Like the Wailers, Paul Revere and the Raiders were an early, and incredibly relevant, Northwest band. The original group was first formed as the Downbeats in Boise, Idaho, in the late ’50s, by Revere and sax honkin’ singer, Mark Lindsay. By all accounts they became a popular teen dance band playing raw R&B instrumentals – VERY Pac NW, y’all. In 1960 they changed their name and began recording for Gardena. Then, in 1961 they scored their first Top 40 hit with their strident piano boogie, “Like, Long Hair.” Unfortunately, soon after the single was issued, Revere was drafted and the group fractured. In mid-’62, Revere caught up with Lindsay, who’d relocated to Oregon, they sorted out a new Raiders line-up, and hooked up with a radio DJ, Roger Hart, as their manager. Hart got then signed to Columbia (via their take on “Louie Louie” no less!!) and the band moved to Los Angeles where they were placed in producer Terry Melcher‘s hands. The Raiders’ first recordings for Columbia was their then current live show; they were committed R&B workhorses. Lindsay even said, “What you’re getting is this bunch of white-bread kids from the Northwest doing their best to sound black.” Yup, and if they’d been pitched like some of the British Invasion English beat groups I bet we’d be asking, “Hmmm, the Rolling WHO?”

In 1965 they hit their stride with appearances on Where The Action Is and a string of pop hits: “Kicks,” “Hungry,” “Him Or Me.” As the ’60s progressed, and the line-up shifted, again, they tried to get a little “out-there,” but they were a pop group so they stuck to their marketable formula, only occasionally getting HEAVY. It wasn’t a bad formula as they stayed in the charts as well as hosting TV shows, Happening ’68 and It’s Happening. After wading into the ’70s their relevance waned, they went rural, and finally split in 1976. However, Revere couldn’t stay retired, so, in 1978, he put together yet another group of Raiders; they’ve been on tour ever since. It was only this past year that Revere slowed, he’d been plagued by cancer. He was hopeful tho’ as the Raiders were due to start ANOTHER tour next month – death was the only thing that could stop him. He died this past Saturday, the 4th. He was 76.

I’ve always known who Paul Revere and the Raiders were, of course, I’m old (I remember “Indian Reservation” first hitting the radio), but for me their impact runs deeper than just nostalgia. Twenty-five years ago the Raiders, by coincidence, became part of a my (re)introduction to garage rock. One afternoon, while shopping for records, I found a beat copy of The Spirit Of ’67 LP in the free pile; once home I gave it a listen and it shook me SILLY. Up to that point I was all like FUCK all old rock and roll, so it was a shock to find this LP and have it FUCK ME UP! The album played as an album: it was varied, raw where it should be, full of harmonies, and those hooks!?! HOLY SHITBALLS! Suddenly punk made more sense. I knew the MC5, the Velvet Underground, and Stooges, of course were the “official” ’60s bridge to punk, but with this album I could hear the not so political/polarizing ’60s threads of punk. This discovery changed my life and the way I thought about ALL rock and roll; it showed me a context I’d been blind to.