Terry Warren: The Man, The Music

Terry Warren (T to those that really know him), was born to parents of Kaw/Osage American Indian and Celtic descent in Illinois, of all places. The eldest of three children from poor, but hard working parents, T was nurtured by loving grandparents who were proud of the cultures from which they came and set the mold for him early in his life. In an interview in the mid 80's, at the height of his involvement in Indian activism , T was quoted as saying, "It wasn't easy growing up the only minority in town, but it made me tough, wise, and a survivor." Knowing him as I do, truer words were never spoken.

T's daddy was a hard-working, hard-drinking, highly-decorated WWII veteran. He made his living in the oilfields of America . The family was susceptible to having to move to wherever the work was, making it difficult to call anywhere home for fear as soon as they did another move would occur.

T's Momma always was, and is to this day, a quiet spoken, firm-in-her-ways, Bible-reading, thinking kind of woman. Also, she is a most talented and gifted musician. Piano, guitar, harmonica, steel guitar, classical harp, and fiddle are just a few of the instruments at which she is accomplished. T's mom gave the gift of music to all three of her children and six grandchildren.

"We grew up in a household that was dirt poor financially, but rich in music," T once said. "We listened to everything from Hank Williams, Sr. to Glenn Miller when I was a kid, and many a night was spent at Southern Gospel 'all night singin's, as they were called in those days."

Singing in church, grade school, and at family gatherings, T knew early on that music was going to play an important part in his life. Although many friends and family scoffed at this idea, his Mother encouraged it. As a sophomore in high school, T auditioned for the school choral group; when the choral director told him there was no place for him in the chorus, instead of giving up on the idea of a life in the music business, it just made the fifteen-year-old that much more determined.

A couple weeks following the failed audition, T hitched a ride to Evansville, Indiana, where "Dick Clark's Cavalcade of Stars" was performing. After some time of hauling music gear for free and hanging out backstage, T got up the nerve to ask to sing with a group of individual musicians from several major groups on the tour who were "jamming" after sound check. Good-naturedly obliging, they let the six foot, one hundred pound, skinny kid who had grunted their equipment earlier have his moment in the spotlight. When they asked him what he wanted to sing, he replied "House of the Rising Sun," the same song he had performed for the choral director. At the end of the flawless rendition of one of the biggest hits of the day, and to the "good job kid" from the pro's, T walked off the stage where he was approached by the big bellied, cigar chomping tour manager.

"Kid you can sing... stick with it, there's a place for you in the business." Those words of encouragement from a total stranger were all he needed to hear. As he headed out the door to hopefully catch a ride back to Illinois, the manager called him back and gave him 2 front row tickets for the show the following day. With no driver's license, an uncle's "borrowed car," and a local doctor's daughter on his arm, T's first rock concert left a lasting impression.

Several years later, after a successful tour, T returned home to learn that the annual "variety show" produced by the high school choral director was experiencing difficulties in getting the school's sound system to accommodate a large production number. T offered the use of his own sound system and personally ran the mix himself. At the end of the evening, the director called T up on stage to publicly thank him for the use of the PA. In front of a hometown crowd, T shook the hand of the man who wouldn't let him in the school choir, and then handed him an autographed copy of T's band's "White Horses and Feathered Lace" album which was receiving airplay nationally, and went on to thank the music director for not letting him in the chorus, and for reinforcing the personal belief in himself and his music.

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Musical Timeline

1967: T joins his first band "The Changing Tymes" This band pays it's dues performing at local skating rink and high school dances in the area

1968: "TCT" guitarist Phil Hawkins is drafted and leaves for Nam, he is replaced by Terry Youngblood for a six month period.

Late 68: Youngblood moves west……….he is replaced by returning Nam vet and Comanche Indian Tim Parker descendant of Quanah Parker……band name is changed to" Otis Lamb Blues Band" there are no further personnel changes for two years, "Otis Lamb Blues Band" perfects its chops, playing universities throughout the Midwest and gains a cult following as an opening act for such well known groups as REO Speedwagon, Head East, and the legendary "Muddy Waters"

Late 1970: sick of the road and sick of each other, the band's founder James Black disbands the group……..immediately, Parker and Warren head back out on the road playing acoustic shows mixed with Indian activism. The constant grind of "one nighter shows" and endless hours on the road away from his home in St. Marie, IL. causes the break up of T's first marriage. What follows was a path of self destruction, with the addiction to amphetamines and heroin that will last for years. Parker leaves the duet and moves back to the reservation in AZ. Days later, T contacts "Otis Lamb" drummer Robin Avery as well as guitarist Tom Cronk from Indiana………..the group becomes acquainted with an area physician and part-time songwriter, who just happens to own a recording studio. The three form the acoustic act known as "Calico", they literally lock themselves in the studio for 45 days writing and recording. The marathon session produces the groups only album "View >From the Porch." With two hours of original material, the group moves to Chicago, playing on the streets for tips during the day, and hammering out a reputation for incredible guitar work mixed with perfect vocal harmonies. Despite the "party till ya die" attitude, the three remain dedicated to their music, selling albums at the gigs, and promoting themselves; they get a break when producer and promoter Irv "the Bear" Azof takes an interest in the band and is responsible for them opening shows for the likes of Mason Proffitt, John Prine, and James Taylor at Chicago's famous "Red Lion" venue. Calico spends the next year touring the Midwest. Irv Azof goes on to produce and manage such huge acts as the Eagles, Joe Walsh, Linda Ronstadt, Dan Fogelberg, and Jackson Brown. Many of these people will play an important role in T's life in the year to come.

Early 1972: with drugs ruling his life, the "Calico" shows become less than stellar, and T is fired from his own band over pancakes and coffee at 3 am following gig in Chicago. He gets on the train and heads South to his home and studio in a renovated barn in the country near St. Marie…Just hours after returning home, he attends a party, plays some music for those in attendance, and then overdoses on a mix of speed and heroin. Someone from the party puts him in their car drives him to the local hospital and dumps him out in the drive of the Emergency room, rings the night bell and drive off……….near death, his stomach is pumped and, after some very touch and go hours, he comes back around. He signs himself into the psyche ward and stays till the withdrawal process is complete……While in the hospital he meets a young nurse, they begin dating and three months later the two are married. The marriage is doomed nearly from day one……….With introductions from his new wife to two musicians from her hometown , guitarist Michael Grove ,and bassist James Kesterson, T recruits guitarist Mike Dasenbrach and drummer Mark Carter, they become "T Warren and White Birch", In less than two months with music connections established by T earlier, the band hits the road doing one nighters in the Midwest and Mid -South; they write songs in motel rooms during the day and soon have enough material for an album. They book the intimate Fox Creek Studio for 48 hours laying down cut after cut. The album is completed in the two days; they take the master tape to several record executives before finally making a deal with fledgling MCA, a subsidiary of Decca records. The album is pressed and released, but slow sales disappoint the record executives; T buys all the rights and existing copies of the album…and markets them himself to record shops and at gigs….The album takes off and produces two singles "Colorado" and Missing You". Unfortunately, the good times are short-lived... while performing in Chicago, heroin comes back into the picture: the marriage, the band -- both are over in less than two months after the release of the album.

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1974: found T playing solo shows wherever he could book them on his own. Living out of an old van with little expenses, he was commanding a more than decent wage; yet he would awake to find himself broke the next day. It got so bad, T recalled, " I found myself playing for gas money and drugs. I'm not afraid of goin to hell, I've already been there." He returned to his home town late in 74. Once again he cleaned his act up and met a beautiful girl, who he would marry a year later. They moved back and forth between Florida and Alabama; she would become the mother of his two eldest daughters Rhiannon and Shanna. When old habits began creeping back into his life, determined not to fail again, T moved them back to Illinois where a stronger support base existed. Shortly upon returning, he took a job working in a body shop and turned his back on music totally for nearly three years. In 1980 he was asked if he was interested in performing at a 2 day music festival. It was a temptation he could no longer turn down. Totally rusty from years of non-performing, the festival performance was less than perfect, yet parts were so memorable that T was approached by representatives of management from "Magic Dragon Music" and "Chimney Sweep Productions" based in Ohio with ties to Joe Walsh. The executives saw something in T, despite the less than perfect performance. Contracts were signed; an advance was paid, allowing him to quit the body shop and devote a entire month to playing hour after hour. When he felt he had rehearsed enough, he called the agency with the news. The first month back on the road was small clubs and bars. When they were satisfied it was going to work, they booked him in larger college venues opening shows for the likes of Rick Derringer, Dan Fogelberg. This two-year period produced over 400 one-nighters, from large venues to small clubs, and one album" Ten Years On," an autobiographical look into the past ten years of broken marriages , drug abuse, and the dark ,seedy side of the music industry. The album failed to produce the results all had hoped for. Music was changing, the big hair metal bands were arriving; acoustic music was all but dead. With a wife, a three-year old and a new born all waiting on him in Illinois, T left the road not successful as in the past but with money saved and no heroin monkey on his back. T had made a promise to stay clean, and he kept it . In order to finish out his contract with Magic Dragon, he formed a Southern Rock oriented band called "Sledgehammer;" for the most part, it was a cover band. Three sets of covers and one set of T's originals. "The band was never meteoric by any means," T recalled, but we were good; people liked our show. We never left anything on the stage; we always gave our all and the crowd knew it." Sledgehammer released a six-song LP entitled "What Were We Thinking?" It went nowhere, and with contractual obligations fulfilled, the band broke up in 83. The next two years were filled with Indian activism and an occasional acoustic show in some little bar.

1985: longing to once again perform for real, T formed a hard-hitting rock band called "RAGE." Comprised of musicians ten years his junior, the band was doomed from the get go. "Everyone in that band, including myself, had ego problems……I was trying to show the kids the ropes; they thought I was just an old has-been, I guess. RAGE was the perfect name... seems every practice, someone got punched out. But it was never me," T recounts. Rage produced on 4 song EP "First Stages" and a live music video that was played on MTV's "Basement tapes." The video was titled" Into the Night," and it is a song that T continues to play to this day. With the breakup of RAGE, T, along with New Orleans Cajun guitarist Kenny DeLancey, drummer Tim Martin, bassist Jeff Etchison, and girl front person Kenna Cravens, formed the high-energy alternative band "No Vacancy"…..The band performed all original songs written by T and Kenna.. "Everything about that band was right" Kenna once told me. "Everything, that is, except we all were in relationships that weren't working." Jealous wives with no interest in music didn't help the band's career either. Somehow "No Vacancy" held it together long enough to release a moderately successful cassette entitled "Scorpio Moon". Producing two hits, T's previously-released "Into the Night" and a new cut, "Cheap Talk". No Vacancy broke up in early 1988 when Kenna left Illinois to pursue the music world of Seattle. She would re-enter T's life.

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Spring 1999: we recruited some musician friends to play at a local bar for T's birthday party. Although they had known each other for years, and had all, at one time or another, played music in different combinations, they had never played as a unit. The birthday party was a huge success, the crowd was loving the music, and it was decided that the boys were just too good together to only be a "one night stand". The band wasn't even given a name, as it was only a one-time get together. During the night, T and Dennis were doing their usual "bite each other's heads off on stage", and I called up to them, "Quit yer bitchin", and Milty the drummer says, "That's it……..that's our name!", so I set out to find an unusual spelling for those three simple words. Quicherbichen was born and named! The band's meteoric rise was phenomenal! They played as many as four nights a week, all the while writing more and more material. The band could never be categorized by those in the music field………somewhere between rock, Delta Blues, alternative, and Native American, with a healthy dose of Celtic magic thrown in. Quicherbichen released "No Need to Spludge" in the summer of 2000, and within weeks, thanks to Kenna in Seattle, they found themselves with two singles in the top 25, with one in the top 10. The top 10 single, "The Road", remained in the top 10 for over 17 weeks. An incredible accomplishment for a Southern Illinois band, who never performed any farther away than Indiana. As with all good things, Quicherbichen came to an end when bassist Jimmy Ruston moved to California. Although personnel changes were attempted, the magic was never there again. Quicherbichen played its last show in 2002, to a more than capacity crowd. It left all those involved with the band….. members, family, and fans, with a great sense of loss.

2000: being of much assistance to him with the band he had at that time. .The only music T played from 1988 to 1997 was Indian activism related. "There are a few bootlegged performances out there, but unfortunately, I never recorded any of those performances myself," T recounted in a recent interview. "I just wasn't thinking, I guess" he said. In 1997, T met and began playing music with Dennis Dunlap, a guitarist extraordinaire and founding member of the Southron Rock band "Hard Knox." They would perform a year as Dunlap/Warren, and made a name change to "Acoustic Motorbike." They were most well-received in the area and were known to have on more than one occasion sold out the venue they played. There are over 200 hundred hours of their music on disc; none of it has ever been released. What a shame that is.

Winter 2003: found T desperately trying to get a CD recorded by the Border Ruffian Band, a Southern Heritage/Traditional WBTS band, comprised of old buddy Dennis Dunlap, new-found friend Jerry Brashear, and long-time friend Barbara Allender, and T, of course. The material for the CD was all originals, with the exception of "Dixie". Recording rates and recording equipment were simply out of our price range, and it looked like the CD was not going to happen. However, through the graciousness of former Quicherbichen bassist Jimmy, who drove from California, bringing his recording equipment, he moved into our church and set out to get the music recorded over the Christmas holiday. In the course of three days, the project was started and completed, including final mix. It truly was a Christmas miracle. The Border Ruffians' "Wanted" CD debuted on WDXB through the kindness of the station's president, Ray McBerry. Immediately the CD gained favorable reviews through the flood of promotion by the likes of Ray McBerry, Terry Compton, Charles Demastus and others too numerous to mention. The CD was nominated for four Southern Heritage music Beacon Awards. The single "Border Ruffians" won single of the year, while the other three singles took second place in the other categories. It was a proud moment for all involved in the CD.

Currently, T is putting together a CD by a new band he calls "Copperheads". Unlike the Border Ruffians, Copperheads are a hard-driving Southern rock band, with strong Southern heritage messages in each song. This CD is not for the faint of heart, or the politically correct. If "in your face" Southron activism is your game, "Rebbed Up" is for you. The CD will be released by the end of May, 2005. Also at this time, the follow-up Border Ruffians CD is about half "in the can", and a soon-to-be-released live rehearsals of T's "Last Ruffian Standing" 2005 Southern Tour will be hitting the market. Besides all these projects, T is presently engaged as a guitarist, steel guitarist and singer for the Matt Stevens Band, one of the Midwest's fastest-rising bar bands. They have scheduled the release of their CD late fall, 2005.

I hope that my near 15 years of marriage to T qualifies me to write this biography. I assure you I have pulled no punches, nor "left anything on the stage".