Geronimo Black

Geronimo Black was a short-lived hard rock band founded in 1972 by Jimmy Carl Black and named for his youngest son Geronimo. It is also the name for an album by "Geronimo Black Two", formed in 2003 by Jimmy's sons, Geronimo and James D. Black, which released a CD under their father's Inkanish Records label.

Its roster of performers included members of other bands, principally from Frank Zappa's The Mothers of Invention:

• Jimmy Carl Black, drummer, from The Mothers of Invention
• Andy Cahan, keyboards, from Dr. John, Richard Souther keyboards
• Tjay Contrelli (John Barberis), saxophone, from Love
• Bunk Gardner (John Leon Guanerra), horns, from The Mothers of Invention
• Buzz Gardner (Charles Guanerra), horns
• Tom Leavey, bass
• Denny Walley, guitar, from The Mothers of Invention and Captain Beefheart's Magic Band

They recorded one album under the MCA-Universal Records label at the Sound City studio, produced by Keith Olson, who later went on to produce Fleetwood Mac's Rumors album.

After their manager Russ Reagen left, according to guitarist Denny Walley,

no one... really knew what to do with the band in the company or how to promote us and they were really afraid of us. We were rowdy, drank a lot, did everything a lot. We were pretty uncontrollable and they wound up banning us from even coming onto the lot and that was the end of the record deal.'

After the band broke up, they briefly reformed to record a later album entitled Welcome Back, Geronimo Black, for the Helios label, which included ex-Magic Band guitarist Gerry McGee.