Yates appears in reunion with Premieres

Arlene Yates, who was in a band called the Premiers before moving to Fallbrook, appeared with the band during a reunion June 24 at the Legion Hall in Pico Rivera.

“It was nice getting together with them,” Yates said.

The Premiers are best known for their 1960’s hit “Farmer John,” although Yates joined the band after that song was recorded. Yates joined her first band, the Jaggz, when she was 14. After that band broke up Yates and the other female Jaggz members became part of the first all-girls rock and roll band in the San Gabriel Valley, the Groovettes. (The Jaggz weren’t an all-girl band, as they had a male drummer and a male keyboardist.) Yates sang and also played the electric guitar with both the Jaggz and the Groovettes.

“A girl playing electric guitar back then was, like, unheard of,” Yates said.

The groups played at high school and other dances, school assemblies, USO events, parades, and private parties. It was during that time when Yates met Frankie Zuniga, the lead singer for the Premiers.

After military conscription broke up the original members of the Premiers, Yates was asked to join the group. After spending time with the Premiers, Yates then joined a band called Hot Rod Lincoln, which specialized in 1950s rock and roll and “do wop” music. In addition to singing with Hot Rod Lincoln, Yates also played guitar and saxophone.

Yates, who was raised in Monterey Park, rejoined the Premiers in the mid-1980s before moving to Fallbrook in 1989. “I couldn’t keep it up,” she said. “They were just too far away.”

Yates rejoined the band for a short time in the early 1990s before deciding that the distance was too much of an obstacle. “Because of traveling distance it kept me apart,” she said.

After moving to Fallbrook, Yates began the recording studio phase of her career. She started working with Bob Summers and now has three CD albums as a solo artist. “I’ve been pretty fortunate to be working with him,” Yates said.

“Where the Boys Are” and “Average Girls” are Yates’ two CDs intended for adult audiences, while “Arlene for Children” targets small children and their parents.

Yates is not a full-time professional musician; she also owns Chick’s Natural Roasted Chicken in Vista. Yates will perform for customers at the restaurant when the patrons request songs. Yates also books herself for schools and private performances.

The producer for the Premiers was — and still is — Billy Cardenas of Del-Fi Records. “Once in a while I get a call and I’ll get the guys together,” Cardenas said.

Cardenas himself is an American Legion member. “I was having a fundraiser for the Post,” he said.

That June 24 event included a car show as well as music by the Premiers. About ten days before the event, Cardenas made arrangements with Yates. “She tracked me down one time prior to this and I got her number,” Cardenas said.

Yates accepted Cardenas’ invitation, although he didn’t tell the other members of the Premiers. “I surprised the guys,” Cardenas said. “I didn’t tell them. They were happy to see her when she arrived.”

One member of the original band was not present. “It’s still the Premiers,” Yates said.

Yates and Cardenas planned the June 24 event as a one-time appearance, but Cardenas hopes that the recording phase of Yates’ musical career will be successful. “She’s a great gal. I wish she would get a break,” Cardenas said.