Copperpenny
Encyclopedia
Copperpenny was a Canadian rock band from Kitchener, Ontario
. They were formed in 1965 by Kenny Hollis and Rich Wamil, and were originally known as the Penny Farthings. Not long after their formation they adopted Copperpenny as their new moniker.
In 1968, the release of "Nice Girl" on Columbia Records
garnered moderate success. They soon switched to RCA
and enjoyed a minor hit with "Stop (Wait A Minute)." However, it was not until their move to Sweet Plum Records, a division of London Records
, where they would enjoy their first major success.
"You're Still The One" was the band's first mainstream hit and the follow-up, 1973's "Sitting On A Poor Man's Throne," was recorded in Dearborn, Michigan, with Richard Becker
.
Copperpenny continued to record as they toured throughout the United States with headlining acts such as Led Zeppelin
, Bob Seger
, The Guess Who
and Uriah Heep
.
1975 saw them sign on with Capitol Records
. They made several appearances on television shows such as "Keith Hampshire
's Music Machine". Copperpenny even had a short-lived variety show that launched the career of an unknown magician named Doug Henning
.
During this period, they had continued success with the singles "Disco Queen," "Good Time Sally" and "Suspicious Love." They toured Canada in support of the "Fuse" album opening for the Swedish band Blue Swede
. Their touring line-up included Mark Stephen Gendel on guitar, Bill Mair on bass and Jim Minas on Drums.
Fuse was their final record, and by the time it was released most of the original members had already left the band. Rich Wamil supported the effort as Rich Wamil & Copperpenny, but the remaining band split up in the late '70s.
Co-founder Kenny Hollis went on to have a successful solo career with the single "Goin' Hollywood". He would later become PR manager at Lulu's Roadhouse in Cambridge, Ontario
, with several Copperpenny reunion shows throughout the 1980s. Hollis died on July 12, 2002 after suffering a heart attack.
Ron Hiller spent 1979-1981 in a Toronto-based contemporary gospel music band called Sonlight. They did the local Toronto church scene, and Kitchener-Waterloo, as well as summer gigs in Muskoka, Ontario.
The other members now have families and took regular day jobs.
1973
1975
1975 (Touring Band)
Donald K. Donald Tour Schedule (1975)
BLUE SWEDE (Blablus) & Copperpenny - CAPITAL RECORDS
Kitchener, Ontario
The City of Kitchener is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It was the Town of Berlin from 1854 until 1912 and the City of Berlin from 1912 until 1916. The city had a population of 204,668 in the Canada 2006 Census...
. They were formed in 1965 by Kenny Hollis and Rich Wamil, and were originally known as the Penny Farthings. Not long after their formation they adopted Copperpenny as their new moniker.
In 1968, the release of "Nice Girl" on Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
garnered moderate success. They soon switched to RCA
RCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
and enjoyed a minor hit with "Stop (Wait A Minute)." However, it was not until their move to Sweet Plum Records, a division of London Records
London Records
London Records, referred to as London Recordings in logo, is a record label headquartered in the United Kingdom, originally marketing records in the United States, Canada and Latin America from 1947 to 1979, then becoming a semi-independent label....
, where they would enjoy their first major success.
"You're Still The One" was the band's first mainstream hit and the follow-up, 1973's "Sitting On A Poor Man's Throne," was recorded in Dearborn, Michigan, with Richard Becker
Richard Becker
Richard Becker was a German theoretical physicist who made contributions in thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, superconductivity, and quantum electrodynamics.-Education:...
.
Copperpenny continued to record as they toured throughout the United States with headlining acts such as Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
, Bob Seger
Bob Seger
Robert Clark "Bob" Seger is an American rock and roll singer-songwriter, guitarist and pianist.As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded as Bob Seger and the Last Heard and Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s...
, The Guess Who
The Guess Who
The Guess Who are a Canadian rock band from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Initially gaining recognition in Canada, they also found international success from the late 1960s through the mid-1970s with numerous hit singles, including "American Woman", "These Eyes" and "Share the Land"...
and Uriah Heep
Uriah Heep (band)
Uriah Heep are an English rock band formed in London in 1969 and regarded as a seminal classic hard rock act of the 1970s. Uriah Heep's progressive/art rock/heavy metal fusion's distinctive features have always been massive keyboards sound, strong vocal harmonies and David Byron's operatic vocals...
.
1975 saw them sign on with Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
. They made several appearances on television shows such as "Keith Hampshire
Keith Hampshire
Keith Hampshire is an English-born Canadian popular singer of the 1970s, famous in Canada for three top ten hits , and the successful television show Music Machine...
's Music Machine". Copperpenny even had a short-lived variety show that launched the career of an unknown magician named Doug Henning
Doug Henning
Douglas James Henning was a Canadian magician, illusionist, escape artist and politician.-Early life:...
.
During this period, they had continued success with the singles "Disco Queen," "Good Time Sally" and "Suspicious Love." They toured Canada in support of the "Fuse" album opening for the Swedish band Blue Swede
Blue Swede
Blue Swede was a Swedish rock band from the early to mid 1970s, that succeeded with a few singles which were covers of other artists' material.-Career:...
. Their touring line-up included Mark Stephen Gendel on guitar, Bill Mair on bass and Jim Minas on Drums.
Fuse was their final record, and by the time it was released most of the original members had already left the band. Rich Wamil supported the effort as Rich Wamil & Copperpenny, but the remaining band split up in the late '70s.
Co-founder Kenny Hollis went on to have a successful solo career with the single "Goin' Hollywood". He would later become PR manager at Lulu's Roadhouse in Cambridge, Ontario
Cambridge, Ontario
Cambridge is a city located in Southern Ontario at the confluence of the Grand and Speed rivers in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It is an amalgamation of the City of Galt, the towns of Preston and Hespeler, and the hamlet of Blair.Galt covers the largest portion of...
, with several Copperpenny reunion shows throughout the 1980s. Hollis died on July 12, 2002 after suffering a heart attack.
Ron Hiller spent 1979-1981 in a Toronto-based contemporary gospel music band called Sonlight. They did the local Toronto church scene, and Kitchener-Waterloo, as well as summer gigs in Muskoka, Ontario.
The other members now have families and took regular day jobs.
Band members
1969- Rich Wamil – vocals, keyboards
- Kenny Hollis – vocals
- Vern McDonald – guitar
- Paul Reibling – bass
- Bert Hamer – drums
1973
- Rich Wamil– vocals, keyboards
- Kenny Hollis – vocals
- Bill Mononen – guitar
- Ron Hiller – bass
- Blake Barrett – drums, percussion
1975
- Rich Wamil – vocals, keyboards
- Brian Russell – guitar
- Al Mix – guitar
- Paul Zaza – bass
- Barry Keane – drums
- Eric Robertson - keyboards
1975 (Touring Band)
- Rich Wamil - vocals, keyboards & guitar
- Mark Stephen-Gendel - guitar
- Bill Mair - bass & vocals
- Jim Minas - drums & vocals
Donald K. Donald Tour Schedule (1975)
BLUE SWEDE (Blablus) & Copperpenny - CAPITAL RECORDS
- Friday, May 2 - Lord Beaverbrook Arena, Saint John, NB
- Saturday, May 3 - Moncton Colliseum, Moncton, NB
- Sunday, May 4 - Fredericton Playhouse, Fredericton, NB
- Monday, May 5 - Bathurst Arena, Bathurst, NB
- Tuesday, May 6 - Sinclair Rink, Newcastle, NB
- Wednesday, May 7 - Simmons Sport Centre, Charlottetown, PEI
- Thursday, May 8 - New Glasgow Stadium, New Glasgow, NS
- Friday, May 9 - Sydney Academy, Sydney, NS
- Saturday, May 10 - Halifax Forum, Halifax, NS
- Sunday, May 11 - Bridgewater Memorial Arena, Bridgewater, NS
- Monday, May 12 - Travel Day
- Tuesday, May 13 - Peterborough Memorial Gardens, Peterborough, ON
- Wednesday, May 14 - Capital Theatre, Cornwall, ON
- Thursday, May 15 - Travel Day
- Friday, May 16 - Sault memorial Gardens, Sault Ste. Marie, ON
- Saturday, May 17 - North Bay memorial Gardens, North Bay, ON
- Sunday, May 18 - Sudbury Arena, Sudbury, ON
- Monday, May 19 - MacIntyre Community Centre, Timmins, ON
- Tuesday, May 20 - Kirkland Lake Arena, Kirkland Lake, ON
- Wednesday, May 21 - Travel Day
- Thursday, May 22 - Ontario Place, Toronto, ON
- Friday, May 23 - Travel Day
- Saturday, May 24 - Key to Bala, Bala, ON
Discography
LPs| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Copperpenny | RCA Victor |
| 1973 | Sitting On A Poor Man's Throne | Sweet Plum |
| 1975 | Fuse | Capitol Records |