Although perhaps not on the level of Dino, Desi & Billy or a Gary Lewis, family connections played a role in the success of teen combo Evergreen Morning. With a Capitol Records producer and the head of GNP Crescendo in their corner, Evergreen Morning played the Sunset Strip during its heyday, and also entered the recording studio on several occasions, most notably as backing band for Chip Hand. Guitarist Philip Perkins acknowledges that while the connections may have opened some doors, it was the talent of the band’s core members that was the primary reason for their accomplishments.
An Interview With Philip Perkins
60sgaragebands.com (60s): How did you first get interested in music?
Philip Perkins (PP): Through family sing alongs, Protestant church music (as a choirboy in several choirs in Washington, DC, Dallas, and Los Angeles), pop radio, and bands that older kids I knew were in.
60s: Was Evergreen Morning your first band?
PP: I was in many bands before this one, several with half-lifes measured in minutes. The reason Evergreen Morning fell together so quickly was that most of us had been in other bands together in various combinations, and already knew 10 or 12 songs the same way before we even started rehearsing as Evergreen Morning.
60s: Where and when was Evergreen Morning?
PP: Evergreen Morning was formed in Los Angeles (Hollywood) in 1967. The prime movers were John Gilmore and Lenny Footlik (now known professionally as Leonard Neil). They had been close friends since elementary school and had fronted several bands together before (and a few after) this one. They were by far the best musicians in the group, and set the tone and pace for everything we did. Most of us were between15-16 when the band started.
Evergreen Morning consisted of John Gilmore: lead vocals, piano; Lenny Footlik: keyboards and vocals (in the first iteration of the band Lenny played bass with his left hand on a stereo Farfisa organ, and regular organ parts with his right); Jeff Steele: drums, percussion; and Philip Perkins: guitar, vocals.
Neal Norman was added to the band in 1969, on lead guitar; and I moved to bass and rhythm guitar.
60s: What special opportunities were afforded Evergreen Morning as a result of your Capitol and GNP Crescendo connections?
PP: A bit of recording, getting hired to play at cool parties (and getting paid for it), and our demos got heard by some top industry people of the time (to no avail…). Neal's house had a small recording studio in it where we rehearsed, and John's dad had a tape deck built into their living room stereo so I learned a little about recording that way—just fooling around to avoid rehearsing. John's father was the legendary Capitol Records producer Voyle Gilmore (Frank Sinatra, Dinah Shore, The Kingston Trio, and USA releases of The Beatles, among many others). Neal’s father was Gene Norman, once a famous musician himself and the “GN” in “GNP Crescendo Records.” At the time of our band’s founding, GNP Crescendo was the label for The Seeds, among other L.A. rock and jazz groups.
60s: How would you describe the band’s sound? What bands influenced you?
PP: Top 40 of the period: The Beatles, The Association, Young Rascals, and other bands that had good three-part vocal harmony.
60s: Where did the band typically play?
PP: Schools and parties plus some larger venues and clubs.
60s: Did you play any of The Sunset Strip clubs...or were you too young?
PP: We were too young but we played on the Strip anyway: The Marquis, Gazzarri's, The Daisy, and some others I don’t recall.
60s: How far was the band’s “touring” territory?
PP: We played out as far as Riverside. We had a regular dance-party gig in 1967-1968 that took us to the Riverside Mission Inn a few times, in addition to other venues around Los Angeles.
60s: Did Evergreen Morning have a manager?
PP: Our manager was supposed to be Lenny's older brother, himself an excellent musician (concertmaster of the USC Symphony Orchestra at the time). However, John and Lenny arranged most of our gigs themselves, as it turned out.
60s: What were the circumstances leading to the band's opportunity to record?
PP: I don't recall the exact circumstances. The Chip Hand sessions were paid for by his parents or his manager; the other sessions we got through personal connections in the music business (not mine).
60s: Chip Hand?
PP: There were sessions at the old Sun West studios backing a singer named Chip Hand, supposedly for an LP to be called Chip Hand and Friends, but I don't think the recording went beyond the demo stage. (We also acted as Chip's band on a few big party gigs.) The band also made a single. The A-side was called ‘Tell Me Why Not.’ I don't recall the label, as this was done after I had left the band. There were also some other sessions I only dimly remember, that lead to nothing.
60s: How did you hook up with Hand?
PP: He was a friend of John and Lenny's; I didn't know him at all. The best song of Chip's we played was called ‘Girl, Get Out of My Mind’ (not the song with a similar line by Gary Puckett and The Union Gap. Chip's song was more of a ballad).
60s: Did Evergreen Morning write any original songs?
PP: We had a few originals. The best songs were written by Lenny with John's help. I wrote a few but I think we only ever performed them once.
60s: Do any other of these Evergreen Morning recordings exist?
PP: I'd have to ask Lenny or John if they have anything, especially the 45s they made after I left.
60s: Did the band make any local TV appearances?
PP: We played on at least one telethon (through family music connections). I think it was Channel 5 in Los Angeles. It was very early in the morning, in early 1970, I think. On that show I know we played ‘Woman Trouble,’ covering the arrangement used by the British band 10 Years After. There may have been others I don't recall. I'm pretty sure no one ever filmed us otherwise.
60s: What year did you leave Evergreen Morning?
PP: I left the band in 1970, and moved away from Los Angeles. The band continued with occasional gigging and recording until at least 1971, when I lost contact with them.
60s: Did you join or form any bands after Evergreen Morning?
PP: I was in several bands in Stockton, California between 1970-1973, the best known of which (locally only) was an avant-garde ensemble called The Neptunes (very few live gigs, no recordings). Many years later (1979-1884) I worked with the San Francisco "mystery band" The Residents, during the production and touring of The Mole Show.
60s: How do you best summarize your experiences with Evergreen Morning?
PP: Aside from the inevitable hassles that come from trying to organize five excitable teen-aged boys into a well-rehearsed and "gigable" musical ensemble that anyone would want to hear play (for money, even), it was a great experience. Like a lot of bands, we got the kind of "team" experience that most guys get on school sports teams with a "team" we made ourselves, and then had pretty reasonable success getting people to let us play at their parties, dances, clubs, shows, etc. This mostly had to do with the talent and professionalism of John and Lenny. The rest of us were really their sidemen, and I was lucky to be around at the right time to get to go on the ride. (This same deal applies to my experience with The Residents, by the way.)
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