Sanctuary in 1979; from left: Robert Shangrow, Craig Lawrence, Dana Brayton, Fred Taylor
In 1978 I met two people who would have a lasting effect on my musical life. The first
is the woodwinds maestro Craig Lawrence, with whom I have enjoyed a productive professional life and warm friendship
ever since. The other was the pianist/composer Dana Brayton, originally from Hartford, CT. We met through Craig
while Dana and his wife, Carol, were students at the U.W. A fine player and gifted composer, Dana's compositions
formed the heart of Sanctuary, which performed widely around the Puget Sound region for almost three years before
Dana and Carol moved back east to Boston, where he died in 2005 at the age of 53. Our original bassist was David
Frierman from Portland, OR, who appears on these two tracks. Robert Shangrow of Seattle played most of our gigs with
us later on. Our very first gig was a live radio broadcast on the wonderful and sorely-missed KJZZ-AM in Bellevue,
WA.
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JazzDance in 1980; from left: J. Andrew 'Andy' Carr, Fred Taylor, Craig Schroeder, Craig Lawrence, Larry Turner
The friendship with Craig Lawrence led to my getting the drum seat in one of the best bands I've ever played with - JazzDance. This was a band that
could play anything - and we did, with music from the early teens up through the early 80s (when we disbanded). This band used to
OWN the Pioneer Square clubs! The fantastic arrangements by Andy Carr were just one of the highlights. Andy Carr-keyboards and vocals; Craig Schroeder-trumpet, lead vocals; Craig Lawrence-woodwinds; Larry Turner-bass; Fred Taylor-drums. |
Janice Lakers in 1982
In the late 70s I began a very productive period working with some very popular musicians in clubs in the Pioneer Square district of Seattle.
I was recommended for the gig with this very fine singer, who went off to Europe in the early 1980s and is still living and singing over there.
She did a fantastic vocal track on the song 'Rio Skyline' by the guitarist Brian Chambers on my first album, 'Court of Circe'.
Janice Lakers - vocals; Dick Cady - piano; Mike Edwards - woodwinds; Larry Turner - bass; Fred Taylor - drums. Recorded by John Nelson at
Crow Recording in Wallingford 1979.
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Cassette box insert for the 'Robert X and the Rays' demo 1991
Robert X. Wolf is a drummer, singer, and keyboardist. In 1991 I was recommended for this demo, which included my old friends Keith Baggerly,
Joe Roderick, Gary Rollins, and Mikel Rolins. Keith, Gary, and Joe and I had worked together a lot in a great little band led by Joe. All the
songs were originals by Robert and Joe. The band performed for a short time around the Seattle area.
Songs (c) 1991 Robert X. Wolf and Joe Roderick
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Olympic College Jazz Ensemble November 1972
In late 1972, when I left Jerry Hegarty's country band and returned to the Northwest, it was with the intent to follow through with my
plan to attend Olympic College, in Bremerton, WA. OC had one of the pioneering college jazz programs, under the very talented educator
and arranger Ralph Mutchler. The reknowned trumpet/saxophone/vocal talent Floyd Standifer, who was a bandmate of Quincy Jones and
a well-known and loved fixture on the Seattle jazz scene, was an instructor at the school and performed with the jazz ensemble.
This concert was taped in the college lounge, in the late fall. The first tune has a title and a composer-all of which are forgotten for the time being. But the
tune is great, and Floyd really stands out with the extended fluegelhorn lead. As soon as I find out the title I'll post it.
The Midnight Cowboy Medley was a big Rich hit - I had never heard it before sight-reading it once before this gig. If I had heard it, I'd have known that the
second, funky piece was supposed to be played at double-time, instead of half-time - a conductor error that the whole band got wrong! I was 18 when we did this.
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CC ("Pinky") Pinckney in Vancouver B.C. 1980
Right after I got out of college in the spring of 1973, I found a great band with whom I spent several years traveling across the U.S.
This was a great funk/jazz/lounge band called Tickled Pink. Its leader, Clarence 'Pinky' Pinckney, was a great vocalist, trumpeter, saxophonist,
and drummer. We worked with a Hammond organ, guitar and drums. In the winter of 1974-75,
Pinky's agent found us a sweet sit-down gig at the grand opening of a new Colorado ski resort - Keystone. The lineup was Pinky, myself, Merlin Bell on
Hammond and Terry I-can't-remember-his-last-name on guitar. We had a wonderful 6-month gig at this beautiful place, which sits right at the top of the
Colorado Rockies in Summit County. One night we were entertaining the multinational, beautiful crowd and someone had a tape recorder going. Note the
'arrangement' of Squib Cakes (Tower of Power) with the mystery 7/8 bar... Pinky is still holding forth in Oswego, New York and gigging up there. |