My Childhood Friend Is Gone

I just received word that my childhood friend passed away on December 17, 2009.  Since I don't live in the town I grew up any longer, it is sometimes difficult to keep up with the news from home.  My oldest sister no longer lives in Circleville and of course other friends I keep up with don't live there any longer as well.  My sister notified me by email and sent me the obituary that sadly reminded me how much Larry Kegg was a great friend of mine while growning up.  After receiving her email, all day my kept wandering back to my childhood days when Larry and I was growing up.

We lived next door to one another while very young and played together often.  His parents, Maxine and Carl (everybody called him Tony) were always great to be around and both of them treated Larry's friends like royalty.  Larry was handicapped but you would never know it.  Larry never let that hold him back.  He played touch football with all of us on Town Street.  Larry was one of the toughest guys I ever knew.  My friend never allowed adversity or his handicaps interfere with his positive mental attitude.  I can also remember he had genuine love for music and cars. In fact in high school he had a band.  I am sorry to say I can't remember the name of it but I do remember he could play the drums and he and his band would take me on a gig or two.  So much fun back then!  Thank you Larry!  Larry's  parents and he many tmes took me along with them to their vacation home on Lake White  Larry's thoughtfulness and his of course his humor was derived from his fun loving parents.  It was sad that both of them died in a tragic accident so many years ago.

Larry graduated in 1968 and I graduated in 1966.  After I graduated I spent more time with my girlfriends and other buddies and Larry and I saw less and less of each other.  Why?  I don't know but that happens sometimes.  Other relationships starts to overtake the other and then the other becomes a faded photograph.

I eventually entered the United States Army and made it a career while Larry attended Northwestern Medical University in Chicago and then graduated from Cerritos College in California with a degree in Orthotics and Prosthetics. Larry worked with some of the best Orthotic and Prosthetic facilities in the country before starting the family firm of South Central Orthotic and Prosthetics Center in Chillicothe, Ohio. Larry was instrumental in bringing State Licensure in Orthotics and Prosthetics in the State of Ohio.  Larry was very successful and loved by all his patients.

I found Larry's sister on Classmates.com and wrote to her several years ago.  Kris was about two years older than me.  She wrote back and gave me his email address but also his phone number and told me to call not to email because he very seldom checked his email or responded.  Well I kept putting off that phone call until it was never made.

In the late 1970s I ran into Larry and his new wife,  Denise at the Pumpkin Show.  I spent a few minutes talking to him and then went my way with my family.  I never saw Larry again.

While home for a funeral in 2002, my cousin,  who was a member of the Elks as was Larry,  told Larry I was home and  Larry agreed to meet us at the Elks.  I don't know what came up but Larry didn't show.  Back then I didn't know that I probably had lost my last opportunity to see Larry for the last time.  I will say this once again.  As we grow older, the friends we make in life later do not compare to the friends we had as children.

Larry, thank you for all the great memories while growing up.  I wish all of us could be as tough, fun loving, positive, and generous as you have been to all those you came in contact with, especially me.  I pray that you forgive me for not taking that extra time to pick up the phone and say 'hey friend, remember me?"

You can read more about Larry by clicking here.

"Somewhere in the Distance"

I just recently finished reading an excellent book by author David Soulsby, "Somewhere in the Distance."   I want to invite everybody who grew up during the 60s decade or those just interested in that amazing era to read this novel.

It is set in Great Britain during the last two years of the decade. The story involves four friends with their own ideals and views of the sixties. Throughout the book earlier years of the decade are recalled through flashbacks which is woven together with actual sixites events such as the assassination of John F. Kennedy and his brother Bobby,  the assassination of Martin Luther King, the Vietnam War and of course the music of the era.

These four friends love for rock 'n roll and their discussions of the best music ever produced is detailed throughout the setting of the time.  Their human emotions,  such as sadness, humor and heartbreak makes this book delightful and highly recommened. 

Although a fictional book with actual events surrounding the story, my question is which one of these characters is David, the author?  I have my suspicion.

Time Gets Better With Age

I wish I can say I wrote this but I did not, but after discovering this little antedote of  coming of age, it would fit perfectly on my blog.  I hope you enjoy it.

I've learned that I like my teacher because she cries when we sings "Silent Night".
Age 5

I've learned that our dog doesn't want to eat my broccoli either.
Age 7

I've learned that when I wave to people in the country, they stop what they are doing and wave back.
Age 9

I've learned that just when I get my room the way I like it, Mom makes me clean it up again.
Age 12

I've learned that if you want to cheer yourself up, you should try cheering someone else up.
Age 14

I've learned that although it's hard to admit it, I'm secretly glad my parents are strict with me.
Age 15

I've learned that silent company is often more healing than words of advice.
Age 24

I've learned that brushing my child's hair is one of life's great pleasures.
Age 26

I've learned that wherever I go, the world's worst drivers have followed me there.
Age 29

I've learned that if someone says something unkind about me, I must live so that no one will believe it.
Age 30

I've learned that there are people who love you dearly but just don't know how to show it.
Age 42

I've learned that you can make some one's day by simply sending them a little note.
Age 44

I've learned that the greater a person's sense of guilt, the greater his or her need to cast blame on others.
Age 46

I've learned that children and grandparents are natural allies.
Age 47

I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.
Age 48
I've learned that singing "Amazing Grace" can lift my spirits for hours.
Age 49

I've learned that motel mattresses are better on the side away from the phone.
Age 50

I've learned that you can tell a lot about a man by the way he handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.
Age 51

I've learned that keeping a vegetable garden is worth a medicine cabinet full of pills.
Age 52
I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you miss them terribly after they die.
Age 53

I've learned that making a living is not the same thing as making a life.
Age 58

I've learned that if you want to do something positive for your children, work to improve your marriage.
Age 61

I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.
Age 62
I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catchers mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back.
Age 64

I've learned that if you pursue happiness, it will elude you. But if you focus on your family, the needs of others, your work, meeting new people, and doing the very best you can, happiness will find you.
Age 65

I've learned that whenever I decide something with kindness, I usually make the right decision.
Age 66
I've learned that everyone can use a prayer.
Age 72

I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one.
Age 82

I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love that human touch-holding hands, a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.
Age 90

I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.
Age 92

THE MUSTANGS: FOUND and REDISCOVERED

by John Timmons

CQ Hams

Many months ago, I wrote an article entitled, "Help Solve A 60s Rock Group Mystery" (Who Were The Mustangs), humbly asking for anyones help in providing information about this 1960s instrumental rock group that had a hit single, "The Dartell Stomp" to which I was very fond. Unfortunately, there was not one response. Coupled with no replies was the fact that I had invested some 12-14 hours of research into finding out who this group was, but with no results. I had just about given up hope of ever learning when one day recently, I discovered a clue on YouTube and "the rest is history" as the saying goes. The mystery has been solved while The Mustangs have been rediscovered by '60s instrumental rock music afficionados through the popular website where "The Dartell Stomp" can now be heard once again. But perhaps the biggest news is for the four original members of the band itself. For the past 45 years, The Mustangs had absolutely no idea

how successful their single became, charting to #92 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart and in the Top 20 on many rock and roll radio station record surveys from coast to coast. This would all change with the writing of this biography in November 2009. The bandmates, now all in their early sixties, have learned through additional new research just how popular their hit record had been on the national rock scene in 1964. Here is the previously unknown, untold, complex, and intriguing biography of The Mustangs.

The story of The Mustangs begins in 1959 when 12 year old John Beach and schoolmate, Tommy Wright compete in a grammar school talent contest. The boys did not win the contest, but it did provide them with the idea and impetus to form their own band. Beach played guitar and Wright bass. By late 1961, two other 13-year-olds joined Beach and Wright to start a band. Paul Amadio played drums and Jack Fernandez was a keyboardist, playing a Cordovox.

This was the beginning of Sandy and The Beachcombers. The four young teens from New Jersey did surprisingly well, playing 3-4 days a week and earning good money for the time. Then in 1963, a simple change in where the band practiced would lead to the realization of every teenage musicians hope in the 1960s..... signing a professional recording contract. The band always rehearsed at the home of John Beach, but for whatever reason, the group decided this one day to practice in the garage of drummer Paul Amadio, a common place to play during this era. Coincidently, an editor for Billboard Magazine lived just two doors away and heard the band practicing on the warm summer day. He came down and told the boys that they sounded good and asked them if they would be interested in playing a song for a record company in New York City. The editor told them that Providence Records was in need of a group to play "The Dartell Stomp", a song previously recorded on the Bolo Label by a band called The Viceroys. Bolo went out of business and Providence acquired the rights to the song. The boys, who were now all sixteen, jumped at the opportunity and met with the owners of Providence along with their fathers who accompanied them to the big city.

Providence offered them a one year recording contract which was a huge thrill for the teens. Though there was no money involved at the signing, the group was told that they would receive royalties

depending on how many records sold, although no specific sales numbers were ever mentioned. The boys agreed to the contract, however, due to their age, had to have their fathers actually sign the document.

For some unknown reason, there was an urgency by the label for the teens to record "Dartell". The group took three days off from school in late 1963 to practice the song and on day three, record it. Providence decided to use a previously taped instrumental of the boys called "Lazy Love" as the "B Side" despite the objections of the teens who requested that their song "Thunder" be used. "Thunder" started out with a loud thunder-like sound created by tipping over a reverb amplifier, something that scared Providence executives who did not like the loud sound nor the piece. 

It would be several months later in March or April of 1964 that "The Dartell Stomp" would officially be released. At the time, the band members all thought this was a "one shot dream" and truly believed the record had no chance of ever becoming a hit. And according to John Beach, "I didn't like the song, personally. There was too much repetition. We tried to get them to do a guitar riff, but to no avail".  Interestingly, the record label told the group prior to recording that they would have to record the  song under a different name - The Mustangs, not as Sandy and The Beachcombers. It is purely conjecture, but a possible explanation for the name change might have been an attempt to associate the group/record with the introduction of the new Ford Mustang that was first shown at the Watkins Glen Speedway in October 1963, the approximate same time that "The Dartell Stomp" was recorded. 

Following this appearance, the Mustang was then seen by thousands at the New York Worlds Fair on April 17, 1964. Some 22,000 Mustangs were sold alone on the first day of sales and one million within the first 24 months of its existence. Amazingly, "The Dartell Stomp" soon thereafter began climbing up the rock and roll Top 40 charts starting in June 1964 and continuing through September. 

Was the band name and release date of "The Dartell Stomp" something that was carefully calculated to ride on the extraordinary sales wave of the new Ford model in an attempt to maximize sales, or purely coincidental? This is something that may never be known.

Life for the young men continued on as it had been before recording "Dartell" with no performance changes, but there were two personnel changes in the band. Paul and Jack left the group and were replaced by Jack Hunt on drums and Tom Wilson on the Cordovox. The half new, half original group thought "it would be suicide" to change their name to The Mustangs, in effect having to start over in terms of name recognition. The band continued playing gigs as Sandy and The Beachcombers and consciously made a decision to play 3-4 days a week as before with the financial benefit of this schedule outweighing other alternatives. The band would perform at weddings, parties and other social events while also becoming the House Band at two area restaurants. The group also performed  at The Hazlet Fair and soon thereafter teamed up with the amusement company to play for two summers whererever the company was operating throughout New York and New Jersey. All the while, there was no knowledge or realization by the band that "The Dartell Stomp" had made its way onto The Billboard  Hot 100 Chart, peaking at #92, and that the instrumental single was a hit throughout many parts of the country. Some examples of the records popularity based on sales are reflected on such major rock and roll radio stations weekly surveys as:

WLS (Chicago): #13 for the week ending August 21

KQV (Pittsburgh): #6 for the week of July 22

WARM (Wilkes-Barre): #20 for the week ending August 21

WKNR (Detroit): #14 for the week of September 17

WXYZ (Detroit): #20 for the week of September 15

WENE (Endicott, NY) #10 for the week ending October 3

KEWB (San Francisco) #39 for the week ending October 30

Sandy and The Beachcombers continued to perform unitl 1970 when they decided to finally call it quits after nine years of performing. Each of the original members of the band went on to have successful careers in various fields. John Beach recently retired from the mortgage industry while Tommy Wright decided to end a long career with IBM. Paul Adadio continues to work in the oil industry and Jack Fernadez remains self-employed as a paving contractor.

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE MUSTANGS and "THE DARTELL STOMP"

* The Mustangs never actually existed as a real band, but in name, only

* After a long gig one evening, The Mustangs (Sandy and The Beachcombers) were followed by the

legendary R&B and Doo Wop group, The Ink Spots

* The Mustangs (Sandy and The Beachcombers) once served as the lead-in band for the popular

1960s group, The Tokens (The Lion Sleeps Tonight)

* The Mustangs never earned one cent in royalties for "The Dartell Stomp"

* Today, "The Dartell Stomp" 45 rpm single is frequently advertised for sale on e-Bay

* In addition to The Viceroys, The Dartells also recorded "The Dartell Stomp" as the "B Side"

for their big hit, "Hot Pastrami"

* At the same time as the East Coast (New Jersey) Mustangs were having a hit with "The Dartell Stomp", another group called The Mustangs from the West Coast (California) had a hit with "That's For Sure"

*Providence Records never achieved much success as a recording label and went out of business

in the early 1980s

* Had it not been for someone placing "The Dartell Stomp" on YouTube, the original band members may have never known the extent of their success with this single 

Prior to the posting of this biography, I received a message from The Mustangs who asked that the

following note be included as part of the band's story. The band wrote, "We would like to thank and acknowledge the three people responsible for bringing The Mustangs back to life, most notably the author, John Timmons, for his tenacity in locating us, his attention to detail, and his patience through the process. To Raymond T. Vinyl, (Play a Record Today) {http://www.youtube.com/user/RaymondTVinyl} for posting "The Dartell" on YouTube after 45 years, and to Michael Wright, Tom's brother, for finding it.

 

The Mustangs, 40 years after "The Dartell Stomp"

hit the charts, at a band reunion in 2004 - (L-R) Tom Wright

, Tom Wilson and John Beach

Soundtrack of the 60s Is A Hit!

On December 1st Soundtrack of the 60s launched and was received very well.. The first day the site had over 9000 visitors which is not too bad for a retro site that is limited to probably to just we baby boomers.

Soundtrack of the 60s is an unique site since each month it will only feature the current month of a particular year during the 60s decade and then next month will offer a new year for the current month. As more ideas and all the tweaks are ironed out this site should be even bigger and better as each month moves on. You will find the popular music played by a DJ for that particular month and year, TV, headlines, the happenings, sights and events that shaped that month and that year.

Right now at Soundtrack of the 60s we are offering a special Valentine's Dedication requests for our visitors with an opportunity to win prizes. Just complete the form and dedicate a 50s or 60s song to somebody special and listen to the broadcast given by our guest DJ the week of Valentine's Day to hear your request and to see if you are a winner of one of our prizes. It doesn't get any easier than that. Here is the link for your Valentine's Dedication.

This site is expected to be hot.

Check out the Soundtrack of the 60s.

Soundtrack of the 60s Coming on December 1

The 60s Official Site proudly presents Soundtrack of the 60s. This special site will take you on a trip back to the sixties, remembering the times, the news, TV, old TV commercials, the sights and sounds of one of the greatest decades in modern history.

Each month we will look at the current month of a year of the 60s decade. Our guest DJ will play that month's most popular songs. On the first of each month we look at a different year of the current month. You don't want to miss being part of this adventure. This site will continue to grow over time as more and more sixties time capsules are added. Here is the link to bookmark us now. Click Here.


Revisit your youth at The 60s Official Site and Soundtrack of the 60s.

There's No Place Like Home

In "The Wizard of OZ" Dorothy had to click her heels together and chant "there's no place like home, there's no place like home" to return from the Land of Oz to Kansas. All I had to do was catch a Southwest Airline flight to make my way to Circleville, Ohio to visit the Circleville Pumpkin Show. This year we grew a record size pumpkin of 1,635 pounds.

I hadn't been to the king of all festivals for 7 years and it was great to get back home just in time to see the beautiful foilage and again arouse my sense of smell to the aroma of all the food being prepared at the Pumpkin Show. That was one of the main reasons to make the trip and try to once again rekindle my young at heart spirit and try to recall way back when I didn't have to wear glasses to read or wear hearing aids. As I wondered and looked around everything wasn't the same. Yes the young of heart was there, the little ones were enjoying the rides and the fun as I am sure I did when I was their age. Instead of standing and watching the parades I could sit thanks to my friend Ron bringing chairs to sit on along the parade route. His exact words were "I'm too old to stand." Wow! I am a few months older than he. So I must be too old to stand also.

Before arriving at the downtown festival Ron and I drove over to the old neighborhood where we were part of the hellraisers at that time. All was not the same. Our stomping grounds have deteriorated to the point we were ashamed of how it now looked. Houses that were once the best homes in the neighborhood were some of the worst. The trees that once lined the streets have all been removed now and looked bare. "There's no place like home" did not have much of an impact anymore. I continued to think about the looks of the street where I once lived as we wondered downdtown hoping to catch some old friends and acquaintances. What happend in the last 45 years? Like everything and everybody it just aged. The magic of being home never materialized.

Return to the 60s at The 60s Official Site