Paul Revere & the Raiders
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Paul Revere & the Raiders is an American rock band that saw enormous mainstream success in the 1960s, best-known for hits like "Indian Reservation (The Lament Of The Cherokee Reservation Indian)" (1971), "Steppin' Out"(1965), "Kicks"(1966), "Let Me" (1969) and "Hungry" (1966).
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[edit] History
[edit] Early years
The group, initially located in Boise, Idaho, started as an instrumental rock outfit led by organist Paul Revere (legal name Paul Revere Dick; original stage name Revere Dick [1]), whose distinctive given names were in honor of the Revolutionary War hero.[citation needed] In his early twenties, Revere already owned several restaurants in Caldwell, Idaho,[citation needed] and first met singer Mark Lindsay while picking up an order of hamburger buns from the bakery where Lindsay worked[citation needed] (this circumstance was later referred to in the tongue-in-cheek song "Legend of Paul Revere"). Lindsay joined Revere's band in 1958. Originally called The Downbeats, they changed their name to Paul Revere & The Raiders in 1960 on the eve of their first record release for Gardena Records. The band scored their first Pacific Northwest regional hit in 1961, with "Like, Long Hair", an instrumental. Revere was drafted, became a conscientious objector[citation needed] and worked at a mental institution for a year and half of deferred service.[citation needed] After re-forming the band, they attracted national attention again with a cover of "Louie Louie", which was picked up by Columbia Records, although beaten in the charts by The Kingsmen's version.[citation needed]
They would maintain a huge level of popularity in the mid-1960s, beginning with "Just Like Me" (1965), which marked the beginning of a string of garage rock classics. The Raiders, under the guidance of producer Terry Melcher, increasingly emulated the sounds of British Invasion bands such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and The Animals, albeit with an American, R&B feel.
The band appeared regularly on national television, especially on Dick Clark's Where the Action Is, Happening '68, and It's Happening, the latter two of which were co-hosted by Paul Revere and Mark Lindsay. Here they were presented as the American response to the British Invasion. The group wore American Revolutionary War soldier uniforms and performed slapstick comedy and synchronized dance steps while the ponytailed Lindsay lip synched to their music. This farcical, cartoonish image obscured the proto-hard rock sound that their music often took.
Their hits from the mid-60's included "Kicks" (Billboard Pop Chart #4), "Him or Me - What's It Gonna Be?" (#7), "Good Thing" (#5), "Hungry" (#5), and "Great Airplane Strike" (#20). Of these, "Kicks" became their best-known song, an anti-drug message written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil that was especially akin to The Animals.
In mid-1967, with three gold albums to their credit, they were Columbia Records' top-selling rock group; their Greatest Hits album was one of two releases selected by Clive Davis to try out a higher list price for albums expected to be particularly popular, along with Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits.
Changing tastes in the late 1960s rendered the group unfashionable, but they still continued to have hits through the rest of the decade, such as "I Had A Dream" (1967 - #20), "Too Much Talk" (1968 - #18, and an illustration of their tendency towards Beatles imitations), and "Mr. Sun, Mr. Moon" (1969 - #18). Tensions between Lindsay and Revere increased during this time; Lindsay wanted to go more in the direction of hard rock acts like Led Zeppelin or the James Gang, while Revere sought a bubblegum pop direction. Lindsay's vision for the Raiders was represented on songs such as "Let Me" (1969 - #20 - Gold Single), "Powder Blue Mercedes Queen" (1972 - #54) and "Just Seventeen" (1970 - #70) and the 1970 album Collage. By the time of the release of Collage the band's name was officially shortened to The Raiders. "Freeborn Man", written by Lindsay and bassist Keith Allison, has since gone on to be a Country Rock standard, covered by The Outlaws, Junior Brown, and Glen Campbell among many others.
Their single release, "Indian Reservation" (1971 - #1 - Platinum single), would be their biggest hit of all, after about a year and a half or so of no hits.
In 1972, The Raiders made one last attempt at a pop album, with Country Wine, but Columbia was sinking money into other acts, such as Mott the Hoople and Aerosmith, and Country Wine and The Raiders sank in the resulting quagmire.
[edit] After Mark Lindsay
Lindsay left the band in 1975 to continue his solo career as a country star of sorts,[citation needed] having landing a hit single in late 1969 with Kenny Young's "Arizona". Country music was also the choice of short-lived member Freddy Weller, who had much success on the country charts after leaving the Raiders.[citation needed] Revere continued to put together successful Raiders lineups with other lead singers, such as Michael Bradley, but Lindsay had clearly been the star of the band.
The punk rock and New Wave eras would see a wave of interest in the Raiders' music; "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone" was covered by The Sex Pistols and Liverpool band The Farm (although The Monkees' cover version was more well known than the Raiders' original), and later "Just Like Me" would be covered by The Circle Jerks (as well as by more mainstream figures like Joan Jett and Pat Benatar). "Hungry" was also covered by Sammy Hagar. The Paisley Underground, garage rock revival, and grunge movements would all acknowledge the Raiders' influence.
Revere has continued to play shows on the oldies circuit and in Branson, Missouri with various Raiders.[citation needed] Lindsay is semi-retired and lives in Portland, Oregon, where he hosts a radio show on a local station.[citation needed] Keith Allison, who played in the Raiders from 1968 to 1975, has since gone into acting, and has appeared in the film Gods and Generals.[citation needed]
In 1997, the group's classic Midnight Ride lineup - Mark Lindsay, guitarist Drake Levin, bassist Phil "Fang" Volk, and drummer Mike "Smitty" Smith - reunited in full costume (though without Revere himself) for a 30th anniversary performance in Portland. Smith died four years later.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Singles
- Beatnik Sticks / Orbit (The Spy) (Gardena 106) 1960
- Paul Revere's Ride / Unfinished Fifth (Gardena 115) 1961
- Like, Long Hair / Sharon (Gardena 116) 1961
- Like Charlestown / Midnight Ride (Gardena 118) 1961
- All Night Long / Groovy (Gardena 124) 1961
- Like Bluegrass / Leatherneck (Gardena 127) 1962
- Shake It Up (Pt 1) / Shake It Up (Pt 2) (Gardena 131) 1962
- Tall Cool One / Road Runner (Gardena 137) 1962
- So Fine / Blues Stay Away (Jerden 807) 1963
- Louie Louie / Night Train (Sande 101) 1963
- Louie Louie / Night Train (Columbia 4.42814) 1963
- Louie-Go Home / Have Love Will Travel (Columbia 4-43008) 1964
- Over You / Swim (Columbia 4-43114) 1964
- Oh Poo Pah Doo / Sometimes (Columbia 4-43273) 1964
- Steppin' Out / Blue Fox (Columbia 4-43375) 1965
- Just Like Me / B.F.D.R.F. Blues (Columbia 4-43461) 1965
- Kicks / Shake It Up (Columbia 4-43556) 1966
- Kicks / Kicks (promo only) (Columbia 4-43556) 1966
- Hungry / There She Goes (Columbia 4-43678) 1966
- The Great Airplane Strike / In My Community (Columbia 4-43810) 1966
- Good Thing / Undecided Man (Columbia 4-43907) 1966
- Ups And Down / Leslie (Columbia 4-44018) 1967
- Him Or Me, What's It Gonna Be / Legend of Paul Revere (Columbia 4-44094) 1967
- I Had A Dream / Upon You Leaving (Columbia 4-44207) 1967
- Io Sogno Te (aka I Had A Dream) / Little Girl (aka Little Girl In The 4th Row) (CBS) 1967
- Peace Of Mind / Do Unto Others (Columbia 4-44335) 1967
- Rain, Sleet, Snow / Brotherly Love (Columbia 4-44376) 1967
- Too Much Talk / Happening (Columbia 4-44444) 1968
- Don't Take It So Hard / Observation From Flight 285 (Columbia 4-44553) 1968
- Cinderella Sunshine / Theme From 'It's Happening' (Columbia 4-44655) 1968
- Mr Sun, Mr Moon / Without You (Columbia 4-44744) 1969
- Let Me / I Don't Know (Columbia 4.44854) 1969
- We Gotta All Get Together / Frankfort Side Street (Columbia 4-44970) 1969
- Just Seventeen / Sorceress With Blue Eyes (Columbia 4-45082) 1970
- Gone Movin' On / Interlude (Columbia 4-45150) 1970
- Indian Reservation / Terry's Tune (Columbia 4-45332) 1971
- Birds Of A Feather / The Turkey (Columbia 4-45453) 1971
- Country Wine / It's So Hard Getting Up Today (Columbia 4-45535) 1972
- Powder Blue Mercedes Queen / Golden Girls Sometimes (Columbia 4- 45601) 1972
- Simple Song / Song Seller (Columbia 4-45688) 1972
[edit] Albums
- LIKE, LONG HAIR (Gardena LP-G 1000) 1961
- PAUL REVERE AND THE RAIDERS (Sande S-1001) 1963
- HERE THEY COME (Columbia CL-2307/CS-9107) 1964
- JUST LIKE US (Columbia CL-2451/CS-9251) 1965
- MIDNIGHT RIDE (Columbia CL-2508/CS-9308) 1966
- IN THE BEGINNING (Jerden JRL-7004) 1966
- THE SPIRIT OF '67 (Columbia CL-2595/CS-9395) 1967
- PAUL REVERE AND THE RAIDERS GREATEST HITS (Columbia KCL-2662/KCS-9462) 1967
- REVOLUTION! (Columbia CL-2721/CS-9521) 1967
- A CHRISTMAS PRESENT ... AND PAST (Columbia CL-2755/CS-9555) 1967
- GOIN' TO MEMPHIS (Columbia CL-2805/CS-9605) 1968
- SOMETHING HAPPENING (Columbia CS-9665) 1968
- HARD'N HEAVY (WITH MARSHMALLOW) (Columbia CS-9753) 1969
- TWO ALL-TIME GREAT SELLING LP'S (Columbia GP-12) 1969
- ALIAS PINK PUZZ (Columbia CS-9905) 1969
- PAUL REVERE AND THE RAIDERS FEATURING MARK LINDSAY (Harmony KH-30089) 1970
- RAIDER'S COLLAGE (Columbia CS-9964) 1970
- GOOD THING (Harmony KH-30975) 1971
- THE RAIDERS GREATEST HITS, VOL 2 (Columbia C-30386) 1971
- INDIAN RESERVATION (Columbia C-30768) 1971
- MOVIN' ON (Harmony KH-31183) 1972
- COUNTRY WINE (Columbia KC-31196) 1972
- ALL TIME GREATEST HITS (Columbia KG-31464) 1972
- SPECIAL EDITION FEATURING MICHAEL BRADLEY (Raider) 1982
- GREAT RAIDER REUNION (ERA) 1983
- PAUL REVERE RIDES AGAIN (Hitbound) 1983
- GENERIC ROCK ALBUM 1984
- STILL LIVE 1984
- JUST LIKE US! (Sundazed) 1998
- MIDNIGHT RIDE (Sundazed) 2000
- ALIAS PINK PUZZ (Repertoire) 2001
- SOMETHING HAPPENING (Repertoire) 2001
- HARD 'N' HEAVY (Repertoire) 2003
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Official website of Paul Revere's current incarnation of the Raiders
- Paul Revere & the Raiders Discography at Musicmatch
- Paul Revere & The Raiders at MySpace
- Mark Lindsay's home page
- Barber & Associates' write-up on Lindsay and how he came to join Paul Revere and the Raiders
- Michael Bradley's home page
