Obituary: Paul Revere

Musician Paul Revere (his real first and middle names with the surname of "Dick"), 76, has died. Apparently he died from brain cancer. He and Oregon native Mark Lindsay started a band called "Paul Revere & the Raiders," which became an extremely popular act in the 1960s especially with prepubescent youth. Dick Clark heavily promoted the band, which used as a gimmick costumes from the Revolutionary War.

They were so popular they even hosted a show during the decade called Where the Action Is. They also appeared on a similar show called Happening '68. Not many bands were seen as often and by so many as this one was during its heyday.

They were a pretty good group although I always found the costumes a bit of a distraction. I know the group employed a lot of humor in their act, but the costumes made them look like an even less-serious group.

Clip from the show (all that are posted are poor-quality kinescopes). Perhaps someday somebody will release the series on DVD. Revere played keyboards for the group.



Another clip from a different source:

Even this year, at the age of 76, Revere was still performing. The busy band was even booked to headline an oldies cruise in 2015, with an exuberant Revere the center of the poster. This summer, however, the musician admitted to health woes setting in.

"Even though I've had some health issues, nothing can stop the old man. I'm like the Energizer Bunny!" he wrote on Facebook in July. "I jump on my tour bus and go from city to city, packing a trunk full of great Raider songs, tight pants and bad jokes - all against doctor's orders, by the way!"

But the message came with the announcement that he was giving in to the doctors at last, taking a break from the band's tour dates as they went on without him. The group would announce his death on their website on Saturday.