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PERRY
BECHTEL
Perry was born in Hunting, Pennsylvania in
1902. He became interested in the banjo while listening to records
by banjoist' Fred Van Eps and the Paul Beise Trio.
It wasn't until he was in the
Navy that he took up the banjo. In 1924 he played with the Virginia
Entertainers. Although he started with the tenor banjo Perry
switched to the plectrum banjo. It was in 1925 his career took a
leap forward when he took the banjo chair in the Phil Spitalny Orchestra. The chair had been vacated by Eddie Peabody.
Unlike the full chord
melody style of Peabody, Perry developed his own unique style that had not
been heard before. During the depression Perry taught banjo and
guitar and later his career excelled in the recording and radio industry.
During the come back years of the banjo Perry was featured in a full-page
pictorial in LIFE magazine "Strumming Up A Banjo."
In the 1950's RCA Victor
decided to produce a banjo record and asked Chet Atkins to produce the
album. The result was "The Greatest of them All."
Chet Atkins played guitar on the album and it become one of the most
sought after albums by banjo players and banjo music fans.
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EDDIE ERICKSON
Eddie's first instrument was the ukulele and in 1961 when his parents
asked him what he wanted for Christmas it was a banjo.
As he developed his skills he and his
father would go to "Me and Ed" pizza parlors and "Shakey's" pizza
parlors to play. At age 19 he was hired to play at the "Warehouse"
on Cannery Row in Monterey, CA. Eddie met
Sonny Helmer while working for Don Van Palta,
who was on a two week vacation, and he was asked to work for the Disney
organization. That lead to several years of working in California
and Florida.
Today Eddie continues to play banjo
and guitar in "All Star" jam sessions along with magical concerts with
his friend Bill Dendle. Bill and Eddie met in the early years at
the "Warehouse" and have developed a unique spontaneous show of music
and comedy. If you ever have a chance to the see the two don't
miss it.
Another project that Eddie is
involved with is a new group called BED that stands for Rebecca (Becky)
Kilgore on vocals & guitar, Eddie Erickson on guitar, banjo & vocals and
Dan Barrett on trombone.
You can read more about Eddie
Erickson in
Jazz Banjo Magazine Volume 3 Number 1.
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