The Inner Sanctums would continue to perform in the area at school dances and other events for more than five years. By the summer of 1968, the group had a standing gig at the VFW Hall in Gerard on Wednesday nights.
Wednesday, November 6, 2024
The Inner Sanctums (Virden)
The Inner Sanctums would continue to perform in the area at school dances and other events for more than five years. By the summer of 1968, the group had a standing gig at the VFW Hall in Gerard on Wednesday nights.
Tuesday, October 1, 2024
Kookie Cook (Danville)
It was there that Miller, Neaville and Cook, along with a handful of other area musicians, recorded dozens of late night sessions, experimenting and honing their unique sound.
Cook, however, was not strictly a session man. Kookie was also a bandleader and a singer that released at least two singles under his own name. In addition, Cook wrote and recorded several incredible songs that went unreleased at the time but eventually saw the light of day.
Other members of Kookie's band (according to the above promo photo) included Karl Reed, Mark James, Johnnie Dee and Dave Diamond.
Listed simply as Kookie on the record, the single included a cover of Roy Orbison's "Ooby Doody" with the original "You Took Her Love" on the flip side. The song was credited to Miller, Neaville and Cook.
Saturday, September 21, 2024
Ben Cooley, Bill McManners & The Arkansas Travelers (Champaign-Urbana)
The Arkansas Travelers were, oddly enough, not from Arkansas at all. Instead, the popular Illinois country band originated from the Champaign-Urbana area.
Ben Cooley of Seymour, Illinois was the band's leader and guitar player. His brother, Ken Cooley, was also in the group along with Bill McManners and Lyle Dillman.
In the 1960's the Travelers were regulars on WHOW radio in Clinton as well as Uncle Johnny Barton's "Corn Belt Country Style" television show on WAND-TV in Decatur. The popular program was broadcast across several stations in the Midwest and lasted for nearly six years. As a result the group had their own fan club at the time and even released a newsletter, Travelers Trails.
The band performed regularly at festivals, fairs and hillbilly jamborees around the state alongside Barton and other local country and bluegrass groups. They were often on the bill when stars of the Grand Ole Opry and other country performers came through central Illinois.
In 1960, the Arkansas Travelers opened up for a 15-year-old Brenda Lee at the Champaign County Fair. Also performing that weekend was Webb Pierce, Carl Smith, Red Sovine and Stonewall Jackson.
In 1964, the Travelers shared the stage with a young John Hartford at the Le Roy Fall Festival. Hartford, who had been a DJ at WHOW, would have been well known to the group and country fans in the area, long before "Gentle On My Mind."
In a 1996 article, Ben Cooley mentions that the band in its heyday performed on shows with Loretta Lynn, Tex Ritter, Ray Price, Smiley Burnett, Porter Wagoner and Billy Walker.
In addition to playng live, the Travelers produced more records than nearly any other country act from downstate Illinois in that era. Between 1958 and 1964 the group recorded and released at least 10 singles on three different labels.
Their first record, "My Blue Eyed Baby" b/w "The Sun Shines Brighter," was released in 1958 under the name Bill & Ben and the Arkansas Travelers. It was a Starday Custom pressing (#715) released on their own Traveler Records. The address on the label was 601 E. University, Champaign, Illinois.
The Arkansas Travelers at WHOW circa 1963: Bill McManners, Ben Cooley, Ken Cooley, Tom Morgan |
Friday, September 6, 2024
The Bushes (Galesburg)
Back in the fall of 1967, the Bushes started out as a quintet. Two of the members, Joel Wilson and Ron Stockert, were students at Knox College at the time. The other three members, John Zefo, Al Johnson and Gary Owen, all lived in Galesburg, Illinois.
The Bushes -Dec 1968: Al Johnson, John Zefo, Joel Wilson, Ron Stockert. Gary Owen had left the group by then. |
Wilson, the lead singer and drummer for the group, was from Upstate New York originally. According to an article in the Knox Student, Wilson had previously been a member of a group called the In Crowd.
Ron Stockert, the talented keyboardist, was from Havana, Illinois. While in high school, Stockert played organ in A.J. & The Savages along with Jerry "Pork" Armstrong. The teenagers released one single on Deleware Records, a Chicago-area label. It included a cover of "Farmer John" and the original "Long Long Time," which was credited to Stockert.Thursday, August 1, 2024
The Blue Boys (Sycamore)
Band members included Steve Bassill, Steven Wynn, John Jeffries and Wendall Mattis. Additional members of the group were Doug Breunlin and Dave Wildenradt.
The Blue Boys regularly played high school and junior high dances in northern Illinois during their brief time together.
They also headlined a series of outdoor dances held in Brown's parking lot in Sycamore on Saturday nights in the summer of 1966. At their last show in July, there were over 500 kids in attendance.In August of 1966, it was reported the band would split up as members left for high school, college and the service. Before doing so however, the combo left us with one incredibly fuzzed-out garage two-sider: "I Know" b/w "Hey Ho."
Their single was recorded sometime in 1966 for Feature Records, a label based in Janesville, Wisconsin. Both songs were written by Wynn and Jeffries.
Feature Records was owned by the legendary promoter and band manager Ken Adamany. The Blue Boys were just one of several Illinois groups featured on his Wisconsin-based label. The Inspirations from the Rock Falls / Sterling area, the Komons from Rockford, the Esquires from Belvidere, the Intrigues from Joliet and the Heard from Peoria all had releases on Feature Records.
Saturday, July 20, 2024
The Meat Department (Decatur)
Meat Dept., "This Weeks Children" / "Janet" Polar Bear, 41967 |
The Mystics / Meat Department performed mainly around the Decatur area. The group doesn't seem to have lasted more than a year.
John Sauter eventually went on to play bass with Mitch Ryder, Ted Nugent and John Lee Hooker.
Thursday, July 4, 2024
Red Foley's Dude Ranch (Mackinaw Dells)
In the summer of 1942, country music performer Red Foley and his wife Eva Overstake (aka Judy Martin) operated a "dude ranch" at Mackinaw Dells near Congerville, Illinois.
For one brief season, from the end of May until Labor Day weekend, the couple hosted a series of weekly concerts while also offering pony rides, roller skating and concessions.
Foley, who grew up near Berea, Kentucky, was a rising star in country music at the time and a featured performer on the WLS National Barn Dance which was broadcast on Saturday nights. He hosted his own show, along with his "Saddle Pals," during the week on the Chicago station.
Overstake had been a regular on WLS, along with her sisters, since she was a teenager. Eva, Evelyn and Virginia Lucille (aka Jenny Lee Carson) were originally known as the Three Little Maids. The Overstake sisters had grown up in Decatur, Illinois.
Ramblin' Red Foley's bio in the 1943 WLS Family Album referenced the new business venture this way: Last year he and his wife, the former Eva Overstake, bought a farm in Illinois, which they plan to make into a "dude ranch."
In truth, Foley had only leased the pre-existing facilities at the Mackinaw Dells. Situated halfway between Peoria and Bloomington, the area was a well-established recreation spot. The park, which included a pavilion and a roller rink, had been hosting dances, picnics and celebrations for decades.
In fact, in the 1930's the WLS Barn Dance booked a number of shows at the Dells including a "monster celebration" on the 4th of July, 1934. It is possible that Foley had even performed there during those years and was already familiar with the area when he decided to put his name on the place.
How involved Foley was with the day to day operations of the park is however unclear. Foley and Overstake, who lived in the Chicago area with four children at the time, did not appear to relocate to the Mackinaw Dells even for the summer.
Instead, as reported in the Woodford County Journal, Foley was renting a room at a residence in nearby Eureka on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights for the season.
On the radio that summer, Foley was on hiatus from the Saturday night Barn Dance show on WLS but kept his Tuesday morning slot with the Saddle Pals which suggests he was returning to Chicago early every week.
The stage shows at the Dude Ranch ran for 14 weeks, always on Sunday, rain or shine. Admission was 30 cents including tax. (Free for children under 10 and men in uniform).
Foley, often listed as "Foreman," was naturally always on the bill along with Eva. Here is a list of additional musical performers and novelty acts:
May 31 | Hoosier Hot Shots, Jolly Joe Kelley, Texas Tommy and his Wonder Horse Baby Doll, Tex Atchison’s Lone Star Ramblers |
June 7 | Pat Butram, Prairie Ramblers, Bolores & Her Bulldog, Bob & Jean in Skating Thrills, Ruth Baxter |
June 14 | Dezurik SIsters, Rusty Gill, Al Verdi & Co., Bento Bros, Rita and Farm Dance Band |
June 21 | Mac & Bob, Maple City Four, Eric Filmore & Co (Acrobats on a Perch), Ted & Flo Vollet (Balancing and Juggling), Mary Joe & The Lumberjacks |
June 28 | Arkansas Woodchopper, Patsy Montana and Her Partners, Ted & Flo Vollet, Mary Joe & The Lumberjacks |
July 4 & 5 | Cousin Emmy & Her Kinfolks, Farmer Bill, Polly and Her Bunkhouse Boys, Alma Deane, Grace Wilson |
July 12 | WLS Rangers, Pepper Hawthorne, Hubert Dyer, Billy Woods |
July 19 | WJJD Supper Frolic: “Red” Belsher, Paul Grove, Don White, Millie and Marge, Frontiersmen |
August 2 | Poppy Cheshire, Skeets & Frankie (of Radio Station KMOX St. Louis), Beehler’s Hollywood Animals |
August 9 | Lulu Belle & Scotty, Texas Tommy and his Wonder Horse Baby Doll, Lumber Jacks (from WJBC) |
August 16 | Chuck Acree, Bill O’Connor (Irish Tenor), Screw Ball Club (from WDZ), Lumber Jacks (WJBC), The Noonans |
August 23 | Cumberland Ridge Runners, Karl & Harty, Doc Hopkins, The Blue Eyed Boy, Coco & Teddy, Baker’s Trained Mule |
August 30 | Whitey Ford (The Duke of Paducah) |
Sep 6 & 7 | Prairie Ramblers (WLS), Parker Bros., Carl Thorson, WDZ Screwball Club |
"Illinois can be terribly hot in the summer, and that day was no exception. They held the show in a gymnasium and with a big crowd it was stifling. I was to go on last, and I waited in the heat. It was like old times having Salty, Jack and the rest of the Ramblers there.It just got too hot in the gym so they decided to move everything outside. I finished the show with "I'd Love To Be A Cowboy" and "I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart."After the show we loaded up and drove back to our hotel in Bloomington. The next morning we gathered for breakfast and went over the previous night's show, then we loaded up and headed out to Red Foley's Dude Ranch.We arrived, unloaded and set up for that evening's show and we drove to a nearby town and had supper. That evening's show was good, and it was hard to leave Red and Eva Foley. You would think, being on the road so much and running into all of our friends, we could manage more time to visit. It seldom happens that way. You arrive in time to set up for a show, do the show and just as quickly head to another town to repeat the process."
Friday, June 21, 2024
The Furniture, Uncle Billy & The Vagrants (Peoria)
The Vagrants from Garbagepool, England were in fact a popular Peoria, Illinois band that was active from 1965-1967. The group was often billed as Uncle Billy & The Vagrants and was later known as The Furniture.
In addition to the name changes, the group went through a number of lineups over the course of a few short years.
According to WWCT Basement Tapes Who's Who (The Gilded Book), the group included Greg Williams and "Uncle Billy" Kendall on guitars, Dave Taylor and Robyn Sleeth on drums, "Snake" King and Ken Anderson on bass, Rick Henson on keyboards and Mike McCabe on sax.
A Garage Hangover post regarding another Peoria group, North Bridge Company, mentions the Furniture may have briefly included NBC's Gary Shawgo as well Ron Stockert and Jerry "Pork" Armstrong (though both were likely in A.J. & The Savages NOT The Vagrants around this time).Starting in the summer of 1965, the Vagrants played a number of dances around the Peoria area. They also performed regularly in Galesburg, Illinois at Wayne Dennis' Teen-A-Go-Go. Dennis appears to have been the group's manager.
"I Love It Baby" is credited to Randy Moody who doesn't appear to have been a member of the band. Thanks to a comment that Moody left on the above YouTube video for the song, we have his version of the story:
Curiously the group went back to being billed as Uncle Billy (listed here as Uncle Billie) and the Vagrants in March 1967 despite having a record out as the Furniture.I wrote this song in 1966 for a group from Peoria, Il. who at that time were named Uncle Billy and The Vagrants. Sam Cerami, the owner of Stature Records, re-named them "The Furniture" which I wasn't wild about...We recorded this at Sound Incorporated Studios in Chicago...The engineer was the great Stu Black, who was famous for making many hits for other artists...I was approached on a Wednesday night by the agent of the Vagrants (The Furniture) who told me he needed two brand new songs sounding similar to the Kinks for a recording session THAT Saturday!...I wrote "I Love It Baby" that night and "Maybe I'm Trying Too Hard" the next night...I intended for "Maybe" to be the "A" side, but it was never released..."I Love It Baby" was receiving great airplay by DJ's who liked it even though it was the "B" side...Then for unknown reasons, Sam pulled it out of publication and off the air, so it never became as popular as it would have been otherwise...
The rumor was that Sam was an A.R. man for London Records and they viewed his label as a conflict of interests...Footnote: I never made a penny from this song despite my contract, which is typical of the Music Industry...Please forgive me if I've bored anyone with this history of the song...David R. (Randy) Moody.
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Maximus, Woof, Jack & Jeris Ross (Bloomington-Normal)
Monday, March 18, 2024
3's A Crowd (Springfield)
The group consisted of Roger Humphrey on bass and vocals, Bob Cellini on guitar and vocals and Mike Bertucci on drums.
Humphrey, who was 37 at the time of the first single, had been a trombone player in Bill Cellini's orchestra (Bob's brother). In the early 1960's, Bob Cellini led his own band, the HI FIs, before joining his brother's group.
Humphrey and Cellini began playing together for fun, working on original material. By 1966 they were joined by Bertucci.
They recorded their first single, "Making Do" b/w "I Don't Mind At All" for Ro-Do Records. Both songs were written by Humphrey.
An article in the Illinois State Journal from May 29, 1967 mentions that the group had another song ready to go called "Run, Sheep, Run" and were hoping to cut an album.
There is however no evidence that the group recorded an album or ever played live.
In 1968, they did record two of Cellini's originals at the Golden Voice Recording Co. in South Pekin, Illinois. "Keep On Walking" b/w "No Where" was released on the Golden Voice label.
Note: Bob Cellini is the nephew of Al Cellini who was featured in our recent post about Space Records.