Ill Wind

Boston-based Ill Wind’s unique blend of folk, rock, bluegrass, blues and psychedelia made them a very familiar act on the college and teen dance circuit in New England and New York City from the mid-‘60s until the early ‘70s. The original concept came from guitarist Ken Frankel, a biophysics graduate student at MIT in Cambridge, and bassist Carey Mann, a math graduate student at the school.

The band’s first incarnation included Frankel, Mann, rhythm guitarist Richard Griggs, drummer Dave Kinsman and vocalist Judy Bradbury. Bradbury left when the group evolved into more of a psychedelic/blues act, replaced by Conny Devanney, who’d been singing in various New York City and Jersey Shore clubs. With her arrival, the band boasted three lead singers and three experienced songwriters, which resulted in tunes with complex three-part harmonies and extended instrumental jams.

EARLY GIGS, NOTABLE OPENING SPOTS

Ill Wind’s earliest gigs were in 1965 at college mixers and frat parties in Boston and Cambridge. After recording a demo at Hanley Sound in Medford, the band landed their first gig outside Boston at a CYO dance in the suburb of Stoneham. The kids were so enthusiastic about the group’s sound that Ill Wind began playing at CYO and teen dances across New England, attracting the attention of several booking agencies in the process. At the time, many colleges had substantial entertainment budgets, which meant Ill Wind had plenty of schools to play in New England and New York (both in the city and upstate). They also began appearing regularly at The Boston Tea Party and many of the ballrooms where big bands played in the ‘30s and ‘40s.

By 1966, the group was playing out full time, bringing in Frankel’s brother to manage and check sound levels at performances and Richard “Berred” Ouellette as road manager. The band opened for many well-known bands and solo artists over the years, including The Who, Fleetwood Mac, The Byrds, Moby Grape, Van Morrison, The Rascals, The Buckinghams, Jethro Tull, The Youngbloods, Mitch Ryder and Vanilla Fudge. They also backed Chuck Berry on stage once for a Boston show.

CAPITOL SINGLES, ABC SIGNING, FLASHES, DISBANDING, REFORMATION

In 1967, the group recorded five songs for Capitol Records at their studios in New York City (produced by Dick Weisman of The Journeymen). Although months of negotiations ensued, no recording contract resulted and the label never released the songs. Frustrated, the band started working with the William Morris Agency, who booked a West Coast tour.

Upon returning to the Northeast, the group spent two weeks playing on Long Island and New York City, where they met Tom Wilson, who’d recently formed his own production company after producing albums for Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel and The Mothers of Invention. With his help, Ill Wind got a deal with ABC Records and recorded their 1968 album Flashes, produced by Wilson, and the single “In My Dark World” b/w “High Flying Bird.” The British music magazine Mojo praised the disc as “some of the finest psychedelia conceivable.”

Unfortunately for the band and their fans, however, ABC didn’t press enough copies of the album to meet demand, leaving many record stores out of stock. Still, Flashes was well received and saw steady airplay on radio stations across the US, including Boston’s WBCN, becoming a “pick of the week” in several markets. In 2009, British label Sunbeam re-released the album in two formats, a double CD and double vinyl LP, along with five previously unreleased cuts from the Capitol sessions and some earlier recordings.

Ill Wind broke up in 1969 but reformed in 1970 with a revised lineup of Devanney, Kinsman, bassist Michael Walsh, lead guitarist Walter Bjorkman (formerly of Cloud and Swallow) and pianist Bryant Thayer. Featuring Devanney’s powerful vocals and Bjorkman’s ripping guitar, the band became a big draw at colleges and clubs until disbanding for good in 1973. Devanney, Griggs, Bjorkman, Bradbury and Wilson have passed away, other former members live in New England or California and, interestingly, far more has been written about Ill Wind since they broke up than when they were together.