Formed in Western Massachusetts, Forest was a working band, playing mostly rock clubs and colleges throughout New England from the mid- to late ’70s. Rooted in American blues, the band took tangents into jazz fusion, Latin, R&B, and what became known as Southern rock.

After a 25-year hiatus, the band did a reunion of sorts in 2000. It was great to see my brothers again and we vowed to stay in touch. In 2003 drummer Bob Girouard was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, and by 2010, not able to play to his prior potential, Bob had channeled his talents to writing about music for various publications such as Elmore and Modern Drummer. In 2014, Forest, its members scattered across the US, again reunited in Bob’s hometown, Albany, NY, to play a “Boogie for Bob” benefit. He has fought the terrible disease valiantly, but it is a foe that cannot be conquered, just dealt with. Forest could do something about it, though, both then in Albany, and now.

In January 2021, the idea for a virtual reunion formed. We could all record and email our parts from various locations, for Bob. The relevant lineup was Bob Girouard (drums and vocals), Bob Strempek (bass), Jim Lacaprucia (Hammond B3 and vocals), Wes Talbot (keyboards), Jim Kimball (guitar), multi-instrumentalist Bill Holloman and myself, Gary Stevens (co-drummer/percussion and vocals).

Bill Holloman started the heavy lifting by making the basic track, all of it, keys, horns, bass, drums, vocals. I rented a studio in Akron and played the drums along with the track, added the percussion and chorus vocals and emailed it back to Bill. Jim Kimball (best known as Reba McEntire’s longtime guitarist) recorded the superb guitar work at his Nashville studio; Jim Lacaprucia did the organ tracks and half the lead vocals at his South Carolina studio, and Bob Strempek recorded the bass tracks back in Western MA, completing the rhythm section. Bob Girouard was visiting family in Stuart, FL, to cut his vocal track, so Wes Talbot, who had developed a successful career producing music, drove from South Beach Miami to Stuart. After Wes added the synth parts that helped glue it together, Bill did all the pre-master/post-production work fixing all the little mistakes that would have never bothered anyone before, but do not have a place in modern recording. Finally, Wes mastered it with the ears of studio heavyweights Bill Holloman and Jim Kimball.

Bob speaks a little at the end, mostly inside jokes. While his singing voice held up, you can hear a touch of Parkinson’s weakness in his speaking voice. Referring to our band in military terms, he said, “A lot of people came through that encampment.” It is not just a reference to the changing band members, but the fact that being in such a tight band with such a tight bond—despite our individual musical predilections—changed each of us. Not to mention that a few of us, especially Bill Holloman and Jim Kimball, have achieved tremendous success as pro musicians.

We chose “People Got To Be Free” (written in 1968, a tough time for our country), in early January, 2021, another time of tremendous strife and hatred. I love the way the listener is invited to the revelation that we are much more alike than different, that it is a natural, universal thing to get along, that we just need to treat each other as we would want to be treated. And that helping a person in need to feel better is one of the best things one can do in life.

Timeless advice. That is why we did this.

Peace in the Valley.

—Gary Stevens

Cleveland, OH