Local Rock ‘n Roll 60s & 70s Style

Posted on June 1, 2011 by bob in Features

Bottom (l-r), Ronnie Monroe, Bobby Dupree and Rusty Crumpton. Top (l-r), Keith Brewer, Ed Sanford and Sonny Grier.

by Lenore Vickrey

If you were a teenager in south-central Alabama in the 1960s, chances are you danced the jerk, flirted with that cute boy, or made out in the corner of the high school gym to the music of a live band of local erstwhile musicians. Believing they could be the next stateside version of the Beatles, they went by a variety of catchy names:  The Rockin’ Gibraltars, the Sweet Young Un’s, The Drones, The Fabulous Shades, the Gate Band.

They were a staple at dances for years, packing National Guard armories, gymnasiums, and teen clubs from Montgomery to Opp and Troy, and college campuses at Tuscaloosa, Auburn and Ole Miss.

“Back then, that’s what music was about,” remembers Bobby Dupree, 63, drummer with The Rockin’ Gibraltars, a popular Montgomery-based group in the 60s. “It wasn’t concerts where you played and 500 people sat down and listened to you. It was a real happening thing.”

Local “garage bands” (they practiced in their parents’ garages or living rooms) were found in almost every town in the United States in the mid-to late 60s, and the Montgomery area was no exception.

“We got started because of the Beatles,” said Jimbo Jones, longtime singer and guitarist with Harmony, one of the most popular bands to come out of Montgomery that played in the mid to late 70s at Kegler’s Kove, the lounge at Bama Lanes. Jones, now 59, also played school dances and armories in a group called The Drones.

“We played a lot of soul music, the Beatles, the Stones,” he said. “We’d go all over, even the Old Dutch in Panama City.”

By the summer of 1975 he’d joined singer and keyboardist Eddie Wohlford and drummer Tommy Beavers to become part of Harvest, the precursor to the group Harmony at the Kove that spawned two major talents who made it big nationally: Tommy Shaw and Beth Nielsen Chapman.

[Montgomery native and fellow Robert E. Lee graduate Tommy Shaw came back from Chicago to join the group, staying six months until getting a call to join Styx, who needed a replacement for a guitarist who’d left as they were about to go on tour. Beth Nielsen joined the group after Shaw left. Her harmonies with Eddie and Jimbo were legendary, and thus the group found its new name. Both Shaw and Chapman have gone on to stardom as performers and songwriters.]

Many who danced the night away to the Rockin’ Gibraltars or who nursed a beer and smoked a cigarette listening to Harmony, recall those days with particular fondness and with nostalgia for a time that won’t likely return.

“There are still a lot of local bands out there,” said Sonny Grier, lead singer with the Rockin’ Gibraltars. “But there’s not a whole lot of money because there’s no place for them to play. Most of the clubs have gone to a single performer, or a duo or karaoke. We came along at just the right time.”

Add the extra costs associated with security guards and insurance, and hiring bands is not a profitable option for many club owners.

That’s not to say Montgomery area favorite bands can’t be seen any more. Several members still play in other bands for private parties, or solo at local restaurants, and on June 9, several members of Harmony plan a reunion show at the Blue Iguana in Prattville. It will be the first time they’ve have been together since a reunion benefit at a local club in 2007.

“It was elbow to elbow in there,” remembered drummer Tommy Beavers. “I was blown away.” Many regulars from the Kove days brought their grown children and will likely do so again.

Beavers and Jones will be joined by former members Kelvin Holly, who works in the recording industry in Muscle Shoals and tours with Neil Young, and Bill Hinds, who tours with the Paul Thorn Band. Keyboardist Mark Marvin will fill in for Eddie Wohlford who is unable to attend. Neither Tommy Shaw nor Beth Nielsen Chapman will be on hand due to their schedules.

Steve Lander, who originally booked Harvest at the Kove in 1975, has offered the Blue Iguana free for the night. He remembers the Kove days with Harvest/Harmony fondly, not only for the band’s music but the people who came to see them.

“People would come night after night,” said Lander, who owns Bama Lanes in Montgomery and Prattville. “There were a lot of fun people.”

Jimbo Jones (L) and Tommy Beavers look forward to the reunion of Harmony.

“I told Jimbo we should all come in with walkers,” laughed Beavers. “I tried to get us all to dress up as the Fruit of the Loom guys but no one wanted to.”

For musicians who played together for years, there won’t be a need to practice much, if at all. “It’s magic,” said Beavers. “It feels good. It’s effortless.”

“Even after all these years,” agreed Jones. “Gobs of people have asked us when we’re going to do another reunion. I don’t feel like we’ll have any problem (remembering their songs).” It’s a good bet they’ll play some Steely Dan, Crosby, Stills & Nash, a favorite, “Sweet Magnolia,” and Bill Hinds’ rendition of Joe Walsh’s “Rocky Mountain Way.”

Though they’ve had other jobs over the years, neither Jones nor Beavers have stopped playing music.

“I play music half the time, the other half I’m a toilet salesman,” Jones said, which means he’s in wholesale plumbing with Thompson Supply Co. He and his wife live north of Prattville in a 1930s “shack,” have three grown children and are expecting their first grandchild. He plays locally at Ruddles, Coaches Corner in Wetumpka, Young Barn Oyster Pub, and has recorded a CD.

Beavers has played drums for various bands, including Doc Severinson, Willie Nelson and Lyle Lovett, winning a Grammy Award for Best Performance by Duo or Group in 1994 while a member of  Asleep at the Wheel. He’s been in a few movies, raced sports cars and been inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. The father of six and grandfather of two currently lives in Montgomery and plays with the Bama Breeze Band.

“I’m content where I’m at,” said Beavers, “except I could lose about 80 pounds.”

Music you could dance to
Sonny Grier is another longtime Montgomery band member who still plays music. He was lead singer of the Rockin’ Gibraltars, formed in 1965 by a group of students at Lee High School.

“It was the summer after my senior year,” said Grier, who was joined by Keith Brewer on bass, Bobby Dupree on drums, Rusty Crumpton on guitar, Ronnie Monroe on trumpet and Ed Sanford on keyboards.

Their first gig was at the Wetumpka Recreation Center where admission was $1.

Bobby Dupree (L) and Sonny Grier of the Rockin' Gibraltars.

“We were all so nervous we wore dark sunglasses so nobody could see how scared we were,” said Dupree.
“We made $100,” remembers Grier. “For an 18-year-old to take home a pillowsack full of dollars, that was quite a heady time.”

With the help of Bill Moody and Cyril Brennan at  WBAM, their music was played on the 100,000-watt radio station, helping the group built a following as an R&B band. They played at YMCA’s, American Legion halls, private parties, and dances all over south Alabama, Panama City, Savannah, and Greenville, Miss.

“We put on a heck of a show,” said Grier. “We were considered the number one soul band in the south. White guys playing soul music!”

“Most of the stuff we played was music you could easily dance to,” said Dupree. “We didn’t play where people sat around and drank. We mostly had a lot of fun.”

They were especially known for their James Brown-style revue, with Grier wearing a cape much like the Godfather of Soul used while singing “Please, Please, Please.”

Rockin' Gibraltars at a Big BAM Show.

The group got a break in 1968 when a Hollywood producer spotted them at the Big BAM show, and wanted to sign them to a recording contract. They moved to LA, minus Grier who’d gotten married and had a new baby and didn’t want to move. He was replaced by Johnny Townsend from Tuscaloosa, who was living with Duane and Gregg Allman in LA. The group recorded a few songs at Muscle Shoals’ FAME Studios, played around the Los Angeles area with big name bands like Vanilla Fudge and Three Dog Night, and once opened for Jimi Hendrix.  They changed their name to Heart before eventually folding. Their most popular singles were “It Will Stand” (also recorded by The Showmen) and “Bug of Soul.” The group’s members drifted back to Alabama, with the exception of Townsend and Sanford who formed the Sanford-Townsend Band and recorded the hit “Smoke from a Distant Fire.”

They have reformed several times with different members, playing for Lee High School reunions. Most recently they performed earlier this year for a benefit show for ailing former bandmate Keith Brewer, who died in April of cancer.

Dupree served with the Army in Vietnam, worked as an engineer in Muscle Shoals, and has been an electrical engineer for the Alabama Legislature for 27 years. He doesn’t keep up with Johnny Townsend, but remains friends with Rusty Crumpton and Ed Sanford, who is a successful artist in Los Angeles.

The Rockin' Gibraltars, Montgomery, 1960s.

Grier continued to sing with trios and orchestras, performing at wedding receptions and private parties. He’s been a school principal and now sells wholesale art, although business has been suffering due to the economy.

His current band, The Soul Crackas, does many of the same soul hits the Rockin Gibraltar performed.

“I can sing as good or better now than I did then,” said Grier. During a recent show some ladies, obviously a few years older than him, recognized Grier from the early Gibraltar days.

“It made me feel good in a way,” he said. “It’s better than not being remembered at all.”

Still Playing (After All These Years)

The Fabulous Shades, 1965. (L-R) Bob Corley, David Headley, Cary Green, Jeffery Johnson, Bob Pike, John Key.

The Fabulous Shades
Formed: 1963, Troy. Disbanded in ’66, reunited ’76, returned to active performance 1991.
Members: Original members John Key, David Headley and Bob Corley plus David Langford, Mike Mobley, Larry Hughes, Bobby Johnson and Rick Roper.

“Our four-piece horn section sets us apart,” said Key. “Classics such as ‘Midnight Hour,’ (Wilson Pickett), ‘Knock on Wood’ (Eddie Floyd), and ‘Mr. Pitiful’ (Otis Redding) sound so much better with real horns.”

Gate Band
Formed: 1972, Tuscaloosa. The band has undergone several incarnations.
Members: Mitch Alton (original member), Gregg Pappas, Ham Wilson, Bill Marshall , Dwight Williams, Rick Byrd, Orville Cain, Carl Tesh.

“We do everything from Jerry Jeff Walker to the Grateful Dead to Van Morrison,” says Pappas. “We try to introduce people to music maybe they weren’t aware of.” Signature song includes “Both Sides of the Road,” about Perdido Bay, written by Ham Wilson.

Sweet Young Uns
Formed: 1966, Tallassee. Renamed Rock Hull Band in ’77 before reclaiming original name in ’90.
Members: Original members Larry Hoyle, Johnny Hassett and Ron Howard, plus Chris Seymour, Johnny Long, Jr. and Craig Young. Signature songs include “Brown Eyed Girl” (Van Morrison), “Cryin’” (Roy Orbison).

“We played all the way through college,” says Long. “We’re a dance band.”

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