From Canton, The Chylds were very popular throughout Northeastern Ohio. After the group disbanded to pursue other careers, drummer Joe Vitale joined several other high profile local bands, and from there went on to become one of the more successful drummers of the past few decades. While he’ll soon be joining Crosby, Stills & Nash for their 40th Anniversary Tour, he graciously took the time to reflect back on some of the best times of his life.
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| The Chylds: Joe Vitale is on top |
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An Interview With Joe Vitale
60sgaragebands.com (60s): How did you first get interested in music?
Joe Vitale (JV): My family was full of musicians and I grew up with music as a huge part of my life. It was so much a part of my life that I wrote about it in my book, Joe Vitale Backstage Pass, which was written by my wife, Susie. I have very early memories of gatherings with family and friends and my Dad playing his accordion. I took lessons as a kid and was in a youth orchestra in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida for one performance. Later I was in a group with my Dad and brother, which was accordion, bass and me on drums.
60s: Was The Echoes your first band?
JV: I guess you could say my first band was The Tony Vitale Trio with my Dad and my brother.
I played bass in a band at my high school called The Knights for a very short time, until my Dad found out and made me quit. My big break into rock & roll was playing drums was with The Echoes, who later became The Chylds. The Echoes were together for five years; they were some of the best years of my musical career, since it was so new and exciting for me.
60s: Were The Echos and The Chylds essentially the same band, or were there personnel changes?
JV: It was the same band…the record company wanted us to change our name to sound more updated and less like a ‘50s band.
John Berecek played lead guitar and vocals; Al Twiss, bass guitar and vocals, Tim Hogan, rhythm guitar, keyboards and vocals; and me, Joe Vitale, on drums and vocals. I sang the lead on our single, ‘I Want More (Lovin’).’ I’m sad to say that Tim passed away several years ago, but John, Al and I got together last year when Al was in town from Phoenix, Arizona, where he now lives, and played for an evening. We’ve talked about a Chylds reunion gig but I never can plan far enough ahead to commit to something like that. The Chylds guys are still my friends today.
60s: Who came up with the name "Chylds"?
JV: It evolved from our manager wanting us to be called The Wild Childs. We changed it to The Chylds with a “y” so it looked more British…at least to us! I had the name printed on my bass drum head.
60s: How would you describe the band's sound?
JV: Early ‘60s rock & roll. We wanted to be The Beatles. I loved all the early rock & roll tunes of the ‘50s and early ‘60s and practiced to them all the time. You should see the box of old 45s I have! When I saw The Beatles on Ed Sullivan, I decided I was going to have a career in rock & roll and never looked back. That was it for me.
60s: What was the Canton rock and roll scene like in the '60s?
JV: It was fantastic. There were teen clubs everywhere, summer and winter. We played all the time all over Northeastern Ohio and into Pennsylvania. We played at amusement parks, battles of the bands, teen dances, private parties, clubs, dances at beaches and swimming pools and at high schools. Everywhere you can think of.
There were tons of teen clubs and we played at all of them. There was one called Suntan Acres that I especially liked because of the name.
We competed in battles against The Outsiders, The Lime, Dick Wittington’s Cats, Richie and The Mariners, and Bocky & The Visions. We usually won but lost several, too…win some, lose some…it was all fun and great competition. We were really popular. I was really proud to be playing with such a great and popular band.
60s: How popular locally did The Chylds become?
JV: We were on the TV show Upbeat, there were tons of articles about us in the newpapers, and we played everywhere all the time. Our one single, ‘Pyschedelic Soul,’ charted nationally in Billboard.
60s: Where did The Echos/The Chylds record?
JV: We recorded at Akron Recording Studios in Akron, Ohio, and then we recorded at Cleveland Recording and finally at Gateway in Pittsburgh. It was really exciting, especially the first time. We did the entire song as a take, no overdubbing. There was no fixing the track, like there is now. You had to be good enough to play it and have all the instruments and vocals record like a live performance. We recorded probably a half a dozen singles with A & B sides.
60s: Are there any vintage live recordings, or unreleased tracks?
JV: I have some live recordings of us, but I don’t know of any unreleased tracks. We recorded just what we needed for an A and B side for a single.
60s: What year and why did the band break up?
JV: The band broke up in 1968 because the guys were getting older and they got married and had to get “real” jobs. I was the only one who stayed with the music business.
60s: What were some of the bands you played in after The Chylds?
JV: I was in The Lime, The Measles, Marblecake, VooDoo, Sheriff, Ted Nugent, Joe Walsh & Barnstorm, Crosby, Stills and Nash, The Eagles, CSNY, Peter Frampton and Dan Fogelberg, to name a few. I’ve been very blessed to have had such a long and exciting career. I would never have imagined that I’d still be playing drums and touring after all these years, and I still love it!
60s: How often, and where, do you perform today?
JV: I’ve never stopped working since my first band with my Dad and brother in the fifties. I’m touring this summer with Crosby, Stills and Nash for their 40 year anniversary tour since Woodstock. I’m promoting my new book, Joe Vitale Backstage Pass written by my wife of over 35 years Susie Vitale and have a new CD, my third solo album, out called Speaking In Drums. I also produced my son, Joe Vitale Jr.’s debut CD, Dancing With Shadows.
All three items are available at Atlas Books, Borders, Amazon.com, itunes, CD Baby, eBay, DigStation and the book only (at this time) is available at Barnes & Noble. They’re selling really well and I’m getting letters everyday at my Web site and at my MySpace page.
You can check out my rising star son, Joe Vitale Jr. and his MySpace page. Please have your readers stop by our Web sites and MySpace pages and send us some feedback…especially after they’ve read the book and heard the CDs.
Thanks for giving me the opportunity to talk about some of the great times of my life. I have one last thing I’d like to say…the music and bands of the sixties rocked! Even with all I’ve done since then, those years were some of the best times of my life.
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Echoes:
Around and Around / You Make Me Feel Good (Dupree 101)
Chylds:
1. Hay Girl / I Want More (Lovin') (Giant 101)
2. Hay Girl / I Want More (Lovin') (Warner Brothers 7058)
3. Deep Inside / Psychedelic Soul (Warner Brothers 7095)
4. Grey Days / No More Tears (Ivanhoe 1801)
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| Joe Vitale's most recent CD |
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| Joe Vitale, Jr.'s newest CD |
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| Backstage Pass by Joe Vitale |
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