Boy, June has been brutal!
We just lost another one of the good ones ...
Lou Christie passed away on Wednesday, June 18th, after a brief illness.
Lou was a very good friend of Forgotten Hits. I only got to meet him one time but we talked quite a while that day as well as previously and afterwards ... he loved what we were doing in Forgotten Hits ... and even had his own website where he would feature songs that he felt SHOULD have been hits but never got the chance ... sort of a Dave The Rave "Relics and Rarities" and Sam Tallerico "Lost And Found Oldies" site where Lou, the ARTIST, picked the hits that should have been ... including a few of his own!
He was a very kind and generous man ... over the years, he sent me numerous gifts, completely out of the blue, never asking for anything in return in the way of promotion, something we were always happy to give for such a great artist. For years I tried to persuade the Happy Together powers that be that Lou would have been a PERFECT fit for their format ...
Come out with the "one fits all / generic" back-up band and bang out four or five of his biggest hits ... it was a natural match made in heaven ... but it never happened.
He was still in fine voice the last time I saw him perform at an Italian Festival in Addison, IL, a few years ago. Just recently he announced that we wasn't going to be doing any more touring, but might still do an occasional gig near home in the Pittsburgh area should the opportunity present itself. (After seeing him perform at The Italian Festival, I always tried to get him to come back here, too, to perform at either the Arcada or Des Plaines Theatre ... I know that he and Ron Onesti were very close as well ... but it just never happened.)
I am very sad today. We will miss you, Lou. (kk)
Lou's records always charted higher here in Chicago than they did nationally ... see our LOUR CHRISTIE HIT LIST below for more details.
THE LOU CHRISTIE HIT LIST
1963 - The Gypsy Cried (US - #16 / CHI - EX)
1963 - Two Faces Have I (US - #3 CHI - #1)
1963 - How Many Teardrops (US - #41 CHI - #19)
1966 - Lightning Strikes (US - #1 / CHI - #1)
1966 - Outside The Gates Of Heaven (US - #45 CHI - #17)
1966 - Rhapsody In The Rain (US - #16 / CHI - #14)
1967 - Shake Hands And Walk Away Crying (US - #95 / CHI - #22)
1969 - I'm Gonna Make You Mine (US - #5 CHI - #2)
A Forgotten Hits review ...
https://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2015/08/lou-christie.html
Lou Christie was a down to earth guy and an amazingly gifted singer/songwriter. He possessed one of the best falsettos in pop music history. As you have said in the past, he would have been perfect for the Happy Together Tour. I hope he was able to finish his autobiography before passing as I can't wait to read it.
Tom Cuddy
https://w42st.com/post/lou-christie-obituary/
This past weekend brought us the anniversaries of the deaths of two great industry giants who dedicated their lives to bringing us the countdowns of our generation …
June 14th marked three years since the passing of Joel Whitburn, whose Record Research books cataloged the history of the Billboard Charts, eventually expanding to including the Cash Box and Record World charts as well.
And June 15th made it ELEVEN years since we lost Casey Kasem, host of American Top 40, the syndicated radio program that brought Billboard’s 40 biggest hits into our homes every week. (Another AT40 anniversary is coming up … it premiered on the 4th of July, 1970 … 55 years ago!)
Both of these men provided milestone after milestone in my life growing up in the ‘70’s. Today, their achievements mark the end of an era.
You can still hear Casey’s countdowns on Sirius XM’s ‘70’s Channel. Meanwhile, Record Research is seeking to liquidate every last piece of existing inventory they have on hand … there will be no new books … and unfortunately we were not successful in finding a new home for Joel’s amazing collection of every charted record. I haven’t heard from his daughter Kim in a while now … and can only presume that this one-of-a-kind collection will be making its way to auction sometime soon (if it hasn’t already.)
The charts just don’t mean as much today as they did then … and the audience that appreciated this dedication and devotion has, for all intents and purposes, “aged out” here in the 2020’s. It’s too bad, really, as amassing a collection along these lines represented a life’s work. SOMEBODY should have been willing to step forward and preserve it for the uniqueness it represents. (kk)
Here's a great recap of The Songwriters Hall Of Fame ceremony, courtesy of Tom Cuddy (and Variety!)
A bittersweet moment as Mike Love accepted his award just two days after the passing of his famous collaborator, Brian Wilson.
Other names of note: The Doobie Brothers three principle songwriters, Tom Johnston, Patrick Simmons and Michael McDonald and George Clinton.
You’ll find the full recap here: https://variety.com/2025/music/concert-reviews/gracie-abrams-garth-brooks-mike-love-songwriters-hall-of-fame-1236430683/
More Brian Wilson kudos …
As expected, the first of three Billboard “Forever Number One” articles saluting The Beach Boys’ Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles Chart came out today …
Look for follow-up pieces later this week saluting “Help Me Rhonda” and “Good Vibrations.” (No mention is made of “Kokomo,” their smash comeback single from 1988 … but that may be because Brian Wilson didn’t have a hand in writing that one, nor did he sing on it. (kk)
Here are The Beach Boys performing live at the PNC Bank Arts Center this past weekend …
Featuring John Stamos and a Brian Wilson Tribute (at 0:45 into the show)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-5mSQT2i9s
This one from Darian Sahanaja, leader of Brian’s band, who faithfully reproduced all of Brian’s studio wizardry live on stage
Also from Tom Cuddy …
Brian Wilson’s Friend Remembers
First Night “Pop Genius Turned Up At The Door For A Pizza”
https://deadline.com/2025/06/brian-wilson-david-leaf-tribute-friends-pizza-1236434341/#utm_campaign=syndication&utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=referral
Harvey sent us a Brian Wilson pizza story, too https://www.thetimes.com/article/6f1f5d2d-72fa-4ab1-b8b5-b726d157907d?shareToken=8e945c458f4697591f9af0862a88fff6
Video Beat has some great, rare Beach Boys videos available for sale …
Use the search engine tool at the top of the page
Harvey Kubernik sent in several cool Brian Wilson shots, too …
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Above Two Photos - Credit: © Capitol Photo Archives
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Brian Wilson Photo By Henry Diltz, Courtesy of Gary Strobl
Meanwhile, “The Sons Of Beatles” (Here Comes The Sons???) have recorded a new track called “Rip Off” and a sneak-peek has been circulating on the internet for the past couple of days. (The track is not yet available for streaming.)
James McCartney and Sean Ono Lennon contributed vocals to Zak Starkey’s band Mantra Of The Cosmos' latest recording. (Dhani Harrison isn’t present, which is kind of a shame, but hey … who ever thought we’d get THIS close to a “Sons Of Beatles” reunion?!?!)
James and Sean have recorded together before … but it sounds like this collaboration was instigated by Zak Starkey, who’s been in and out of The Who a couple of times this past month.
As mentioned, the full recording hasn’t been released yet … and I doubt that it’ll do “Now And Then” numbers at the sales counter whenever it is … but I think it's still kinda cool that they’d even consider putting something like this together for the fans to enjoy! (kk)
Listen here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DK6WpHFMVdy/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=9d30cf16-c183-41e4-bc58-179d48ac0921
UPDATE:
(because for whatever reason, there always seems to be more to the story when it comes to Zak Starkey!!!)
Even after all this recent Who hub-bub, Zak Starkey still hasn’t learned the fine art of what to offer up in the way of commentary in regard to his work with his former cohorts The Who OR this new project that features Beatle offspring James McCartney and Sean Ono Lennon.
Some prime quotes as proof in point:
For starters, Zak says his "super-group" Mantra Of The Cosmos (which also includes Happy Mondays stars Shaun Ryder and Bez and former Oasis bassist Andy Bell) do not sound anything like the Fab Four.
He recently told "The Telegraph" when asked if the track would have a "Fab Four Sound": “No it’s not. It’s like Mantra Of The Cosmos with them in it. It’s Sean of the Cosmos and James of the Cosmos, it’s still my band. If we had spent three years sleeping on flea infested mattresses in the back room of a Hamburg club it might have chemistry. But we have been swaddled in silken robes in houses so big that it’s too far to go and make a piece of toast – seen?”
Zak goes on to tell “The Telegraph” that he isn’t as wealthy as the other children of the Beatles. The 59-year-old drummer is the eldest of Ringo’s three children with late hairdresser Maureen Cox and he’s adamant he doesn’t have the same kind of wealth as the other Beatles offspring, because they inherited money from their parents while Zak’s mum died penniless in 1994. (The fact that John and Paul also earned song writing royalties for an incredible catalog of music evidently had nothing to do with it!)
He told the newspaper: “[The others have] loads of money because their dads are dead. James’ mum [Linda McCartney] is dead. Left him a lot of money. [But] my mum died skint with a whole desk-full of brown envelopes that she never opened because she spent all her money on her friends.”
Playing it up even further, Zak – who recently lost his gig drumming with The Who – added of his financial woes: “And now I haven’t got a job.”
Starkey was let go by the band earlier this year before being welcomed back and then dismissed once again. The way Roger Daltrey painted it, Zak’s departure was due to disagreements over his performance at a gig at the Royal Albert Hall in London in April … but Starkey is convinced that it was really the product of tensions that have plagued the band for years.
Zak claims The Who’s Pete Townshend went along with the decision to part ways with the drummer for a second time because he didn’t want to disagree with frontman, Sir Roger Daltrey.
He told “The Telegraph”: “What happened was I got it right and Roger [Daltrey] got it wrong … I watched the show and I can’t find any dropped beats. Then Pete had to go along with it because Pete’s had 60 years of arguing with Roger …
“I don’t blame anyone. I blame The Who because they’re unpredictable, aggressive and fucking insane.”
He went on to reveal that he’s written to music legend Bob Dylan to ask if he needs a drummer, but hasn’t heard back from him.
However, according to Starkey, his drumming days with The Who might not be over for good.
“I spoke to Roger last week and he said: ‘Don’t take your drums out of [The Who’s] warehouse yet in case we need you’. I said: ‘Best let me know.'” (Starkey also says he turned down a chance to tour with Oasis because of the upcoming Who gig which then fell apart before his very eyes.)
As to why George Harrison’s son Dhani (also a musician) wasn’t asked to participate in this Mantra Of The Cosmos special recording project, Zak was a bit vague (and not especially kind) in this regard, too.
When "The Telegraph" reporter suggested that he should have reached out to Dhani Harrison, Starkey said: “No I don’t. Why do I?” (Zak comes across as a really nice guy, right?!?! Somehow I'm just not feeling as sorry for him now as I was a few weeks ago!) kk
From Tom Cuddy …
Chuck Negron (This photo was put up for Father's Day by Chuck's family on Facebook)
A few weeks ago we told you about a special farewell concert that REO Speedwagon was putting on in Champaign, Illinois, honoring the legacy of the group that hailed from there – and how lead singer Kevin Cronin couldn’t participate because he was already booked on his own solo tour appearing with Don Felder and Styx. The word was that the date couldn’t be changed and so the concert would have to go on without him. (Cronin and REO did not part on the best of terms earlier last year.)
So they recruited original lead singer Terry Luttrell to handle this special gig … and then after the concert this past Saturday Night, Terry fell asleep at the wheel when driving back from Champaign and rolled and totaled his car. Reports are saying that it’s a miracle that he was able to walk away from the accident. (Talk about rolling with the changes!!!)
Saturday night's reunion show was dubbed "Honoring the Legacy of REO Speedwagon: A Concert Event – Back Where it All Began." The reunion placed Luttrell back on stage with original REO keyboardist Neal Doughty and drummer Alan Gratzer, all of whom performed together on the very first REO album. Also taking part were '70’s guitarist Steve Scorfina, long-time bassist Bruce Hall and early-'70s singer Mike Murphy, among others.
Hall explained that "This event was created to provide the founding fathers, original singers and classic REO lineup a chance to reunite and say a proper goodbye. It also provides a chance to honor the memory of late band members Gary Richrath and Gregg Philbin." It was known in advance that Kevin Cronin, the group’s longest-running frontman, was performing that same night with Styx in Bend, Oregon, and would be unable to participate.
As for the accident, “it just happened" according to Luttrell. "I nodded off. I rolled the car over, and I woke up and I was in a cocoon [of airbags]. Unfortunately, it totaled the car."
He blamed his lack of sleep on long autograph sessions, both at the concert after-party and then later at the hotel, where he said there were at least another 40 more fans waiting to see the band. "It was just sign, sign, sign." He estimates that he didn't get to bed until 4:30 AM and was back on the road by 7 AM. The accident occurred on Interstate 57.
All things considered, Luttrell, he was really quite fortunate, suffering only a cracked sternum from the deployment of his vehicle's airbag. He spent the next couple of days at a local hospital recuperating. "I was able to get up and get out of the car," he told the Champaign News-Gazette. "I have a little back pain and neck pain. It's nothing that can't be overcome." (kk)
Carol Kaye, legendary bassist of The Wrecking Crew (only don’t call them that in front of her!) will NOT be attending The Rock And Roll induction ceremony later this year.
Several members of The Wrecking Crew have been previously inducted, but Kaye has always objected to the tag, stating that they were NEVER referred to by that name at the time they were chalking up thousands of recordings. (Carol estimates that she appears on close to 10,000 recordings made during the ‘60’s, including hit records credited to The Beach Boys, The Mamas and the Papas, The Monkees, Nancy Sinatra, Simon and Garfunkel and countless others.) She has always maintained that The Wrecking Crew name is something that drummer Hal Blaine came up with later … and she even refused to cooperate with Denny Tedesco’s Wrecking Crew documentary for this same reason.
In an official statement, she said: "People have been asking: NO, I won't be there. I am declining the RRHOF awards show ... turning it down because it wasn't something that reflects the work that studio musicians do and did in the golden era of the 1960s recording hits."
When you’re a session musician, "You are always part of a TEAM, not a solo artist at all. There were always 350-400 studio musicians (AFM Local 47 Hollywood) working in the busy 1960s, and called that ONLY. Since the 1930’s, I was never a 'wrecker' at all — that's a terrible insulting name."
Best known as a bassist, Kaye started her career as a guitarist. She only switched to bass “out of necessity” to book gigs. "Just so you know, as a working jazz musician (soloing jazz guitar work) in the 1950’s working since 1949, I was accidentally asked to record records by producer Bumps Blackwell in 1957, got into recording good music with Sam Cooke, other artists and then accidentally played on a Fender Precision Bass in mid-1963 when someone didn't show up for a session. I never played bass in my life, but being an experienced recording guitarist, it was plain to see that three bass players hired to play 'dum-de-dum' on record dates wasn't getting it. It was easy for me to invent good bass lines. As a jazz musician, you invent every note you play, and they used a lot of jazz musicians (and former big-band experienced musicians on all those rock and pop dates too)."
She went on to explain that she doesn’t believe The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame properly acknowledge the group contributions of the myriad sessions musicians with whom she worked. "I refuse to be part of a process that is something else rather than what I believe in, for others' benefit and not reflecting on the truth. We all enjoyed working with EACH OTHER. Thank you for understanding."
The 90-year-old bassist is being inducted as part of the Musical Excellence category and will still be honored and acknowledged by The Rock Hall whether he's present at the ceremony November 8th or not. (kk)
Just an FYI …
I am at the Happy Together concert tonight … and they DID announce that due to health issues Mark Volman would not be appearing tonight. But the show doesn't start till 7:30 so if you have not come in early, you would not have heard it.
Shelley
This is what I have been hearing. Instead of making it part of the band introductions or opening ceremony announcement, you have to be in your seat 30-60 minutes early in order to hear this announcement … and even then if you can hear it over the constant hum of the crowd getting ready for the show.
Too bad … as I think these artists (and these fans) deserve a better acknowledgement than this … but at least they can say they’re letting the audience know (well after they’ve already purchased their tickets, mind you!) kk
Sabrina Carpenter’s new single “Manchild” debuted at #1 in Billboard this week. She is DEFINITELY on a roll … and I’ve gotta say I like her attitude!
Meanwhile, Mariah Carey’s new song “Type Dangerous” (featured here last week) also debuted on the chart this week, at #95. Billboard is touting this as Mariah’s 50th Hot 100 charted single … but Joel Whitburn’s Top Pop Singles book, 1990 – 2022, shows that she passed that milestone a few years ago … and that’s not even counting the multiple appearances of “All I Want For Christmas Is You.”
If it reaches #1, it’ll be her 20th record to do so, tying The Beatles for most Hot 100 #1 Records. (She’s been chasing that dream since 2008!) Again, this total does not include the multiple times here Christmas single has topped the chart (which now stands at SIX, I believe.) kk
Kent,
Hope you had a Happy Father's Day.
It's been several years since I've heard Paul Petersen's MY DAD on the radio. So, what else is new? How about COLOR HIM FATHER by the Winstons?
My daughter got for me for Father's Day the three books (volumes) edited by Carl Mann called RADIO MUSIC SURVEYS 1955-1960, 1960-1965, and 1965-1970. A very good read and must have for your readers who are really into weekly radio surveys of stations across the country. Sort of reminded me of the newspaper DISCoveries where, in their issue dated July, 1991, they featured radio station surveys through their pages. I remember when Carl Mann was working at KOMA here in the city, I would call him up about every time he was on the air and discuss very, very briefly a record or two. Made requests as well. He won't remember me since he had a lot of listeners who did the same thing. Have a good week.
Larry
Hearing good things about Carl’s books … we’ve run promos for these several times now.
I only heard “Color Him Father” on Father’s Day … it came on as we were pulling out of the restaurant parking lot after going out for breakfast Sunday Morning. Funny, ‘cause that’s not a song you heard a lot here in Chicago when it was out, although it does look like it made The Top Ten on both of our local surveys in 1969.
“My Dad” is always a good one (see Frank B’s note below)
And I seem to remember that we did a Father’s Day Sweet 16 a few years ago, too …
https://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2022/06/daddy-issues.html
KENT ...
Wild Wayne did an interview with Paul Petersen for Father’s Day
Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil Originally Wrote "MY DAD" In The Past Tense.
That Wouldn't Work On The Donna Reed Show So They Changed It.
Paul Said He Wasn't Able To Hit Some Notes In "MY DAD."
At The Recording Session, He Was Able To Hit Notes Half An Octave Higher Than Ever Before.
Brian Wilson Songs Wayne Played = Surf + Cars + Girls
"SURFIN'” (Beach Boys First Recording)
"SHUT DOWN" / "SURFER GIRL" / "I GET AROUND" / "GOOD VIBRATIONS" / "GOD ONLY KNOWS" ( My Favorite )
He Closed The Show With "THE WARMTH OF THE SUN."
R I P BRIAN WILSON.
FRANK B.
We’ve got a link for that one, too! (lol) kk
https://fhstoriesbehindthesongs.blogspot.com/
From Tom Cuddy …
CBS News: Harry Chapin: Songwriter, activist and father
https://youtu.be/Bt6RTWbpeuM?si=9AqZfDSrzwEvqv0u
Cherry Red / Esoteric Records is releasing a special, deluxe edition set of Jack Bruce’s second solo album, “Harmony Row,” as a 2-CD / 2-BluRay box set at the end of this month (June 27th)
The original master tapes have been newly remastered and mixed and the special box set will also include an additional 34 bonus tracks drawn from Stephen W. Tayler’s new 5.1 Surround Sound and Stereo Mixes of the album, a Blue-Ray video featuring Jack Bruce’s 1971 concert for the Granada TV Show “Out Front” as well as the 1972 German TV documentary “Swing In.” It also comes with an illustrated book an essay by Sid Smith.
The album was first released in July of 1971 and followed Bruce’s successful and influential first solo album, “Songs for a Tailor.” Per the press release:
Once again, Jack’s intention was to make a record distinctly diverse from the music he had recorded with Cream, and ‘Harmony Row’ expanded even further on the musical palate he explored on ‘Songs for a Tailor’ featuring compositions which drew stylistically on jazz, folk, classical, rock and Eastern musical influences.
Joining the recording sessions at London’s Command Studios were guitarist Chris Spedding and drummer John Marshall, with Jack singing and playing piano, organ, bass guitar and cello. ‘Harmony Row’ was highly acclaimed upon its release and is now rightly regarded as a masterpiece and one of Jack’s seminal works.
This box set edition of this special album features the original 1971 album mix (newly remastered from the original master tapes), along with wonderful new stereo and 5.1 Surround Sound mixes of the album by Stephen W Tayler (from the original 16-track master tapes) and previously unreleased session out-takes and demos. The set also includes a marvellous performance in 1971 by Jack and a band featuring Graham Bond (organ, vocals), Chris Spedding & John Marshall for the Granada TV show Out Front and a documentary on Jack made for the German TV series Swing In, first broadcast in 1972. It also features an illustrated book with a new essay by Sid Smith and is the definitive version of this classic album.
Many years ago when I had a mail-order record business I was invited to a special “launch party” by the record distributor for a new artist who was releasing his first album (and playing at one of the downtown clubs here in Chicago.)
While I had never heard of the guy (or any of his music), I wanted to go because (A) I had never been invited to an event like this before and (B) because a good friend of mine HAD heard the new music and thought the guy was great.
The artist turned out to be Marshall Crenshaw who, despite a very loyal cult following, really only had legitimate Top 40 Hit (“Someday Someway,” #23, 1982.)
He had also portrayed John Lennon in the stage show “Beatlemania” and Buddy Holly in the movie “La Bamba” … so the feeling was that this guy was really going places.
I ended up buying two or three of his albums and can rattle off at least half a dozen favorites, but overall he never seemed to really catch on with the masses.
Incredibly, that was 40+ years ago already. Crenshaw recently regained the rights to his first two album releases … and now has captured the rights to some of his special EP’s as well, which he’s re-releasing on CD in August. (kk)
More details here: https://theseconddisc.com/2025/06/18/marshall-crenshaw-from-the-hellhole-remixed-ep-tracks/
Some new photos to share from Jim Roup …
Hey everybody, Boy George just had a birthday 🎆 🎇🎂!!!!. Seen here doing an in store gig at Tower Records in Hollywood, California.
Happy Birthday 🎈 🎂! greetings to Carol Kane, who you don't see much anymore on TV or movies.
This is basically true ... but, ironically, we just saw her in an episode of "Poker Face" a week or two ago! (kk)
Remembering Harry Nilsson on his Birthday!🎇🎂🎉🎊 June 15th. He was in the company of Dr. Timothy Leary this night at Nicky Blair's on the Sunset Strip.
Harry and Tim were asking me where the hip places around town were that night. I have a funny story of having drinks with Harry one afternoon in Studio City.
