McKenna Mendelson Mainline was a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
blues band that released four albums.
In the spring of 1969, the band was signed to
Liberty Records (United Artists).
History
In the summer of 1968, in May,
Toronto, Ontario
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, Canada blues guitarist
Mike McKenna (born April 15, 1946 in Toronto), formerly of
Luke & The Apostles Luke & The Apostles was a 1960s blues group from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The band is known for their 1967 hit "Been Burnt". Band members included Canadian guitarist Mike McKenna, Luke Gibson, Peter Jermyn, Jim Jones, and Pat Little. The band i ...
, placed an ad in ''The Toronto Star'' seeking musicians for a new project. In replying to the ad, acoustic blues artist
Joe Mendelson (born July 30, 1944 in Toronto) suggested to McKenna that the idea of searching for blues musicians through the want ad milieu was an exercise in naïveté. Nevertheless, the two worked well creatively and the basis of McKenna Mendelson Mainline's dynasty was formed.
Original band members
Former
The Paupers
The Paupers were a Canadian psychedelic rock band from Toronto, Ontario, who recorded between 1965 and 1968. They released two albums for Verve Forecast Records and appeared at the Monterey International Pop Festival.
History Origins
The g ...
bassist Denny Gerrard (born February 27, 1948 in Scarborough, Ontario) was invited to join, and The Spassticks' Tony Nolasco (born July 9, 1950 in Sudbury, Ontario) completed the quartet on drums. The band debuted at the Night Owl club in Toronto's Yorkville Village from August 5–10 and the following month recorded demos which later became the basis of a bootleg album, ''McKenna Mendelson Blues''. Gerrard left the band in early October (immediately after a show at Massey Hall supporting The Fugs) because of artistic differences and was replaced by Mike Harrison (born November 1, 1948 in Brampton, Ontario), bassist from popular Canadian R&B band
Grant Smith & The Power.
In November 1968, MMM opened for The
Jeff Beck Group at the
Grande Ballroom
The Grande Ballroom ( ') is a historic live music venue located at 8952 Grand River Avenue in the Petosky-Otsego neighborhood of Detroit, Michigan. The building was designed by Detroit engineer and architect Charles N. Agree in 1928 and origina ...
in
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
, United States, and garnered several standing ovations.
Early success in the UK
In December 1968, MMM reversed the trend of English bands coming to North America, and proceeded to England to gig and hopefully to pursue a major record deal. The band hit the stage almost immediately, their first show being at the
Utrecht
Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...
Pop Festival on December 27/28, 1968, filling a prime timeslot just vacated by
Jimi Hendrix and his duo (
Noel Redding
David Noel Redding (25 December 1945 – 11 May 2003) was an English rock musician, best known as the bass player for the Jimi Hendrix Experience and guitarist/singer for Fat Mattress.
Following his departure from the Experience in 1969 ...
and
Mitch Mitchell
John Graham "Mitch" Mitchell (9 July 194612 November 2008)In his book about the Experience, Mitchell states he celebrated his 21st birthday while on tour on 9 July 1967, which makes his birth year 1946.Mitchell's obituaries in ''Billboard' ''T ...
). MMM started soon thereafter gigging on an English club circuit which included such notables as The
Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band
The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band (also known as The Bonzo Dog Band or The Bonzos) was created by a group of British art-school students in the 1960s. Combining elements of music hall, trad jazz and psychedelia with surreal humour and avant-garde a ...
,
Family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
, The
Keef Hartley
Keith "Keef" Hartley (8 April 1944 – 26 November 2011)
was an English drummer and bandleader. He fronted his own band ...
Band, Gun, and the newly formed
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
.
After several false starts, they signed with Liberty/United Artists in the spring of 1969, and in April 1969 recorded a best-selling album, ''Stink''.
It was subsequently reissued on CD.
Back to Canada
Homesickness, dissension in the ranks, and the vagaries of youth facilitated a return to Canada in June 1969. Shortly after the July 1969 release of ''Stink'', Allied Records released the demos recorded in September 1968 as ''McKenna Mendelson Blues''. MMM thus became Canada's first "major label" act to be the victim of a bootlegged album. However, while in Europe and England selections from the Stink album appeared on various blues samplers and compilations, notably
Liberty
Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom.
In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...
's
Gutbucket (1969), subtitled 'An Underworld Eruption', and
Son of Gutbucket (1969).
GRT Signing and 1971 Album
Following "Stink", and a brief hiatus resulting from the internal dissension, the band reformed with Zeke Sheppard on bass and was signed in Canada by GRT Records. In 1971 Mainline recorded a second studio album, "Canada Our Home and Native Land" in San Francisco. The album featured horn arrangements on some tracks and was engineered by Fred Catero, who worked on many albums by top artists, including Bob Dylan, Al Kooper and Santana. The album had more of a production sheen than the "Stink" album, owing perhaps to the California influence and that of its producer Adam Mitchell, formerly of the Paupers. The subsequent supporting tour included dates in Australia.
The Mainline Bump n Grind Revue
In late 1971, Zeke Sheppard moved on to other things and the band, again by newspaper advertisement, hired Ted Purdy to take over the mantle of bass player for the otherwise intact band. In February 1972, the band recorded a live album featuring striptease artists at the run-down Victory Theatre, a vintage Toronto burlesque venue. The resulting album, "The Mainline Bump and Grind Review" was mixed at Moses Znaimer's Thunder Sound studios, long before Znaimer gained notoriety as the founder of CITY-TV. The album was recorded by Jay Messina and Jack Douglas on the Record Plant mobile studio out of New York City. Messina and Douglas later engineered the likes of John Lennon, Aerosmith and Lou Reed. The Record Plant mobile encountered difficulties crossing the border due to customs officers' unfamiliarity with high-tech equipment of such nature being packed into a truck, with the result that there were only a couple of hours to do a complete sound check prior to the performance. This difficulty was compounded by the fact that the band was in an advanced state of inebriation from drugs and alcohol, and consequently played at much higher volume during the performance than they had during the sound check. As a result, most of the individual instrument and vocal tracks were too distorted to be useful, which left only the house stereo pair for mixing. The mixing sessions at Thunder Sound were therefore quite protracted, and studio back-up vocal and horn tracks were added to buttress the live tracks. Mick Jagger dropped in one afternoon and enjoyed a convivial visit with the band while listening to the tracks. Despite the technical shortcomings of the recording, the concert became the stuff of minor legend with its combination of hard-driving covers of blues classics and the estimable performances of talented striptease performers. The tribute to vaudevillian burlesque form was completed by the use of a comedian as opening act and MC and the formal dinner-jacketed, tuxedoed attire of the band members. The critical acclaim that the "Mainline Bump n' Grind Revue" garnered was unfortunately not followed by commercial success. The 1972 Bump n Grind Revue is sometimes confused with a later burlesque show that the band performed at the Victory Theatre on New Year's Eve, 1974. That concert was recorded on video by TV Ontario, a public broadcaster, but was not the subject of a major label album release. The other main distinguishing feature of that show was that band members appeared in drag.
Mendelson Exits
By June 1972 Mendelson's continuing differences with McKenna led to his departure from the band. Mendelson's place was taken by the up-and-coming talent of
Rick James
James Ambrose Johnson Jr. (February 1, 1948 – August 6, 2004), better known by his stage name Rick James, was an American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. Born and raised in Buffalo, New York, James began his musical career in ...
, who would go on to great fame with multiple platinum albums for Motown and singles such as "Superfreak". The funk/R&B stage presence of James seemed a mismatch for the sittin' down heavy blues signature of the band, but the formula worked, with large receptive crowds in venues such as Carleton and Dalhousie Universities. Eventually, however, the reconstituted band fell apart when James left the band and Nolasco pursued a record deal for what he viewed as a super-talented performer in Rick James—a goal that Nolasco would ultimately achieve in 1978 with the release of James' debut album, "Come Get It!".
McKenna and Mendelson--The Last Hurrah
After Mendelson left the band he pursued a solo career. In 1975, Mendelson was signed by Taurus Records and reunited with producer Mitchell and bassist Purdy to record a studio album, "Sophisto". The album was not a commercial success, so the label instead pursued a project in which Mendelson would reunite with McKenna and record a Mainline reunion album. This led to the album "No Substitute" released the same year featuring Mendelson, McKenna, and Purdy and with Jorn Anderson (from the "Sophisto" album) on drums. The sessions were rancorous with Mendelson at his dictatorial best and the album was, unsurprisingly, a failure. This was to be the last recording featuring Mendelson and McKenna as bandmates. With the exception of "No Substitute", Mainline's albums today remain available on music streaming services such as Apple Music and Spotify.
Mainline Today
The Mainline reunion of the late 1990s gave rise to their best known "recent" gig at Toronto's
El Mocambo
The El Mocambo is a live music and entertainment venue in Toronto, Ontario. Located on Spadina Avenue, just south of College Street, the venue has played an important role in the development of popular music in Toronto since 1948. It is best kn ...
Tavern. A reformed Mainline, without Mendelson, but with Mike McKenna (guitar, slide guitar, vocals), Tony Nolasco (drums, lead vocals), Mike Harrison (bass, vocals), Ted Purdy (acoustic guitar, vocals), and Bob Adams (harmonica) played to a sold-out crowd at The Elmo. A CD, ''Last Show @ The Elmo'', was subsequently released by Bullseye Records.
Discography
Albums
*1969 ''Stink'' (Liberty/United Artists)
*1969 ''McKenna Mendelson Mainline Blues'' (Paragon/Allied); 1996 CD re-issue (Pacemaker)
*1971 ''Canada Our Home & Native Land'' (GRT Records)
*1972 ''Mainline Bump 'n Grind Revue - Live at the Victory Theatre'' (GRT Records)
*1975 ''No Substitute'' (Taurus Records)
*2001 ''Last Show @ The Elmo''
Singles
*A: One Way Ticket / B: Beltmaker Liberty 1969
*A: Better Watch Out / B: She's Alright Liberty 5 Jul 1969
*A: She's Alright / B: Mainline Liberty 1969
*A: Don't Give Me No Goose For Christmas Grandma / B: Beltmaker Liberty Dec 1969
*A: Think I'm Losing My Marbles / B: Drive You Liberty May 1970
*A: Get Down To / B: Pedalictus Rag GRT 1971
*A: Ezmeralda / B: Game of Love GRT 1972
References
Notes
* "Why can't Toronto grasp Soul or, for that matter, anything else that's really good in today's sound?". Article by Peter Goddard, ''
Toronto Telegram
''The Toronto Evening Telegram'' was a conservative, broadsheet afternoon newspaper published in Toronto from 1876 to 1971. It had a reputation for supporting the Conservative Party at the federal and the provincial levels. The paper competed w ...
'' 's "After Four" section, August 17, 1968, page 50
* "Denny Gerrard returns with the MMM", ''
Toronto Daily Star
The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and par ...
'', August 10, 1968, page 26
External links
Last Show @ The Elmo CD
Pacemaker Entertainment
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mainline, Mckenna Mendelson
Canadian blues musical groups
Musical groups from Toronto
Musical groups established in 1968
Musical groups disestablished in 1971
Liberty Records artists
1968 establishments in Ontario
1971 disestablishments in Ontario