line up 1 (1963-68)

- Monte Allison (RIP 1980) -- vocals, keyboards 

- Ray Atwater -- vocals, rhythm guitar 

- John Johnson -- vocals, drums

- Mac Lewis -- rhythm guitar 

- David Marlette -- vocals, lead guitar

- Steve Rogers -- bass, drums 

- none known

Genre: garage

Rating: 3 stars ***

Title:  Introducing the Nightriders

Company: Justice

Catalog: JLP-157
Year: 1967

Country/State: Burlington, North Carolina

Grade (cover/record): VG/VG+

Comments: name written in ink on back top right corner 'Kay Dawson'; 3" seam split along top side' 4" seam split along lower edge

Available:  SOLD

Catalog ID:  SOLD 5817

Price: SOLD $450.00

So here's another Justice releases where there isn't much to go on.  A six piece outfit, The Nightriders (the cover photo showed the band name was actually 'The Night Riders Combo'), were from Burlington, North Carolina.  Formed in 1963, the line up featured childhood friends keyboardist Monte Allison, rhythm guitarist Ray Atwater, drummer John Johnson, rhythm guitarist Mac Lewis, lead guitarist David Marlette, and bass player Steve Rogers.  Still in high school, five of the six members were 16 with the 15 year old Lewis being the baby of the group when they made their recording debut.  In standard fashion, they'd gotten themselves a manager (Roger Taylor) and started out playing local dances and talent contests.  A local high school Battle of the Bands competition (where they placed second), caught the attention of a talent scout from Justice Records, which arranged for a quickie contract with the vanity label.  500 copies of the album were pressed with the  band members and families doing the sleeve assembly.

In most respects 1967's 'Introducing the Nightriders" wasn't all that different from the majority of Justice releases.  With marginal production values (much of the album had a distant, hollow sound), the overall sound was somewhat raw and sounded way dated, even for 1967.  The set was also heavy on covers, though the performances showed they  guys actually had a considerable amount of talent.  True, most of the covers were pretty rote affairs, seldom detouring far from the originals, but performances like their covers of 'Louie Louie' and 'Journey To the Stars' displayed the group's considerable energy and obvious affection for the music.

"Introducing the Nightriders" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) Midnight Ride (instrumental) - 2:48  rating *** stars

Kicked along by Allison's organ and Marlette's lead guitar, the opening instrumental 'Midnight Ride' had a distinctive early-1960s surf feel.   

2.) Long Tall Texan   (Henry Strzelecki) - 2:10  rating *** stars

'Long Tall Texan' was one of those songs that would have been a blast to hear in a small, beer soaked club.  Nothing that would knock your socks off, but the backing vocals were fun and the band seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely.   

3.) Good Lovin'   (Rudy Clark - Arthur Resnick) - 2:09  rating *** stars

Technically their cover of The Young Rascals' "Good Lovin'' was actually pretty bad.  They were lucky to come within a couple of miles of the actual melody, their ragged vocals giving the song a much rougher feel.  Marlette's brief solo was almost a slice of proto-punk frustration.  

4.) Double Shot   (Don Smith - Cyril Vetter) - 3:04

The same comments pretty much cover their stab at the Swingin' Medallions 'Double Shot'.  Nice try, but didn't come close to the original (which was actually entitled 'Double Shot (of My Baby's Love).  

5.) Louie Louie   (Richard Berry) - 2:48    rating ***** stars  

Richard Berry's 'Louie Louie' is one of those classic songs that you really can't destroy, so the fact these guys didn't seem to know the words (not that anyone does), really didn't make much difference. It was actually kind of funny to hear them forget the words at one point.   It's also a song where a band can compensate for lack of technical finesse by playing with energy and enthusiasm which these guys did.  Kudos to Marlette who actually turned in a dazzling solo.   

6.) I Love You   (Cole Porter) - 2:20 rating * star

One can only assume that their cover of Cole Porter's '' was meant to be the band's chick magnet song.  Let's call it pretty and forgettable.  

(side 2)
1.) Come See About Me   (Eddie Holland - Lamont Dozier - Brian Holland) - 2:54   rating *** stars

Side two started out with an interesting, organ powered cover of the Motown hit 'Come See About Me'.  The vocals were really weak with the band kind of group singing their way through the track.  The good news was drummer Rogers kicked the crap out of the song.  Too bad the rest of the band couldn't match him.

2.) Twist and Shout   (Phil Medley - Burt Russell) - 2:31  rating ** stars

'Twist and Shout' was another indestructible classic where they got by more on enthusiasm than actual talent. The famous scream part of the song was hysterical, the singer sounding like he'd just found a field mouse in his pants. \

3.) Money - 2:16  rating ** stars

In theory their cover of the Motown classic 'Money' should have been immediately forgettable.  The band did their best to stick with the original melody and turned in a performance that was generously described as sloppy.  Still or a bunch of teenagers, the results were better than a lot of other covers I've heard.  

4.) Night Train (instrumental) - 2:04  rating ** stars

If there was a highlight to the instrumental 'Night Train' (I'm not saying there was), it came in the form of Marlette's' trumpet solo.   

5.) Little Latin Lupe Lu   (Bill Medley) - 2:25  rating ** stars

I'd love to know what Marlette was playing for the solo on 'Little Latin Lupe Lu.  It almost sounded like a Coral electric sitar.  Anyhow, this rocker was one of the better performances 

5.) Journey To the Stars   (Nokie Edwards - Don Wilson - Bob Bogel - Tom Taylor) - 2:26    rating ***** stars  

For some reason I've seen the closer 'Journey To the Stars' credited as a band original.  I may be wrong, but believe it was actually a cover of an old Ventures tune.  Doesn't matter one way or the other since this was easily the album's standout performance.  Alison and Marlette nailed this performance, turning in a steaming organ and lead guitar combo.

So where's this one fall in the Justice label hierarchy?  I'd put it in the middle of the pack, chiefly because it was so heavily packed with covers.  The performances were all worth hearing (okay maybe not the Cole Porter cover), but these guys would have benefited by being willing to push for more original material.  'Course when you're 16 ...

And that was the end of the Nightriders recording career with the band calling it quits in 1968.  Would love to know more about the group.   By the way, the album deserves credit for the fantastic cheesy cover art which made my 'best album covers' list.  Also, the car was a 1964 Pontiac Catalina 2+2 owned by Johnson's brother.  (One other curiosity - for some reason the album shared the same release number as The Invaders "... On the Right Track".)

For anyone who doesn't have to own an original, or can't afford the hideous price of an original, in 1995 the Collectables label reissued the album in CD format (Collectables catalog number COL-0603).

Turns out the surviving members of The Nightriders have remained in contact with one another.  Singer/keyboard player Monte Allison died in May 1980, but the remained members reunited in July 2008 for a 40th anniversary which included a benefit concert for Mac Lewis.  Lewis was left a quadriplegic following a car accident in Ireland and incurred some significant and ongoing medical expenses as a result of the accident.

Steve Rogers also has a small Nightriders tribute site at:

http://www.thenightridersband.com/fr_aboutus.cfm

SRB 11/2009