Dead Rocker's Society
Tommy Bolin
Very Easy Cache! Bring the kids as there is a great playground
here. The park has a .61 mile hiking trail, all paved, with a lake
in the middle. There are picnic tables and benches. There is a
small pavilion too. A nice easy stroll will get you to the cache.
The last 10 feet are off the trail but very easy. Make sure you
cover it back up.. It can be seen from the trail if you don't.
PLEASE DO NOT FEED OR PET THE HORSES!
This is a series dedicated to
past rockers who have left their mark on our society. To be a
member of the Dead Rocker's Society, a person must be dead.. Sorry,
the living still have a chance of becoming famous. The person must
have been in a rock band with an album. Too many rockers died
before they ever achieved fame. They will not be included. This is
also not a rock and roll hall of fame. This is for die hard rockers
that impacted the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's and 2000's. Each person
will have a cache placed in their honor. If you knew the person
through their work, please indicate it in the log. Share with us
what you remembered about this person. If you have never heard of
them, this hopefully, will introduce you to their work.
Thomas Richard Bolin was born on 1st August
1951 in Sioux City Iowa. His father Richard was of Scandinavian
descent and his mother Barbara was of Syrian. Tommy was later
joined by younger brothers Johnnie and Rick (“Pudge”).
Tommy’s early interest in music centered
around the sight of Elvis Presley on the Caravan of Stars
television show, followed by Richard taking some of the family to
see an Elvis performance when Tommy was five years old. That same
year Tommy learned to pantomime to “Heartbreak Hotel” and appeared
on “Kids Corner” (a local TV talent show) wearing a full Elvis
costume. The station was impressed and asked him back three days
later. He also came in second at a talent show at Lake Okoboji,
after which his obsession with rock and roll began.
Drums were Tommy’s first choice for an
instrument, but the expense of a full kit prompted Tommy to move to
keyboards and guitar. He kept drumming as a hobby all his life,
which he credited in later interviews as contributing to his fast,
powerful and accurate picking attack on guitar. His first guitar
was a Silvertone with the amp built into his case that Richard got
for $65 from Sears, which was followed by a Gretch Country
Gentleman.
Johnny Wells, a friend of Tommy relates that
“Tommy bought a Gretch Country Gentleman guitar from United
Teachers of Morningside in Sioux City around 1967. I was there when
he carried it out of the store. But to my recollection he brought
it back soon after. I also remember him buying a Mosrite solid body
guitar, but I don’t beleive he kept that one very long either. He
also purchased one of those vinyl-covered Kustom amps with it. I
really remember when he brought that thing back. He was not very
happy about it. He did experiment though.”
His school only offered music lessons every
other year, so Tommy looked to private teachers, first a Mr. Flood,
and then a Mrs. Sullivan, neither of whom related to the music that
Tommy intended to pursue. After those experiences he then learned
by hanging out with other young musicians, invariable a few years
older than himself. Their musical experience and knowledge rubbed
off on him, and he was spending time learning songs and licks off
of records.
Tommy’s first band was called the Miserlous,
but he was quickly heard by members of Denny &
The Triumphs, an experienced group of teenagers organized by
George Larvick, Sr., father of band members Brad and George Jr.
Tommy was invited to jam, and soon joined the group. Not long
after, bassist Denny Foote was sacked, and the band changed it’s
name to Patch of
Blue with George Jr. taking over Denny’s bass spot. Patch of
Blue lasted until mid-1967.
After Patch of Blue broke up, Tommy played
jobs with various bands, but not committing to a firm lineup. On
one trip in the fall of 1967 to play at the University of South
Dakota he met lyricist John Tesar for the first time. Tesar would
continue to work with Tommy for the rest of his life. (Source:
http://www.tbolin.com/history/youth.html)
Tommy went on to play with bands such as
James Gang and Deep Purple. I had the James Gang Miami
album. Tommy also had 2 fairly successful solo albums.
Teaser and Private Eyes were big hits of the early
metal era. His distinct guitar licks on these albums can be
recognized by anyone who knew his earler works. He had a style all
his own.
Tommy was a hardcore rocker as much as a hard
core party animal. He joked once in an interview with Rolling Stone
magazine that his nickname was Mr. Party. On December 4th, 1976,
Tommy was taken from the Rock n Roll world by a drug overdose. This
was only 4 months after the release of his second album.
The cache is a standard Tupperware box in a
small park. Please be discrete when looking for the cache. It has
been placed with permission from the grounds crew at the
park.
Placed by a member
of:
