Rick Nordin thought it was one of the guys joking around when he answered the phone and was told that the band he put together in 1984 was going to be inducted into the Mid-America Music Hall of Fame this weekend.
He soon realized the call wasn't a prank.
"I had goose bumps for an hour," said Nordin of Lake Lillian, who organized the Doc Holliday Band 24 years ago as a "weekend band of married guys."
With a style of music that transitioned from Texas swing to southern rock to "country with a kick" to Top 40, the Doc Holliday Band had five or six members at any given time. In all, 12 different vocalists and musicians came and went before the band folded in 1996.
Eleven of the 12 members will be inducted into the hall of fame this weekend during a three-day event at the Medina Entertainment Center. Despite an exhaustive search, they couldn't find their original drummer, Jodi Seward.
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Most of the band members still live in Minnesota. One is coming from North Dakota and another from Florida.
Considering the caliber of other Minnesota bands that are already in the Hall, joining the ranks is an "honor," said Kris Pederson of Willmar, who is a drummer.
"It's a pretty cool deal," said David Mohs of Kandiyohi, lead vocalist and guitarist. "It's very humbling."
Thirty different bands or individuals will be inducted this weekend including some well-known groups like Whisky River, Michael Johnson, High Noon, Lynn Anderson and Mary McGregor. Remember the song, "Torn Between Two Lovers?" It was sung by Mary McGregor.
The 11 members of the Doc Holliday Band got together for a reunion performance in 2002, and on Saturday afternoon they practiced for a couple hours at the Willmar VFW to prepare for their performance Friday night in Medina as part of the Hall of Fame show. They'll be performing three songs: Boogie Back to Texas, Bluest Eyes in Texas and Northern Town.
With four tenor vocalists, the band will deliver their trademark four-part harmony.
They'll also be performing 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. on May 9 at Melvin's in Spicer for a local Hall of Fame induction celebration performance.
Even though years have passed since the musicians played together, the nervousness will disappear with "that very first chord" that's played, said Mohs.
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Getting together with the crew is always a "lot of yuks and laughs and giggles," said Mohs.
The fun the band had when they played together on a regular basis was one of the things that made it such a popular regional band in the 1980s and '90s.
"The crowd could see what we were doing was fun," said Mohs.
In 1993 they participated in the national "Star Search" program. In 1994 they were the first regional band to get an encore request while playing at the outdoor county music festival, WE Fest, which Nordin said was a testament to the quality of music the band was producing.
The band members are now between 46 and 52 years of age.
They describe each other as "brothers" who not only share a love of music, but have also watched each others' children grow up. There are 23 kids between the 11 members.
"We have an incredible amount of respect for each other," said Nordin.
During the early years, on weekends when they weren't performing, they used to get together at Nordin's country home for a potluck supper with their families and play music around a bonfire.
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They would usually perform in regional venues three or four nights a month. During their busiest years, the band traveled for 18 months straight. They provided warm-up music to big names like Charlie Daniels and Conway Twitty.
"That stuff was fun," said Pederson.
Through it all "ego never became an issue," said Nordin.
Their friendships and their music survived the times even though the band didn't.
"We're just like brothers. It's all good," said Pederson.
Some of the Doc Holliday members are in new bands.
Nordin, Mohs and Pederson have formed a band called Specials Lit, which plays music from the 1960s and '70s. They will be performing next weekend at Melvin's as part of the Doc Holliday post-induction celebration in Spicer.
For ticket information about the Mid-America Music Hall of Fame call 763-261-6661 or go to www.RockCountryHall.com .
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For an audio clip of the band's performance, visit www.wctrib.com
