The Playboys

 

In 1958, two Colorado Springs musicians teamed up with four music students at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Together they were known as The Playboys. While most teens were boppin' to the sounds of Elvis and the Everly Brothers, the six young men were known for jazz.

Regulars at college dances (mostly at CSU in Fort Collins) and nightclubs, The Playboys recorded their one and only vinyl offering, Playboy Impressions. Recorded in 1959, at Bud Edmunds' KCMS studios, in Manitou Springs. 

Minus a successful bid on an eBay auction, I have never come across this record before. Guessing these had a small pressing, quite possibly only sold at their shows. The seller didn't have any connection to it. Who knows, but it's a fantastic find.

The tracks on the red-colored vinyl are pretty much jazz combo standards, minus the energetic cover of the` Billy Eckstine  / Four Freshman bopper, "Mr. B's Blues," and a take on Peggy Lee's "Fever" (samples below).

 

Listen to a sample of "Fever"

Listen to "Mr. B's Blues"

 Members:
Tom Forgey - Drums
Don Hake - Trumpet / Vibes
Norm Helwig - Piano
Dick Skipton - Tenor Sax
Bob Smith - Trombone
Rick Vaughn - Bass 

The cover features model Lou Ellen Morrow, a University of Colorado student, from Colorado Springs.  The Playboys would only last through the end of their college years. The last noted appearance of the band was in 1964. 

To confuse things, there were apparently other Colorado groups going by The Playboys, including 78s recorded by Smiley Macom and his Western Playboys (Frontier 502 and 503), Jimmy Lake and the Colorado Playboys (Band Box 380 - "She Awoke / Where Will it End"), Sef and his Playboys, Schroeder's Playboys, who would appear on Marvin Shilling records, The Polka Playboys, The Rocky Mountain Playboys who back Johnnie Dwyer, and a standard four-piece outfit, going by The Playboys, who would occasionally back Kenny Jay (who also appeared with the Fabulous Roadrunners).

Tom Forgey would go on to be elected Arkansas state representative. Norm Helwig would become an attorney, in Vail. Don Hake would pass away in 1998. Dick Skipton still lives in Colorado. I couldn't find any additional information on Bob Smith and Rick Vaughn. As always, let me know if you have anything to add.

You'll really dig the action at Tulagi's!

 

Working on a massive reel-to-reel project, helping a friend sell off his incredible collection. Among the finds is this undated radio commercial for Tulagi, the historic Boulder bar. Warning, this catchy jingle will be an earworm! 

Listen

I'm not going to copy and paste the hard work of others, so head over to the About Boulder website, for more on this iconic location, and its rich music history.

Newspaper Find: Ray Rodriguez Trio (1971)

 

Ray Rodriguez Trio - Keely Brunner, Bill Weinacht and Ray Rodriguez 
Golden Daily Transcript - July 30, 1971

I often buy old Colorado paper items, if only to see if I can find anything music related in them.  At a recent estate sale, I picked up a large box 1950s-1970s-era Colorado newspapers. Will be sharing my printed finds, over the next few months, but first let's start off with this picture, from the July 30, 1971 issue of the Golden Daily Transcript - the Ray Rodriguez Trio.

The trio included Ray Rodriguez (guitar), Keely Brunner (guitar, banjo and mandolin), and Bill Weinacht (bass guitar). The story I found notes that the group will be the guest performers on the Denver TV show, Insight (which aired on Rocky Mountain PBS, Channel 6).

I couldn't find much on the Ray Rodriguez Trio, minus the fact that they were regular performers at both the Lion's Lair Lounge, in Denver, and the Blue Onion, in Aurora.

"All musicians are self taught. Brunner writes bluegrass and folk tunes, and accompanied Josh White on his tours." Side note: Josh White (February 11, 1914 – September 5, 1969) was an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and civil rights activist. He also recorded under the names Pinewood Tom and Tippy Barton in the 1930s. 

It doesn't appear that the trio recorded any vinyl releases, as I struck out on a search (as always, if you know of anything, let me know).

Towne & Country Revue (Keely Brunner standing, at center)

Keely Brunner later found success in the Towne and Country Review (which included Ned Alterman, Ritchie Mintz, Steve Carnes, Ben Carnes, and Zeke Little). In 2003 the group released the Live at Mountainears CD. Keely Brunner died in 2015. 

The Bucher Yodeling School of Boulder / Denver

Boulder was once home to a yodeling school. Yup, the things which continue to surprise me about esoteric Colorado music history.

Found this previously-unknown-to-me history, while attending an estate sale, last weekend. Discovered a couple of 45s and an album, and noted the Colorado addresses on them. Of course the fun part is always doing the research...

Bucher's Yodeling School opened for business, in the 1950's, by Magnus Bucher, a Bavarian immigrant, and Olympic skier, who came to Denver to attend the University of Denver (where he was also on the ski team). He later attended the University of Colorado.

The story goes that this world-known skier used to impress his teammates with his yodeling skills, and they encouraged him to teach others.  During his time at the University of Colorado, he opened a formal yodeling school with K.A Jaensch, a Slovenian immigrant who worked as a full-time Denver engineer, when he wasn't yodeling. The school was housed in Boulder, at 1146 Pleasant (Bucher's college apartment).

Billboard Magazine

May 19, 1958
(note the Alpine Records notation, not to be confused with the Paul Weingardt label)

In 1956, Bucher recorded the instructional album, Anyone Can Yodel.

The following year, Bucher appeared as a guest on the popular TV show "What's My Line" - click on the link to watch.  He stumped the panel, won $50, and gave a sample of his yodeling, before he left the stage.

More publicity followed, when Bucher appeared in the January 20, 1958 Sports Illustrated, hyping the Boulder school.

In 1959, Bucher graduated the University of Colorado, with his Ph.D., in history.  That same year Jaensch (sometimes spelled Yansh) recorded a handful of 45 rpm singles, of his own original songs (performed by Bucher), pressed by RCA Victor, and released under the KAJ Montaphone Records label. (KAJ stands for Kurt A. Jaensch). The address of the school also changed to 515 E. 7th, in Denver, as noted on the record sleeves (apparently due to Bucher leaving his college housing, in Boulder).

"Yodel Fox" / "Alpine Yodel Waltz" (featuring Magnus Burcher, yodeler)

KAJ 201

"Aspen Polka" / "Call of the Magic Mountain" (featuring Magnus Bucher, yodeler)

KAJ 202

"Skier's Joy" / The Yodeling Santa Claus" (featuring Magnus Bucher, yodeler)

KAJ 203

No clue when the Bucher Yodeling School shut down, but I found a reference to Magnus Bucher, in 1971, where he was noted as a ski instructor at the University of Maryland, Munich campus.

In 1982, Bucher's now long out-of-print yodeling instruction course was discovered by a reporter at Skiing magazine, who ran a story on it, in a piece entitled "Bring Back the Yodel."

K.A. Jaensch died in 2000.

The Silver and Gold - University of Colorado (1938)

Scored a small stack of 1938 The Silver and Gold issues, the University of Colorado-Boulder student newspaper, at a recent estate sale. Of course, you know me, I immediately dug in to see if I could find anything music related.

As evident by the ads below, the popular music genre of 1938 was a new pre-WWII sound called swing. Tommy Dorsey, Rudy Vallee, Dolly Dawn, and later, former University of Colorado alumn, Glenn Miller would have been on most college campus turntables. As evident by these few papers, campus formals, with bandleader orchestras, were common. I've also added the #1 national Hit Parade magazine songs, of these particular weeks, to give you a feel of that time period:

(click on pictures, to enlarge)

January 7, 1938:
#1 Hit Parade Song "Once in a While" - Tommy Dorsey 

 

Bay & Nickols ("for Popular and Classical Music")

2017 12th Street
Apparently this was an early Boulder record store.
The location (12th and Pleasant) is now a parking lot.

 

The Buffalo Club

"Dance to the Music of Westerberg-Durnell"

Club was owned by James Marshall
The Buffalo Club was located on 13th Street, and was there through at least 1940 (later becoming the Anchorage). It's now home to the Fox Theatre.

January 11, 1938:

 

ASUC ("Associated Students University of Colorado") Dance

Music by the Emmett Ryder Orchestra (pictured below) and Robert Lee Holloway.

 

January 14, 1938

 

Pete Smythe and his Orchestra
Before Pete became a well-known Denver TV personality, he was a band leader. He graduated CU-Boulder, in 1934, and fronted the band the Whiz Bang Four, which morphed in the Pete Smythe Orchestra. Three years, after this particular concert (above) he went on to his first disc jockey job, as the host of "Meet The Boys in the Band," on KMYR.
The Canon Park Nite Club was located about a mile from the Boulder city limits (which was then a "dry" alcohol town, until 1967). 

 

1938 Junior Promenade
George Hamilton and his Music Box Machine
(George Hamilton was the father of the actor, George Hamilton)

January 18, 1938:
 #1 Hit Parade song: "Rosalie" - Sammy Kaye

 

 

Lewis Frazier Orchestra

 

Joe Cook and his Orchestra

 

(Postcard of the Joe Cook Orchestra - courtesy of the Longmont Museum)

February 11, 1938:

 

St. Valentine's Day Law School Formal

Matt Kramer and his Orchestra

 

Barb Formal

Robert Lee and his Swinging Violins

February 18, 1938:
#1 Hit Parade Song: "Bei Mir Bist Du Shon" - Andrews Sisters

 

Wally Wallace and Al Menke playing at the 

Engine Ball
 Al Menke was a popular big band band leader, from Minnesota. 

February 25, 1938:

 

Buffalo Club

Dance to the Music of Red Gray and Band

G.S. Sachdev at Naropa Institute, Boulder (1975)

I've always enjoyed the sounds of a sitar, tabla, tambura, and bansuri. I played Ravi Shankar LPs so much that I had to replace them, repeatedly.

I read last year that one of my favorite performers, G.S. Sachdev had passed away (June 24, 2018). His beautiful ragas, on bansuri (bamboo flute), were transcendent.

In 1975, Sachdev performed at Naropa Institute, in Boulder. He was accompanied by tabla virtuoso Zakir Hussain, for a performance of the Raga Bhupali. Naropa had only been open a year, but was already achieving notoriety for its world renowned campus performers.

While the Raga Bhupali is considered a classical piece of Hindu music, it's an often-heard piece in many Bollywood movies.

Four years after the concert, the Sachdev-Hussain event was released on the Unity Records label (pictured above). I was lucky enough to find this release, at the Denver Record Convention, last week.

Enjoy a sample (3:00)

Attention obscure Colorado music geeks! Guess who is back on the radio?

 

This just in...

I'm going to be back on the radio, this Friday, playing a sampling of esoteric selections from the deep, dark depths of my rescued Colorado vinyl stash.

If you missed it - here's the link to the show (starts at 55:20). Enjoy!

Boulder's Southern Hills Junior High (1975-77)

Southern Hills Junior High School

Show Choir and Jazz Ensemble 1975-1976

Chris Finger and Vince Gnojek, directors

Audicom Corporation (USR 9272)

Side One:
I Believe in Music
Laughter in the Rain
Sorry, No Gas
Precious and Few
The Surrey With the Fringe on Top
December Child
Sausalito Strut

Side Two:
Love Will Keep us Together
California Dreamin'
I Won't Last a Day Without You
You're Sixteen
Love One Another
George M. Cohan Patriotic Fantasy

Listen to a sample of songs above

 I figure that since May is the time most schools start wrapping up the semester, I would spotlight an LP from the kiddos this time around.  I'm a sucker for any and all school-related LPs that feature pop covers, and this album from Boulder's Southern Hills Junior High (now Middle School) doesn't disappoint.

There are actually two (that I know of) releases from SHJH. Both are on the prolific Audicom label. Unfortunately, my copy of the 1974 release is trashed (someone decided to donate it to the thrift store where I found it...after they used it to sharpen knives), so I'll sample from my 1975-1976 album.

 

The Hustlers - Ski Country

November has me in a snow mood, so thought I would spotlight another ski LP from the stash (you may remember this one from last year).

Formed in 1962, the Hustlers (Adrian Anderson, Mel Anderson, Jan Camp, and Mike Wuergler) started out as a University of Colorado, Boulder folk quartet. During the ski season the group would perform at resorts "entertaining standing room only crowds from Aspen to Sun Valley"(liner notes).

In 1966 the group recorded two LPs on the Morey Bernstein Finer Arts label, The Hustlers Live in Action at the Red Onion (FA 104), and Ski Country (FA 103).  That same year the label released two accompanying singles, "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" / "Julianne" (FA 2011), and "Ski Country" / "The Times I've Had" (FA 2014).

(I did find a notation of another single with the same FA 2011 label number, “I Came Home” / “Lowlands of the Sea.")

Drummer Rod Jenkins also appears on the album (former member of Sunshineward, Nu-Sett, The Contrasts, and The Astronauts).

For the purpose of this blog entry, Ski Country features the "clean cut and energetic" sound (as per the liner notes) of the Hustlers.  Lots of ski-related offerings, a few covers, and some original ditties thrown in.

Side One:
Ski Country (Mel Anderson)
In This White World (Bob Gibson)
Watch Out for That Lift Tower (Ray Conrad/Mel Anderson)
Highlands Where We Ski (Morey Bernstein)
Ski the Rocky Mountains (Mel Anderson)
Somewhere My Love (Lara's Theme - P.F. Webster)

Side Two:
Aspen Ski Blues (Judy Henske, S. Silverstein)
Edelweiss (Rogers and Hammerstein)
Super Skier (Bob Gibson)
Four Strong Winds (M. Witmark)
Cremation of Sam Magee (Robert Service/Mel Anderson)
Lovers of Snow (Adrian Anderson/Mel Anderson)

Mel Anderson (who also produced the LP) moved to Idaho and became the president of the Idaho Potato Commission, where he helped create the popular "Spuddy Buddy" character.  Mike Wuergler went into media and was a producer at Walt Disney Productions, was nominated for an Emmy Award, and was the Chief Operating Officer at the American Television Network. Jan Camp Garrett teamed up with singer JD Martin, and the duo continue to perform around the country.  Adrian Anderson's whereabouts are unknown.

Boulder's Fairview High School

I'm a sucker for high school records. Unfortunately most of the ones I happen upon don't adhere to that whole separation of church and state thing, and sound more like Sunday cathedral recordings.

Then there are the musical offerings of Boulder's Fairview High School band, Excalibur vocal group, and its jazz ensemble.

Fairview has had, at certain times in its 50+ year history, various music programs including eight choirs, numerous bands (including The Classic Knights), three jazz bands, jazz combos, and a string orchestra. With all of this homegrown talent, it seemed obvious to record albums.

The first one I came across was a 1972-1973 standard issue band recording (Audicom 5672).  Lots of classical stuff here.  

The second release I found was completely different.

I Write the Songs was recorded and released in 1976 (Audicom 8714). You can tell these kids are having a blast belting out the pop songs, much like one of my other favorite high school finds, from Cañon City High.

Side One:
It's a Miracle
All I Know
Skin Tone
Freedom for the Stallion
Lennon/McCartney Medley

Side Two:
There's Nothing Like Music
Happy Together
Willow Gold
Bandstand Boogie
Nice 'N Juicy
I Write The Songs

Yes, there are three Barry Manilow covers. Personal preference has me favoring the uptempo "It's a Miracle."

Unfortunately, the "Lennon/McCartney Medley" is a Muzak sounding selection of the Beatles slower hits, "Here, There, Everywhere," "And I Love Her," and "Long and Winding Road."

Maybe because I just finished reading the outstanding Shell Shocked: My Life with the Turtles, Flo and Eddie, and Frank Zappa, etc., by Howard Kaylan and Jeff Tamarkin, that my favorite cut on here is "Happy Together."

Excalibur and the Jazz Ensemble were no strangers to recording.  I also found a 1979 LP, Riders to the Stars (Audicom 3703), which features a Beatles cover of "Got to Get You Into My Life," and yet another Manilow standard, "Copacabana."

Dave Brandl

Side One: 

All I Want to Say
While We'reHere
Stargazing
Keepin' Up
I Listened

Side Two:
Love at First Meeting
Los Coruna Bay
While We're Here (Reprise)
Dawn
Dedication

Dave Brandl interviewed March 2012.

Been meaning to get to this one for several months, but got backlogged with other posts.

First heard of Dave Brandl's All I Want To Say (Bear Mountain VAR020 -1977) album when I was noting all of the Colorado records listed in Acid Archives. Then, I begin to see this 1977 LP pop up on auction sites, going for a nice chunk of change.

So I decided to track down Dave Brandl.

Where did you go to school?

Alameda High School [where he was voted "Most Musical Male"]. I graduated in 1975. I went to Adams State for a year.

So what did you plan to do after you left college?

I was originally thinking that I would study music education, but to be honest, I just wanted to play music.

How did the LP come about?

I had worked with some friends and got a Teac 4-track recorder and over dubbed the tracks. I brought in a bassoon and a female vocalist. Put it together and got in touch with Steve Raydon, who helped me produce it.

Why Bear Mountain?

I picked Bear Mountain because I was going through the Yellow Pages and doing some pricing and he said he could make my record for $1.60 a piece, for a 1000 copies.

Where was it recorded?

Steve worked out of his garage. I think my LP was the only record the label ever did.

How was it sold?

I would take some over Colorado State University, and college friends at the time they would buy them. I also got a few in the local Peaches record stores, but it was mostly word of mouth.

Did it get any airplay?

Some country stations played it. I went back to Adams State and they put it on the play list college station.

Tell me about the cover art.

It's a representation of the different songs on the album. It was done by Joe Chirichigno. We were friends in high school, and played in some bands together. He is doing graphic design now in Florida.

The back pictures on the album shows you performing.

I'd play at Little Bear Mountain bars and a few solo shows, here and there. In the summers I would perform in Jackson Hole at the Jackson Lodge.


Was there ever talk of a follow-up recording?

Yeah, I actually had two other albums planned. The second one was going to be called Things I Didn't Think of the First Time, and the third one was going to be called You Thought I Was Finished, Didn't You?

So what happened?

Mostly a slap in the face of reality – it didn’t take off. I got some radio play and sold a few records, and played in a band with Steve Raydon, called Mirror and we played some shows at Herman’s Hideaway and The Pearl Street Music Hall.

What happened with Mirror?

We were together about five or six years. We never released anything, although we did meet with A&M, and met Herb Alpert and the Commodores, and moved out to California.

It was a period of time where I was shocked into reality of what it took to be a musician. My wife and I after did some USOs shows when we moved to California. The first The Frankie Lee Band, and we played at the Hollywood USO Club, and up and down the West Coast. Bob Hope actually opened for us. We were supposed to be the opening act for him, but it was his birthday and they wanted to get him on and off early.

What have you been doing now?

I'm in the computer world - programming and training. I play in our church choir in Denver.

What do you think about the collectibility of your album?

I find it amazing, actually. I think it’s more because it’s a collectible, not because of the content. I mean, it's often described as psych folk. I probably would now agree with that description, and I guess that's what people collect, now.

I get contacted by about one or two people a year, who want to buy my album. Records by Mail, and a collector out of Seattle always call to see if I have any... I only have about 30 copies left.

Five Bucks, Four Shades, and Five Peaks

 The Four Shades

Clockwise from top:  Gerald Gantt, Robert Stallworth

Casey Hynes, and Joel Scherzer

 Interview with Robert Stallworth and Joel Scherzer conducted January-March 2012.

Last year I received a cryptic e-mail from a record collector who told me about a doo-wop single recorded in Colorado, or one that had ties with someone in Colorado. The single, "Alone and Blue," by The Five Bucks, blew me away. In all of my years of collecting, I had never heard the single. But what caught me as odd was while the sound was something straight out of the 1950s, the actual single appeared to be, at least, issued in the 1970s.

I tried every possible avenue to locate information on the group. Who were these guys? Why was there absolutely no information on this record?

So, after almost a year of searching, I contacted my dear friend, and fellow Colorado record collector, Joel Scherzer.

"Yeah, I know about the Five Bucks," he told me. "I put out that record."

Well how about that...

In the mid 1970s, Joel and fellow music lover, Robert Stallworth, who was attending medical school in Boulder,  teamed up with Casey Hynes, a professor at CU-Boulder, and fellow student Gerald Gantt, to occasionally sing doo-wop tunes--a genre they all loved. They soon decided to form their own group, the Four Shades, and start up their own label, Race Records.

The first release from the group was "Yes Sir! That's My Baby," and the b-side, "Stormy Weather" (Race 1000).

Listen to a sample

Looking for additional material to release on their new label, Scherzer looked to Stallworth's extensive record collection--and several acetates of unused material from R&B groups, whose real names are lost to posterity.

"While looking for old records in Gary, Indiana in the 1970s, I came upon three acetates, possibly recorded in the 1950s, of unknown and unnamed singing groups," said Stallworth. "The songs were "I Got Goofed," "Just Rhymes," and "My Mama Done Told Me." When we were putting together our label, we decided to release these, and give the group the name of The Five Bucks."

"I Got Goofed" and the flip "Just Rhymes" was the second release for the label (Race 1001).

Listen to sample

Needing a fourth song to put out a third single, the duo used a 1971 recording Stallworth had made while a student at Millikin University.

"We never performed anywhere, we just sang together for fun. I had a radio program, and a crude way of recording at the station. So one night I asked the guys to come up and sing a song. We decided to do our version of the Delacardos, "Got No One."

Listen to a sample

Along with Stallworth, the members of the group were lead singer Gregory Purvis, Nelson Harvey, Ronald Thompson, and Charles Fields.

"After the recording, I decided to add a sixth voice," Stallworth said. "I added a falsetto tenor top to the background."

The song was renamed "Alone and Blue," and was the b-side to "My Mama Done Told Me" (Race 1002).

 The Four Shades would record just one more single, "Let It Please Be You"/"I Thought You'd Care" (Race 1003--red vinyl).

The group eventually broke-up, after Gantt headed off to graduate school, and the other members pursued other interests.

 In 1987, Stallworth and Scherzer teamed up again to release "Sittin' on the Porch"/"Hair-Net" (Jay-R 100). The record was credited as the 5 Peaks.

"I only minimally knew Maurice Simpkins at the time of the Race releases.  I was in Colorado and Maurice was in Chicago," Stallworth said.  "I did not really reconnect with Maurice until after I moved back to Illinois, which was in 1982.  Maurice and I were friends again by 1983.  One day while I was at this apartment, I noticed an acetate on the floor behind his living room couch.  It was "Sittin' On The Porch" as done by Maurice and his group, The Five Chimes.

"I asked Maurice if he could get some of his singing friends to record two songs and I would have them pressed up.  I asked Maurice if he could re-do "Sittin On The Porch" and he agreed, since it was a song which he already knew."

 "Sittin' on the Porch" was a departure for us in that the recording included instrumental accompaniment.  Robert sang lead and overdubbed the bass part.  I didn't sing on this one, but I came up with the name and design of the label, the name of the group, and also helped with the distribution," said Scherzer. "It got airplay on various radio stations around the country, most notably WCBS-FM in New York."

The song was released on the Jay-R label (JR 1000), and was later included in the Heavy on Doo-Wop CD series.  

 Listen to a sample

Joel Scherzer lives in Pueblo and runs a successful online used record operation. Robert Stallworth is now retired in Nevada, after a career in medicine. Casey Hynes divides his time between Colorado and Paris, France. Gerald Gantt's whereabouts are unknown.