re: LOVE POTION NUMBER NINE:
>>>A Chicago buddy of mine, Rick Kancilja, claims the 45 version of "Love Potion #9" is faster than all of the CD versions he hates to hear nowadays. He claims That the 45 had more of a "kick" to it than the CD versions he's found. (Clark Besch)
>>>"Love Potion #9" is wrong on the CD version. It's slower and totally different. I just played it in the car this afternoon. (Rick Kancilja)
>>>I find that very fascinating since the stereo version on the Rhino best of cd runs at basically the exact same pitch and length as my mono Kapp 45 (the 45 is very minimally faster). Perhaps the person with his memory of Love Potion #9 had one of those record players that played discs too fast (I had one of these a few years ago when I was in college, which was a 1950's portable model that I picked up at the local antique market). Could it be that one's memory of playing records on a specific player has them sounding a certain way so that no matter what they hear later on in life (even if the 45 is playing at the proper speed), it would be incorrect? (Tom Diehl)
I found nothing wrong with the speed of The Searchers, Love Potion #9 ...
http://www.angelfire.com/empire/abpsp/images/lovepotion.mp3
The more annoying part of this song is the squeaky bass drum pedal in the beginning of the song! I can't believe they didn't stop the recording to oil!
The more annoying part of this song is the squeaky bass drum pedal in the beginning of the song! I can't believe they didn't stop the recording to oil!
I have several imported CDs from the UK, and all of them sound the same; not one slower and one faster. Kapp Records had NOTHING to do with the recordings; they just struck a deal to distribute them in the USA! Always, I mean, always seek out these songs from where they were recorded, not in the USA! Most of the time, the US release will sound less impressive than the UK release ... sometimes the difference between mono and stereo, too! Now, what is this, Tony Hatch was The Searchers producer? Maybe he can explain why that squeaky Searchers bass drum pedal never got oiled!! LOL!
John
John
re: MY BOY LOLLIPOP:
>>>I have been following your Forgotten Hits site for about a month now and it is pretty cool to say the least. I used to have the song My Boy Lollipop ... we had that one on a 78 record. I can't remember the artist but it was a catchy song. (Kenny)>>>The US Hit version of "My Boy Lollipop" was done by Millie Small, who took her record all the way to #2 back in 1964. It stayed on Billboard's Hot 100 Chart for twelve weeks. (kk)>>>If he had My Boy Lollipop on a 78 it must have been the original version by Barbie Gaye from 1957. (Tom Diehl)
Hello Kent,
Nice to hear some else knows this tune. Mr. Diehl could be right ... I am not sure.
I was only 10 maybe 11 years old at the time. My brothers and sisters had this record. Back then I was not really knowledgeable about the artists and the year it came out. If it came out in
1957 as Mr. Diehl says by the artist Barbie Gaye, I could not verify that for sure. I just know that it had a very catchy sound musically and her voice was different. She sounded very young at the time too. I am not sure if it was the original either, but I would not bet against it ... we had a lot of the originals back then.
1957 as Mr. Diehl says by the artist Barbie Gaye, I could not verify that for sure. I just know that it had a very catchy sound musically and her voice was different. She sounded very young at the time too. I am not sure if it was the original either, but I would not bet against it ... we had a lot of the originals back then.
Thanks,
Kenny
Kenny
re: GREAT SET LIST!:
>>>We've formed a new band called the Way Back Machine. The charter of the band is to focus on songs we all loved from the 60s and 70s, but rarely, if ever, hear on the radio any longer. I'll give you a list of the songs we've been working on:
TALK TALK, BLACK IS BLACK, PSYCHOTIC REACTION, BAD TO ME, THE RAPPER, GIRL WATCHER, THE CHEATER, INCENSE AND PEPPERMINTS, I THINK WE'RE ALONE NOW, DON’T THROW YOUR LOVE AWAY, EVIL WOMAN (DON'T PLAY YOUR GAMES WITH ME), SMILE A LITTLE SMILE FOR ME, TOAST AND MARMALADE FOR TEA, TOBACCO ROAD, SPREAD IT ON THICK, WHEN YOU WALK IN THE ROOM, FRIDAY ON MY MIND, GYPSY WOMAN, SHA LA LA, A WORLD WITHOUT LOVE, CAN’T YOU HEAR MY HEARTBEAT, LITTLE BIT O SOUL, EXPRESSWAY TO YOUR HEART, NEVER MY LOVE, APPLES PEACHES PUMPKIN PIE, THEN YOU CAN TELL ME GOODBYE, 98.6, HERE COMES MY BABY, FROM ME TO YOU, WORDS OF LOVE, WHAT YOU’RE DOING
Cool tunes, huh?! What I would appreciate from your readers are more songs. What songs did they love that, somehow, the esteemed program directors (even on Sirius - XM) just can't seen to fit into their brief and repetitive playlists? What songs do you love? What songs rock you and what songs do you want to hear again? Maybe we'll be booked in your part of the country next summer and we'll get to perform some of them for you! Readers can write me directly with suggestions at doc_of_rock@comcast.net if they'd like. (Bob Rush, DC)
Great list, Bob ... some VERY cool tunes indeed! If you guys ever make it out Chicago-way, please let us know 'cause that's a show we'd like to see. (kk)
Kent,
For Dr. Robert at the U.S. Beat ...
Here's a set list for you:
Cry Just a Little -- Beau Brummels; Expressway To Your Heart -- Soul Survivors; Every Time You Walk in the Room -- Jackie DeShannon; Ain't That Peculiar -- Marvin Gaye; Little Bit o' Soul -- Music Explosion; I Need You -- The Beatles; I'm Alive -- Bee Gees; Eve of Destruction -- Barry McGuire; Mountain of Love -- Johnny Rivers; Memphis -- Chuck Berry; Everybody -- Tommy Roe;
Drift Away -- Dobie Gray; Under the Boardwalk -- the Drifters; I'll Cry Instead -- the Beatles;
You Don't Know Like I Know -- Sam & Dave; It's Alright -- JJ Jackson
What do these songs have in common? They're the first set of three sets we played in my band The Maroons, from around 1978 to 1988. We did exactly what the good doctor imagines doing. Four of us each brought 20 of our favorite songs, obscure or not, to the first rehearsal, and we picked and chose the ones we all liked. We had no intention of breaking big -- after the Famous Potatoes, and Ouray, and Cactus Jack, all we wanted to do was play with minimal production, and play only songs we all loved and missed. Hence the name, the Maroons. Not after the U of C football team, but after Bugs Bunny, when he says about Elmer Fudd " ... what a Maroon!". It was almost exactly the period when Bob Stroud was at the Loop, starting his "Lunchtime Roots" show -- one hour of what came to be called "oldies". It wasn't our specific intention, but we inadvertently became what had to be Chicago's first 60's band in the early 80's. There's a review of us in the Illinois Entertainer from the period, and it pretty much describes what we did. We played those songs as if they had been recorded in the present time -- more power and grit than the originals, but stayed true to the musical and vocal arrangements. The focus was on fun and those great songs, and we enjoyed significant success for over 10 years. More fun than a bucket o' monkeys. I wish the good Doctor all the best in his venture, and may he enjoy it as much as we did.
Rick Barr
New Colony Six
Cry Just a Little -- Beau Brummels; Expressway To Your Heart -- Soul Survivors; Every Time You Walk in the Room -- Jackie DeShannon; Ain't That Peculiar -- Marvin Gaye; Little Bit o' Soul -- Music Explosion; I Need You -- The Beatles; I'm Alive -- Bee Gees; Eve of Destruction -- Barry McGuire; Mountain of Love -- Johnny Rivers; Memphis -- Chuck Berry; Everybody -- Tommy Roe;
Drift Away -- Dobie Gray; Under the Boardwalk -- the Drifters; I'll Cry Instead -- the Beatles;
You Don't Know Like I Know -- Sam & Dave; It's Alright -- JJ Jackson
What do these songs have in common? They're the first set of three sets we played in my band The Maroons, from around 1978 to 1988. We did exactly what the good doctor imagines doing. Four of us each brought 20 of our favorite songs, obscure or not, to the first rehearsal, and we picked and chose the ones we all liked. We had no intention of breaking big -- after the Famous Potatoes, and Ouray, and Cactus Jack, all we wanted to do was play with minimal production, and play only songs we all loved and missed. Hence the name, the Maroons. Not after the U of C football team, but after Bugs Bunny, when he says about Elmer Fudd " ... what a Maroon!". It was almost exactly the period when Bob Stroud was at the Loop, starting his "Lunchtime Roots" show -- one hour of what came to be called "oldies". It wasn't our specific intention, but we inadvertently became what had to be Chicago's first 60's band in the early 80's. There's a review of us in the Illinois Entertainer from the period, and it pretty much describes what we did. We played those songs as if they had been recorded in the present time -- more power and grit than the originals, but stayed true to the musical and vocal arrangements. The focus was on fun and those great songs, and we enjoyed significant success for over 10 years. More fun than a bucket o' monkeys. I wish the good Doctor all the best in his venture, and may he enjoy it as much as we did.
Rick Barr
New Colony Six
re: SARAH VAUGHAN:
Hey Kent,
I need a little help on this song. Listening to the great Pat St. John on Sirius / XM “Fifties on 5” this morning and he played Sarah Vaughan’s “Broken-Hearted Melody”. I recognized the song, but I seem to think that I know it from another version. It’s a great song so I’m sure other artists have done it also, but my Whitburn Billboard Top 40 book only lists the Sarah Vaughan version. Do you know of some other versions that may not have made the Top 40 but got some airplay? I’d appreciate any info on this song. Thank You.
Thanks again,
Eddie Burke,
Orange, CT
It's a GREAT track, isn't it??? And yet ANOTHER one that would sound absolutely "at home" on oldies radio. (Nice way to introduce others to some of these "classics", too!)
As far as I know, Sarah Vaughan had the only charted version of this song, a #6 Pop Hit in 1959. But this is one of those songs that's been covered by just about everybody ... so you may have seen it performed on TV or something by somebody else and THAT'S the one that's been stuck in your head. (We've been hearing another one of Sarah's big '50's, hits, "Whatever Lola Wants", in a TV ad campaign lately, too. This one ... from the Broadway Musical "Damn Yankees" ... went to #5 for Vaughan back in 1955.) kk
re: BADFINGER:
Kent,
Your August 4th edition was fun to read and the one article about The Iveys becoming Badfinger caught my eye because, relative to their song "Maybe Tomorrow", I had to think for about 20 minutes but I finally remembered where I'd heard that song title, and I finally came up with the buried memory / fact that there was an original song released by The Rembrandts 25 or so years ago that was also titled "Maybe Tomorrow".
I think that The Rembrandts are probably out of the 'time area of research' of Forgotten Hits, but still, that Rembrandts song is a great track. You might remember that they had a very "Beatles" sound to their writing and singing and guitar work ... they wrote and produced some very interesting tracks.
If you don't think that The Rembrandts version is too 'current' to include in Forgotten Hits, maybe your fans would enjoy hearing it as much as I do, since the story about The Iveys sort of got my mind working, and by the way ... thanks for doing that for me ... I could use all of THAT I can get. lol. I love Forgotten Hits, Kent. When are you going to offer a Forgotten Hits
Your August 4th edition was fun to read and the one article about The Iveys becoming Badfinger caught my eye because, relative to their song "Maybe Tomorrow", I had to think for about 20 minutes but I finally remembered where I'd heard that song title, and I finally came up with the buried memory / fact that there was an original song released by The Rembrandts 25 or so years ago that was also titled "Maybe Tomorrow".
I think that The Rembrandts are probably out of the 'time area of research' of Forgotten Hits, but still, that Rembrandts song is a great track. You might remember that they had a very "Beatles" sound to their writing and singing and guitar work ... they wrote and produced some very interesting tracks.
If you don't think that The Rembrandts version is too 'current' to include in Forgotten Hits, maybe your fans would enjoy hearing it as much as I do, since the story about The Iveys sort of got my mind working, and by the way ... thanks for doing that for me ... I could use all of THAT I can get. lol. I love Forgotten Hits, Kent. When are you going to offer a Forgotten Hits
T-Shirt for us fans?
Veeder Van Dorn
The Denver Moonrakers
Veeder Van Dorn
The Denver Moonrakers
The Rembrandts are best known for their theme song from the hit television series "Friends", "I'll Be There For You" ... had they released it in its prime, it would have been a guaranteed #1 Hit ... but they didn't want to be saddled down with this one hit record so they held it back instead. (When it was finally released in 1995, it went to #17.) Their other big hit was "Just The Way It Is, Baby", which reached #14 in 1991 ... and is another one of my favorites. I don't see anything by them titled "Maybe Tomorrow" hitting the charts at all so I'm not really sure if it was ever released as a single. (In fact, a quick check of Amazon.com doesn't turn up ANYTHING with that title by The Rembrandts, so I'm guessing you're confusing it with another song ... unfortunately, I don't know which one so I can't even help you with this one. Maybe one of our readers has an idea??? Meanwhile, here's what ultimately has proven to be their BIGGER hit, "Just The Way It Is, Baby" ... a GREAT tune from 1991(kk)
Is it my imagination ... or does anyone else hear a resemblance between the Iveys' "Maybe Tomorrow" and your hit-bound single "Girl Across The Room"?
David Lewis
If there is, its subliminal at best. While I absolutely LOVE Badfinger, "Maybe Tomorrow" isn't one of my favorites by them ... but it's no question that their style of keeping the sounds of the '60's alive in the '70's was right up my alley. Even most of the cover songs we did seemed to have a very '60's feel to them! Thanks for the compliment! (kk)
Speaking of "subliminal at best", this seemed like a good time to share THIS one again ... a little tribute to the "trials" of George Harrison, done by Jonathan King of "Everyone's Gone To The Moon" fame!
