The English Setters changed its name to The Cherry People and traveled to New York City several times to perform at nightclubs. During a show at Café Wha? the band was seen by producer Ron Haffkine, which led to a new five-year management contract with Jerry Ross Productions and a deal with Heritage Records. The Cherry People were the first group to be released by the MGM-distributed label. The group were promoted nationally by Jerry Ross with Dick Clark on American Bandstand, where they debuted their single "And Suddenly".
The band spent the fall of 1967 recording their debut album at Bell Sound Studios in New York City. Haffkine hired Barry Oslander to co-produce and a number of studio musicians were used to replace the band members during recording. When the eponymous album was released in May 1968, it had a bubblegum pop sound. The band toured the country in support of the album, including a show at Whisky a Go Go on Sunset Strip. In April 1969 Chris Grimes, Punky Meadows, Rocky Isaac, Al Marks, Doug Grimes and Jan Zukowski went to New York to try to negotiate a release from their recording contract. Unable to get a meeting with Jerry Ross the band went to a jam session at Steve Paul's Scene, where they met Jimi Hendrix, Billy Cox and another person. Hendrix needed a drummer and invited the whole band to the studio, so Isaac, Grimes, Marks, and Zukowski went to the Record Plant and recorded three tracks with Hendrix: "Room Full Of Mirrors", "Crash Landing", and "Stone Free Again", with Isaac on drums, Marks and Grimes on percussion, and Zukowski on bass (though this was not used on the tracks). Two days later the band returned for another session, during which they recorded "Bleeding Heart" and "Drone Blues". All the tracks were later released on Experience Hendrix reissues.
In the spring of 1969 the band returned to Washington, D.C., adopting a more hard rock sound. They took a job as house band at the Silver Dollar throughout the remainder of 1969 and 1970, and worked most nights a week at the Georgetown nightclub, also playing one-off shows at venues including the Greenbelt Armory, the Bladensburg Firehouse, St. Mary’s Church in Landover Hills, St. Ambrose Church in Cheverly, and The Wedge (a teen club in the Bethesda Youth Center in Montgomery County, Maryland). On October 19, 1969 the Cherry People headlined the Intercollegiate Music Festival at the Sylvan Theatre on the Mall in Washington in front of a crowd of over 10,000. The band also headlined concerts at the Falls Church Community Center in Virginia on March 7, 1970 and the University of Maryland's Ritchie Coliseum on April 30, 1970. They continued playing the Silver Dollar in 1970 as well as a long stint at The Keg throughout 1971 and into 1972. Still trapped by the Jerry Gross Productions-Heritage Records contract, the band self-produced a single, "Sea and Me", backed with "Come on Over", and released it on their own label, Hot Cotton (a division of Tracy Records). In June 1972, as a result of the five years of constant nightclub work, Rocky Isaac left the band and was replaced by Mike Zack, who in turn was replaced by T.C. Tolliver, a drummer from Southeast Washington, D.C. who had previously played with a soul band called J.J. and the Invaders. Lead guitarist Punky Meadows also left and joined BUX. A month later The Cherry People stopped playing.
After a short break, Chris and Doug Grimes began auditioning musicians at The Keg later that summer and organized a schedule of nightclub dates in Boston, Massachusetts. The new lineup consisted of the Grimes Brothers in their previous roles, Tolliver on drums, bassist Mark Hughes from Wheaton, Maryland (born September 13, 1951) who had previously played with Blitz, Rockinghorse and Link Wray, and a guitarist from Camp Springs, Maryland named Chris Noe (born December 5, 1951) who had previously played in Spread Eagle and Black on White.
The Cherry People left Boston and returned to Washington, D.C. to play at the Keg in December 1972. At this time Noe was replaced by Wayne Tomlinson of Landover Hills, Maryland. Throughout 1973 the band played at The Bayou, The Keg, and The Crazy Horse, with appearances from former members Pick Kelly, Mike Zack, and Jan Zukowski.
Late in the year the Grimes Brothers were offered work at a nightclub called Beginnings in Schaumburg, Illinois. They relaunched the band as a quintet with three new members: lead guitarist Rick Benick (born January 23, 1952), from Forest Heights, Maryland, who had previously played in Hailstone; bassist Andre Sokol (born January 8, 1954), who lived in Oxon Hill, Maryland and had played in Hailstone and Earth; and drummer Barry Brandt (born November 14, 1951), who was raised in Wheaton, Maryland and had recently played in Earth. The band spent 1974 between Chicago and Washington, D.C.
For the first six months of 1975, The Cherry People (who during this period occasionally performed under the name Pearls) were based in the Varsity Grill, a Prince George's County nightclub on Baltimore Avenue in College Park that often booked heavy rock and roll bands, which was their last job as a band. The Cherry People played their final gig with a three-night stand at the Varsity Grill from June 19–21, 1975.
The Cherry People—Heritage HT 35,000 (mono)/HTS 35,000 (stereo) (1968)
Nobody's Perfect (CD) The Cherry People (2010)
Whoopin'& aWhoppin' (CD) The Cherry People—Angel Air Records
Singles
And Suddenly b/w Imagination—Heritage 801 (1968)
I'm The One Who Loves You b/w Gotta Get Back (To the Good Life) -- Heritage 807 (1968)
Feelings b/w Mister Hyde—Heritage 810 (1969)
Light of Love b/w On To Something New—Heritage 815 (1969)
Sea and Me b/w Come on Over—Hot Cotton (number unknown) (1972)
Related Research Articles
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist, songwriter and singer. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential electric guitarists in the history of popular music, and one of the most celebrated musicians of the 20th century. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame describes him as "arguably the greatest instrumentalist in the history of rock music."
John Graham "Mitch" Mitchell was an English drummer and child actor, who was best known for his work in the Jimi Hendrix Experience for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992. He was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 2009.
Washington, D.C., has been home to many prominent musicians and is particularly known for the musical genres of Jazz, Rhythm & Blues, bluegrass, punk rock and its locally-developed descendants hardcore and emo, and a local funk genre called go-go. The first major musical figure from District of Columbia was John Philip Sousa, a military brass band composer. Later figures include jazz musicians, such as Duke Ellington, Charlie Rouse, Buck Hill, Ron Holloway, Davey Yarborough, Michael A. Thomas, Butch Warren, and DeAndrey Howard; soul musicians, including Billy Stewart, The Unifics, The Moments, Ray, Goodman & Brown, Van McCoy, The Presidents, The Choice Four, Vernon Burch, guitarist Charles Pitts, and Sir Joe Quarterman & Free Soul.
Angel is an American rock band from Washington, D.C., formed in the mid-1970s by Punky Meadows, Mickey Jones, and Gregg Giuffria. They were primarily known for their flamboyant glam stage presence and white satin outfits.
Roland Robinson was a longtime Memphis studio session bass player and songwriter. Robinson was a cousin and close friend of Teenie Hodges, Al Green's lead guitarist in the 1970s when Green recorded with the famed Hi Records staff band, the Hi Rhythm Section.
Bobby Taylor & the Vancouvers were a Canadian soul band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The group recorded for the Gordy Records division of Motown Records in 1968, where they had a top 30 hit single, "Does Your Mama Know About Me". As a producer and solo artist, Bobby Taylor contributed to several other soul recordings, both inside and outside of Motown. Taylor is most notable for discovering and mentoring The Jackson 5. Tommy Chong was a member of Bobby Taylor & the Vancouvers before he became famous as a comedian.
Charlie Lee Byrd was an American jazz guitarist. Byrd was best known for his association with Brazilian music, especially bossa nova. In 1962, he collaborated with Stan Getz on the album Jazz Samba, a recording which brought bossa nova into the mainstream of North American music.
George Allen "Buddy" Miles Jr. was an American composer, drummer, guitarist, vocalist and producer. He was a founding member of the Electric Flag (1967), a member of Jimi Hendrix's Band of Gypsys (1969–1970), founder and leader of the Buddy Miles Express and later, the Buddy Miles Band. Miles also played and recorded with Carlos Santana and others. Additionally, he sang lead vocals on the critically and commercially acclaimed California Raisins claymation TV commercials and recorded two California Raisins R&B albums.
Jerry Miller is an American songwriter, guitarist and vocalist. He performs as a solo artist and as a member of the Jerry Miller Band. He is also a founding member of the 1960s San Francisco band Moby Grape, which continues to perform occasionally. Rolling Stone included Miller at number 68 on their list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time and Moby Grape's album Moby Grape at number 124 from listed 500 greatest albums of all time. Miller's longtime guitar is a Gibson L-5 CES Florentine guitar which he calls "Beulah".
William Cox is an American bassist, best known for performing with Jimi Hendrix. Cox is the only surviving musician to have regularly played with Hendrix: first with the experimental group that backed Hendrix at Woodstock, followed by the trio with drummer Buddy Miles that recorded the live Band of Gypsys album, and, lastly, The Cry of Love Tour trio with Mitch Mitchell back on drums. Cox continues to perform dates with the Band of Gypsys Experience and the Experience Hendrix Tour.
Eire Apparent were a band from Northern Ireland, noted for launching the careers of Henry McCullough and Ernie Graham, and for having Jimi Hendrix play on, and produce, their only album.
Separated Vegetables is the first full-length album by Washington, D.C.'s Slickee Boys. Self-released on guitarist Kim Kane's Dacoit label, it was pressed in an edition of 100 copies. As well as songs written by the band, it includes cover versions of songs originally by Overkill, Flamin' Groovies, the Road Runners, Johnny Smith, Country Joe and the Fish, the Small Faces, Chuck Berry, and the Hangmen (whose song, "What a Girl Can't Do", the Slickee's had already released on their debut record, 1976's Hot and Cool EP. A mix of studio and live recordings, the album includes a number of tracks taped in front of an appreciative audience at D.C. punk dive the Keg.
Jean-Paul Gaster is an American musician who is the drummer for the rock band Clutch.
Punky Meadows is an American guitarist best known for his glam rock image and as a member of the band Angel between 1975 and 1980.
BUX was an American hard rock/boogie rock band that is best known for having lead guitarist Punky Meadows and bassist Mickie Jones both of whom joined Angel, and lead singer Ralph Morman who was with the Joe Perry Project from 1979–1980 and Savoy Brown from 1980–1982.
"Bleeding Heart" is a song written and recorded by American blues musician Elmore James in 1961. Considered "among the greatest of James' songs", "Bleeding Heart" was later popularized by Jimi Hendrix, who recorded several versions of the song.
Jerald Edward Kolbrak, known professionally as Jerry Cole, was an American guitarist who recorded under his own name, under various budget album pseudonyms and as an uncredited session musician.
The Bo-Keys are a soul jazz band from Memphis, Tennessee, formed as an homage to the city's rich musical tradition.
James Kelly Robinson II was an American recording engineer, record producer and musician. He was best known for his engineering techniques with both analogue and digital audio recordings with prominent popular pop and rock records in American music from the late 1960s to the present. In addition to his recording expertise, Robinson was also an accomplished musician in his own right and had been awarded gold records as both a saxophonist and bass guitarist.
Ron Haffkine was an American record producer, composer and music manager most recognized for his work as a producer and manager of Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show, an American rock band, producing hit singles including "Sylvia's Mother", "The Cover of Rolling Stone", "Sharing the Night Together", "A Little Bit More" and "When You're in Love with a Beautiful Woman" and achieving 67 Gold and Platinum records.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
