Chapter Quartets

The Men of Note are proud to have two active quartets within the chapter.  Our quartets are:

Sometimers

The SOMETIMERS quartet was formed in 1997 with Dave Hawkins, tenor; Ray Briggs, lead; Phil Rankin, baritone; and Al Temby, bass. In 1999, due to job conflicts, Dave was replaced temporarily with Chris Gelb at tenor.  When Dave left to sing with another quartet in 2005, the SOMETIMERS added Tom Gillam singing bass, and moved Al Temby to the tenor spot.

Al Temby is self employed, writing marching band programs for high schools and colleges within the state as well as for bands from several other states. He married his new wife, Sherry, in January 2009. Ray is a retired chemical engineer, followed by twenty years as a substitute teacher, teaching primarily science and math at the high school level. He founded the Kokomo Chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society in 1957 and is the only remaining charter member of the Men of Note. Phil is retired from Delphi Electronics as an accountant. Tom retired from First National Bank as a Vice President .

The name, SOMETIMERS, refers to their self admitted, but rarely witnessed, weakness – “sometimes we remember all of the words and sometimes we don’t. Their slogan – “Have pitch pipe, will travel.”

Sycamore Road

Sycamore Road rang their first chords in March 2003. Their name brings with it a rich heritage in barbershop harmony. Back in the late 1970's and early 80's, at the conclusion of the Saturday night Afterglows, a cast party would come together West of town on an old Indian Trail called Sycamore Road, at the home of Bob Whitacre. In those days, the Chapter hosted some of our Society's greatest quartets. The quartets would come to the party to relax and sing with their friends late into the night. Quartets like "The OK Four", "Gentlemen's Agreement", "Blue Grass Student Union", and "The Insiders" all shared their love of Barbershopping with the Kokomo Men-of-Note.

Today, a new quartet comes to that same hallowed house to begin a new era of Barbershop Quarteting. That new quartet has taken the name Sycamore Road as a tribute to the legacy of all the great quartets that have passed down that old historic road to sing Barbershop Harmony. Please come meet Colin Craig-Baritone, Bob Whitacre-Bass, Dave Hawkins-Lead and Phil Griggs-Tenor, as Sycamore Road.

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