 | When Eddie Bertrand left the Belairs, he founded Eddie and the Showmen. Eddie wanted to use heavy reverb and staccato picking while Paul Johnson wanted to continue to write and play relatively dry with his trademark lead-rhythm interplay. This band issued several singles on Liberty, but never scored a hit. Future members of the Showmen would include John Anderson from his own band the Baymen, Eric Gies, and Sterling Storm who would move to Santa Cruz in 1970 and form the Humans, who mixed Surf and pop for a decade before making a splash on IRS in the eighties, also recording as Ed Hatch, Ed, and the Ninja Nomads. Eddie and the Showmen were probably most remembered for their rousing version of "Squad Car" and for "Mr. Rebel." |