An Interview with Bob Manning
60sgaragebands.com (60s): How did you first get interested in music?
Bob Manning (BM): As far back as I can remember, I was always interested in music. As a little kid, I loved music. In the second grade I told my parents I wanted to be in the grammar school band. So, after school one day, Mr. Bartlett set up a time when all the school kids that didn’t play an instrument would show up in the band room and pick an instrument that they would like to play. I picked the trumpet. (I remembered this like it was yesterday.) Mr. Bartlett showed me how to hold the trumpet. He told me to blow in to it. I did and he just stared at me and then he said, “Bob, in all my years of teaching I never heard a person play a perfect note on the trumpet like you did on the very first try.” He told me I would be a great trumpet player if I continued playing trumpet. I took trumpet lessons for four years and learned how to double and triple tongue. During this time I represented Sherman’s Grammar School as a trumpet player at the East Bay Music Awards. I (won) first place for two years in a row. Then I noticed a sore on my lip and it started to bleed and would not heal. A doctor took a biopsy of the area and found that it was cancerous and that ended my trumpet career. I was devastated. Mr. Bartlett called my mother and said that he needed a drummer for the Christmas Band Festival and that he would teach me to play the drums. I apparently got my music ability from my Dad’s side of the family.
60s: Was Alan and The Flames your first band?
BM: Yes, Alan and The Flames was the first band that I was in when I was in the tenth grade. Then, a few years later in 1965, I quit the band and joined Stanley and The Four Fendermen.
60s: How did you first hook up with the guys that would become Stanley and The Four Fendermen?
BM: When I was rehearsing with Alan and The Flames, I noticed that Alan was using a new guitar player, Dana Schlotz, and we began to play several gigs together with Alan and The Flames. Dana was not pleased with the present drummer that The Fendermen was using and after one of the gigs, Dana approached me and wanted to know if I be willing to sit in on a couple of gigs with Stanley and The Four Fendermen. I jumped at the opportunity.
60s: Once you joined, where did the band typically play?
BM: We played at school dances, parties, and colleges. We started playing at go go places, The Lemington Hotel in Oakland (Boss A-Go-Go), The Mark Hopkins Hotel in San Francisco, and The Claremont Hotel. We also played in Berkeley and at many high school proms, junior proms, VA Memorial Building dances, The Rollerena, and in San Leandro. We played a few shows for Bill Graham at the Long Shoreman’s Building with many recording stars in San Francisco. We were featured with The Bobby Fuller 4, The Grass Roots, and many others! I can't remember them all.
60s: Did you play any of the local teen clubs?
BM: I don’t recall playing for any teen clubs. During the time The Fendermen were well known, we were all over the San Francisco Bay area and played for many county fairs and go go places. One teen spot was The Coconut Grove in San Cruz, which was a great place to play. I really don't recall many teen clubs but there were many promoters that were holding dances all over the place in the Bay area.
60s: How would you describe the band’s sound? What bands influenced you?
BM: At first we were playing rhythm and blues—Chuck Berry and Little Richard—and later Paul Revere and The Raiders. When The Beatles arrived we changed our style and played much of the Beatles’ music, The Animals, The Rolling Stones and The Kinks. Out of all of the English groups our style was more like The Stones and The Animals.
60s: Did Stanley and The Four Fendermen participate in any battle of the bands?
BM: We played at the Teen Battle of the Bands in San Mateo, Ca;ifornia and we placed second to The Beau Brummels in 1966. Our second place prize was to tour with The Yardbirds (Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page) from England at The Avalon Ballroom at Catalina Island off the California Coast. We (later) played at a Berkeley battle of the bands and came in first place. There were so many bands that played at that contest and I imagine some of them were Peter Wheat and The Breadmen and The Just Six. Oh…there were more but I can't remember the actual count; I just know that there was probably every garage band in the San Francisco Bay area that played at that thing. I was just amazed that we actually did that well.
60s: What other local groups of the area do you especially recall?
BM: The Spyders, The Just Six, The Chessmen, Harbinger Complex, Misanthropes, Peter Wheat and The Breadmen, The Talismen, Tom Thumb and The Hitchhikers, The U.S. Male, The Zoo, The Epics, Mother’s Kookies, Tower of Power, and many, many more.
60s: Did Stanley and The Four Fendermen have a manager?
BM: Pete Paulsen, who had a racing equipment store called House of Wheels, became our agent (he was also a promoter). Stan Weisenberger of Stanley and The Four Fendermen introduced us to him. He was mainly involved in promoting the band through out the Bay Area.
60s: How popular locally did Stanley and The Four Fendermen become?
BM: We became very popular all over the Bay Area and were advertised on the radio many times at places that we were playing at in the Bay Area. We even had a fan club that was formed in Alameda and they all seemed to come where we were playing. Some of those kids came to San Francisco. How they got there I haven’t a clue. I was just amazed at how those kids (responded) to our playing. In 1966, KYA’s Russ” The Moose” Syracuse conducted a radio poll. He invited listeners to call in with in with name of their favorite local band. The poll ran for one entire weekend, and when it was over, Stanley and The Four Fendermen received the most votes and came in first place.
60s: How far was the band’s “touring” territory?
BM: From Fort Bragg, which is very north of the state, to Los Angeles and Catalina.
60s: What were the circumstances leading to Stanley & The Four Fenderman's recording?
BM: Unfortunately, I don't remember what got us to the point of doing a recording. I just know that we wanted to make our mark. Other groups (were recording) and if we were going to stay in the groove we were going to need to (record) a song.
60s: Where did Stanley and The Four Fendermen record? What do you remember about the recording sessions?
BM: We did a recording for Fantasy Records in Berkeley, the same label that Creedence Clearwater did their music on. I remember we made the soundtrack and that Stan had a hard time singing along with it. He was used to just singing when the group played.
60s: What was the name of the song you recorded?
BM: The name of the song was called ‘It's All Right.’ Unfortunately we never did come back and finish the job, mainly because during that time some of the members were beginning to get drafted into the service.
60s: Did Stanley & The Four Fendermen write any original songs? Who was the band’s primary songwriter?
BM: Unfortunately, none of us really had a good (grasp) for song writing. Dana Schlotz arranged all of the music that we played and was the one to figure the best key to play the music in when it came time put everything together.
60s: Do any other 60’s Stanley & The Four Fendermen recordings exist? Are there any vintage live recordings?
BM: Yes! Dana has all the original recordings including some of the practice sessions. Dana has the original track of Stanley and The Fendermen but one of the tracks on the original was damaged. Before it was damaged and Dana made a copy on a cassette and then transferred it to a CD. Dana also has a tape of some practice sessions that I think is still good but hasn’t transferred them to CD yet. Dana also has some sounds on a CD of some jam sessions that Dana and I and a group of musicians made after we both came back from the service in 1970. We called ourselves The Eastern Affair but I don't remember why; that group never matured. I knew a guy at work that knew a good Hammond Organ player Denzel Waley and I then called Dana and Mike Turpin, a bass player, and we began to form the group.
Later someone heard me play and called me and wanted me to play with a group called The Pieces of Eight. I called Dana and wanted to know if he would be interested in doing a recording at Coast Recorders in San Francisco backing up a girl by the name of Michelle Wilson who was around 17-years old and was a former member of The Doodle Town Pipers (who had some specials with John Wayne, Perry Como and many others). She sang ‘Get Ready’ and ‘You Keep Me Hanging On.’ She had a very strong voice and would have done very well on a show such as American Idol of today. This recording was done around 1971.
Two versions of ‘It’s All Right’ exist. One is strictly a practice rehearsal of the song with vocals and was recorded on a home recorder by Dana’s father at Ron Stern’s, the keyboard player’s, house. The second track, which was the sound track to ‘It’s All Right,’ was not a rehearsal session and it was recorded at Fantasy Records in Berkeley in 1966. We originally were planning to make the song a vocal and not an instrumental. When we were at the studio, we recorded the sound track and then Stan was to go and sing in a glass case with the soundtrack and they were going to dub him, but he had difficulty singing with the soundtrack because he was so used to singing with the band and didn't have any studio experience at all. So the recording engineer (instructed) us to take the soundtrack home and practice singing along with it and then come back to the studio, but before we could do that guys in the band were getting their draft notices so the whole plan got interrupted and nothing ever became of it.
60s: Did the band make any local TV appearances?
BM: No, we never did a TV appearance.
60s: Were you drafted in late 66? How popular were The Fendermen at that particular time?
BM: No, I enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve in 1966. We were at the height of our popularity at that time.
60s: How long did you serve in the military? Were there any opportunities to play musically during your stint?
BM: I served in the Marine Corps Reserve for six years from 1966 to 1972. I came back after my six-month active duty and joined Mark and Stan and The Fendermen. The original Fendermen—Ron Sterns, Gary Lucas, and Dana Schlotz—left the group due to their military obligation. The group changed the name because Mark and The Uptowners merged with the remaining members of Stanley and The Fendermen. The music also changed from British rhythm and Blue to soul music and Righteous Bros. (type songs), etc.
60s: Had the Fendermen (with Mark and Stanley) broken up by the time you completed your military stint?
BM: No. When I came back from my six-month reserve duty, Stan Weisenberger was instrumental in bringing back with the newly formed group Mark and Stan and The Fendermen. My first concert with them was with The Doors at the Oakland Coliseum.
60s: How often, and where, do you perform today?
BM: I am presently retired and still playing with Dana Schlotz. We have formed a group called The New Fendermen. Members of the group include Mike Cantrell and Don Cantrell of the former The Just Six. Mike Trangali, who played guitar for us in our performance of the 2007 East Bay Garage Band Reunion, is now playing bass in the newly formed group.
60s: How do you best summarize your experiences with Stanley & The Four Fendermen?
BM: My experiences with the Stanley and The Fendermen during that time were the best years of my life. They were priceless. You can’t put any value on the experiences, on the places we went, and on playing for such large groups of people. I never expected the group to go as far as it did. The whole idea was just to start a group so we could play at some of the local dances at a few schools and some community centers. But once we started playing it seemed like everything began to happen automatically.
One of the most memorable experiences was when we were at The Avalon Ballroom at Catalina Island. We rehearsed for the show that night along with The Yardbirds and to be able to sit five feet away from Jeff Beck, the lead guitarist, and watch him play his songs was truly incredible. I think he was one of the best around and at that time Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin was also apart of The Yardbirds and I was able to chat with him. He also was one of the best guitarists around and I suppose they both are still playing. I might add that Stanley Weisenberger passed away from a heart attack years ago. Gary Lucas is still around in town and gave me a call a while back. Ron Sterns is still around. Dana Schlotz still lives fairly close by and I have stayed in touch with him. Dana and I have always been close friends. Mark Edlin, who merged with The Fendermen later on when it was called Mark and Stanley and The Fendermen, is still in town. Stu Anderson, the keyboard player of Mark and Stan and The Four Fendermen, still lives in the Bay area, but I haven't spoken with him. I don’t know where the second bass player and drummer are located.
After Mark and Stan and The Four Fendermen broke up in 1970, I continued to play the drums and during that time, I recorded one commercial, three singles, one album, and recorded in seven studios: Different Furs, Sierra Sound, Fantasy Records, CBS Studios, Coast Recorders, Mercury Records and Century Recorder. I backed up, recorded or played on concerts with Richard (Dimples) Fields, Roger Collins, The Yardbirds, The Doors, Creedence Clearwater, Them, The Chocolate Watch Band, Syndicate of Sound, The Vejetables, The Standells, The Leaves, The Mojo Men, The Bobby Fuller 4, The Beau Brummels, Eddie Money, The Sal Carson Jazz Band, Bobby Freemen, The Olympics, Julie Atkins, Doc Serverson, The Winnington Sisters, Dick and Dee Dee, Veron Garett, Mavin Holmes, Eugene Blacknell and The Tower of Power.
I hope all this has given you an insight as to how it was for me personally, and for the rest of the group, to make an imprint along with the many other groups in the San Francisco Bay area.
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