The Rising Storm | |
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Background information | |
Origin | Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts, United States |
Genres | Garage rock, folk rock |
Years active | 1965–present |
Labels | Remnant Records, Arf! Arf! Records, Stanton Park Records, Sundazed Music |
Website | http://www.rising-storm.com |
The Rising Storm is an American rock group that was active at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, United States, between 1965 and 1967. Their music is considered to belong in the folk rock and garage rock genres. The original members of the group were Bob Cohan (guitar), Todd Cohen (bass), Charlie Rockwell (keyboards), Tom Scheft (drums), Tony Thompson (guitar, lead vocal), and Rich Weinberg (guitar, vocals).
The Rising Storm is most notable for their 1967 album, Calm Before, which is cited by rock and roll historian Richie Unterberger in Allmusic as being "one of the rarest and most respected garage band albums." [1] Unterberger devoted a chapter of his 1998 book, Unknown Legends of Rock 'n' Roll, [2] to the Rising Storm. More than fifty years after the group's founding, mint copies of Calm Before can fetch four figure sums among vinyl record collectors interested in the garage rock era. In 2018, Calm Before was re-mastered and reissued on vinyl by Sundazed Music.
The notoriety of this rare album has been the subject of articles in the Boston Globe , [3] Boston Magazine , [4] the Washington Post , [5] Mojo Magazine , and a feature on NPR's All Things Considered . In addition to Calm Before and the many authorized and unauthorized reissues it has spawned, the Rising Storm has released two other albums, Alive Again at Andover in 1983 and Second Wind in 1999.
The band is still active and has reunited to perform on multiple occasions: in 1981, when they played at The Rathskeller in Boston, with songwriter and record producer Andy Paley sitting in for Cohen on bass; in 1982, when they played at their 15th class reunion in Andover; in 1992, when they played at their 25th class reunion and gigs at T.T. the Bear's Place in Cambridge, MA and Maxwell's in Hoboken, NJ; in 1999, when they opened for the first Boston reunion of the Remains at the Paradise Rock Club; in 2002, when they played at their 35th class reunion; in 2007, when they played at the Dirty Water Club in London and opened for the Yardbirds at the Primitive Festival [6] in Rotterdam, with progressive musician and composer Erik Lindgren on bass; in 2014, when they performed at the WMBR Pipeline 25 Festival, celebrating "50 Years of Boston Rock", with Cohen returning as the group's bass player; and in June 2017, when they returned to Andover to play for the 50th reunion of the Phillips Academy Class of 1967, an event that was the subject of a feature story in The New York Times . [7]
A short documentary film chronicling the band's origin, music, and 50-year history is in limited release. [8]
In April 2023, a profile of the Rising Storm was added to digital archives of The Music Museum of New England .
The Shadows of Knight were an American rock band from Chicago, Illinois, that played a version of British blues influenced by their native city. When they began recording in 1965, the band's self-description was "the Stones, Animals and the Yardbirds took the Chicago blues and gave it an English interpretation. We've taken the English version of the Blues and re-added a Chicago touch," to which rock critic Richie Unterberger commented: "The Shadows of Knight's self-description was fairly accurate."
Thomas Richard Fogerty was an American musician, best known as the rhythm guitarist for Creedence Clearwater Revival. He was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993.
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The Music Machine was an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1966. Fronted by chief songwriter and lead vocalist Sean Bonniwell, the band cultivated a dark and rebellious image reflected in their musical approach. Sometimes the band made use of distorted guitar lines and hallucinogenic organ parts, punctuated by Bonniwell's distinctively throaty vocals.
The United States of America is the only studio album by American rock band the United States of America. Produced by David Rubinson, it was released in 1968 by Columbia Records. The album combined rock and psychedelia with then-uncommon electronic instrumentation and experimental composition, along with an approach reflecting an anti-establishment, leftist political stance.
The Litter was an American psychedelic and garage rock band, formed in 1966 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. They are best remembered for their 1967 debut single, "Action Woman". The group recorded three albums in the late 1960s before disbanding, but they re-united in 1990, 1992, and again in 1998, when they recorded a new studio album consisting of both old and new material. All of their Minneapolis recorded material was produced by Warren Kendrick, who owned the Scotty and Warick and Hexagon labels.
Richie Unterberger is an American author and journalist whose focus is popular music and travel writing.
The Choir was a garage rock band largely active in the greater Cleveland area from the mid-1960s into the early 1970s. Originally called The Mods, their largest commercial success came with the release of their first single "It's Cold Outside" in December 1966. The song, considered to be a classic of the garage rock era, was featured on Pebbles, Volume 2, one of the earlier garage rock compilation LPs. The flipside, "I'm Going Home" was included as a bonus track when the Pebbles album was reissued as a CD, and it can also be found on a garage rock compilation LP on Ohio bands, Highs in the Mid-Sixties, Volume 9. The Choir is well known for containing three of the four original members of Raspberries.
New Colony Six is an American garage and later soft rock band from Chicago, formed in 1964. Original members were Ray Graffia Jr. (vocals), who was born March 28, 1946; Chic James (drums); Pat McBride (harmonica); Craig Kemp (organ); Wally Kemp (bass); and Gerry Van Kollenburg (guitar), who was born June 26, 1946. Ronnie Rice replaced Craig Kemp in 1966. There were numerous changes in the lineup over the years. Richie Unterberger characterized the group's sound as "a poppier American Them with their prominent organ, wobbly Lesley-fied guitar amplifications, and rave-up tempos", later devolving into "a cabaret-ish band with minor national hits to their credit by the end of the 1960s." Like Paul Revere & the Raiders - with whom NC6 shared a two-flat before either band hit the charts or knew that the other had nearly identical stage wear, they wore colonial outfits on stage.
The Crusaders was an American garage rock band, whose 1966 album Make a Joyful Noise with Drums and Guitars is considered one of the first gospel rock releases, or even "the first record of Christian rock".
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"Action Woman" is a song by the American garage rock band the Litter, written by their record producer Warren Kendrick, and first released as the group's debut single on Scotty Records in January 1967. The song also appeared on the band's first album Distortions. Although "Action Woman" never broke out on the national charts, it is now revered as a classic piece of the musical genre of garage rock. Accordingly, the composition has appeared on several compilation albums – most famously as the opening track on Pebbles, Volume 1, incorporating a skip in the recording – and has been the subject of cover versions.
The Remains is the debut album by the American garage rock band the Remains, released on Epic Records in September 1966. Though the album was largely overlooked at the time of its original release, The Remains has since received recognition as one of the more cohesive efforts of the era.
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Yeah Yeah Yeah is a compilation of garage rock recording from the 1960s issued by Arf! Arf! Records, and is available exclusively on compact disc. In keeping with the sub-heading that reads "28 Mega-Manic & Elusive '60s Garage Punkers", the set features mainly upbeat and hard-rocking examples of the genre, whereas Arf! Arf!'s previously released companion piece No No No, focuses instead on moody ballads and downcast songs of lament. In customary fashion, the rear sleeve includes a brash description of the contents contained within:
The E-Types were an American garage rock band formed in Salinas, California, in 1965. The group's sound combined striking three-part vocal harmonies and Jody Wence's jangling keyboards, with professional production techniques that were outside of the garage band norm. During the E-Types' recording career, the band released five singles, including their most notable record "Put the Clock Back on the Wall". Although the band was short-lived, the E-Types had a profound presence in San Francisco's live scene and, years after their disbandment, the group recorded a reunion album.
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