1960s TEEN BEAT

The band prepared for the recording of their first and only single. It would later be issued on the TMS label, which stands for Tyler Marshall Smith. It's the only release on the label.

Tyler: "I originally tried to write a song similar to 'Don't Let the Sun Catch You Cryin'. I also sent a copy of 'I Was A Fool' to Jerry and the Pacemakers... They told me that 'this is very good for a start - Keep on writing - You might be good someday!'  I did."

Tyler's parents decided since their son couldn't sell the song to a band, they'd finance The Invaders to do it themselves. Tyler's dad came along to the recording session for support. 

Tyler: "It was a small, 4-track studio, where most of the bands recorded demos and records--it was the best facility in the city at that time. Later, it gained a lot of clout, and eventually became the studio (changing its name to Sound Recorders),  where most of Omaha recorded. It was the starting point for Mannheim Steamroller (Fresh Aire), which is known all over the world now."

According to Tyler, the instrumentals were done all at once, first take. The vocals were doubled and done on different tracks. The band had 500 copies pressed and had a local music store, Musicland, taking it on consignment.

Tyler: "We distributed it personally. It was very difficult for local musicians to get well-known distributors behind independent records. We promoted it wherever we played."

The band usually played gigs at private parties, proms, school dances, and Sandy's Escape , a local teenage nightclub. Tyler remembers competing bands, The Rumbles, The Coachmen, The Chevrons, The Wonders, The Bushmen.  

It's interesting that the group didn't consider their two recorded songs as particularly good:

Tyler: "Our record was premature and we regretted it. Two years later when we got much tighter I was also writing better songs. To this day I wish we had waited longer to go into the studio."

The band did write and perform more original material, but it was never recorded. No live performances were preserved, either. 

Tyler: "We did one called 'You Better Go'. It sounded similar to 'Tell Her No' by the Zombies. Also 'Am I Really A Man' - a war protest song in the Dylan mode. I do remember one called 'On My Own' about a rambling homeless man. I still remember how to play and sing 'You Better Go' - I sang it for my wife a couple days ago."