TIMMYTIMMY
TIMMY is a very old band and they have so far released a CD under the bandname EYE in 1989 and a mini-CD under the orignal bandname TIMMY last year. Through the years the band recorded many songs and in the coming years we can finally hear all these recordings. Musically they started out as a Progressive Rockband (KANSAS/YES/GENESIS-style) in the early 70s, but the two CDs they released so far contained songs from the 80s and these recordings can easily be called Classic 80s AOR/Pomprock.
Both reviews can be read by clicking here and as you can see the EYE and TIMMY album are both Classic 80s AOR/Pomp in the style of bands such as LE ROUX, RATHSKELLER, ROADMASTER, JOURNEY... I haven't heard the rest of their material, but I can assure that this band is totally 80s AOR on these two CDs. In the future more reviews will follow, because the band will release more CDs of unreleased songs. In the meantime check out the interview I had with the band...
Did any of you do something musically before TIMMY?
Peter Panhallow (Keyboards): I was in Cream of Chicken, (Alice Cooper/Beefhart influences) with Paul Zahl, who is also an ex-Timmy drummer, lives in Brussels, and commutes to Amsterdam regularly as a session drummer. Paul has a cd of a Cream of Chicken rehearsal from when we were 20. Raw power trio stuff.
John Harrison (Lead vocals, Bass, Keyboards): When I first came to California in 1973, I did a brief stint with a local Marin band called Logos. It's been Timmy from there on! Twenty-seven years.
Don MacLeod (Bass, Guitar): Hi I'm Don MacLeod, I play strings, guitar and bass guitar. As John said we have played together since we were kids. I have played in other bands growing up, my first gig was playing for the Atlanta Falcons football team party and have been gigging ever since. I came to California from Georgia in 1971 and John followed two years later and we formed Timmy.
Andy Bishop (Drums): Prior to joining Timmy, I played in numerous bands. Most of which were your typical Top-40 cover bands with the occasional original tune thrown in. But, the crowds we'd play for were more interested in our cover tune repertoire. Then I was in a couple of original-only bands, but these bands never acquired any sort-of critical acclaim -- primarily because we could never secure management (and its not because we weren't actively looking). These original bands were keyboard-heavy, progressive type bands (i.e. Yes, mid-era Genesis, L Saga); so when the Timmy drum seat became available, I was well versed in the genre of music that John & Don came from.
Charles Tapp (Drums, Lead Vocals): The year before I joined Timmy, 1981, I was in "Cinema" with Jeff Pilson, (Dokken) Mark Robertson (Cairo) and Mike Varney. The year before that, 1980, I was with "Randy Hansen" (The Randy Hansen Album, Capitol Records) and we did two North American tours. For three years prior there was "Christmas" wth Pilson, Robertson and Bruce Hazen, in Seattle, WA 77-79.
When did you
actually start with TIMMY?
Peter: I joined the band in 1975, and was with them till 1988. Actually I'm still in the band, I just haven't been to rehearsal for 13 years. John and Donny have been together since 7th grade, (1965).
John: Timmy started in late 1973 with Don MacLeod on bass, myself, drummer #1 David Obeido, an English guitarist Angie Makaruk. I played rock clavinet (similar to guitar tone).
Andy: I'm the new kid on the bock. I joined the band in the summer 1995 and my first gig was about 2 months after I joined.
Charles: Proud Timmy member, Jan 82 thru 1985. Officially.
Could
you tell me more about the beginning of the band?
John: Early Timmy had a great rock sound. We started right off with originals, some cover tunes like the Beatles' Oh Darling and Paperback Writer, Fleetwood Mac's Rattlesnake Shake, Savoy Brown's Tell Me, Hendrix' Little Wing and Watchtower, and Procol Harum's Whiter Shade of Pale. I played my string clavinet through a guitar amp with similar rock guitar tone. Donny was a great bass player. Angie played a Gibson SG through anything he could get his hands on (had to be ultra rock tone). Dave, great rock drums.
Don: John and I had talked about forming a band since we were young growing up in Atlanta Georgia. We've been fortunate to be able to play with musicians of high calibor.
In 1984 you recorded an album titled 'The Atlanta Tapes', can you
tell me everything about this album and it's recordings?
John: The band flew to Atlanta
and started work recording with Eddie immediately. We did about
twenty pre-production songs first and Eddie picked these four.
Eddie had turned an old movie house into a great
recording studio. The band set up where the screen was and he had
his console and monitors on about the tenth row. He took the
chairs out, great room, great tone.
The album was produced by Eddie Offord, a famous producer, how
did you get in touch with him, and how was it working with him?
Peter: Andy West was in our band. Eddy produced one Dregs album. That was one connection. Also, Tony Secunda, who managed the Moody Blues and Procul Harem, among others, also knew Eddy, from way back.
John: Eddie was contacted by our then manager Tony Secunda, who sent Eddie some of our music. Eddie loved it and agreed to produce us. Working with Eddie was fantastic, fast, professional, great tone. He basically let us produce and he engineered. Could you imagine doing a full blown project with Timmy and Eddie?
Don: Working with Eddie Offord was great as I was always a fan of his.
Charles: We worked with Eddie through Tony Secunda. It was a wonderful experience!!
He did gave your band not the sound of most of the other bands he
produced (such as Police, Yes, ELP), but much more the famous
early 80s AOR/Radiorocksound with the perfect harmonies,
keyboards, sharp guitarwork every now and then, did you choose
for this great sound and which bands influenced you for making
this sound?
Peter: We were just doing what we do.
John: As Peter said, "We were just doing what we do."
Don: As Peter says we were just
doing what we do, I dont think any of us owned a stereo at the
time so our listening oportunities were limited to what we heard
on the radio. Come to think of it, we still don't own any
stereos.
Do you perhaps know bands such as ROADMASTER, THRILLS, SYNCH, DAKOTA, RATHSKELLER who played the same type of music as TIMMY and/or how was the scene like for this type of music?
Peter: Never heard of those bands. Would like to. There was not much of a scene at all for our kind of music in the San Francisco Bay Area, but we did warm up such acts as Bill Brufurd, The Dregs, Alan Holdsworth, Captain Beefhart, etc., and always did well in those situations.
John: I've never heard of these bands too. I would like to. Timmy went over great at gigs, and still does. Encores, etc.
Don: Don't know those bands but would like to hear them.
Andy: I, personally, have never
heard of most of these bands, except for Rathskeller. I remember
seeing that name around, but I've never heard their music.
Did the sound of TIMMY changed much during the years?
Peter: We were originally very much into the European progressive rock sound. We had half-hour tunes, with time-changes every measure. Very beautiful stuff. In about 1980 we shortened the tunes and made them a little straighter.
John: Our sound hasn't dramatically changed but yet it has morphed into more polished and arrangement- oriented music. I have been the main writer since day one. I don't think of it as changing sound, just more experience and luck.
Don: We have hundreds of songs so I don't know how much we have changed. It's always evolving. I think we are better than ever now as I continue to rehearse and gig, having a great time with Timmy.
Why was that 'The Atlanta tapes' recording never officially
released?
Peter: We were shopping it as a demo.
John: It's a real shame about this. Basically, politics entered in and the songs were shelved into obscurity, until now. Thank you, Gabor!
Charles: Mo Austin, when
president of Warner Bros., sat with Tony and Craig Miller and
promised to release Timmy; a few months later, Mo was gone from
Warners. The whole era was release by the labels, whatever they
wanted.
Did you record more music under the TIMMY name?
John: Yes, we've been constantly writing and recording all this time;
Don: Yes we have alot of stuff on tape.
When did you changed the name into EYE (and why?)
Peter: A brief change. I actually came up with the name. It is an acronymn for "Eternal Youth Enterprises".
John: Funny question. Again, typical Timmy business move. Eye was our first CD project. We decided after 15 years to go with a new name the night before printing, and changed it back about a month later. Smart, huh?
In
1989 EYE released the fantastic album 'It might rain', please
tell me everything about this record and it's songs?
John: Eye, as you know, is Timmy. By the way, "Under the Weather" was produced by Vince Wellnick, (Tubes, Rundgren, Grateful Dead). This album is a good example of Timmy songs done on an extremely low budget. Most tunes are syntho keyboard bass. We have been syntho bass entirely except for the first few years and with exception to Andy West who was in the band for about one year. The cover was done by Prairie Prince, the fabulous Tubes' drummer. The album was produced by us, and Greg Schnitzer pretty much engineered.
Did you get much support and how did the album sold, got it many
airplay?
John: We've been externally plagued with horrible management, so the album never even got to see the light of day until now. Thanks again, Gabor!
By that time, a lot of similar sounding bands were signed to big
major recordlabels. Bands like JOURNEY, LOVERBOY, NIGHT RANGER
were big time in the USA, didn't you feel that it was a shame
that TIMMY/EYE couldn't benefit of the popularity of AOR/Melodic
Rock back then?
Peter: We always hoped that Europe would discover us!
John: Yes, totally.
Don: Yes we thought it was a
shame, although we tried very hard, playing lots of gigs in the
bay area opening for bands that clubs concidered hard to open for
like Devo, Bill Bruford, Captian Beefheart, Tubes and others.
Did you play live and/or toured with the band back then?
Peter: Just the occasional warm-up gig.
John: Yes we are a great live band. We play many gigs including some warm up spots for big acts.
Don: We have always done well at gigs, then and now.
What happened after the LP release?
John: We did not release anything else. We should write a book on how not to make it in the music business.
Weren't you able to release another album in the period TIMMY and
EYE existed (did you release any singles perhaps)
John: Never.
Charles: It is easier to release an indy CD today.
Has EYE or TIMMY split up and if so when did you get back
together again?
Peter: John and Donny have been
together since 7th grade. They split up once for a week. I quit
the band 50 times between 1975 and 1988. The band has been
through several drummers: Paul Zahl, Panda, Charlie
Tapp, Bob Rigus, Brain, and currently Andy Bishop. Charlie and I
recently recorded with Timmy on a tune for the forthcoming cd.
Are there plans for a new CD?
Peter: The current Timmy has some great material. They're still working on it, but there should be a cd in about a year?
John: Our plans for a new CD are the best so far ever! We've got about two albums full of my favorite material that we are working on now, and have begun to record in Huey Lewis' new recording studio.
Don: Yes we are thinking about putting out an album we did live in the Record Plant in Sausalito, California.
Can you tell us about possible new written songs?
John: Like George Lucas (Star Wars), we think it's smart not to reveal anything about our new stuff.
Don: We have tons of new stuff, I tend to write guitar oriented pieces but also write on keyboard as well. It has always been fun writing and playing with John and Peter as we all play guitar, keys, drums, etc. We really don't have to tell each other what to play since we have a good basic knowledge of the other instruments. Example, keyboards are not what I play on stage but it helps to look at someones hand and know where they are going. John and Peter are excellant guitar players even though I'm the one elected to record and play on stage.
Andy: We are currently working on recording a lot of new material. It's going rather smoothly and we hope to have it out by summer, 2000.
Are these new songs in the style of the old EYE/TIMMY songs?
Peter: Very much so.
John: A bit of everything, including melodic meter hook lines. The present band is now trio. I love this sound. We've been like this about seven years - keyboard/guitar/drums/all sing.
Andy: The new material is more diverse than what's on the CD's. We've incorporated quite a few different styles into the new crop of tunes. There's Latin, Tribal, and R&B feels that are evident, but we also make these styles rock! I think the song writing has definitely improved.
And those old songs, when can we see more new CDs with old
material?
Peter: We have tons of archives
of our more progressive stuff: rehearsals; gigs. I'm in the
process of remastering them. Coming Soon! We also have 16 track
masters of progressive stuff that we never finished.
Plans are under way to finish them...someday.
Did TIMMY/EYE had a big following back in the 80s and are these
people aware of the new CD?
John: We got great live response from the audience in the 80's.
Don: We had a great following, but it was mostly other bands. Tons of musicians used to come see us live.
Where can people get this EYE CD from 1989?
Peter: A Brown Soun'.
John: http://www.abrown.com/store.htm
Could you tell me of each bandmember what they did after the
split (if there was a split of course), any new recordings with
other bands/projects?
Peter: I've been a musical director for kids theater projects for 22 years. Not much rock and roll, but lots of fun. Then there is the Cream of Chicken CD, which I plan to redo in the studio someday as well.
Charles: After Timmy, I spent
seven years with "The Tapp" recording many originals
that I'm remixing and should have out on Rudolf Music in 2001. In
97 I released TAPP, sort of a solo album that was Rudolf Music's
first CD.
You already told me about what the guys are doing right now, but
musically a lot of things have changed since the early 80s. AOR
has almost vanished, but is now making a huge comeback,
especially in Europe with big labels popping up here and there.
Would you like to play the fun rock'n'roll of EYE/TIMMYall over
again?
Peter: We've all talked since you have written, and we would be thrilled to play if anyone will listen.
John: Yes! We never quit.
Don: Of course.
Finally, do you have anything to add to the readers and the fans
out there?
Peter: See you at the pot-bar!
John: Thank you! Stay tuned.
Don: We really appreciate the mention in your mag. It's always nice to hear that someone is enjoying the music we made as it sure is fun doing it.
Andy: Being the newest member, I'd like to say that it's an extreme pleasure to be playing with these two seasoned veterans. They've been together for so long that they can communicate telepathically! These guys have a chemistry that few bands have and you can definitely see it during a gig, but I'm mainly talking about during rehearsals. John may have a piece that he brings in to work on and almost immediately, Don will fire off another idea that fits perfectly! It's a trip, to be sure. They just know each others musical prowess and tastes so well, that it's scary! Other than that, I'd love for us to gig in Europe. It would be great to play for all our new found Timmy fans over there. And, of course, a big thank you to Gabor for his interest and extremely kind words. Keep up the good work!
Charles: We've been waiting for you.
DISCOGRAPHY:
TIMMY: The Atlanta Project (1984/2000)
EYE: It might rain (1989)
LINE-UP:
Atlanta Project:
John Harrison, lead vocals,
keyboards
Don Macleod, guitar, back-up vocals
Peter Penhallow, keyboards, back-up vocals
Andy West, bass
Charlie Tapp, drums, lead and back-up vocals.
Current line-up:
John Harrison, lead vocals,
keyboards, and bass
Don Macleod, guitar, back-up vocals
Andy Bishop, drums, back-up vocals
"It Might Rain" cover-art by Prairie Prince.
LOCATION:
San Anselmo, California
USA
WEBSITE:
http://www.abrown.com/timmy.htm
http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/17/timmy.html
E-MAIL: