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ARLYN GALE

ARLYN GALE (Born Richard Whitmore Tambone July 1st, 1951 in Woodstock IL) is an American Rock, Folk, Country Singer/Songwriter. Most widely known for his critically acclaimed and influential 1978 LP BACK TO THE MIDWEST NIGHT and as a driving force in New York’s late 70s music scene, combining jazz, rock and country elements to multi textured lyrics (1)). Arlyn Gale is also known for his departure from the world stage at what many thought was the top of his game.

Early Life: Richard Tambone, aka Arlyn Gale, was born the 5th of 9 children to John & Patricia (Whitmore) Tambone in rural Illinois. His father was a physician of Italian descent from Chicago. His mother was from Tennessee, of English/Irish parentage. The two met at Camp Forrest, TN and were married there in December of 1941 before Dr. Tambone (Captain Tambone, United States Army Medical Corp) was shipped off to the Pacific. After the war they settled in the small farm town of Woodstock, IL, 60 miles NW of Chicago and 20 miles south of the Wisconsin border.

Gale’s musical ambitions began at St. Mary’s Grade School where he and his friends formed a group called The Three Ds. He also credits a school ensemble of him and 2 classmates on trumpet and a stout nun on trombone as his first group (2). At Marian Central Catholic High School his rock band became The Children of Thyme, influenced by many Chicagoland groups of the era such as The Shadows of Knight, The Cryan’ Shames and The Mauds. They played weekend sock hops, private parties & county fairs while he worked after school at the local music store delivering pianos, selling records and giving guitar lessons.

After HS he moved to Boston and attended classes at Berklee College of Music while working at the MIT Bookstore in Cambridge. While there he became lead singer of a local group called Stone Soup with fellow students Peter Mackey and Peter Templer. His first recordings were also made in Boston. This was followed by a cross country road trip to LA with childhood friend Scott Bourbon, where from a cheap hotel room on Hollywood Blvd they made the rounds of record companies and clubs. They soon found that the laid back music scene of early 70s Southern California conflicted with their roots rock style and after a few months they returned to Illinois. There he formed another band, T-Bone 5, and secured a record deal with small Chicago label Behemoth Records. His song “BMOC” was recorded using a Baptist church choir for the A side and enlisting brother Tom on guitar for the B. Gale continued to play solo acoustic gigs while performing concerts and club dates with his group, building a reputation as a top band in the area.

New York City: Armed with a 45 rpm recorded under the name Dick Destiny, Gale headed to New York City in 1975. From an SRO hotel room on E23 St he dutifully made the rounds of Village open mics at clubs like Gerdes and The Bitter End. Days were filled with odd jobs and the ongoing frustration of rejection from major labels, but also soaking up NY’s rich musical vibe and networking with many like minded groups such as Blondie, the Dictators and the Ramones. Just as Gale was about to accept an invitation from The Dictators to join their band, he had a meeting with Manager/Producer Mike Appel. That meeting resulted in a request for some country songs and Gale returned hours later with a fresh batch of material. This was followed by a Sunday morning trip to the Power Station and with the aid of engineer Jimmy Iovine some acetates were recorded and a Management/ Production/ Publishing deal signed.

Mike Appel’s friend and collaborator Luis Lahav was called in to co-produce material for an eventual album. They assembled a band consisting of Israeli jazz keyboardist Alona Turel and NY artists Steve Cavaretta (guitar), Ivan Elias (bass) and Omar Hakim (drums). From Automated Studios in Times Square with resident engineer Peter Darmi, an album was hammered out over a period of months. Over time though, Gale felt the fusion of these multi styles take on a more group-like feel. On an off night from recording while watching “The Wizard of Oz” with his girlfriend he took note of the composer Harold Arlen, whose work he’d long admired (“Over The Rainbow”, “Stormy Weather”, “One For My Baby”). This, accompanied by the lead character Dorothy’s last name, Gale, became what he’d hoped would be a catch-all banner for the project: Arlyn Gale (2).

The album was finished and released on Los Angeles label ABC Records in Sept of 1978 to solid reviews (1). Appearing alone and with artists such as Rory Gallagher, Rockpile and The Doobie Bros, the group began a cross country tour selling an impressive amount of records and gaining respect from critics and fans alike. Cashbox called him “a gust of fresh musical talent” while Variety touted a “spectacularly complete new singer-writer”. Worldwide attention was building and a cover version of the title track was recorded by Japanese artist Ken Takahashi. Due to manager Mike Appel’s well publicized court battles with Bruce Springsteen at the time, there was the inevitable comparisons between the two artists (3) which both surprised and annoyed Gale. He respected and empathized with both men and tried to stay out of it while focusing attention on the album and tour obligations. Then at a show in Dallas, Texas the band learned that ABC had been purchased by MCA Records, who would be taking on only artists who had sold 100,000 copies or more. This was lucky news for label-mate Tom Petty, whose album had come out some months before Gale’s and had reached that mark. Not so lucky for Gale and his band. Overnight they had no label support, a situation that deepened Gale’s inherent distrust of the industry.

At the same time the music business itself was experiencing a downswing, with labels folding and recording budgets being slashed, heralding the onset of the low budget punk era. Back in NY the band went on hiatus, working on individual projects while Gale wrote material for a new album, expanding his sound with guest players such as country/rock guitarist Arlen Roth and accordianist Paul Errico from Steve Forbert’s band. During this time Gale was invited up to Francis Coppola’s 5th Ave apt to interview for an impending film project. Gale attended and was grateful for the opportunity but had no real interest in acting and was relieved when the project never materialized. As the economic slump continued, combined with an exasperation of the unwanted Springsteen connection via Mike Appel, the two decided to amicably part company. They remain friends to this day. Gale signed with manager Sid Bernstein and recorded some of his new material with another producer and backing group. However the sound and chemistry didn’t feel right and he ultimately refused to record under the name Arlyn Gale. A dissolution with Bernstein occurred shortly afterwards, again amicably.

80s and Beyond: While on a camping trip in the Adirondacks he attended a Rockabilly festival and met Rory MacLeod, slap bassist for Memphis Rockabilly and Roomful of Blues. The two became friends and MacLeod introduced him to drummer Doug Hinman of Rock House and the Duke Robillard band as well as other acquaintances of his in the Providence, RI area. Gale found this environment a refreshing change from the “musical mercenary” business of NY, and began a custom of working with a revolving collective of players, regaining his love of playing for its own sake. Performing “guerilla gigs” under names like The Furies, The Unknowns and his own, a live recording was done at this time in New York which included his songs “Wild Kingdom”, “Looking For a Man” and “Breathe Her Light”. Gale reunited with producer Luis Lahav to record his “lost tracks”, “Say It”, “Gimme An Inch” and “A Choice of Dreams”. Intended as demos, Gale credits Lahav as “making something out of nothing” but he soon thereafter disengaged himself again from the required self-promotion. He reshuffled his priorities, married long time girlfriend Martha Browning and moved out of New York City. They raised their 2 daughters Stella and Vita while he found work outside of the industry and wrote music unimpeded by its fashions. He occasionally resurfaced in bands from Boston to Nashville, recording his “Yankee Trash” and “All Fired Up” with Joe “Chewy” Anthony, his “Loser’s Fairy Tale” with The Black River Band and providing music for personal interest subjects such as the Atchafalaya Society. Home life was a priority however and became even more so with the onset of some serious family health issues. Band activity came to a halt while he focused on those issues, eventually building an in-home studio as his base of musical operations. The diversity in his writing has expanded into equal parts country, zydeco, rock and jazz as he continues to work with his acoustic outfit The Peaces and harder edged T-Bone 5.

His bandmates from the Midwest Night days have continued to grow and thrive in various musical arenas (4). Alona Turel with Freddie Hubbard & others, Steve Cavaretta as premier session guitarist on countless recordings, Omar Hakim with Sting, Miles Davis, Madonna, David Bowie, Dire Straits, and Ivan Elias who enjoyed success with Scandal and The Lynch mob before succumbing to cancer in 1995. Luis Lahav has continued a successful career as one of Israel’s leading record producers and Mike Appel has branched out into music promotion and theatrical composition. Unearthed youtube videos have prompted a rediscovery of Arlyn Gale music.

References:

(1): Harvey Kubernik, Melody Maker Aug 26, 1978 Cashbox, Dec 2, 1978

Charles Barrett, The Hollywood Reporter Oct 4, 1978

Billboard, Oct 7, 1978

Record World, Oct 14, 1978

Variety, Nov 2 1978

(2): Personal Interviews

(3): Dave Marsh: “Two Hearts, The Story”

(4): Mike Appel website mikeappel.net