'Spanky' member, 81, dies

Guitarist and singer Nigel Pickering, one of the founders and songwriters of the 1960s folk-rock group Spanky and Our Gang, died at Bay View in St. Augustine after a long struggle with liver cancer.

He was 81.

Longtime friend Jim Carrick said Pickering had been a musician for more than 60 years.

"His hands failed five years ago from arthritis," Carrick said Saturday. "He continued to sing, though. He didn't want to let anyone down. He was loved by just about anybody he met."

Pickering died about 9:20 p.m. Thursday night.

Carrick, a guitarist, is now a member of the Gang, which still plays various venues and charity events.

The only original member left is lead singer Elaine "Spanky" McFarlane.

Spanky calls herself "semi-retired" but will be here to play at the Tradewinds on Sunday, June 26.

The day before, she will attend an open-mike event at the bar from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. to honor Nigel.

"People can play or just get up there and speak. There are no restrictions," she said Saturday.

Word of Pickering's death traveled quickly through St. Augustine's close-knit music community.

But the news was first made public Saturday morning by John Birney, host of "Good Morning Americana," a roots-revival program on 88.5 WFCF.

Five wives

Pickering reportedly had five wives.

One ex, Skye Webber of Santa Monica, Calif., met Nigel when he was 40 and she was 21. They fell in love and ran away.

At the time, Nigel was married to somebody else, but he didn't know where she was, Webber said.

Years after Our Gang broke up in 1969, the couple managed restaurants, one in Spain, one in Santa Monica.

Their only child, Cyrus, was born in Holland. He came to St. Augustine a week ago to see his father.

"He bought Nigel some clothes," Webber said. "Cyrus said he weighed about 80 pounds."

Pickering and Webber split in 1978 or 1979 after seven years.

"It was hard being a musician's wife," she said.

Spanky said Nigel has perhaps several other children and grandchildren, but knows nothing about them.

"He had a long list of women in his life," Spanky said.

Webber said she raised Cyrus alone.

"We were always poor as church mice. In the end, we'd met wonderful people and had wonderful adventures. But the best was having a wonderful son," she said.

The beginning

Pickering was born Fredy Ray Pickering in 1930 in Pontiac, Mich.

In the late 50s and early 60s, he played with The Folksters, with Art Schill and bassist Ken Hodges, who later became a member of Our Gang.

The Folksters performed on the Ed Sullivan Show and for Johnny Carson. Their photo is still at the Tradewinds.

Eventually, Hodges, Pickering and McFarlane got together to play and sing as a fill-in band at "Mother Blues," a Chicago nightclub, wearing costumes and incorporating comedy into the act.

Soon the idea for Spanky and Our Gang was born.

The group's songs made the charts from 1967 to 1969. They cut a few albums and performed on major TV shows, but broke up when their guiding light, guitarist and trombonist Malcolm Hale, died of pneumonia.

Spanky got married and then pregnant, and their drummer was lured away by The Turtles.

Pickering acted in a few bad movies, but his show business career never took off.

He and Hodges -- who had both lost most of their show business wealth -- retired to St. Augustine.

The end

Jim Stafford of Eclipse Studios in St. Augustine, who with Carrick coproduced three albums for Pickering, said Nigel was a joy to work with.

"I'll always treasure the opportunity I've had to record and perform with such a legend," Stafford said.

He and Hodges always could relate interesting stories about working and partying with entertainment celebrities.

But according to Spanky and most of Pickering's other friends, he drank too much and ate too little.

Stafford said Pickering's three albums are "Cowards Never Start," "Sunset at the Tradewinds," which is a mixture of live and recorded music, and "Back Home Americana: Part I," recorded with Spanky and others.

A service in Pickering's memory is set for noon, June 25, at the American Legion Post across from the bar.

Pickering appeared frail and moved painfully at his 81st birthday party at Tradewinds last June.

He smiled and waved to the packed room, but no one there thought he'd be back for his 82nd.

Spanky said he sang with her that night.

"I knew that was our last duet," she said. "He was my rock on stage. I was expecting (this news)."

She said Carrick had been "a saint" in the years he had helped Nigel.

The last song at that party began with his signature introduction, "How'm I doin'?" Then he sang Willie Nelson's "Ain't It Funny How Time Slips Away?" and everyone knew he wouldn't be back.