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1960s rock group The Association will play at Saint Francis.
By Sheryl Krieg
of The News-Sentinel
Oct. 19, 2009
History repeats itself Friday when the 1960s rock group The
Association reminisces with the crowd while performing its greatest
hits and personal favorites at the University of Saint Francis.
In a phone interview with original band member Jim Yester, the New
Jersey resident spoke about the group's past, present and future.
According to Yester, 69, the audience can expect to hear the hits
that made The Association famous "Cherish," "Windy," "Along Comes
Mary" and "Never My Love" as well as a medley of other artists'
'60s songs that were special to band members throughout the years,
including those from The Beach Boys, Credence Clearwater Revival and
The Four Tops.
"We do a lot of talkin' and chattin' with the people. We give them
history of the songs," Yester said.
Yester said his personal favorites include "Along Comes Mary," the
group's first hit in which he sang lead, and "No Fair At All," which
he wrote about a personal experience.
"I think a lot of people have a relationship with the music we did,
especially with 'Cherish' and 'Never My Love,'" he said. "So many
people come and say they had that song played at their wedding. Or
'I'd like to introduce you to my daughter, Windy or Cherish.' 'This
was our song.' I have those same kind of songs. I remember where I
was when I heard a song," he added.
"We're all about vocal harmony. That's what we do…," he said of the
group. "There's not a lot of major harmony groups out there anymore.
They don't do the big block of harmonies that we do. It's nice and
big and full. We're very into what we're singing the lyrics. Songs
have to go through an ordeal to make it into the show."
The Association was the first group to open the first multi-group
rock music festival, the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival.
The group also was asked to perform at Woodstock in 1969, but, as
Yester explained, "It was shortsightedness on our manager's part.
Most all of the deals required a 50 percent deposit. He refused to do
it. Had anybody known what that was going to be, we would have gone."
Yester said The Association also was offered the chance to record
"MacArthur Park;" however, the group had to record the full 24
minutes or forget the deal.
"We turned it down, and it went to an actor," he said. "Had we taken
the 24-minute cantata, we would have been rejuvenated much like the
Bee Gees with 'Saturday Night Fever.' It would have been an orchestral piece."
Though Yester left the group twice in 1977 and again in 1983 he
continued to perform with family and friends from other groups,
including his brother in Hawaii as well as The Lovin' Spoonful, The
New Four Preps and The Diamonds.
Current band members live all over the U.S. from New Jersey to
Washington state. Russ Giguere and Larry Ramos also are original
members, while Bruce Pictor, Jordan Cole and Del Ramos are newer band
members. The Ramoses are brothers, while Cole is the son of original
member Brian Cole, who died of a heroin overdose in 1972.
Yester said The Association performs about 30 concerts a year and
looks forward to performing in England. The group also is collecting
material for a new CD.
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