Kevin's Celeb Pics

Yesterday could have been titled a Turtle and a Car. It should have been the Turtles and a Car.

Yesterday afternoon I met Howard Kaylan, the original lead singer of the 60's pop group, The Turtles, before their show at the Alton Argosy Casino in Alton, Illinois. I had a nice chat with Kaylan as he waited for his ride to the venue. We talked a lot about Seattle (his current residence), his pets (like a proud pet owner he showed me photos on his I Phone), and a little bit of music. He also signed a couple of 8 x 10s and posed for this shot.

A few minutes later, the Turtles keyboardist for the evening arrived in the lobby. Greg Hawkes, the original keyboardist and co-founder of the 80's super group The Cars, plays keys in the "East Coast Band" version of the Turtles. His signature style is evident on The Cars hits like Hello Again, Let's Go, Shake It Up, and Just What I Needed. Hawkes signed a Cars Greatest Hits disk that already had the signatures of deceased vocalist Benjamin Orr and guitarist Elliot Easton and happily posed for the photograph above.

Hawkes current fascination is the ukulele. Check this out.

Unfortunately, Mark Volman, the other original member of the Turtles, drove himself to the show from his home in Nashville and wasn't at the hotel. I did manage to get him to sign the 8 x 10s that Howard had signed earlier, but those darn Illinois Gaming Commission laws prohibit photographs on their property, inside and outside. So, a photo with Mark will have to wait until next time.