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1. Name and instrument: Lou Spagnola, Bass, booking agent, ball breaker 2. What do you use for gear? Schecter and Ibanez 5 strings, Fender Precision & Jazz basses (all with Rotosound strings), Gallien-Krueger 400RB, Joe's cabinets with 15" JBL's 3. How did you get started in music? There were a lot of bands around where I lived when I was young, it really inspired me to want to play in a band. So I saved my money and bought a bass, and then shut myself in my room during the Summer of 1983 and learned how to play. 4. What are you most memorable musical experiences? My very first gig, back in 1984. A gig in 1999 that took me through Texas, Atlanta, New Orleans, and Canada was a lot of fun, I never laughed so hard. Meeting John Paul Jones, my favorite bass player and biggest influence, twice in a 4 month span. |
When I first joined the band back in 1997, Dickie told me all about the Eagle 93.7 shows that were coming up, so I figured they'd be great. When I walked onstage and saw 20,000 people, it was incredible, much bigger than I expected (and I damn near had a panic attack). The adrenaline rush was like nothing I ever experienced....you don't hear applause, you hear the crowd roar! 5. What are your least? Not being on the same page with bandmates. Pushy people who demand things of you when they have no right asking in the first place....and they wouldn't do these things themselves. Anyone who calls themself a professional but acts unprofessionally. Musicians that have too high an opinion of themselves, especially ones who remember their 5 minute careers from 20 years ago as being a lot more important than it actually was. 6. What 5 discs could you not go without if stranded on an island? Marvin Gaye-What's Going On, Led Zeppelin-Physical Graffiti, Chicago-VII, Pink Floyd-Wish You Were Here, The Doors-Strange Days. 7. What's in your CD collection that people would never expect? A lot of Easy Listening (Frank Sinatra, The Carpenters), old R & B, and 60's music. 8. What else do you do besides play in Fortune? I keep as busy as possible with things music related....I'm also a member of The Fools. If I practiced bass as much as I went to the driving range, I'd be a lot better! 9. Which guy in the band would you least want to be stuck with for a long ride to a gig, and why? Bob. His eating habits......let's just say I'd have to keep the window open all the way to the gig. 10. What have you learned from all your years as a musician? You eat shit on every level of this business. For every hand you shake, there's another one ready to stab you in the back. There is very little loyalty, and too many people who want to step on you to get themselves a step higher, as well as forget about you as soon as they realize that you can't do anything to help them further their career. |
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1. Name and instrument: Bob Vose, Voice and percussion 2. What do you use for gear? Bottled water and sometimes ear plugs. 3. How did you get started in music? I got started at the 16year oldish stage in a band called MXR with Brian Alex (you may know him from Entrain). |
The very
talented Bill Plourde joined and shortly after we brought Jeremy Heussi in on
Keyboards. I
won't bore you with long list of drummers and bass players we went
through, however some of them are very worth mentioning. Dave Vargas, a great
drummer who is still playing and is very dear friend. Rick O'Neal, a great bass
player
and great person who I enjoyed playing with.
4. What
are you most memorable musical experiences? The Eagle 93.7 shows at City
Hall Plaza were with out a doubt
the highlight of my music career.
5. What are your least? Oddly enough the, one of the same Eagle 93.7 shows, we were supposed to go on before BTO and BTO said "NO opening acts for us"...thanks BTO...I was just glad we didn't have a bunch of friends and family travel a long way to come see us......yyyyyyyyaaa
6. What 5 discs could you not go without if stranded on an island? Boston 1, Queensryche-Operation Mindcrime, Rush-Greatest Hits Volume 1, Eagles-Hotel California, Journey-Captured.
7. What's in your CD collection that people would never expect? Probably Kenny Loggins
8. What else do you do besides play in Fortune? I have a wife and two children, Cameron (boy) and Sydney (Girl). I work as an account executive for an independent medical record review company.
9. Which guy in the band would you least want to be stuck with for a long ride to a gig, and why? I would have to say Bill.....only because I have crush on him and he doesn't know it after all these years, and I think that the tension would be just too much to take.
10. What
have you learned from all your years as a musician? I have learned that
you don't have to necessarily be
talented to make it in this business.....although it certainly helps. Music trends are dictated by what is driven into
your
head by the tired radio. I think that people have lost the ability to decipher
what is good....well written music and what is thrown together noise that is following the en vogue trends. Just compare what was written back in the
seventies to some
of the garbage you hear today. Don't get me wrong-some of it is good. However, the good bands are recycled through by
the record
companies and they end up having very short careers as opposed to the great
groups of the past decades...then again that is just the opinion of a bitter
guy who never made it....so take it for what its worth.
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1. Name and instrument: Pete DiStefano, Guitar & Vocals 2. What do you use for gear? 2 Custom Chunky Amp Heads, Early 70's Fender Twin, Marshall JCM 800 Head, Marshall 4x12" & Custom 1-12" Cabinets, Parker Fly Guitar, Ernie Ball Musicman Silloutte Special, Gibson Les Paul [Various Other Guitars]; Boss Me-30 Multi Effect, MXR Micro Amp, Cry Baby Wah, Jim Dunlop Roto-Vibe, Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer 3. How did you get started in music? Exposed To music early by way of a Musical Family! Started Formal Lessons @ Age 13 and studied with many private instructors throughout Jr & Sr High School. Started First Original band in "84" with Bob Vose on Vocals. 4. What are you most memorable musical experiences? Playing gigs with high energy and a tremendous reaction from crowd! Most noteably opening for many national acts at City Hall Plaza in Boston and getting standing ovations as an opening act! Also playing with "Beatlejuice" in old historic theaters where the acoustics and vibe were just made for |
music and everything felt perfectly right! 5. What are your least? We have all had them (Hell Gigs)...the band is off, the crowd is lame, someone in the band is bitchy (including yourself)! Un-rehearsed last minute shows or just plain "Bad sounding rooms" where you wish you were somewhere else doing anything but playing the gig! 6. What 5 discs could you not go without if stranded on an island? Robben Ford-Talk to your Daughter, Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon, Eagles- Greatest Hits 1& 2, Steely Dan-The Royal Scam, Jimi Hendrix-Axis Bold as Love 7. What's in your CD collection that people would never expect? John Coltrane; Harry Connick Jr; Tower of Power; Prince 8. What else do you do besides play in Fortune? Practice Guitar; Mow the Lawn; Clean the pool; Paint & Fix things around the house; Play with my Kids & Walk the dogs - isn't that enough? There is more but I won't bore you with it: Oh yeah! I have done many gigs with Beatlejuice; Brian Maes & other fabulous, talented friends and musicians! 9. Which guy in the band would you least want to be stuck with for a long ride to a gig, and why? Sorry, but Dickie! No reason other than one time many years ago he was driving home and got pulled over and arrested and kept me out all night! He also liked to play Kenny Loggins "Return to Pooh Corner" on a long ride! It's a great album but you might as well take a sleeping pill and bring a pillow with you! 10. What have you learned from all your years as a musician? Music is great and rewarding at times and and can be a struggle at others. If you stay focused and stick with it it will always be a great experience no matter what level you are playing at...I've learned that if you play from your heart and just feel it out you can't go wrong and will enjoy the yourself! |
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1. Name and instrument: Dickie Paris Jr, Drums 2. What do you use for gear? Tama Starclassic drums and Sabian AA cymbals. 3. How did you get started in music? I got started in music by listening to my father sing and watching his shows, he was in the 70's show band Mac's Mob. 4. What are you most memorable musical experiences? My most memorable musical experiences were playing the Eagle 93.7 shows. 5. What are your least? Playing shows when the crowd is not into it. 6. What 5 discs could you not go without if stranded on an island? Queensryche-Mindcrime, Toto-Mindfields, Simon Phillips-Another Lifetime, Tangerine Dream-Legend, The Yes box set. |
7. What's in your CD collection that people would never expect? Riverdance. 8. What else do you do besides play in Fortune? I spend time with my wife Karen (hunny bunny) and my son Andrew and daughter Emily. 9. Which guy in the band would you least want to be stuck with for a long ride to a gig, and why? Iwould have to say Bob, because when he hears a great song on the radio he punches me in the arm.and it hurt's. [ouch]! 10. What have you learned from all your years as a musician? I've learned to never expect anything from this buisness. I have become a better drummer because of the caliber of musicians I am lucky enough to play with, and I have also learned that there is nothing like making music with your friends and doing a show where it all comes together. |
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1. Name and instrument: Jeremy Heussi-Keyboards 2. What do you use for gear? Roland RD700 for most of the material. Ensoniq ZR76 for retro fits. 3. How did you get started in music? My mother kept a piano in the house. I banged on it till I could make some sense out of it. My first favorite album was Alice Cooper's Go To Hell. At 7 year's old I knew it was cool to be in a rock band. 4. What are you most memorable musical experiences? City Hall Plaza Boston. Those gigs were quite validating. 5. What are your least? A long time ago Fortune did some dates in PA. Yep, I can't find the cells in my brain to recall them. |
6. What 5 discs could you not go without if stranded on an island? I. Pink Floyd, The Wall 7. What's in your CD collection that people would never expect? Mazzy Star 8. What else do you do besides play in Fortune? I own and operate a company called Paint Pro, Inc.. I enjoy 9. Which guy in the band would you least want to be stuck with for a long ride to a gig, and why? Is this for "Tiger Beat" magazine?? 10. What have you learned from all your years as a musician? You make a lot of friends when you are in a rock band. Also, you evolve tremendously as a musician when you work with world class musicians. Finally, there is no greater sadness than wasted talent. |
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1. Name and instrument: Bill Plourde-Guitar, Vocals and late arrival 2. What do you use for gear? Chunky 50 watt head with a custom made 1x12 speaker cabinet or sometimes Marshall 2x12 cabs. Marshall JCM 50 watt combos at home. Mostly I use Parker guitars live because of the instant acoustic/electric switching. A Gibson Les Paul that should be seen at more shows than it is. Ernie Ball Musicman Silhouette Special, Paul Reed Smith and various custom made guitars I have had built over the years. Taylor and Ovation acoustic guitars. I'm also looking for a half size Leslie cabinet if you know anybody that has one.......Brian!! 3. How did you get started in music? I have always been a music lover. At a very young age(2 or 3) I was exposed to 8-track cassettes (Cream, Grand Funk, James Taylor etc..). There is also a history of music in my family from my mother and grandmother playing piano and organ to my great grandfather who was a self taught violin player. |
My brother Rick is a bass player that has played with Fortune at various times. He definitely had an influence on me. I always wanted a bass or guitar from a young age and finally took up guitar at around 13. I met Pete through a bass player I was playing with and Pete had already played with Bob. Started writing original tunes with Pete in my bedroom at my parents house in February 86 while Bob was at college. Bob came home and we formed "The Big Three". 4. What are you most memorable musical experiences? All of the gigs we did for Eagle 93 at Boston City Hall Plaza. What an incredible and memorable experience to be able to play for crowds of that size and with other bands that you grew up listening to and loved. The Hampton Beach Casino shows weren't too shabby either. 5. What are your least? Playing songs that I don't like or am embarrassed to have played. Luckily this has happened very few times. Also having the band completely ruin a song that we have played a million times. 6. What 5 discs could you not go without if stranded on an island? Led Zeppelin II, The Beatles-Abbey Road, 9. Which guy in the band would you least want to be stuck with for a long ride to a gig, and why? Anyone who doesn't want to listen to Zeppelin - That means everybody but Lou, and maybe Dick (I knew he'd come around sooner or later!). 10. What have you learned from all your years as a musician? I have learned two things over the years being a musician: |
The Storyline
| Now for the real dirt, the history, the story behind the story......You want to know how this band started, where it all began, and who it began with? Why they had more bass players than Spinal Tap had drummers? More comebacks than Muhammad Ali? Why their road crew is more famous than they are? OK, all seriousness aside here. This is one of the most talented bands the area has ever seen....And the story is, well, entertaining! Once upon a time, back in 1985 when horses and carriages rolled along the cobblestone streets of Downtown Peabody, Bob Vose and Pete DiStefano started Prowler with guitarist Bill Plourde, bass player Mike Fee and drummer Mark Bistany. |
| They were mainly a cover band, and played until Bob went off to college. Sometime around February of 1986, phase 2 of Prowler began, with Kevin Belanger on bass and Bob commuting from college on weekends. When the decision came to add Keyboards, Jeremy Heussi came aboard. In 1988, the departing Mark Bistany was replaced by Dave Vargas. Shortly after, they were off on a Summer-Fall Winnebago tour that took them from Boston to Baltimore, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Texas, Arizona (sans the Winnebago, which blew up in Texas), California (where they showcased at SIR Studio for Fred Davis and Robert Ace), back to Arizona, then to Texas again for the winnebago (which wasn't supposed to leave MA, and was a pile of black dust when they got back to it), and then home. |
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In 1989, Kevin Belanger was replaced by Mike Finnegan mainly because Dave Vargas wanted him in the band, and then Dave ended up flying the coop (figuritively, and otherwise). While auditioning drummers, some attempted to come as package deals, bringing bass players with them....which leads us to the ill fated audition of one drummer, who brought his bass player with him.......that's when Mike Finnegan |
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| showed up to pick up his skis, and ended up taking them, along with all his equipment, as he left in disgust. Ironically, one of the drummers auditioned lived next door to Bass player Lou Spagnola, who was doing weddings and functions in bad suits at the time. One of the package auditions yielded Bass player George Roelke, and after many more auditions, Drummer Bill Ferraro rounded out the new lineup. Not too long after, Ferraro left to pursue other tastes and George went his own way, later moving to California (where he worked for Hustler's Larry Flynt). In February of 1991, a coworker of Bill Plourde's suggested auditioning his cousin, Drummer Dickie Paris. After waiting for Dick to set up what looked like a 47 piece drum set with a full cage |
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| and 26 cymbals ("This kid BETTER be good", remarked Bob to Pete while they walked to the store during the assemblement of the drums), Dick aced the audition and was in. |
| While working Dickie into the set, a bass player who rehearsed down the hall, Kevin Brooks, was asked to jam and subsequently joined. This lineup set out to record its debut release, the self titled "Fortune" (which would ultimately be finished and released in 1993). From 1991 to 1995, Fortune dominated the North Shore and basically anywhere they played, with a massive following in tow. Packed shows at the Rockpile, Ovations (later Classics), Club 114, the Paradise, the Ocean's Beat, and the Hampton Beach Casino validated the fact that this was undoubtedly one of the area's top bands. An acoustic side project was also started by Bob, Pete, and Bill, called Serenade, and that packed people into Classics every Thursday. The engine was clicking on all cylinders, and life was good! |
| But with this being the world of Rock and Roll, something always has to go wrong. It's in the script. The first sign of trouble came when Serenade became a 6 member electric project, which meant electric versions of songs like Thunder Island instead of Queensryche. People were wondering aloud, "Serenade? I thought they were called Fortune??". More on that later.... Sometime in 1995, during the long process of recording their second CD "Storyline", an irreparable personal rift developed, and Kevin Brooks left, never to be heard from again. With Brooks gone, and gig at Classics coming that Thursday, fate intervened when Bass Player Phil Bynoe happened to be in the audience. After paying someone $20 to rent their bass for the night (it just happened to be in their car), Phil sat in, and ultimately bridged the gap until a new bass player could be found. Enter Rick O'Neal, late of the Ben Orr band. |
| During Rick's tenure, they were hired to play the 1st Anniversary party for Eagle 93.7, which led to them being hired as the opener for Eagle's 1996 Summer Concert Series at Boston's City Hall Plaza. While the highlight was opening for Cheap Trick and America in front of over 20,000 people, the low point came when BTO refused to allow an opener at the last minute (rumor has it that they were afraid a 6-man band like Fortune would take away from their supply of food at the buffet table....). Shortly after, with Rick wanting more gigs, he decided to leave the band. At this point, Jeremy Heussi realized that he couldn't possibly bear the thought of playing Boz Skaggs' "Lido Shuffle" even one more time, and not only left the band, but the business as well, selling all his equipment to incoming keyboardist/sound man Bryan Petrocchia, who joined immediately. Bill's brother Rick Plourde took over as the interim bass player, and Jeremy retired to life as a painter (where he reportedly once fell from a ladder when Lido Shuffle came on the radio). |
| Somewhere in Revere in January of 1997, Bass player Lou Spagnola was hired by the band Graphite to record (More irony-Graphite's former drummer was Dickie Paris.....it's a very small world indeed!!). Not happy with their choice of a drummer for the session (Lou demanded they hire "someone who knows where the 1 is without using a flashlight"), they instead hired former Fortune drummer Dave Vargas, who was now playing with Brian Maes, and was living next door to Pete DiStefano. The rehearsals and recording went well, and Lou and Dave stayed in touch. In February, Dave called Lou and asked, "Are you playing with anyone?" Lou had just ended a stint with Angel's Frank DiMino (it'a rumored that Lou missed out on the Angel reformation tour when he cut his hair....), and his cover band had just bitten the dust as well. He remarked, "Yeah, myself...I have my thumb up my ass, why?" "How'd you like to join Fortune?" Lou's first thought was how great they sounded when he practiced down the hall from them a few years back, and dove right in. The new lineup debuted at the AOH on March 14th, 1997, and shortly after played at Boston's Hatch Shell. A return engagement at Eagle 93.7's Summer Concert Series was on tap for 1997, opening for Dave Mason, Kansas, Orleans, Ben Orr, Blood, Sweat & Tears, and America. While all the shows had crowds of gigantic proportions, Lou and Bill needed a police escort to get through the massive crowd to their cars after the America show! This was the beginning of the "revolving keyboard player era" that saw Bryan Petrocchia leave after the Dave Mason gig, with Jeremy Heussi coming back for a handful of shows before leaving again. While Pete was filling in as Beatlejuice's guitar tech, he met keyboard player Steve Baker, who told Pete he'd be interested in doing some gigs. |
| While Steve stepped right in and kicked ass (due to the fact that he's one hell of an incredible player), the band was definitely losing steam. The gig schedule was basically once a month at the Town Line, and some people weren't afraid to suggest that the song list left a lot to be desired...(One guy came up to Lou and said, "What the hell happened to you guys?? I used to see the band at the Rockpile, playing Queensryche and originals and basically killing the place! What's with the Doobie Brothers?? You sound like you had your balls ripped off!! You guys suck!!"). And he was being nice about it....The set list did suck. In January of 1998, Bob developed an inner ear problem that forced the band to the sidelines indefinitely. Lou and |
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Bill started a classic rock band called Tangerine to kill some time, while Pete, Dickie, and Lou all filled in with the Brian Maes band. When Eagle 93.7 called about their 1998 Summer Concert Series, they decided to have a Harbor Cruise to kickoff the big event, with Fortune playing. One warmup gig was all the warmups they got before jumping into the cruise, and gigs with John Cafferty, The Guess Who, and Jefferson Starship (a gig with Loverboy was rained out) followed that summer. But all was not really well. The apathy that started creeping in at Serenade gigs (and worsened in the ensuing years) was now at an unbearable level. After a few fall gigs, Pete decided he'd had enough of the lack of focus within the band and made the call to stick a fork in it, with the last show coming in December of 1998. This was a good time for reflection. When you're a band dominating the North Shore like Fortune did in the early 90's, and major record labels are looking at you, it's a matter of when, not if, you're going places. When you're down to one gig a month and you're not enjoying yourself, it's very easy to wonder where it all went wrong and what might have been. By the Summer of 1999, Bill informed everyone that the band needed to pay corporation fees and taxes, and unless everyone wanted to dig into their pockets, gigs would have to be played. And to show you how many people out there find this site, we recently heard fromformer bass player George Roelke. He was glad to hear that Fortune is still playing, and he sent along this picture from the early 90's, from the old JR's Fast Lane:
George Roelke lives in LA and plays with the Greg Leon Invasion.
Kevin Brooks, recently back from a stay in Florida, catching up with George and Louie.
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Live at Narcissus-1989 
Boston's City Hall Plaza, June 20th, 1998 
