Hi Carlos,Think we could use some more members in the
group.As I have sent requests trying to get info on
Bowling Alley in Hidden Valley or Ranch in Sabino
Canyon belonging to Rodger Mclusky .Here's a another
query.Two Castles in Tucson.One East of Vail you can
see from I-10 and other one on West Side.Maybe Bonnie
could get some info.Thanks a bunch and have a great
day.Bob
--- mistercopacetic <mistercopacetic@...> wrote:
Hi All, and welcome to the new members,
Bonnie Henry has an article in today's Star about
Tucson's Lewallen
Brothers. Does anyone remember seeing these guys
back in the sixties,
or know any of them currently?
I've posted the only photo I could find at the Group
homepage.
Please add any additional pics to a new folder
called "Tucson music"
in the Photos section.
I know who I'm going to call for my next plumbing
job!
See article below:
Bonnie Henry: Lewallens made name plumbin',
strummin'
Opinion by Bonnie Henry, Arizona Daily Star Wed Feb
8, 3:48 AM ET
They may know their way around a pipe wrench. But
it's their way with
a guitar chord that Tucsonans of a certain age
remember.
Heck, you may have danced to their tunes at the old
Sunset Rollerama
or Hi-Ho Club.
Their name was, and is, Lewallen. As in the Lewallen
Brothers one of
the hottest bands rockin' in the Old Pueblo back in
the '60s.
Three of their songs got considerable airplay on
Tucson radio. They
also won a TV gig on the Dick Clark show, "Happening
'68," featuring
such luminaries as James Brown and Glen Campbell.
"It was really amazing to be on a show like that,"
says Cal Lewallen,
66, oldest of the clan.
If that name rings a bell in a different way,
perhaps someone from
Cal's Plumbing has unstopped your drains a time or
two.
Unstopping drains and strummin' guitars both are a
family tradition
going back to Cal's father, Cal Sr.
In 1936, Cal Sr. came to town with a wife and a
promised gig with a
band whose guitar player had taken sick.
"The guy stayed sick, Dad kept the job," says Cal
Jr. And then one
fateful day, the business agent from the local
plumbers union talked
Cal Sr. into an apprenticeship.
By 1948, he had his own company, Cal's Plumbing.
Even so, the man kept
his guitar pick in the music game. He also
encouraged his sons to
play, buying them guitars and a few lessons.
First to take their dad up on the offer were Keith
and Tim. Before
long, Cal Jr. was joining in on bass guitar.
Meanwhile, sister Gayle was singing with a band, the
Marsades.
"Their guitar player got drafted, so Tim and I
started playing with
them," says Keith, 57. So, before long, did Cal Jr.
Cal Jr., Keith and Tim started a band in 1963 called
the Cokats, with
Dennis Gamble joining them on drums.
Besides the usual teen hangouts, they also hit the
bar scene. "I was
playing in bars when I was 15," says Keith.
In 1963, they recorded their first record, "Tough He
Was," written by
Cal Jr.
They sent the song to record producer Bob Keane. A
promoter with Keane
told the band to change their name to the Lewallen
Brothers. By that
time, brother Bobby had joined them on keyboard and
vocals.
Two more records followed: "It Must Be Love," and
"Only a Dream," both
recorded in 1967.
In 1968, the Lewallen Brothers won a battle of the
bands contest at
Old Tucson. First prize: an audition on "Happening
'68." They made it
through two shows, losing on their third appearance.
So they hit the road everywhere from Oregon to
Wisconsin. Drummer
Dennis Gamble dropped out, replaced by Mike Ramsey,
who still plays
with the brothers today.
Less than a year later, they were back in Tucson,
where they became
the house band for the Cedars and backed up everyone
from the Turtles
to Gary Lewis and the Playboys.
"We also played with Chuck Berry," says Cal Jr. "He
always wanted the
local band to play with him."
Years before, Cal Jr. had taken up the pipe wrench
plumbing by day,
strumming by night. Keith and Tim followed that
route around 1970.
In 1981, Bobby died of cancer. The band quit for a
decade.
But by the early '90s, they were back on stage at
various spots around
town. Somewhere along the way, Tim dropped out to
become a full-time
plumber.
Their latest gig: a high school reunion last spring.
"If someone wants
us now, it's $500 a night," says Keith, who plays
with Cal Jr. and
Ramsey. (Call Cal's Plumbing at 748-1105 for more
information.)
A CD of the band's '64-'68 songs is also available
at Judy's Music
Stop (881-2681).
Asked if he still gets recognized when he makes
house calls, Keith
says, "All the time. I go there as a plumber and we
wind up talking
about the Lewallen Brothers."
Copyright 2006 The Arizona Daily Star.
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