bars, etc,” adds Sam. “We had so many band jobs at one time we played 10 nights in a row. Sometimes we played two jobs in one night. For example we would play a dance until midnight and then play a post- prom on the same night.”
Being a family band proved to be a plus in the camaraderie department as well as a good solid support base. The next logical step was to capitalise on their local standing as the band to see by heading into a local studio and recording some sides. In 1964 they ventured to RCA Universal in Chicago to record their first forays into the world of vinyl.
The first two recordings, ‘Jackie, Jackie’ (Ark Records, ’63) and ‘Come On Willie’ (Score, ’64), became local hits, the latter being a clever rewrite of the ever-popular ‘Farmer John’. It was the ‘Farmer John’-like disc that was the bigger of the two and it received much spin time by the local jocks. Both singles at least gave the group a stepping stone into bigger and better gigs –they’re fantastic garage/frat dancers that truly sound as if they are a gateway to something even more worthwhile.
Gaining momentum on the strength of their live performances and local hits, the demand became more and more prevalent as their popularity spread. “We had a very large fan base in N.W. Indiana and eventually we started to play all over the Midwest,” explains Sam. “Packing the dance halls and the clubs, our band performed at the major functions of all the area’s high schools and at many universities in the Midwest. Probably the most famous locations were The Marquette Park Pavilion, Chapel Of The Dunes, The Embassy Ball Room, Maduras Ballroom and on Wells Street.”
Oscar’s reputation as a unique guitar player was starting to attract the attention of other musicians who would flock to the shows to see what they could pilfer. Not being ones to give up their hard-earned secrets easily, they developed their own protection. “Oscar and I briefly had sheet metal guards fashioned with the band name on the fret boards of our instruments,” laughs Sam. “At the time other bands would stand right in front of us blocking us from our fans and the crowd we were paid to entertain. They would watch everything we played in an attempt to copy our style.”
Oscar & The Majestics’ sound was the perfect amalgam of soul chops and ferocious garage-punk conviction delivered in a fashion to be reckoned with. “Our sound is a product of our location,” claims Sam. “When Oscar started playing the guitar, he played with some blues and R&B
bands in the area, including The Dells.”
This proved to be excellent schooling and tightened up the discipline department, but deep down, Oscar wanted to play rock. So the end result was melding the two approaches into one palatable style. Since the release of three singles during ’63-64, fate beckoned in the form of Jerry Gold of U.S.A. Records, which had recently switched gears from its earnest R&B beginnings to the fruits of the acne-ridden teen market and their penchant for loud guitars and music to get girls by. Beckoned by the interest and encouragement of the label, O & TM headed over to Chess studios and proceeded to record five monsters on their own dime, in true DIY fashion.
“In order to keep the cost manageable, we were well prepared,” Samadds. “We knew what we wanted and were able to execute our plan. Oscar and I did all the mixing, incidentally.”
What happened next was a particular point of interest for the garage-punk fanatic, as O &TMproceeded to record those high-water marks that we’ve come to know and love. With the band ensconced in the studio, they proceeded to record ‘No Chance Baby’ and ‘My Girl Is Waiting’ in ’65, which was released the same year. It was an impressive debut for the label and sawa fair amount of regional chart action. The top side is a mid- tempo garage mover that demands attention with its authoritative vocal and healthy doses of fuzz, whilst the flip is a moody beat ballad that tells the tale of a boy about to be shipped off to war.
During these sessions the band had also recorded a steroidal version of The Who’s ‘I Can’t Explain’, which the label wasted no time in releasing early the next year backed with ‘My Girl Is Waiting’ once again as the flip.
Live gigs were becoming more prevalent
and lucrative as they continued to wipe the floors with the local competition; earning a reputation as the band to see. Local help came in the form of radio stations WLTH, WJOB,WWCA and even Chicago giant WLS, which all featured the singles in heavy rotation, and in some cases gave the boys some local chart success. During their heavy playing schedule they still found time to release what has come to be known as their piece de resistance, and a downright classic in
While they were recording ‘Soulfinger’ none other than Bo Diddley popped in and gave his thumbs up.
hallowed halls of snotty garage-punk: ‘Got To Have Your Lovin’’ backed with ‘Soulfinger’, which was released on U.S.A. in ’67. A garage-punk one-two upper cut of no small genius that has since become de rigeur for any devotee of essential garage- punk wompage!
‘Got To Have Your Lovin’’ is a boogaloo- cum-garage anthem that is as angry as a hornets’ nest and emphatic as a reprimanding from your father. ‘Soulfinger’, as you may have surmised, is a clever rewrite of The Bar-kays’ classic, pumped up on stimulants and tailor-made for teen madness on the dance floor. According to Sam, while they were recording the latter, none other than Bo Diddley (who was recording down the hall), popped in and gave his thumbs up to said track.
After the recording schedule lightened, the act continued to strengthen their fan base by hitting the Mid-western club circuit hard but never did any national tours. Sam explains why: “We didn’t tour outside the Midwest because we had so many jobs already. We were booked every weekend and many weeknights. Also, we were all college students working towards our degrees and that kept us from taking on any tours.”
Between their studies and the gruelling show schedule they managed to release one more single: ‘House Of The Rising Sun 1969’, parts one and two. A complete reworking of the standard made popular by The Animals, the band eschewed the dirge format, opting instead for a fuzzed-out mid-tempo garage model that sounds way more ’66 than its actual ’69 release date.
As the ’70s rolled on, the Majestics never really broke up and sporadically played shows, although they became more few and far between as the time consuming pressures of adult life became more of a prevalent factor.
21
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