Dear Alan

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Hi Alan! Although I'm well acquainted with the current members of REO, you and I have never met. My name is Kimberly Tolley, although the band calls me "Kimmers". I hope one day that we will be officially introduced. In the meantime, I invite you to read the online letters I've posted for K.C., Bruce, Neal, Dave, Bryan, and Gary. I won't be updating yours and Gary's letters, but the sentiments I've expressed will stand the test of time.

Like Gary, you played a pivotal role in the REO Speedwagon I knew and loved as a young girl. You not only contributed your skills as a drummer, but also your sharp mind for business, your leadership abilities, and your sense of humor. I laugh my ass off every time I watch you flash Bruce in the dressing room at the end of the Wheels Are Turnin concert documentary, and in the video for One Lonely Night, in the downtown Hollywood scenes. It's always the quiet ones. :O)

I lived in L.A. recently, and have seen that part of town in the wee hours of the morning, so I appreciate what that video shoot must have been like for you. The scary thing is, you probably didn't attract any attention at all. Think about it: a film location, a bunch of hunky men dressed in funny outfits, with way too much makeup on....only in Los Angeles !

The first time I saw all those old videos was on the "Video Anthology: 1978-1990", released by Sony Music in 1991. I didn't buy it until 1995, when I experienced a very powerful transition from child fan to grown up fan. It was only a few months after this "REO renaissance" that I got involved with REO Pals International, an unofficial fan club, and met the band in 1996. Suffice to say, I'm in the process right now of a third rebirth. Maybe the third time will be a charm, and instead of encountering more heartbreak on the other side of this renewal of spirit, my rock & roll dreams will finally start coming true. It's all up to the guys to meet me halfway. I sure can't do it alone.

mona lisa '97

A very special photo from my REO scrapbook!

During the time that I worked with REO Pals International, you conducted an interview for our newsletter, and in it, mentioned the restaurant you owned at the time in Santa Barbara, The Mona Lisa. You talked about the REO memorabilia you had displayed in it, and the countless REO fans you met from the old days who you relegated with war stories. My only regret is that I wasn't one of them.

While I lived out in Los Angeles, I struck up a friendship through the chat pages on the official REO web site with "Motor" Merritt, and interviewed him about my beloved Retro Speedwagon, and you. If you'd like to check it out, go to the Gratzer Central website. This is a fan web site in your honor, and is run by a very sweet lady named Christina Rister. Or, click here.

What a great guy Mote is! He had such high words of praise for you, and everybody he worked with in the REO family. Through him, Neal's former roadie, "Fumi", emailed me. He was a really nice guy, although his English was still somewhat rusty!! No hint of those American profanities Mote "claims" to have taught him! Hehehehehe. Fumi sent me a current picture of him and Lizard, in ZIP format, and I had a PC at the time, so I couldn't open it! THAT would have been a priceless treasure for my REO scrapbook!

In past interviews, K.C. described you as "the president", the guy that kept an eye on the business side of REO so that the others could focus on writing songs and being creative. My perception is that you carried that role into the studio, to balance out the strong, assertive personalities of Kevin and Gary. Whether that's true or not, whatever you did worked, and it worked very well.

See ya later, alligator, and thank you so much for helping K.C., Bruce, and Neal keep the fire burning all those years! I miss you and love you more than you will ever know.

Peace, love, and drum heads,

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