Los Angeles, CA -- Studio Work

• Lester Wilson, Lola Falana's coreographer, asked me to stay in Los Angeles and play the dance rehearsals for a new variety show -- Van Dyke & Company starring Dick Van Dyke. Didn't take long to decide when he told me the scale was $25.00 an hour!!
• D'Vaughn Pershing (from Lola's rehearsals) would be the rehearsal pianist/music co-ordinator
• The show was produced and rehearsed at NBC Studios in Burbank. The Tonight Show was produced on the soundstage next door -- I was able to say hello to Doc Severinsen immediately. He immediately introduced me to Al Lapin, the NBC music contractor - he handled all the Musicians' Union contracts, booked the musicians, etc.. Mr. Lapin, as it turned out, who was also doing the contracting for Van Dyke & Company. When Al learned that I had worked for Doc he was comfortable with a newcomer getting the show. The show won an Emmy for "Outstanding Comedy-Variety or Music Series" and was nominated for two more for writing and directing.
• NOTE: Mark Stevens, the drummer with Burt Bacharach that I met while in the Studio Band, took me to the Union and got me transferred from Chicago with no waiting period. Basically I was told NOT to compete with the local musicians working clubs and hotels... Studio work was considered "National" work as the same contract was used across the US for television show production and recording - variety television shows are video-taped live before audiences but the artist preformances, the acting - singing - dancing, are done using 'pre-record'ed music tracks. With few exceptions the typical LA studio musician had the same experience I was going through... move to LA, try to get some work.

And then...

Van Dyke & Company - Fall 1976

• Started rehearsing the show which consisted primarily comedy sketches and music production numbers featuring Dick Van Dyke and his weekly guests. There were six wonderful female dancers who did most of the dancing... although Dick Van Dyke was no slouch!!
• After the second week, Johnny Guerin who was playing drums on the pre-record quit because there was no music - except for the dance production number - so he wasn't making any "extra" money. He was right... I checked... as the rehearsal drummer for one major production number a week I was making almost twice what he was making recording the show. When he gave his notice, it was decided that I should be hired to do the pre-record for the show since I was playing the production music all week in rehearsal. In town 2 weeks... locked up one network TV series!!
• Two weeks later contractor Al Lapin was out for medical reasons and sent Red Mandel, contractor for Sonny & Cher, and Captain & Tennile, to handle the contracting chores. When I saw Red later in the week

he offered me the...

• Sonny & Cher Show was offered to me on a week by week basis when their regular drummer, Matt Betton (of North Texas, by the way!) went on the road with Jimmy Buffett (he's still there!). He never came back and I played the entire season -- all but the first two shows.
• The cast rehearsed the show at CBS studios in Hollywood and by late Tuesday afternoon the musical numbers had been set (songs, keys, etc.) and the arrangements written.
• The show was pre-recorded at Cherokee Studios on Tuesday night. 1 1/2" of music that was recorded in 3 hours!! The band would play the charts once to make sure the parts were right... then record it!
• The band was incredible and included:
  • Harold Baptiste, music director
  • Rhythm Section:
    Fred Tackett -- guitars
    David Hungate -- bass
    Alan Estes - percussion
  • Saxophones:
    Ernie Watts - jazz tenor
    Ted Nash - lead alto
    Thom Rotella -- baritone
    
  • Trumpets
    Chuck Findley
    Oscar Brashear
    
  • Trombones
    Dick Nash

• Diff'rent Strokes Theme - This 45 minute recording session surely must have set a record for the most money paid a band for a 30 situation comedy show. Themes are typically renewed every 13 weeks... the contract for this session had the theme being renewed EVERY show that was taped. When the show went into 5-day a week re-runs I thought I had died and gone to Heaven. The band was Tony Orlando's rhythm section. Conductor Reg Powell had been hired by producer Alan Thicke to arrange the song and be the music director. The session was done in 45 minutes!! We all went home thinking "that was cool"... we had no idea how "antarctica cold" it was going to get!!! The show paid residuals (including Europe, India, Brazil and Australia) for YEARS!!! Video -- Diff'rent Strokes Show Openers
• The Gong Show - Subbed for Mark Stevens on two weeks of shows Needless to say these were CRAZY experiences... what I mean to say was that 5 shows - a week of shows - were taped in ONE day!! At the beginning of the day ALL contestants for the day (all 5 shows) were rehearsed for +/- 5 minutes each. Then a break (so you could forget them all) and then the taping started -- 3 shows before lunch then two more later. By the end of the day I wasn't sure who was in worse shape, the band the contestants, or Chuck Barris?????
• Dinah Shore Show 12-15 shows as a sub for drummer Mark Stevens -- The Dinah show was really fun to do... the band was great: John Rodby - piano, Warren Luening - trumpet, Roger Neuman - saxophone, Mark Stevens -drums, Ernie McDaniel, bass & Barry Zweig - guitar. AND they were funny!!
• Tony Orlando & Dawn Show (10/16/76) With conductor Bob Rosario in the basement of CBS. This "day of the show" session got me the gig with Tony for 3 years
• Tony Basil Show (03/07/1977)
• The Academy Awards (03/27/1977)
• Richard Pryor Special (04/11/1977)
• America's Junior Miss (05/10/1977) Did a couple of these with Bob Rozario and bass player Don Baldwin in Mobile, Alabama. The orchestra was local and they played their hearts out... the girls were cute and some even had some talent. The experience revolved around three things... (1) if the coreographer couldn't hit it off with the girls we were in trouble... (2) if the emcee didn't buy into the experience it was not cool... and (3) if the crayfish were not big and fresh the whole thing was a bust!!!
• Happy Birthday Bob Hope (05/25/1978) with Tony Orlando, Reg Powell
• Tony Orlando's First Special (10/26/78) Tony's first solo special in Lake Tahoe (Video
• NBC Live Wednesday (02/26/1979) Dick Clark Productions
• America's Junior Miss (04/1-4/1979) Bob Rozario
• The Tonight Show (01/26/1979 with Tony Orlando
• Mike Douglas (04/16-17/1979) Tony Orlando -across two days of taping
• The Tonight Show (06/06/1979) as a sub for Ed Shaughnessy... having played on Mr. Shaughnessey's drums before I insisted on using my drums and schlepped them in myself. they did not do a good job of filling up the hole left by Ed's big kit!!! Otherwise it was great!! That Tonight Show band just ROARED!
• St. Jude's Telethon (07/08/1979) with Tony Orlando
• "I've Had It" (11/11/79) Dick Clark Productions
• Beat The Clock (01/10/1980)
• Ice Follies, Holiday On Ice Special (01/29/1980) This was an emergency recording session to re-record the music from an existing Ice Show that had been video-taped in Baltimore with (somebody's) intention of using the recording of the local Baltimore band. Bob Rozario was called in to "fix" it. The session band was a who's who of LA guys... the session started at 8:00 AM, the band left at 6:00 PM and I stayed until 10:00 PM recording "accents" to re-inforce the skating coreography.
• Donnie and Marie (03/21/1980) Bob Rozario asked me to come to Orem, Utah, to the Osmond's recording complex to record a Donnie and Marie Show... flew up with Ric Baptist
• St Jude (05/23/1980)
• Mike Douglas Show (05/27/1980)
• Don Kirchner's Rock Concert (06/23/88)
• The Tomorrow Show (01/26/1981) with Paul Anka
• Phil Donahue Show with Paul Anka
• 20/20 (03/10/1981) with Paul Anka
• All Commercials (5/22/1981)
• Hysterical (10/14/1981)
• Love Boat TV Movie (08/31/1983- 09/21/1983) Walter Painter and Juliet Prowse
• Erotic Film Awards (3/14/84) - Contracted by Joe Soldo... a who's who band of LA players... there's a LOT of different kind of work in LA!!! Not much time to "look" around!!
• Merv Griffin Show (11/6/84) - La Cage visits Merv

• One day Mark Stevens called to say that he was no longer able to tour with Burt Bacharach and that he had recommended me to Burt as a suitable replacement. He said that Burt's contractor, Jules Chaiken would call to hire me officially. Mark then explained how to handle the negotiations. It worked exactly as he described and I got the gig I had set my sights on so many years before while still in the Studio Band. Nothing like 'shopping for drums together' to facilitate some serious bonding!
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