Mark Randall Volman (born April 19, 1947) is an American vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter, best known as a founding member of the 1960s rock band The Turtles, and, along with his bandmate and friend Howard Kaylan, a member of the 1970s rock duo Flo & Eddie, where he used the pseudonym Flo (short for The Phlorescent Leech). Volman also became a stand-out figure upon joining Frank Zappa's band, The Mothers of Invention.
Mark Volman | |
|---|---|
 Volman performing in 2008 billed as "The Turtles Featuring Flo & Eddie" | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Mark Randall Volman |
| Also known as | Flo Phlorescent Leech |
| Born | April 19, 1947 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
|
| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1965–present |
| Labels | |
| Website | www |
Early life
editVolman was born in Los Angeles, California, on April 19, 1947 to a Jewish father and Catholic mother. He grew up in Westchester, a suburb of Los Angeles, where he performed in the proto-Turtles band the Crossfires and graduated from Westchester High School in 1965.
Career
editMusic and film
editVolman and Howard Kaylan were founding members of the Turtles, a popular band of the late 1960s. In December 1968, NME magazine reported that Volman had insured his distinctive frizzy hair for US$100,000 against fire, theft or loss due to illness.[1] As their band folded, Volman and Kaylan discovered that the terms of their contract forbade them to use not only the name 'The Turtles', but also their own names. Kaylan and Volman were recruited by Frank Zappa, joining the Mothers of Invention, and they also worked together as Flo & Eddie in music, in film (they provided music and voices for animated films like Down and Dirty Duck), and in radio broadcasting. In 1971 Volman appeared on the soundtrack to Zappa's humorous pseudo-documentary film, 200 Motels.[2]
In 2015, Kaylan and Volman celebrated their 50th year, touring and performing more than 60 concerts a year, billed as "The Turtles ... Featuring Flo & Eddie" with their Happy Together Tour, a classic revue-format show featuring some popular bands of the mid-to-late 1960s musical era. During this tour in 2015, Volman was diagnosed with throat cancer, but was declared cancer-free in 2016.[3] According to The Hollywood Reporter, Volman and Kaylan have been "leading the charge against the uncompensated use of their music—and using state-based misappropriation, conversation and unfair competition claims because sound recordings only began falling under federal copyright protection in 1972."[4]
With Kaylan's retirement due to health issues in 2018, Volman is the last original member of the Turtles still performing with the band.[5]
Academia
editIn 1992, at age 45, Volman started his bachelor's degree at Loyola Marymount University. He was an active undergraduate member of the choir and a Founding Father of the California Chi chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity. Volman graduated with a B.A. degree in 1997 magna cum laude and was the class valedictorian speaker. During the speech he led the graduates in a chorus of "Happy Together". CBS Evening News covered Volman's graduation and interviewed his parents, who were perplexed at their son's academic accomplishments.[6]
Volman earned a Master's degree in Fine Arts with an emphasis in screenwriting in 1999, also from Loyola. Since that time, he has taught Music Business & Industry courses in the Communications and Fine Arts department at Loyola. He has also taught courses in the Commercial Music Program at Los Angeles Valley College. He is currently an associate professor and coordinator of the Entertainment Industry Studies Program at Belmont University, in the Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business and conducts seminars about the music industry for various academic institutions from junior high school to university level. In addition, he offers consulting on music business and entertainment through the website Ask Professor Flo.[7]
Personal life
editVolman married high school sweetheart, Patricia Lee Hickey in January 1967, and they were married for 25 years. The couple had two daughters, Sarina Marie and Hallie Rae Volman. Volman married his second wife, Emily in 2000.[8][9] They were divorced in 2015.[10]
In June 2023, Volman disclosed that he was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia.[11][12][13]
Discography
editWith The Turtles
editStudio albums
edit| Year | Album | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | It Ain't Me Babe | White Whale |
| 1966 | You Baby | |
| 1967 | Happy Together | |
| 1968 | The Turtles Present the Battle of the Bands | |
| 1969 | Turtle Soup |
Singles
edit| Year | Title (A-side / B-side)
Both sides from same album except where indicated |
Album | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | "It Ain't Me Babe" / "Almost There" (from You, Baby) | It Ain't Me, Babe | White Whale |
| "Let Me Be" / "Your Maw Said You Cried (In Your Sleep Last Night)" | |||
| 1966 | "You Baby" / "Wanderin' Kind" (from It Ain't Me, Babe) | You, Baby | |
| "It Was a Very Good Year" / "Let the Cold Winds Blow" | It Ain't Me, Babe | ||
| "Grim Reaper of Love" / "Come Back" (from Wooden Head) | Golden Hits | ||
| "We'll Meet Again" / "Outside Chance" (from Golden Hits) | Wooden Head | ||
| "Making My Mind Up" / "Outside Chance" (from Golden Hits) | Happy Together | ||
| "Can I Get to Know You Better?" / "Like the Seasons" (from Happy Together) | Golden Hits | ||
| 1967 | "Happy Together" / "Like the Seasons" | Happy Together | |
| "She'd Rather Be with Me" / "The Walking Song" | |||
| "Guide for the Married Man" / "Think I'll Run Away" | |||
| "You Know What I Mean" / "Rugs of Woods & Flowers" (from Happy Together) | Golden Hits | ||
| "She's My Girl" / "Chicken Little Was Right" (Non-LP track. A re-recording of this song later appeared on The Turtles Present the Battle of the Bands) | More Golden Hits | ||
| 1968 | "Sound Asleep" / "Umbassa the Dragon" (Non-LP track) | ||
| "The Story of Rock and Roll" / "Can You Hear the Cows" (Non-LP track) | |||
| "Elenore" / "Surfer Dan" | The Turtles Present the Battle of the Bands | ||
| 1969 | "You Showed Me" / "Buzzsaw" | ||
| "House on the Hill" / "Come Over" | Turtle Soup | ||
| "You Don't Have to Walk in the Rain" / "Come Over" | |||
| "Love in the City" / "Bachelor Mother" | |||
| "Lady-O" / "Somewhere Friday Night" (From "Turtle Soup") | More Golden Hits | ||
| 1970 | "Teardrops" / "Gas Money" | Non-LP track (released under the alias: "The Dedications") | |
| "Who Would Ever Think That I Would Marry Margaret?" / "We Ain't Gonna Party No More" | More Golden Hits | ||
| "Is It Any Wonder?" / "Wanderin' Kind" (from Wooden Head) | Golden Hits | ||
| "Eve of Destruction" / "Wanderin' Kind" (from Wooden Head) | It Ain't Me, Babe | ||
| "Me About You" / "Think I'll Run Away" | Happy Together | ||
| 1978 | "To See the Sun" /"The Owl" /"Surfer Dan" (Alternate Version)/"The Last Thing I Remember" (Alternate Version) | Rhino Records 12″ EP Picture Disc (1968 Outtakes) |
Studio albums
edit| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| Chunga's Revenge | 1970 |
| Fillmore East – June 1971 | 1971 |
| 200 Motels | |
| Just Another Band from L.A. | 1972 |
Singles
edit| Single (A-side, B-side)
Both sides from same album except where indicated |
Album | Year |
|---|---|---|
| "Tell Me You Love Me"
b/w "Will You Go All the Way for the U.S.A.?" [sic] |
Chunga's Revenge | 1970 |
| "Tears Began to Fall" (remix)
b/w "Junier Mintz Boogie" (non-album track) |
Fillmore East – June 1971 | 1971 |
| "Magic Fingers"
b/w "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy" |
200 Motels | |
| "What Will This Evening Bring Me This Morning"
b/w "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy" |
With Flo & Eddie
editAlbums
edit- The Phlorescent Leech & Eddie (1972)
- Flo & Eddie (1973)
- Illegal, Immoral and Fattening (1975)
- Flo & Eddie Interview with Barry Mann, Special Promotion Record for Radio Stations (1975)
- Moving Targets (1976)
- Rock Steady With Flo & Eddie (1981)
- The History of Flo & Eddie and the Turtles (1983)
- The Best of Flo & Eddie (1987)
- The Turtles featuring Flo & Eddie Captured Live! (1992)
- New York "Times" (2009)
References
edit- ^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London, UK: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 191. CN 5585.
- ^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London, UK: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 223. CN 5585.
- ^ Volman cancer free
- ^ Gardner, Eriq (2 October 2014). "After SiriusXM Success, The Turtles Take on Pandora in $25 Million Lawsuit". Billboard. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
- ^ "A pioneering Jewish rock band got its start in 1965; they're still slowly and steadily turtling along". April 19, 2024.
- ^ Profile, RagBaby.com, April 9, 1999; accessed April 19, 2015.
- ^ Ask Professor Flo; accessed April 19, 2015.
- ^ Groups.google.se
- ^ The Phlorescent Teach, nashvillescene.com; accessed April 19, 2015.
- ^ "MSN". MSN.
- ^ Finan, Eileen. "The Turtles' Mark Volman reveals he's been diagnosed with Lewy body dementia, the disease Robin Williams had, but he's determined to live a full life". Peoplemag.
- ^ Kreps, Daniel (2023-06-14). "The Turtles' Mark Volman Reveals Lewy Body Dementia Diagnosis". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2023-09-02.
- ^ Kielty, Martin (2023-06-15). "Turtles' Mark Volman Reveals Dementia Diagnosis". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 2023-09-02.
External links
edit- Official website
- Ask Professor Flo, a business and website run by Volman and his wife to aid up and coming musicians
- Mark Volman at IMDb