As I’m sitting down working on a story for the December column, at least for me, no other band brings a smile to my face faster than the Fabulous Flippers. They seemed a perfect choice for a holiday column.
One always has to be careful when choosing to use the word “legendary.” But in the case of this group, it’s safe to use the term, since that is exactly what the Fabulous Flippers of Lawrence, Kan. became.
The story of The Flippers began over 50 years ago in the tiny community of Hays, Kan. when a group of high school friends decided to form a band. After their high school graduation, these would-be rockers ended up attending college at The University of Kansas in Lawrence. They had to find a name for the band, so they chose Fabulous Flippers, a slang name for knock-off hubs on a car.
The original Flippers consisted of: Terry Wierman-lead guitar; Jerry Tammen-drums; Dennis Frederick-bass; Roger Lewis-trumpet; Gary Claxton-sax; Doug Crotty-sax; Danny Hein; and Dennis Loewen-keyboards, guitars, and lead vocals.
While in Lawrence, they had the good fortune to be groomed as the lead act for the highly successful Mid Continent Productions booking agency.
Mid Continent was the brainchild of John Brown and college buddy, Mike Murfin. It was an idea to book a few bands on the side while in college and make a little money.
It was while they were a part of Mid Continent that the Flippers were established and marketed to legendary status on KOMA Radio out of Oklahoma City, Okla.
How many times can we remember tuning in to 1520 KOMA and hearing about a Flipper dance headed in our direction? When those ads came on the radio, we knew we were going to see and experience something special, and the Flippers were just that. Those ads made the Flippers seem larger than life and with that cool name, they were a home run for Mid Continent.
These radio ads, along with the group’s talent, helped Mid Continent establish the name of the Fabulous Flippers over a 10-plus state area.
Throughout the Flippers’ career, they recorded eight singles, one LP and one EP. They are best remembered for their release on Chicago’s Cameo-Parkway Records of “Harlem Shuffle/I Don’t Want To Cry” (Cameo-Parkway 439).
In 1968 the “original” lineup for The Flippers disbanded, and front man Dennis Loewen took over the helm of the band and lead them all the way though 1972.
Usually, wherever they played, The Flippers held attendance records up and down the highway. You usually said “wow” after seeing their custom motorcoach pull into the ballroom parking lot and the same after you saw their live show.
A few years back, The Flippers released a now hard-to-find CD titled, “The Fabulous Flippers, Then & Now.” It was comprised of most of their single releases along with some rare live cuts. If you ever have the chance to find this CD, grab on to it.
I get comments from people all the time thinking that The Flippers were from their home state. What many kids never realized was that the Flippers, being Lawrence-based, traveled the 10-state Midwest and deep south nonstop, building their following. You could almost believe they lived near you, because of their non-stop marketing and tour schedule.
Seeing this group live was unlike most musical experiences that you encountered as a kid. Eight guys all wearing matching tailored suits, doing dance steps and choreography; a group that boasted the hottest horn section to be found anywhere, doing black R&B hits that made them seem like old hands at the music. The catch was they were all farm kids from rural Kansas, not inner city seasoned R&B musicians.
I’ve had the good fortune over the years to get to know many members of this talented band. That was not an easy task, as over 70 musicians went through The Flippers.
Today, when you hear the name “The Fabulous Flippers,” you think of a hot sound, an exciting show, great musicianship, and those amazing men from Lawrence. You just defined what rock and roll of the 60’s was meant to be.
On a fun side note: if you saw the Flippers at the Hollyhock, you were quite lucky, as the Hollyhock only hosted the Fabulous Flippers on two occasions, both in 1969, April and July. Why so few appearances? The Hollyhock was doing such great business with the Flippers’ sister band, The Roarin’ Red Dogs, they didn’t feel the need to book the Flippers much at the Hollyhock and business was business: the Red Dogs were cheaper to book.
I’d like to take this time to wish everyone the happiest of holidays. For me, it has been a fun year. I hope you have enjoyed these columns. They have been fun for me. I’ve got some exciting things planned for next year with this column. Make sure you check back. I hope Santa is good to you. I have on the top of my Santa list my very own vintage Hollyhock poster. I can always hope.
See You All Next Year.
Take Care & Remember The Music
P.S. The perfect gift for someone reading this column is a copy of my all new, Second Edition book on the legendary Hollyhock Ballroom. They can he bought at Pipestone Publishing offices, Pipestone Historical Society and in Hatfield at The Hatfield Roadhouse.
Tom Tourville has been writing about Midwest rock & roll for close to 30 years and has published over 25 books based on Midwest rock music history. He lives in Lake Okoboji, Iowa, and can be reached at tourvillea@aol.com.
