Ronnie Rice

The QUILL Records Story

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the Quill Records Story CD

Collectables CD 0662

The Quill Records Story is a killer retrospective of the Chicago rock scene from 1965 to 1969. 25 tracks including garage hits, psychedelic rarities & first-time Stereo. Compiled with the full cooperation of Quill label owner, Peter Wright, this amazing CD also features authoritative liner notes, detailed recording information & previously unpublished photos:

THE EXCEPTIONS: (w/ Peter Cetera, later of the band Chicago, Marty Grebb, later of The Buckinghams & Billy Herman, later of The New Colony Six): "As Far As I Can See *"," "Business As Usual";

THE SKUNKS: "Don’t Ask Why";

THE PROPHETS: "Yes I Know," "Sad On Me";

RONNIE RICE & THE GENTS: "Warm Baby *," "La-Do-Da-Da *";

THE NIGHT FLIGHT: "Without You *," "To Color Turn *";

JIMMY WATSON & THE ORIGINAL ROYALS: "A Heart Is Made Of Many Things," "I Wanna Do It";

THE EXTERMINATORS: "Voo-Doo," "Declaration Of Independence OE65";

THE RICOCHETTS: "Losing You";

THE HIGH-SCHOOLERS: "The Graduation Song",

CHANCES R: "I'II Have You Cryin";

THE RIDDLES: "It’s One Thing To Say"

THE PROPER STRANGERS: "Joyce," "One In A Million"

THE COMMONS LTD: "I’m Going To Change The World";

THE DELIGHTS: "Every Minute, Every Hour, Every Moment *," "Just Out Of Reach"

THE ROOKS: "Ice and Fire," "Turquoise", "Free Sunday Paper."

* First-time Stereo

LUMPEN MAGAZINE AUGUST 1997

V/A The Quill Records Story. The Best of Chicago Garage Bands (Collectables)

I am openly admitting complete ignorance of any of these bands. One of them, The Exceptions starring Peter Cetera of Chicago fame, I was immediately bent on avoiding at all costs--just a reflex sort of action. But then I thought, well, musically, the late sixties had so much to offer, and there's probably musical gold in here. And there is. Producer Harry Young (who some of you might already know about as the local Lou Christie fanatic) knows his Chicago rock history and has fleshed out the liner notes thoroughly. My own particular favorites include the fascinatingly awry "The Graduation Song" by girl group The High-Schoolers, which is, well, what it's called, and as spooky as the Kids from Widney High or children singing religious songs. Ronnie Rice from The New Colony Six does a Chris Isaak sort of sultry cover of The Lovin' Spoonful's "Warm Baby" that is just beautiful. The Skunks "Don't Ask Why" is steps away from Strawberry Alarm Clock, Joe Meek, and The Chocolate Watch Band. As for The Exceptions, well, I still don't like Peter Cetera any better.

BILLBOARD JULY 05, 1997

DECLARATIONS OF INDEPENDENTS

HEADLINE: Indies Provide Crucial Documentation Of Music Past

BYLINE: CHRIS MORRIS

LEGENDS OF THE LOST: As our protracted vacation drew to a close, we wound up loafing around the house--what else?--listening to indie records and musing about the way indies become the caretakers of their own history.

Just as independent labels have served as the promulgators of the most forward-looking music, they also act as the ultimate archivists of music that was misplaced, buried, or ignored in its own day. Nothing serves as a better reminder of this crucial role than four fascinating current historical packages, which focus on obscure but vibrant developments during the '60s and '70s in Chicago, Memphis, Cleveland, and Los Angeles.

We'll admit that, even though we claim Chicago as our hometown, we were unfamiliar with the Windy City's Quill Records until the arrival of "The Quill Records Story --The Best Of Chicago Garage Bands" from Narberth, Pa.-based Collectables Records. We're glad that Collectables rectified the situation.

Quill was one of several Chicago-based indies that sprouted up in the mid-'60s, when the city's top 40 station WLS, with its butt-kicking 50,000-watt clear-channel signal, was able to turn a local act into a national commodity: In1966 alone, the Buckinghams' "Kind Of A Drag" climbed to No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles chart, while the Shadows Of Knight's "Gloria" hit No. 10.

Quill was the brainchild of Peter Wright, manager/producer of mellow Chi-town act the New Colony Six. Wright scooped up a variety of young groups from Illinois and Wisconsin, and, while he never hit it big, his eclectic roster might find favor today with garage band enthusiasts whose collections bulge with the "Nuggets," "Pebbles," and "Back From The Grave" compilations.

Among the gems on "The Quill Records Story" are two lush Beach Boys-inflected tracks by the Exceptions, a Chicago unit that included a pre-Chicago Peter Cetera; snarling garage punk by the Exterminators, the Delights, and the Riddles; and lots of derivative but entertaining folk-rock, pop, and power punk. There are a few nifty photos of band members stylin' with doggie-bowl haircuts and houndstooth suits, too.

The Quill Records Story (Collectables) (Three Stars)

This compilation of singles recorded for Chicago's Quill Records between1965-67 bills itself as "The Best Of Chicago Garage Bands." But this collection does preserve some essential Windy City nuggets, which generally alternate between raw rave-ups and harmony-soaked crooning. For example, the Exterminators' "Voo-Doo" bashes out a nasty trash-rock rumble, while the Skunks' "Don't Ask Why" wobbles with a memorable case of psychedelia. The Riddles' "It'sOne Thing to Say," is an infectious organ-guitar shuffle that cries out for covering by the Lyres. Chicago rock historians should note that a number of the bands represented here (Ronnie Rice & the Gents, the Night Flight) eventuallycontributed members and tunes to the New Colony Six, while the Exceptions boasted future Chicago bassist Peter Cetera.

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