This is the story of The Bel-Aires, later The Countdowns, then ultimately The Epics, as related by original member Chuck Stenley.
“Inspired by the Beatles like so many at that time, we were three cousins (Jimmy Michael, Chuck Stenley, and Ray Maxwell) that started in the summer of 1964 as a trio vocal group calling ourselves the Bel-Aires because we grew up around Belair Road and Erdman Ave. Our first performance was at the old “Skateland” roller rink in Highlandtown. We were very nervous and probably not so good, but one of our relatives owned the place, so no worries.”
“By late summer we added a 4th member, friend (Tony Zubrowski), and started playing instruments. Ironically one guitar player (Ray) was left-handed like Paul McCartney. We thought that was a sign. At that time we called ourselves “The Countdowns”. We played various small parties, once in Rock State Park and once on the “Lady Baltimore” out of the Inner Harbor. As well as about a million auditions.”
“By early 1965 we added a part time lead singer (Ed Lauer) and changed the name again to “The Epics”. Ed’s Son (Ed Lauer, Jr.) is playing music today in Fells Point. As the Epics we played various Frat parties and a stint on the infamous “Block” at Harry’s Corral. We actually opened for Tommy Vann and the Echoes at one of their gigs in the Steelworkers Hall. We were actually one of the first bands to play at the new teenage night club “The Zoo” which is mentioned in (the) book. What a thrill that was to hear our name mentioned on the radio as one of the featured bands! We spent some time at the Holabird Inn across from Fort Holabird. Another highlight was while playing at the Green Door on Greenmount Avenue we had the pleasure of having Ronnie Dove sing a song with us.”
“We went on a hiatus for a period between 1967 until 1971 while Tony and Ray were in the service during the Vietnam War. We picked back up when they returned.”
“We finally landed a house band gig at Nick’s Musical Bar on Eastern Ave in Highlandtown. Great guy to work for. We were one of the bands on a float (actually a flatbed tractor trailer truck) that played during the dedication of the new “Utz Twardowicz” field in Patterson Park.”
“From Nick’s, we moved on to be the house band at another local bar at Eastern and Mace Avenue in Essex. At that time it was called “The Lighthouse”. Later known as “Troys” and the last I saw it was called “Legends.”
“We stuck around for a time in the ’70s adding some additional family members. Eventually we all kind of moved on. A couple of the original members have passed and some are now living out of state. A couple of years ago the last three remaining original members got together and played some of our old songs. We were at it for over 10 hours straight. Best time ever!”
“As far as members and their participation here is the list I came up with. Like many of the local bands of that era, we brought in a few people from time to time from other bands to fill in or try out to see if they were a good fit. Way too many to list, but here are the most notable members:
The Epics original members:
Jimmy Michael – Drums / Vocals
Chuck Stenley – Lead Guitar / Vocals
Ray Maxwell – Rhythm / Bass / Vocals
Tony Zubrowski – Bass / Rhythm / Vocals
Later Additions:
Ed Lauer, Sr. – Rhythm / Vocals
Gary Zubrowski – Bass
John Stenley – Bass
Diane Stenley – Vocals
Marylyn Petro – Keyboard / Vocals
Ed Berry – Keyboard / Vocals
“Our musical adventure was a great inspiration to all of our families. Ray is still playing his guitar, Tony is a big part of his church’s band. My late brother was also a member of our band and we are working on piecing together some of his original music that we found after he passed. My children spent countless hours listening to 45’s and then scribing the words so we did not have to buy the song sheets and still listen to music all the time. My son had his own High School band using some of our old band equipment and is still playing today. His two girls can play guitar. My grandson is an accomplished pianist and music teacher in one of our local High Schools. Various nieces and nephews also caught the music bug. I could go on, but there is not enough time. I like to think “The Epics” had a small part of all of this. Thank you for putting the Baltimore Sounds book together. It brought back a lot of memories and revived the musician in me.”
Article courtesy of Chuck Stenley – June 10, 2022.
