Interview With A Turtle

By Larry R. Matthews

Jim holds his Fender Stratocaster. His gold record for "Happy Together" appears on the wall behind him

Many of us who grew up as teenagers in the 1960's fondly remember the music of that era. There was always so much excitement to be had in hearing a new hit record on your transistor radio or seeing some new rock group perform on shows such as "Shindig", "Hullabaloo", "Where The Action Is" and "American Bandstand".

I guess that's why I have written so many articles regarding the history and music of that decade. In March of this year I wrote an article in the Territorial Dispatch about one of my favorite 60's bands; The Turtles.

One of the few joys of being a writer is getting feedback from readers and, in this case, I was certainly not disappointed. Shortly after the article appeared I received an e-mail from Jim Tucker of Grass Valley . He was the rhythm guitarist for the Turtles from 1965 to 1968. Jim indicated that even though the facts in my article regarding his old band "were pretty much right on" he did want to clarify a few things.


So I interviewed Jim on June 11th. Jim lives in a charming 100 year old house in Grass Valley with his significant other Debbie and their little dog Angie.


His house reflects the obvious pride that Jim has of having been a Turtle. On one wall are the following: A group photo of the original Turtles and a framed copy of the Turtles' "Happy Together" and "Turtles 20 Greatest Hits" record albums. Next to these is a 2007 certificate from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences certifying that the song "Happy Together" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Last but not least is Jim's Gold 45 Record from RIAA showing that "Happy Together" sold over a million copies.


Jim joined the Turtles in 1964 while they were called the "Crossfires". All of the members had gone to high school in the Los Angeles area.


After they became the Turtles in 1965 they produced a string of hits. Jim played on all of their hit records until 1968. Those songs included: "It Ain't Me Babe", "Let Me Be", "You Baby", "Happy Together", "She'd Rather Be With Me", "You Know What I Mean" and "She's My Girl". Jim left the group in early 1968. The group went on to have two more hits; "Elenore" and "You Showed Me" in 1968 and 1969. Overall the group had 17 hits in the Top 100.

I asked Jim to share some Turtle memories that come to mind:

They flew to Chicago for their first tour in 1965. Few had ever flown before or been out of California . They learned quickly that bus touring was not glamorous. They had to sleep on the floor of the bus. With them were Peter and Gordon, Brian Hyland, Tom Jones, Mel Carter and Dick Clark. The touring band was called "The Executives" who later changed their name to " Chicago ".

 This Turtles photo is from 1965. Jim appears in the middle of the top row.

He remembers playing the Hollywood Bowl with Sonny and Cher . That was back in the days when they were getting along and singing "I Got You Babe".

Jim Morrison and the Doors opened for them for a week at the Whiskey A Go Go. The Turtles had five Top 40 hits before the Doors made it big with "Light My Fire".


Jim really enjoyed touring with the Lovin' Spoonful. He and the Spoonful's lead singer, John Sebastian became very good friends.

They played the Ed Sullivan show twice. Over a three day period they were required to have a dry rehearsal and a dress rehearsal and did not get to meet Mr. Sullivan until he actually introduced them on stage.

They played the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour three times and Jim remembers Tom and Dick as being really great guys - and funny!

Jim remembers that the first time they played a song at "The Speakeasy" in London , nobody applauded. As they were scheduled to appear there for 6 weeks the band was very concerned. But things did get better. Later that night they saw John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Jimi Hendrix, Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones and Graham Nash of the Hollies arrive to hear their show.

The Turtles also met Bob Dylan but Jim remembers that Bob was not in any condition to even remember that their first record, "It Ain't Me Babe" had been written by him! Mainly, Bob was face down in a plate of pasta.

The Turtles also appeared in one of the earliest music videos. It was for their biggest hit, "Happy Together" and it shows the group running, jumping, rolling and mugging in a park in Los Angeles . Jim says it may have been Griffith Park , but he is not sure. It has a very Beatle/Monkee look to it.

To clarify why he left the group was one of the things Jim wanted to explain. He states that much has been made of the fact that he was a big Beatles fan and that he had quit the band because he was so greatly disillusioned after meeting the Beatles in London . Jim says that is not true.

As a matter of fact this story was recreated in the 2003 film, "My Dinner With Jimi". It shows a scene where John Lennon is very rude to him and Jim disgustedly leaves the group. The film was written by the Turtles' lead singer Howard Kaylan. Kaylan recently repeated this story in an interview on KLOS Radio in Los Angeles.

Jim says that the Turtles met both John Lennon and Paul McCartney in 1967 in a high class London club called "The Speakeasy". Jim says that not only was John Lennon not rude to him, he doesn't even remember him saying a word to him. He remembers John just being pretty incoherent or passed out much of the time. He does remember Paul McCartney telling him "I like your tunes" . He never met George Harrison or Ringo Starr.


So if it wasn't a rude remark by a Beatle that made Jim leave the group, what was it? Jim says he was tired of touring and recording. While they were touring in early 1968 the stress of continual touring and the pressure to record new album tracks caused Jim to have a panic attack. Jim says, "There was no time for myself and everybody wanted a piece of me. We never fought or argued. I just needed a break." Also, he was homesick for California .

Jim says, "I can understand how being a celebrity can cause mental stress. I can understand how Michael Jackson turned out the way he did. You no longer belong to yourself and so many people depend upon you for everything."

After leaving the Turtles at age 21, Jim moved to Grass Valley and became an electrical contractor. He is now retired.

I asked Jim if he still played guitar so he showed me his current Fender Stratocaster. He sometimes plays locally on Saturday and Sunday nights in Nevada County and has made a habit of playing with the group Mogollon over the last 6 or 7 years during the Nevada County Fair. A video of one of their performances from 2010 can be found on You Tube.


I wondered if Jim still keeps in contact with any of the original Turtles. He stated that drummer Don Murray passed away in 1996. He has spoken by phone with vocalist Mark Volman in the last few months and guitarist Al Nichol within the last few years. It has been many years since he has heard from lead vocalist Howard Kaylan and bassist Chuck Portz.

Jim says, "I have never regretted leaving the Turtles and I have no regrets about my time with the group. I got to see the country and to meet most everybody who was famous in the music industry at the time."

Jim Tucker seems very content with his life and with his time as a Turtle. It's nice to know that after 45 years Jim still keeps on rockin'.