Ever heard of the Buffalo Chipkickers?

Subject: Ever heard of the Buffalo Chipkickers?
From: GUEST,kurt [dot] uke [at]gmail [dot] com
Date: 17 Feb 24 - 11:18 AM

Back in 1976 or so, when I was in college in Salem, WV, a 4-piece Bluegrass Group from State College PA came to town and did a show at the school's pub - The Buffalo Chipkickers.

The lineup of the Buffalo Chipkickers I'm referring to was:Bob Doyle-guitar/vocal,Lee Ann Lenker - banjo/vocal, Matthew Guntharp - fiddle/mandolin/vocals, and Hugh Johnson-upright bass/vocals. (Not to be confused with a later California country band of the same name.)

I used to know several of the songs from their album "Cleaning Up Our Act (Chedda NR 7420), but the memory goes away sometimes...

Has anyone ever heard of the band, the album, and the lyrics to "Cleaning Up My Act" (Guntharp/Johnson, DuLac Music BMI)??

Thanks in Advance.

    -Kurt

Subject: RE: Ever heard of the Buffalo Chipkickers?
From: ksiegel
Date: 17 Feb 24 - 11:32 AM

OK, this was me... I forgot I was a member...

On another musical forum, I ended up chatting with Lee Ann's husband. She passed away in 2008 due to cancer - he met her when she auditioned for a band called Cross Creek in the early 90s.

He has the album, but (Just like me) has no idea where it is.

SO again, if anyone can help, that would be wonderful.
Thanks!

-Kurt

Subject: RE: Ever heard of the Buffalo Chipkickers?
From: cnd
Date: 17 Feb 24 - 01:58 PM

I personally haven't heard of the band, but it's both before my time and outside my region. The albums look solid.

If you still have a record player, there are copies of all 3 of your band's known releases (2 albums, 1 EP) for sale on Discogs, as well as several on eBay. Pricing from Discogs:

- You Can't Catch Me / Undecided - NOT ON LABEL (no year) - $27.50 in Near Mint, 1 copy for sale
- Volume 1 - Marjon International Records MJCS-1019 (1974) - $21.99 in Near Mint, 2 copies for sale
- Cleaning Up Our Act - Chedda Records NR 7420 (1976) - $18.00 in Near Mint (or $3-7 in VG), 5 copies for sale

No luck finding any recordings online, unfortunately.

If you do happen to purchase physical copies, I'd be more than happy to convert the vinyl to digital for you if you ship them to me, free of charge (besides USPS media mail costs).

Subject: RE: Ever heard of the Buffalo Chipkickers?
From: GUEST,LouDan
Date: 17 Feb 24 - 09:16 PM

I attended Penn State in the 70's and used to hang out with these guys. I was trying to learn banjo and fiddle at the time, and they were very tolerant of my musical attempts. I had no idea they ever recorded any albums, how cool! There was a lot of old-time and folk music being played at State College at that time. PSU lirbrary had a collection of Alan Lomax field recordings that I would listen to while studying there. I play mandolin now, and I still play some of the songs I learned from Bob. I remember Bob and Matthew, and wish them the best if they're still around!

Subject: RE: Ever heard of the Buffalo Chipkickers?
From: ksiegel
Date: 18 Feb 24 - 12:46 PM

From what I can tell, Matthew is an attorney, and still in practice (Google Search). Bob recently passed away - his obituary shows January 24, 2024 as his date of passing.

Subject: RE: Ever heard of the Buffalo Chipkickers?
From: GUEST,Sam Komlenic
Date: 08 Jan 25 - 06:52 PM

I met Bob Doyle in 1975, just as the band was re-configuring from a three=piece unit to a four-piece. They were an exceptional act and were so much fun to watch. They played frequently at the Westerly Parkway Hi-Way Pizza's bluegrass night (every Wednesday) in State College. They wrote many of their own songs and knew how to create an amazing amount of energy. They'd each tie a necktie to their mic stands, so that when they stood behind them it looked like they were wearing the ties.

Bassist Hugh Johnson would occasionally lie down on his back while continuing to bang it out on the bass. Bob was a multi-instrumentalist and played guitar and fiddle, among others. Fiddler and mandolin player Matthew Guntharp was an integral part of the lineup, and along with Bob did a lot of research on indigenous music in central PA and have their work enshrined in the Library of Congress as the Doyle-Guntharp Collection.

The very talented and attractive Lee Lenker was their banjoist, and I just read that she died in 2008. I had such a crush on her!

They had a picnic every summer at a farm near Centre Hall, PA, which was another treat, as they and others performed there. I had a ton of fun following that band around and must have seen them 20 or more times. They were a big influence on my musical preferences moving forward and I miss them terribly.

Rest in Peace, Bob and Lee, knowing that there are those of us to whom you cannot be replaced.

Subject: RE: Ever heard of the Buffalo Chipkickers?
From: GUEST,Sam Komlenic
Date: 08 Jan 25 - 06:55 PM

P.S. I have both albums, the eponymous first album and Cleaning Up Our Act, the only two they ever cut, to my knowledge.

Subject: RE: Ever heard of the Buffalo Chipkickers?
From: GUEST,George Stephens
Date: 13 Jan 25 - 01:55 AM

Yep, I was at Penn State in the 70's, and remember them well. I was just getting into acoustic music, and their, um, energy, was energizing.

George