{"id":262,"date":"2010-07-08T05:40:33","date_gmt":"2010-07-08T10:40:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/?p=262"},"modified":"2010-07-08T05:40:33","modified_gmt":"2010-07-08T10:40:33","slug":"feature-paul-revere-the-raiders-part-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/2010\/07\/08\/feature-paul-revere-the-raiders-part-4\/","title":{"rendered":"Feature: Paul Revere & the Raiders (part 4)"},"content":{"rendered":"

In connection with the 2010 Collectors\u2019 Choice Music release of the 3CD compilation <\/em>The Complete Columbia Singles [review here<\/a>], I arranged a series of extensive, in-depth interviews with former members of 60s hitmakers Paul Revere and the Raiders. I was fortunate to gain insights from vocalist Mark Lindsay; bassist Phil \u201cFang\u201d Volk; guitarists Jim \u201cHarpo\u201d Valley and Keith Allison; and Raiders manager Roger Hart. In a modest tribute to Raiders guitarist Drake Levin \u2013 he passed away on July 4, 2009 \u2013 I\u2019d like to present PART FOUR of this five-part Raiders feature. \u2014 bk<\/em><\/p>\n

The Happening <\/em>Era<\/strong>
\nIn 1967, Paul Revere<\/strong> and Mark Lindsay<\/strong> went to Memphis and filmed a pilot for a planned TV show called Treasure of \u201967<\/em>, but that project failed to materialize. A local station (WHBQ) had just installed color cameras, so the pair produced an off-the-cuff program in hopes of selling sponsors on the idea. Lindsay laughs as he recalls the \u201clast-minute\u201d nature of the program, complete with \u201cspray-painted paper plates\u201d decorating the wall and naughty banter that could never make it onto TV. At one point in the program, Lindsay turns to Revere, who\u2019s wearing a frog sock puppet on his hand, and says, \u201cGet the frog out of my face!\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Roger Hart<\/strong> had suggested to Dick Clark<\/strong>\u2019s people that they should develop a show for Revere and Lindsay, based on, in his words, \u201cwhatever\u2019s happening in music.\u201d What came out of those meetings was the weekly program Happening <\/em>(and later a companion daily show called It\u2019s Happening<\/em>). Their co-host on some programs was a former co-star from their WTAI <\/em>days, solo artist Keith Allison<\/strong>. The Raiders and Allison had toured together for years; Allison would open the show, and then return mid-set to be backed by Revere\u2019s band. Allison had also contributed as a session musician to the singles \u201cUps and Downs\u201d and \u201cHim or Me \u2013 What\u2019s It Gonna Be?\u201d In 1968 Revere approached Allison to join the group on bass. \u201cBe in the studio next week,\u201d Allison recalls Revere telling him. He showed up in time to play on the single, \u201cCinderella Sunshine.\u201d<\/p>\n

By 1968 the band settled into a lineup of Lindsay and Revere plus southerners Freddy Weller<\/strong> on guitar, Keith Allison on bass, and Joe Correro Jr.<\/strong> on drums. While the 1968 album Goin\u2019 to Memphis<\/em> was a Raiders album in name only (Lindsay recorded all songs — except the single \u201cPeace of Mind\u201d — in Memphis with producer Chips Moman<\/strong> and his stable of sessioners), the next three — Something Happening<\/em> (1968), Hard \u2019N\u2019 Heavy (with Marshmallow)<\/em> (1969) and Alias Pink Puzz<\/em> (1969) \u2013 were more band-centered projects. \u201cOn Hard \u2019N\u2019 Heavy<\/em>, it\u2019s all us,\u201d says Allison. \u201cThat\u2019s all Freddy, Joe and me. We played everything on it. Glen D. Hardin<\/strong> played keyboards\u201d on a few tracks, he says, but \u201cI played keyboards on a lot of the stuff in Paul\u2019s absence; he was already up in Idaho.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the Sixties<\/strong>
\nIn the new decade the hits slowed down (\u201cdiminishing returns\u201d for their efforts, says Hart). Lindsay and Weller both had successful solo careers in tandem with their Raiders work, and concerts of the era included selections from their solo records in addition to Raiders hits. The latter were often condensed into medleys, since the length of a typical concert didn\u2019t allow for performance of all of the Raiders\u2019 long list of hit singles.<\/p>\n

The surprise success of another Raiders-in-name-only cut, \u201cIndian Reservation,\u201d in 1971 reinvigorated the group as a concert draw, but the rocking 1970 Collage <\/em>LP bore little resemblance to that sound. By the early-to-mid 1970s Paul Revere and the Raiders was more of a live revue than an album-making outfit.<\/p>\n

Even though the music got heavier, Raiders concerts didn\u2019t bow toward the musical excesses of the era: Paul Revere and the Raiders never did drum solos. \u201cIn February \u201972 we went into Vegas,\u201d Allison recalls. \u201cThe first two rock acts to play Las Vegas were Elvis <\/strong>and us. We were at the Flamingo, and he was at the Hilton.\u201d<\/p>\n

The group had retired the Revolutionary garb shortly after the departure of Phil Volk<\/strong>, Mike Smith<\/strong> and Drake Levin<\/strong> in favor of \u201chigh-fashion street clothes,\u201d in Allison\u2019s words. By the early 70s they wore \u201cjumpsuits with a yoke up the front, and rhinestones and shit\u201d like Elvis, Allison laughs. Coming full circle, when the Raiders went to Vegas they again donned the uniforms.<\/p>\n

While gigs in Las Vegas and on the oldies circuit suited Revere, the other members slipped away one by one. By 1975 Allison and Lindsay had left, and the recording era of the group was effectively over. Revere continued the group as a live act with various other musicians, and as of 2010 continues to perform with a lineup based in Branson, Missouri. Hart likens the Raiders\u2019 ever-changing lineup to \u201ca well-oiled machine, with occasional spare parts.\u201d<\/p>\n

The final segment<\/a> of this five-part Raiders series will examine unreleased material and the group\u2019s enduring legacy.<\/em><\/p>\n

Follow \u201cthe_musoscribe\u201d on Twitter<\/a> and get notified
\nwhen new features, reviews and essays are published.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In connection with the 2010 Collectors\u2019 Choice Music release of the 3CD compilation The Complete Columbia Singles [review here], I arranged a series of extensive, in-depth interviews with former members […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-262","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-interview","cat-41-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/262","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=262"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/262\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=262"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=262"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=262"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}