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| La Paz - who's who. |
Doogie White - Vocals --> More on Doogie White Chic McSherry on Doogie White: "What can I say about Doogs...he's my best mate and I never worked with a vocalist with his range and calibre before or after. I tend to concentrate a lot when I'm on stage and I often look very serious, but every so often Doogs hits a note or runs a phrase that quite takes my breath away and I lose concentration totally. I have even been known to smile when that happens. Doogie is quite simply an astonishing talent and I can recall that when I first heard him I told him "Man, you're world class and we're going to be HUGE!" It all came true of course but in my case getting HUGE involved eating all the pies. To be honest, when Doogie left La Paz all the fun went out of it and I hung up the guitar for about 20 years until he called and asked me to play with him again at the Rock Radio gig. As well as the music of course, we both share an abiding love of pre-Raphaelite painting, dead insects and vegetable soup. " Chic McSherry - Guitar --> More on Chic McSherry Paul McManus on Chic McSherry : "Everyone remembers special times in their life. My life-changing moment was 20th February 1985 - more accurately, 14:50 hours on the 20th Feb 1985! That’s when Chic called to ask if I was interested in joining La Paz. I was 17 years old but had already been playing for years and, of course, I knew of the formidable reputation of Mr. McSherry! I met the band the following week for an audition and ran through 'Kill the King'. What a blast - we seriously cooked. The guys were knocked out – not with my drumming, of course, but with the prospect of heaven-sent exploitation! Being the youngest in the band I was made to carry all the gear, load the van, make the tea, run the errands, hand over all my pocket money, etc. Getting that call from Chic changed the course of my life: if it hadn’t been for Chic and my time with La Paz I wouldn’t have met my current business partner with whom I’ve built a successful company. So, I owe more than a debt of gratitude to Chic...mind you the bugger did keep all of my pocket money so I think we're probably quits." Alex Carmichael - Bass --> More on Alex Carmichael Andy Mason on Alex Carmichael : “Working with Big Al has always been a real pleasure, and with Paul we think of ourselves as the “real” rhythm section in the band. Many’s the time we've lost our place in the set and have had to scream the next note to each other in a panic 'cos we know Chic will kill us if we screw up. With Alex you’re never far away from a joke or a story. He’s a fantastic player and a solid guy, although I’m getting blinded a bit now from the lights hitting his baldy head so good call on the bandana big man…”
Andy Mason - Keyboards --> More on Andy Mason Doogie White on Andy Mason: "When Andy joined the band he was just a wee boy really. His parents were not that pleased that he was hanging out with a bunch of reprobate rawkers at the expense of his studies. Once a month we used to play 3 nights back to back at the Dunoon US Naval Base. We would hire a chalet where the band, crew and "guests" would party: man did we party! Knowing that Andy would never empty his gig bag, never mind do his own laundry, we hatched a plan to hide various 'intimate' items amongst his soggy t-shirts and jeans. After the second occasion his mother called me to ask just how the large cup sized bra had managed to find its way into her young son's laundry and would we like our reading material on human biology back....what a fabulous woman! She grew to love us all and we in turn continued to place inappropiate items in, on and around her wee Andrew."
Paul McManus - Drums --> More on Paul McManus Alex Carmichael on Paul McManus: "As a bass player in any type of band, it’s essential that a strong rapport exists with the drummer for various reasons. Anyhoo, over the years I have been very fortunate indeed to play alongside some of the best drummers around, four of whom happened to be in La Paz, although not at the same time. That would have been foolish. (We can’t count Spank…he knows who he is.) Let’s not beat about the bush, Paul McManus is the best that there is anywhere in the country and beyond. It’s always an education to play alongside him, he never fails to surprise and delight. He’s also a great guy, generous and funny. He accepts jibes about his resemblance to a fat Michael Flattley with grace and apparent good humour. By rights he should be a proper rock star. On the down side, he plays VERY loudly and I fear that those of us in the band who stand in front of his kit will soon be quite deaf. I said QUITE DEAF! He also really fancies himself but in an acceptable and amusing way. As long as someone does, eh Paul? " -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And let's not forget: Rhona Walters - Management. Rhona looked after us for all of our career and did an amazing job. She booked rehearsals, gigs, recording sessions, interviews, line-dancing... she generally made everything happen to be honest. After La Paz she went on to manage The Almighty and is now making sure that the Kings Theatre in Glasgow runs like clockwork. We still luv ya ta bitz Rhona :-) Paul Jackson - Road management. Ok...so he was a roadie, but what a roadie! He was the first roadie we ever had who wasn't just a "hanger on" or a mate doing a favour and who took the job seriously and professionally. Everything went like a dream when Paul was in charge. He is now Stage Manager on the current Judas Priest "Priestfest" tour which shows the quality and ability of the man. He goes by the nickname "Bomber" but when he was with us we called him "Miss Jackson"...we still have the photos Paul...deny it as often as you want but keep sending the payments. Wilson Reid - PA. Wilson was a long-time pal of Doogie and Al and, since he had a van and a PA, naturally he was hired. He is still running a successful PA hire business and does the rigs for La Paz' current shows. John McPhee - Sound. John did a great job for us "front of house" and kept the band loud but clear in all cases except at a Kelvingrove gig when "persons unknown but from a 'rival' band nicknamed 'nuthin nuthin' pulled some plugs from the PA"...allegedly of course. After La Paz he went to work for Radio Clyde for many years and now does something secretive for the M.O.D... Billy Hepburn. Billy took lots of photos of us over the years and also built Chic's amazing speaker cabs! Contact Billy at www.musicpro.co.uk Tommy McGuiness, Big Davy Waugh, Robert Fields - The best rock promoters in the business back then and sorely missed now. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Current Crew - without whom there would be no new shows...thanks guys!
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