John Hendow

This article recently surfaced on Google, and it’s a bit of a flashback to consider what I was up to 27 years ago. As a teenager I spent the majority of my time playing guitar and had began to play with local bands in Seattle, working to learn more about the music, the professional music scene, about myself. One of my first steady gigs was with a local band fronted by Jim Cull (now a local DJ). Our band “Straight Shot” was a wonderful learning opportunity for me, composed of musicians Nick Nicholai (keyboardist who performed / recorded with Louis Armstrong, Theresa Brewer and Loretta Lynn), John Jansen (guitarist who played professionally with countless country bands) and Howie Johnson (original drummer of The Ventures – “Wipe Out” !). At the time I recognized that I was playing with accomplished older musicians, but in retrospect this was probably the luckiest break a young musician could have. Nick, John, and Howie were incredibly generous with their musical knowledge, teaching me great turnarounds and cues; they were also very kind in sharing their road-earned wisdom about playing professionally. In the context of this band I played bass, guitar and banjo – we performed “Dueling Banjo” every night, along with other bluegrass staples. We played together for years, working almost every Friday and Saturday, and they patiently guided me as I learned the ropes. Jim was a steadfast friend throughout the years of playing in that band. He did an admirable job of interpreting the music Tom Jones, Elvis and Frank Sinatra. 

This article mentions a single “Do Ya / I’m Sorry” which we recorded in Bellingham’s “Fairhaven Studios”. I’m proud to say this was my first professional recording. I multi-tracked electric and acoustic guitars on the B-side of the single, with layers of 12 string forming a shimmering texture. I’m still pleased with the way that recording came out. Our engineer Armen Stein was very good and understood how to get the sounds we wanted. He also did some great dancing behind the control board while we recorded.

For me, this was an amazing introduction to the world of professional music. The band, the bars, and the audiences were all new to me, and I found a lot of adventure in the whole thing. It was a bit like running off and joining the circus I suppose. One of the key elements in the adventure was that for my first four years playing in this band, I was a minor and technically not even allowed to be in the bars where we played! Most of the places we played didn’t seem to care as long as I was onstage. Generally I was required to spend my set breaks sitting outside in the van, or if the bar allowed it, hiding in the kitchen. Great experiences all around, and an auspicious beginning. 27 years later and I’m still out there with the circus!