The Januarys

Back in the mid- to late-‘60s, I was part of a contemporary folk singing group that formed when I was attending Woodbury College in Los Angeles.

Originally, the group consisted of Ray Ohta (on the right), Donna Dean, and me. We took advantage of a photo studio’s offer of a free sitting and set of proofs, and some wallet-sized prints, and had the above picture taken.

I look pretty geeky, don’t I, with those horn-rimmed glasses. For some reason, the photographer wanted me to sit on a shorter stool than the others. In reality, we were all about the same height. Consequently, I not only look like a geek, I look like a runty geek. Ah well, what do I have to complain about, the picture was free.

Donna played her acoustic guitar and had the voice of an angel; I played piano, tenor ukulele and guitar, and sang the tenor parts; Ray was a baritone and played a Gibson 12-string. Eventually, we added Mike Aldrich to the group – he played the bass fiddle and mandolin.

The Januarys played at parties, weddings, luncheons, and of course at college concerts. We cut a single record – “Lonely Am I,” written by Ray. The flip side was a traditional song, “There Is a Ship.”

Ray’s song hit #10 in Hawaii when his sister and her friends conducted a call-in campaign to the top Honolulu radio station.

Ahhh, the memories.