Verne,
I found your exchange with Taylor the student from Kelowna very interesting indeed.
One of the things that happened at Lejac that I thought was very significant for a lot of the boys and girls was our dance band "The Termites" not to be confused with the "Beatles" but darn near as good. I so much enjoyed the dances we had at the school just for the opportunity to sit and listen to the talent we had in our midst. The band was made up of about 8 boys who took turns on the different instruments, base guitar, lead guitar, rhythm guitar, drums and on occasions the accordion plus the vocals. The range of music the band played always astounded me and they could go on for a good four hours without repeating themselves. I remember one of the boys paying particular attention to a song that was playing on the radio in my room "Never on Sunday". Later that day I heard him playing the song on his fife while another boy was trying to pick up the tune on a guitar. Then about two weeks later at a dance I hear the dance band playing "Never on Sunday" and they had never heard the original.
Yes, there was natural talent as none of the students could read music, it was all by ear. The big amplifier the band used was one I built myself from a mail order kit. The drum set was a Christmas gift from my mom in Newfoundland. We always had to beg, borrow or steal to get the things we needed to entertain the boys and girls. Our government budget for entertainment was $10.00 per year per student and that does not cover very much, so we had to be resourceful. We used to take the dance band along on trips we would go on like Hockey trips to the Williams Lake school and on a few of the band tattoos we attended in the Okanagan where the boys would entertain the large gathering with their great music. I remember one weekend we played for a dance at the Fraser Lake Community Hall. Each of the band members got about $15.00 for their effort. The dance band was always a hit where ever they played. Great memories. Jim
I found your exchange with Taylor the student from Kelowna very interesting indeed.
One of the things that happened at Lejac that I thought was very significant for a lot of the boys and girls was our dance band "The Termites" not to be confused with the "Beatles" but darn near as good. I so much enjoyed the dances we had at the school just for the opportunity to sit and listen to the talent we had in our midst. The band was made up of about 8 boys who took turns on the different instruments, base guitar, lead guitar, rhythm guitar, drums and on occasions the accordion plus the vocals. The range of music the band played always astounded me and they could go on for a good four hours without repeating themselves. I remember one of the boys paying particular attention to a song that was playing on the radio in my room "Never on Sunday". Later that day I heard him playing the song on his fife while another boy was trying to pick up the tune on a guitar. Then about two weeks later at a dance I hear the dance band playing "Never on Sunday" and they had never heard the original.
Yes, there was natural talent as none of the students could read music, it was all by ear. The big amplifier the band used was one I built myself from a mail order kit. The drum set was a Christmas gift from my mom in Newfoundland. We always had to beg, borrow or steal to get the things we needed to entertain the boys and girls. Our government budget for entertainment was $10.00 per year per student and that does not cover very much, so we had to be resourceful. We used to take the dance band along on trips we would go on like Hockey trips to the Williams Lake school and on a few of the band tattoos we attended in the Okanagan where the boys would entertain the large gathering with their great music. I remember one weekend we played for a dance at the Fraser Lake Community Hall. Each of the band members got about $15.00 for their effort. The dance band was always a hit where ever they played. Great memories. Jim
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