Thomas Leary - Wheezer Lockinger Interview
Tell me about growing up in Rockford, Illinois. What was your childhood like? When did you first begin to fall in love with music? Was music something that was relevant around your household growing up? Do you have any siblings? What would you and your friends do for fun growing up?
Rockford was once called “The Forest City”. It had the most wonderful small town charm, and was a great place for a family to live in. You could walk anywhere safely, and the bus system would take you anywhere in town. I had a wonderful childhood there. Rockford was where I performed on stage the first time, playing piano for a show held at Boylan High School as a piano accompanist featuring singers Charles Imbert, and Amelita June Facchiano. I remember very clearly. Once, when I was very young, and listening to classical music, I suddenly began to be able to hear the individual instruments instead of just the overall sound. This was a memorable turning point for me, and from then on, I began to listen to music with understanding and appreciation for the way the parts fit together and complimented each other.
My mother, Helen Leary, played classical piano (a lot of Chopin) on her Kimball Baby grand that she had picked up at a good price during the depression. She had worked her way through college in Chicago by playing piano at the soda fountain in Macy’s. When she moved to Rockford, she bought a B3 Hammond organ and Leslie speaker, and took lessons from Nathan Bast at Jackson Piano . I was drawn to the organ, and spent many hours learning how to play it, and later on, chose the Hammond organ as my signature sound in bands. I later added Wurlitzer and then Fender Rhodes electric piano, and two mini Korgs played through two Univox Brats (tape delay units). He was non-musical and graduated from Harvard as a P.H.D. in Anthropology, later to become a professor at the College of Connecticut. We played in bands and performed at Rec Nights, parties, and Community Centers. I played organ and sang. Rockford was full of bands and places to play.
Who were some of your earliest influences in your more formative years? When and where did you see your very first concert? When did you realize you wanted to spend your life pursuing music? I understand you attended Milton College in WI for music. Did you participate in any groups, or projects prior to Wheezer Lockinger? How did you initially meet your bandmates When and where did you guys play your very first gig? Can you tell me about writing and recording those two tracks?
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ferde Grofé, Frédéric Chopin, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Ludwig van Beethoven, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Leonard Bernstein, Lerner and Loewe, Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky, and, Claude Debussy. When the Beatles came along everything changed, and my taste switched to popular music. My mother took me to some Broadway shows in New York, and shows held at the Coronado Theater, and in Chicago. When I attended National Music Camp in Interlochen Michigan I saw Van Cliburn in concert. I don’t remember when, but my mother said, I always wanted to be a one man band. I had to make a between College and the band, and I chose the band. Yes, there were many bands before that. The first was the “Everlasting Lyfe” followed by “The Good Guys”, “Creech Free and Running Soft”, and “Under Glass”. Some were good, the last two were great, but none lasting very long. We met at the Rumpus Room in Belvedere. We agreed to jam. That turned out well so we formed the group. The first gig we played was at the Rumpus Room in Belvedere in the late 60s. I was very lucky we had extremely talented players to do my new original material.
When and where did recording begin and what was the overall vision for those tunes? What did you ultimately want to explore and express with this material? What eventually happened to the band after ‘70? Did you continue to play music after WL? What have you been up to more recently? Is there anything else you would like to further share with the readers?
It was in ‘69 and came about at Golden Voice recording studio in Pekin IL. I was very young and was thrilled that I could hand over my songs to such talented musicians. I’ve always been able to express my Feelings through the songs that I write. And I’m still able to do that. The band actually went through a number of different incarnations. Needless to say our goals changed, most got married had children. We did get back together later in ‘79 and played local gigs and recorded some new songs that can be also heard on my YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/vdzYkE_MPJU. I get calls to perform as a single at private parties, fairs, park gigs, and venues. I really enjoy the personal aspect of those. I’m glad you asked me. I would like people to visit my you tube channel https://www.youtube.com/@muledogrecords to listen to some Wheezer Lockinger studio songs as well as some new music I have written recently.
