Part Nine: Yellow Submarine
For a few years in the early 2000’s I got to fulfill an adolescent fantasy of mine and sing for a Beatles cover band. Yellow Submarine was the band’s name, and being in the group was a wonderful experience, particularly as the band had two father-daughter teams: Chip Charleston on bass, with daughter Emi on drums, and David Cohen on rhythm guitar, with daughter Gemma on vocals and keys. Lead guitarist Chris Poole was also about the same age as Emi and Gemma, so including me we had three old folks and three young folks (whom we were careful to position in the front of the bandstand).
I’m sure we weren’t the greatest Beatles band in the world, but I think we played and sang with feeling, and we had a great time doing gigs at clubs and fairs around Iowa. Audiences really seemed to like us. We never made any serious attempts at recording the band, but here’s a one-mike-in-front-of-the-stage live sampler:
Yellow Submarine
After Gemma left for college, Chris Poole’s sister Emily took over on vocals for a few gigs, and then when Chris left, Gemma’s brother Jonnie took over on lead guitar. Shortly after that, however, Chip Charleston, the founder and leader of the group, was killed in an auto accident, and that was pretty much the end of the band.
There have been a few thrown-together Yellow Sub gigs with other musicians over the years, and they were fun, but nothing to match the soul of the original Yellow Submarine. I do suspect, however, that some of those original young band members will go on to become famous: keep an eye out for Gemma and Jonnie Cohen, Chris and Emily Poole and Emi Charleston.
I’m sure we weren’t the greatest Beatles band in the world, but I think we played and sang with feeling, and we had a great time doing gigs at clubs and fairs around Iowa. Audiences really seemed to like us. We never made any serious attempts at recording the band, but here’s a one-mike-in-front-of-the-stage live sampler:
Yellow Submarine
After Gemma left for college, Chris Poole’s sister Emily took over on vocals for a few gigs, and then when Chris left, Gemma’s brother Jonnie took over on lead guitar. Shortly after that, however, Chip Charleston, the founder and leader of the group, was killed in an auto accident, and that was pretty much the end of the band.
There have been a few thrown-together Yellow Sub gigs with other musicians over the years, and they were fun, but nothing to match the soul of the original Yellow Submarine. I do suspect, however, that some of those original young band members will go on to become famous: keep an eye out for Gemma and Jonnie Cohen, Chris and Emily Poole and Emi Charleston.
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