Kent,
Enjoyed your moments that gave you the shivers. Many know of mine. There are VERY many, mostly dealing with hearing songs for the first time on the radio, often WLS. Some would be first hearing "She Loves You" or "All Right Now" or "Love You So Much" (NC6) but my two most exciting would be hearing "Look Through Any Window" by the Hollies on WLS' Dex Card survey show and hearing Ron Riley play "I Wanna Meet You" by the Cryan Shames a year later on WLS. Attached are those moments as preserved on our Bell Reel to Reel along with a photo of me and my little brother Bill circa 1968 with the Hallicrafter receiver my dad had that gave us the chance to pull in those long distance stations as recorded from Dodge City, Kansas.
Clark Besch
Enjoyed your moments that gave you the shivers. Many know of mine. There are VERY many, mostly dealing with hearing songs for the first time on the radio, often WLS. Some would be first hearing "She Loves You" or "All Right Now" or "Love You So Much" (NC6) but my two most exciting would be hearing "Look Through Any Window" by the Hollies on WLS' Dex Card survey show and hearing Ron Riley play "I Wanna Meet You" by the Cryan Shames a year later on WLS. Attached are those moments as preserved on our Bell Reel to Reel along with a photo of me and my little brother Bill circa 1968 with the Hallicrafter receiver my dad had that gave us the chance to pull in those long distance stations as recorded from Dodge City, Kansas.
Clark Besch
I had just gotten my driver's license and was tooling around town, enjoying my new independence, radio on, and as Tom Petty said, It was a beautiful day. All of a sudden, out of the very high turned-up radio comes "I Am the God of Hellfire and I Bring You ..." What a jolt!! I was at the corner of Bouquet and Soledad Cyn Rds in Saugus California, and I had to pull over. I listened to every word, making sure I got the Title AND artist. As soon as the song was over, I drove straight to the record store ... Fire by The Crazy World of Arthur Brown ... my first record purchase in which I had personally driven to buy.
Scott
Hi Kent,
I've had lots of goosebump moments in music. That's probably, at least in part, why I'm still a musician. Here are three quick ones. The Beatles and Beach Boys will not be listed in any of these, because they are just a given as far as I'm concerned.
Girl in Love by The Outsiders. I have such a vivid memory of hearing it while sitting on the front steps of our house. It was a hot day, and between the heat, and a nothing to do summer day, and the melancholy sound of the record, I'm always transported back to 1966 and being nine years old when I hear it.
2. Good Lovin' by The Young Rascals. For some reason that one sticks in my mind as being the first song that said "hey, white guys can sing R&B style and still play in a rock band. Felix became one of my singing heroes and I hadn't become a singer yet. <grin>
The third one is Merry Christmas Darling by the Carpenters, and particularly the little ending bit with all the vocals. I can just play that little bit over and over again to this day. I still haven't figured out all the parts yet. It's absolutely amazing to me.
OK That's way more than you need, but ...
Bill
Scott
Hi Kent,
I've had lots of goosebump moments in music. That's probably, at least in part, why I'm still a musician. Here are three quick ones. The Beatles and Beach Boys will not be listed in any of these, because they are just a given as far as I'm concerned.
Girl in Love by The Outsiders. I have such a vivid memory of hearing it while sitting on the front steps of our house. It was a hot day, and between the heat, and a nothing to do summer day, and the melancholy sound of the record, I'm always transported back to 1966 and being nine years old when I hear it.
2. Good Lovin' by The Young Rascals. For some reason that one sticks in my mind as being the first song that said "hey, white guys can sing R&B style and still play in a rock band. Felix became one of my singing heroes and I hadn't become a singer yet. <grin>
The third one is Merry Christmas Darling by the Carpenters, and particularly the little ending bit with all the vocals. I can just play that little bit over and over again to this day. I still haven't figured out all the parts yet. It's absolutely amazing to me.
OK That's way more than you need, but ...
Bill
Hey Kent,
One of my first "I’ll never forget" music moments would be the first time I heard the Byrds' "Mr. Tambourine Man". I don’t think I'd even heard of Bob Dylan at that point. All I knew was here was a new band with a new song. The first ten seconds of the song, when the bass kicked in, was so cool, I was hooked.
It was the end of the school year and I was 13 years old in Sister Raphael’s 7th grade class. A few of us stayed after class to help Sister do some classroom cleaning. (Flashback: clapping erasers, cleaning the pencil sharpener, washing the blackboards.) We had a 45 record player in class. Me and my friend Rick were telling her about the new song that was just so cool. I had the 45 and lived just a half block from school. I asked her if I could go get it and play it on the record player. She said she would like to hear it. I brought it back and we probably played it 20 times. (All two minutes and 18 seconds.) She ask me how much the record cost? I told her 69 cents. She said, “OH MY!" I guess she thought that was a lot of money for one song. A short time later, the Byrds appeared on Hullabaloo. Awesome! Jim (or was it Roger) McGuinn with the granny glasses, Gene Clark, front and center on tambourine and David Crosby wearing a cape. These guys were so cool!
As much as I love this song, my favorite Byrd song is "I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better". (Side one, track #2 from the debut album ... but who remembers that?) Fast forward to today ... I recently learned that on the original recording Roger McGuinn was the only band member who actually played on the song. The Byrds had just formed and the record company wasn't comfortable with the other band members' musicianship. They brought in some session musicians (enter the Wrecking Crew) to play on the original recording. Hal Blaine and company strike again.
Thanks SO much for FH’s. As always, there are people who listen to music ... and then there are people like us.
Gary
One of my first "I’ll never forget" music moments would be the first time I heard the Byrds' "Mr. Tambourine Man". I don’t think I'd even heard of Bob Dylan at that point. All I knew was here was a new band with a new song. The first ten seconds of the song, when the bass kicked in, was so cool, I was hooked.
It was the end of the school year and I was 13 years old in Sister Raphael’s 7th grade class. A few of us stayed after class to help Sister do some classroom cleaning. (Flashback: clapping erasers, cleaning the pencil sharpener, washing the blackboards.) We had a 45 record player in class. Me and my friend Rick were telling her about the new song that was just so cool. I had the 45 and lived just a half block from school. I asked her if I could go get it and play it on the record player. She said she would like to hear it. I brought it back and we probably played it 20 times. (All two minutes and 18 seconds.) She ask me how much the record cost? I told her 69 cents. She said, “OH MY!" I guess she thought that was a lot of money for one song. A short time later, the Byrds appeared on Hullabaloo. Awesome! Jim (or was it Roger) McGuinn with the granny glasses, Gene Clark, front and center on tambourine and David Crosby wearing a cape. These guys were so cool!
As much as I love this song, my favorite Byrd song is "I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better". (Side one, track #2 from the debut album ... but who remembers that?) Fast forward to today ... I recently learned that on the original recording Roger McGuinn was the only band member who actually played on the song. The Byrds had just formed and the record company wasn't comfortable with the other band members' musicianship. They brought in some session musicians (enter the Wrecking Crew) to play on the original recording. Hal Blaine and company strike again.
Thanks SO much for FH’s. As always, there are people who listen to music ... and then there are people like us.
Gary
I guess a "goose bump" song has to be a ballad because there are hundreds of rockers that I have immediately loved and probably as many ballads, but only a few ballads have given me "goosebumps" (although many made me excited, depending on who I was dancing with at the time).
From the fifties there were "Most of All" by the Moonglows, "I'm Sorry" by the Platters, "You Send Me" by Sam Cooke, "My Heart's Desire" by the Avalons, "I Only Have Eyes For You" by the Flamingos, and "Since I Don't Have You" by the Skyliners.
"My True Story" by the Jive Five, "When We Get Married" by the Dreamlovers and "Stay In My Corner" by the Dells are a few from the sixties.
"I'm Gonna' Make You My Wife" by the Whispers, "Special Lady" by Ray, Goodman and Brown and "I Only Have Eyes For You" by Art Garfunkle are a few from the seventies.
A great one from the eighties is "At This Moment" by Billy Vera and the Beaters.
I guess I've been fortunate to have had my share of "goosebumps" through the years.
Danny Guilfoyle
PS -- just about every ballad that the Four Freshmen ever sang gave "goosebumps" when I heard their amazing harmonies as well.
You just conjured up another "late bloomer" for me. I had never heard "Since I Don't Have You" by The Skyliners until it appeared in the film "American Graffiti" ... it grabbed me IMMEDIATELY and I bought the entire soundtrack album (a 2-LP set) for that one song! To this day I get chills every time I hear it! (As an added special bonus that soundtrack LP became the crux of my early rock and roll era collection. It was easy to expand it from there with so many great tracks available in one place!) kk
My best goosebump moment was when I first heard "Pilot of the Airwaves" by Charlie Dore. It brought me back to the days of the 50's and early 60's when nighttime radio was more important (at least for rock and roll) than morning drive time and every teenager would call in their requests and dedications.
Steve Davidson
Hi kk -
Rick Levy here, bandleader and manager for TOMMY ROE, remembering a true goosebump moment. Summer of 67, I believe ... a bit hazy then ... when WHITER SHADE OF PALE came out. I was was with my band, THE LIMITS, driving from Allentown, PA, to Monticello, NY, for a summer gig ... and we were in one of the guy's Mustang.
Well, the dj announced a new song by a new group ... Procol Harum ... what a name ... and when the song came on, we literally ... a carload of teen rockers ... had to pull over ... stop the car ... and were totally mesmerized by the magical, sensual, spiritual sound of Whiter Shade ... it was unlike anything heard before on since.
I am so blessed to have been performing non stop since. Ah, the joy of music.
(See link below ... recent story on yours truly.) http://www.examiner.com/article/veteran-rocker-rick-levy-leads-tommy-roe-s-band-sells-pottery?cid=db_articles
RICK LEVY
Rick Levy Management
for booking Tommy Roe, contact rick@ricklevy.com
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"A Whiter Shade Of Pale" is STILL a "goosebumps song" for me, too ... probably the most sophisticated and intelligent piece of music I had ever heard up to that point ... and it still resonates just as strongly with me today. Even 40 years later, I still get goosebumps (and tears in my eyes) nearly every time I hear it ... and incredible piece of work.) kk
This is kind of a tough one, because there are songs that give me goosebumps now, that might not have at the first playing. I tend to call them “stop-breathers” because the reaction for me is more of my breath stopping for the first few notes. There are four, though, that might fit the category.
Back in the day, I kept my own top ten- and do I wish I’d not let those notebooks go! I always did mine on a Thursday, and then wait all weekend to hear Casey Casem on Sunday morning. On one Tuesday night, I heard ELO’s Telephone Line. Thursday it became the first (and one of two) song to ever hit #1 on my list as a debut. Sunday, I owned the 45, which was quite a trick considering I wasn’t driving at the time.
Back in the day, I kept my own top ten- and do I wish I’d not let those notebooks go! I always did mine on a Thursday, and then wait all weekend to hear Casey Casem on Sunday morning. On one Tuesday night, I heard ELO’s Telephone Line. Thursday it became the first (and one of two) song to ever hit #1 on my list as a debut. Sunday, I owned the 45, which was quite a trick considering I wasn’t driving at the time.
In the early eighties, a girl got us all listening to country. The first time I heard Roseanne Cash’s I Don’t Know Why You Don’t Want Me, I knew it was her somehow in the first three notes. Can’t explain it, but I remember it clearly. Did the same with the next single, Never Be You, but it never had the same impact.
One of the first songs I ever loved was Merilee Rush’s Angel Of The Morning. The first notes I heard of Juice Newton’s remake froze me in my tracks. Still does.
And last, imagine a guy who grew up on the sixties, now living in a world where Pearl Jam was the coolest, and being dead drunk when you hear their remake of Last Kiss the first time. Rotten rub of that was, I was in emergency need of the restroom and didn’t even get to hear the whole thing!
The only one of the three that really still gets me like that is Juice’s Angel. Merilee’s does as well. And maybe a dozen others, ranging from Bobby Helms’ My Special Angel to the Pretenders’ It’s a Thin Line Between Love And Hate. And, of course, Percy Faith’s A Summer Place Theme. And I’ll end here, before I end up writing you a book.
CW Martin
Some GREAT choices on this list. I absolutely loved Roseanne Cash's "I Don't Know Why You Don't Want Me" and believe it should have been a HUGE cross-over hit. To his day I can't believe it wasn't ... and still smile and sing along every time I hear it.
Personally I prefer the Merilee Rush version of "Angel of the Morning" to Juice Newton's version ... but I will grant you that she did a pretty powerful reading. The Pretenders' recording of "It's A Thin Line Between Love And Hate" ranks as one of my favorites by them ... and I totally agree with you on "A Theme from 'A Summer Place'" ... and have almost mentioned that one at least a dozen times since this topic started. Thanks for sharing with us, CW! (kk)
