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Eclipse has been one of the most popular regional bands for many years, but its legions of fans will soon have to face the music without them.
The South Dakota-based band, which began in about 1993 and has performed more than 1,000 shows over the years, will soon be calling it quits.
“It’s time,” band founder Tony Valnes of Sisseton told the Watertown Current. “People in this kind of occupation say that you’ll know when it’s time.”
The five-member band which plays both country and rock music, has just two more shows scheduled. Eclipse will perform at Skinner’s Pub in downtown Brookings this Saturday, November 8, and then do one last show on New Year’s Eve at the Country Road Barn north of Watertown.
The band has had upward of a dozen members over the years, but currently consists of Valnes on bass, guitar, and harmonica; longtime member Dale Plunkett of Kranzburg on lead guitar; Heather Andrie on lead and back-up vocals; Jason Piechowski on rhythm guitar, vocals and bass; and Taylor Kannas on drums.
Eclipse has been a popular regional band for many years. Courtesy photo.
Valnes said the retirement talk has been going on for a while.
“The three older guys in the band (Valnes, Plunkett and Piechowski) have been going back and forth for the last year and a half: ‘I’ll quit if you quit; I’ll quit if you quit,’ kind of waiting for the other guys to raise their hand,” Valnes said. “I think we’re all ready. We had discussions like, what if we just booked fewer shows, or just played in the summer. The problem with that is, summer is the time when you miss everything.”
He remembers this summer when his wife went with him to an Eclipse show. They were on their way to Sturgis for a vacation, but he had to play a show on the way there.
Meanwhile, all of his wife’s family were at their lake house. When the couple had to leave, their guests were getting in their pontoon, cracking drinks and enjoying their home.
“She looked at me and said, ‘is this what it feels like when you have to leave? This is sad. Everybody is enjoying themselves, and we have to leave,’” Valnes said.
But performing with a popular band has been a lot of fun for members of Eclipse. They travel mainly in South Dakota and Minnesota, but they also do shows in other areas of the Midwest.
Eclipse has shared the stage with such national acts as Black Hawk, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Diamond Rio, Quiet Riot, Hall & Oates, Joan Jett, Loverboy, Little Texas, and Sawyer Brown. When not opening for big-name acts, Eclipse was thrilling crowds at bars, clubs and some of the largest street dances in the Midwest.
“The biggest show we’ve done is in Chester, the largest street dance in South Dakota,” he said. “Eclipse was the longest running band to play there — 15 or 20 years. There would be two to five thousand people there. When you get that many people just for an Eclipse show, that’s pretty cool.
“When you open for somebody famous, there’s still five thousand people there, but in reality, they aren’t there to see you. We did a couple of shows with Hairball, and they were great to work with. They are really fun and have some great crowds.”
Eclipse has also had some big-name entertainers in the crowd at their shows.
“Years ago, Blake Shelton was at our show at the South Dakota State Fair,” Valnes said. “He had played earlier and just came down and hung out to watch us for two hours.”
But Valnes doesn’t think he will have any regrets after hanging up his bass.
“Being in a band means you’re missing out on things in life,” he said. “When you play twice a month in the winter and every weekend in the summer, there are a lot of things you’re going to miss. Last winter, my wife went on two vacations without me, just because I had to work.”
He hasn’t made many “retirement” plans yet. He still has his full-time job as a realtor, but he’s looking forward to some down time.
“I live on a lake, so I’m looking forward to enjoying lake life.”
He also said he and the other members of Eclipse would be open to doing some reunion shows down the road.
Eclipse typically plays in front of large, enthusiastic crowds. Courtesy photo.
