Doug Beatty remembered

By Bryce Martin

Doug Beatty was known in area clubs for his self-contained act and especially for his solo version of the falsetto-charged "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" and its catchy "Wimowehs" borrowed from a traditional Zulu melody. Beatty was a member of The Lelands (previously the Leland Four), joining in 1982 when the group's original guitarist Rick Stock left. (Beginning in September 1967, according to Stock, The Leland Four on tour established itself in Bakersfield as a popular attraction with regular appearances at Maison Jaussaud.) In the mid- to late-60s, Beatty joined with Kenn Lively for one of Lively's many folk trio combinations. One of those with Lively, Beatty and Mike Meyers led to a 45 rpm recording on Bill Woods' Fiesta Records, of which Beatty was superb on lead guitar on a combination Doors' "Light My Fire" and the Nashville Teens' "Tobacco Road" coupling. It's a lost gem of a record.

Note: The Leland Four originated as a rock 'n' roll band in Honolulu, Hawaii, under the name Hawaiian Shadows, 1961-1965. The name was changed upon arrival in Portland, Ore., in April 1965 to avoid any possible confusion with the English group The Shadows (Cliff Richard and The Shadows). They were Leland (Lee) Henriksen, Jet Kanani, Spud Ivens and Rick Stock. After playing all over Nevada they called it home and became a show band. In August 1975, they recorded an album at John Ascuaga's Nugget in Sparks. When Ivens left the group in 1978, they became The Lelands and a number of musicians revolved in and out of the remaining original group structure.