Jerry Woolsey (vocals)
Barrie Nighswander (guitar)
Duane Smith (bass, guitar, keyboards)
Dennis Meneely (keyboards)
Bill Hobson (drums)
Paul "Brink" Di Cola (percussion)
Dale Ladouceur (Chapman stick, vocals)
Al Brant (vocals; replaced Woolsey 1990)

Long-time veterans JATO from Stettler, Alberta, featured Woolsey, Nighswander, Meneely and Hobson as Tacoy Ryde starting in 1966. The band added Smith and Di Cola in 1968. As time progressed they made the transition through every musical trend. They moved to Edmonton in 1973. In the spring of 1980 the band recorded their first single at Homestead Recorders with manager Larry Wanagas (k.d. Lang, Big Sugar, The Trews). The single, "Is There A Reason" b/w "Don't Let Me Be Alone" was released and received airplay regionally.

These were the days of six-nighters back-to-back across the country, with a solid fan base in several major cities. Tacoy Ryde was also becoming a full-fledged reggae band. They were now being booked to open for major reggae acts such as Jamaica's Third World Band and England's Steel Pulse.

By 1982, the time was ripe to record an album. The band headed to Pinewood Studio in Vancouver with producer Claire Lawrence (Chilliwack, Hometown Band). The album consisted of original reggae material but upon completion, the band was unable to secure a record deal so the album was shelved and to this day remains unreleased.

In late 1983, under pressure to change their name and move in a more pop direction Tacoy Ryde became JATO (which the band jokingly claim means 'Jet-Assisted-Take-Off') and signed with an upstart label from Vancouver, Parallel One, run by Gordon Sinclair and Scott Andrews.

Their debut album was recorded by Bob Rock and produced by Declan O'Doherty at Little Mountain Sound in Vancouver.

The singles "She's Got" reached No. 74 on the national charts and "Lake Of Fire" reached No. 90. The album achieved minimal attention and with the demise of Parallel One Records not long after the band was put on hold in 1988.

In 1990, without lead singer Woolsey, the band returned to their original name of Tacoy Ryde. The band forged ahead without a lead singer until meeting up with Al Brant while performing a tribute on Jimi Hendrix's 50th birthday. Shortly after this, drummer Bill Hobson's future wife, Dale Ladouceur, joined the band on Chapman Stick.

By 1995 the band was a regular fixture on the Edmonton club scene. Tacoy Ryde soon began recording their debut independent CD.

'Here's The Picture' was released in 2003 and songs like "Where's Doug" and "Ojo Grises" ranked in the top 15 most played songs on CKUA Radio.

The group is currently working on a follow-up album to mark it's 40th anniversary in the business.

with notes from Ken Ames and Dawn Woolsey.


Singles
as TACOY RYDE
1980 Is There A Reason/Don't Let Me Be Alone (independent)

as JATO
1987 She's Got/Coming Home (Parallel One) POR-0145-JA
1988 Lake Of Fire/Dance For You (Parallel One) POR-0345-JA
1988 Standing Alone/Breaking Down (Parallel One) POR-0445-JA

Albums
as TACOY RYDE
2003 Here's The Picture (independent)

as JATO
1987 JATO (Parallel One)

Video


Compilation Tracks




Official Tacoy Ride Website


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