Monthly Archives: January 2016

Birthdays, Music et al, Music of the 60s, Woodstock Music and Art Fair

Keyboardist Chick Churchill

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Keyboardist Chick Churchill

Keyboardist Chick Churchill

Classical studies

Michael George “Chick” Churchill was born on January 2, 1946 in Ilkeston, Derbyshire.

Chick  began playing piano when he was six and was doing classical studies until he met the blues in 1961.

While part of the Sons of Adam, he met Alvin Lee whose band then was called the Jaybirds.

Churchill joined first as a road manager and then as a keyboardist.

Keyboardist Chick Churchill

Ten Years After

The band evolved into Ten Years After and concert promoter Bill Graham invited the band to tour America for the first time in the summer of 1968. Ten Years After would ultimately tour the USA 28 times in 7 years, more than any other U.K. band.

Keyboardist Chick Churchill
Ten Years After
Keyboardist Chick Churchill

Summer of 1969

During the summer of 1969, they performed at  6 major festivals, including  the Woodstock Music and Art Fair. Of course their performance of “Goin’ Home” at Woodstock and the song’s inclusion in both the film and on the album established their fame. (I wonder how many times the band performed that song that summer?)

I recently contact Chick and he generously responded with the following:  Woodstock seems so long ago now but I remember the huge audience and the helicopter journey. I think we went on after the rain storm. Everything was wet and I don’t think health and safety would allow it now but we survived. 

Keyboardist Chick Churchill

You and Me

In 1971, Chick released a solo album,  You and Me.

Keyboardist Chick Churchill

Post Ten Years After

When  Ten Years After disbanded in 1976 Chick Churchill became professional manager at Chrysalis Music.

In 1977 he began a partnership with Tim Whitsett as Whitsett Churchill Music Publishing. The company specialized in promoting American artists from southern states.

Ten again

The band reformed occasionally over the years, but once again things changed when on September 29, 2024 a Syracuse.com article reported that: ”

Ten Years After announced…that its current lineup is calling it quits after completing its remaining tour dates in November. The group, which features founding members Chick Churchill (keyboards) and Ric Lee (drums), has been touring and recording music together with Marcus Bonfanti (guitar/vocals) and Colin Hodgkinson (bass) for the past 10 years.

“The time spent through the decade together has been very rewarding, and throughout it the members formed a bond of mutual respect for one another as musicians, and a great social bond, outside of their term playing together. They had a superb relationship working and travelling together,” a statement said. “The band members are indebted to the fans who have followed them through the years in Europe and the USA, and want to take this opportunity to thank each and every one for their support and dedication.”

But…

The statement continued: “For the future, Ric Lee is already working to form a Ten Years After lineup with new members to continue the good work set up by Chick, Marcus, Colin and himself. Ric plans to have the new band up and running early in 2025 and an album to be released in the spring…”.

Neither Alvin Lee nor Ten Years After are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The band’sFacebook page.

Keyboardist Chick Churchill

Bio from TYA site >>> Churchill bio

Keyboardist Chick Churchill

Birthdays, Woodstock Music and Art Fair

Woodstock Wes Pomeroy

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Woodstock Wes Pomeroy

Remembering Wes Pomeroy on his birthday
January 1, 1920 – May 4, 1998

Woodstock Wes Pomeroy

Peacefully muddy

The popular media image of the 1969 Woodstock Music and Art Fair is one of drugs, skinny dipping, mud, rain, and disorganization, but the reason behind that image is the general atmosphere of peace that prevailed the whole weekend.

As Max Yasgur said on Sunday to the hillside of young people, “… the important thing that you’ve proven to the world is that a half a million kids…can get together and have three days of fun and music and have nothing but fun and music….”

There is no one reason why, under such adverse circumstances, there was such peace. The lack of food, toilet facilities, overwhelming  numbers of people, and a transportation breakdown would seem a recipe for disaster, not tranquility. Then Governor Rockefeller thought there was a disaster and had readied the National Guard to take over the site.

Woodstock Wes Pomeroy

Wes Pomeroy

Wes Pomeroy, born in Berkeley, California on January 1, 1920, which means he was 49 when Woodstock Ventures hired him him to be the festival’s Director of Security. At a time when young people were warned not to trust anyone over the age of 30, Pomeroy’s age would seem to have automatically disqualified him, but at a time of extreme polarization, his philosophy to use communication and cooperation for crowd control, rather than  threats and force.

Woodstock Wes Pomeroy

Officer Pomeroy

Who was Wes Pomeroy before Woodstock? He had begun his adult life with the California Highway Patrol before joining the Marines and seeing action in World War II, including the Battle of Okinawa. After the war he earned a law degree while undersheriff in San Mateo County (CA). And at the same time he was working in law enforcement, he was also a member of the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Association of Colored People.

Woodstock Wes Pomeroy

Practiced what he preached

  • an advocate of the decriminalization of marijuana
  • a law enforcement officer who viewed protesters as citizens, not criminals.

That CV is a recipe for calm control, not tumultuous dissatisfaction. And he had proof of the approach’s effectiveness:

  • his successful security operation at the 1964 Republican National Convention during which a number of protesters who managed to get inside the center were not dragged out forcibly, but carried out on stretchers.
  • Chicago Mayor Richard Daily rejected Pomeroy’s attempt to use the same approach at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago and resulted in the infamous chaotic riots and Chicago Eight trial circus.
Woodstock Wes Pomeroy

Post Woodstock

In 1974 he police chief in Berkeley, CA. Wavy Gravy remembers Pomeroy as “a good cop.” He later worked for the Carter Administration’s Office of Drug Abuse. In he early 1980s, he served as Deputy Director of the Michigan Department of Mental Health . In 1983, he was named head of the Dade County (Miami) police review board. He retired and retired in 1995.

He died on May 4, 1998. “The most important thing in his life,” said his wife, Lonna Pomeroy, “was his commitment to humanitarian issues.” His family asked that “…gifts in his memory be sent to the Unrepresented People’s Positive Action Council or the NAACP, Opa Locka, FL branch.” [NYT obit]

Thank you Wes Pomeroy. One of Woodstock’s unknown heroes.

 

Woodstock Wes Pomeroy
Music et al, Woodstock Music and Art Fair

Country Joe McDonald

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Country Joe McDonald

Country Joe McDonald

Happy birthday, Joe
Born January 1, 1942

Country Joe McDonald

Joe wasn’t scheduled to perform until Sunday with the Fish, but circumstances forced the Woodstock organizers to call a few audibles.

After Quill’s opening set, the crew needed someone to do a few songs to give the them time to set up the next band (Santana). Joe didn’t have a guitar–someone found one for him–and the guitar didn’t have a strap–someone found a piece of rope (see about 1:20 in the video below). He did a 9 song set. The most famous of which was his “Fish Cheer/I Feel Like I’m Fixin’ To Die Rag.”

Country Joe McDonald

California Joe

Joe was born in Washington, D. C., on January 1, 1942, but grew up in the Los Angeles suburb of El Monte, California. where he was exposed to a wide range of music.

Joe moved to Berkeley to go to school, but ended up mainly playing music. In the fall of 1965, the Free Speech Movement on the Berkeley campus organized demonstrations against the war in Vietnam at the Oakland Induction Center, Music was often a part of any 1960 demonstration and Joe and the Fish did that for Berkeley’s.

Country Joe McDonald

Fishy Joe

From Joe’s site: The origin of the name appears to have come from the band’s manager, ED Denson, who coined the phrase drawing from Mao’s saying about “the fish who swim in the sea of the people;” the Country Joe part has numerous variants, the most oft-told refers to Joe’s parents having named Joe for Joseph Stalin, whose nickname during World War II was “Country Joe.”

 

Country Joe McDonald

Contemporary Joe

Joe continues to write, record, and perform. He has released 37 albums since his start as a solo artist in 1969.

In 2017 he released his most recent album: 50

Country Joe McDonald

In 2007 he toured his “Tribute to Woody Guthrie” show, a mix of music and spoken word. I was fortunate to see one of those shows at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts. There was a Q & A before the show and several of us showed up early to say hello. I did that and I also sincerely thanked him for the once in a lifetime opportunity to yell out FUCK with 400,000 other people.

Here’s a video of Joe discussing his appearance at Woodstock.

  • Bio from his site
  • Second shorter bio by Joel Selvin.
Country Joe McDonald