The history of The Progressive Shamanists
The group, the Progressive Shamanists, formed at Lehigh Univesity in December, 1980. Over the course of the Fall semester of 1980, group founder, Rob Kowtko, met fellow group founder, Huw Roberts, at the University Center in September of 1980, as Roberts was playing his acoustic guitar in public in the building. Rob Kowtko was a third year student, a junior, at the time, enrolled in the Engineering College at Lehigh University. Roberts was a first year student, a freshman, enrolled in the Business College. In the brief encounter Kowtko and Roberts discussed meeting to play original material at Kowtko's off campus residence on Third Street in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Kowtko had phone service at his off campus residence. Bell assigned the phone number, 215-866-3274, to the phone service at Kowtko's off campus residence. The last seven keys spelled out the word, UNLEASH. Soon after meeting Kowtko, Roberts introduced the keyboardist to his roommate at the freshman dorm he resided at, Keith Swanson. Swanson reportedly had no experience with a musical instrument prior to attending Lehigh University. However, Swanson quickly picked up the bass guitar. Kowtko recalls that Swanson's bass guitar skill "blew him away", as he played the instrument from the top bunk over the course of one encounter in the dorm room Roberts and Swanson shared.
In September, 1980 Kowtko, Roberts, Swanson and Andy, a bass guitarist, met at Kowtko's residence on Third Street. The group of musicians recorded two songs from the session, including what later was titled, KGB, and Hitchhiker, onto cassette tape. Andy initially named the group of musicians, The Shrooms, at the session in September, 1980.
Later that semester, Roberts and Swanson pledged the Tau Epsilon Phi fraternity. At the fraternity Roberts and Swanson met percussionist, Jim Jordan, and Scott W. Keller. Jordan was a third year student enrolled in the Business College at Lehigh University. Keller was a second year student, who was enrolled in the Arts and Science College. Keller was studying towards a Bachelor of Arts degree in Architecture. Keller was enrolled in the ROTC program for his entire undergraduate tenure.
Although Keller did not own an musical instrument of his own, Keller advertised himself as a vocalist and had some prior experience at singing.
Roberts, Swanson, Jordan and Keller discussed rehearsing in the basement of what was known as the Tau Epsilon Phi Annex located at 216 Warren Square, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The four musicians did not extend an offer to Kowtko to join the group. Jordan, who openly disliked Kowtko, likely objected to any discussion that included Kowtko in the group. Hence, the Shrooms evolved into a defacto, fraternity house band. However, the group retained the name that Andy came up with, The Shrooms, as the name of the group.
Still later that semester, Roberts, Swanson, Jordan and Keller learned that Greg Pichler, who was also a brother at Tau Epsilon Phi, had experience in a high school contemporary group. The group that Pichler performed as a guitarist and vocalist with at Walt Whitman High School, in Bethesda, Maryland, was called The Headlights. Pichler happened to have had access to a public address system that he co-owned with fellow High School group member, Raymund Cuevo.
Pichler was a third year student, in class of 1982, who was enrolled in the Arts and Science College. Pichler was studying towards a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science.
Roberts, Swanson, Jordan, Keller and Pichler began rehearsing in the basement of the property at 216 Warren Square for the purposes of performing in public at a later date.
Over the course of the Spring semester of 1981, the fraternity house band, The Shrooms, performed in public on two occasions. The first occasion was at the Catacombs which was in the basement of Packard Chappel. The second occasion occurred on the lawn adjacent to the fraternity house, located at 227 Warren Square.
However, the fraternity house band, The Shrooms, quickly evolved into a band with a revolving door, changing personnel after the conclusion of each semester. At the end of the Spring semester of 1981, Roberts transfered out of Lehigh University, leaving Pichler as the only guitarist. However, the ensemble continued rehearsing music in advance of a number of live performances.
Keyboardist, Bob Jones pledged Tau Epsilon Phi over the course of the Fall semester of 1981 and joined the group. With Jones, the fraternity house band added diversity in its musical repertoire. Swanson, Jordan, Keller, Pichler and Jones produced the equivalent of one studio album and performed two times at the fraternity house that semester. However, at the conclusion of the semester, Swanson dropped out of Lehigh University, leaving a huge gap in the fraternity house band. On Swanson's failure to return for the Spring semester of 1982 percussionist, Jim Jordan, outright quit the group, citing the practice sessions in the basement of the fraternity annex at 216 Warren Square, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania were loud and disruptive to the neighbors at 214 Waren Square, the Sables. The Sables were at that time frail and elderly. Auspiciously, Jordan did not express the concern over noise through the Fall semester of 1980, nor the Spring semester of 1981 nor the Fall semester of 1981. That left guitarist Greg Pichler, vocalist Scott Keller, who is now deceased, and keyboardist Bob Jones without a requisite complement of musicians to continue.
Group founder and former group member, Rob Kowtko, invited Pichler to form a band, initially called The Phoenix, with first year student and percussionist, Rob Prigge. Prigge had posted an ad at the University Center, seeking to join a group of musicians.
With Kowtko, who owned a Gibson organ, being on keyboard, having Bob Jones as a member of the group, The Phoenix, would have been redundant. So, unfortunately, Bob had no standing in the newly formed band. However, Kowtko and Pichler vigorously sought the services of a bassist. With Swanson gone, Kowtko and Pichler set down a policy that any additional members of the band, including a bassist, would have to have the ability to both sing and play their instrument in real time. The rationale behind that decision was the smaller the band, the better and the easier to organize. As Scott Keller did not play an instrument other than rudimentary guitar, he, too, was left out, leaving only Kowtko and Pichler to carry on with the legacy of The Shrooms.
Kowtko's voice was not particularly his strong point, however, his voice was adequate to cover songs sung by Jim Morrison of the Doors. That left Pichler and Prigge to carry the load at the microphone. Prigge carried the lead vocal for the Kinks medley of songs, You Really Got Me and All Day and All of the Night. Pichler assumed the lead vocal on a number of cover songs, including the Lennon McCartney song, I Saw Her Standing There, and all of his original songs. Kowtko sang lead vocal on all of the songs by the Doors, including Break On Through and When The Music's Over as well as his own original songs.
The group performed a blend of both cover tunes as well as original material. Kowtko had behind him an arsenal of poetry and original music. By that time Pichler had developed a number of original songs, including Twenty-One Years, Hey Lis, The Calamity, Charleen and Ode to Afghanistan. While Kowtko had in his arsenal, Playing It Cool, Fire In The Night, Song From The Double Chamber, and Women Drivers.
However, the group was never successful at recruiting a bassist while attending Lehigh University in 1982, which was Kowtko and Pichler's final year at Lehigh University. To compensate Kowtko played a separate keyboard to carry the bass part.
The sound the group was able to produce worked immediately, or so the group thought, despite not having a bassist and the group went on to record several album's worth of original materials. Later on Saturday, April 23, 1983, the group reconnected with founding member, Keith Swanson, and with the re-addition of Swanson, the group changed the name of the band to The New Shrooms. However, the group later rescinded that decision in honor of the fraternity house band and in 1984 Swanson and Pichler agreed to change the name of the group, again, to The Progressive Shamanists, aligning the name of the group with one of Swanson's songs, entitled Progress and one of David Axelrod's songs, entitled Live Shamanistic Dreams.
Click here to listen to the Tanglewood, PA version of the medley of Kinks' songs, Girl You Really Got Me, All Day and All Night, that the group rehearsed two weeks prior to a scheduled performance at the German House at 212 Warren Square, on Friday, April 2, 1982.
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