Sugar Bear

There are at least two acts with this name: 1. An American band who released one self-titled LP in 1970. A charming chunk of rural rock from the Sunshine State. Originally released on No Label Records (NR5392), this four-piece outfit from Florida (named after the hip American '70s singin'n'guitar-playin' cartoon character, Sugar Bear) have managed to produce an album of high originality which defies categorisation. From the rock'n'roll opening track, via the superb 'Honey Love', and the album's two standout tracks, 'Season For Love' (vaguely reminiscent of Neil Young's 'Southern Man') and 'The Garden', this is a record of real depth and intelligence. Three of the band's members share the vocal duties, as well as taking turns to deliver some highly-proficient harmonica playing that, particularly on 'Honey Love', supports excellent instrumentation. In terms of musical styles, the 'rural rock' probably covers just about everything you'll find here, from rock'n'roll to the blues and plain ol' country rock in the style of The Outlaws or Pure Prairie League." 2. Today's "Sugarbear" consists of Ivan Bailey on bass, John McLaughlin on lead guitar, and Eric Chick on drums. Ivan and John have been together about 44 years. Started out in Miami as "The Goldtones", later changed to "The Roustabouts". Moved to the Ocala area and became "The Merger" and in 1972 changed the name to "Sugarbear". Eric joined in 2002. The band is still very popular all around Marion County. Their sound is sweeter than ever! Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.