Chessmen

The Chessmen were one of British Columbia’s most accomplished and ambitious mid-1960s rock groups, bridging instrumental surf, beat music, and vocal pop at a moment when Canadian bands were only beginning to break beyond regional circuits. Their short but intense run—from fraternity gigs and Okanagan road dates to Nashville sessions and Mercury Records singles—captured a rare moment when a Vancouver band briefly intersected with the American music industry at its highest level.

The group’s roots stretch back to the late 1950s. Guitarist Guy Sobell, who had played in the Vancouver group The Ken Clark Trio, was deeply influenced by the instrumental sounds of Sweden’s The Spotnicks and England’s The Shadows, which he encountered while traveling in Europe. On returning to Canada, Sobell resolved to form a band built around that clean, melodic, guitar-driven approach.

At the same time, a 17-year-old Terry Jacks had assembled a surf-oriented project called The Sand Dwellers. Though the group never performed live, they recorded two unreleased tracks, including the Jacks–John Crowe original ‘Build Your Castle Higher’. The song later resurfaced in the United States when Jerry Cole and The Spacemen recorded it under the new title ‘Midnight Surfer’. When The Sand Dwellers dissolved, some of its members regrouped as The Vancouver Playboys, while Jacks moved on to new collaborations.

Jacks and Sobell were introduced by a mutual friend, Sam Bawlf—later British Columbia’s Minister of the Environment—who, like Jacks and Sobell, was attending the University of British Columbia at the time. The pair joined forces with fellow UBC students Bill Lockie, a guitarist transitioning to bass, and Erik Kalaidzis, a vocalist who had met Sobell through chess games. The group adopted the name The Chessmen and began playing fraternity house gigs for $40 a night, initially without a drummer.

Kalaidzis soon departed, as his classically inclined vocal style did not align with the band’s direction, and The Chessmen became an instrumental unit. In the winter of 1963, they toured the interior of British Columbia, playing dates in the Okanagan while staying in memorably grim roadside motels such as the Tell-a-Friend in Vernon and the Davy Crockett in Kamloops. During one engagement, newly recruited drummer Tom Meikle failed to appear, forcing the band to perform without drums once again.

At a Kelowna show, Jacks met Craig McCaw, then a member of The Shadracks, who attended with his friend John Tanner (later a well-known Vancouver disc jockey). The encounter proved significant: McCaw would later reconnect with Jacks in The Poppy Family, the internationally successful group that followed The Chessmen.

Back in Vancouver, the band secured a new drummer, Kenny Moore, and recorded their first material in 1964 at Robin Spurgin’s Vancouver Recording Studio. The session produced ‘Meadowlands’, ‘Mustang’, and the previously unreleased ‘When I’m Not There’. Influential Vancouver DJ Red Robinson passed the tape to Alice Koury, Vice President of London Records, leading to the December 1964 release of ‘Meadowlands’ b/w ‘Mustang’. Robinson—widely regarded as instrumental in launching the group—was credited as producer. The single performed well locally and was subsequently issued in the United States on Seattle’s Jerden Records, where the A-side was retitled ‘Mr. Meadowlands’.

Buoyed by the record’s success, The Chessmen toured extensively across British Columbia in early 1965, playing roller rinks, high schools, and dance halls. During this period, the band reconsidered its instrumental format. Jacks, not originally viewed as a strong guitarist, secured his place by writing ‘The Way You Fell’. With no dedicated vocalist, Jacks sang the track himself, adding layered harmonies. Earlier discussions had included the possibility of adding a female singer, and Bonnie Huber briefly performed and recorded demos with the band, but the idea was abandoned.

With Al Wiertz now on drums, ‘The Way You Fell’ b/w ‘She Comes By Night’ was recorded at Vancouver Recording Studio and released by London Records in April 1965. The single became one of The Chessmen’s biggest successes, reaching #4 on Vancouver’s CFUN Top 50, and firmly establishing Jacks as the band’s frontman.

1965 proved pivotal. Jacks befriended Brenda Lee and her manager Dub Allbritten after seeing her perform at Vancouver’s Cave Supper Club. Allbritten—already a major figure in Nashville, having worked with artists such as Red Foley, Hank Snow, Ernest Tubb, Roy Orbison, and as co-writer of Lee’s ‘I’m Sorry’—offered to manage The Chessmen. Under his guidance, the band signed with Mercury Records in the United States and recorded four songs in Nashville with producer Jerry Kennedy, known for his work with Roger Miller, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Charlie Rich.

The band traveled to Nashville by Greyhound bus in September 1965. By then, Myles Kingan had joined on drums, and Bruce Peterson added electric accordion (Chordovox), bringing a distinctive texture—and a famously dry sense of humour—to the group. The Nashville sessions took place at Fred Foster’s studio, where Roy Orbison’s classic recordings had been made. The Chessmen returned to Vancouver with new material and an increasingly demanding performance schedule, sharing stages with The Beach Boys, Charlie Rich, Buddy Knox, and Roy Orbison, and playing major venues including the PNE Gardens and Queen Elizabeth Theatre.

Their first Mercury single, ‘Love Didn’t Die’ b/w ‘You Lost Your Game’, appeared in December 1965, followed by a second Nashville trip in February 1966. Bassist Larry Borisoff replaced Bill Lockie for these sessions, contributing both bass and vocals. The final Mercury single, ‘What’s Causing This Sensation’ b/w ‘For Running Wild’, was recorded despite Sobell having been struck by a car shortly before the session—an incident he shook off in order to complete his guitar solo.

Upon returning to Canada, The Chessmen continued touring with drummer Duris Maxwell, their fifth and final drummer. The band’s last performance took place in Ladner, British Columbia, on July 15, 1966, where they earned $180. The show was recorded by local mobile sound engineer Douglas Gyseman (aka Kurtis Vanel), and selections from the tape later appeared on archival releases.

The band dissolved soon afterward when Sobell chose university studies in London over continuing professionally. “Checkmate,” as the liner notes succinctly put it. While in England, Sobell sold his white Fender Stratocaster to Jimi Hendrix for £80—an epilogue befitting the era.

The Chessmen’s legacy was later preserved in The Chessmen Collection, remastered from the original master tapes under Terry Jacks’ supervision. The release gathered all eight original single sides alongside live recordings from the final concert and previously unreleased demos, documenting a band that briefly—but decisively—pushed British Columbia rock onto a much larger stage.
-Robert Williston

Lineups
Original UBC / Early Formation (1963)

(initially without drums; instrumental)

Guy Sobell: lead guitar
Terry Jacks: rhythm guitar
Bill Lockie: bass
Erik Kalaidzis: vocals

Instrumental Touring Lineup (1963–1964)

(Okanagan dates, interior British Columbia)

Guy Sobell: lead guitar
Terry Jacks: rhythm guitar
Bill Lockie: bass
Tom Meikle: drums

London Records Lineup — ‘Meadowlands’ / ‘Mustang’ (1964)

Guy Sobell: lead guitar
Terry Jacks: rhythm guitar
Bill Lockie: bass
Kenny Moore: drums

Vocal Transition / London Records Lineup — ‘The Way You Fell’ / ‘She Comes By Night’ (1965)

Guy Sobell: lead guitar
Terry Jacks: rhythm guitar, lead vocals
Bill Lockie: bass
Al Wiertz: drums

Mercury Records / Nashville Sessions Lineup (September 1965)

Guy Sobell: lead guitar
Terry Jacks: rhythm guitar, lead vocals
Larry Borisoff: bass, vocals
Bruce Peterson: electric accordion (Chordovox)
Myles Kingan: drums

Final Touring Lineup (1966)

Guy Sobell: lead guitar
Terry Jacks: rhythm guitar, lead vocals
Larry Borisoff: bass, vocals
Bruce Peterson: electric accordion (Chordovox)
Duris Maxwell: drums