McKendree Spring

McKendree Spring
McKendree Spring in 1970
Background information
Origin	Glens Falls, New York, United States
Genres	folk rock
Years active	1969–1976, 2009-2021
Labels	Decca MCA Pye
Members	Fran McKendree Dr. Michael Dreyfuss Christopher Bishop Martin Slutsky Carson Michaels
Website	mckendreespring.com

McKendree Spring is a progressive folk-rock band, formed in 1968 and particularly active in the early 1970s. ^{[1] [2]} The band, originally known as McKendree Spring Quartet, formed at Adirondack Community College in Queensbury, New York. ^[3] The group's leader was Fran McKendree (vocals and guitar); their first bass player was Larry Tucker then Fred Holman; Dr. Michael Dreyfuss (electric violin, viola, Moog, Arp, Mellotron); and Martin Slutsky (electric guitar). Christopher Bishop replaced Holman on bass as of the 1973 release Spring Suite. Some of their music ventured into avant-garde or experimental territory, such as "God Bless the Conspiracy" from their album 3, with its violin/viola/synthesizer solo by Dreyfuss. ^{[4] [5]}

Steve Anderson (bass and vocals) and Alan Stoker (drums and vocals) were added for the "Live at the Beachland" live performance recording and 2007 release. In addition, Dave Morrison (harmonica) also played on the live album.

In the summer of 2010, Christopher Bishop (bass and vocals) rejoined the group for the recording of 5 songs for "McKendree Spring: Recording No. 9". This recording also featured Alan Stoker (drums/percussion/vocals), Paul Hollowell (keys) and Fred Mollin (synth).

The band reunited for one final show at the legendary Douglas Corner club in Nashville, May 2013, which was video recorded and released in Dec. 2015 on DVD as McKendree Spring: Times Like These. Fran McKendree, Mike 'Doc' Dreyfuss, and Marty Slutsky, the three founding members of the band, are supported by bassist Chris Bishop, keyboardist Paul Hollowell [Dolly Parton], Nashville standouts Alan Stoker (drums and vocals) and Rock Williams on sax, along with harmony singing by Carol Anderson and Sharon Ferrara Slutsky.

According to the official site, Michael Dreyfuss died on September 25, 2017.

Fran McKendree (born Robert Francis McKendree on May 9, 1947, in Springfield, Massachusetts) ^[6] died of cancer on June 10, 2021, at age 74. ^{[6] [7]}

Albums

Year	Album	Chart Positions	Label
		US Top 200
1969	McKendree Spring	—	Decca
1970	Second Thoughts	192
1972	McKendree Spring 3	163
	Tracks	—
1973	Spring Suite	—	MCA
1975	Get Me to the Country	118	Pye
1976	Too Young To Feel This Old	193
2007	Live at the Beachland Ballroom	—	McKendree Spring Records
2010	Recording No. 9	—
2015	Times Like These	—

Charted singles

Year	Single	Chart positions	Album
		US/US Bub.
1971	"Because It's Time"	105	Second Thoughts (1970)
1976	"Too Young to Feel This Old"	110	Too Young to Feel This Old (1976)

References

1. Mayer, Ira (June 11, 1972). "Article 2 -- No Title; McIlwaine To Jake's Jewels". The New York Times . Retrieved July 14, 2009.
2. "McKendree Spring Get Me to the Country". The Village Voice . April 14, 1975. Retrieved July 14, 2009.
3. Glens Falls Post-Star 5 August 1968, p. 2
4. Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. May 20, 1972. p. 14. ISSN   0006-2510 . Retrieved January 12, 2015.
5. "Michael "Doc" Dreyfuss, Electronic Violist and Violinist Extraordinaire!". Archived from the original on September 16, 2006. Retrieved January 12, 2015.
6. "Robert Francis McKendree May 9, 1947 ~ June 10, 2021 (age 74)". Asheville Area Alternative Funeral & Cremation Services, LLC. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
7. "Episcopal Musician Fran McKendree Dies at 74", Living Church, August 12, 2021. Retrieved February 8, 2022

External links

• Official site
• McKendree Spring on Facebook
• McKendree Spring discography at Discogs