‘Oh my God, they know these songs!' How Jerry Riopelle became the hottest thing in Phoenix
Jerry Riopelle had no idea just how big a deal he and his music had become in Phoenix when he showed up for his first appearance on a Valley stage as the opening act for kindred spirit David Bromberg at the historic Celebrity Theatre.
It was 1974 and the DJs at KDKB-FM, a free-form progressive rock station in Mesa, were all over Riopelle’s “Saving Grace” album.
As David Plenn, a guitarist in Riopelle’s LA-based combo, recalls, “We’re in LA and none of my friends know who Jerry Riopelle is. They keep asking, ‘Who’s this guy you’re playing with?’”
Phoenix was a different story altogether. First, they show up for the Bromberg gig and hear their music on the radio. Then, they take the stage — as an opening act — and launch into “Livin’ the Life,” the first song on the album.
“And everybody starts applauding and cheering,” Plenn recalls. “We’re kind of looking around like, 'Did someone walk in? Did a guest star come on stage? Why are they clapping?’ Then we realized, ‘Oh my God, they know these songs!'”
It was a mind-blowing experience.
“To hear the reaction and feel the genuine enthusiasm for the music was great,” Plenn says. “Of course, we went from there to Denver, where we opened for Dory Previn, and the audience was just the opposite, like, ‘Who are these guys? Get ‘em out of here.’
"So we came back down to earth very quickly.”
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In 1974, Jerry Riopelle launched a Phoenix New Year's Eve tradition
The next time they played Phoenix, the response was even stronger, which led to an opening slot for Dr. John on New Year's Eve at the Celebrity.
Danny Zelisko, who booked many shows for Riopelle, was relatively new to Phoenix when that album started taking off on local radio. He recalls the scene at Riopelle’s first New Year’s Eve performance.
“He blew that place out,” Zelisko says. “He was the guy who sold that show out more than Dr. John did."
The next year, Riopelle returned to headline New Year’s Eve as a Phoenix tradition took hold.
“It was really amazing to me, just to go to a restaurant and hear your music playing," Plenn says.
Riopelle 'couldn't go anywhere in Phoenix. He was like Elvis'
There were other markets spinning “Saving Grace,” from Minneapolis to Amsterdam. But Riopelle could drive to Phoenix from LA for a gig.
“So we could keep that plate spinning, where the other ones, we couldn’t,” Plenn recalls.
Starting in 1975, Zelisko says, “Jerry went on a run of concerts from the success of ‘Saving Grace’ where he was up to three shows at a time, sold out in advance. People here just couldn’t get enough of him. He couldn’t go anywhere in Phoenix. He was like Elvis.”
In 2011, Riopelle, who was born in Detroit, told The Republic, "The people in Tucson thought I was from Phoenix. People in Phoenix thought I was from Tucson. And I was just treated, always, like a favorite son when, in fact, I was living in L.A., working in film music and things like that."
“Saving Grace” was Riopelle’s third album and his first on ABC after doing two albums for Capitol Records. They were touring on a second ABC release, 1975’s “Take a Chance,” when the label folded.
“We found out, ‘It’s time to come home. Things are falling apart,’” Plenn says. “That, I think, helped contribute to Jerry’s isolation from the rest of the country.”
Riopelle remained a major draw in Phoenix, eventually moving to Scottsdale. He died on Christmas Eve 2018, days before he was scheduled to play two final gigs at Talking Stick Resort, which had sold out quickly.
Jerry Riopelle's bandmates reunite for 'Saving Grace' 50th anniversary
Plenn and other members of Riopelle’s band — John Harris, Llory McDonald, David Goodstein, Tara Austin, and Paul Riopelle, the singer’s son — will reunite to celebrate the 50th anniversary of “Saving Grace” at Talking Stick Resort with two performances on Friday, May 31 and Saturday, June 1.
They plan on playing the entire album from top to bottom, followed by other fan favorites with guest vocalists including Chuck E. Baby, Michael Nitro and Ray Herndon.
“It’s interesting,” Plenn says. “Some of the tunes, we’ve never played outside the studio. Or if we did, we played them once or twice. So it was fun to learn them. It’s my guitar on those songs, but I hadn’t played them in 50 years.”
They’ve done these types of shows before since losing Riopelle.
“I love doing it,” Plenn says. “For me, there’s some real value in the music. And it’s good to put it out there. Otherwise, it’s gone, you know?”
Paul Riopelle says these may be their final tribute shows.
“It’s great when it happens," he says. "But I think it’s time. And I’ve got other things in mind to keep his legacy alive.”
Those things include reissues and a tribute album “with new interpretations of because the songs should live on,” he said.
How Jerry Riopelle came to rule the airwaves at KDKB in Phoenix
“Saving Grace” breaking in Phoenix marked a pivotal time in the singer’s career, thanks in large part to KDKB, where the station’s copy of the album had a message from program director Bill Compton scrawled on the back.
“This is excellent music,” Compton wrote. “Eat it, breathe it, absorb it! It’ll help you grow in eight ways!”
Linda Thompson Smith was a popular DJ and music director at KDKB. They had played some tracks on Riopelle’s two Capitol releases, she recalls.
“And we started getting response to some of those tracks, like ‘Let’s Get Loaded’ and ‘Candy Bar,’ in particular,” she says. “So when ‘Saving Grace’ came out, we knew him.”
The station played eight tracks from “Saving Grace,” including “(Loaded) Like We Used to Do,” “Blues on My Table,” “Naomi’s Song,” “Shoulder to the Wheel,” “Roll with the Feeling” and “You and I,” while still playing the songs from his earlier records.
“We didn’t actually have a rotation at the station,” Thompson Smith says. “But everybody played certain key albums.”
Paul Riopelle says, “It was kind of the album that put Jerry Riopelle on the map out here. Bill Compton got a hold of it and the rest is history.”
Zelisko says, "They had to have been eight songs deep on that album on KDKB, which was unheard of. It’s basically the whole album. ‘Saving Grace,’ to me, was like his ‘Sgt. Pepper’s.’”
Riopelle's success in Phoenix led to Capitol reissuing those first two albums. And hearing a Riopelle song on the radio while in town to perform inspired Kenny Loggins to record his own rendition on the "Nightwatch” album.
“He gets in the limo, the radio’s on and he hears ‘Easy Driver,’” Plenn says. “Any other city, he wouldn’t have heard that song. In Phoenix, he hears that song and goes, ‘Damn, I gotta record that.’ So he puts it on his biggest-selling record.”
As crucial as that airplay was in breaking Riopelle in Phoenix, it wouldn’t have been nearly as successful if the live show hadn’t sealed the deal.
“He started developing this really big following,” Thompson Smith says. “Because people loved his shows. They were high-energy and so much fun. You could tell the band was working really hard to make it a great show. And that just translates to audience love.”
In 1979, Riopelle was the headlining act at the grand opening of Compton Terrace in Tempe, drawing more than 17,000 people.
“During the quiet songs, you could hear 17,000 people singing our songs,” Plenn recalls.
Paul Riopelle says his dad “adored” his fans in Phoenix.
“They meant everything to him,” he says. “That’s why he kept doing it. There was nothing like a Phoenix audience in his mind.”
Celebrating the Music of Jerry Riopelle
When: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, May 31-June 1.
Where: Talking Stick Resort, Loop 101 and Pima Road, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.
Admission: $40 and up.
Details: 480-850-7734, talkingstickresort.com.
Reach the reporter at ed.masley@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @EdMasley and facebook.com/ed.masley
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: How Jerry Riopelle became a star on Phoenix radio with 'Saving Grace'
