Iris Corbin

A Tribute to Iris Corbin. I can picture Iris with her feet in the sand and staring out over the ocean. We will miss her….Veronica (her niece) and Stephen (her nephew.) Auntie Iris, What a kind and gentle soul. Her love of all God’s creatures was and is tremendous. She never turned her back on any animal that needed help or food or some loving. A great daughter, a great friend, a great auntie, and a great soul. We will miss you dearly…..Stephen and Veronica. If there was ever a person that embodied the term,“ gentle soul” it was Iris. But yet, when she got behind the drums she had an edge and could rock with the best of them. I loved hearing her play. And although she didn’t have an easy life, I never saw her become hard and cold to others because of it. She didn’t really have a mean bone in her body. She got joy from her animals, plants, and music and seems to ignore the rat race that was the rest of the world. Like a rebellious flower child of the sixties who refused to change as the decades rolled by, she stayed true to who she was. I’ll never forget all the crazy, funny, happy and some sad memories through the years. Love you and miss you, Iris and can’t quite believe you’re gone, but happy that you’re now at the top of the stairway to heaven……Debbie. Iris was the Tallassee Lassie of Dreamer( our rock and roll band.) She was the best drummer around, long before being a girl drummer in a rock band was a “thing”. My memories if our friendship are very special and are the memories shared by my daughter, Kristen. Iris thought I was mean to her because I wouldn’t let her eat sugar. One story short was that she took her to the movies and told her she could eat any candy she wanted so Kristen ate almost all of the chocolate covered raisins the movie theatre had. Funny! I could write a book about the fun times we had. Besides being a talented musician, Iris had a wonderful spirit. I will miss her and her laugh…..Liz. Iris was a gentle soul and always looked at the glass half full. She was kind, generous, and spiritual, and would have taken care of every abused animal if she could have. I’m sure she will be playing drums with Janis Joplin, George Harrison, and John Lennon to name but a few. I love you Iris Corbin…..SuzyQ. Iris had a touch with people and with animals. I met Iris when I drove to the Rock Inn to do sound and lights for the band, Dreamer. I had never heard them before but those ladies “Rocked”. A long term friendship with the band and with Iris. Later when the band disbanded I had the privilege to play with them in the band “Release”. I remember while returning home from a gig in the mountains we had to make a necessary stop along the road. We were not driving but danced on the side of the road to RESPECT the queen Aretha Franklin. We talked about sock dancing years after that. She holds a place in my heard and will be missed by many…..Larry. Iris was a great drummer and precipitated in one of the greatest rock and roll adventures of all time. She lived and played during a time that will never repeat itself. Her smile was big and wide while she played. As Dreamer’s soundman I used to love pushing the drum mix loud in the PA. You surely could hear her kick, snare, and toms from a mile away. I love animals but could never do the great work she did for animals. Iris had a “true love” to do that kind rescue for her babies. I will miss her deeply. Rest in Peace my friend…Ron What caught me most about Iris was her beautiful smile, it was radiant! And next her southern style, yes she was the Tallassee Lassie for sure. She became a bandmate with me in Dreamer. She was my drummer and I was her bass player, we fit together like hand in glove. She was a true flower child of the 70’s along with being a rock and roll “gypsy” who followed her music heart and soul. I am sure if there is a rock and roll band in heaven she is in it now. I’m thankful to have known her for all these years, she had a beautiful spirit that you could never forget soon. Good speed my friend. I love you….Sherry. A radio ad came on when I was moving to Colorado from Minnesota. All female band looking for female lead guitarist. I answered the ad and that is how I met Iris. She and I had exactly the same taste in music. The band sucked with the exception of Iris, who I thought was great. We played in five bans together, Meek, Montage, Creation, Dreamer and Release. In the 70’s they had GoGo dancers in cages above the dance floor. Between bands Iris took on the job as a drummer in the cage that would play to requests from the audience. I was there and I requested “Look at Yourself” by Uriah Heep. It was one of the hardest drumming songs out. She could have killed me, but she didn’t. Instead she played the hell out of it. We used to laugh about that time a lot. We used to laugh until our jaws hurt and then we would start crying. Everyone has stated before me about her spirit, love of animals and music. We were friends for 47 years through all the ups and downs of life. I will love her forever and think of her probably every day until we meet in heaven again. I love you, Iris!!!….Suzie Found in her house…. The Ocean. Staring out into the ocean with my feet in the sand. I walk along the sea shore letting all my thoughts unwind that were built up and stored. And as each wave rolls up on me, it sooths my soul and makes me feel free and takes me with it wherever it goes but always brings me back. You start at the beginning and get lost in the middle. But like the waves it takes you back to where you began, staring at the ocean with your feet in the sand….written by Iris in 1971. Guess that says it all.