Bass Guitar, Vocals (’67-’69)
Jeanette Huber grew up in Princeton, NJ where her Dad attended Princeton University. Her musical interests began at the tender age of 7 when she began studying piano and violin. After transferring from St. Paul’s School in Princeton to the Lawrenceville public schools, she would soon meet and become childhood friends with Geri Lombardo.
After seeing the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan television show, she fell in love with the whole British music scene. Eventually seeing the Beatles live in concert only fueled her fire to meet them, a desire shared by Geri andher other future Untouchable bandmates. While attending Notre Dame High School, Jeanette became first violinist in the school orchestra. During this time, she can remember wishing she was carrying a guitar case — instead of a violin case — like her friend Geri, who by this time was a member of The Untouchable. Jeanette remembers spending quite a bit of time with Geri and the band, watching them perform at their various gigs, impressed with how good — and popular — they were becoming. Since she could already read music and knew the cover songs they were performing, she was a natural fit when Molly York, the bass player left the band. Shelving her well-worn violin, Jeanette excitedly worked to learn the bass as quickly as possible, and began playing gigs with the girls within weeks of joining the band.
With a naturally good singing voice, she easily slipped into learning the 4-part harmonies the band regularly sang. 
While Sheri Oman was the lead singer for most of the cover tunes the band performed, Dodie, Geri and Jeanette sang lead on some of the songs. One song that Jeanette distinctly remembers performing was the Jefferson Airplane song: “White Rabbit.” “The audience was always blown away by Dodie as she belted out the lead vocal of that song… she had such a beautiful and strong voice ” she recalls.
Jeanette’s time with the band was like a dream come true for a teenager during those years. Initially they practiced in Geri’s basement, and then in the basement of Dodie’s home. She remembers they built a small elevated stage at Dodie’s to practice on and painted the room purple. She also re called that they affectionately referred to that purple practice room as: “The Pit”. Jeanette remembers meeting Jimmy Osterberg (not known as Iggy at the time) and performing for him and his band that weekend in Geri’s basement, as well as getting into trouble with her parents. She related,
“After that performance at Geri’s, I remember we wanted to show the boys around Princeton. On the way into town we stopped at my house, and when my parents later foundout that we were with these strange guys, they were not happy!”
As The Untouchable were becoming more well-known and getting even tighter as a band, they were soon playing on the same bill as bigger rock bands and playing in larger venues like The Electric Circus and in Central Park. Jeanette’s devotion to the band was made clear on the weekend of her high school senior prom, when she played a gig at a hip New York City club at the time, Ondine, rather than go to her prom! Like her friend Geri, the normal stuff that their classmates were busy with didn’t interest her in the least. Jeanette and the girls felt that they were on the path to fame and fortune. Others evidently felt that way too. While listening to the band at the Electric Circus, a man who worked there and had heard the girls perform several times and who had become a fan of the band, turned to Jeanette’s dad and exclaimed
“Those girls have a million dollars in their back pockets!”
Her devotion and enthusiasm for the band only increased as they started to concentrate more on writing their own music. Eventually landing an audition for Koppelman and Rubin Associates, and eventually recording a single, Jeanette remembers how exciting that time was:
“I remember going in to that audition and singing a cappella for Charlie Koppelman, and he wanted to sign us right away. This was really exciting—the same management company as The Lovin’ Spoonful! And when they assigned us a real record producer, and they paid for studio time in a professional recording studio, I felt there was no stopping us now.”
Her excitement was short lived, however. First, Charlie Koppelman wanted to rename the band Calliope, which no one in the band liked. Then the girls, who were still minors, would need to involve their parents in signing any contracts.
A few of the girl’s fathers were starting to become uncomfortable with the trajectory of the band, and feared what the drug-fueled, male-dominated rock and roll industry might expose their kids to. Playing locally was one thing, but these new developments would catapult their daughters into a whole different arena, touring nationally and exposing them to an unhealthy lifestyle and being exploited. Additionally, the initial offer from Koppelman was the girls would get only 30%, a split that most thought was unfair.
These hurdles were becoming a significant roadblock to the band’s future, but the final blow was when Kathy the drummer had to quit the band for personal reasons. Even if they could find a female drummer to replace her—virtually impossible in 1969—the concerns their parents had were so significant that the band was forced to break up.
Each girl dealt with the breakup in different ways, but all were heartbroken that things fell apart so close to the brink of success.
LIFE AFTER THE UNTOUCHABLE
Jeanette spent the next summer working at the Temple University Music Festival in Ambler PA while living on theMain Line for the summer. Here she was surrounded by music and musicians, which was bittersweet. Her next move was to start school at Fisher Junior College in Boston until she could transfer to the University of Massachusetts at Amhurst. Jeanette became engaged while at UMass and soon thereafter moved to Aspen, Colorado. Though not in a band, she stayed connected to one as her finance, a Harvard grad and an architect, was in a band of his own. However, she grew tired of the snow and that life, and ended her engagement. She decided to move to California and start a new life there.
In time, she opened her own insurance company, specializing in large group health, life and disability. During that time she established long-time working relationships including one with Harris Farms, home of Harris Ranch Beef, a loyal client of 22 years. Jeanette also earned her real estate license during that time. Though enjoying the people she met and attaining success in these various jobs, her true passion at heart remained the arts. Naturally talented, she continues to dabble in art, working in acrylic and mixed media.
Animals remain another passion in her life, and she is a self-proclaimed “aqua-baby”, preferring to live by the sand and ocean. Currently splitting time between Palm Desert and her favorite cove in Laguna Beach, California, the sweetest music she hears these days is the relaxing sound of the surf. She remains grateful to God for her friends, a wonderful life, and the beauty of God’s creation that surrounds her.
