Saturday, November 28, 2015

The Sunday Comments ( 11 - 29 - 15 )

re:  On The Radio:  
>>>All weekend long WCBS-FM will be playing their Top 500 Countdown starts on WCBS-FM.  Maybe you can listen now and then.  (I'm gonna go out on a limb and say neither one of us will like the #1 song.)  Frank B.  
>>>What??? You don't think "Boogie Oogie Oogie" will win the top honors this year?!?!?  (kk)   
Kent ...
"I Love The Nightlife" by Alicia Bridges is song #500 on the WCBS-FM Top 500.
We're just getting started and already I'm upset.
Frank B.    
Meanwhile I've been totally enjoying The Drive's A-Z Weekend Special.  At lunch on Tuesday I heard "Another Brick In The Wall", "Another One Bites The Dust" and "Another Park, Another Sunday" ... and then yesterday they played four dirty songs in a row ... "Dirty Laundry", "Dirty Water", "Dirty White Boy" and "Dirty Work".  (They seem to be moving through the program quite quickly this time around ... I can't believe they had already gone thru the A's, the B's, the C's and a chunk of the D's in just 24 hours!!!)  
It continues all weekend long ... and you can listen live here:
http://live.wdrv.com/listen/
Or, you can suffer thru a bunch of '70's and '80's drivel on WCBS-FM ...
http://player.radio.com/listen/station/wcbs-fm/  

UPDATE:
Kent ... 
#1 = "Billie Jean" - Michael Jackson
DJ said everybody was calling in an guessing "Hotel California," one of your favorites.  It came in at #2.  
"Boogie Oogie Oggie" is starting to look better to me.
Frank B.   
Will have to peruse the list to see how many '50's and '60's songs made it.  Not very many I'd imagine.  (kk)

re:  This And That:  
Hi Kent,  
Recently, I was a guest on the Icon Fetch podcast with Tony Peters.  We spent about 20 minutes discussing The Comparison Book.  It’s my personal favorite of all the books that I’ve helped Joel work on over the past 23+ years.  You can listen to the full interview here:
http://www.iconfetch.com/great-music-interviews/2015-shows/944-show-257-comparison-book-112715.html  
Paul Haney 
Record Research
It's definitely my favorite, too.  As soon as Joel obtained the rights to both the Cash Box and the Music Vendor / Record World charts, my hope was that he would someday display this information side-by-side in one concise volume.  I remember at the time Joel saying that Billboard would never allow him to include their chart information alongside those of other, competing publications ... so this was a HUGE step forward in totally recapturing the essence of what the music scene was like back in the '50's, '60's, '70's and early '80's.  A LONG time coming ... but well worth the wait.  (If you guys don't have a copy of this book yet, you need to pick up a copy ...
http://www.recordresearch.com/pop/the_comparison_book_1954-1982.php)  
It's a must-have for any serious collection.
Thanks, Paul!  (kk) 

Kent ...
I sent out a letter with an Elvis stamp on it.  It came back, wrong address.  Now I have an Elvis stamped envelope that is also stamped " Return To Sender. "
Frank B.
 


I saw a very cool show at the Akron Civic Theater on November 13th ... The Legends of Ohio Rock ...  Northeast Ohio music legends, together on one stage.  Joe Vitale (Joe Walsh's Barnstorm, CSN, Eagles), John Sfera (Glass Harp), Gary Markasky (Michael Stanley Band) and Marty Lee Hoenes (Donnie Iris and the Cruisers).  It provided a night of great hits like Rocky Mountain Way, She Don't Love You, Love Is Like A Rock and several others.  Brought back many memories ... and I was able to go backstage afterward for the artists to sign all my albums. 
Tom Apathy

 Gary Markasky

 Joe Vitale

 John Sfera

Marty Lee Hoenes

Speaking of cool concerts, Rick Levy tells us that more Box Tops dates have been booked ...  
UPCOMING BOX TOPS DATES
January 9th ... Indiana Grand Casino ... Shelbyville, IN
January 23rd ... Grand Falls Casino ... Larchwood, IA
February 6th ... Peabody Auditorium ... Daytona Beach, FL
May 28th ... Cannery Casino ... Las Vegas, NV

 Brian Wilson / Beach Boys Examiner columnist David Beard files this report (and interview) after catching Brian and his band in concert a few weeks ago ...
http://www.examiner.com/article/brian-wilson-thankful-to-fans-for-their-love?CID=examiner_alerts_article   

 I don't know what you think of the current trend of Digitally Extracted Stereo processing of oldies but this new release is one of the best examples of the technology that I have heard.   
Audio samples here:     http://www.retrofonorecords.com/samples/  
Paul Urbahns 
Radcliff, Ky   

 Speaking of jukeboxes ... 

 Kent ... 
Another one of my jukebox complaints ... 
Whenever a singer or songwriter dies, I like to play their songs in the jukebox as my own personal tribute, thanking them for entertaining me over the years. 
As you know from printing this information in Forgotten Hits, I've done quite a few jukebox tributes in the last few weeks ...  
#1 = Allen Toussaint wrote "Mother In Law", in addition to many other hits. I want to play Ernie K-Doe. It's in the jukebox by Allen Toussaint, the writer, but not by the guy who turned it into a #1 Hit.  
#2 = P. F. Sloan wrote "Eve Of Destruction", in addition to many other hits. Same story. I can get P.F. Sloan singing songs he wrote but I can't get Barry McGuire's #1 Hit version. 
Doesn't make sense to me.  If both versions (singer and songwriter) were available, I would've played both.  
Frank B. 
Not sure what your "jukebox" source is ... or why they would limit the selections in this way.  Honestly, MOST people are going to want to hear the HIT version of the song anyway.  I get it, if it's being presented as some sort of tribute to the songwriter who has recently passed away (like the two examples you cite above) ... but I think people are STILL going to want to hear the hit versions they remember.  You're right ... it really doesn't make sense.  (kk)   

 Hi Kent -
Don't forget, having just listened to Transister Sister, that it is Freddy "Boom Boom" Cannon's birthday on December the 4th ... and last week was his fifty first wedding anniversary to the real Tallahassee Lassie, Jeanette. 
Take care, 
Rockin' Lord Geoff 
(from England but on holiday at the moment in Florida)
Florida?!?!?  Boy, we could use a little bit of that sunshine and heat here right now ... had about 14" of snow dropped on us last week! 
Congratulations, Freddy!  Happy Birthday ... Happy Anniversary ... and Keep On Rockin'!!! (Still trying to get you out to Chicago sometime in 2016!)  kk   

 We've run this clip before ... but just received it again from our FH Buddy Clark Weber so thought we'd give it another spin ...   
Tri-Dueling Pianos with Ray Charles, Jerry Lee Lewis, & Fats Domino.This is a once in a lifetime appearance and one you will not forget!  Ron Woods of the Rolling Stones, Carl Perkins (Blue Suede Shoes) and others playing backup.  A "Cameo Appearance" by Rod Stewart and all directed by Paul Schaeffer.
http://gottaseethisvideo.com/dueling-pianos/

I suspect most people didn't know that a novelty song had been written about P. F. Sloan, way back in 1971. It was "P. F. Sloan," by Jimmy Webb, and recorded on The Association's "Stop Your Motor" album. Webb was making fun of Sloan, and it was made worse by the fact that a lot of people who had never heard of Sloan assumed that he was an imaginary character invented by Webb for the song. 
Jeff  
Here's Jimmy Webb, doing his composition with Jackson Browne for those of you who haven't heard it before.  (Probably a lot more timely in 1971 ... but still appropriate considering Sloan's recent passing.)  kk
From FH Reader Tom Cuddy ...   
FELIX CAVALIERE: PBS Plans for 2016 
We hear that Felix Cavaliere’s Rascals will headline a public TV concert special that will be taped in Pittsburgh next April. Gary U. S. Bonds, Peaches and Herb, The Happenings and The Reflections will round out the bill.

Felix, who released his first-ever seasonal album, Christmas Joy, in 2014, will perform several holiday shows next month:   
 12/11 - St. Charles, IL - Arcada Theater 
 12/13 - Culver, IN - Culver Academy
 12/19 - Riverhead, NY - Suffolk Theater

 12/20 - Washington, DC - Hamilton Live 
---From Premiere Radio Networks     

So I guess these days EVERY late night TV talk show host had better know how (and be prepared) to sing!!!
Here's the currently topical again Carly Simon with Stephen Colbert singing her Top Three Smash duet with former husband James Taylor, "Mockingbird" 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tedKatFBvgw


More from Wild Wayne's 40th Anniversary Interviews:

Interview Date:  July 30 , 2006  =  Johnny Tillotson

Johnny talks about his 1960 hit "Poetry In Motion."

Songwriters Mike Anthony (Lyrics) and Paul Kauffman (Music) were having a tough day ... no good ideas. They decide to take a break.
Mike looked out the window at a bunch of girls coming out of the school across the street. He turns to Paul and says "Look at that ... it's poetry in motion."
Johnny said he recorded this song at 10 o'clock in the morning in Nashville.

 Interview Date:  June 28 , 1998 =  Chris Montez
He was influenced by his idol, Ritchie Valens. He thought to himself that if Ritchie could make it,
there was a chance for him.  This was in Hawthorne, California.
Chris Montez heard that Ritchie Valens was appearing at this big dance hall. He went there to hear Ritchie sing. It was a big place, maybe a 1000 people. He turned around and Ritchie was standing next to him.  He shook his hand and told him how much he liked his music.  Chris said that's why he goes out of his way to be nice to his fans. He knows how it feels to be on the other side.
Frank B.
re:  Helping Out Our Readers:  
Kent,
With this week's survey not having any radio station call letters and or town or state designating where it's located, it probably was licensed in the Twilight Zone.
I liked your description of Sam the Sham and the Pharaoh's song as a virtual 'non-hit'. I liked their ten on trial and unlisted. From the five singles listed, I would say the five later would turn out to be innocent or guilty, however one wants to put it, as being hits of the future.
Finally, speaking of weekly radio surveys, Kent I am going to say that probably the average size of a station's weekly radio survey was somewhere along the dimensions of a regular piece of typing paper or 8 1/2 by 11 inches and usually smaller in size. I have a weekly survey here at home that is 2 7/8" by  3 1/2" in size. It is for radio station KWHP 97.7 FM here in OKC which was on air in the early seventies. It was called the Mini Hit List. It had listed 97 records. Now, the survey was folded three times which unfolded measured 8 3/8" I am just curious, maybe Clark would know as well, if there were any surveys put out in which the measurements were shorter than this. The one I have one could fold and put in one's billfold.
Larry Neal
Well, you know, Larry, for all these years they've told us that size doesn't matter ... but when it comes to radio station surveys I've seen them all over the place ... from the full-size 8 1/2 x 11 notebook size sheets (perfect for saving IN a notebook for future reference) to the half-size sheet (or slightly smaller) which seemed to be one of the semi-norms ... to the long and thin WLS surveys that used to come out in the '60's and '70's (approximately 3 1/2" x 8")
I always hated folding my surveys to stick them in my pocket ... and would get annoyed if the sales clerk folded it and stuck it in my bag when I bought that week's favorite 45's.  I always wanted them to be nice and flat, clean without any creases ... but the "pocket pal" version does make sense I guess if you plan on carrying it around with you. 
Maybe some of the other survey collectors can weigh in on what they might have in their own private stash.  (Many of these guys have been collecting surveys from all over the country for the past 50 years ... I'm sure they've seen a wide (and I guess narrow!) assortment of charts! (kk)

I came across your website as I was searching for lists of B sides or Country 45's. Found a fair list on you Top 200 Biggest Two-Sided Hits of All Time, but was wondering if there was a more generic list of B sides? Thanks.  
Ken Cartwright  
KYAC Community Radio  
Program Director
Because we primarily concentrate only on the pop charts, I don't have such a list ...  
However I would strongly recommend Joel Whitburn's book "Hot Country Songs" which lists the A-Side and B-Side ... by artist ... of EVERY song to EVER make Billboard's Country Chart, 1944 - 2012.  It'll give you more ideas than you could ever possibly program!!! (lol)  
You can pick up a copy here:   
Hit Country Records 1954-1982 | Joel Whitburn's Record Research  
And, it is currently on sale for only $59.95.  
Visit the website and you can view some sample pages ... it's absolutely OUTSTANDING and should serve all your needs.  
Thanks, Ken ... let me know how it works out!  (kk) 

Thanks Kent, I gave this book some thought and will purchase it.  
Ken Cartwright
You won't be disappointed ... 
In fact, I bet it will trigger all kinds of other new programming ideas once you browse thru its pages and realize how many great songs you've forgotten all about!  Good luck!  (kk)     

>>>I ran across your website and thought you might know about Richard Gardner.  I'm helping a friend, Daniel Tyler Pohnke, look for him. He is his biological father. We were told he passed away a few years ago in Houston.  He was with the Coastliners for a short period of time in the 60's and with the Buzz Bone band in the 70's.  He copyrighted one song called "Too Pooped To Pucker" under the name Richard Dayton Gardner.  Any help you could give would be appreciated.  (Kathy Brantingham)
Searching copyrights ... 
(http://www.copyrightencyclopedia.com/sterling-dollar-diplomacy-the-origin-and-the-prospects-of-2/),
I find that Richard Dayton Gardner was born in 1950 and copyrighted Too Pooped To Pucker in 1982. The Social Security Death Index online shows only one Richard D. Gardner born in 1950 passing away. That happened in Wyoming on November 4, 2012. That's not to say there aren't others, though. There seem to be several Richard Gardner's listed in whitepages but I have no idea if any of them would be a lead in the right direction.
The song does not currently show up either on the BMI or ASCAP websites, and actual copyright records for it don't seem to exist beyond what I listed above. Sorry I couldn't be of further help.
Tom Diehl

 Kent,
Your first reader, Jane, was looking for the intro (in the beginning, there was nothing but rock ... ) which was used on Bob Stroud's show. I am not familiar with his show, therefore his intro, but the first thing I thought of was the Coasters' 1959 song THAT IS ROCK AND ROLL, which I believe was the flip of ALONG CAME JONES ... a particular tune I haven't heard in years. Yep, you guessed it ... I just now got it out and played it.
Larry
Stroud's opening was a montage of several songs leading into his Rock And Roll Roots Program. 
Give it a listen and see what you think ...
Here's what I come up with:
The whole thing seems to be built around The Coasters' track "That Is Rock And Roll" ... it kicks off the montage and then is woven in between Bill Haley's version of "Rock This Joint", "Spinning Wheel" by Blood, Sweat and Tears" and "It Will Stand" by The Showmen. 
Up next:  three generations of the Chuck Berry classic "Rock And Roll Music", first by The Grandfather Of Rock And Roll himself, followed by The Beatles' '60's version and The Beach Boys' '70's remake.
The Beach Boys then chime in again with "I Can Hear Music", followed by Sam Cooke's "Having A Party", Reunion's #1 Hit "Life Is A Rock (But The Radio Rolled Me)" and then the whole thing wraps up with a reprise of The Coasters' track.  Not a bad little montage, is it???  (kk)




















re:  The Evolution of Radio (and the changes in our listening habits): 
Hey, Kent! ~~~
When I was just starting my career in radio back in the day as a young, pre-driver's license, teenage disk jockey playing the Hits in South Dakota that have since become those Great Oldies and Forgotten Hits we all love today, it would have been just too cool if this would have been my bike to ride from home back and forth to those KRSD Rapid City radio studios!
Chuck Buell




It's funny how our listening choices have changed over the years. 
Way back when our parents listened to the radio in the pre-TV years ... their contraption was likely some big, stand-up tube unit which later was incorporated into television consoles in the 1950's.  By the time of the rock and roll revolution, every teenager had a transistor radio attached to their ear (and MOST of us slept with it under our pillows, too, because we just couldn't get enough of this hot new music.)
Then in the '70's, we went thru that whole "bigger is better" phase ... where we had speakers the size of a refrigerator mounted in our rooms, blasting out the latest sounds (probably breaking a few of mom's plates along the way thanks to the bass-boost button on our receivers!)
Before you knew it, we were listening to music on our tiny little computer radios again ... until somebody came up with the idea of taking most of your music with you ... on either an iPod or cellular phone, once again not much bigger than those little transistor radios were carried around in the '60's.
But this custom BIKE radio is to DIE for!!!  (I don't think I've EVER seen one of these before!)
Anybody out there ever have one of these?
We'd love to hear from you.  (DJ Stu ... you go to all these shows ... you, too, Bob Mayben ... tells us about some of the cool things you've run across over the years!
Thanks for sending, Chuck!  (kk)  

re:  Merry Christmas:
Well, we've made it thru Thanksgiving ...
So I guess now it's Full Speed Ahead to Christmas!!!
HO! HO! HO! ~ LET THE HOLIDAZE BEGIN!
Yes, It's THAT TIME AGAIN!
Help spread the Holiday cheer.
Don't forget to add Ian Lloyd's mysterious Christmas theme:
"Everybody's Happy 'Cause It's Christmas Time"
Download 320kbps MP3 Here:
http://machinedreamrecords.com/mdr_Music/IanLloyd_ChristmasTime_320k.zip
Now Radio Ready for your Holiday playlist.
ROCK IS ON!
MDR & Ian Lloyd [aka 'Brother Louie']
www.machinedreamrecords.com  
We've featured this one a few times before ... but here it is again, just in case you missed it.   

 If you visit YouTube, be sure to check out Paul Evans' VERY popular "Santa's Stuck Up In The Chimney" ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=557tQC86thA   

 ... and another one of MY personal favorites, first featured here in Forgotten Hits many years ago, "Santa's Comin' Here" by Dick Eastman.  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9t5FBxUJoE   

 Aww, what the hell, how about another plug for my OWN Christmas Classic, "Lonely Christmas" ...
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