News from Marlene and Di, our Website Reporters

So many of my life stories begin with "Gloria and I....".....It's hard to think of upcoming times without her. Gloria and I met in 8th grade, through her cousin Carol. Carol and I were at school together, and she sometimes had parties and would invite Gloria, since we were all the same age. Gloria and I found that we had a couple of important things in common....music, and the Cubs. We loved them both, and a lot of times together were spent involved in those two things.
Back in the 60's, a lot of us had house parties for birthdays or graduation or whatever, and the main activity was playing the latest 45 records on our record players, and dancing to the music. The Beatles, the Beach Boys, the Four Seasons, Paul Revere and the Raiders....we had all their records in our collections. Gloria and I went together to see "A Hard Day's Night", who knows how many times....we could recite the entire script. We went to high school together, and many days would race home after school to watch "Where the Action Is", to see the latest bands perform, but mostly because Paul Revere and the Raiders were kind of the "house band", and Gloria loved Mark Lindsay! It was in the mid 60's that local Chicago bands began to appear, and we'd hear their records at school sock hops and dances, and they were featured on WLS and WCFL radio, played by all the djs like Ron Riley, Art Roberts, Clark Weber, and Joel Sebastian. That was in the day when radio personalities were as important as the music they played, and the dj's put in a lot of appearances at teen clubs and dances. The local bands would sometimes play, and it was exciting to see them "live". We started to go downtown on Saturdays, because sometimes bands would be at the radio stations, and we could go up to the station and watch them be interviewed by the dj's. Gloria and I would meet on the "el" platform, as I lived further north than she, and if we met on the platform we wouldn't have to get off and on and pay twice, and of course neither one of us could drive or owned a car....we were city girls. I remember we met Sonny and Cher, and the Four Seasons, and Neil Diamond that way. There was a lady named Avis who was the secretary at one of the radio stations.....boy did we envy her! We hoped when we got out of school we would have that kind of dream job too!
One Saturday we were downtown at WCFL and they had a Beatles' weekend thing, and they had guest bands playing....one of them being the Cryan' Shames. We had never seen them, but knew their song "Sugar and Spice". Well, we became instant fans....I fell in love with Jim Fairs, and Gloria loved Tom Doody. I remember going home and telling my mom about him, and she said he was too old for me (I was 15, he was 18)......who cares about that when someone is so cute???? Anyway, that was the start of a lifelong connection with the Shames. We started going everywhere we could to see them, and would be thrilled when they'd recognize us in the crowd. Unfortunately, we couldn't go to too many places, since either my dad or Gloria's dad usually drove us and picked us up. One of the most memorable times was on Christmas morning in 1967 (I think) when they sang at Cook County Hospital for the kids that were there....I remember my dad drove us down there, and while we were so excited we could hardly stand it because we were the only fans there, my dad was talking to Joel Sebastian like they were old friends! How cool was that ?? How we finagled that is unknown to me, since I have 7 brothers and sisters, and it WAS Christmas morning!!! How did we get my dad to do that???? (Thanks, Dad!) But most places we took the bus or the "el" to, so we were somewhat limited. I do remember one time the Shames were signing autographs at the record department at Kee's Department store on Irving Park and Milwaukee, and Gloria and I were there. We found out they were going from there to another record signing in Downers Grove, so we pooled our money and took a cab out there. The cab driver enjoyed it because he had a son in a band, and he actually waited for us to take us back to the city when it was over. I remember the Shames being surprised and asking us how we got there. Afterwards we were in the cab on the expressway on the way home, and the Shames were in a limo which pulled up next to us. I remember one of them yelling out the window "How much do they owe you now?"...and thinking "Well, you could invite us to ride with you in the limo!!"
We went all over to see the Shames play, and as 15 year old girls do, we always dreamed we'd end up with one of them. The first time we heard that Tom was getting married to Caroline was at Lane Tech High School, it was Isaac's birthday, and Gloria was devastated! How could he pick someone besides her? Through the years, we continued to see the Shames as often as we could, and listening to their music on the radio and on records. I remember playing "The Warm" over and over so many times....it was all Jim Fairs....and I wanted to know every nuance of him!
Then, as people do, we all went on with our lives, Jim left the Shames for the sunny shores of California, and for me at the time, the Shames were no more. Their popularity faded, we graduated from high school, and got jobs and other interests. Gloria and I stayed friends. I remember when she first met Al, who was to become her husband, and I stood up for her wedding. Later I remember being there the day after her daughter Jenni was born. We stayed friends even tho our lives were different now.
Years went by, and suddenly the Shames were playing again. Gloria and I would go, along with Al and Jenni, and got to know the "new" Shames as well. While there was no more Tom Doody, Jim Fairs, Isaac (RIP, friend), Lenny, Denny, Grape or Stonehenge, there was still Hooke up there, keeping the band alive and well in the hearts of Chicago music fans. Jeff, Tim, Ron, Rocky, Paul, Larry, and later Bob and the Daves...they all played the hits we were so familiar with, and they had fun and made it fun for all of us. We had a lot of good times and good memories. Unfortunately, Gloria had developed diabetes years earlier. She fought it valiantly, taking her sugar counts and medicines religiously, and participated in a research study on diabetes. She even did talks about it at her job at Swedish Covenant Hospital, and was pretty much an expert on the disease. Her vision was low due to the disease, and although it prevented her from driving, it didn't stop her from much else. She was always there at the shows, and enlisted both Al and Jenni to help her out from time to time. However, in late summer 2007 she developed an infection in her foot, and even with treatment and hospitalization, it couldn't be stopped from spreading. She passed away in November from complications of the diabetes. I miss her today as much as I did then. She was my oldest and best friend. We went through so much together. I knew her brother and both her parents before they died, she knew my whole family, and always spent a couple of hours on Christmas with us, as part of the family. Though we still see Al and Jenni on occasion, I really miss Gloria. She was definitely my partner in crime, and I can't think of the Shames,the Beatles or the Cubs without thinking of her. I know she's in a better place, and I hope she saves me a seat at the big oldies show in the sky....I want to be in the front row with her!
Marlene

Visits from The Stork
Pat and Babs, our Web Mister and Mistress became proud grandparents with the arrivial of Damien Alexander Malott on January 3rd, 2007, and Kaelynn Grace Malott May 2nd, 2008. J.C. Hooke made it even more special by giving the new Shames fan his own Cryan' Shames T-Shirt.
Tom Doody is also expecting his 4th Grand Child. Jim Pilster is now a proud grandfather with his new granddaughter Grace and Denny Conroy is also grandfather again.

Scramble has returned for 2008!, News from Jeff Rutter
Hi---Scramble at Ditka's Sportsdome, Bolingbrook, IL Sat., 3/1/08 @ 9 pm www.ditkasportsdome.com
Thanks, Jeff

Clark Besch On The Radio, News From Clark Besch

< A HREF=" http://www.sundazed.com/sc11201.html">CD: http://www.sundazed.com/sc11201.html

< A HREF=" http://www.sundazed.com/lp5245.html">LP: http://www.sundazed.com/lp5245.html

Pets On Parade:
By Babs

Bubbles O'Malley

Come on Shames Members (Past and Present) send in your pets photos and news.

Click On Sundazed Button Above To Purchase the following Cryan' Shames CDs: Sugar & Spice, A Scratch in the Sky, Synthesis. These CDs are On Sale Now.

Update Feb.9th, 2002!......
Clark Besch said the new Sundazed CDs are selling great!!! ,and thanked us for helping promote them.

Where on Earth is James Fairs?

New Message !! From James Fairs Jan. 20, 2009
Click Here

James sent us this new picture of himself at TREEC.

His lastest project report will be posted soon.

Lenny Kerley News