re: HELPING OUT OUR READERS:
Hi,
I was wondering if you might be able to help me with finding someone who might be interested in buying a collection of 78 and 33 RPM records dating back to the 1940s and possibly the 30s.
These are my mothers records. I hate to just donate them or worse, toss them out. They are not old rockers, but some of them are known big bands and solo artists. There are probably around 200 - 300 records. Most are in decent condition, some not so good.
I can come up with a list if you want. I don't know if they are worth anything or not. My mother is elderly and on a fixed income. I would like to try to get what I can for them to help her out.
Thank you in advance,
Howard
We really don't get involved much with record searches or sales anymore but I'm happy to post your inquiry on the website and see if we get any nibbles. Give it a week or two and see if anybody responds.
Meanwhile, we're still taking stories for our next "Record Collectors" edition of Forgotten Hits ... if you've got a particularly interesting story or experience to share, drop us a line and let us know. Your greatest find??? The one that got away? The ONLY one you need to complete your collection??? You get the idea. Just drop us an email and we'll put your story in our next edition. (kk)
>>>I have been searching for years for a particular song from the late 60's or early 70's that started out with killer motorcycle sounds. It was an instrumental on 45. I don't remember the name or artist ... that's why I'm not having much success. I used to run a summer camp and during the last week of camp, instead of playing the bugle song to wake up the campers, we played crazy stuff. I played this motorcycle song and it sounded like the Hell's Angels were tearing through the camp! It was a riot!! I happened upon your website and blog in my online searches this evening and thought I'd see if you have a clue as to what my long lost motorcycle instrumental might be. Thanks for any help you could give me! (Sharon Sigmon)
>>>Wow, that's not much to go on ... there could literally be DOZENS of possible candidates for this one ... there was a whole genre of "motorcycle music" going around in the late '60's ... off the top of my head, I'm inclined to go with this "Blues' Theme" by Davie Allan and the Arrows ... it's one of MY favorites and was a pretty decent-sized hit back in 1967 ... (that and the fact that Davie Allan is on our FH Mailing List doesn't hurt either!!! lol) This comes from the film "The Wild Angels", circa 1967. (kk)
Sound like Dave Allan & The Arrows: " “Blues' Theme” !!http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Davie_Allan
I have an autographed CD, complete with guitar picks! :-)
Dave's alright! Thanks!
Enjoy reading your site!
Best,
John
angelfire.com/empire/abpsp
We never did hear back from Sharon as to whether or not this is the song she was looking for ... if you're out there, Sharon, drop us a line ... there are several other "motorcycle" possibilities to choose from, too! (kk)
There is an oldies song I'm looking for ... I don't know the artist but the lyrics to the song go something like this:
I can't wait forever, you know you want me to,
Time won't let me wait that long
Hope you can tell me the name of the song an the artist.
Thanks -
Dan
Well, Dan, that's one of the easiest ones we've ever come across ... "Time Won't Let Me" was a HUGE Top Five Hit for The Outsiders back in 1966 ... and it's still an oldies radio staple today. Happy to feature it here today because it's also one of MY favorites! (kk)
Thank you so much! I was able to get it on the lime wire ... now have it in my collection! Had been trying to find it for months!
God bless ,
Dan
Happy to help ... glad you're enjoying Forgotten Hits! (kk)
Hey Kent,
What do the initials T.A.M.I. stand for? I'm in the dark.
Chuck Adams
Teenage Awards Music International ...
which is ESPECIALLY weird since no actual awards were ever handed out or associated with this program!!! (lol) kk
Talking about some REALLY Forgotten Hits, Scott Shannon forwarded me this exchange between himself and a True Oldies Channel Listener ... this song is LONG gone from the radio radar ... glad we were able to help out ...
Hey, Scott --
Speaking of "forgotten oldies" (as you often do), how about correcting one of the greatest injustices in RnR history by playing a song that was buried by the British Invasion and has gone unplayed since 1964 -- Bobby Rydell's far-superior version of "A World Without Love"?
Thanks,
John Egan, listening on WLS-FM.
JOHN ...
I DO PLAY SOME FORGOTTEN 45'S, BUT THEY HAD TO HAVE BEEN HITS ON THE RADIO ... BOBBYS VERSION NEVER WAS ... SORRRRY!
SCOTT SHANNON
I beg to differ. It spent 7 weeks on the WLS Silver Dollar Survey, peaking at #10 (!!) on May 29, 1964. Obviously a better showing than many of the songs you feature. And this is no regional artist we are talking about, either. I don't understand your reluctance -- it's interesting from a historical standpoint (most of your listeners don't even know it exists) even if you don't agree with my "far superior" assessment. But hey, it's your show -- thanks for responding, I'll keep listening anyway.
John Egan (in no way affiliated with Bobby Rydell)
JOHN ...
I WASN'T TRYING TO BE A JERK ... I JUST WASN'T AWARE THAT IT WENT THAT HIGH ON WLS. AND I DO APOLOGIZE FOR MY WLS IGNORANCE ... MOST OF THE NATION'S LISTENERS, ME INCLUDED, HEARD THE BRIT VERSION ... BUT I'LL TRY TO DIG UP BOBBY'S VERSION AND PLAY IT WHEN I GET BACK FROM VACA.
SCOTT
And then a quick note to me ...
KENT ...
CAN YOU DIG UP THIS BOBBY RYDELL TUNE TO PLAY FOR THIS GUY ... THEY DIDN'T PLAY IT ANYWHERE THAT I KNEW OF ... BUT IT MUST HAVE BEEN BIG IN CHICAGO.
THANKS!
SCOTT SHANNON
Which we did ... along with a brief explanation as to just how "big" a hit it really was here in Chi-Town ...
Here ya go ...
First of all, you'd be pretty hard pressed to find very many people who consider Bobby Rydell's version to be the "far superior" take on this song ...
Nationally, it peaked at #80 during a six week chart run ... but he's right, it DID hit #10 here in Chicago ... sort of ...
There's no question as to who the song belonged to ... Paul McCartney gave the track to his girlfriend's brother, Peter Asher, to cut with his partner Gordon Waller ... by the Spring of 1964, The British Invasion was in full swing, and even the most established U.S. Acts were having a hard time placing their records on the chart.
Bobby Rydell most likely cut this tune more in the spirit of "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em" than anything else ... he never did have another U.S. Top 40 Hit after "Forget Him" peaked at #4 in early 1964, just as The Beatles were working their way up the chart with their first of an incredible THIRTY chart hits that year!!!
Being the more "familiar" artist at the time, WLS charted Bobby Rydell's version side-by-side with the Peter and Gordon version for the first several weeks ... both records debuted at #28 on the WLS Silver Dollar Survey dated May 22nd, 1964. A week later, they shared the #10 spot ... not at all an uncommon practice back then. (Quite often when more than one artist recorded the same song, the chart would reflect multiple versions "sharing" the same spot on the charts.)
Incredibly, a week later, the record slipped to #11 ... but the following week Peter and Gordon were sitting at the #1 Spot while Bobby Rydell's version dropped to #13. From this point forward, the records charted separately as Peter and Gordon's version was clearly the record of preference.
It's not an AWFUL version ... it's just not the way we expect to hear this song performed!!!
That being said, Bobby Rydell had a pretty good chart run before The British Invasion ... 19 of his records made The Billboard Top 40 between 1959 and 1963 ... and in 1963 he was cast in a lead role in the movie version of "Bye Bye Birdie" ... quite honestly, things were looking up at the time. But then the four lads from Liverpool came along and turned the entire music world upside down ... and Rydell's time as a "Teen Idol" was over.
On an up note, the producers of "Grease" DID name their High School "Rydell High" ... so that must count for something, right??? (kk)
Featured here today for those who have never heard Bobby's version ... and those who haven't heard it played since 1964!!!
Trivia question: Who is Dolores Erickson ?
bpalomaki
lol ... let's see ... we've probably run her picture about 250 times over the past eleven years!!! (251 counting today!!!) Let's just say she's a Forgotten Hits favorite!!! (kk)re: HEAVEN SENT:
Hey Kent & Krew,
Really long time since I've written (Ron Kolman - I won (GREAT!) a signed CD for winning Paige's choice 'Best Describing "Psychedelic Music' ... I hope your whole family is well, we are).
Unreal! I recall sending you mail - years back - asking FH's readers if anyone recalled or knew anything re: the "Heaven Sent" radio spot. You ran the question, no one knew where it might be had.
Attached is a magazine ad I came across while fishing for the actual spot. As I mentioned, it's been a while, and time hasn't made for steady FH following. I've a folder in Gmail for FHs sends. When things slow, I go in and grab a random copy to spend an hour catching-up. Today, just absolutely and entirely coincidentally, I decided to grab an issue "fresh" from mail to peruse.
BAM!!!
Heaven Sent.
Gives one pause, ya know?
I had that couple seconds of disbelief. I've been searching for that tune on the net for years! I've come close, but no cigar till today. I got the chills listening. Got my wife (with whom I listened to that spot, parked on my father's car, over and over, until the association with our youth, and Love, and "those days" were completely woven together), and her eyes brimmed with tears.
As I have before, Thank You Kent for resurrecting a memory!
Can't comment on the voice being Shelly Fabares', I'm not familiar with her voice. I could almost swear, however, the spot was recorded by a male-group as well. I recall it having an "Early In The Morning (She Lets Her Hair Down)" kind of sound? Maybe just juxtaposing the two because they both have really positive associations.
Thanks so my KK. This made my week.
Absolute Best Regards - and once more ... for all the work you put into FH ... TRULY appreciated,
Ron Kolman
Next time you're perusing the website, type "Heaven Sent" into the "Search" feature ... you'll be shocked to see how big a topic this has become! (You'll also find several other musical versions posted on the web ... as well as a whole "She Lets Her Hair Down" / "Early In The Morning" segment, too!)
As for your definition of Psychedelic Music, you'll find that this, too, has been permanently enshrined on the OTHER Forgotten Hits web page ... in fact, our Psychedelic Series is still the most popular item searched on our site with well over 10,000 readers so far! (See, we've helped to make you famous!!!) kk
Click here: Forgotten Hits - Top 20 Favorite Psychedelic Songs
And, since you like all things "Heaven Sent", be sure to check THIS out, too!
and, in OTHER commercial news ...
re: YOUR COMMERCIAL FAVORITES:
Kent, I just came across your blog today and thought your Top 100 commercials were spot on. However, the following were missing and they were as good as any song on the air at the time.
1) Clairol Born Blonde "Girl do you know where it's going to?" 1969
2) Dry Control by Vitalis " You can't see it, but you know it's there 1970
3) Lemon Up "Lemon Up and make peace with grease" 1971
4) Cantrece Panty Hose " Cantrece makes panty hose move when you groove" 1970
5) 7 UP (the campaign right before the Un-Cola) "7 UP goes Wet and Wild, first against thirst, first to satisfy you"
6) Clairol Summer Blonde "Come to the sunshine" 1968
7) Tanya Hawaiian Tanning Butter " A deeper faster Hawaiian tan, that's what you get when you use Tanya"
8) Wink Soda "Wink, the sassy one, from Canada Dry" 1965
9) Budweiser "Best reason in the world to drink beer" 1967
10) American Dairy Association " Milk, makes it" 1968
Jim B
Welcome aboard! Do a quick website search and you should find our feature on "Come To The Sunshine", too! Thanks, Jim! (kk)
re: THE BEACH BOYS:
The Beach Boys are scheduled to perform on "Dancing With The Stars" tonight on the first results show of the new season. They'll reportedly be performing a medley of their hits "California Girls," "Kokomo" and "Fun, Fun, Fun," with special guest John Stamos joining them on the guitar and drums. (The actor has a long association with the band, having provided vocals on the song "Forever." The Beach Boys also made multiple appearances on Stamos' 1987-1995 sitcom "Full House".)
You can see The Beach Boys in action when the "Dancing With The Stars" results show airs this evening on ABC at 8:00 p.m. Eastern / 7:00 p.m. Central time. (Of course this means that we'll be missing our special "enhanced" replay of "Lost", a pivitol episode to say the least ... but an appearance by The Beach Boys just might get us to tune into a program we otherwise wouldn't even bother with!!! (kk)
re: THE BEATLES:
A rather sad Beatles anniversary is right around the corner ... on April 10th, it will be officially 40 years since Paul McCartney announced that he was leaving the Beatles and filed formal papers to disolve the band.
Now comes word of a brand new radio special marking the end of an era. Called "And in the end ... the 40th Anniversary of the breakup of the Beatles", it is being marketed through Radio KG and promises "Ultra-rare 60's and 70's interview and press conference material with The Beatles and those who knew them plus new interview material with many who knew, worked with and / or were associated with The Beatles."
Hosted by Dennis Mitchell, award-winning host of the weekly syndicated Dennis Mitchells' "Breakfast With The Beatles", the two hour special will air nationally (through syndication) from April 5th through April 12th and will also feature all kinds of great Beatles music along with stories behind the songs.
No official word yet on which markets this special will air (but you might want to check with your local oldies and / or classic rock stations to see if any of them have obtained the rights to this broadcast.)
