Gernhard, Phil (1943-22.02.2008)

Arranger, producer and songwriter who co-penned The Royal Guardsmen’s biggest hit, “Snoopy vs. the Red Baron”. Although it earned them dubious “one-hit wonder” status, he continued to produce their albums and milk the cow for three more novelty records.

Around the time The Royal Guardsmen were first planting the seeds of their group, Gernhard was slumming in a band called The Sugar Beats where he met singer-songwriter Kent Lavoie. It began a creative partnership that would last about twelve years. In 1969, Gernhard produced Lavoie’s debut 45, “Happy Days in New York City”. The B side was “My Friend is Here”. Although it was an inauspicious collaborative effort, two years later, the pair struck gold with a song called “Me and You and a Dog Named Boo.” Lavoie, afraid he would go the way of The Royal Guardsmen and be stereotyped as a novelty act, adopted the moniker Lobo. The song was a hit and the name stuck.

It was not the last career Gerhard would help launch. In 1973, he would produce former Sugar Beat member Jim Stafford’s “Swamp Witch”, which hit the top forty. A pair of follow-ups, “My Girl Bill” and “Wildwood Weed” were co-produced by Gernhard and Lobo and were both successful, the latter reaching the top ten in the U.S. Gernhard also marshalled a bit of a comeback for sixties sensation Dion by giving him a song called “Abraham, Martin and John”, a song that was supposedly earmarked for The Royal Guardsmen. It put Dion back on the charts and began another important artistic collaboration for Gernhard, who would go on to produce a couple of Dion’s albums in the ’70s.

As the decade muddled along, Gernhard trended towards country, producing The Bellamy Brothers’ “Let Your Love Flow”, Hank Williams Jr.’s “Family Tradition” and helping Jo Dee Messina give her career the shot in the arm that it needed, signing her to Curb Records. He even made a brief foray into film and served as Music Supervisor for the Mike Curb-produced wrestling film Body Slam in 1987.

Phil Gernhard was recently at a platinum-record unveiling for another one of his prodiges, Rodney Atkins. Lobo continues to tour internationally and Jim Stafford owns his own theatre in Branson, Missouri. Not bad for three Sugar Beats that the sixties weren’t all that sweet to.

He was married and divorced four times and while suffering from prostate cancer he committed suicide in February 2008.

The Royal Guardsmen recordings
Snoopy vs. the Red Baron (Phil Gernhard/Dick Holler)

He produced “Isabelle and Samantha” for Jo Stafford and is seen here with him…

Sources:

Gernhard, Phil (1943-22.02.2008)

Navigation