Jim Morgan

Bass Guitar (1967)

Memories of Jim
By Phil Salgado

Shortly after Butch Martin left the Nitecaps in 1966, we found ourselves, once again, looking for another bass player. We all knew how hard it would be to find just the right person. A combination of musician and showman, which could not only play the parts but also do the choreography that, was such a big part of our band. After auditioning several bass players, we found a guy from Milpitas named Jim Morgan.

Jim, who attended Samuel Ayer High School, turned out to be the perfect choice. He had no trouble learning the parts on the bass. Even though Jim was young, (about a year younger than most of us), he had already played in several bands. From country to rock, he was one of those natural bass players that just heard the bass line in every song. Learning the steps would turn out to be a little more challenging, but Jim had a great attitude and a real willingness to learn. It wasn’t long before Jim had mastered the steps and was playing gigs with us.

Jim was a great musician and fit in perfectly on stage. Offstage he was one of the nicest guys you would ever want to meet with a great sense of humor. This was really important because we were around each other constantly. Jim stayed with the Nitecaps until the band broke up. He then went on to help form a new band, The Midnight Haze, with some of the other members of the Nitecaps.

Jim was the perfect fit for our group. He became a very close friend to me and other members of the band. Looking back, I have very fond memories of the time Jim spent with us. He was a true Nitecap!