Saturday, October 1, 2011

The Weekend Comments (Part One)

TONS of comments again this week ...

So we're giving you a Double Dose this weekend.

So let's get it started!


re:  OOPS!:

Hello Kent,
Hey, whattsamattayou?  Who's doing the quality control?  A Million to One by the Jive Five linked to an MP3 by the Five Satins ??? (Sunday 25th post)
Oh well at least I'm still reading the posts! ha ha
Take Care,
Charlie
Sweet Dreams
Charlie Fraser
Oops! Sorry about that.  (Honestly, I wouldn't have known the difference ... not my area of expertise!  All I did was link to the clip Carrie sent me!)  But I DID ask her if she could help to explain or clarify the error  (if we'd made one.)  Here's what I got back:


I'm so sorry Kent. He is right. It is by the Five Satins and that's what I have on my Itunes too. I don't know why I said the Jive Five. My birthday was yesterday and I think I'm getting a case of CRS. lol
Carrie
No problem ... we just wanted to get the correction out there!  Thanks, Carrie!  (kk)


And another correction ... when talking about the song "Point Me In The Direction Of Albuquerque the other day, we misspelled songwriter Tony Romeo's name as "Romero" ... sorry about that!  (kk)
Clark Besch had the spelling of " ... Albuquerque"'s writer correct. It's Tony Romeo.
(For a long time I couldn't get "I'm Gonna Make You Mine" out of my head after playing Ronnie Allen's interview of Louuuuuu Christie.)
-- BOB FRABLE



re:  THREE STARS ... THE DAY THE MUSIC DIED:
Clear Lake, Iowa, near where Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper died in a 1959 plane crash, will dedicate Three Stars Plaza in their honor October 13. In addition, the city will dedicate Ritchie Valens Drive and J.P. Richardson Avenue, contiguous to the existing Buddy Holly Place. Together they will triangulate the Surf Ballroom, where the trio played their last concert. Buddy Holly Place will rededicated with updated signs.
-- Ron Smith


re:  TOMMY ROE:
Of course Tommy Roe is one of those artists who have always been associated with the "sound" of Buddy Holly.  Tommy's been doing some great comeback appearances in Canada (after his big return to the stage at last year's Beat Expo put together by our FH Buddy Charles Rosenay.)

We're trying to help line up some dates for Tommy here Stateside ... personally, I think he'd make a GREAT addition to ANY oldies show line-up.  Here's more information if you're a promoter and you're interested in booking Tommy for one of your gigs!  (kk)

HI!

Catch TOMMY ROE and band at CASINO RAMA, RAMA ONTARIO  OCT 15
RICK LEVY MANAGEMENT PROUDLY PRESENTS THE RETURN OF A ROCK N ROLL PIONEER AND INTERNATIONAL STAR ... TOMMY ROE - AN EVENING WITH TOMMY ROE!
FAIR AND FESTIVAL BUYERS ... DON'T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY ... IT'S FAMILY FUN FOR ALL AGES!
TOMMY ROE
*DIZZY* *SHEILA* *SWEET PEA* *EVERYBODY* *JAM UP JELLY TIGHT*
23 TOP 100 HITS ... 11 TOP 40 ... 6 TOP 10!
(WROTE AND RECORDED MORE THAN ANY SOLO AMERICAN ARTIST IN 60S!)
THE BEATLES OPENED FOR TOMMY IN THE UK!!!
I'd love to work with you ... he's a draw for sure!
Check out this brand new video montage of new photos ... and a great lost classic tune of Tommy's recorded in the UK back in 1964!
904 - 806 - 0817
AFFORDABLE ... EASY TO WORK WITH
CALL NOW ... RICK LEVY
904 - 806 - 0817

re:  PAUL REVERE AND THE RAIDERS:
Kent ...  
Don't you think Paul Revere & Raiders should sing this song in all their shows?
Frank B.  
Click here: The Monotones - Ride of Paul Revere - YouTube 
Man, wouldn't THAT make for an awesome double bill??? Tommy Roe live in concert with Paul Revere and the Raiders?!?!?  Sounds like an ultra cool show to me!!!  (kk)
re:  THE ADDRISI BROTHERS:
Clark Besch recently mentioned the Addrisi Brothers.  Very talented as penners AND performers.  Not familiar with "Somebody Found Her" but it sounds like my "wheelhouse."  Can anyone post it?  I also wanted to mention that Kenny Young (if we're talking about the same guy) was a featured singer and writer with The San Francisco Earthquake -- "The March of the Jingle-Jangle People" -- a non-hit on Smash from about '69 or so, has a very Fifth Estate kind of sound and is one of my favorites by them.  Locally popular but never caught on nationally.  
Bobster
I'm a fan of The Addrisi Brothers, too ... especially like their early '70's non-hit "I Can Feel You" ... which was actually a Top 20 Record here in Chicago (despite only managing to "bubble under" in Billboard!)  Anybody got a copy of "Somebody Found Her" they can send in???  (kk)

re:  TOMMY JAMES:
We've been telling you for over a year now that this was gonna happen ... but who listens to us?!?!?  I guess now it's finally official.  (It MUST be if Frank B. found it on the WCBS-FM website!!!)  kk

Kent ...

Martin Scorsese strikes again.  Tommy James' book turns into a movie and a play.
Frank B.

http://wcbsfm.radio.com/2011/09/30/tommy-james-talks-to-dan-taylor-about-the-rascals-martin-scorsese-and-more/

re: RICK NELSON:
>>>Interesting interview with James Burton.  (Gary Theroux)


Wow where was it and when was it posted? Did I miss something in my old age? Honest to God I'd love to hear what James would have to say about his time with the Rickster!

Wild Bill


It's a GREAT interview.  And be sure to look for links within the article ... I think there were THREE parts if I remember correctly.  Good stuff!
kk



And from Ricky ... to Micky!!! 


re:  MORE MICKY:
Kent ...

Being fired by WCBS-FM, was a great career move.  If you remember, Micky was the morning DJ on the old WCBS-FM. He lost his job, when they switched to JACK-FM.  Like you said, Micky Dolenz is all over the place.
Frank B.

re:  SLY STONE:
>>>Earlier this year, Stone released an album of his hits re-recorded with other artists.

(WILLEM ALKEMA and REED TUCKER – New York Post)
I believe this CD (album) has already surfaced in the budget bin. Cute, but of no value to me.
Jersey John

It's always curious to me when these big name artists go back and recut their material.  It's rarely (if EVER) going to improve upon the original ... but some of these pairings would be pretty interesting.  (Sly Stone recording with Michael Jackson, for example ... some tracks of which may actually exist ... I would find VERY interesting ... and at least want to hear them for myself!)  kk

re:  THE SULLI-GULLI:
Dull to listen to, but would be ROFL to watch.
Shelley J. Sweet-Tufano

re:  CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL:
Nice round-up of the CCR story, and the comments are cool to read.  I wonder how many people reading this page are familiar with the Tom Fogerty solo albums?  They're actually pretty decent. The first suffers from lame production (the drums sound like plastic boxes) but things improve after that, and his Myopia album is one that I think all CCR fans would like and should hear.  Unfortunately only only his first, self-titled album made the album charts, and then only as high as #180, but I'd say he deserves a bit more attention today from the average CCR fan. 
- AJV
Thanks!  Our CCR piece is another one of our most popular articles and thousands and thousands of CCR fans have discovered it since we permanently posted it on the OTHER Forgotten Hits web page here:

And now that John Fogerty has gone on the record as saying that he "wouldn't rule out" a Creedence Clearwater Revival reunion, who KNOWS what the next chapter may be!!!  (I've always been a HUGE CCR Fan ... loved 'em from Day One ... and was just listening to the "Green River" and "Cosmo's Factory" CDs in the car the other day!  They STILL sound fresh today.  I've seen John Fogerty several times over the years ... but only managed to see Creedence live once ... and to this day I still believe it was the LOUDEST concert I've ever seen and heard ... to the point of complete discomfort ... you literally couldn't enjoy it (and I love EVERYTHING they ever did.)  The group was down to a trio by this point (1972) and I don't know if they were over-compensating or what ... but it was truly unlistenable.  (So guys, if you're all paying attention, you OWE me another show!!!  lol)  kk

re:  THE BEATLES:
Kent ...
Are you ready for the Beatles, before they were the Beatles?
To be released 11/8/11.
(I would've waited a couple of days ... 11/11/11).
Frank B.
Well, The Beatles already took advantage of 9-9-09 when they reissued their entire catalog (and The Rock Band game) ... but this isn't a Beatles release ... it's being put out by Time / Life, who normally doesn't release stuff to the general marketplace, so that's kinda cool.
Fact is, there's really nothing special about this release ... in fact, this is probably the 15th time they've marketed these same tracks.  (Let's face it ... only so many exist!) 
If you've never heard them, they're interesting from a historical perspective only ... "My Bonnie" actually hit the US charts (and THIS is the record that first prompted a Liverpool lad to wander into Brian Epstein's record store and ask for it because it was by a local band who just happened to be playing right up the street at The Cavern Club) ... but on everything other than two tracks (and one of those is an instrumental written by John Lennon and George Harrison, "Cry For A Shadow"), The Beatles are simply the back-up band ... all of the lead vocals are handled by Tony Sheridan.  The OTHER track (and a STAND-OUT track at that) however, (and one that we featured just a couple of weeks ago) is John Lennon's rip-roaring vocal on "Aint She Sweet", a raving rock-up of the old 1920's standard that The Beatles have their way with.  To this day, I still think it's one of John Lennon's best rock lead vocals, right up there with "Twist And Shout".  Those KEY tracks ... "My Bonnie", "Cry For A Shadow" and "Ain't She Sweet" ... all appear on the first Beatles Anthology CD, too.  Everything else is the kind of stuff you'll probably listen to once and then put away.
Far more interesting a release would be a legitimate, high-quality issue of The Beatles' Decca audition tapes.  These, too, have been circulating for decades in bootleg form ... (and a few found their way on to Anthology 1 as well) ... but a high-quality, detail-annotated edition would be a welcome edition to ANY Beatles collection (especially when one considers that Decca turned The Beatles down because "groups with guitars are on their way out"!!!)


re:  THE WEDDING SONG(s):
Kent,
Maybe it's the Brit in me, but I'm a real sucker, too, for Julie Rodgers' song "The Wedding".
Mike Ogilvie
Mississauga, ON
Canada 
Kent,
You probably will want to kill me before this is over. I just thought of a future wedding song you possibly could feature leading up to the two weddings you have planned. For the week of August 23, 1962, here in OKC, Bob Braun's recording of TIL DEATH DO US PART was number one (Decca).
Larry Neal

And let's not forget THE wedding song ... (which was actually just called "The Wedding Song") by Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary fame!!!  Yep, there's a ton of them!!!  (kk)

Kent:
How about DOWN THE AISLE OF LOVE by The Quin-tones?
Or TO THE AISLE by The Five Satins?
Tal Hartsfeld


re:  BOBBY DARIN:
Kent ...
Here is an official document I'd like you to sign and return:
I , Kent Kotal, being of sound mind --- do promise to re-run my Bobby Darin Series by the end
of the year, 2012. If I fail to do this, I will fly to New York (at my own expense) and paint Frank's house (at my own expense).

---------------------------------------------------
Please sign, notarize and return to me.
Frank B.
I love Kent's Bobby Darin stuff so much, maybe I'll come paint both your houses! 
(Subliminal hint: rerun Darin, rerun Darin, rerun Darin. Picture me on my knees ...please!!!
Jamie

By the way, this is the perfect companion to today's Forgotten Hits!  OOOOJ



Hi Kent!
On September 26th, what would have been my parents wedding anniversary, I dedicated this youtube (on facebook) in their memory.  The song choice was always a favorite of my Dad's. (see link below)
Fast forward to your "Darinlicious" blog today, and Jamie (Our Vegas Star Queen) writes to our Darin chat site the following: "This is the PERFECT companion piece to"  Kent's blogspot today.  Take a listen, Kent ... not the best quality but an interesting MIX ... and a coincidence! ...?  
By the way, did you check out ABC's new show Pan Am and how they used Mack the Knife?
Best,
Susan Schooley
Bobby's fans are out in full force today!!!  I love it! And this IS a pretty cool mix so thanks for sharing!  I didn't stick around long enough to hear "Mack The Knife" on Pan Am ... the show lost me within the first 20 minutes!!! (And I had such high hopes for it, too ... especially from a music perspective!)  kk


re: MICHAEL BUBLE:
While his music is good, there is one thing he said not that long ago that really turned me off. He defended artists lip syncing at concerts. I believe it came about with that whole Brittany Spears incident down in Australia. IMO no artist should ever lip sync, ever, in a concert. It is a fraud perpetrated on the audience, given what these top flight acts charge these days. I know that  several artists including Elton John hold a similar position.   
Scott Schultz

I hadn't heard about this ... and I can honestly say that most times I've seen Buble on TV, he HAS been performing live ... including ONE performance where I swear we thought he was drunk on his ass!!! (lol)  kk

LOTS MORE COMMENTS COMING UP TOMORROW 
IN OUR REGULAR SUNDAY COMMENTS EDITION ...
Don't Miss It!!!
Posted by at

Friday, September 30, 2011

Connie Francis ... Bobby Darin ... and Michael Buble (?!?!?)


re:  CONNIE FRANCIS ... AND BOBBY DARIN:

I did not know that Connie Francis was so in love with Bobby Darrin and he with her. I always thought it was just Sandra Dee.
Stacee

Kent ...
In the latest issue of "Goldmine" (Pink Floyd Cover), you'll find an article about Connie Francis.
The Forgotten 20: Connie Francis' First 45s On MGM.
They review each song.  I didn't know she recorded that much material before her 1958 Hit
"Who's Sorry Now"!
Frank B.
It took a while for Connie's career to take off.  As I recall, she had a VERY demanding and controlling father attempting to "guide" her career ... (which often meant her singing material that HE had picked out for her ... and, quite often, in Italian!!!)  In fact, it was Connie's father who ultimately drove Bobby Darin away (according to some reports at gunpoint!!!) 


Check out yet another AMAZING excerpt from our Bobby Darin Series below:


'60's FLASHBACK: 

By the mid-'50's Bobby Darin began writing songs with another Bronx Science High School graduate, Don Kirshner, who was also acting as Bobby's manager at the time.  Starting with jingles and then moving on to pop tunes, the duo approached talent manager George Scheck, who placed a few of their songs with artists like LaVern Baker, rocker Gene Vincent, Bobby Short and, eventually, Connie Francis, who Scheck also happened to manage.  None of these songs were hits, but Bobby and Donny felt that they were on their way.
One day, they walked into Scheck's office with a new song they had written called "My Teenage Love".  Scheck thought it was good enough to cut a demo and sent Bobby upstairs to have it done.  When he returned, however, to play back the tape, it was Bobby's voice coming over the speakers.  At first Scheck seemed angry, demanding to know who's voice was on that tape.  When Darin finally admitted it was his, Scheck told him to "Start thinking of a professional name ... because in a week, you're going to need one for your recording contract."
(Prior to this time, Bobby was using variations on his REAL name, Walden Robert Cassotto ... usually something like Walden Robert or Robert Walden.)  The legend goes that Bobby had seen a neon sign at a Chinese restaurant offering Mandarin food ... and that the "man" lights were burned out ... when he saw only "darin" in lights, he decided that Bobby Darin would make a GREAT stage name!  (Another far less interesting version of the story says he simply picked the name out of a phone book!)  In any event, he'd need it soon ... Scheck signed him to Decca Records just THREE DAYS after hearing his demo of "My Teenage Love".  He also became his personal manager.
Bobby's new manager George Scheck worked hard to break the career of a young new singer he had discovered named Connie Francis (Concetta Franconero).  Her father was an intimidating man who wasn't about to let ANYTHING stand in the way of his daughter's career.  But this didn't stop Bobby Darin, who fell head-over-heels in love with Connie.  In fact, he started to tell people that he wanted to marry her and that, not only would she make the perfect wife, but also the perfect mother for his children!  (According to Connie Francis, Bobby actually proposed to her prior to EITHER of them ever having a hit record.)  Mr. Franconero would have NO part of this and ordered Scheck to break the two of them up or risk losing Connie as a client.  (He also, at times, threatened to take matters into his OWN hands and, at one point, reportedly even came after Bobby with a gun!)
Connie, of course, would go on to have an incredible career, placing over 40 songs in the National Top 40.  (That's nearly TWICE as many Top 40 Hits as Bobby managed!  One of Bobby's faults (and it would stay with him his entire life) was that he had to be the STAR and bread-winner of the family ... any woman who had any TRUE feelings for him would be expected to give up her own career and dreams and sit in the audience each night to watch her husband perform.  She'd stay at home and raise a family.  He was so determined to make it ... and make it big ... that he couldn't even imagine someone else having the same dreams, aspirations and determination to do so.  (He would later face a similar situation with singer JoAnn Campbell.  In fact, as you'll see in one of our upcoming chapters, even a red-hot movie star like Sandra Dee had to put her career on hold to satisfy her demanding husband.)
As proven by Connie's enormous success, she DID have the same determination (and talent) that Bobby had to make it big in show business.  In hindsight, had they married, we would have been cheated out of a tremendous talent ... and it probably wouldn't have lasted.  Connie wasn't about to give up the dreams she worked so hard to achieve.  And, believe it or not, as a pre-emptive measure, George Scheck finally told Bobby that he was dropping him as a client!  Once successful, Bobby and Connie remained close "professional" friends forever, even co-hosting the Heart-To-Heart Telethon for the American Heart Association as the King and Queen of Hearts!  In 1959, they appeared together on The Ed Sullivan Show and sang a couple of duets.  Ironically, Connie even recorded "My Teenage Love", the demo Bobby had written and recorded that first launched his career!  (She also cut his composition "My First Real Love", which was released as her fourth MGM single ... and the backing group credited on the record, The Jaybirds, was, in fact, Bobby Darin overdubbed!  It never charted ... but we've got it here for you today in Forgotten Hits!)


Kent ...
Part Three of that Baltimore Radio Bobby Darin Special aired this week.  It includes interviews with the authors of two Bobby Darin Books, "Roman Candle" and "That's All".
Music = "Charade", "More", "Look At Me", "I Wanna Be Around", "The Good Life", "I Left My Heart In San Francisco", "Rainin'", "The Sweetheart Tree", "The Shadow Of Your Smile", "Where Do I Belong", "Try To Remember", "I Believe In You", "Artificial Flowers", "About A Quarter To Nine", "Mame", "If I Were A Carpenter", "Until It's Time For You To Go", "The Wind Will Whisper Your Name".  Last song was written by John Denver. (Hope I got the title right.)  The  DJ dedicated this last song to Bobby's son, Dodd.  CNN's Larry King said that his first radio interview was with Bobby Darin.  The Interviewer asked Larry King, "Is there anyone around today who approaches Bobby Darin's talent level.  He answered, "Yes - one and only one. Nobody else comes close.  Michael Buble."  Check him out on You Tube and let me know what you think.
Part 4 = Next Week, 1966 - 1973 ... TV, Return to nightclubs and Jimmy Scalia.
Frank B.
Man, this song list makes it appear like Bobby Darin was going through his "Now I Wanna Be Tony Bennett" period or something!!!  (lol)  Which is really only half a joke ... many well known music experts have said that, had Bobby lived, HE probably would have been the one to have had the resurrected career (ala Tony Bennett) with contemporary artists wanting to work with him again ... and his "King of Cool" persona would have been all the rage again in the Retro '90's.  (Of course had THAT been the case, it's quite likely that a guy like Michael Buble would have never even entered the picture ... but more on Michael below.)
I haven't had a chance to listen to ANY of these Darin radio specials yet ... I'm hoping they're archived on the site as I'd really like to hear the whole thing.  Jimmy Scalia was very helpful in my series, securing me a couple of long out-of-print Darin tracks to use ... I finally got the chance to meet him and thank him at that Las Vegas Flamingo Hotel Star Dedication Ceremony a few years back.  And Bobby's son Dodd was quite complimentary about the end result as well.
There is definitely a very loyal legion of Bobby Darin Fans out there ... I was a "Johnny Come Lately" to the party as, other than the most obvious hits, I knew very little about his music prior to doing the series.  In fact, the original inspiration to DO the series was to see if I could take an artist that I knew virtually NOTHING about ... research their life and their music ... and come up with enough of an education to help re-introduce this artist to the music-loving world at large.  By all accounts, it seems we succeeded.  Due to ongoing popular demand, the series ran three or four times and, even all these years later, we're STILL getting requests to run it again.  (Of course MOST of those requests are coming from you, Frank, but that's OK ... we'll get to it eventually.  Meanwhile, I hope you enjoy today's special excerpt!)  kk  

re:  MICHAEL BUBLE:
As for Michael Buble,   his career was just starting to take off when our Bobby Darin Series ran the first time.  We received emails from several readers suggesting that we check this guy out.  Quite honestly, we resisted ... Buble's whole make-up at the time was a very deliberate throw-back to the Sinatra / Darin Era ... a "wannabe" at best, I thought ... and hadn't Harry Connick, Jr. already tried ... and failed ... at this same type of "novelty" career?!?!  His early releases consisted of not much more than big band / swing arrangements of songs from 50-60 years ago.  Over time, however, we grew to love him ... I believe Buble came into his own when he started doing more of his own material and made the whole look back to another era just "one of the things he did" rather than the main focus ... as his OWN material is strong enough to stand on its own.  The truth is, he really is quite the showman (although, much as Darin did, he often comes across as quite conceited and full of himself from time to time ... but who knows ... maybe that's all just part of the act, too. )  If you get the chance to see him perform on the first David Foster PBS Television Special, check it out ... he's incredible.  I've since bought three or four of his albums.  He's not Darin ... he's not Sinatra ... but he DOES seem to have developed his own style.  Last year's hit "Haven't Met You Yet" just may be my favorite song of the year!


And his 2005 break-through hit "Home" (co-written with David Foster's daughter) may be one of the prettiest songs of the past 20 years ... so yeah, that's some pretty high praise indeed!




Posted by at

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Helping Out Our Readers



I'd like to mention that "Helping Out Our Readers" is one of my favorite features in Forgotten Hits.  Rock On!
Ed
Thanks, Ed ... then I think you're going to REALLY enjoy today's edition!  (kk)


>>>My second 45 is one that I’ve been trying to figure out for years now.  I can remember a light-blue label, and the song had something to do with a soldier sitting under a tree reading a letter.  Or maybe it was a girl sitting under a tree reading a letter from her soldier boyfriend.  Not sure, but I’d love to know what it was.  (Kathy Reilly)
Kent,
The song that Kathy Reilly is thinking about is somewhat familiar to me but I am like her in that I can't remember the name or artist. I want to say it was the song IF HE WERE IN HIS TEENS by Bill and Doree Post from 1959 on Crest records (blue label) but I am not sure without going in and playing it.
Larry

We've offered a couple of suggestions, too, but still haven't hit on a winner.  If somebody has a copy of this that we can post for Kathy to listen to, please let us know!  (kk)

No luck with this one right off the bat ... it seems it was once on youtube but the account got shut down by youtube ... however this time persistence pays off ... I noticed the name of the person who had posted the youtube video that got yanked and realized he's good friends with a buddy of mine, so I sent off a message on facebook and here's the end result ... so thanks to Cris Vanvalkenburg for sending me this one!
Tom Diehl
 


Well, thank you, Cris Vanvalenburg!  (Although listening to this and reading Kathy's original description, I can't imagine that this is the right tune ... but hey, we've been wrong before!)  kk


Kathy Reilly mentioning "Robot Man" made me think of a song with the same title from 1972 billed to Jay and the Techniques, a group long associated with my area, the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania.
It came after most of the band was reportedly drafted into the military (we were still in Vietnam at the time) and Jay Proctor had been cut loose from Mercury / Smash and was attempting a comeback with Motown (who released this on Gordy). Its writers and producers also penned Wilson Pickett's 1971 hit "Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You."
It had great harmony and lots of horns, but did not chart nationally; it did get decent mileage on local radio here and in Philly. Since Motown never continued its "Complete Motown Singles" compilations past the company's departure for Hollywood, it's not really been available on
anything save possibly some overseas collections of Jay's bigger hits.
Closest I've gotten to this lately's been a few vinyl merchants who sadly sold out of whatever copies they had. Anybody have this in their collections?
-- BOB FRABLE
All we can do is ask ... but with all the Philly and Jersey readers we have on the list, my guess is that SOMEBODY will have it!  (kk)

Hey Kent!
I stumbled upon your lost hits website at:
http://forgottenhits.com/your_top_200_favorite_forgotten_b-sides
while searching for a song from my childhood.
I've had zero luck searching for this song and wanted to see if it jogged a memory that might help me find more information about it.
When I was a kid in the early 70s, my brothers and I used to listen to my mom and dad's old record collection on a record player. They had stacks of 45s that we'd listen to. Most of them we'd never heard before on the radio but we had fun listening to them anyway. We each quickly found our favorites to play and one of mine was a song called "Achuay" or "Achuway (not sure of the spelling but they sang it as awe-choo-way). It seemed to be a late 50s or early 60s song maybe? I don't know the artist or the label it was on, I just know some of the lyrics. Of course all those records went away over the years so they are now lost to us.
Anyway, I thought if anyone would be able to find information about this song and who the group was, you would!  Any help you can give me would be much appreciated!
Thanks in advance for any advise you can give me for finding this song!
Sincerely,
Jim Schick
Rio Rancho, New Mexico
We've got a pretty astute group of readers out there, Jim ... I'll betcha SOMEBODY turns this one up for ya!  Stay tuned.  (kk)

>>>I have a 45 that has been in my possession over 35 years and I have never been able to find out who did it.  It is Point Me In The Direction of Albuquerque, but definitely not the Partridge Family version unless David sounded a bit like Wayne Newton.  The only number I can find on the disc is AQ-607AM engraved in the vinyl and the label just says test pressing. Any help or point me in the direction of help would be appreciated.  (Patrick Smiley)
But before we could even post this or come up with an answer, Patrick wrote back:
>>>I was doing some more searching last night and found a UK site that lists old records for sale and found a match after all these years.  It was done by Larry G. Hudson of Macon, GA.  I don’t know if it was ever released as a commercial single as the other one I found was also a demo.
I was hoping it would be an artist a bit more popular. Sometimes mysteries should stay that way, but it’s still neat to have found out who it is after all this time.
Thanks,
Patrick Smiley

Apparently, a few other artists cut this tune, too, besides The Partridge Family.  Here's a note from FH Reader Clark Besch:

"Believe it or Not", Joey Scarbury recorded "Albuquerque" (I think he wrote it too, but cannot remember) on Bell 113 in the early 70's.  It got some nice airplay in the midwest and I actually think it should have been a hit by him.  Excellent production work and enthusiastic singing much alike his big hit.  Might have been a big hit had Mark Lindsay released it instead at the time.  I have the 45, but no time to get it out.  If need be, I can maybe track it down next week.  Let me know. 
Clark Besch
Would LOVE to hear Joey's version (and I'm sure most of our readers would, too!)  By the way, all the sources I checked show Tony Romero as the song writer ... but it's SO cool to hear early efforts from artists BEFORE their big break-through hits ... and Joey's "Theme from 'The Greatest American Hero'" was a HUGE one back in 1981!  (kk)

Meanwhile, here's The Partridge Family version ... never a hit but quite popular due their inclusion of this track on their TV show!


Kent,
I found my copy of the Joey Scarbury version and I must admit that this is just a terrific rendition, not unlike the Cassidy vocal, but much more enthusiastic and just better all the way around.  Shoulda been a hit for him.  How many great pop tunes were on Bell in the early 70's that never made it (and did).  Obviously, the Partridges and Manilow made it big, but there are countless other non-hits with that same great appeal, such as this, the Addrisi's "Somebody Found Her" and Sandalwood's "Lovin' Naturally" and even Family Dog's (before Lindsay) version of "Arizona"!!
You are right that Tony Romeo was the writer of this version.  I will send the label scan along showing Mike Post ("Rockford Files") as producer too!!  I am sending this to a buddy in New York, Bob, who is the nephew of the late Tony Romeo, writer of the Cowsills' "Poor Baby" and "Indian Lake" as well as "I'm Gonna Make You Mine" by Lou Christie and Partridge songs and was a member of the Epic Records group "Trout".  Maybe Bob will want to start reading "Forgotten Hits" and have some input, too! 
Clark Besch
That would be great!  Thanks, Clark!  (kk)


OMG ... and now we've even got the Larry G. Hudson version, too!!!  Cool to see that so many artists believed in this song ... yet it STILL never became a hit record!  (Thanks to Patrick Smiley for sending us this clip from his rare test pressing!) Seriously, where else are you going to find an Albuquerque triple play like THIS one!!!  (kk)



I was curious about the Family Dogg version of "Arizona" as I had never heard it (or anything about it) before.  (Especially since Scott Shannon is putting together his next True Oldies Channel "Rock And Roll Remakes" Weekend right now!!!)  It sounds like they had quite an impressive run of "guest artists" work on their first album ... check out Clark's notes below ... and give a listen to this early take of "Arizona", too!  (kk)
Kent,
The Family Dogg 45 of "Arizona" was released around Christmas, 1969, here on Bell 848. 
The song was written by UK writer Kenny Young who also wrote "Under the Boardwalk" and other hits.  The Family Dogg formed in 1966 in England and released an album in 1969 that spawned a hit single, "Sympathy."  The single's follow-up was their flop version of "Arizona."  The Family Dogg featured Steve Rowland (produced all the great Dave Dee, Dozy, etc hits!!) and the great songwriting team of Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood (wrote Hammond's solo hits as well as "The Air That I Breathe," "Gimme Dat Ding," and "Little Arrows")! 
Their 1969 album featured Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, John Bonham and Elton John as musicians playing on it!
You can certainly hear the British accents on the vocals and I think Rowland might have over modulated this song quite a bit.  A fair amount of distortion, unless my 45 is causing it?  It's not nearly as good as Lindsay's version, BUT it was first and has quite a history behind it.  
Clark Besch


After I passed this track and info along to Scott Shannon, I got this from Lou, part of the Research Team over at The True Oldies Channel, who offers a few corrections to Clark's assessment of Family Dogg ...


Hi Kent,
Scott passed the "Arizona" notes to me. For the sake of accuracy, in case you post the reader's letter on your site, Kenny Young, the songwriter, is certainly American, not British. He is a New Yorker, through and through.
Also, Steve Rowland, who sang most of the Family Dogg songs, was also American.
Mike and Albert were British, however. So, their vocals might be the ones he was referring to as having an accent, though I never noticed.
Anyway ... just want to keep it correct re: ol' Kenny.
Thanks,
Lou
I picked up on the bit about Kenny Young, too ... I believe he was part of the stable of songwriters signed to Bobby Darin's Trinity Music Publishing House at one time (and also wrote the Herman's Hermits Hit "Don't Go Out Into The Rain".)  Hadn't even HEARD of Family Dogg before ... but in further checking it looks like these two singles were released right around the same time ... November / December of 1969 ... so while it may have been the first, original release by a week or two, the song was certainly circulating trying to find a home with the right artist.  Without question, Mark Lindsay did a KILLER job on this track ... and was rewarded with a Top Ten Record in the process!  (kk)  


I have about 75 -- 45's and about 50 albums I want to sell -- but want to get the fair price for them -- any suggestions for finding out the real worth of my collection.  Thanks!
Jim DeVito
The key to the whole thing is going to be condition and rarity of what you have in your collection.  There are ALL kinds of record price guides around, showing you the value of records ... but it's going to come down to what kind of shape they're in to attract a real collector.  (75 singles may not attract much of an audience ... typically these guys are used to dealing with collections numbering into the tens of THOUSANDS of records!!!)  However, a good starting point would be to check out some of the online services like eBay or Gemm.com to see what your titles are currently going for.  (These are both two excellent sources to sell your wares, too, as they cater to music fans and record collectors ... and both charge a small service fee or commission for listing your titles.)  But FIRST determine what kind of shape they're in ... and then grade conservatively ... or an educated buyer will kick them back at you if they find them to be not "as advertised".  If you're looking to sell them to a dealer, expect to receive far less than market value, as they're most likely buying these from you to sell at a profit.  Not knowing exactly what you have in your collection ... or how rare these titles and artists may be ... I'd check out Gemm.com and eBay first to see what records like these are typically selling for.  That should give you a pretty good idea as to what they're worth.  (kk)

Dear Kent,
We've been listening to KFRC on 1550 AM for years ... and now they aren't there!!
What station did they move to??
WE LIVE IN ALAMEDA, CA
Please write & tell us where to find them!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks!!
Lynda & Bill
I nosed around online but didn't really see anything pertaining to a format change.  I asked Scott Shannon, too, to see if this was one of his True Oldies affiliates ... but I don't see anything listed for California on The True Oldies Channel web page.  (One of the sites I found for KFRC called it a "True Oldies Station" so I'm not really sure what's up with that ... if anybody out there can help Lynda and Bill out to find their oldies, please let us know!!!)  Meanwhile, of course, you can always listen to The True Oldies Channel online:

>>>This comes across the A.P. Entertainment History DJ prep every year on September 15th.
In 1969, Ed Sullivan released "The Sulli-Gulli," his first and only rock record. He was hoping it would create a new dance.  I have never heard the record.  I am sure it is really bad.  Do you have a copy of it?  (Phil Nee - WRCO)

Kent,
SOMEBODY does have a copy of that record, and recently paid $30.00 for the privilege: http://www.ebay.com/itm/ED-SULLIVAN-SULLI-GULLI-45-RARE-PROMO-NOVELTY-PS-/280585730269
-– Randy Price

It’s as bad as it mentioned. Released on Columbia Records.
sixtiesoldiesguy
Rich
It most certainly is!!!  (But isn't it also exactly everything you'd expect it to be?!?!?)  Thanks, Rich!  (kk)
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