TEEN IDOLS: With the Spotlight on David Cassidy!

 Last Friday we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the debut of The Partridge Family on ABC.

The program created overnight teen idol status to actor / singer David Cassidy, who played Keith Partridge on the series.  (David's real-life step-mom, Shirley Jones, portrayed his mother on the show!)

We found that we weren't the only ones celebrating this milestone ...

In fact, Ultimate Classic Rock ran a feature as well.

(Ultimate Classic Rock?!?!?  And The Partridge Family?!?!?)

And it was quite good!

https://ultimateclassicrock.com/partridge-family/?utm_source=sailthru&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=newsletter_4572276

The idea and inspiration for the program came from the success of the real-life musical family, The Cowsills who, between 1967 and 1969 scored four Top 20 Hits, including two #1's!  ("The Rain, The Park And Other Things," #1, 1967; "We Can Fly," #17, 1968; "Indian Lake," #6, 1968 and "Hair," #1, 1969.)

In fact, in the truth is stranger than fiction department, The Cowsills actually did a screen test to essentially play themselves on TV ... 

But producers "didn't find them believable" as a family (!!!), so actors were brought in instead!  (Studio musicians, most often The Wrecking Crew, provided the music for the series ... and only David's and Shirley's voices were used on the records ... everything else was performed by "hired hands!")

The Partridge Family ran up a quick string of hits, too ... "I Think I Love You," #1, 1970; "Doesn't Somebody Want To Be Wanted," #1, 1971; "I'll Meet You Halfway," #2, 1971; "I Woke Up In Love This Morning," #9, 1971 and "It's One Of Those Nights (Yes Love)," #13, 1972.  (In addition, David Cassidy scored three Top 20 solo hits during this time, too ... "Cherish," #3, 1971; "Could It Be Forever," #15, 1972 and "How Can I Be Sure," #15, 1972.)

When Tom Cuddy, a bigwig with the ABC Broadcasting Network saw our piece, he was inspired to share a couple of VERY special memories with our readers.  (Man, I just LOVE stuff like this!!!)

I'll turn things over to Tom ...

Kent: 

Reading today in FH about the success of the Partridge Family and David Cassidy reminded me about my good fortune of working with many of the teen idols in pop music, including Donny Osmond, Bobby Sherman, the Monkees, Shaun Cassidy and David Cassidy.  

Few people on the planet have walked in the shoes of someone like David Cassidy, with the adulation he received during the height of his popularity.

I got to know David pretty well. We did many radio promotions and concert events over the years and then he moved to New York when I was VP/Programming at ABC's flagship WPLJ-FM and we got to know each other better.

He co-starred on Broadway with his step brother Shaun and Petula Clark in "Blood Brothers" and we met for dinner a few times after his performances.  I was backstage with my family after a matinee and who walks in the backstage door but Mrs. Partridge herself, Shirley Jones, to congratulate the two members of her family, headlining the production.

At WPLJ we once hosted a "Teen Idol Cruise" on the Hudson River.  It was a huge cruise ship with multiple levels, and 300 excited, mostly female fans who can came to see Donny Osmond and David Cassidy.  

I was told at the time that the two had never attended the same radio promotion before. So knowing that, I asked David before the autograph session started, if he'd like to say hi to Donny and he replied "No thanks, I'm fine."  I was never sure how to interpret his response. However it surprised me because Donny is one of the nicest guys I've ever met in the business.  So sadly, there is no picture of Donny and David together at that event.   

In the limo headed to the hotel with Donny after the cruise, I was expecting Donny to say something like ... "I can't believe I didn't run across David tonight."  But Donny, a true gentleman, never brought it up. 

It's hard to believe, but we had two of the biggest former teen idols ever on one cruise ship in NYC and over the three hour cruise they never ran into each other -- by design.  

Donny was on one deck meeting fans and David was on

the other deck.  That night they were both a delight to work with and I can assure you our listeners have never forgotten that night.  

On another occasion, David had just released what turned out to be his last Billboard chart hit, "Lying to Myself," in 1990.  It hit the Top 30.  At the time, I was on the committee planning entertainment for the National Association of Broadcasters annual convention.  It was going to be held in Boston.  

I had booked Bruce Hornsby to headline a concert, who was very hot at the time.  We did the show at Symphony Hall for all the radio broadcasters in town.  David had offered to MC the concert so he could get in front of the Program Directors and let them know he had a new release. 

That sounded fine to me, but when Bruce Hornsby was told that David was going to be introducing him, he said "I'm uncomfortable with that."  He went on to tell me that David is not associated with the type of music he (Hornsby) is known for. 

So, with only 30 mins before the concert, it put me in an uncomfortable position.  I knew I didn't want to hurt David's feelings, so I asked Shadoe Stevens, who had just been named as the new host of "American Top 40," to go out on stage and co-host with David, but when the two of them had finished talking to the audience,  it needed to be Shadoe who introduced Bruce.   

Crisis adverted and it went well.  Plus Hornsby put on a super solid set for the SRO audience of broadcasters. 

More teen idol stories at another time!!

-- Tom Cuddy 

   New York, NY

Backstage at Boston’s Symphony Hall: David Cassidy, Bruce Hornsby,

Tom Cuddy and ABC Radio Networks executives

L-R:  Tom Cuddy, Donny Osmond and Micky Dolenz

And, finally, from FH Reader Ken Voss, who helps maintain The Illinois Rock And Roll Website, we got THIS tying in to both our Partridge Family piece ... and our on-going Favorite Television Theme Songs Poll ...

FYI, Susan Dey is from Illinois ... so I have to vote for that one!

Ken

"C'mon, Get Happy," the theme song from The Partridge Family, currently has 27 votes as we go to press this morning!  I've got a hunch it'll earn a whole lot more!  (kk)

 

A DAVID CASSIDY BONUS!!!

Here's a piece that first ran in Forgotten Hits back in 2004!!!  (This was before we even had a website ... and everything was being done thru emails!)

We ran a very special TEEN IDOLS WEEK ... and asked the ladies on our list to share memories of their early crushes with these heartthrobs.

This is the piece that ran on DAVID CASSIDY way back when ...

'60's FLASHBACK:

We asked some of the women on the list to describe some of the memories surrounding their earliest teenage crushes. Let's face it, many of you were ten years old (or even younger!) when you plastered DAVID's or DONNY's or LEIF's or ANDY's posters on your bedroom walls ... yet there was something about them that turned you on ... musically and physically. I'm not really sure that you could have even understood the physical part of the reaction at such an early age ... most girls on the list said that they simply wanted to MARRY their heart-throb ... it wasn't really a sexual urge as much as a need to feel that he belonged to only you. (LOL)  

Being a guy, I never really understood it ... we didn't have those same types of crushes.  Sure, back then we debated many of the same things that we continue to debate in FH ... who was hotter: GINGER or MARY-ANN ... SAMANTHA or JEANNIE ... WILMA or BETTY ... and, I WILL admit to having a special fondness for NANCY SINATRA's SUGAR TOWN album cover ... and maybe HERB ALPERT's WHIPPED CREAM Cover, too.  (We've certainly shown THAT one a time or two here in Forgotten Hits!)

 

It seemed different for you girls, 'though. I've had women tell me that they used to kiss their DAVID CASSIDY poster good night every night ... they'd make-out with their pillow, pretending it was DONNY OSMOND ... and, based on the cold harsh realities of life, these are girls who would have been about eight or nine years old at the time they were doing this! One woman said she spent her early adult years looking for someone who had "DAVID CASSIDY's lips" and a young black girl (who would have been about eight when THE BEATLES first hit our shores) was absolutely convinced that SHE would marry GEORGE HARRISON ... without any logical consideration of age, race or probability ... she truly, truly believed it. 

So this week, we're going to try to dig a little deeper into just what fueled these urges ... and we hope that some of you will share your memories and crushes with us, too. Along the way, we'll look at some of the most popular teen idols of the time and hear some long-since overlooked bubblegum pop.

Today's feature was written by FH list member JACK'S TROPHY WIFE (Laura), who not only made it through the '70's TEEN IDOL craze and lived to tell about it but also buys, sells, trades and collects old 16 MAGAZINES ... and all OTHER types of rock-related magazines ... with her hubby, JACKJ13. Thanks for the inspiration ... we hope you'll enjoy some of the other comments as well!   

David Cassidy, Rock Me Baby, circa October 1972.

THIS 45 spent a lot of time on my older sister's Close & Play, especially during our marathon dance sessions on the front porch. (We were too young to be embarrassed dancing on our front porch, after dark, with the porch light on, on the main highway of a small town. At least I was; perhaps she should have known better.) According to his autobiography (which I no longer own, because someone ran off with it, so I cannot give you an exact quote), David was horrified to learn that his vocals on Partridge Family songs were speeded up to make his voice higher and thus theoretically less threatening and more appealing to young girls. Fortunately for those of us dying to be threatened by our teen idols, David eventually released this solo (correct speed) number, a delicious shock. This wasn't the David of the old days who told us to come on and get happy. THIS David was a midnight man!
---Jack's Trophy Wife / Laura

DAVID CASSIDY was the consummate teen idol ... at one time, he was getting more fan mail than THE BEATLES at their peak. Between constant television exposure through THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY and solo concert tours on the weekends, he may have TRULY been the hardest-working-man-in-show-business, despite what JAMES BROWN says!

Between his hits with his stepmom SHIRLEY JONES and their fictitious PARTRIDGE FAMILY and his solo smashes, CASSIDY hit the Pop Top 40 a dozen times between 1970 and 1972, topping the charts with I THINK I LOVE (1970) and DOESN'T SOMEBODY WANT TO BE WANTED (1971) and scoring Top Ten Hits with I'LL MEET YOU HALFWAY (#2, 1971), I WOKE UP IN LOVE THIS MORNING (#9, 1971) and CHERISH (#3, 1971).

According to a "Fact Sheet" he filled out for 16 MAGAZINE back in January of 1970, his favorite singing group was THE BEATLES (he covered their PLEASE PLEASE ME and hit The British Top 20 with it), his favorite individual singer was ANTHONY NEWLEY, his favorite TV Show was LOVE, AMERICAN STYLE, his favorite actor was MARLON BRANDO and his favorite food was lobster. He likes "girls who are bright ... I can't stand dumb girls" and he dislikes "plastic people."

(And all this time you thought it was 
DONNY who had the PUPPY LOVE!!!) 

 

CASSIDY continues to wow them live in concert ... in fact, he finally c'mon and got happy a few years ago and now performs most of his solo and PARTRIDGE FAMILY hits in their original arrangements. A live concert DVD and Greatest Hits CD have both been released in the past year ... pretty amazing since DAVID spent nearly two decades denouncing the whole KEITH PARTRIDGE connection. (His infamous ROLLING STONE "Naked Lunchbox" cover pretty much told all his female fans, 13 and under, that he really was a "Rocker" and was having sex with any willing "of age" follower! He goes into much greater and graphic detail in his autobiography, C'MON, GET HAPPY ... listing many of his sexcapades) 

The music that LAURA selected for today is CASSIDY's 1972 rocker-image attempt, ROCK ME BABY, a #26 pop hit in Cash Box Magazine.  (Track posted above)

We've also added one of his prettier solo ballads as well ... COULD IT BE FOREVER went to #15 in Cash Box the same year ... and was a #5 smash here in Chicago.

ok you asked for it ...

In the early 70's, when I was no more than 4 or 5, it was David Cassidy, ALL the way! I had a real thing for the Partridge family ... used to pretend that they were my family ... I wanted Keith to be my older brother! I even begged my mom to buy me a corduroy maroon pant suit (couldn't find velvet) with a frilly blouse underneath the vest, so that I could dress like them.

Mary Ruth 

The Friday Flash

We've been experiencing a bit of "overload" this week with the unexpected deaths of Mac Davis and Helen Reddy ... (We were already "overbooked" BEFORE this happened!) ... 

So we're doubling up on a couple of features now (and handling a few things via email) in an attempt to stay on pace.

What that means for you is another KING-SIZE Edition of The Friday Flash ... 

So let's get right to it!

 

Rolling Stone Magazine has updated their list of The Top 500 Greatest Albums …

And now lists Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” as the #1 Album of All-Time.

(A reflection of the times perhaps?)

The Top 50 still includes some mainstays …

PET SOUNDS by The Beach Boys (#2), BLUE by Joni Mitchell (#3), SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE by Stevie Wonder (#4), ABBEY ROAD by The Beatles (#5), NEVERMIND by Nirvana (#6), RUMOURS by Fleetwood Mac (#7), PURPLE RAIN by Prince (#8), BLOOD ON THE TRACKS by Bob Dylan (#9) and THE MISEDUCATION OF LAURYN HILL by Lauryn Hill (#10) … seriously?  Ahead of “Revolver” at #11, “Thriller” (#12), “Exile On Main Street” (#14), “Highway 61 Revisited” by Bob Dylan (#18) and “Born To Run” by Bruce Springsteen at #21.

Things get REALLY wonky the further down the list you go … but Top 50 Albums (of all-time???) by Kendrick Lamar, Radiohead, Kanye West, Public Enemy, The Notorious B.I.G., Wu Tang Clan, D’Angelo, Beyonce’ (WHAT?!?!), Dr. Dre, A Tribe Called Quest, Nas, Outkast and Jay-Z.

(Somehow I just can’t picture a remake of “Almost Famous” being made today … a film VERY near and dear to the hearts at Rolling Stone … where the big sister is packing a case of albums for her little brother as a means of enlightenment … and it’s filled with ANY of the albums by the artists listed above!!!

You’ll find “Sgt. Pepper” down at #24 … and Carole King’s “Tapestry” right behind it at #25 … and “Let It Bleed,” “Ziggy Stardust,” The Beatles’ White Album, “Rubber Soul,” “Are You Experienced” and “The Velvet Underground and Nico” are in there, too … but that’s QUITE a shake-up in The Top 50!!!  (“Dark Side Of The Moon” … an album that rode the charts for DECADES … is down at #55!)

Their first Top 500 List came out in 2003 … and then they did it again in 2012.

This year’s list boasts 154 new titles, never making the list before.  (In addition, more and more “Greatest Hits” collections have been eliminated in favor of stand-alone album projects.)

You can view all 500 titles here:

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-albums-of-all-time-1062063/

Best Classic Bands ran a piece about “Hey Jude” moving into the #1 position this week in 1968 … and staying there for nine consecutive weeks.  Actually, this article, which also points out OTHER momentous occasions for this week in ’68 … such as Denny McLain winning his 31^st game (no pitcher has won 30 games in a single season since), Mickey Mantle playing his last major league game, “Hawaii Five-O” and “60 Minutes” making their television debuts (“Hawaii Five-O” currently leads our poll for All-Time Favorite TV Themes with over one votes thus far … for the record, “60 Minutes” doesn’t have any!), reads a lot like one of our Forgotten Hits calendar pages!

But the truth is, “Hey Jude” only held the top spot for nine weeks in Billboard Magazine.  (Here in Chicago, it was #1 for a week!)

Cash Box and Record World showed it at #1 for 7 and 4 weeks respectively, replaced by their own Apple Records act Mary Hopkin.  (Here in Chicago, besides Hopkin, “Fire” by The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown and “Over You” by Gary Puckett in the Union Gap reached the top during The Beatles’ nine week Billboard reign.)

Still, it was the biggest Beatles hit of all time … here in The States.  Over in the UK, “She Loves You” holds that distinction.

Still worth another view I guess … if you’ve got just over seven minutes to spare …

You can check out the complete Best Classic Bands article here:  https://bestclassicbands.com/radio-hits-september-1968-9-25-155/

 

John Michael Coppola (Frankie in Chicago’s production of “Jersey Boys” and leader of The Four C Notes) found the quote I was looking for from Joe Pesci about the passing of Four Seasons founding member Tommy DeVito and forwarded it along to us:

The time he spent as part of the Four Seasons produced some of the most iconic music of that era and continues to inspire young musicians to this day. I will always remember him for his great voice and for the character that he was.  

-- Joe Pesci

He also provided the link to that quote:  

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/sep/23/tommy-devito-four-seasons-founding-member-dies-of-covid-aged-92)

We've lost two more greats - Helen Reddy and Mac Davis - born three months apart, no less.  R.I.P.  

Mike

 

>>>"Ain't No Way To Treat A Lady," kept the feminist mood intact when it reached #5 in 1976 (and I actually really like this one!)  kk

Kent, 

That is also one I kept in my faves all these years!  I appreciated her music and of course, "I am Woman" became an anthem back then.  

She did not write hers, but she DID play the folk singer nun in Airport 1975 which was parodied in "Airplane!" which was a good thing!!  ;)

I have about a 5" stack of her 45s that need to go somewhere.  Not as bad as all the Anne Murray 45s I accumulated by chance over the decades.  Anne would be one of the artists I have the most 45s by that I kept NONE for my fave 45s boxes.  She did good stuff, but I just never liked any one record that well, I guess.

As to Mac Davis, I was not excited about his country solo 45s much, but several songs he wrote are ones I love.  "Watching Scotty Grow," "In the Ghetto," "I Think I'm Gonna Rain" (Everyday People), and "Something's Burning." Good stuff!

My stack of Mac Davis ones is pretty big, too, but I kept none in my faves BY HIM.  I did not know he wrote "A Little Less Conversation."  WOW!!  Put him on the board in '68, but set him up for life in the new century!  I think my oldest solo Mac 45 was on VJ 1964 or so! 

Check out the 45 I mentioned by Everyday People.  Pretty catchy, I think.  I am guessing this might BE Mac Davis, himself.  It was an Abnak yellow vinyl promo in STEREO!  A 1970 45 that was probably one of the last Abnak 45s, I suppose.  Got airplay in Kansas when I was growing up.  Psychedelic pop?  Fuzz meets Partridges?

Clark Besch

If I'm not mistaken, I think Mac Davis actually used to work for Vee Jay Records back in the mid-'60's, trying to get and keep a foothold in the music business.

I just found him to be a very personable, likeable guy.  (C'mon ... you HAD to like that rockabilly clip I ran!!!)  

In my haste to prepare the remembrance pieces on Helen Reddy and Mac Davis the other day, I neglected to mention that Davis also wrote the Kenny Rogers and the First Edition hit “Something’s Burning,” a Top Five Hit in 1970. 

And DIDJAKNOW that Helen Reddy's first single here in The States was her version of the Mac Davis tune "I Believe In Music"?  Now how cool is THAT??? (kk)

 

Don't misconstrue what you watched last night on the presidential debate.  

It was not really spite, hatred, under your breath, jargon, insinuation or sarcasm that was used.    

That debate was really a subliminal tribute to the late Mac Davis. 

You heard guys REALLY saying "It's hard to be humble," "A little less conversation, a little more action," "Another little baby child is born in the ghetto," "Memories pressed between the pages of my mind," "I've got everything a man could ever need," and "Can't you feel it ...  Here it comes ... FIRE ... Something's burnin'."   

Mac Davis making a political statement thru two candidates???

Clark 

I may be a minority, but I found Helen Reddy's contribution to pop music to be minimal. She got lucky with I Am Woman and rode the wave for as long as she could. I don't agree with the idea of her being a feminist icon. 

Thankfully, I don't listen to oldies radio, so I do not need to hear airings of a mediocre song catalog at best. 

Jack Levin

While I can’t call myself a Helen Reddy fan, I absolutely liked a good portion of her songs (once we got past “I Am Woman.”)

I wasn’t able to listen to oldies radio on Wednesday so I didn’t hear what kind of tributes stations like Rewound Radio, True Oldies and Me-TV-FM may have put together to honor these two big ‘70’s stars.  But I’m sure it was something fitting … as it should be.

Not your taste … and I get that …

But the statistics prove that you are in the minority on this one …

And not by just a little bit!

Like it or not, Helen Reddy was a STAR!!! (And a big one at that!)  kk  

Some nice coverage of both Helen Reddy and Mac Davis by our friends at The Second Disc ... well worth reading ...

https://theseconddisc.com/2020/09/30/in-memoriam-mac-davis-1942-2020/ 

https://theseconddisc.com/2020/09/30/in-memoriam-helen-reddy-1941-2020/ 

 

And here's an interesting article from Billboard Magazine, showing the similar trajectory of their careers in the 1970's ... https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/9457412/mac-davis-helen-reddy-music-tv-stars?utm_campaign=Daily&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_term=daily_digest

 

Morris Mac Davis  

Lubbock, TX 

Wednesday January 21, 1942   /  Tuesday September 29, 2020

 

"Baby Don't Get Hooked on Me"

Hey Kent,

Another Writer / Artist / Musician has left the planet.

(My Mac Davis experience)

It was 1972, ("Baby Don't Get Hooked on Me"), and we were playing what we use to call The U.S. Steel Mill circuit on 28th Street.

"Baby Don't Get Hooked on Me" was just one of the songs on our play list.

Well ... after a few rounds of that song with your Girlfriend in the front row, I can tell you that every attempt at a relationship goes right out the front door (What's in a Song)!  But!  But! Baby!!!

This is the time where most will say ... Ah, then it wasn't meant to be.  

But I've got to tell you ...

It is really hard to measure if it was meant to be when you're performing "Baby Don't Get Hooked on Me" to your Girlfriend!

(My Mac Davis experience) 

 

... Oh so many years later ...

Mary, Would You Write Me A Letter 

* 

I remember Mary Ann and the color of her hair 

I was so in love with her two kids without a care 

Those days are gone, and we can't go back - 

Been many years since then 

Each time I think of Mary Ann 

We're back in school again 

*

Mary, would you write me a letter 

Tell me how you loved the things we use to do 

And if you would include those old photographs of you 

'Cause I'm trying to pretend Wwe're back in school again 

Mary, would you write me a letter 

*

You know sometimes you lose at love and open up another door 

Someone always comes along to change our lives once more 

And in our hearts we hold those keys that unlock memories from the past 

Each time I think of Mary Ann, these things I'd like to ask 

* 

Mary, would you write me a letter 

Tell me how you loved the things we use to do 

And if you would include those old photographs of you 

'Cause I'm trying to pretend we're back in school again 

Mary, would you write me a letter 

* 

Mary, would you write me a letter 

Tell me how you loved the things we use to do 

And if you would include some old photographs of you 

'Cause I'm trying to pretend we're back in school again 

Mary, would you write me a letter 

* 

'Cause I'm trying to pretend we're back in school again Mary, would you write me a letter 

* 

I remember Mary Ann, and the color of her hair

L J

L J Coon

 

Mac Davis is probably best known as a songwriter ... 

Some of the songs he gave away to other artists became bigger hits than his own. 

One of his that I particularly like that he DIDN'T write falls right into the Forgotten Hits category we talk about all the time ...

A song you NEVER hear ... but will remember immediately the next time you do. 

Here's "Rock And Roll, I Gave You The Best Years Of My Life," a #15 Hit in 1975, written by Kevin Johnson, who also charted with it a couple of years before.

(If I'm being totally honest, I actually like the Kevin Johnson version better ... but you're probably not going to remember that one because it only made it up to #63 ...

But hey, we're here to salute Mac Davis today ... so that's exactly what we're going to do!)  kk

 

 

I met Helen Reddy circa 1977 when Kim Fowley was producing the "Ear Candy" album for her. I was at the "You're My World" session. David Carr of the Fortunes and Rick Henn of the Sunrays were the arrangers Kim brought in. One night Chris Darrow, who had played dobro on a Cajun-influenced  track, gave me his phone number.  

I went to all "The Midnight Special" television show tapings in Burbank. Reddy was a guest a couple of times.  

I never bought records by Helen Reddy, but "Angie Baby," written by Alan O'Day, produced by the very underrated Joe Wissert, is terrific. What a spooky recording with a haunting alluring vocal and arrangement. One of the best-ever examples where the songwriter's cryptic lyrics, the perfect singer and a veteran producer showed us how a hit record is done.    

Harvey Kubernik

Alan was a good friend to Forgotten Hits ... I ran an exclusive piece the other day where he explained the story behind "Angie Baby" ... GREAT track.

Not a lot of people have ever heard Alan's version ... but I love it!  He is missed. (kk)

 

 

When I woke up this morning and heard the news about Helen Reddy and Mac David, I immediately went to the Forgotten Hits page.  There is something about the way you cover these things that makes me feel like I'm talking with a friend ... it just seems much more personal ... and much more personable ... than simply reading a "just the facts, ma'am" news report.  I appreciate the way you are able to communicate your own grief and love for this music ... something the impartial news report cannot seem to do.

We have lost so many of our favorite artists these last few years ... but you seem to always treat them with respect and put their career and contribution in perspective.

Thank you for Forgotten Hits ... MY source for oldies news.

Jennifer

Thank you so much for the kind words.

As I have said from Day One, I am ALWAYS a fan first ... but I also have to call 'em as I see 'em ... this is what our readers have come to expect and I never lose sight of this.

That being said, I always try to offer constructive criticism in a negative review ... more of a "Would you consider this?" sort of thing ... but always offered from the fan perspective.  (I recently told Tommy James that the songs his fans would most like to see him perform in concert that he doesn't include in his act is "She," a Top 20 Hit from early 1970 that includes just a touch of psychedelia.  Will he do it?  Who knows ... but where else ... and WHO else is going to tell him something like this???)

By the way, this Sunday Tommy will be talking about Forgotten Hits on his Sirius / XM Gettin' Together program.  (Not sure to what extent ... but still REALLY cool to be mentioned!) kk

It was sad to read about the loss of Mac Davis and Helen Reddy. I have played both artists hundreds of times since their debuts in the seventies.  

I think Texas In My Rearview Mirror is an underrated song.  Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me is personal favorite.  It is one of those cheesy '70's guilty pleasures.    

I had a crush on Helen Reddy. She was great as the only regular host of the Midnight Special, which I watched every week.  Aint No Way To Treat A Lady was one of my favorites

back in the day.  

In the mid-70's I bought a stereo with a cassette player (which was hard to find at that time).  The first cassette I bought was Helen Reddy's Greatest Hits.  

I did have the chance to chat with her on my show in the 1990s.  It was so cool to be able to tell her how much I appreciated her music.

Phil Nee - WRCO

Helen Reddy's Greatest Hits is the one to buy ... LOTS of great music on that CD.

Mac Davis switched record labels too many times to collect all of his hits in one place ... but he recorded good music on all of them ... so I have THREE Greatest Hits by him in my collection.  (kk) 

 

Lost in the shuffle of all the Helen Reddy / Mac Davis press, we should also note that Wednesday marked the passing of Francis Rocco Prestia, inovative bass player and founding member of Tower Of Power.  (He's the guy who put a lot of the "funk" into their unique sound!)

Essentially best known for their horn section (and the not so illustrious career of their lead singer, Rick Stevens, who did jail time for murder), Prestia's "finger style funk" helped to define the band's overall sound.  He was much admired by other musicans (and wowed by fans.)  kk

From someone already 85, best wishes to Jerry Lee Lewis. Of course, my fourth favorite singer of all time, Johnny Mathis turns 85 on September 30. My three favorites, in order, are Ella, Nat and Frank. 

Hil

My guess is you won’t find Mrs. Miller ANYWHERE on this list!!! 

Congrats on the Big 85, Hil … it’s the new 50!!!  (Yeah, right!!!  I'm still nearly twenty years away and still wake up screaming for the "oil can" every morning!!!)  kk

I checked the Phil Nee station and lo and behold, there's Phil doing high school volleyball!  Hope to catch his show Saturdays once in awhile.  

Hey Kent, great T-shirt you had in '74.  You DID look like a member of EITHER group back then!

So HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Jerry Lee.  When he rings someone up nowadays, I am guessing he can say "C'mon over, there's a whole lotta shakin' going on," that it means something different?  Maybe not, knowing Jerry!  He's a legend.

That Twist stuff is cool, too.  If I was still actively collecting, might have to buy them.  We have BOTH "Twist" 45s, with "Toot" and the pic sleeve one with "Twistin USA" too as well as Chubby signed the Twist LP.

Clark

See that, Phil ... you're already getting new listeners just from one mention!!!  (Been tellin' ya for years!!!  But hey, better late than never!)

Our readers will definitely enjoy your Those Were The Days program on Saturday nights.  Phil's got a couple decades worth of interview clips he's able to splice into his show ... makes for some VERY entertaining oldies listening.

Be sure to check it out this Saturday night on WRCO!  (kk)

 

Thanks for the mention about our stream.   I am glad you got to listen.  The numbers of listeners has increased a great deal even before streaming.  It is hard to manage the requests and the biggest challenge of taking all of my own calls is listeners want to talk for a while.  They want to do more than request a song. So many people are lonely during this time and they just want a conversation.  It is hard to cut someone off, but sometimes I have to.  

In the last few years the requests have been getting newer. I still try really hard to include the 50's and 60's, but the majority of requests are from the 70's and 80's. I do play some early 90's.   I still get a chance to play a few with a 'wow' factor now and then.

Feel free to request a song some night.  It would be an honor to play something for you.

Phil 

And here's a bit of good news ...

Despite a report earlier this week that John Records Landecker wouldn't be kicking off his new show on WGN Radio until after The Chicago White Sox finished their post season play, Landecker is now telling media columnist Robert Feder that he'll be back on the airing starting on Monday, October 5th.

John's new program is going to be called “The John Landecker Radio Oasis,” and it will air from 7 to 10 p.m. weeknights.

Landecker explained the show's title this way:

“It is a three-hour oasis from the stressful world we all share. All that stuff you heard all day? I’m not talking about any of it. I’m going for entertainment and fun. Will there be music? Yes, but in a way that is totally unique. Boogie Check? Yes. Stay tuned — more will be revealed!”

OK ... now I've GOTTA listen!!!  (kk) 

 

Landecker and I shared some screen time during the recent Dick Biondi Birthday Celebration / Fundraiser ... you can catch us in Hour Three of this event:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDonbAZ1a4M&t=3002s

 

And more from Pam Pulice, who's putting together the Biondi Documentary that eveybody's talking about ...

 

Hi Kent,

I enjoyed reading the Sunday Comments and was happy to see a mention of our Dick Biondi Day celebration.  Thanks for being part of it and for helping spread the word. A special shoutout to Ray Graffia, Jr., Bruce Mattey, and the New Colony Six band members for closing our 4 hour program.  We love you guys and thank you for a great finale to our Dick Biondi love fest!

I enjoyed seeing Chubby Checker’s  “The Twist” video so much that I posted it on The Dick Biondi Film Facebook page.  (BTW, Kent and Frannie, if you need some help with the Forgotten Hits Facebook page, let me know.  I’m no expert, but I’ve been learning for the past 6 1/2 years.  

Stay safe everybody!  

Pam Enzweiler-Pulice

Director

The Voice That Rocked America: The Dick Biondi Story

Thanks, Pam.

Frannie now has Administrator rights to the page so I’m going to turn things over to her.  We at least want to maintain a presence, even if it’s just to run links to some of the key articles we’re running each week … or for special features like the new Favorite TV Themes Poll.

Hopefully, if she can devote some time to this in the next week or two we’ll only be TWENTY years behind the times!!! (lol)

[Hey … that’s ok … our who method of operation here is Living In The Past!!!]  kk

kk:

What happened to the DOO-WOP Countdown?

Oh … Maybe that was my idea.

Could John B. Sebastian win again?

Here’s the latest COUSIN BRUCIE REPORT –

He says one rule - No talk about the election or Corvid-19.

Brucie seems to be settling into a pattern -- mostly phone and e-mail requests.

He did talk about Tommy DeVito's death.

Been doing a contest - Caller #77 and Caller #107.1 wins a Cousin Brucie hat plus Norm N. Nite's new book plus some CD's.

Those numbers come from the two stations he's on ... 77 in New York City and 107.1 on Long Island.

He played "PRETTY LITTLE ANGEL EYES" by Curtis Lee ... said that Curtis introduced the song at one of his Palisades Park shows. Flip it over for great Doo-Wop Ballad. Cousin Brucie is bringing back one of his old bits. He calls it "THE MAGIC CIRCLE." He played -- from February 13 , 1965 -- #1 - "YOU'VE LOST THAT LOVIN' FEELING;" #2 - "DOWNTOWN; “ #3 - "THIS DIAMOND RING."

I'll save you the trouble of doing a "MOVIE THEME COUNTDOWN" …

#1 = "BLACKBOARD JUNGLE" with "ROCK AROUND THE CLOCK" by Bill Haley & His Comets.

FB

Ultimate Classic Rock ran a poll the other day naming The Ten Worst Kiss songs ...

And all I could think about was "How could you possibly limit the list to just ten???"  (kk)

Speaking of which, Chuck Buell sent us this as "The Quote Of The Day" ...

Now THERE'S an artist who REALLY has a handle on her career!  (kk)

Hi Kent - 

A re-mastered HD video has just been posted to YouTube. This highly entertaining one hour film includes plenty of participation from Hometown Hero Jim Peterik. 

Clive

This is by far my favorite Brian Wilson solo album ... I have the original dvd for this ... but here's a great chance for others to see it (and in high definition, too!)  

Thanks, Clive!  (kk)

Brian Wilson - Imagination (1998 Documentary)

Kent: 

Have you ever heard The Bee Gees write a song? 

This is audio from the actual writing session for “How Deep is Your Love”

Tom Cuddy

https://youtu.be/M5k0NGEP6ZQ 

Always fascinating to hear how a song comes to life.

This is a 41 minute clip ... so probably not for everybody ... it is interesting to hear how this evolves.  (And you can let it play in the background because there isn't any video to go along with it anyway!  (kk)  

Tom also sent us this time-appropriate clip ...

 

As further proof that oldies music is still alive and well, I am VERY happy to officially announce that some of OUR favorites from the late '70's are still kickin’ ass …

Billboard is reporting this week that Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 #1 Hit “Dreams” tripled its sales and doubled its streams after a Tik-Tok video went viral.  For the three-day period of September 25th - September 27th, "Dreams" racked up 2.9 million on-demand U.S. streams and 3000 in digital download sales -- numbers up 88.7% and 374%, respectively, from their totals in the prior three-day periods, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data. (The song also climbed as high as No. 24 on Spotify's US Daily chart on Sept. 27.)  Incredibly, “Dreams” is Fleetwood Mac’s only #1 Single on The Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles Chart.  (Their follow-up release, “Don’t Stop,” topped the Cash Box Singles Chart.)

Meanwhile, Earth Wind and Fire’s “September” (#4, 1979) saw a similar spike after “the 21^st of September,” mentioned in the song’s lyrics.  (This is the third straight year this has happened!)

Billboard reports that on-demand audio streams of the song rose from 340,000 on Sept. 20th to 1,187,000 on the 21st, a gain of 249%.  Meanwhile, the song also jumped a whopping 622% in day-to-day sales, from a negligible figure on Sept. 20 to 2,000 on Sept. 21st.  The full-week sales spike for "September" resulted in the song re-entering Billboard's Digital Song Sales chart at No. 19 for the chart dated Oct. 3.

I’m telling you, this music is TIMELESS!!!  (No reports of any Beethoven or Bach tunes increasing in significant sales during this … or any OTHER time for that matter.  I’m sure we can expect to see the same type of loyalty and respect for the music of Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Jay-Z and Kanye West forty years from now.  (kk)

 

kk:

I just realized that Scott Shannon is competing with himself.  

He's on WCBS-FM and TRUE OLDIES at the same time.  

I'll take the TRUE OLDIES version of MICHAEL SCOTT SHANNON ... more music and less talk. (I wonder why he doesn't use his first name?) 

Glad you enjoyed the Four C Notes concert.

(I hope that wasn't the price of tickets!)

FB

I have been listening to The True Oldies Channel more and more lately at work.  Scott's still at the top of his game ... and he loves this music as much as we do ... and always has some great stories to tell and memories to share.

I just happened to put it on the other day and heard him plugging our TV Themes Poll ... had NO idea he was even going to say anything!  (ALWAYS cool to hear your name on the radio!  lol)

I sent him a quick thank you email for mentioning it today ... and he wrote back:  " EVERY DAY "  (Now that's reason enough to listen all the time right there!)  kk

 

Speaking of which ...

Send us your list of All-Time Favorite TV Themes …

We’ve even set up a special email address for this …

tvthemes@yahoo.com …

First theme to earn 100 votes?

“Hawaii Five-O” … our 2013 winner.

Prior to that, “Bonanza” had been leading the pack.

As I type this, EIGHT shows have already earned over 100 votes ... and we've received just over 4000 votes in all.

But along with some of the obvious long time favorites, we’re also getting a number of obscure votes, too …

At least two dozen so far for shows I’ve never even heard of!

(I have 139 shows right now that have only one vote each … and, like I said, I’ve never even HEARD of some of them!!!)  But that’s ok … this poll is to determine YOUR favorites …

So if there’s a theme song that meant something to you, please give it a shout out in our latest poll.  (Remember, you’re not voting for your favorite TV SHOW … you’re voting for your favorite TV THEME!!!)  kk

A couple of historical facts:
Sept 30th, 1960 :  First episode of The Flintstones; LAST episode of Howdy Doody.   ;-(
Yabba dabba doo!
Mike

Quite a few cartoon themes have been getting votes, too! …

I mean, who doesn’t love the opening theme to “George Of The Jungle” …

Or “Magilla Gorilla”???

There is no limit … and there are no restrictions …

So vote for as many of your favorites as you like …

And then keep watching for the results of Your Top 50 All-Time Favorite TV Themes!

(We’ll be counting them down the weekend of November 21^st and 22^nd)

Get your votes in now!!!  (kk)

THIS WEEK IN 1970:

October 2^nd – A plane carrying members of The Wichita State University Football Team crashes in Colorado, killing approximately half of the team on their way to a game at Utah State University.  Who could even possibly imagine that a similar fate would happen to another team just six weeks later. 

 

Also on this date, Kelly Ripa is born

October 3^rd – The Weather Bureau is renamed The National Weather Service.