Acton Teen Scene
The Acton Teen Scene
Because Acton was a small suburban town in the 1960s, it did not have multiple commercial music clubs or teen‑only concert halls like bigger cities nearby (e.g., Boston). Instead, music and dances for teens happened in multipurpose community spaces. Battles Of The Bands usually took place in the Gymnasium of Acton‑Boxborough Regional High School or Acton District High. Even if there wasExchange Hall on School Street, built in 1860 and serving as a ballroom, dance hall, and concert space for more than a century, I could not find any specific teen dances or gatherings take place there.
Acton's high school yearbook was called "Torch". The Internet Archive currently hosts copies of the 1965 and the 1967 editions. You can browse or download them here.
Acton had a fantastic roster of groups: Backstreet Affair , Boss Todes , Mauve , Pebbles , Reactions , Royal Coachmen , Sounds Unknown , Tempos , Torques , Tremtones
Among the people being active in the Acton group scene were: Eric Semple, Charlie Weeks, Dick Ford, Ron Walunas, Brian Imhoff, Paul Munroe (Boss Todes / Mauve), Bob Piper, Rick Kapche, Bill Condon, Rick Shamel, Charles Pickard (Reactions) , Kim Carlson (Royal Coachmen) ,
Battle of the Bands, High School Gymnasium, April 2, 1966
Prizes of $100, $25
- Boss Todes (#3)
- Minutemen (#1)
- Misfits
- Retreads
- Rockin' Gambells (#2)
- Shadows
- Sounds Unknown (#3)
Battle of the Bands, High School Gymnasium, June 24, 1966
Battle of the Bands, High School Auditorium, March 25, 1967
- Beau Geste
- Color
- Cougars
- Gremlins
- Livin' Kind
- Night Kapps
- Olde Crows
- Poets
- Reactions (#4)
- Sounds Of Aftermath (#1)
Battle of the Bands, Acton Boxboro High School Auditorium, February 24, 1968
