The Saturns

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Pat Patrick, center, with Kenny Agee (L) and Stuart Keathley (R) as the Beach Nutz.

The Saturns were an early 1960s rock 'n' roll combo playing rent parties, driveways and garages. Founded by bandleader Richard "Pat" Patrick, the Saturns became the Fabulous Beach Nutz, in the mid-60s, eventually becoming the big society band The Pat Patrick Orchestra.

History[edit | edit source]

Nov 10 1962 Tennessean

Formed by Richard Corry Patrick III while in high school at Montgomery Bell Academy, the Saturns were soon playing gigs at country clubs, high-school dances and fraternity parties. The group used Pat's bedroom as a rehearsal space.

The Saturns were briefly signed to Polygram Records when they remade Marvin Gaye’s hit “Stubborn Kind of Fellow” and recorded one of Patrick’s originals, “You Can Destroy My Mind.”

The Saturns turned into the Fabulous Beech Nut Show Band in the mid 60s, playing frequently around town and appearing in several newspaper articles. A 1965 Tennessean article, called "Combo Mania," quotes Pat:

"I had an old guitar when I was about 12 and a friend of mine had a sax. We started playing around on them, a little every day." Pat and his friend eventually found a rummer and base [sic] guitarist to complete the group. "We played by ear. I can't read music, and most of the others couldn't either. We made our own arrangements by listening to records, getting the feel for it... The main reason we did it was because we enjoyed playing." (Tennessean Aug 22 1965, p.63)

A Tennessean article in late 1966 refers to a combo party played by The Beach Nutz Combo who "have a real treat in store- [they] have recently recorded some of their original songs to be released next week- so its for sure they'll give the partygoers a sneak preview." (Sep 9, 1966 (p.22)).

June 5 1966 Tennessean

The Beach Nutz played in a 1966 band playoff at Municipal Auditorium with Noble Blackwell, Night Train host and WLAC DJ as a judge.

June 13 1966 Tennessean

A mention in a tennessean write-up in Oct 1966 referenced them billed as such: "The Lost in Sound, formerly the Beach Nutz will play for dancing" (Tennessean Oct 8 1966, p.8). Briefly transforming into the Kracker Jacks Show Band in the late 60s, the band transformed eventually into the Pat Patrick Band in the 1970s.

Pat Patrick died in 2015 and is buried in the Graceland section of Woodlawn Cemetery.

Promotional Material[edit | edit source]

Nov 23 1965 VU Law Ball

From the Dixie Entertainment website:

It may be hard to believe, but the origins of the Pat Patrick Band started in 1958, when band leader Pat Patrick picked up the guitar at age eleven. Four years later, Patrick formed his first band and named it the Saturns Combo. Comprised of guitar, bass, drums and sax, they used Patrick’s bedroom for rehearsal space.

This young band received its start performing for the Hillwood Country Club, Belle Meade Country Club, and various high school dances and fraternity parties all over Nashville.

While attending Vanderbilt University, the Saturns were signed to Polygram Records. This contract allowed the band to grow by one more horn player. Unknown to Patrick at the time, adding band members (and subsequently growing his repertoire) would be a distinguishing characteristic of the Pat Patrick Band. During their agreement with Polygram, the Saturns remade Marvin Gaye’s hit “Stubborn Kind of Fellow” and recorded one of Patrick’s originals, “You Can Destroy My Mind.”

As the band progressed, so did their name. The Saturns turned into the Fabulous Beech Nut Show Band around 1968. This name did not last for long, transforming into the Kracker Jacks Show Band. Even though they were at a loss for a name, Patrick’s band was in such great demand that he was able to add three more horn players and one more vocalist.

The band continued playing new venues in and around Nashville and for sorority and fraternity parties all over the South.

Performances for friends in Nashville soon led to bookings in Louisville and Memphis, and before long Patrick found himself being asked to play for social events and weddings all over the country. During this time the band focused on playing rock hits of the 70’s. Then in 1978, Patrick increased the size of his band yet again, adding four horns at the request of a client. The band was now able to play Big Band, Jazz and Swing in addition to Rock and Pop.

Over the course of forty-five years and innumerable performances, the band evolved from a four-piece combo into today’s Pat Patrick Band and Orchestra. With the diversity to perform as a 5-piece combo or a 23-piece orchestra, the PPB has developed a reputation as one of the most energetic party bands around. The band is comprised of Nashville’s top studio musicians and is led by the only band leader in the country who has earned more than 30 platinum records. Reminiscent of Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman and Francis Craig, Pat Patrick brings the Big Band and Swing era to life, while continuing to play a diverse repertoire of Rock ‘N’ Roll, Soul, Pop and R&B.

Obituary for Pat Patrick[edit | edit source]

Robert Oermann for MusicRow.com writes:

Pat Patrick left his mark on the music business as a studio owner, record producer, jingle writer, song publisher, recording artist and, most famously, as the leader of Nashville’s top party band.

Patrick passed away on Tuesday, June 16. The music he made in The Pat Patrick Band formed the soundtrack for thousands of society functions, weddings, collegiate events and private parties. His various groups bearing his name could entertain doing pop oldies, r&b “beach music,” rock ’n’ roll or big-band swing. Many of the finest session musicians of Music Row performed in his ensembles over the years.

Born Richard Corry Patrick III, he was a Nashville native who graduated from Montgomery Bell Academy in 1965. He formed his first band, Saturns Combo, when he was a teenager and was soon playing gigs at Hillwood Country Club, Belle Meade Country Club, high-school dances and fraternity parties. Around 1968, the group changed its name to The Fabulous Beech Nut Show Band. Next, it was known as The Kracker Jacks Show Band.

After his graduation from Vanderbilt University, he expanded the group several times. During the 1970s, The Pat Patrick Band specialized in cover versions of rock hits. In 1978, the group’s increased size allowed it to graduate to swing music. The Pat Patrick Band recorded a number of albums on its own label.

Meanwhile, Pat Patrick became more and more involved in the business of Music Row. At first, he worked for the independent label Certron Records. He then became the creative director of the recording studio Audio Media. In addition to attracting the top artists in Nashville as clients, the facility became the home of his commercial jingles business.

During the 1970s and 1980s, Patrick produced more than 5,000 jingles for such companies as Holiday Inn, GMC, Chevrolet, Disneyland, Goodyear, Tidy Cat, K-mart and Buick, as well as many local businesses. Several of these earned Addy Awards.

He formed a close relationship with the Disney company. This led to producing and performing on a series of children’s albums, including Mousercize, Rock Around the Mouse and Mickey Mouse Disco. These records have earned him more than 30 million-seller awards.

Audio Media became Cal IV Music. Patrick purchased the Ray Stevens studio on Grand Avenue and renamed it Grand Central Studios in 1983. Here, he began producing such Christian-music stars as First Call, Steve Green, Bruce Carroll and Amy Grant.

He next co-founded the publishing company the Grand Music Group. Among the company’s copyrights were “High Cotton” (Alabama), “1982” (Randy Travis), “What’s Going on in Your World” (George Strait) and “Out of Your Shoes” (Lorrie Morgan).

In recent years, the entrepreneur has been the creative director of Pearl Trax Studios, Patilison Tunes and Pat Patrick Music.

He is survived by Dr. Elizabeth Cato and daughters Mary and Ellie. Visitation will be today, Thursday June 18, from 4:00-7:00 p.m. at Woodlawn Roesch-Patton Funeral Home. His memorial service is Friday at 11:30 a.m. at Westminster Presbyterian Church with visitation an hour prior at the church.

Honorary pallbearers will include SAE fraternity brothers, The Pat Patrick Band and the MBA Class of 1965. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Kathleen Patrick Hughes Endowed Scholarship of Education at the University of Alabama, Box 870231, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35487-0231.

in the 'Graceland' section of Woodlawn cemetery

External references[edit | edit source]

https://musicrow.com/2015/06/lifenotes-king-of-the-party-pat-patrick-passes/

https://dixieent.com/pat-patrick-band/

The Tennessean archives