If you are of a certain age - say, 55 like me - chances are fairly good that one of the first real rock bands you saw was Paul Revere and the Raiders. For me they actually were second - the Righteous Brothers were my first. But PR&R were certainly big in the mid-60's - a string of Top 40 hits, regular TV gig on Dick Clark's "Where the Action Is," Sixteen Magazine, the works. Drake Levin was quiet, but his musicianship was important to the Raiders' sound. While they may be remembered more today for their later, more trivial hits, in their early days they could rock in true mid-60's garage band fashion - right down to the Vox organ. Songs like "Steppin' Out," "Just Like Me," as well as some mostly well-chosen R&B covers stand the test of time today.
PR&R recorded "Louie, Louie" in the same Portland studio in 1963 at around the same time the Kingsmen did. At first, the Raiders' version was the bigger hit - heavily outselling the Kingsmen locally. But, it was the Kingsman's version that was picked up nationally later that year and rest is rock and roll history. The song itself was written 8 years before by Richard Berry.
That's Drake on the right. He passed away - interestingly enough - on the Fourth of July.
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