Just a few quickies as I'm running out the door ...
TONIGHT:
Hopefully some of our West Coast Readers can take advantage of this invitation:
Hello Kent,
Here are details on a magical musical event happening tonight ... this Friday night ... at 8:00 PM at the Roxy. Please join us if you are available.
Cheers,
Feel free to forward the below to anyone you want for a free spot on the guest list.
Thanks for spreading the word. All that we need are names for the guest list, and if they would like an actual invitation sent to them, we would need their email addresses.
Everyone should RSVP to me or Sara directly (below):
Here is a cool bit of information in regards to SOME of what will happen at the show this Friday night:
The Music of Gene Clark And LOVE Will Be Honored By
Special Guests During Rare Tribute Set At The ROXY In L.A.
On April 29, High Moon Records will celebrate its label launch and upcoming release of LOVE'S 1973 'Black Beauty' and Gene Clark's 1977 'Two Sides To Every Story’ with a one-time-only concert at the Roxy in Los Angeles.
During the concert, Clark's son Kai Clark and the Kai Clark Band will perform 'Two Sides' in its entirety and a full set of Gene Clark songs, and the surviving members of the LOVE Black Beauty Band will perform never-before-heard live versions of songs from Arthur Lee’s lost masterpiece ‘Black Beauty.’
Special surprise guests will perform throughout the night and include the surviving members of the Gene Clark Group (Chip Douglas, Joel Larson and Bill Rinehart) who will reunite for the first time in over 40 years and be joined by Kai Clark, Tim Bluhm of the Mother Hips, Stephen Ehret of Wildflower and famed rock photographer Henry Diltz of Modern Folk Quartet. The event is hosted by Jim Ladd of KLOS and sponsored by LA Weekly and Music Connection
Thanks again!!
I hope to see you at the show this Friday night.
Warmest regards,
Craig
Hi everyone,
Please see the attached press releases and invitation to the High Moon Records launch party on Friday, April 29th at the Roxy in LA. We would really appreciate it if you could pass along the information to friends, family, colleagues, and anyone who you think may be interested in attending. Complimentary tickets are still available; just let us know your guests' names and how many tickets they'd like, or you can have them email us directly. Any promotion for yourself and the event via your Facebook/Twitter/social network accounts/websites is appreciated and encouraged!
Here are some links you can use to promote the show (along with the attached materials):
Thanks so much for everything, and we look forward to seeing you all at the show!
re: AND TOMORROW NIGHT:
Freddy “Boom Boom” Cannon will be interviewed on the nation’s most listened to oldies show this Saturday night, April 30th, on New York’s Powerhouse 50,000 watt signal 77/WABC, with a signal that booms into 38 states. The interview will also be streamed on WABC’s website: http://www.wabcradio.com
Air Talent Mark Simone will interview Freddy at about 8:15pm (NY time) about how his music influenced the Rolling Stones early in their career. . .the night Elvis Presley came to see him perform in Las Vegas. . .his history with Dick Clark ... and his new love of drawing pencil portraits of celebrities, which can be seen on his website:
Phoebe Snow ... dead at 58. Whoa ... way too young.
I saw her once ... she opened for Jackson Browne at Princeton.
Renfield
We were all saddened to hear of Phoebe's passing yesterday. Although she has had some serious health problems this past year, it's still hard to hear that she didn't make it. Her biggest hit, of course, was "Poetry Man", a #5 Hit back in 1975 ... but I always liked her duet with Paul Simon, too ... "Gone At Last" reached #20 later that same year. (kk)
Phoebe Snow, best known for the #5 1975 hit, "Poetry Man," died Tuesday (April 26) from complications of a brain hemorrhage she suffered last year. She was 58. Born Phoebe Laub in New York, she grew up in Teaneck, New Jersey, and took her stage name from an advertising character who appeared for the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. First appearing as a folk artist in Greenwich Village, she was discovered by Shelter Records. Besides "Poetry Man," she also dueted with Paul Simon on "Gone At Last" (#23 - 1975) -- her only U.S. Pop top 40 hits (mainly due to contractual rifts with Shelter and other labels). Phoebe put her career on hold to take care of her brain-damaged daughter, Valerie, who was born in 1975 and died in 2007. She continued performing until her hemorrhage in January of 2010 when she was planning the release of a new album. She was placed in a medical coma and never really recovered. In 1975, Phoebe was nominated for the Best New Artist Grammy award. She will also be remembered for singing the theme to the NBC-TV show "A Different World" and for the classic "Celebrate the moments of your life" commercial for General Foods International Coffees.
-- Ron Smith
re: THE FORGOTTEN HITS BOOK CLUB:
We've been waiting for THIS one for a long, long time ...
Artie Wayne's book "I Did It For A Song" is FINALLY available for purchase!!!
Check out the links below!
Kent,
I hope you and your readers had a HAPPY EASTER!
I'm proud to announce the official release of my autobiography
"I DID IT FOR A SONG".In my book I write about my first hand experiences songwriting (Aretha, Michael Jackson,Tony Orlando, Cher, etc.) producing (the Kingsmen, The Shirelles, the Guess Who) and getting hits for Warner Brothers Music (“You’re 16″, “R+R Heaven”) and Irving / Almo music (“I Honestly Love You”, “Our Day Will Come”).
I share my private stories about, Carole King, MORRIS LEVY, Neil Bogart, The BEATLES, Jimi Hendrix, SCOTT SHANNON, Eagles, MICHAEL JACKSON, Bert Berns, Alan Freed, BOBBY DARIN, Brian Wilson, PAUL WILLIAMS, Murray The K, TOMMY JAMES and the Shondells, Olivia Newton-John, HERB ALPERT, JERRY MOSS, Don Kirshner, RICK JAMES, Rolling Stones, ELLIE GREENWICH, Clive Davis, Barrry White, DAVID GEFFEN, Marvin Gaye, QUINCY JONES, The Rolling Stones, DAVID BOWIE, Phil Spector, AND DOZENS MORE!
And, speaking of new books, I just got a copy of "AND ON PIANO ...
NICKY HOPKINS" by Julian Dawson. Nicky played with just about everybody over the years ... The Beatles (both as a group and as solo artists), The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Kinks, David Bowie, Steve Miller, Jefferson Airplane, Van Morrison, Nilsson, Joe Cocker, Peter Frampton, Rod Stewart ... the list goes on and on. I can't wait to read this one (and am hoping to meet with Julian when he visits Chicago in June.)
For more information on how YOU can get a copy of this hot new book, visit Julian Dawson's website at juliandawson.com.
By the way, Ron Smith's new Rock And Roll Calendar Book, "EIGHT DAYS A WEEK: Births, Deaths And Events Each Day In Oldies History" could be available in the next couple of weeks! We'll keep you posted ... (in fact, we might even have an autographed copy to give away!) ... or you can always just check Ron's incredible oldies website www.oldiesmusic.com ... which will also provide ordering links once the book is ready to ship. (kk)
re: DAVIE ALLAN AND THE ARROWS:
Davie Allan fans are not too happy about the fact that the Mike Curb / Sundazed Records deal fell through to release many of Davie's great movie soundtrack recordings for the first time on CD. Below he shares some of the comments he has received by way of emails to his own website and other oldies music posting boards. (kk)
>>>I don't know if you still wondered about the Sundazed deal with Curb but here is the final word on that. Our backyard (and into the back room and garage) was flooded in December from record rainfall and the nightmare continued with three months of construction. As bad as that has been, even more galling is the canceled deal between Curb and "Sundazed". The following note came two days after we received a revised bill on the rain repairs: (From one of Curb's lawyers, regarding the deal to re-release all the 60's soundtracks of which I was a part on CD) Davie Allan
>>>We received an email from Sundazed the other daythat Sundazed will not be able to work with the economic model we proposed. They offered an alternative model, but such model will not work, as it does not cover the amount that Curb is required to pay out to royalty participants and leave something for Curb. Sundazed's decision came somewhat as a surprise to me as the model that Curb proposed was not questioned by Sundazed until just recently.
And then this from Bob "Sundazed" Irwin:
>>>I simply cannot work with the Curb "model" without losing money on each and every release sold - their proposed royalty structure is far beyond anything that could be considered reality. I had talked with them about this for over a year, so it should come as no surprise to them ... And I worked extremely hard to propose an alternative (which also would have been extremely costly to us, but manageable), but they rejected that two weeks ago. I absolutely cannot spend any more time on this - the math does not work, they will not accept my proposed terms, and I now have to let it go and move on to other things.
>>>That's too bad ... I'm sure a number of our readers were looking forward to these releases, long out of print, including many of which never saw release in the CD format. (Aren't SOME sales at SOME rate better than NO sales at a 0% royalty rate?!?!? Some of this stuff just doesn't make sense anymore ... meanwhile, EVERYBODY loses. I cannot help but wonder what "new" audience this music might have found had a workable agreement been reached.) kk
Kent,
Sorry if my message seems too negative for your site, but here are some of the comments I received on other posting boards after word got out about the now defunct Sundazed-Curb deal to re-release ALL the 60's soundtracks on CD. (By the way, if you read through all of this, you will see that I did NOT put the blame on either Sundazed or Curb when I was asked about the deal ... plus I deleted the names to protect the innocent!): >>>It just doesn't make sense to me. Why lock up these treasures and deny them to a potential new audience? Is Curb going to release them himself? Surely it would be good for him to have the music out there instead of left in the vaults. I know I know little about the music industry, but I would have thought these releases would be of historical interest as well as financial. As usual, the actual talent, the artist, is given last consideration.
>>>There is no end to greed. Davie, you made me want to play guitar. Mike Curb and all the lawyers in the world never made me want to do anything.
>>>All this is so disturbing! Life itself is hard enough without any added dramas and, as unpredictable as what tomorrow has in store, the world is a very foreign place now rather than the land of dreams we had in our naive yesterdays. BUT one thing is a certainty ... we of our generation have this pioneer spirit ... an inner constitution that supercedes any aim to destroy us. We have survived many slings and arrows and still remain to be the legacy of our parentage even if the scenario has morphed into chaotic uncertainties and dismal reflections. Through it all, we have to see within ourselves and examine our faith and beliefs and as our turmoils boil and see the the inner steam from it becomes evident around us like a halo aura that others can perceive and say to themselves ... " This individual is going through some pressure and hardships but they can be trusted with the load of issues because they have been through many fires and remain tempered and somehow keep that eye of the tiger to survive the ordeals ... DAMN THE TORPEDOES!!! ... Full steam ahead! That don't mean we still don't whine and hiss and kick and cuss and cry and wallow in self pity, but we get up and brush off and put on a happy face.
"Atta boy Davie!"
"Atta girl Janine!"
No matter what bedevils us ... no matter what it looks like ... it is a wonderful life!
Glad to be riding this orb together with such beautiful people.
"This too shall pass!"
>>>Dang it! There is no justice...
>>>"The music business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. There's also a negative side."
Hunter Thompson
>>>This is another reason why I have NO problem with people who burn CDs ... these scoundrels are nothing but human garbage wrapped in skin. Hold your head up, Davie ... these scum bags eventually will get theirs. What a load of crap. Still scratching my head in frustration.
>>>What we have that others have not is ... a responding soul.
Those with a responding soul hear music and are able to respond to it intimately.
Those who do not have the responding soul see music as their commodity to broker and although they know a good tune when they hear one, they can never ride it to the place we can because as corrupt as our flesh may be, we never compromised our respondent soul but kept it guarded with much melodies of music.
They on the other hand are music pimps and see music as Ted Bundy saw women.
Hi! Who are you? I'm Davie Allan. I am a musician and I offer my gift of music to the world.
Off in the shadows: And then who might you be? I'm the wrangler of his music. I'm a "Serial Music Pimp".
>>>Far be it from me to tell Mike Curb what to do, but if I were him, I would be honored to have nurtured Davie's career, promoted him and his music to the max and re-launch those fabulous movie soundtracks. Curb is aptly named because he has curbed one of the most enduring musical talents if not his career in the US, maybe the world. Davie Allan is part of the soundtrack of my life even before I heard of him. So glad I made the effort to seek out his albums and surf onto the website.
Still, Davie, you are still standing and still playing. The rock historians should be rewriting their history books, especially after the surprise package that is "Retrophonic 2".
>>>The limitless greed and lack of human-soulful connection of the music biz sharpsters never ceases to amaze and repulse me. Curb has feasted heavily off not only Davie Allan, but a stable of other very profitable talented artists. He has already made a very comfortable fortune. There is a concept called "pro bono" which he continues to ignore. My concept of pro-bono is to GIVE BACK to the universe some pittance of what you have already reaped or squeezed out of it.
>>>How stupid. It sounds like someone who can't take the heat but still wants to stay in the kitchen!
>>>What can I say about Curb that we don't already know, but it's a drag he blew the deal by not playing ball with Sundazed. Come on what does he really have to lose?
>>>I'd like to see what both their "models" are ... Record companies suck.
>>>It would be amazing to see (not to mention, hear) "Glory Stompers," both "Wild Angels," "Thunder Alley" etc., as properly released CDs. It seems that it was out of Bob Irwin's hands and Curb just chose to make the price so high. I'm sure Bob's mightily disappointed and this 'dog in the manger' routine Curb pulls makes it beneficial for no one -- not even him. (And to think I always thought he valued profit before anything else. Hmmm ... ) Seems like he's being vindictive for no good reason.
>>>This whole thing with the soundtracks deal is pretty sad to hear about. I was hoping it would happen. I don't understand ... would it be too expensive to release all this stuff?!?! This confuses me: "Curb is required to pay out to royalty participants and leave something for Curb." Wouldn't he just need to pay you? Also the guy is pretty freakin' loaded; why does he need something left for him. Even a small percentage would work for him ... he owns the rights too all the soundtracks!!! This sucks. Is there any other way that this would get released or is it pretty much a lost cause?
It would have been cool to see this released. I had the idea that it could have been done as sort of a box set with ALL the soundtracks, 2 or 3 movie soundtracks in each CD. And you could have a couple of discs with the box set as well as pictures of the movie posters more photos of DA & the Arrows, stories and such. It could have been freakin' awesome!!!
>>>Jesus ... Davie, this is appalling. Curb is going to take this insanity to the grave, isn't he?
Is it possible to take this deal elsewhere, or will Curb's greed torpedo it again? How much money does the man need? What is he getting from this? It has passed far beyond the realms of pathological and into the realms of the sadistic. I'm so, so sorry.
Clearly, there is a fanbase clamoring for the release of this music. Here's hoping that SOMETHING can be worked out that would satisfy ALL of the parties concerned. (kk)
re: DO WE REALLY REMEMBER THE HITS AND THE ORIGINAL VERSIONS?:
Now, is this the "hit" Kent remembers?
Could it be someone's trying to fool him and messed with the stereo mix, maybe even left some tape tracks out!? Kent claims they know the "originals"! But, really, just how well do the know them!? Even I am sometimes fooled into thinking it's a remake, when it was just actually (re)mixed differently!!!
Do I remember it? You betcha!!! In fact, MY copy of "Rubber Soul" was one of those rare mono editions that had the false start of "I'm Looking Through You" ... which was the ONLY way I knew this song for probably ten years. I had NO idea at the time that it was a false start or a rare pressing ... it truly was the ONLY way I had ever heard it so I just assumed that this was the way The Beatles intended it to be. The first time I heard it WITHOUT the false start, I thought THAT was a mistake ... figured the needle skipped ('cause this was back in the day when they still played vinyl in the studio on many of the FM stations.) Only YEARS later did I find out that this was a rare mistake that made it through into the fans' hands! So yes, I ABSOLUTELY remember what "I'm Looking Through You" sounded like on MY record player!!! (kk)
re: ELVIS AND THE BEATLES:
Kent;
Don't know about how U.S. radio station were (?) regulated in the days that the Beatles were intro-ed TO north America ... but I DO know that each ANNOUNCER, be they a disc jockey or just announcer of info, had a LOG BOOK, before them with what was to be played or said
along with any commercial. As each speaking and record playing was done, its id was crossed out.
How it's done today (????????) I don't know.
How to find out WHO actually spun that FIRST EVER Beatle 45 ... the station that played that type of music in the early 60s (Somehow I figure some are OFF the air) one would have to tediously go back to look it up.
Here in Toronto, there is a station CFRB Newstalk 1010 AM, that, back then, had a gentleman, RAY SONIN, who on Sat evenings had a program, CALLING ALL BRITONS, and, on a regular basis, he and his wife went 'ome for visits and to first hand catch up with the musical happenings of any type. Seems that on one visit he heard of this group, the BEATLES, gave them a listen to, and brought back a 45.
What the broadcast licensing deal was, I've no idea, but, he often said in later years that HE was the first person in NORTH AMERICA to spin, the BEATLES ...
BUUUUUUUUUUUUUT, there again, one would have to look up the log books ... again/
About two years prior to the Beatles, I had been into listening to the radio and gotten the liking of Elvis' style and my younger brother was listening to THEM. I remember the big build up when they were announced by Ed Sullivan, they'd be on NEXT WEEK. Their many records had been being played at the high school dances, which was just up the street from our house, so getting there was easy. HEY, I liked their stuff, too ... I just didn't go "GA-GA" over them.
Well, we sat and watched 'em on Ed Sullivan ... yep, the girls squealin'. Watching was my mother and, after a few seconds, she commented, "They did the same for Elvis!"
Who? I wonder who was theeeee first to send his / her audience into a frenzie???
Read somewhere that one of the master piano players of the 17 or 1800's did it!!!!!!
Yep, this column blog, whatever it be called in computer linguistics, what we celebrate
wouldn't be, but for them guys back THEN.
Robert Black
(By the way, it's Contrario, not C;Ontario ... I like to play with words ... CONtrario describes our Prov gov't.)
Scroll back on the blog and you'll find several instances where we addressed Ray Sonin and playing The Beatles first in North America. Like you said, the ONLY way to know ... and PROVE ... for sure would be to track down those vintage log books. Honestly, I can't believe ANY of this stuff still exists anymore. With so many radio stations changing hands and changing formats over the years, I believe it would be virtually IMPOSSIBLE at this point in time to determine anything for certain ... but what we did in the research that we did way back when (in determining that Dick Biondi was the first disc jockey in America to play The Beatles) was double-check, triple-check and quadruple-check the timelines and then bear these out with actual documentation of these songs showing up on the radio station's survey charts. I'm pretty confident that we're right ... and any number of challengers have come along over the past several years stating otherwise ... but NONE of them have offered anything in the way of documented proof like what we show on the website. So for right now ... and until somebody conclusively proves otherwise ... we're stickin' with our story! (kk)
>>>>It's a little known fact that years before his success as a solo artist, Rick had a band at the age of 17 called The McCoys that had a #1 hit in 1965 called, "Hang on Sloopy." (from the Hippiefest Promo Rick Derringer bio) Who writes this stuff? Maybe a little-known fact to the writer, but not to the majority of the fans!
David Lewis
... and, speaking of Hippiefest ...
re: GARY WRIGHT:
Seeing Gary on the Hippiefest tour reminded me of this one ... Gary's OTHER Hit Record ... "Two Faced Man". Top 40 radio wouldn't play this, but the progressive FMs did. I don't guess it was released as a single?
Here's an interesting Gary Wright video with George assisting.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81i_1gmztRc
Although it's somewhat familiar, I honestly don't know this one ... and I don't show it even "bubbling under" as a single release.
Gary's two biggest hits, of course, were "Dream Weaver" (which went all the way to #1 in Cash Box Magazine) and "Love Is Alive" (#2), both from 1976. He had a bit of a comeack hit in 1981 when "Really Wanna Know You" reached #16. (Actually I think Gary Wright toured recently as part of Ringo Starr's All-Starr Band!)
I clearly remember George Harrison going on Dick Cavett's late night talk show to promote "The Concert For Bangla Desh" album ... and he brought along Gary Wright who sang a song where Harrison "guested" on guitar ... little did I know (or remember) that it was THIS particular song!!! (The show started with little fanfare ... just an announcement of Gary Wright performing ... and it was up to the audience to catch George sitting in on guitar.)
I'll never forget George telling Cavett "I've learned a lot from the Lennons" when it came to self promotion ... totally cracked me up at the time ... and still does thinking back on it. (George always seemed so laid-back as "The Quiet Beatle"!!!) You can catch that entire interview here:
VERY cool to think of George Harrison doing this!!!
Cavett had the "hippest" talk show at the time ... so it was really cool to see people like George Harrison and John Lennon show up on the couch! (kk)
re: HIPPIEFEST (and HAPPY TOGETHER AGAIN) TOUR ARTISTS:
kk wrote recently wrote about Hippiefest and the Happy Together Tour:
Figure I'd entertain the FH fans while you're slacking off! :-)
The Buckinghams - Kind Of A Drag (countdown): http://www.angelfire.com/empire/abpsp/images/kinddrag-a.mp3The Turtles - She's My Girl (Stereo!): http://www.angelfire.com/empire/abpsp/images/mygirl-st.mp3Grand Funk - The Loco-Motion (studio talk): http://www.angelfire.com/empire/abpsp/images/loco-motion.mp3Grand Funk - Closer To Home (studio chat, false start): http://www.angelfire.com/empire/abpsp/images/closertohome.mp3The Association - Never My Love (superior mastering): http://www.angelfire.com/empire/abpsp/images/mylove.mp3The Association - Along Comes Mary (superior mastering):http://www.angelfire.com/empire/abpsp/images/comesmary-r.mp3The Association - Cherish (superior mastering): http://www.angelfire.com/empire/abpsp/images/cherish.mp3Jersey John
Thanks, John ... gee, what would we do without you?!?!? (kk)
A comment about The Happy Together Tour that goes along with the agents and promoters running the show(s). The nearest venue to us has decided to charge VERY high ticket prices for most of the performances they produce, so we have been priced out for this one. I saw the show last year at the same venue and this year's prices have tripled. Good news / Bad news. I love the fact that promoters feel these shows warrant the high prices ... says much positive for my taste. BUT, I would also like to be able to go!
Shelley J. Sweet-Tufano
Again, probably something beyond the artists' control (unless they're sharing in TRIPLE the bounty this time around!) Somehow, I kinda doubt it. (kk)
I'll hopefully have the chance to check out The Happy Together Tour personally sometime in the next few weeks ... and, from what I've heard, that Bethlehem, PA, venue (about
10 miles from my home) is fantastic!! That whole complex (formerly part of the town's legendary steel mill) is now the new centerpiece of the annual Musikfest celebration held every August.
http://www.musikfest.org/info/
-- BOB FRABLE,
Easton, PA
Can't anyone have these tours come to Tallahassee, Florida?
I'm an old hippie and doo wop lover.
I can't travel very far, but I want to see these artists.
the great and wonderful Malcolm
Maybe it's time for the fans to write to the promoters and tell them they want to see these shows. Surely if enough venues in certain parts of the country are interested in putting these on, it will make financial sense to do so. This is one hell of a line up for both The Happy Together Tour AND Hippiefest this year ... give the fans a chance to see their heroes. (Seriously, who knows when they'll pass this way again!) kk
re: UPCOMING SHOWS:
Hi again to friends and fans in South Carolina, Colorado and Wyoming -- or those of you who may be in S.C., Colorado or Wyoming over the next few weeks.
I'll be leaving this Friday (April 29) to play shows in Ehrhardt, S.C., Denver, CO, and Rock Springs & Green River, Wyoming.
April 30, 2011 - Saturday, 7 pm
Ehrhardt Auditorium -- On Madison St., one block west of & parallel to U.S. 601 behind Ehrhardt City Hall in Ehrhardt, SC 29081(A presentation of the Bamberg County Chamber of Commerce)
May 7, 2011 - Saturday
Swallow Hill Music Association -- 71 East Yale Ave -- Denver, CO 80210
(303) 777 - 1003 swallowhillmusic.org
May 8, 2011 - Sunday, 7 pm
Western Wyoming Community College -- John Wesley Powell Room -- Green River, WY(Sponsored by the Arlene & Louise Wesswick Series, the concert is free and open to the public.)
Contact Chris: 307-382-1728 -- ckennedy@wwcc.wy.edu
And there've been some pretty widespread reports of "personality clashes" already on The Monkees' 45th Anniversary Reunion Tour currently getting under way in Great Britain. Too bad ... these guys just can't seem to get along. All three regularly perform as solo acts ... and still draw a loyal and faithful crowd ... but TOGETHER they can pack the house everywhere they go. In that this will most likely be the LAST time they ever regroup to do this, why not just enjoy it for all it's worth? You're each making FAR more money than you EVER could doing your solo gigs ... and the fans can't wait to see you. PLEASE get it together before this thing kicks off here in The States! (kk)
re: DIGGIN' FORGOTTEN HITS:
you need an eggorcism
NorthTexGal
Funny!!!! LOL!
You're eggsactly right!
Best,
John
FORGOTTEN HITS has been great ! You have to spend way more time on yours than I do on mine ... ARE YOU EVER GOING BACK TO WORK ?
Renfield
LOL ... BEEN back to work ... for about 2 1/2 years now!!! Still squeezing this in to what remains of very little "free" time ... but glad that folks are still enjoying the results of our efforts! Thanks, Gary! (kk)
Hi Kent,
I haven't written in a while, but I've certainly been staying current on the Sunday comments and a few mid-week visits as well. I've also been trying to navigate my way through your years of archived content, never knowing when a certain link will lead to another. It dawned on me that trawling through Forgotten Hits is like that long lost, exhilarating experience of combing the cut-out bins of yesteryear. You never know what unexpected treasure may be next, there at your fingertips. My trips to FH have become an essential pastime. Keep up the good work!
(And, for all of you out there who keep preaching "Size Doesn't Matter" ... then you'll just LOVE today's Comments Page ... as Blogger has once again decided to change ALL of my sizes and spacing no matter how many times I go back and fix it!!!)
re: HAPPY EASTER!: Today is Good Friday!!! Make it better, make it Great Friday and feed me some new FH News! LOL! John Honestly, we're doing everything we can to keep up with this ... but sometimes it gets away from us ... and we fall a little behind! Should have a few new posts this week, including a brand new edition of "Helping Out Our Readers"! (kk)
Your eggsellent epistle was filled with bad yolks!
Steve Davidson
Kent ...
Too many EGGS ... Not enough BUNNIES.
Frank B.
hahaha Kent,
your Eggsplanation was fun to read!
Shelley J. Sweet-Tufano
Kent,
Did you write all this? It's great!
Happy E-Day,
Davie Allan
Kent,
I had no idea you were such an Eggs-istentialist!
Regards,
Scott
Too Cute! Happy Easter to you and your family!
U R EGGONORATED THIS TIME Kent!!!!
Lynn
Kent,
Good to know you are alive and kicking. The absence of the Friday Forgotten Hit had me worried that something had happened to you ... and apparently it did. It appears you were kidnapped by some eggstra-terrestrials and they scrambled your brains ... LOL.
You often talk about the long hours you have to put in at your job ... just wondered what you do for a living.
This particular reader is happy you still find the time to do the Forgotten Hits webpage. Thanks again.
Stacee
In the "real world", I work for a printing company in the Chicago suburbs ... and, simply put, quite often the demands are pretty intense ... Thursday was literally an up at 5:15 am, home at 11:00 pm day ... what's that??? Eighteen hours?!?!?! And all this just so I could take Friday off???
HARDLY seems fair that after putting in double hours Friday should count as a "vacation" day!!! But such is the world we live in.
Please know ... we ALWAYS publish WHAT we can, WHEN we can ...
sometimes it's just a whole lot harder to keep up the schedule than others!!! (kk)
Kent,
First let me say that I enjoyed your commentary today concerning whether you should put out a FH on Easter Sunday or not. Now, personally, I don't see anything wrong with it. I got up this morning, went to Church, went out and ate a good lunch. If you hadn't put one out today, I would have understood. Same goes for Christmas, New Years, 4th of July, etc.
In fact, would you believe this morning on the way to church, it dawned on me that maybe I should have e-mailed you with some suggestions of Easter Songs to mention, if not put on your website. For eggsample: THE BUNNY HOP by either Ray Anthony, or the Appeljacks version, (remember them), I WANNA BE AN EASTER BUNNY by the Singing Reindeer,(what, you don't remember that one?) and another one by Lee and Paul from 1959 called the CHICK on Columbia, which, believe it or not made it into our top 5 here in OKC.
I enjoyed your readers' comments on Mr. Randy Wood. The one thing I always liked and noticed about Dot Records were that in the early years one could find the year of release on the label.
This idea of radio station giving out the wrong time on purpose years ago, I really don't remember or even hearing about it here in OKC. Same for speeding up the records. Maybe the stations here in OKC did it but I don't know. I do know that many years ago, radio stations here in OKC were arbitron rated twice a year. Now they are done every quarter.
Finally, I was talking to a friend of mine the other day and something was said that reminded him about a record some years ago. He asked me what my dad did during the war and I said that he was in the navy. He snapped his fingers and said that there was a song he had not heard in years. I said what are you talking about? IN THE NAVY by the Village People. You mentioned it, of course, in your Sunday Comments today.
Again, I don't see anything really wrong on putting out a FH on holidays. I did of course notice that there wasn't a forgotten 45 on Friday. What an appropriate song to omit, expression wise, on Friday. OH ME, OH MY (I'M A FOOL FOR YOU BABY). I am not sure but I believe I have heard Scott Shannon play that sometime during the last two months. Wait a minute! Stop the presses!! I just thought of something. A few sentences ago, I used the expression "snap your fingers". Hmm! SNAP YOUR FINGERS. That sounds like a good title for a song, maybe sometime around the early sixties, like 1962, on some obscure record label, maybe named Todd, by a singer sounding very similar to Brook Benton. Nope! Never would have happened.
Larry
re: FREDDY CANNON:
Sounds like Freddy's getting LOTS of publicity about his drawings ...
just got this from FH Reader Tom Cuddy:
FREDDY CANNON:Now His Art Is Visual
Freddy "Boom Boom" Cannon has shared stages, and been friends, with many of rock and roll's greatest stars. And now, the voice of such classics as "Palisades Park," "Action" and "Way Down Yonder in New Orleans" is drawing sketches of them. Cannon's website has a page featuring his pencil renderings of Mick Jagger, JohnnyCash, StevieNicks and Ricky Nelson as well as such sports figures as Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers and star player Rajon [pr: RAY-zhawn] Rondo. While the work is original, Cannon says he always studies photos of his subjects to capture their expressions. Magnifying the area around their eyes is a key to capturing the details.
Freddy Cannon will join Jimmy Clanton and several other stars from rock's first decade on May 7th at the Keswick Theater in the Philadelphia suburb of Glenside, Pennsylvania. --Mike McCann
KENT,
THANKS FOR POSTING MY SITE ON FORGOTTEN HITS.
I HAVE DONE REAL WELL AND THANKS, TOO, TO MY FRIEND SCOTT SHANNON AND THE TRUE OLDIES CHANNEL. I'M DOING MORE DRAWINGS, MORE VARIETY.
I WILL BE POSTING MORE PICTURES IN ANOTHER WEEK.
AGAIN, THANK YOU!
FREDDY "BOOM BOOM" CANNON
re: BRIAN HYLAND:
Another long-time list favorite is Brian Hyland ... so it was nice to get this from Clark Besch the other day ...
I'm Afraid To Go Home -- Brian Hyland
Last week was the 150th anniversary week since the beginning of the Civil War. This may be the best song to be listening to for remembering the day (from the Top 40 era). I really like the song and it is reminiscent of the later Vogues' "5 O'Clock World" beat! Brian Hyland has some GREAT music that is passed over because he had so many HITS! A few I would acknowledge checking out: Save Your Heart for Me -- Same song Gary Lewis had a smash with. His is simpler, but beautiful as well. Stay Away from Her -- My long time friend James Holvay co-wrote this great song with Brian when they were on tour in 64 with Dick Clark's Caravan of Stars tour. Holvay was a member of the backing band for the stars and first year out of high school! He and Brian wrote several songs on the bus together. Two got released. One was this A side single which I believe I have charting in May, 64 on WHK Cleveland, so am guessing it was recorded before May? The song is a dead ringer for Del Shannon sound of the day. The other song that Brian recorded and released out of the batch that they wrote together was "One Night Jimmy", appearing on the "Run, Run, Look & See" album in 66. James tells me that he also co-wrote "Don’t Give Up Now” and “Even If She Doesn’t Love Me”, also from apparently the same session as "Stay Away from Her." 3000 Miles -- Yes, an Artie Wayne song that is REALLY good too! Artie is well-known by most of us now. I Can Hear the Rain -- CLASSIC Hyland song written by Layng Martine, Jr. and also well recorded by Reparata & Del Rons for RCA. Brian's is really great! Flip side of "Joker Went Wild" if I remember correctly. Hung Up In Your Eyes -- Another really cool one that came with pic sleeve, too! It was also used for a Rowe Jukebox Stimulator that was played in jukeboxes to entice people to play records when no one was plugging the box. Holiday for Clowns -- Right in the Gary Lewis sound of the day and a natural follow-up to his two previous hits, "Joker.." and "Run Run ..." Holiday is a GREAT slice of bubblegum not dissimilar in lyric to "Everybody Loves a Clown." Get the Message -- Indeed a PERFECT song for its' day. Hard to believe mid 67 gave us this, "Western Union" by the 5 Americans and Robbs' "Rapid Transit" all with "dit dit dit's" or something to do with messages of some type. All great! Stay & Love me All Summer -- A perfect follow-up to his hits "Tragedy" and "A Million to One" this eclipses those in greatness by far. It was #1 in Wichita when I lived in Kansas.
Anyway, some REAL gems that would be great to hear from masters. Clark Besch
I'm a big Brian Hyland fan, too ... several times over the past five or six years we've been promised interviews with him but it has yet to happen. Would LOVE to have the readers come up with a bunch of questions to ask this obvious list favorite!
While "I'm Afraid To Go Home" didn't do very well on the national charts (it peaked at #59 in Cash Box and #63 in Billboard), it was a #7 Hit here in Chicago. (By the way, Brian's original version of "Save Your Heart For Me" is the B-Side of this record ... great version, by the way!) kk
And, while we're on the topic, apparently our interview with Jack Scott is officially off. Sounds like Jack's been working with somebody on a biography and doesn't want to "give too much away" in our pages prior to the book coming out. Oh well ... maybe he'll want to help PROMOTE the book, once it's available, and we can talk to him then. (We'll see!!!) kk
I like his early hits best. The consecutive weeks on the charts record for his "Greatest Hits" Album is quite impressive.
Frank B.
Yeah, I always think of Johnny Mathis and Pink Floyd when I think about album chart records! (lol) Crazy thing is, that's EXACTLY who you SHOULD be thinking about ... yet, despite all his chart hits (and his legion of fans), you never hear ANY Johnny Mathis music on the oldies stations anymore. All this guy did was score 22 National Top 40 Hits, including Five Top 10's ("It's Not For Me To Say", "Chances Are", "Gina", "What Will Mary Say" and "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late") and two Number One's ("Chances Are" and "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late"). kk
Obviously, it was remade and reissued, then it became an international Pop hit!!!! So, in this case, tell your favorite DJ to play the remake, not the original version!!!! (Jersey John)
A quick note: The Sweet's song "Fox On The Run" came out in late 1975, not 1974, and was popular in late 1975 and early 1976.
Leah Jordan
For the record, "Fox On The Run" debuted on The British Chart in March of 1975 ... it wouldn't appear here in The States (in its remade form) until eight months later. (kk)
re: COOL OLDIES VIDEOS:
I wanted to alert you to a project for which I’ve been doing some work.So while I guess this is a shameless plug, I think this venture will be of increasing interest to you and your visitors.
The company is Digital Video Singles or DVS (www.digitalvideosingles.com) .This is a relatively new start-up whose mission is to unearth lost and forgotten music performances –chiefly from the pre-MTV era — that were captured on film or videotape.We secure licensing rights to the footage, digitally restore it and make them available on iTunes.I’m proud to say that, in every case, we directly compensate the featured artists or their estates.
The DVS catalog is currently a modest 20-some clips, but we expect to reach at least 100 or more in the weeks ahead.As small as it may be right now, our current roster speaks to the diversity we hope to curate as we go forward.In addition to videos from Paul McCartney, Elton John, the Moody Blues, the Four Tops and George Harrison, we also have performances from Richard Thompson, Sister Rosetta Tharp (do not miss her!), Neil Sedaka, Nanci Griffith and Iggy Pop.We have a lot of amazing stuff in the pipeline, too.Without giving anything specific away, there’s lots of vintage Motown in the pipeline, classic rock and British Invasion stuff.I think I heard some mention of your buddy, Peter Noone!
As I have seen, you have lots of legendary performers and broadcasters among your readership and, as our chief goal is to rescue what might otherwise be lost slices of music history, I want to throw this out there:If you own or know the whereabouts of some incredible performance footage, let us know.If you’re aware of a dusty archive at an old production studio or TV station, let us know.Even if you simply recall a legendary concert event or personal appearance and believe that it was professionally recorded, let us know, we may be able to find it.DVS would be delighted to hear from you, and the company will gladly pay licensing and finder’s fees if we come up with something that begs to be seen.So everybody’s deputized!
Some of us (myself included!) had trouble with this one on Sunday ... so we're trying it one more time again today. (I actually was able to get it to work again later in the day!) kk