Myddle Class / All Night Workers / Bill Elmiger

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Sheila Klein
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Myddle Class / All Night Workers / Bill Elmiger

Post by Sheila Klein » 01 Dec 2019 01:44

This page at the Garage Hangover site:

https://garagehangover.com/myddle-class/

is a rabbit-hole of info on The Myddle Class, the death of its lead guitarist Rick Philp, and the VU's debut show opening for them. Don't read it if you don't feel up to chasing down that hole, but I do draw your attention, at least, to the reply from a Bill Elmiger, this passage in particular:
Rick was simply the best guitarist I’ve ever seen or worked with. More than that, he was the nicest guy. I met him when the Myddle Class played at The Station in Lake George, NY, in the mid '60s, can’t remember the exact year. They were the house band there for at least part of the summer, as I recall, and Rick, Dave, Charlie and I became friends. I was in the house band at The Airport Inn down the road for four summers, a group called Otis Smith and The All Night Workers, with the above mentioned Lloyd Baskin on keyboards as a featured singer.
I was about to ask whether this All Night Workers might be the same as the group which recorded "Why Don't You Smile Now," but decided first to check the entry for that record at 45cat. The writing credit for its A-side, "Don't Put All Your Eggs In One Basket," is to Billy Elmiger, which answered my question before I even asked it.

I next thought to try to contact Elmiger in hope of interviewing him about that phase of his life, but found that his ship has, as of just a few weeks ago, sailed:

https://tharpfuneralhome.com/funeralpre ... iii/2183//

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Sheila Klein
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Re: Myddle Class / All Night Workers / Bill Elmiger

Post by Sheila Klein » 01 Dec 2019 01:45

For those interested in chasing further down the hole of the VU debut show, the same site also has a brief page on The 40 Fingers:

https://garagehangover.com/40Fingers/

msatlof
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Re: Myddle Class / All Night Workers / Bill Elmiger

Post by msatlof » 02 Dec 2019 18:13

For what it's worth, I asked Carole King once if she was there or knew anything about it (given her and Gerry Goffin's connection to the Myddle Class). She was not, and did not.

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Sheila Klein
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Re: Myddle Class / All Night Workers / Bill Elmiger

Post by Sheila Klein » 04 Dec 2019 04:29

For what it's worth, I asked Carole King once if she was there or knew anything about it (given her and Gerry Goffin's connection to the Myddle Class).
"It" being what?

msatlof
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Re: Myddle Class / All Night Workers / Bill Elmiger

Post by msatlof » 05 Dec 2019 14:16

"It" being had she heard anything about the gig at the time, did the Myddle Class tell her about it

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mangue
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Re: Myddle Class / All Night Workers / Bill Elmiger

Post by mangue » 11 Dec 2019 10:58

Sheila Klein wrote:
01 Dec 2019 01:44
I next thought to try to contact Elmiger in hope of interviewing him about that phase of his life, but found that his ship has, as of just a few weeks ago, sailed:
https://tharpfuneralhome.com/funeralpre ... iii/2183//
info from http://olivier.landemaine.free.fr/prevu/lrprevu.html

a.Don't Put All Your Eggs In One Basket [2:25] (Bill Elmiger)
b.Why Don't You Smile Now [2:30] (Phillips - Vance - Reed - Cale)
7 inch single, Round Sound RS-1
[add.from discogs: A product of Pickwick Int'l Inc.]

The [All Night] Workers consisted of Syracuse-area mates of Lou Reed: Otis Smith (band was previously known as Otis and the Headliners - Syracuse University frat band mid-60s), Lloyd Baskin (later of Seatrain), Billy Elmiger, Steve McCord (the man Felix Cavaliere asked to be in the Rascals but settled for Gene Cornish instead 'cause Steve knew music was no replacement for a degree!), and some other guy. Lou had been a McCord roomate during his Syracuse years. The All Night Workers were a great fraternity band.
Alan Reddig says: "The "some other guy" you allude to was drummer Herb Flower, a Syracuse University music student at the time, who was later a percussionist with the Syracuse Symphony orchestra.

Don't know anything about anybody mentioned above [apart from Reed of course], might be interesting to try to find and contact them [as far as still possible of course].

PS: recently found some newspaper reviews of the Myddle Class - VU show from 1965.December; don't know if these are in Alfredo's Inevitable book [a bit above my budget, and never seen it]; if not can post the parts about VU from those reviews here.

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Sheila Klein
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Re: Myddle Class / All Night Workers / Bill Elmiger

Post by Sheila Klein » 12 Dec 2019 20:34

Kathy West's book A Song For You https://tinyurl.com/u5jycd6 indicates that when Myddle Class members Rick Philp, Danny Mansolino and Dave Palmer were all residing in Boston post-M.C., they met and worked with Lloyd Baskin. I don't think this quartet was ever officially a group, but it does position Baskin as a link between Lou Reed at Pickwick (via All-Night Workers' version of "Smile Now") and the VU at Summit High.

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Sheila Klein
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Re: Myddle Class / All Night Workers / Bill Elmiger

Post by Sheila Klein » 13 Dec 2019 05:30

"It" being had she heard anything about the gig at the time, did the Myddle Class tell her about it.
This article claims she was indeed present at the show: https://www.njarts.net/pop-rock/50th-an ... gh-school/

msatlof
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Re: Myddle Class / All Night Workers / Bill Elmiger

Post by msatlof » 13 Dec 2019 22:44

Hm. Good information! I will ask if I see her again.

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