8 • soundcheck 2010
PUNK INVASION Madelyn “Lucymad” Ropner fronts for one of SLO’s original punk acts, AK-47, during a raucous gig at the world famous Dark Room in the early ’80s.
! d n i Rew l past a c i s u m d e Our stoBrYi GLEN STARKEY
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sk any local music fan who’s been around for awhile, and they’ll have stories to tell about SLO County’s rich and varied music scene. For instance, most everyone has heard of the SLO County Band, which has been playing continuously for more than 135 years, starting first as the SLO Military Band founded in 1874 before changing its name in 1881. But folks have more personal stories as well, stories about USO shows at Camp San Luis or Camp Roberts, stories about family bands and annual public gatherings at places like Pozo Saloon or Madonna Inn. While it’s not possible to offer a thorough account of SLO’s musical history in these pages, Soundcheck picked the brains of a few people closely tied to the local music scene and pieced together some interesting moments in the county’s musical history.
PHOTO COURTESY OF MADELYN ROPNER
found out the point of the audition was the $50, but I got in and the next Sunday was my first gig at the Morman Church, which is now the Springfield Baptist Church. I played with a band for three hours and came home with $10, and then I played virtually every Friday and Saturday nigh for the rest of the year.” He was just 14 when he responded to an ad to play with Bob Calloway’s band. “It was a territory band, and I don’t think they realized how young I was when they hired me, but we toured for a month and when I came back I started my sophomore year at SLO High. I did that every summer until I graduated in 1949.” Pierce recalls all the old places like the Elmo Theater, Motel Inn, the Anderson Hotel when they had music every night, a
place called Blackie’s on Foothill, and the Log Cabin on Broad. One of the biggest changes to the local music scene was the fading power of Local 305. Union members made $10 for three hours or $12 for four, and it wasn’t too long before Pierce’s music career was bringing in more money than his father’s salesman job. “You could actually make a living in the old days,” said Pierce, who still plays three or four times a month in SLO, often leading his own project, The JP Jazz Band. “I don’t think you could today.” By the way, Jack Pierce eventually got his chance to play with Woody Herman. “When I finally got around to playing with him, he was three days older than dirt,” Pierce quipped. “He shuffled out onto stage, stooped over, but when the band PHOTO COURTESY OF JACK PIERCE
The old timer Jack Pierce is 78 years old and has been playing in SLO County since 1946 when he moved here as a junior high student. He recalled his initiation into music. “Back in those days they had honestto-God, real live radio programs, and I was probably 12 years old when I heard Woody Herman playing ‘Blue Flame,’” Pierce recalled. “Well, I ran and grabbed my mom and pulled her to the radio and said, ‘That’s what I want to do.’” Pierce soon learned to play clarinet, sax, and flute, and after his family moved to SLO from Santa Cruz, he convinced his father to let him audition for the musicians union, Local 305. “It cost $50 to join the union, which was a lot of money in those days, and I quickly
STILL WORKING Jack Pierce (standing) leads his ensemble, The JP Jazz Band, through its paces at Madonna Inn. He’s been playing continuously on the Central Coast since the mid-‘40s.
began to play, he rose to 6 feet tall and just came alive. He was an interesting guy. I found out that he took his first gold record and melted it down into a doorknocker. It was still on his house when he died.”
The aging surf god Whether or not you believe Merrell Fankhauser’s song “Wipe Out!” provided the basis for The Surfaris hit single of the same name, there’s no question he’s left an indelible mark on popular music. His songs with bands such as The Impacts, Exiles, Fapardokly, HMS Bounty, FankhauserCassidy Band, and MU have continued to be picked up for inclusion on oldies compilations. Now in his sixth decade of performing, he hosts a syndicated TV show that runs in California and Hawaii and performs regularly around the area. Back in 1960, he got his start playing locally in theaters between double features and at talent shows. The era of Local 305 and union gigs was waning, and rock’n’roll was on the rise. In addition to The Impacts, the area’s other big surf act was The Sentinals, known for their Latin tinge. The band’s drummer, John Barbata, went on to play with The Turtles and Jefferson Starship. Fankhauser also remembers a surf and R&B band called The Biscaynes, in which his friend Bill Todd played. “They had only had a few rare recordings on surf compilation LP’s,” he recalled. “Bill later joined me in 1967 in Fapardokly and in 1968 in HMS Bounty.” The big place to play in those days was the Rose Garden Ballroom (now Pancho’s Surf Shop), which was the site of The Impacts reunion concert in 1989. The group recorded three reunion CDs, the last one