Artie Wayne vs. the music industry: Can a nice guy finish first?

Reading the Artie Wayne biography, ‘I Did it for a Song,’ readers are moved, nay compelled, to ask themselves two basic questions.

Question 1: Can nice guys finish first in business? Answer: Which business? Response: The Music business.

Question 2: Which nice guy? Answer: Artie Wayne. Response: The answer is up to you, the reader to decide.

Do you know Artie Wayne? If you love rock and roll music, chances are good you’ve heard his name at some point in the last 50 years. And it could be for a number of reasons. Among other things, Wayne is a singer, songwriter, demo guy, promoter, producer, record label executive, nurturer of creativity, messenger of great ideas, and more. He’s more than a Renaissance guy. He’s a futurist, in the best sense of the word.

Most importantly, Wayne’s best skill is having been, and still being ‘the man in the middle’ of some of the best music ever to go from ‘how about this?’ to ‘vinyl is final’ stages. And as Wayne says, ‘he did it for a song.’

Poignantly, that is the exact title of his recently released autobiography, unquestionably one of the best and fastest fun reads of 2011. Have you read ‘I Did it for a Song’ yet? Perhaps you have, if you belong to an elite group of music lovers, who lives and breathes music so much that you haunt vintage record stores and multiple garage sales for that one missing 45 or 33 to define your collection.

Or, you have read it if you’re one of those types to check in often on blogs such as ‘The Pop Culture Addict,’ ‘Forgotten Hits,’ or even ‘Artie Wayne on the Web.’ If so, then you probably scout out treasures on eBay, you have alerts set to find a copy of a song or album that means the world to you. We know you.

You’re also the music lover who reads liner notes and knows the name of the recording studio, the recording engineer, arranger, composer, publisher and who played bass on those Billboard chart hits across the country for the past 50 years, a period in which the genre of rock and roll rose, soared, and crested into the genre we now enjoy as “classic rock music.”

In a Perfect World

In a perfect world, the music industry is an assortment of vibrant personalities, creative talents, unique business and music skills and opportunities to bring all these factors together. When combined, bright people of like minds and commensurate talents find each other, join forces and create great musical works.

Creating a music product that is known and appreciated from Middletown, CT to San Jacinto, CA is usually done for the sheer joy of creation. That’s in a perfect world. But inevitably external variables creep into the equation, introducing imperfections and exceptions, advance sales, chart positions, units moved, power rotations, remainders, returns, pre-orders, gold and platinum certification, the Grammy Awards and who will be nominated for the controversial, dubious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

So, who is Artie Wayne? He’s a man who lives in that perfect world, believes in the basic goodness of others, and has trusted more than a few people to do the right thing by him, particularly when they said that they would in the first place. During his career, within the upper echelon of the music business, he’s found some of the faith and trust he’s placed in others to be well worth his time.

Others have disappointed him in large measure, but he doesn’t absorb the negative energy of their misdeeds. Instead, he figures it’s just a matter of time before they do right by him. A do-right man, as the song goes.

Artie actually entered this world as Wayne Kent, a great name on two levels. One, it’s strong, to the point, and sounds like a guy who’d grow up to be an executive, doesn’t it? Two, it’s gently amusing that both names comprise portions of the alter egos of two cartoon heroes whom people are always counting on to rescue them and in fact, save the world.

Batman, as you know, was Gotham City millionaire Bruce Wayne by day; and Superman, of course, was mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent, he of the Daily Planet. Put them together and you have Wayne Kent. I doubt he ever once thought about that, yet the longer you visit with Artie Wayne, and the more you learn of his amazing abilities to make others’ dreams come true, as he introduces the world to yet undiscovered talents, the more likely you are to search him for a cape and a mask.

Just Call Him Artie

The name switch came from his being bright enough to use his real name, Wayne Kent, for songs he’d written for ASCAP publishing. His pseudonym for BMI songs was Art Wayne. It was not all that unusual back in the day to have a show biz stage name if you didn’t like the name your parents gave you. But he was savvy enough, early on, to know that he could be in both publishing organizations with a little panache and an extra non de plume. His friend and colleague, Ed Silvers, began calling him ‘Artie,’ and hence, ‘Artie Wayne’ became the bon vivant of the music business. He has not let go of the spotlight yet. He owns it. It belongs to him. That, and a few other things are due him.

How and where he’d get into the music business was never a worry. Artie seemed to have a sixth sense and proclivity for being in the right place at the right time. As a young songwriter working on future hits with a great friend, Ben Raleigh, Artie’s natural confidence and magnetic personality took them far up the ranks in short measure, all because of a positive attitude he still has to this very day. It started with Bo Diddley and Bobby Darin.

Going into Bo Diddley’s backstage dressing room before his appearance on Alan Freed’s TV show, ‘The Big Beat,’ Artie was just hoping for an autograph. Instead, Bo showed him how to get his famous ‘Hey, Bo Diddley’ riff, even tuning Artie’s guitar to an open E-chord for him. The lesson ended when (get this) Jimmy Clanton, Jackie Wilson, and Bobby Darin come through the door, interrupting the lesson to play Diddley a test pressing of Bobby’s song, ‘Dream Lover.’

Incredible Breaks, Breaking Records

Wayne and Darin became good friends, with much in common as two Bronx boys who loved music. Darin encouraged Artie in his songwriting and is responsible for not only starting Artie’s career as a songwriter, he kept it from ending. Artie shared with Darin his excitement, as he was about to sign a management contract with Alan Freed. Darin knew something that Artie (and most of the rest of America) didn’t, that Freed’s house of cards was soon about to come down with the revelation of the payola scam. Darin suggested to Artie that he go see a publishing friend of his who was officing at 1650 Broadway.

What an incredible break that was. Turned out the company was Aldon Music, and the friend was Don Kirshner. And thus began Wayne’s career. His book of 70 chapters is chock full of star-studded stories like this but the funny thing is, Artie doesn’t think of himself as a star and perhaps he’s not. He’s actually a starmaker. He perceives himself to be a regular guy, born under a lucky star, and never does seem to be affected by all the glitz and glamour that were once a part of his daily life.

Without giving the whole story away, Artie’s career went from songwriter/singer, to demo man, to producer, to (with partner Kelli Ross) running Quincy Jones’ New York publishing companies. And he didn’t stop there. At the pinnacle of his career with Warner Brothers Music, his title was General Professional Manager, and Director of Creative Services.

He ran the ‘New York, Nashville and L.A. offices out of Hollywood,’ and represented the ‘songs of Badfinger, Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan, the Faces, 5th Dimension, the Kinks, George Clinton, Gordon Lightfoot, Mahavishnu Orchestra, John McLaughlin, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Graham Nash, Randy Newman, J.D.Souther, Stephen Stills, John Sebastian, Sly and the Family Stone, Carly Simon, Jimmy Webb, Allan Toussaint, Donny Hathaway, Neil Young, Glenn Frey, Don Henley, and Dick and Don Addrisi.’ He was the chief ringleader of a group of brash boys of bravado, ‘The Warner Raiders’, seven stalwart songpluggers whose mission was to know every single song in their catalog and find artists and producers to record them. Their successes were legendary.

Wayne was also known as performer Shadow Mann, and he is a songwriter who co-wrote ‘Midnight Mary’ with friend and songwriter, Ben Raleigh and wrote ‘3000 Miles’ recorded by Brian Hyland, just to name a few. Wayne recorded on 'Tomorrow Records and worked on Morris Levy’s Roulette Records, the home of music of Tommy James and the Shondells. Now, you know who Artie Wayne is. Right?

You Don’t Know Artie Wayne at All

Artie Wayne is not some paragraph on a long-ago resume of one whose life was lived on the backs, shoulders, or coattails of a bunch of rockers. Not by a long shot. Artie is one of those guys who made magic happen.

By being in the right place at the right time, he was able to draw upon a huge catalog of songs he managed, controlled, or knew a guy who did, and make certain that the right producer, the right singer, the right instrumentalist, and the right industry bigwig heard it all and, more importantly, bought it and signed on the dotted line for it. Future security for virtually everyone but Artie himself.

It’s not much of a stretch to think that he truly believed, in his heart of hearts, that if he took care of the business, the business would take care of him. So far, it hasn’t always worked out that way. But here’s Artie Wayne, ever the optimist, certain that he can get those in charge to see the light and make things right. That remains to be seen, but after talking for an hour with Wayne, you are convinced that he’s right.

Sharing Wayne’s story is best left to him to tell. The untold story is here, and in it is the question: ‘Does the Music Industry really take care of its own?’ Artie was so busy doing deals for other people that he failed to write himself into contracts where he could have. Innocently or naively, you be the judge, he was counting on people to remember him ‘later,’ yet only a handful of people did.

Among those who he considers great friends today are songwriter Alan O’Day (‘Angie Baby,’ ‘Train of Thought,’ ‘Undercover Angel’) and Allan Rinde (of Cash Box and later Columbia Records), who have remained his lifelong friends and trusted associates. There are others but sadly, some have already passed away.

The Royalty Statement Said ‘What’?

The biggest, most important ‘do right’ question came to light this week when Wayne opened up his royalty statement and was shocked to see that: ‘This last quarter is the first time in my career that I didn’t receive one penny in royalties as a songwriter or publisher. What is even more devastating is the big Michael Jackson payoff I was expecting from having two of my songs in four different posthumous releases fizzled out. Supposedly, only a few thousand units were sold…but I don’t believe it…do you?’

The two songs Wayne co-wrote are ‘Touch the One You Love’ and ‘Little Christmas Tree’ and they’ve been re-released since 2009. You can imagine the skyrocketing numbers of posthumous sales of any recording by Michael Jackson in the past year.

So, as Wayne states, he ‘called to ask for a $5,000 advance,’ and the corporation could expect to recoup that based on Jackson’s longstanding popularity. They didn’t give him the $5,000 but they did give him $2,500. The next period, Wayne said the corporate statement, stemming ultimately from the conglomerate music entity, had not recouped the advance. Hmm. Interesting. So he waited a while and asked for another $2,500 advance. They gave him $1,500. Even more shocking as Wayne read the statement over the phone, he’d been credited with earning $40 in that quarter, and the company wasn’t going to pay out until the sum reached $50.

Let’s do the math. As cowriter Wayne would earn $.02 on each sale/download whatever. Earning $40 means that only 2,000 units were sold that quarter. The $4,000 advanced by the company to Wayne was not charity. It was an expectation of something Wayne contends is the reality, of the elevated status of any new, unreleased, rereleased items in the Michael Jackson catalog. Does that 2,000 units look right, in a quarter that hung in the precipice between the announcement of Jackson’s death and this month’s national news updates of the ongoing criminal trial for Jackson’s death being considered wrongful vs. accidental?

We’ve Already Been Down This Road Once Before

Just like Steve Popovich, the late industry promo genius of Columbia Records, had to do, it seems like Wayne is destined to don his cape and mask one more time and see if he can’t win it for the little guy, the good guy, and the guy by himself. Popovich created a web site that hundreds spent more than a few hours reading a few short years ago. The web URL, inactive today, was, ironically, onemansfightagainstsony.com. The industry lost Steve Popovich earlier this year and not only did grateful musicians write their own Internet tributes upon his passing, so, too, did Artie Wayne remember Steve in his ultra popular blog, ‘Artie Wayne on the Web’.

Popovich is another of those names that more insiders than record consumers know. He was the guy, to read what Clive Davis said in his biography years ago, who lived on Tab soda (remember that?) and bags of chips, slept on his couch at Black Rock headquarters in New York, and was on the phone working records 24/7 across the country. He’d be the button puncher with his car radio dial preset every where he went, listening to hear where and when his songs were played.

Good-natured Steve worked records into a frenzy and created buzz, wrote the buzz, kept the buzz going and was a licensed hitmaker. The man turned good little songs into solid gold pieces of history. And he’s gone now. He won his fight with Sony, and now he’s gone. It’s a crying shame but he’s almost forgotten, except by those who remembered where they came from and the names of all the ‘little people’ who he made their path of gold for, all without ever singing a note or playing a piano.

Is Artie Wayne destined to become another Steve Popovich? They have a lot in common: indefatigable, wide-eyed lovers of life, who live, breathe, love, consume any air filled with music. Plus, they were raised by their families to do the right thing. When Popovich won, in the settlement over ‘bookkeeping’ for his sales at his own Cleveland International Records (rereleasing Meat Loaf’s Bat out of Hell on CD was the centerpiece of the issue), it took all his energy to fight that fight. No one knew publicly what he made off the settlement, and the records were apparently sealed.

For Artie Wayne, it’s déjà vu, all over again. And who knows, his big label conglomerate might surprise everyone, and decide to do the right thing...eventually. Artie Wayne, at age 69, isn’t getting any younger. He still thinks and talks like he’s 25 years old, but you know how long things like this can drag on. And, let’s face it. It’s just not right.

You Decide Whether or Not a Nice Guy Can Finish First

So how can every reader decide whether nice guy Artie Wayne can finish first? The answer is right on your computer. Buy his book. For $9.95 you can get his e-book in any format you want: iPad, Kindle, e-Book, Word doc, it’s there. More than just buying his book, you’re sending him an affirmation that you support his efforts to go back to the mountain one more time to see if corporate conglomerates can rediscover their lost bookkeeping.

If you are a singer, songwriter, entertainer, producer, DJ, blogger, or music lover, even if you haven’t met Artie Wayne, send him your message that he’s not alone. It’s a pretty isolating business when you’re no longer in powerful positions. A lot of the friends who you think will remember you...may not. If you go up against a behemoth, you find out who your real friends are, another hard lesson to accept while you’re fighting a bigger one. The e-book is the best, fastest reading you’d ever hope to enjoy. In his you-are-there style of writing, you really are under the strobe lights, the spot lights, and the stage lights of the best days in the music business ever. They’re gone now. Sadly. Today's big music labels overflow with executives, lawyers, and folks who have gone to Wharton who tell you how many units you need to sell before they’ll sign you. It's taken all the fun out of making music for some.

We don’t any longer have those independent hustlers who moved records out of the backs of their cars. We don’t have the guy who will give you $20 cash because he knows you haven’t had a hot meal in a week while you try to get your band a gig somewhere. You have YouTube videos to showcase your work instead of being able to go live to prove yourself and develop a following. It's convoluted, confusing, and there's plenty of room for change available to bright minds willing to get in there and be a part of the solution and the future of music creation and delivery.

Classic rock lives. Artie Wayne has faith in humanity. Show him that you appreciate his spending 50 years in a business trying to help musicians achieve their dreams. At least post on his blog (http://artiewayne.wordpress.com/) and let him know he’s not the only one who cares about this. He asked for nothing for himself so many times that he helped others. For the love of music and love of people, he did it for a song. Rock on, Artie. Rock on.

The MOB--Reunion weekend in South Dakota

First in a new 3-part series that chronicles the South Dakota Rock & Roll Music Association’s 2011 Induction Ceremony in Sioux Falls

Previously, readers learned how The MOB reunited, after 30 years, to be honored in the South Dakota Rock & Roll Hall of Fame,” as the direct efforts of four strangers who came together to reunite the band in April 2011 for the induction ceremony.

Sounds simple enough, doesn’t it? How hard could it be to alert seven men, who had been part of a legendary national show band, that they were being sought by, two, later four, then five, aficionados of their music who wanted to see them get an honor that was long overdue? The caveat was that most of those band members hadn’t even seen one another, nor had they all been together, in 30 years.

Until October, 2010, eight men who were surviving members of The MOB were blissfully oblivious to the world of music, simply going about their daily business lives without missing a beat. They had all “moved on,” as it were, with their lives. Three had entered the corporate and nonprofit sectors as businessmen. Two more had entered city services administration for major cities; one was working in an entertainment-related industry and only one was a fulltime performer, though you could safely assume others have had post-MOB music opportunities.

When the board of directors of the South Dakota Rock & Roll Music Association considered The MOB for induction into their Hall of Fame three years ago, no one knew where they were. They did not have an internet presence. Board member Terry Tausz says their name had been discussed from the outset as a group of interest, but “no one knew how to get hold of them.”

After Ana Lord and Alan Schrank had found them, Schrank next communicated with the South Dakota Rock & Roll Music Association by leaving a message on their web site (http://www.southdakotarockandrollmusicassociation.com) message board. In the days that followed, board members were sufficiently impressed and reviewed the nomination package submitted by Schrank and Lord.

Quickly, the board had verified what they already knew, the impact of the music of The MOB and what it had meant to South Dakota natives all these years. It would be learned as well that memories of The MOB had a wonderful, lasting impression on many who had never even lived in South Dakota, but traveled from their homes 30, 50, and 80 miles away, often, to hear them perform there. Even though The MOB members were natives of Chicago, after 10+ years of 3-week stints performing at the famed Mocamba Club, The MOB might as well have been considered as, at least, South Dakota regulars.

But simply receiving and distributing a letter announcing the distinct honor was only part of how they all managed to wind up on stage at the Ramkota Exhibit Hall to a capacity crowd of 2,000+ fans that night. It was far from a done deal, because there were many factors to consider that might have brought about the induction of the band but NOT the full reunion and performance together, their first in 30 years. One South Dakotan whose dedication as a volunteer made a substantial impact on the reunion’s success is William Bertsch.

A musician himself, Willie Bertsch was well acquainted with The MOB, having been a vocalist booked, as part of local favorite band, The Apostles, as the opening group for The MOB many times at the Mocamba Club. Bertsch, a Sioux Falls resident, found himself in a vital role in making the reunion weekend a reality. But to hear him tell it, he was just one of many coming together to support a great cause. There’s more to that story.

Reunion Not a ‘Done Deal’ at First

The MOB’s reunion was not a fait accompli from the beginning—not by a long shot. First, most of the band members had closed the door on their musical pasts, with the exception of “Little Albert,” Albert Maligmat, who still performs in Hawaii as his primary career. Imagine the challenge for music pros, many of whom had not rehearsed or played, other than recreationally, to regain their professional chops again after such a long time away from the stage. It didn’t take long, though. Independently, these music pros went right back to their rudiments and woodshedded for over 4 months to get back on their games, once the decision was made. Because of the geographical distances that prevented in-person meetings, thanks to Jimmy Ford and James Holvay, the band members started reconnecting by phone and e-mail. That had to have been some set of conversations. Songwriting talent and premier saxophone/keyboardist Gary Beisbier was the only one of the surviving members who couldn’t make the date. MOBster Tony Nedza had passed away.

The Mocamba Club had been home to The MOB for years as it had been to The Apostles, something they had in common. Says Bertsch, “In the late 60s, early 70s, at the Mocamba Club, my band, the Apostles, would come on and play a couple of numbers. And, The MOB was the headlining act; that would come on about 10 pm or 11 pm. So, we opened for them on a couple of occasions, but I personally had not actually seen them in 40 years. I was also sure they would not remember me from Adam.”

The Mocamba, a beloved icon of great show bands, was the only place Bertsch ever saw them. “Back in those days, we were playing every weekend also.” Bertsch estimates that he had a chance to see The MOB 12–15 times there during their heyday. Those memories would prove sufficient fuel for Bertsch to get involved as a volunteer to do everything he could to make the reunion week/weekend spring to life and be joyful for the band.

“That was what was so neat about this thing. I knew from the first time that I’d talked to Al (Schrank) that The Mob hadn’t actually been together on stage in 35 years. And I know how tough that is. My band was inducted last year in the SD R&R H of Fame (The Apostles),” Bertsch explains.

It Don’t Come Easy; You Know It Don’t Come Easy

As the song goes, “You got to pay your dues if you want to sing the blues, and you know it don’t come easy.” For this R&B/soul/rock/horn band, to reunite the group was akin to launching a strategic operation.

For many reasons, The MOB had not reunited in 30 years. So, when the call came and they were made aware: “you’re going to be inducted, we’d like to have you come perform in April, 2011” and have it happen? Despite the honor, despite the advance time of six months to prepare, it still was not a fait accompli. Bertsch continued, “Several of the band members had ‘day jobs’ and responsibilities.” They were geographically separated from Hawaii to California to Chicago and parts in between, which didn’t make rehearsing easy.

And, let’s be frank, The MOB in days of old had a lifetime full of celebrations, partying and activities that go along with musical fame and legions of female fans. Several of the members had likely stayed away from the music also because their lifestyles had changed so drastically over the years. When some of them shut the door, they latched it and bolted it tight.

Bertsch explains one example of reluctance. Dynamic vocalist “Big Al” Herrera shared with Bertsch by phone an initial reluctance to jump back into the fray all over again for the reunion. Religion is a personal thing for most people, but when people of faith connect with others who have had similar experiences, eventually the conversation at some point turns to religion. It just does. And so it did with Bertsch and Herrera. When Big Al explained to Willie that one of his reservations, aside from being gone from his job as a city services manager in Elgin, Illinois to be in the music business again for a few days, was that he was not happy with several of his choices back in the day. His life had changed, drastically, for the better, and he was unsure he wanted he wanted to reopen the door.

Bertsch immediately understood, and shared his own faith, how the past decade had brought Bertsch a renewed interest in participating in church activities, especially in a praise band at First Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls. The Sioux Falls church also features an original Aeolian Skinner Organ, that has recently been updated, so that provides a clue about the rich history of tradition and structure inherent in their specific synod within the Lutheran faith.

Bertsch’s bandmate in The Apostles, Sam Hasegawa, had also had a lengthy break from performing when a chance to reunite their band for the 2010 South Dakota Music Association’s Hall of Fame Induction evening the previous year, so Bertsch, himself a lead vocalist, kept talking and Herrera soon found many reasons to consider the reunion weekend a positive opportunity once again. That night of the reunion on stage, Al would give thanks to “my Lord and savior, Jesus Christ, for the opportunity,” that he was in the middle of experiencing. It’s appropriate to say that Bertsch’s words were potentially helpful in Herrera’ decision-making process.

The next thing that Bertsch did was offer his and his wife Audrey’s home to some of the band members who had a large number of family members coming to the area for this night-of-nights. As South Dakota Rock and Roll Music Association board president Don Fritz would be able to attest, the evening concert sold out of VIP tables as well as general admission as fast as anything they’d ever seen. And so, too, did the hotel rooms. So, with many of the band members having relatives “coming in from everywhere,” the Bertschs said, “Please come and stay with us,”and some of the MOB family and the Bertsch family became more ‘like family’ in an instant.

Bertsch credits his lovely wife, Audrey, with splendid hospitality and much tolerance for whatever Willie is volunteering her for. He is always sure of her agreement in his endeavors. Bertsch explains, “I was out running errands, picking up some folks around town, helping get people to rehearsal and here at our front door would be people that Audrey would greet who haven’t even met her yet.” Bertsch says it took about 5 minutes for everyone to start hugging and visiting in delight and anticipation of what was going to happen on Saturday night, April 16th.

Band members had planned to arrive on Wednesday, prior to the Saturday night performance. Willie Bertsch was the unofficial behind-the-scenes coordinator who helped facilitate a lot of things. He’d already been at work long before that. Bertsch talked with a good friend, Jay Hardy, who plays drums in the same church praise band where Bertsch plays.

“I said, ‘Jay I need a place for these guys to rehearse. The hotel doesn’t have any place large or quiet enough with privacy to accommodate them.’” Hardy knew who The MOB was and he said, “by all means.” Hardy’s generosity was exceptional. Bertsch explains, “he wouldn’t charge us a nickel; the band could use it anytime they wanted to, which made the show possible, it really did.”

Terry Tausz agrees, “Jay Hardy’s donation of time in his studio really helped” give privacy and recreated the band’s days of professional recording together. You have to remember also that these men, a band of brothers themselves, who hadn’t seen each other in 30 years, needed time to themselves to reconnect just all by themselves. Jimmy Ford shared with Bertsch that the first night, the band would meet alone and visit. Bertsch, as a musician, understood that need.

On Thursday, The MOB held their first run-through of the song set list, sitting around a conference table. Alan Schrank was on hand to take selected photos of the subsequent rehearsal with instruments and vocals in the recording studio. Bertsch and Tausz were there and also spent time (at a respectful distance) watching the magic come alive again during the first rehearsal.

Says Bertsch, “Those guys were so far above the fray 40 years ago with their showmanship, so far above the crowd. They were leaps ahead of us. They had not been together in so many years.”

“It’s a special deal you have to experience, to all be onstage together once again, I knew this was huge for these guys.” So, getting the chance to use Hardy’s recording studio was big, really big.

“It was just as much fun in the practice sessions in the recording studio as it was that night at the concert performance,” Willie explains. The camaraderie was what impressed him most.

It had to have been flashbacks during various notes or a particular song. Photos taken by Schrank capture their spirit and their joy. Bertsch agrees, “You can see so much of the joy—it was such a renewal. When you were around these guys, it was like you had not seen your best friend in 40 years,” he explains. “Just the vibes that were coming out were just incredible, really strong.”

Jimmy Ford explained the night of the induction ceremony that the audience “wasn’t seeing double, that there were 14 people on stage where they might have been expecting 7.” The reason for that, Ford said, was that the band wanted to bring the best possible horn sound the audience would be expecting. How did that happen?

Yes, it was Bertsch who reached out to musician Ken “Boneman” Hoyne, as the two had been longtime friends. Hoyne’s band had backed up Bertsch’s band, The Apostles, when they had been inducted into the Hall of Fame last year. Hoyne, a premier player, was noted for putting horn sections together for shows around South Dakota, so that was a fortuitous happenstance, and he was happy to do that for the evening.

As seen on the DVD of the evening’s performance, it is no small compliment that Jimmy Ford plays to the horn section when he noted the players individually and complimented them on their talents. You have to wonder if these next-generation horn players knew ‘who’ it was paying them a high compliment indeed. Egos were checked at the door, so it’s doubtful that the once-legendary status of Ford, McCabe, and Herrera on horns was even really discussed.

One More Thing – Sharing the Faith

Bertsch has shared that part of his becoming more involved in church again was a reprioritization of his personal and family faith life. He speaks so enthusiastically about the family of faith at First Lutheran Church, led by Pastor Dr. John Christopherson. So, after Bertsch and Herrera had spoken of their faith by phone, the discussion naturally progressed into faith at the open house/barbecue dinner that Willie and Audrey held on Thursday evening at their home. Their home address and phone number probably deserved the rank of “Most Shared” that week, as the phone rang as much as the doorbell, and the party was at The Bertsches! All week.

Audrey shared name tags with all their new guests. After about an hour’s time, those name tags were unnecessary because the vibe in the home was one of family. Bertsch explains there was a special spirit present throughout the home, a reverent spirit, one surely filled with joy. Willie shared that it was one of those nights he’d never forget. Several of the band members had multiple family members present for the special ceremony and that Thursday night, everyone it seems was at the Bertsch home.

We Are Family

By the time the band had their first day’s rehearsal behind them, it was the start to a great reunion week. Plans were set for all inductees to attend a special dinner for all the bands on Friday night before Saturday’s big activities. So, Thursday, it was BBQ with the Bertsches. As Alan Schrank photographed the activities of the days leading up to the reunion night, it’s easy to spot all of new friends becoming extended family, joy in sharing simple times, great memories, and good people knowing that other good people thought the world of what they’d done 30 years earlier.

And because the event was a complete sellout, it’s a good thing community members like the Bertsches offered their homes to some band members’ extended families, because many of the MOB’s band members come from very large families and there are only so many hotel rooms in Sioux Falls—a large community but this deal was bigger than anyone had ever anticipated. The day following the induction ceremony is one of sharing faith.

Sharing the Faith<

The more you know Willie Bertsch, the better you understand that faith is an important part of his life. It was actually one of Albert Maligmat’s sisters, who was in town for the event, who had earlier shared with Bertsch a YouTube link of Albert singing, “I Believe I Can Fly.” The video captured from by Albert’s nephew, Jason, captured a powerful voice, dynamic range, and perfect acoustic guitar accompaniment that silenced a chatty crowd in Hawaii with its elegance. A second example is Albert singing “Amazing Grace” with Eddie Ramirez on trumpet.

Albert’s vocal range on these songs of faith blew Bertsch away, and so he took a chance. Even though Bertsch didn’t know Maligmat well, he made the ask. “I belong to a big church in Sioux Falls, and play in our praise band and the day after the event is Palm Sunday. Could you possibly come to our church and sing those songs for us?” Bertsch asked.

Maligmat didn’t hesitate before accepting. “Absolutely,” he said. I’ll come any time the Lord asks me to sing. I will be there.” And the 5,000+ member congregation has an extensive and talented music ministry team. Everyone was on board with inviting the guests. Also answering the call to sing was Al Herrera, who was equally glad to praise God in song that Sunday morning.

Bertsch especially appreciated Pastor Christopherson’s and the entire music team’s trust in bringing in ‘famous R&B/soul entertainers to sing on Palm Sunday,’ because traditionally Lutheran churches, especially 100-year-old ones, have structure in liturgy and worship music for Palm Sunday set months in advance. Little Albert and Big Al had a glorious impact on the congregation, who is traditionally not given to public displays of approval. “After Albert Maligmat sang ‘I Believe I Can Fly,’ the entire congregation rose to their feet and clapped,” Bertsch revealed. He continued, “I have never, ever seen that before in my lifetime in that church,” he explains.

“He was up in the stratosphere with his vocals,” Bertsch continued. He was equally as effusive about Herrera’s powerful vocals that morning. Just another example of the character of these special visitors that they would be reveling in the recognition of a lifetime, one they’d waited 30 years for but never expected to see. And as their Saturday night celebrations stretched into visiting and sharing until 3 or 4 am on Sunday morning, it didn’t matter. Maligmat and Herrera were happy to be singing in the 11 am Contemporary Praise service on Palm Sunday at Willie’s home church. It speaks volumes.

The MOB—History of Their Reunion in Sioux Falls

To read more of the plans and details leading up to Sioux Falls’s once-in-a-lifetime coup of having The MOB converge and take the stage once again, there’s a link to the site that about how four strangers, fans of the music of The MOB, connected to find the band members, follow this link to the six-part series,”The MOB—From Chicago, IL to Sioux Falls, SD in 30 years or less.” At the end of the first story, readers will find links to the other 5 sequential parts in the series. If you’d like to connect with other fans who like the band as much as you do, visit the Facebook fan page Alan Schrank created two years ago at The Mob’s official fan site.

This Reunion Weekend Story Continues

Next up, in The MOB—Reunion Weekend in South Dakota, Part 2, a visit with John Mogen, Board of Directors Member of the South Dakota Rock & Roll Music Association, who was the invited guest keyboardist with The MOB at their first reunion in 30 years on a night when music history was made in South Dakota.

Karan Chavis Brings Good Times to Good Time Charley’s

Guest blogger: Rhonda Brinkmann

The Karan Chavis Band rocked Good Time Charley's last Friday. Photo: West Communications.

Anyone watching the Karan Chavis Band set up at Good Time Charley’s last Friday night would have doubted they could get all their equipment, not to mention the band members themselves, into the small corner of the packed restaurant. But after 25 minutes of unpacking, repacking, and rearranging, the six-person band was tucked away -- cozy, but ready to entertain.

And entertain they did. With classics including Get Your Kicks On Route 66, How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You, Brown-Eyed Girl, Amarillo By Morning, Rose-Colored Glasses, and Georgia On My Mind, they kept the crowd swaying and cheering. The eatery in the historic downtown section of Bryan, Texas, was packed from the start of the performance. Fortunately, the restaurant has a side room and the staff found places to seat more people coming in throughout the evening.

Chavis explained that she’d been battling a cold all week, but it didn’t harm her soulful style. Her voice was as smooth as the Smooth Operator she sang about. Maybe there were a few more instrumental breaks than usual. Maybe the band members stepped up to the mic to take the vocals a little more often than they sometimes do. But with so much talent on display from band members Monte Mann, Larry Seyer, Kevin Hall, David Webb, and Craig Nietfeld, the audience relished each song. When Karan did belt out a number, her voice was as strong and smooth and sultry as ever.

Good Time Charley’s is named for the historic Charles Hotel Building, where the restaurant has occupied the ground floor for less than a year. During its operation from 1939 to the 1980s, the Charles Hotel must certainly have seen its share of good times, and if Good Time Charley’s continues to bring in talented bands like the Karan Chavis Band, good food and good music will continue to thrive in historic Downtown Bryan.

[Note: Story originally published on examiner.com on Sept. 17, 2011.]

Karan Chavis: Song Styles Fit the Occasion, Two Chances to Hear Her in September 2011

[Karan Chavis and her band perform for V-Twins Rock: Motorcycle Enthusiasts & Musicians Join Forces To Fight Cancer, the 2010 Breast Cancer Awareness special event, University Towne Center, Oct. 2, 2010, College Station, Texas. Band: Monte Mann on guitar, Mark R. Harris, bass guitar, Art Kidd, drums, Ryan Murphy, Keyboards.]

When Karan Chavis sings a favorite classic rock song, she owns it. Her version of “Proud Mary” is such that Tina Turner would nod her head in approval. Chavis was singing “At Last” in shows long before the Etta James version came to the forefront. The blues are the blues when Karan belts them out as few others can. Gospel takes on a new level when just her acapella offerings are moving and powerful.

The works of Ella Fitzgerald were part of Karan’s repertoire last summer in Austin in a tribute concert performed at the One World Theatre. And yet, she doesn’t have to sing ‘just like’ someone to be given kudos. The versatile Chavis also composes her own music as well in an upbeat, powerful style that is truly her own. She's been working on a new CD project when time permits.

It’s seemingly all too rare that she perfoms in the Bryan-College Station area, because other cities keep booking her first. That’s good for Chavis, but it’s better for Aggieland that she’s in concert this weekend. And since it’s a football weekend with TAMU hosting Idaho on Saturday evening, visitors will be looking for great music, so locals need to arrive early Friday night.

On Friday, September 16, Karan and her band will be performing at Goodtime Charlie's. Music begins at 7:00 pm and will go through 11:00 pm. The downtown Bryan club is located at 201 S. Main (the old Papa Perez location). Word to the wise: nearby parking is plentiful, but get there early.

Chavis is delighted to have her band with her for this performance. Many who’ve seen her before enjoy seeing Larry Seyer and Monte Mann on guitar, Kevin Hall on drums, and David Webb on keys. They’ll all be here.

Later this month, on Wednesday, September 28th, there’s also a chance to see Karan in Austin as she’ll lend her vocals to an evening of Blues & Swing with The Fenno-Hilboldt Project. The backdrop of another colorful Austin sunset in the hills, an outdoor special event at Central Market Westgate. Perfect for a late September evening.

The Fenno-Hilboldt group consists of leader Jimmy Fenno (drums/vocals), Jamie Hilboldt (keys/vocals), Sean Hopper (bass), and Karan Chavis will sing. The evening begins at 6:30 and goes til 9:30 pm. For directions to Central Market Westgate, click here. Hilboldt and Chavis are a familiar team, having played in musical events together years ago in Austin, all the way back to even days occasionally singing on dates where Rotel & The Hot Tomatoes were holding forth with their power-rock 50s/60s/70s tributes.

Hilboldt also travels the country as keyboardist and musical director for classic rock star Gary Puckett (“Young Girl”, “Lady Willpower”, etc.), and everything he plays is perfectly styled and suited for Karan’s soulful voice that embodies the blues. Fenno’s strengths and specialties include the standards by Frank Sinatra, Louis Prima, Louis Jordan, and Louis Armstrong. Chances are good, then, for Karan to sing her signature “Satchmo Blues,” where she voices both Louis Armstrong and Miss Ella Fitzgerald in echoes and answers to the lines. Two must-see, must-hear events.

For more on Karan's latest activities, check out her web site www.karanchavis.com

The MOB—From Chicago, IL to Sioux Falls, SD in 30 years or less: Andantino di canzona

Fourth in a series of “How The MOB (one of Chicago’s first horn bands) landed in the South Dakota Rock & Roll Hall of Fame” in April 2011.

Andantino in moda di canzona

“Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain,” or so goes the spoken demand in “The Wizard of Oz”. Remember that? To be sure, Chicagoland is no ‘land of Oz,’ but the music scene is a seemingly close community. Many will stand at various gates, but they’re ready to welcome you inside, not keep you out. But where exactly is Command Central located?

One person who knows the answer is music researcher/historian Joseph Pytel. Pytel, or “Joe” to his friends, is today known in Chicagoland music circles.

He casts an even wider net, thanks to social media, for his ability to uncover and discover facts, figures, trivia and tidbits on Chicagoland musicians. His work is so substantial and his ‘finds’ so great, many are in awe of his research skills. People never know where, how, or when he has time to find these things. How does he do it?

Credit can be shared with the one and only, Carl Bonafede. Yes, The Screaming Wildman of 60s radio and ballroom dance fame. THE Carl Bonafede, one and the same.

Bonafede is ever the impresario, enterprenuer and a man who hasn’t seemed to age a day in 45 years. He is now revealed as one who definitely deserves some of the credit for bringing honor, long-overdue and most well-deserved, to The MOB.

After spotting on Facebook that Ana Lord and Alan Schrank had been in communication with Joe Accardi, Joe Pytel consulted with his friend and musical history mentor, Bonafede. Pytel had joined in the search for MOB members and knew that Bonafede had known Jim Holvay, since having approached him for songs for some groups he was managing in 1965.

Pytel was serving in the Navy in the 1960s and 1970s, when The MOB was “back on the road again” touring the United States and Canada, so he never saw them perform live. He was familiar with their music because Pytel and Bonafede had discussed every nuance of Bonafede’s career several years ago as Bonafede was preparing his autobiography.

Because Bonafede was in on the Chicago rock music scene from the very start, he’d known Jim Holvay was touring in one of the two Dick Clark Caravan of Stars bands that Jimmy Ford was responsible for putting together. Holvay had about 10 songs already recorded by other artists, so in the early days of The MOB, Holvay and his associates were already on the road. Bonafede traveled to meet up with Holvay and asked him if he had any songs he had for his new band. Holvay said he did.

Bonafede met up with Holvay one day while The MOB was on the road. Bonafede had brought a reel-to-reel tape recorder with him. And, with a guitar that Holvay had bought for $10 in Tijuana, he sang and played a song for Bonafede to consider. Songwriting partner and fellow MOB member Gary Beisbier supplied the voicings on the ‘answer’ part to that song. It did well for Bonafede’s group.

Bonafede joined forces with Holiday Ballroom owner and bandleader Dan Belloc, who’d already written a major hit, “Pretend,” made famous by Nat King Cole. The duo co-produced the record with engineer Ron Malo adding his own signature touches. The single wound up being played at a faster tempo than Holvay had written, but as it turned out, the public liked it. It became Bonafede’s (and Belloc’s) first and only number one hit: “Kind of a Drag.” More on Holvay/Beisbier compositions can be found on Carl Giammarese’s web site.

Bonafede’s “finds” and promotional/management skills also included young, up and coming DJs who played the dances where Bonafede would book them, places like the Holiday Ballroom.

Then as an agent with Willard Alexander and the CASK Agency, Bonafede booked performers including Mickey, Larry and the Exciters (featuring Mickey Esposito and Larry Alltop), and Ral Donner. He also produced music, over 255 records, for artists and groups including: the Rail City 5, Lincoln Park Zoo, Thee Prophets, The Delights, and more.

When Joe Pytel approached Carl Bonafede to ask him what he knew about The MOB and tell him how there were some people looking for members, but to no avail, Bonafede had an idea. He filled Joe in on how the band came to be formed, and turns out Bonafede had pictures (from the old days as a booking agent), and instructed Joe to “put the whole kitchen sink up on the wall, and see what comes back."

Bonafede may not have known how to use the Internet or personal computers, he had Joe (and later other talented social media friends) to help with that. What Bonafede had was an undertanding of how to get the word out and the power of promotion of a good cause, at which he was most accomplished as a behind-the-scenes kingmaker. At Bonafede’s suggestion, Pytel started creating YouTube videos of The MOB, to get more people talking on the Net.

Pytel purchased The MOB’s music from eBay, and in beloved vintage record stores, including Chicago favorite, Beverly Records. Joe initially used photos that Bonafede had given him of The MOB in the early days. Later, Joe connected with Alan Schrank, and even more video creations ensued.

Fortuitiously, it was not long afterwards that people started talking more about The MOB. That ultimately led to Ana Lord getting an e-mail from someone who suggested where she could find Al Herrera. No, there’s not an exact dotted line between the two events, but the buzz, the furor, the air of excitement about The MOB, and “finding those guys again” was ably assisted by the resources and wisdom of Carl Bonafede and his mentoree, Joe Pytel.

“How do you find all this stuff?” is a question that has been posed to Joe about 20 times in the last few weeks. Pytel’s researching skills are versatile. A devoted Chicago Blackhawks fan, Pytel can just as easily talk hockey stats as the classic rock music that he embraces. If he likes it, he learns everything he can about it.

Pytel honed some of his graphic skills working at his job for a printing specialty firm, plus his sons taught him a few tricks they knew. He’s a natural at figuring things out. His wife, Thaiz, is always an enthusiastic supporter of whatever it is Joe is researching at the time, so it’s a family affair, this passion for Chicago music.

His e-mail sign-offs can vary from “Chicago Joe” to Joseph, to JayJay331, his YouTube user handle found on more than 100 uploaded ‘finds’ of music where he’s created video montages set to favorite songs from the 60s forward.

For examples of Joe’s work in behalf of making the music of The Mob (and a substantial number of compositions penned by James Holvay and Gary Beisbier) rise to the forefront, visit this link, which is his personal YouTube channel.There you are going to find a lot of gems.

Everything that goes around comes around, and there are times when everything old is new again. To seven men, founding members of The MOB plus two more recent MOBsters, the renewed enthusiasm and excitement for their music can be traced back to several researchers, including Ana M. Lord, Joe Accardi, Mike Baker, Alan Schrank, and a few more who remain for someone to discover. But, add to that group the names Bonafede and Pytel. They’re two more of the heroes of Chicagoland Rock and Roll, on the road to Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Joseph also has a great sense of humor:

The MOB—From Chicago, IL to Sioux Falls, SD in 30 years or less: Andante

Third in a series of “How The MOB (one of Chicago’s first horn bands) landed in the South Dakota Rock & Roll Hall of Fame” in April 2011.

Andante to allegro

Know this: Ana M. Lord is a one-woman dynamo. A powder keg of excitement, quick mind, strong organizational skills, a sixth sense for timing, true determination. That’s Ana Lord to anyone who has met her, even one time.

Who she is to The MOB, a beloved 1960s R&B/soul/rock horn band, may be best described as the unseen hand of a guardian angel. For over 30 years, her presence escaped the knowledge of seven men from Chicago, who would one day come to know of her gifts and talents in their behalf.

Some 10 months ago, October, 2010, to be precise, James Holvay opened a letter he’d received from Don Fritz, President of the South Dakota Rock & Roll Music Association, informing him that The MOB had been selected to be inducted in their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. A formal ceremony was slated for April, 2011 at the Ramkota Exhibit Hall in Sioux Falls, SD. The Association wanted the band to attend, and perform in a grand finale concert.

Cue theme music: “Gotta get back, back on the road, back on the road again”, a song that is perfect accompaniment, featuring Jimmy Ford’s killer trumpet solos.

Ana Lord presently resides in the Bahamas, an advertising sales agent, who began her professional ad career from 1972 to 1987 in San Antonio, Texas with a group called TMC (Total Marketing), which was affiliated with the famous J. Walter Thompson Agency. Maybe it was there that she learned never to take ‘no’ for an answer.

About her first MOB sighting: “I first saw them perform in 1967, they were a fairly new group (having come from three different groups to form this unique conglomerate). It was in Jacksonville, Florida, where she heard this band, and it literally changed her life forever.

Says Lord, “I’d just turned 15 years old, and they were booked in to this club called The Forum. They were there for a two-week engagement at the Forum and as I had a modeling assignment there (they thought she was older), I fell in love with them, saw them every night. Then they left and I didn’t hear about them for 2 years.”

The next time she saw them was in Miami, when they did an engagement at The Marco Polo Club. “It was amazing. I was then in ‘MOB mania’. I saw them a couple of times but then I was busy and that was it. I didn’t see them again,” until one time later in Washington, DC.

“But off and on I kept thinking about them, wondering where they were”, she explained.

In the 1980s, “I was living in San Antonio where I was an advertising sales agent for this large firm, and a client in San Antonio wanted a really big group (like the Mob) for their special event. I remember trying to track them (The MOB) down. At the time I remember I was told that they had gone their separate ways. Some of them were in LA; they were all over the place. The guy I spoke with wasn’t too friendly and didn’t want to give me too much information.”

It was there her search hit a dead end. “I tried to find them and I couldn’t. We had the Internet back then, but there just wasn’t anything really there”. She had moved to the Bahamas from San Antonio for her career, and at a greater distance, you’d think that would have been the end of it. Nope. “Lo and behold, 2005, I was looking at the Internet trying to find them again”. Determined to find whatever she could find about them she finally hit on something that gave her hope. “I came across Joe Accardi’s Beloit Club Pop House (web) site. He had a whole page dedicated to The MOB with a photo, but he had not heard from any of them in a very long time, either.”

Another guy shared with her that “he’d heard through a friend of Jimmy Ford’s whereabouts, that he might possibly be somewhere in California”. Lord and two of her colleagues who had met her in this endeavor got busy. “We started to post...Alan Schrank and Joe Pytel were there, we started to post on Joe Accardi’s site (Club Pop House), asking ‘please, if anyone had any information on the MOB, please post it.’”

For researchers with doubts, forget it. The web retains virtually everything we post. This case is no exception: (http://pophouse.accardiweb.com/?p=16). The picture was posted October 16, 2006, and Accardi had been contacted by Holvay to share the correct ID (and spelling) of the names of his fellow MOBsters. Also on the page are Ana’s posts (see her there as ‘Twiggy’).

That would be the only single valid source for “who are these guys” to be found on the Web for several years. That’s an overwhelming realization when you look at the Internet today...The MOB, The MOB, The MOB everywhere. Well, actually that’s just been in the past two years. And longtime MOB fans have Lord, Schrank, Pytel, and Accardi to thank. Accardi took his collective memories of the best days of music there and published “Beloit’s Club Pop House (Images of America: Wisconsin). It’s available on Amazon.

When I’d noted to Lord, that in my own research 3 years ago, I’d seen her post on Mike Baker’s page as well, she said, “Yes, I posted there”, she laughs, “correct”. “We posted everywhere; it became an obsession with me trying to find the guys.” Dogged pursuit of a relentless researcher; got the visual?

Baker’s site is an excellent source of info for MOB aficionados, complete with some old press photos and some helpful timelines for who came into the band when and stayed for how long. It will be noted later, but it’s poignant to note that “Little Artie” Herrera was an original founding member of The MOB, with a powerful voice and great performing style. Yet, service to his country came first, and he left the band early, drafted to serve during the Vietnam war. The good news is he made it home, and the better news is that he made it to South Dakota. More on that later.

Lord continues, “In 2006 we were still posting, ‘where are the guys?’ We had some hopeful contacts”, but none of their leads turned out. One red herring was that Al Herrera was in San Diego with a car dealership, but when Ana checked that out, that went nowhere. It almost looked like the end of the line. “We couldn’t find them”, she stated.

In 2007 the 20th post on Accardi’s site read:

“Ana... Says:

November 29th, 2007 at 7:42 pm I have asked this before but got no reply. Does anyone know where any of the members of the Mob are today and how to get in touch with them? It would be so great if we could organize a MOB reunion. I would willingly contribute whatever it takes to make it happen.”

Then in early 2010, Lord received a post from a gentleman in Austin, Texas. “Ana, I know that you are looking for the MOB”, and he suggested a web site where to look. She continues, ”I went in there (to the site), and saw a post that referred to Al Herrera. It read, ‘Al is doing well, he’s in Chicago and he might be on Facebook’ and that was all it took.”

Immediately, Lord picked up the phone and called Alan Schrank, sharing, “I believe I found the first good lead”. Alan was on his way home and Lord recalled, “I think he almost had a heart attack” with that news. “By the time Alan got home, I had already gone on Facebook and started looking for Al”. Keep in mind it had been 40 years since she’d seen Herrera’s face and a fast Internet search notes there are 443 people named Al Herrera on one search site. Yes, it was going to be a long night for Lord.

“Facebook had a whole bunch of Herrera’s—I went through every one of them,” looking for the man belovedly known as Big Al. It took forever, but then she spotted it, a 1960s photo of a man sitting on a couch. “I clicked on it and lo and behold, it was Al Herrera.” “Oh my God,” she exclaimed.

“In the meantime, I’d already put feelers out to find Mike (Sistak). And next, I get this e-mail saying Mike Sistak is somewhere in Oregon”. I called Alan back and said, “Alan, I’ve found the guys; let’s go and start creating commotion on FB (Facebook).” Understatement of the year, 2010, grand prize winner.

Lord said, “I contacted Al Herrera. He was shocked, simply shocked to hear from me”, and then Alan Schrank came on board with gusto.

Ana explains, “You know, Alan who is a person who has loved The MOB even more than I do, and that is almost impossible. This man had every old photo, every cassette you could imagine, then he had tapes, every song that he could have found somewhere, anywhere. I have no idea where he found some of the songs, and he had a huge collection.” Lou Rawls once told Holvay that “in order to have a hit record you have to have all the stars in the sky line up in just the right way.” Something like that was going on for Messers Holvay, Sistak, Ford, Herrera, Herrera, Beisbier and, ultimately, Maligmat and McCabe.

Schrank said, “Ana, I am going to do a MOB (Facebook) site.” She replied, “Go for it,” and they were off. Lord said, “Then we learned that, wait a minute, South Dakota is having a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction. Let’s start a campaign to get the MOB in there.”

From there on it was smooth sailing. “After we found out (about the award process), Mike (Sistak) came on board. From there we learned where Bobby (Ruffino) was, tracked him down, then we learned where Jimmy Soul was, tracked him down, then we learned where Jimmy Ford was, and, of course, tracked him down”. So, the order of discovery was Al Herrera, Mike Sistak, Bobby Ruffino, James Holvay, and Jimmy Ford. Reminds you of the classic movie, “With Six You Get Egg Roll”. Well, in fact, a new movie that could be written, “With Seven (plus Lord, Schrank and Pytel), you get to South Dakota.”

“You can imagine our joy, and if you go back to FB you can see our early posts from 2010. Photos were being put on there from everywhere. Songs were being plastered all over YouTube (thanks to Joe Pytel, see Part V of this series). Between Joe (Pytel) and Al (Schrank), it was amazing the things they did on YouTube”, Lord says.

“Next, we started in on Facebook. We were saying, ‘Okay we’ve got to get the guys back together again. We’ve got to get the guys inducted’. And we put out messages: “MOB Fans: this is what you need to do, you need to call Don Fritz (SD R&R Music Association President) and Terry Tausz (Treasurer), and let’s start a campaign to have them included for the induction for their 2011 group.”

You can then imagine the process wherein she and her well-organized team began an intelligent campaign of letters supporting the nomination packet, noting facts, figures, and relevant information. There’d be exhibits, photographs, press clippings. Clearly, the SD R&R Music Association had likely never seen anything like that before.

The most incredible reality is that none of the MOB members were doing any of this, to try to seek any honor for themselves. They were likely as overwhelmed by their newfound appreciative audience as one could envision. A few band members scrambled to find some pictures, but the music came from Joseph Pytel sitting on the computer and purchasing CDs, mp3s, and he was a four-star eBay watcher. It was truly a 100% fan-driven effort, which makes it all the more priceless.

When asked if she’d ever been to the famed Mocamba Club in South Dakota, where The MOB had set attendance records in their heyday of the 70s, Lord replied “No”, but that she’d heard stories about it, how wonderful the club was. She did, however, refer to an audio CD of a live show recorded in 1969 at South Dakota’s Mocamba Club that “Jimmy Soul” (Holvay) had sent her as a gift.

The last time Lord had heard the band was in Washington DC, in the 1970s. She didn’t ever live in South Dakota. She’d never been to the state to know of their significant place in musical history for live music and particularly dynamic show bands. Boggles the mind.

Have you ever imagined an advocate for a cause dear to your heart more passionate, more determined, more devoted? Likely the answer is ‘no’. So anyway, that’s how it all came about. Lord says of what happened next, “From that point forward, it became mayhem, because we were all so excited”. It’s additionally poignant that two of the MOBsters, the dynamic writing duo of James Holvay and Gary Beisbier would compose a song that would never see the light of day (released to the public) at the time, and yet, today, it almost seems custom-written for Ms. Lord. The song? “All I Need”:

“...I’ve been lonely so long; I thought I’d never see the light.

Until you came along, I was always so uptight.

You opened my mind, set it free; it’s meant a lot.

Won’t you to listen to me?”

All I need is someone to love me like you, girl”. © Holvay/Beisbier (see related video)

The song was previously unreleased and stored away in a vault for years. But it did make it onto a special CD, “The MOB: The Heritage Sessions” (released 1995, Sequel Records). Naturally, Joseph Pytel found this track, and created another of his signature custom videos. Great music stands the test of time, no matter how long it has remained undiscovered.

The excitement in her voice some two years later still contains the inherent joy in Lord’s discovering something that had been a goal of hers for over 20 years. The subject of her search had been imprinted on her spirit ever since she was a young model. You never forget who, and what, is important to you during the development and maturity processes of your life.

And often, those who are inspirations of and to the hearts of music fans are entirely oblivious of the impact their work product, their talents, and their gifts to audiences can truly have.

Make no mistake. Lord is not a fan/groupie/fanatic/zealot to be dismissed or dumped into a category that is anything other than exemplary, stellar, and accomplished. It’s easy for perjorative thoughts to arise, particularly for female fans of music bands. Ana Lord is a lady, a gentlewoman, an educated person who simply refused to give up on a dream she believed in. Fortunately for the young men from Chicago, her faith in them, and her resolution that they were deserving of being lifted up and honored was far stronger than even their own self-image could possibly contain, and it remained thus for over 30 years.

Let’s be frank. Musicians have egos, if not pride. And thank goodness for that. If musicians don’t believe in themselves, you wouldn’t want to buy a ticket to hear a group of people standing there with instruments going, “uh...we’re not very good; you really don’t want to hear us, do you?” That said, musicians are often the most vulnerable and hardest on themselves when the applause dies down and the fans go away. If they have a life outside the music, they’re fortunate. Jim Holvay, today a successful Los Angeles-based business executive, has been known to say, “in life, wouldn’t it be great if everyone worked in an office where your boss came in at the end of the day and had everyone give you a standing ovation?” Imagine how people would feel about their jobs.

Ana Lord did just that, through her intelligence, her dedication, determination, and her indefatigable spirit, and the love of pursuing a mystery. Among other things, Ms. Lord is a modern-day Nancy Drew. It’s easy to see her in mind’s eye, driving the pathway in her sporty roadster, on a conference call with Alan Schrank, Joseph Pytel, and Mike Sistak about “wouldn’t it be great--if?”

The only sad note in this musical montage is that Ms. Lord was in the Bahamas on business the night of the induction ceremony and could not attend the very event that she had such an integral role in creating. If you’re wondering, she is safe from Hurricane Irene, and you can be sure that if The MOB is ever given another honor, or chance to perform for an audience, the band will have reserved front row, center, for Ms. Lord and her chosen guests. You can count on it. The story continues on the road to South Dakota.

Next...The Screaming Wildman, and his friend Joseph Pytel, work behind the scenes as, one more time, impresario Carl Bonafede helps make magic happen. That’s Part IV of “The MOB—From Chicago to Sioux Falls, SD in 30 years or less.” And remember the words of Alan Schrank, “The party’s not quite over.”

From the Heart, and for the Soul, of Chicago Music—Joseph Pytel’s Video Tributes to The MOB

Supplement to The MOB (4)—From Chicago, IL to Sioux Falls, SD in 30 years or less: Andantino

A Video Gallery of Music of The MOB, beloved Chicago horn-rock-R&B-soul band created for the Love of the Music crafted by Joseph L. Pytel, Jr.

Formula for Success—Add these four elements, and what do you get?

(1) Music by The MOB;

(2) Current-day reunion photography by Alan Schrank, plus his collection of vintage photos;

(3) Personal photos from the Mike Sistak Collection; and,

(4) Internet Ingenuity and Graphic Arts Wizardry by ”Chicago Joe” (aka JayJay331) Pytel

RESULTS: A video collective like no other, in tribute to The MOB, a favorite Chicago horn-rock band, revered and beloved for over 40 years by many across the United States and Canada.

See the accompanying story for more on the master of Chicagoland music montages. Here’s a sample of some of Pytel’s most creative videos set to music (found on YouTube) by The MOB:

All I Need (Holvay/Beisbier)

Back on the Road Again (Holvay/Beisbier)

Disappear (Holvay/Beisbier) [Arranged by Gary Beisiber]

Everyday People/Love Power (Sylvester “Sly” Stone)/(Warwick/Bacharach/Sager)

For a Little While (Holvay/Beisbier)

Goodtime Baby (Holvay/Beisbier)

I Dig Everything About You (Holvay/Beisbier)

I Feel the Earth Move (Carole King)

I Wish You Would Leave Me Alone (Holvay/Beisbier)

Love Has Got a Hold on Me (Holvay/Beisbier)

Make Me Yours (Bettye Swan)

Maybe I’ll Find a Way (Holvay/Beisbier)

Money (That’s What I Want) (Janie Bradford/Berry Gordy, Jr.)

Once a Man, Twice a Child (Holvay/Beisbier)

One Way Ticket to Nowhere (The MOB)

Savin' My Love for You (The MOB)

Tear the House Down (Beisbier/Holvay)

The Worst That Could Happen (Jimmy Webb)

Try A Little Tenderness (H. Woods/J. Campbell/R. Connelly) [Arranged by Holvay/Beisbier]

Two and Two Together (Holvay/Beisbier)

Where You Lead (Toni Stern/Carole King)

Who’s Shaking Your Jelly Roll (The MOB)

Looking ahead:

In Part 5 of this series, you’ll meet Alan Schrank, a dedicated, talented Sioux City (Iowa) photographer, who has maintained treasured photographs and music memories of The MOB for safekeeping over 40 years. When called upon to help, Schrank answered in a flash with camera and on Facebook. His onsite coverage of The MOB’s reunion week is included in the next installment.

The MOB—From Chicago, IL to Sioux Falls, SD in 30 years or less: Overture

Second in a series of “How The MOB (one of Chicago’s first horn bands) landed in the South Dakota Rock & Roll Hall of Fame” in April 2011.

Overture

What’s in a name? In music, it’s not everything. Sometimes it’s the only thing. In music, fans and friends remember your name and associate with that name who they believe you to be, individually and collectively. Presently, there are four different ‘bands’ known as “The MOB”. So, when you hear that The MOB was recently inducted into the South Dakota Rock and Roll Music Association Hall of Fame, did you know which one it was? The MOB, yes, but which one?

No, it’s not:

(1) the latest version of The M. O. B., with Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Steven Tyler and Jonny Lang (just some rock superstars, collectively for a single recording). The collaboration reportedly occurred so these four could record “Sharp-Dressed Man” for a ZZ Top Tribute Album (ZZ Top: A Tribute from Friends”, set for release October 11th)

(2) Then, there’s the Orlando, Florida-based band calling themselves “The MOB” (themobband.com), who play classic 60s, 70s, and 80s (3 guitars and drums, no horns). Since the recognition to the ‘real’ The MOB, the Floridians might best be thinking up a new name.

(3) Add in The M.O.B. from Rice University (as in Marching Owl Band, the ultraclever academic set who creates musical and media havoc every fall football season, (http://mob.rice.edu). By the way, they don’t march “ever”. They’re not going to change their names, but they’re too funny to watch to ask them to find a new name. No confusion when it’s a band with a (great) attitude for poking fun at their competition compared to a band with a great attitude having fun playing music.

So far, that’s three, and it’s still not THE “The MOB,” who took Sioux Falls, South Dakota by storm in April as they received an honor some 30 years in the waiting. Don’t even go trying to sort out the choices of their band on YouTube (without a guide where to search). Confused? Not if you know who you’re looking for: no, no, the real The MOB and their music. A beloved band of Chicago natives, formed in 1966, bringing together members from more than three professional bands. The group played for 14 years, toured as faithful road warriors, and amassed a large fan base who, seemingly, forgot all about them after the music ended. Or so they thought. Members of The (Real) MOB from Chicago (see photo and hear one of their classic songs in a tribute video, attached) and their stage names by which they introduced and identified themselves:

Mike Sistak (Mike Paris)

James Holvay (Jimmy Soul)

Jimmy Franz (Jimmy Ford)

Gary Beisbier (Gary Stevens)

Bobby Ruffino (Bobby Cheese)

Tony Nedza (Tony Roman)

Arturo Herrera (Little Artie)

Al Herrera (Big Brother Al)

For fans of the horn band that was created in Chicago in late 1966, you’d be hard pressed to forget their best work. Now you know their names, and CORRECT identity of which version of “The MOB” was celebrated this past April, in Sioux Falls, SD, with more than 2000 people had the privilege of hearing The MOB in person, in their first reunion in 35 years.

Check out Part III of “The MOB—From Chicago to Sioux Falls, SD in 30 years or less”. And remember the words of Alan Schrank, “The party’s not quite over.”

The MOB--From Chicago to Sioux Falls, SD in 35 years or less: Prelude

The following is the first in a series of “How The MOB (Chicago’s first horn band) landed in the South Dakota Rock & Roll Hall of Fame” in April 2011, and how one woman’s spark of ingenuity brought four strangers together in a single goal. Their mission? To give the gift of remembrance to 7 men who likely thought they’d long been forgotten, overlooked, disregarded and worse yet, cemented into obscurity.

Lord, Bonafede, Pytel, and Shrank—Ever heard of them? Probably not. No, they’re not a Michigan Avenue law firm, but they’re a powerhouse group nonetheless. They are behind-the-scenes movers and shakers who made their acquaintances two years ago, via Facebook, not in person, and managed to make some pretty exciting things happen for musicians who had not been together, much less seen each other, in 35 long years.

No, there was no acrimony that had broken up one of Chicago’s first-ever horn bands better known as “The MOB”. It was just that the music business had moved along without them, despite multiple attempts to harness the attention and support of national labels. As a fall-out to lack of results measured in vinyl sales, the young men, some newly married, had to face their futures square on. They could either remain traveling troubadours living in the world of “the band”, while playing at having a real life, or they could get off the road, find ‘real’ day jobs, and delight their families by settling down, once and for all, and getting perfectly serious about their futures.

‘Real’ life wasn’t such a bad alternative, but a choice was necessary—one or the other. You really can’t keep one foot in one world, and one in the other. When you’re on the road 250-300 nights a year, your home life can easily implode, as some members of the band known as The MOB would come to realize. The final trumpet sound was heard on New Year’s Eve, 1980, at the Bonaventure Hotel in Los Angeles. And with that sound, ended an era for a beloved band of Chicago natives, formed in 1966.

The group that had been the amalgam of three professional band entities had sought fame and fortune and toured as faithful road warriors for 14 years, many sacrificing personal lives to do so, and amassed a large fan base who, seemingly, forgot all about them after the music ended. Or so they thought.

Not the case. Memories of The MOB, their music, their songs, their countless 45s demos and singles, some LP albums, continuous club-booking and attendance records, in fact did not die, not completely. It’s possibly still unknown, by even some of the band members, how the 35-year musical drought ended and how their ‘old’ life came back to life one more time and culminated in one unforgettable night in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Those responsible ‘movers and the shakers’ are not names known throughout the music business, not really. But it’s often those outside the key lights who make big things happen. Their secret? Passion. Because they are passionate about their subject, these ‘kingmakers’ invested hours of hard work, for days, weeks, months, and even years, overlooking obstacles and frustration, to reach their goal. It’s a story worth sharing.

How ‘this’ version of The MOB came to find itself in Sioux Falls, South Dakota the third week in April, 2011 is also a poignant tale. Four separate independent variables intersected to revive the enthusiasm and the memories, for a groundbreaking reunion attended by over 2,000 people. And the kicker is that only one of the four kingmakers actually got to attend the awards evening they’d made possible. The best news is that the one who ‘did’ make it is a first-class photographer and graphic artist, so the pictures made up for the others missing the show. And there’s a DVD to talk about as well.

This, then, is the series on a superb Chicago horn band that waited politely for some 35 years to be heralded formally by a group of appreciative music afficionados, not in their own home town of Chicago, but in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The next story introduces The MOB, its members, and helps clear up some of the present-day confusion of “Who really is a (real) MOB member?” or “Who can truly call themselves a music MOBster?” To quote Alan Schrank, “The party’s not quite over”. Check out Part II of The MOB--From Chicago to Sioux Falls, SD in 35 years or less“.