The
Mystics, 1963
Scott
Eberhart, Justin Bonner, Tim Woodward, Dean Jackson, Vance Shirley.
The
Mystics
Boise,
Idaho
1961
~ 1970
1981
- Present
Members
The 60's to 1970
*#Justin
Bonner ~ Drums
#Scott
Eberhart ~ Saxophone
*Gary
Grove ~ Bass
-John
Hynes ~ Bass
#Dean
Jackson ~ Bass
*Dennis
McCarthy ~ Piano
-Tom
McMeekan ~ Guitar
Chris
Oswald ~ Drums
Dennis
Schaffner ~ Vocals
#Vance
Shirley ~ Keyboards
Rich
Smith ~ Drums
*#Tim
Woodward ~ Guitar
Del
Chapman ~ Manager
*
Original
Members
#
First Gigging Lineup
-
Joined in 1964
The 80's to
Present
Robb
Campbell ~ Bass, Vocals
**Don
Cunningham ~ Bass, Vocals
**Lawson
Hill ~ Drums, Vocals
Bill
Liles ~ Bass, Vocals
Russ
Martin ~ Lead Guitar
Dave
Owens ~ Drums, Vocals
Dennis
Schaffner ~ Bass, Vocals
Mike
Wallace ~ Harp, Vocals
**Rico
Weisman ~ Lead Guitar
**Tim
Woodward ~ Guitar, Vocals
**
Current Lineup
Visit
The Mystics Website
In
Memory of
Robb
Campbell
Vance
Shirley
Del
Chapman
The
Mystics, 1965, on the fire escape to their Saturday-night haunt,
Boise's
Fiesta Ballroom
Justin
Bonner, John Hynes, Tim Woodward, Vance Shirley
Frantic
Records Recording Artists
Universal
City, Calif.
"The Mystics of
Boise
were together from 1961 to 1966. They made a record, "Weekend People,"
that was a 5 to 1 hit on an L.A. station and were asked to tour with
the
Golliwogs (who became CCR) in California, but by then the group
had
broken up. The members at the time of the recording were Tim Woodward,
Vance Shirley, John Hynes, Rich Smith and Dennis Schaffner. They played
at halls in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon. The band reunited
in '81 and is still playing in the Boise area."
Mike
Wallace,
29 November 2000
The next version
of
the Mystics came about after an early lineup of the band regrouped in
1981.
After several very successful reunion shows over the course about five
years, three members decided that they couldn't devote the time/energy
to continuing on, even though the group was only performing at the
occasional
event, perhaps 2 or 3 per year. Only founding member and rhythm
guitarist
Tim Woodward and bassist Dennis Schaffner remained.
Woodward, who
had
become a popular columnist for the local daily newspaper had become
acquainted
with, and had written a column about a local band called
DownTime.
DownTime happened to play many of the same songs that were also in the
Mystics' repertoire, so Woodward and Schaffner hatched an idea and
approached
DownTime's lead singer, Mike Wallace with a proposition...Wallace,
along
with DownTime's drummer Dave Owens and lead guitarist Russ Martin would
replace the Mystics who had left at the occasional Mystics'
performance.
After consulting with his bandmates except bass player Greg Dennett,
Wallace
offered a counter proposal... the three would join the Mystics on a
permanent
basis, but only if the Mystics would become a regularly gigging band
once
again! Woodward and Schaffner finally agreed. This version of the
Mystics went on for a couple of years until Wallace the band left
sometime
in 1987.
A lot of
players
have come to and gone from the Mystics over the years. By
Woodward's
count, Wallace, Owens and Martin were Mystics #31, 32 and 33.
Mike
Wallace,
January 2009
Mystics
- 1986 Western Idaho State Fair
Woodward,
Schaffner, Wallace
The Mystics began
in
1961, when 15-year-olds Tim Woodward and Justin Bonner began practicing
with a $50 Silvertone guitar and a beginner's drum kit in Justin's back
yard in Boise, Idaho. They soon added piano player Dennis McCarthy and
bass player Gary Grove. This group was short-lived and never played
outside
of McCarthy's basement.
The first
Mystics
band to stay together more than a few months and play publicly was Tim,
Justin, bass player Dean Jackson, piano player Vance Shirley and
saxophonist
Scott Eberhart. They played at teen dances from Prineville, Ore. to
Pocatello,
Idaho and were Friday night regulars at Boise's Trocadero ballroom.
They
drove a 1956 Chrysler Crown Imperial limousine painted cherry red with
the name of the group painted on the side and a U-Haul trailer full of
gear bringing up the rear. They were together a little less than two
years.
With the advent
of
the British Invasion in 1964, Woodward, Bonner and Shirley formed a new
Mystics group with bassist John Hynes and guitarist Tom McMeekan. They
reopened and operated the Fiesta Ballroom in downtown Boise and played
to large crowds there every Saturday night. McMeekan presently
left
to start his own group, the Quirks, eventually recruiting Bonner to
join
them. They were replaced by drummer Rich Smith and vocalist
Dennis
Schaffner. These Mystics played at the Fiesta in
1965 and 1966 and recorded the band's only record, in 1965 in Lodi,
Calif.,
for the Frantic label. Written by Woodward, the A side was titled
"Weekend
People," the B side "I Get So Disgusted." "Weekend People" was a
five to one hit on a Los Angeles rock station's hit-or-miss segment.
That
led to the group's being asked to tour California with a band called
the
Golliwogs, who later changed their name to Creedence Clearwater
Revival.
By then, however, the Mystics had disbanded due to college, marital and
military commitments. The record, though, acquired a mystique of its
own.
So few copies were made due to the group's breakup that it became a
collectible.
Only four copes are known to be in existence. They now command a
price of up to $1,000, depending on condition.
In 1969,
Woodward
returned from the Navy and joined Schaffner and Smith at the University
of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho. Shirley joined them in a group they called
Hope.
They played weekly at a club called the Alley and at college
dances.
Drummer Chris Oswald replaced Smith after a year. The group disbanded
when
its members graduated.
That was the
end
of the band until 1982, when many of its former members were living in
Boise again for the first time in a decade and decided to go on the
proverbial
mission from God and put the old group back together. What began
as a one-night stand in a packed church basement has become nearly
three
decades of playing at functions from biker rallies to the governor's
ball.
Many players have come and gone during this time, with most of the
early
members being replaced by professional musicians.
Bill
Liles, Lawson Hill, Tim Woodward, Russ Martin, Sandon Mayhew
The
Mystics, 1990s
Longtime
Mystics
since the group reunited in 1982 include Woodward (the only remaining
original
member), Lawson Hill (20 years), Russ Martin (15 years), Bill Liles (11
years), Rico Weisman (10 years), Dave Owens, the late Robb Campbell and
Don Cunningham (all about four years). Others have included
well-known
Boise musicians Sandon Mayhew, Dave Robinette and "Dr. Joe" Baldassare.
The most famous person to play with the group (two gigs) was renowned
jazz
player Curtis Stigers.
The current
lineup
(2010) is Woodward, guitar and vocals; Hill, drums and vocals,
Cunningham,
bass and vocals and Weisman on lead guitar. They play at parties,
reunions,
wedding receptions, festivals and other events. The group can be
reached
at tswoodward@msn.com
Tim
Woodward,
February 2010
Don Cunningham,
Lawson
Hill, Rico Weisman and Tim Woodward
The Mystics in 2010
