The Shades: A Brief History

In the year of our Lord 1979, the catalyst that would combine the energies of five remarkable Texas musicians, The Shades, was born in Cameron, in late spring of that year. It began with an early-morning phone call.

Cameron native, Dennis Hardwick, by far the town's finest guitarist, and sublime bassist, Bo Cryer, also from Cameron, had been in and out of the typical run of rock and country groups throughout their days at C.H.Yoe High School. Both were now anxious to form a serious band to play the various larger venues throughout the area.

Dennis had heard of a new drummer in town from the Lubbock area who was a first year band director at the middle school; a fellow named Bruce Bray. He gave Bruce a phone call at 7:15 one Tuesday morning to introduce himself and ask if he would be interested in getting together with Bo Cryer for a jam. The three met the following Saturday morning in a one-room stucco structure near the Catholic Church known as, "The Mexican Hut." From their first sound it was clearly evident that something special had begun. With the addition of a singer and a keyboardist, the three formed the local pop/country super group--The Horizons. The band enjoyed immediate success in the area due in large part to Hardwick's immaculate command of the guitar and Cryer's deft, understated mastery of the electric bass.

Bruce left the band in January '80 to pursue composing and recording his original tunes. In March of that year he was introduced to Jim Titsworth. Jim was a gifted sound engineer whose love for music was boundless. Together he and Bruce created their own recording studio in a dilapidated farm house in the middle of nowhere A.K.A. The Pettibone Community. It wasn't long before Jim's technical wizardry also landed him a position running sound for The Horizons, who continued their successful run as a primarily country cover band.

Popular and successful as they were, both Bo and Dennis were "rockers" on the inside and were done with the lighter repertoire they were playing in The Horizons. Bo was first to make his exit and by November of '82 Dennis had left the band, as well.

Once again, Dennis contacted Bruce, who had now moved up to the head band director position at C.H.Yoe High. In the interim Bruce and Jim had continued working together and it was suggested that the three men have an informal rehearsal at the Yoe High Band Hall, this time with Jim running sound. Once again, with just Dennis on guitar and Bruce on drums, the same catalyst that had stirred in The Mexican Hut so long before, rose from its slumber that gray winter Sunday. Bo was soon called in and this time the concoction began to bubble from an indothermal reaction that needed but one more ingredient to go critical. Turns out Dennis had a double cousin named, Ricky Matthews.

If Cameron was the epicenter where the disparate elements of The Shades co-joined, the town was not unique in its wealth of musical talent. Neatly-stitched on the inside pockets of communities nestled there in the breast of The Lone Star State were the rich breeding grounds for some of the finest "pickers" on the planet. Ricky Matthews hailed from the town of Rockdale, just to the south of Cameron some twenty miles.

If Dennis Hardwick's guitar prowess were an automobile, it could be accurately described as a top-of-the-line BMW--sports edition with genuine leather interior; Teflon finish to repel dirt and grime and an engine so smooth at full throttle you could hear a mouse on the package tray pissing on an ink blotter! For his double cousin, Ricky, one's thoughts turn to, well . . . NASCAR . . .on steroids! Faster than a scalded-assed ape and every bit as dangerous, an electric guitar in Ricky Matthew's hands became an alien battle scepter spitting out modes and scales long-since banned by civilizations of neighboring galaxies here in the Local Cluster. Just this side of madness, Ricky Matthews was the Boogie Man.

With the addition of Matthews, the elements for the original band, The Shades, were now in place. There was the element of elegance and precision from Dennis Hardwick's guitar, the exquisitely-grounded, no-nonsense firmament from Bo Cryer's contribution on bass, the borderline brilliant creativity and tastefulness of drummer, Bruce Bray, the reckless, drive-by shooting style from the bleeding neck of Ricky Matthews' guitar and lastly, the unparalleled sonic sorcery that gave the band its signature depth of sound and voice, Jim Titsworth.

In short order the band began to redefine the weekend entertainment scene by their no-holds-barred delivery of rock anthems from The Stones to Stevie Ray Vaughn. The Shades were a pile-driven, clandestine hit of high octane adrenaline, sweat and faded denim; all rolled-up into one formidable juggernaught of rock so dense, so magnetic, it could pull the planets from The Firmament!

For reasons long-forgotten by the bandmates, The Shades had called it quits by 1984 having never reached the potential that once seemed destined for them. Speculation could argue that the call of adulthood with all its trappings--jobs, a family, a mortgage, was too strong for the band to continue and retain a clean conscience. All went their separate ways, surfacing only periodically to confirm no one had yet gone down for "The Great Dirt Nap."

December, 2006, and again, it began with a phone call from Temple to Austin--once again from Dennis Hardwick to Bruce Bray. After twenty-three years the catalyst had reawakened--older, wiser . . . RAVENOUS! By whatever grace or benevolent force that fuels the phenomena of our days, the elements that the years had dispersed so far apart were rejoined-- their orbits again, aligned. The Shades were back!

Rehearsals began in January of 2007 in the old Coca~Cola bottling warehouse in downtown Cameron--early 20th Century architecture--antique and priceless with its tin roof ceiling and electric 1920s era service elevator. The building was being rented by the now, sixth member of the band, James Mueck. Yet another accomplished talent from Cameron, James' guitar work and smokey vocals gave even more depth and dimension to The Shades' sound. Even Jim Titsworth had returned to run sound after having completely lost touch with everyone for a generation. From the downbeat it was as if The Shades had never stopped performing--same energy, same intensity; this time, however, with a discernable honesty and control in execution that only maturity through the long years apart could bestow.

Then as suddenly as the band had miraculously reformed, tragedy struck the group in March of that year with the untimely death of their beloved soundman, Jim Titsworth, who died of a stroke after a brief battle with pneumonia. It was a devastating blow--overflowing with cruel and bitter irony. Big Jim's contribution to the band's gestalt could never be weighed or measured. Though he never sang the songs, he gave the band its voice. He didn't write the tunes, but gave each song new meaning. Jim was BASF. He didn't make the stuff; he made the stuff that was made, better. Jim was the happy warrior; the gentle giant . . . the celebrated "better angel of our nature."

At his graveside service, Jim's sister, Tina, gave each band member a letter that he had composed some time before his illness. In the letter he seemed to sense what was coming and clairvoyantly took that opportunity to put down on paper his determined wish for the band to continue in his absence.

Later on The Shades, like bewildered apostles, gathered in the upper room rehearsal space of the old warehouse to discuss the band's future. As fate would have it, the band's salvation arrived one day in a metallic-blue Volkswagen Beetle belonging to renowned sound engineer, Steve Kleypas. Steve performed open-heart surgery on the ailing group when he graciously agreed to take the helm and run sound. We are pleased to announce that the operation was a 100% success.

Photographs chronicling The Shades' early days are rare. Along with Steve's timely arrival, however, the band has had the equal fortune to come into association with multi-talented entrepreneurial wunderkind, Doug Holleman and his burgeoning creative media enterprise, dougorama.net. In just the first six months since the band's return to the stage, more photographs of the group have been stunningly captured via Doug's pristine mega-pixel genius than in the entire period of The Shades' first incarnation! Eye-popping, collector-quality gig posters and clever wordplay decals are but more examples of Doug's selfless donations of support towards The Shades' iconoclastic revival. The Shades have been received into the halls of his exclusive online portrait gallery to share, along with myriad other talents, the boon of Doug Holleman's exquisite dedication to his craft.

Well, that's our story and we're sticking with it.   As for Mr. Baldry . . .

He has an equally long way to go.