Mystics
'Didn't We Have A Good Time' is not only the title of the Mystics' Spectra 45, but the phrase also neatly sums up the Dallas' group career.  From their beginnings in the early '60s as The Glory Tones to their October 2011 performance at the 45th reunion of their high school class, David Mitchell and The Mystics have always had fun, and have been fortunate to do what they love doing. 
The Mystics first promotional photo: Danny Fugate, Robert Faris, David Mitchell, Glen Struble and Ron Jobe (front).
An Interview With David Mitchell

60sgaragebands.com (60s): How did you first get interested in music?
David Mitchell (DM): When I was 11 years old I met a kid that lived down the street. We became friends and began to hang out . We played on neighbor ball teams together, had paper routes together, and enjoyed doing all the things kids did at that age. His name was Robert Faris. We went to the same grade school but Robert was a year ahead of me. When he was around 12 his dad got him a guitar. It was so cool, I had to have one too. The next Christmas I got one. Neither one of us knew how to play so we found a guitar teacher and began to take lessons. At school we met a kid that was taking drum lessons. We asked him to come over and play some rock and roll with us. His name was Glenn Struble. That was our first band. We called ourslves The Glory Tones and we were ready to rock and roll.

Not only were we band mates, we were the best of friends. As we became more involed with music we realized something was missing in our little group--vocals and a bass guitar player. I was playing rhythm and Robert played all the leads. Instrumentals were all we knew. Another kid on our block wanted to take part in our fun and asked us to teach him something to play. We asked if he would like to try bass. He did and his name was Kenneth Jobe. We now had a combo--The Glory Tones Combo--but still missing were vocals.

Robert wanted to sing and was trying but at that age, around 13 by then, his voice was changing but he kept trying. One Saturday he called me and said he had got a mike and asked me to call Glenn and to then go over to Kenneth's house. When we got there we heard someone singing 'Traveling Man' but it sounded too good to be Robert. It was Kenneth's brother Ronnie.  We now had a singer.
60s: This was the start of The Mystics...
DM: We were all from Oak Cliff, Texas outside of Dallas. As The Glory Tones we played all the teen clubs, car lot openings, burger stands, roller rinks and just about anywhere we could. Because of our name we even got booked by a church. But they didn't want rock and roll so it was time for a name change. Around 1965 we changed the name to The Mystics. Still the same players, just a new name.

The Mystics were: Robert Faris, lead guitar; Glenn Struble, drums; Ronnie Jobe, lead vocal; Kenneth Jobe, bass; and I, David Mitchell, played rhythm guitar. Kenneth left the band around 1963 to join Johnny Gee and The G men, another Dallas group. I then switched over from rhythm to bass. That left a spot open. We tried several other players but when when we all got to high school one of our classmates joined us to play rhythm guitar. His name was Danny Fugate.
The Mystics perform at Keist Park.
60s:  How would you describe the band's sound? What bands influenced you? 
DM: Our sound was rock and roll. Remember we started at age 11. We played Chuck Berry, Bobby Darrin, Elvis, Ricky Nelson, Ventures, Beach Boys--just about all the sounds from the '50s and '60s. Then The Beatles and British music hit. We played all of that, too,as most bands did. As I mentioned, we played all the teen clubs and nightclubs, and any place we could.  We played many battle of the bands, which was big back in the '60s. In the summer of 1965 we played a battle of the bands for a record contract with Spectra Records and won.

After winning that battle of the bands and the record contract we recorded 'Didn't We Have A Good Time' and 'Now And For Always' (Spectra S-707). That was 1965  and we were 16 and 17 years old. How cool was that? Very.
Mystics personal appearance poster.
60s: Where did The Mystics record?
DM: We recorded at an eight track studio in Dallas on Knight Street. Dale Hawkins ('Susie Q') produced with Bob Sanders. Ron Price wrote 'Didn't We Have A Good Time' and Robert Faries wrote 'Now And For Always'. Ron was a great songwriter and artist. Ron was never a part of our band but he did play with other bands during that time.

60s: Are there any other Mystics recordings? Are there any vintage live recordings, or other unreleased tracks?
DM: The record was released locally on the Spectra label and later picked up by Dot Records and released nationwide. We had other recording sessions but never released (other records).

60s: Did the band make any local TV appearances?
DM: We did local teen shows in Dallas/Ft. Worth, San Antonio, Houston and Lubbock. We also opened for The Beach Boys, The Lovin' Spoonful, Chubby Checker, Sam The Sham and others.
The Mystics on stage.
60s: Did The Mystics have a manager? 
DM: We mainly promoted the band ourselves, but had help later from our record company.

60s: What year and why did the band break up?
DM: In 1967 Ronnie got drafted into the Army. A singer friend from another band joined us. His name was Mike Clifton. But our uncle (Sam) didn't stop there. Danny was the next to go. Then Glenn and I were next. Robert nevered got drafted. He found some new players and held the band together for about a year. He then got an opportunity to move to California and join Sam The Sham as the guitar player. Later he hooked up with The Bellamy Brothers and toured Europe.

After the Military I played in some bands off and on with Glenn and sometimes Robert and other players for the past thirty years. On October 1st, 2011, I got the band back together to play our 45th high school reunion. Ronnie couldn't make it because of health reasons and Kenneth and Mike have passed away.

I now play keyboards with the current Mystics. Glenn's brother Alan plays bass. Also, after Danny was drafted we added a keyboard player, Cass Moore.

60s: How do you best summarize your experiences with The Mystics?
DM:  It was the thing we did and loved as kids, teens and adults--and still love today.
The Mystics obviously having a very good time at their 45th high school reunion.  More songs are available for viewing here.

For more on The Mystics, and to download both sides of the Mystics' Spectra 45, visit Garage Hangover.