MUSIC
The Institution - 1966
“Love is Not Free” was ecorded in 1966 at Creative Production Studios in Orange, NJ. "Antipathy" is the B side. Personnel: Rich Lester, Marvin Coopersmith, Howard Duff, Jean LaMond, and Russ Frame.
The Institution - 1967-68
Personnel: Rich Lester (vocals), Marvin Coopersmith (lead guitar), J. Howard Duff (rhythm guitar. background vocals, lead vocal on “Ramblin”), Pat Moast (bass), Janette Greene (organ), Jean LaMond (drums), Philip Rubin (occasional special effects guitar).
The Institution II
Praisegod Bearbones
J. Howard Duff said: “Praisegod Bearbones is the band that Institution II evolved into with me, Marvin Coopersmith, Rich Lester, and two other guys, George Juchnevicious from Elizabeth on bass and Dave Massler from Livingston on drums.
Philip Rubin
These are a couple of fragments of practice sessions from around 1968 of Philip playing, sloppily and slowly, a couple of pieces by Furry Lewis and Robert Wilkins on his then newly purchased, original 1932 National Steel guitar.
Rich Lester
Rich Lester was the co-founder and lead singer of The Institution. Rich died of cancer in 1996 at the age of 47. Below are some of the tracks from a tribute CD, “From The Bottom of My Heart (Vol. 1)”', featuring rare performances by Rich accompanied by various New Jersey musicians, starting with The Institution in 1965, through some of his final solo sessions (some also listed above). The tracks are preceded by spoken liner notes by J. Howard Duff.
J. Howard Duff
J. Howard Duff. was the co-founder and guitar player The Institution. He has had a long career in the music industry. Click on the images below to view or listen to many of his albums and performances.
The Blues & Back is an 18-track blues and rock album, released in August 2017, that blends classic rock with traditional blues, featuring covers and original tracks including “I’m Crying,” “Gin House Blues,” and “Who’s Been Talkin’”.
Time Pieces, released on August 30, 2019, features a collection of folk and rock tracks, including renditions of songs like “Rain” and “Heart Full of Soul”.
Thunder & Lightning, is a 15-track, 2021 rock and blues album featuring Duff playing all the instruments and singing alongside vocalist Dawn Gaye.The album's tracklist spans various blues and rock standards,
Cathecism Cataclysm. This 12-track gospel/Christian album from Feb. 21, 2016 features tracks like “I’m Standing with Jesus” and “Fire & Brimstone”.
Legacy: The Road, The Best of J. Howard Duff. A collection of 22 hand-picked songs from 6 of Duff’s LPs and Singles from 2009-2026.
Duff, with the Red, White, & Blues band. This YouTube playlist from 2025 includes tracks featuring J. Howard Duff playing with the Red, White & Blues band, a professional blues & swing band based in the lowcountry (Hilton Head/Bluffton) area of SC.
Note from J. Howard Duff to Philip Rubin (Jan. 22, 2023) regarding “Time Will Tell”.
“This is a remake of the first Institution original song. We wrote it as a group, although you and Marvin wrote the bulk of it, if I am not mistaken. We recorded the original on Rich’s reel to reel for submission to Golden Records of LA. They sent us a record contract which we foolishly decided not to sign. The original reel to reel recording was lost when Richard passed away. The song has haunted me for years and I decided to re-record it for one of my CD releases (“Time Pieces”). I asked Marvin for permission to do so (which he gave me) and asked him to get your permission as well (which he told me was given by you). I thought it might be an interesting addition to the website. Hope you both remember it and enjoy it as well. I just put it back on YouTube after hiatus of two years.”
Marvin Coopersmith
Marvin Coopersmith, from Union New Jersey, was a co-founder and the lead guitarist of The Institution, which broke up in 1970. However, Coopersmith, Rich Lester, J. Howard Duff, and Jean-Paul LaMond, successfully formed, gigged, toured, and recorded, through the ‘70s and ‘80s, in various musical aggregations of the core team. This included The Institution II and Praisegod Bearbones. In 2026, Marvin said, “I play and write all the time with my Roland Looper and my PreSonus ES-2 interface, which allows me to use the Garage Band and Logic Pro music software in my Mac. Below are 6 things I’ve done, including my first ever (and lame) attempt at jazz. I’m doing my best to figure out this modern gear. It’s not like hitting the record button on our old Ampex reel to reel.”
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