Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction
Ceremony
Tonight's the big night ... Chicago finally gets inducted into The Rock
And Roll Hall Of Fame!
Listen to Scott Shannon interview Robert Lamm:
Also being inducted this year ... Cheap Trick, Deep Purple, Steve
Miller and NWA ... the ceremony is tomorrow night and will be televised on HBO
on April 30th. (kk)
ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME: Friday Night Preview
The 31st annual induction ceremony returns once again to
Brooklyn, New York.
The Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame will hold its 31st
annual induction ceremony Friday night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn,
New York with Cheap Trick, Steve Miller, Deep Purple, Chicago and N.W.A all going in.
Artists become eligible, 25 years after the release of their first
recordings. Cheap Trick, Chicago and Steve Miller, all of whom have long
been eligible, were all elected on their first nomination. Deep Purple and N.W.A
have been nominated before.
The public's five favorites were counted as a “fans’ ballot” along
with the hundreds of industry insiders who voted. Three of the fan selections
were elected: Chicago (#1), Deep Purple (#4) and Steve Miller (#5).
Kid
Rock will induct
Cheap Trick; Rob
Thomas will speak for Chicago; Lars Ulrich of Metallica will heap praise upon Deep
Purple; The Black
Keys will honor Steve Miller; and Kendrick Lamar will be on hand for N.W.A.
Friday night's ceremony will air on HBO
on Saturday, April 30th at 8 p.m. ET.
More Losses This
Week
The list just keeps growing ...
Country Superstar Merle Haggard (105 charted country hits between 1963 and
2005) passed away on Wednesday, April 6th (which just also happened to be his
79th birthday), after a couple of rough illness-plagued years.
Haggard had a rough go of it in his late teens and 20's (he was first arrested at the age of ten!), often in trouble
with the law. The story goes that he was incarcerated at San Quentin when
Johnny Cash performed at the prison and that Cash inspired him to turn his life
around and pursue a career in music ... but the fact of the matter is Haggard
had already been recording since late 1963 and this fateful San Quentin
appearance didn't happen until 1969. (Ron Smith's story below puts Haggard in
San Quentin in 1957 at the age of 20 ... probably a far more likely scenario ...
but UNLIKELY that he would have seen Cash perform at the prison at this point in
Johnny's career.)
Merle's roots were certainly in country music ... but he did cross over to
the pop charts a few times, too ... In 1969 (again, something else that doesn't
make the above timeline work) "Okie From Muskogee" hit #41. He had a #27 Pop
hit in 1973 with "If We Make It Through December" and reached #58 with "From
Graceland To The Promised Land" in 1977, released shortly after Elvis Presley's
death.
Official Forgotten Hits Grim Reaper Ron Smith fills in some of the gaps on
Merle Haggard ... as well as a few other rock and roll casualties from the past
week ...
Country star
Merle Haggard, whose 1970 tune, "Okie From Muskogee" (#41 - Pop, #1 - Country,
1970) made him a star, died Wednesday (April 6) of pneumonia on his 79th
birthday. He had been in poor health for quite some time. Born in Bakersfield,
California, he spent three years in San Quentin (California) Prison for
burglary, starting in 1957. Continuing his love of music upon his release, he
became part of the Bakersfield sound popularized by Buck Owens. Merle charted in
1964 on tiny Tally Records with "Sing A Sad Song" (#19 Country) and a year later
he was signed to Buck's own label, Capitol. All told, he charted 105 times on
the Country charts (12 times on the Pop charts) in 42 years, including
crossovers like "The Fighting Side Of Me" (#92 - Pop, #1 - Country, 1970) and
"If We Make It Through December" (#28 - Pop, #1-Country, 1973). Merle was
granted a full pardon for his early offenses by then-California Governor Ronald
Reagan in 1972. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1994 and
was granted an honorary doctorate in fine arts by California State University in
Bakersfield in 2013.
Leon Haywood, best
remembered for his 1975 hit, "I Want'a Do Something Freaky To You" (#15 - Pop,
#7 - R&B) died Wednesday (April 6). The Houston native was 74. Leon started
playing keyboards with blues musicians in Houston and Los Angeles before joining
Sam Cooke's backup band until Sam's death in 1964. Leon moved on to a solo
career, charting with "She's With Her Other Love" (#92 - Pop, #13 - R&B) as
Leon Hayward (he quickly changed to his real name). While "Freaky" was his only
Pop top 40 hit, he was a staple of the R&B charts from 1965 - 1984,
including "Keep It In The Family" (#50 - Pop, #11 - R&B, 1974), "Come An'
Get Yourself Some" (#83 Pop, #19 R&B, 1975) and "Don't Push It Don't Force
It" (#39 Pop, #2 - R&B, 1980). He also wrote and produced Carl Carlton's
"She's A Bad Mama Jama" (#22 - Pop, #2 - R&B, 1981) and went on to produce
blues artists, may on his own EveJim Records.
Carlo Mastrangeo,
founding member and lead singer of the Belmonts after the departure of Dion,
died Monday (April 4) near his home in Boca Raton, Florida, from an undisclosed
illness. He was 77. The group -- named for Belmont Avenue in New York, was
paired with Dion DiMucci in 1958. Bronx native Carlo sang bass on tunes like "I
Wonder Why" (#22 - 1958), "A Teenager In Lover" (#5 - 1959), and "Where Or When"
(#3 - 1960) until Dion's departure for a solo career in 1960. Carlo moved up to
lead singer on songs like "Tell Me Why" (#18 - 1961) and "Come On Little Angel"
(#28 - 1962) but left himself for a solo career as "Carlo" in 1962 after a
dispute with the group over the finances of their self-owned label. He never
charted again in the U.S., either solo or with his later group, the Endless
Pulse (later, Pulse). He did however, work with Dion again as a backup musician
and songwriting partner from 1964 to 1966. In 1972, Dion and the Belmonts
reunited at Madison Square Garden in New York for an oldies show that was
recorded and released as an album.
From Tom Cuddy:
Carlo
Mastrangelo, the bass
singer in The Belmonts who moved up to replace Dion DiMucci as the
group's frontman, died Monday at age 77. Dion credits Carlo with coming up with
the ear-catching opening of The Belmonts' first hit "I Wonder Why." The intro
was supposed to start with "Wella, well, wella, I don't know why..." Mastrangelo
didn't like it. So they huddled and came up with an alternative: a rapid-fire
"di-di-di-di-di-di..."
And, speaking of Dion, FH Reader
Frank B sent us this link ...
http://www.noise11.com/news/dion-releases-buddy-holly-tribute-visionary-heart-20160331
Details are sketchy, but
its been learned that Mike Gibbons, lead singer and trumpet player with Bo
Donaldson and the Heywoods, died Saturday (April 2). Formed in 1965 while the
founding members were still in high school (Mike joined later in the decade),
the group got its break opening for the Osmonds in the early '70s. Though they
had recorded in their native Cincinnati and with Family Productions (where
"Special Someone" as "The Heywoods" made it to #64 nationally in 1972), it was
signing with ABC Records and spotlighting keyboard player Robert "Bo" Donaldson
that made them stars. With Mike singing lead, their cover of Paper Lace's
"Billy, Don't Be A Hero" spent two weeks at #1 in 1974, followed by "Who Do You
Think You Are (#15 - 1974) and "The Heartbreak Kid" (#39 - 1974). But "Our Last
Song Together" (#95 - 1975) proved to be just that -- at least on the charts.
Singles for Capitol Records, Playboy Records and Republic Records (as the Bo
Donaldson Band) failed to chart and even a switch to country music as River Bend
failed to re-kindle their star power. By the '80s, they split up though they did
reunite to play the oldies circuit in 1996.
Frannie's very first concert was Bo
Donaldson and the Heywoods opening up for The Osmonds. I didn't realize that Bo
didn't sing any of their hits until I saw the group perform last year at The
Arcada Theatre as part of a '70's show extravaganza (where former Bay City
Roller Kyle Vincent sang their hits), after which is was explained to me that Bo
was never their lead vocalist ... those duties were filled by Mike Gibbons.
(kk)
Got
this from FH Reader Tom Cuddy ...
BO DONALDSON Remembers Vocalist Mike
Gibbons
Mike
Gibbons, the voice of such Bo Donaldson
and the Heywoods hits as "Billy Don't Be a Hero," died Wednesday from
pneumonia. He was 62.
Reached at his Southern
California home, Donaldson -- who was the group's keyboard player,
not its frontman -- recalled Gibbons as having "a great voice... In the studio,
he would grab a song and all it would take would be one or two [takes] and he
would have it down. I mean, he just had a real natural
ability."
Bo says they had remained friendly over
the years and always left the door open for Gibbons' return. Mike last worked
with the Heywoods about three years ago in their home town of Toledo. But plans for a
reunion of the band's mid-'70s lineup, which also produced "Who Do You Think You
Are" and "The Heartbreak Kid," never came
together.
Eric Records
Have you entered for your chance to win a free CD from Eric Records?
We've received quite a few entries so far. (Scroll back to Monday, April 4th, for all the
details)
Some of your comments (including some high praise for the quality
compilations released by this label) are below.
Now I should point out that NOBODY has actually PURCHASED any CDs from The
Eric Records Website ... which is kinda disappointing because I thought we would
get at least a few readers vying to earn the chance to win TWO free CD's instead of one ... plus there are SO many great selections there to choose from!
And right now Eric Records is running a special offer through their
site whereby if you purchase three regular CD's (from the selection of about 60
titles available), you'll also get the chance to pick a FREE Promotional CD from
their selected list ... PLUS you'll be entered to win copies of BOTH CD's that
we have to offer here at Forgotten Hits! (Hard To Find Jukebox Classics,
1960-64 and Three Decades Of Classic Novelty Hits)
You can visit the site here: http://ericrecords.com/
We're accepting entries up through April 21st ... so go online, pick your
favorites and enter now!
Hi,
Kent,
I’ve got a lot of the songs on all
of these, but they’re interesting collections, and some the stereo cuts (the
real ones, not the DES) sound quite
worthwhile.
No orders at this time, but it’s
good to know the Eric folks are still around. I’ve got several of their 45's in
my collection; do they still maintain that
catalog?
Thanks for all you good
work!
Best regards,
Country Paul Payton
Hi Kent,
The Eric CDs I would be most anxious to add to your
collection are Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1964, Hard To Find Jukebox Classics
1963 and The Paris Sisters Sing Everything Under The Sun.
I
talked with Bill a few times in the early days of Eric records when I was PD at
WHN and we had mutual friends, Barbara and Fred Kelly (who managed Country
singer Randy Barlow). Glad to see that Bill is still doing
well.
Ed
Salamon
Eric Records has had a long and distinguished
history of catering to the oldies fan interested in something other than just
endless reissues of the same handful of burned out oldies. Serious rock,
pop, soul and country collectors cherish Eric Records for their quality, high
true stereo content and frequent inclusion of rare or otherwise impossible to
find tracks.
I was in contact with the owner of Eric
Records a number of years ago regarding the licensing of a number of tracks he
owns outright, such as The Rivieras' "California Sun." I should have
suggested the idea of Eric issuing a series of CDs under the "History of Rock
'n' Roll" banner, a trademarked name I could license to him. I could also work
with him in compiling each CD and contributing the liner notes. Maybe I should
still do that.
Where does one begin in picking three Eric
releases as the most desirable, considering that ALL their albums are worth
having -- especially at the low prices they are offered at? In my case, I have
copies of about 99% of the tracks on the Eric CDs but not necessarily the stereo
mixes. Therefore, I guess I could say that "Hard To Find Jukebox Classics
1960-64" would be one of the three for its stereo content, but then again so
would the "Amazing Early '60s Box" -- and either the '63 or '64 "Jukebox
Classics" CDs.
What do I do here? I'm also a sucker for
comedy tracks so "Three Decades of Classic Novelty Records" -- even though it
actually incorporates tracks from FIVE decades (the '40s through the '80s) -- is
indeed cool. "Sugar Pop Classics" sounds like a fun, spirit-lifting collection
of wonderful tracks to drive to.
Well, that's more than three picks, which I
guess knocks me out of the competition. Having myself compiled and annotated
more than 300 LP and CD repackages of vintage material, I can only imagine how
much trouble Eric Records went through to assemble and make available a
catalogue which is 100% junk free.
Gary Theroux
Greetings, Kent,
I took a trip 'down memory lane'
and it was truly hard to limit my 'best of' to only three. Whomever A&R'd
these selections did a great job of picking some truly 'timeless' rock
classics.
Here are my three -- but all of the
titles sounded great -- particularly the instrumental selections, which we just
don't hear on the radio these days, nor have we in several decades. Growing up
in those glorious 50's and 60's, instrumentals were a regular part of the Top 40
experience ... jazz, country, big band, surf, we got it all. The kids of today
really have no idea of what they missed out on. Listening to Top-40 radio was a
fabulous introduction to all varieties of music.
So, here we go:
1.) Hard To Find Classics of
1957
2.) Amazing Early 60's
3.) Hard to Find Juke Box Classics
of '60-'64
Ironically, as I went through the
tracks, I came across a number of acts I'd booked -- as far back as my senior
year at El Camino High School in Sacramento: Rusty Draper, Jerry Wallace were
the earliest two -- and they were a solid year prior to producing my first Beach
Boys concert on May 24, 1963. I booked Ray Peterson in September and talked
Murry Wilson into hiring Ray for several early Beach Boys tours, including
Hawaii (for Tom Moffitt) and Australia. Ray, whom I booked on an appreciation
show for KXOA Radio on September 6, 1963 -- a show that also featured The
Coasters, The Righteous Brothers, Johnny Burnette and our buddy, Freddy Cannon.
Come to think of it, I believe Al Frazier and The Rivingtons were also on that
show. Oh, what a night, early September back in '63!:)
I could have spent another hour
just going through the great titles!
Have a great 2016!
Fred Vail, President /
CEO
Treasure Isle Recorders, Inc.
Treasure Isle Recorders, Inc.
Nashville, TN -- Music City,
USA
PS Congratulations to
our friend and studio client, Jason Aldean, on winning the coveted "Entertainer
of the Year" at last night's ACM Awards. We're in the midst of recording our
seventh album with Jason -- and Michael Knox, son of Buddy -- his
producer.
This And
That
Kent,
Thought you might dig this ... 1973
pic of me helping the incomparable Wayne Cochran suck down scotch. I wanna say
the photo was taken at the long gone Happy Medium.
Chet Coppock
Very cool! Thanks for sharing,
Chet! (kk)
EAGLE ROCK
ENTERTAINMENT PROUDLY PRESENTS THE ROLLING STONES -
TOTALLY STRIPPED
~PRESENTED ON
MULTIPLE FORMATS~ JUNE 3,
2016~
New York, NY
(April 6, 2016)—On June 3, Eagle Rock Entertainment will proudly release
Totally Stripped by The Rolling Stones. One of the
most anticipated releases in recent years, this collection features The
Rolling Stones going back to the source of many of their favorite tracks,
creating new stripped back versions. Selected material from studio sessions and
shows presented here formed the Stripped album of
1995.
Totally Stripped is available as a DVD or SD Blu-ray
containing the newly-revised documentary of the same name, or on DVD+CD or
DVD+LP featuring the documentary and single CD / 2LPs compiled from live shows
[MSRP $29.98 SD Blu-ray+CD, $21.98 DVD+CD, $39.98 DVD+2LP]. Additionally a DVD
or SD Blu-ray deluxe edition is available, packaged with a 60 page hard book set containing 5
discs [$109.98 for 4 SD Blu-ray+CD, $99.98 for 4 DVD+CD] which boasts
hours of previously unavailable music (three complete shows made available for
the first time ever) from this truly legendary
act.
These reimagined
versions lose none of their impact and emotional heft, and in fact connect with
listeners in a different way. Totally Stripped itself is a brand
new version of the documentary of the same name, which tells the stories of the
two studio sessions and three live shows (The Paradiso in Amsterdam in May 1995,
L’Olympia in Paris and Brixton Academy in London in July 1995) that make up this
project. The Deluxe Edition contains a CD of favorites drawn from across the
live shows and three DVDs featuring, for the first time, ever each of those
shows in full.
Following the
‘Voodoo Lounge’ tour, The Stones released Stripped, an album of
reconsidered, pared back renderings of some classic Stones tracks, and
also a couple of carefully chosen covers. The album mixed new studio versions
of tracks with some live songs. The tracks that made up Stripped were
taken from two studio sessions that took place in Tokyo [March 3-5, 1995] and in
Lisbon [July 23-26], and a trio of live shows in July 1995 at small concert
venues in London, Paris and Amsterdam. Keith Richards commented, “There’s
something about playing these small venues, the immediacy of it. Also we can
keep God out the band, because on big gigs he sometimes turns up as rain or
wind”.
As Mick
Jagger said at the time, the aim was to “Take the best element from [MTV]
‘Unplugged’, the intimate thing of it, without actually doing it completely
unplugged”. This collection is built on the power of lyric and melody, and the
material here feels somehow simpler yet potent, as the songs stand on their
individual timeless quality rather than on the production techniques and
technical expertise that generally come as part and parcel of being the biggest
band in the world.
Totally Stripped is the release that the fans have
been waiting years for, a document that reveals the inner workings not only of
The Rolling Stones themselves but also indeed some of their most loved
tracks. Revealing, intimate and moving, Totally Stripped is
unmissable.
TRACK
LISTING:
CD:
NOT FADE AWAY –
AMSTERDAM / HONKY TONK WOMEN – PARIS / DEAD FLOWERS – AMSTERDAM / FARAWAY EYES-
LONDON / SHINE A LIGHT – AMSTERDAM / I GO WILD – PARIS / MISS YOU – LONDON /
LIKE A ROLLING STONE – AMSTERDAM / BROWN SUGAR – PARIS / MIDNIGHT RAMBLER –
LONDON / JUMPIN’ JACK FLASH – PARIS / GIMME SHELTER – AMSTERDAM / RIP THIS JOINT
– AMSTERDAM / STREET FIGHTING MAN - AMSTERDAM
DVD1:
‘TOTALLY
STRIPPED’ DOCUMENTARY
DVD2:
PARADISO, AMSTERDAM / 26•MAY•95
NOT FADE AWAY /
IT’S ALL OVER NOW / LIVE WITH ME / LET IT BLEED / THE SPIDER AND THE FLY / BEAST
OF BURDEN / ANGIE / WILD HORSES / SWEET VIRGINIA / DEAD FLOWERS / SHINE A LIGHT
/ LIKE A ROLLING STONE / CONNECTION / SLIPPING AWAY / THE WORST / GIMME SHELTER
/ ALL DOWN THE LINE / RESPECTABLE / RIP THIS JOINT / STREET FIGHTING
MAN
DVD3:
L'OLYMPIA, PARIS / 03•JUL•95
HONKY TONK WOMEN
/ TUMBLING DICE / YOU GOT ME ROCKIN’ / ALL DOWN THE LINE / SHATTERED / BEAST OF
BURDEN / LET IT BLEED / ANGIE/ WILD HORSES / DOWN IN THE BOTTOM / SHINE A LIGHT
/ LIKE A ROLLING STONE / I GO WILD / MISS YOU / CONNECTION / SLIPPING AWAY
MIDNIGHT RAMBLER / RIP THIS JOINT / START ME UP / IT’S ONLY ROCK ‘N’ ROLL /
BROWN SUGAR / JUMPIN’ JACK FLASH
DVD4:
BRIXTON ACADEMY, LONDON / 19•JUL•95
HONKY TONK WOMEN
/ TUMBLING DICE / YOU GOT ME ROCKIN’ / LIVE WITH ME / BLACK LIMOUSINE / DEAD
FLOWERS / SWEET VIRGINIA / FARAWAY EYES / LOVE IN VAIN / DOWN IN THE BOTTOM /
SHINE A LIGHT / LIKE A ROLLING STONE / MONKEY MAN / I GO WILD / MISS YOU /
CONNECTION / SLIPPING AWAY / MIDNIGHT RAMBLER / RIP THIS JOINT / START ME UP /
BROWN SUGAR / JUMPIN’ JACK FLASH
Speaking of The Rolling
Stones, they are reported to be releasing a new album later this year ... more info on that as it becomes available.
And we're also hearing lots of buzz
about Paul Simon's new album, "Stranger To Stranger", out June 3rd. You can
listen to the first single ("Wristband") on Simon's
website:
ZZ TOP AND GREGG ALLMAN U.S.
TOUR SET FOR LATE SUMMER AND
FALL
“That Little ol’ Band from
Texas” and the legendary Gregg Allman are back at it. Having
shared the stage many times throughout the decades, ZZ Top and Gregg Allman are
set to hit the road together this year, on a tour that will take them from the
Midwest to the east coast, and all the way out to the western states, including
California.
ZZ
Top’s Billy Gibbons commented on the bond his band shares with Allman and the
upcoming tour, “The history with ZZ Top and Gregg Allman together goes way back
to around the time the earth cooled. The double lineup makes for a killer
combination so buckle up and let's have a party! Rock
on!”
Having formed more than four decades ago in the Houston area of
Texas, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees ZZ Top continue to be a relentless
touring machine. The bearded duo of singer / guitarist Billy Gibbons and bassist
/ singer Dusty Hill, and drummer Frank Beard, aka “the man with no beard” have
consistently rocked audiences with their brand of chrome-plated, electrified
dirty blues. Hot rods, buzzards, B.B.Q., cacti, furry guitars and alluring women
are some the many images that have become synonymous with the ZZ Top experience
but their blues/rock sonic skew has kept them in forefront for longer than any
US-based band. Audiences can look forward to seeing them belt out timeless hits
such as “Legs,” “La Grange,” Sharp Dressed Man,” “Tush,” and many more from
their 15 studio albums.
As a
founding member of the legendary Allman Brothers Band and in his own storied
solo career, Gregg Allman has long been a gifted natural interpreter of the
blues, his soulful distinctive voice one of the defining sounds in the history
of American music. Also a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Allman more
recently received the “Living Legend” award from Classic Rock Magazine, and a
Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award as part of the ABB. He continues to captivate
audiences, as evidenced in his recent Gregg Allman Live: Back to Macon,
GA live DVD/CD package, containing crowd favorites like “Statesboro Blues,”
“Melissa,” “Queen of Hearts” and “I’m No Angel.”
ZZ Top/Gregg Allman tour
dates
Aug 16 - Huber Heights, OH - Rose Music
Center
Aug 17 - Clarkston, MI - DTE Entergy
Music Theatre
Aug 19 - Anderson, IN - Hoosier Park
Racing & Casino*
Aug 20 - Fort McCoy, WI - Ft. McCoy Army
Base
Aug 21 - Springfield, IL - Illinois
State Fairgrounds
Aug 23 - Darien Center, NY - Darien Lake
PAC
Aug 24 - Albany, NY - Times Union
Center
Aug 26 - Atlantic City, NJ - Event Center @
Borgata
Aug 27 - Essex Junction, VT - Champlain
Valley
Aug 28 - Boston, MA - Blue Hills
Bank Pavillion
Aug 30 - Hyannis, MA - Cape Cod Melody
Tent*
Aug 31 - Hartford, CT - Xfinity
Theatre
Sep 1 - Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts
Center
Sep 3 - Syracuse, NY - Lakeview
Amphitheater
Sep 4 - Portland, ME - Maine State
Pier*
Sep 24 - Albuquerque, NM - Sandia
Casino
Sep 25 - Morrison, CO - Red Rocks
Amphitheatre
Sep 29 - San Luis Obispo, CA - Avila Beach
Concerts*
Sep 30 - Murphys, CA - Ironstone
Amphitheatre
Oct 1 - Saratoga, CA - The Mountain
Winery
Oct 2 - Saratoga, CA - The Mountain
Winery
Oct 4 - San Diego,
CA - Humphrey’s*
Oct 6 - Los Angeles, CA - Greek
Theatre
Oct 7 - Las Vegas, NV - The
Pearl
Oct 8 - Rancho Mirage, CA - Agua Caliente
Casino*
*ZZ Top
only
