Category Archives: In Records

Kit and the Outlaws “Don’t Tread on Me”

Kit and the Outlaws, 1967
l-r: Kit Massengill, Joe Jessmer on drums, Jerry Colwell at the mic and Alan Ravkind

Outlaws In 45 Fun, Fame & FortuneKit and the Outlaws evolved from the Outlaws, the Dallas group led by Kit Massengill. As the Outlaws, they had a great early Texas garage 45 on the In label, produced by Tommy Allsup. Both sides, “Worlds Apart” / “Fun, Fame & Fortune” were written by Kit.

Kit and the Outlaws Blacknight 45 Don't Tread on MeWith a change of members, the group hit the big time with their second 45, a fuzzed-up version of “Midnight Hour”. It was picked up by Philips for national distribution in late 1966, mainly on the strength of the a-side. That’s a fine cover version, but it’s the b-side, Kit’s original “Don’t Tread on Me”, that gets the attention nowadays.

The first BlacKnight pressings list the band as “The Outlaws”, later pressings read “Kit and the Outlaws”. Philips licensed the single through its subsidiary Mercury Records, from San-Lin Corporation on November 23, 1966.

Members included:

Kit Massengill – lead vocals and rhythm guitar
Dennis Lowe – lead guitar
Jerry Colwell – keyboards
Alan Ravkind – bass
Joe Jessmer – drums

There is also one further 45 as Kit and the Outlaws, “Now Doubt About It” / “Mama’s Gone” on the Empire label, another of Bob Sanders’ labels. Both sides written by Kit Massengill and published by Tall Pine Music, Black Knight Production. I don’t know the date of this one, or where it fits in to the chronology of their releases, but it seems to be a rare 45.

Kit and the Outlaws Empire 45 No Doubt About It

Kit and the Outlaws Empire 45 Mama's Gone

Alan Ravkind - bass

I recently heard from keyboardist and occasional vocalist Jerry Colwell, and asked him about Kit and recording “Don’t Tread on Me”:

I met Kit in late ’65, he was working with the owner of the Cotton Club, a topless bar on Lemmon Ave. He had a bass player named Alan Rafkin [actually Alan Ravkind], and drummer named Joe Jesmer [Joe Jessmer seems to be correct spelling], but needed a keyboard player and lead guitar. I was on my way out of a band called the Gobyzurks, we were a college and night club band in North Texas.

Dennis Lowe was the lead guitar and I was the organ player. Dennis and I went to high school together and were fairly good friends. Kit told us we had 2 weeks to learn about 50 songs and play nightly at this club.

Kit & the Outlaws, recording Midnight Hour at Sellers Recording Studio, Dallas
Recording Midnight Hour at Sellers Recording Studio, Dallas


After about a year of playing night clubs in Dallas we recorded the record Midnight Hour/ Don’t Tread on Me. The Sellers Studio was close to downtown [2102 Jackson Street]. I sang on the song Don’t Tread on Me, as background.We had it pressed on the Black Knight Label. Frank Jolly at KBOX really liked us and would play the song every night, Finally all the DJ’s at KBOX started playing the song and it went up the charts. [It reached #1 on KBOX on December 2, 1966.] We were shocked that it was doing so good. KLIF wouldn’t play it cause we wern’t with a major record label.

Thanks to Bob Sanders, the recording engineer for the Sellers studio and our manager, we got signed to a 5 year contract with Philips. And changed our name to Kit and the Outlaws.

Kit & the Outlaws

We played at a daily televised venue called “Something Else” [Sump’N Else] hosted by Ron Chapman, as well as opening for Sonny & Cher, The Hollies, Herman Hermitts, Noel Harrison, and The Byrds. We toured and had some great stories, like me and Kit putting a huge dead fish in the Galvez hotel swimming pool one night at three in the morning. Had pictures of Graham Nash and the Hollies drinking about 14 cases of beer before they went on at Will Rodgers in Fort Worth.By 1968 was almost 20 and still hadn’t completed high school, somehow lost interest due to work and touring. Can you imagine going to high school and having a #1 record. Needless to say I dated just about anyone, and I did!

Early days:

The Malibus, 1964

The Malibus, 1964

Started playing bass guitar and got with some older guys called the Centurys in Mesquite. Later [1964] formed my first band “The Malibus” with Don Doss, Gary Stultz, & Glen Milsap. Started playing in old bars down on Grand and Haskel Ave. These places had dirt floors, we used to put a hat down and play Jimmy Reed stuff. Thats how I learned blues harp.

Johnny Green of the Greenmen
Johnny Green of the Greenmen
Johnny Green of the Greenmen
The Drifters ?
The Drifters ?

The Kavemen backing Chuck Berry at Surfers a Go go
The Kavemen backing Chuck Berry at Surfers a Go go
The Kavemen backing Chuck Berry at Surfers a Go go
The Kavemen backing Chuck Berry at Surfers a Go go

Later joined the #1 Dallas band The Cavemen and played battle of the bands against Jimmy Vaughan and his band, and the Royals and others. In 1965 the Cavemen was the home band for a Night club “Surfers A Go Go” in Dallas, where we played with Chuck Berry, Roy Head, The original Drifters, Jimmy Velvet and Johnny Green and the Greenmen. We played at clubs all over Texas, my favorites were the “Bamboo Hut” in Galveston, and “Panther Hall” in Fort Worth, a televised event every week. We were also played at Louanns many times.

The Kavemen, Dallas 1965
from left to right: Roland Allen, Jimmy Allen, Rodney Vinyard, Tommy Fonseca, Bill Walden & Jerry Colwell

In 1965 my favorite club was the Purple Orchard in downtown were my buddy Little Anthony was the host. I could go in just about any night club in Dallas and get a drink for free when I was just 16. Had a great time one night with Fats Domino.


 The Gobezerks at the Sugar Shack in Mesquite
The Gobezerks at the Sugar Shack in Mesquite

In 1966 played with “The Gobezurks” a college and night club band, I dressed in drag for some of the songs and would fall off the stage as if I was drunk.The Outlaws broke up in spring of 1968 and I went on to form the Jerry Layne Orchestra with 10 various horns and a stand up bass with Teresa Morrision on vocals.

I still play a B-3 and have recorded and produced 3 live CD’s in Austin.

Jerry Colwell with Kit & the Outlaws
Special thanks to Jerry Colwell for his history of the band and photos.

Kit & the Outlaws Philips 45 Don't Tread on Me

Update, February 2021:

March 1966 demo tape of Kit & the Outlaws from Sellers Recording

George Gimarc sent this image of an early demo tape of Kit & the Outlaws from March, 1966. “Fame, Fun and Fortune” is a different version than the In single. The other three songs are “Wanted”, “You Are My Sunshine” and “Lonely Avenue”. None have been released. The tape was found in the storage of the Sellers Company Recording Studio.

Update, September 2021:

Ron Lansing wrote to me about early days with the Outlaws:

I started playing with Kit when he joined my band Revelee’ in early 1965. We had met when my band was playing Louanns. Kit played with my band at a Mardis Gras party in February of 1966.

He and I both played with other bands from time to time. Band members came and went just like many of my high school buds who I played with at the time. Ultimately I ended up playing lead guitar with Kit when he and I along with Joe Jesmer and Tommy Johnson (I think that is correct last name) formed The Outlaws.
 
I am not positive, but I think our trip to Odessa with our ‘Outlaw’ band was in April 1966 to record the two songs Kit and Joe Jesmer came up with.

The Young Tyrants

The Young Tyrants, Rochester

The Tyrants business cardOne of the leading bands in the Rochester, NY area, the Young Tyrants were Carl Lundquist lead guitar and vocals, Lou Grillo lead vocals, Julio Lora rhythm guitar, Mike Zazzaro bass and Mike Montoya drums. They were heavily influenced by the Young Rascals, even adding “Young” to their band name in imitation, but came up with a sound all their own by the time they recorded their only 45.

The Young Tyrants In 45 I Try!Fine Records Studio owner Vince Jans signed the band after hearing their live show over the phone. In September 1967, they recorded an album’s worth of songs at one session, mostly typical cover versions off the day along with two original songs and a couple instrumentals.

Jans let them release the two originals for their only 45. “I Try” starts off with Carl’s trilling guitar riff taken from the intro to the Buster’s surf classic, “Bust Out”, then turns into a fantastic rocker as the band kicks in. “She Don’t Got The Right” simmers with resentment: “She’s got the right to say/ she don’t want my kind/but she don’t got the right/ to take away my pride.”

The Young Tyrants In 45 She Don't Got the Right!Lou Grillo wrote “I Try”, although there are no credits on the label, while Carl Lundquist wrote “She Don’t Got the Right”. 500 copies were pressed on the In label and sold at their shows, at venues like the New Patriot Club in Hornell. The only radio play it received was on local Rochester station WSAY.

The band broke up in 1968, as Carl and Lou were heading to college. The masters from the Young Tyrant’s recording sessions have been saved, and supposedly include other takes of both sides of the 45 as well as a cover of “I Can Only Give You Everything”. Hopefully someday we’ll hear the whole session.

The primary source for this story is Greg Prevost’s interview with singer Lou Grillo from 1978.