Paul Revere, RIP

[GA Russell]

Paul Revere has died of cancer at 76. RIP.

I never got to see him, but 20 years ago I saw Mark Lindsay in concert in Atlanta, and he was great!

And of course, I got a big chuckle out of Joe Flaherty's take on "the piano stylings of Paul Revere" on SCTV.

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/music/paul-revere-raiders-rock-band-dies-76-article-1.1964054

[mjzee]

The first album I ever bought was a mono copy of Midnight Ride. RIP.

[Chuck Nessa]

He did the US a great deed - oh, wait, forget that.

[BFrank]

"Kicks" was one of the first singles I ever bought. I wouldn't say they were a great group, but they had some better than average hits.

[JSngry]

I'll say they were a great singles band, and mean it. One of those bands whose "Greatest Hits" hits type albums will be perfectly suited.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

I bought their first single, 'Like long hair' back in the day. Well, was it their first? - first to come out here. A lot of bands were doing rock-classical instrumentals back then. Even junk music was interesting.

RIP Paul Revere.

MG

[Bill Nelson]

The first single I bought was 'Just Like Me'. Ya gotta love Paul Revere's greezy keyboard. Played that 45 until the grooves turned white.

As a neo-garage punk band, the image of PR & The Raider's colonial outfits made them acceptable to Middle America and got them a TV variety show on ABC.

Have to thank Terry Melcher and their handlers for that.

[CraigP]

Always have a soft spot for Mark Lindsay's "Arizona". Loved that song as a kid for some reason.

[GA Russell]

The first single I bought was 'Just Like Me'. Ya gotta love Paul Revere's greezy keyboard. Played that 45 until the grooves turned white.

Bill, I think that Just Like Me was my third single! I felt it had the same vibe as The Kingsmen's Louie, Louie.

[A Lark Ascending]

Was the name 'Paul Revere' a reference to the so-called British Invasion...or did it precede that?

[Shawn]

One of the first records I ever remember hearing was the song "Hungry" by Paul Revere & The Raiders, I was probably about 3 years old at the time.

[GA Russell]

Was the name 'Paul Revere' a reference to the so-called British Invasion...or did it precede that?

Bev, no. As the obit linked above says, his real name was Paul Revere Dick.

Wikipedia says that the band took the name in 1960, and their first regional hit was Like Long Hair in 1961.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Revere_%26_the_Raiders

The British Invasion (music on the radio) started in January of '64.

[A Lark Ascending]

Maybe he just knew in advance that the British were coming.

Thanks

[CraigP]

Every time I read about a pop/rock musician from the 60's/70's, I always wonder if they ever made any money from their endeavors. Seems like it was a crapshoot, some did and some didn't.

[JSngry]

I think Revere was a pretty good businessman, or at least became one. That band worked the oldies/state fair circuit for a loooooooong time, and I'm somehow under the impression that it was his business, not a front for somebody else's enterprise. I don't know how much of the original money he made, if you know what I mean, but I do think he at least came out of it being his own puppet.

I mean, for archetypical AM Teen Pop-Rock between 1966 & 1969 or so, was there really anything better than this?

Just shut up, play it LOUD, Play It VERY LOUD, jump up and down (literally or otherwise), laugh your ass off, and then get back to reality (which, if you were a teen at the time, say whaaaaat?, but now, hey). That's what I want out of this stuff, and damn if I can find anything better for getting it. Limited function, but maximum efficiency.

[mikeweil]

It may seem unlikely for a German music fan, but the very first LP I ever bought was "The Spirit of '67" ... I had heard some of their singles on the rado, liked 'em, and that album was the first I could find. None of my classmates knew that band - I always went for something different. I always liked the groove of US bands better than that of British groups, the Rascals were my favourite, for their blue eyed soul tinge, but rock-wise, it was the Raiders. I might still have that LP ... R.I.P.

Edited October 7, 2014 by mikeweil

[JSngry]

Yeah, the Rascals were another one, great singles band, back when pop radio was a sustainable life style and such things really mattered. And they matured a helluva lot too, really grew into some neat musical shit.

[GA Russell]

I think Revere was a pretty good businessman, or at least became one. That band worked the oldies/state fair circuit for a loooooooong time, and I'm somehow under the impression that it was his business, not a front for somebody else's enterprise. I don't know how much of the original money he made, if you know what I mean, but I do think he at least came out of it being his own puppet.

Jim, I think he was always the boss.

Do you remember on Where the Action Is when the three members of the rhythm section were replaced one by one, so that only Revere and Lindsay were left? (I remember that one of the replacements was Freddie Weller, who went on to enjoy some success in country music.)

I once read that Revere had a strict "no drugs" policy. The three rhythm section guys wanted to smoke grass, so they quit the band.

[BFrank]

I'll say they were a great singles band, and mean it. One of those bands whose "Greatest Hits" hits type albums will be perfectly suited.

I'd have to agree with that. This IS a great collection!

[Shawn]

I'll say they were a great singles band, and mean it. One of those bands whose "Greatest Hits" hits type albums will be perfectly suited.

I'd have to agree with that. This IS a great collection!

Yes, that was the album I heard. Left at my Grandmother's house by either my Mother or Uncle, all of my early music experiences were a stack of albums and 45s that they didn't take with them when they each went to college.

[sgcim]

Just recently, I remembered that PR &TR were the first rock concert I ever attended. It was at some hall on LI, and all I remember was that it didn't sound at all like the record...

I remember a priest played "Kicks" for us at Sunday School, and followed it with a lecture on the evils of drugs. .

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

I think Revere was a pretty good businessman, or at least became one. That band worked the oldies/state fair circuit for a loooooooong time, and I'm somehow under the impression that it was his business, not a front for somebody else's enterprise. I don't know how much of the original money he made, if you know what I mean, but I do think he at least came out of it being his own puppet.

I mean, for archetypical AM Teen Pop-Rock between 1966 & 1969 or so, was there really anything better than this?

Just shut up, play it LOUD, Play It VERY LOUD, jump up and down (literally or otherwise), laugh your ass off, and then get back to reality (which, if you were a teen at the time, say whaaaaat?, but now, hey). That's what I want out of this stuff, and damn if I can find anything better for getting it. Limited function, but maximum efficiency.

Yeah, he does seem to have been a decent businessman, according to Wiki, owned several restaurants in his early twenties.

Early years[edit]

Initially based in Boise, Idaho, the Raiders began as an instrumental rock band led by organist and founder Paul Revere Dick (January 7, 1938 in Harvard, Nebraska – October 4, 2014 in Caldwell, Idaho).[2][3] In his early 20s, Revere owned several restaurants in Caldwell, Idaho[4] and first met singer Mark Lindsay (born March 9, 1942, Eugene, Oregon)[5] while picking up hamburger buns from the bakery where Lindsay worked [4] The circumstance of their meeting was later referred to in the tongue-in-cheek song "Legend of Paul Revere", recorded by the group. Lindsay joined Revere's band in 1958. Originally called The Downbeats, they changed their name to Paul Revere & The Raiders in 1960 on the eve of their first record release for Gardena Records. The band garnered their first hit in the Pacific Northwest in 1961, with the instrumental "Like, Long Hair". The record had enough national appeal that it peaked at No. 38 on the Billboard chart on April 17, 1961.[6][7] When Revere was drafted for military service, he became a conscientious objector[4] and worked as a cook at a mental institution for a year and a half of deferred service. During the same time period, Lindsay pumped gas in Wilsonville, Oregon.[4] On the strength of their Top 40 single, Lindsay toured the U.S. in the summer of 1961 with a band that featured Leon Russell taking Revere's place on piano.[4]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Revere_%26_the_Raiders

I have the feeling 'Like long hair' might have done better on Cash Box than Billboard. Cash Box was the chart a nice girl in a record store in Bond Street used to get for me in those days. (Cash box was a lot more focused on indie record companies so they probably organised their chart surveys differently.)

MG

[Brad]

Some good hits, Kicks most notably. Other than that.....

[Homefromtheforest]

I remember seeing Paul Revere & the Raiders as a young pre-teen kid at the Northwest Washington fair in Lynden, WA around the early 80s...I don't remember much detail but do recall the show was a lot of fun and he was a great frontman!