Friday, March 22, 2019

The Greatest Classic Rock Tracks Of All Time


Over the course of the past two weeks (from March 5th thru March 15th) Sirius / XM’s Channel 30 counted down what they determined to be The Top 1000 Classic Rock Songs Of All-Time.  

As we’ve discussed here many times before, lists like these are designed to breed controversy … especially when no particular source for this ranking has ever been divulged or described … making it more of a “these are MY favorites” (or, in this case, OUR favorites) or “I think these songs should belong” kind of list rather than any type of scientific ranking by a specific criteria.  (Since a lot of this material is available on album only, it would be virtually impossible to rank the tracks by chart performance.  Things like copies sold or downloaded … or, perhaps more importantly in this case, airplay … sure would help in determining a more mathematical listing … but none of that seems to be the case here.)

So, since it’s an arbitrary list at best … compiled by an unknown number of sources … it really plays a lot more like a “these are my favorites” list than ANYTHING that remotely makes sense based on the reality of Classic Rock Radio.  (As in traditional Oldies Radio, these are the songs that WE'VE determined you should like ... regardless of how any of you out there actually listening may feel.)

Now I have been listening to Classic Rock Radio for as long as it has existed … and I was also there at the time when virtually ALL of this music was being newly released as brand new tracks … LONG before the concept of Classic Rock Radio ever even crossed a program director’s mind.

As such, I have got to tell you that I have been QUITE surprised by a good number of these entries that made this Top 1000 List as I don’t know that they would have made my Top 5000 List!

In fact, after listening for the majority of the ten days that this feature aired (and writing down as many titles and artists as I could in that timeframe) I can only speculate that, at the very best, they’ve seem to have gotten this list about HALF right.  (I've listened to Classic Rock my whole life and didn't even recognize some of their Top 1000 "besties"!!!)

And some of the results are simply flat out ridiculous.

Some cases in point:  

To have Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Town" finish in The Top 30 but not have "Purple Haze" even make The Top 100 has been enough to make me motivated to come up with our OWN list of Classic Rock Favorites.

In fact, while we’re on the subject of The Prince Of Darkness, in what universe do Ozzy Osbourne and/or Black Sabbath deserve 16 of The Top 1000 ranked songs?!?!

Seriously!?!?  (Siriusly???)

I can think of two … maybe three songs that should have made this list … but 16?!?!?  (Do you suppose that the fact that Sirius / XM also offers an Ozzy Osbourne Channel might have something to do with it???)  Which throws ALL credibility out as far as I’m concerned.

Ozzy Osbourne claims 16 spots while Classic Rock staples like The Eagles, AC/DC, Pink Floyd, Aerosmith, Journey, Jimi Hendrix, Queen, The Doobie Brothers, Steely Dan, Heart, Santana and The Steve Miller Band all fall far behind him.  (How many Ozzy songs have YOU heard in the past two weeks?  Two months?  Two years???  I'm sorry but he is hardly the Poster Child of Classic Rock Radio!!!)

And it’s not just an issue like this that throws the whole list out of kilter … 

It’s things like “Life In The Fast Lane” coming in at #164 … BEHIND “I Don’t Know” and “Flying High Again” by Ozzy Osbourne (What!?!?!? Can anybody even sing a line from either one of these tunes?), “Have A Drink On Me” by AC/DC (now granted, they play a TON of AC/DC on Classic Rock Radio … but is THIS one of the ones that immediately comes to mind for you???) and “Photograph” by Ringo Starr (#102) … I’m sorry, but this makes absolutely NO sense to me.

I have heard “Life In The Fast Lane” EVERY SINGLE DAY since it first came out in 1977 … that’s 42 years of airplay of AT LEAST once per day … or over 15,000 times that I personally have heard them play this song on the radio!!!  And it comes in at #164 … behind “War Pigs” by Black Sabbath (#48 … which is just one spot below The Beatles’ “Let It Be”!!!) and “Synchronicity” by The Police (#110)

And speaking of saturated airplay, several years ago we named John Cougar Mellencamp’s “Jack And Diane” as “the most over-played song on the radio” … and it was at the time … It got to the point where I ended up turning it off EVERY time it came on ... because radio RUINED the experience of hearing it for me.

So where does “Jack And Diane” place on the Classic Rock's Greatest Hits list?

#419 … right behind “The Zoo” by The Scorpions.  (Say what?!?!)  And “Thunderstruck” by AC/DC (#397 … how many times have you heard that one, comparatively speaking, in the past twenty years???) … and “No More Tears” by Ozzy Osbourne.  Are you starting to pick up on a trend here???  (Mellencamp placed twelve songs on the Top 1000 List … “Hurts So Good” placed even lower than “Jack And Diane” at #728 … but BOTH of these non-stop airplay rock classics finished lower on the countdown than “I Need A Lover” (#367), which also charted for Pat Benatar, who earned TEN spots in The Top 1000. 

My favorite AC/DC song (which I also hear every single day), “You Shook Me All Night Long” came in at #348 … behind OTHER AC/DC “classics” like “Rock And Roll Noise Pollution” and “Girls Got Rhythm.”  (Betcha those are the first ones to cross YOUR minds!!!)

Simply put … this list is ALL fucked up!!!

Now that’s not to say that most of these songs don’t belong here somewhere … (although I’d be willing to bet you we could eliminate close to a third of them without hardly even trying) … they just don’t belong in the places they fall.  (“Stairway To Heaven” came in at #1, exactly as we  expected.  I figured “Hotel California” would be right up there at the top … it came in at #8 … behind “Sympathy For The Devil” and “A Day In The Life” … and that’s just wrong!  “Sweet Home Alabama” placed even lower than that (#13) while Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” came in at #16.  I don’t know that I can think of four better examples of Classic Rock Radio today than these … and, quite honestly, you don’t even hear “Stairway To Heaven” all that much anymore because listeners have OD’d on it.  “Kashmir” seems to have become the Zeppelin song of choice lately … and it’s way down at #112!)

“Who Are You” by The Who seems to get played several times a day … yet it is ranked #101 … behind Who songs like “Behind Blue Eyes” (#25) and “Love Reign Over Me” (#67).  And how the heck does “Magic Carpet Ride” rank higher than “Born To Be Wild” on ANY rock list?

Speaking of which, “Africa” didn’t make the list at all!!!  Another one of the most-played songs of the past 35 years, it didn’t even make the cut on the Sirius / XM Classic Rock Top 1000 Countdown.  (Toto earned one entry, for “Hold The Line,” which came in at #279 … understandable, I guess, since you NEVER hear this one as much as some of those Ozzy tunes!!!)

Analytically speaking, in most cases this list isn’t even close to Classic Rock Reality … and we need to fix it!  

More examples:  “Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo Heartbreaker” by The Rolling Stones came in at #131 … ahead of Stones classics like “Under My Thumb” (#200), “Let’s Spend The Night Together” (#274), “Get Off My Cloud” (#228), “Time Is On My Side” (#332) and “Start Me Up” (#381 – WHAT?!?!  That just may be one of the Greatest Classic Rock Songs of All-Time!!! Is there ANY opening riff that gets you going like this one does?)

Maybe “Brown Sugar” is more your thing?

That one came in at #108 … right behind AC/DC’s “Shoot To Thrill” … yep, THAT’S a classic “go to” rocker for sure!!!  (For the record “Satisfaction” came in at #73 … and The Stones placed 36 songs on the list … more than any other artist.)

And that’s another thing … the artists with the most songs are, most often, the ones you would expect to see near the top of the list:  The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Tom Petty, Bob Seger, The Doors, The Eagles, Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Fleetwood Mac … but then how do you explain Van Halen coming in at #5 with 25 tracks … or CCR at #7 with 17 … or Bat Head-biting Ozzy Osbourne at #9 with 16???  (Don’t get me wrong … I’ve been a Creedence fan since Day One … but these guys do NOT belong in the Top Ten List of Greatest Classic Rock Artists ahead of The Doors, David Bowie, Pink Floyd, Fleetwood Mac, Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton, Journey, Aerosmith. Crosby, Stills, Nash And Young, Jimi Hendrix and Queen.)

Rush has SEVEN entries on the list … now I’ve never been much of a Rush fan … and I will concede that maybe four of these songs deserve a spot … but once again, how much Rush do you hear on the radio today on any regular basis?  (I guarantee you that if you ask a Rush fan, they’ll tell you “nowhere near enough” … but can any other Classic Rock Music Fan … or even casual Rush fan … even name seven of their songs???)

Clearly, I’m upset … clearly I think this list is a bogus, worthless piece of crap with absolutely NO regard for the reality of what makes Classic Rock Radio Great.  Clearly, I feel like I’ve wasted over a hundred hours listening to this shit and this is time I can never get back.

But, luckily for you, I am ALSO feeling REALLY inspired … enough to put the challenge out there to all of our readers …

Because I know that YOU GUYS can help us put together the ULTIMATE LIST of CLASSIC ROCK SONGS that should define an ultimate play list to last for all time.  (Or at least until another generation of classic rock songs become old enough to make the cut somewhere down the line.)

So how about this …

A list of The Top 3333 Classic Rock Songs.  (Get It???  33 1/3 … since Classic Rock is the very definition of Album Rock, which took over the airwaves in a VERY big way in the ‘70’s and has grown thru every generation since as more and more folks are discovering this great, timeless music.)

Start submitting your votes and nominations now … let’s see what songs YOU guys think belong on the list.  Ideally, we’d like to get up to around 5000 viable candidates … and then have you do a final vote on those in order to narrow the list down to the final Top 3333 that will act as our official Classic Rock Songs Countdown.  (We’re also looking for a radio partner to help us countdown the winners!)

Speaking of which, we’re going to open this forum up to EVERY Classic Rock Radio Station out there … poll your listeners and have them send in their votes and nominees … let’s get the best cross-representation we can of Rockin’ America.  (At least OUR list will be based on something … and reflect the opinions of The Classic Rock Nation!!!)

Please … contact your favorite local Classic Rock Radio Stations and ask them to get in on the action …

Announce our poll on the air and tell their listeners how to cast their votes.  Make it personal ... promote it as YOUR station taking part in a nationwide poll trying to determine The Top 3333 Greatest Classic Rock Songs of All-Time.  Let’s get the largest representation possible to come up with the ultimate list of Classic Rock Favorites … as voted on by the FANS (and not a couple of guys holed up in a room for the weekend pulling candidates out of thin air.)

To help accomplish this, we’ve even set up a brand new email address to accumulate the votes.  So send your nominations to: classicrockvote@yahoo.com … and let’s see where this latest Forgotten Hits Poll takes us.

To help inspire you, we’ll run suggestions along the way over the next several months … and then, when we’ve got a viable list to work from, we’ll officially open the polls, tell you who the final candidates are and let the REAL voting begin.  Who knows … before the end of the year we just may have our own VERY Special Countdown to reveal.

Here’s hoping to hear from each and every one of you!  (kk)



Thursday, March 21, 2019

THURSDAY THIS AND THAT


A very hastily put together edition as I am running out the door!!!

DICK DALE: 
More comments on the late, great Dick Dale …

Including this one from Davie Allan, The King Of Fuzz, regarding The King Of Surf Guitar …

Kent,
I had trouble sleeping last night … it's always tough losing a friend.
Dick and I met in the 60's and in '85, he played on one of my tunes, "Surf Trek."
I wish we could've done more together.
Losing him and Hal Blaine has been beyond sad for me.
Thanks,
Davie


Hi, Kent.
I messed up (the old memory ain't what it used to was). 
I saw Dick Dale at Durty Nellie's in Palatine, not Biddy Mulligan's.
It was on August 14th, 2016.  Pam Pulice was nice enough to tell me about the performance and we went together.  One of the best shows I've ever seen.
Here's a pic I took.
 

Mike Wolstein 

kk:
Some Dick Dale Trivia …
Wild Wayne said that he personally witnessed Dick Dale melting guitar picks during his performance.
FB




Another one bites the dust.
This is not shaping up to be a good year for music icons.
We have lost Dick Dale, the king of the surf guitar. He was 81.
I did see him in concert sometime in the 80s.
Jack

Harvey Kubernik sent us this coverage from The New York Times …  

The New York Times: 
Dick Dale recorded the hit song “Misirlou” and influenced guitarists like Jimi Hendrix and Eddie Van Halen.  
Dick Dale, King of the Surf Guitar, Is Dead at 81  
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/17/obituaries/dick-dale-dead.html 
By Emily S. Rueb and Jon Pareles 
March 17, 2019  

Dick Dale, who was known as the King of the Surf Guitar and recorded the hit song “Misirlou,” which was revived on the “Pulp Fiction” soundtrack, died on Saturday at a hospital in Southern California. He was 81.

His death was confirmed by Dusty Watson, a drummer who played live shows with Mr. Dale. The cause was not immediately known.

Mr. Dale was a surfer, sound pioneer and guitarist whose unusual, percussive playing style and thick, thunderous music earned him the nickname the Father of Heavy Metal, and influenced the Beach Boys, the Cure, Eddie Van Halen and Jimi Hendrix.

Sam Bolle, a bassist who played with Mr. Dale’s namesake band, Dick Dale, for about 15 years, described him as “an aggressive and ferocious” musician who played like one of the lions he raised at his home.

“I played a gig with him about a month ago,” he said, and “he was still slaughtering people with volume.”

Mr. Dale was born Richard Monsour in Boston in 1937. He developed a musical signature that was influenced by the traditions of his Lebanese father and Eastern European mother, and the flamboyant big-band drummer Gene Krupa.

After moving to California as a child, Mr. Dale defined the sound of surf guitar as a musical expression of the elemental surge of the ocean, with its savage waves, its volatile crosscurrents and its tidal undertow. He played melodies that crisscrossed the beat with the determination of a surfer riding across choppy waves, forging a triumphant path above deep turbulence.

“Surf music is a heavy machine-gun staccato picking style to represent the power of Mother Nature, of our earth, of our ocean,” he told The New York Times in 1994. His almost constant tremolo created friction so intense that it melted his guitar picks and strings as he played.

“The staccato is so fast it heat-treats the strings,” he said. “They turn purple and black and they snap. And when I play, you’ll see a flurry of plastic — it just falls down like snow. I used to think it was dandruff. But I grind so hard that the guitar picks just melt down.”

His quest for a sonic impact to match what he had felt while surfing also led to innovations that would change the technology of electric guitars and amplification.

He called the surf music he played “a heavy machine-gun staccto picking style to represent the power of Mother Nature, of our earth, of our ocean.”

Leo Fender, one of the electric guitar’s trailblazers, worked closely with Mr. Dale to create a guitar sturdy enough to withstand his style — Mr. Dale called it the Beast — and an amplifier that could crank up loud enough to fill a dance hall.

“Leo and I went to Lansing Speaker,” Mr. Dale said in 1994, “and we said, ‘We need a speaker that will not burn, will not flex, will not twist, will not break.’”

In the fast-changing 1960s, instrumental surf rock reigned briefly on the charts, and the Beach Boys used it as one foundation of their pop songs. Mr. Dale’s brash playing also found a fan in Jimi Hendrix, among many other guitarists, and, decades later, among a generation of indie-rockers who prized his untamed sound.

Chris Darrow, a multi-instrumentalist recording artist who has been in the music industry for 50 years, first saw Mr. Dale perform at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Newport Beach in the early 1960s.

“The intensity and volume of the performances were such that the wooden building seemed to lift off the ground when he played,” Mr. Darrow said in an interview with the music journalist Harvey Kubernik.

“Until the Beatles came along there was nothing that drove the audiences as wild like Dick Dale and the Del-Tones. He was boss.”

 “The only real surf guitarist for me is Dick Dale,” he added. “All the rest are imitators.”

In 1963, Mr. Dale’s music was catapulted onto a national stage when he performed “Misirlou,” an adaptation of a traditional Arabic song, on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” That same song re-entered the mainstream in the 1990s, as the opening anthem for Quentin Tarantino’s blockbuster film “Pulp Fiction.”

Mr. Watson, who played live with Mr. Dale for over a decade, said Mr. Dale had been sick for a while, but that “he’s such a bull,” he thought he would “power through it.”

“He’s an incredible loss for music,” he said.

Mr. Dale’s survivors include his wife and manager, Lana Dale, and his son, Jimmy.

For years, Mr. Dale struggled with health issues, including bouts with rectal cancer and renal failure. But he performed through the pain.

“Don’t worry about yesterday and don’t worry about tomorrow,” Mr. Dale told California Rocker, an online music publication, in 2015. “Don’t worry about yesterday because it’s used. It’s either good or it leaves you feeling bad. And don’t waste time or energy worrying about tomorrow. I could have a stroke and be dead. That’s why they call it the present. It’s a present.”

For him, music was medicine.

“I have to perform to stay alive,” he once said.

Sandra E. Garcia and Richard Sandomir contributed reporting. 

I’m sorry to hear about Dick Dale passing.
Dick’s guitar playing was a big influence on all of us, and we covered “Misirlou” on our Surfin’ USA album in ‘63.
Love & Mercy to Dick’s family.
Brian Wilson

Brian has got to be hurting this week with the loss of two of his greatest comrades and influences, Hal Blaine and now Dick Dale.  Our hearts go out to you, too, Brian, as we’re certain you’re grieving.  (kk)

Speaking of The Beach Boys, Billboard Magazine ran a nice tribute about Dick Dale’s influence on the band this past week.
Featuring memories from Bruce Johnston, Al Jardine, Mike Love and our FH Buddy Billy Hinsche, this is a very touching tribute:

OTHER SAD NEWS:
Longtime FH Reader Phil Miglioratti ran Fred Vail’s recent FH comments regarding Hal Blaine on his Pray For Surf website … and Fred elaborated a little bit more, too.

From FH Reader Ken Voss …

RIP Ozzy guitarist Bernie Torme …



And, from his brother Gary, a long-time Forgotten Hits Reader and Contributor, come this sad news about Jim Pike, founding member of The Lettermen


Hey Kent,

I thought I’d let you know that my brother, Jim Pike, founder and creative force of the famed Lettermen vocal trio, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s and now joins the ranks of many other 60’s recording stars with this affliction, and has retired from performing. 

I like to say FAMED Lettermen because there were other Lettermen groups in the late 50’s and early 60’s that were irrelevant and had no hit records prior to the Capitol Records Jim Pike Lettermen. 

After Jim sold the remaining interest in the Lettermen name, he went on to form The Reunion, with other ex-Lettermen and also helped put back together the Four Preps with Ed Cobb, Bruce Belland and David Somerville.  They billed themselves as Three Golden Groups In One,  “The Preps”, “The Lettermen” and “The Diamonds.”  David Somerville and Ed Cobb have since passed away and Bruce continues on with the Four Preps with new guys. 

Time goes on no matter how talented you are.

Thanks, 

Ex - Letterman and Reunion, 

Gary Pike

So sorry to hear the news, Gary … please pass along our very best wishes.  (Dave Somerville as a “Friend of Forgotten Hits,” too.

I know the current version of The Lettermen play here nearly every Christmas but I have yet to see them in concert … I guess I always felt that without Jim’s presence, it just wouldn’t be the same.  Readers are welcome to pass along any well-wishes to Jim Pike and we will be sure to forward them to his brother Gary.  (kk)

ME-TV-FM:
To be clear, we weren’t really coming down on Me-TV or Me-TV-FM the other day … they do a GREAT job of preserving the music through their radio station as well as many of the vintage television programs we all grew up loving back in the day.  It just seems to me they could do a better job of cross-promoting one another.  (I know the radio station runs a number of TV themes as part of its regular programming … and will even feature a “sponsorship” promo along the lines of “The next hour of Me Music is being brought to you by Floyd’s Barber Shop” as a tip of the hat to one of their most popular programs, The Andy Griffith Show.
But while the premise of low Spotify downloads may have triggered the debate, they REALLY should have stressed the solution … Me-TV-FM … where you can hear ALL of these great songs (along with a whole lot more!) on a regular basis.
It was also to nudge them (once again) to start streaming.  You’re sitting on a goldmine of memories that people all over the country (if not the world) would enjoy listening to … so SHARE IT WITH THEM!!!  I don’t see any reason why the concept of Me-TV-FM Radio can’t become an Internet sensation once it captures its true potential audience.  (Plus I’m sure something could be worked out where commercial breaks would allow each market across the country to run “local advertising” for their area, thus bringing in additional revenue to help offset some of the streaming costs.  Scott Shannon did something similar to this with his True Oldies Channel for years.”  In addition, then everybody listening would reap the benefit of an intelligently programmed station featuring this music the way it deserves to be heard.

Speaking of which, we heard from Neal Sabin, head honcho at Me-TV-FM, Me-TV and the Weigel Broadcasting Company, who still downplays the idea of streaming:
The radio station is local.  The vast majority of our 27 million weekly Me-TV viewers can't listen to our audio.  We’re trying to get affiliates. Streaming is a no win solution.
Neal
That’s exactly my point … you’ve got 27 million already established Me-TV fans who are all potential listeners if only given the chance to be able to tune in and listen.
Affiliates have been slow in coming … I believe there are only a few at this point … and I also believe some of those stations ARE streaming!  So why not the flagship station, controlling this to ensure that what’s going out over the airwaves is EXACTLY the way you want the station represented?
I have no choice but to listen to the Milwaukee stream on my computer at work as my car doesn’t even pick up the 87.7 Chicago signal … yet another way you’re restricting your potential listenership. 
Yet despite ALL of these factors, the ratings for the station continue to hold steady and/or grow.  (Imagine the potential of what it COULD be!!!)

Meanwhile, Robert Feder is reporting that some internal changes have been made as well to help beef things up there …

WRME 87.7-FM, the Weigel Broadcasting soft-rock oldies and classic hits station known as Me-TV FM, just fortified its ranks with the addition of another Chicago radio veteran. Bob Lawson, best known for his many years as production director at the former WJMK, has been hired as production and programming assistant. He’ll report to program director Rick O’Dell and imaging and production director Bill Cochran. “Bob’s a great addition to the team because his background is a rare combination of production and programming,” O’Dell said. “Weigel likes to hire people whose baseball card would say ‘Infield-Outfield.’ Bob’s versatility is a huge plus for Me.”

It was also VERY cool to see The Monkees being advertised in this week’s edition of TV Guide.  As we told you a couple of weeks ago, Me-TV is running two back-to-back episodes of the ‘60’s sitcom classic on Sunday afternoons, making their way through all 58 episodes.

And here’s something that sounds kinda interesting.
Me-TV is launching its first-ever original program …
A brand new television series titled “Collector’s Call” launches in April.  It will spotlight collectors who have assembled mass collections of various types of memorabilia (think records, comic books, baseball cards, TV Guides, Wizard Of Oz and Disney items, etc.) and show off their collections … and the whole thing will be hosted by Lisa Whelchel (Blair of “The Facts Of Life,” one of Me-TV’s popular series.)
The show kicks off on April 7th and will air Sunday Nights at 9 pm here in Chicago.  (Check your local listings for show times)
More information can be found here: 
Definitely worth checking out!!!  (kk)

ATLANTA RHYTHM SECTION:
As part of our Atlanta Rhythm Section concert review we told you about a track we ran several years ago in FH where we took one of their biggest hits, “Imaginary Lover,” and sped up the album track to play at 45 rpm and, in the process, discovered a brand new version of the song seemingly sung by Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac!  (If you haven’t already done so, give it a listen … it’s quite uncanny!)



Well, I’ve been reading the book “The Atlanta Rhythm Section: The Authorized History” by Willie B. Moseley (available thru their website or Amazon.com) and this very topic is discussed in Willie’s book!

Willie writes:  “And while there aren’t any statistics to cite, ‘Imaginary Lover’ would also have a high ranking in the pantheon of rock music in a listing of songs that were intentionally played at the wrong speed by fans.

“While ‘Imaginary Lover’ might have owed a possible tip of the headstock to ethereal Fleetwood Mac ballads such as ‘Rhiannon’ and ‘Dreams,’ the legend about a cover version of the Atlanta Rhythm Section song actually being recorded by the mighty Mac began when a radio deejay accidently played the A.R.S. hit at a faster speed than specified.  However, listeners called in to express their approval of the tune, thinking, thinking it was a verson of the song that had indeed been recorded by Fleetwood Mac.  The song sounded peppier, and the vocals sounded like chanteuse Stevie Nicks fronting the band she was currently a member of.

“Nicks herself heard about the musical incongruity and purchased her own copy of the A.R.S. song.  Playing the disc at a faster speed, she dubbed ‘Imaginary Lover’ onto cassette and submitted it (as a gag) to bandmate Christine McVee; the speeded up tune was supposedly a demo for Fleetwood Mac’s future consideration.  McVee was said to have been impressed by what she thought were Nick’s vocals and the ‘arrangement’ of the Atlanta Rhythm section tune.”

Too funny!  (Now what would have REALLY been funny is if Stevie sang even a short portion of the song as a gag during a couple of Fleetwood Mac’s shows at the time.  Anybody out there know if she did???)  kk


ATLANTA RHYTHM SECTION:  THE HIT LIST

The Atlanta Rhythm Section charted eighteen times on the national charts between 1974 and 1981. 

Here are their Ten Biggest Hits:

# 1 – SO INTO YOU (#5, 1977)

# 2 – IMAGINARY LOVER (#7 1978)

# 3 – I’M NOT GONNA LET IT BOTHER ME TONIGHT  (#14, 1978)

# 4 – SPOOKY (#15, 1979)

# 5 – DO IT OR DIE (#19, 1979)

# 6 – ALIEN (#27, 1981)

# 7 – DORAVILLE (#35, 1974)

# 8 – NEON NITES (#42, 1977)

# 9 – CHAMPAGNE JAM (#43, 1978)

#10 – DOG DAYS (#63, 1977)

Honorable Mention:  GEORGIA RHYTHM (#68, 1977)

HELPING OUT OUR READERS:
Hi Kent,
Hope this finds you well.
I read every issue of FH from beginning to end, and thoroughly enjoy the information and memories you and your readers share.
I work with Tommy James and received an inquiry from someone who attended St. Willibrord’s High School 50 years ago. She recalls that her school won a contest run by either WLS or WCFL, in which the school that sent in the most slips of paper with the cough drop sponsor written on them would win a concert by Tommy & The Shondells.
And so ... I'm wondering if any of your readers, especially the former Chicago radio deejays, recall any specific details: the radio station involved, date of the concert, etc. Any info would be much appreciated.
Thanks and keep up the great work!
Cheers,
Ed Osborne
I’m happy to put it out there and see if anything comes back.  (I don’t know that we have any ‘CFL jocks currently on the list but you never know!)
Contests like these were pretty common in the ‘60’s.  I remember lots of girls at my high school collecting gum wrappers and folding and connecting them to see who could come up with the longest chain.  (For some reason I think Juicyfruit and Beech Nut were the two most common.)  I don’t think our school ever won anything but some of these wrapper chains were incredibly long!  (I don’t even know how they rolled them up and sent them in!!!)
I seem to remember The Grass Roots being big on these kinds of contests … a contest to “Win The Grass Roots To Play At Your High School” sort of thing.
I’m sure some of the girls on our list who participated in these events can shed some more light on the whole phenomena.  (kk)

HOW WILD IS THIS?
So in the very same Willie B. Moseley ARS book we just told you about … on the very same page as the Stevie Nicks story … Moseley tells THIS story about a tour that was organized for the band in 1978, sponsored by The Carefree Sugarless Gum Company!

“As the buzz about ‘Champagne Jam’ (the ARS’ most successful album ever - kk) continued to grow, a brilliant marketing plan was put together to garner wider interest in the band and the album, abetted by a brand of chewing gum.
“The redoubtable Carefree Sugarless Gum Tour was organized by creating twelve contests by twelve Top 40 radio stations in twelve markets.  The high school, junior high or middle school that collected the most gum wrappers would get a free concert in the school gym by The Atlanta Rhythm Section, and the school’s PTA would receive a sizeable donation.
“The twelve markets that were selected weren’t particularly strong for the ARS so they made sure the radio stations sponsoring the local shows had a Top 40 format instead of an album-oriented rock format.  The band even recorded radio spots for the station.
“One rule of the competition mandated that a school that was competing had to be able to pick up the signal of the radio station that was sponsoring the contest.  Such a strategy meant that the then-current single, ‘Imaginary Lover,’ would receive a lot of airplay in those markets and the band would probably get a decent share of airplay on the AOR stations as well.
“The airplay of ‘Imaginary Lover’ for the Carefree Sugarless Gum contest would ultimately break out both the single and the album in markets where the band never had previous success.” 
Don’tcha just love it when this stuff all comes together?!?!  (kk)

By the way, The Guinness Book World Record Holder for the longest gum wrapper chain ever assembled is Gary Duschl, who built a chain that measures 140,303 feet!  (It took 2,512,793 gum wrappers … at a cost of nearly $176,000!!! … and over 40,000 hours to build the chain!)  Gary began his project / hobby / obsession on March 11, 1965, using Wrigley wrappers only.  To put its length in perspective, the chain represents the equivalent of 19.7544 Miles … or 347 Football Fields … 72 Empire State Buildings.  Driving from end to end would take 20 Minutes by Car at 60 mph … or over 7 hours to walk.  (kk)

UP-COMING SHOWS:
The Genesee Theatre has just booked Cheap Trick (June 7th) and Three Dog Night (which is actually only One Dog Night nowadays with only Danny Hutton on board … October 4th) Also coming (May 16th) is Burton Cummings.

Burton Cummings will also make a return engagement at The Arcada Theatre on August 3rd.  The Micky Dolenz concert has been rescheduled for September 22nd (tickets from the cancelled May show will be honored) and, after performing again on April 14th, The Cornerstones Of Rock are already coming back in November (the 30th) for what is sure to be another sold out show.

And check out these vintage acts …

On March 24th (that’s THIS SUNDAY), Iron Butterfly will appear with Vanilla Fudge and Head East … and then, in a show billed as “The Heroes Of Woodstock” you can catch Canned Heat with Big Brother and the Holding Company on July 21st!
More info on all these shows here:  http://www.arcadalive.com/upcomingevents/

Hi Kent:
I will be on Dewey's Corner / Jerry's Attic Radio Show on Friday Night at approximately 6 pm.
We will be counting down a WRIT, Milwaukee Top 40 Survey from March, 1969, as part of our 50 year anniversary shows. Tune in if you have time.
Shows are also on the net and are archived.
As always, we play Records!
Ken

And lots of buzz this past week about the vintage Rolling Stones British Television Special “Rock And Roll Circus” being shown in theaters in the not-so-distant future!

This will be a first and fans are quite excited.

More information below:
ABKCO Films, in collaboration with Screenvision Media, a national leader in cinema advertising, announced today ticket availability for The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus. Theatre screenings for the iconic 1968 concert show will take place April 1, 3, 4, and 5 in select theaters nationwide, including markets such as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Dallas. Fans can purchase tickets at www.rockandrollcircusthefilm.com.
The live concert special’s restoration has been sourced from the 35mm internegative and will be presented in both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos sound. The Dolby Vision laser projection system delivers astonishing brightness, incomparable contrast, and captivating color that more closely matches what the human eye can see. Dolby Atmos places and moves sounds anywhere in the Dolby Cinema, including overhead, to make audiences feel they are truly attending The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus. Together, Dolby Cinema’s combination of powerful image and sound technologies creates an engaging, multi-sensorial cinema, and concert, experience for viewers.
Through 2019 technology, the audience is whisked back to 1968. The 4K restoration beautifully captures and recreates this historic event, creating a truly unique and immersive experience that fans won’t be able to get anywhere else.
Directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus was originally conceived as a BBC-TV special and was filmed before a live London audience in 1968. The film centers around the original lineup of The Rolling Stones — Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Brian Jones, Charlie Watts, and Billy Wyman — who serve as the show’s hosts and featured attraction. It stars the band performing fan favorite classics like “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” as well as extraordinary live performances by The Who, Jethro Tull, and more. 
This performance marks the first musical concert in which John Lennon performed before an audience outside The Beatles, as part of supergroup The Dirty Mac, which also included music legends Eric Clapton, Keith Richards, and Mitch Mitchell. The Rolling Stone Rock and Roll Circus is also the only time Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath performed with Jethro Tull, and the last time Brian Jones would perform with The Rolling Stones in front of an audience.
“We are thrilled to share the incredible The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus with moviegoers and music fans for this limited engagement,” said Darryl Schaffer, executive vice president of operations and exhibitor relations, Screenvision Media. “We think it’s the perfect time to answer fans’ excitement and give them an unforgettable concert experience from the comfort of their local movie theatres.”
For more information on The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus or to purchase tickets and view trailer visit www.rockandrollcircusthefilm.com.

And have you seen the line-up for the 50th Anniversary Woodstock Festival???