Vinyl Recall was born with a guitar lick from the Beatles’ “I Want to Hold Your Hand.” It’s a Villages’ band with five people reclaiming their personal and musical pasts.
“Playing with this band takes me back to my ‘Wonder Years,’” said lead guitarist Doug Blount, whose wife Pam is also in the group. “We’re just reliving our youth, playing rock and roll like we did when we were young.”
For Wayne Beal that brings memories of the Beatles, the Beach Boys and the Tempts, as well as hanging upside down on a basketball hoop back in Chicago.
“I was 16 and our group was in a battle of the bands,” said the singer/bassist with Vinyl Recall, at the group’s appearance Monday at Spanish Springs Town Square. “After we played in a gym, the people were going to pick the winners. I wanted them to notice us, so I jumped on the hoop and was upside down. We won. People told me, I was ‘the real deal.’”
See a clip of the band at: https://www.facebook.com/TheVillagesNews?ref=tn_tnmn
Beal also plays in another local group called Real Deal. He’s a lot older and a bit wiser these days but when he hits the stage with Vinyl Recall, something special happens.
“You can feel the energy,” Beal said. “It’s palpable. When I came to The Villages, I wanted to take it easy. But I still wanted to rock.”
Other Vinyl Recall members Roy Bill and Jim Fraser share that feeling.
The band was born during a meeting of The Beatlemaniacs Club, headed by Fraser. It’s one of the most popular music clubs in The Villages and attracts many musicians to its weekly, Friday morning meetings.
One day, Doug Blount showed up and was jamming with the other players to “I Want to Hold Your Hand.”
“Doug was playing guitar and I heard him do this riff, and it was really cool,” said Fraser, who plays drums. “I told him how much I liked it. Next thing you know, I get a call from him, asking me to jam at his house.”
The two hit it off musically and soon they asked Roy Bill, a singer, to join, along with Pam Blount. Before long, the four of them turned into a garage band. Then, about a year and a half ago, Vinyl Recall was born and Beal joined the band. They regularly play at The Saturday Night Dance Club’s monthly parties.
That club was founded by Chris Bill, Roy’s wife. And so, in one of those stories so typical in The Villages, a lot of people sharing a common love for music, came together to have a good time.
“That’s why The Villages is such a wonderful place, because it brings people together,” Chris Bill said. “Vinyl Recall is a unique band. They all have different musical interests but when they start playing something special happens.”
The band’s set list is filled with songs from the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s. Pam Blount, playing keyboards, delivered a powerful version, singing “I Believe,” at Spanish Springs. It earned a standing ovation from much of the outdoor crowd.
“It’s a lot of work being in this band, but it’s worth it” she said. “We all love this music. It holds up over time. I’ve got kids in their 20s, and this is the music they like.”
Among the other songs the group performed: “A Thousand Stars,” “Surfin’ USA,” “Pretty Woman,” “Diana” “Stormy” and “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg.”
It’s enough to warm any baby boomer’s heart.
“They play everything we love and they play it great,” said Joyce Englehart. She and her husband, Wally, have been following Vinyl Recall for about a year.
“I like the harmony,” Wally said. “They’re nice people and they have a lot of fun. Their music makes you want to dance.”
Doug Blount percolates with energy on stage. During one song, “Come and Go With Me,” he ran off stage with his guitar and into to the Spanish Springs crowd, to get the people singing along with the band.
“Just like when we were kids,” he said.
Playing the Villages Squares is a major accomplishment for any local band.
“It’s an honor because the best bands in The Villages play the Squares,” Fraser said. “The recognition means a lot to all of us.”
“It’s really a kick to play the Squares,” Roy Bill added. “We never imagined this when we got together in the garage. But here we are.”