The “Golden Hits Of The 70s” 

Main MenuConcept Refinement The Author..Wayne JancikGolden Age Of The 50sGolden Age Of The 60s1970s and There After

 

SKYLARK

WILDFLOWER

(Dave Richardson, Doug Edwards) Capitol 3511

No.9 May 26, 1973

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Skylark was a fleeting fling for Bonnie Jean Cook, DAVID FosTER, and their fluctuating fraternity.

Bonnie Jean and David had been members of RONNIE HAWKINS’ Hawks before they hatched a scheme

to start their own band in the early ’70s. Based in Vancouver, Canada, Cook (lead vocals) and Foster

(keyboards) rounded up some hometown help from Donny Gerrard (lead vocals), Carl Greaves

(percussion), Duris Maxwell (drums), Norman McPherson (guitar), and Steven Pugsley (bass).

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After six months of rehearsals, Capitol of Canada took an interest in the group. Little did the label know

that the band’s days were numbered. By the time Sky­ lark’s self-titled LP was released, Greaves,

McPherson, and Pugsley were ex-members. After the group’s first 45 flopped, Windsor’s CKLW took a

protracted airtime interest in a tender track called “Wildflower!’

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Reportedly, internal tension’s resulted from the swelling success of “Wildflower;’ a tune written by a

studio musician and a Victoria police officer. Follow-up 45s failed to fly, and by the time their second

and last album was recorded, the only Skylarks remaining were Donny Gerrard and the Fosters (David

had married Bonnie Jean Cook by this time).

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In addition to doing session work with Eric Car­ men, Donovan, and Yvonne Elliman, Donny Gerrard had

a solo charting in 1976 with his Greedy release, “Words (Are Impossible)” (#87). Carl Greaves experi­en-

ced homeland hits with “Hey Radio” and “Baby, Hang Up the Phone.” Duris Maxwell resurfaced in the

’70s as a member of Doucette, and in the ’80s drummed for the Powder Blues Band.

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David Foster has been a member of groups like Air­ play, Attitudes, Fools Gold, Highway, and later, the

Average White Band; Attitudes went Hot 100 in ’76 with “Sweet Summer Music” (#94). His “Love Theme

From St. Elmo’s Fire;’ the successful title take from the 1985 Rob Lowe-Demi Moore flick clicked Top 20.

Fos­ter has also racked up an incredible list of session cred­its, having played keyboards for PATTI

Austin, George Benson, Kim Carnes, Chicago, Earth, Wind & Fire, Hall & Oates, Michael Jackson,

Gladys Knight, Little Feat, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Pointer Sisters, and both George Harrison and Ringo

Starr-to name but a few. In 1993, Foster produced Color Me Badd’s rendition of “Wildflower.”