By Lola Rossi
After their Sold Out concert last year, The Jacksons return to Fantasy Springs Resort Casino with The Commodores and take the stage this Saturday, February 27, 2016 in The Special Events Center at 8 p.m.
“I love what I do,” said Walter “Clyde” Orange of The Commodores during a telephone interview from his home in Florida. “It is so rewarding making music and sharing it with the world.” The most memorable song from The Commodores would be a matter of choice, since everything they recorded is still playing on the radio. “Brick House” is a favorite dance tune at parties but “Nightshift” was the song that brought home The Grammy in 1985. The current members of the band are William “WAK” King, Orange and James Dean “J.D” Nicholas with their band The Mean Machine.
Born and raised with two sisters in Jacksonville, Florida, Walter Orange was raised in a strict and loving home. “I wasn’t allowed to touch anything. I wasn’t allowed to touch the radio or the TV,” recalls Orange. “We had a piano in our living room and one day I came home from school with a melody on my mind, I was maybe twelve years old. I sat down at the piano and tried to play what was on my mind. After a few minutes, I turned around and my Grandmother was standing in the doorway. She just looked at me and never said a word to discourage me. I couldn’t believe it.”
Orange became interested in the drums when he was in elementary school and in the ninth grade he started learning how to play the drums and how to read drum charts. “My dream was to play good enough to play with James Brown’s band.” In 1965, he received a Full Scholarship to Alabama State College in Montgomery, Alabama.
In 1969, while performing with his own band at a local venue, The Commodores were around the corner at The Elks Club. He went to see the band and met one of the founding members, bassist Michael Gilbert, at the bar and they became friends. The original band was from Tuskegee, Alabama. “During the summer of 1969, I flew from Montgomery to New York City to join the band. I met their manager at the time who told me to drive to Atlantic City, New Jersey. I was a nervous wreck because I had never driven in that much traffic before.”
He watched the band perform at The Wonder Garden for two weeks to learn the arrangements. At that time, The Commodores weren’t a top recording band they were just a really great band. “My first gig with The Commodores was in New York City at Small’s Paradise, we performed there all summer.” After Labor Day, they drove 18 hours back to Alabama to go to school. Their manager, Benjamin Ashburn called and told them to get together for a phone call the following week. “He called Lionel Richie’s grandmother’s house and told us that he had a friend named Suzanne de Passe who arranged for us to tour with The Jackson Five. We couldn’t believe it. We toured with them for about two years. I am very grateful and thankful to God. I feel very blessed.”
This opportunity led them to Motown with their debut album topping the charts with the instrumental song “Machine Gun” in 1974. Top hits include “Easy”, “Three Times A Lady”, “Sail On” and “Still”, to name a few.
The Jackson Five made history when their first four singles reached #1. This gave them International fame and yet, they never won a Grammy nor an American Music Award, but they really enjoyed being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with The Bee Gees in 1997; and the Vocal Hall of Fame in 1999.
I highly recommend going to The Jacksons Official website and viewing them on YouTube. The Jackson Family live their lives with love and respect for each other. They have their ups and downs in life, just like anybody else, but the bond they have as a Family and their Faith in God, keeps them focused. They are very appreciative of all the fans that have supported them over the years.
