Tuesday

FOUR PREPS / BRUCE BELLAND AUTOBIOGRAPHY


WAIT 'TIL YOU HEAR IT FROM ME: Theirs was one of the most all encompassing adventures through all phases of the entertainment industry. Editor / Publisher Michael McDowell celebrates Icons, Idols And Idiots Of Hollywood, the all new autobiography by BRUCE BELLAND of the FOUR PREPS (Click on above image to enlarge).

ICONS< IDOLS AND
IDIOTS OF HOLLYWOOD -
Bruce Belland (Bear Manor Media)
By Michael McDowell

"What a group!"

So said the late Ed Cobb in a landmark, three-part interview that was published in Blitz Magazine - The Rock And Roll Magazine For Thinking People in the 1980s. As co-founder of the iconic and groundbreaking vocal quartet, the Four Preps, it had taken Cobb years to come to terms with that phase of his extraordinary legacy. 

Cobb had subsequently gone on to work in various capacities (including composer, arranger and producer) with such legendary artists as Ketty Lester, Brenda Holloway, the Standells, the E-Types, Stark Naked And The Car Thieves and the Chocolate Watchband, to name but a few. In view of the extraordinary accomplishments of those artists, Cobb (who, at the time of that summit meeting with Blitz Magazine headed the Hollywood-based AVI label with Seymour Heller) had gone through a phase of self reassessment in terms of his own capabilities in the spotlight, which had led him to downplay his own role in that capacity for a season.

Ultimately, Cobb need not have worried. The Four Preps' unique mission statement of combining their impeccable vocal harmonies with material that often leaned towards humor, satire and socio-political commentary permanently established their formidable legacy. In turn, the Four Preps' remarkable vision was a direct inspiration for such like minded groups as the Cowsills, Harpers Bizarre and APO Hiking Society. 

Sadly, Cobb (who served as the group's bass vocalist) passed away in September 1999. Cobb's death came just six months after the passing of Four Preps tenor Marvin "Marv Ingram" Inabnett. Baritone Glen Larson followed in November 2014 at age 77.

All of which has left lead vocalist and Chicago, Illinois native Bruce Gerald Belland to tell the tale. Indeed, he does so quite candidly (with occasional irreverence) in Icons, Idols And Idiots Of Hollywood.

From a geographical standpoint, the Four Preps were at a decisive advantage. Belland, Cobb, Inabnett and Larson were students at Hollywood High School on Sunset Boulevard, which is located at about an equal distance from the Sunset Strip to the west, and their future record label to the east. An executive from that label (Capitol Records) spotted them at a talent show at the school in 1956, and signed the ambitious quartet to the label that same year.

One classic Four Preps single after another followed at Capitol. They included Dreamy Eyes, Twenty-Six Miles, Big Man (which was covered by Herman's Hermits in the late 1960s), Where Wuz You, Again And Again And Again, Cinderella, Lazy Summer Night, Down By The Station, Big Surprise, I Ain't Never, Got A Girl, a vocal rendition of Lawrence Welk's monster classic instrumental Calcutta, the comedic More Money For You And Me, The Seine, The Big Draft, Let's Call It A Day Girl (also recorded by the Razor's Edge for the Pow label) and Draftdodger Rag, among others. 

In turn, their studio albums for Capitol were rife with vocal harmony laden material.  They were augmented by acclaimed live albums that primarily showcased their aforementioned penchant for topical material.

While riding high with Capitol, the Four Preps were soon also working with rock and roll pioneer Rick Nelson. In addition to backing Nelson vocally during live appearances, the Four Preps also found themselves in recurring roles on Nelson's family's acclaimed ABC television series, The Adventures Of Ozzie And Harriet

To be certain, theirs was and is a tale with an abundance of aesthetic riches. Thankfully, Belland has chronicled it all in candid terms in this remarkable autobiography.

Being a part of the Capitol roster in that most productive period meant having a wealth of top drawer talent as labelmates. They included the Kingston Trio, Nat King Cole, Dean Martin, the Beach Boys, Frank Sinatra, Ron Goodwin, Gene Vincent, Peggy Lee, the Journeymen and Dwayne Hickman. And while the Four Preps crossed paths with most of them in various capacities, they in turn carved out their own equally formidable niche.

In the process, the Four Preps also found themselves in a variety of circumstances with such diverse figures as Ed Sullivan, Dick Clark, President John F. Kennedy and humorist Lenny Bruce. And given the various accounts of those encounters outlined by Belland herein, it is in some ways remarkable that the members of the Four Preps lived to tell those tales. 

Thankfully, Belland has done just that in this extraordinary account. In some respects, he has emerged from his own period of self reassessment with a candor that had apparently heretofore eluded him. In the process, apologetics (a most disconcerting byproduct of survival for veteran artists who had successfully endured the protracted aesthetic slump of the immediate post-Woodstock ers) have given way to an ad hoc "vengeance is mine" approach. 

Nonetheless, that approach is tempered with the forgiveness maxim found in Matthew 18:21-22, which in part is in keeping with Belland's legacy as the son of Stanley Belland, the one time Senior Pastor of West Hollywood Community Church. All of which serves to make Belland's book an essential read. 

"It took me eight years to write", said Belland.

"What a kick it is to grab a pen and contribute to the fun".

Or, in the words of the aforementioned classic track from the Four Preps' 1958 debut album, Icons, Idols And Idiots Of Hollywood is a first class first person account that is worth revisiting Again And Again And Again.