Ventures FINALLY in the R@R HOF

Bill Hatcher · From: Atlanta Ga. USA

Finally!!!

The Ventures have been voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. They have been the most influential guitar instrumental band in the world for over 40 years and are still out performing. I would guess that the Ventures, the Beatles and Chet Atkins are responsible for more young kids like myself buying a guitar in the 60s than anyone else.

This is long overdue. I still listen to them today and find their music fun to hear.

Little Walter also was inducted in the "Early Influence" category.

Stu Schulman · From: Ulster Park New Yawk (deceased)

Is Jerry McGee included?
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Bill Hatcher · From: Atlanta Ga. USA

He should be, but you know the Ventures are Bogle and Wilson. They started the band. Nokie Edwards played bass on the first sessions and they used a studio drummer. In the early years, Edwards left and Bogle and Wilson toured for years as just a duo and when they needed bass and drums they just picked players up locally. Then the band changed into the Ventures we know best with Nokie on lead and Mel Taylor on drums. Still though, I get the idea that Wilson and Bogle are the business part of the Ventures.

I saw them one night with Jerry McGee also playing with Nokie,Taylor,Wilson and Bogle. They were great. It will be interesting to see who is included in the ceremonies as "official" Ventures.

Leon Taylor, son of Mel Taylor has taken over the drum slot. Pretty cool to keep the Taylor name in the band.

Jack Francis · From: Queen Creek, Arizona, USA

It took til 2007 for the rock & roll hall of fame to recognize the Ventures...that is mind blowing!!
Confused

Jody Sanders · From: Magnolia,Texas, R.I.P.

What Jack said. Jody.

Mike Shefrin · Posted 13 Dec 2007 8:36 pm

yeah, but better late than never.

Stephen Gambrell · From: Over there

Kinda offsets Madonna gettin' in, don't it... Rolling Eyes

Dave Mudgett · From: Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee

It's about time!! But I'm very glad to hear it. I'm only sorry Mel isn't here to be part of it. The gold standard in rock drumming, to me. Glad to see his son Leon is part of it.

I think it's pretty much impossible to estimate their influence and importance to popular music. I still listen to them today, and have played their music for decades. Long Live the Ventures! Smile

Little Walter - now there is another "Why hasn't this already happened?". But again, salute and merci beaucoups.

David L. Donald · From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand

Yeah for sure WAY over due.

They were and influence for so many.
Not to mention that not many acts EVER
had instrumental hits.
THAT list is very, very small,
and they sit right at the top.
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Bill Hatcher · From: Atlanta Ga. USA

Chuck S. Lettes · From: Denver, Colorado

That's great news! I always loved the Ventures. I had a chance to speak with Nokie Edwards at the SWSGA's show in Mesa last year. It turns out that Nokie is a big steel fan and wanted to meet Bud Isaacs. Maybe next year it will be Hank Marvin and the Shadows' turn for the Hall of Fame.
Chuck

Dustin Rigsby · From: Parts Unknown, Ohio

although I am not very familiar with the ventures...the fact that Madonna and John Mellonhead are being inducted over more deserving artists really gets my goat ! I thought the the HOF was supposed to be honoring folks who were pioneering and ground breaking. Madonna is a talentless fluzie(putting it politely) and Mellonhead is just a rural Bob Dylan! Mad

Roger Kelly · From: Bristol,Tennessee

I too am glad to see the Ventures get this award, which is long overdue. I am sorry that Mel Taylor didn't live long enough to see this happen.

Mel and I played in several Country Bands in the Tri-Cities area in the late 50's and on WCYB's "Farm and Fun Time" radio and TV for a couple of years. Mel lived in Johnson City, TN at the time. Not only was Mel a great Drummer, which I found out later, but he could sing harmony, play rhythm guitar and was one hell of a good Flat Top Guitar Picker. We played many gigs together. After Elvis hit the scene in the late 50's, a Country Band like ours couldn't draw a crowd even if you gave everyone a 5# sack of Flour at the door Cool

. Mel became our Drummer since he said he had some drums and we thought it might help if we had a drummer. It did help, but we were still too Country. Later on Mel asked me if I wanted to go to California with him since it was his intentions to go to California and make it playing drums. I went back to school and Mel went to California. You know the rest of the story.
Here is a photo of "Red" Malone and his Smoky Mountaineers taken in 1956 at WCYB-TV Bristol, VA.
From L-R Standing Doug Morris, Mel Taylor,"Red" Malone, Jackie Miller, and John Holt Mgr. I'm in front with my Fender Steel.
Just thought some of you might be interested to know that Mel loved Country Music and was a good friend and great person.

Dennis Lobdell · From: Freeport,Tx,USA

I agree, The Ventures were long over due. If you liked their music in 1961, check out The Ventures 45th Anniversary DVD availble from their web site. Dennis

Joe Casey · From: Weeki Wachee .Springs FL (population.9)

Boy and how long over due.. I was lucky enough to be invited to a reunion show @ nashvilles Cajuns Wharf. There was a great big spread upstairs after and during the show and guess who was the only one with a camera..Jeff Cook took this pitcher and I took one of everyone afterwards with Nokie..Certainly one of many of our guitar heros..Nokie went for a while on tour with David Frizell as the reunion did not last long.

Jerry Gleason · From: Eugene, Oregon, USA

It even made the front page here in Eugene, where Nokie is a local celebrity:

http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?cid=35893&sid=1&fid=1

Nokie lives in Elmira, a small rural community just outside of Eugene.

Dave Harmonson · From: Seattle, Wa

This is good news indeed. Nokie is probably my biggest guitar hero. He lived near Tacoma for many years and any of us who played around the area were lucky enough to have him sit in many times. The first time I met him, I was playing a six night a week gig and Nokie was coming in with a Sunday Night band and playing on our gear. Nokie was playing through my amp and I was so awe struck I could barely speak to him. After getting to know him I came to find he was one of the nicest people you could meet. I learned a lot from watching him play, not just licks, but from his whole demeanor and relaxed attitude. If you've only heard what he's done with the Ventures, you should know that is only a small part of his guitar mastery. The best I can describe his playing is kind of like Chet Atkins, Jerry Reed, and James Burton all rolled into one. He set a high bar for us to strive for with little chance any of us could reach that high.

Dave Harmonson · From: Seattle, Wa

I've heard that Mel Taylor played drums on the Buck Owens song "My Heart Skips A Beat". Does anybody know if that's true?

Ron Whitfield · From: Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA

Makes me wonder, again, how much longer the R&RHoF will take, if ever, to give Dick Dale his long deserved spot.
I've always liked The Ventures, but Miserlou, Taco Wagon, Death of a Gremmi, name any one of Dick's tunes and half way thru it'll blow away the entire Ventures catalog.

And he's still at it!

Jason Odd · From: Stawell, Victoria, Australia

Mel played drums with Gene Davis from 1959 to 1962, most of his stint was during Gene's run at the Palomino.
He was also part of the Cal's Corral TV show, a session drummer for Toppa Records (west coast country label), and while still with the Ventures, he recorded with Buck Owens, and played with Gene again for a short stint in '63 and the Norm Raleigh Band (with Sneaky Pete no less) in '64, in Beatles style rock and roll, and still played with the Ventures I might add, with Don Markham (future Stranger) on sax for live shows in '64.

After taking off a good part of '63-64 due to the health issues and military service of some Ventures, the group toured real hard from '65 onwards, Mel issued his first solo album in '66 (it's awesome) and cut some more.
Earl Ball and Red Rhodes are among some of the country pickers who played on Ventures sessions, Red as early as '63, Sneaky Pete in '64.

Really dug your input Roger Kelly.

Nokie also started out a country picker, when he was in Tacoma, he did some gigs with Buck Owens, back when Don Ulrich (aka Don Rich) was the fiddle player on Buck's Northwest TV show.

Mark Eaton · Posted 15 Dec 2007 8:12 am **Re: Is it really about real Rock & Roll?**

Don Sulesky · From: Citrus County, FL, Orig. from MA & NH

It's about time.
One of the reasons I picked up playing the guitar back in the late 50's.
Don

Bill Hatcher · From: Atlanta Ga. USA

Roger Kelly · From: Bristol,Tennessee

Bill, I remember Mel more as a Guitar player and singer than Drummer. He was a good drummer though and gave our Country Band a little more variety as to the upbeat tunes of the day like "Don't be Cruel", "Hound Dog", "Blue Suede Shoes" and the like.
The Drums helped, but it didn't take enough Country out of our Band to really convince the audiences we could play R&R tunes. We did a lot of Webb Pierce, Jimmy Dickens, Hank Williams, Eddy Arnold and Hank Thompson tunes at the time too.
Mel and I played a lot of Street Dances, Drive-in Theaters, Schools and Festivals around the 5 State area that the 10,000 watt Radio Station covered. We did a lot of TV shows too.
Not long after Mel left for California our Band decided to hang it up. Mel and I kept in touch for a few years and I was really glad to hear that he had hooked up with a group called "The Ventures" that was going to do Instrumentals with a R&R beat. I guess you could say Bill, Mel became a great Drummer after he arrived in California and could play the type music he liked with good musicians that were there on the scene. Mel told me that he would tell the Band some of the things he did when he played in our band back in East Tennessee and they would really get a kick out of it.
I've never been happier to see a friend make it in the music business as I was Mel Taylor. Mel was one of the good guys in my book.