The Baltimore Sounds Book
Attention musicians, fans, and lovers of Baltimore’s entertainment history: After many years of research and in depth study the encyclopedia of local pop musicians, bands & recordings is here! This is the definitive book about Baltimore bands & musical entertainment! If you lived in Baltimore or visited during the 1950’s-1980’s and enjoyed the local entertainment – this is the book for you!! It’s full of facts and hundreds of images – over 360 pages of nostalgia!! And a wonderful introduction by author Tom D'Antoni.
It all started way back when... Even as a teenager Joe saved memorabilia (band cards, photos, etc) from bands that he knew, or bands that his groups appeared with on multiple billed events. Joe's own groups barely got out of the basement, while the ones he worked for as a road manager (Sage and Bandit) worked extensively at clubs, teen centers, proms, frat parties, pool parties, concerts, etc. An older brother of an early childhood friend was a drummer for the Horde and later Cherry Smash. As a pre-teen brat Joe enjoyed peering in the window of their basement practice room and listening to the bands. He took an interest in the bass guitar and was a member of several neighborhood bands. Joe went to many teen center dances and was intrigued by local groups such as Seed, The Boat, Penny Candy, etc. He rarely missed any of his high school dances that featured groups such as Grand Jury, Majestics, Wizard, Flagstaff, Pine Street Station, Ellicott Brothers, Grapes of Wrath, Jupiter & the Jets... Around 1974 he befriended the local band Sage and became a road manager. Working the circuit during the mid-'70s Joe remembers multiple bills with groups such as Appaloosa, Royal 5+1, Joshua, Wintersunn, OHO... He also attended many parties and concerts with friends in local southern rock band Dragonfly... Working with his brother Mark in the '80s, they booked many great groups to play at the Back of the Vac: bands such as Nightshift, Gary Brown & the Doubts, the Boucher Brothers, Richard Taylor & the Ravers, the Danny Lough Band, Wally & the Weirdos, Vinnie D, Daryl Beard... the list goes on...
Fast forward.... Some friends at the Arbutus Record Show (read about the monthly show on our NEWS page!) began publishing a magazine as a tribute to '60s era local bands titled "Charmed Times." Joe was eager to contribute, but his knowledge at the time was more '70s oriented. When the magazine folded, Joe continued to search for information about local groups and any records that they released. Eventually the Baltimore Sounds book was created. Joe chose the moniker "pop" music as it encompasses most mainstream musical styles including rock, R&B, soul, country... Did we miss you in our first book? Do you have photo’s of groups-entertainers-venues? We’d love to have them – we’re seriously considering a Vol. 2 – if you have any information, or if you belonged to any support groups such as fan clubs, road support – please contact Joe as soon as possible – we’d love to hear from you. Credit is always given for contributions. Check out THE BIG LIST page for names of artists from the Baltimore area... |
You can contact Joe by email at jv45rpm@juno.com
Back of the Vac back bar