A New Year

2009 was a good year for ARCA. We had several interesting speakers, held our 28th consecutive CD & Record Show and enjoyed fellowship with other members at both our summer picnic and Christmas party.

2010 promises to be even better. We will get a great start with our January 17th meeting when we have a special guest. He is none other than Jay Michaels. Jay is currently a DJ with WZZK in Birmingham and has been in the radio business for many years. However, before that, he was a drummer with the Townsmen. Jay should have a lot of stories, not only with being a member of the band, but also from his many years in radio.

Christmas Party At The Hoover Lake House

There is no meeting this month. Instead we’ll be gathering for food, fun and fellowship at our annual Christmas party on December 19th. Specific details are in the ARCA newsletter (both November and December). We hope to see everyone there!

Thank You Dale!

The special guest at our November meeting was Dale Aston. Influenced by early rock and roll, Dale taught himself to play the guitar. He and a friend, Wendell Colbert, who also played guitar formed a band in 1963. They took the name Torquays after a town in England and a song by The Ventures of that name. The initial band had several members, but eventually dwindled down to five, Dale on guitar and lead vocals, Wendell on bass, Barry Bicknell on trumpet, Eugene Hayes on drums and Steve Salord on sax. The Torquays made two records. The first, “While I’m Away” written by Aston backed by a great Doo Wop sounding “Pineapple Moon.” These were recorded in Muscle Shoals at Fame Studios. Both sides got significant air play in the Birmingham area. The second record, “You’re The One Who Loves Me” (also written by Aston) was recorded in Memphis. The Torquays often backed artists like Travis Wammack, Chuck Berry, Billy Joe Royal and Bobby Goldsboro. They played steadily all throughout the southeast, but disbanded in 1968. Dale went on to play a short stint with the Distortions, another popular Birmingham band.

November 15th Meeting

Dale Aston will be speaking to us at this month’s meeting. Dale was the lead singer and lead guitarist of the Birmingham band, The Torquays. He also penned both of the hits, “While I’m Away” and “You’re The One Who Loves Me." Both of these songs are available for playing from this blog (see left column). He was later with the Distortions. We gather at 2 pm for refreshments and music conversation. There will be a short meeting at 3 p.m. preceding Dale’s talk. Visitors are welcome to drop by! We’re at the Homewood Library, located at 1721 Oxmoor Road, near Homewood Park. We meet in Room 110 in the lower level.

Mark Your Calendar!

Our Christmas party is December 19th and our annual CD and Record Show is April 30 & May 1, 2010. Hours for the show are:
Friday, April 30, 2010, 4:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (early birds 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m)
Saturday, May 1, 2010, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Annual Christmas Party Returns To Hoover Lake House

Plan to finish your Christmas shopping at the Galleria and then join us at the Hoover Lake House on December 19th. As always, there will be food, fun, fellowship and of course music! It's a great time for our out-of-town members to join us. More details on the party will be in the November and December newsletters.

October & November Meetings

For our October meeting (10/18) we have a Birmingham legend. Honorary ARCA member, Ed Boutwell, will come and talk to us about the glory days of music producing in Birmingham. There are so many artists that Ed produced and recorded that I can’t list them here. He is very enthused about coming and loves to talk about those days. Let’s have a big turn out and bring your questions. The meeting will be this Sunday, October 18th. As always we’ll gather at 2 pm for refreshments and music conversation. There will be a short meeting at 3 pm and then we’ll go straight into the program. Don’t miss it!!!

We have a special guest lined up for the November meeting (11/15). Dale Aston will be speaking to us. Dale was the lead guitarist and vocalist with the Torquays. He also wrote their two hit songs that were put on vinyl. He was later with the Distortions. More on this next month.