Itchy Brother

Cleveland, 1970-1

The organ trio was a popular format for jazz bands in the 1960s. A few local rock bands used the lineup in the early 1970s. Itchy Brother were from Cleveland's SW suburbs (although an Akron newspaper bit incorrectly llsts them from Barberton).Tracy Coats was the band leader and played a souped up Hammond C3 organ setup. The other two members were George Holoubek (drums) and Allen Lacko (bass). George was a senoir at Brunswick HS, Allen may have been from Midpark HS.. 

The band had a regular gig at the Longhorn during 1971. They also played closer to home in the Akron area. Their biggest moment was probably opening for Seatrain and Taj Mahal at CWRU in May 1971. The band did not get a good review from the Cleveland Scene writer but they were up against tough competition.

Tracy Coats went out on his own and performed solo shows in NE Ohio for a couple years before starting a sound production company. He resurfaced in the early 1980s as the founder and producer of the All Sports Band.

The band's name came from a character in a now (deservedly) forgotten TV cartoon show of the early 1960s, King Leonardo. There were a few more bands across the US using the same moniker. The same cartoon provided the name for Biggy Rat.