The Preacher Interview Page 2




		Rudy 's interview page 2


	60s: The Preachers released three singles that I'm aware of: "Who Do You Love" / "Chicken Poppa"; The Zeke" / "Quit Talkin' About Him"; and "Stay Out Of My World" and "Pain & Sorrow". What do you recall about these? RG: “Who Do You Love” - Hal introduced this as a good song for us to record. When we recorded it we had trouble with the introduction. Dewy Martin (drummer for Buffalo Springfield) said, “try this.” He did a little drum intro. We liked the drum intro and that's how we recorded it; “Chicken Papa” - was something Richard had been playing in other bands so we threw it on the B-side. When we did the SHIVAREE show, the dancers loved it because they could prance around like funky chickens; “The Zeke” - We were rehearsing one day and Zeke started playing a rift on his bass. Hal joined him and then the whole band came in. We liked it so much that we started playing it in our club act. When we recorded it we put the screams in the background. That was Zeke and I doing the screams; “Quit Talkin' About Him” - At this time (1965) we made a big mistake and changed lead singers. With Richard Fortunato we had a very basic raw sound - it was unique to The Preachers. Folk rock was becoming popular so we decided to hire a singer who could sing pretty. We should have remained true to ourselves instead of trying to follow trends. We hired Burke Reynolds. He sang real pretty but it just wasn't the Preachers. We then came across John English and replaced Burke, which brought us back to the raw sound of The Preachers. He had the lyrics to “Stay Out of My World” and “Pain & Sorrow” but no music. I wrote the music and we recorded the two songs. The harmonic solos were actually two harmonics playing on top of each other. Hal played one and I played the other. 60s: Whose idea was it to release "Moanin" / "Just Don't Complain" as by John English III, and not as by the Preachers? RG: I was becoming disenchanted with Moonglow as a record company. I was very naïve and did not understand that I was in the music business. I would try to make a record have a certain sound and Moonglow would change it. We recorded “Moanin” and “Just Don't Complain.” I got upset with the voicing of the trumpets and the mix, which buried the piano solo. I decided to quit the music business for a while until I could get with a record company that was more progressive. It was stupid but I was young. Moonglow wanted to release the record but the Preachers had apparently disbanded. So they released it as Johnny English and The Lemon Drops. 60s: How did you hook up with John English? What was he doing prior to joining the Preachers? RG: I don't know what John did before the Preachers. I can't remember exactly how we met John. I do remember auditioning him in front of a live audience and they loved him. 60s: You’ve stated that Hal introduced the band to “Who Do You Love.” The song’s been covered numerous times, but what do you attribute the popularity of the Preacher's version to? RG: I think it is popular because it's presented in such a raw fashion. I think the screaming in harmony set it apart. I have heard other artists do the song since we did it and I feel they were influenced by our version. 60s: Have you ever heard the Woolies version? RG: No. I've never heard it. 60s: Are there any unreleased Preachers' songs in the vaults? RG: We did record a song with Burke Reynolds called "Two Brothers". I loved it but Moonglow wouldn't release it. It was a semi-folk song about two brothers who fought on each side during the civil war. I don't have a copy of it and don't know what happened to Moonglow Records. 60s: So Moonglow was partly responsible for the break-up of the Preachers? RG: We didn't think we had a future with Moonglow so we mutually went our own ways. Looking back I 'm sure if we would have stayed together we would have been successful. It was musically a good sounding band. 60s: Did you join or form any bands after the Preachers? RG: After the Preachers I went to work as an Engineer at the Lockheed Skunk Works. After a few years I came back to the music business and played in many dance hall bands - none of any notoriety, but it made me a living. 60s: What about the other Preachers? RG: Richard and Zeke joined the Vegetables. Steve Lagana played drums for Johnny Rivers. Hal joined the WC Fields Memorial Electric Guitar String Band. I have lost touch with Richard and Steve. 60s: Do you still perform at all? If so, how often and where? RG: I play once a week with a bunch of guys who used to play in bands in the ‘60s. We rent a rehearsal hall and play for our own enjoyment. Once in a while we will play at charities. I like the sound of the band. It sounds just like a ‘60s garage band. I tell the guys there's no way you could get studio musicians to sound like us. 60s: Does the band have a name? RG: We have been getting together every Thursday night in a rented rehearsal studio for about six years. We just refer to ourselves as The Thursday Night Band. 60s: How did you hook up with Lee Joseph of Dionysus Records? RG: I found out that some of the Preachers records were on his compilations. I emailed him trying to buy some. We started talking then. He is going to release a 10” record of all of the Preachers song including “Moanin'.”

page created with Webpage Designer (NS)