In 1969, unbeknownst to music fans and concert promoters, a Bay City company started putting fake bands on tour throughout the United States and Canada impersonating The Zombies, The Animals, and The Archies – groups that were no longer touring but had recorded major hits on the Billboard Hot 100. 

  The ruse was exposed in a frontpage story in Rolling Stone magazine on May 28, 1970; the only time that Bay City would be so featured in the renowned music publication. By that time, Delta Promotions had employed two different fake Zombies bands. One was made up from the remnants of a popular band from Marquette, Michigan, that had played in teen clubs across the state including Daniel’s Den in Saginaw, the Blue Light in Midland, and Band Canyon in Bay City. The second of the fake Zombies groups included members originally from Texas. Two of the musicians from this lineup would go on to form a new band that became world famous, sell over 50 million albums, and later be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

 Join BCHS board member Gary Johnson and special guest, author Daniel Ralston, to learn more about this fascinating chapter of Bay City’s rock and roll history.