by Richard Skelly » Sat Jan 06, 2018 8:35 pm
Decades back, when I first heard Chickens intro’d by a deejay as “from Vancouver”, I guessed it was by Wildroot. Three minutes later, I learned the group was 6 Cylinder. But Wildroot wasn’t a bad guess since two of its alumni—drummer/vocalist Peter Padden and pianist/reeds/vocalist Ian Berry (RIP)—were in 6 Cylinder. Everyone sang in the group, including multi-instrumentalist Carl Erickson, a graduate of the beloved ‘60s act The Nocturnals.
There was a hint of swingsters Asleep At The Wheel in the sound of 6 Cylinder. Chickens itself was propelled to fame in the ‘40s by Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five. Think it was one of the Jordan band’s biracial hits before keyboardist Bill Doggett joined. Truly an inspired pick for a shortlived Vancouver band making its way thirty-odd years later.