 Based
out of Tampa Florida, The Tropics began as a seven piece horn band
featuring Mel Dryer on lead vocals, Buddy Pendergrass on guitar
and Spencer Hinkle on drums, with Wayne Guida on Trumpet and Ronnie
Ferrer on sax. After 1964, the band changed styles, and became a
Beatle type band, adding Eric Turner on guitar and Charlie Souza
on Bass, dropping the horns and hiring a new drummer, Bobby Shea,
They took on manager Margie Sexton, owner of the famous "SURFER'S
CLUB," at Madeira Beach, Florida, a teen-age night club in
the mid 1960's.
In 1966, The Fabulous Tropics won The Inter-national Battle of
the Bands held at the famous McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois.
The Band took first place over more than 1000 bands, which included
such names as Chicago and Tommy James & The Shondells. Out
of that came a recording contract with Columbia Records in New
York and the single "Take the Time," produced by Teo
Macero, which made it to the top of the charts and got a 92 on
Dick Clark's American Bandstand!
~
The Origional Group At Their 1999 Reunion ~
|
