It Shined: The Saga of The Ozark Mountain Daredevils

by Michael Supe Granda

As the turbulent 60's began to fade into the calmer 70's, a coterie of young singers, songwriters, musicians, artists, and poets began to congregate, musically on the stage of The New Bijou Theater - the Springfield, Missouri nightclub that would become the loose-knit group's home. What started as an informal weekly gathering, quickly morphed into a formal band. Dubbed the Family Tree, they became a favorite of the local counter-culture, as well as a continuation of the tradition-rich, Springfield music scene - which, until recently, included the Ozark Jubilee (the nation's first televised country music show). Though unprofitable at the time, they stuck to their guns and their original songs. When a rough tape of an early Bijou gig caught the ear of music mogul, John Hammond, it culminated in a 26-song studio demo, which caught the ear of A&M executive, David Anderle. The group signed with the label, changed their name to its present moniker, and whisked off to London to record their debut album under the tutelage of Glyn Johns. The album contained "If You Want to Get to Heaven". Their subsequent album, recorded in rural Missouri, contained "Jackie Blue". Both songs remain staples on 'classic rock' radio. By the early 80's, the Ozark Mountain Daredevils found themselves right where the Family Tree had stood a decade before - in Springfield with no record deal. They did, though, find themselves with legions of loyal fans around the world. Amidst personnel changes, personal turmoils and a cornucopia of tales from the rock-n-roll highway, the next twenty years were spent 'on the road'. Though continuing to write, they could garner little interest among the rapidly modernizing music industry - a situation many long-haired, long-named hippie bands of the 70's find themselves in. Their music, though, lives in the hearts of their fans.

Genres: Music, Biography

508 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Harry Sahl]

What a treat it was to learn a little more about this underrated band. They should have been bigger than they were but I think it's because they didn't fit a specific genre - which is a good thing!
Michael Supe Granda wrote a nice 500 plus page book about the history of the band that is entertaining and informative. Who knew that the band name came from a "naming party" where guitarist John Dillon came up with Cosmic Corn Cob & His Amazing Ozark Mountain Daredevils?
This is a great book for fans of the band. Sadly, being that they didn't fit a specific genre, they never were as big as The Outlaws or The Marshall Tucker Band. Considered a southern rock band, they were so much more. They were a little bit rock, a touch of hillbilly and some bluegrass. They were talented musicians that added mandolin, fiddle, mouth harp and dulcimer to their well written songs. Famous for the hit "Jackie Blue", one of my favorites (and still is) is "Chicken Train" which I used to sing to my girls when they were little.
The story seems very complete and is the only one I know of that's about this great band. Glad it's by a founding member and thanks Supe for sharing your story.

[John]

You may ask: how can you give a biography/story of a minor rock & roll band the same five-star rating as, say, East of Eden? Well, I may be a little biased.

1) The band in question is one of my favorites and looms large in my move from late teens to adulthood.

2) The author is one of the most gracious celebrities I've met, spending an hour after a gig my band had opened up for him on talking one-on-one then introducing me the other guys in the band.

3) It is so well written.

I've read quite a few music autobiographies - Keith Richard's Life and, most recently, Richard Thompson's Beeswing to name two - and most (read 'all but this one') come off bland and more 'as told to' than 'as written by'. But this one? Egon Spengler himself couldn't find a ghostwriter anywhere in its nearly 500 pages. This book is pure Supe. The man is a flat-out storyteller. I'd loved his baseball writings and the Local Heros videos he produced, and he bring his unique voice to this book as well. Plus, he was there for it all (not to say he's the most reliable narrator - bringing the horrors of KC & the Sunshine Band to Southwestern Missouri at least a year before they formed).

His early story is the story of many aspiring musicians, including my own - ten years later and in the opposite corner of the state but without the 'rock star' success of course. The later story is an honest look at record companies, bandmates, the fun AND the boredom of life on the road, and the challenges an aging musician and songwriter faces as time marches on. Though it all, he's always been the same fun-loving, approachable guy.

In a few short years, the Ozark Mountain Daredevils put out a body of great, honest songs that their fans still love. I'm glad Supe took the time to give us a glimpse behind the curtain.

[Glenn Blaine]

It Shined

I have loved the OMDD since junior school. It shined gave me lots of insight into the history of the band

[Ned]

This account is comprehensive, detailed and hilarious. Few will likely read it since it is of a band that produced a unique blend of original music that continues to defy categorization, in a time and place that has come and gone (the 1970s) yet remain vivid for me. My brothers and I were likely the perfect fan, who enjoyed this music for its own sake as it came through AM radio and eventually those rare vinyl records we could afford. And we wore them out, loving the harmonica and the bizarre vocals and genuine (and sometimes profound) lyric. This book was written by the de facto bandleader, Michael "Supe" Granda, who apparently autographed every copy of this book (mine came that way unadvertised). The tale is richly detailed and told in a humorous cadence that one can only imagine is the way Supe talked, as he recounts the beginning and ultimate demise of the band and all the other music it spawned. It is nonsentimental, and remarkably chronicled - hard to believe someone keeping such excellent archives considering the incredible volume of substances that eventually was their fate (as so many of this time).

If you are a fan of the Ozark Mountain Daredevils, or interested in the music scene of Saint Louis and Springfield, MO, this is a must read. I suspect there are a few hundred of us remaining. I've read many rock bios and this is one of the best, without ghostwriting, and truly and insiders' account of how popular music was made and promoted in the US in the 1970s.

I gave it 3 stars only because of the subject matter, in terms of sheer reading enjoyment its a 4.

And by all means, get a copy of OMD if you love music. They are now available on CD.

[Katherine Doll]

I was really looking forward to this read, as the Ozarks are one of my very favorite bands from back in the day.

The biggest lesson that I got from this book was the knowledge that some people should stick with what they know best. That being music, for Michael Supe Granda.

Perhaps this book would be cherished by the really hard-core fans who relish every tiniest detail of their journey. For me though, it was just an endless list of 'we went here, and we went there, and then this happened, and then we played a gig here, and we met (insert name of 70's music icon), and then we flew here and cut an album, then we lived at this ranch and wrote the songs for this album, oh, and I delivered my daughter at home (that was a good part!), and then we played this gig, and then this guy left the band, and this guy joined the band.... endless, and endless and endless.

I guess I was expecting a little more structure to the book, and finesse with the writing and some introspection about their journey.

However, I still LOOOOOOVVVVVEEEE me some Ozark Mountain Daredevils!

[Ken L. Dillon]

The music never disappoints, and neither does the book

Having played not JUST the hits from the band for years on the various radio shows I have hosted, but sharing a wide array of tunes from the talented boys from just down the road here in Missouri, I was interested in the human stories from the band. The book made me smile, chuckle, and appreciate the meaning in the words...just as their music did, and still does.

[Kenneth Brown]

Fascinating story

Through the years, I knew pieces of the Daredevil story but not the whole one. Supe lays it all out there with incredible detail about the people and the music. And while not putting too many feathers in his hat, Supe comes off as someone who loves the rock n roll life through and through.

[Michael Smith]

See my review here:
http://michaelbuffalosmith.blogspot.c...