History

Southern New Hampshire in the 60's was pretty cool.
And after The Beatles hit the scene in February of '64, things really took off.
There were always plenty of hip dances that we waited for all week.
We had Teen Haven, Club 96, Bennett's Barn, York Beach Casino,
Pine Grove Pavilion, and The Monkey Club.
Plus, most High Schools held regular dances with live bands.
And what bands they were ..
The Tidal Waves, The Spectras, The Ill Wind, The Ramrods, The Pendletons,
The Young Adults, The Rockin' Mods, and The SevenTeens were just a
few of the names we followed faithfully.

It All Started For Me In 1964

I began guitar lessons in December of '64 and by Summer '65, I was
in my first little 'combo' with Carl Provencal and Tom Flanagan. Two guitars,
drums, no bass, and no name .. playing instrumental tunes. (Ventures of course)
We also began with no microphones and with Tom using cardboard boxes and
a grill grate as a drum kit. We used to cut rehearsals to run home and
watch "Where The Action Is", "Shindig", and "Hullabaloo" on TV.

First Guitar and Amp

I used to stare for hours at this guitar and amp in the
Sears and Roebuck catalog. This setup cost $350 back in '65
(Note the guitar and amp page cut out and framed).
I eventually scored both of them (Thanks, Pop) and I was on my way.

Shortly after that cousin Steve Theodore and I started
The New Sounds (catchy, eh?) which soon became The Surfs with
John Kane and George Tibbetts, steered by manager Bob Dubois.
By 1967 it seemed like everybody in High School had a
cool band and a name to match:
The Vibrators, The UFO's, The Whipped Cream Conspiracy, and
The Wild Knights with Mike Ekola and Bugsy Beringer (that was us).

Fresh out of HS in '69 I worked my first bar gig with
Freddie Dame and the Fables at The Clover Club, in Salisbury, MA.
In 1970 I joined with Thom Scagliotti, Mike Duffy, Vic Levesque,
Doug Lieb, Tom Lavoie, and Mark Robillard to form
Freddie Fleet & His Band with the Beat (later known as Streetlight),
Just in time to catch the Chicago-Blood Sweat & Tears craze. 1971 saw
the jazz trio Wine Cellar with pianist Joe Simon play Monday through Saturday at
Portsmouth's Holiday Inn, with yours truly on bass.

Plum and it's alter ego Master Cylinder, with Jim Spilios, and Jim Polychronis both
came in '72 and early '73 saw the first power trio Trigger with Ed Staples.
That led to Guillotine with Mark Gagnon and John Rzcuidlo, and a
furious Summer run at The Barrel Inn, The Red Onion, The Ancient Mariner, and
Riverstyx. 1974 brought Four Hits and a Miss with Marilyn Berry and
Glenn Rabideau followed in '75 by Bullwinkle which included
Andy Davis, Terry York, and a short appearance by Greg Dame.
Then in 1976 there was a quick stint with Bruce Helton and
Bob Woodbury in Clear Blue Sky.

Jamming at the Kimball Hotel


Clockwise from top left: Bob Clement, Rick Bellomer,
Rusty Hudson, John Fulmer, Brian Richardson, BV.
(I hurt myself many nights those years)

In 1976 Dover had it's own Mafia.
Every day we terrorized Hannon's, John's Pizza, and the Kimball Hotel.
If you missed the Kimball days in Dover, nobody can describe it to you.
If you do remember the Kimball .. no explanation is necessary.

In '76 I teamed with Bob Clement and Rick Bellomer as We-3 ..
(another winning name) house band at the Kimball, and
then in October I joined The Franconia Notch Band with
John 'Buck' Bochert, John Bendall, Brad Parker, and Wayne Ferreira.

(.. take breath here ..)



The Franconia Notch Band played many huge venues.
These two shots were taken at an all day Rockfest held on 7 July 1977 at
Cheshire Fairgrounds in Swanzey, NH. I snapped the photos looking through
Wayne's cymbals out on a crowd of 11,000. Look closely, and you'll see the
Somersworth gang holding down the fort next to the stage.

1978 saw The Monroe County Outlaws with Paul Sadler, Neal Thomas, and
Steve Toland, which led to another venture called Tennessee Express with
Pete 'Sneaky Pete' Stolper in Key West, FL. Then Buck, Bendy, and
company reunited in 1979 for another round as The Notchband.

Stevie's Wedding Bash

Of course when cousin Stevie got married on 19 July 1980, it was
our duty to crash the party. Dennis Dionne plugged us in .. and
Dan, Stevie, and I seriously rocked out.

1980-83 saw two versions of The BVD Band with John Desjardins, Paul Topham,
Pete Bellissimo, and Les Benoit, and in early '83 the first BVD Solo show was born.

Original solo setup  1983

Armed with a Tascam 244 4-Track Cassette deck and a
Boss Dr. Rhythm drum machine (boom-chucka-boom-chucka) ..
it became obvious that this idea could work.
This shot was taken at one of the very first BVD solo gigs.
Who knew I'd still be doing it 29 years later.
Hmmm ... relaxing in a nice cushy chair ... hey, that's not a bad idea.

While the Solo show always remained the focus from then on, my
band days continued as well; Big Night Out with Mike Endicott and Deb Bowler,
and The Cooties with Fran Calo both came in '84. After that it was
The Studebakers with Dan Pomerleau in '85, ZBop with Barry Rousseau and
Lani Copp in '86, Los Dos and Advent in '86-87, and then BVD Band III with
John Bartlett in the Summer of 1987.
1989 saw The Delrays with Sharon Demeritt followed later by
The Clarence Dobbins Review in Nashville, TN.

40th Birthday Bash

Jamming with old friends at my surprise 40th birthday party held at
the Rollinsford Legion function hall on 26 May 1991.
L to R: BV, Brad Parker, Jim Spilios, Barry Rousseau.

The beat marched on in the 1990's with
The Wanderers in '91, The Blue River Band with Wayne Brewer,
Danny Thomas, and Jack Jimenez in '93, Tightly Integrated with Larry Lytle in '95,
Lumbago with Steve Topham in '96, The Hasbinz with Mike Walsh in '97,
The Termites in '98, Heist with Leon Chapman and
Tammy Burns in '99, and The Bonnevilles with Jim Bitetti in 2000.

There were many more not mentioned here and many of the people who have
supported me all these years are still following me today.
For that I consider myself incredibly lucky and I am grateful beyond words.
If it ends tomorrow I have already been rewarded many times over.
But hey .. I'm not done yet!