We're doing something just a little bit different today for MLK Day ... and with Black History Month only two weeks away.
We took a look at every #1 Hit from 1960 - 1980 that topped Billboard's R&B Chart and also crossed over to hit #1 on their Pop Chart and compiled a list of The Top Ten Black Cross-Over Hits based on the TOTAL weeks spent at #1 between the two charts.
We then wanted to salute some of the tunes that dominated the R&B Chart but (despite, in many cases, enormous popularity) just never quite reached that achievement on the Pop side.
Below you'll find a list of 60 Soulful Favorites ... including a few that you may not have heard in awhile. (It is, after all, Forgotten Hits!!!)
Up first ... The Top Ten Cross-Over #1 Hits:
#10 - ROCK WITH YOU - Michael Jackson
# 9 - FINGERTIPS, PART 2 - Little Stevie Wonder
# 8 - I'LL BE THERE - The Jackson Five
# 7 - DUKE OF EARL - Gene Chandler
# 6 - I CAN'T HELP MYSELF - The Four Tops
# 5 - RESPECT - Aretha Franklin
# 4 - I HEARD IT THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE - Marvin Gaye
# 3 - LE FREAK - Chic
# 2 - TOSSIN' AND TURNIN' - Bobby Lewis
# 1 - I CAN'T STOP LOVING YOU - Ray Charles
And next, a random assortment of R&B #1's that somehow never made it that far on The Pop Charts ...
PAPA'S GOT A BRAND NEW BAG - James Brown
AIN'T TOO PROUD TO BEG - The Temptations
TOO BUSY THINKING ABOUT MY BABY - Marvin Gaye
UPTIGHT - Stevie Wonder
USE TO BE MY GIRL - The O'Jays
I'VE GOT LOVE ON MY MIND - Natalie Cole
TELL IT LIKE IT IS - Aaron Neville
STAND BY ME - Ben E. King
HEAT WAVE - Martha and the Vandellas
GREEN ONIONS - Booker T. and the MG's
I WAS MADE TO LOVE HER - Stevie Wonder
RESCUE ME - Fontella Bass
TWISTIN' THE NIGHT AWAY - Sam Cooke
DO YOU LOVE ME - The Contours
THE SHOOP SHOOP SONG - Betty Everett
WALK ON BY - Dionne Warwick
UNDER THE BOARDWALK - The Drifters
UNCHAIN MY HEART - Ray Charles
HELLO STRANGER - Barbara Lewis
UM UM UM UM UM UM - Major Lance
IT'S A MAN'S MAN'S MAN'S WORLD - James Brown
BABY, I LOVE YOU - Aretha Franklin
WHAT DOES IT TAKE - Jr. Walker and the All-Stars
THE LOVE I LOST - Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes
HOW LONG (Betcha Got A Chick On The Side) - The Pointer Sisters
THIS WILL BE - Natalie Cole
SING A SONG - Earth, Wind and Fire
THE CLOSER I GET TO YOU - Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway
ANOTHER SATURDAY NIGHT - Sam Cooke
THE WAY YOU DO THE THINGS YOU DO - The Temptatins
JIMMY MACK - Martha and the Vandellas
HIGHER AND HIGHER - Jackie Wilson
I SECOND THAT EMOTION - Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
RAINY NIGHT IN GEORGIA - Brook Benton
IF I WERE YOUR WOMAN - Gladys Knight and the Pips
UNTIL YOU COME BACK TO ME - Aretha Franklin
I LOVE MUSIC - The O'Jays
LOVE WON'T LET ME WAIT - Major Harris
ROCKIN' CHAIR - Gwen McCrae
WALK AWAY FROM LOVE - David Ruffin
I'LL BE GOOD TO YOU - Brothers Johnson
THE RUBBERBAND MAN - The Spinners
WHODUNIT - Tavares
EASY - The Commodores
STUFF LIKE THAT - Quincy Jones
STRAWBERRY LETTER 23 - Brothers Johnson
SEPTEMBER - Earth, Wind and Fire
GOT TO GET YOU INTO MY LIFE - Earth, Wind and Fire
GOT TO BE REAL - Cheryl Lynn
And, believe it or not, the highest ranking R&B #1 (ten weeks on top) was BABY, YOU'VE GOT WHAT IT TAKES by Dinah Washington and Brook Benton!
******
Legendary Record Producer Phil Spector died of natural causes over the weekend. (Some reports state his death was Covid-related.)
Obviously, this is VERY big news in our world ... Spector created a whole new sound that changed the way records were made, influencing some of the biggest names in music along the way. (He was also notorious OUTSIDE the recording studio for his erratic, irrational and angry behavior, ultimately serving time for the murder of a former girlfriend.)
Because we already had pre-posts planned for Monday and Tuesday of this week, we will take a look back at Phil's illustrious career (both inside and outside the recording studio) later this week.
Forgotten Hits ran a month-long tribute to Phil Spector, assembled by FH Reader Steve Knuettel, in 2008 ... sadly Steve has also since passed on.
We have long been considering permanently re-posting that complete series on the Forgotten Hits Archive Website ... and now may finally be the proper time to do so.
That being said, I couldn't possibly get this ready by the end of the week ... a complete capture of the series works out to be just over 140 printed 8.5 x 11 pages! ... (it's a frickin' BOOK!!!) ... which renders it MUCH too large to even sort thru right now, let alone edit for publication.
In addition, the original series featured literally dozens and dozens and dozens of extremely rare recordings produced by Spector over the years. Add to this, the fact that we are unable to post any music to the archive website ... and it's the very inclusion of this music that makes this series such a one-of-a-kind collection ... tells me that we will definitely have to keep you posted regarding any development on this front down the line.
Still, SOMETHING needs to be compiled to honor this creative genius (albeit crazy man!!! )
So stay tuned to see what we come up with.
('Cause I'm kinda anxious to figure that out, too!!!) kk
This week's top three songs hold their positions from the week before ... while "Lonely Days" and King Floyd's "Groove Me" move into The Top Five.
Elton John's first US Hit "Your Song" climbs from #9 to #6 ... and Lynn Anderson's "Rose Garden" makes a ten point leap from #17 to #7. (It will go all the way to #1 in both Cash Box and Record World ... while stopping at #3 in Billboard.) My all-time favorite Gladys Knight and the Pips song, "If I Were Your Woman," breaks into The Top Ten for the first time this week, moving from #18 to #10. Dave Edmunds' remake of the old Smiley Lewis track "I Hear You Knocking" makes a big move this week, climbing from #31 to #19. This song will go all the way to #1 here in Chicago ... and it was a great tribute to the sounds of early rock and roll. John Lennon's "Mother" continues to climb, too, moving from #46 to #36 this week, while The Osmonds' "One Bad Apple" kicks off The Top 40, jumping from #49 to #40. Previously featured "favorites" are doing well on the chart this week ... "Let Your Love Go" moves from #45 to #41, "Sweet Mary" climbs ten spots from #60 to #50, "When I'm Dead And Gone" moves up from #58 to #52 and Emitt Rhodes' "Fresh As A Daisy" climbs a dozen places from #68 to #56. Last week's top debut, "Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You," jumps from #79 to #63, while this week's top debut bows at a more respectable #57 for The Jackson Five. ("Mama's Pearl") Playing Favorites:
Not a great week for premiers this week ... although I have always fancied Sammi Smith's "Help Me Make It Through The Night" ... so that's the one I'm going with today.
1971 would prove to be a very big year for songwriter Kris Kristofferson. In addition to "Help Me Make It Through The Night," Kris' compositions "For The Good Times" and "Loving Her Was Easier Than Anything I'll Ever Do Again" both made the pop Top 40 (the former a big hit for country crooner Ray Price, the latter would become Kris' own first hit as an artist), while Janis Joplin took his soon-to-be classic "Me And Bobby McGee" all the way to #1.
Also this week in 1971:
January 17th – Marvin Gaye sings The National Anthem at Super Bowl V in Miami, FL between The Dallas Cowboys and The Baltimore Colts
Also on this date, Kid Rock is born
January 18th – Canada passes the CanCon Law, requiring that 30% of all music broadcast between 6 am and 12am be music created by Canadian artists.(Tracks were considered eligible as long as they met at least TWO of the following four characteristics:Music most be composed entirely by a Canadian; the recording artist is Canadian, the record was produced in Canada or the lyrics were written entirely by a Canadian.This move was viewed as a way to better promote Canadian artists in their own country.)
January 20th – Diana Ross marries Robert Silberstein … she’ll file for divorce five months later … but the couple will later reconcile.In all, the marriage lasted six years.
Man, I just LOVE it when all this stuff times out together
… with virtually NO input from me whatsoever!(lol)
First, I got this email from FH Reader Mike Lane …
Hi Kent -
I'm still a daily visitor to your blog during my lunch hour. Always
learning something ... always entertained!
Lately I have been digitizing my home movies (regular and Super 8)
with a machine that scans frame-by-frame. I also made a few experimental /
silly films back in the late 70's / early 80's before music took control of my
life.
One film I made was a stop-motion comedy featuring small busts of
famous composers that my mom kept on our piano. Before the four busts duke it
out on the keys, I inserted a brief bit of a tv weather forecast . (Kind of
like a Family Guy cutaway!)
DJ Ron Riley was a weekend weather guy on Baltimore television, as
well as a hot jock for Top 40 WCAO-AM. He was great to listen to, and did just
fine on TV, too. The photo enclosed is a shot of my monitor as the silly film
mentioned above was being scanned.
Just thought you might like to see a glimpse of Ron Riley (with
perm and mustache!) circa 1980 doing the weather in Baltimore!
Mike Lane
And then this shot from Mike Wolstein of the aforementioned
Ron Riley Batman Club Membership Card …
And finally, this AMAZING news from Pamela Pulice about a
brand new Ron Riley Film Documentary being in the works!!!
Hi Kent,
I got a call from a young man named Brad
Still, who is directing a documentary film about his mom’s uncle, Ron Riley.
As we all know, Ron Riley was one of the
great deejays at WLS in the sixties who arrived after Biondi’s famous firing. The
British Invasion was just beginning, and Ron was there when the Beatles
performed at Comiskey Park. The Beatles were young kids having fun, and that’s
when Ron got his nickname Ron Ringo Riley.
It’s a great story and certain to be a
great film.
If you can help spread the word it would
be super!
To make a donation, here’s a link to the
Indiegogo site for the Ron Riley Documentary …
Everybody who grew up here in Chicago in the ‘60’s knew
and loved Ron Riley’s show …
And that includes thousands who listened to him on a
clear channel signal evenings in other cities all ove the country as well.(I immediately forwarded your email to Clark
Besch, an enormous fan and serious collector of Riley memorabilia.In fact, Ron Riley himself has a remarkable
collection of memorabilia from back in the day … but they may have already
drained that well dry!)
Others who want to get onboard with this project can
click on the links above.How cool is it
that TWO major jocks from the Chicago stations have documentaries in the works
right now???WLS was, without a doubt,
one of the premier stations around … about time we reminded the rest of the
world about it.(Now if only the station
itself would take some pride in its legacy!!!)kk
Here's another Batman-related song that was a good-sized hit in San
Antonio.
My vinyl
copy is VERY scratchy at this point, so I downloaded a cleaner version today.
This was
a TOP 10 chart hit in San Antonio …
The
Ballad Of Batman by The Camps
Brad
Ok, this
is nothing short of awful!!!(lol)
Top Ten in San
Antonio?!?!?For real???
Never underestimate
the pop culture trends of the American public I guess!!!
Thanks, Brad …
never heard … or heard OF … that one before!(kk)
I meant to run this
one the other day …
Happy Friday, Kent:
Great photo of you and Julie Newmar today!
Next weekend we’ll be doing our Neil Diamond birthday feature.
Have a good weekend.
Rick O’Dell
Me-TV-FM
We’re letting
everybody on the list know about this …
Because otherwise
no one may hear it at all …
Not even the
chair.
Thanks, Rick!(kk)
Mary McCartney (Paul and Linda’s daughter, who also took the
photos for Macca’s new McCartney III album) is announcing a new documentary
celebrating Abbey Road Studios.Titled,
“If These Walls Could Sing,” it will coincide with the studio’s 90th
Anniversary this year (although no official release date has yet been
announced.)Still, the number of
landmark artists (The Beatles notwithstanding) who passed through these doors
is staggering.It’s the first time that
Abbey Road Studios have ever allowed a film crew to have this kind of “intimate
access.”Should make for a very
interesting film.(kk)
Congratulations to Debbie Allen, Joan Baez, Garth Brooks,
Dick Van Dyke and Midori … they’ve all been named as this year’s recipients of
The Kennedy Center Honrs.
As with everything else in the world of late, proceedings
will be scaled back for this year’s ceremony … but an edited version saluting
all five artists is scheduled to run on CBS on June 6th.More details as they become available.(kk)
We thoroughly enjoyed the new film “One
Night In Miami” Friday Night on Amazon Prime.(I had been looking forward to this one ever since I first heard about
it from FH Reader and Promoter of the Regina King-directed film, Bob Merlis.)
The story, a essentially a fictional period piece inspired
by real events but with plenty of creative liberties taken to allow for each
superstar’s story to be told in greater detail in some fashion, takes place on
the incredible night in 1964 when Cassius Clay,
portrayed by Eli Goree, defeated Sonny Liston to become Heavyweight Champion of
the World at The Miami Convention Center. (Think of it as The Black Million Dollar Quartet!)
Now I have been a fan of
Muhammad Ali, the name Clay adopted immediately after winning the title, since
this historic night … and I have to say that Eli Goree does a remarkable job of
portraying The Champ, invoking all of his trademark mannerisms and nuances along
the way.Speaking as a true fan, I was
blown away by just how convincing his performance is. There were moments when he actually WAS Ali.
Also present that night
(and looking forward to the After Fight Victory Party that just never lived up to their dreams and expectations) are Football Great Jim
Brown, played by Aldis Hodge, and Singer Sam Cooke, brilliantly portrayed in
style and voice by Leslie Odom, Jr.
Because Malcolm X (featuring
Kingsley Ben-Adir in what can only be described as the lead role) is also
present, the party never quite reaches anywhere near the potential momentum and
atmosphere the others may have envisioned … in fact, for all intents and purposes,
it never really leaves their hotel room! (Ben-Adir plays the role brilliantly, both as the devoted Muslim ... and as the ambitious manipulator looking to start his own sect by perhaps riding on Ali's coattails.)
Along the way and throughout the course of the film we are treated
to some very thought-provoking dialog highlighting the trial and tribulations
of four black men at the absolute peak of their careers.In fact, it is the dialog that carries the
whole movie, powerfully and brilliantly delivered by these four gifted actors.
Some of the conflict
expressed between them that night takes your breath away.Each actor BECOMES the icon they are
portraying, convincingly nailing each performance and presenting a point of
view perhaps not considered by the others around him, despite their friendship
and respect for one anothers achievements in their own field of expertise.Each man is keenly aware that they are an
elite group of friends … and NOT your typical Black Man of 1964 … and several
points are made in this regard that will stay with you long after the movie has
ended.
Kudos to Regina King for
a brilliant directing job.While each
man’s story was well known to me going in, having lived through these times, I
was still impressed by how the storyline was engineered to showcase some key events
that happened AFTER their One Night In Miami.(To think that TWO of the men in that hotel room that night would be shot dead
before the year was over is a devastating reminder about what a different world
it really was in 1964 … or was it?)
You’ll find great music
throughout (especially if you’re a Sam Cooke fan … and I am!!!)You'll even catch a brief glimpse of Jackie
Wilson on stage … and Cooke’s opening performance at The Copa, along with his
return years later are definite highlights. (So is his television performance of “A Change
Is Gonna Come,” his answer song to Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ In The Wind,” a song
Sam always felt that HE should have written … a point driven home with dramatic
flair and tension by Malcolm X in one of the many confrontations between these
two men during the course of the film.The accusation and very idea that Cooke catered his performances to his
audience each night … black crowd / white crowd … also hits home with a wallop …
at the same time allowing for just how shrewd a businessman he really was!)
Throughout the film, each
actor is given several moments to shine … and each delivers the goods every
time in their spotlight moment.
HIGHLY recommended … it’s
on Amazon Prime now, available to watch any time you’re free to do so.If you, too, grew up during this era, you will
enjoy this look back … as well as gaining some new perspective to what drove
these men to become the heroes they were.(kk)
Another Anniversary …
On January 15, 1967, The
Ed Sullivan Show welcomed The Rolling Stones under one condition —
they change the lyric of “Let’s Spend The Night Together” to “let’s spend some
time together.”
What
a great clip … I just LOVE how Mick rolls his eyes at the obvious lyric change …
it just makes the whole song!(lol)kk
Speaking
of The Rolling Stones, the story that Sam Cooke tells in “One Night In Miami”
about The Stones recording the Bobby Womack song “It’s All Over Now” is priceless
… although not even remotely accurate in many instances, it again makes Sam’s point about getting
this music out there (and reaping the benefits of doing so … turns out Sam
owned the publishing rights to that one … so when The Rolling Stones caught on
here in America as part of The British Invasion, the money came rolling
in!!!)kk
And,
speaking of Ed Sullivan, our FH Buddy Harvey Kubernik is putting together some
type of tribute to Ed’s 21 years on the air … so we sent this little tidbit along.(We gave Ed the spotlight treatment several years
ago … and, with the launch of YouTube’s Ed Sullivan Channel, clips that haven’t
been seen in half a century are starting to show up again … and in their full-length,
uncut form, too!(kk)
The fact that Ed Sullivan is not in The Rock And Roll
Hall Of Fame simply offers further proof of how badly this organization has blown
it here ... it's not only a disgrace and insult to everyone involved with the
program, but also to every fan who ever tuned in on Sunday Nights to catch
their favorites performing their latest hits.
Ed Sullivan brought Rock And Roll into our living rooms
EVERY Sunday Night ...
And made it acceptable for all of America to enjoy.
There may be no other person in the history of the rock
and roll genre to have made such a blanket impact on the growth and affection
of this music ... yet The Rock Hall somehow doesn't recognize his incredible
contribution.
We discovered some of these artists for the very first
time ... while others were already our long-standing favorites.
And an appearance on Ed's show virtually guaranteed a
20-30% increase in record sales the following week.
We ran a lengthy tribute to "the smartest and
least talented man in the history of television" on the website a few
years back, dissecting the program from BOTH sides of the screen. Many
artists who appeared on Ed's show participated, as did dozens of the fans who
never missed a Sunday performance.
We seem to be moving (slowly) ever closer to live concert
events again … but with new social distancing protocol, limiting seating and
capacity at all venues.
Most of the dates I’m seeing now have been pushed to the
third and fourth quarter of 2021, of course still subject to further
postponement depending on the health condition of our nation as the year
progresses … but with the vaccine now making its way throughout the country, we
are all hopeful that things will become a little more normal (if normal means
wearing a mask for the rest of your life!) as time moves on.(One positive outcome of all of this …
doctors are saying that flu numbers are WAY down right now, likely due to the
extra precaution wearing a mask invokes.)
As such, I was a little surprised to see The Genesee Theatre
announcing their Genesee Street Cabaret as early as March 28th,
featuring an acoustic performance by The Plain White T’s.(Seems a bit early to me in that bars and
restaurants here in Chicago are still closed with no indoor seating, offering
carryout and curbside service only.)
Time will tell if this event goes off according to plan …
but it IS encouraging to see us trying to get music back into our lives.(I have also maintained that music makes you
feel good, makes you happy and keeps you young.I’m still not quite sure how “tickets previously purchased for these
events will still be honored” comes into play … if capacity is reduced to as
much as 25%, what happens to all those other ticket holders?!?!)kk
FOR EXAMPLE:Kenny G has just rescheduled HIS Genesee Theatre performance
for the fourth time!
Originally slated to appear on September 5th of
2019, the show was moved to March 27th, 2020 … then to October 2nd,
2020, and now to December 2nd, 2021!
This is more in line with what I’ve been seeing by other
artists and venues.(I say it’s still
too close to call just exactly when we can safely attend concerts again.(And trust me, the artists are just as
concerned … even though they’re all chomping at the bit to get back out there
in front of an audience again, they’ve got their entire crew and back-up
musicians to consider.Let’s face it …
OUR crowd … the oldies artists … are in the highest risk age group for all of
this … so once again, FAR better to be safe than sorry.)kk
We’ve
already lost a few more music stars in the first two weeks of 2021 … but the
one that has garnered the most email so far is the death of Tim Bogert, bassist
for Vanilla Fudge, who scored that big Top Ten Hit with their heavy metal
interpretation of the Motown / Supremes classic “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” in
1968.
The
single was actually first released a full year earlier, in July of 1967, but
barely made a blip on the national charts, reaching #48 in Record World, #67 in
Billboard and #87 in Cash Box … but a full year later, in July of 1968, the
music scene had changed a bit … and some of these heavier sounds and extended
jams were starting to show up on brand new FM Radio stations.
This
time around, “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” soared up to #6 in Billboard (and #7 in
both Cash Box and Record World) and all kinds of similarly reinterpreted tunes
followed in its wake.
So sad to hear about Tim Bogert’s passing
today.
He had a good voice and the band Vanilla Fudge
had an influence from ’67 – ’69, pivotal psychedelic years in music, IMO.
I always hold "You Keep Me Hangin’
On" coupled to "Sunshine of Your Love" in the Summer of ‘68 when
BOTH were on Atco and BOTH had charted up to a year earlier, but cemented their
Top 10 stardom in Summer, 1968, and BOTH peaked on the Hot 100 at #5 and #6 on
August 31, 1968.
TOP 40 radio had never had so much psych
blasting out of those transistor radios before. #2, #4, #5, #6 and #13 were
blaring in your ears as well as "Journey to Center of the Mind" at #16,
"Pictures Of Matchstick Men" at #28, "Time Has Come Today"
at #71, "Piece Of My Heart" at #80. Add "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"
jumping to #66 in its second week (also on Atco … and would also return to the
chart a year later!), and thanks to #3, the DOORS' version of "Light My
Fire" returns to the Hot 100 a year later at 91.
Awesome times and hearing the Vanilla Fudge LPs
get airplay, too, it is somewhat historic today to listen again to "Voices
In Time" from their "Beat Goes On" 1968 LP release. The
Fudge had three LPs in the current top LPs chart that week in ‘68.
It certainly was a heavier time … an almost overnight change
in music.
Also shown on your Billboard Chart from 1968 are “Hush” by
Deep Purple, The Doors’ latest, “Hello, I Love You” and “Born To Be Wild” by
Steppenwolf, all big breakthrough hits.
Yet the ‘60’s being what they were … ya know, the ‘60’s …
the list also found room for bubblegum (“1,2,3 Red Light”), country (“Harper
Valley P.T.A.”), M-O-R (“Turn Around, Look At Me”) and ‘60’s Soul.(Marvin Gaye, Tammi Terrell, Archie Bell and
the Drells and The Dells are all represented in the Top 14 songs on this list.)kk
(And let’s not forget Beck, Bogert and Appice, where Tim was
a “name player”!!!)
Obviously there’s a new trend happening with Classic Rock songwriters,
selling their catalogs for beaucoup bucks one by one of late.(And the list keeps growing!!!)
Already cashing in their chips are Mick Fleetwood, Lindsey
Buckinghams and Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac, Bob Dylan, Neil Young and many,
many more.
(These houses are looking to make royalties for generations
to come as these songs are not expected to ever go out of style.It’s like I’ve always said … Rock And Roll
Music is the BEST Music EVER!!!(kk)
As far as singer Neil Diamond goes, I always
liked his earlier recordings as opposed to the ones he made later on when he
was at Columbia Records. Or his recordings on Bang, I liked most of them.
Clark mentioned that early record of Diamond's,
CLOWN TOWN.I heard years ago that he
hated that song and one shouldn't mention it if one was able to talk to
Diamond. I am like Clark in that I never liked re-recordings and songs done
live. Reminds me of years ago when I bought an album of Little Richard's
GREATEST HITS. Well, when I got home to play it, I noticed on the back of the
album, in very small print mind you, that the recordings on the album were
re-recordings. Made me look even further when I bought an album to make sure it
wasn't made live or a re-recording.
I also wanted to mention that I really enjoyed
Paul Evans' posting of the Group 5ive melodies of songs done by groups from
1942-1967.
The first thing I thought of were the two
records the 4 Preps made in 1961-1962, MORE MONEY FOR YOU AND ME and THE BIG
DRAFT ... a very similar concept though the 4 Preps were kind of making fun of
the groups they were mimicking.
And finally, very briefly, singer Brian Hyland
was mentioned in today's FH and you said that his GYPSY WOMAN was very big in
the Chicago area. I don't know how big it was in Chicago but his follow-up (?),
LONELY TEARDROPS, the old Jackie Wilson tune, was very big here in the OKC
area.
Larry
Neil Diamond lost me as a fan when he started
over-dramatizing his songs in more of a spoken word fashion.He just made it feel like either he couldn’t
sing anymore or was overridden with self importance!(lol)
As mentioned above, you’ll be able to hear ALL of his hits
next weekend on Me-TV-FM as part of their Neil Diamond Birthday Salute.
I liked the fact that The Four Preps were having fun with
their competitors, all the while still enjoying hits of their own.(Some of their parodies are spot on!!!)
“More Money For You And Me” was a Top 20 Hit in its own
right in 1961.
The Four Preps also hit The National Top 40 five other times
between 1958 and 1960:“26 Miles (Santa
Catalina)”, #2, 1958 … that one’s my favorite … “Big Man” (#3, 1958); “Lazy
Summer Night” (#21, 1958); “Down By The Station” (#13, 1960) and “Got A Girl”
(#24, 1960).
Brian’s version of “Lonely Teardrops” (it WAS the follow-up
to “Gypsy Woman”) snuck into The National Top 40 at #35 in Record World.(Billboard ranked it at #54.)It just never struck me as creative and
inspired as his new interpretation of “Gypsy Woman,” a #3 Hit in 1970 across
the boards.(By the way, DIDJAKNOW that Brian’s
version of “Gypsy Woman” was produced by Del Shannon???)
“Lonely Teardrops” never charted here at all.(kk)
Cat Stevens (or is that The Artist Formerly Known As Cat
Stevens … who is now going by Cat Stevens again because he just wasn’t getting
any positive recognition under his new Yusef Islam name) has a new childrens’
book coming out, based on his lyrics to the Top Five Pop Hit “Peace Train,”
which is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year.
Aloha, Kent ...
Bet ya never seen one of these before, huh?
I don't even remember where I got it from.
I wonder if Jack has any of these. ;-)
And, it's dated 'Week Ending May 2nd, 1963' ... a sad day for WLS
listeners.
Mike Wolstein
We’ve run a few
Hawaiian charts before, most notably where The New Colony Six were having great
success over there … so much so that they were able to play some concerts on
the islands in the early ‘70’s.(kk)
Hi all,
I just discovered a new internet station that
is awesome for 60's Brit Invasion maniacs like me. NO, it is not some XM
DJ playing "You Really Got Me" twice a day. It's a time trip to
a place and time I knew only from afar dreaming of hearing. It's RADIO
LONDON 60's -- for real!
Here's how it works ...
They have tons of DJ patter from the original
60's tapes and they insert the current stereo or good quality music into the
airchecks. It's so cool to KNOW what was a hit there, but to HEAR it as
it was played on the station THEN is so cool. Check it out for an hour
and you may get hooked. Sure, lots of US hits (as they were hits there,
too) and TONS of great Brit songs of which many I knew only because of WLS'
Brit Billboard and many I do not know.
Totally awesome.
Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich!!!!
Where ya gonna hear that???
Classic Rock Heartthrob RICK
SPRINGFIELD Meets Classic Rock Heroes BADFINGER For A Special New Single!
If you grew up in the ‘70s, chances
are you had a poster of actor / musician / singer Rick Springfield adorning
your bedroom wall and at least one Badfinger vinyl in your record collection.
Now these two icons of ‘70s rock have joined forces on a new single that
recreates a classic hit from Badfinger’s catalog, the 1979 power pop favorite
“Love Is Gonna Come At Last” originally released on the album Airwaves. This
new version features not only Springfield’s powerful vocals, which seem to have
only grown more resonant with time, but also his deft and intricate guitar work
that intertwines beautifully with Badfinger’s Joey Molland’s own ample voice
and driving bass guitar. It’s truly a match made in rock heaven!
Springfield shares, “Badfinger has
always been one of my all-time favorite bands. In fact, I am often asked by
journalists ‘What is the one song you had wished you had written?’ and my
answer is ‘Baby Blue.’What a perfect
song! Their music was and is immortal.”
Look for a full-length Badfinger
album with special guests Todd Rundgren, Rick Wakeman, Matthew Sweet, Rick
Springfield, Sonny Landreth and more coming later this year!
I just barely remember the song (Badfinger had a
minor hit with it in 1979) but I think Rick Springfield does a VERY credible
job with the lead vocal on this one.
Check it out when you get a chance.(kk)
Just got word that Don Miller, one of the original
Vogues, passed away on January 11th.Once again, no official cause of death was given.
These guys brought the house down when they appeared
on TJ Lubinsky’s Pop Memories Program a few years ago … always wished I could
have seen them.(kk)
HELPING OUT OUR
READERS:
Hello
Kent,
I
came across an old blog post about Evolutions Of Rock on your site as I've been
wanting to get my hands on the documentary that I first heard as a high
schooler in the late 70's.
Realizing
these posts are nearly ten years old, do you know how I could get a hold of
Warren Cosford, or Dave Strock or others that might have the show in their
collection?
Or
point me to someone who might collect such shows?
Thank
you
Don
Buettner
40-year
broadcasting veteran
Best I can do is run this in our HELPING OUT OUR READERS
segment and see if we get any response.(I know we have a ton of collectors on the list … maybe we’ll hear back
from somebody.)
Warren Cosford used to participate with Forgotten Hits from
time to time but I haven’t heard from him in YEARS … but who knows, maybe he’s
still reading as part of the silent majority that enjoy FH every day but don’t
actively participate.(Warren, are you
out there???Check in from time to time
to let us know how you’re doing!Lol)
