Since 2004 Plastic Crimewave (aka Steve Krakow) has used the Secret History of Chicago Music to shine a light on worthy artists with Chicago ties who’ve been forgotten, underrated, or never noticed in the first place.
Chase soon became an in-demand soloist, and made several appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show. In the late 60s, while freelancing in Las Vegas, he developed an itch to start his own ensemble, and in 1969 he began to assemble players. By 1970 he’d formed a nine-piece band named after himself, “Chase,” recruiting three other trumpeters—Ted Piercefield, Alan Ware, and Jerry Van Blair. All were likewise veteran jazz players and skilled arrangers, and Chase backed them up with a rock-style rhythm section: keyboardist Phil Porter, guitarist Angel South, bassist Dennis Keith Johnson, and drummer Jay Burrid. Though Bill Chase had conceived of his group as instrumental, he soon added Terry Richards as lead vocalist.
On August 9, 1974 (the day Nixon resigned), Chase were flying to a gig at the Jackson County Fair in Minnesota when bad weather caused their small plane to crash, killing everyone aboard: Bill Chase, keyboardist Wally Yohn, guitarist John Emma, drummer Walter Clark, and the pilot and copilot.
