Great news this weekend as Record Research announced the update to their flagship book, "Top Pop Singles," now covering EVERY Billboard Charted Pop Hit from January 1st, 1955 thru December 31st, 2018.
Whether you've been collecting these editions from the beginning as I have or hopped onboard somewhere along the way, you already know that EVERY update is a "must have" edition to your music library ... and this one is no exception.
Joel Whitburn always finds something new to bring into the mix with each new edition ... and he's running a pre-publication discount offer right now ... $15 off the published price of $79.95 ... if you order a copy before the books come in in late June.
More details here at the Record Research Website ...
https://recordresearch.com/
You'll find all kinds of other goodies here as well ... including books spotlighting the R&B and Country Charts ... a complete history of Billboard's Top 200 Albums Chart throughout the rock era (1955 - 2016) as well as volumes showcasing every printed pop chart in Billboard, Cash Box, Record World, Music Vendor and more. There's even a Pop Annual recap, showing the rank order of EVERY charted it, year by year ... and my personal favorite, The Chart Comparison Book, which shows the peak position achieved in Billboard, Cash Box and Record World for every charted record, 1954 - 1982, all ranked side-by-side for easy comparison and analysis.
Discover the world of Record Research by adding some of these volumes to your collection. (I can honestly say that there has never been a single day ... since 1970 ... that I have not picked up a Whitburn book to clarify some point of reference. It allows me to have the History of the Pop / Rock era right at my fingertips ... they never leave my desk!) kk
GREATEST CLASSIC ROCK TRACKS OF ALL-TIME:
Turns out The Drive's Memorial Day 500 Countdown was based on listener votes collected over the last several weeks ... so there definitely was some merit to the process ... and quite a few surprises along the way. ("Brick House" by The Commodores?!?!? Really??? I don't think I've EVER heard The Drive play this track before!!!)
Truth is, their results reflect a pretty different outcome than our own months of research ... but that's the great thing about a countdown. With over 700,000 votes already processed, I'm thinking any Classic Rock Station would be hard-pressed to come up with a more definitive list than ours ... and hopefully that research will pay off by way of more variety in future programming. (Seriously ... with literally THOUSANDS of songs available for airplay there is absolutely NO reason for ANY Classic Rock radio station to repeat the same song two, three and even FOUR times during the same 24-hour period ... yet that is EXACTLY what they're doing now. That's about the least-imaginative programming possible! And it truly insults your listeners on a daily basis. The volume of votes and nominees we've received PROVES they want and expect more from a radio station.)
We ran into this same issue when we first attacked Oldies Radio some twenty years ago ... a playlist of about 200-300 songs ... but I really expected more in the Classic Rock arena.
But here are the plain and simple facts ...
Any station that is claiming to have a playlist of 500-1000 songs is lying ... they may have 1000 tracks available to play for certain special occasions like this weekend's Top 500 Countdown or a week's worth of A-Z programming ... but on a daily basis, they are playing the exact same 200 songs again and again and again ... which are the EXACT same songs that most of their counterparts across the country are also playing every single day.
And that's a real shame ... because there is SO much more out there that listeners want to hear.
As frustrating as it has been for me to tabulate all these votes (and as many times as I've thought about giving up, having taken on far ore than I can handle on my own), what keeps me going is the plain and simple fact that Classic Rock Radio NEEDS a list like ours ... without it, there is nothing to allow one station to stand out from any of the others ... because right now, they are all essentially the same.
We've still got a ways to go before we start publishing the final ballot ... lots of other research is also being done including download statistics to determine what songs people are actually spending money on to add to their collections. Monitoring airplay tells you what every radio station in the USA is playing ... but it DOESN'T tell you what listeners actually want to hear ... so PLEASE continue to cast your votes at ClassicRockVote@yahoo.com ... be a part of the DEFINITIVE Classic Rock Essentials List.
Actual airplay is just part of the equation ... we've been monitoring twenty Classic Rock Stations across the country and compiling their daily logs. Carrying more weight is the number of downloads these songs have received ... this means that, despite what radio is telling us we want to hear, these are the songs that people went and actually shelled out money for in order to add them to their collections.
But NOTHING counts more than your actual votes ... so PLEASE keep voting at ClassicRockVote@yahoo.com.
More updates and details coming soon. Target date for the final ballot right now is July 5th ... so stay tuned! (kk)
Forgotten Hits Reader Joe Cantello told us about another Top 500 Memorial Day Countdown going on last weekend ... we checked this one out as well ... pretty much the same songs ... just in a somewhat different order.
And that's another thing we've learned ...
As stated before, most of you can probably already guess what the majority of The Top 500 Songs will be ... all this list will do is confirm that ... but you may be surprised by the ORDER of these tunes.
And with 3333 titles listed, you're going to find ALL KINDS of interesting suggestions in the bottom two-thirds of this countdown ... "WOW" songs that can be slipped in every now and again as real attention grabbers. (kk)
Hey Kent -
Here is a countdown you may want to check out this Memorial Day week end.
I wonder what the time frame this covers is. (What year is the earliest song from and the latest)?
Joe Cantello
Top 500 Classic Rock Countdown
Hey Fox fans.
Starting tomorrow at 8 am, it's The Top 500 Classic Rock songs of all time ... along with over 100 interviews and lots of trivia about the artist and songs. It will play from 8 am til 8 pm, stop repeat and continue that way through Memorial Day.
Tune in either on The Fox or http://www.thezew.net.
Share it, please, and thank you.
Have a blessed Memorial Day and be safe!
Joe
THIS AND THAT:
THIS AND THAT:
>>>We’ve been out of action for most of this past week but I am happy to report that all is well. There is now an even BIGGER backlog of material I have to wade through to get something up on the site again!" (kk)
“Our Boy Friend’s back and his posts are going to double
Hey-la-day-la our boy friend’s back
He's been gone for such a long time
Hey-la-day-la our boy friend’s back
Now he's back and things'll be fine!"
- Anonymous -
>>>That’s a rare shot of me that you found … kind of a cross between Cowboy / Stagecoach Kent and Serial Killer Kent, with just a touch of Jim Peterik thrown into the mix, thanks to what appears to be purple hair!!! (kk)
Who’s the dude with the purple hair. Wasn’t me. I was never that close to my all time dream girl, Doris Day.
>>>That’s a rare shot of me that you found … kind of a cross between Cowboy / Stagecoach Kent and Serial Killer Kent, with just a touch of Jim Peterik thrown into the mix, thanks to what appears to be purple hair!!! (kk)
Who’s the dude with the purple hair. Wasn’t me. I was never that close to my all time dream girl, Doris Day.
I remember staring mesmerized by her image in shorty pajamas on the cover of my sister’s copy of the original cast soundtrack of the Pajama Game. Omg. She looked so sweet & innocent and yet ... she was always the girl next to the girl next door. Doris will forever live on!!
Jimbo
I must have been channeling my Inner Jimbo!(Now where can I buy a pair of those boots???)
That’s a secret man! Lol!
Jimbo
kk:
Just read about the Rolling Stones giving up their royalties on the "Bittersweet Symphony" tune.
Do you think the Beatles would've done it?
FB
Probably not ... rumor has it that The Beatles' publishing companies are collecting ten million dollars for the use of their music in the new "Yesterday" film out next month ... which Billboard Magazine describes as the "feel-good film of the summer." I know we can't wait to see it! (kk)
>>>Can you believe The White Sox are celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Disco Demolition next month?!?!
Funny thing, in 1995, the White Sox were involved in another on-field mess. They were in town playing the Anaheim Angels on what was billed as Seat Cushion Night. The game was a score fest, if I remember right, the final was like 16-10. In the later innings, Mitch Williams, the original wild thing from the Phillies, who lost the 4th game in the 1993 World Series, was brought in by the Angels to quell the Sox. He didn't. Instead he allowed 5 or 6 runs, which the Angels never recovered from. The fans went nuts. Of the 40,000 seat cushions passed out that night, 30,000 must have made it to the field. It looked like blue snow for a while. The game stopped and it took the ground crew a good 40 minutes to clear the field. I kept mine, and still have it today. From then on, most giveaways were passed out as you exited the stadium, LOL.
Glad you are doing ok, Kent. I was beginning to wonder where you were. I, too, am a fan of Whiskey Cavalier, mostly for Lauren Cohan, :-)
Scott
I actually think I heard Chet Coppock roll over when the Disco Demolition announcement was first made! (lol)
There was some talk of a possible reprieve for "Whiskey Cavalier" last week but apparently it's now a done deal ... nobody picked it up and it's history.
There was some talk of a possible reprieve for "Whiskey Cavalier" last week but apparently it's now a done deal ... nobody picked it up and it's history.
Lauren Cohan was certainly enjoyable (much easier to look at, I'm told, than she was on "The Walking Dead"!!! lol) ... but I found the entire cast completely engaging ... another show cancelled recently before it was allowed to reach its true potential was "The Imposters" ... check that one out on Apple TV if you haven't already seen it. Lots of fun. (kk)
Author Mark Bego caught up with Debbie Gibson on the Mix Tape Tour in Phoenix this week. Gibson has a recipe in Bego’s Eat Like A Rock Star (Skyhorse) book and Bego did Gibson’s biography, Between The Lines in 1989.
Author Mark Bego caught up with Debbie Gibson on the Mix Tape Tour in Phoenix this week. Gibson has a recipe in Bego’s Eat Like A Rock Star (Skyhorse) book and Bego did Gibson’s biography, Between The Lines in 1989.
And, speaking of books ...
Kent,
You wrote: "I once again have to mention Sam Tallerico’s book “Who Did You Say Your Father Was” a very interesting tale of Sam’s investigation into his own parentage … only to discover that in all likelihood his father is none other than the incredible Bobby Darin."
Kent,
You wrote: "I once again have to mention Sam Tallerico’s book “Who Did You Say Your Father Was” a very interesting tale of Sam’s investigation into his own parentage … only to discover that in all likelihood his father is none other than the incredible Bobby Darin."
Am I reading the price here right . . . ?!
From AMAZON.com ~~~
==========================================================================================================
==========================================================================================================. Over 1 Million Satisfied Customers.
$899.99 times One Million equals $899,990,000.00!OK, THAT can't be right!
CB
Say what?!?!?I’ll sell you my copy for $500! (kk)
Lol. And I bet at your price, you'd also even give me free overnight shipping!!
I'd really like to get my $4.99 for shipping ... but if that what it takes to make this happen, ok. (kk)
Ha ... ha ... thanks!
I asked Sam if he was aware that his book was selling for $900 on Amazon. (Well, it's not actually SELLING for that price ... it's just ADVERTISED for that price ... I can't imagine anyone crazy enough to actually PAY it!!!)
Here's what he told me ...
Hiya Kent,
That is hysterical about the $899! There should be a decimal point in there somewhere. And I'd probably still only see my $1.74 royalty or whatever.
FYI, I pulled the book from distribution back in March, with the intention of reissuing it with the part about DNA and all that's transpired since, but ... I decided the original was a testament about what happened before that time, so I allowed it to be reissued as written ... BUT then the publisher said it would take 6 - 8 weeks for the book to be available again through third party vendors like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc. ...to wit, someone who ordered it in March told me they STILL have not received it through Amazon... sigh...but the publisher Lulu says it's available from via THEIR platform NOW, though without free shipping, and Lulu's standard turnaround time which I think is a couple weeks. I really do need to make the online version available too, though, like I've said, I wrote it for a select few, not expecting it to have a shelf life beyond who's already read it.
Which prompts me to thank you, Kent, for your kind words about "Who Did You Say Your Father Was?" available at www.lulu.com. Since the book's publication in 2016, I've gotten DNA confirmation that Bobby Darin was indeed my biological father, thanks to the websites 23andme and Ancestry. What's really cool for Darin fans is that these sites could finally solve the long-held mystery of Bobby Darin's own paternity, something he desperately wanted to know. Hmm ... I smell a sequel ... "Who Did You Say Your GRANDfather Was?"
Meanwhile, I cannot help but wonder ... Wow!!! What's this seller gonna do, come to my house and steal my proof copies?? Or maybe he / she bought their own copy and thought it was worth that much. LOL
Either way, I will only see $1.92 (just checked the actual amount of my revenue per copy)
Thanks for the head-scratcher.
And, thanks again, Kent, for the plug, but more importantly, for keeping Forgotten Hits a must-read! (PS Love the 1969 surveys!!!)
As for an update, I am back in New York ... sold our Manhattan apartment (the closing is Thursday, yikes!) Upstate house on the market, moving elsewhere in July, regardless, so geez, no wonder I haven't gotten around to doing anything about my book!
And yes, I HAVE read Connie Francis' Yellow Pages size tome! I absolutely loved her style of writing ... pulls no punches ... but honestly, the size and glossy pages made it an ordeal. Yet I finished it. I had to wonder how much of her recollections were embellished. I missed a public appearance by her in Florida by just a couple weeks this March. Damn.
I actually wanted to write something about the Motown 60th Anniversary GRAMMY salute that aired on CBS a few weeks ago, too. I didn't expect much, given previous similar specials, but this one was better than I feared. What WAS shown was enjoyable -- Smokey Robinson and Stevie Wonder still sounding great, even though there was a bit too much of them at the expense of The Temptations and Four Tops, most notably. If you knew nothing about Motown, you might have been left with the impression that the label was all about Smokey and Stevie, and oh, yeah, some other people made records for the label, too. Why were acts like The Commodores, Gladys Knight and the Pips, and Jr. Walker & The All-Stars given such short shrift, when they, and so many others, were instrumental to Motown's success? Speaking of instrumentals, why no shout out to The Funk Brothers?? There was a nice discussion about the songwriters; how fab was it to see Holland - Dozier - Holland! But were any of Mickey Stevenson's songs mentioned (quick, name ONE) and did Nickolas Ashford's name even come up in the conversation??
The grande dame of Motown's serenade to Berry Gordy was sweet, but come on, Motown was hardly God's gift to movie soundtracks. When people think 'Diana Ross,' they most likely think "Baby Love," not "My Man." Kudos also to Mary Wilson for being brave enough to sit through the Diana segment that pretty much glossed over The Supremes. And no, of course, there was no mention of Jean Terrell.
Also there was no mention in the In Memoriam section of ... Bobby Darin, who was on the label from 1971 until his death in 1973.
Curious to hear your take on the special. Will be anxious to read YOUR take on the Motown 60 special, if you indeed saw it.
And for the record, I was one of those readers who was starting to panic when I wasn't seeing anything new in the Forgotten Hits blog for a couple days. Glad to know all is well in your world. I know your followers are very interested in all the stuff you write about ... I know that *I* am!
Best,
Sam Tallerico
Thanks for the reciprocal kind words.
(Too bad you don't have a couple hundred extra copies of your book lying around ... we could corner the market, selling them for $250!!!) Of course, it wouldn't be ethical for YOU to do such a thing ... but I'm perfectly happy to be your middle man on this whole thing ... take in the orders while you discreetly ship the packages from an untraceable location ... and all for just 25% of the take!!! (Yeah, I know ... I've been watching too many spy thrillers lately!)
We actually DID a very brief review of the Motown Grammy Special shortly after it aired ... I, too, was very pleasantly surprised by how good it was ... but also disappointed by what was left out and/or glossed over.
You can read our review below ...
I watched the Motown 60 Grammy special, celebrating Motown’s 60 year anniversary. More tribute performances than actual Motown stars this time around … not quite like the phenomenal Motown 25 television special of several years ago. Too many of these great stars have left us.
Things kicked off to a rousing start with Stevie Wonder (looking somewhat unrecognizable) doing “Sir Duke” and Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson telling the story about Motown’s first #1million-selling hit, “Shop Around,” which Smokey then performed with Pentatonix. Meghan Trainor also did a note-for-note, letter perfect reading of The Supremes’ “You Can’t Hurry Love” which was segued into the original where you literally couldn’t tell the difference from where one version stopped and the other one began. That whole controversial J-Lo sequence that aired several months ago was repeated as was a beautiful tribute to Marvin Gaye performed by John Legend. (I will admit to never having been much of a John Legend fan in the past … but his last several televised performances … including “Jesus Christ, Superstar” … have completely blown me away. This is one VERY talented dude!)
Two emotional highlights for me were Stevie Wonder performing “Never Dreamed You’d Leave In Summer” as a tribute to his late, first wife Syreeta, and Diana Ross performing a “Lady Sings The Blues” medley face to face with Berry Gordy himself … VERY moving.
Catch it On Demand if you can … or watch for the inevitable DVD release. Although about half the show dragged, it is still well worth checking out. (kk)
Things kicked off to a rousing start with Stevie Wonder (looking somewhat unrecognizable) doing “Sir Duke” and Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson telling the story about Motown’s first #1million-selling hit, “Shop Around,” which Smokey then performed with Pentatonix. Meghan Trainor also did a note-for-note, letter perfect reading of The Supremes’ “You Can’t Hurry Love” which was segued into the original where you literally couldn’t tell the difference from where one version stopped and the other one began. That whole controversial J-Lo sequence that aired several months ago was repeated as was a beautiful tribute to Marvin Gaye performed by John Legend. (I will admit to never having been much of a John Legend fan in the past … but his last several televised performances … including “Jesus Christ, Superstar” … have completely blown me away. This is one VERY talented dude!)
Two emotional highlights for me were Stevie Wonder performing “Never Dreamed You’d Leave In Summer” as a tribute to his late, first wife Syreeta, and Diana Ross performing a “Lady Sings The Blues” medley face to face with Berry Gordy himself … VERY moving.
Catch it On Demand if you can … or watch for the inevitable DVD release. Although about half the show dragged, it is still well worth checking out. (kk)
Hey Kent:
Thank You for posting the late 50's 'Buddy Holly' sound, Mp3 for "Pretty Blue Eyes, Pretty Blues Eyes."
I have had some really great feedback, including some from Buddy Holly's Niece.
The UK responded with: "Loved the song. It really has The 'Buddy Holly' vibe."
A 50's Drummer offered: "Really liked The Mp3, and felt that it really channeled 'Buddy Holly'."
A 50's Historian: "Pretty nice. Will you be recording this?"
Please take the time and listen to the lyrics / song Mp3, and provide your detailed thoughts, comments.
'Keeping you in The Loop'!!!
Kindest Regards,
L J Coon
Thank You for posting the late 50's 'Buddy Holly' sound, Mp3 for "Pretty Blue Eyes, Pretty Blues Eyes."
I have had some really great feedback, including some from Buddy Holly's Niece.
The UK responded with: "Loved the song. It really has The 'Buddy Holly' vibe."
A 50's Drummer offered: "Really liked The Mp3, and felt that it really channeled 'Buddy Holly'."
A 50's Historian: "Pretty nice. Will you be recording this?"
Please take the time and listen to the lyrics / song Mp3, and provide your detailed thoughts, comments.
'Keeping you in The Loop'!!!
Kindest Regards,
L J Coon
You can scroll back to The Friday Flash (May 24th) to hear LJ's demo in Forgotten Hits. (kk)
DIGGIN' FORGOTTEN HITS:
I just discovered and read your blog on 5/26/19. It is an AWESOME blog and website. I'm sorry I didn't discover this sooner ... but better late than never.
Thank you so much. It is great reading.
This is Rockin' Bob from Fair Lawn, NJ.
Have a great day and a great Memorial Day!
Bob "The Song Man" Marshello
Thanks, Bob! You've got a lot of catching up to do ... so I'll leave you to it!
And we have a whole 'nother page ready for you to explore, too ...
Be sure to check out ... www.forgottenhits.com ... for more great oldies information and insight! (kk)
Kent -
Summer is coming and as always I check out various sites to see what playing for free or small donations at the Fests. Keep in mind your favorites could be playing other places so check out their websites, too.
So without further ado ...
Ides of March 8/9 Elmwood Park at 3 pm
Also 9/21 at Berwyn Octoberfest at 8pm
the Buckinhams July 25 at 7:30 in Addison IL
Here is a great double bill! The Shadows of Knight with The New Colony 6 in Addison, starts at 6:30 on August 1st
When I looked at the Addison web site, there is a lot going on. Other great groups include Sha Na Na, Los Lonely Boys, and others so be sure to check out the web site www.ithappensinaddison.com to see more.
Also, Elk Grove Village has some great shows ... see below ...
We are pleased to announce our 2019 lineup for the 11th annual “Unity Within the Community” Mid-Summer Classics Concert Series:
Thursday, July 4 at 7:30 p.m. - Melissa Etheridge
Tuesday, July 9 at 7:30 p.m. - Boz Scaggs
Tuesday, July 16 at 7:30 p.m. - Commodores
Tuesday, July 23 at 7:30 p.m. – Wynonna & the Big Noise
Tuesday, July 30 at 7:30 p.m. -Night Ranger
Also, Elk Grove Village has some great shows ... see below ...
We are pleased to announce our 2019 lineup for the 11th annual “Unity Within the Community” Mid-Summer Classics Concert Series:
Thursday, July 4 at 7:30 p.m. - Melissa Etheridge
Tuesday, July 9 at 7:30 p.m. - Boz Scaggs
Tuesday, July 16 at 7:30 p.m. - Commodores
Tuesday, July 23 at 7:30 p.m. – Wynonna & the Big Noise
Tuesday, July 30 at 7:30 p.m. -Night Ranger
Check out their web site for further info
Here is one I am all excited about ...
Hillside, IL - August 20th - The Cryan Shames! 7:30
It will be great to see Toad, the one and only Tom Doody, and Hook, Jim Pilster, team up and perform all their classics ... not to be missed!
Skokie, IL's Backyard Bash has a little more current line-up featuring the Smithereens with Marshall Crenshaw singing at 8:30 and Material Issue at 6:45 Friday, August 23rd. On the 24th, War appears at 8:30
Some great shows, Kent, I can't wait!
Mike DeMartino
DIGGIN' FORGOTTEN HITS:
Thank you so much. It is great reading.
This is Rockin' Bob from Fair Lawn, NJ.
Have a great day and a great Memorial Day!
Bob "The Song Man" Marshello
Thanks, Bob! You've got a lot of catching up to do ... so I'll leave you to it!
And we have a whole 'nother page ready for you to explore, too ...
Be sure to check out ... www.forgottenhits.com ... for more great oldies information and insight! (kk)
I dig your web site the most!
Rick Bloom
Beatlemania
New York City
Thanks, Rick! (Were you in the touring company of "Beatlemania"? I saw the show here in Chicago probably a couple of years after this shot from 1978.)
The Fab Four have also been using our site for promotion purposes. (Hey, that's what we're here for!!!)
Keep watching these pages for your chance to win free tickets to see them when they appear at The Arcada Theatre on November 1st! (kk)
