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April 12, 2007

Ken Lyon Retrospective concert: All the notes fit to blog, and Tombstone Blues video too

Ken Lyon, undated photo, at kenlyon.com

The gig: An Evening with Ken Lyon: A Musical Retrospective with the Rev. Don Lyon, D.C. Culp, Rick Bellaire, John Cafferty, Michael "Tunes" Antunes, Gary "Guitar" Gramolini, Mark Taber, Pendragon, The Shoe Fly Orchestra, The Tombstone Blues Band, and other guest performers.

The man: Ken Lyon... Bluesman. His site.

The story: Ken Lyon concert will honor super career Rick Massimo today in the Journal:

In more than 40 years of making music, Ken Lyon has gone from pre-Beatle popster to solo acoustic bluesman to blues-rock titan to traditional folkie and back again. And on his 66th birthday at the Stadium Theatre in Woonsocket, he’ll recap the whole thing.

...The idea for the show, and the record, came from Lyon, (Don) Culp and (Rick) Bellaire, who got together last year at the funeral of original Tombstone guitarist Paul DiChiara. Bellaire was in charge of putting together a collection of musicians from all the bands DiChiara had played in over the years to play an “Irish wake” for the guitarist. On the way home, Bellaire says, Culp had the idea to do something similar for Lyon before — um, before …

“They’ll have a jam session after I’m dead,” Lyon says, “but this way I can be a part of it.”

...Lyon calls playing “a blessed narcosis” and draws a parallel to old Greek pearl divers, crippled by the bends, who still head to the deep water because it’s the only place they feel normal.

“I can’t tell you how good it feels” to still be playing, Lyon says. And the re-emergence of Tombstone is particularly gratifying. “To know I can still honk ... it’s energizing. When I’m up there, I feel no pain. My back doesn’t hurt; my head doesn’t hurt. That place the band creates is still there.”

Sunday, June 4, 2000, Ken Lyon of Lincoln leads
the singing of Old MacDonald in Slater Park, Pawtucket,
at a city arts event. (Providence Journal / Glenn Osmundson)

Teen idol tunes: Here's some of The Best of Ken Lyon Vol. 1, put together as a souvenir of Saturday's concert. The annotation comes from Rick Bellaire. They're mp3s, all but one is a partial clip.

The Big White House, Dot Records single, 1960; unknown studio musicians.

Fallen Idol, Epic Records single, 1961; unknown studio musicians and unknown musicians from Bobby Vinton’s band. Arranged and conducted by Bob Mersey who worked for Columbia as a staff musician and on the road with Vinton.

Tombstone mp3s:

Tombstone Blues Band, Columbia Records promotional photo, 1973. From left, Jon Polcy; Paul DiChiara; Ken Lyon; Mark Taber; Sybilla; Thom Enright; Brenda Mosher Bennett; Michael ("Squeaky") Quinn.

(Tombstone) started in July 1967 with Lyon singing, Mark Taber playing piano, Al LoBello playing bass and Tommy DiQuattro on drums, with a revolving cast of guitar players (including a Duke Robillard who wasn't even called "Duke" yet) and harmonica players (with Lyon's brother Don giving way to Steve Nardella), playing at Bovi's.
-- Rick Massimo, Ken Lyon and his band mark 39 years of the blues, Providence Journal, April 22, 2006

Goin' Down (Hallelujah) and Sugarbones, from the Columbia Records album Ken Lyon & Tombstone, 1973. On these tracks: Ken Lyon, bass guitar, lead vocals; Mark Taber, piano (recent photo at right); Brenda Mosher, backing vocals, percussion; Sybilla, backing vocals; Paul DiChiara, Lead guitar; Thom Enright, lead guitar, bass guitar; Michael “Squeaky” Quinn, drums, percussion; Jon Polce, acoustic guitar, backing vocals.

My Baby's So Evil (full song) and Who Do You Love. WLIR-FM radio show recorded and broadcast live at Ultra Sonic Studios, Hempstead, N.Y., 1974. Ken Lyon, bass guitar, lead vocals; Mark Taber, piano; Brenda Mosher, backing vocals, percussion; Sybilla, backing vocals; Paul DiChiara, lead guitar; Thom Enright, lead guitar, bass guitar; Michael “Squeaky” Quinn, drums, percussion.

Ken has mp3s online of his most recent work with The Shoe Fly Orchestra -- Lori Lacaille, Richie Calitri, Greg Andreozzi and Pendragon’s Bob Drouin.

Video: This is a concert split into four parts (YouTube has a 10-minute clip limit) recorded from a ,show at the Church House Inn by, and as a fundraiser for, Creative Television of R.I. (bandwidth warning, video there loads with page)

Intro (1:39) and opener: Ken Lyon & The TombStone Blues Band_CTRI 9:39

Ken Lyon & TombStone Blues, Shaky Ground Part 1 7:59

Shaky Ground Part 2 5:44 . (Shaky Ground is the second song on Part 1. The break comes while the band is introduced.)

Ken Lyon & TombStone Blues, Killer Kane 4:06

Respect: Rick Bellaire emailed this in response to a question about Ken,

I like to think of Kenny as the "John Mayall" of the Rhode Island scene. Witness the outpouring of support from John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band! Kenny was their template: stick to your guns, get what you want, get what you need, otherwise, it's not worth it. Kenny may have been, perhaps, overly generous as a leader with shared lead vocals and instrumental space, but I know he doesn't regret a minute of it all. Just look at the alumni association:

Scott Hamilton: the best-selling contemporary tenor saxophonist in the world;
Duke Robillard: a revered, internationally famous proponent of blues and jazz guitar styles;
Brenda Mosher Bennett: Prince, The Time, Vanity Six, Apollonia Six, the Purple Rain movie;
Jon (nee, and now, John) Polce: one of the most successful RC-based Christian singers in the country...

From left, Rick Bellaire, Don Culp and Ken Lyon,
the forces behind Saturday's concert.

What, when, where, how much? An Evening with Ken Lyon: A Musical Retrospective happens Saturday night at 8 at the Stadium Theatre Performing Arts Centre, 28 Monument Square, Main Street, Woonsocket. (map) Tickets are $20 and $15; call (401) 762-4545.

More, more: If you're interested in deep detail, here are the concert's set list and program notes, and an annotated list of all the cuts on The Best of KEN LYON Vol. 1.:

Posted by Sheila Lennon  at 5:06 AM | Permalink

Comments

Posted by: Cindie on June 7, 2008 9:57 PM