The Seagle — Coastal, and correct.

01

Liner Notes

As printed on the inner sleeve, with the particulars the sleeve leaves out.

Corpus Christi, 1983. Two halves. Five albums. One single at No. 67.

The Seagle formed in Corpus Christi, Texas, in 1983. The band had two halves. One half sang close three-part harmonies over twelve-string guitar. The other half played synthesizers through a drum machine and a chorus pedal. Both halves had been booked separately before they were booked together.

The arrangement held for nine years and five albums on Wingspan Records. In 1986 the single "Wingspan" reached No. 67 on the national singles chart. In 1992 the band played its final show in Corpus Christi and did not play again. The cause of the split is on file. It is considered unresolved.

“We reached No. 67 on the national singles chart.”
— "Gull" Hendricks, every interview, 1986–1992

Five band members sitting on a concrete seawall at sunset with the bay behind them, a singer in a pink blazer at the left — The seawall, Corpus Christi, 1984. Publicity session for Two Birds. The light lasted eleven minutes.

Chapter 1

One Generator

In the spring of 1983 two bands were booked on the same outdoor bill on the Corpus Christi bayfront. The first was a harmony act: Rubén "Eagle" Montoya on twelve-string, Marisol Treviño on electric piano, Dale Brennan on drums. The second was a synthesizer act: Warren "Gull" Hendricks on synthesizer and vocals, Kip Lowery on bass, and a drum machine.

The bill had two PA systems and one generator. The generator would run one of them. The promoter asked both acts to share the stage for one set. The set ran seventy minutes. Marisol worked out the keys between songs.

The second PA was repaired the following week. Neither act asked for it back.

Chapter 3

Different Days

Neither was recorded over eleven weeks in 1988. The harmony parts were tracked on Mondays and Wednesdays. The synthesizer parts were tracked on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Fridays were reserved for the rhythm section, who attended every day.

Marisol Treviño was the only member present for all of it. She wrote the bridges that join the two halves of each song, played keytar on both sets of days, and sang the middle harmony on everything. The record is darker than the two before it. The band agreed on that.

Printed on the back of the sleeve

stage

One Microphone

At every show from 1983 to 1992, Gull Hendricks and Eagle Montoya sang lead into a single microphone. A second microphone was always provided. Neither used it. Marisol Treviño sang the middle harmony into her own, positioned between them.

chart

No. 67

"Wingspan" reached No. 67 on the national singles chart in 1986 and stayed on the chart for three weeks. The figure appears on the band's letterhead from 1987 onward, beneath the label address.

rig

Both Kits

Dale Brennan set up a full acoustic kit and a rack of electronic pads at every show. He played the acoustic kit on the harmony songs and the pads on the synthesizer songs. On songs where both halves played at once, he played both.

sleeve

The Split Sleeve

Every Seagle sleeve is divided down the middle. The left half is printed in warm stock. The right half is printed in cold stock. The band's name crosses the seam. The design was the label's idea. It was the only thing the band agreed on unanimously in 1984.

02

Personnel

Credits in the order the stage was set: harmonies stage left, synthesizers stage right, one keyboard player between them.

Stage left · Harmonies

A man with long dark hair in a denim shirt playing an acoustic guitar cross-legged on a wooden pier, pelicans on the pilings behind him — Eagle Montoya on the pier, 1985. The pelicans were already there.

“Eagle” MontoyaRubén Montoya

Lead guitar, harmony vocals

Long feathered dark hair, denim shirt, turquoise belt buckle.

Served 1983–1992

“The synthesizers were dragging down the harmonies.”

Now Teaches guitar in Kingsville. Plays a twelve-string at weddings when the couple asks for harmonies.

Dale Brennan

Drums, electronic percussion

Headband, mustache, electronic pads beside a real kit.

Served 1983–1992

“I set up both kits every night. Nobody asked me to choose.”

Now Plays weddings across the Coastal Bend. Brings the electronic pads. Brings the real kit.

Centre · Both

Marisol Treviño

Keyboards, keytar, harmony vocals

Keytar on a strap, electric piano on a stand, her own microphone.

Served 1983–1992

“The harmonies were in E. The synthesizers were in E. I could never find the argument.”

Now Teaches piano and music theory in Corpus Christi. Still owns the keytar. Still tunes it.

Marisol Treviño wrote the bridges that join the two halves of every Seagle song. She played on every harmony session and every synthesizer session, sang the middle part on all of it, and worked out the keys between songs on the night the band was formed. The archive lists her as the band's arranger. The band never gave the job a title.

A man in a denim shirt and a woman with long curly hair sing harmony into one studio microphone in a wood-paneled booth while a blond keyboard player works synthesizers behind the control-room glass — Tracking Neither, 1988. Harmony day. The synthesizer half was in early.

Stage right · Synthesizers

Portrait of a young man with tall swept-up platinum hair and dark eyeliner, in a pale blue blazer and navy tie, against a teal backdrop — Gull Hendricks, 1985. Label portrait.

“Gull” HendricksWarren Hendricks

Lead vocals, synthesizer

Swept-up blond hair, eyeliner, skinny tie, pastel blazer.

Served 1983–1992

“We reached No. 67 on the national singles chart.”

Now Lives in Rockport. Gives interviews when asked. Mentions No. 67 in each of them.

Kip Lowery

Bass

Bleached, spiked, sleeveless.

Served 1983–1992

“I stood where the bass sounded best. It was usually in the middle.”

Now Port Aransas. Fixes outboard motors. Has not changed the hair.

03

The Records

Five albums on Wingspan Records, 1984–1992. Every sleeve is split down the middle. Each title opens its track listing.

Five figures in silhouette stand on a wooden pier against a pink sunset over the water, holding a bass, drumsticks and a microphone stand, gulls in the sky — Cover session, 1986. The photographer asked for silhouettes. Everyone complied.

04

The 45

"Wingspan" b/w "Coastal Patrol." Seven-inch, picture sleeve, 1986.

From the original motion picture soundtrack

The Seagle

Wingspan

b/w Coastal Patrol

No.67National singles chart

Chart record

Peak position: 67
Weeks on chart: 3
Year: 1986
Source: The motion picture's closing credits
Interviews on file: 14
Interviews in which No. 67 is mentioned: 14

The motion picture is not named in the archive. The song is.

Chapter 2

No. 67

"Wingspan" was written for Soaring in 1985. A music supervisor heard it on Corpus Christi radio and placed it in the closing credits of a 1986 motion picture. The picture had a short run. The song had a longer one.

The single reached No. 67 on the national singles chart and remained on the chart for three weeks. Gull Hendricks mentioned the position in every interview the band gave from that year forward. The archive holds fourteen interviews. The figure appears in all fourteen. In two it appears twice.

05

Tide Table

Nine engagements along the Gulf. Predicted tides for each stop on the night of the show, in feet above mean lower low water. Gulf tides are small. The heights are correct.

The Soaring Tour, 1986

Station: Coastal BendDatum: MLLW · Times local

No.	Port of call	High	Low	Remarks
01	Corpus Christi, TX	7:42 pm 1.4 ft	1:16 am 0.3 ft	Opening night. Hometown.
02	Kingsville, TX	8:20 pm 1.3 ft	2:05 am 0.2 ft	—
03	Victoria, TX	9:02 pm 1.1 ft	2:51 am 0.4 ft	—
04	Galveston, TX	9:47 pm 1.6 ft	3:30 am 0.1 ft	Played on the seawall side of town.
05	Houston, TX	10:31 pm 1.5 ft	4:12 am 0.2 ft	—
06	Beaumont, TX	11:15 pm 1.2 ft	4:58 am 0.3 ft	—
07	Lake Charles, LA	11:58 pm 1.3 ft	5:40 am 0.1 ft	Only date outside Texas.
08	Brownsville, TX	6:55 pm 1.4 ft	12:44 am 0.2 ft	—
09	South Padre Island, TX	7:36 pm 1.7 ft	1:22 am 0.0 ft	Closing night.

06

Coastal Bend Log

Three entries, as reported. No entry has been amended.

1986
The Closing Credits
A cinema on South Padre Island Drive, Corpus Christi
The band bought tickets to see their song in a motion picture. The house lights came up during the second chorus.
The band attended a Tuesday matinee of the film in its second week. "Wingspan" began over the closing credits. The house lights came up during the second chorus, as is customary. The other patrons left. The five members of the band remained seated until the final credit, which was the song's publishing line. Gull Hendricks asked the projectionist for a frame of it. The projectionist declined.
1989
The Norther
Outdoor stage, Corpus Christi bayfront
A cold front arrived during the fourth song. The temperature fell twenty-two degrees. The synthesizers held pitch. The guitars did not.
A blue norther crossed the Coastal Bend at 8:40 p.m. during an outdoor show on the bayfront. The temperature fell twenty-two degrees in forty minutes. The synthesizers, which had been warmed up since the afternoon, held pitch. The twelve-string did not. Eagle Montoya retuned between every song for the remainder of the set. A small craft advisory was issued for the bay at 9:15. The band played "Small Craft Advisory" at 9:16. Eagle has since disputed the tuner readings.

07

Final Approach

1992. The farewell album, the final show, and the hallway.

On final approach an aircraft is lined up with the runway, configured, and descending. There are two ways the approach ends: a landing, or a missed approach. The band chose a landing.

Final Approach was released in 1992. The final show was played in Corpus Christi the same month. Before the encore, in a hallway behind the stage, Eagle told Gull that the synthesizers were dragging down the harmonies. Gull replied that the synthesizers are underrated. The encore was played. The band has not played since. The matter is considered unresolved.

1992 · The Hallway

Backstage, Corpus Christi

The exchange took place in a cinder-block hallway between the stage door and the equipment cases. It lasted under two minutes. Marisol Treviño, Kip Lowery and Dale Brennan were present and have declined to characterize it. A photograph exists. In it, two members stand back to back with their arms folded. The encore that followed was "Wingspan." They shared one microphone for it.

Two band members stand back to back with their arms folded in a cinder-block hallway backstage, three bandmates watching behind them among equipment cases — The hallway, 1992. Before the encore. Under two minutes.

A packed hall seen from the back, hands raised toward a lit stage where a five-piece band plays in front of teal and pink curtains — The final show, Corpus Christi, 1992. The encore was "Wingspan."

08

Notices

One clipping and three letters, entered into the record without amendment.

Coastal Bend Music Review · Spring 1990

The Seagle: Two Nights, Four Sides

Corpus Christi's split-stage five-piece on the live album, the soundtrack, and the chart

By Staff

We meet the band on the seawall at six. Four of them are on time. Gull Hendricks arrives at six-ten in a pink blazer and apologizes to the water.

CBMR: The new record is a double live album. Why now?

EAGLE: The songs are better live. The harmonies need a room.

GULL: The synthesizers need a room too. We reached No. 67 on the national singles chart.

CBMR: That was 1986.

GULL: It was.

CBMR: The two of you share one microphone on stage. There are two microphones up there.

EAGLE: The second one is for emergencies.

MARISOL: The second one is mine. I sing the middle part. They both lean toward me.

CBMR: How would you describe the band's sound?

MARISOL: Warm on the left. Cold on the right. I stand where it meets.

“Warm on the left. Cold on the right. I stand where it meets.”

Letters

★★★★★

I saw them on the bayfront in 1986. Two microphones on stage. They used one all night. I have thought about the other one since.

— Debra L., Portland, TX

★★★★★

Neither is the record I play when the wind comes out of the north. My wife plays Soaring. We have both been right for thirty years.

— R. Garza, Kingsville, TX

★★★★★

Thirty-one years of flying out of the Coastal Bend. The title track of Final Approach describes the procedure correctly. I checked it against the book.

— T. Whitfield, retired naval aviator, Corpus Christi, TX

Wingspan Records · Corpus Christi, Texas

Wingspan Records Mailing List

Fill in the card. The Sideband Label list hears first about new pressings, shirts and anything else the archive brings in off the coast.

Go to the store

Allow four to six weeks. Postage paid in Corpus Christi.

TheSeagle

Liner Notes

One Generator

Different Days

One Microphone

No. 67

Both Kits

The Split Sleeve

Personnel

“Eagle” MontoyaRubén Montoya

Dale Brennan

Marisol Treviño

“Gull” HendricksWarren Hendricks

Kip Lowery

The Records

Two Birds

Soaring

Neither

The Wingspan Sessions

Final Approach

The 45

No. 67

Tide Table

Coastal Bend Log

The Closing Credits

The Norther

Final Approach

Notices

The Seagle: Two Nights, Four Sides

Wingspan Records Mailing List