{"id":27165,"date":"2024-03-22T05:30:06","date_gmt":"2024-03-22T09:30:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/?p=27165"},"modified":"2024-03-22T14:26:40","modified_gmt":"2024-03-22T18:26:40","slug":"the-chocolate-watchband-is-still-rocking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/2024\/03\/22\/the-chocolate-watchband-is-still-rocking\/","title":{"rendered":"The Chocolate Watchband is Still Rocking"},"content":{"rendered":"

Legendary garage band\u2019s story isn\u2019t over yet<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

They\u2019re far from a household name, but among aficionados of sixties garage and psychedelic rock, the Chocolate Watchband is spoken of in reverent tones. The band\u2019s convoluted history is confusing \u2013 they aren\u2019t even present on some of the recordings issued under their name \u2013 but their legend lives on. They got their start in Los Altos in 1966, and a recent concert in L.A. seemed to be the final chapter of a long, fascinating saga. But it just might not be the end of that story.<\/p>\n

In 1966, David Aguilar was a student at San Jose State University; the so-called British Invasion was in full force. The Beatles, Rolling Stones and other groups had inspired a generation of American youth. \u201cThe music scene in the mid \u201860s was very vibrant,\u201d Aguilar recalls. \u201cIt was happening everywhere. It was amazing. All the kids that were in band in junior high and high school were now forming bands.\u201d He says that in those days, young bands had endless opportunities to play in front of audiences. \u201cIf you could get three songs together, you could play at fraternity parties, sorority parties, roller rinks, churches, schools.\u201d If you could learn a few chords, you were a musician; it was that simple.<\/p>\n

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The Chocolate Watchband\u2019s farewell gig, January 11 at the Whisky-a-Go-Go.
L-R: Mike Stax, David Aguilar, Anja Stax. Photo by Eric Vaughnes<\/p><\/div>\n

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Across the country, rock bands formed in most every city and town. And each city\u2019s scene seemed to develop a character all its own. While San Francisco was a major hub for music, the rest of the Bay Area had its own coterie of groups, like the Golliwogs from El Cerrito and The Count Five from San Jose.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen bands like the Jefferson Airplane, the Dead and Santana got together, some of them started writing music very early,\u201d Aguilar says. \u201cThey weren\u2019t doing covers of other people\u2019s songs. And because of that, they each had a distinctive sound.\u201d Those groups were playing in nearby places like San Jose, influencing younger aspiring musicians. \u201cThey were three to five years older than us,\u201d Aguilar says.<\/p>\n

The Syndicate (of Sound) was another one of those San Jose bands inspired by their San Francisco heroes. They\u2019re remembered today for their biggest hit, \u201cLittle Girl,\u201d included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum\u2019s \u201cone hit wonder\u201d exhibit. \u201cThey were amazing,\u201d Aguilar says. \u201cA new Beatles song would come out on a Friday afternoon, and by the weekend they would have learned it, and then they played it live.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the Chocolate Watchband, fronted by lead singer David Aguilar, took a different path. \u201cWe decided that we were going to pick obscure b-sides of 45s \u2013 many of which had not been released in the United States \u2013 rearrange them, and do them ourselves.\u201d Aguilar says that if the group had stayed together longer, they would have moved toward all original material. \u201cBut we were too young. We were just beginning to get our chops together and understand what our sound was.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quickly building a buzz, Aguilar\u2019s group played the Fillmore in San Francisco, sharing a bill with Frank Zappa\u2019s Mothers and Lenny Bruce (in his final performance). They even appeared in a legendary teen exploitation film, Riot on Sunset Strip<\/i>. The Chocolate Watchband were something of an underground success, but their progress would be confounded by record industry meddling. The band made three albums in the \u201860s, but \u2013 without the group\u2019s knowledge \u2013 their producer recorded many songs with studio musicians, passing those tracks off as the real thing. Nonetheless, the group waxed a fistful of classics, including \u201cAre You Gonna Be There (At the Love-in)\u201d and \u201cLet\u2019s Talk About Girls.\u201d<\/p>\n

Aguilar left in 1967, and by 1969 the group was no more. That might have been the end of the story, but the music of the Chocolate Watchband would be rediscovered by subsequent generations. In the \u201870s, Lenny Kaye curated Nuggets<\/i>, a compilation of garage and psychedelic tracks including \u201cLet\u2019s Talk About Girls.\u201d A 4CD boxed set reissue in 1998 featured two more songs from the band.<\/p>\n

That same year, Bay Area author-historian Richie Unterberger\u2019s book, Unknown Legends of Rock \u2018n\u2019 Roll<\/i> featured a chapter that untangled the complicated history of the group. Renewed interest led to a reunion of sorts, spearheaded by Mike Stax, editor of influential music magazine Ugly Things <\/i>and <\/i>leader of garage revival band The Loons.<\/p>\n

For his part, Aguilar had long since left music, going into the aerospace industry and working at Harvard. But he took part in the reunion, and that endeavor inspired new Chocolate Watchband recordings. For the next two decades, various lineups of the band mounted occasional reunions and tours, all of which were well-received.<\/p>\n

Last December, Aguilar sent an email to his fan base, announcing an upcoming performance at Hollywood\u2019s famed Whisky-a-Go-Go, billed as the final concert by the Chocolate Watchband. With most of his old bandmates long having since passed away, he had been carrying the torch. In part, the email read, \u201cSilently standing next to me will be Mark Loomis, Sean Tolby, Billy Flo Flores and \u2018Killer,\u2019 aka Gary \u2018the kid\u2019 Andrajasevich. Together we will play the tunes that appeared on our albums for all the world to hear and enjoy one last time.\u201d<\/p>\n

For that performance, Aguilar had hoped to rally the most recent lineup of the group, but it wasn\u2019t to be. \u201cWhen the request came through, none of the band members wanted to do it,\u201d he explains. \u201cThere wasn\u2019t enough money for them; they had other projects.\u201d So Aguilar reconnected with his old friends Mike and Anja Stax. \u201cI had played with the Loons in San Diego and in Europe,\u201d he says. \u201cI liked them, and they were younger than me. They were energetic.\u201d<\/p>\n

So backed by The Loons, Aguilar took to the stage on January 11. \u201cI blessed them just before we went on stage,\u201d he says with a laugh, \u201cand I made them all official Chocolate Watchband members.\u201d By all accounts the show was a success. \u201cThey were loose, and they were strong,\u201d Aguilar says. \u201cAnd it amazed me how well they knew the songs. I felt like a kid up there again.\u201d<\/p>\n

That Whisky show might have seemed like the close of the long and winding Chocolate Watchband saga. But Aguilar has other plans. \u201cWe didn\u2019t have hit records, and we didn\u2019t get to travel the world,\u201d he concedes. \u201cBut I\u2019ve been in countries where they barely speak English, and our music is huge. And to see an audience singing these obscure songs back at you at the same time you\u2019re singing them, it\u2019s truly astounding.\u201d<\/p>\n

Aguilar reveals that he has a massive trove of unheard material. \u201cIt\u2019s a mixture of stuff,\u201d he explains. There\u2019s an album\u2019s worth of unreleased Chocolate Watchband songs from 2000, and piles of tracks he has made either by himself (\u201cI play everything except lead guitar,\u201d he says) or with an assortment of fellow musicians.<\/p>\n

He says that these songs are very personal, designed to fill what he sees as a void. \u201cI miss creative music that talks about the here-and-now and what\u2019s going on in the world,\u201d he says. \u201cSo you\u2019re going to hear a song about everybody who wants to have their own YouTube page. And there are songs that you\u2019re going to listen to and say, \u2018That sounds like the Mothers of Invention!\u2019 I love variety.\u201d<\/p>\n

Aguilar promises a half dozen albums\u2019 worth of new Chocolate Watchband music in 2024. But don\u2019t look for it in your local record store, or on Amazon. Conjuring the spirit of the \u201860s, he\u2019s giving it away. \u201cI will announce it on Bandcamp (thechocolatewatchband.bandcamp.com), and post a news release to let people know that it\u2019s coming,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Long after most of his contemporaries have passed on or retired to a quiet life, Chocolate Watchband frontman David Aguilar has much left to do. \u201cThere have been so many wonderful surprises and opportunities to meet the people who have listened to my music,\u201d he says. \u201cFor me, that last show was a really nice thank-you. Who would have thought that at this point in my life, I\u2019d be putting on red and black striped pants and jumping out there on stage? And for that hour, I am 19 years old, and I am just loving it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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