The Cherry People

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The Cherry People
Origin
Heritage, Hot Cotton
MembersChris Grimes
Doug Grimes
Michael Fath
Jude Vitilio
Past membersPunky Meadows

The Cherry People were a

Hot 100
Charts in 1969.

History

MGM-distributed label. The group were promoted nationally by Jerry Ross with Dick Clark on American Bandstand
, where they debuted their single "And Suddenly".

The band spent the fall of 1967 recording their debut album at

bubblegum pop sound. The band toured the country in support of the album, including a show at Whisky a Go Go on Sunset Strip. In April 1969 Chris Grimes, Punky Meadows, Rocky Isaac, Al Marks, Doug Grimes and Jan Zukowski went to New York to try to negotiate a release from their recording contract. Unable to get a meeting with Jerry Ross the band went to a jam session at Steve Paul's Scene, where they met Jimi Hendrix, Billy Cox
and another person. Hendrix needed a drummer and invited the whole band to the studio, so Isaac, Grimes, Marks, and Zukowski went to the Record Plant and recorded three tracks with Hendrix: "Room Full Of Mirrors", "Crash Landing", and "Stone Free Again", with Isaac on drums, Marks and Grimes on percussion, and Zukowski on bass (though this was not used on the tracks). Two days later the band returned for another session, during which they recorded "Bleeding Heart" and "Drone Blues". All the tracks were later released on Experience Hendrix reissues.

In the spring of 1969 the band returned to Washington, D.C., adopting a more

University of Maryland's Ritchie Coliseum on April 30, 1970. They continued playing the Silver Dollar in 1970 as well as a long stint at The Keg throughout 1971 and into 1972. Still trapped by the Jerry Gross Productions-Heritage Records contract, the band self-produced a single, "Sea and Me", backed with "Come on Over", and released it on their own label, Hot Cotton (a division of Tracy Records). In June 1972, as a result of the five years of constant nightclub work, Rocky Isaac left the band and was replaced by Mike Zack, who in turn was replaced by T.C. Tolliver, a drummer from Southeast Washington, D.C. who had previously played with a soul band called J.J. and the Invaders. Lead guitarist Punky Meadows also left and joined BUX
. A month later The Cherry People stopped playing.

After a short break, Chris and Doug Grimes began auditioning musicians at The Keg later that summer and organized a schedule of nightclub dates in

Boston, Massachusetts. The new lineup consisted of the Grimes Brothers in their previous roles, Tolliver on drums, bassist Mark Hughes from Wheaton, Maryland (born September 13, 1951) who had previously played with Blitz, Rockinghorse and Link Wray, and a guitarist from Camp Springs, Maryland named Chris Noe (born December 5, 1951) who had previously played in Spread Eagle and Black on White
.

The Cherry People left Boston and returned to Washington, D.C. to play at the Keg in December 1972. At this time Noe was replaced by Wayne Tomlinson of Landover Hills, Maryland. Throughout 1973 the band played at The Bayou, The Keg, and

Jan Zukowski
.

Late in the year the Grimes Brothers were offered work at a nightclub called

Barry Brandt (born November 14, 1951), who was raised in Wheaton, Maryland and had recently played in Earth. The band spent 1974 between Chicago
and Washington, D.C.

In 1975, Brandt and founding member Chris Grimes both left the band, to be replaced by drummer

Arlington, Virginia
respectively.

For the first six months of 1975, The Cherry People (who during this period occasionally performed under the name Pearls) were based in the Varsity Grill, a Prince George's County nightclub on Baltimore Avenue in College Park that often booked heavy rock and roll bands, which was their last job as a band. The Cherry People played their final gig with a three-night stand at the Varsity Grill from June 19–21, 1975.

Rocky Isaac, drummer (born on November 19, 1946, in Newtown, Mingo County, West Virginia) died of Covid-19 on June 15, 2020, at age 73.[1]

Discography

Albums

  • The Cherry People—Heritage HT 35,000 (mono)/HTS 35,000 (stereo) (1968)
  • Nobody's Perfect (CD) The Cherry People (2010)
  • Whoopin'& aWhoppin' (CD) The Cherry People—Angel Air Records

Singles

  • And Suddenly b/w Imagination—Heritage 801 (1968)
  • I'm The One Who Loves You b/w Gotta Get Back (To the Good Life) -- Heritage 807 (1968)
  • Feelings b/w Mister Hyde—Heritage 810 (1969)
  • Light of Love b/w On To Something New—Heritage 815 (1969)
  • Sea and Me b/w Come on Over—Hot Cotton (number unknown) (1972)

References

  1. ^ McCormick, Jarrid (July 17, 2020). "West Virginia native Rocky Isaac dead at 73". The Herald Dispatch. Retrieved July 19, 2022.

External links

  • The Cherry People - Official Website: [1] (this is the most current and updated)- Doug G.
  • Cherry People Acoustic Official Website: [2]
  • Cherry People Acoustic Official Myspace: [3]
  • Guitar World magazine Vol 31/No. 4 April 2010 "Hendrix: The Lost Year" Alan Di Perna pg. 52
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