Here are a few of your latest comments ... along with one more reminder about The Top 50 All-Time Favorite Instrumentals Countdown running this weekend on WRCO, courtesy of Phil Nee. Those of you in the Richland Center area of Wisconsin can tune into AM 1450 and hear the show LIVE this Saturday Night (the 28th) ... be sure to check the website on Sunday (the 29th) to SEE the final results ... and keep watching this page for information as to how you'll be able to listen to an archived podcast of the program in the very near future.
Thanks again to everyone who took the time to vote ... when all was said and done, we received just over 14,000 votes ... so this truly is YOUR countdown, representing YOUR All-Time Instrumental Favorites.
Meanwhile, here are a few other thoughts and comments, as sent in by our readers:
re: ROCK AND ROLL ROOTS, VOLUME 11:
Hi Kent ...
Just wanted to thank you again for helping me obtain this cd. I've played "Face The Autumn" by Family on my last show, and got a good reaction.
Dave The Rave heard it, and asked what CD it was on. I told him that you made it possible for me to have that cd. He might be contacting you about getting a copy.
Thanks again!!! I enjoy your website very much.
Cheers,
Glenn Sauter
Producer and Host of HITS OF YESTERYEAR
http://www.hitsofyesteryear.com
"Face The Autumn" was a #12 Hit here in Chicago back in 1967 ... amazingly, it never even "bubbled under" in Billboard. If Dave The Rave ... or anyone ELSE on the list for that matter ... would like to obtain a copy of this hot new CD, just drop me a line and we'll set everything up. (I just mailed four other copies yesterday as a matter of fact to some of our out-of-state readers!!!) For a complete track listing, simply scroll back to the November 8th posting ... or visit The Drive Website here (kk):
Click here: Rock 'n Roll Roots Vol. 11 - WDRV - THE DRIVE
re: THE MAGIC LANTERNS:
"Shame Shame" is one of my favorite songs by the Magic Lanterns.
Carrie
One of MY favorite songs of the '60's!!! We featured this one, too, not too long ago ... Click here: Forgotten Hits: It's A Shame - Part 3 ... along with a brief bio on the band.
Here's the track again for those of you who may have missed it ... or simply enjoy hearing it as much as I do!!! (kk)
re: DICK CLARK BIRTHDAY BASH:
Ryan Seacrest is now a part of the Dick Clark Birthday Salute with Jimmy Jay. Ryan and I recorded bits together last week and we had a great time. This will be the Broadcast Event of the Year. I am so sorry that we could not get all the stars on the show that wanted to be because we were full almost a week ago. I should have done 4 hours instead of 3.
When will it air? Many stations are going with it at different times but here is what I know off the top of my head.
95.9 FM WATD in MA will run it Saturday Night November 28 from 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM EASTERN TIME (They Stream also www.959watd.com). WLNG 92.1 FM in New York will run it Monday Night November 30 at 9 PM – 12. They also stream (www.wlng.com). There are many more but I can’t remember them again from the top of my head. I am lucky I have a head after interviewing all the stars below in the past two weeks.
Some of The Stars that will be on (In No Particular Order, just from memory): Huey Lewis, Neil Sedaka, Bobby Vee, Tony Orlando, Bobby Vinton, Dobie Gray, Chris Montez, Mel Tillis, Steve Alaimo, KC of the Sunshine Band, Betty Wright, Andy Williams, Connie Francis, Marshall Lytle from the Comets, Bobby Curtola, Martha Reeves, Bill Medley, Bobbi Smith of the Spinners, Paul Revere, Brenda Lee, Freddy Cannon, Joe Terry (Danny & The Juniors) Tom Bergeron (Dancing with the Stars), Joey Dee, Ruth Pointer, Beach Boy Al Jardine, Ben E King, Richie from the Rip Chords, Billy Vera, Barbra Lewis, Fabian, Brian Hyland, Bobby Lewis, Chubby Checker, Dee Dee Sharp, Colonel Abrams, Earl Lewis (The Trammps) Paul Peterson, Bobby Goldsboro, John Ford Coley, Little Anthony, Judy Craig Mann (The Chiffons), Maurice Williams, Ron Dante, ? & The Mysterians Kool of Kool & The Gang, Tommy James, BJ Thomas, Paul Evans & ... hmm ... I think I am missing somebody.
Grammy Award Winning Producer of BB King, Trade Martin recorded all the jingles for this special broadcast.
If you know of a station that should run this show or the 1 hour condensed version, have them contact me 617-773-0690 or by e-mail JimmyJay@RewindShow.com
The One Hour Special will feature only hits from 64 plus but with drops from the older stars. The 3 hour show does it all (the way it should be).
But we all do what we have to in order that we keep the music alive.
Be sure to contact your local radio stations the show is good for both music & talk stations.
Dick Clark has heard most of it already and has sent me a very special e-mail. The ad banner is atached.
Happy Thanksgivng and Keep Rockin!
Jimmy Jay
www.RewindShow.com
re: FROM DICK CLARK TO ED SULLIVAN:
Kent ...
I think everyone will like this book as much as i did ... "Sundays With Sullivan,"
by Bernie Ilson.
How The Ed Sullivan Show brought Elvis, The Beatles, and culture to America. Lots of behind the scenes information. On most shows the star act was put on at the end of the show. Ed Sullivan thought you had to grab the audiences attention, right away. Elvis & The Beatles opened the show and were brought back two more times during the show.
Frank B.
I've gotta STRONGLY disagree with you on this one, Frank ... I was REALLY looking forward to this book when it came out ... and it SHOULD have been a much-more-detailed, behind-the-scenes accounting of The Sullivan Show, a television landmark series that was our connection to what was happening in the entertainment world at the time ... in SOME cases, literally the MOMENT it was happening. I was EXTREMELY disappointed in the way the book was written. For some reason, Ilson felt the need to share some of the same meaningless tidbits about Sullivan's social habits two, three and even four times within these scant less-than-two-hundred pages. (That in itself was a huge disappointment ... how do you work with this guy for 20-something years and then cover the highlights in only 200 pages???) The stories I wanted to hear ... about Sullivan breaking some of the biggest acts in the music business ... and show business all together ... were barely there. Even the aforementioned Beatles and Elvis appearances were condensed into a few brief pages. (How sad that the most interesting new factoid that I took away from the book was the time Sullivan was eating an ice cream cone backstage when the performing bear ON stage noticed that Ed was sampling his reward treat ... and nearly mauled him for doing so!!!) SO much more could have been covered ... even a show-by-show recap, stating the guests and what they performed would have made for an EXCELLENT addendum. (You can find THIS kind of information over at TV.com ... a little bit of research, ESPECIALLY by a guy who was there for most of it, could have GREATLY enhanced this book's value to its audience.) My score on a 1-10: 2. (kk)
... and, speaking of The Beatles ...
re: THE BEATLES:
Beatlemania is alive and well at Collectors’ Choice Music. The new boxed sets have been dominating our top sellers list as well as our CD players and they are truly something to behold (especially those mono tracks)! As we get ready to take a little Thanksgiving break and look forward to a nice dinner and a long weekend with family and friends, we’re also looking forward to a couple of Beatles-related specials set to air in the coming days. On the evening of Wednesday the 25th, the History Channel presents “On Record With The Beatles,” a brand new documentary from director Bob Smeaton, who also did the acclaimed Beatles “Anthology” series and the new mini-documentaries included on the new remastered stereo CDs. “On Record…” is being touted as featuring over 60 songs with rarely seen footage and never-before-heard outtakes, so obviously, we are psyched to check it out.
ABC will follow that up on Thanksgiving night with a new one-hour Paul McCartney special highlighting his 2009 concerts at New York’s Citi Field. That special will also flashback to the Beatles’ legendary 1965 Shea Stadium show. You can pick up the new 2 CD / 1 DVD set that this new McCartney special is based on right now! Just visit our site for the full details on that and all of the new Beatles releases!
Meanwhile, both Mono and the Stereo Beatles Box Sets are back in stock and available for immediate shipment. You can check all of this out here (along with all kinds of OTHER great new releases):
Click here: Collectors' Choice Music
I knew about the Citi Field concert special ... but wasn't aware of The History Channel Program ... that'll make for some GREAT TV viewing tonight after "Glee"!!! (kk)
Kent,
I am enjoying another Sunday session with your newest Comments page from today. As always thanks for all the interesting stories to peruse and think about. I have a question about the new Disney production about The Beatles that maybe you can answer or find out for me. I notice that a "Steve Starkey" is listed as one of the Producers of it. Do you think he might be a relative of Ringo aka Richard Starkey? It would be interesting to know. I think I remember Ringo's son's name is Zack. Maybe he had more than one son and this is one of his boys. Also, do you know what Zack is doing? Maybe he's doing some music like Julian Lennon. If so that would be a great group to put together, along with George's son and also I believe that Paul had a son too. Do you know anything about the Beatles kids? It would be interesting to know what they all are doing, if anything, with writing and performing music these days.
Thanks for any info Kent, and for providing a great forum for us old rockers,
Veeder Van Dorn
The Moonrakers
Each of The Beatles has at least one musically-inclined offspring. To date, Julian Lennon has been the most successful in his musical ventures, scoring four Top 40 Hits (including a couple of Top 10's) in 1985 and 1986 ... but he hasn't made much of a musical impression since. Sean Lennon (John's son with Yoko) has also released a number of recordings but none of these have ever really taken off in a very big way. Paul McCartney's son James has performed on some of his father's recordings ... (no, Teen Idol Jesse McCartney is NOT related) ... and George's son Dhani was a featured player at the Concert Tribute to his Father ... and I believe he was somewhat instrumental in helping to put together the "Rock Band" deal. Zak Starkey has maintained the greatest presence amongst rockers, playing the drums for artists like The Who and the VERY Beatles-influenced Oasis. (I thought he may have sat in with Led Zeppelin a time or two, too, but I couldn't find anything on this online.) I, too, wondered about Steve Starkey ... so I asked Charles Rosenay, who sponsors all those Liverpool Tours (and the upcoming Beat Expo) if HE could fill in some of the blanks regarding your questions ... and this is what he had to say:
It seems that most, if not all, of the Beatles offspring are musically inclined. Julian Lennon, who had the most hits and recognition dating back the 80's, is preparing to release a new album for the first time in years. His catalogue of work ranges from quite good to brilliant. Sean Lennon has also released albums and toured, but his material seems to be less commercial than Julian's. He has most recently toured behind his mom, Yoko.
Ringo's son, Zak Starkey is a well-established drummer in his own right. For years, he has been The Who's drummer. His brother Jason is also a musician, but has not had the success of his brother. Ringo's daughter, Lee, never had any musical aspirations. Steve Starkey is a well-known Hollywood producer, and you could also find a Steve Starkey playing guitar on YouTube, but they are not related to Ringo.
George's son Dhani has released an album, "You Are Here," under his duo / band's name "thenewwho2" and it's very good. He has toured, and - of all the Beatle boys - seems to be most proud of his Beatles heritage. He was very instrumental in the release of the Beatles Rockband game.
Most recently, Paul McCartney's son, James, is the latest of the Beatle babies to make music, and he just did some low-key shows with a band just a few weeks ago.
We'd love to see a band with the Beatles sons, but only they can make that happen. We don't even know if they're friends. If they ever did "come together," it would be quite interesting, and we would honored to have them play at one of our Beatles conventions! At this point, none of the Beatles sons or daughters have ever made a convention appearance.
I must throw in a plug for my next convention, because it's this weekend! "BEATexpo 2009" takes place Saturday night, November 28 (doors open at 8 pm) and Sunday, November 29 (doors open at Noon, with an early-bird VIP optional 11 am admission) at the Downtown Stamford Holiday Inn, 700 E. Main Street in Stamford, CT. Although none of the Beatles kids will be there, John Lennon's recording engineer (Dennis Ferrante) will be here along with Peter Tork, Spanky McFarlane, Butch Patrick and many others. For more Info, check out the website here: www.ToursAndEvents.com.
Charles
... and, speaking of BeatExpo, check out what sounds like a KILLER performance by Monkee Micky Dolenz, who joined Peter Tork on stage for a recent show!!!
re: MICKY DOLENZ:
As a prelude to his appearance at the BEATexpo 2009 convention(www.Toursandevents.com/BEATexpo.htm) this weekend at the Downtown Stamford Holiday Inn, Peter Tork was a guest star at the Boston area Mega-Fest convention this past weekend. He sprinkled his live set with old Monkees favorites and some choice blues and bluegrass tunes. He also pleased the crowd with a rousing "Lady Madonna." But the highlight came when, toward the end of the set, Peter shouted to the back of the ballroom, paging a Mister "George Michael." After several attempts and no response, he shouted "Micky!" and from the rear of the room came Micky Dolenz onstage to join him. Dolenz told the audience of the time he met "British royalty" - not the Queen - but The Beatles! He went on to tell of his Abbey Road experience, and how The Beatles were all dressed in jeans, but that George Martin was in a suit. And he said that the following came out of the speakers, before he ripped into a scorching "Oh Darling," which is perfectly suited for Micky's vocal range. They ended with Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode." Davy & Mike were missed.
Don't miss Peter Tork's very special appearance at BEATexpo 2009 THIS WEEKEND in Stamford, CT. He performs solo and with a backing band on Saturday night (Nov. 28, doors open at 8pm), and he talks onstage + meets fans + signs autographs (no charge for autographs, photos and other souvenirs will be on sale!) on Sunday (Nov. 29, doors open at Noon, with an optional early-bird VIP admission at 11am). Ticket Information can be found on the website: "BEATexpo 2009" - TicketLeap
And, you can read the complete article with photo of Peter & Micky here: http://www.examiner.com/x-2082-Beatles-Examiner~y2009m11d22-Monkees-minireunion-features-Beatle-talk-and-Fab-Four-songs-at-Boston-area-celeb-convention?cid=examiner-email
Charles Rosenay / Liverpool Tours
Sounds like a GREAT show. (I tried to find a clip of this on YouTube but didn't see anything posted yet. Put "Micky Dolenz Oh Darling" into the YouTube search engine and you'll find ALL kinds of recent appearances of Micky performing this song live on stage. Be sure to give us the full scoop on your convention this weekend, Charles!!! (kk)
re: DIGGIN' FORGOTTEN HITS:
Hello Kent,
I hope things will slow down a bit for you this week after all the tabulating that has gone on to come up with the Top Instrumentals listing. I look forward to hearing them on Phil Nee’s show on WRCO this Saturday. Keep up the great work, a lot of great stuff in the Forgotten Hits newsletter.
Mike OgilvieMississauga, ON
Howdy! From Austin, Texas.
I enjoyed the psychedelic list, though I thought it was awfully wordy. And maybe that was unavoidable with the contest winners and commentary about the contest entries.
(Yeah, I know - EVERYBODY's a critic!)
Anyway, THANKS!!!
I'd like to get on your mailing list, just for grins. I don't really spend much time with the oldies, as my musical interests run more to blues and "folk" music, and next year will be my 35th season working on the volunteer staff at the Kerrville Folk Festival: http://www.kerrville-music.com/.
I do recall being pretty well blown away by several of the tunes on your top 20 list - and there were some I do not recall at all (at all ... ). One of my faves back then was "Hot Smoke and Sassafras", which got a fair bit of airplay in my home area of Southeast Texas (Beaumont - Port Arthur market) which is where I had an eight year stint as a DJ. The four years as Music Director, then Program Director of KVLU at Lamar university was the high (!) point, but I was exploring non-commercial music and pimping "Progressive Country", which Texas Folkie Steven Fromholz referred to as "The great Progressive Country scare of the 70's"!!!
Anyway, I noticed that you said that "Hot Smoke & Sassafras" had gone A.W.O.L. from your archives. I just happen to have one. If ya need a digital copy I can probably dig it out of one of the boxes of promo 45's in the back room. There are some other "Gems" in there, too.
The first rock concert I ever went to (1962, I think) featured Dick & Dee Dee (The Mountains High), Gary (U.S.) Bonds (his hit just came and went thru what passes for a memory these days) and the "unforgettable" Piltdown Men!!! Do ya need a copy of "The Brontosaurus Stomp"???
The mentions of "In a Gadda Da Vida" brought back this blast from the past:
I was medically evacuated back to the Naval Hospital at Corpus Christie, Texas, on December 23rd, 1968, and sent home for the holidays on the 24th. The guy that took me to the airport in Corpus had a 4-track (yes!) player in his car (the first car audio I had seen besides the AM radios of the time. He played "I.A.G.D.V." and when it faded down in the middle of that mind bending drum solo, I decided I would never own a device that mangled music that way. I never owned a four or eight track player, but bought an under-dash Sony cassette player in 1970.
Anyway, that's enough for now! It's late and I'm tired. I look forward to hearing from you, and getting the newsletter - and digging through those old singles again ...
All The Best -
Bob C
P.S. My username (64RagTop) refers to my pristine '64 Dodge Dart Convertible. I recall drawing pictures of the new Darts in my high school art class, but it took me 40 years to get to own one!
Welcome aboard, Bob C ... great to hear from you!!! (lol ... and he called ME wordy?!?!? Just kidding, Bob!) Actually, that Psychedelic Series that you just read (over on The Forgotten Hits Website ... Click here: Forgotten Hits - Top 20 Favorite Psychedelic Songs) originally ran spread over an entire MONTH!!! What's up on the site is the "condensed" version of a month's worth of postings ... so it probably IS an awful lot to digest in one sitting!!! It is ALSO the most-read article on the website so I'm glad you found it interesting.
I'm sure that Bubble Puppy were quite popular in your neck of the woods ... they hailed from Texas, too! (Actually, I still have their big hit ... what's missing from the archives is a lengthly in-depth piece we did on the band back in 2000 ... a similar piece on The Iron Butterfly is now also forever lost thanks to one of numerous PC crashes since then!!!)
Anyway, I hope we DO stir a memory or two along the way ... and remember, your thoughts and comments are always welcome here! (kk)
re: HAPPY THANKSGIVING:
Hey KK!
Been out of touch for awhile, but enjoying your current issue. Without taking up too much "real estate", I just want to wish you & your readers a blessed & peaceful Thanksgiving. We have much to be grateful for, & music's near the top of the list!
Alan O'Day
Right backatcha, Alan ... and Thank YOU for all the great music you've given us over the years!!! (kk)
Of course not ALL of our Thanksgiving memories are HAPPY ones ... here comes a reminder from Clark Besch ...
Kent,
You mentioned Uncle Lar coming back to the internet radio waves soon. I have to say that he and Ron Riley are my all time heroes of radio. Being that it is nearing Thanksgiving, I thought I'd pull out this classic Lujack / Dahl battle tape that was a bit more "real" than WLS' 10 years earlier Riley / Weber feuds were. It was Thanksgiving of 1985 (and only a year plus until WLS would pull the plug on their "Music Radio" format) when Steve Dahl and Garry Meier's on air "antics" would boil over into a confrontation of strange results. Steve had been mouthing off at Larry for some time and eventually, Larry decided to have Steve "put up or shut up." Neither happened. But, Larry decided to "drop in" on Steve's show and ask Steve to explain or discuss his "problem of animosity" towards station employees and all. Once the VERY awkward moment ended and Larry left the studio, Steve commented that if he ever did that again, he'd be walking on one leg. Lujack, on his next show, would comment back about Steve, saying he would be starting a new segment called "The Truth About Steve Dahl" on his program. He decided to hang around until Steve's show came on and go in and hope Steve "would swing and I would break every bone in his body." SO, Lujack DID walk in on Steve's show AGAIN and the results were much less than Larry had hoped for. You can hear it on the enclosed attachment.Thanksgiving on WLS, 1985. I guess we all miss WLS for more reasons than just the great music and top 40 DJs we heard in the 60's. BUT, not much after 1987!! Haha. WLSClark
I remember listening to every bit of this exchange live on the air as it happened ... eventually Dahl and Meier walked out, leaving Larry to finish the program by himself. Larry's "The Truth About Steve Dahl" aired for a few days ... it was NOT a pretty site ... hardly a glowing moment in EITHER of these mega-talents' careers ... pretty embarrassing for the station, too ... but it was shock radio at its very best (or should I say WORST) to hear this all unfold live and unexpected. The strangest part is I think Garry Meier TRULY respected Lujack and his radio legacy but was egged on by Dahl to the point of no return. So sad to see legends fall. I have no idea if the two of them have ever spoken to each other again ... or if any apologies were ever rendered. Let's just say it's NOT the kind of memory EITHER man would look back on and laugh at today ... and definitely NOT one of their finest radio moments. (kk)
re: AND HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!!:
It's amazing. I've been telling you for years that this thing is bigger than you gave it credit for, and now look atcha. Mitch and I came up with an idea for another vote ... have you ever done the most recognized song intros? We go to our local Aurelio's pizza here and there, and they always have on 60s on 6 satellite station ... but it's really hard to hear. So we make it a game with each other, and every so often you'll hear the big twang right before Hard Day's Night, or something like that. There's my vote for the next vote.
Kristy
We're receiving LOTS of ideas and suggestions as to what our next countdown should be ... this one might be a bit too easy ... I think most of our readers fall into that "I can name that song in one note" category!!! (How does the All-Time Favorite Polka strike you?!?!?) kk
This is one of the best websites ever, and I don't mind AT ALL visiting the website with all the good information and great music it provides, not to mention the millions of times it has provided me with that "walk down Memory Lane" -- a place where I love to walk.
Kudos to you!! Keep up the good work!!! Thanks again, Kent, and all the Forgotten Hits Readers!
Anita
Thank you for all the memories and smiles!!
Lea Mea
Hi Kent,
Happy 10th Anniversary! Keep up the good work.
Diana
Bloomfield Hills, Mi
Hi Kent,
Congrats on 10 years. That's a lifetime in Internet time!
Take care -
Art Munson
Happy 10 years!! (and happy wedding anniversary last week :)
Here's to many more forgotten hits!
Beatle Princess
Congrats on your number of visitors and length of tenure. Good stuff.
I'm at live365 counting down the top 800 oldies with countdown extras [source - various radio station top 500s and the like from the year 2000] as well as playing almost every charted oldie [1955-1979] alphabetically by title.The live365 show just began this week.
Get there by going to live365, going to listen and search MTS.
Take Care
Mark
Sounds like OUR kind of show!!! Thanks, Mark! (kk)
Dear Kent -
Happy Anniversary! I don't know how you do it, but I always look forward to your Forgotten Hits emails.
When you love what you are doing, it is fun. May we have many more Anniversary years to celebrate!! Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family too.
Carolyn
>>>This Thanksgiving Weekend officially marks our Ten Year Anniversary (kk)psst ... do what I did for RIP Renfield ... 1 issue past the 10 anniversary?I call it ... "NOW IN ITS 11th YEAR!!!"
oh ... congrats!
Renfield
Happy Thanksgiving Everybody!!! Be sure to check back this weekend to see the OFFICIAL List of Your All-Time Top 50 Favorite Instrumental Hits!!! (kk)
