gkynard

Well, I can tell you that I was able to hit Gary with another, highly obscure item in his brother's discography http://www.organissimo.org/forum/index.php...1&st=&p=entry and when I found out that he was also lacking all of Charles' Mainstream Records appearances, I hooked him up with our own Bill Fenohr and got him covered in that regard, too. ← Gary is still around, but now with a complete collection of Charles's music, thanks to the overwhelming generosity and kindness of two stellar individuals in Dan Gould and Bill Fenohr. There have been a number of family gatherings during which the newly acquired music made its debut to everyone's delight. Dan, some material is scheduled to be moved out of our storage unit over the upcoming July 4th holiday. That will make a way for me to get at the 2 or 3 gospel albums we did of Charles. Since I don't have the equipment to transfer from vinyl to electronic media, I will ship it to you in hopes that you can perform the magic. Has your address changed? gary@kynard.com

Here's a photo of Claude Fiddler and my uncle Ben Kynard (don't know the lady). Claude Fiddler photo Ben still gigs 2 to 3 times a month. Gary Kynard

Our dad, B.C. Kynard, played the alto and tenor sax. Our uncle Ben Kynard plays alto, tenor and baritone sax. I guess it was normal for Charles to play piano and organ! Someone had to accompany! Charles later mentioned that while in the Army band, he never had to carry anything when they marched and played. Also influencing Charles toward piano and organ was his mom, Fannie, who played piano rather well. Growing up in the church further underscored his piano and organ direction.

Thanks for the photo! If this one scares you, you should see the ones that scared me, and his family!

I've been looking for solo organ Gospel records for YEARS, but with very little luck. More information, please, including how to order this material! I will have to make an appointment with my storage unit to search for a remaining LP from the CGP records days. The name of the albums: Nostalgic Trip Vol I and II. I'll let you know what I find, although it will take a little while to move the mountain of belongings.

Charles would always mention Jimmy Smith as one who inspired him. While in Kansas City, he would often draw crowds to a series of "Battle of the Organs" where Charles and another great organist, Reginald Buckner would challenge one another like tap dancers often do. The crowd would be worked into a frenzy and long-extended standing ovations at their completion. Strangely, I've never heard any Reginald Buckner recordings.

QUOTE]One of my all time favorite albums of Charles Kynard is one call "Soul Brotherhood"

Glad to be here! I will look in the direction of military archives for Sullivan shows! Charles taught moderate to severely handicapped children for many years at a school in KC and also in a Los Angeles suburb. He was often lauded for his ability to "get through" and make a positive difference in the development and educational progress of the children. Music would enter his classroom on a regular basis to augment his efforts. Charles also operated a private music studio where he instructed organ lessons for students 8 years old to adult. He was the Minister of Music at the First AME church of Los Angeles and then First AME church of Pasadena. He was known for conducting in his tails and white tie during standing room only concerts featuring his operetic choir. We launched CGP Records (Charles, Gary, Paul) to record old traditional gospel tunes (organ only) for direct sale to the many churches across the nation that requested his performance. Charles left us as he loved to live his life, in the spotlight. He had a heart attack while performing on stage during the play Evolution of the Blues at the Westwood Theater across the street from the UCLA medical center. Help arrived almost immediately, but to no avail. At the time of his death in July of 1979, he was survived by his wife Alice and three kids, Jeff, Kimberly and Bradley.

Charles appeared with the band and was featured on one of the two numbers they played. They gave him pretty good camera time. They were in their uniforms. Would love to find a copy of that show! Gary

Thanks for the warm welcome to the forum. Charles spent time away from KC in the late 50's when he was in the Army band. He performed on the Ed Sullivan show during that time. After his return, he married and had his first son before pulling up stakes and heading to Los Angeles in 1963.

The Organissimo forum popped up on a recent search on Charles Kynard. Dan Gould had posted Charles' album, Where It's At, as the Album of the Week to review in July of 2003. My cousin, Brett and I are currently collaborating on photo selection of Charles Kynard to submit for induction to the Jazz Museum and The Blue Room located at 18th and Vine in Kanas City, MO. A follow-up with Dan Gould has resulted in a treasure of Charles Kynard recordings the Kynard family does not have. Dan's generosity is second to none as he has offered to fill the gap of the family collection of Kynard recordings. The internet is remarkable! One crowd-pleasing tune that was always requested of Charles at any live performance was his rendition of Ebb Tide. The supreme showman, Charles would flail his arms as he crescendoed the tune during the howling winds and crashing surf of the ebbing tide. Although you'd really have to SEE it to appreciate it, I still wonder if he ever recorded the piece. Does anyone know? Thank you for being there as an active forum to allow us to connect with our past! Gary Kynard