Last Monday, November 22nd, marked he 58th anniversary of the assassination of President John Kennedy in Dallas.
Robert Feder ran his annual CBS / Walter Cronkite timeline (I remember it SO clearly, even after all these years … and being only ten years old at the time. We were dismissed early from school and the only thing on TV, on every channel was coverage of this sad, sad event. The whole country was grieving and bewildered … none of us had ever seen something like this happen before. Even at the age of ten you couldn’t help but be affected.) kk
November
22, 1963: ‘Here is a bulletin from CBS News’ - Robert Feder
Sad day! I was standing on Jackie’s side and watched the
motorcade go by. After I saw them, I went into a store to buy something and
minutes later, I heard the commotion. We all know the rest.
Brian Hyland
I remember writing a piece on this
years ago from the perspective of some of the artists who were there that day,
scheduled to perform that evening as part of one of Dick Clark’s Caravan Of
Stars extravaganzas. Shocking to say the
least.
(I seem to remember Tommy Roe being
there, too, although his name is not on the poster … maybe it was just
something he was telling me one day … but unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find
it in time to include in today’s piece.)
kk
Forgotten Hits: 50 Years Ago Today (forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com)
And then, of course, this is also
the night that Brian Wilson and Mike Love (who ended up performing that night
after all, after threats of their concert being cancelled ran throughout the
day), returning to their hotel room and polishing off “The Warmth Of The Sun,”
while grieving for our fallen President.
(kk)
Forgotten
Hits - The Story Behind The Beach Boys' Classic "The Warmth Of The
Sun"
From Jay Siegel …
This is terrific, Kent ... Enjoyed reading this.
Happy
Holidays,
Jay
Kent,
Some additional info you may already know
about the song THE LION SLEEPS TONIGHT ...
The group Darrell and the Oxfords had a less
than minor hit with A PICTURE IN MY WALLET in 1959 on Roulette Records. Also, I
don't know if it charted nationally, but in 1961 the Playmates of BEEP BEEP
fame, recorded WIMOWEH on Roulette Records. That particular version made our
local survey with the flip being a song called ONE LITTLE KISS. Finally, a
group known as the Romeos in 1961 had the answer to THE LION SLEEPS TONIGHT
with a song called THE TIGER'S WIDE AWAKE on Amy Records.
Larry
And on D.B. Cooper …
(Which makes me wonder …
If he made it and landed safely, shouldn’t there have been a LOT more D.B. Cooper Burger
King sightings than Elvis sightings over the past fifty years???) kk
So this guy stole the money and
probably botched the landing (?)
I think we should all move on from this one (!)
James
JUST FINISHED YOUR PIECE ON D.B. COOPER …
AMAZING ... THANKS
ARLENE
Chuck Buell thinks he's
uncovered the herebefore secret answer to the story I posted Wednesday! (kk)
>>>50 Years
Ago … November 24, 1971 … a man known only as D.B. Cooper hijacked an airplane
that he then parachuted out of (over Southwestern Washington State) carrying a
briefcase filled with $200,000 and disappeared.
(kk)
CB ( which stands for "Conspiracy Boy!" )
Wow, still amazing … no trace of him was ever found?
Merrell
Yeah, it’s like on the one hand, he got away with it … but in
reality, got away with nothing at all!
When you consider the planning that HAD to go into something
like this, you’ve really got to wonder what he was thinking … yet no body, no
money and no parachute were ever found … so where the heck did he go?!?!? (kk)
About three years
ago as we were boarding a nighttime flight departing Seattle, I asked the gate
agent if Mr. Cooper had checked in for the flight. None of the gate agents knew
what I was talking about, although a couple of passengers standing nearby did.
David
Hey, I woulda laughed!!! (lol) kk
Hey Kent,
I know you're working hard my friend ... so I
hope you can have a warm, blessed, and relaxed Thanksgiving.
I remember that Thanksgiving in 1967 ... "Snoopy's
Christmas" broke on the Mike Douglas Show. Man, we had to sing live, with
our track because the sound stage was pretty bad. Pretty scary for a bunch of kids
... lol
Hope ya get a chuckle or two.
Eat, drink, and sleep ... then repeat! lol
Love ya, man -
Barry
This is great … thanks so much for
sending! (And I guess now we let the
Christmas Season begin!) kk
What would American Pie sound like if written
today? No idea, but the below song that
came out three years after American Pie blew me away as if the SECOND COMING of
American Pie. Not only do I love it 50 times more than Don Mclean's song,
but it got me to become a big Cotton fan. Yeah, it's an obscure type
lyric ala McLean's, but such a catchy thing that shoulda put Gene on top.
IF you have not heard this and loved Pie, this is for you!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lv0rWCQmtnI
Taxi was an awesome record, but Sequel fell way
short. I DO like it, but it just doesn't work somehow for me.
I like the new doowoppy American Pie, but after five
minutes I had to stop. ;)
Clark Besch
I agree, some of these
song lengths have become a factor in my patience for hearing them. I have a REAL hard time even making it thru
“Hey Jude” these days. (In fact, truth
be told, I probably turn it of 7 times out of 10, just because they play it so
often … and it is SO long to sit thru all the way to the end.) “American Pie” has elicited that reaction
from me for decades now … so I’m a bit surprised I find the doo-wop version so
refreshing. I can’t tell you how many
times I’ve listened to it already! (kk)
Speaking of which …
Thanks a million for posting that song by James
Holvay, SWEET SOUL SONG. I can't tell you how many times in a row I have played
that video. In fact, it's playing now in the background as I send you this
email
Larry
And then …
Kent,
In a previous email, I asked you a somewhat
rhetorical question of how many times do you think I've played James Holvay's
SWEET SOUL SONG. Well, I am going to ask you how many times do you think I've
played it today (Tuesday).
I'll give you a hint ...
Kent, you can't count that high. (lol)).
Also, I have gotten out Arthur Conley's SWEET
SOUL MUSIC and played several times.
Larry
It’s catchy as hell and
SO authentic sounding … James really outdid himself with this one … and I had
to tell him so … I can’t stop playing it!!!
(kk)
A big
THANK YOU, Kent.
I need
all the help I can get.
I wish
had the $$$ to press some 45’s up. (ha, ha)
THANKS
AGAIN,
James
One other you might try that also captures a very authentic feel of
this era is Mayer Hawthorne’s “The Walk” …
This one never got played on the radio (because of the language) …
and it’s a very sexy (and violent video) … but it’s an INCREDIBLE track that
works hand-in-hand with James’ latest track.
(kk)
JUST ANNOUNCED BY BILLBOARD ... A VERY IMPRESSIVE #10!
Tom Cuddy
https://www.billboard.com/charts/greatest-of-all-time-artists/
A very impressive list indeed … although I’m still having a hard
time wrapping my head around the idea that Taylor Swift is now considered to be
a bigger act than Elvis, Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Neil Diamond, The
Eagles, The Bee Gees, The Beach Boys, Fleetwood Mac, Aretha Franklin (!), Hall
and Oates, Led Zeppelin, Diana Ross and Bob Dylan … and that’s just in The Top
50.
And I’m not quite sure how Barbra Streisand’s chart performance
ranks a #6 showing either … Mariah Carey (#4) has earned her status with nearly
twenty #1 hits … but Babs??? Wedged in
between Madonna and Michael Jackson?
As usual, some of “the new kids” are earning their points in a
distorted reality … but why go thru all of that again? That being said, I’m both shocked and pleased
to see Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Monkees and Three Dog Night make The
Top 100 … because these acts, huge as they were, rarely show up on these kinds
of lists … especially when artists like Drake, Eminem, Adele, Jay-Z,
Nickelback, Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, Nelly, The Black Eyed Peas, R. Kelly,
Tim McGraw, Chris Brown and Linkin Park earned a Top 100 rating.
Still, we all love lists like these … and the fact that The
Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Elton John occupy the Top Three slots is quite
impressive. Kudos, too, to Stevie Wonder
at #9, Chicago (as Tom noted) at #10, Paul McCartney (solo) at #12 and Herb
Alpert (who I think should have ranked MUCH higher … he absolutely dominated
the charts back in the mid-‘60’s) at #21.
(kk)
Also from Tom …
Pittsburgh Cultural Trust Announces ROCK 'N REMEMBER LIVE!
https://www.broadwayworld.com/pittsburgh/article/Pittsburgh-Cultural-Trust-Announces-ROCK-N-REMEMBER-LIVE-20211124
Have you seen the commercial on television for
Alexis where the two teens (boy and girl) are dancing to the song I ONLY HAVE
EYES FOR YOU and in the next scene, it is some 62 years later and they are
still dancing to the same song? How about the commercial for a type of liquor
where BAREFOOTIN' is playing, not the Bobby Parker version?
Larry
Yes, lots of great
oldies are being used in commercials right now … and on television shows, too! (I just heard “Oogum Boogum” in an ad right
after typing this!)
Others include the
Pilot hit “Magic” (sung as Ozempic in their drug ads), “I Got You Babe,” “From
Me To You” (a rare Beatles track being used in a commercial, albeit sung by one
of those girl indie singers who all sound exactly the same) and perhaps the two
most over-played of all, “You Make My Dreams” by Hall and Oates and “I Want It
That Way” by The Backstreet Boys, part of Kohl’s new holiday campaign.
This weekend we heard
“Runaway” by Del Shannon and “All I Have To Do Is Dream” by The Everly Brothers
on the new episode of “Dexter: New Blood” … and then “Only You” by The Platters
on “Big Sky” as well.
Previously this season,
“Dexter” has featured “Burnin’ For You” by Blue Oyster Cult and “Heart Of
Glass” by Blondie … and an Iggy Pop song called “The Passenger” that I wasn’t
familiar with but fits the theme of the show perfectly … and we’re only three
episodes into the season! (Ironically,
“The Passenger” was also used on an episode of “Big Sky: … where I’ve already heard
alternate versions of “These Boots Are Made For Walkin’,” “The House Of The
Rising Sun,” “Spirit In The Sky” and “Bad Moon Rising” as well as “Happy
Together” by The Turtles “It’s All Over Now” by The Rolling Stones,” “Mannish
Boy” by Muddy Waters, “Folsom Prison Blues” by Johnny Cash, “Top Of The World”
by The Carpenters, “Blue Bayou” by Roy Orbison, “Somethin’ Stupid” by Nancy and
Frank Sinatra, “High Hopes” by Frank Sinatra, “Yummy Yummy Yummy” by The Ohio
Express, “Let It Be Me” by The Everly Brothers, “Dear Mr. Fantasy” by Stevie
Winwood, “Louisiana Woman, Louisiana Man” by Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn, the
Joan Jett version of “Crimson And Clover,” “Crazy On You” by Heart, “The Girl
From Ipanema” by Getz and Gilberto and “Chances Are” by Johnny Mathis on “Big
Sky” over the past dozen episodes or so … so they’re definitely keeping in step
with the music format! (Typically, their
television ads feature a popular tune, too!)
I think it’s great! (kk)
Billy Hinsche had the musical chops and was keenly
aware of pop sensibility. Brian Wilson really dug him, too. I had never
have seen this visual or label copy for the tune he wrote with Brian, recorded
by Dino, Desi and Billy.
I faintly remember hitch-hiking around Sunset Blvd. in 1967 or '68 ... maybe I was walking on Sunset ... and Billy had a yellow Sting Ray car and honked. He also took this photo earlier of Dylan and Rodney B. at The Trip in 1966 with Rodney's Brownie camera. I put it in one of my books. For decades no one would mention his name from my books in reviews and more than once I tried to actually do an interview or big piece on him for UK magazines and websites. All met with silence. His year, 1965-1966 is the stuff of pop music dreams. And he remained a top-notch musician for a half a century.
photo courtesy of Rodney Bingenheimer, who is now heard as a deejay on SiriusXM's Little Steven's Underground Garage Channel
Billy took this photo of Bob Dylan and Rodney with Rodney's own camera.
It was outside The Trip nightclub in 1966, a venue
on Sunset Blvd.
It was published in my 2009 book "Canyon
of Dreams: The Magic and the Music of Laurel Canyon."
I encountered
Billy in 2002 when he helped produce and book acts for a series of shows to
celebrate the 35th anniversary of the Whisky A Go-Go on the Sunset
Strip. In 2006 at the House of Blues on Sunset Blvd., he hosted
Rickenbacker International Guitar's 75th anniversary. Even after leaving
Los Angeles and residing in Las Vegas, Billy still had roots in West Hollywood.
Harvey Kubernik
Not a bad song at all …
too bad it never charted.
Nationally, Dino, Desi
and Billy only had two Top 40 Hits … “I’m A Fool” (#12, 1965) and “Not The
Lovin’ Kind” (#23, 1965) … but here in Chicago they also scored with “Please
Don’t Fight It” in 1966 and “Two In The Afternoon” in 1967.
Very cool photo …
thanks for sharing. (kk)
Billy indeed had many, practically life-long
ties with the Beach Boys, Brian and especially Carl of course.
He was a mainstay of the band's 1970s tours
(he's all over 1973's "Beach Boys In Concert" album
for starters), and don't forget, he and big brother Bri wrote DD&B's final
Reprise release, Lady Love.
Gary Pig Gold
Hello Kent,
I am saddened to hear the news of the passing
of our wonderful friends and musicians, Keith Allison and Billy Hinsche.
Here are a couple of photos taken by Henry Diltz of
Keith at the Columbia Ranch during a break from filming "Monkees
Marooned" on May 16-18, 1967.
Gary Strobl
Also, check out this video and you will see
Billy at 1:57 …
Part of an actual news clip that ran in 1983.
Please share these with your readers.
Healthy & Happy Days Ahead,
Gary
How did you miss The Hollies’ "reunion" tour back around 1982?
I've
seen the band twice. The first time was somewhere around the time of "The
Air That I Breathe." Graham Nash was not there, although I've seen Graham
with David Crosby a couple of times, as well with Crosby, Stills & Young.
All
I remember about the 1982 show was that Graham kept babbling about how
"magical" it was.
As
far as the current line up, I'm a bit surprised that Terry Sylvester isn't
there. I would not have expected Allan Clarke ... all recent footage I've seen
shows his voice is gone (too bad).
What
does that say about your band when Graham Nash is NOT the lead singer?
I
don't think it's a question of having any major projects getting in the way, I
think it's more of there's nothing left to prove. Still if I were physically
able to make the trek to Chicago, I'd probably want to go.
Jack
Nope, I missed the 1982
reunion tour (although I’ve heard the live tapes from this and, truthfully,
they’re a bit underwhelming) … but still, this is The Hollies (!), one of the
most revered bands of the ‘60’s, with a hit list a mile long.
I’m most surprised that
Terry Sylvester isn’t onboard for this as he seems to attach his name to
virtually ANYTHING Hollies-related.
Graham reportedly had a
blast doing the early ‘80’s reunion (which even resulted in a brand new album
and a Top 40 Single with their remake of the Motown / Holland-Dozier-Holland
hit, “Stop! In The Name Of Love” … not exactly Hollies material in my book!)
As for Allan Clarke,
I’m perplexed …
He made a big major
statement that he wasn’t going to be performing and singing anymore because his
voice had become unlistenable … and then two years later he released a brand
new solo album … so who knows what’s really going on with him!
Still, The Hollies are
not going to sound like The Hollies without some of those key voices onboard …
so I think I’m going to sit this one out.
(kk)
I admit it … we’ve been pushing the new ABBA release quite a bit here in Forgotten Hits … but the numbers don’t lie … #1 in England, #1 in Australia and #2 here in The States, all right out of the box … and now a first-ever Christmas single … AND their first-ever Grammy nomination for “I Still Have Faith In You” in the Record Of The Year category. (ABBA has been releasing music for 49 years and … and were the top-selling act on the planet for YEARS … yet this is their first EVER Grammy nomination!!!) So, once again, Hail to the world’s Super Group … ABBA!!! (kk)
Also nominated (for a
couple of Grammys, no less!) is Paul McCartney for his McCartney III album.
The album is up for
Best Rock Album … and the song “Find My Way” has been nominated for Best Rock
Song. (Not bad for an old guy, eh???)
While I don’t think
anybody expects him to win in either category, it is quite an honor to be
nominated nearly sixty years after releasing his first recording with The
Beatles in 1962. (I’d say that makes for
quite a career!) kk
With his new lyrics book out just in time for Christmas, McCartney has had a pretty good year after lockdown! (kk)
From Tom Cuddy …
Beatlemania 50 Years Later: Paul McCartney Scores 2 Grammy
Noms, Sells 50K Copies of $100 Memoir in two Weeks
https://www.showbiz411.com/2021/11/24/beatlemania-50-years-later-paul-mccartney-scores-2-grammy-noms-sells-50k-copies-of-100-memoir-in-2-weeks
Yeah, I think this kid’s gonna do all-right for
himself!
Throw in the Disney+ premier of the “Get Back” film
and I feel like no time has passed at all!
(Unless, of course, I have to move!!!)
kk
The Rolling Stones
closed their No Filter Tour Tuesday Night with an intimate show at The Hard
Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
Based on all the publicity and excellent reviews surrounding this tour …
not to mention a TON of money … I can’t imagine that they won’t be planning
another one in the not-too-distant future … perhaps tying in with a brand new
album release. (There is still the issue
of carrying on without Charlie Watts, however … but I think if the demand … and
the desire … is there, The Stones WILL be back again!) Stay tuned for more details! (kk)
The set list from The
Stones’ final show in Florida, November 23rd:
Street Fighting Man (from Beggars Banquet,
1968)
Lets Spend The Night Together (from Between The Buttons, 1967)
19th Nervous Breakdown (single 1966)
Tumbling Dice (from Exile On Main Street, 1972)
You Can’t Always Get What You Want (from Let It Bleed, 1969)
Living In A Ghost Town (single 2020)
Start Me Up (from Tattoo You, 1981)
Honky Tonk Women (single, 1969)
Connection (from Between The Buttons, 1967)
Slipping Away (from Steel Wheels, 1989)
Miss You (from Some Girls, 1978)
Midnight Rambler (from Let It Bleed, 1969)
Paint It Black (from Aftermath, 1966)
Sympathy For The Devil (from Beggars Banquet, 1968)
Jumping Jack Flash (single, 1968)
Encore
Gimme Shelter (from Let It Bleed, 1969)
(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction (from Out Of Our Heads, 1965)
More on the finale: https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2021/11/24/exclusive-the-rolling-stones-end-2021-tour-rare-intimate-show/8753962002/
Kent,
Really enjoyed FH this Monday morning.
Clark mentioned the Carpenters' SUPERSTAR ...
what a record ... one of my all time favorites by that singing twosome.
He also mentioned DESIDERATA. Remember the
novelty record that came out lampooning that song? It was called DETERIORATA by
a group called National Lampoon on Banana Records.
Larry Neal
It’s funny because at
the time, I never knew “Deteriorata” was an “answer record” … Les Crane’s
“Desiderata,” despite being a National Top Ten Hit, never got played here in
Chicago. “Deteriorata,” however, was a
regular fixture on The Dr. Demento Show, which I listened to faithfully at the
time. (National Lampoon, of course, was
a MAJOR publication at the time … so their foray into the music business was
quite a surprise … several other releases by them also exist. Then again, it wasn’t all that unusual for
Alfred E. Newman to stick a flexi-disc in the middle of the pages of “MAD
Magazine” either … that’s where this great “It’s A Gas” classic came from back
in the day! (kk)
And after running his pre-Thanksgiving Turkey Prep piece on Tuesday, Chuck Buell has now blessed us (cursed us???) with this Post-Thanksgiving wrap-up …
And now, this Personal Holiday Special Chuck Buell
Post-Thanxgiving Report!
Oddly memorizing.
CB ( which stands for "Cornbread Boy!" )
HELPING OUT OUR READERS …
(or, in THIS case … HELPING OUT OUR WRITER … which
would be me!!!):
We have got ALL kinds
of new features planned for 2022, having partnered with Writers Jeff March and
Marti Smiley-Childs, WRCO Disc Jockey Phil Nee, former Top 40 Jock (from The
Top 40 Era) Johnny Holliday, Archivist Gary Strobl, Author Harvey Kubernik,
ARSA (the ultimate Top 40 radio survey site), Survey Collector Frank Merrill
and more to bring you a series of regular features each month to enhance the
Forgotten Hits experience …
But now we need YOUR help!!!
In addition to bringing
back our SWEET 16 feature (from 2016), spotlighting sixteen songs of a similar
theme each month, we will also be running Top 40 Surveys from across the
country … one from every state, spanning 50 of the 53 weeks we’ll be covering
(including TWO Chicagoland charts, one each from powerhouses WLS and WCFL) plus
a CHUM Canadian chart as well as a chart from Washington, D.C.
However, we’ve run into
a snag …
We have been unable to
find a copy of a Vermont chart from 1972!!!
So we need your help.
If you happen to have …
or know someone who might have … a ’72 Vermont Top 40 Chart, we need it to
complete our 2022 run.
Now, in an absolutely
PERFECT world, that chart would cover the date of August 14th … but
we realize how unrealistic that request might be …
So right now we’ll take
ANY chart from March – December, 1972, and shuffle around the rest of what
we’ve got in order to slip this in and make it work, creating the perfect storm
of 1972 Top 40 surveys.
Please contact me as
soon as you possibly can if you have something that we can use.
And then get ready for
one heck of a ride as we unveil Forgotten Hits, 2022 … our 23rd
year!!! Thank you for your support. (kk)
