Songs, Steps, and SWMRS

Last Wednesday the Piedmont Recreation Department’s Walking on Wednesdays group had a strong turnout of 49 walkers and two K-9 best friends at the Exedra for another special walk.

As part of our new initiative to ensure the long term future of the activity, more walkers are leading walks. Walker Max B was leading this Wednesday’s walk and he called the group to order at the Exedra. Announcements were made and appreciation was expressed to Sherry J, Jim K, Matt G, and Max for leading July’s walks. Additionally, it was happily noted that August’s four walks will be led by Mary C, Matt G, Jack F, and Sean B. Lori A has also been writing walk summaries.

This morning’s walk was going to be totally unique because Max was going to put his musical skills on display for a Wednesday walk like none before. He started off by telling the group a little bit about himself. He grew up in Piedmont and went to Piedmont schools. He has started a career as a realtor at Corcoran Icon Properties whose office was right across the street from the Exedra.

He originally joined the walking group to get re-acquainted with parts of the community after he and his wife moved back from Washington DC. He said he has thoroughly enjoyed being part of Walking on Wednesdays and loves learning more about Piedmont history and being with the other walkers.

Instead of taking the group on a real estate walk, Max wanted to showcase his other side. For the last 15 years, he has toured around the world in a rock band. The band toured Europe earlier this year and was showcased this summer on a huge New York Times Square electronic sign. Max’s two younger brothers, Cole and Cade , are in the band with him, his mom, Tami, travels with them to sell “merch”, his sister, Marki, designs the stuff, and his dad, Mark, is the group’s roadie, as well as being a noted local architect. This obviously is a family business.

The band’s name is SWMRS (pronounced “Swimmers.”) They write all original songs and have a global following that is extremely loyal. In fact, some fans have tattoos of their lyrics on their arms and legs.

In 2011, while still at Piedmont High School, and originally calling themselves Emily’s Army, the Becker brothers and their two childhood friends released their first album, Don’t Be a Dick. Walk activity leader, Dick Carter, wanted to know, “What’s wrong with being a Dick?”

SWMRS released their first official album, Drive North, in 2016 and was subsequently signed to Atlantic Records. In 2019, they released their second studio album, Berkeley’s on Fire, and later that summer went on to open for the British rock band, MUSE, in front of 80,000 people at Stade de France in Paris.

Max said that while he is working hard and loving his new career as a realtor here in Piedmont, the act of singing and playing songs is extremely important to his identity, which is why he wanted to try something new for this walk. He provided lyric booklets of three classics, two by The Beatles and one by Ben E. King, for the group to sing along with him.

To start the morning walk, Max led the group into singing Stand By Me by Ben E. King. Max brought pens so they all could autograph each other's booklets and feel like rockstars for a little while. After this first song, Max took the group down Highland and Wildwood Avenues, past a beautiful Mediterranean home that is currently on the market and stopped at the top of the Wildwood Steps for the group to sing Here comes the Sun by The Beatles.

Then the group went down the steps to the top of the stands at Witter Field. Youth soccer classes were being conducted on the field and Piedmont High Football assistant coach Po Tauaho was building the strength of future Piedmont High football players in the field’s weight room.

The group walked across the top of the stadium to an access road that goes past the small, little-known Bern Field that is just above the stadium’s walkway. The Piedmont Soccer Club got permission a few years ago to create this turf field for their youth practices on an unused space. The access road meets the high school’s steep “PE Hill” that gave the walkers some climbing exercise for the morning.

They continued on past the school’s William “Binks” Rawlings Gymnasium, where basketball, volleyball, and badminton are played by Piedmont students, to the central campus quad that connects the school's library, cafeteria, and an open-air amphitheater.

Max took the group down the steps into the amphitheater where they took their seats for their final song, With a little Help From my Friends. The walkers demanded an encore and Max played and sang a SWMRS song called Lose It.

Max said he became a singer because of the Piedmont High A Capella program and its long time director, Joe Piazza. Max also recalled that he and his high school band competed in a PHS “Battle of the Bands” competition in this very amphitheater, which they won. It was the first of many successes for the band and Max.

The walkers agreed that this walk was just the most recent success for Max and that many more are to come in his singing and real estate careers. The group expressed their appreciation to Max for a most enjoyable and unique Wednesday walk before walking through the campus back to the Exedra.