Sunday, July 15, 2012

The Endd - LaPorte - seacape


 The Endd from LaPorte. If any other band had an output as strong as this, they would be a household name in the Indiana 60's band narrative. But sadly, no.
Any info on the Endd is scarce, this is what we do know:
Russ Sanders - writer - publisher of most Seascape run. Deceased for quite a while.

What is speculated:
Russ Sanders - lead singer
Larry Anderson - bass

Not much to go on eh? Look up the address on the label, and you find a home that has been there since the mid '30s. All the Seascape 45's have Sanders involvement, so MAYBE it was his label, at this address.

Seascape discography (known releases):

#500 - So Sad / Emancipation (as the End)
#501 - Project Blue / Out of my Hands
#502 - Black Blues / Feeling (The Zoo from Michigan?)
#503 - Gonna send you back to your mother / Don't it make you feel like cryin'
#504 - Come on into my world / this is really Zoo plus two
#507 - Stop / One Down Seventeen More to Go ( Credited to Phase II Productions)

Where are #505 & #506? Is Phase II Productions a later Endd reincarnation? Why were the Zoo on this label? Any answers, ideas, real or imagined, please help us out!

13 comments:

. said...

i started to do some research into the history of this group when i lived in laporte 6 or 7 years ago. russ sanders, when he grew up, ran a bar on lincolnway in downtown laporte that had, i was told, a pretty "shady" reputation. he disappeared in (IIRC) october 1988, taking a small boat out into lake michigan and he was never seen or heard from again (that i know of). the people i talked to were convinced that he faked his own death and skipped town. his brother still lived in laporte as of 2006. i've got a couple of scans in the archives somewhere, a couple of russ's high school photos and the articles that ran in the herald-argus when his boat disappeared. if you're interested, i can scan the stuff for you. let me know. great band.

. said...

i started to do some research into the history of this group when i lived in laporte 6 or 7 years ago. russ sanders, when he grew up, ran a bar on lincolnway in downtown laporte that had, i was told, a pretty "shady" reputation. he disappeared in (IIRC) october 1988, taking a small boat out into lake michigan and he was never seen or heard from again (that i know of). the people i talked to were convinced that he faked his own death and skipped town. his brother still lived in laporte as of 2006. i've got a couple of scans in the archives somewhere, a couple of russ's high school photos and the articles that ran in the herald-argus when his boat disappeared. if you're interested, i can scan the stuff for you. let me know. great band.

vinylfool said...

Sure I'd like to see them Rob. Just use my e*mail address on this blog.
I had "heard" that some believed he was likely to "still be out there".
Still then, who were the others?

Grapher said...

Hi!
1967 - Gonna Send You Back To Your Mother (320 kbps)
http://tempfile.ru/file/2627963
1967 - Don't It Make You Feel Like Cryin' (320 kbps)
http://tempfile.ru/file/2627964
Come On In To My World (256kbps)
http://tempfile.ru/file/2628056
This Is Really The Zoo Plus Two (320 kbps)
http://tempfile.ru/file/2627966

Anonymous said...

I knew Russ Sanders casually shortly after high school. Kind of a brooding individual as I recall. If he did really fake his death it would have been pretty nasty since he had a 16 year old son at the time. That son, Dylan, passed away last year at age 39. His obit refers to Russ's having passed away in 1988. In a sad irony, Dylan also leaves behind a 16 year old son. The obit can be viewed at 'What's New LaPorte?' online.

sliesch said...

I came across your blog while researching a couple of my singles. Thought you might like to know that "Come On in to My world" b/w "This Is Really the Zoo Plus Two" has SS-504 on the A-side, and SS-505 on the B-side. I have also been told that Phase II Productions was definitely the final Endd single. There was something to do with somebody in the band being sentenced to prison for a long time (hence, the title of the B-side) and possibly the remaining members released it?

Anonymous said...

I bought my 1st car from Russ in 1981 for 300 dollars, he ran a used car lot on Pine Lake Ave. back then. He also ran the Red Rooster bar. (It was a sunny place for shady people.)

vinylfool said...

Great, looks like we may have some pieces to start putting together. This was a really good band, not sure if they played live much, but wonderful 45 output.

Anonymous said...

I took guitar lessons from Russ when i was in high school, at his home, which was the address on Johnson Road noted on the record label. Russ was a few years older than i was. I was closer to another member of the band, who played guitar at church. I'd learned just enough from Russ to join that group. Some of the members of that church group still play music in La Porte.

Dave Lowery of LaPorte did a series of video interviews with members of some of the bands from LP in the 60s and 70s that he's posted to VIMEO. The link below takes you to the session he did with Tom Konieczny, who was another member of the Endd with Russ. Both Dave and Tom can also be reached through Facebook. Here's the link to the interview https://vimeo.com/44379615

ROGER P said...

WOW ? I did a collection of bands from Laporte . and here is the info i have ..from his brother and tom k his bass player . . YES Russ died ,his body was found and a funereal approx 30 days later.one down and 17 more to go was the song about prison to my understanding ..from carl zuwicki who drummed on the record .Carl died about 2 years ago .a talented musician in his own right, played keys in our band,and a nicer guy you would never find ! .THE ZOO PLUS TWO ,is russ and some members from the new buffalo group ''THE ZOO ''.
The phase II production,was a band from laporte WHO recorded under russ's label .their songs seascape ss 507 a is 1 down 17 more to go,and ss 507 b ''STOP'' some members of that band where carl and jim tallerico .. songs where produced and recorded by russ. russ played on 1 down ... the phase two and the end are 2 different bands .jim and russ where friends .
i was also blessed with getting some of russ,last recorded work ..great work with him solo .and still playing songs about his life ...money and pain ..a great one for sure .
the band s members in the early days before the ennd was sanders ,the schot boys .tom and ?, tom konezniey. Tom let me record the record from ..wjob am .who recorded them at FETLAS in valpo .plus the interview of the members ..
THE EARLY END ,CHANGED TO... THE ENDD [2 D S] WAS RUSS ,ROD PALMER ,? CROBACK ,AND CHAPANSKI ...the 3 pcs was RUSS ,TOM AND ROD
DURING THIS PROJECT ,TOM told me some great stories of the band and russ RUSS always was a mover and shaker,he was denied a business license to open a coffee shop ..called the obiss. where all friends and band members helped out building, but was never opened .russ was also a guitar teacher at roxy,among many other things ..this is 1 place that tallerico and sanders had met ?
according to tom k ..their most famous song ''PROJECT BLUE '' was getting a lot of CHICAGO AIR PLAY ..WLS WCFL ,,TILL THE CHICAGO D.J.STRIKE..THEN WHEN IT WAS SETTLED . time has passed and new songs where being played... they did 2 versions .i like em both ..in fact i remember buying my 99 cent copy or copies at roxy where he taught .
In 2013 i was involved with 'the maple city flashback ,and m.c. music review ..a group of people who brought famous laporte bands back to together .our band played project blue in remembrance of russ ..today tom lives in laporte as does choback ,Russ boy hood home is still standing on Johnson road ..chapanski is a judge in Colorado ,and Rod lives in Washington state .
RUSS SANDERS AND THE ENDD . DID IT THEIR WAY .
RUSS was a great guitar player with psychedelic leads ,and blues riffs ,with tom and rod ,backing him up .they where tight, in the pocket, all out awesome band .
You may not believe this,... but according to tom, they where hired by ''dobson'' a band promoter to go on the road as'' the rivieras''' to cover the pending contacts for that band ,when they either broke up ,or left dobson ... TOM remembers playing'' California Sun'' at the beginning and end of each set per riviera set list along with top 10 of the day .BELIEVE IT OR NOT ..
YOU CAN HEAR IT IN A INTERVIEW WITH TOM ON ''MAPLE CITY FLASHBACK'' ,THE ENDD .TOM K ,BY DAVE LOWERY [THANKS DAVE ] IN LAPORTES FAMOUS CIVIC AUDITORIUM ,OR SEARCH DAVE LOWERY VIEMO VIDS .HE STILL MAY HAVE THEM UP ..HOPE THIS FILLS UP SOME MORE VOIDS FROM' 'THE ENDD''

Unknown said...

Wow, I didn't realize The ENDD was still famous after 50 years. I was fortunate enough to have played in the band. I started out as the guitar player behind Russ (on lead) and then when our bass player left for college in the fall of 1967, I played bass, and we were a three piece band. Lots of fun back then. Russ was way ahead of time. For example,he put together a unique light show that we used. Most local bands back then used a color wheel that was designed for an aluminum Christmas tree.

The song "This is really the Zoo Plus Two" is really them (the Zoo, not the Endd). We recorded an A side and since we didn't have anything else, Russ stuck this recording by a band called the Zoo from New Buffalo, MI as the B side.

Going back even farther, I have a recording featuring Russ with our band called the Rogues. We were featured on "Jan's Polka Party" playing "Honey Don't" and "Little Latin Lupe Lu."

Hope all you old guys have a good Christmas!

Anonymous said...

Russ and I went to my high school prom. We were an item for about a year but he broke up with me for another. We then had one date a year or so later but I never heard from him or of him again. Just found our prom picture and started wondering whatever happened to him. So sad to hear about his possible early death. When I knew him he was the sweetest, kindest, most considerate boyfriend. I can’t find anything online about his disappearance.

Unknown said...

I was one of the lucky ones who was taught by Russ I still play mostly in Chicago and also I remember going to a three day concert at goose lake Michigan with rod Palmer and I played at red rooster when Russ ran it I alot of people took Russ wrong about alot of things I think about him every time I play people in LaPorte might know me by my last name Samford or Samford brothers band or the lucifer band