The Chocolate Watchband
Encyclopedia
The Chocolate Watchband, was a psychedelic rock
and garage rock
band formed in San Jose, California
in 1965
. The band had finally broken up indefinitely by 1970
but then reunited in 1999 at a 66/99 show Mike Stax organized in San Diego. They continue to play today at garage rock shows in Europe as well as the States with Little Steven and the Electric Prunes. The band's music was largely described as a blend of 1960s-style garage rock
with a distinguishable rolling San Francisco Sound
. The group's early music appeared to contain blues
influences, and later it developed psychedelic
elements through use of instrumental experimentation. Ed Cobb
was well-known as their producer. The band also appeared in the 1967 film Riot on Sunset Strip
and the 1968 film "The Love Ins".
.
The Chocolate Watchband's founding line-up consisted of members:
This line-up quickly dissolved after a number of factors that included the draft; which claimed Rich Young, then the departure of their drummer, Pete Curry, who was replaced by Gary Andrijasevich, a jazz drummer from Cupertino High School
. The final blow to the band came as a result of other bands around the area, fond of the Watchband, successfully attempting to poach some of the group's members. A San Francisco-based combo known as The Topsiders offered Ned Torney a position as the band's guitarist. Torney's departure coincided with that of frontman Danny Phay and organist Jo Kemling, who also left the Watchband in order to join The Topsiders. As a result of their departure, Torney, Phay, Kemling, as well as Ken Matthew and Tom Antone (members of The Topsiders) formed a new band called The Other Side.
The Watchband's next incarnation consisted of:
Mark Loomis acted as somewhat of a leader during this time, although the band never really had a definite leader. Sean Tolby obtained the latest in Vox equipment while Mark Loomis provided the space for daily rehearsals. The band performed at various places in the teen-circuit in San Francisco's South Bay, playing a range of blues cover songs and even more obscure import tunes cranked up to a level even the original writers never imagined. Very different from the jam bands they were playing with (Grateful Dead), led by Dave Aguilar, the Watchband had a knack of instantly splicing different songs seamlessly on stage in real time. One night at the Coconut Grove in Santa Cruz, "Season of the Witch" turned into the full 8-minute version of "Going Home". Other bands in the Bay Area covered popular Stones songs but nobody had the gravitas to pull off "Going Home".
The Chocolate Watchband's success and popularity was beginning to pick up at the same time as an interest in signing the band began. The band were offered a management deal by Bill Graham
after a show in which they opened for The Mindbenders
at the Fillmore in San Francisco. However, having signed with their new manager Ron Roupe a week earlier, the band eventually secured a deal with Green Grass Productions and began working with producers Ray Harris and Ed Cobb
. Cobb gave the band a song he had written called "Sweet Young Thing", which was recorded and released in December 1966
on Tower Records
, which featured the group's cover of Bob Dylan
's "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue
" as the B-side.
The Watchband began to experiment with writing their own material around this time, with Dave Aguilar penning originals like "Right By My Side", "Gone & Passes By", "Don't Need Your Lovin' Anymore" and "Sitting There Standing"; however, the producers had other songs they wanted the Watchband to record instead. Although "Sweet Young Thing" gained strong airplay around San Francisco during the Spring of 1967
, and has since been covered by the Australian band JET, it was poorly promoted by Uptown Records. Too busy playing in the Bay Area, the band preferred to perform cover material of obscure British songs, although Their signature "Let's Talk About Girls was penned by Manny Freiser of the Tongues of Truth, an Arizona band. To the Watchband, the show was the sport. Many times, they thoroughly intimidated headlining acts by blowing them off the stage with their wild and driving music. The Watchband's second single was a commercial-sounding "Misty Lane", released with an orchestrated ballad, "She Weaves a Tender Trap", as its B-side, a choice that the band absolutely hated. When the 45 was released, the band took boxes of them and used them for skeet shooting targets thrown off the back porch of Sean Tolby's house in the Santa Cruz mountains.
During this period The Watchband also starred in two films: Riot on Sunset Strip
and The Love-Ins. The latter film inspired The Watchband's next single; "Are You Gonna Be There (At The Love-In)", which was written and recorded in one day, the single was released with the B-side "No Way Out", an instrumental that spawned from a studio warm-up with spontaneous vocals that Ed Cobb later took credit for.
The band broke up in mid-1967
, shortly after the release of their single "No Way Out". Mark Loomis, a critical member and somewhat of an acting leader for the group, began delving in psychedelic drugs and decided that he was tired of the band's punk/hard-rock direction. Loomis quit the band to form a psychedelic
/folk-rock band known as The Tingle Guild (which would featured ex-Watchband frontman Danny Phay as lead singer). Loomis' departure sparked the departures of drummer Gary Andrijasevich, and then the group's frontman, David Aguilar.
The Chocolate Watchband's resurrected line-up (after their breakup in mid-1967) were:
The band still maintained a level of success, but nowhere near the level of the previous line-up. The sound was different - the energy was different, to the fans, it wasn't The Chocolate Watchband. They managed to secure a place as the opening act for The Doors
and also performed at the KFRC Magic Mountain Festival. In late Autumn of 1967, Abbott and Flinders had a disagreement with Tolby and manager Ron Roupe over financial matters, which ensured the indefinite break-up of the Watchband in December 1967.
; its line-up consisted of:
The Watch Band recorded with Cobb to produce their third album, the relatively original One Step Beyond.
, because they were presented as being more instrumental on record than they were live due to Cobb's vision of what a psychedelic band should be. Never taking the time to see them perform on stage, he had no idea of the talent he had at his disposal. In later life, he would publicly lament this lack of curiosity or foresight on his part. In addition, Cobb recorded parts of the Watchband's albums without them - in fact, less than half of The Inner Mystique
was originally recorded by the band, with many of the instrumental songs performed by session musicians. One Step Beyond was to be a fresh new direction for the band but nonetheless completely unsuccessful except for the songs written and sung by David Aguilar that were put in on the album from past recording sessions. The difference was remarkable. Rambling, low energy folk tunes interspersed with rolling in your face rock and roll of the popular earlier band. Before the recording session could really get underway, Mark quit and was replaced by Jerry Miller.
The Chocolate Watchband recorded a Cobb tune already done by The Standells
, "Medication" (on The Inner Mystique).
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
and garage rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
band formed in San Jose, California
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
in 1965
1965 in music
-Events:*January 4 – Fender Musical Instruments Corporation is sold to CBS for $13 million.*January 12 – Hullabaloo premieres on NBC. The first show included performances by The New Christy Minstrels, comedian Woody Allen, actress Joey Heatherton and a segment from London in which Brian Epstein...
. The band had finally broken up indefinitely by 1970
1970 in music
- Events :*January 3**Davy Jones announces he is leaving the Monkees**Former Pink Floyd frontman Syd Barrett releases his first solo album The Madcap Laughs....
but then reunited in 1999 at a 66/99 show Mike Stax organized in San Diego. They continue to play today at garage rock shows in Europe as well as the States with Little Steven and the Electric Prunes. The band's music was largely described as a blend of 1960s-style garage rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
with a distinguishable rolling San Francisco Sound
San Francisco Sound
The San Francisco Sound refers to rock music performed live and recorded by San Francisco-based rock groups of the mid 1960s to early 1970s. It was associated with the counterculture community in San Francisco during these years.- Stylistic Dimensions :...
. The group's early music appeared to contain blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
influences, and later it developed psychedelic
Psychedelic
The term psychedelic is derived from the Greek words ψυχή and δηλοῦν , translating to "soul-manifesting". A psychedelic experience is characterized by the striking perception of aspects of one's mind previously unknown, or by the creative exuberance of the mind liberated from its ostensibly...
elements through use of instrumental experimentation. Ed Cobb
Ed Cobb
Ed Cobb was a musician, songwriter and record producer, most notably during the 1950s and 1960s.-Career:...
was well-known as their producer. The band also appeared in the 1967 film Riot on Sunset Strip
Riot on Sunset Strip
Riot on Sunset Strip is a 1967 low-budget exploitation movie, released by American International Pictures, and filmed and released within six weeks of the actual late-1966 Sunset Strip curfew riots....
and the 1968 film "The Love Ins".
Early line-up (1965)
The Chocolate Watchband was formed in the summer of 1965 by Ned Torney and Mark Loomis, who had previously played guitar together in a local band known as The Chaparrals the previous year, 19641964 in music
-Events:*January 1 – Top of the Pops is broadcast for the first time, on BBC television.*January 3 – Footage of the Beatles performing a concert in Bournemouth, England is shown on The Jack Paar Show....
.
The Chocolate Watchband's founding line-up consisted of members:
- Ned Torney, as a guitarist.
- Mark Loomis, as a guitarist.
- Rich Young, as a bassist.
- Pete Curry, as a drummer.
- Jo Kemling, who played voxVox (musical equipment)Vox is a musical equipment manufacturer which is most famous for making the Vox AC30 guitar amplifier, the Vox Continental electric organ, and a series of innovative but commercially unsuccessful electric guitars and bass guitars...
organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
for the band. - Danny Phay, who provided vocals. Phay was well-known for his on-stage presence as a charismatic frontman.
This line-up quickly dissolved after a number of factors that included the draft; which claimed Rich Young, then the departure of their drummer, Pete Curry, who was replaced by Gary Andrijasevich, a jazz drummer from Cupertino High School
Cupertino High School
Cupertino High School, colloquially referred to as "Tino", is a four-year comprehensive public high school located near the Rancho Rinconada and Fairgrove neighborhoods of Cupertino, California, USA. It is part of the Fremont Union High School District. The school serves mostly suburban...
. The final blow to the band came as a result of other bands around the area, fond of the Watchband, successfully attempting to poach some of the group's members. A San Francisco-based combo known as The Topsiders offered Ned Torney a position as the band's guitarist. Torney's departure coincided with that of frontman Danny Phay and organist Jo Kemling, who also left the Watchband in order to join The Topsiders. As a result of their departure, Torney, Phay, Kemling, as well as Ken Matthew and Tom Antone (members of The Topsiders) formed a new band called The Other Side.
Instant success – Loomis–Aguilar line-up (1966–1967)
Mark Loomis started to play guitar for a popular young local band known as The Shandels, but quickly became bored with playing for a target audience of pre-teens. Loomis decided to recreate The Chocolate Watchband with The Shandels' bass player Bill 'Flo' Flores, and former Watchband drummer Gary Andrijasevich. They enlisted the help of former Topsiders guitarist Dave "Sean" Tolby, and the charismatic frontman of a local band known as The Early Morning Reign, David Aguilar.The Watchband's next incarnation consisted of:
- Mark Loomis, as lead guitarist.
- David Aguilar, who served as vocalist, as the group's lead singer and frontman.
- Gary Andrijasevich, as the group's drummer.
- Sean Tolby, as a guitarist (usually serving as rhythm guitarist).
- Bill 'Flo' Flores, as a bassist.
Mark Loomis acted as somewhat of a leader during this time, although the band never really had a definite leader. Sean Tolby obtained the latest in Vox equipment while Mark Loomis provided the space for daily rehearsals. The band performed at various places in the teen-circuit in San Francisco's South Bay, playing a range of blues cover songs and even more obscure import tunes cranked up to a level even the original writers never imagined. Very different from the jam bands they were playing with (Grateful Dead), led by Dave Aguilar, the Watchband had a knack of instantly splicing different songs seamlessly on stage in real time. One night at the Coconut Grove in Santa Cruz, "Season of the Witch" turned into the full 8-minute version of "Going Home". Other bands in the Bay Area covered popular Stones songs but nobody had the gravitas to pull off "Going Home".
The Chocolate Watchband's success and popularity was beginning to pick up at the same time as an interest in signing the band began. The band were offered a management deal by Bill Graham
Bill Graham (promoter)
Bill Graham was an American impresario and rock concert promoter from the 1960s until his death.-Early life:...
after a show in which they opened for The Mindbenders
The Mindbenders
The Mindbenders was a 1960s beat group from Manchester, England. They were part of the mid 1960s British Invasion with their chart-toppers "Game of Love" and "A Groovy Kind of Love"....
at the Fillmore in San Francisco. However, having signed with their new manager Ron Roupe a week earlier, the band eventually secured a deal with Green Grass Productions and began working with producers Ray Harris and Ed Cobb
Ed Cobb
Ed Cobb was a musician, songwriter and record producer, most notably during the 1950s and 1960s.-Career:...
. Cobb gave the band a song he had written called "Sweet Young Thing", which was recorded and released in December 1966
1966 in music
-Events:*January 3 – Hullabaloo shows promotional videos of The Beatles songs "Day Tripper" and "We Can Work it Out".*January 8 – Shindig! airs for the last time on ABC, with musical guests the Kinks and the Who...
on Tower Records
Tower Records (record label)
Tower Records was a record label from 1964 to 1970. A subsidiary of Capitol Records, Tower often released music by artists who were relatively low profile in comparison to those released on the parent label, including a number of artists—such as The Standells and The Chocolate Watch Band—later...
, which featured the group's cover of Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
's "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue
It's All Over Now, Baby Blue
"It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" is a song written and performed by Bob Dylan and featured on his Bringing It All Back Home album, released on March 22, 1965 by Columbia Records . The song was originally recorded on January 15, 1965 with Dylan's acoustic guitar and harmonica and William E. Lee's bass...
" as the B-side.
The Watchband began to experiment with writing their own material around this time, with Dave Aguilar penning originals like "Right By My Side", "Gone & Passes By", "Don't Need Your Lovin' Anymore" and "Sitting There Standing"; however, the producers had other songs they wanted the Watchband to record instead. Although "Sweet Young Thing" gained strong airplay around San Francisco during the Spring of 1967
1967 in music
The summer of 1967 is "The Summer of Love" in San Francisco. It also became an important year for psychedelic rock, with releases from The Beatles The summer of 1967 is "The Summer of Love" in San Francisco. It also became an important year for psychedelic rock, with releases from The Beatles The...
, and has since been covered by the Australian band JET, it was poorly promoted by Uptown Records. Too busy playing in the Bay Area, the band preferred to perform cover material of obscure British songs, although Their signature "Let's Talk About Girls was penned by Manny Freiser of the Tongues of Truth, an Arizona band. To the Watchband, the show was the sport. Many times, they thoroughly intimidated headlining acts by blowing them off the stage with their wild and driving music. The Watchband's second single was a commercial-sounding "Misty Lane", released with an orchestrated ballad, "She Weaves a Tender Trap", as its B-side, a choice that the band absolutely hated. When the 45 was released, the band took boxes of them and used them for skeet shooting targets thrown off the back porch of Sean Tolby's house in the Santa Cruz mountains.
During this period The Watchband also starred in two films: Riot on Sunset Strip
Riot on Sunset Strip
Riot on Sunset Strip is a 1967 low-budget exploitation movie, released by American International Pictures, and filmed and released within six weeks of the actual late-1966 Sunset Strip curfew riots....
and The Love-Ins. The latter film inspired The Watchband's next single; "Are You Gonna Be There (At The Love-In)", which was written and recorded in one day, the single was released with the B-side "No Way Out", an instrumental that spawned from a studio warm-up with spontaneous vocals that Ed Cobb later took credit for.
The band broke up in mid-1967
1967 in music
The summer of 1967 is "The Summer of Love" in San Francisco. It also became an important year for psychedelic rock, with releases from The Beatles The summer of 1967 is "The Summer of Love" in San Francisco. It also became an important year for psychedelic rock, with releases from The Beatles The...
, shortly after the release of their single "No Way Out". Mark Loomis, a critical member and somewhat of an acting leader for the group, began delving in psychedelic drugs and decided that he was tired of the band's punk/hard-rock direction. Loomis quit the band to form a psychedelic
Psychedelic
The term psychedelic is derived from the Greek words ψυχή and δηλοῦν , translating to "soul-manifesting". A psychedelic experience is characterized by the striking perception of aspects of one's mind previously unknown, or by the creative exuberance of the mind liberated from its ostensibly...
/folk-rock band known as The Tingle Guild (which would featured ex-Watchband frontman Danny Phay as lead singer). Loomis' departure sparked the departures of drummer Gary Andrijasevich, and then the group's frontman, David Aguilar.
Continuation – Tolby–Abbott line-up (1967)
After the departure of Loomis, Andrijasevich and Aguilar, Tolby and Flores were left with the duty of fulfilling a month's worth of bookings. They decided to enlist the services of Tim Abbott, Mark Whittaker and Chris Flinders, members of the San Francisco Bay Blues Band.The Chocolate Watchband's resurrected line-up (after their breakup in mid-1967) were:
- Sean Tolby, as a guitarist (handling lead guitar).
- Bill 'Flo' Flores, as a bassist.
- Tim Abbott, serving as a guitarist.
- Mark Whittaker, as the group's new drummer.
- Chris Flinders, a "Paul ButterfieldPaul ButterfieldPaul Butterfield was an American blues vocalist and harmonica player, who founded the Paul Butterfield Blues Band in the early 1960s and performed at the original Woodstock Festival...
disciple", served as the group's new frontman.
The band still maintained a level of success, but nowhere near the level of the previous line-up. The sound was different - the energy was different, to the fans, it wasn't The Chocolate Watchband. They managed to secure a place as the opening act for The Doors
The Doors
The Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger...
and also performed at the KFRC Magic Mountain Festival. In late Autumn of 1967, Abbott and Flinders had a disagreement with Tolby and manager Ron Roupe over financial matters, which ensured the indefinite break-up of the Watchband in December 1967.
Reformation - Break-Up (1968-1969)
The Chocolate Watchband was reformed in Autumn of 19681968 in music
-Events:*January 4 – Guitarist Jimi Hendrix is jailed by Stockholm police, after trashing a hotel room during a drunken fist fight with bassist Noel Redding.*January 6 – Gibson Guitar Corporation patents its Gibson Flying V electric guitar design....
; its line-up consisted of:
- Sean Tolby, as a guitarist.
- Bill "Flo" Flores, as a bassist.
- Mark Loomis, as a guitarist.
- Gary Andrijasevich, as a drummer.
- Ned Torney, as a guitarist.
- Danny Phay, as the frontman and singer.
The Watch Band recorded with Cobb to produce their third album, the relatively original One Step Beyond.
Ed Cobb's influence and disputes
The band was involved in disputes with their manager Ed CobbEd Cobb
Ed Cobb was a musician, songwriter and record producer, most notably during the 1950s and 1960s.-Career:...
, because they were presented as being more instrumental on record than they were live due to Cobb's vision of what a psychedelic band should be. Never taking the time to see them perform on stage, he had no idea of the talent he had at his disposal. In later life, he would publicly lament this lack of curiosity or foresight on his part. In addition, Cobb recorded parts of the Watchband's albums without them - in fact, less than half of The Inner Mystique
The Inner Mystique
The Inner Mystique is a 1968 album by The Chocolate Watch Band.-Tracklist:# "Voyage of the Trieste" - 3:41# "In the Past" - 3:08# "Inner Mystique" - 5:37# "I'm Not Like Everybody Else" - 3:42# "Medication" - 2:08...
was originally recorded by the band, with many of the instrumental songs performed by session musicians. One Step Beyond was to be a fresh new direction for the band but nonetheless completely unsuccessful except for the songs written and sung by David Aguilar that were put in on the album from past recording sessions. The difference was remarkable. Rambling, low energy folk tunes interspersed with rolling in your face rock and roll of the popular earlier band. Before the recording session could really get underway, Mark quit and was replaced by Jerry Miller.
The Chocolate Watchband recorded a Cobb tune already done by The Standells
The Standells
The Standells are a garage rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in the 1960s, who have been referred to as the "Godfathers of Punk Rock", and are best known for their 1966 hit "Dirty Water," now the anthem of several Boston sports teams.-The 1960s:...
, "Medication" (on The Inner Mystique).
45s
- "Sweet Young Thing" / "Baby BlueIt's All Over Now, Baby Blue"It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" is a song written and performed by Bob Dylan and featured on his Bringing It All Back Home album, released on March 22, 1965 by Columbia Records . The song was originally recorded on January 15, 1965 with Dylan's acoustic guitar and harmonica and William E. Lee's bass...
" : Uptown 740 (1966) - "Misty Lane" / "She Weaves a Tender Trap" : Uptown 749 (1967)
- "Are You Gonna Be There (At the Love-In)" / "No Way Out" : TowerTower Records (record label)Tower Records was a record label from 1964 to 1970. A subsidiary of Capitol Records, Tower often released music by artists who were relatively low profile in comparison to those released on the parent label, including a number of artists—such as The Standells and The Chocolate Watch Band—later...
373 (1967)
Albums
- No Way Out: TowerTower Records (record label)Tower Records was a record label from 1964 to 1970. A subsidiary of Capitol Records, Tower often released music by artists who were relatively low profile in comparison to those released on the parent label, including a number of artists—such as The Standells and The Chocolate Watch Band—later...
ST 5096 (1967) - The Inner MystiqueThe Inner MystiqueThe Inner Mystique is a 1968 album by The Chocolate Watch Band.-Tracklist:# "Voyage of the Trieste" - 3:41# "In the Past" - 3:08# "Inner Mystique" - 5:37# "I'm Not Like Everybody Else" - 3:42# "Medication" - 2:08...
: Tower ST 5106 (1968) - One Step Beyond: Tower ST 5153 (1969) (as The Chocolate Watchband)
- Get Away: Orchard 3716 (2000)
- At the Love-In Live!: Roir 8272 (2001)
Compilations
- The Best of the Chocolate Watchband: Rhino RNLP-108 (1983)
- Melts In Your Brain... Not On Your Wrist!: Big Beat CDWIK2 249 (2005)