Swallow

Swallow was a Boston-based 11-piece rock outfit consisting of George Leh (lead vocals), Vern Miller (bass/vocals, formerly of The Remains), Phil Greene (guitar/vocals), Parker Wheeler (harmonica/vocals), David Woodford (tenor sax/flute/vocals), Bob Camacho (organ/vocals), Mario “Mick” Aranda (drums), Kerry Blount (alto sax), Jay DeWald (trumpet), Lenny Witham (trumpet) and Gordon Kennedy (trombone).

While Miller and Leh put the band together based loosely on the concept of the Mike Butterfield-fronted soul/rock outfit The Electric Flag, Swallow, with its super-tight rhythm and blistering five-piece horn sections, was known for its “wall of sound,” musical expertise and vibrant stage shows that focused on blues/R&B-based material, mostly penned by Leh and Miller with Woodford handling horn arrangements. Several band members had graduated from well-known music schools and Berklee College of Music founders Larry and Alma Berk helped Leh and Miller pick the horn section from among Berklee’s best students.

“The Swallow House,” Out of the Nest, Swallow, Lineup changes

The group lived together in a big red house on the corner of Commonwealth Ave and Center Street in Newton for several years where they wrote and rehearsed on a daily basis when not on the road. “The Swallow House,” as it soon became known, buzzed with music and was a hub for local musicians.  It wasn’t unusual for Boston-based musical icons like James Montgomery and Jeff “Skunk” Baxter to drop by well after midnight following a gig and jam until dawn.

The band recorded two albums for Warner Bros., 1972’s Out of the Nest and 1973’s Swallow, the latter of which was produced by Buddie Buie of The Atlanta Rhythm Section and included the Greene-produced single “Yes I’ll Say It”, which reached #17 in the Billboard Hot 100. By the time of the second LP, Charlie Sorrento had replaced Camacho on keyboards, Andy Harp had replaced Witham on trumpet and J.D. Smith had replaced Kennedy on trombone

Opening spots, Disbanding

Between 1969 and 1974, Swallow appeared at colleges and festivals across North America, sharing the stage with major acts such as The J. Geils Band, Sly and the Family Stone, Aerosmith, Joe Cocker, Iggy Pop, The Beach Boys, B.B. King, Linda Ronstadt, Charles Mingus, The Allman Brothers, Janis Joplin, Traffic and The Supremes, among others. After the group disbanded in 1974, several members went on to successful careers as performers, producers, engineers, songwriters, composers and educators. Frontman Leh has been an iconic figure on New England’s blues for the better part of 50 years, appearing regularly across the six-state region.