|
Chapter
15
The year is 2007. I had already announced the retirement of the band and we had done several farewell concerts. I was just about to get in the old rocking chair when God sent another miracle to us. A friendship formed between Allen, Gregg, myself and a man named Hadley Cohen. A few months after we became friends with Hadley, he offered to sponsor us on making a new CD. Although I cautioned Hadley that a recording is a risky investment, he still had enough faith in us to go forward with the recording project. The result of all of this is that because of the dedication of the new players whom I call, "The New Breed", we were able to come up with probably the best CD that we have ever recorded. We will always be grateful to Melinda and Hadley Cohen for enabling us to do this classic Boogie Kings recording. It is entitled, "Never Go Away". Allen Wayne is now with the band. Allen brought a great attitude to the group, something that had been missing for a while. Allen wrote four original songs for the new CD. He is a wonderful entertainer and a great friend. Gregg Martinez, a wonderful singer, has been performing with us for a few months. Gregg has a wonderful voice and is a top notch professional performer. His classic original, "Never Go Away" is a masterpiece of a song, and his performance of it is nothing short of pure genius. Shayne Whitmore has replaced Tommy Richard on guitar. He is a fine player with a great attitude. Steve Morrow is our bass player, Bubba Boudreaux is on keys, Tim Courville and Ronnie Crowley are alternating on drums. Jeff Fournet is on tenor sax, joined periodically by Alex Melton, Bubba Robin and Sid Janise. Jon Smith is performing with us again. But the best thing of all, Mark Klein, a 14 year old wonderfully talented young man, has been performing with us since he was ten years old. He is a very gifted young man and he'll go a long way. Jon Smith left the group in 2002 to tour Europe with Peter Moffay. He still does the tour every year. Jon also records with most of the major artists in the USA. Jon played with the group "Toto" for a while. He also records with Edgar Winter, a monster musician from Beaumont, Texas. GG Shinn owns a very successful night club in Alexandria, Louisiana. We perform there occasionally. GG still sings his heart out, just like he did for his entire career. He always was a consummate professional front man, the best that I ever worked with. He always excites a crowd and never misses a note. Jerry Lacroix still has chops of steel and an uncanny feel for the blues. One would think that his rough, raspy style would have burned his voice out, but he still belts it out every time. He told me the wisest words I ever heard way back in the sixties. He said, "Ned, you have to upset the audience or they won't remember you!" Duane Yates, the most soulful white man that ever held a microphone, is retired. He has performed with us longer, and recorded more songs with the Boogie Kings than any other singer. His unbelievable "Otis Redding" style always captivated the audience. On the other side of the coin, he can croon out a "Nat King Cole" sound also. Duane had to replace GG Shinn back in the sixties when GG left to form his own group. That was some big shoes to fill, but Duane was perfect for the task. Duane and I have played together in Las Vegas, Hollywood, Reno, Lake Tahoe, San Francisco to name a few cities. Matt Schlenker, a true friend of the band, has been taking photos of the band since 1992. He has literally spent thousands of dollars doing this. Matt has given me and the guys hundreds of pictures and to this day, he has never charged us one red cent. You couldn't have a better friend than this. Matt has documented hundreds of our performances. Thank you, my soul brother. I have spoken very clearly and freely about drugs and my involvement with them in this book, but I need to make one thing abundantly clear. I do not wish to glamorize the use of drugs and I do not advocate the use of drugs in any form, shape or fashion. Drugs ruined my life and I am now in recovery, living one day at a time. Rene', my beautiful wife has been there for me since the day we got married. She has put up with my moody personality, my sarcastic ways, and all of the other shit that goes along with being a musician. When I am ugly to her, which is quite often, she always puts me in my place. Rene' is a kind, giving, strong and warm person who cares deeply for other people. She is the first one to forgive me when I go astray. She loves pets, flowers and children. Nothing makes her happier than to go on the road with the band. She has a son, two daughters and three grandchildren. Rene' encourages me daily to do better and try harder. She laughs with me and cries with me. Her belief in me has given me the strength to carry on, year after year. I love Rene' from the depths of my soul, and I always will. She is the best thing that ever happened to me and I could not make it without her. I must mention some great friends. Benny Davis and his friends from Tyler, Texas began to sponsor gigs for us in Tyler. Benny used to bring us barbequed brisket that was delicious. Craig Neal from New Roads, Louisiana hired us to play some gigs at the Civic Center and also at his farm in Woodville, Louisiana. Craig always treated us like "Kings" with his great deer roasts. Don Ball booked a gang of gigs in the Port Arthur area. Floyd Soileau of Jin Records produced three new recordings on the band. Lou Gabus inducted us into the Louisiana Hall of Fame. Kent Juneau gave us some gigs at "Kyrle's" in Mansura. John Blancher featured us at the "Rock ‘n Bowl" in New Orleans. Norman Land at Kingsland Entertainment threw us a bone. Mark Layne at KVPI in Ville Platte, Louisiana has always helped us tremendously. David Rachou, engineer at "La Louisianne" studios in Lafayette did a terrific job on our recording projects. Paul Marx and Phil Daigle at KBON Radio played the dog out of our records. Gene Romero from New Iberia, Louisiana repaired our cars for little or no charge, helping us to stay on the road. Connie and Jimmy Rogers from Dallas, produced a recording on us. Bill Anderson gave me financial help when I was desperately in need, and even flew down to catch one of our reunion shows. Roy Shaw helped us to get the "Walkin The Dog" project produced. Marsh Edelstein from Minnesota got us into the casino circuit with a bang. The internet created a world wide market for our recordings. Maureen Brennan and Danny Kimball fixed my head. Jimmy George helped me personally more than words can express. Nell Gauthier gave us our look. John Howe kept us alive in Shreveport. The guy that helped us most of all was Jeffery Sabree, entertainment director at the Paragon Casino in Marksville. Jacques and Celeste Louviere manufactured our CD's for us at prices that we could afford. Sam Montel and Huey Meaux gave me the rights to all of our old recordings. Social Security and Medicare gave me a kick in the butt. My brother and attorney, Kit, bailed me out of several bad situations. Marsh Edelstein gave us 5 years of the good life. We did our farewell tour in 2006. The fans came out in huge numbers. But they didn't come to tell us goodbye. They came to tell us not to hang it up, but to keep it going as long as we could. Then, out of nowhere, a couple of people came into our life, gave us the budget to do a brand new recording. We did the album entitled "Never Go Away". It may or may not be our last recording. I hope not! We will be forever indebted to Melinda and Hadley Cohen. I mentioned all of these names because I could not have made it to where I am today without the collective help and support of all of them. It is now November of 2008. We are still playing gigs with an 11 piece band. The Boogie Kings have truly achieved and earned the title "Louisiana's Legendary Super Group". We have been blessed for many, many years, actually, decades. We lost a lot of great players along the way. We provided an opportunity and a platform for more than 150 musicians to "show their stuff". The digital age has provided me with a lifetime of royalties and a world wide fan base. We had a great deal of laughs and tears. I never dreamed that the journey would be so long and enduring. There is a ton of BS in the music world, but it never discouraged us. We just kept on going year after year like we knew what we were doing. I think the good Lord above had a hand in all of this. The real thanks go to Otis Redding, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, Wilson Pickett, Sam and Dave, Sam Cooke, James Brown and Bobby "Blue" Bland. That is the fantastic story of a fantastic life of a little Cajun boy with a horn and a dream. If this book has a moral, I guess it would be this: No matter how many times you get your ass kicked, never give up. Take one more chance. Dream one more dream. I have always pursued my goals with honesty and integrity and total dedication. I always tried my best to succeed. I thank God for giving me the opportunity to serve the community and my state through many fund-raisers, civic and charitable events. By my calculation, my band has raised many hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity. Because Boogie Kings fund raisers, a small child will have something to eat tonight. This child will have a roof over his head and a blanket to keep his tiny body warm. Because of the Boogie Kings fund raisers, school children will get the supplies they need to further their education. Because of the Boogie Kings fund raisers, an older, less fortunate musician can get a life-saving operation and continue to share life with his family. Because of the Boogie Kings fund raisers, Law Enforcement Officers have obtained much needed supplies and overtime pay. To all of the thousands of Boogie Kings fans throughout the world who have supported us through the historic Boogie Kings era, you have my unconditional love forever. It was because of you that we were able to maintain a standard of excellence in the music industry that will never be equaled by anyone, anytime, anyplace. It is for you that this book was written. Without your total support and dedication, there would be no Boogie Kings. . To the new Boogie Kings fans who are checking us out in record numbers, you are our future and our legacy is yours. We graciously accept your acceptance. We hope that what we leave behind will forever be validated by fans and musicians. The internet has made us a world wide phenomenon. To all the Boogie Kings players who number over one hundred-fifty through the years; you have proven to yourselves to be a cut above the rest. You are all a part of the incredible legend of this great band. You have always performed on a professional level with dignity and honor. It has always been a privilege and an honor for me to share the stage with you. The fact that this wonderful group of musicians is still performing today is a testimonial to your skills. I am truly blessed to have been afforded the opportunity to have served as your leader. I love you guys. Thanks from the bottom of my heart. To Jerry, Gary, Bado, Bobby, Robert, Sed and Danny, rest in peace my Brothers. Your legacy will never be forgotten. I am a musician. That is my job. That is what I do. I would not trade my life's experiences for anything on earth. I paid the price. I never gave up. I proved it over and over again, year after year, that I could stay the course of my mission. To the young aspiring musicians, I have only this to say. If we have inspired you, then we have served you well. Pursue your goals with vigor and enthusiasm. If you stumble and fall, brush yourself off, get up, and get back in the race. Never say die. Set your goals, and work hard to achieve them. Believe In yourself, and you will find that dreams really do come true! You
see, God planned it that way.
Ned TheallNed Theall  |
| Back to Home Page |
BOOK COVER