The Smiley Smile Message Board

I was just revisiting some Midnight Special performances and was blown away by Native American Redbone's performance of "Come and Get Your Love," even better, IMO, than the record. That baseline...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0J6vURwLSc


It triggered some curiosity about their early days as musicians and ...viola! It seems that "...  the brothers attempted to cash in on the surf craze popularized by Jan and Dean and the Beach Boys, with such songs as "Gypsy Surfer" and "Wax 'em Down" on the Chancellor label, and "The Phantom Surfer" on the Regency label. {As}The Avantis featured future Beach Boy drummer Mike Kowalski, and their recordings earned them an opening slot on a Beach Boys' tour. Who knew?!

http://www.redbone.be/History/Origins.html

Wow! I never knew the Vasquez brothers were behind so many amazing '60s records. That's a real eye-opener...

I used to love this one of Redbone's. Super-tight!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Zp5cr7lHHc

AGD's site mentions The Marketts opening for the Boys on 27 September, 1962 at The Row, USC campus, Los Angeles. I wonder if Pat and Lolly were with them at this time. (I didn't see any mention of The Avantis.)  

http://esquarterly.com/bellagio/gigs6162.html



  

They performed under number of names in a few configurations - The Crazy Cajun Cakewalk Band is one, which reflects their swampy rock funk rock style, although they were Native American-Mexicans from Fresno, LOL. They were session musicians with Glenn Campbell, Leon Russell, and "discovered" by Jimmy Hendricks.They "got around!"

(Drummer) "Butch Rillera first met Pat and Lolly in the early 60s when he played a surf concert in Fresno, California with a band called the Lively Ones.  Pat and Lolly’s Crazy Cajun Cakewalk band were also on the bill, with The Beach Boys headlining.)
http://www.markguerrero.com/23.php

Fascinating article. Only the name The Crazy Cajun Cakewalk Band comes from the late '60s, according to that same artlcle (and elsewhere):

"In the late 60s, Pat and Lolly Vegas formed their own group called The Crazy Cajun Cakewalk Band. Their original drummer was Ed Greene, who went on to become one of the top studio drummers in Hollywood.  When they added Tony Bellamy on guitar and Peter 'Walking Bear' DePoe on drums, who was of Cheyenne Indian heritage, the four decided on the name Redbone."

According to AGD's site, on April 5, 1965 the Boys played "Melodyland Theater, Anaheim CA [2 shows - w/The Munsters Singing Group, Pat & Lolly and The Vegas Trio [sic]]" (http://esquarterly.com/bellagio/gigs65.html). Ian Rusten & Jon Stebbins correct that to "the Pat and Lolly Vegas Trio" (p. 58 of their book) and mention Mike Kowalski as then being a member of that band.

As for the Lively Ones, IR & JS list two BB gigs in 1962 on which they played: October 27 at the Hollywood Bowl (at least one of two shows there that day, with long lists of artists ending with "and others", which doesn't rule out Pat and Lolly, pp. 13-14) and December 1 in Van Nuys (CA) with a finite list (i.e. no Pat and Lolly, p. 14, also at AGD's site). I also noticed in IR & JS that the Surfmen (who became the Lively Ones) gigged with the boys at Oxnard on July 14.    

All grist to the mill. :hat

Yep. It's interesting who played with whom/had connections back in the day. I'm always fascinated in the same way with the British connections during the same era: Jon Lord/Cat Stevens, Yardbirds and so on.   

Always loved Maggie...and The Witch Queen of New Orleans as well as Come and Get Your Love.  I guess these guys could really ROCK.  Proud First Nations guys too. 

What's the Lord/Stevens connections, B? I can't find it anywhere, not even in Pete Frame's fantastic Rock Family Trees...

I never realized "Come And Get Your Love" was Redbone! I remember hearing it at the time. Brilliant song, brilliant live version!

RIP, Lolly Vegas and Tony Bellamy.

Yikes! Was sleep-deprived when I wrote that. I meant Rick Wakeman, later of Yes. As the story goes, Steven's rendition of the hymn was way too short. He had overheard Wakeman working on what would become "Catherine Howard" and asked him to adapt it as an intro, middle, ending. Wakeman was reluctant, but convinced to do it,as well as play on the track and more,  for the princely sum of 10 pounds. He didn't get the money until Islam returned to performing many decades later. Rick tells the whole story here:

http://www.harmonycentral.com/forum/forum/Forums_General/acapella-50/31892015-rick-wakeman-s-anecdote-on-creating-morning-has-broken-with-cat-stevens

That's beautiful! Rick is a born story-teller.

He's been an occasional guest panelist on the UK satirical TV show Have I Got New For You. On one occasion he told that he'd written and performed something for a musical of some kind----looking it up, it was probably King Arthur on ice at Wembley Stadium. There was a scene in it when two equal sized armies of knights fought one-to-one until they'd all killed each other. One occasion one of the participants was ill or something. So they got to the end of this scene and there was one knight left! The conductor of the orchestra was glaring at him to get off the ****ing stage! After wandering around aimlessly for a bit, he ran himself through! :lol     

Love it!

I forgot to mention the song in question re: the Rick Wakeman/Cat Stevens connection: "Morning Has Broken."

I compiled the gig info for bellagio and for our book-differences are that I can still update bellagio 😏 I believe I added more about opening acts to 1962-63 recently. Kowalski was with the vegas at that April 65 show

Interesting! Thank you.