REMEMBERING HOT SEATTLE BANDS FROM THE 60’s
Many of these groups were booked by Garrett Enterprises and were headlining the teen dances for Pat O’Day.
Johnny Cash, a very hip man, had her (Merrilee) on his TV show, not because she was country but because she was and is a world class talent. She took over the screen as she slowly walked to the front of the stage and made me realize that I wanted my own Angel of the Morning. She had stage presence very much like a young Bette Middler
Don and the Goodtimes: We went on the road backing up this record and got some local airplay! We were an interesting band because we had these R&B roots but at the same time we realized that kids really liked show bands — like Paul Revere and the Raiders — so we amalgamated the two
The Wailers, often credited as The Fabulous Wailers, were an American rock band from Tacoma, Washington. They became popular around the United States Pacific Northwest around the late 1950s and the start of the 1960s, performing saxophone-driven R&B and Chuck Berry rock and roll
The Sonics are an American garage rock band from Tacoma, Washington that formed in 1960. Their aggressive, hard-edged sound has been a major influence on punk and garage music worldwide, and they have been named inspirations to the White Stripes and other musical artists.
The Viceroys, by the spring of ’59, Jim Valley (guitar), Al Berry (piano), Fred Zeufeldt (drums), Fred Rucker (sax), and Bud Potter (bass) continued to develop their sophisticated teen-R&B sound at private dances held at the Washington Athletic Club, the Seattle Tennis Club, the Yacht Club, and many other uptown functions.
In 1965 the Raiders began recording a string of garage rock classics. Under the guidance of producer Terry Melcher, the group relocated to Los Angeles and increasingly emulated the sounds of British Invasion bands such as The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Dave Clark Five, and the Animals, while adding an American, R&B feel.
The Dynamic’s first album was recorded in Memphis and featured a number of Memphis session musicians – Reggie Young on guitar, Bobby Emmons on organ, Bobby Wood on piano, Mike Leech on bass, and Gene Chrisman on drums.
The quartet of keyboardist Mike Balzotti, guitarist Mardi Sheridan, drummer Bob Galloway, and bass player Chuck Warren. Using a Roget's Thesaurus to select a name that would give their enterprise an English ring, they became the Bards and began releasing singles in 1966.