We had a
gigging
band from about 1967 through 1983 that played in Vancouver under
several
names starting with "Revelation" and "Good Company" with Lyle
Watts,
Ken Smithson, Steve Hoas, Al Staniforth, Brian Brown, John Hudson, and
Glenn Taylor.
The early 70's
saw
a name change to "VANCOUVER, Your Town Band", which we used until our
breakup
in 1983.
We played 50-70
gigs
a year around the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island; mostly larger
corporate
events in the major hotels. We booked mainly through Bruce Allen
and John Whitefoot, as well as developing our own client list through
those
years.
Ken
Smithson,
November 2008
Band
History
The band
started
in 1965 with a group of 14 and 15 year old guys from the Dunbar area of
Vancouver who attended Point Grey Senior Secondary School. We
played
mainly for school dances, functions and private parties under the
“Quotations”
and “Revelation” banner.
“Good Company”
was
formed circa 1970 after Lyle Watts returned from a year in
Europe.
This band performed a lot around town, producing a much more “polished”
sound. Cecil Green Park was a fairly regular gig where we could try out
our new material and have a good time as part of our deal was to have
our
friends get in free, plus all the alcohol we could drink... We played
around
the Greater Vancouver area, including the Sunshine Coast.
“Lyle
and the Group” was formed in the fall of 1973 with a new roster of band
members when Steve Hoas moved to Sicamous and Dave Esau moved to
Calgary.
Doug Jang, Ron Merrison and Karen Weisgarber joined Lyle Watts, Ken
Smithson
and Brian Brown. This group worked hard on the repertoire, taking
advantage
of Karen’s flute and vocals to allow agents to book us for weddings,
corporate
events and parties in the major hotels. This band honed our
ability
to play for all age groups and we were much in demand as a
result.
We ran the band in a business-like fashion, and the agents respected
and
trusted us to provide their customers with good value.
“Lyle and
the
Group” changed in name to “Vancouver, Your Town Band” in January 1977,
with new custom tailored uniforms, even more emphasis on vocal harmony
(Lyle, Karen and Ken had choral experience), plus a large set list
developed
over the years. This band continued to fill a niche in the Greater
Vancouver/
Fraser Valley market for a well presented six person band that could
successfully
entertain large, mixed age group corporate gatherings in the major
hotels
and country clubs, up-scale weddings, large parties etc. We
played
on Vancouver Island at the Comox Air Force Base several times, as well
as other venues up and down the island, and were even flown to the
Queen
Charlotte Islands for a logging company celebration.
We enjoyed the
company
of many fine local musicians who passed through our ranks over the
years,
and would like to thank each and every one of them for their
contribution
to our success. We had some great times!
As our various
“daytime”
careers developed, in 1983 we decided to stop playing regularly.
Playing between 50 to 70 casual gigs a year took a large amount of time
and energy, and became harder as our personal commitments grew.
We
would reform through the ‘80s to play a few gigs, such as New Years or
other interesting venues.
Afterwards,
Lyle
Watts, Dyan Telford and Wayne Briscoe performed on a number of Princess
Cruise ships. Ken Smithson and Brian Brown played together for
about
20 years as a duo, and also in a trio, Rogue Scholars, with Bonnie
Wolokoff.
