In addition to their unusal moniker, The Sedate Sunshine Colony separated themselves from other Fresno-area bands of the '60s by routinely incorporating a flute into their songs. Hailing from the same stomping grounds as The Brymers and The Road Runners, the Colony never offically recorded, but was somewhat prolific in composing original music. The band reunited in 2004, and has just wrapped up Coming Home, a CD of 15 original songs. Bassist and vocalist Jeffrey Anderson provides the band's story...
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| The Sedate Sunshine Colony, L-R: Woody Bell, Jeff Anderson, Pat Erickson, Craig Anderson, Jonnie Sue Bartel and Chuck Zendner |
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An Interview With Jeffrey Anderson
60sgaragebands.com (60s): How did you first get interested in music?
Jeffrey Anderson (JA): My brother and I came from a musical family with my mom and dad playing piano and sax. I started in the violin in fourth grade, then went to the trombone in fifth grade because I had trouble getting my fingers to move fast enough. Interestingly, both instruments have no frets or keys, requiring training your ear to recognize the correct note.
60s: Was The Eccentrics your first band?
JA: The first band that my brother and I formed was The Schillings, an obvious rip from the British Invasion. We changed sax players to one who could also sing and then formed The Eccentrics. We lasted about a year and a half, until our guitar player was killed in Vietnam. We disbanded and soon began imagining something larger and different.
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| The Eccentrics, L-R: Craig Anderson, Harvey Adair, Jeff Anderson, Greg Howell and Russ Zakarian |
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60s: Where and when was The Sedate Sunshine Colony formed? Where did you locate the four new members that were added at this time?
JA: The Sedate Sunshine Colony was formed in 1965 with my brother, Craig Anderson on guitar and lead vocal, Pat Erickson on lead vocal and flute, Woody Bell on lead vocal, Jonnie Sue Bartel on keyboards and vocals, Chuck Zendner on drums, and me (Jeff Anderson) on bass and vocals. Three of us were all in the same class, and in fact, all of us attended Kingsburg High School, a small town 20 miles south of Fresno, California.
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| Jeff Anderson, Pat Erickson, Craig Anderson and Woody Bell |
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60s: You've described the band's sound as "Folkadelic". Why?
JA: We actually called ourselves a psychedelic band, but with three and four part harmonies, no one playing a screaming lead guitar, and using an excellent flute as lead instead, the folk overtones were definitely there. I'd say we were a cross among The Byrds, Jethro Tull, and The Beatles.
60s: Where your songs ever intentionally written to spotlight the flute?
JA: Yes, we spotlighted Pat on a song called 'Visionary Pumpkin' that Craig wrote. We added flute in many cover songs as well. She could play anything.
60s: Who was the band's primary songwriter?
JA: Craig was the only songwriter, at the time of our first incarnation. He used to set his alarm at 2 a.m., so he would be sure to be dreaming when he awoke. He would scribble some notes about whatever he was dreaming so he could write a song about it the next day. It used to drive me insane.
60s: What was the local rock and roll scene like in the '60s?
JA: It is very difficult to explain to some of my younger friends what is was like watching the global music scene unfold, with new groups, new sounds and techniques, and equipment developing so rapidly. When we could finally slow it down enough to catch something, we tried to learn it and take it down to the band and the local scene. Every large and small town in the San Joaquin Valley had bands springing up like weeds. You began to hear certain names repeated and you would search them out to see what they were about. Recording studios were not very prevelant in our area, so most groups didn't make it, even though there was outstanding music being played. Some local bands, like The Brymers and The Road Runners, made records and enjoyed a higher level of success. We performed quite a few original songs that Craig wrote, like 'Bentley Road,' 'Change The World,' and 'Visionary Pumpkin.' It was a highlight of my life being involved in music at that exciting time.
60s: Where did the band typically play?
JA: We played anywhere we could, but many high school dances and proms, festivals and fairs, private parties, at school and at battle of the bands.
There was one very memorable battle. It was in 1967 down in Visalia, for a MelCo sponsored event with an electric guitar and amp up for grabs. We decided to try something different. Craig arranged four songs that would be bridged by his own chord progressions, making it a 14-minute song. We loved the idea and practiced for it. We were up against a soul group that had a full horn section and Hammond organ and they were all dressed in tuxedos. Wow, they were good. I just don't remember their name. Anyway, we did a very good job, but ended up in third place. One or two of the songs were original. At that moment, I felt if we really focused, we could do anything.
60s: Did you play any of the local teen clubs?
JA: Not that I can remember.
60s: How far was the band's "touring" territory?
JA: We played from about 30 miles south of Kingsburg, to Fresno, and all the way to Santa Cruz.
60s: Did The Sedate Sunshine Colony have a manager?
JA: The job of managing was basically assigned to our drummer, Chuck Zendner. He was actually pretty good at marketing and got us lots of gigs.
60s: How popular locally did The Sedate Sunshine Colony become?
JA: That is hard to say. A lot of locals remember us and we were asked to play at the class of '67 reunion. Our events were usually pretty well attended, but we lacked focus. We were quite talented, but the band wasn't necessarily our priority. As an example: Pat was a pom pom girl, was in madrigal singers and the high school band; Craig was in high school band and active in church; Woody was a wrestler; Jonnie Sue was a concert pianist and rock was a foreign language; Chuck was in the high school band, chasing girls and loved cars; and I was in three sports, madrigals, the band, and numerous other things. For a part time kind of thing, we actually did pretty well.
60s: The Sedate Sunshine Colony recorded any 45-rpm singles? Why not?
JA: Well, we didn't know anyone who could do such a thing! We didn't have the money to go to a studio. We didn't have anyone that was chasing us to sign a contract. So, actually recording was the farthest thing from our minds. But that would change for some of the members…
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| The Eccentrics, L-R: Eccentrics, L-R: Craig Anderson, Harvey Adair, Greg Howell, Jeff Anderson and Russ Zakarian |
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60s: There is an existing reel of a live performance from 1968. Do you recall anything in particular about that specific performance?
JA: Oh yes! We had the worst PA in the world. The only thing good about it was it had our name on the speakers and it looked really cool. But the sound was atrocious. We joined up with another band to put on a concert, totally funded by the bands. It was at the Dinuba Memorial Hall, April 1968. It was our last performance. The band playing with us, The Accents from Dinuba, let us use their PA system and it was incredible. For the first time in our life, we could hear ourselves sing. We were so in tune, it was amazing. It showed us that we could be as good as our equipment allowed us. It was only coincidence that our drummer, Chuck, had bought a new reel-to-reel stereo tape deck and set up two mics about 20" from the stage and recoded the concert. That recording, after years of unprotected aging, was the single most instrumental reason The Sedate Sunshine Colony got back together again after 35 years.
60s: How did the band land the appearance on The Dick Carr Show?
JA: I don't remember how it happened that we got on TV, only the experience. We decided to showcase an original song, written by Craig. I remember that Chuck borrowed a set of timpani drums from the high school, so he could really make some noise. We performed 'Visionary Pumpkin' with Pat on flute, along with a Doors song, 'White Rabbit' by Jefferson Airplane, and another song. We were also interviewed by Dick and he asked us, "What does Sedate Sunshine Colony mean?" None of us could come up with an answer other than it sounded good at the time. Fast forward to 2010 and we have the same name. Go figure.
60s: Craig apparently filmed the band in 1969 for his senior recital. Was The Sedate Sunshine Colony filmed as a "band" or did the members make solo appearances?
JA: Craig was going to receive the very first degree for music composition at Fresno State College. His senior recital was totally up to his own creativity. He went for it. First, he composed music that can only be described as similar to what you heard in the movie 2001. He brought in the college choir to sing it, along with an orchestra for the instrumentation. He also decided to make a movie to go along with the music. He chose to display four different emotions in the music and color code the movie like this: red for anger, yellow for fear, blue for peace, and white for something else. The Sedate Sunshine Colony members were recruited for individual segments. Pat wore a wedding gown and rolled down a sand dune with flowers in her hand. Pat and Woody acted as young lovers strolling along the ocean, and I acted like I was being chased, running away in a suit and finally falling in a huge mud puddle. I guess you had to be there. We were able to find the footage and I am working on incorporating it into a music video for one of our songs.
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60s: What led to the band's breakup in 1969?
JA: I cannot understand why we broke up. All I know is that Craig had graduated from college and decided he would move to Los Angeles to make it big in music. He took along Pat and Jonnie Sue, along with another friend, Dave Nyberg. He asked me to come along, but I wanted to finish college and get married, so they moved on. Their group, called Anderson or The Anderson Pump Company, did pretty well for themselves, signing a contract with a recording company and making a 45.
60s: So the live '68 recording was the impetus for The Sedate Sunshine Colony reuniting in 2004...
JA: The cassette tape I made of our 1968 concert was what did it. I had some time on my hands and listened to the tape. We sounded pretty darn good and what were those guys doing after 35 years? I decided to try to find everybody and ask them to get back for a practice and maybe a concert. My brother was easy and he agreed right away. Pat was not so sure until her daughter said it was such a wacky idea, how could she refuse. I found Chuck in Oregon and he no longer played drums, so he was out. Jonnie Sue could not be found. Woody not only straightened up his act, but learned to play the guitar quite nicely. We brought in our old drummer from The Eccentrics and then there was me--the weak link who had to pick up his chops in a hurry. The concert came together impossibly well. We really sounded good, after only a few rehearsals.
60s: How often, and where, do you perform?
JA: Based on our performance from our reunion, we were asked to play for the class of '67's 40th reunion in 2007. We all agreed to do it. I decided to write a song for the event, 'The Summer of '67.' The concert was well-received and before going our separate ways, we agreed to go into the studio to record original music. It was two years in the making, but The Sedate Sunshine Colony is proud to release its first album of 15 original songs. Pat left the group in 2008 and was replaced with a vibrant, young talent in Katie Engstrom. The album ranges from Americana to blues to historical romantic fiction to good old rock 'n roll. Please visit our Web site to view pictures, listen to snippets of songs, view videos made at our recording sessions, and to purchase CDs and downloads.
60s: How many original members are still with the band?
JA: Craig, Woody, and Jeff plus our drummer before Sedate Sunshine Colony, Russ Zachariah, along with newcomer Katie.
60s: How do you best summarize your experiences with The Sedate Sunshine Colony?
JA: The older I get, the more I appreciate not only what we did in the beginning, but most of all what we accomplished with the release of Coming Home.
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| The Sedate Sunshine Colony in 2010: Russ Zakarian, Woody Bell, Craig Anderson and Jeff Anderson around Katie Engstrom |
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