The Unrelated Segments were an American
garage rock
Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...
band from
Taylor, Michigan
Taylor is a city in Wayne County, Michigan, Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Its population was 63,409 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Taylor is the fifth most-populated city in Wayne County and the 17th List of municipa ...
, that were active between 1966 and 1969. The group was a popular musical act in
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
, achieving regional acclaim for their song, "Story of My Life".
History
The nucleus of the Unrelated Segments was spearheaded by
lead vocalist
The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...
, Ron Stults, and
lead guitarist
Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featured ...
Rory Mack, the two previously playing together in a short-lived band called The Village Beaus. Stults and Mack were shuffling between groups when a fellow musician,
rhythm guitarist
In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...
John Torok, invited the two, along with
bass guitarist
A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), synthbass, keyboard bass or a low bra ...
Barry Van Engelen and
drummer
A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one mem ...
Andy Angellotti, to a jam session. The group experimented with chord patterns and guitar licks, while playing popular songs. By the second rehearsal together, Stults and Mack co-wrote the band's most successful song, "Story of My Life". Within two weeks after the rehearsal, the band officially formed, and began performing locally.
On November 26, 1966, they entered the nearby United Sound studio to record the track for their debut single with the song, "It's Unfair", being the flip-side. The sessions were complete in three and a half hours, by which time the band had to prepare for a local performance. In February 1967, the "Story of My Life" single was released on the HBR label, and became a massive hit on
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 th ...
radio, particularly on
WKNR
WKNR (850 AM) – branded as ''850 ESPN Cleveland'' – is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, serving Greater Cleveland. Owned by Good Karma Brands, WKNR is the Cleveland affiliate for ESPN Radio and the AM flagsh ...
Radio. The song also gained significant airplay in other pockets of the Midwest, including a number nine listing on ''Keener's Music Guide'' and charting in the top ten in
Toledo, Ohio
Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...
. However, the band was limited by the label's limited promotion and distribution, so the single failed to chart nationally.
In the summer of the same year, the Unrelated Segments returned to the studio to cut their second single, "Where You Gonna Go?; " another local smash, it helped the group land live dates at the famed
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 origin ...
opening for acts including
Spirit
Spirit or spirits may refer to:
Liquor and other volatile liquids
* Spirits, a.k.a. liquor, distilled alcoholic drinks
* Spirit or tincture, an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol
* Volatile (especially flammable) liquids, ...
,
Spencer Davis Group
The Spencer Davis Group were a British band formed in Birmingham in 1963 by Spencer Davis (guitar), brothers Steve Winwood (keyboards, guitar) and Muff Winwood (bass guitar), and Pete York (drums). Their best known songs include the UK numbe ...
and
Jeff Beck Group
The Jeff Beck Group was a British rock band formed in London in January 1967 by former Yardbirds guitarist Jeff Beck. Their innovative approach to heavy-sounding blues, rhythm and blues and rock was a major influence on popular music.
Firs ...
. They also opened for the likes of
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...
and the
MC5
MC5, also commonly called The MC5, is an American rock band formed in Lincoln Park, Michigan, in 1963. The original line-up consisted of Rob Tyner (vocals) Wayne Kramer (guitar), Fred "Sonic" Smith (guitar), Michael Davis (bass), and Dennis ...
.
[
"Cry, Cry, Cry" followed in the summer of 1968, but failed to match the success of its predecessors; Angellotti was soon dismissed from the line-up, replaced by Ron Fuller who brought a style of drumming akin in style and showmanship to the biggest English bands. After Van Engelen was drafted to serve in Vietnam in early 1969 the Segments recruited new guitarist Darrell Gore, with Torock moving to bass. After changing their name to simply the U.S., they recorded a handful of unreleased tracks before disbanding as the decade drew to a close. The band re-formed and changed the name to “Lost Nation” and recorded on the Rare Earth (Motown) label. In 1998, the Cicadelic label released a comprehensive collection of the Segments' music titled ''Where You Gonna Go?''][
]
Discography
* "Story of My Life" b/w "It's Unfair" - HBR 514 (1967)
* "Where You Gonna Go" b/w "It's Gonna Rain" - Liberty 55992 (1967)
* "Cry, Cry, Cry" b/w "It's Not Fair" - Liberty 56052 (1968)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Unrelated Segments
Garage rock groups from Michigan
Musical groups established in 1966
Musical groups disestablished in 1969
Protopunk groups