The boys are making music and rekindling memories

          I got wind the other day of a group of Montezuma High School boys who started a garage band. I think it was Debbie who found out about the band on Facebook.
        She’s pretty good about sharing news story ideas with me and I appreciate it. It’s great to have a wife who helps me better serve the area.
        Anyway, I reached out to one of the band member’s moms, Dana Desrochers, this past weekend and she arranged an interview with the band on Sunday early afternoon at the school.
     Band members are Ethan Desrochers on vocals, Isaiah Wilson on guitar, Evan Haughery on bass and Easton Hudnut on drums. Desrochers and Wilson are in ninth grade and Hudnut and Haughey are both in tenth grade.
    They call their band “Unknown” and the boys have been playing together for several years in the Montezuma Pep Band. They first talked about starting a band three years ago, but nothing came of that until this past fall.
       Since that time, they have been practicing during the lunch hour and on weekends at the school. They also practice at band member’s homes.
        The boys enjoy playing rock and roll and heavy metal music and have played at basketball games. They’ll be playing at Montezuma Summer Nights on June 19 on the Montezuma Square and will also perform at the Montezuma Variety Show on March 22 at the school.
        The boys plan to write and record some of their own music and produce an album. I’m looking forward to writing another story when they release their album.
        I told the boys that back in the day when I was in high school, we had live bands at school dances. One of the popular bands during that time was called “Daddy’s Money.” A classmate of mine, Rick Hemmert, played drums in a band with his brothers.
        They played all the cover tunes of the 1970s rock and roll music.
      “Daddy’s Money” played at my high school senior prom in 1978. They later changed the band name to “Paradise.”
       Hemmert went on to enjoy a long career in music playing drums and recording albums with Carla Olson and the Textones.
        Growing up, I didn’t have a stereo. I had a Panasonic tape recorder that my mom bought me to record a piano recital in sixth grade. I rode my bicycle to Radio Shack about a mile and one half from my boyhood home and bought a spool of stereo speaker wire and ear plug piece to attach it to my tape recorder.
        I found an old television speaker at a neighborhood television repair shop a block from my home.
       I used a strand of speaker wire and rigged up a stereo in my bedroom. I would pop in a cassette tape and listen to my music.
      My first cassette tape was by Three Dog Night and featured “Joy to the World” and “I’ve Never Been to Spain,” both written by the late Hoyt Axton.
       I learned to play “Joy to the World” on the piano and performed it and Handel’s “Messiah” at recitals. I also learned to play “Let It Be” by the Beatles.
       I kind of miss playing the piano and once I retire, I might give it another try. I’m going to have to buy a keyboard to practice.
       In seventh grade, I joined the Columbia Record Club. Some of you might remember the CRG. I was able to purchase 13 cassette tapes for a penny with the stipulation that I would buy another 10 or 12 at full price plus shipping and handling.
      In junior and senior high, I hung out with a friend, Weldon, who lived a few blocks from my boyhood home. We both had newspaper routes in Tulsa in the 1970s and enjoyed music.
        He had a nice stereo and I would spend time at his house listening to music. One of my favorite albums was titled “Brain Salad Surgery” by Emerson Lake and Palmer.
        I bought my first home stereo in 1981. It featured an Akai receiver and turntable and a Yamaha tape deck and recorder. The speakers were Norman Lab.
         I paid about $750 for the setup and it was awesome sounding.
         I still have the speakers and a few years ago, I had them tested at the former Music Shop in Grinnell. The owner said they sounded like brand new.
        That’s pretty good for nearly 45-year old speakers.
        I’ve been to a number or rock and roll concerts through the years. My first one was the Dobbie Brothers in April 1979 in Tulsa.
       I saw a lot of good bands back in the day that included REO Speedwagon, Journey, Heart, Little River Band, Charlie Daniels, ZZ Top, Van Halen, Bad Company and more. I later started attending Christian bands that included DeGarmo and Key, the Joe English Band, Sweet Comfort Band, Petra, Resurrection Band, Mylon LeFever and Broken Heart, David and the Giants and the Imperials.
          Since those days, I’ve attended a few country music concerts including George Strait in Des Moines. It’s hard to beat George Strait and his guitar. What a show!
           Thanks boys for all the music memories.
         I hope the Montezuma boys keep it up. Music has the ability to bring people together. I’m rooting for them and hope that they have much success in their band and in life.
          Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day.