Remembering Paul Revere--The Last Madman of Rock & Roll

Much like the colonial Paul Revere spread the word about the British invasion, today the internet is spreading the word of the passing of another Paul Revere.  Paul Revere Dick, born in Nebraska, January 7, 1938, passed away October 4, 2014, at his home in Idaho.

For those not familiar with this Paul Revere, he was the founding member of the 60's band, Paul Revere & the Raiders.

 The band got it's start in the late 50's, early 60's in Idaho, and were then known as The Downbeats.  When Paul, and then lead singer, Mark Lindsay, moved to Portland, Oregon, the name was changed to Paul Revere & the Raiders. 

After moving to Portland, Paul met up with Roger Hart, a KISN radio DJ at the time, who became the band's manager.  Roger helped get the band exposure outside the region, eventually landing them as the house band on Dick Clark's "Where the Action Is", from 1965 to 1967.  The band was on TV five days a week, in their colonial garb, singing and being crazy. 

 I never had the chance to see Paul Revere & the Raiders when Mark was the lead singer.  My chance to see the band wasn't until 1978, when Louie Fontaine did lead vocals.  By then I'd been a major fan of the group for 10 years, having first seen them at 9 years old on "It's Happening", their afternoon show on ABC television.

Since then, I've seen the band many times, with different lead singers.  Michael Bradley, Carl Driggs, Darrin Medley, and current Raider, Darren Dowler, have all held the position of lead singer of the Raiders over the years.

While there have been many Raiders over the years, Paul Revere was always the guiding force behind the band.  Paul would lead the charge every show, bringing audiences a fast paced set of music and comedy.  No matter how many times one would see a Raider performance, it was still fresh, fun and highly entertaining; or as Paul himself described it, "organized chaos". 

Even well into his 70's Paul Revere still toured extensively with his band, playing casinos, fairs, festivals, cruises, and anywhere else they were invited to play, and Paul would rock just as hard as always, every time. 

At the beginning of 2014 though, Paul announced that he was going to take a break from the road, upon doctor's orders.  He revealed that he'd been told to take a breather much earlier, but had continued touring, despite the fact.  Revere had had a bout with cancer years before; though this time, no real explanation was given, other than he was having health issues.

At the time of the announcement, Revere assured fans, he was going to rest up, so he could get back to doing what he loved.  In the meantime, his current band of Raiders, Darren Dowler, Doug Heath, Ron Foos, Danny Krause and Tom Scheckel, would carry on, fulfilling the tour dates the band was already committed to.

Then came the news on October 4, 2014, Paul Revere had passed away.  "Uncle Paul", "The Last Madman of Rock & Roll",  had died at home in Idaho, having gone full circle from where his band started their musical journey.

Rock & Roll Heaven has just gained another legend and leader in Paul Revere.  I'm sure he's already up there, helping to organize fun music and chaos for the angels.

R.I.P. Paul, you will be missed.