Apr 22 2009
Small Starts (and NEWS)
In the back-pages of rock and roll, we’ve seen acts that, for whatever reason, “fell between the cracks” a bit — just to have one or two of the members “climb out” of that crack and go on to become superstars in their own right.
The boys on yer left is proof of that. Ya know who they are by the band’s name, Allman Joy.
But when Duane and his brother Gregg got together with a couple of friends, donned some Beatlesque collarless jackets and gigged as AJ way back in 1964, they had no idea what was ahead of them!
Today, years after Duane’s death, Gregg is still carrying the family name high with the legendary Allman Brothers Band. (Incidentally, their Rebel Rivals, Lynyrd Skynyrd, wrote a song in memory of Duane Allman, shortly after his fatal crash. It was called … Freebird!)
Another band, which apparently was a bit more influential than I’d originally thought, spawned one of the greatest songwriters of the twentieth cen — no, of the whole of history!
Tico and the Triumphs influenced quite a few bands of the time, and that was largely due to its songwriter/leader (see in the middle of this pic) — a young man who, though had a street-tough pseudonym, became better known under his real name: Paul Simon!
IN THE NEWS
Piano Man Billy Joel is set to put his “John Hancock” on a $60,000 baby grand piano! The purpose: It’s gonna be auctioned off to raise money for Mount Carmel-Holy Rosary School’s music program (the school’s in East Harlem, New York). The auction will end on May 6.
Oh … and congrats to John Mellencamp’s fourteen-year-old son, Hud! He won the Indiana Golden Gloves championship in his division Thursday night. Now he moves on to the national championship in Salt Lake City, which’ll take place on May 4-10.
Now, I’ll be back a bit later this evening with more, so stay tuned! Ya never know what’s gonna pop up on TRR next.
See ya on the flip side!
