Lifespan: 1988-1990

Personnel:

• Bob Buckwalter - rhythm guitar
• Carlin Yoder - lead guitar
• Ted Birkey - drums, vocals
• Ryan Newswanger - vocals
• DS - bass

Low Point: The first set of the above gig. It was our final show, and our only one at an actual club. Unfortunately, this meant that only 21-and-over folks could show up, so our audience was greatly diminished, and I had to sit in a secluded corner while offstage. Our first set was underpowered, hampered by the lack of folks and by the somewhat stiff atmosphere, and we almost called it quits for the evening, bewildered; every other show had been a riot, start to finish.

Story: My brother and I attended the same college in the Midwest. He's three years older than I, and had formed a cover band that was quite notorious on campus by the time I arrived. He was a born frontman and vocalist, and the group hit all the right notes on classic rock, alt-rock, and funk covers. During one packed gig in the Art building, people doing pottery in the basement could see the wooden floor above them visibly bowing under the pressure of several hundred people freaking out to "Brown Sugar".

Their bass player had graduated, so the slot was open for me. We didn't do many rehearsals, and in fact, for a four-hour gig we would usually have a single four-hour practice. Our first off-campus show was at a pizza parlor where we had a friend checking ID's at the door - naturally, he stamped the hand of anyone who showed up, so the place was full of underage kids partying their asses off. The energy was high before we even played a note, and by the time we launched into the Doors' "Roadhouse Blues", the place was just stomping. People were constantly bringing pitchers of beer up to the band, and we tried to keep playing even while these pitchers were being lifted to our lips, mid-song. For being "just" a cover band (besides one heavy, detuned original), we really were a great group. We had all the right elements; the squirrely guitarist who'd learned every extant Frank Zappa lick, the rhythm guitarist who was almost a caricature of rock-solid stability, the extroverted drummer who'd literally converted into a Rastafarian, my brother the singer who performed as if he'd been waiting his whole life for the opportunity (which was pretty much the case), and myself, who was just loving the experience of playing rock and roll to huge, drunken crowds (with upperclassmen, no less). I can easily say that some of the most fun I've ever had in music was with this band.