I remember the time in 1975 when we recorded this album in Mason City, Iowa. The three of us were on the road playing gigs throughout the Midwest about 28 days a month. Our manager was also a concert promoter and when he would book a national act for a large concert, he would have us open for them. We got to share dressing rooms and stages with some awesome, world class musicians and they are memories we have carried with us throughout our lives. Steve remained one of my dearest friends for over fifty years, and I miss him dearly. One of the finest guitarists, and human beings I have ever been honored to play with and know. It's great to see his music being enjoyed, and applauded all these many years later. We are being inducted into the Iowa Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this fall and will be playing a concert the night of the induction. Steve's son, Jade, will be standing in on guitar. He is a great guitarist in his own right and I think it is a fitting tribute to Steve to have his son playing these great songs so many years later.

-Dan

Photo Courtesy of Psychedelic Baby Magazine.

When and where were you born? What was growing up like for you?

Brooklyn, NY in the early fifties. We were a lower middle class family. We grew up playing outside in the school yard playing stickball, handball, riding bikes. We really never thought about not having a lot of stuff. We made due with what ever we could find to play with.

The Epicureans circa: 1968. (Photo Courtesy of Psychedelic Baby Magazine.)

Do you have any siblings? When did you first begin to fall in love with music and what was it about the drums that initially fascinated you?

Two brothers and a sister. My father was a musician and always encouraged me to learn an instrument. He offered to buy me any instrument I wanted and pay for lessons. I naturally gravitated to the drums. I loved the feeling of playing syncopated rhythms and the sheer physicality of the instrument appealed to me.

The Epicureans circa: 1967. (Photo Courtesy of Psychedelic Baby Magazine.)

What would you and your friends do for fun? Do you go to many local shows in your area?

We formed a band and would jam regularly. No, not many. I did go to see the Young Rascals on Flatbush Avenue once at a local disco, before they made it big.

What was the music scene in your community like back in those days?

Remember in the movie "Rocky", when he'd walk down the street and there'd be young guys singing Doo Wap acapella on the corners? That's a lot like how it was. Then the British Invasion hit and everything changed.

The Epicureans circa: 1969. (Photo Courtesy of Psychedelic Baby Magazine.)

Were there any groups you saw that made a huge impact on you?

Yes, later on. The biggest influences for me were Yes, Kansas, Mahavishnu Orchestra and Return to Forever. Cream was up there too, especially the live "Wheels of Fire" album. The Epicureans were a hybrid of both The Pacers and The Covairs. Of which of these groups did you participate in and can you tell me about those early days of playing in that band? Neither. I joined the Epicureans after they had been established already for about five or six years and were already beginning to morph from a 60's rock and roll band to a more sophisticated Classic Rock/Prog type entity.

How did the groups initially meet each other and what led to them combining to eventually form Highway?

Except for Steve Murphy, none of the original members of either the Pacers or the Corvairs became members of Highway. I'm not sure how they originally met or combined. They were all from Fairmont, MN and, like many bands do, I suppose the members were constantly in flux and moved from band to band.

How did you initially meet your band mates Eric Bannister, Mike Velasquez and Steve Murphy?

I met Steve when I answered an ad in the college newspaper that the Epicureans had placed looking for a drummer. When he and I decided to leave the Epicureans and form Highway, we held auditions for a bass player. Eric was an English fella that answered the ad and had a playing style that we thought fit our musical direction well. I never met or played with Mike Velasquez. He was a drummer that joined Highway for a short time after I left and right before they permanently broke up.

The Epicureans in 1965 from left to right: Wayne Wolters (bass guitar), Steve Murphy (vocals and lead guitar), Jerry Clark (vocals, rhythm guitar and sax), Phil Messerli (vocals and organ) and Tom Brockman (vocals and drums).

‘I don’t know why I Cry/Baby Be Mine’. IGL Records circa: 1966.

What were your first impressions of them?

Steve was one of my dearest friends and one of the greatest guitarists I have ever played with. We remained close for 50 years, until his untimely passing last year. Eric was an excellent bass player but a rather moody and unusual dude.

What was the chemistry like between all of you and what commonalities outside of music did you guys share?

Steve and I had tremendous chemistry on and off stage. We could read each other and play off each other very easily. Despite the fact that he was raised on a farm and I in a huge city, we clicked and understood each other, and always got along, even under the most stressful conditions. I don't remember ever having a cross word with him, despite the fact that we were on the road together 28 days a month for about 10 years. Outside of the music, Steve and I had little in common with Eric.

Highway eventually morphed out of The Epicureans in ‘72. Can you tell me about that transition? What initially led to this?

We were a five piece in the last iteration of the Epicureans, with a Lead Singer and front man by the name of Chris Skillman. Chris and Steve did not see eye to eye about a lot of things and Chris was prone to getting drunk and high quite a bit back then. One day during rehearsal they had words and Chris jumped up and punched Steve in the face, breaking his nose. That was the last straw for Steve. Chris was fired and Steve approached me about going off on our own, performing and developing more of our own original material and moving musically toward a more complex and sophisticated genre.

In addition to all the material on the self titled album, we also started doing our own versions of music by Yes, Kansas, Styx, Flash, Joe Cocker, The Allman Brothers, Cream and Steely Dan. Initially we started out as a three piece, but after Eric Bannister parted ways with us, we called back Tim Messerli on Keyboards and John Goosen on Bass to join the new band. They were original members of the iteration of The Epicureans that I was in, and both were phenomenal musicians. Later, John left us and we were joined by Ron Curtin, a young, extremely talented bass player that played a Rickenbacker and had the kind of sound we were searching for at that time.

Can you tell me about those early days of playing together as Highway? Where would you guys rehearse and what was that first initial jam session like under the new band name?

One of the original members, and founders, of the early Epicureans, Jerry Clark, decided to become our manager and booking agent. You can see Jerry in the video above playing rhythm guitar on Brightside and bass on Crossroads. Jerry is a very entrepreneurial guy and was soon getting us huge bookings as the opening act for major national acts like Styx, Reo Speedwagon, Bob Seeger and the Silver Bullet Band, Cheap Trick, Vixen and the Association. He was also encouraging us to put together and polish up the songs we would eventually put on the album. Jerry also owned a ballroom in Fairmont, MN called the Gay Paree'.

It was there that we rehearsed and worked up our song list for the new band. We also played there on a regular basis. It was great because we were able to rehearse in a setting that was very much like a live gig. Jerry and his wife Betty were very kind to me and often i stayed at their place when we were rehearsing. I would also stay at Steve's parent's farm in Fairmont. How did you guys come up with the name for the band? We were on the road 28 days a month, and would drive from Chicago to the Black Hills of South Dakota, sometimes in the course of two days, to play gigs.

When and where was the group’s first gig and what was that experience like for you?

Probably at the Rathskeller Bar in Mankato, MN. We played there a lot in the early days, before the album and the big name concerts. The experience was great. People loved us and became very loyal to the band and its music. There was always a huge crowd there when we played. What was the band’s process and approach when writing original material? Steve would come to us with his idea for a song and then we would all expound upon that idea and put in the parts that we felt would best fit and enhance that basic concept. Often we would jam on it for hours to begin developing the long leads and rhythm parts that came to be the finished product.

How did you guys end up recording the record and without a label?

Jerry set it up and financed it in order to better market us and in hopes of having a major label discover us.

Highway ‘S/T’ LP. (Not On A Label) circa: 1975.

Who did the cover art?

A young lady that Steve and Jerry knew. Her first name was Char. Not sure about the last name.

Can you tell me about writing as well as recording those songs and what those sessions were like?

We only had the studio for two or three days, so we had to work hard and be efficient. Remember, in those days you used magnetic tape, and you couldn't really record things separately and just drop them in. If one guy made a mistake and everyone else played perfectly, you had to do the whole song over. You were more or less playing live with everyone playing simultaneously. We did do some overdubbing, but it was very rudimentary. For instance, when you hear the synthesizer on Look Away. Steve played that part after we recorded the main body of the song. When did recording take place and where was the studio located? April 1975 at Westminster Studio in Fort Dodge, IA. What were the band’s activities between ‘72 and ‘75 before the self-titled album was recorded? Gigging just about every day. Playing as openers for those national acts. Outdoor concerts, College Concerts, Clubs, Bars, State/County Fairs.

How did you guys fund that record as well as the recording sessions?

Jerry Clark was our manager and a concert promoter. He helped us fund the recording.

After the record was made, what was the first order of business? Did you guys put together a tour? If so, can you tell me about some of the gigs you played and what performances still stand out in your mind to this day?

The first order of business was to play a lot of high profile gigs to get the word out that the album was done. As mentioned earlier, Jerry would book these large concerts with national acts and he would make us the opening act for them. We got a lot of notoriety in that way. The ones that stand out are Styx, where we sat in the trailer backstage with Dennis DeYoung and the other members and discussed what it took for a midwest based band to make it big in the music industry in those days. The answer was "go to New York or Los Angeles, play a lot and get discovered", which the guys in Highway were not willing to do at the time. Except for myself, the other members were from a rural culture and they were justifiably proud of that. So they had no interest in going to live in a big city, (and neither did I).

Photos Courtesy of Psychedelic Baby Magazine.

They thought you could be discovered by a record company while playing in the Midwest exclusively. I knew that wasn't true, but it wasn't until Dennis DeYoung told them that they finally accepted that. The other big gig I remember was the one we played at Mankato State College in Minnesota with Bob Seeger and the Silver Bullet Band. I had just finished setting up my drums and the other guys were still working on getting their stuff set up, when I noticed a young woman sitting on the grass watching us and sunning herself between classes. I decided to go out and chat her up while waiting for our sound check. One thing led to another, we began dating and she eventually became my first wife. So it was because of that spontaneous decision to go chat her up that my sons, and all my beautiful grandchildren, exist today!! Oh, and by the way, we had a GREAT gig!!

What eventually happened to the group?

I got married and wanted to begin having a family. Life on the road was really challenging, and not conducive to family life, so I reluctantly decided to leave. Steve, John and Tim hired Mike Velasquez for a short while before the band fell by the wayside. Steve and I had always been supportive of one another through the tough times, and once we were no longer together, I don't think the vibe was the same. So Steve decided to get together with his brother Mike, and they formed the Murphy Brothers Band, which still plays to this day.

Did you continue to pursue afterwards? If so, what projects and other creative endeavors did you pursue?

I continued to play the drums throughout those many years and gigged as well. In 2016 I got together with a long standing band from Roanoke Virginia called The Rarely Available Band. They are a bunch of excellent musicians who had been playing together a really long time and had some phenomenal original music that really impressed me when I joined. So I offered to fund studio time to get an album recorded. It was a great project and we had a lot of fun recording it. I also learned to play classical piano when in my early 40's.

What have you been up to in recent years? Are you still in contact with any of the other members?

I still play both drums and piano regularly. Steve and I remained very close friends until his untimely passing late last year. We were supposed to play the gig in the video above together, but it was not meant to be. I miss him terribly and wish we could have been on stage together one more time. I'm sure he was smiling down on us as he watched his son do him proud on the stage that night.

When you reflect on your time with Highway, what are you most proud of?

I played great music with a bunch of great guys who were also fantastic musicians. The life was tough, but I would not trade it for anything. The experiences I had and the rush of being on stage and playing to huge crowds who appreciated what we were doing made it all worthwhile. I also developed relationships and friendships that have lasted over 50 years. Music truly is the universal language.

What do you think about this younger generation and audience taking an appreciation in the band after all these years?

I think it's fantastic, and it gives me hope for the future. Not to sound like an old fogey, but when I hear some of the stuff people call "music" today, with the formulaic melody lines, electronic rhythm machines and auto tuned singers, I wonder what the hell happened to this industry. I also think that the ability to play an instrument well is less appreciated, and has been relegated to a background position, in favor of highlighting the singer, by the music industry. Instead of shows like "American Idol" and "The Voice", I would love to see a competition entitled "The Instrument".

Is there anything else you would like to further share with the readers?

Yes. I have the joy of being able to play music for myself and others because my father, who was also a musician, saw my inherent talent and had the good sense to nurture it by getting me drums and paying for lessons. He was not wealthy, by any means, but he understood the value it could offer my life and made it happen for me. He was a VERY smart man. I encourage all parents and family members, if you see any signs of musical interest or ability in your kids to nurture that in them and allow it to develop, in whatever way you can. Even something as simple as sitting down, listening to a favorite album of yours and discussing what you love about it. It's a way to communicate and spend time with your kids in a very meaningful way... And who knows, you may be spending time with the next Chopin, Paul McCartney, or Chick Corea!

-I want to thank my friend Klemen Breznikar over at Psychedelic Baby Magazine for his help in supplying some of the photos that are featured here in this piece. Check out his interview with the late Steve Murphy from Highway that was published back in April of 2016 in the link below.

https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2016/04/highway-interview-with-steve-murphy.html

http://www.highway-theband.com/

Dakota Brown

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