Thursday, June 20, 2024

Thursday This And That

SO sad to hear of Willie Mays’ passing on Tuesday (6/18)

Yes, he was 93 years old … but he was such a fixture in our lives growing up.

It’s just heartbreaking to think that the Say Hey Kid is gone.

It was a different era, for sure … but Mays always stood out as symbolizing what baseball was supposed to be all about.

In August of 1966, he moved into second place (behind Babe Ruth) with the most career home runs (535 at the time) ... he would hit 660 during the course of his career.  (Time marches on ... but those 660 career home runs still rank him sixth in Major League History.)

He was a 24-time All-Star.  He was Rookie Of The Year.  He was The National League’s MVP ... twice.  He was at one time the highest paid ball player in baseball history.    

And he was every bit as amazing on the field as he was at the plate, effortlessly making over the shoulder catches while running toward the outfield wall and earning twelve Golden Glove Awards.  He led the league in stolen bases four times.  His career batting average was .302 (and twice he won the NL title.)  He is one of only five players to hit 500 home runs and have 3000 hits.

Willie, we'll miss you.

You truly were one of a kind.  (kk) 


Here is an article that truly puts into perspective just what an incredibly

versatile and unique career Willie Mays really had ...

It was just any one statistic ... he excelled at ALL of them ...

But he was also able to compound these stats into multiple seasons ... and then EXTEND them throughout an entire career.

(The article also wonders how much greater Mays may have been had he not lost a couple of years to military service ... one can only speculate ... but these were PEAK years in his career.)

But hey ... ALL of his years were peak years in one way or another ... and, in some cases, in SIX ways and another!!!  (kk)


You have to read this to believe it!!!

https://www.mlb.com/news/willie-mays-best-stats-and-accomplishments


Got this alert late Wednesday Night ...

 

Queen has sold their recording and publishing rights for $1.27 BILLION ... a new world record in what has become a very common practice in closing out your career as a recording and performing artist.  The deal also includes all rights to their name and likeness.  Reportedly revenue from live performances is NOT included in the deal.  (Queen founding members Brian May and Roger Taylor continue to tour and perform live with new singer Adam Lambert ... if by "new" you mean for the past twenty years!)

As for the sale of their recordings, Disney and Universal Music Group will permanently retain the rights to distribute Queen's records in North America ... but the band's share of the royalties from those sales will now go to Sony Music.  It is expected that sales for the rest of the world will transfer from UMG to Sony Music over the next couple of years.

We saw Queen late last year ...

Our concert review is here:  https://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2023/11/queen-adam-lamberet.html

 

It’s been rumored about for months now …

But last Thursday, the 13th, The Eagles officially announced that they will, in fact, be performing at The Sphere in Las Vegas.

Set dates for these shows are: Friday, September 20th, Saturday, September 21st, Friday, September 27th, Saturday, September 28th, Friday, October 11th, Saturday, October 12th, Friday, October 18th and Saturday, October 19th

And the tickets are incredibly reasonable … just $175 each, all in (no hidden fees or service charges … provided you can grab them before the scalpers and ticket brokers do.)

But they’ve even instituted a way to pre-reserve your tickets in the hopes of circumventing this usual, pricey road block.

UPDATE:  Due to overwhelming demand, The Eagles have added four more dates to their Sphere residency ... November 1st and 2nd and November 8th and 9th.

I've really got to wonder what kind of images they've got planned for this ... The Eagles have always been a no-nonsense, all about the music, no flash sort of band.  They (other than Joe Walsh) basically just stand in place and perform their hits, as closely to the records as possible ... which, of course, only makes me want to see it more!  (kk)

 

We saw The Eagles earlier this year ... and wrote about it here ...

https://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2024/03/concert-review-eagles-and-steely-dan-at.html

 

And last weekend saw Donny Osmond ... and wrote about it here ...

http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2024/06/donny.html

 

And, speaking of Donny Osmond ...

 

Kent,

I enjoyed your review so much about Donny that I checked Ticketmaster to see where I could see him in my area. He is actually playing at the Hard Rock in Tampa (about 45 minutes from my house.) on July 25. I looked up tickets and it is actually sold out other than a few "platinum" offerings at over $300 each. I did not pay that much for the Stones or McCartney. I will keep checking back.

Great review, Kent.

Rich Turner,

Largo, Fl

Tickets to a Donny Osmond concert may not be at the top of everybody’s bucket list … but I can promise you a VERY enjoyable night of entertainment.  We are seriously considering heading out to Vegas just to see him again!  (kk)

 

Hi, Kent!    

Larry Millas from the Ides Of March ...

I was there, too!

Donny O is one of my wife's favorite stars from her childhood ... and she couldn't get tickets to see him at Harrah's when she was in Vegas on a "Girls’ Weekend" with our daughters, etc., in March ...

So she jumped at this show when it first showed up for buying tickets ...  

And we ended up in the 3rd row, just off center center to stage right ...

(Donny came down in the audience at one point and was about six feet away ... ) 

I agree with your comments, review, and accolades ... 100% ...

It was an amazing show ...

Dancers, Video / Film, Vocally .... and he was simply amazing.  The entire show was SO well produced and executed.

I really got the feeling he will be taking the torch from Wayne Newton as the "Face of Las Vegas" moving into the future.

I was both humbled and inspired.

My word of the evening was "WOW!"

Keep Rockin’ –

LM

I love it when other musicians are bowled over by fellow musicians …

Certainly not your genre of music …

When The Osmonds first hit the pop charts singing “One Bad Apple,” The Ides Of March were already knockin’ ‘em down with their hits “Vehicle” and “L.A. Goodbye” … yet there was room on the charts back then for ALL of this great music.

(And speaking of “One Bad Apple,” how about that kid Donny found on Tic Toc to sing the high parts for him … and with all the dance moves, too!!!)  kk

https://youtu.be/NK_8OeeUnTk?t=184

 

Thank you for featuring “Love Me For A Reason” today …

And now this song is running through my head so much that I am playing it throughout my day.

I bought it on a 45. I loved it then. I love it now. Tell Frannie it makes housework much easier. 

Shelley

 

Hi Kent, 

I enjoyed reading all the Forgotten Hits stories ~

Donny is amazing with his heavy schedule … and the Happy Together Tour

is still going strong. Pray for Mark Volman to stay healthy!!!

The Anniversary Date of the Premier of Viva Las Vegas brought back special memories!   

We want all our favorite "Oldie But Goodie Acts" to keep touring for sure …

Keep Up the Fantastic work and, of course, Keep Rockin!!!!

Your Fan, 

Carolyn

 

From Tom Cuddy ...

Clips from Donny's "Pre-Show" performance ...

https://youtu.be/bwiGPlltIuc?si=MGMCQ8_PT60fICMZ 

Where DOES this guy get his energy?!?!  (kk)

 

We’ve been keeping tabs on all the special songs The Rolling Stones have been pulling out of their back pocket as they criss-cross America on their Hackney Diamonds Tour.

Well, Ultimate Classic Rock has compiled the complete list thus far …

And there are even videos for most of them!

Check it out via the link below …

https://ultimateclassicrock.com/rolling-stones-hackney-diamonds-tour-debut-roundup/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ugh&utm_term=UCR%20New%20Smart%20List

 

And, speaking of The Stones, maybe it’s NOT all over now (lol) …

I’m STILL learning stuff about The Rolling Stones’ recording of “Time Is On My Side” as I dig deeper into my research.

 

Here’s how it all started …

 

Hi there, Kent,

You may not even have to post this question to the blog of FH readers ...

You may know the answer yourself, but I have always been curious about this.

Back in the fall of 1964 when I was ten years old, I always heard Time

Is On My Side by the Rolling Stones starting with four organ chords. 

But in 1978, when I requested the song as an oldie on a small radio

station, WLGN in Logan, Ohio, not far from Ohio University in Athens where

I was attending college, the disc jockey played a version that had an

organ in the background, but the introduction had a guitar as the

dominant instrument.  

Is that guitar version an alternate album version, or was that version released as the single version in the UK?  I've always been curious about that, and personally I like the organ introduction version better because it's the first version I ever heard.

Thanks for your help in advance.

With warmest regards,

Sam Ward

It's interesting that The Rolling Stones got the chance to perform this song WITH Irma Thomas a few weeks ago on their Hackney Diamonds Tour.  It was Irma's version that first inspired The Stones to cut this song themselves.

As I always understood it, the organ intro version was the UK single ... so the fact that that's the version you were hearing in 1964 kind of surprises me.  Here in Chicago, we only knew it with the guitar opening intro ... but a bit more research shows that the organ intro actually DID come first ... 

THAT's the version they recorded 60 YEARS AGO TODAY right here in Chicago.

Then in November, they went back into the studio to cut the much tighter sounding version with the guitar intro ... and THAT'S the one that came out in England on The Stones' second album (it was not released as a single there) ... so actually the REAL sequence of events is the exact OPPOSITE of what I've always believed to be the case.  The guitar intro version seems to be the one you hear most often today - and is typically the version included on all of their Greatest Hits compilations.

They're also completely different vocals ... and the guitar version has a MUCH stronger lead vocal by Mick Jagger.

When I heard the organ intro for the very first time ... which wasn't until many years later ... I thought "Oh my God, they're playing an outtake!  This is HORRIBLE!!! How could they not know this?!?!"

(I know ... a bit of an over-reaction ... but like you said, once you've only heard it one way, the OTHER way sounds totally foreign to you.)

That means that the track that we posted the other day was the more popular and widely-circulated UK album version ... so, in the interest of "equal time," we posted the original US single version as well.

Thanks for asking!  (See, I learn new stuff in Forgotten Hits all the time, too!!!)  kk

After I received Sam's original inquiry, I sent him this ...

>>> If you check today’s Forgotten Hits post you’ll see that the timing of
your question couldn’t have been more perfect.  (kk)

Hi again Kent,
Wow, that's for sure.  That's pretty amazing.
I think it's really interesting that WLS played the version of Time Is On My Side that we all know so well.  WCFL wasn't rocking yet, and I think by that time, WYNR had thrown in the towel as a top forty rocker.  But both WBZ and WMEX in Boston played that organ intro version, in other words, the U.S. single version.  Below I will do a bit of musing about other differences between other British group's hits here, versus the UK.  Thanks for clearing up the mystery for me Kent.
Sam Ward

Hi there FH readers,
I find it interesting that WLS played the album version of Time Is On My
Side which we have all come to know so well, while in Boston, both WBZ
and WMEX played the U.S. single version recorded exactly 60 years ago
today as I write this.  Another interesting thing is that during the
summer of '64, WBZ was playing I'll Be Back by the Beatles, so they must
have gotten hold of a British copy of the Hard Day's Night album.  But I
remember WBZ playing that song a lot that summer.
At the time, I don't think anyone was thinking about a war between the
Beatles and the Rolling Stones because they weren't that successful over
here yet.  The talk was about a battle between the Beatles and the Dave
Clark Five because they were the second British group to make the
Billboard charts with Glad All Over and then, very quickly, Bits and
Pieces and by the summer, Can't You See That She's Mine.
I've heard that neither I'm Henry VIII I Am or Mrs. Brown You've Got A
Lovely Daughter by Herman's Hermits were released as singles in the UK,
but they were released here.  Kent has already covered Peter Noone's
disappointment that No Milk Today was relegated to the B side of Kind Of
A Hush, because in his opinion, that song was the group's best single.
Also curiously, the follow up single to the Honeycomb's smash hit Have I
The Right, a song called I Can't Stop, which didn't do that well here,
wasn't even released as a single in the UK, and the only version that
was released there, was an alternate album version which was much slower
and not nearly as great as the single version that we got here.  I Can't
Stop isn't even mentioned in a British article that I found about the
group on the net, though Wikipedia probably mentions that song.  I'll
have to check.
By the time I'm Telling You Now by Freddie and the Dreamers came out in
1965, it was a two year old hit in the UK, and the group was seen as a
"has been" group.  I could go on about the differences in singles released here, versus singles released in the UK.  Unbelievably, Yesterday by the Beatles was never released as a single in the UK since it was on the Help album.  Both the British versions of the Hard Day’s Night and Help albums were so much better than what we were stuck with here. 

Anyway, I'm sure that in 1964, during the Rolling Stone's first American tour, that absolutely no one thought at the time that the Rolling Stones would out last the Beatles by more than five decades.

With warmest regards,
Sam Ward

Ron Riley, MY favorite WLS jock during The British Invasion, made it a point to play “The British Billboard” during his program … LOTS of British hits we heard in advance of their releases here in The States … and, because he had access to the British pressing of The Beatles’ albums, he was able to feature music that we wouldn’t otherwise have heard until their next cobbled-together US Capitol album.  He would regularly do a British Countdown show, too.

Some of those songs you mentioned WERE given a shot here in 1963 … America just wasn’t ready for them yet.  I guess we had to wait for the “mania” to settle in before we could appreciate with the British teens had already been enjoying for years.

As such, the market was quickly saturated while the US played “catch-up” on the charts.

Still, for me there has never been a more exciting time in music … it’s what sucked me in, got me hooked and has kept me deeply invested for the past six decades.

I’m enjoying showing how The British Invasion unfolded here in The States at the time … yes, The Beatles burst open the door in a very big way … but there was so much other great music that came across the pond, too (even if a large percentage of it was the Brits feeding our own rock and roll right back to us with their own particular spin.)  kk

 

UCR also talks about the complete R.E.M. reunion taking place in honor of their recent induction into The Songwriters Hall Of Fame …

https://ultimateclassicrock.com/r-e-m-reunite-2024/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ugh&utm_term=UCR%20New%20Smart%20List

(I still think all of this recent attention is due to Micky Dolenz recording four of their tracks for his most recent EP!)

It was the first time the full band has performed together since 2007.  (Wow, seriously?!?!)

A quick check of the R.E.M. Hit List shows that the boys from Athens, GA, made Billboard’s Hot 100 Chart 23 times between 1983 and 2008.  (Honestly, I didn’t realize they dated back that far!)

Their first Top 40 (and Top 10) Hit came in 1987 when “The One I Love” went to #9.

They followed that up a year and a half later with The Top Ten Hit “Stand” (#6, 1989) … and then their biggest hit, “Losing My Religion,” which went to #4 in 1991.  (They also hit The Top Ten with “Shiny Happy People” that same year.)

Congratulations to the guys … you cannot help but wonder where it might go from here.  (kk)

 

Even faster than I expected, Paul McCartney has already added European tour dates to his Got Back Tour.

And with two dates in each city, thousands of fans will get the chance to see Macca's return to the stage.

 

WEDNESDAY and THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4th and 5th - 

PARIS, FRANCE - LA DÉFENSE ARENA

MONDAY and TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9th and 10th - 

MADRID, SPAIN - WIZINK CENTER

SATURDAY and SUNDAY, DECEMBER 14th and 15th - 

MANCHESTER, UK - CO-OP LIVE

WEDNESDAY and THURSDAY, DECEMBER 18th and 19th - 

LONDON, UK - O2 ARENA

 

Lots of sadness over the passing of songwriter Mark James.  Mark penned Elvis’ big #1 Hit “Suspicious Minds” (after first cutting it himself without success) as well as Willie Nelson’ big smash “Always On My Mind” (recorded a decade earlier by Elvis) and B.J. Thomas’ Top Five Hit “Hooked On A Feeling,” which went on to become an even BIGGER hit when Blue Swede added their ooga-chugga intro and took it all the way to #1 in 1974.  (James had further chart success with a couple of these artists when Elvis Presley cut his “Moody Blue” and B.J. Thomas recorded “The Eyes Of A New York Woman.”)

Mark James passed away at his home in Nashville on June 8th.  He was 83.

He was inducted into The Songwriters Hall Of Fame in 2014.  (kk)

 

Here is Paul Grein’s Billboard salute …

https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/mark-james-dead-always-on-my-mind-writer-obituary-1235709014/#recipient_hashed=fa7e92da6f6e66bffcf0bcbf863670c6eb37d7159eb4d0ea1e44fecd5ec87eeb&recipient_salt=3a1d6b09af3b92ad7e38f8327cf18febeb049fd1c9a251b66957a07d9375735c

 

Look for a brand new 5-CD Elvis box set coming out in August.

Titled simply "Memphis," the set collects Elvis' recordings made in the state he chose to call home ... everything from his very first sessions at Sun Records ... on thru to his late '60's return to American Sound Studios, where he recorded his monster hits "In The Ghetto" and "Suspicious Minds" ... his visit to Stax Records' studio in 1973, followed by a live concert recorded at Mid-South Coliseum in 1974 ... and winding up in his very own Jungle Room, where he recorded some of his very last material.

The box is beautifully packaged and, even though all of this material is previously available, it'll be nice to have it all in one spot.  (kk)



Just before checking this Saturday's Super Chart here on the blog, I received word that Billy J Kramer's 2nd new song 'I Couldn't Have Done it Without You' has hit the top 20 in the charts. The difference between then and now in charting is that now the songs are voted on. The next chart is out in a few days, so performers are urging votes to move their songs along.

Obviously, we are not running down to the record store to buy our fave new releases, but then again, could we really buy all of them before? I, for one, relied as well, on my radio listening and requesting my choices.

Kent, what exactly were the charts based on? Sales? And now, voting is the way to go? It now seems to me that charting is a form of advertising. It brings attention to songs one might enjoy and encourages us (then and now) to give them a 'listening to'.

Shelley

I don’t know what chart you’re referring to that is based solely on votes … but I can tell you that it’s not an “official” chart measurement such as Billboard’s Hot 100.

I also don’t see how it could possibly be an accurate measurement as this policy leaves itself wide open to all kinds of ballot-stuffing.

(Here’s a photo of a KOMA Chart from exactly 60 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK showing Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas at #1 with their two sided hit “Little Children” / “Bad To Me,” as legitimately tabulated at the time.)

 


Interestingly enough, I recently did a Super Charts post explanation on the “Both Sides Now” chat board, which I’ll reprint here to share with our FH Readers as well …

But first a brief explanation …

The Super Charts (which run from 1955 thru 1982 when there were three major trades reporting the most popular music in America) is a conglomerate ranking based on the findings of all three trades.

As you’ll see below, they each had their own separate means of calculating and recording these facts, whether it be actual sales – number of copies shipped by the distributor – airplay – listener requests – and individual Top 40 Charts collected from all over the country in order to establish a most descriptive and accurate representation of popularity.

However, each of these trades used different sources as their source of information and statistics.  As such, there were often substantial discrepancies between the chart findings of these three publications – so The Super Charts were born utilizing ALL of the information collected through ALL of the sources available, thus gaining an even MORE specific and accurate representation of song popularity.

This is why (and as I’ve been saying for 20+ years now), I believe this method makes them the MOST accurate information out there today.

 

Here’s my piece from Both Sides Now, which prompted much post-posting conversation, including some from Paul Haney of Record Research, the company that Joel Whitburn founded when he began publishing his chart books showing the history of the Billboard, Cash Box and Record World / Music Vendor charts …

 

from BOTH SIDES NOW:

My whole inspiration and motivation in coming up with the Super Charts concept was the sometimes staggering chart discrepancies between the three major trade publications.  We often found peak positions varying by as many as 20-30 places, which made absolutely no sense to me since all were three essentially tracking the same records across the country.
But what one has to consider is that each was using its own "database" if you will to gather this information.  Billboard might give more weight to airplay and listener requests while Cash Box might factor in actual record sales as their biggest criteria.  Record World was evaluating Top 40 Charts from some of the biggest radio stations across the country, which is why hits on our own 50,000 watt giant WLS always peaked a little bit higher in Record World than they did in the other publications.
Some still used jukebox spins - others counted the number of records shipped by distributors (whether they sold or not, meaning a fair percentage could have been returned to the distributor a week or two later with no impact on the charts that were already out there, often causing massive jumps and falls within their own Top 100.)
And let's face it, all three publications had their own little "side deals" going, too.  ("Place a $10,000 full page ad and watch your record go up ten spots next week with a bullet.")  No friends, payola was not confined to just the disc jockeys!
But the fact of the matter is that these charts as they were compiled at the time are the ONLY record of a song's success for that moment in time (which is really what "pop music" is all about) - so as such, they're really the only criteria we have as a measurement of popularity.  We have to take them at face value for what their research showed at the time.
So I thought, "Why not take the research and statistics used by all THREE publications - since they did all use different sources - and, with the benefit of hindsight, establish the most accurate portrayal of popular music for this era.  Now you've got ALL of their findings available, consolidated into one master list.
Sure, some of the resources were duplicated between the three - but that just proves why the biggest hits were the biggest hits - we already knew what those were, based on what our own radio stations were playing and charting ...
MY focus was on all the OTHER positions beyond The Top Ten or Top 20 ... where a record peaked at #38 in one publication but only at #86 in another.  This would create the chance to balance things out to get a far more accurate representation.
So I approached Randy Price, a true chart statistician. who had access to the weekly charts of all three trades, and asked him if he would be interested in creating such a list.  Thankfully, he was ... and The Super Charts have existed ever since.
To be clear and address another comment I saw posted, these charts are NOT a list of personal favorites ... in fact, compiling the charts this way eliminates any and all sense of "favoritism" that may or may not existed at the time because it offers a true balance instead of what people were buying and what radio was playing.  There is ZERO bias ... just the facts, Jack!  (And don't even get me started on two-sided hits ... how ANY publication could possibly determine which side of the record Joe Record Buyer came into the store that afternoon to plunk down his $.98-cents for is beyond anyone's wildest imagination.  I've been doing chart research for almost sixty years now and in EVERY instance that I have ever encountered, I have found that BOTH sides of each record sold the exact same number of copies!)
Anyway, those are the origins of The Super Charts ... and we've been running them every Saturday in Forgotten Hits (forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com) as part of our 60 YEARS AGO TODAY feature that kicked off last year on the 60th anniversary of the Kennedy assassination.  (Scroll down on the website to 2017 and you'll find our year-long salute to 1967, my favorite year in music, which also featured every Super Chart for that year.)
Over the years, we have talked to various people, radio stations and radio networks about publishing or incorporating The Super Charts into their programming - but it hasn't happened yet.  We even thought about doing our own subscription service to help circulate this information - but there's never been any kind of financial reward to make such an extensive venture palatable.
That being said, we created these for a reason ... and to just have them sit on Randy's hard drive is a waste of information and an insult to the amount of legwork he had to do to put these things together ... so we've been trying to get them out, one piece at a time over the past twenty years.  They're meant to be shared and enjoyed ... and I do believe that with a proper explanation as to the extent of the research and the source of their information, a company like Record Research could possibly market these.  (They currently exist from 1955 - 1982 and stop where Record World ceased publication.)  I would love to see them expanded thru 1985 or 1989, using another source (like maybe Radio and Research, which Record Research has already published charts for) as the third criteria to help "balance things out." 
Time will tell ... with Joel Whitburn gone now, it's almost impossible to say ... but I know that based on the conversations I had with him about this subject, he held the work in high regard ... he just didn't know how to properly market it.  (Of course at one time he also told me that Billboard would never allow their chart information to be shared side-by-side with Cash Box and Record World ... something else I had long pushed for ... and now Joel's Chart Comparison Book is one of Record Research's best sellers ... so never say never.)
Anyway, I've rambled on long enough now ...
I just wanted everyone out there to understand the source and purpose of The Super Charts ... as I believe them to be THE MOST ACCURATE REPRESENTATION OF POPULAR MUSIC OF THIS TIME.
Kent Kotal - Forgotten Hits - with special thanks to Randy Price, who did all the heavy lifting!!!  (kk)

ADDITIONAL NOTE:  While most of the biggest chart discrepancies fall outside The Top 20 (and, in many cases, allow for dozens and dozens of other hits to now qualify for Top 40 status, you’ll see some of these questionable discrepancies from the top end of the charts, too.

For example:

How does “Twist And Shout” by The Beatles make it to #1 in both Cash Box and Record World but NOT in Billboard, where it peaked at #2 for four weeks.

We’ve examined Top 40 Charts from all over the country and “Twist And Shout” was #1 on virtually ALL of them. 

Likewise for “Louie Louie” by The Kingsmen … #1 in both Record World and Cash Box but only #2 in Billboard … for SIX WEEKS!!!

“Hey Jude” was #1 in Billboard for nine weeks but only seven in Cash Box and only four in Record World, allowing “Those Were The Days” to also occupy the top spot, which I believe it rightfully deserved to do.

And, that same year, how does “Dock Of The Bay” by Otis Redding sit at #1 in Billboard for four weeks and not make #1 at all in either Cash Box or Record World, where tunes like “Theme from ‘Valley Of The Dolls,’” “Valleri by The Monkees, “Simon Says” and “Young Girl” by Gary Puckett and the Union Gap all hit the top of the charts.  (Would you believe that in 1968, 27 records rose to the #1 position between the three trades … yet only HALF of those … 14 records … made it to #1 in all three!!!  #1 is #1 … how does THAT happen?!?!)

The Super Charts were designed to eliminate that … by points earned for these records in all three trades.

But even they are not without a few surprises and/or disappointments.

For example, “Good Vibrations” made it to #1 in all three trade publication but did NOT make it to #1 on The Super Chart because it didn’t have enough points on all three charts at the same time to warrant a #1 ranking.  (The Super Charts are completely unbiased … there are no “favorites” here … they simply represent the cumulative rankings of all resources available at the time that built the original charts we have trusted then and ever since.)  So while “Good Vibrations” certainly deserves #1 status, it doesn’t earn it here as it hit #1 at different times between the three trades.  If you’re going to use a method of measure, it has to be the same, consistent method of measure for every chart … and this is what The Super Charts represent.  (kk)

Harvey Kubernik takes a look back at The Monterey Pop Music Festival, held 57 years ago this week …

A Perfect Haze: The Illustrated History of the Monterey

 

The Kenny Vance Doo-Wop documentary “Heart And Soul” is premiering on select PBS stations this month.

 

We saw the about a month ago and gave it a great review … and I think most of our readers will enjoy it, too.

 

Listed below are the cities where the program is already scheduled to air.  (I have tried to keep this in order as best I can … but re-airings make this a bit difficult … so please check to see if any of your local stations are listed … and if you happen to have missed a prior screening, check to see if you will have more opportunities to see it again.)

 

Unfortunately, the program has already aired in several cities, dating back to June 8th, prior to us receiving this list … as such, we’re only listing showings scheduled for after today (June 20th):

 

JUNE 21st: KUFM – Missoula, MT; KBGS – Billings, MT; KUSM – Bozeman – Butte, MT; KUGF – Great Falls, MT

JUNE 22nd: KPJK – San Mateo, CA

JUNE 23rd:  WITV – Charleston, SC; WJPM – Florence, SC; WHMC – Conway, SC; WEBA – Allendale/Augusta, SC; KPJK – San Mateo, CA; WNSC – Rock Hill, SC; WNTV – Greenville, SC; MNEH – Greenville, SC; WRET – Spartanburg, SC; WRLK – Columbia, SC; WRJA – Sumter, SC; WJWJ – Beaufort, SC

JULY 1st: MYIN – Merrillville, IN

JULY 7th: WHTJ – Charlottesville, VA; KVPT – Harrisonburg, VA; KQED – San Francisco, CA; KQET – Watsonville, CA; KQEH – San Jose, CA; WCVE – Richmond, VA

JULY 13th: JCPT – Kansas City, MO

JULY 21st: WNED – Buffalo, NY

 

I’m quite sure several more showings will be added to this list; hopefully, we will receive them in a more timely fashion to share them with our readers.  (kk)

 

I learned thru Diane Diekman Country Music Newsletter about a show that goes on every year featuring the offspring of several country music stars, most of which have since left us, but their music is living on thru their children.  (I was shocked to hear that this was the 12th annual event and I was just first hearing about it!)

 

I’ll let Diane explain further …

 

 

NewsChannel 5 Nashville reports on the 12th annual Next Generation Sons and Daughters of Country Legends show. The idea originated after RFD-TV filmed Larry Black’s Country's Family Reunion, Second Generation in 2013. Robyn Young (Faron Young), Hawkshaw Hawkins (Jean Sheppard and Hawkshaw Hawkins), Julie Husky (Ferlin Husky), and Melissa Luman (Bob Luman) decided they should put together a show of them singing their parents’ hits. The fan base that developed from their 2014 show led them to make it an annual event, which usually kicks off CMA Fest. "We aren't looking to 'be our parents,'" says Melissa Luman. "We want to keep their music and their memories alive and well." Past Next Generation shows have included Pam Tillis, Lorrie Morgan, Georgette Jones, Dean Miller, Ronny Robbins, John Carter Cash, Shelly West, Kathy Louvin, Waylon Payne, among many others. They share a kindred spirit, because their parents were usually out on the road entertaining fans. "Our parents were all friends and all worked together when many of us weren't even born," Melissa says. "The show will be around as long as the fans want us to be."

 

Here's another look at The Happy Together Tour, 2024, courtesy of Best Classic Bands …

https://bestclassicbands.com/happy-together-2024-tour-dates-lineup-6-11-24/

(You can read Rich Turner's Forgotten Hits review if you scroll back to last Sunday, 6/16)

 

I’m reading Michael McDonalds’ autobiography right now and just discovered the fact that when he was only 16 years old he recorded a version of the Hal David – Burt Bacharach classic “Always Something There To Remind Me” with a group called the Delrays that was released as the B-Side of a single on Stax subsidiary Arch Records in 1968 …

And I just HAD to hear what a 16 year old Michael McDonald (then Mike) sounded like.

 

Well, now YOU can hear it, too!  (kk)

and this closer from Chuck Buell ...

Tonight, on CB-TV, one special program returns for one exclusive airing only!

 

Who Do You Think You Are?  The genealogy documentary that reveals celebrity participants’ family history.

 

Tonight’s episode researched deep into the Forgotten Hits Family Tree Backstories of Kent Kotal, Shelly Sweet-Tufano and Chuck Buell!

 

See the remarkable discovery, unbeknownst to them until recently, about how their ancestors actually knew one other centuries ago, which led to how their interest in Forgotten Hits today was inherited and was more strongly developed through each following generation!