| Who Are These Guys? |
Gary and The Wombats are the original guys
who started playing rhythm and blues / rock
and roll at Wesleyan University in 1962,
traveling throughout the northeast in a '49
Packard hearse. Now we put our "real lives" on
the shelf, grab the wives and sometimes the
kids and convene from cities in 3 timezones to
make music together.
Many people remember dancing to Gary and
The Wombats in fraternities at Princeton,
Dartmouth, Yale, Brown, Amherst,
Williams, RPI, Middlebury, Tufts, Bucknell,
Mt. Holyoke, Connecticut College (then "for
Women") Duchess Community College, and
our home campus, Wesleyan.
During summer vacations we were heard on
Long Island at Gino's, Manhasset Country
Club, Garden City Chop House and at The
Sands and Tony Mart's in Somers Point,
NJ. In 1963 and '64 we played Spring Break
at Daytona Beach, FL. During our reunion
years we played at reknown music venues
Johnny D's (Somerville, MA) and Maxwell's
(Jersey City, NJ); sadly, both venues have
closed,but we believe our appearances had
nothing to do with that.
Gary passed away in 2009 after a long and
determined fight against cancer. Honoring
his leadership we will continue to play as
Gary and The Wombats.
Leon passed away in 2016; the heartbeat of
our rock and roll has been stilled.
who started playing rhythm and blues / rock
and roll at Wesleyan University in 1962,
traveling throughout the northeast in a '49
Packard hearse. Now we put our "real lives" on
the shelf, grab the wives and sometimes the
kids and convene from cities in 3 timezones to
make music together.
Many people remember dancing to Gary and
The Wombats in fraternities at Princeton,
Dartmouth, Yale, Brown, Amherst,
Williams, RPI, Middlebury, Tufts, Bucknell,
Mt. Holyoke, Connecticut College (then "for
Women") Duchess Community College, and
our home campus, Wesleyan.
During summer vacations we were heard on
Long Island at Gino's, Manhasset Country
Club, Garden City Chop House and at The
Sands and Tony Mart's in Somers Point,
NJ. In 1963 and '64 we played Spring Break
at Daytona Beach, FL. During our reunion
years we played at reknown music venues
Johnny D's (Somerville, MA) and Maxwell's
(Jersey City, NJ); sadly, both venues have
closed,but we believe our appearances had
nothing to do with that.
Gary passed away in 2009 after a long and
determined fight against cancer. Honoring
his leadership we will continue to play as
Gary and The Wombats.
Leon passed away in 2016; the heartbeat of
our rock and roll has been stilled.
| We kept our rock and roll songlist alive by playing reunion parties at Wesleyan in 1974, '75, '85, '90, '95, 2000,'05, '10, '14 and '15 |
| "..I took my loved one over 'cross the tracks..." John Dunton lives in Waltham, MA |
| "..So she could hear my man a wailin' sax..." Brooke Jones lives in Yorba Linda, CA |
| "I must admit they were a rockin band...Man they were blowin' like a hurricane..." Steve Flance lives in Santa Fe, NM |
| "...So let me hear you play that rock and roll music..." Gary Thomson lived in St. Croix, Virgin Islands and played nightly at his Tivoli Gardens Restaurant in Christiansted until shortly before his untimely death in 2009 |
| "...If you wanna dance with me...." Richard Smith lives in Rye, NY |
| Words by Charles Berry, East St. Louis, MO 1953 |
In 1995 the Wombat World Tour was launched by
Judy & Dick Emmitt, who asked the band to play
for a special birthday party in New Jersey. That
evening began the annual gatherings of the
band--we now convene several times a year
appearing all around the country to play for
charity FUNraisers, wedding receptions, private
parties and corporate parties of all kinds. We'd
like to play for you too!
Judy & Dick Emmitt, who asked the band to play
for a special birthday party in New Jersey. That
evening began the annual gatherings of the
band--we now convene several times a year
appearing all around the country to play for
charity FUNraisers, wedding receptions, private
parties and corporate parties of all kinds. We'd
like to play for you too!
