![]() In fact, James Montgomery’s brother, Jeff, was a member of that committee for awhile! Thankfully, my five years at the helm were quite successful and lots of fellow students and colleagues went on to make their marks in the music business. Other than being a pretty good poster artist, and a serious music freak, I had ZERO experience. Within a year, I was its chairman, running what was really a million dollar operation, booking and running dozens of shows every year. I got my start at Michigan State by becoming the poster artist for the student government’s concert organization. You’re right about how some of us got started in the music biz-and how loose it was. What a great band!Īnd James was always a great friend to us. We got to see them close-up and get to know them. Hey Bob, when my band Sageworth played in Boston in 1972-73 we were managed by the same people who managed the James Montgomery Band. We know that, but some people just do it for the magic. I just saw Tom Swift from the band last September and the boys are still out doing it, there’s no money in it anymore. I’ve really never seen anyone else do that before or since.īy the way, Sageworth also did a bunch of shows with Duke and the drivers as well. Each loop of the belt contained a different harp that way he could switch keys very quickly and effortlessly. ![]() He used to wear a fishing utility belt when he performed. James was the man on harp and I can see he still is. After college, Walter Egan took the band to Boston where they did many, many nights with James Montgomery band. When The Malibooz went to college, we changed our name to Sageworth. King and Jackson Browne in the chapel and the Rolling Thunder Revue at UVM. ![]() Pure magic, thanks for asking Tom to provide that gift. Was sorry I never got to see Duke and The Drivers live but still play that record in the car. Hasn’t lost a step.Ĭheck Your Bucket was played all the time by Stoneman on WPLR back in the day. ![]() He plays free shows for the city of Boston every summer. Saw James and his hot band open for J Geils in Long Island around 1975. Plays locally in Rhode Island and Connecticut frequently. Super nice guy, I park my car behind his JMBB license plates often. I wish I had had the courage to pursue a career in it. There is nothing like being anywhere in the building at a show. The first thing he said was he wasn’t going on until he was paid. He was booked to play an outdoor music festival I was in charge of. One of my favorite stories is about Bo Diddley. Speaking of Mahavishnu, we even had John McLaughlin, Al Di Meola, and Paco de Lucia. We booked Elvis Costello on the Trust tour but there was a big snowstorm and they cancelled multiple dates. We had The Kinks, the Grateful Dead, the Jerry Garcia Band, David Grisman, Utopia, Hall and Oates, Poco (you didn’t mention the excellent A Good Feeling to Know), Graham Nash, Graham Parker, John Hall, Ornette Coleman, Pat Metheny, Charlie Byrd, Talking Heads, Gregg Allman playing with the Nighthawks. I remember Van Morrison on the Wavelength tour with Rockpile opening. Penn State is in the middle of nowhere but it’s a big school so we managed to get good shows. I was on the concert committee at Penn State in the late 70s. I do remember that the band came back to our room after the set and smoked at least $200 of weed, so maybe we are both right. He insists that we gave him $200 but I don’t think so. Over the years since, I have seen James many times and we always joke about that gig. My roommate and I decided to try our hand at concert promotion, so we hired James and the band for $100 to play in the common room of the dorm. I had seen James and his band at my friend’s frat at MIT and was totally blown away by his act. It was an all men’s dorm and the Animal House of Tufts. I was a sophomore at Tufts University in the Fall of 1971 living in Carmichael Hall. Thanks for bringing him up! That Capricorn record was a favorite when I was in HS! James is a great entertainer, and has all kinds of showmanship! He toured heavily with Johnny Winter. His late brother Jeff was a local gay rights activist and his brother John was a VP at I think Epic? He has great stories of the record biz and the majors and he came home to raise a family. I have backed him up on local gigs and consider him a friend. James went to the same HS as me here in Grosse Pointe, MI. We cut much of the record at Phil Walden’s Capricorn studios in Macon – that was a long time ago. It was one of the first records I produced with Tom Dowd. Thanks for writing about James Montgomery Band.
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