More Brian News

re:  Brian Wilson / The Beach Boys:

It was announced this week that the new Brian Wilson biopic "Love And Mercy" will see national distribution in theaters when it is released on June 5th!  

The long-awaited film traces Wilson's career from the '60's into the '90's and stars actors Paul Dano and John Cusack in the title role, portraying Wilson in the early and later years.  (The always-fun-to-watch Paul Giamatti plays the part of Dr. Eugene Levy.) 

A brand new trailer was released this week ...  

... and Beach Boys Examiner Columnist David Beard has the full scoop here:

http://www.examiner.com/article/brian-wilson-love-mercy-movie-trailer-premieres?CID=examiner_alerts_article   

Beard also covers Brian's new solo album ("No Pier Pressure") and Mike Love's reaction to the comment that this was SUPPOSED to be music featured on The Beach Boys' follow up album to their smash 50th Anniversary hit release "That's Why God Made The Radio" ...

http://www.examiner.com/article/brian-wilson-s-new-music-arrives-at-the-right-time?CID=examiner_alerts_article

http://www.examiner.com/article/mike-love-states-his-case?CID=examiner_alerts_article

(Love promises to dish out more Beach Boys behind-the-scenes information when his autobiography is released next year)  kk   

Here are a few of the comments we received after we featured the new Brian Wilson track "The Right Time" last week, featuring Al Jardine on lead vocals ...

http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2015/02/new-brian-wilson-music.html   

Al Jardine sounds remarkably youthful on the new Brian Wilson single.  I'm surprised that Brian did not call in Dean Torrence, The Surf City All Stars and The Bamboo Trading Company to work with him in assembling his new album -- or did he?

Gary Theroux

Al sounds remarkably good (some have speculated that his son Matt helps him out a little bit here and there ... but it's a VERY Beach Boys-sounding track.) 
As much as I like it, I think it's a bit of an unusual choice for a lead-off track ... the album is being marketed and released as a Brian Wilson solo project (with guests) but the first "single" features Al Jardine on lead vocals throughout.  Then again, it IS one of the stand-out tracks on the album ... and is probably most reminiscent of The Beach Boys sound ... so it just may work.  (Despite what Mike Love says, I can absolutely believe that this track was planned for the follow up album to "That's Why God Made The Radio" ... and it's kinda cool that Brian is still working with the "terminated" Beach Boys on his own, leaving two camps for Beach Boys fans to follow ... the Mike and Bruce show ... and everybody else!)

In addition to Al Jardine, former Beach Boys members David Marks and Blondie Chaplain also make appearances on the new LP, along with Brian Wilson "regulars" Jeffrey Foskett, and touring band members Darian Sahanaja, Scott Bennett, Paul Mertens and Probyn Gregory.  It doesn't sound like Dean, The Surf City All Stars or The Bamboo Trading Company were involved in the making of this album ... but several young, contemporary female artists are, including Kacey Musgraves, who I particularly enjoy. (Also onboard are Nate Ruess of Fun and She & Him's Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward.  Studio musicians include Don Was, Jim Keltner, Dean Parks and Kenny Aronoff.)

Brian told Endless Summer Quarterly Publisher and Beach Boys Examiner Columnist David Beard that he STILL writes everything with The Beach Boys' voices in mind ... Carl's in particular.

The new CD will be released on April 7th.  (kk)   

Kent,

This hurts.

I have admired Brian Wilson for over half a century.
His musical genius is quite simply unmatched.

Would there have been a Sgt. Pepper without Pet Sounds?
Maybe, but I doubt it.
Brian is the greatest songwriter in American history. As George Halas said of Gale Sayers, "We will never see his like again."  The same could be said of Brian.
Now, let's get real.

Failing to embrace anything Brian does is damn near like requesting 50 days in purgatory. Or worse yet, watching the Bears' offense.
That being said, I just listened to the new tune with Al Jardine (always the underrated Beach Boy) handling the lead. I was hoping for musical magic but got a heavy dose of elevator music.
The song bored me.

Did it have the passion of In My Room, the ethereal charm of God Only Knows or the buzz of Do it Aaain?
I feel lousy. I love Brian Wilson. I truly hope he can find the gear that allows a younger generation to see what he's capable of creating.
Chet Coppock
Author: Chet Coppock: Laying it on the Line

To use a sports analogy that I know you'll relate to, I think all of our heroes from that era were "in the zone" at that moment in time ... when else have you ever seen the mass quantity AND quality of output by artists like The Beach Boys and The Beatles, who absolutely inspired one another to greater heights.  Look at the ENORMOUS leaps and bounds both artists took in a five or six year period ... from "Love Me Do" to "Rubber Soul", "Revolver" and "Sgt. Pepper" ... from "Surfin' USA" to "Pet Sounds" and "Good Vibrations" ... who else can you name that had THAT kind of evolution in such a brief period of time?  (Stevie Wonder and  Michael Jackson come to mind ... but I'd say overall it's a pretty short list.)  Some fifty years on, it's tough to measure up to the standard of your past work ... technically, they did it to themselves by setting the bar so high.

That being said, I really like the new tune ... for me, it's very reminiscent of The Beach Boys' sound, much like the bulk of the "That's Why God Made The Radio" album.  This is ESPECIALLY evident when you compare it to most of the other solo releases by Brian since his "Imagination" album.  Brian Wilson doing Gershwin?  Brian Wilson doing Disney?  Some of his best solo work (and a great amount of credit needs to go to his top-notch, stellar band of musicians) has been recreating new versions of his past work like "Pet Sounds" and "Smile" live in concert.

If you read Mike Love's interview via the link above, you'll see that much of this "new" music was actually created many years ago (around the time of the "Imagination" album) when Brian was living right here in St. Charles and working with Joe Thomas.  The Beach Boys' "That's Why God Made The Radio" album included a few collaborations with Chicago's very own Ides Of March!

I think it's a positive sign ... and the fact that he's working with new, contemporary artists tells me that he IS trying to reach "the younger generation" ... who might be more inclined to listen to some of these tracks because Kacey Musgraves or Zooey Deschanel or Nate Reuss of Fun are on them.

Brian's work has been an inspiration to SO many new artists over the years who have followed in his footsteps to forge their own musical mark ... so I've gotta disagree with you on this one.  Judging by nearly all of the comments I've seen, most of the other folks on the list like the new track, too.  (kk)

Hi Kent

Thank You! Thank You! Thank You! For the "Love and Mercy" Movie Preview. It looks good so far.

I have read almost every book on Brian Wilson and the  Beach Boys so I am anxious to see it!!

Leave it to the Master to get the latest rock and roll news.

Carolyn

We've been waiting a long time for this one, too (although I'm still having a hard time picturing John Cusack playing Brian Wilson!!!  lol)  ESQ's David Beard that there may also be a new soundtrack album to accompany the film as well ... so we hopefully have that to look forward to.  (kk)   

I really dig the new Brian Wilson song, Kent. Looking forward to what else Brian has in store.
Thanks for sharing!

Mike Dugo

Kent ...

I loved the Brian Wilson tunes!!!!!!!! Great stuff. 

I also Loved the 2014 Arcada Theater year in review!! What a great array of talent they assembled! BUT the Bottle Boys blew me away. Great stuff!!

As always to you ... A GREAT JOB!!!!!!!!! 

Keep up the good work ... I think I'm movin' to Chicago  LOL  

Pete Garrison

I thank my lucky stars every day to have fallen into the good graces of Ron Onesti and The Arcada Theatre ... here's a guy who loves this music as much as I do ... and strives to bring it home every night via his venue.  Let me know when you hit town ... I'll make sure you get in to see a show!!!  (kk)

Chicago's Got A New Radio Station

Chicago's newest radio station signed on shortly after noon on Monday by playing two Chicagoland standards ... "Lake Shore Drive" by Aliotta, Haynes and Jeremiah and "Take Me Back To Chicago" by Chicago.

 

Me-TV-FM can best be described as soft rock / easy listening oldies from the '60's, '70's and '80's.

 

There are no live dj's yet ... and no commercials ... right now they're simply setting the tone for the type of music you can expect to hear from the station, located at 87.7 FM ... so it's an excellent time to listen.

 

(My initial reaction:  I hate the name ... I mean, I understand that they're trying to capitalize on the success of Me-TV resurrecting some vintage television shows not normally found in mass circulation in the world of syndication, by following the same mind-set that this station will be playing music long-absent from the standard, repetitive programming found everywhere else up and down the dial ... and they obviously feel the need to establish a connection between the two in order to help reinforce their mission statement ... but I'm hoping they eventually break from this pattern and allow the station to establish its own identity ... TV is TV and radio is radio.  Their slogan of playing "Me-zy" Listening Music was already stale the second time I heard it!)

 

I listened the entire way to and from work yesterday to try and get a feel of where they're headed ... and it DEFINITELY is a soft rock mix.  (Suggestion:  An up-tempo tune here and there might liven things up a bit ... and help keep your audience awake!)  They're taking requests and suggestions at their website:  metv.fm ... it's not really clear yet as to how much impact this will have on their future play list ... but it certainly is a nice gesture ... and a great way to draw listeners in early and make them feel part of something new.

 

I am happy to report, however, that I heard some things that I haven't heard on the radio in a long, long time.  (Honestly, the mix may not be for everyone ... but I'm one of those who simply enjoys hearing something DIFFERENT and out of the norm, regardless of whether or not I happen to be in love with the tune ... rather than feeling the constant need to turn off the same music that we're being force-fed everywhere else.)  That being said, I'm not sure how many people out there have been craving a John Denver or a Helen Reddy tune ... but both were significant artists of this era and it's nice to hear them FINALLY represented on the airwaves again.  This is something Forgotten Hits has been fighting for for a long, long time.  (A few years back K-Hits counted down The Top 40 Artists of every decade for the '60's, the '70's and the '80's and left The Carpenters off the list ... today I got to hear The Carpenters back where they belong ... on the radio.  With twenty National Top 40 Hits, it's flat out WRONG that radio today ignores them ... and the same can be said for both Reddy and Denver, too ... in moderate doses ... it comes across as a nice change of pace ... and certainly helps break the monotony of what has come to pass as "classic hits" radio today here in Chicago.)

 

Here is a recap of what I heard both to and from work today ... give it a once-over and if it sounds interesting, tune in to 87.7 FM and check it out for yourself.  (Note:  the station is not yet streaming ... but I expect that they will be soon.)

 

AM:

Daniel by Elton John / In The Ghetto by Elvis Presley / It's Sad To Belong by England Dan and John Ford Coley / The Way You Make Me Feel by Michael Jackson / Everywhere - Fleetwood Mac / This Girl Is A Woman Now (my all-time favorite song by Gary Puckett and the Union Gap ... and one you NEVER hear) / Galveston by Glen Campbell / Carefree Highway by Gordon Lightfoot / Sooner Or Later by The Grass Roots / Kiss On My List by Hall and Oates / You And Me Against The World by Helen Reddy / A Little In Love by Cliff Richard (when's the last time you heard THIS one?!?  And just try NOT singing along!) / Make Me Lose Control by Eric Carmen (another personal favorite) / A Taste Of Honey by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass / Listen People by Herman's Hermits (another seldom-played gem) / On A Carousel by The Hollies / How Sweet It Is by James Taylor / I Got A Name by Jim Croce / I'm Happy That Love Has Found You by Jimmy Hall (I'll bet I haven't heard this one played on the radio since 1980) / Follow Me by John Denver (evidently an album track I wasn't familiar with) and the Judy Collins version of In My Life

 

PM:

Another Park, Another Sunday by The Doobie Brothers (NOT one of their WAY over-played hits for a change) / Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is by Chicago / Beautiful by Carole King (which sounded great, by the way!) / Yesterday Once More by the Carpenters / Never Be The Same by Christopher Cross / Three Times A Lady by The Commodores / You're All I Need To Get By by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell / A Groovy Kind of Love by Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders / I'm A Believer by The Monkees / Shilo by Neil Diamond / King Of The Road by Roger Miller / Leader Of The Band by Dan Fogelberg / Diary by Bread (another long lost favorite) / Moonshadow by Cat Stevens / Handy Man by James Taylor / The Longest Time by Billy Joel / Eleanor Rigby by The Beatles and Taxi by Harry Chapin

 

Chicago radio veteran Mark Zander (late of The River, one of Chicago's better Classic Rock stations, which broadcasts out of the suburbs ... and a guy who really knows his stuff) is helping the station take shape ... and Mark, if it's an eclectic mix of hits and FORGOTTEN HITS you're looking for, we are more than happy to help lend a hand.  Chicago's been in need of a GOOD oldies station for awhile now and while we're optimistic that the station will find its way with the right mix of easy listening and up-tempo tunes to perk up listeners and get them singing along, (hopefully pleasing them along the way by FINALLY playing some tracks they haven't heard for awhile ... Lord knows, there are hundreds if not THOUSANDS of legitimate Top 40 Hits that don't get played anymore to choose from), a station concentrating ONLY on the soft rock / pop hits risks branding itself as the 2015 version of "elevator music" ... if you're not careful, it can get kinda boring rather quickly.  At this point, it's still VERY early in the game ... hopefully they can steer the course and draw a substantial number of listeners to jump on-board who are fed up with  hearing the same 200 songs and artists on nearly every other radio station in town.  Word of mouth can be a very powerful thing ... if the word is good.  (kk)

Hey Jimi!

A wave of Jimi Hendrix emails came through after our Friday post ... hopefully some clarification here on a few things ... 

 

re:  Jimi Hendrix:

>>>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 way back when ... and we've run it that way ever since!  Thanks!  (kk)

 

The picture is not Noel Redding. 

Here are some ads for the 2/28/68 Scene Club show along with other materials. I am currently compiling for a story on his appearances 2/27/68 in Madison and 2/28/68 in Milwaukee.

Ken Voss, Curator

Jimi Hendrix Information Management Institute

Publisher of Jimi Hendrix fanzine Voodoo Child

 

Kent,When it came to the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Jimi's two sidemen were often (and unfairly!) thought of us "just those two guys with Jimi," so it's not surprising that the question of which-is-which occasionally arose.I met and interviewed all three in Hartford, Connecticut in August 1968, and I'm attaching a photo I took at the time (in the Green Room of the Bushnell Memorial).  The lineup is, left to right, Jimi, unknown young lady, Noel Redding, unknown young lady, Mitch Mitchell.  Noel was the one with the frizzy hair; Mitch was the one who played drums.  As far as I am aware, this picture has not been published anywhere -- probably because of its mediocre quality -- so feel free to use it on the site if you want.

Henry McNulty  

Cheshire, Connecticut

Absolutely ... thanks, Henry!  Are you kidding me?!?!?  ANY unpublished photo of Hendrix showing up at this stage of the game is a welcome sight!

Based on THIS photo I'd say the guy pictured with Jean is Mitch Mitchell ... the shot is very similar, all the way down to the shirt.

By the way, you're absolutely right about the anonymity of Jimi's co-conspirators ... I went through three Jimi Hendrix books last night looking for definitive proof by photo association and at best (if you saw Noel or Mitch at all in a picture), they were simply identified as The Jimi Hendrix Experience rather than by name.  It's that "baby face" look of '68 that throws me ... Redding clearly had the big white Afro in most of the pictures but Mitchell looks older and a little "harder" in most of the shots I saw.  Still a tough call as these guys seem to have been "transposed" in any number of shots I found on the web!  (Inter-changable "bit players" when, in fact, nothing could be further from the truth.)

The hard part for me is that Jean Theel, who submitted this article way back in the very early 2000's has ALWAYS referred to her photo-partner as Noel Redding ... and in any number of Hendrix photos I found, there WAS a guy who looked an awful lot like this.  I don't know that I'm any more ... or less ... confused by all of this ... but it HAS allowed us to run some never-before-seen Hendrix photos!!!  (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) 

I don’t doubt that it was “documented” somewhere that Jimmy Page saw Hendrix play- I simply mentioned that I had recently read Jimmy Page say he always wanted to see Jimi and meant to but never got the chance. So maybe what was documented was in error. I wasn’t picking on you for repeating it, just trying to clarify something.

As for Jimi’s appeal being largely noise and showmanship, he did a lot of that to get attention and once he had the attention and was successful he wanted people to let him play and to listen to what he was doing. He didn’t want to be a “clown or a rock and roll star” any more. I don’t mind that you don’t appreciate or “get” what the fuss is about ... I was just reacting to your statement that you found him to be 80% theatrics, 10% talent etc. There are no “theatrics” involved when you listen a record are there? He did several beautiful ballads with melodic playing and made noise to express himself like in the Star Spangled Banner. He USED the noise and controlled it - and a lot of what you hear live is very different when you can see him playing. He was high a lot, no doubt, and also struggled with out of tune guitars and equipment problems on stage. But if you can listen to something like Machine Gun and call it all theatrics and 10% talent, well let’s just agree that we don’t speak the same language. Watch him play that - he just stands there and plays his ass off, paintings pictures of war and suffering with music. 

I meant to say I really, really liked your article - I wanted to point out the Jimmy Page thing for what it’s worth - and not to bag on you for not digging Hendrix like I do. I don’t UNDERSTAND your feelings, that’s all. Great informative piece, especially from someone admittedly not a big fan! Just so you don’t get the wrong idea.

To clarify ...

I found your Jimmy Page comment:  "With an audience filled with guitar greats, HENDRIX won over his peers ... "There were guitar players weeping," says TERRY REID, who was in the audience that night along with KEITH RICHARD, MICK JAGGER, PAUL McCARTNEY, JIMMY PAGE, JEFF BECK, ERIC CLAPTON, PETE TOWNSHEND." 

Meanwhile, this is supposedly from Rolling Stone: Jimmy Page talking about Hendrix- 

Did I ever meet him? I did actually go into a club in New York called Salvation, and he was there, but he was totally out of it. He didn't really know who anybody was -- he was barely conscious. Somebody was just kind of holding him up. It is just kind of a shame that I never really had a chance to talk with him or hear him... I heard his records, naturally, but it would've been a thrill to see how he worked things out on stage. That's quite another ballgame, as you know.

Pete Von Sholly

Thanks for the clarification, Pete.  Taking several points (for whatever they're worth) ...

In that I never personally covered the career of Jimi Hendrix at the time it was going on (I turned 14 the same week "Purple Haze" premiered on the charts), I had to rely on OTHER published reports to put together my article.  I was inspired (and fascinated) by discovering facts I couldn't believe I didn't know ... I think the one that FINALLY made me commit to doing the research and committing something to paper was finding out that Jimi played guitar with Joey Dee and the Starliters at The Peppermint Lounge!!!  It just wasn't at all what one would expect to be on this guy's resume ... a Guitar God / Legend of the heaviest extreme.  I just couldn't imagine him up there cranking it out for a bunch of wanna-be "twisters"!!!

I knew about the whole Monkees connection as that was more my musical taste at the time.  That, too, blows me away ... that Micky Dolenz and Peter Tork, for all their lack of "street cred" in the music business had the insight (and the interest!) to pursue Jimi and show him off to the world.  (Then again, the decision to form Crosby, Stills and Nash happened sitting around Peter Tork's swimming pool, thanks to a conversation with Mama Cass ... so who KNOWS where some of this stuff comes from!)

I think the fact that I knew VERY little about Hendrix ... and was not particularly a fan ... is what makes the article work ... I was discovering all of this for the very first time ... intrigued, I did the digging and found and related what I felt was a pretty fascinating story.

The Page comment (now that you've explained it) came from Terry Reid ... the quote could have come from any of the sources listed at the end of my piece.  All this means is that it's either the way he remembered the incident (or embellished it) ... such is the way with MOST rock and roll folklore.

However, I would find it really hard to believe that Page DIDN'T seek him out.  At the time, Page was the FAR bigger star ... having done session work on some of the biggest hits of The British Invasion Era.  He was the "go to" guitar guy at the time ... so if some new kid in town (especially an American!) was tearing things up in the clubs and had musical big-wigs like Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton and Pete Townshend going on and on about how amazing he was, singing their praises, I can't believe for a minute that Page didn't make a beeline for WHEREVER Jimi was playing to check it out for himself.  (I get the feeling sometimes that these guitar whizzes were almost like "gun-slingers" at the time ... and the story of ANY new guy who was faster, or more flamboyant would IMMEDIATELY circle through the ranks!)

Jimi's version of "The Star Spangled Banner" at Woodstock was amazing ... no doubt ... although when you watch the footage it almost seems like less than a dozen people got to hear it ... by then, everybody had split, leaving thousands of pounds of garbage to clean up.  But the article also points out that he had been practicing and fine-tuning that piece for quite awhile before he showcased it at Woodstock ... it also tells how Jimi received death threats should he attempt to perform (desecrate?) our National Anthem in Dallas ... as folks found it sacrilege at the time. (Isn't it funny that they said the same thing about Jose Feliciano's performance at The World Series the year before?!?!)

Jimi's "theatrics" was even brought into question by promoter Bill Graham who chastised him backstage after one particular performance (also documented in our article).

 

'60's FLASHBACK:

According to GRAHAM, JIMI put on an incredible show, pulling out every trick in the book to razzle dazzle the audience ... but, "he never really played.  He did every one of his moves.  Side.  Up.  Under.  Piercing.  Throwing.  Kissing.  Fire.  Fucking.  Humping.  He did it all.  Picking with his teeth ... they thought he was the greatest ... and he was ... but not during that set."  The audience sat in awe with their mouths open ... it appeared to be the show of shows.  Between shows, HENDRIX came back stage to GRAHAM's office and asked, "What'd you think, Bill?"  GRAHAM says, "I didn't want to answer him, so I asked the others to leave the office.  And I said, 'Jimi, you're the best guitar player I know and tonight, for an hour and a half, you were a hack.  You were a disgrace to what you are."  HENDRIX, typically a quiet and shy man, was blown away.  "Didn't you hear that audience?  They went crazy!" "I know," said GRAHAM.  "You know what you did?  You made the same mistake too many of the other great ones make.  You subconsciously play what they want.  You sock it to them.  You did an hour and a half of shuck and grind and bullshit that you can do with your eyes closed lying down somewhere.  But you forgot one thing.  You forgot to play.  And it's tragic for you, because you can play better than anyone I know." 

 

Musical tastes differ ... I usually find that I can find SOMETHING good in nearly every catalog of music by virtually any artist.  (OK, maybe not Barry White ...  but that's a whole 'nother issue!!!  lol)  No one person's opinion is "righter" than another ... it's what works for you.  I like some of Jimi's music and appreciate it for what it is and the talent he clearly had.  It just never really worked for me.  My loss, perhaps ... but I can live with it.

Believe me, I've heard from HUNDREDS of fans and fanatics over the years since our piece first ran ... I just wasn't of the "heavy mind set" at the time to appreciate it ... but even some 40+ years later, I still find very little I can relate to.  By the same token, I can listen to 1968 Hits by artists as diverse as The Beatles, The 1910 Fruit Gum Company, Stevie Wonder, The Beach Boys, Tommy James and the Shondells, Gary Puckett and the Union Gap and Tiny Tim and still relive the joy it brought me way back when.  Like I said, there is no right or wrong ... only what works musically for you.  (kk)

For anybody out there who has NOT read our piece on Jimi Hendrix, here's the link:  http://forgottenhits.com/jimi_hendrix

 

 (from that same club in Milwaukee, courtesy of Jean Theel, circa 1968)

50 Year Flashback - February 23rd, 1965

This week we're off to New Hampshire where, just as we told you they would a couple of weeks ago, The Beatles sit on top of the chart again with their latest US Release "Eight Days A Week" / "I Don't Want To Spoil The Party".  (This record would not be released as a single back home in England and, incredibly, it's already topping this WKBR Chart the same week it is premiering on The Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles Chart!  And it leaps to #1 from the #11 spot it held the week before!)

Both tracks were available on the British Album "Beatles For Sale", as were "Words Of Love" and "Kansas City", shown as the #11 Hit this week as "unavailable".  That's because those two tracks would wind up on the Capitol Records release counterpart "Beatles VI" a few months later, along with the aforementioned #1 single.  (Here in The States, "Beatles '65" was the album of choice at the time ... and it included their previous #1 Record "I Feel Fine" / "She's A Woman".)

Check out the #6 Hit ... it's by Boston Red Sox Outfielder Tony Conigilaro, who scored a nice-sized, regional hit with "Why Don't They Understand".  (Although this one never made the Billboard Chart, it "bubbled under" in Cash Box Magazine at #121.  Another local hit, "Little Red Scooter", is also quite a collectible record.)

Tony was a VERY popular player with The Red Sox and sort of an all-around playboy and ladies man at the time, even dating actress Mamie Van Doren.

Last week's WGLI chart showed "Red Roses For A Blue Lady" charting as an instrumental hit for Bert Kaempfert ... this week's WKBR Chart shows the vocal hit by Wayne Newton at #7.  (Vic Dana would also have a hit record with this tune in many markets.  Nationally, his would be the biggest hit version.)