Thoughts on BoHammer

While putting this package together, I learned of the passing of Jim “BoHammer” Kelly, the drummer on the Ricochet Project. He died in November 2005. He’s probably the only person who had played in more bands with TC than I had. I have no idea how long the two knew each other, but there was a mutual respect and admiration between them. As a drummer, Jim’s style fit neatly between those of Led Zeppelin’s John Bonham and The Who’s Keith Moon. He was a heavy-handed wild man with a heart of gold, and he will be missed.

Rick Clogston, Jim "BoHammer" Kelly, and TC Sweeney

Link to Pan

Hi. Some of you found this blog because of a link that was placed on "The Ricochet Project" CD. If so, it also has a link to my personal blog. But, if you came here through other means, then you might not know about my blog, "Peter Pan's Lemonade Stand."

http://panstand.blogspot.com/

From here, you can read about my CD, "Rough Edges," along with some other writings of mine. Hope you enjoy it.

TC's Obit

T. C. Sweeney passed away on January 4, 2002. This was the obituary that I sent out to The Flexibles’ email list the next week.

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Hello.

This is Rick Clogston, guitarist/singer of The Flexibles, with some sad news. T. C. Sweeney, the group's bassist, has passed away. He was 46 years old. It is reported that he died of a massive coronary, and he had been ill for several weeks before his passing.

T. C. was a veteran of many bands in New Hampshire over the last thirty years. He was a songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who was comfortable in a variety of styles.

His funeral will be held at Mayhew's Funeral Home on Langdon St. in Plymouth, NH, on Friday, Jan. 11, at 2 pm. Afterwards, his friends are invited to the Bridgewater Inn on Route 3A in Bridgewater for snacks and beverages.

As for the band, it's future is currently undecided.

The Secret Life of the Flexibles

This is an email I sent out to advertise the only performance in which TC’s last band, The Flexibles, played the band’s originals. The original concept that he and I had for the band was that it would be, in fact, two bands; one, a cover band whose purpose was to make the money necessary to buy equipment; the other, an all-originals band.

Bill and TC decided they wanted to use a name that I had wanted to use for just such a band for a long time; SDG. The name comes from J. S. Bach, who used to inscribe the beginning of each new work with the initials JJ, standing for Jesu Juva, Latin for “Jesus, help me.” At the end, he would write SDG; Soli Deo Gloria, Latin for “To God alone be the glory.”

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----- Original Message ----- From: Rick Clogston Sent: Monday, May 07, 2001 6:03 AM Subject: The secret life of The Flexibles

Hello.

If you know The Flexibles (and if you're receiving this email, you do) then you know us as a classic rock cover band. But, many of you have been asking if we write our own material. Well, . . . some of you have been asking. Awright, NONE of you have been asking, but we do anyway.

Here's where we come to today's installment of The Flexibles Mystery Theater, entitled "The Secret Life of The Flexibles." Bassist T. C. Sweeney has been writing songs for, oh, a couple of decades and tried to coax other bands into taking his originals into the studio. Finally, out of frustration and between bands, he convinced guitarist/singer Rick Clogston into helping him out.
Along with drummer Jim "BoHammer" Kelly they went into BCM Studios in Claremont, NH and recorded "The Ricochet Project," an oft-ignored and rarely-sought-after semi-demo of original Sweeney-isms.

Rick had been writing for quite a while himself, mostly with the band Tribute. When Sweeney and Clogston reunited last year to form The Flexibles, it was with the understanding that one day, when no one expected it, they would continue with the original-music project they had planned to do so many, uh, uh, weeks and months ago. (Hey, c'mon, we're not THAT old!)

Well, that day will be May 18. The place will be Drifters, an all-ages non-alcohol club located at 17 Factory St. in Nashua, NH. You can get directions and any other information you need by calling them at 603-226-2556. Oh, by the way, we won't be The Flexibles that night. This band-within-a-band (which still includes super-drummer Bill Joyner) will be appearing under the name SDG. (Anyone able to correctly discern what the initials stand for will win a donut.)

And, if you can't make the Drifters gig, or you prefer us as a cover band, you owe it to yourself to come to Jeremiah's in Lakeport, across the street from Dan Fitzgerald Dodge on the weekend of May 25 and 26. Jeremiah's is a very nice club with great atmosphere. Heck, I might even go there if we weren't playing. Hope to see you then.