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1st Place Winners "Showdown A Go Go" WQAD TV 1967
The original Road Runners Band on WQAD TV 1967. Left to right - Ramsey Mason, Gary Goetz, Dick Grissinger, Tim Hendrick, the host Bill Flannery and Joe Sikora. |
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June 26 & 27 2015 50th Anniversary Concert |
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The Road Runner's are back in Savanna for a two night concert!
Show times are: The Firemans Ball 8:30 pm to 12:00 midnight with all the added attractions on Friday June
26th and then at Manny's in Savanna on Saturday June 27th from 8:30 till closing. Bring the family and have a blast with the past.
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June 19 2009 Reunion Concert |
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Old Mogul Records, the label that launched last year
with the local release of the Road Runner's popular 'Fat Jack's Jones' is today releasing an
8-song CD which is a compilation of works by local artists. The disc, titled 'Fertile Fields'
includes recordings by Dan Eilers of Macomb; Savanna natives Kevin & Cathy Hamilton, both of
whom now call the Quad Cities home; the Nomadds, who hailed from Freeport in the mid- 60's
and of course Savanna's own Road Runners. Many of the songs are originals by the artists
themselves, some written as long ago as the mid 1960's to early 1970's. The intent of the CD
is to offer a glimpse of the rich and often unheralded musical talent that is deeply rooted
in the upper Mississippi river valley. According to J Mason, who launched Old Mogul Records
last year as 'a diversion to keep my sanity from being washed away by my day job', the CD
"Barely scratches the surface . . . soon after I mentioned the idea last year, I began to
contemplate the very difficult task of assembling a group of tunes that would work well
together and also share local roots and artists' histories. I actually had been too busy
(with the day job) to work on the project for much of the past year", said Mason who leads
a volume homebuilding company in the Ft. Worth area (which has actually managed to expand
its business through the industry downturn). "But when we (the Road Runners) finished
recording 'Free and Easy' this winter, the tune sounded so good that I took another look
at what I songs I had and what I'd recently been given by other local artists and decided
there was enough to put together a great listening and reminiscing experience." The first
cut from the CD to be heard publicly will be 'Free and Easy' which will debut May 19th on
WCCI Radio. The song's debut will be in conjunction with Brian Reuschs's interview of the
Road Runners, who will perform again this year at the annual Fireman's Ball on alumni
weekend. The 'Fertile Fields' CD will be available for purchase on a limited basis in early
June at Poopy's Pub & Grub and at the Fireman's Ball June 19th.
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New Release - Fat Jack's Jones |
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An interview and World Premier was on WCCI Radio Friday 3/28 @ 11:40 a.m newest song, Fat Jack's Jones.
How a song is created...
For a musician on the road doing 5 & 6-nighters, life is an unbroken stream of play, eat, sleep, rehearse, eat, play, drive, eat . . . you get the picture. As a result, the uniqueness and quality (or lack thereof) of the food experience becomes a significant piece of having a home on the road.
Finding home-cooked flavors was always top-shelf. Gary and I worked on the road for awhile with one guy who turned out to not like any of the restaurant meals he shared with us, usually complaining to the server enough that he was not charged for them. I used to think he was just being cheap, but it occurs to me now that he may well have been looking for home at every one of those meals, and not finding it, could only react by acting a bit childish. He left the group after a couple of months, to go home of course.
The rare occasion for us to actually prepare a meal on the road was both heartening and inspiring, often giving rise to one-of-a-kind recipes and certainly birthing more than a few amateur chefs who learn to love the creative outlet that the kitchen offers.
No stranger at all to my own kitchen, I've often commented to my wife that ad-libbing a recipe is much like jamming on stage - if you know enough parts that are tasty together, and put them in the right order and quantity, you just might get a dish as alluring and satisfying as a memorable tune.
Sooooo . . . memorable food for a road player will always be that - and when memorable food is encountered later in life it can be no less inspiring.
Such is the case with this little ditty: Having for the past several years regularly stocked my pantry with a special BBQ sauce made in Savanna, I found myself one evening, after emptying the last jar of my stash, in a real funk - knowing I'd have to go without until I could get replenished. I turned to my wife and said, "Babe, I'm out - I'm gonna have a Fat Jack's Jones" . . .
J Mason
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The Official Site of the Road Runners Band of Savanna, Illinois. |
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This is the official site of the Road Runners Band of Savanna, Illinois with Road Runners Music. We have tried to gather much of the Road Runners music, historical information and photographs from the early days when the Road Runners Band first started up to present. This is the place to come and listen to some of the good old rock and roll music they played and watch this rock and roll band perform in the videos we have for free downloading. The Road Runners Band performs everything from good old Rock and Roll, to the Beatles and Blues.
We will add to the collection of Road Runners music as new songs are recorded and new photos are found in the fans archives. So if you are a fan of the Road Runners Band, take advantage of the free music downloads and our trip back into the past.
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