Paul Revere, the charismatic leader of Paul Revere and the Raiders, died on Saturday at the age of 76. While no official cause of death was announced, Revere had been in poor health and had retired from the band in July.
The Raiders official website posted a lengthy tribute about his love of life and love for his fans.
Revere was already a successful businessman in Caldwell, ID, owning several restaurants, when he started an instrumental combo where he played organ. While picking up buns at a local bakery, he met Mark Lindsey who joined the band, originally called the Downbeats, in 1958.
In 1960, they changed their name to Paul Revere and the Raiders, who scored a minor hit in 1961 with Like, Long Hair (#38). Unfortunately, Revere was drafted and, although he was a conscientious objector, he worked in a hospital for the length of his stint.
Revere and Lindsey reformed the band after the service with a new lineup and, in 1963, were signed to Columbia Records. Their first few records were minor hits but it was 1965’s Just Like Me (#11) that broke them nationally.
They followed with four top ten hits over the next two years; however, a shakeup in the lineup and changing tastes led to a few years of lesser chart action. After the critically acclaimed album Collage flopped, Mark Lindsey began to strike out on his own but returned to help promote the single Indian Reservation which went on to become the band’s only number 1 and their last major hit.
The band continued to record for Columbia through 1975 with little success. Mark Lindsey officially left the band in 1975 and Revere continued on with a somewhat changed lineup. He married his second wife during a show on July 4, 1976 and announced his retirement, but he was back with the group less than two years later.
Revere and the band has continued to tour regularly over the next almost four decades along with, occasionally, releasing new music.
The band plans on continuing to tour as Paul Revere’s Raiders.
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