Feeling The M’Pax – Lexington’s Unsung Garage Rockers

The tale of the M’pax should have been far easier to tell, but like many artists on my research “wish list” the wanting and knowing were separated by a great deal of time. I found this record around 1995 or so and practically wore out an already beat copy and then wore out the pavement in search of them to no avail – until now. As we approach the 50th anniversary of the record’s release, give these boys two minutes of your time for a virtual spin and a little bit longer for a read.

As always, any errors below will hopefully be corrected in future and can be blamed on any number of things but most likely due to my misunderstanding, bad handwriting, and/or a failed memory. Ladies and gents – the M’pax!  [2019 Shawn Chambers / Lexingtunes]

A mail-order guitar. Some friends. A garage. These are typical ingredients in the all-too-familiar recipe for mid 60s DIY rock ‘n roll. From small towns to big cities, there were thousands of teens emulating the sounds of the British Invasion as well as the homegrown heroes blasting through the earpiece of tightly clutched transistor radios. Lexington was no exception.

In 1965, Mike Bishop (vocals) and Bill Dixon (drums) formed the idea and coined the name for a band. For Bishop at least, music was buried somewhere in his DNA as his grandfather was part of the Cracker Barrel Gang who regularly appeared on a WKLX radio program as well as area dances in the late 1940s and early 1950s. They quickly recruited fellow Tates Creek HS pal Hugo Hempel to join on bass. With the rhythm section established, two guitar slingers from Bryan Station – Mike McKinney (rhythm) and Larry Childers (lead) were added. The ‘Mpax were born!

The story of the original lineup flows about as expected. Days of practice led to playing at many school sock hops (ironically Bishop recalls only Bryan Station being the exception – not a welcome homecoming to be had for Childers and McKinney at the time apparently). In 1966, Bishop reports the ‘Mpax winning a citywide Battle of the Bands, which led to a handful more contracted local gigs. The material was generally hits du jour, but Childers and McKinney had at least a couple of original instrumentals that could be worked into the set as well.

By the end of 1968 the first lineup of the ‘Mpax was over. Graduation for some meant facing the uncertain future as it pertained to Vietnam. The draft lottery was still ahead, but certainly plenty of men had been drafted already. At a minimum, by 1969 Childers was a Marine and Bishop was married and in the Army Reserves. Like scores of other bands broken up by Vietnam the tale could end here, but Larry Childers refused to quit. New blood was needed and new blood he found.

The M’pax was my first REAL band. We sure thought we could make it. – Lee Gabbard

Allen Lee Gabbard took to guitar the Christmas before his sixteenth birthday when a Sears Silvertone appeared under the Xmas tree. The 1967 New Year rang in with Lee eagerly learning chords as quickly as possible and during the next couple of years he became proficient enough to play with some local pickup groups. One night during his senior year of high school, Lee was approached at a party by Childers and offered the job of lead guitarist in the ‘Mpax redux. Gabbard conveniently had a bass playing buddy (Steve Monbeck) who was quickly added to the new group. The drummer? Childers was able to coax Bill Dixon out of his very short retirement from the original group.

The change with the M’pax was more than just an apostrophe shift to the right. The shift was to professionalism and making it as a band. Minor changes like adding a manager and printing business cards were important, but the greatest change was a new found emphasis on writing original material with the goal of cutting a record. A writing partnership developed with Childers providing lyrics and occasional melody with Gabbard molding the final musical form. In 1970, the M’pax were studio ready.

The Lemco studio would seem to have been a better fit musically than Jimmy Price’s Sun-Ray, but the M’pax manager was kin to Price and convinced the band to session there. The two original cuts “Mistakes” and “Can’t Bear the Thought” were the only ones laid down that first foray and a 45 was released a short time later on the label.

“Mistakes” is a local gem. The intro sounds as if it could have been spliced from an early Stones “Paint it Black” demo tape, but the rapid fire soon gives way to Childers’ lyrical trip:

Mistakes
I’ve made enough mistakes – to last anyone a lifetime
I once was organized but now I’ve blown my mind
What else can I do to get on back to you?

At the halfway point a casual handoff of “alright, Lee” unleashes an immediate response from Gabbard’s Fender Jaguar, which sends the listener on a ten-second wah wah fueled thrill ride. The sonic rodeo gives way to another verse and Childers’ final cries of “Mistakes…MISTAKES… Mistakes…MISTAKES”. Two minutes of garage greatness.

At the tender age of 22, Childers was already on his second marriage and his unlucky-in-love lyrics are present on both cuts. The B-side offers a heartfelt, wavering delivery of anything but conventional lost love phrasing:

Your lips are moving in a very strange way
I know I will lose you – please say you’ll stay
Your hair is blowing for someone new
I can’t bear the thought of losing you

A simple guitar line and drum punctuation from Dixon offer a stark contrast to the A-side rocker.

Distribution was almost non-existent. Each band member received a box of 25 records with the manager mostly responsible for the rest. A best guess on pressing quantity is 300-500. The band hawked the 45 at shows, but proper store distribution was little to none. Local radio at the time was already leaning corporate, but the boys did enjoy hearing the song beam from the WVLK booth atop Lexington’s Phoenix Hotel courtesy of legendary local DJ Arty Kay.

The M’pax dusted off this early setback and within a few months were once more in the cozy confines of Sun-Ray’s studio. Again the output was two original singles with at least one finding Gabbard shifting to keys. For reasons not entirely clear at this late date, Jimmy Price was owed money and refused to hand over the masters until paid. The slated single was never released. These songs and titles are lost to Lexington’s musical past, unfortunately.

Beyond the studio, the M’pax were tuning up the wedding bells. Steve’s gal Ella had a best friend named Shelia who often accompanied her to band practice. Larry and Shelia fell for each other and the four friends tied the knots to their respective partners in June 1971. Larry’s “mistakes” were over as he enjoyed 40 years of marriage, which ended only with his death.

The positive vibes from romance did nothing to spur the band’s forward trajectory, however. Live appearances continued locally with the majority being school dances. Larry did manage to finally land a Bryan Station High School gig by playing the Junior Prom, but nothing really broke to open the band to a wider audience.

Further issues arose when due to the aforementioned Vietnam draft concerns both Gabbard and Monbeck opted to enlist in the Air Force in 1971. Despite passing a local physical, Gabbard was deemed unfit following a more rigorous mandatory exam and was honorably discharged within a month. Monbeck adjusted to life with a short haircut.

With the loss of Monbeck, Larry dug into his musician Rolodex and quickly rounded up a replacement bass player known only enigmatically at this time by his first name of Pontius. The band continued with this new bassist for a while longer before finally bringing the curtain down on the M’pax. For Childers and Gabbard, however, it would not be the end of their musical partnership.

Larry and Lee decided to regroup and rebrand and ultimately reformed into a southern rock style band dubbed appropriately Rebel Yell. For several years the group operated as the house band at the Flamingo Club and played many venues in the area. This loose-knit group would ultimately have dozens of members throughout the years with even Gabbard leaving and then returning years later. Larry fronted the group and resumed a mix of lead and rhythm duties and handled the vocals. The band survived until roughly 2001 when Larry called it a day.

Larry Childers passed away in December 2011 at age 63. Many central Kentuckians remember him from both his music and the 30 years he spent working at Powell Optical and Jessamine Optical.

Lee Gabbard had another day on vinyl in 1983 with the release of a live album from his time with the band Uncle Lijah as a keyboard player. Inspired by Black Oak Arkansas and sporting Confederate uniforms on the cover, this 12 song LP had four original cuts but consisted mostly of covers ranging from CCR’s “Green River” to a then chart topper John Anderson’s “Swingin” (dubbed “Swangin” on jacket).

Gabbard spent many years as a professional musician and worked with dozens and dozens of local artists. Just a few of the people he has played with in more recent years include Terry McDonough, Skyjack Miller, Mike Archer, and Kent Gaitskill. Lee has slowed his live appearances, but can still be found here and there, every now and then either strapped to a guitar or behind a keyboard. [Update – Lee passed away Oct 25, 2023 – Shawn]

Steve Monbeck lives out of state.

Of the original ‘Mpax only Mike Bishop and Bill Dixon remain. Mike enjoyed a successful career in the healthcare industry and at last check was semi-retired and giving tours at an area distillery. Bill Dixon remains in Frankfort and in recent times worked as an owner/stylist for Capital Hair Design. Hugo Hempel IV passed away at the age of 70 in 2019 after a long career for the UK Medical Center. Michael McKinney is also reportedly deceased.

Fifty years later the M’pax memory and music lives on.

[Shawn Chambers / Lexingtunes 2019]

Discography: (click song titles to listen)
45:
SUN-RAY
144    Mistakes /    Can’t Bear the Thought 1970

(Rite pressing 26581/25582 – “ALLEN” misspelled on label songwriting credit)

CD:
Gear Fab    Psychedelic States – Kentucky in the 60s features Mistakes