A Saturday Chart Bonus

In addition to running our brand new Saturday Surveys feature, we've also been celebrating The British Invasion Anniversaries as they pop up ...

Today we combine BOTH features with this Super Chart, courtesy of Randy Price ... a chart dated January 25th (which is EXACTLY 50 Years Ago Today!) showing The Beatles reaching the national summit for the very first time.

The Super Charts are a conglomeration of research based on ALL of the available tracking of this era, including record sales, radio airplay, jukebox plays, distribution records and sales as well as the published and documented findings of all of the major music trade publications.  In my opinion, it is the most comprehensive, complete portrait of how this music truly fared at this exact moment in time.  (A record's given standing in any single publication often varied by any number of chart positions.  This is because each of the major trades polled different sources in order to compile their charts.  The biggest selling feature of The Super Chart is that it combines ALL of these resources into one complete, comprehensive chart, thus portraying "the most accurate" representation of each record's popularity.)

You'll see that in addition to holding down the #1 Spot, The Beatles are also debuting at #67 this week with "She Loves You".  Dusty Springfield (who we spotlighted earlier in the week) jumps up 23 points from #97 to #74 with her first U.S. Hit "I Only Want To Be With You".  

While not quite an "invasion" yet, The British are definitely coming!!!

The Saturday Surveys (1-25)

We've got another fine selections of charts for your enjoyment today.  (Special thanks to Clark Besch for sending these along.)

 

Everybody thinks album rock started on the FM Dial in the late '60's / early '70's ... but these weekly Top 40 Charts ... from some of the most popular AM Radio Stations in the Country ... continue to prove otherwise.

Look at The Beatles' track "Michelle" from their "Rubber Soul" album charting at #6.  (David and Jonathan would have a reasonably sized-hit with their cover version as ... INCREDIBLY ... Capitol Records never released this track as a single here in The States.  The way they regularly milked The Beatles vault for additional releases, this truly came as quite a surprise at the time.)

Our FH Buddy Bob Lind is at #5 with his biggest hit, "Elusive Butterfly" while Peter Noone and Herman's Hermits sit at #2 with "Listen People", also shown as an album track here.  (It became SO popular that MGM finally had to release it as a single a few weeks later ... and what a great track it is!)

You hear "Zorba The Greek" in television commercials all the time now ... people forget that this was a MAJOR hit for Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass back in the day.

Other surprises on this chart:  "Moulty" by The Barbarians at #19 ... this track never climbed any higher than #90 in Billboard.  "Like A Baby" by Len Barry, "Night Time" by The Strangeloves and "The Cheater" by Bob Kuban are also Top 20 Hits on this WBZ Chart from this week in '66.

Wow!  Look at this chart from WKY in Oklahoma City!

Ed Ames sits at #1 with "My Cup Runneth Over", edging out The Monkees and their monster hit "I'm A Believer" for at least the second week in a row.

Jim Edgar (who?!?!?  A local talent perhaps???) is at #5 with "Apartment #9" ... and the #6 spot is shared between Don Cherry and Jack Greene with "There Goes My Everything", a hit nationally for Engelbert Humperdinck.  Except this is nearly six months BEFORE the Engelbert version was released as a single here!

"Stand By Me" is a MUCH bigger hit here ... it's kind of a clever version where Spyder Turner mimics the vocal styles of several other FAR more successful soul singers than himself!  (lol)

And one of my all-time favorites, "Summer Wine"  by Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood is locked in at #12, up five places from the week before.

You'll find quite a few Top 50 Hits on this chart that seem to be unique to the Oklahoma area.  FH Reader (and former Okie DeeJay) Larry Neal has shared chart information with us for years now ... they certainly did seem to have a different approach to calculating the hits!

Kent,  

You wanted to know who Jim Edgar was. Back in the 1960's, Jim Edgar and his group, the Roadrunners, were probably without question, the number one band of all time here in the state of Oklahoma. They were the pioneers of the local music scene. Other bands tried to imitate them, but none could come close to the dominance they had on the music scene they had here in Oklahoma.
They primarily had four records which made our local top 40 radio station's weekly survey. The four records were as follows:
1. LITTLE PIG / RAINS which came out in 1963 on Chan Records. RAINS was a Jim Edgar tune with LITTLE PIG being the same song that Dale Hawkins recorded earlier in 1958.  Both sides were equally played here in OKC.
2. FUNNY HOW I FEEL / TREASURE OF LOVE from 1964 on DJB Records. FUNNY HOW I FEEL was again a Jim Edgar composition with TREASURE OF LOVE being an uptempo version of the song that Clyde McPhatter recorded in 1956. Again, both sides were equally played here in OKC. Personally speaking, his FUNNY HOW I FEEL is my all time favorite Jim Edgar tune.
As for the information about the song THERE GOES MY EVERYTHING by artists Jack Greene and Don Cherry, you are correct in that both versions did well and charted well here in OKC.  Back in the sixties, there were quite a few, many in fact, country records that would cross over.  Jack Greene also had another crossover hit here in OKC with his 1967 song ALL THE TIME recorded on Decca as well as his THERE GOES MY EVERYTHING. Maybe Jack Greene recorded the song in late 1966 which is why it made the survey in early 1967.
As for Don Cherry, whose biggest hit probably was BAND OF GOLD back in 1956, well, he had Oklahoma ties is some ways. As I remember he had relatives living in Oklahoma and every year for I don't know how long, he came to Oklahoma and participated in a golf tournament here. Back in the sixties, Don Cherry recorded for Monument Records and every record that was released by him on that label, was played here on our local top 40 radio station. Probably his biggest hits here in OKC on that label were  I RUN TO THE DOOR in 1967 and I LOVE YOU DROPS in 1965 as well as the one you mentioned. 

3. TENNESSEE STUD which came out in 1966 on major label Scepter Records. This of course was his version of the 1959 Eddie Arnold tune. It was somewhat more of an upbeat version that Eddie Arnold's ... TENNESSEE STUD peaked at #5 here in OKC in May of 1966.

4. APARTMENT #9, as you said, made it to #4 here in OKC back in early February of 1967.  It was on the Hama Record label. 

As far as I know, Jim Edgar is still alive and well here in Oklahoma. For many years, as I understand it, he worked for the Ditchwitch Company in Perry, Oklahoma.

Larry Neal

Check out this chart from 1970.  Most of the usual suspects are here ... but so are a handful of surprises!

"Jennifer Tomkins" by The Street People at #5 ... that's one of Rupert Holmes' earlier bands  

"Early In The Morning" ... a GREAT Forgotten Hit ... by Vanity Fare at #9  

The New Colony Six at #12 with "Barbara, I Love You", probably my LEAST favorite single by them ... but still a major surprise since it only reached #78 nationally  

"Mornin' Mornin'" by Bobby Goldsboro and "She's Ready" by Spiral Starecase in The Top 20!  

"God Only Knows" by The Vogues and "Freight Train" by Duane Eddy in The Top 30?!?!?  

And "Crazy Annie" by Evie Sands, the Nazz version of "Hello It's Me", "Monster", a great Steppenwolf track and "Compared To What" by Della Reese rounding out The Top 40.  (Talk about diversity!!!)

Speaking of which, look at "Heartbreaker" by Grand Funk Railroad and "You Got Me Hummin'" by Cold Blood bringing up the rear!

This chart is WILD!!!

The Beatles Are Coming!

Actually, The Beatles Blitz is already here ... virtually everywhere you turn lately ... and there's a whole lot more coming as we countdown to the major anniversary of The Beatles' first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show.  SO cool to hear that Paul and Ringo will be performing together for this very Special 50th Anniversary Event.  Yoko Ono and Olivia Harrison will also be on hand to help celebrate ... although neither one of them had even met their husbands John and George yet at this point in time.

Which begs the question:  How might The Fab Four be celebrating this year, were they all still with us?  Of course, one can only speculate ... but as you look back over the events since the passing of John Lennon 34 years ago (incredible to think that he has now been gone nearly as long as he was with us!), you cannot help but wonder.

Of course several of the REAL Beatles anniversaries already passed last year ... but there was something about conquering America that still reigns supreme.

SO much has happened in the last 20 years alone.  The "Threetles" reunited to get "The Beatles Anthology" out ... I have to believe that John would have contributed heartily to that event had he been here to do so.  (Then again I suppose any one of them could have procrastinated, refusing to live in the past, but one would hope for such a momentous event, they would have reunited in spirit if nothing else.)  The documentary had been planned for ages, originally to be called "The Long And Winding Road" after the band's final #1 hit.

George Harrison campaigned for the Cirque de Solei "Love" tribute that is still playing at The Mirage Theatre in Las Vegas, a culmination of Beatles music set to visual delight.  (Paul, on the other hand, was the driving force behind "Let It Be ... Naked", a stripped-down version of The Fab Four's final album the way he felt the band had always envisioned it, pre-Phil Spector tampering with the tapes.)

The continual revamping and improving of their recorded catalog most certainly would have happened with or without them, simply from a technological standpoint.  

Might they have gotten together sooner?  Perhaps the emotion of any one of the events would have been enough to spark something, especially working on "Anthology".  Under the circumstances, Paul, George and Ringo added their contributions to a couple of rough Lennon demo tracks ... certainly the possibility exists that NEW music might have ensued if all four guys got wrapped up in the emotion of what they were working on.

The only thing that's certain is the uncertainty ... we'll never know.

SO much is planned ... yet I cannot help but feel that more can be done.  "The Night That Changed America" will tape the day after The Grammy Awards Ceremony (which will also feature Paul, Ringo, Yoko and Olivia) ... and then air on the actual 50th Anniversary of that first Sullivan appearance on February 9th.  Although I'm sure some vintage clips will be worked into the program, it seems like a television special devoted to the entire Sullivan catalog would also be in order.

And shouldn't SOMEBODY be airing "Anthology" now, too?  Whether it be the abbreviated ABC Mini-Series Television Special or the full-length ten hour commercial release it seems like SOMEBODY (ABC?  VH1?  Palladia?  PBS?) should have jumped on this.  Plus it would probably help spark new sales for this collection, much as the release of their American Albums Catalog did this week.

What about a movie marathon?  "A Hard Day's Night", "Help!", "Magical Mystery Tour", "Yellow Submarine" ... a weekend event in the making.

Which begs, of course, the OBVIOUS question ... WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON WITH "LET IT BE"?!?!?!

For over 25 years now we've been promised that this film would FINALLY be released ... but it has yet to see the light of day.  (I am one of the fortunate few who owns a copy on VHS.  In fact, back in the late '70's, when "Let It Be" was released on both VHS Tape and Laser Disk, I bought a copy ... for something like $89!!! ... and I didn't even own a VHS player yet!!!  I just knew that this was something I needed to own and, thankfully, I've held on to it all these years.)  It just seems that a legitimate, cleaned up DVD / BluRay edition is LONG overdue.  No, it's not their finest moment ... and maybe they feel in retrospect it portrays the break-up of the band ... but it is a KEY event in the story, featuring some great, timeless music, as well as their final live roof-top performance.  It deserves to be seen ... and owned!

Fans continue to write in about the momentous event ... here are just a few of your letters from last week:

>>>The Beatles’ first American television appearance 50 years ago next month — said to be the most significant moment in pop music history — also marked a turning point for Top 40 radio.  Nowhere was the British invasion welcomed more warmly than at WLS AM 890, where the Fab Four dominated the Silver Dollar Survey on Chicago’s 50,000-watt giant for rest of the decade.

Click here: Feder flashback: WLS meets the Beatles | Robert Feder

>>>By mid-December, British copies of “I Want to Hold Your Hand” started getting airplay in key markets , such as Washington and Los Angeles. Capitol moved up its release date to December 26.  “She Loves You” and all the other early singles were re-released to millions of eager fans ready to spend their Christmas gift money. In the week following Christmas, they had five hits on the charts and by the end of January, had sold 2.6 million singles. By the time The Beatles appeared on “The Ed Sullivan Show” on February 9, 1964, they were already cemented as the biggest viral sensation in music history.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/maxrobins/2014/01/21/how-the-beatles-went-viral-in-america-in-six-weeks/

Hi Kent,

Coincidentally, Forgotten Hits is featuring 'The British Invasion' which I took part in.

The National Guitar Museum has awarded me 'The Lifetime Achievement Award' for my part in the history of the guitar.  I've copied the details below.  Your details of the TV Show at the end of the month mention many of the records I was on, so it's very relevant.

Such recognition by the Museum is a first for British session musicians, as was my having an evening at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame a couple of years ago where I talked about the impact of British music on the American scene, just as the USA music had on the UK music scene.  Wonderful how the interchange jumped the 3000 miles of 'the big pond.'

Keep up the good work, Kent and I hope we can meet up one day.

Very best wishes,

Vic

www.vicflick.com

The National GUITAR Museum Announces Presentation of “Lifetime Achievement” Award to Vic Flick . . . The Man Behind The World’s Most Famous Guitar Riff.

NEW YORK, December 24, 2013: The National GUITAR Museum announced that Vic Flick, the guitarist who played on hundreds of London sessions — and is best know for playing the guitar on the James Bond theme – will receive its “Lifetime Achievement” Award for 2013. Flick is the fourth recipient of the award, following David “Honeyboy” Edwards in 2010, Roger McGuinn of The Byrds in 2011, and the legendary B.B. King in 2012.

Flick’s work spans four decades of popular music, from movie soundtracks to jazz to rock and roll. “It is arguable that Vic created and played the one guitar riff that has been heard by more people than any other in history,” says HP Newquist, the executive director of The National GUITAR Museum. “In 1962, Vic played guitar on the soundtrack to "Dr. No" – in the process creating the James Bond theme song. His sinister opening riff has been featured in dozens of Bond movies ever since, and the popularity of the Bond franchise means that hundreds of millions, if not billions, of people all over the world have heard Vic's playing. We’re honored to be able to recognize his contribution to the guitar with this award.”

Flick was so well respected in the London session scene that he was recruited to play guitar on the soundtrack to The Beatles' film "Hard Day's Night." He was asked to help promote the Fender Stratocaster when it was introduced in the UK, and over the course of his career he performed on albums by artists as diverse as Tom Jones, Nancy Sinatra, Herman's Hermits, and Henry Mancini . . . not to mention many more soundtracks. His stellar work was recognized in 2012 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Still making the occasional public appearance, Flick published his autobiography, appropriately titled "Vic Flick, Guitarman," in 2008. More on Vic's career and accomplishments can be found at http://www.vicflick.com/

About The National GUITAR Museum

The National GUITAR Museum is the first museum in the United States dedicated to the history, evolution, and cultural impact of the guitar. Its touring exhibition, “GUITAR: The Instrument That Rocked The World” debuted in 2011 and is currently on display at the Fleet Center in Balboa Park in San Diego, CA. The Touring Exhibition consists of more than 70 guitars, along with engaging, entertaining, and educational displays that include historical artifacts, video screens, and computer interactives designed to appeal to visitors of all ages. In the next few years, the exhibit will become the basis of The National Guitar Museum and its permanent home.

The Museum’s Board of Advisors includes guitar greats Tony Iommi, Steve Vai, Ritchie Blackmore, Johnny Winter, Steve Howe, Liona Boyd, and Pat Kirtley.

Congratulations, Vic, on the well-deserved (and long-overdue) accolades ... you were certainly in the thick of it and it's great to see you finally getting some of the recognition you have long deserved.

Again, please feel free to comment throughout our salute to The British Invasion ... we'll be rekindling memories all year long in Forgotten Hits!  (kk)

Kent,

As Forgotten Hits is looking back -- as we all are -- at the Beatles' arrival in America 50 years ago, I think it's interesting to see what the mainstream media, and others, considered their most important trait:  not their music, but their hair.

The Hartford (Conn.) Courant, where I was a writer and editor from 1968 to 1995, certainly exemplified this in news stories, letters, and editorials from early 1964.

From an Associated Press story of February 8:  "Britain's way out Beatles, equipped with rag mop hairdos and guitars, invaded the colonies Friday. ... The Beatles collectively are sort of a sheep-dog version of Elvis Presley."

Letter-writers to the newspaper complained about "your front page picture of Ed Sullivan and his gallery of four other freaks ... to inspire thousands pickle-headed female morons to slobber over these refugees from barber shops and normal habitats."

The Courant itself opined:  "They apparently are likeable, harmless young men with ordinary singing voices, who use the gimmick of haystack hairdos to attract attention. ... the bushy-haired boys whose sex is not immediately apparent."

The idea that long hair equaled femininity was mirrored in the 1965 song by the Barbarians (#55 on the Billboard Hot 100) which argued, "With your long blond hair / You look like a girl ... You're either a girl / Or you come from Liverpool." (By 1967, the Barbarians refused to play this song in concert. I am attaching a photo I took in spring 1967 of Victor "Moulty" Moulton of the group; note the long hair).

It was quite a while before America settled down to recognize that the most important thing about the Beatles was not the length of their hair.

Henry McNulty

Cheshire, Connecticut

 

 

Without question, The Beatles' hair received every bit as much coverage as their music in the early days ... it was the butt of virtually EVERY comedian's joke ... and the focal point in every major newspaper and magazine. It was just something we had never seen before ... The Beatles had NO idea how great an impact this would have on world fashion the first time they combed it down in Moe Howard fashion!  (lol)  In hindsight this probably wasn't even a preconceived marketing ploy ... but boy, it sure worked!   (Kids were even buying Beatles wigs!!!  Check out this picture of FH Reader Mike Mertes, wearing his and strumming his brand new axe!  lol)

 

Even the radio guys got in on the act.  Most famously, here in Chicago, the WLS Jocks were all pictured on the Silver Dollar Survey with their Beatle hair-cuts ... hysterical because back then a couple of these guys were already losing their hair!

 

But, as I'm putting together our new Saturday Surveys feature, I found that our station wasn't the only one!  Here's the K-Men in THEIR Beatle gear, too!

I've told this story several times over the years ... by the timing is probably most appropriate now. 

 

Unlike apparently MANY teen (and pre-teens) in January of 1964, I had absolutely NO clue who The Beatles were until they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on February 9th.  (I was only ten years old at the time and hadn't even really discovered listening to the radio yet ... although this, too would change, six months down the line.) 

 

Anyway, Sunday Night we all sat down to watch The Ed Sullivan Show together as a family (like families all over America did) ... and we couldn't stop laughing at the way the girls in the audience screamed while The Beatles sang.  I didn't really know any of their songs yet ... but thought they were pretty good. 

 

The one who first caught my eye was George Harrison ... several times during their performance, our family discussed how much George looked like my Dad's Army Buddy Bud Baer ... except for the long hair and all.  In fact, when The Beatles appeared again the following week ... and then again the week after that, we all kept laughing and teasing my dad about his buddy Bud Baer being on TV.  (We had been on camping trips together so we knew Bud pretty well.  When he stopped by to visit he couldn't believe that we had been making fun of him for looking like one of those long-haired weirdos on tv!!!) 

 

The Beatles made such an impression on me that I didn't even remember their name the next day ... but boy, EVERY girl in school sure did ... that's ALL they were talking about.  Even in fifth grade, the girls were going ga-ga for The Beatles! 

 

The Monday night after their first Sullivan appearance my dad took all three of us boys for haircuts.  (Yes, barber shops were open on Mondays back in 1964!)  The barber ... who had been giving the Kotal boys crew-cuts for YEARS, kept kidding around about giving us Beatle hair-cuts ... (I was game!) ... again, everywhere you turned that Monday, The Fab Four were the central topic of discussion.  I even clearly remember him telling my dad how if these haircuts ever caught on, he'd soon be out of business! 

 

Virtually ALL of the newspapers and magazines focused on their hair rather than their music ... it was unlike anything we had ever seen before ... and within the next couple of weeks boys who had enough to do so were soon combing their hair forward into what WE called the "Moe Howard look", rather than The Beatles Cut. 

 

Before their third appearance I was hooked ... I had already bought "I Want To Hold Your Hand" / "I Saw Her Standing There" and "She Loves You" / "I'll Get You" ... and played them constantly.  When my mom took me shopping to buy their first album I remember being really confused ... "Meet The Beatles" and "Introducing The Beatles" were displayed side by side in the album racks, prominently displayed where you couldn't miss them in the store.  When I asked about them, the store clerk told me that "Meet The Beatles" was the one I wanted ... "that other one has a bunch of old stuff on it that was recorded before they were famous."  (Yeah, right!)  Little did anyone know that soon those "Introducing The Beatles" tracks like "Please Please Me", "Love Me Do", "P.S. I Love You", "Do You Want To Know A Secret" and "Twist And Shout" would soon be racing up the charts right along side their "new stuff" on the "Meet The Beatles" LP. 

 

It seemed like only a matter of weeks before EVERY record on display had some sort of Beatles take-off displayed on its cover ... "The Beatle Buddies" were a bunch of girls dressed in turtlenecks and posed just like The Fabs on their "Meet The Beatles" album cover, with half their faces covered in a shadow.  Beatle rip-off albums were everywhere, too ... "Jolly What!  The Beatles and Frank Ifield On Stage" (implying a LIVE album when, in fact, you just got three or four recycled tracks from the "Introducing The Beatles" album ... an album that was recycled itself in several different configurations including one packaged with a Four Seasons Greatest Hits album, Vee Jay Records' other big predominant recording act.  (I finally gave in when the "Songs, Pictures And Stories" LP was released with the gatefold cover.  Even though it was the exact same track line-up I had ignored up till then, I just HAD to have this album.) 

 

I remember walking home from school with three girls from my class (Cindy, Sue and Beth ... wow, we were ten years old and I STILL remember this) because they knew the words to EVERY Beatles song by heart and would sing the entire "Meet The Beatles" album to me on the way home from school.  (Clearly, I just couldn't get enough ... I needed to hear this music during every free, available moment!) 

 

As the year wore on, so did my Beatles record collection ... 45's mostly, especially if they had picture sleeves, which nearly ALL of The Beatles' singles did.  I remember having GREAT debates about which side of the record was the better song ... because nearly every single Beatles record was also a two-sided hit ... and my allegiance changed regularly between the A-Side and B-Side, simply because BOTH sides were so great! 

 

As I said earlier in the week, I find it hard to believe that I can recall SO many details from 50 years ago with the absolute clarity that I can ... nobody EVER believed this music would last ... and yet it has in some fashion inspired every bit of music to come since, just as The Beatles themselves were inspired by the early days of American Rock And Roll. 

 

I've said it 10,000 times and I'll say it 10,000 more ... this music is TIMELESS ... NO other music has EVER had the incredible lasting impact that this music has had.  We are SO fortunate to have lived through this experience first hand ... and I am SO pleased to be able to share these memories today with those who may have missed it the first time around.  There has NEVER been a more exciting time in music ... it deserves to be heard and it deserves to live on.  And this year the entire world is doing exactly that.  (kk)

Helping Out Our Readers

Hi -  
I just discovered your Forgotten Hits website and am enjoying the trivia. I am writing to you because I saw that there was a contest last year and the prize was a copy of a book I have been searching for. I was turned on to music in the early 70's and followed the Billboard charts passionately and listened to Casey's show every Sunday morning for 4 or 5 hours with a pen and pad and wrote down every title. (Did not realize there was an actual magazine that kept a list weekly for a few years!) 
I would really like to know when they plan on reprinting and selling the book, if ever, again. I went to the Joel Whitburn website and it is always 'unavailable.' 
Thank you 
Zoltan Deak 
Norwalk, CT   
I know Joel's book had completely sold out when our trivia contest ran ... which is what made one of his personal copies such a cool prize to give away. 
Joel recently reprinted the '60's Chart book ... so I asked him if any plans were underway to do the same with the 1970's edition.  (kk)  
Kent, 
As you probably know, printing books has become extremely expensive. We've had a number of "big" ones this past year, including "Hot Country Songs", "Top Pop Singles" "1950s Chart Book" and now "Cash Box Pop Hits", which is printing this Friday.  We should have some stock in on Monday (with lots of preorders to fill!)  So, there just hasn' t been a lot of room to catch up on reprints of out of stock titles. 
I definitely plan on re-prints of the Billboard 1970s, 1980s & 1990s books spread throughout this year. 
I'm also working on a new book project which I hope to have out in two to three months.  It has something to do with "Top Pop Playlists" surrounded by picture sleeves in full color for EACH MONTH per year!   When I have some samples I'll send them to you, but right now I'm still working on the layout, years covered, etc.  It will probably be a perfect book for those looking for "Forgotten Hits" that we all loved so much.  I'll keep you posted. 
Joel  
Man ... ALWAYS something new and exciting coming from this guy!!!  And he keeps finding new ways to present the material to us, which I love!  Stay tuned for exclusive "sneak peeks" right here in Forgotten Hits ... and as soon as we get word about a '70's Chart Book Reprint, we'll let you know, Zoltan!  Glad you're enjoying Forgotten Hits.  (kk)  
Hi Kent, 
Really? Wonderful! That would be amazing.  
Thank you for asking him. I'm excited. I am so desperate to own one that I am involved in a bidding war at this very moment on Ebay. Now I hope someone else tops my current high offer! 
Much appreciated, 
Zoltan  
Well, be patient ... and maybe we can save you a few bucks!  (Besides, Joel doesn't make any extra money when his books are sold at these "collectors' rates" ... and he'd rather offer them at a fair price value / bargain anyway!) kk

Hi Kent, 
This is a LONG SHOT!!! ... But maybe you or one of the dedicated Forgotten Hits fans can pull this one from somewhere.  I'd like to know the song and artist of an instrumental (the worst kind of song to not the know the title to) track used in an episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. 
Here's the episode on Hulu.  This is front the 1st season, and the song appears around 9:15 and continues throughout a very odd scene for The Mary Tyler Moore Show, with an outdoor montage of footage.  
http://www.hulu.com/watch/668  
The title of this episode is "Bess, You Is My Daughter Now" from the show's first season.  This song has been used in the series at least one another time, albeit in a short snippet only.  It might just be generic TV music, but this full length song leads me to believe this track might exist somewhere. Now I have a hunch the artist might be Patrick Williams, who was responsible for scoring several films and shows.
Here's some of his work:  

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Williams_(composer) and his personal website confirms some work on The Mary Tyler Moore Show:  http://www.patrickwilliamsmusic.com William's body of work is quite extensive.  Anyway, it is a long shot, but any way somebody might be able to put a name to the song I linked to, or maybe even a confirmation that it is indeed part of Williams' work? 

Thanks Kent and FH Readers, 
AJK  
I investigated Patrick Williams' site and, based on what I'm hearing here, I'd have to say that it's a real strong possibility that he supplied the music for this track.  It seems his "incidental music" used in both The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Columbo regularly get comments and requests. 
But it ALSO sounds like most of these snippets never even got song titles ... he was just told to fill "x" minutes of screen time and come up with something based solely on that criteria. 
He also doesn't own any of the rights to his own music ... so he has no way of making it available to interested parties and, surprisingly, it sounds like there have been THOUSANDS of requests over the years. 
As such, you may have to live off you Hulu Clip ... or burn just that musical segment to your computer. 
Here's a copy from Jason Lee, an associate Of Patrick Williams with a bit more detailed explanation.  (kk)  
Hi Kent, 
My name is Jason Lee.  I work with Patrick Williams, and was forwarded your message in hopes that I could assist you. 
It's a tough inquiry, as all of that music is owned by FOX (formerly MTM Enterprises).  Often times there were no actual "titles" to the pieces other than a cue# and the length of the piece.  Pat does not have any of the music from that show in his personal archive, as it's owned by FOX, so it's pretty much impossible to track down the information you're looking for unless you were to contact the studio directly ... and even then, I can't imagine it being an easy task. 
Pat gets requests almost daily for his music from the Marry Tyler Moore Show and especially the work he did on Columbo.  Unfortunately, we're not able to re-release any of this music or make it available for people to enjoy. Thanks for your inquiry, Kent.  Sorry I don't have a better answer for you. 
Have a great rest of your week. 
Best, 
Jason  

Kent, 
Hope you and family had a nice holiday. 
I have a question as you are the man. 
One of the cover tunes I played in my 60's garage band was "Midnight Hour". Of course Wilson Pickett (and scores of other artists) did the song. I think that some local band had a release of it, too, since I remember hearing it on the radio, but never had a copy on record. Do you know who's the artist? If so, how can I procure that song? 
Thanks, 
Bob  
I'm guessing it's the Michael and the Messengers' version that you're remembering, which did very well here in Chicago.  Give a listen to the track below and see if this one rings the bell.  (Of course The Rascals' version got quite a bit of airplay, too, but I figure you've already ruled that one out.) Michael and the Messengers have come up several times the past couple of weeks in Forgotten Hits ... we're actually trying to put a short piece together on these guys with the help of Gary Myers, who wrote the book on the History of Wisconsin Rock.  (kk)

Ya, that's the one. I know Wilson Pickett's and the Rascals' versions are infinitely more soulful, but that one

sticks with me - my garage band had the cheesy Farfisa organ sound too. It was cool to hear it again!

Thanks, Kent

Bob    

Hi Kent,

I'm trying to produce a documentary about the local Boston, MA, music scene in the 60's and was writing to ask if you could post this on your website. I'm trying to find any archive video from the mid 1960's concerning some local Boston, MA, Rock Bands that anyone might have in their archives that they could share or may know of that might have aired on any local TV or news shows on any networks from the years 1966 - 1969. The main bands I'm looking for footage of are Orpheus, Pandoras, Ill Wind, Teddy & The Pandas, Rockin' Ramrods, Barry & The Remains, Ultimate Spinach, Beacon Street Union or any one else associated with that scene at that time. I know a lot of these bands had done some TV over those years so I'm hoping some may be around.

I read your newsletter all the time! It's always very cool. Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

Lenny Scolletta

lennys09@verizon.net

Happy to put this out there, Lenny ... good luck.  (Interested parties can contact Lenny directly through the email address shown above.)  kk

Aside from the known stories about raiding each others' dj staff, why was it some major songs hitting Number One on WLS would make a paltry showing at CFL, as in for example, Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody", which only charted for two weeks on the latter, and some songs never made the playlist that went on and did well nationally.  In hindsight, it looks almost suicidal,business-plan wise … 
Regards, 
Tim Abbott  
Hi Tim!  

You're right about the jocks moving from station to station during this era ... but that also goes to show you just how well known ... and how well-LOVED these jocks were here in Chicago back in the day.  (How often do you see that today ... especially in a time when SO much of radio is automated or voice-tracked ... there is very little connection between the guy on the radio and the guy listening at home anymore, other than some of today's Top 40 stations that have kept the trend going ... and those stations that incorporate talk into their music mix.

Naturally, the two stations competed for audience share and often one station would jump on a record that the other station passed on ... but by and large, their charts were very similar over the years.  Sometimes they'd air different versions of the same songs ("Beautiful People" and "Son Of My Father" immediately come to mind ... WLS played the Bobby Vee and Giorgio versions, respectively, while WCFL opted for the versions cut by Kenny O'Dell and Chicory.)  

The Queen example, however, is not a fair analysis ... the reason "Bohemian Rhapsody" only charted for two weeks and stopped at #31 is because WCFL shut down in what would have been the record's third week on the chart.  The final WCFL Chart published was dated February 21, 1976, which was "Bohemian Rhapsody"'s second (and final) week on the chart. (kk)

And, speaking of WCFL ...

>>>J.R. Russ “has spent a thousand hobby hours to create an Internet version of WCFL (1000), the free-wheeling Chicago station that during the 1960s and 1970s was the home of Larry Lujack, Jerry G. Bishop and Barney Pip.” That’s the Chicago Sun-Times’ Dave Hoekstra, profiling “a labor of love” by Russ. J.R. says that “rather than a tribute station, stuck in the ‘60s and ’70s, I call it a salute station, which captures the essence of the original,” but plays some newer music. His traffic grew after Lujack’s death on December. 18. Read the Sun-Times story about the original WCFL where the jocks were “more unleashed,” and the current J.R. Russ version of it here. Note that J.R.’s also got the “Chickenman” comedy series, created by then-WCFL production genius Dick Orkin.

Kent, 
Do you have the website for this station??
Clark
The link in your email is SUPPOSED to take you there ... but I personally have tried numerous times now to access the station and have yet to connect.  I either just keep spinning or being redirected to other areas, none of which allow me to listen to the site.  I'm hoping that someone else on the list had better success with this and can provide us with a new link so that others on the list can enjoy it, too.  I'll keep you posted.  Help anyone???  (kk)
 

re:  On The Radio:

Chicago Media Columnist Rob Feder just ran the final tally for the December radio ratings period and once again those know-it-all consultants have been proven right ... Chicago really DOES need six stations playing the same Classic Hits / Classic Rock format.  Just a casual glance at the ratings will prove how right they really are ... 

#1 - by a LANDSLIDE - is the new My-FM (93.9, formerly The Lite), programming their annual 24 / 7 Christmas Music Blitz.  How big?  An 11.6 share ... nearly DOUBLE their nearest competition.  (In all fairness ... as Robert Feder points out in his column ... traditionally it will now go on to lose two-thirds of its audience as it returns back to its regular adult contemporary format.) 

How did our know-it-all rockers fare?  Well, let's see ...

WLS-FM (the guys we keep saying NEED to switch back to oldies if only to save themselves) were at 2.4.  (I'm sure those numbers please the folks back at Corporate!  In the all-important 25-54 demographic, that number drops to 1.7, or good enough for 24th Place on the list of Top 30 Radio Stations in Chicago.  Woo-Hoo!!!)  

WLUP (newly acquired by Cumulus) was ALSO at 2.4.  (Their numbers actually improve in the 25-54 demo.)  WDRV (The Drive) fared a little bit better with a 3.3 share, or about HALF of the city's #2 station WVAZ (who scored a 6.4 playing "urban adult contemporary" music.)  K-Hits (yeah, the guys we offered to help) fell to a new low of 1.7 (meaning nine out of every ten Chicagoans would rather listen to the same Christmas songs played over and over and over again than ANYTHING K-Hits has to offer) and suburban rockers The River and The Fox scored so low they didn't even place on the list. 

Clearly, we have absolutely NO idea what we're talking about ... thank you, Chicago listeners, for proving this point once again.  (It just keeps getting better, doesn't it???) Hmmm ... maybe My FM should switch to a 6-week "Love Songs" format for Valentine's Day and see if they can keep the streak going.  And then there's Easter ... surely there must be SOME way to bunny-hop back up the charts.  Heck for the 4th of July they could play Katy Perry's "Fireworks" every other song ... instead of every fifth song like they do now.  Follow that up with a very special "Christmas In July" two-week marathon and before you know it, it'll be time to spin those holiday classics again for real!!!  (I'm only half-joking ... we've hit a low point here in Chicago where you could program almost ANY new idea, no matter HOW ridiculous it might seem, and still get people to tune in and listen to it, just because it's something better than or different from what we're being force-fed now.  Which again begs the question ... why not oldies?  What have you got to lose?  Or, more to the point, how many more listeners can you afford to lose?) 

And here's something interesting ... the formats that scored ahead of Classic Rock / Classic Hits include Urban (2 stations), All News (3 stations), Current Contemporary Top 40 (B-96 and Kiss-FM) and Country.  Perhaps the saddest news of all ... the All-Mexican Channel now draws more listeners than WLS-FM ... but there's nothing they need to fix there ... they believe they're giving Chicago exactly what it wants to hear.  (You just keep telling yourselves that, guys!  Lord knows you've been proven right so far!)  kk 

Fifty Years Ago This Week:

As we continue to re-live the 50th Anniversary of The British Invasion (be sure to see last night's special posting for some VERY exciting news), here is a recap of how the Brits fared on our U.S. Charts fifty years ago this week:

1/24 and 1/25/64 - I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND jumps to #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles Chart, right behind LOUIE LOUIE (#2) and THERE! I'VE SAID IT AGAIN (#1), a 42 point jump on the charts.  Meanwhile SHE LOVES YOU premiers at #69.

Also new on the chart this week:  DUSTY SPRINGFIELD debuts at #77 with I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU, becoming the first of what would become known as The British Invasion to make their way on to the U.S. charts.

Here in Chicago, on the WLS Silver Dollar Survey, "I Want To Hold Your Hand" jumps from #40 to #8 this week … Beatlemania has taken over The Windy City ... and The Fab Four haven't even appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show yet!