Friday, February 20, 2015

The Friday Flash

With another absentee weekend looming (and a WHOLE lot of mail to still sort through), here is what I was able to throw together very quickly this afternoon to keep you till Monday's 50 Year Flashback Chart ...   

re:  This And That:   
MY FRIEND AND YOURS, TOM CUDDY, SAID IT ALL ABOUT YOUR BLOG EVERY DAY AND SUNDAY.  
THANK YOU, KENT,  KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK. 
YOUR FRIEND, 
FREDDY BOOM BOOM CANNON 
BY THE WAY, I AM FEELIN' GREAT! 
This is GREAT news ... and SO weird!!!  I was just about to email you this afternoon to see how you were doing ... heard you're already booked to do a cruise show!  Going through a bit of "near pneumonia" myself right now so I've been sidelined at home for the week and catching up on old mail and thought, "Man, I haven't talked to Freddy in a long time ... I should check in with him to see how he's doing" ... and then your email appeared!!! 
GREAT news ... just take it easy and take care of yourself ... work back into it ... the fans understand.  We want you with us for a long time to come! 
Thanks, Freddy! 
kk    

 More praise for Joel Whitburn's Comparison Chart Book ... from our FH Contest Winner ...    

 Kent:
I just wanted to thank you one more time. I got my copy Tuesday of the Comparison Book and I've yet to put the book down. It is great having all the chart information there in the one volume. This might be the most important release ever for Record Research. I still can't believe I was Joel's lucky contest winner.   

I also wanted to tell you about an exciting new CD set coming soon:   

Upcoming release on March 27 of Herman’s Hermits “Best Of Herman’s Hermits – the 50th Anniversary Anthology”. This is a 2 CD set assembled by Ron Furmanek that will contain 66 tracks, 56 of which appear in true stereo for the very first time along with a terrific book. To avoid licensing control in the U.S. by ABKCO, the CD is being released as an import on the Bear Family label. 

Here is the track lineup:   

CD 1:
Only Last Night (Feb 1964 Demo) • I’m Into Something Good • Mrs. Brown You’ve Got A Lovely Daughter • Kansas City Loving • Sea Cruise • Walkin’ With My Angel • Show Me Girl • I Understand (Just How You Feel) • Mother-In-Law • Your Hand In Mine • Thinkin' Of You • Wonderful World • Just A Little Bit Better • Hold On! • Leaning On The Lamp Post • A Must To Avoid • My Reservation’s Been Confirmed • The Story Of My Life • There’s A Kind Of Hush (All Over The World) • Saturday's Child • If You’re Thinking What I’m Thinking • You Won’t Be Leaving • Dandy • Jezebel • No Milk Today • Little Miss Sorrow Child Of Tomorrow • Gaslite Street • Rattler • East West • What Is Wrong What Is Right • Mum & Dad • My Sentimental Friend • Years May Come Years May Go

CD 2:
Thinking Of You (Feb 1964 Demo) • Can’t You Hear My Heartbeat • I’m Henry The Eighth, I Am • The End Of The World • For Your Love • I Gotta Dream On • Don’t Try To Hurt Me • Silhouettes • I’ll Never Dance Again • Tell Me Baby • Listen People • Bus Stop • Little Boy Sad • This Door Swings Both Ways • Museum • Upstairs Downstairs • Busy Line • Moonshine Man • Green Street Green • Don’t Go Out Into The Rain (You’re Gonna Melt) • I Call Out Her Name • The London Look • The Colder It Gets • A Year Ago Today • I Can Take Or Leave Your Loving • Sleepy Joe • Just One
Girl • Sunshine Girl • Something's Happening • Here Comes The Star • It’s Alright Now • Smile Please • Bet Yer Life I Do  
All true stereo and all new fresh mixes. Even Peter Noone has reportedly listened to several of the tracks and couldn't believe how good they sound. 
Looks like 2015 is starting off nicely for us oldies
music lovers.
Santiago Paradoa
Miami, Florida  
Sounds outstanding!  (Hey, maybe Peter will autograph a copy or two to give away to our readers!!!  Whatcha say, Peter???)  kk


THE MONKEES ANNOUNCE FIRST CANADIAN LIVE DATES IN OVER A DECADE   
The Monkees' Micky Dolenz and Peter Tork will be taking off to the Great White North for two exclusive concert dates at Casino Rama in Ontario on April 24 and 25. This announcement comes almost thirteen years to the day of The Monkees' last dates in Canada on 2002's Monkeemania tour. To mark this special occasion, Dolenz and Tork will be digging back into The Monkees' songbook to perform a special show comprised of their Canadian hit singles - "Last Train To Clarksville," "I'm A Believer," "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You," "She Hangs Out," "Pleasant Valley Sunday," "That Was Then, This Is Now," "Daydream Believer" - many of which hit #1.  
Tickets available now through Ticketmaster    

In Micky news ...

DOLENZ JOINS SKETCHFEST IN SAN FRANCISCO   
Monkee Micky Dolenz joined in with a stellar cast last weekend for SketchFest in San Francisco. The yearly fete is a combination of sketch, improv, stand-up, film, music and alternative comedy. There'll be another one in L. A. this Valentine’s weekend. 
Seen in the photo (courtesy of Jakub Mosur):  
L-R – John Cho, Dayle Reyfel, Debbie Harry, Micky Dolenz, Steven Weber, 
Janeane Garofalo, Jennifer Tilly, and, producer Eugene Pack.


And, speaking of The Monkees, FH Reader David Lewis sent us this Monkees Concerto a short while back: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fgq_qcE8i38   

Here's a fun video ... Mark Lindsay performing his hit "Arizona" as part of The Teen Idols Tour a few years back ... check out his background singers ...




Here's a great clip from Tommy James ... takes you behind the scenes of a proposed television series that simply never happened.  Watch and enjoy ... more episodes to follow! 
Click here: Tommy James: Inside Tracks Episode 7 "American Jukebox" - YouTube   
In fact, you'll find SEVERAL chapters already posted on YouTube ... just search:  Inside Tracks with Tommy James and enjoy this on-going series.  (LOTS of great stuff to be found!)  kk


Just wanted to weigh in on your Bobby Fuller Blog ... 
Some may not know that Bobby Fuller appeared twice on The Dating Game TV show as one of the three eligible bachelors. He was not chosen either time. 
Dreamlover50s 
I didn't know that.  (Couldn't find any clips on YouTube).  Another cool fact I learned this past week while reading the Flip Wilson biography that Frannie got me for Christmas ... for years and years and years, Flip's key character Geraldine talked about her boyfriend "Killer" ... but Killer was NEVER seen or heard on camera.  Sometimes she'd joke that he was incarcerated but for the most part he was always talked about only, leaving the audience to their own devices to conjure up what Killer must have looked like in their own minds ... until the final season of The Flip Wilson Show.  Then ... and ONLY then ... Killer FINALLY made an appearance on screen ... does it freak you out at all that Killer was portrayed by O.J. Simpson?!?!?  (kk) 
Speaking of interesting TV, I must confess that in twelve years I have NEVER seen an episode of Two And A Half Men ... just not my thing ... but I DID watch the one hour finale last night out of curiosity's sakes and I've got to tell you that I cannot imagine a more SATISFYING conclusion to this program.  Long-time fans must have been delighted and I have to admit I laughed more during that hour than all 3 1/2 hours combined of Saturday Night Live's 40th Anniversary Special the other night.  The writing was spot-on and perfectly scripted ... kudos to Chuck Lorre for going out with the upper hand.  The hour had a good time poking fun at itself and was THOROUGHLY enjoyable, even for a newbie like me.  
For those of you who missed Charlie, be sure to watch next week's episode of "The Goldbergs", another one of my favorite comedies on TV these days.  (It's like "The Wonder Years", set in the '80's.)  Next week they do a full-on tribute to everybody's favorite '80's movie "Ferris Buehler's Day Off".  (In fact you may have already seen some of the promo clips running featuring Ben Stein talking roll call ... "Goldberg ... Goldberg")  It's a consistently funny program and this one promises to be amongst the best.  "The Goldbergs" airs Wednesday Nights on ABC (8:30 Eastern / 7:30 Central)  kk   

Kent, 
I listened to "Miracles" last night by Jefferson Starship. It is - point blank - the single most underrated song of the 70's. Marty Balin's lead combined with Grace Slick and Paul Kanter singing background vocals makes for an ethereal classic. It may well be the most under appreciated rock song of all time. I know the right wingers and other purists were disturbed by one line of Balin's lyrics but it doesn't diminish the genius of this song. Did I mention that the band track is just haunting yet inspiring?  
Chet Coppock - Noted Forgotten Hits Villain 
Back when I was growing up, just post-high school, "Miracles" was voted the sexiest #1 Make-Out Song of All-Time ... by the GIRLS!!!  They said they just couldn't resist the whole rhythmic, orgasmic experience ... to this day I'll bet a number of women would agree.  (My guess is quite a few lucky guys will attest to this, too!)  lol  (kk)


(Picturing ALL of my Forgotten Hits Readers out there listening to this naked right now ... oh come on, give me my moment, won't you?!?!?)



PHOTO:  Frankie Avalon and Chris Montez, backstage (from FH Reader Shelley Sweet-Tufano)


Kent: 
Registering a song for performance rights with B.M.I. or ASCAP is not copyrighting a song. To copyright a song, you have to do it in Washington D.C. at the Library of Congress.
Berry Gordy probably checked to see if the song had been officially copyrighted, found it wasn't and proceeded to do so in his name and publishing company and credited Gwen Gordy, Billy Davis and himself as the writers.  Very underhanded and crooked ... but legal. A lot R&B songs were never copyrighted or even registered for performance rights.
Andrew Hamilton 
Andrew is referring to article about "You Got What It Takes", a song apparently written by (but never credited to) Bobby Parker.  Sadly, Bobby died a few years ago after we brought his story to the public.  He never did receive acknowledged credit for his efforts.  
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2008/08/you-got-what-it-takes.html


I have been on your site before. You had a link to a chart on an Edmonton or Calgary radio station that had Thank You Girl as number 1 for a week, on an old survey. 
I always liked the mono single version of Thank You Girl ... but not the stereo The Beatles Second Album version, because of the extra harmonica.
I lived in Greater Vancouver from 1950 to 2012.
bought a single of From Me To You to get Thank You Girl in the fall of 1964.  None of the three Canadian albums had it. Not Beatlemania, Not Twist And Shout. It should have been on the Long Tall Sally album.
Are you still linked to that? Please direct me to it. My eyes get tired fast if I stare at my computer screen too long.
T McCafferty 
I couldn't tell ya ... I'd have to search through every single Saturday Survey from last year, just like you would!  It seems we heard BOTH versions of "Thank You Girl" here back in the day ... the difference was immediately noticeable.  Here in The States it was "From Me To You" that never appeared on a Beatles album.  Even when Capitol released "The Early Beatles" and, years later, the so-called "Hey Jude" album, "From Me To You" was left off.  If you didn't buy the single in '64, you weren't going to get a copy until the "red" and "blue" greatest hits albums came out in the '70's.  For YEARS it was the only hit NOT in my Beatles collection.  If I wanted to hear it, I had to play The Chipmunks' version from their "The Chipmunks Sing The Beatles Hits" album!!!  How whack is that?!?!?  (kk)




Just a couple of quick comments about this year's Grammys show. 
First, one of the more enjoyable ones with actual melodic songs taking up most of the show this time.  Not sure WHY ELO was on there, but Jeff Lynne did an excellent job with the shortened versions of "Evil Woman" and "Mr. Blue Sky."  I asked a few people if they ever had heard "Mr. Blue Sky" and most said no.  A big UK hit, but being the last 45 from "Out of the Blue" here in the US, it failed to even chart, despite its' greatness.  It was funny to see McCartney and the young stars singing along with "Evil Woman" or AC/DC's "Highway to Hell." 
Do you ever have someone in a concert or football game who just HAS to stand while everyone is sitting?  How funny to see Sir Paul doing just that for ELO until the camera got on him and he realized he was the only one standing and then sat down quickly.  BTW, did they ever turn his mic on when he performed, because he WAS singing and you NEVER heard him.  No big deal, he was just there for guitar anyway.  Still, a bit odd.
The Roger Miller commercial was cool to see.  I sure miss him on TV.  He was funny in song and spirit.
Clark Besch
For the record, "Mr. Blue Sky" DID chart here in The States ... #27 in fact in Cash Box, besting its showing in Record World (#33) and Billboard (#35).  It was a #6 Hit in the UK.  Lynne's making a presence again because he's about to go out on tour as Jeff Lynne's Electric Light Orchestra ... first time in DECADES ... and it ought to be an absolutely AMAZING show ... hoping we can see it here in Chicago.  (Kinda funny that Lynne and Tom Petty were both present at The Grammy Awards Ceremony ... and watched Sam Smith win for "Stay With Me", a song they now share co-authorship with!)
I'm not quite sure what Macca's contribution is to Rihanna's "Four Five Seconds" ... it's certainly a catchy enough tune (which would imply McCartney right off the bat) ... but I never heard him sing a note during the broadcast OR on the record.  A pretty stripped down arrangement but musically and vocally a very nice tune ... and Paul's first Top Ten Record in a long, long time.
EVERYBODY loves the Roger Miller commercial ... people can't stop talking about it.  Two days after it first aired it had over 2 1/2 million hits on YouTube ... yet surprisingly this track is available for downloading on iTunes.  BIG mistake in my opinion ... I'll betcha just as many people would download it for their own personal keepsake! 
I don't remember ANY Grammy Awards Show kicking off the way this one did ... AC/DC set the tone for the night ... and the last two years' programs are amongst the all-time highlights in my book.  (Kinda went out with a whimper though after just a great start-up ... and then leave it to Kanye to embarrass the entire music world.  Asshole.)  kk


Hey Kent ... 
There was some discussion here last week about the documentary, "The Wages Of Spin 2" by Shawn Swords. I'm proud to report that the soundtrack of that film contains a lot of my solo music ... 11 different tracks throughout the film. I've included a link to a track called "Off The Line", which is the first music you hear in the beginning of the film as the needle hits the record. Check it out:  https://soundcloud.com/homeroomprod-records/off-the-line-by-mitch-schecteras-heard-in-shawn-swords-film-the-wages-of-spin-2  
On my first solo CD "Shoreline" this song was dedicated to the great Charlie Gracie, who has been a huge inspiration to me. We jammed a while ago, at a Bar-B-Q held by DJ Corky Warren, and Charlie blew me away. Here's a photo of that jam.


Also, next week we are performing in Ft. Pierce, Florida on a great show at the Sunrise Theater. Here's a poster of that event, which also stars Ron Dante and a few other greats. Stay warm!



Mitch Schecter / The Rip Chords

Unfortunately, getting to this too late to help promote the concert ... but it sounds like one hell of a line-up!  Hope you all had a great time.  (Would love to see this group come out to Chicago ... Ron Dante, Lou Christie, The Rip Chords ... we haven't seen these artists perform here in DECADES!!!) 
Lots of press lately for "Wages Of Spin 2" ... and Character Films in general.  
Here are a couple of other links interested parties can check out: 
Wages of Spin II "Bring Down That Wall"  Yahoo Screen Trailer U.K.....

We happened to see this in our AAA magazine,and it looks fabulous! Lesley Gore - Bowzer and The Stingrays with Johnny Contardo, formally of Sha Na Na - The Lovin Spoonful - Gary US Bonds - Johnny Tillotson - Freddy Boom Boom Cannon - The Legendary Teenagers - Chris Montez - The Chiffons - Joey Dee - Tommy Mara and The Crests - DJ Emcee Al Brady from Little Darlins and Wolfman Jacks Rock and Roll Palace and your hosts - Rocky and The Rollers - all on board for entertainment nightly, dancing and meet and greets!
Eileen
Another stellar line-up (although sadly Lesley won't be joining them after all.)  Any more details about this show would be appreciated as I'm sure others on our list would also be interested in attending.  Thanks, Eileen!  (kk)
They have them frequently. This is the one we had originally looked at, but the dates are not working with us this month. I am going to try to find one in March or April. I believe they are run through AAA, so people could contact them.
The lineup I sent you is for February 7th, 2016 and February 14th, 2016 on The Rockin' The Caribbean Cruise on Royal Caribbean's Freedom Of The Seas ... six dances, eight shows, Rock and Roll Trivia contests, Meet and Greets with all the headlining acts.
Eileen     

The other day we talked about Paul McCartney working with Rihanna and Kanye West ... could Lady Ga-Ga be next?  That's the latest word on the street ... McCartney and Ga-Ga have already been laying down tracks together.  That's ONE way to get the public to listen to your new music I guess.  Worked for YEARS for The Bee Gees!!! (kk) 

My guess is that Sly Stone was dancin' to the music when THIS ruling came down last month ...  
http://mashable.com/2015/01/28/sly-stone-5-million/?utm_cid=mash-com-Tw-main-link  
Read Chet Coppock's review of The Family Stone (minus Sly) here:  
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2015/02/another-guest-concert-review.html   

SO many great shows at The Arcada Theatre last year ... and this year's line-up is already chock-full of winners!  DEEPEST Thanks to Ron Onesti for keeping this great music going for all these years ... we love ya!  Check out this video of acts who appeared at The Arcada in 2014 ... I can think of at least another dozen who didn't make the cut ... this place has become THE venue to see classic, baby-boomer rock and roll ... and we love it!


 
re:  Local Heroes:  
With separate benefit concerts coming up at The Arcada, Chicagoland '60's Music Fans are in for a real treat this spring ... The New Colony Six will headline The Rhythmic Arts Project on April 19th, a concert raising money for a multitude of organizations with disabilities ... followed by The Benefit Concert for Marty Grebb, which will feature a who's who of '60's music artists including The Cryan' Shames, The Shadows Of Knight, Ronnie Rice and Nick Fortuna, Carl Giammarese, Marty Grebb and Dennis Tufano performing the hits of The Buckinghams ... many other surprise guests are planned.  

We've got the whole town talkin' about BOTH of these exciting events!   

>>>Just a short thank you for the posting today of the records that your boys made and charted with back in the sixties and early seventies.  Loved it immensely.  Currently I am at the bottom of the list with SHAKE.  Just love that record. Most of the records you listed (the minor hits and less than minor records that did chart in Chicago), did not make our local survey, but that is I think understandable.  (Larry Neal)
Actually, Larry, KOMA did list several Chicago hits on their charts.  My memory of my KOMA charts reminds me of "Love You So Much," "Sugar & Spice" and "It Could be We're in Love" all making their top 30 (or higher) of the KOMA Sing-a-Long top 40 chart.  
This is more impressive than many might think.  Because my dad had schooling for his FAA job there almost every summer, we spent many summers in OKC.  Chicago acts got NO push in OKC from kids listening to WLS and WCFL like in other parts of the country.  WLS was at 890, as was OKC station KBYE and WCFL was at 1000 as was OKC station KTOK.  It was amazing back then that both cities could have stations exactly in the same spot on the dial as my Chicago stations.  SO, the NC6, Shames and others had to fight their own fight to get onto the local charts -- and they DID it!! Unfortunately, for now, it looks like I will not be coming for the great concert event.  :(  
Clark Besch


>>>A coupla years ago Carolyn talked about an old video of the Shames / NC6 that she was gonna send you - I asked if you could ask her if I could make / buy a copy, and I don't think I ever got an answer. Did you ever make a copy, and ask her about it? I'd still like to have a copy.  (Marlene)
I would pay to get a copy of this, too!!!  My search for 60's Shames video is unending and always fruitless, it would seem.  Even 1970's Ides / Shames Union stuff would be awesome to see! 
Clark
I still don't remember anything about such a video ... so I wrote to Carolyn myself to see if she could shed a little light on this.  Here is her response:
You must be referring to a VHS tape I bought at a record convention.  It was a live concert in Michigan with the New Colony Six, Shadows of Knight and Cryan Shames and maybe another group.  Circa 1989.
I once sent it to you and you let Ray Graffia play it and he said it was a "train wreck" ... he autographed the VHS cover box! And then sent it back to me.
I will have to find it in my "archives" and play it to see how it plays and find out all the groups who are on it.
Can't get over all the good entertainers Ron Onesti is having.  I have never been there since it is far away but I would like to, especially the Chicago Concert for Marty Grebb.  I have the Buckinghams LP with Marty on the cover with them hanging up in my basement with other LPs.  I also like Randy Bachman.  I have seen him a couple of times.
Keep up the GREAT work and I will email you with further info once I find the tape and play it ... maybe this weekend.
Take care,
Carolyn
Wow, I STILL don't remember it ... but several years ago I was working with Ray Graffia's brother Ron, trying to assemble sort of a "best of" video collection of The New Colony Six performing live.  We had DOZENS of tapes to work from and were trying to find the best version of each song, all to be edited into a final "best of" tape that could be used both for audition purposes and be sold to the fans at their shows.  The whole thing ultimately fell apart and even I don't have a copy of what we deemed "the best of the lot".
Fortunately years ago I was given a DVD of The New Colony Six Reunion Show at The Park West from I wanna say 1988 that included Ray, Ronnie Rice and a few other one-time members of the band ... haven't watched it in YEARS but I remember it being pretty good.  I recently met bassist Bruce Gordon at a music get-together and he said that he would LOVE to get a copy of that (as he was one of the NC6 performers that night.)  
Vintage clips from the '60's are even harder to come by ... you'll find The Buckinghams most often because they did national shows like The Smother Brothers and others ... usually the best stuff winds up on YouTube.  But some of the local appearances are much tougher to find.  (The New Colony Six on Kiddie-A-Go-Go is a pretty popular clip ... but they also appeared on The Mike Douglas Show and, I wanna say, Lloyd Thaxton, too.  I used to have a list of all these appearances but it's long since gone thanks to numerous computer crashes over the years.)  kk 

Talk about a couple of Oldies & Goodies from WLS of the 1960’s.  Lyle Dean, Dex Card and yours truly having lunch yesterday in Ft Myers. Dex reports he had a stroke last year, Lyle remarried last year and I’ve just gotten a hell of a lot older since last year!!!!
Clark Weber

Great shot, Clark, of a momentous meeting.  (Gee, I remember when 89 was the frequency ... not the age of all the participants!!!  lol  You know I'm just kidding ... SO good to see you guys getting together after all these years!)  kk


re:  Lesley Gore:
So sad to hear about the passing of Lesley Gore this past week. 
I can still hear the  Golden Hits Of Lesley Gore album coming from my older sister’s bedroom every time I hear a Lesley tune. In many ways this was a concept album and after all the trials and tribulations with Judy and Johnny, etc., the last cut on this album should have been the triumphant coming of age, “You Don’t Own Me”.  
I’ve read many a comment about Quincy Jones over-producing and double tracking on this album. I have also watched many live clips like The T.A.M.M.I. Show and old Mike Douglas appearances and know that her talent didn’t disappear when she stepped out of the recording studio  Besides, if beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, then beauty is also in the ears of the listener regardless of what means were used to arrive at it.  
My favorite all time Lesley tune is “All Of My Life,” regardless if I hear it in stereo, mono, double track or single track.  
Setting talent aside for a moment, let’s celebrate the passing of a young lady who at such an early age brought so much joy to so many.
Jerry


 Since there probably will be few stations that will have / had any "real" tribute to Lesley ...  
The Vinyl Arkhives will be back on the air for another three-some hours Wednesday Night (2/18), beginning at 9 PM Mountain at www.kafmradio.org -- click LISTEN LIVE after clicking on the link. In addition to a lot of the lost and forgotten hits from the First 25 Years of Rock & Roll, we will be paying tribute throughout the night to Lesley Gore, who passed away earlier this week.
Spread the word, and if you have a fave you want to hear, call the show at 970-241-8801 ext.1 Wednesday night.
Tim Kubat
Another one we got to too late to post in time for fans to enjoy.  Please let us know if this program is archived somewhere, Tim, so interested parties can tune in and listen to the tribute.  Thanks!  (kk)

re:  Jimi Hendrix:
Hi
Just stumbled across your site and wanted to let you know that the picture below Jimi Hendrix is not (bassist) Noel Redding but (drummer) Mitch Mitchell.
Best regards from England
-- Steve
Assuming you mean the shot in the "Scrapbook" section as there are no pictures of Noel Redding in the Hendrix article itself.  However, I believe you're mistaken.  The girl in the picture sent me this some fifteen years ago when she saw Hendrix perform at a small club in Milwaukee and she's the one who identified him, having spent some time with both Hendrix and Redding between sets.  For comparison's sake, here's our website photo along with a publicity shot of The Jimi Hendrix Experience identifying all three members:


Then again I also found THIS photo, flip-flopping the two ... so now I'm REALLY confused!!!

The classic line-up of The Jimi Hendrix Experience, from left to right: 
Noel Redding, Mitch Mitchell and Jimi Hendrix.

Meanwhile, I found this old Rolling Stone article (from 1969) when Redding had left The Jimi Hendrix Experience to form Fat Mattress ... which would indicate that our photo has been misidentified for all these years!
Anybody got any DEFINITIVE proof on this ... 'cause now I'm REALLY confused ... especially since Jean (who sent us that Milwaukee shot some fifteen years ago) identified her photo partner as Noel Redding.  Thanks!  (kk)

I don’t hear any noise or distortion of feedback in Little Wing, or The Wind Cries Mary, or Angel, do you?
Maybe the problem is with you (no offense) if ALL these other smart and respectable people find Hendrix so amazing?
You might consider that. Not trying to start an argument but I did want to comment.
PS Jimmy Page said he never saw Jimi live, so I don’t think he was in attendance wherever you said he was.
Sincerely,
Pete Von Sholly
It seems that every new reader who discovers our Jimi Hendrix piece feels it necessary to take a swipe at me for being the ignorant SOB who wrote it ... when, in fact, I acknowledge all along that for so many others to feel differently about the music of Hendrix, the problem must be on MY end because I just never really "felt it". 
As for "Little Wing", "The Wind Cries Mary" or "Angel", I suppose we can find exceptions to ANY rule.  Fair to say The Beatles weren't only about "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" or "You Know My Name", right?  They DID do some other music, too ... that most of the world felt important enough to make them the musical gods that they became.
As for the Jimmy Page comment, I don't remember specifically what you're referring to (and clearly you don't either since you brush it off with simply "wherever you said he was") ... but the research that went into this piece came from reading and referencing SIX Hendrix biographies (also mentioned in the piece) so all I can tell you is that it must have been documented SOMEWHERE in one of those volumes.
Scanning my piece (written many years ago when Forgotten Hits was still an email-only newsletter), the only Jimmy Page reference I could find was regarding the recording of Donovan's hit "Hurdy Gurdy Man", originally written with Hendrix in mind to record it.  Hendrix passed on the opportunity and then never showed up the day he was supposed to lay down his guitar licks on Donovan's track ... so once again my article clearly states that Page (who WAS in the studio that day) and Hendrix failed to cross paths.  (kk) 

Speaking of Jimi Hendrix, we recently caught word of a brand "new" Hendrix release featuring some early tracks from 1965, just before he was launched into super-stardom.  Check it out here:  
EXPERIENCE HENDRIX L.L.C. AND LEGACY RECORDINGS TO RELEASE 
YOU CAN’T USE MY NAME: CURTIS KNIGHT & THE SQUIRES (FEATURING JIMI HENDRIX) THE RSVP / PPX SESSIONS ON MARCH 24
 
1965 - 1967 Recordings Showcase Hendrix’s Brilliance Just Before His Ascent to Stardom
February 18, 2015 – New York, NY - Experience Hendrix L.L.C. and Legacy Recordings are releasing You Can’t Use My Name: Curtis Knight & The Squires (Featuring Jimi Hendrix) The RSVP / PPX Sessions – the first in a series that presents these recordings in their original context. The specially priced fourteen-track collection, taken from sessions in 1965 and 1966 [plus one July, 1967 recording], will be available on CD and 150 gram LP on March 24. 
In the mid 1960s, before launching a solo career that has profoundly influenced and altered the course of popular music, Jimi Hendrix was a little known sideman, working for short periods with a variety of artists including the Isley Brothers, Don Covay, Little Richard, and the Harlem-based R&B combo Curtis Knight & The Squires.
Ed Chalpin was an entrepreneur and record producer who founded PPX International, Inc. in 1960. He had created a lucrative business by recording cover versions of top US hits for foreign record companies, who then overdubbed translated lyrics.  In addition to creating remakes for foreign markets, Chalpin had begun to produce original material at his New York recording facility Studio 76 that he would license to various record labels.  Chalpin auditioned Curtis Knight in 1965 and agreed to manage and produce him.  
In October 1965, Knight introduced Jimmy Hendrix to Chalpin. After their initial recording session yielded Knight’s “How Would You Feel,” Chalpin signed Jimi Hendrix to a notorious three-year recording contract for $1.00 and a 1% royalty. Hendrix had thought he was signing a release as a backing musician, later noting, “I took it as an insure of getting paid for the session…” In 1966, Chalpin licensed two singles from Hendrix’s sessions with Curtis Knight to RSVP Records, a New York based independent label owned by Jerry Simon. “How Would You Feel” b/w “Welcome Home” and “Hornet’s Nest” b/w “Knock Yourself Out.” The latter two instrumentals were composed by Hendrix and stand as the first ever commercial release of his own music. Both of these efforts missed the charts entirely and, as a result, Simon’s interest in the group waned and RSVP did not issue a third single.
Hendrix would continue to intermittently perform as a member of Curtis Knight & The Squires in 1966. He had also formed his own group Jimmy James & The Blue Flames in Greenwich Village.  It was there where Animals bassist Chas Chandler spotted Hendrix performing “Hey Joe” at the Café Wha?. He offered to take Hendrix to London to record a version of the song and serve as his producer.
In September, 1966, Chandler escorted Hendrix from New York to London to make good on his promise. Under his guidance, Hendrix formed the Jimi Hendrix Experience with drummer Mitch Mitchell and bassist Noel Redding. Chandler rushed them into the recording studio, pawning his bass guitar to help fund the group. Chandler’s faith was rewarded in December, 1966 when “Hey Joe” became a hit in England and soon throughout Europe. “Purple Haze” and “The Wind Cries Mary” followed in quick succession and were even more successful.  In a matter of months, Hendrix had transformed from a struggling, little known sideman to the brightest new star in popular music.
Ed Chalpin had learned of Hendrix’s international success via reports in industry trade journals. Beginning in May, 1967, Chalpin had begun notifying every company he could identify as doing business with Hendrix that his company PPX had previously signed the guitarist to an exclusive three year contract covering the term between October 1965 and October 1968.
Beginning with December 1967’s Get That Feeling, Chalpin began to compile and license albums featuring the master recordings Hendrix had recorded as a sideman to Knight. Get That Feeling was followed by October, 1968’s Flashing. Hendrix’s burgeoning fan base was confused by the lack of liner notes or accurate cover imagery [Get That Feeling featured a photograph of Hendrix performing at the Monterey Pop Festival] as these albums gave full artist billing to Jimi Hendrix.
Jimi Hendrix was hamstrung throughout his career by litigation over these recordings in the US and UK and these fights continued until his family ultimately prevailed in litigation against Ed Chalpin and PPX in 2003. Experience Hendrix has since acquired all of the recordings controlled by Chalpin and PPX and this compilation stands as their first attempt to present this music in its original context.
You Can’t Use My Name kicks off with “How Would You Feel,” a 1966 single based in part on Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone.” “How Would You Feel” tackles sensitive race issues, pre-dating by a few years the explosion of popular R&B acts latching onto the thriving Black Power movement. Its B-side “Welcome Home” is also featured on the collection. These tracks represent a musical touchstone, as Hendrix (listed as “Jimmy Hendrix”) received his first ever label credit as an arranger of both songs. Also included is the instrumental “Hornet’s Nest” and its B-side “Knock Yourself Out [Flying On Instruments],” both of which were composed by Hendrix.
Capping off You Can’t Use My Name is the August, 1967 track that spawned its namesake. Heard for the first time is the fascinating section of studio chatter that precedes a take of “Gloomy Monday,” wherein Hendrix repeatedly requests that Chalpin not use his name in the marketing of the recording, and Chalpin agrees, albeit, ambiguously. Already months deep into litigation, it can only be theorized that Hendrix continued to participate in sessions with Chalpin as a gesture of goodwill in the hope that all would be forgiven. It didn’t pan out that way, and the dialog is an interesting footnote to the complicated history between the two parties.
“We are extremely delighted to now be in a position to offer these rare, historic recordings,” commented Experience Hendrix President and CEO Janie Hendrix, sister of Jimi Hendrix. “What makes them so special is that they provide an honest look at a great artist during the pivotal time when he was on the cusp of his breakthrough ...  a time when Jimi’s number one priority was playing and recording, and this set captures him doing just that, both as a collaborator and an innovator. They are more than just recordings, they represent a significant segment in the timeline of Jimi's musical existence.”
Original Jimi Hendrix Experience recording engineer Eddie Kramer recently went to pain-staking lengths to maximize the audio quality on the collection. “We’ve taken every single performance as far back as we could go in terms of source and we came up with the best original performances, stripped them back and re-mixed them and made what we feel is the best representation of those recordings,” says Kramer. “It’s a continuing archeological sound dig which is to say you sweep away the dirt with a fine brush and find the gem hidden therein.  It’s what I call ‘forensic audio’ where we use every available piece of outboard gear and plug-ins and whatever tools are available to us.  It’s been hours and hours of intensive work but it’s truly been fun to find the best performances and to make sense out of them."
These recordings made for PPX and RSVP are part of Jimi Hendrix’s extraordinary legacy. They neatly align with those other sessions Hendrix participated in during this same era as a sideman for other acts. Absent the confusion as to Hendrix’s true involvement, these recordings provide a snapshot of his development immediately prior to his discovery by Chas Chandler. “I was a backing musician playing guitar,” Hendrix explained in a 1967 interview. “I was always kept in the background, but I was thinking all the time about what I wanted to do.” Enjoyed in this context, these Curtis Knight sessions showcase his evolving technique and emerging brilliance.
You Can’t Use My Name: Curtis Knight & The Squires (featuring Jimi Hendrix) The RSVP/PPX Sessions tracklist:
1)    How Would You Feel
2)    Gotta Have A New Dress
3)    Don’t Accuse Me
4)    Fool For You Baby
5)    No Such Animal
6)    Welcome Home
7)    Knock Yourself Out [Flying On Instruments]
8)    Simon Says
9)    Station Break
10) Strange Things
11) Hornet’s Nest
12) You Don’t Want Me
13) You Can’t Use My Name
14) Gloomy Monday  
JimiHendrix.com 
LegacyRecordings.com
re:  Barry Manilow:
Seriously ... where else on EARTH are you going to go from Jimi Hendrix to Barry Manilow?!?!?  Man, you've just GOTTA love Forgotten Hits!!!  (even if we do picture our readers naked from time to time - lol!)   

Saw Manilow about '79 or so at Pine Knob in Michigan  He called his back up singers an "oreo cookie" ... two girls were black and one was white. LOL
Sanvtoman 
That was Barry's running gag early on ... that he was going to name his trio of background singers "The Oreos" as they stood black, white, black behind him.  Ultimately they settled in on "The Flashy Ladies" and even released a few singles of their own, as "Lady Flash".  Debra Byrd would go on to be a vocal coach and background singer on American Idol for many years to come.  (kk)  

I truly enjoyed this review.  The fact that a reluctant fan gives Barry a thumbs up and the audience a thumbs down shows the review was given in an honest frame.  Barry IS quite the entertainer and performer.  I feel the pain that a deserved standing ovation was lost.  Sometimes people cannot release their "proper" and just be grateful for the freedom allowed in music.
Shelley    

First time I saw Barry Manilow was way back in the 70's. I was working at the Auditorium Theatre. He was the pianist for Bette Midler and she appeared for three consecutive nights. She introduced him to the audience and said that he was going to be a big star some day. He soloed by playing a few commercial jingles that he had written at that time. Who would have ever guessed what he would soon become? I sure didn't. I remember thinking, "This guy will never be a star unless he gets that nose fixed!"
Aside from that, on the second of the three nights, a strange looking group walked in. It was eight young guys, all wearing trench coats. They had tickets in the very center of the front row. Early in Bette's performance, they dropped their pants while sitting down. They then stood up, all at the same time, and they peeled off their trench coats. They shouted in unison, "We love you, Bette," while standing totally naked. This was a tribute to Bette's beginnings as a singer in New York's famous gay bath houses. She saw and heard the men and totally broke up, stopping right in the middle of her number. She was laughing so hard she couldn't go on. She said, "I love you, too," regained her composure and carried on.
Thank you
Steve Sarley
Awesome!  The Full Monty BEFORE there even was such a thing as The Full Monty!!!  Love It!  (kk)   

Here's my favorite story about Barry Manilow, and some of you in Chicago might remember this. I was working for his show a few years ago. He had broken his foot or something, so he was brought out on stage in a wheelchair. Well, the music started, then suddenly transitioned into something more lively, and Barry threw off the lap blanket and jumped up out of the chair and began to sing - 'It's a Miracle'! It was pretty funny, and definitely got the show off to a great start! Regardless of whether or not you like his music, he's definitely a great entertainer!
Marlene       

re:  Clip Of The Week:  
FH Reader Alex Valdez sent us this one ... 
You gotta wonder how long it took ... and how many bottles had to be consumed ... to come up with THIS one!!!  Pretty cool actually.


Posted by at