Welcome Bluebird fans and friends into the 21st century! This site is devoted to the Pacific Northwest's first and foremost country-rock and roll band Bluebird. The group, based out of the Seattle suburb of Mercer Island, Washington , was together from 1968 till 1973. Here is a brief history of the band and also an update on what the members are currently up to.

Pictured above left to right: John Soltero, David Baroh, Phil Klitgaard, Kevin Marin. Photo by Ted D'Arms, 1972.
Bluebird logo designed by David Baroh, 1969. The image background and logo was scanned and downloaded to this page by Ben Shy.

[IMAGE]

Bluebird was formed in August of 1968 by guitarist/singer David Baroh from Mercer Island, and bassist/singer Kevin Marin from Kent, also a Seattle suburb. They had been friends for several years and decided that they wanted to put together a group that reflected their love for vocal oriented rock & roll with country and folk music elements. Their band would follow their influences like The Beatles, The Everly Bros., The Byrds and Chuck Berry, as well as writing their own songs. Dave convinced his long time Mercer Island school buddy and fellow musician Phil Klitgaard to join on drums. Kevin brought in guitarist Tony Pugel from a group they had just disbanded. Borrowing from a phrase of a Moody Blues tune that reads "....bluebird flying high, tell me what you see.....", Dave christened the group "Bluebird". After a few months of rehearsals and a few local gigs Tony left the group and was replaced in March of 1969 by John Soltero, another Mercer Island school chum of David and Phil and a band mate of Kevin's in their group The Loose Chippin's. This wound up being the most permanent and popular line up, lasting nearly five years. Bluebird was now in flight.
By this time in the Great Northwest the heady days of the early to mid sixties were beginning to change drastically and the next generation of rockers were raising up and beginning their own journey to what they hoped would be rock stardom. A number of famed legendary Northwest bands out of the fifties and early sixties like The Ventures, The Wailers, The Kingsmen, Paul Revere and the Raiders, The Sonics, The Viceroys, Don The Goodtimes, Merrilee and The Turnabouts, Mr. Lucky & The Gamblers, Little Bill and The Blue Notes, The Regents, The Imperials, Tiny Tony and the Statics, The Bards, The Dynamics, and fellow Mercer Island school mates The Bandits, all helped to pave the way for interm groups that rose out of the mid-sixties British invasion and "hippie" underground movement. These bands included The Daily Flash, Emergency Exit, The West Coast Natural Gas Co., The Liverpool Five, Fat Jack, The Crystal Sect, The Magic Fern, Crome Syrcus, P.H. Factor Jug Band, and The Floating Bridge. By the end of the decade as these groups began to break up and reform, a new bunch of bands were on the move heading out of the sixties and into the seventies. Their musical roots firmly entrenched in the Northwest rock scene, these bands and artists included Jr. Cadillac, Bighorn, Springfield Rifle, Shy Anne, Sweet Rolle, Child, Calliopy, Locomotive, Lud Stetson and The Firetones (featuring premier guitarist Bob Rice), Merrilee Rush, Heart and of course Bluebird.
In late 1968 at the urging of noted bassist Jeff Beals (ex-Imperials and Kingsmen) Dave was encouraged to persue his interest in the pedal steel guitar and became the first northwest rock roll musician to utilize the then exclusive country music instrument, which he continued to play for many years, as well as the mandolin. John, already a highly acclaimed lead guitarist, was performing on the 5-string banjo and honky tonk piano as well. With their unique song writing skills that featured precise vocal work, Kevin's tight harmony arrangements, and top notched musicianship, the group became a favorite amoung fellow musicians and fans alike. By 1969 and 1970 Bluebird and their fine blend of country and rock music was heard in concerts and clubs all over the Pacific Northwest, including many appearances at the famed Trolly Club in downtown Seattle. The band quickly developed a loyal following and for a time in the late sixties and early seventies they were amoung the top name acts on the Northwest music scene. They enjoyed numerous and still talked about personal appearances with "name" acts such as their memorable appearance at Eagles Auditorium with Joe Cocker (booked by Jeff Beals from the GEC entertainment agency), club dates with Golden Earring, David Gates and Bread, The Steve Miller Band, Rick Nelson, and the openning act on the third day at the legendary 1969 Sky River Rock Festival. The band also enjoyed a special relationship with well known KJR and KOL disc jockey Burl Barer who produced several of the groups records and was a key player in getting their recordings on the radio. They worked with well known northwest record producer Jerry Dennon who produced The Kingsmen's "Louie Louie", The Wailers, The Sonics and many other popular northwest acts. They did a record (Country Boy Blues) produced by Terry Jacks (of The Poppy Family and "Seasons in the Sun" fame) released on the London lable in Canada. They had a number of eclectic record releases over the years starting in the fall of 1969 through summer of 1973. The most popular was their Northwest regional hit "Modessa", written by Dave and Phil, released in1971 on Dennon's Burdette lable. They also recorded many studio tracks, all original material, and "live" concert dates. Some of these tracks were slated for a future album but were never released. Then there was a special recording project featuring Dave, Kevin and Phil which was produced by Burl Barer. Could this be the infamous beginings of Crowbar, Riley, and P.K. known to the cosmos as Grand Theft? Yes, but that story is for another time! Bluebird pressed on seeking the break that would take them out of the confines of the Northwest and into the stratosphere of national stardom. But it was not to be, and after scores of concert and club dates, radio shows, and TV appearances, the band seemed to finally run it's course at the end of 1972. John left in early 1973 to briefly form his own group with Pat Hewitt (later of The Rangehoods) called Winchester. Bluebird soldiered on with long time friend Emerson Hoefs (ex-Trolly) replacing John on lead guitar. The boys tried a more commercial approach to their sound, dropping the long time country elements of their music. This worked for a time as the group kept busy with road gigs. But in July of 1973 Kevin and Emerson left the band to form Windfair with Kevin's brother Kim on drums. At that point, bass guitarist Ric Niemer was called in and left his group Big Top from California and joined up with Dave and Phil. The three of them cut the next Bluebird single, "Needles and Pins", with Dave doing all the vocal and guitar parts. Guitarist Tom Chapman (a friend of Ric's) was then added when he left his group Inner City Romance and joined up. This musically powerful line up lasted for several months' worth of gigs but the band just did not follow the same path as the previous line up. So in late November 1973 this version of Bluebird was laid to rest. Dave and Phil continued on together doing several gigs with bassist Gary "Orville" Barnes and guitarist Craig Critchfield, as Bluebird. But they finally let go of the name at the end of the year and in January of 1974 they became Nash Rambler. Unfortunately, this line up lasted only untill March of 1974 when Dave and Phil finally called it quits after a difficult Alaska road trip. After five and a half years the Bluebird era was over. Phil sat in with several bands that year and then retired from active duty at the end of 1974. Dave went on to his next project, a group called Unicycle that re-united him and John Soltero, with bass guitarist Garey Shelton (ex-Unholy Rollers, Jr. Cadillac and Jesse Collin Young) and drummer Steve Yusen (of Gold Rush and Freddy and The Screamers). Steve is now a popular fixture with the Seattle jazz scene and performs regularly with the Fred Radke group and Brian Nova. Bluebird also helped spawn the country rock scene during this time and groups like The Skyboys, Lance Romance, The Ryders, and Wagon Wheel Willy carried the banner successfully for years to come.
Fortunately, a number of years later, in 1980, a compilation album of demo songs from early 1969 sessions and the bands single records releases from the Jerry Dennon days (1969 to 1971) was released on Dennon's Piccadilly lable called "Country Boy Blues".

 Just recently, Bluebird is well listed amoung many featured bands in the newly released book entitled "Encyclopedia of Northwest Music" compiled and written by Seattle author James Bush, along with other various writers, featuring a host of northwest music groups and artists from past to present. This book is currently available through Sasquatch Books (206) 467-4300 in Seattle, Washington. It's a must read for anyone interested in the history of music in the Pacific Northwest area.
 
 

**************************




What are they currently doing now?

 To date, Dave Baroh, who lives in Kirkland, Washington, has continued to performed for years in his own bands around the greater Seattle and Bellevue area in groups like Starfire, The Johnny O'Francia Quartet, Shadowfax, and The Seals (with Bob Rice). Since 1984 and up until April 1998, Dave performed with The Backbeats , a band that included his brothers Sandy and Danny, and long time friend Jim DeJoy. After taking some time off from the music scene for a while in 1998 and most of 1999, he is now looking to get back to performing again with some of his old band mates. He also takes time to persue his interest in auto racing and enjoys his long time passion of a fine premium cigar whenever he gets the chance.
After a long and successful association with the band Windfair, Kevin Marin, who resides in Auburn, Washington, has also continued to performed with various groups over the years. He still performs occasionally with his brother Kim and fellow Bluebird bandmate Dave Baroh.
Phil Klitgaard, who lives in north Seattle, retired from music at the end of 1974 and is a shift supervisor at Bank America in Seattle. Phil keeps himself up on the music scene with an extensive record and CD collection.
John Soltero currently resides in Sherman Oaks, California, and owns and opperates his own company called Digital Audio Recording, a successful video/film audio company. John, still a very much renown guitarist, is very much into classical and flamenco/jazz guitar studies, though since the hectic rock days of Bluebird has not really performed in a steady group since then.
Guitarist and songwriter Emerson Hoefs played an extended time with the Marin's in Windfair. He has self produced and written numerous recording projects over the years and is currently residing in Arizona.
Nowdays Burl Barer is having much success as a world renown author and his latest book is "Capture The Saint". Also his books "The Saint" and "Maverick" (each from the motion pictures of the same name) are enjoying world wide popularity. Visit his web site from the list below.
Many thanks to long time Bluebird road manager Chet Tozer for his friendship and support. After working for national acts such as The Rolling Stones, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, and Led Zeppelin, he retired from the music business in the late seventies has since started his own organization with his wife Bonnie called F.A.C.E.S. (First Aid For Children in Elementary School). The book, and educational program with the same name, is finally taking off in a big way across the nation. They currently reside in Iowa.
Honorary band drummer Kim Marin started the Kent based group The Nightshades back in 1964 (with his brother Kevin) who later became The Loose Chippins (with John Soltero and Don Scott) in 1965. He later performed in Windfair, Starfire, and Shadowfax. Kim still performs occasionally with Dave and Kevin. He is a supervisor at the Flight Development Center with the Boeing company in Seattle and lives in Maple Valley, Washington.

Though Bluebird is no longer together as a band, all the guys and their friends still stay in touch with each other and the Bluebird legend is always in flight. Thanks for now.

[IMAGE]

Bluebird discography-
Singles releases:

 1. Billy Drake(Baroh) b/w I Shall Be Released (Dylan)-Jerden Records-released September 1969. Produced by Jerry Dennon and Steve Montgomery.

2. Country Boy Blues(Baroh) b/w Good Thing Lost(T. Jacks)-London Records (Canada only)-released June 1970. Produced by Terry Jacks.

 3. Modessa (Baroh-Klitgaard) b/w Goin' Down (Marin-Klitgaard)-Burdette Records-released March 1971. Produced by Burl Barer and Jerry Dennon.

 4. What Ever Happened To Rock & Roll (Baroh-Marin-Soltero) b/w Goin' Down To New Orleans-(Baroh-Klitgaard) Sea West Records-released July 1972. Produced by Burl Barer, with Rick "the Wizard" Keefer.

 5. Needles Pins(Bono) b/w Goin' Down To NewOrleans (Baroh-Klitgaard) (remixed)-Sea West Records-released August 1973. Produced by Burl Barer.

 Album releases:
"Country Boy Blues"-Piccadilly Records-(PIC-3382)
Side One:
Change My Mind-(C. Putnam) John lead vocal
Natural Feeling-(Kevin Marin) Kevin lead vocal
Travelin' Ways-(John Soltero) John lead vocal
The Good Life-(Kevin Marin) Kevin lead vocal
Country Boy Blues-(David Baroh) Dave lead vocal

 Side Two:
Billy Drake-(David Baroh) Dave lead vocal
I Shall Be Released-(B. Dylan) Dave lead vocal
Goin' To Nevada-(David Baroh) Dave lead vocal
Goin' Down-(K. Marin/P. Klitgaard) Kevin lead vocal
Modessa-(D. Baroh/P. Klitgaard) Dave lead vocal

 Released July 1980. Produced by Jerry Dennon.
 
 

**********************




The album that was never released when recorded in 1972 but may see a CD release in 2000. Tentative title was "BLUEBIRD".

 Side One: (Sea-West studio)
Goin' Down-(K. Marin/P. Klitgaard) Long version-Kevin lead vocal
Flying Blind-(David Baroh) Dave lead vocal, John piano
L.A. Smog-(Baroh/Marin/Soltero/Klitgaard) Dave, Kevin, John vocals, John on banjo, Dave on mandoline
Gold Minds-(John Soltero) John on banjo, Bob Enslee on harmonica, John and Dave on guitars
Legions-(K.Marin/P. Klitgaard) Kevin lead vocal
Side One produced by Burl Barer.

 Side Two: (Live in concert at Gold Creek Dome, Woodinville WA. Spring 1972)
Crossroads-(R. Johnson) Dave lead vocal
Modessa-(D. Baroh/P. Klitgaard) Dave lead vocal
Cantalope Island-(H. Handcock) Instrumental
If You Gotta Go, Go Now-(B. Dylan) Dave lead vocal
Side Two produced by Bluebird.
 
 

**************************




BLUEBIRD questions and facts you might like to know about:

 1) On their recordings did Bluebird use any studio musicians or outside help with their performances?
Answer: No. The band played all their own instruments and sang all their own vocals. They also multitracked and doubled on varoius instruments. John was not only an incredible lead guitarist,but was an accomplished keyboard player as well. Dave performed on not only guitar, but added mandolin and pedal steel guitar to various recordings. The only outside musician to perform with the band in the studio was Bob Enslee who played harmonica on a John Soltero composition called "Gold Minds". Their illustrious road manager Chet Tozer also helped provide yelps and handclaps on "Billy Drake".

 2) Have the boys really been friends since school days?
Answer: Yes. Phil and Dave met in seventh grade (1961) and they met John in ninth grade (1963) at North Mercer Jr. High School. Kevin (and brother, Kim) entered the picture in summer of 1965 when Dave and Phil met him at a battle of the bands competition in Eastgate, near Bellevue. They've all remained close friends ever since.

 3) Why didn't the band achieve success outside the Northwest area?
Answer: They had several opportunities to leave the Seattle area for greener pastures in L.A. but chose to stay close to their families and hope that their records would push them out into stardom. They came very close on two occasions with "Country Boy Blues" and "Modessa". Other musicians such as drummer Mike Botts of Bread, Jim Messina and Richie Furay of Poco, Neil Young, Rick Nelson, and Gram Parsons urged the band to move to L.A. but in the end they never did make the move.

4) Would Bluebird be interested in a reunion of sorts?
Answer: Yes. Dave, John, and Kevin got together at their 30th year high school reunion in summer of 1997. It wouldn't take much for them to agree to a one shot reunion, if their varied schedules and business travels permitted.

5) What were the makes and types of instruments that Bluebird primarily used?
Answer: John Soltero mainly used an early sixties Fender Telecaster that featued re-wired Humbucker pickups and re-worked maple neck. He also used an Epiphone Riviera with double pickups and a Martin D-18 accoustic. Dave also used several guitars including a 1969 Rickenbaker 360 12-string, a 1969 Fender Telecaster semi hollow body, a 1970 Gibson Les Paul Custom, a 1969 Martin D-28 accoustic, and a mid sixties Sho-Bud double 9 string neck six-pedal steel (later replaced with a Fender single neck 10 string four pedal model). Both used the Fender Twin Reverb amps. Kevin played a 1961 Fender Precision bass and used the Fender Showman bass amp. Phil used a Rodgers drum kit with Zildjian and Paiste cymbals.

 6) Besides their singles and the album are there other Bluebird recordings available or would be available in the future?
Answer: Yes, there are many studio tracks the band recorded for an aborted album in 1972. There are also live recordings the group wanted to use and release as well. There are a number of home recordings the group did and a few live gigs and rehearsals on tape. There are currently some discussions and planning for a Bluebird CD release possibly in 2000 of these studio tracks and selected live recordings.
 
 

***********************************




Bluebird reunion!

 Here's a live shot of Bluebird performing at David, Phil, and John's 30th year Mercer Island H.S. class reunion on July 26th, 1997. Phil was not able to attend, so Kim Marin sat in on drums. The band sounded great and a splendid time was had by all!
Left to right:
Kevin Marin, Kim Marin, David Baroh, John Soltero.
Photo by Theresa Baroh.

[IMAGE]

Favorite Sites to visit:

  • The Ventures
  • The Fabulous Wailers!
  • The Wailers
  • The Kingsmen
  • The Viceroys
  • Little Bill and The Bluenotes
  • Paul Revere and the Raiders
  • Pacific Northwest Bands
  • The Regents Homepage!
  • Jerden Records
  • Jimi Hendrix Web Site
  • Heart Home Page
  • Grand Theft Official Home Page
  • The Beatles-Links
  • The Byrds Homepage
  • The Searchers
  • Rich Dangel
  • Brian Nova
  • H.B. Radke City Swingers
  • Julie Baroh's Virtual Art Gallery
  • Burl Barer
  • Lan Roberts Home Page
  • Seattle Lexicon: Blasts from the Past
  • Seattle Bands
    •  This page was constructed and brought online by DATCO Enterprises in July of 1997. If you would like to e-mail this site, just click on our address which is:datco96pro@aol.com
     
     

    This site was last updated on January 6, 2000.

    Thanks for visiting, please come back soon!
     
     

    *******************




    This site is dedicated to the memory of our buddies:
    "Papa" John Skalka
    Chris Klitgaard
    Tom Grose
    Dave Baroh
     
     

    *******************