Applejack

Warren Kipner

It was the late '60s. Warren Kipner and his childhood friend, Rob Henson, moved from Australia to the UK in the hopes of starting a band. Over time, however, their relationship became increasingly strained. While Rob became heavily involved in psychedelia and the current protest scene, Warren still wanted nothing more than to make music.

Then came one dark and rainy night. Rob was returning home from another town and had time to come by and pick Warren up from a local concert. Before either of them could break the awkward silence of the ride, a car drifted towards them from the other lane, causing Rob to panick and turn the wheel.

The rest of that night was a blur for Warren. When he finally regained consciousness, he was in the hospital alone with a peculiar lack of feeling in his legs. Eventually a nurse gave him the grim news. Not only was Rob gone, but Warren himself would never be able to walk again. With those things went his dream of ever making music, or so it seemed.

Prior to the incident, however, Warren had become acquanted with a group of British chaps who were also looking to start a band. Eventually their lead guitarist, Barnie Sinclair, managed to get a hold of Warren. Together they convinced the band to make Warren their lead singer, prompting a quick makeover. By the time the early '70s came around, "Applejack" was swiftly on the rise as the new hit group. Their tunes were energetic and catchy, soft and moving when needed, but most of all, an air of intrigue surrounded the story of their frontman...

It wasn't one bit usual to turn on the television and see a young man singing about dancing while sitting, a microphone in one hand and the other merely hitting his knee with the beat. Then, for him to not stand up once during the concert, not even to bow, and eventually get carried off the stage by the group's best roadie? As soon as the band began putting out that Warren was paralyzed, the people were hooked. Newspapers around the country were hastily reaching out wanting to know more and more. How did it happen? What was it like living that way? Could he really not feel anything down there?

Warren didn't seem to mind the questions at first. Things were finally turning right for him, so who cared if interviewers were a little pushy now and then? So long as he had his band, the music, and the fans, getting labeled "disabled" first and "singer" second was the least of his worries. But over time, he began to notice the patterns more and more. And with increasing freqeuncy, he began to wonder...

Was it really the music the people loved? Or just the novelty?

The Band: (WIP)

• Warren Kipner - Lead vocals
• Barnie Sinclair - Lead guitar, vocals
• Don Collings - Rhythm guitar, vocals
• Andy Fairfield - Bass guitar
• Bruce Wild - Percussion