The
Velvet
Dandelion
Attleboro,
Massachusetts
1966-1968
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Seated L to R: Ronnie
"Rocket" Ritchotte, Dana Davis.
Standing L to R, Kenny Pelletier, Dave Haslehurst,
Lee Holbrook.
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Our band began in 1966
with Dave, Dana, Lee and Guy Blaser on drums as
"The Lost Soles". Kenny replaced Guy on drums in
late 1966. The band name changed to "The Vipers"
before finally becoming The Velvet Dandelion.
Ronnie came on board in 1967; Lee left in 1968 and
was replaced by Ritchie. We primarily played at
local dances, and in battles of the the
bands.
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Personnel:
Dana Davis - Rhythm Guitar/Vocals
Dave Haslehurst - Lead
Vocals/Tambourine
Ronnie "Rocket" Ritchotte - Lead
Guitar
Lee Holbrook - Bass Guitar/Vocals
Ritchie Raposa - Bass Guitar
Kenny Pelletier - Drums/Vocals
Dave Witherell - Manager
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Influences:
Beatles,
Rolling Stones, Bee Gees, Buckinghams,
Byrds, Jimi Hendrix, Cream.
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Setlist
Sample:
My Back Pages, Bring It On Home to Me, Do
You Believe In Magic, Knock On Wood,
Sunshine Of Your Love, Walkin' The Dog,
You Can't Do That, In My Own Time, Hey
Baby (They're Playin' Our Song), Mr.
Tambourine Man, I Can See For Miles,
September Wind (original song by K.
Pelletier).
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Equipment:
Here's where my memory fades; Dana played
a 12 string Rickenbacker guitar and had an
Ampeg amp; Lee's bass guitar was a violin
style, but not a Hofner; I can't remember
the brand name of my drums; Shure mics; we
either ran the mics through the amps or
borrowed p.a. equipment.
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Rehearsal
Space:
Kenny's
cellar, Dave's rumpus room; Dana's bomb
shelter
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Band
Vehicles:
Kenny's
dad's 1961 Chevy station wagon; trunks of
the other dad's cars.
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Fashion
Statement:
We all
bought suede "Beatle" boots that zipped up
the back; can't recall any other
clothing.
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Best
Gig:
June 22,
1968 - Fall River Arts Festival, Fall
River, MA. We played several sets
throughout the day and did great, got
great publicity.
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Gig
from
Hell!:
February
17, 1968 - Battle of the bands at St.
Mary's Center, Norton, MA. Placed 7th out
of 7 bands. We were the first band to
perform and then right afterwards, packed
up our equipment and went over to Murray
Universalist church in Attleboro to play
at a "Speakeasy" dance and played
great.
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Last
Gig:
October
18, 1968, Welfare Hall dance, Attleboro,
MA
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Comments:
Kenny and
Dana just enjoyed a reunion on October 4,
2003, after not having seen each other
since 1976.
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L to R: Ronnie,
Dana, Dave, Lee.
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Where
are they now?
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Fall,
2003
Dana Davis has written
many songs over the years. He performed in other
local bands such as Whiskey Run (with Kenny and
others) and the Davis-Greene band (with Joel
Greene) before retiring that band in 1981. He later
owned a remodeling/construction company, and became
a luthier. He is currently enjoying life in Norton,
MA.
Dave Haslehurst was last
known working in Attleboro as a fireman and
plasterer.
Lee Holbrook played with numerous bands, and later
in life moved to Ft. Collins, Colorado where he
played bass in the groups "Rounder" and the "Book
'em Danno" band. Sadly, Lee passed away in November
2002 leaving a wife and 4 children.
Ronnie "Rocket" Ritchotte went on to great success
as a guitarist. He has performed with Cher and Les
Dudek in Black Rose; played and toured with Ricki
Lee Jones; was the lead guitarist with Steppenwolf
from 1985 - 1993; has played with David Lee Roth
and is currently on tour with Lou Gramm of
Foreigner. Ronnie was only 12 years old when in the
Velvet Dandelion, and at that age was already a
brilliant guitarist.
Richie Raposa I'm told became a recording engineer
and was involved in recordings done by Tony Danza,
Schooner Fare, John Kay, and David Lee Roth. He has
been involved in programming, keyboards, vocals,
engineering and mixing.
Kenny Pelletier left Attleboro in 1976 and
currently resides in Sugar Land, TX. He has been a
worship song leader and guitarist in his church for
the past 17 years, and has recorded two cassettes
of worship songs with this worship team, "Praise Of
Faith" Vols. 1 & 2. He is a weekend dj on
Christian radio KSBJ in Houston, and can be heard
Sundays from 2 - 6 pm over the internet at
www.ksbj.org.
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Dana and Kenny
October 4, 2003
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Information contributed by
Kenny Pelletier kpdjksbj@ev1.net
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