This is part of a series of posts I’ve entitled, “Stories From the Road.” Each week I will post a new story from Rick Sikes, a Texas musician who traveled the roads of Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and out to California for well over twenty years. With hours to pass in a bus full of sweaty musicians, they found ways to entertain themselves. These stories are told in Rick Sikes’ words. I’ll do my best to correct grammar, but I want to keep them in his own voice.
Rick:
“I had a tall skinny bass man that we used to play tricks on. His name was Thomas Jenkins but we all called him Red because he had red hair. He wore glasses with thick lenses. He had a lot of trouble with his eyes. I remember one time we were in a motel out in California when he went to sleep on the floor watching TV with his glasses on. My brother, Bobby, had some watercolors and he painted the lens on his glasses with red, yellow and orange paint. When it dried on them, after a minute or so, he put a paper sack in an aluminum pan and set it on fire. Once the room filled with smoke, everybody started hollering, “Fire, fire, fire.” Red woke up. He jumped up off the floor and of course, all he could was red, orange and yellow and he could smell the smoke. He was panicking until he pulled his glasses off. Of course, he failed to see the humor in it but we were all rolling on the floor laughing.
Another thing we used to do to him when he would zonk out like that was spray shaving cream on his glasses. He would wake up and couldn’t see anything but white shaving cream and he’d think he’d gone blind. I suppose that was pretty cruel, but it was all in fun. No harm was ever meant by it.
This same guy, Red Jenkins, greased his hair down with Brilliantine oil, that was popular back then. He was bad about falling asleep; one of those guys that nodded off real good, kind of a Rip Van Winkle sort of guy. So anyway, this time, someone else was driving, Red was in the middle and I was on the passenger side. Three other guys were in the back of the car and we were heading to a gig. I was wearing a white western shirt. Red went to sleep and fell over on my shoulder with that greasy head so I pushed his head back up. He didn’t even wake up. We went a little farther down the road and he fell back over on my shoulder again. I raised his head back up but by this time I was getting a little perturbed. So, the third time he fell over on my shoulder, I popped him upside the head and told him to wake up. He said, “That’s alright, you sonofabitch. You’re gonna want to sleep someday.” It was kinda funny though. The guys all cracked up when I popped him good.
I will say this about Red Jenkins. He always had my back. I met him when he was hitchhiking through Texas on the way to California. I stopped to give him a ride. He wound up staying with me and playing in the band for many years and even went to prison with me. I felt responsible for him. He wasn’t real bright, but he could play good and he was loyal. I often wonder whatever happened to him…”
Writing and Music 
What a story! It sounds like its right out of the movies.
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Lol! Truth is oftentimes much stranger than fiction. Thanks for stopping by!
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This had me laughing a lot harder than I probably should have been. Really were some good gags. Loved the pictures and stores as always:)
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Many thanks, D.L. I’m glad you saw the humor in the pranks. Boredom on the road can cause a man to do crazy things. 🙂
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This sounds just like my family when I was growing up! Most everyone enjoyed playing the jokes, but few appreciated being on the receiving end. I bet it was a hoot ~ and a challenge! ~ traveling with Rick and the band 🙂 Hugs, Jan ❤
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A challenge for sure, Tina. Thanks for stopping by. Hugs!
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Red sounds like a character and I could see how having him as a sidekick would be a joy. Thanks for the story, Jan
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Weeeellll, joy isn’t exactly the word I would use, but Red was loyal to Rick – like a great hunting dog sort of. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by, John.
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😀
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Jan, what a great slice of life from a band on the road. I know how fond Rick became of Red and how dedicated he was to seeing that Red was treated right. And then, Red just disappeared one day. Very odd to say the least. I love each of these tales that sprang from Rick’s pen. He was very prolific. 🙂
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Thank you for stopping by today, sister. You are right, Rick and Red were like brothers. So glad you are enjoying the tales. Love you!
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Oh how funny, Annette! Thank you for dropping by and commenting. I appreciate you!
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Gee whiz… Rick and my ex could have been related… The practical jokes flew while we were married. Of course, I was my husband’s “Red” Jenkins (I was a redhead back then)
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Their playfulness is so endearing. You’ve immortalized an era of innocence along with their music, Jan. Thank you for sharing with all of us. Big hugs! ♥
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And thank you, sweet Gwen, for taking the journey with me. Have an awesomely blessed day!
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Guys really do like to rag on each other in good fun, LOL. I’m sure once Red got over being irked he saw the humor in the situations too. I keep looking at the top black and white picture because he reminds me of someone….though I can’t figure out who.
Another entertaining segment from Rick’s days on the road, Jan!
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Thank you, Mae. Perhaps you can solve the mystery of whatever happened to Red. 🙂 It’s a rather long story, but it involved a sudden disappearance from prison. Thank you for dropping by and leaving a comment. You rock!
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🙂
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Now I wonder whatever happened to Red too. A marvelous cast of “characters” in these stories, Jan. You handle it well. Hugs.
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Many thanks, Teagan. I am happy you stopped in to enjoy. Have a great day! Hugs back to you!
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