The article mentions Fandango as being Joe's first professional band (i.e., signed to a recording contract).
I shot their farewell - I'm guessing it was a "farewell" to the local scene - on April 17, 1977 at The Jail in Hillsdale. Members of other local bands - such as Triad and DeWaves - were on stage at various times during the show.
In the below photo, Joe (far left) is playing with some of them and also with Fandango's Rick Blakemore (second from the right). Rick died in a car accident in 1983.
I've never seen anyone mention the fact that Joe went directly from Rick Blakemore to Richie Blackmore as his lead guitarist - two Richards with nearly identical last names from two different countries.
The only other Fandango member I sorta recognize is Bob Danyls, whose head is totally blocked, but he has a cast on his left wrist that made playing his bass a bit of a problem.