OLD ROCK MUSICIAN

Hello. My name is Gary, and I'm a recovering old hippie rock musician.  (I think I just heard someone yell, "HI GARY!")  

But seriously folks, I originally thought I would call this post, "Old Hippie Rock Musician," but I didn't want my Mama to be unhappy with me. So I kept it sort of generic. What follows is basically a life history of my musical journey.

Anyway, I've played the piano (keyboards) since I was around five years old. I remember my neighbor Diane Cash (and yes, related to Johnny Cash) lived next door to us, and had a piano. I'd go over and doodle around on it. She took the time to show me a few songs like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Yankee Doodle. My Mama noticed the interest, and bought a piano for me. They had it put it in the room I shared with one of my brothers.

Around second or third grade, I began taking piano lessons for four years. I think I returned for a bit in high school to freshen up my musical notation skills. That benefited me tremendously throughout my life, since I could play by ear and pick out harmony parts for the other guys in the various groups I'd join. I'm forever grateful to Diane and her patience, along with my parents for buying the piano for me. Here's a picture of me playing that piano in the early 1970s:

My First Piano

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I could listen to a song on the radio and pick it out on my piano. I think the first rock song I picked out was Mr. Lonely by Bobby Vinton. I guess the catchy melody got my attention. 

​One Christmas, my parents got me a Magnus Chord Organ. It was portable and one day a friend from up the street was playing a guitar. I took it with me to his house and we began to play the hit by Stephen Stills,​ For What It's Worth. This was FUN! I'd found a new thing that I loved doing, and it sounded like the radio with everybody playing. Actually, it was probably really bad. Anyway, we eventually formed a little 4-piece band with drums, bass, guitar, and keyboards.

When that happened, my Daddy went with me to the local music store called C & O Electronics in Monroe and bought me a Vox Jaguar Organ. I was in heaven, and man, I was big-time now! Paul Revere and the Raiders used a Vox Super Continental organ, and mine looked like a mini version. For an 11 year old kid, this was cool! I promised to pay Daddy back, which I did by mowing yards and various other little jobs a boy could do. I remember we kept a list of them until the debt was paid. I felt great that day.

Later on, we went back to the store and bought a Sunn Sonaro amp to use as a speaker for the organ. It had one 15" speaker which could fill up a large room. That thing was LOUD. I used it for about 5 years before trading it in on my next setup.

Our first paying job was in West Monroe, Louisiana at the Spot Cafe. We actually made large back drops painted in psychedelic colors. We had a blast, and got paid $40! I was about eleven years old, and had $10 for something I loved to do. Now that's what I'm talkin' bout! You have no idea how much that was at the time for a kid that rode his bicycle around to collect coke bottles in the ditch to redeem for two cents at the store. 

​We eventually got a bit better, and played a few more small jobs. I started first grade at 5 years old, and also attended a program to do 3 years of school in only 2 years. So when I began high school, I was only 12 in the 9th grade. I was a runt and always the last one to get called in PE class. I began to think my first name was "Aw-come-on." (Say it fast.)    :) 

So around that time, there was a school talent show. So my buddies and I decided to play a few songs in front of the school. (Remember Marty in Back to the Future? Something like that.) What I remember most is we worked up In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida and played it. I sang the lead and played.

​At my recent 50 year class reunion, some of the attendees told me they remembered! Made me feel good. Anyway, Max Kelly, a fellow student and classmate, was the school photographer. He took a picture of us playing. You can see my Vox organ and the Sunn amplifier behind us. It was a hoot getting seen by my classmates doing something that we loved. That was a great day in my youth.

​​Playing the WMHS School Talent Show

The above left photo shows the full band. I don't remember what we were called. You can see me on the far end. On the right is me singing and playing the Vox Jaguar and on the far right you can see my Sunn Sonaro amplifier. I was certainly happy I'd paid for them doing odd jobs as well as playing music. Now that's a great memory. 

Later in high school, I played with a couple of other groups of friends, and started making steady money with music. Some other local fellows heard about our group, and asked me to join. I hated leaving my friends, but it was a good opportunity to play with some great musicians. In fact, the bass player Mike (second from the left shown below) went on to become one of the most in-demand players in Nashville studios. The guitar player Cole (far right) attended University of North Texas ... one of the more renowned music schools in the nation.

They had really good equipment and we began playing a lot of weekend gigs. The only downside for me was my age, and my Mama was a chaperone for us on many of the gigs. We were still in our early teens then. 

One day, we went to old downtown and took a group picture. This is the only one I could find, and I guess we had some copies made for promotion. Anyway, we stayed busy for most of my high school days. That's me on the far left bottom ... just a baby!

Lochness

I remember one time we were on our way to a gig and I was in the car with my Mama. The guys were in a van following us. It was dark, and all of a sudden a horse appeared on the right side of our car as we were traveling around 55 miles per hour. He rared back as we drove right under his belly. I looked back, and the fellows hit him broadside and killed him. The horse smashed in the front of the borrowed van, and hurt the drummers leg riding in the front passenger seat. We did go on and do the gig though.

As we were playing that night, the police showed up. Turns out the owner of the horse was threatening us, and we had to have an escort out of town after we packed up! That was a strange time, but we all survived.

After that group, and while still in high school, I began playing with some friends in a band called Delago Bay. I recall us not knowing what to call ourselves, and so we grabbed a dictionary and just pointed to a word, and voila! Delago Bay was born, a result of extensive market research.

Here's a crazy story about those years. We were on our way to a gig one day in central Louisiana. I drove (at 15 years old mind you) my Daddy's pickup to haul our equipment. I'd just purchased a Hammond B-3 organ and Leslie 122 speaker in Dallas three weeks prior. I loved it. Man oh man. this was regulation stuff!

Anyway, so earlier in the day, I'd taken his truck to get a new tailpipe put on the Chevy S10. The rear bed of the pickup was wood. As I was zip-pa-de doo-dah-ing along and out in middle of a huge field, I glanced in my rear view mirror and the truck was engulfed in flames! I slammed on the brakes and began throwing all our equipment out, but it was intricately tied with a rope.

It took precious moments to remove the tightly packed equipment since we couldn't reach around the flames. After a knife had finally been located, we were able to literally toss most of it onto the road. But not my heavy organ, which was a total loss. The guys following had quickly jumped out and helped me do all this. I spotted a barrel next to an old shed nearby, and myself and another fellow ran and picked it up and brought it to put out the fire. I know it must have been unbelievably heavy, but I guess the adrenaline had kicked in.

​Musical Equipment Fire Damage

Besides the organ, a guitar and other various PA equipment were a total loss. It took me three years of playing to pay it off. Someone had notified my Daddy, and once again he saved the day by driving a hundred miles after renting a U-haul van to bring the equipment home. I don't even remember driving back in the damaged truck, but I must have. I may be wrong, but I think the rear cab glass had even shattered from the intense heat. Man, that was a bad day.

I remember only breaking down one time in the backyard with Mama while we were talking about it. Mama later found out that our homeowners insurance policy had not received the monthly payment, and the policy lapsed the day prior to the incident. Oh well, that's life.

But all was well. During the year I had no equipment, the local music store (then named Specialty Sound) provided me with whatever keyboard I needed to play gigs. Hugh Youngblood has a special place in my heart for what he did for me back then. A year later, Daddy and I went back to Dallas and bought another Hammond B-3 organ. I continued to use the charred Leslie 122 speaker for many years with the new organ, and now had two monthly payments. Later I built a new, smaller cabinet to house the interior components, making it more portable.

​THE HEYDAY OF ROCK MUSIC
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I was fortunate to be coming of age exactly during the peak of classic rock. The 1960s and 1970s were certainly a golden era for mega rock hit production. Hundreds of radio stations worldwide are devoted today solely to the genre. The 1950s led the way with such artists as Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and countless others playing their upbeat three chord blues inspired progressions. 

The Beatles invasion of 1964 however, changed the entire musical landscape of the nation. Many of their early songs were rooted in those earlier American artists. John Lennon and Paul McCartney collaborated during the mid-sixties to produce tunes still popular today. Young listeners were enamored with each new group on the scene, and strove to remain "hip" to the latest. 

Today, individual new artists are featured as stars, such as Taylor Swift. The group concept is now relegated to the background, although some groups such as the Foo Fighters still emerge. But the point remains, teens of the past stayed current with groups, and teens of today are focused more on individual artists. 

It was during this time I joined a group that laid the groundwork for my musical career. I'd just graduated high school, and the summer following I was asked to audition for a group of college fellows looking for a keyboard player. I remember going to their rented house and setting up my equipment. They began playing a few songs common to us, and I realized some harmony vocal parts were missing. I suggested a few different parts, and our voices suddenly came together. Everybody felt it was something special, and we immediately started working up a song list.

After a few gigs, we were starting to get recognized for all the hard work we were devoting to practicing the songs and perfecting the harmonies. We tried to emulate the current hits, and quickly became one of the top cover bands in the area. A management firm in Jackson, MS began to book us to play all over the surrounding states. Over the following three years, we traveled from Florida to Oklahoma to play. We called overselves Everybody's Pillow.
  

An Early Promotional Photo of Everybody's Pillow

​Traveling mostly on the weekends worked well as we all continued attending the local university. We began practicing at my home which had a large game room, and so we left our equipment there the majority of the time. We'd pack it into a couple of vans usually on a Friday, and travel to wherever we needed to be. It usually took a couple of hours to set up, and the jobs were usually four hours long. Many hours were spent together, and we became like brothers. That friendship remains today.

I grew up a lot during that time. It was great seeing the country, meeting business owners and venue managers. We got to hear other bands doing the same thing we enjoyed from all over the south. I remember many times while playing at universities, we'd quickly run around and hear other bands performing while we were on break. I'd hear groups I thought were mediocre, but sometimes one would outshine all the others and honestly make me want to quit. But there was no way that could happen. We'd always keep trying to improve.

A Later Promotional Photo
(Shown left to right: Billy Bennett, Alan Davis, Jules Lemoine, Gary Savage, Scott Nealy)

We were very dedicated to our music, and avoided the drug scene entirely. I'd grown up a Christian, and none of that appealed to me at all, although we were exposed to it regularly. A couple of the fellows would rarely consume an adult beverage, and I can remember actually witnessing it only a time or two in our three years together. We all just loved to play.

One other thing to note about this time period, which was not unique to us. We were able to make a living from music. We stayed booked six months in advance. Groups were the thing, and young folks wanted to hear what was on the radio, albeit from a cover band. That didn't really seem to matter. Young groups today struggle to make the same money we did fifty years ago! Times have certainly changed. But in my humble opinion, there is nothing better than live music. The Pillow disbanded after about a three year run.

About five years ago, we had a reunion of the fellows. Unfortunately our bass player, Jules Lemoine (seated above) had passed away. But all other members got together to reminisce about our time together. But we were inspired to play together again, and so three of us (the ones still living in the area) began to play together in a new group called .... surprise .... REUNION!

We continued for about two years until our guitarist had to unfortunately depart. It was wonderful being able to do all the old tunes, and hear our voices together again.

REUNION

I few months later, I was contacted by a popular local singer forming another group. He wanted to feature three lead singers, and so Earth was formed. Scott, the singer from our band, along with myself joined up. Once again, we featured good harmonies along the lines of Three Dog Night. We played together for a little over a year, and one of the members left, so we disbanded. It was a good group, and we were once again well rehearsed and well received. Here's a promotional photo:

​EARTH

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Playing my Hammond B3 and Wurlitzer Piano in the Early 1970s

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I was 18 during that time, and met the beautiful girl I'm still with today, Jenny. Sometimes I call her "My Jenny," along the lines of Forrest Gump. :) Anyway, I left the group, and she and I headed off to far away lands .... California! I wanted to see if I could be in a group out there, and duplicate what I'd had back in Louisiana.

But alas. After roaming around the Sunset Strip, Malibu, and the Santa Monica area backing up some great vocalists, I found it extremely difficult to find players wanting to spend the time to develop a good group. After about a year and a half, my wife encouraged me to finish my degree. I did just that. After graduating in Industrial Arts, we immediately CAME HOME! We were so homesick.

​THE LATER YEARS

After returning home, and with the responsibilities of a new family, I began designing homes (planshoppe.net) utilizing my Industrial Arts degree. I majored in drafting and woodworking, and began to put them both into practice. It's been a great life drawing house plans and building things, and the support its given to my family has been a blessing throughout.  But playing music has remained constant. 

I began playing in a number of different groups, and the side income it produced, though meager, did help. Groups were still in demand at the time (early 1980s) and we made decent money. Then the disco era hit. Many great musicians were affected. Venues didn't want to pay for live groups, and began hiring DJs instead to cut costs. The era of playing music for a living in good groups began to fade away. We did keep plugging along however playing for much less money, continuing for the love of the music.

As disco began to wind down, punk rock became a thing. I never cared for the disjointed approach to the sound. I'm not kidding. Some of the "songs" had a drummer, bass, guitar, and synthesizer individually playing something totally different. There was rarely a good melody, and if there happened to be one, it was continuously repeated ad nauseam.  As you can see, it “twernt my thang”! I've always enjoyed great musicianship and good vocals with a melody.

During my later years, I continued in many different bands, some good, and some not so good. Recently one particular group I was in during the nineties called Firesteed reunited. We spent months rehearsing many of the old songs, and had a decent repertoire put together. It turned out to be short-lived, as covid hit. Since that time, and at my age, my playing days seem to be numbered. 

​Firesteed

​I've since devoted my time teaching vocals in my local church. It's turning into a fun time for all of us. We get to learn new songs (we sing acapella) and "re-learn" some old ones that need a bit of work. It's been a good outlet for me and helps our folks come together and grow stronger.

All in all, it's been a fun musical journey for me I hope will continue a long while. I appreciate you hanging in there, and I hope you've gotten to know the "Planman" a bit better. Thanks for reading!