FRANKLIN, Tenn. (WTVF) — For a lot of kids, having a garage band with friends is just part of growing up. One garage band ended up becoming a longtime local tradition, one that was repeatedly shaped by history.
In the middle of mic checks and rehearsals, someone had made sure to bring a rubber good luck chicken. After all, the show happening at Franklin Theatre was going to be something special. It was a celebration of a garage band four guys began in 1964.
"We just liked to play music," said original band member Glenn Crowell.
"That's was the whole thing, just having fun," added another band member, Loy Hardcastle.
Band members Glenn, Loy, and Bill Adair were friends at Battle Ground Academy. They were joined by Jeff Cook of Columbia who suggested a name; The Exotics.
"We said, 'okay!'" Loy remembered. "That was it. We didn't study it. We didn't think about it. It was an impulse. We probably didn't think at that time we'd last a month. It didn't matter. We could have called ourselves The Trash Cans."
"We did Beatles songs, all kind of stuff like that," Glenn added.
"We started out playing high school parties and ball game after ball game, homecoming dances, parties at colleges," Loy continued. "Word of mouth started spreading."
The Exotics hit the road.
"It was like a band of brothers is the way I always looked at it," Glenn said.
It was early in the band's run, they began performing with Black Nashville-based group The Spidells. It the mid-60s and white and Black bands performing together was still rare.
"We'd go out of town with them," Glenn remembered. "They would not be allowed to come and eat food with us. We'd have to take food out to them in their car."
For the crowds, the mix of British Invasion influence and r'n'b of the two groups was a knockout.
"Crowds loved it," Glenn said. "We loved those guys like they were our brothers."
There had been some recording sessions and stardom was looking possible. Then came Vietnam.
"I got drafted in 1968," Glenn said. "I was gone for two years."
In that time, everyone got other jobs. Life moved on. The Exotics kept getting together to play gigs over the years with other members joining along the way.
Today, Jeff is in ill-health. Billy died a few years ago.
"He was my best friend," Glenn said of Billy. "He was the one who inspired me to play. I didn't know if I wanted to continue, but Billy told me he wanted us to, and I did. We did."
The Franklin Theatre was the venue for a sold-out 60th Anniversary show for The Exotics.
Included was a surprise for the crowd. A group had been assembled as a tribute to the Spidells. Some original fans were there to see a band that lived through and was shaped by history.
"We had our first date on April 29, 1967 at the War Memorial Auditorium when they and the Spidells were opening for the Standells," said Judy Fox Jackson, standing next to husband Donny Jackson.
"It's humbling for sure," Loy said of the fanbase. "It's gratifying. It's surreal, really."
"We've been blessed tremendously," Glenn added. "We still love it. We love it. We've been best friends forever."
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Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
-Bree Smith
