From Reel-to-Reel: Digitizing My Dad’s 1967 Hamilton Tableau Band Recording

We were on our way home from the concert we just saw together. It was late, and Dad was driving the back roads in the dark. (This was the same night I wrote about in Lessons in the “Slip Note” and Other Concert Goings With My Dad) He shared how his childhood buddy Chuck had recently been up for a visit and they were tinkering around with an old tape deck, trying to fix it. Being from the 1980s I immediately thought cassette tape, but quickly shifted to thinking about when my Dad was a teenager and that he meant further back technology. “Oh you mean that kind of tape,” I said. “Gotcha. How’d that go? Did you fix it?”

Long story short, they got stuck. Something about a band being overstretched and parts being hard to replace on equipment that old. (Looking back at a text he later sent me about it he said the problem was the drive band slipping) I asked him more about why he was doing this, and he said he had recordings of him in a band he was in the summer of 1967 when he lived in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They were recorded on an old reel-to-reel like the Sony deck he bought in college in 1969 that he still has! Here’s a picture of that one:

The story goes, as I was confused when I first asked my Dad about this, but now it makes more sense, is that the recording is not one he did himself. I originally thought it was. But actually he said his band and him were recorded by a producer in Winston-Salem, North Carolina at a radio station. He can’t remember the name of either. Apparently they were asked to do a recording for a car commercial for the station’s salesman. Dad said he had promised them $50 minimum, or $150 if he could sell it to the local dealership. It never sold he said, but they got $50 plus the recording at his station’s studio. (He later texted me a picture of the car the commercial was for, a 1968 American Motors Javelin) The recording of his band is the one pictured above next to his reel-to-reel.

Here’s a few pictures from when he got his first reel-to-reel the Christmas of 1962, that was more of a toy. (Click the slideshow arrows to view)

My Dad lived in Madison, Wisconsin through his first year of high school and then moved out East because my Grandpa got a different job. They later moved back, but that’s a different story.

Dad told me he was 16 years old at the time. He’d been in other bands, but this was the only one he had a recording from. He wanted to digitize the recording, but he hadn’t yet figured out how to get the speed to be consistent.

I said I knew he’d figure it out, and he did. The next day he sent me a link via text! “Got it recorded!” it said.

My Dad and I are a lot alike in this way. When there is something we want to accomplish, we will stop at nothing to do it. Plus no matter how long it takes, we’re often super speedy when we are focused and determined.

This text message wasn’t surprising to me. I knew he’d find a way.

He had done the arrangements himself he told me. He shared that the band was called the Hamilton Tableau and that they were only together for a few months during that summer of 1967. The band was him and two others, a gal named Donna and a guy named Chris. They were both a year or two older than he was he recalled. Here’s a picture of them with my Dad, Craig on the right!

Now like I’ve shared in the past, my Dad loves to share stuff he’s working on or tidbits of history here and there, but this time was slightly different.

Imagine being sent a recording you’ve never heard of your parent’s voice from when they were 16 years old!

I didn’t immediately click the link.

First of all, I was thinking, I need to eliminate distractions, get somewhere quiet. Should I get a special cup of something to drink? Do I need to sit somewhere special? Oh, Annie…I was saying to myself, you said “I’m sure you’ll figure it out,” and he had. Here is the link. Listen.

So I did!

What I uncovered was incredible. My Dad’s voice, not like I’d heard him before, but also familiar too. They were harmonizing, and sounded straight out of the 1960s, exactly like it is soaking up and radiating all the influences of music from that time. I could imagine my Grandma popping her head in to sneak a listen.

What a thing to capture, and what a thing to now bring new life to all these nearly 57 years later!

Not only had he fixed the problem (He explained later in a text he simply moved the drive band out of the groove on the wheel and the speed was fine) but he now had something he could enjoy from his past for himself, and share it with me to enjoy for years to come.

Here’s a recording they did of some covers in 1967! My Dad’s on the lead vocals and did all the arrangements. His favorite one is California Dreamin’ a few songs in. Each of the songs is time stamped if you wanna skip around.

Listen to Hamilton Tableau Recordings below:

1. Monday, Monday by The Mamas & The Papas (:07-3:15)
2. The Dangling Conversation by Simon and Garfunkel (3:20-5:54)
3. That’s What You Get For Lovin’ Me written by Bob Dylan (5:59-7:53)
-Dad said they did the Peter, Paul and Mary version
4. California Dreamin’ by The Mamas & The Papas & Just A Little by Beau Brummels (7:57-11:30)
5. You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away by The Beatles (11:34-13:47)
6. Goin’ Out Of My Head written by Teddy Randazzo and Bobby Weinstein, made popular by Little Anthony and the Imperials (13:51-16:17)
-Dad said they did the version by The Lettermen

(I’m happy to edit anything above in the song credits that needs it. I tried my best to include the original songwriter, but Dad also said lots of people covered major artists back then. It wasn’t as big of a deal to borrow and riff and cover people as it is now. But I value giving credit where deserved. Leave me a comment if you see something that needs tweaking. Thanks!)

Remember, this is recorded on an old reel-to-reel. You may hear a little bit of a warble from the speed of the tape changing from time to time as it goes on. Pretty impressive though, considering how long ago it was recorded and what they had to work with.

Found out later from Dad the digitizing was done using a different reel-to-reel he got from a family member. Here’s a picture of that one:

View a few more pictures of the band! (Click the slideshow arrows)

Of course, I had to text back and forth with my Dad to complete this post. I always learn something new! He said his guitar teacher was Roy Plumb. He believed he was a relative of Edward H. Plumb an orchestral film composer for Disney, including the movie Bambi. He said he took lessons from Roy for a few months at Patti Music on State Street his sophomore year in college while attending the University of Wisconsin, Madison. I shared a link to a picture we found of Patti Music in this post: I Started Playing Banjo With My Dad. He studied Chet Atkins’ style of guitar, playing four strings at a time, the highest string for playing melody and the rest for playing accompanying chords he explained.

It all comes full circle. Dad and I had just heard Chet Atkins’ grand niece playing in a concert that night we were driving home!

Cool right?! It’s amazing how that all works out.

It’s been really fun taking a little trip back in time, and hopping into the present, looping it all together like a reel-to-reel.

I hope you enjoyed it too. Make it an adventure!

Leave a comment below if you like.