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| All photos courtesy of Steve Hubbard. Set list courtesy of Gary Brown. |
The Legynd from Reading, Mass., north of Boston, would have remained virtually unknown to all but family and friends if it weren't for drummer Steve Hubbard putting together a slideshow presentation that lead singer Gary Brown uploaded to his YouTube channel for all the world to see (or at least a handful of '60s band enthusiasts to stumble upon). It turns out that the soundtrack to the band's photo montage was in fact two unreleased cuts recorded at the famed Continental Recording Studio in Framingham, Mass., in 1967: the monstrous fuzz thumper "I'm Coming Home" and its requisite ballad flip side, "Pretty Little Girl."
The genesis of the band began in 1963 as instrumental combo The Demenshuns, with founding members Steve Hubbard (drums) and Tom Grosvenor (guitar). The following two years saw the addition of Gary Brown (vocals), Bill MacKilligan (guitar/vocals), Bobby Hand (bass) and Carl Layton (keyboards), and Paul McMahon joined on guitar in 1966. With these lineup changes, the Demenshuns became The Caravans and eventually The Legynd.
Gary provided a list of some of the venues at which the bands performed:
- Reading, MA Community Center
- Stoneham Town Hall
- North Andover Community Center
- Charlestown Hall
- Greenfield College
- Providence Country Day (RI)
- Wilmington, MA High School
- Beverly Hall
- Rye Beach
- Hampton Beach
- Good Harbor
- and many more
Though these photos are undated and without captions, they present a small time capsule of what it was like to be in a band (near a beach!) in the mid-Sixties. So peruse the set list, take in the pictures, and soak up the sounds of Reading's true rock and roll Legynds!
"We did have fun and it kept most of us out of jail!" —Gary Brown
THE LEGYNDI'm Coming Home / Pretty Little Girl
Unreleased acetate
1967
