Billy Cairns on drums, Ray Finch on lead guitar, lead singer J.P. Gelinas on rhythm and slide guitar, Mike Adams on bass, Chuck Ciany on vocals/guitar & saxophone and Al Speed on keyboards.
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We lost the Great Billy Cairns
Billy Cairns was a great friend, a great Father and a great musician. His smile was infectious. To know him was a great honor and his spirit was inspiring. For those of us who love people and music, if you didn't know Billy-you wish you did. God, please rock his soul easy, for he was a good man.
Sincerely,
Johnny B.
Here is a letter written by our friend Steve that says it best:
Billy Cairns
It is with the deepest sorrow that I presently write of the passing of my dear friend and band mate, Billy Cairns. The crash of reality's thunder is jarring, and the loss profound. To muster any words at this time seems so difficult, but to fail to do so would be impossible.
About Billy; he was a whacky, magnetic, crazy-ass, truly unique personality plus type. He was smart as hell, confident, loyal, witty, super reliable, a hard worker, and was always up for an adventure. He could sweat with the best of 'em but you still wanted to hug him. His pride, devotion, and love for his family were at the fore-front of his being.
About his drumming; his whole body would sway with the instrument, a sort of blurry, loopy rubber man, dynamically pounding hard and soft hits in perfect time. It seemed like any and all parts of the kit were fair game for a strike. His playing was a combination of God-given natural talent, superb rhythmic intelligence, and a huge heart. In short, he was awesome.
I feel so fortunate for having spent the last year hanging out, playing in a band, and recording with him. It was the best time I ever had musically, and he came to feel like a brother to me. His child-like enthusiasm and love of music sent us all into the, "Billy Zone". He will be sorely missed, but never forgotten. I love you brother.
Steve January 10, 2008
The Freelance Vandals started life as a rock band in 1976. The original five members (Billy Cairns on drums, brothers Ray and Jack Finch on lead guitar and keyboards, lead singer J.P. Gelinas on rhythm and slide guitar, Garry Pritchett on bass) began performing their energetic and original brand of rock & roll while attending the University of Dayton in Ohio and drinking too much beer. The band settled in the Long Island area of New York in 1977 where they quickly attracted a large and rabid following. In 1978, the band were signed to RCA records where they recorded their first album that, due to contractual problems, remains unreleased to this day. 1979 saw the release of The Dogpak, a set of two singles, released on their own label, Dog Records.
The early eighties brought about several personnel changes (Mike Adams: bass, Chuck Ciany: vocals/guitar & saxophone, Tommy Yamasaki: saxaphone, Al Speed: keyboards) as The Freelance Vandals kept drawing crowds on the club circuit. During this period, the band was featured as the opening act for such artists as John Hiatt, Dr. John, Beaver Brown and NRBQ. In 1984, the band released a live album, Yer Money Or Yer Ears on Gunga Din Records.
After a series of farewell concerts, The Freelance Vandals retired from the stage in 1985 as many of the band members got married and started families. In 1996, the Vandals staged a successful comeback and released a series of cassettes called The Bootleg Years that highlighted many of their live shows from previous years. 1997 saw the release of Songs That Never Made Us Famous, a compact disc collection of studio demos that covered the years 1975 to 1980. Several live concerts anthologies were released over the past five years. At present, the band can be found performing several select gigs at local Long Island gigs each year.
