Omaha/Shakers Music
Waller and Worley and The Shakers
THE SHAKERS 1988 - From left, Reed Waller, lead guitar, Nate Bucklin, bass, Allan Standish, percussion, Kate Worley, guitar/keys. Photo by Fred Levy Haskell |
Kate and I were performing music together as a duo years before I turned the Omaha writing chores over to her. We belonged to Minn-STF, the Minnesota Science Fiction Society, which was very active musically. We both played guitar and sang, and we performed both folk and classical pop standards as well as original tunes by us and our friends. We played at club parties and gatherings, as well as cons, and contributed to the work of others, like songwriter Nate Bucklin. In 1988 when our publisher, Denis Kitchen, got access to a picture disk manufacturer, he asked us if we'd like to do an Omaha picture disk. So we got a band together, with Nate Bucklin on bass, Allan Standish, who i'd worked with since we were in high school, on drums, and David Emerson on keyboards. Drawing on the catalog of songs by our friends, like Bob Berlien and Kathy Routliffe, Sandy Andina, and Howard Ashby Kranz, and writing a few of our own, we filled out an album and produced it at Creation Audio in Minneapolis. After the release of the picture disk, the Shakers continued to perform locally for some time, as did Kate and I as a duo. Here is some of the music. |
Omaha the Cat Dancer Picture Disk (1988)
THE SHAKERS |
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REED WALLER | NATE BUCKLIN | ALLAN STANDISH | KATE WORLEY |
guitars, lead vocals | bass, vocals | drums, vocals | guitars, lead vocals |
PRODUCED BY: Reed Waller & Kate Worley
PRODUCTION CONSULTANT: Fred Haskell ASSISTANT: Susan Levy
Recorded September, 1988 at CREATION AUDIO, Minneapolis, MN Engineer: Dennis Steck
Special thanks to CHOPPER BLACK for emergency post-production
PIANO on “They Call her Omaha” “Rhythm Blues” “We Kept On Dancing” - DAVID EMERSON
SOPRANINO on “Rhythm Blues” - RICK O’DELL
HARMONICA on “Sassafrass Jones” - FRED HASKELL
TRACKS
1. They Call Her Omaha (Reed Waller) © 1988 by Reed Waller
2. A Man Could Hurt Himself (Sandy Andina) © 1983, 2000 by Sandy Andina
3. Cinnamon Jam (Kate Worley) © 1988 by Kate Worley
4. Catseye (Howard Ashby Kranz) © 1985 by Howard Ashby Kranz
5. Rhythm Blues (Kate Worley) © 1988 by Kate Worley
6. The Kiss And the Knife (Bob Berlien) © 1985 by Bob Berlien
7. Goofus And Gallant (Howard Ashby Kranz) © 1985 by Howard Ashby Kranz
8. Cry Out Loud (Reed Waller) © 1988 by Reed Waller
9. Sassafrass Jones (Reed Waller) © 1974 by Reed Waller
10. Wildcat (Kate Worley) © 1988 by Kate Worley
11. Window On the World (Reed Waller) © 1988 by Reed Waller
12. We Kept On Dancing (Nate Bucklin) © 1985 by Nate Bucklin
All selections BMI © (P) 1988 by Reed Waller & Kate Worley
Waller and Worley at Home
In November 1991, the day after the Halloween Blizzard, I was diagnosed with colon cancer. I was scheduled for surgery in January of 1992.
"Hoo-Wee!" was a spontaneous unplugged performance by Waller and Worley, with Al Standish, in our parlor at 1610 East 34th Street in Minneapolis, recorded live on DAT by Mike Levin, in December 1991. Mike thought it would be a good idea for us to get down some of our signature tunes on tape, just in case it was the last chance.
It's certainly not perfect, but it does capture the feel of what we sounded like at a party. Thank you again, Mike.