Member of iconic 1970s duo from Kansas City dies. They hit it big time with first single
Michael Brewer, half of the most successful folk/rock music act Kansas City has ever produced, died Tuesday, Dec. 17. He was 80.
Brewer and Tom Shipley formed Brewer & Shipley in the late 1960s when both were playing at Kansas City’s Vanguard Coffee House. They were instrumental in the formation of Good Karma Productions, which produced regional concerts, and played frequently at the legendary Cowtown Ballroom.
Brewer & Shipley became international stars with “One Toke Over the Line,” released as their debut single in 1971. Essentially a joke song celebrating marijuana, it played constantly on the radio and reached No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Brewer spoke to The Star in 2021 about the song’s impact.
“We played virtually every college and junior college and high school that existed all over … the Kansas City metropolitan area, and really the whole Midwest,” he said. “Then ‘One Toke’ hit, and we just continued to be on the road. We just started playing large venues and getting paid more.
“It was a catalyst for sure. Everything changed.”
Brewer & Shipley’s nine albums included “Down in L.A.” (1968), “Weeds” (1969) and “Tarkio” (1970), the last of which included “One Toke” as well as the popular “Tarkio Road.” The duo, whose songs have been covered by the Byrds, John Denver, Stephen Stills, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and others, performed until the pandemic hit in 2020.
Chuck Haddix, music historian and curator of UMKC’s Marr Sound Archives, saw the duo at Cowtown Ballroom.
“Their blended vocals and intricate acoustic guitar work gave voice to the generation of young people during a troubled chapter in American history,” Haddix wrote in an email. “Their hit ‘One Toke Over the Line’ became a humorous anthem for that rebellious generation. To Kansas City fans, they were hometown heroes.”
Brewer, a native of Oklahoma City who was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in 2018, had lived near Branson for more than 30 years but maintained his connections with Kansas City.
“I love Kansas City, always have,” he said in 2021. “I still consider Kansas City home. Have so many friends there.”
Shipley, an Ohio native who lives near Rolla, released a statement indicating Brewer had been battling multiple illnesses the past three years:
“I saw him on Saturday at Cox Hospital in Branson, and he told me he wanted to go home. ... I will raise a glass to Michael and drink to all those years, all those miles, all those songs and all the heavenly audiences we played for. Go with God my friend. I’ll see you on the other side.”
This story was originally published December 18, 2024 at 2:25 PM.
