September 18, 2014 Vol. 20 Is. 35
By Steve Lobowitz
They were one of the first bands ever to play at Earl Warren Showgrounds back in the early 1960’s and the last to perform at Peabody’s in Montecito before it closed in 2012. They worked with such major artists of the era as the Allman Brothers, Roy Orbison, Deep Purple’s Ritchie Blackmore, Eddie Brigati (of the Young Rascals), Nick St. Nicholas (Steppenwolf), Kenny Cetera (Chicago), and Doug Ingle (Iron Butterfly) and later, locally, Toad the Wet Sprocket and Katy Perry in an earlier guise. For a while in the 1960s, they were the biggest band in the land, the 16-ton monster in the 805. But unless you’re a musician or local music fan nearing retirement age, chances are you’ve never heard of them...
