Five boys from Texas had a rock and roll band 40 years ago...
They were on the cusp of fame and fortune, only one song away... Then, just when the cosmic tumblers were lining up, they gave up.
What would happen if they had a reunion and there was a little magic in the air? Do dreams have a time limit? Can music transcend space and time? Can the spirit of the 60's make a comeback?
Find out what happens when the new old band that never was... is.
We Were The zOnks!
© 2009 by J. Gale Morrison
© 2009 by J. Gale Morrison
Praise for We Were The zOnks!
“A literary tour de force. Magnificent, enthralling, sophisticated, moving, powerful, verbose, turgid(look it up), third-person omniscient, English!, amateurish, mildly amusing, catty-corner, and unreadable. Ok, can I go now dad?
- Emily Rose
- Emily Rose
“Yes, you can go Emily. Ok Niklaus, your turn!”
- The author
- The author
“People who don’t mind crying for all the wrong reasons will not be disappointed!
-Niklaus Columbus“Great idea! You should give it to a real author!”
-Dennis Helm“Words strung together in such a convincing fashion that the illusion of a story almost magically appears…”
-Pathe Gazette- Butte, Montana“Where do we get a T-shirt!”
- Auto Detailers Monthly Cover Design Matthew Funkhouser We were the zonks! ©J. Gale Morrison Published by Dog Ear PublishingThe zOnks! will hopefully, someday soon invade the public consciousness and then ultimately… your neighborhood multiplex. Is that a tad ambitious? Yeah, probably. But I am a dreamer, just like the band.I am at the tail end of the baby boom, so I missed the 60's. But I, like almost everyone else, can appreciate the explosion of music that occurred in that era. The modern pop song and the classic rock song were both invented in the 60's, and those genres are still flourishing almost half a century later! Almost everything was invented in the 60's. Rap? Try Subterranean Homesick Blues by Dylan. Head banging rock? Remember the Kinks? Heavy Metal? Led Zeppelin. Modern Pop? The Beatles, of course. Hip Hop? Isn't that reggae, pop, and rap mixed together? And all of it happened in a span of about 8 years. My point is this: Something was going on back then, and I'm not sure that anyone has figured it out yet. Maybe they never will...What caused the explosion that still reverberates today? I have kids who listen to The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, etc. I doubt that I could have stomached music from the 20's when I was a kid! There were musical wonders blossoming and being discovered all throughout the 60's... but... what if one... was missed? What if one band got left behind... and what if there was a reason they did?Enjoy your preview of...
We Were The zOnks!
Prologue
What God Hath Wrought
hannahbear815: Wanna play musicology?
pathfinder762: Ok, you first.
hannahbear815: not much of a girlfriend…
pathfinder762: I thought we were playing musicology?
hannahbear815: how would you like a fat lip via knuckle sandwich? Oh, and I ain’t your girlfriend… yet.
pathfinder762: too easy… Breakfast in America… Supertramp
hannahbear815: yep, A-hole
pathfinder762: I laughed. Here’s a harder one… In the darkest depths of Mordor, I met a girl so fair…
hannahbear815: please tell me it was at least in the 70’s
pathfinder762: nope, 60’s… 1969 I believe
hannahbear815: I wasn’t BORN yet you hippy!
pathfinder762: you have heard it, trust me.
hannahbear815: no clue
pathfinder762: Ramble On, Led Zeppelin II, 1969
hannahbear815: really? Hmmmm. I have heard it. Great song, but I don’t remember those words being in there. Are you sure?
pathfinder762: omg.
hannahbear815: How could I not know that? Mordor! I am a huge Tolkien fan!
pathfinder762: yes, how could you NOT know that?
hannahbear815: shut up!
pathfinder762: your turn
hannahbear815: wait.. what does it mean?
pathfinder762: what?
hannahbear815: …. In the darkest depths of Mordor, I met a girl so fair.
pathfinder762: My opinion… is….not sure. Two possibilities I suppose. He met a beautiful girl at a strip club or some such, Mordor representing an actual place of ill-repute in that case. Or, maybe he was depressed and met a beautiful girl with “the darkest depths“ or “Mordor” alluding to his state of mind. But in the context of the song, which celebrates our hero’s desire to “ramble”, it’s doubtful that either possibility was leading to a long term relationship. By the way, the song continues… But Gollum, and the Evil One, crept up and slipped away with her.
hannahbear815: I hope it’s the second, that he was depressed… Maybe Gollum and the Evil One were her mother and father… stepping in and forbidding the relationship because they know our antihero’s intentions are not pure.
pathfinder762: that’s a good insight… The proof that we are discussing a great song? The fact that we could probably continue to try and decipher it for hours.
hannahbear815: Do you think they will ever write songs like that again?
pathfinder762: nope
hannahbear815: wow, you didn’t hesitate… how can you be sure?
pathfinder762: I listen to today’s music… occasionally, I don’t like the odds.
hannahbear815: I keep a candle in the window.
pathfinder762: I don’t … your turn.
hannahbear815: Ok… Leaves are falling, all around- Time, I was on my way.
pathfinder762: ha ha funny… same song.
hannahbear815: tried to trick you… Ok, how about… Ha Ha Funny!
pathfinder762: Is that in a song?
hannahbear815: Yes! It is!
pathfinder762: Thinking…
hannahbear815: I thought I smelled rubber burning!
pathfinder762: Oh… got it. Evil Woman, ELO… Your song!
hannahbear815: Shut up. If I am the Evil Woman you are the Evil One.
pathfinder762: See how it all works out?
hannahbear815: karma I suppose…
pathfinder762: karma karma karma karma karma
hannahbear815: Ouch! You’re right… Don’t even want to admit that I know the answer to that one! See where free-association musicology has led us? Straight into the abyss…
pathfinder762: Abyss: immeasurable space… infinity… or, a situation of apparently unending awfulness. Your abyss is the perfect metaphor for great art. One interpretation is benign, the other… not so much. Mordor: despair, or a strip club where our randy protagonist hits pay-dirt.
hannahbear815: Hmmm, Great art allows for the altering eye… to alter all. William Blake
pathfinder762: That’s not an exact quote! Your candle may still be burning, but the light is dim.
hannahbear815: and fading…
pathfinder762: a mere ember survives…
hannahbear815: I’m sleepy…
pathfinder762: It’s only 3am and she’s allllllll ready gone… Say goodnight Gracie.
pathfinder762: Ok, you first.
hannahbear815: not much of a girlfriend…
pathfinder762: I thought we were playing musicology?
hannahbear815: how would you like a fat lip via knuckle sandwich? Oh, and I ain’t your girlfriend… yet.
pathfinder762: too easy… Breakfast in America… Supertramp
hannahbear815: yep, A-hole
pathfinder762: I laughed. Here’s a harder one… In the darkest depths of Mordor, I met a girl so fair…
hannahbear815: please tell me it was at least in the 70’s
pathfinder762: nope, 60’s… 1969 I believe
hannahbear815: I wasn’t BORN yet you hippy!
pathfinder762: you have heard it, trust me.
hannahbear815: no clue
pathfinder762: Ramble On, Led Zeppelin II, 1969
hannahbear815: really? Hmmmm. I have heard it. Great song, but I don’t remember those words being in there. Are you sure?
pathfinder762: omg.
hannahbear815: How could I not know that? Mordor! I am a huge Tolkien fan!
pathfinder762: yes, how could you NOT know that?
hannahbear815: shut up!
pathfinder762: your turn
hannahbear815: wait.. what does it mean?
pathfinder762: what?
hannahbear815: …. In the darkest depths of Mordor, I met a girl so fair.
pathfinder762: My opinion… is….not sure. Two possibilities I suppose. He met a beautiful girl at a strip club or some such, Mordor representing an actual place of ill-repute in that case. Or, maybe he was depressed and met a beautiful girl with “the darkest depths“ or “Mordor” alluding to his state of mind. But in the context of the song, which celebrates our hero’s desire to “ramble”, it’s doubtful that either possibility was leading to a long term relationship. By the way, the song continues… But Gollum, and the Evil One, crept up and slipped away with her.
hannahbear815: I hope it’s the second, that he was depressed… Maybe Gollum and the Evil One were her mother and father… stepping in and forbidding the relationship because they know our antihero’s intentions are not pure.
pathfinder762: that’s a good insight… The proof that we are discussing a great song? The fact that we could probably continue to try and decipher it for hours.
hannahbear815: Do you think they will ever write songs like that again?
pathfinder762: nope
hannahbear815: wow, you didn’t hesitate… how can you be sure?
pathfinder762: I listen to today’s music… occasionally, I don’t like the odds.
hannahbear815: I keep a candle in the window.
pathfinder762: I don’t … your turn.
hannahbear815: Ok… Leaves are falling, all around- Time, I was on my way.
pathfinder762: ha ha funny… same song.
hannahbear815: tried to trick you… Ok, how about… Ha Ha Funny!
pathfinder762: Is that in a song?
hannahbear815: Yes! It is!
pathfinder762: Thinking…
hannahbear815: I thought I smelled rubber burning!
pathfinder762: Oh… got it. Evil Woman, ELO… Your song!
hannahbear815: Shut up. If I am the Evil Woman you are the Evil One.
pathfinder762: See how it all works out?
hannahbear815: karma I suppose…
pathfinder762: karma karma karma karma karma
hannahbear815: Ouch! You’re right… Don’t even want to admit that I know the answer to that one! See where free-association musicology has led us? Straight into the abyss…
pathfinder762: Abyss: immeasurable space… infinity… or, a situation of apparently unending awfulness. Your abyss is the perfect metaphor for great art. One interpretation is benign, the other… not so much. Mordor: despair, or a strip club where our randy protagonist hits pay-dirt.
hannahbear815: Hmmm, Great art allows for the altering eye… to alter all. William Blake
pathfinder762: That’s not an exact quote! Your candle may still be burning, but the light is dim.
hannahbear815: and fading…
pathfinder762: a mere ember survives…
hannahbear815: I’m sleepy…
pathfinder762: It’s only 3am and she’s allllllll ready gone… Say goodnight Gracie.
The prologue that everyone but me hates is done! Was that so bad?
We Were The zOnks! is mere clicks away.....
Did you read
it yet?
Of Course!
How are we going to fit in that rocket?
we?
