Clamtones was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers suc ...

group, and Jeffrey Frederick's most notable band. Most of the band's lineup also performed with

The Holy Modal Rounders The Holy Modal Rounders was an American folk music group, originally the duo of Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber, who began performing together on the Lower East Side of New York City in the early 1960s. Their unique blend of folk music revival ...

at one point.

Biography

Although

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

and

musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...

, Jeffrey Frederick, organized his first Clamtones band in

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

during the early 1970s, the best-known incarnation of the band was based out of

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

. The Clamtones usually comprised Frederick (vocals and guitar); Jill Gross (vocals); Robin Remaily (mandolin, fiddle, guitar, other strings); Richard Tyler (piano); Dave Reisch (bass); Teddy Deane (woodwinds and horns); and Roger North (drums). As the Clamtones, Gross, Reisch and Remaily joined Frederick,

Peter Stampfel Peter Stampfel (born October 29, 1938, in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin) is an American fiddle player, old-time musician, and singer-songwriter. Stampfel is best known as a member of the Holy Modal Rounders, a psychedelic folk band that he founded with ...

, Michael Hurley and friends on the 1976 ''

Have Moicy! ''Have Moicy!'' is a 1976 album released by Michael Hurley, The Unholy Modal Rounders, and Jeffrey Frederick & the Clamtones. In 2011 Light In The Attic Records reissued ''Have Moicy!'' on vinyl. It is difficult to give credit to which band p ...

'' (

Rounder Records Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by Al ...

). However, the definitive studio recording of the full band was the following year's ''Spiders In The Moonlight''. Some of the tracks from that album and from ''Have Moicy!'' were included in the 2003 Rounder

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

, ''I Make A Wish For A Potato''. In 2007, the original album was digitally remastered, and three studio tracks from the later Jeffrey Frederick Band were added, and the work republished on CD as ''Resurrection of Spiders In The Moonlight''. ''Jeffrey Frederick & The Clamtones B.C.'' (Frederick Productions, 2005) was a remastered effort taken from a 1976 radio broadcast of their show at Rohan's Roadhouse in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada. The Clamtones were part of an unusual arrangement in which the same band members played by that name when Frederick took the stage, but as the

Holy Modal Rounders The Holy Modal Rounders was an American folk music group, originally the duo of Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber, who began performing together on the Lower East Side of New York City in the early 1960s. Their unique blend of folk music revival ...

when Steve Weber fronted the band, typically as alternative sets in the same show. Weber's portion of the above-referenced Vancouver performance has been released as ''Steve Weber, The Holy Modal Rounders, B.C.'' (Frederick Productions, 2005). Clamtones, without Frederick and Gross, also performed on the Holy Modal Rounder's Adelphi recording, ''Last Round''. Although Frederick and Tyler are deceased, the rest of the Clamtones continue to be musically active. When he is not touring with Michael Hurley, backing the Holy Modal Rounders or on some other project, Reisch sings and plays bass with the Freak Mountain Ramblers, along with North on percussion. Remaily also plays with them on occasion, at Holy Modal Rounders reunions, as well as with a number of musical collectivities on the Oregon Coast. Deane had an active theatrical and musical career in Portland, most notably leading the Swingline Cubs, a seven piece swing band. He continued to play and sing, currently as part of the duo, the Play-Rite Boys.Teddydeane.com
/ref> In 2008, he recorded a new album of original songs, ''So Far So Good'', with the remaining Clamtones and others. Gross performs from time to time in the Boston, Massachusetts area, and appeared on Michael Hurley's album, ''Sweetkorn'', as well as on the

tribute album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records coll ...

, ''St. Jeffrey's Day: The Songs Of Jeffrey Frederick, Volume One'' (2008). Jeffrey Frederick and the Clamtones were inducted into the Oregon Music Hall of Fame on October 8, 2011

Discography

* Jeffrey Frederick and the Clamtones, ''Spiders In The Moonlight'' (Rounder, 1977). An expanded version is available on CD, billed as ''Resurrection of Spiders In The Moonlight'' (Frederick Productions, 2007) * Jeffrey Frederick and the Clamtones, ''Clamtones B.C.'' (Frederick Productions, 2005)

References

{{Reflist Psychedelic folk groups Musical groups from Portland, Oregon American folk rock groups