SKUNK JUNCTION
Tampa Bay area band
Skunk Junction had a relatively short life ('69-'73) but made up for it by being very loud. Original members were Lenny Austin (gtr), Henry Burke (organ), Tom Huck (drums) and Tom Scott (bass). Scott and Huck were soon replaced by Buddy Greene and Todd Tennant, both from the band Roc which also featured guitarist Rick Moon (now with Stormbringer). Lenny had been in The Mirage with Scott but wanted an outlet for his original material. The group made quite an impression in central Florida but never recorded.
Skunk Junction was one of the few Florida bands that relied mostly on original music (written by Lenny), although they did some "cover-songs" in order to stay working all over the state. This was met with some resistance at first, but they soon gathered a faithful following for their unique original music through local concerts and as an opening act for established bands such as Ten Years After, Crow, Sugarloaf, and Country Joe McDonald (who sang "Fixin' To Die Rag" at Woodstock). Some of the band's more popular tunes were "Henry's Space Song", "Music Maker", "See", and the old favorite "16 Tons", a 70's re-vitalized version of the Tennessee Ernie Ford 50's classic that was keyboardist Henry Burke's one and only vocal performance
Lenny went on to play in many local bands, including The Mad Beach Band, Tom Gribbin and the Saltwater Band, TC Carr and the Catch, and spent two years touring with Dr. Hook. Lenny still plays professionally in Tampa/St. Pete and elsewhere.
Todd Tennant now lives in Northern Alabama with his wife and 3 children, and is a prof-essional illustrator. His strange monster art can be seen at;
www.americankaiju.com.
Buddy Greene is an electrician in Seminole.
Henry Burke passed away not long ago.