In 1958, Don Cary’s mother forced him to join the middle school marching band.
Now at 78 years old, Cary – a Grove City resident for more than five decades – plays his saxophone to a live audience almost weekly. He performed 106 shows during 2023 alone!
“Sometimes mom knows best, right?” Cary says.
The Prelude
Ray LaVoie
Cary’s roots in Grove City run deep. In the ‘50s his parents bought several acres from the Gantz sisters and built a house on Dyer Road. When his family later moved to the south side of Columbus, Cary knew he wanted to return to Grove City and raise a family of his own.
While attending South High School in Columbus, 16-year-old Cary met 14-year-old Jack Fox, who became a lifelong friend and stage partner. Fox put an ad selling his go-kart in the newspaper, and when Cary stopped by to see it, he noticed Fox’s guitar and asked him if he’d like to join his band. The two have been playing together ever since.
Ray LaVoie
Cary and Fox, 2024
“Jack ends up being the best guitar player in Columbus, because of that, he actually played with George Jones, Ricky Skaggs, Herb Alpert and The Tijuana Brass and The Rhondels,” Cary says. “Dave Thomas of Wendy’s gave him $90,000 to go to Nashville and record an album. (It) hit the charts, but it didn’t hit it real big. We always say we’re glad it didn’t because if it hit big we’d be drug addicts or dead by now.”
After graduation, Cary enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, serving during the Vietnam War.
“I went to about 16 different countries,” he says. “I went to England, France, Germany, Turkey, Greece, Greenland, Panama Canal, Hawaii, Okinawa, the Philippines, Vietnam and probably a couple of others too. I got to travel and see a little bit of everything, but not a whole lot of anything.”
Last year he visited Washington D.C. on an Honor Flight trip, reminiscing and paying his respect through music.
“I played Taps at the Vietnam wall, and then when we got to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, in the amphitheater out front, I played the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ on harmonica,” he says.
Becoming 3C
When he returned home after his service, he took a job at Fritsche Homes as a salesperson, eventually becoming vice president before retiring in 2018.
While working at Fritsche Homes, Cary met Terry Christian. The coworkers connected as musicians and began playing live shows and performing classic cover songs. Cary played saxophone and Christian played keys inside the company’s model homes and other spots around town.
One night when playing at Plank’s On Broadway, Cary and Christian came up with the band name 3C Highway. The name references Ohio’s three major cities connected by State Route 3, which passes through Grove City.
“It starts in Cincinnati, we’re stuck in Columbus, but we’re trying to make it to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland,” Cary says.
While playing in a newly built condo, the two met drummer Mike Vanden Ecker, who later joined the band.
“[Vanden Ecker] said ‘Hey, I play drums. Do you mind if I play?’ I said ‘Yeah, you play drums I’d rather play just sax,” Cary says. “So he started playing with us and one time we were leaving a gig and I asked him where he used to play. Well, he came from California and he actually played with the Beach Boys when he was 14 years old before they got big.”
3C Highway now consists of Cary on saxophone, Christian on keys, Fred Snider on bass and Vanden Ecker on drums.
More than Music
Cary still performs with Fox under the name Fox and Cary Combo.
Ray LaVoie
Both bands he’s a member of often play for charity events, weddings, parties and dances. They play benefits for organizations such as Lifecare Alliance, as well as free shows at local elementary schools.
Based on what is requested, they play pretty much any style of music including covers of love songs, dance, country, New Orleans, classic rock and more.
While he’s an accomplished musician, Cary doesn’t take himself too seriously, always cracking jokes between songs. He loves to interact and engage with the audience.
“What’s nice about the saxophone is you can go out into the audience and play,” Cary says. “I’ll go out into the audience, down the aisles, around the tables and play so they can hear right there because it sounds so much better.”
One memory Cary has from a volunteer show at Riverside Methodist Hospital encapsulates the joy he can bring by doing what he loves.
“We’re playing and a lady comes up with her husband in a wheelchair and starts dancing with him,” Cary says. “I mean, it doesn’t get better than that. You know?”
Having had a father who battled Alzheimer’s, Cary says music is great for memory care.
“When you go to those places and play music, they come alive, especially if you’re playing songs from their era,” he says.
He and his groups also host Ohio State Football tailgates. An avid Buckeye fan, Cary recorded and performed an original pep tune titled “Go Bucks, Bucks Go,” about 10 years ago. The song led him to receive TV interview requests and radio plays.
Playing through the Postlude
Cary lives in Grove City with his wife Linda. They have two daughters and six grandchildren, some of whom remain in the area.
His triplet grandchildren performed at The Little Theatre off Broadway, which led to the three landing starring roles in the feature film Cadia: The World Within.
Playing music is still Cary’s passion and he doesn’t plan on giving up anytime soon. He says he hopes to die with his saxophone still hanging from his neck.
“It keeps you busy and young,” he says. “We play for free, we only charge to set up the equipment and tear it down and that’s good exercise at my age; loading equipment and unloading equipment is kind of like an exercise program.”
A Don Cary Funny:
“You know what they do in Ann Arbor when there’s a tornado?
They go to the stadium because it’s unlikely there’ll be a touchdown there.”
Maisie Fitzmaurice is an editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at mfitzmaurice@cityscenemediagroup.com.
