The Ed Sullivan Show
Lew DiTommaso was a key member in Daddy’s Junky Music for many years and built a reputation on honest and passion driven hard work. That passion for Lew started when he first heard the Beatles, several months before their famous American debut on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. After playing in...
Jerry Grote grew up in Minnesota and began playing guitar after seeing the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964. As a high school student, Jerry began visiting local music stores and discovered music retail. One of the stores he visited was called The Guitar Center, not related to the...
Jerry Hovey grew up in a musical home as his father was a professional drummer. Jerry’s own love for music began at an early age but it wasn’t until he saw the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964 that Jerry wanted to be in a rock band. And he has been in such a band ever since. He...
Ed Hamrick enjoyed playing the drums ever since he saw the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. From that moment on, he played drums and in the early 1970s established his own drum shop outside of Atlanta, Georgia. Over the years the Atlanta Pro Percussion Shop has become one of the strongest...
Steve Porcaro vividly recalls watching the Beatles perform on the Ed Sullivan television program in February 1964 and having the sense that his life would never be the same. After forming several bands with his now famous brothers, Steve became a member of the band Toto, playing keyboards and...
John C. Hall’s father purchased a guitar company from Adolph Rickenbacker, who was a cousin of the famed fighter pilot, Eddie Rickenbacker. The Rickenbacker Guitar Company made and sold Hawaiian guitars in the early 1930s including an electric model now known as the Frying Pan and historically the...
Clora Bryant was billed as the female Louie Armstrong in the era of the Ed Sullivan variety show. Her raspy-voiced imitations were a big favorite among viewers but the gimmick often over- shadowed her incredible talents as a trumpeter. Most music lovers don’t like to think about how Clora had to...
Scotty Moore set a date and time on July 4, 1954, to get together with a young singer who wanted to record with Sam Philips at Sun Records in Memphis. Sam asked Scotty, who had recorded with several bands on Sun, to call this kid and work out a few songs. This was his first meeting with Elvis...
Specs Powell played jazz drums during the hey-day of 52nd Street in New York City. He worked hard -- sometimes four gigs a night -- playing behind such legends as Billie Holiday, John Kirby and Red Norvo. Specs was active in the V-Disc recordings to boost the troops’ morale during World War II and...