line up 1 (1974)

- Doug Booth -- drums, percussion

- Ron Gardner (RIP 1992) -- vocals, keyboards, sax

- David Immer -- keyboards, vibes, percussion, backing

  vocals

- David Shogren (RIP 2001) -- bass, backing vocals

- Dennis Weaver -- lead guitar

- Anthem

- The Bootmen

- The Breakers

- Chip & Dave (David Immer)

- The Doobie Brothers (David Shogren)

- Elijah

- Jumbo Groove

- Sneaky Sam's Lamb

- The Solitudes

- Sweet Rolle (Ron Gardner, David Immer, Dave Roland and 

  Dennis Weaver)

- The Wailers (Ron Gardner)

The Breakers (Saxophone, Vocals)

The Fabulous Wailers 1960 (Vocals, Keyboards, Tenor Saxophone)

The Solitudes 1961-64 Saxophone, Vocals

The Duprees 1960-63 Saxophone (guest musician)

The Bootmen 1964-66 (Saxophone, Vocals)

Sweet Rolle 1968-71 (Saxophone)

Elijah 1969-71 (Vocals)

Anthem 1970-72 (Saxophone, Vocals)

Sneaky Sam's Lamb 1971-72 (Keyboards, Saxophone) ? Jumbo Groove 1988-92 (Vocals, Saxophone)

Genre: rock

Rating: 3 stars ***

Tiitle:  RG

Company: MCA

Catalog: MCA-419

Year: 1974

Country/State: Jetmore, Kansas

Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+

Comments: cut lower corner; minor ring wear

Available: 1

Catalog ID: 4972

Price: $15.00

The late Ron Gardner's probably best known for his work with The Wailers.  While not one of the original band members, as the band's singer/keyboard/sax player Gardner had one of the longest tenures with the group, extending from 1962 (he became a full time member in 1963), through the band's 1969 collapse.

Gardner's first post-Wailers move was to form the short-lived Sweet Rolle with ex-Chip & Dave drummer David Immer and former Wailers Dave Roland and Dennis Weaver.  Sweet Rolle survived long enough to record a 1970 single for the small Lionel label (Squares and Triangles' b/w 'Little Sister' (Lionel catalog number LN-3204).   

With Sweet Rolle falling apart Gardner, Immer and Weaver decided to continue their collaboration as the Ron Gardner Group.  Expanding the line up to include drummer Doug Booth and former Doobie Brothers bassist David Shogren, the group caught the attention of MCA Records.Produced by Ron Moore, 1974's "RG" was one of those sleeper albums that I seem to stumble across once every six months.  Admittedly the first couple of times I played the LP it didn't make much of an impression on me.  Perhaps due the fact the album started with a rather lame country-ish number ('Scramble'), I simply didn't pay much attention to the rest of the set.  Blame it on poor track sequencing by MCA management since nothing else on the album had a country tinge.  Featuring all original selections (a couple co-written by former Wailers Weaver), the rest of the album showcased Gardner's likeable voice and underscored his gift for penning highly commercial material.  Musically the album offered up a nifty mix of conventional pop ('Sails' and 'Topanga Morning') and tougher AOR numbers like 'Heaven' and the should've been a hit 'Caught Up'.  Mind you, this wasn't highly original and a couple of the songs were simply bland and forgettable ('Sails' and 'Waterhole' - the latter saved somewhat by what may have been the year's most cheesy synthesizer), but Gardner and company played with considerable enthusiasm.  

"RG" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) Scramble (Ron Gardner) - 2:47

2.) Heaven (Ron Gardner - Dennis Weaver) - 3:19  

3.) Sails (Ron Gardner) - 3:00

4.) Pale Moon (Ron Gardner) - 3:40

Best of the lot was the killer rocker 'Pale Moon' which MCA tapped as a single:

- 1974's 'Pale Moon' b/w 'Caught Up' (MCA catalog number MCA-40285)

5.) Topanga Morning (Ron Gardner) - 3:00

(side 2)
1.) Southern Comfort (Ron Gardner) - 4:23

2.) Waterhole (Ron Gardner) - 3:51

3.) Caught Up (Ron Gardner - Dennis Weaver) - 3:52

The song also appeared as the "B" side on Gardner's 'Pale Moon' 45.

4.) Dancing (Ron Gardner) - 2:38

5.) Timeless Eternal (Ron Gardner - Dennis Weaver) - 2:33

Sadly, Gardner died in an unexplained 1992 fire.

1974 trade ad for "Ron Gardner"

Ron Gardner, a former member of the renowned Northwest rock band the Wailers, has died of injuries suffered in a fire.

Gardner, 45, was apparently asleep inside a motor home when it caught fire Dec. 16, authorities said. The vehicle was parked on his Christmas tree lot near a south Tacoma bowling and entertainment center.

Gardner suffered burns on his head, neck, arms and back, among other injuries. He died Wednesday afternoon in the burn unit at St. Joseph Hospital.

Fire investigators believe a faulty electric blanket or space heater may have started the fire.

"A Tribute to Ron Gardner," with Gabriel, The New Blues Brothers, Jumbo Groove, Merrilee Rush and special guests. Temple Theatre Grand Ballroom, 47 St. Helens St. 6 p.m. Sunday. Sold out. 272-2042. --------------------------------------------------------------- -- TACOMA Ron Gardner was a Wailer, in more ways than one. The singer and sax-playing songwriter, who passed away after an accidental fire last December, was not only a longtime member in one of the Pacific Northwest's earliest rock bands - The Wailers - but someone who was always playing, always performing, always doing something.

"He just amazed me,' said Buck Ormsby, a founding member of the Wailers. "He had so much energy. He always did." Gardner joined Ormsby's seminal rock band in 1962. "And he stayed with us until the show was over in 1969.

"We brought him in to replace our first sax player. We wanted someone who could play and sing and that was moveable, someone who could get around a stage, put on a show. He could sure do that. Eventually he started writing songs, too. It went on from there. He kept at it all through the '70s, '80s and '90s. He was working with another band when the accident happened."

"Ron lived around Tacoma all his life," says Mike Mitchell, a life-long fan and one of the organizers of Sunday night's benefit. "If you lived around here for any length of time, you knew Ron. It didn't take a lot of prompting to get some local businesses to

contribute to doing this benefit for Ron's family (Gardner was married to his high school sweetheart Diane and had two children) . Everyone wanted to pitch in."

Mitchell says the first time he ever saw the Wailers, he was just a kid. "I sneaked into a Battle of the Bands, and there was Ron and the Wailers. They were incredible. I'd never seen anything like it. So raw, so exciting. It was really rock 'n' roll. It really affected me - the music, the band, everything." Mitchell remained a fan, slipping into the now-legendary teen dances of the time even when he wasn't quite old enough. "I just followed his career," said Mitchell.

When the Wailers finally came to an end, Gardner went on to several other groups, most notably The Ron Gardner band and Jumbo Groove. He wrote and recorded several regional hits. He was always working on one project or another.

"We had recently been talking about a Wailers' reunion," says Ormsby. "We had done a few over the years and Ron hadn't been involved in all of them, so he was looking forward to this one. I guess some of the band will be coming together for this show."

Jim Leeder, another longtime friend and former manager for the band Gabriel - one of Seattle's hottest bands of the '70s and '80s - said that Gardner was a superstar before the word was coined. But like a lot of longtime local musicians of the '60s, he never got his due, he didn't leave a lot behind for his family. "That's why we're doing the benefit. The response has been really great."

"There were 500 tickets, and we were a little unsure of how they'd move at first," said Mitchell, "but they were gone in like a week. Almost all by word of mouth, a few here, a few there. The show is sold out. But we're doing some merchandising, too, especially a T-shirt. And we wanted people to know that we've set up a trust fund that anyone can contribute to. It's called the Ron Gardner Trust and anyone who cares to can make a contribution in that name in any Key Bank in the area."

"Ron was a pioneer," said Michael Kinder, leader of Gabriel. "We just want to celebrate his life and his music. It's the least we can do."

 Group, Sneaky Sam's Lamb, Anthem, Jumbo Groove, Elijah