December's Children - December's Children (180 Gr. Vinyl Rip) 1969

December's Children were one of Cleveland's most popular bands of the 1960s. Founding member Ron Papaleo generously provides this first hand account of the band:
"The original lineup was myself on drums, Bill Petti (who is also my cousin) on bass, Craig Balzer on guitar, and TWO female vocalists, Alice Popovich and Janet Belpulsi. Craig and Bill started the band. They brought me in next and shortly after we added the girls. All of this happened in the fall of 1965. We played our first gigs in December of that year (hence the name) while I was still a junior in high school, and by 1966 we were going pretty strong. Under this lineup, we were the first band to play at the E. 24th street Agora (in July of 1967), we came in third place in the battle of the bands the year Tiffany Shade won it, and we toured throughout the midwest, going on a 5 month road trip in early 1968 that included stops in Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Michigan. As for clubs, we played at the Plato, The Agora,(both the one on Cornell and the one downtown) The Ramp, Socrates Cave, Otto's Grotto, Chesterland Hullaboo, Mentor Hullaboo, Cyrus Erie West, Admiral Bimbos, Pickle Bills in the Flats, The Inn Spot in Mayfield Hts., Nagles (a very popular neighborhood bar in Cleveland Hts.) 8 Miles High (the old Heidleburg Lounge on W. 25th Street), The Akron Agora, and a whole bunch neighborhood bars that are long closed and forgotten. I guess my favorite was Otto's Grotto. It was a happening place in the summer of 1967. Monday was reserved for local bands and we played our fair share that summer. I was just out of high school and it was all so new and exciting. Of course I also enjoyed playing at the Plato and the Agora, and we played so much at Nagle's for a while that it seemed like a second home to us. The December's Children of this era was basically a Motown Band, with everyone but me handling vocals. Our 4 part harmony was really our signature back then. Janet left the group to pursue marriage and a career as a hairdresser in late 1968 or early 1969(I'm not exactly sure of when). She was replaced by Craig Balzer's brother, Bruce Balzer. Under this lineup, we achieved our greatest success. It was during this time that we became more of a hard rock band, playing songs by the Allman Brothers, King Crimson, The Rolling Stones, Neil Young, etc. etc. It was also during this time that we made the album for Mainstream Records. As you note, the album has been described as "west coast psychedelic", but we never thought of ourselves that way. We were a rock and roll band. The psychedelic stuff was invented by the record company. The album cover they created makes it obvious.

01.Trilogy 4:50
   a)2.30 Casino
   b)In Between A Dream
   c)Lady Of The Garden
02.Sweet Talkin' Woman 2:55
03.Jane's Song (The Slow One) 2:12
04.Hide The Water 2:25
05.Afternoon 3:00
06.Slow It Down 2:24
07.Too Early To Be Late 4:15
08.Last Monday Night 2:40
09.Back Road Rider 2:30
10.Livin (Way Too Fast) 3:40

December's Children :
Bruce Balzer - guitar
Craig Balzer - guitar, keyboards, vocals
Ron Papaled - drums, percussion
Bill Petti - bass, vocals
Alice Popovic - vocals
 
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