The music goes on for Bill Bundy

So when was the golden age of rock and roll?  

Bill Bundy at the old Colony Bar in Port Huron between 1958 - 1961.For many music fans, it’s the 1950’s. Bands and artists such as Bill Haley and his Comets and Chuck Berry, to name a few other than Elvis, took over stages across America. 

Locally, a musician who began playing in 1956 Bill Bundy, credits his father for starting him on his lifelong love affair with music. 

“My dad told me ‘Son, nobody in my family ever played music,’” Bundy says.  “I’m going to start you out on guitar and see if I can make a musician out of you. I took a few lessons, but then kind of learned on my own.  I don’t read music well, but I know all the chords.”

Bundy’s first band didn’t start in a garage, as many do.

“In 1956, I started playing with Dick Scouten and Frank Elliott in our backyard or on Scouten’s front porch,” Bundy says.  

From the backyard and the front porch came other bands. In 1957, Bundy met accordion player Ed Ligocki and started playing wedding receptions. Over the years, Bundy and his fellow musicians played venues such as Emil’s Buffalo Bar, the Cadillac Hotel, and Colby’s Bowling Alley, becoming a popular band in the area. 

He also played guitar and sang with Dick Scouten and the Dreamers, the Korvetts, the Blue Echoes, the Lakeshore Band, and Western Exchange.

“In 1976, I joined Ray Govaere and the Blue Water Band. We were a Polka band and played for polka festivals all over the Midwest,” Bundy says. “We even played at the National Polk Festival in New York two years in a row.  We still play together.”  

Bill Bundy at the Senior Talent Show on February 20, 2024, at the Carnegie Museum.Polka gigs in Richmond and Blake’s Orchard & Cider Mill are planned for this summer. 

“I enjoy polka, but my favorite music,” Bundy says, “is classic country and classic rock.”

As many musicians do, Bundy balanced a variety of jobs. From working at Mueller Brass to insurance to real estate, but his constant in life has been music. 

Bundy occasionally plays solo at Port Haven Manor and relishes the joy he brings to the residents. 

“The people just love it,” Bundy says.  “I can’t believe I’m still playing. When I get done playing, my fingers and knees are sore.”

For an audience of seasoned citizens, current research suggests that hearing familiar tunes helps to nurture memory centers embedded in the brain. Music can be and often is therapy.

It’s how Bundy has brought smiles to people for decades.