A few late stragglers ...
re: THE ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME:
Just a reminder ... in addition to tabulating your votes for your All-Time Favorite Garage Bands, we are ALSO compiling an updated list of the artists that YOU feel are the most Deserving and Denied of Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction. This poll, too, closes on June 1st ... so PLEASE get your votes and nominees in soon! Here are a couple of recent comments that we received ...
Amongst all your RnR HoF feedback, Jeff Tamarkin's comments easily carry the most weight. Insightful. This is the same man who, while he was still editor of Goldmine, wrote in that publication that the Dave Clark 5 would never be inducted into the Hall. ("Ain't gonna happen.") In the past, I attributed his remark to personal snarkiness but having read his comments about the Moody Blues, they were probably just a reflection of the temperament and mind-set of the nominating committee in general.
Halls of Fame are not perfect institutions. Someone, somewhere will always be offended by inclusions and omissions. But the inherent cronyism of the RnR HoF is saddening and self-diminishing. It's almost too late to prevent the hall from becoming a punchline to a not-so-funny joke.
... Ed44
It's been an unfunny joke for quite some time now ... and the real music fans out there can no longer take it seriously. Several artists have stated on the record that if nominated and elected, they wouldn't even go ... because induction today is just part of the sham. Too bad ... I just can't help thinking about what this COULD (and SHOULD) have been! (kk)
Jeff Tamarkin had a nice list of Hall of Fame nominees. What about nominating the Wrecking Crew? Oh, yeah ... I guess that is WHY many of Jeff's acts are on the outside looking in. The Crew cannot get their DVD produced and the bands whose records they played on cannot get in the Hall of Shame. Something's not right there. I am guessing the Anita Kerr Singers and Rod McKuen will be inducted next? Rod's "The Warm" poem WAS the inspiration for the Cryan Shames single "The Warm" so maybe he deserves it -- BUT not the Cryan Shames themselves. That seems to be the way the non-logic goes with the Rolling Stone Magazine Hall of Fame, right?
Jeff Tamarkin had a nice list of Hall of Fame nominees. What about nominating the Wrecking Crew? Oh, yeah ... I guess that is WHY many of Jeff's acts are on the outside looking in. The Crew cannot get their DVD produced and the bands whose records they played on cannot get in the Hall of Shame. Something's not right there. I am guessing the Anita Kerr Singers and Rod McKuen will be inducted next? Rod's "The Warm" poem WAS the inspiration for the Cryan Shames single "The Warm" so maybe he deserves it -- BUT not the Cryan Shames themselves. That seems to be the way the non-logic goes with the Rolling Stone Magazine Hall of Fame, right?
Clark Besch
Rod McKuen probably WILL get inducted into The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame before half the folks on our Deserving And Denied List. (Why not??? They let Leonard Cohen in!!!) When I was a kid growing up, I was a big fan of e.e.cummings ... think HE'S got a chance of induction, too? In all fairness, Rod McKuen and The Cryan' Shames are not worthy of Hall Of Fame Induction ... but Chicago, The Guess Who and The Moody Blues certainly are ... so what's their excuse for keeping THESE guys on the outside lookin' in??? (kk)
If you REALLY want a historic profile of the "Rock and Roll era" simply look up the Top-100 single hits of 1954 through 1989 (via Joel Whitburn / BILLBOARD), write down all the titles -- then, somehow, put together a recorded collection of as many of them as you can, infusing a few "choice" B-sides and chestnut non-single "album" hits as well.
If you can do all that, what more does one need?
Rock and Roll came about by accident anyway. It's all derivative.
It started out as a composite of other musical styles ...
If you REALLY want a historic profile of the "Rock and Roll era" simply look up the Top-100 single hits of 1954 through 1989 (via Joel Whitburn / BILLBOARD), write down all the titles -- then, somehow, put together a recorded collection of as many of them as you can, infusing a few "choice" B-sides and chestnut non-single "album" hits as well.
If you can do all that, what more does one need?
Rock and Roll came about by accident anyway. It's all derivative.
It started out as a composite of other musical styles ...
Rock and Roll is to pop music what English is to other languages.
In other words, just as English stole all of its words from all the other European and Mediterranean languages, so, too, did Rock and Roll steal all of its musical styles from all of the other popular music styles.
Tal
re: DONNA SUMMER:
Hi Kent,
In other words, just as English stole all of its words from all the other European and Mediterranean languages, so, too, did Rock and Roll steal all of its musical styles from all of the other popular music styles.
Tal
re: DONNA SUMMER:
Hi Kent,
Sad to learn of Donna Summers passing. Certainly she was queen of the disco era.
My very good friend Les Hurdle, who now lives in California, was responsible for most of those 'disco bass lines' which made the music so distinctive. Yet another unsung 'Wrecking Crew' type session musician who helped make the Stars' careers.
Cheers,
Vic Flick
Most of the
disco hits you’ll never hear again, because they didn’t have legs, as we say in
show business. But numbers count, and the Bee Gees had 29 Top 40 hits over 22
years. Like their disco era contemporary, Donna Summer, that high level of
longevity doesn’t come around too often.
Bee Gee Robin Gibb has died ... and last week we had the passing of Donna Summer. Safe to say that disco is now officially dead. (Think Harry Casey is looking over his shoulder right now???)
re: ROBIN GIBB:
STATEMENT
FROM ‘THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN EARS,’
KAL RUDMAN, PUBLISHER OF THE
FRIDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK, BIBLE OF THE BROADCAST AND MUSIC INDUSTRIES,
ON THE DEATH OF ROBIN GIBB OF THE BEE GEES
 |
PHOTO
CAPTION: At left, Robin Gibb with Kal Rudman, center,
and Barry Gibb, the lone surviving member of the Bee Gees.
|
CHERRY HILL,
NJ –
Robin Gibb will forever be remembered for his brilliant contribution with
his brothers to the seminal “disco” soundtrack, “Saturday Night Fever.” The
irony, however, is that those songs were written by the Bee Gees well before any
thought about the movie, or disco. Robin and his brothers totally mastered the
skills in writing upbeat music for the fast dancers. And their pride as
songwriters exceeded their pride as singers.
Bee Gee Robin Gibb has died ... and last week we had the passing of Donna Summer. Safe to say that disco is now officially dead. (Think Harry Casey is looking over his shoulder right now???)
Top10Kid
re: THE BEACH BOYS:
re: THE BEACH BOYS:
In response to David Beard's review of the new Beach Boys album -
Hey, Furv, great to hear from you. Actually, quite a few people on the list feel The Fifth Estate belong on the ballot ... counting YOUR vote, you guys are now up to 62! (Not enough to win it just yet ... but hey, there's still two more weeks of voting left!!! Lol) We've got SIX bands now with over 200 votes each (and one of those just passed the 300 mark!) ... so this should be a pretty good representation once all of the votes have been tallied and the favorites have been announced! Thanks for casting yours! (kk)
re: THE FIRST ROCK AND ROLL RECORD:
Rolling Stone gave it three stars: Beach Boys Harmonize Like It's 1965 Again"'That's Why God Made the Radio' ... a harmony cascade ... kinda cosmic, sorta corny, undeniably gorgeous."
Not bad for a bunch of 70 year olds!
Phil
PrayForSurf.net
Can't wait to hear it for myself ... sounds like the official Boys Of Summer have pulled off yet ANOTHER remarkable comeback! (But then again, their unique sound has never really gone out of style! And NOBODY does it better!) kk
Kent ...
Not everyone will be able to attend a Beach Boys concert on this tour but
if you'd like to at least hear what the experience is like, a full concert can
be found online here:
The sound quality is pretty darn good, all things considered, and the group
sounds pretty good overall. I'm looking forward to seeing them in a little over
a month in Saratoga, New York, all the way back in my $15 lawn seat ... I may not
be able to see them from where I'll be seated but I'll know they're there
LOL.
Tom
Kent ...
Wild Wayne went to The Beach Boys 50th Anniversary Show at the Mohegan Sun, CT. Here's what he had to say about it ...
They opened with "Do It Again" and closed with "Fun, Fun, Fun."
They sang "Forever" with Dennis, via video clip. They sang "God Only Knows" with Carl, via video clip.
The Beach Boys sang 45 songs in two and a half hours. Wild Wayne said you could've left at the intermission and would've still got your money's worth.
Frank B.
Frank B.
We've heard nothing but unanimously good reviews ... so glad to hear the guys are getting along and giving their fans their money's worth. Watch for my daughter's review next week in Forgotten Hits! (kk)
re: CLIP OF THE WEEK:
re: CLIP OF THE WEEK:
If you haven't seen this yet, you have GOT to check this out. Eliminated American Idol finalist Joshua Ledet (he officially came in third) blows the doors of the James Brown classic "It's A Man's, Man's, Man's World" ... one of my favorites anyway ... but a STELLAR, landmark Idol performance that is better than ANYTHING I've seen on one of these competition shows in a long, long time. (Maybe the best ever!) And I just LOVE the way the strings and horns play off him in this performance.
Ledet never finished in The Bottom Three ... until, of course, there were only three candidates left ... and he now holds the record for most standing ovations in American Idol history with fourteen ... damn, this guy can sing!!! (kk)
Click here: Joshua Ledet: It's A Man's Man's Man's World - Top 4 - AMERICAN IDOL SEASON 11 - YouTube
re: CALIFORNIA SUN:
re: CALIFORNIA SUN:
>>>I listened to The Rivieras' Greatest Hits CD this weekend ... and their Top Five Hit Recording of "California Sun" HAD to be a fluke!!! It's the PERFECT record in every way ... and nothing else they ever did ever came REMOTELY close to sounding like this. (Don't believe? Listen to their 1965 "California Sun" remake ... it's AWFUL!!! You'd think by this point they could recreate this record in their sleep!!!) Kudos to whoever produced and engineered their hit in the studio ... because that first hit was magical. (kk)
Hey Kent,
Here’s a great rendition at a recent Springsteen show
Thanks,
Eddie Burke,
Orange, CT
Honestly, this one does very little for me. (A "younger" Bruce might have tackled this pretty well ... maybe Bruce should have tried this in a lower key so he wouldn't have to "reach" so much to hit some of these notes!) Without question, it's a great song ... I'm just not feeling like this is a very great version of it. (Readers can judge for themselves via the YouTube link above.) kk
re: GARAGE BANDS:
re: GARAGE BANDS:
Here is my choice of bands from best to least. I grew up in northern Ohio and now live in Massachusetts. Love your site.
1. Paul Revere and the Raiders
2. The Outsiders
3. The McCoys
4.The Buckinghams
5. The Beau Brummels
6.Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs
7. Cannibal and the Headhunters
8.Gentry's
9. Music Explosion
10. The Human Beinz
1. Paul Revere and the Raiders
2. The Outsiders
3. The McCoys
4.The Buckinghams
5. The Beau Brummels
6.Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs
7. Cannibal and the Headhunters
8.Gentry's
9. Music Explosion
10. The Human Beinz
Steve H
Hi Kent -
Furvus here.
Of course I'm going to vote for The Fifth Estate as the #1 Garage Band.
Would I vote for the other guy if I were running for president?? Hey there's an idea!!
Ah ??? Yes, maybe I would, if I REALLY wanted a truthful accurate assessment of who would really be best as #1 Garage Band or as president, as the case may be. So I'll rearrange my list just a little then. This is also based largely on first hand knowledge by having played with or at least knowing about half of all the people in these bands, and some who were at my pad when I lived just outside NYC.
Also as to The Fifth Estate, I think it is fair to say that most of our released material, except for a few early singles, would not be considered garage rock by most. BUT much of our yet unreleased BUT soon to be released material truly is!! Here is one attached
called Night On Fire! and another we did under the pseudonym of Medicine Mike - called - I've Never Been So High^^^! Here's the link to a compilation which it is on.
Also our latest album just out Time Tunnel - has been reviewed as just about as "Nuggety" as anything.
It's just us playing like us, with none of the edges shaved off!
So now with me considering some of those yet to be released songs, here's my list in order of priority:
1 Sonics
2 Electric Prunes
3 Music Explosion
4 Shadows of Night
5 The Fifth Estate
6 Chocolate Watch Band
7 13th Floor Elevators
8 Nashville Teens
9 Blues Magoos
10 Count Five
Thanks, Kent, for putting out this very cool survey. Real fun to participate and even more to be in it!!!
Furv
The Fifth Estate
Hey, Furv, great to hear from you. Actually, quite a few people on the list feel The Fifth Estate belong on the ballot ... counting YOUR vote, you guys are now up to 62! (Not enough to win it just yet ... but hey, there's still two more weeks of voting left!!! Lol) We've got SIX bands now with over 200 votes each (and one of those just passed the 300 mark!) ... so this should be a pretty good representation once all of the votes have been tallied and the favorites have been announced! Thanks for casting yours! (kk)
re: THE FIRST ROCK AND ROLL RECORD:
Here's a quick Rock And Roll History lesson, courtesy of FH Reader CPass ...
Some good candidates here to be sure ... and did you notice use of the phrase dating all the way back to 1929 ... YEARS before Elvis was even born?!?!? I'm sure we'll have more on this topic over time ... and, if I can get our buddy Ed Parker to share HIS thoughts on the subject, put together a pretty amazing series! (kk)
