I propose a bet—you had no idea there was a rockstar in our midst here at Concours. (And for those of you that know who’s writing this, I’m not referring to myself!) That rockstar is Dan Kolasinski, our own Mercedes Service Manager and former bass player. Had it not been for the Beatles, most of us probably wouldn’t know Dan personally today.
Okay, so that’s a little over-dramatic, but truth be told, Dan’s band made it pretty darn far…
Back in the late 60s, Dan was in a band called Music Monster with his drummer friend, Brian Pierottie. The band was pretty popular on the south side of Milwaukee; they were basically the go-to band for all of the CYO dances at local schools.
In 1967, they entered a Battle of the Bands contest. They didn’t win, but they managed to come in 5th out of roughly 80 bands! Two days after the contest, they got a call from Eddie Matthies, Sr. He owned a couple of bars and restaurants in town…and he was a producer to boot. He liked what he saw at the battle and wanted Dan and Brian to audition for a band he was creating. He was looking for the best of the best, and the intention was to cut a record and go national.
Dan and Brian made the cut, along with Jim Gorton on rhythm guitar, Dan Delker on lead guitar, and Eddie Matthies, Jr. on the Hammond B3 organ, complete with a Leslie. Most of the guys were in their late teens, while Eddie was only 13! To round off the sound, all of them sang, creating 5-part harmonies on EVERY song. The group was officially called The New Look.
Eddie Matthies, Sr. had established a deal to record in Nashville, so he bought a Greyhound bus with “The New Look” written on the side to take the band and an entire crew down there, as well as brand new, top-of-the-line equipment (speakers, amps, etc.). In the spring of ’68, they recorded an album over their Easter break from school!
They recorded two songs specifically to be sold on 45s. The “A” side was called “East of the Dawn (In the Year of Our Love),” and the “B” side was “What Did You Take Me For?” Both songs were written by professional songwriters, namely Dan Folger and Kathy Childress.
Just before the record was officially released that spring, they opened for The Rascals in Milwaukee. There were 3 opening bands, and The New Look was to be the last one, and their new single was hyped up at the gig. It turns out, too, that The Rascals were running late. They didn’t show up for the rain-soaked practice, and the show was to start around 7pm. As 6pm approached, they were nowhere in sight, and Dan’s band wondered if they might have to play more songs than planned!
But of course, The Rascals showed up, and Felix Cavaliere (keyboards) ran up to Dan, saying he heard he had some really good speakers, and could he use them? Dan said yes on the condition that Felix give him an autograph.
That summer, The New Look played with the Box Tops down in Nashville, and they also played at the very first Summerfest in 1968. At that time, Summerfest was held just north of the War Memorial. The band opened for Andy Kim that year (of “Rock Me Gently” and “Sugar Sugar” fame), and even played as his back-up band!
The New Look’s record made the Top 5 here in Milwaukee and Nashville that June and was starting to climb the charts in the Boston area, where it made the Top 10 that August.
And then the Beatles released “Hey Jude.” Of course, there was no way they would beat them out—if they had, we definitely wouldn’t know Dan at Concours! Shortly afterward, the band slowly broke up. The lead guitarist, Dan Delker, fell in with that underground Led Zeppelin crowd, and no longer wanted to do “bubblegum” Top 40 radio hits. They replaced him with a guitarist named Keith who could play and sing like Jimi Hendrix! But when Brian, the drummer, started to go with the underground crowd, too, Keith went with him.
I’ve personally heard “East of the Dawn (In the Year of Our Love)” and I have to say it’s incredible to hear—not just the song itself, but the quality of the sound and the amazing harmonies. If Dan ever lets you, I recommend taking a listen!
Dan Kolasinski, 1960s rockstar. Who knew?
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