Jerry McGeorge (born October 22, 1945,
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
,
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
, United States) came to prominence in late 1965 as an American
guitarist with the
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band
The Shadows of Knight
The Shadows of Knight were an American rock band from Chicago, Illinois, that played a version of British blues influenced by their native city. When they began recording in 1965, the band's self-description was "the Stones, Animals and the Y ...
.
He later joined the
psychedelic rock band
H.P. Lovecraft on
bass in the summer of 1967, appearing on their debut
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 co ...
, ''
H. P. Lovecraft''.
Early life
McGeorge began playing
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...
in 1961. His early guitar influences included
Scotty Moore
Winfield Scott Moore III (December 27, 1931 – June 28, 2016) was an American guitarist who formed The Blue Moon Boys in 1954, Elvis Presley's backing band. He was studio and touring guitarist for Presley between 1954 and 1968.
Rock critic ...
,
James Burton
James Edward Burton (born August 21, 1939, in Dubberly, Louisiana) is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 (his induction speech was given by longtime fan Keith Richards), Burton has also been recognized ...
,
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music ...
,
Charlie Byrd,
Les Paul, and the Brazilian
Bossa Nova artist,
Laurindo Almeida
Laurindo Almeida (September 2, 1917 – July 26, 1995) was a Brazilian guitarist and composer in classical, jazz, and Latin music. He and Bud Shank were pioneers in the creation of bossa nova. Almeida was the first guitarist to receive Gra ...
. The
folk music revival of the early 1960s was also influential, but, like many young Americans at the time he became most heavily influenced by the first
Beatles-led
British Invasion
The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when rock and pop music acts from the United Kingdom and other aspects of British culture became popular in the United States and significant to the rising "counterculture" on ...
. Particular favorites at the time were
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...
and the original
Byrds
The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...
.
McGeorge was quoted in the 1980s: "My parents were adamantly against my listening to
rock & roll at home, so, from the time I was about eleven years old I'd sneak a small
transistor radio
A transistor radio is a small portable radio receiver that uses transistor-based circuitry. Following the invention of the transistor in 1947—which revolutionized the field of consumer electronics by introducing small but powerful, convenient ...
and an earpiece under my pillow at night. I'd tune in radio as diverse as the nearby
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
Jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
&
R&B stations to
WSM in Nashville and the "
Grand Ole Opry". I've always felt that the negative pressure from my parents made me even more determined to love this music. Their over-protective upbringing was a complete failure: Within five years I was not only a touring rock musician, I was helping throw
TV sets out of hotel windows."
He found his initial footing playing high school dances with a small local band from Northwest Indiana, The Mystics. He subsequently played with the group,
The Blackstones, with
Jeff Boyan (aka Geoff Bryan). Boyan would later lead Chicago's Saturday's Children, and, in an odd twist of fate, replaced McGeorge on bass with H.P. Lovecraft in Spring 1968, appearing on their second album, ''
H. P. Lovecraft II''.
Career
The Blackstones were a Beatles-influenced quartet who performed and recorded many original compositions penned by Boyan, with McGeorge as collaborator. The Blackstones performed with a number of high-profile rock acts during 1965, including
The Byrds
The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...
,
The Beau Brummels and
Herman's Hermits. The band developed a significant following and, as a result, was invited to play at
The Cellar a teen dance club in
Arlington Heights, Illinois, home of house band
The Shadows of Knight
The Shadows of Knight were an American rock band from Chicago, Illinois, that played a version of British blues influenced by their native city. When they began recording in 1965, the band's self-description was "the Stones, Animals and the Y ...
. There the Blackstones became a sensation, with McGeorge's guitar and vocal skills a major factor in their success. The Blackstones disintegrated in Fall 1965 after two members, bassist Tom Osborne and drummer David Blanchard, were
drafted into the
US Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
.
Attempts to replace them were unsuccessful and McGeorge became interested in the sudden opening in the Shadows of Knight created by the loss of rhythm guitarist, Norm Gotsch, who was also drafted into the U.S. military. The Shadows of Knight's Joe Kelley gauged McGeorge's interest in joining the band and he made the difficult decision to part company with friend Boyan to accept The Shadows' offer. McGeorge's influence on the Shadows of Knight, and theirs upon him, were enormous. His high energy level, showmanship and inventive secondary role play behind the often brilliant guitar work of
Joe Kelley
Joseph James Kelley (December 9, 1871 – August 14, 1943) was an American left fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) who starred in the outfield of the Baltimore Orioles teams of the 1890s. Making up the nucleus of the Orioles along with J ...
, intertwined with drummer
Tom Shiffour's riffing, helped give the band its signature sound. McGeorge's insistence the band not stray from its unique sound resulted in the ground-breaking live
studio recording The term studio recording means any recording made in a studio, as opposed to a live recording, which is usually made in a concert venue or a theatre, with an audience attending the performance.
Studio cast recordings
In the case of Broadway mu ...
techniques employed in production of the band's late 1966 classic "I'm Gonna Make You Mine".
As the Shadows of Knight's short-lived run through 1966 and mid-1967 came to an end, McGeorge accepted a surprising invitation from H.P. Lovecraft's leader, George Edwards (aka
Ethan Kenning), to join that band on bass. With another difficult career decision behind him, McGeorge made the transition to not only a new group and a new
genre
Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...
, but to a new instrument as well. With only a few days to learn his new band's songs and
bass lines, he appeared on their notable first album of the same name. McGeorge again succeeded in adding a unique dimension to this somewhat quirky band and its thematic repertoire.
After a short time, however, McGeorge confided to friends that the role proved not to be to his liking, and that he and the band were not a good fit. Financial pressures mounted due to the band's poor earning power, and he became increasingly at odds with Edwards, who in early 1968, along with the band's manager, the eccentric former
Dunwich Records co-founder
George Badonski, decided to replace him with Boyan. In January 1968 friend
David "Hawk" Wolinski confided that H.P. Lovecraft had been auditioning bass players. McGeorge confronted the band, who denied the rumors. He immediately made plans to resign and remain in Chicago, rather than undertake the band's planned relocation to
Marin County,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
. However, these arrangements came undone and he was forced to agree to the ill-considered move. He would state in an April 1968 interview with the
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...
that he had only agreed to the California move because he had no other means of making a living.
It soon became apparent that he had been retained short-term simply to ensure the band could fulfill numerous California contractual obligations, among them a notable March 1968 appearance at the
Fillmore Auditorium with
Traffic
Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation.
Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffi ...
. Ironically, recordings of those performances reveal McGeorge the artist at his absolute best.
His firing was very callously handled. McGeorge, feeling deceived and humiliated by this experience, suffered a crisis of confidence, becoming what he later described as "seriously withdrawn." He returned home to his native Indiana and began a long period of rehabilitation, which included a rigorous daily regimen of guitar study. Inspired by the talents of classically trained
David Miotke of H.P. Lovecraft, for several years he stepped away from the popular music scene to turn to the formal study of music and the guitar. In 1969, he studied
jazz guitar at
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
's
Berklee School of Music
Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...
. In 1972, with his guitar skills well honed, he moved to the
Southwest
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
and began playing
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
full-time, long a personal favorite genre. In 1978, he finished his formal music education, graduating with honors from the prestigious jazz program at the
University of North Texas
The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in Denton, Texas. It was founded as a nonsectarian, coeducational, private teachers college in 1890 and was formally adopted by the state 11 years later."Denton Normal School, ...
.
McGeorge's broad range of studies made him equally at home with rock, country,
electric blues
Electric blues refers to any type of blues music distinguished by the use of electric amplification for musical instruments. The guitar was the first instrument to be popularly amplified and used by early pioneers T-Bone Walker in the late 1930 ...
, jazz &
classical guitar. As a result, he became a highly sought-after
session musician. Throughout the 1970s, he performed on numerous radio & television commercials, as well as performing and recording with a series of prominent country artists, including
Waylon Jennings
Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music.
Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...
,
Lawanda Lindsey
LaWanda Lindsey (born January 12, 1953) is an American country music singer.
Born in Tampa, Florida, United States, she began her career at age 14 and had her first nationally charted record at age 16 with "Partly Bill". She was one of several ...
,
Johnny Bush, and
Bucky Allred.
Later career
In the late 1970s, concerns over an accelerating
hearing loss
Hearing loss is a partial or total inability to hear. Hearing loss may be present at birth or acquired at any time afterwards. Hearing loss may occur in one or both ears. In children, hearing problems can affect the ability to acquire spoken ...
and disenchantment with the musician's lifestyle caused McGeorge to abandon his music career and enter the
auto industry
The automotive industry comprises a wide range of companies and organizations involved in the design, development, manufacturing, marketing, and selling of motor vehicles. It is one of the world's largest industries by revenue (from 16 % such ...
. He ultimately rose to executive positions with
Volkswagen of America
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (sometimes referred to as Volkswagen of America, abbreviated to VWoA), is the North American operational headquarters, and subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group of automobile companies of Germany. VWoA is responsi ...
and
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...
's
Jaguar Cars Division.
In 1999 he made a surprise appearance in
Arlington Heights, Illinois, at a reunion of bands and fans of
The Cellar teen
dance club
Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire ...
, at which the Blackstones, Shadows of Knight and H.P. Lovecraft had performed in the 1960s. Teamed up again with original Shadows of Knight bandmate, Joe Kelley, the pair stole the show with a set of improvised electric blues. McGeorge's latter day guitar work can be found on the obscure ''Steve Vallence & The Dividers'' CD of the same year. McGeorge
retired
Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload.
Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...
in 2000 to rural Southwest
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:McGeorge, Jerry
Living people
1945 births
American rock guitarists
American male guitarists
Musicians from Cincinnati
Guitarists from Ohio
20th-century American guitarists
20th-century American male musicians
H. P. Lovecraft (band) members
The Shadows of Knight members