Phil Nee recently interviewed Tommy James on his "Those Were The Days" radio program ...
And this seemed like a timely spot to run some of those excerpts, since Tommy's new album is out this week ...
Tommy James has long been a favorite with our Those Were the Days listeners. He has played in every major city and many small towns across Wisconsin. He even lived in the state for a couple of years (Monroe) while he was growing up.
He joined me in September of this year and we talked about how he has survived in the business and is happy to still be touring.
In 2010, Tommy released his excellent book Me, the Mob, and the Music.
It is one of the best ever written about the music business.
Plans continue for the book to become a movie.
Tommy was one of the first guests on my radio show.
In 1990 he had a song called 'Go' which did well for WRCO back when we were an Adult Contemporary reporting station for the Gavin Report. That was the last time we had the chance to have Tommy join us by phone. It was great to
get caught up.
He has a new release that he is excited about.
Tommy has always been a good friend to Forgotten Hits (and we have been fans since we heard his very first hit record, "Hanky Panky," back in 1966.) I've owned that "40 Year" package for several years now and it is an excellent collection. (I also recently purchased and listened to his complete Roulette package, featuring every track he ever recorded for the label, and made some new discoveries along the way while listening to that one, as I didn't typically buy Tommy James and the Shondells albums when they were first released.)
His music has always done very well here in Chicago ...
Seven of his records have made it all the way to #1 here on our local charts ...
And he has earned a total of thirteen Top Ten Hits here in The Windy City!
TOMMY's BIGGEST HITS on the Chicagoland Charts:
1966
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Hanky Panky
1
1966
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Say I Am
(What I Am)
2
1966
Tommy James and the
Shondells
It's Only
Love
10
1967
Tommy James and the
Shondells
I Think We're
Alone Now
1
1967
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Mirage
1
1967
Tommy James and the
Shondells
I Like The
Way
13
1967
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Gettin'
Together
12
1967
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Out Of The
Blue
14
1968
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Get Out Now
22
1968
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Mony Mony
1
1968
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Somebody
Cares
14
1968
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Do Something
To Me
19
1969
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Crimson And
Clover
1
1969
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Sweet Cherry
Wine
4
1969
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Crystal Blue
Persuasion
1
1969
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Ball Of Fire
9
1970
Tommy James and the
Shondells
She
23
1970
Tommy James and the
Shondells
Gotta Get
Back To You
19
1971 Tommy James
Adrienne
35
1971 Tommy James
Draggin' The
Line
1
1971 Tommy James
I'm Comin'
Home
4
1971 Tommy James
Nothing To
Hide
2
1972 Tommy James
Tell 'Em
Willie Boy's A'Comin'
25
Be sure to listen to Phil Nee's THOSE WERE THE
DAYS radio program tonight … and EVERY Satuarday Night on WRCO ... 6 pm –
Midnight (Central):
Beatles fans were thrilled last week to see the release of the deluxe
box set edition of their 1966 album (and sessions) “Revolver.”
And now Monkees fans can experience a similar joy when Rhino
Records releases the ULTIMATE deluxe edition of their 1967 album “Headquarters”
later this month.
Much like “Revolver” was a game-changer for The Beatles … it
showed The Beatles using the studio to experiment and create new sounds ... and set the stage for “Sgt. Pepper” released the following year … “Headquarters,”
too, upped the ante for The Pre-Fab Four … as this was the album that broke them
free from the clutches of Don Kirshner and allowed them to call all their own
shots, play their own instruments and select their own tracks.
Under the watchful eye of Producer Chip Douglas (of The
Turtles), “Headquarters” became The Monkees’ third straight #1 album (although
it only stayed there for one week as the aforementioned “Sgt. Pepper” was
released at the very same time, displacing it quickly and riding the summit for
the next fifteen weeks.During that
time, however, The Monkees held down the #2 spot on Billboard’s Top LPs chart
for eleven of those fifteen weeks.)
In fact, The Monkees had the #1 Album in the Country for 32
out of 33 consecutive weeks starting with their debut album in late 1966,
followed by “More Of The Monkees” in February of 1967 (which held down the #1
spot for eighteen consecutive weeks ... even more than "Pepper"!), interrupted for a lone week by Herb Alpert and
the Tijuana Brass’ “Sounds Like” LP before “Headquarters” took over the top
spot for its week.
The ”Headquarters” sessions have been well-documented in the
past … but this one pushes things beyond the limit of all expectations.(The official press release copy follows
below.)
And, to top things off, Micky Dolenz (literally the hardest
working man in show business these days … I mean seriously, this guy NEVER stops!) will do
a Spring Tour next year performing the “Headquarters” album in its entirety
along with his Tribute To The Monkees, featuring all of their biggest
hits.(We’re going to see THAT show
later this month – thank you very much, David Salidor!I hear it’s an amazing show, interspersed
with video of his former bandmates who have now sadly moved on.)
MICKY DOLENZ ANNOUNCES UPCOMING 2023 SOLO TOUR “THE MONKEES
CELEBRATED BY MICKY DOLENZ” WITH PERFORMANCE OF HEADQUARTERS ALBUM EACH NIGHT PLUS ALL OF
THE BAND’S BIGGEST HITS - TICKETS GO ON SALE THIS FRIDAY (as in
tomorrow!!!)
This Limited Edition 4-CD / 7” Vinyl Set Revisits The Entire Headquarters Project With 69 Previously
Unreleased Recordings, Including The Entire Album Newly Remixed, The Debut Of
Backing Tracks Made For An Abandoned Version Of The Album, The Band’s Earliest
Demo Recordings, And More Monkees Studio Outtakes
Micky Dolenz
has announced the details of his upcoming solo tour, “The Monkees Celebrated By
Micky Dolenz.” The tour begins next year on April 1st in Orlando, Florida, and
includes 19 shows where Dolenz will present The Monkees’ triumphant third album
Headquarters with
live performances and videos plus all of the band’s biggest hits. Tickets go on
sale this Friday, November 4th. Click here for more information about tour dates and on sales.
Dolenz is
right to celebrate. The album represents a peak moment for The Monkees in terms
of both creativity and camaraderie. Released in May 1967, Headquarters was the first
album the group recorded after winning a hard-fought battle for control over
its music earlier that year. It sold three million copies and topped the
charts, making it the band’s third consecutive #1 album in less than a year.
Rhino honors
the landmark recording’s 55th anniversary this year with an expansive
new set that shows the genesis of the Headquarters
project in full. It boasts 69 previously unreleased recordings, including the
entire album newly mixed from the original multitrack elements which were
resynched to create the best fidelity version of the album ever available. It
also boasts the debut of backing tracks made for an abandoned Don Kirshner-led
version of the album, as well as the band’s earliest surviving demos, plus
recordings that would be completed in 2016 for The Monkees’ final studio album,
Good Times!.
HEADQUARTERS:
SUPER DELUXE EDITION contains 4 CDs and a 7” vinyl single with “All Of Your Toys” b/w
“The Girl I Knew Somewhere.” Limited to 4,000 copies worldwide, the set will be
released on November 18 for $69.98, exclusively at Monkees.com. Pre-orders are available now. A new line
of Monkees holiday merch also launched today, including a Christmas ornament
and sweater. Shop now.
After completing our first tour
as a four-piece band in late 1966, Nez perceptively remarked that, 'Pinocchio
had become a real little boy.' By the end of March 1967, Pinocchio had actually
become quite a cool little dude (if I do say so myself) with the completion of Headquarters, the
first studio album that we had been allowed to create entirely amongst
ourselves.
Monkee
music was great music. Terrific songs crafted by gifted writers and
produced by skilled producers. But Headquarters will
always hold a special place in my heart. I remember the camaraderie, the
collaboration, the enthusiasm and the occasional creative angst. And I
particularly remember lying on the floor behind my drumkit between takes eating
sunflower seeds.
-- Micky Dolenz
The creative
journey that led to Headquarters
unfolds chronologically on the new Super Deluxe Edition. It documents The
Monkees’ struggle for artistic control with Don Kirshner, the group’s music
supervisor. The group wanted to write and perform its own music, while Kirshner
preferred to continue using outside songwriters and studio musicians to record
backing tracks, with the band adding vocals later.
In January
and February 1967, Kirshner oversaw sessions in New York where more than an
album’s worth of backing tracks were recorded for the band’s planned third
record. At the same time, in Hollywood, the Monkees – Dolenz, Davy Jones,
Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork – began recording songs with producer Chip
Douglas. The Super Deluxe Edition includes the debut of the band’s earliest
demos for “The Girl I Knew Somewhere” and “All Of Your Toys.” The band recorded
them in January 1967 at Gold Star Studios to convince Kirshner the group should
have more creative input.
Kirshner
balked at the idea, and the showdown continued until late in February when he
was dismissed from the Monkees’ project after unilaterally removing Nesmith’s
“The Girl I Knew Somewhere” as the B-side on the band’s new single and
replacing it with a different song. With Kirshner gone, the band quickly took
creative control and began recording the album at RCA Victor Studios in
Hollywood with Douglas producing (credited as Douglas Farthing Hatlelid).
While
previous reissues like Headquarters
Sessions (released by Rhino Handmade in 2000) have focused exclusively
on The Monkees’ time in the studio, the new collection is the first to revisit
the songs Kirshner planned to include on the album. The Super Deluxe Edition
introduces 23 previously unreleased backing tracks from those sessions.
Many were
recorded by producer Jeff Barry in New York early in 1967. They include several
songs he wrote or co-wrote (“99 Pounds” and “Gotta Give It Time”), plus
contributions from other songwriters, including two from Neil Diamond, who
penned “Love To Love” and “A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You.”
Along with
selections from Headquarters
Sessions, the new Super Deluxe Edition digs deep into the vault to
uncover even more unheard outtakes from the band’s time in the studio in
February and March 1967. The unreleased highlights from those sessions include
“Detuned 12-Bar Jam,” an informal recording of Tom Paxton’s “The Last Thing On
My Mind,” and different versions of album tracks, like “You Just May Be The
One,” “Forget That Girl,” “No Time,” and more.
Grammy®-nominated
producer/engineer, Andrew Sandoval compiled and remixed the audio and penned
the detailed liner notes that accompany HEADQUARTERS:
SUPER DELUXE EDITION. In them, he writes: “Rather than plunder the
previous reissues...the entire three-month period surrounding the creation of Headquarters has been
reexamined to offer a deeper view…The primary goal has not been modernizing or
reinventing what is now a legendary work but rather presenting it in the best
possible light.”
THE MONKEES
CELEBRATED BY MICKY DOLENZ Tour Dates
April
1 Orlando,
FL
The Plaza Live
April
2 Clearwater,
FL
Bilheimer Capitol Theatre
April
4 Virginia Beach,
VA Sandler
Center for the Performing Arts
April
5 Annapolis,
MD
Maryland Hall
April
7 Atlantic City,
NJ
Ocean Resort
April
8 Vienna,
VA
The Barns At Wolf Trap
April
10 Chester, NY
Sugar Loaf PAC
April
11 Huntington,
NY
The Paramount
April
12 Englewood,
NJ
Bergen PAC
April
14 Ridgefield,
CT
The Ridgefield Playhouse
April
15 Beverly,
MA
The Cabot
April
16 Jim Thorpe,
PA
Penn’s Peak
April
18 Warren,
OH
Robins Theatre
April
19 Kent,
OH
The Kent Stage
April
22 Royal Oak (Detroit),
MI Royal Oak Music Theatre
April
23 Milwaukee,
WI
The Pabst Theater
April 25
Niagara Falls,
ON
Fallsview Casino Resort - Avalon Theatre
April 26
Niagara Falls,
ON
Fallsview Casino Resort - Avalon Theatre
April 27
Niagara Falls,
ON
Fallsview Casino Resort - Avalon Theatre
HEADQUARTERS:
SUPER DELUXE EDITION
4-CD Track
Listing
Disc One:
Headquarters (& More) Remixed
1.
“You Told Me”
2.
“I’ll Spend My Life With You”
3.
“Forget That Girl”
4.
“Band 6”
5.
“You Just May Be The One”
6.
“Shades Of Gray”
7.
“I Can’t Get Her Off My Mind”
8.
“For Pete’s Sake”
9.
“Mr. Webster”
10. “Sunny
Girlfriend”
11. “Zilch”
12. “No
Time”
13. “Early
Morning Blues And Greens”
14. “Randy
Scouse Git”
Bonus
Material
15. “The
Girl I Knew Somewhere” – Version One
16. “All Of
Your Toys” *
17. “The
Girl I Knew Somewhere” – Version Two *
18. “A
Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You” *
19. “She
Hangs Out” *
20. “Gotta
Give It Time” *
21. “Love To
Love” *
22. “99
Pounds” *
23. “You
Can’t Tie A Mustang Down” *
24. “If I
Learned To Play The Violin” *
25. “Sally”
1969 Version *
Disc Two:
January 1967 Sessions
1.
“The Girl I Knew Somewhere” (Gold Star Demo) *
2.
“All Of Your Toys” (Gold Star Demo) *
3.
“She’s So Far Out, She’s In” – Backing Track (Take 2)
4.
“The Girl I Knew Somewhere” – Version One, Backing Track (Take 10) *
5.
“All Of Your Toys” – Backing Track (Take 1)
6.
“Love To Love” – Backing Track (Take 1) *
7.
“Love To Love” – Backing Track (Take 14) *
8.
“You Can’t Tie A Mustang Down” – Backing Track (Take 5) *
9.
“Gotta Give It Time” (Rehearsal) *
10. “Gotta
Give It Time” – Backing Track (Take 4) *
11. “99 Pounds”
– Backing Track (Takes 3 & 4) *
12. “A
Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You” – Backing Track (Take 2) *
13. “A
Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You” – Backing Track (Takes 3 & 4) *
14. “She
Hangs Out” – Backing Track (Take 2) *
15. “I Wanna
Be Your Puppy Dog” – Backing Track (Take 10) *
16. “Love Is
On The Way” – Backing Track (Take 7) *
17. “Sally”
– Backing Track (Take 2) *
18. “Sugar
Man” – Backing Track (Take 6) *
19. “Poor
Little Me” – Backing Track (Take 14) *
20. “If I
Learned To Play The Violin” – Backing Track (Take 4) *
21. “Black
And Blue” – Backing Track (Take 6) *
22. “Eve Of
My Sorrow” – Backing Track (Take 7) *
23. “The
Love You Got Inside” – Backing Track (Take 9) *
17. “The Story Of Rock And Roll” –
Version One, Backing Track (Take 18) *
18. “Untitled Jam” *
19. “The Story Of Rock And Roll” –
Version Two, Backing Track (Take 28) *
20. “Early Morning Blues And Greens”
– Alternate Vocals *
21. “No Time” – Backing Vocal Mix *
22. “Just A Game” – Demos (Takes
1-3) *
23. “Zilch” – KHJ Radio Spot
24. “For Pete’s Sake” – TV Edit
25. “Tema Dei Monkees” – Mono 45
Version
26. “Love To Love” – 1969 Mono Mix
27. “You Can’t Tie A Mustang Down” –
1969 Mono Mix *
28. “Tema Dei
Monkees” – Stereo LP Version
29. “99 Pounds” – Mono Album Mix
* Previously Unreleased
Damn!101 Tracks!!!This is unreal!
More
Monkees memories tomorrow in Forgotten Hits!(kk)
And
back to The Beatles for just a moment, too, so we can share this brand new
video released in conjunction with their new “Revolver” box set … VERY
cool!(kk)
The
Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony takes place this Saturday Night
(November 5th) … and highlights will start broadcasting two weeks
later on the 19th.
Inductees
this year include Pat Benatar (along with hubby Neil Giraldo), Eurythmics, Lionel
Richie, Carly Simon, Duran Duran, Eminem and Dolly Parton. (I can’t WAIT to
hear Dolly’s speech at this thing!!!)
Also
being honored are Judas Priest, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Harry Belafonte,
Elizabeth Cotton, Allen Grubman, Jimmy Iovine and Sylvia Robinson.(kk)
Bruce
Springsteen made his first appearance ever on Howard Stern’s radio program last
week and, from what I’ve heard, made for a VERY interesting guest, literally
talking frankly and honestly about his whole career.(Springsteen had his first chart success in
1975 when “Born To Run” came crashing thru the airwaves … and he’s been going
non-stop ever since.)
Stern
asked him about everything from the early days to his first (failed) marriage
to his recent selling of his music catalog to Sony (for a reported $500
Million!)
Stern’s
program airs exclusively on Sirius XM … but you’ll find all kinds of video
clips posted on YouTube from this soon-to-be landmark interview.(kk)
>>>For those of you who may be
wondering, yes, this is another picture of me (R) and Chuck (L) from his recent
visit to Chicago.(kk)
HA-Ha-Heh-heh! Good one, Kid!
>>>I miss my old cassettes collection, too,
other than when the tape would unwind inside the tape machine and
then the cassette would have to be taken out of it and rewound! (kk)
I always thought that famous old phrase was
more pertinent to audio tape cassettes than to what we heard so often in radio
commercials ~~~ "Have Your Pencil Ready!"
Which brings up another age-old question ~~~ "Did
you rewind your cassettes by inserting the pencil into it and turning it? Or,
Did you insert the pencil into it and then twirl the cassette around it?!
CB ( which stands for "Cassette Boy!" )
I always let the pencil do all the work as I VERY carefully
and strategically turned it, sometimes even stopping to try and smooth out some
of the wrinkles and kinks … got pretty damn good at it, too … although
sometimes the tape would literally break … and then you had to try and fish it
out of the tape player without doing any damage should it be wrapped around one
of the capstans.
I kept my “home-made” collection … just in case I ever had
the opportunity to put a cassette player back in one of my vehicles.(Insert Jim Peterik comment here)
Seriously, I’ll bet I had 300 tapes covering nearly every
song that made the charts between 1955 and 1980, randomly selected and placed
to where you would NEVER know what song might be coming up next.
I always fantasized about getting something like a vintage
Chevy or ’65 Mustang and then souping it up with all the modern technology in
the way of sound … and then hooking the cassette player up to that and just cruising
around with the top down listening to the oldies!(kk)
Kent,
I don't know if you have the Jumble Puzzle
in your local newspaper, but this was the one in our paper today. You got it!
First thing it reminded me of was FH.
Larry
>>>The fact that Chuck
Buell had THIS much stuff ready to post for Halloween is just a little bit ...
well ... scary!!! Lol (kk)
>>>I went from laughing
--- (Shelley)
HA! Thanx for
your kind comment, Shelley! (CB)
>>>--- to worrying
about CB's mental state!(Shelley)
(Ahhh, thanx. Visiting hours are on
the 32nd of every month except February when it's on the 30th.)CB
And
how about one last Halloween smile from Chuck Buell …
Be sure you check any and
all Halloween Candy you may have gotten!
