Lots of press this past week about Frankie Valli cancelling the rest of his 2026 tour to focus on some health issues. This has been a hot topic here in FH lately … so I’m glad
https://share.google/SYzRyjiqAdLioP2h1
Frankie Valli cancels the remainder of the Four Seasons’ farewell tour, citing health concerns
An additional statement from Stewart himself read, "My apologies to my family of fans. I am on vocal rest as I recover from a sinus infection. I look forward to seeing you at a future show at Caesars Palace or on tour this summer." (kk)
And Tom Cuddy sent us this (by way of Carole King) …
The Cookies had three Top 40 Hits during their first year on the charts … “Chains” (#12, 1962), “Don’t Say Nothin’ Bad About My Baby” (#7, 1963) amd “Girls Grow Up Faster Than Boys” (#33, 1963), all written by Carole King and her then-husband Gerry Goffin. Earl Jean also had a solo hit the following year with “I’m Into Something Good” (#35, 1964)
“Chains” would be famously covered by The Beatles on their first LP … an early George Harrison vocal. It was part of their stage act that same year. “I’m Into Something Good” would announce Herman’s Hermits to The States … they took their version all the way to #7 just a few months after Earl Jean’s version charted. (kk)
Tom Cuddy also tells us that we can add singer Peabo Bryson to our sick bay list as well ...
Peabo Bryson under medical care after suffering stroke, representative says.
https://share.google/MH8d2rNR40bl5qPn0
Bryson has won two Grammys in connection with Disney movie theme songs ("A Whole New World" from the film "Aladdin," a duet with Regina Belle that went to #1 in 1993 and "Beauty And The Beast" from the film of the same name, a duet he cut with Celine Dion that went to #9 in 1992. He also had two Top 20 chart hits with Roberta Flack, "If Ever You're In My Arms Again" (#10, 1984) and "Tonight I Celebrate My Love" (#14, 1983.) kk
And from Frank B ...
Death Of A Commodore ...
Commodores Co-Founder & Former Bassist Ronald LaPreed, Dead At 75.
LaPreed Spent 16 Years With The Group.
He Played Bass On Their Hits "BRICK HOUSE," "EASY," "THREE TIMES A LADY" Plus Many More.
FRANK B.
The Guess Who "Takin' It Back" tour is now underway, featuring Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman.
Their shows kicked off at Moncton’s Avenir Centre in New Brunswick, Canada last Tuesday night. (We've got tickets to the show here in Chicago on June 30th.) Former Eagle Don Felder will be their opening act for most shows. (They hit the U.S. on June 25th with a show in Minnesota.)
Tom Cuddy sent us these news clippings:
https://www.pressreader.com/canada/times-transcript/20260530/281595247197381
Kent,
In today's FH in which the cartoon depicted wanted to know who put the ram in THE RAMA LAMA DING DONG and also who put the bomp in the BOMP BAH BOMP BAH BOMP, well Frankie Lymon admitted to it in 1961 with I PUT THE BOMP on Roulette records. A good answer I might say.
Also I watched a movie online recently in which there was a scene in a diner and people were dancing to the record that was playing on the jukebox. It had a close-up of the jukebox and the selections available. The one that was playing was Lilith White - BELA LUGOSI LOVES TO DANCE b/w CHATEAU MARMONT. I believe the latter is a hotel somewhere but the record about Lugosi never charted here in the U.S. However, I understand it went to #1 over in Transylvania. (lol)
Larry
Yeah, I think they played that one regularly after Dinner With Drac. (I couldn’t even find the Bela Lugosi record on YouTube!!!)
But I DID find the Frankie Lymon track you were talking about!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQLG3RHPdnY&list=RDUQLG3RHPdnY&start_radio=1
(kk)
>>>Anyways, I have been frantically looking for a photograph of Shotgun & myself together when we met, but so far I cannot locate it. But rest assured when it does finally turn up, I'll definitely let you know and pass along a copy of it. (Timmy)
Found It!!! Circa 2005 -
L - R: Darrell Wayne, Shotgun Tom, Timmy
Great Shot! Thanks, Timmy! (kk)
kk …
I Just Listened To This Week’s Lobo Interview ...
Lobo Means Wolf In Spanish. Kent La Voie Adopted That Name ... Didn't Want To Use His Real Name.
He Was Writing A Song ... He Had Me & You ... What Rhymes With "YOU?"
Looked Out His Window & Saw a Dog Named "BOO."
Not Your Typical Star Type Person. He's A Home Body. Never Did Many Live Concerts Or Traveling.
30 years Ago He Was A Big Star In Asia. He Did A Few Concerts There. Fans Knew All The Words To His Songs,
He Has A New Song Called "MANGROVE MEMORIES." It Evokes A Nostalgic, Poetic Vision Of Growing Up In Old Florida.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QiDHcagDlnY&list=RDQiDHcagDlnY&start_radio=1
FRANK B.
Lobo has stayed active in the recording industry but we haven’t heard much from him lately. I always thought he had an appealing voice … scored ten Top 40 hits between 1971 and 1979. I mean, how bad could he be if he’s named “Kent”??? (kk)
kk ...
This Week Wild Wayne Replayed An Interview He Did In 2006 With Sam Nelson, Ricky's Youngest Son.
They Talked About The "RICKY NELSON SINGS" DVD Documentary.
Of Course We Watched Ricky Grow Up On "THE ADVENTURES OF OZZIE & HARRIET."
Ricky Heard His Date Talking About Elvis & Told Her He Was Going To Record A Song.
April, 1957 "I'M WALKIN'" Was A #4 Hit For Fats Domino.
June, 1957 "I'M WALKIN'" Was A #4 Hit For Ricky Nelson.
There's A Great You Tube Clip Of Them Singing This Song Together.
Between 1957 & 1973, Ricky Nelson Had 53 Songs On The Charts ... 19 Of Them Were Top 10 Hits.
In 1987 He Was Inducted Into The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame.
Sam Was 11 Years Old When His Father Died On December 31, 1985 In A Plane Crash.
Most People Didn't Realize That Ricky Nelson Was An Excellent Producer.
When He Heard James Burton Playing The Guitar, He Said "That's My Lead Guitarist."
James Was The Spice To Ricky's Sugar.
Ricky Usually Would Sing His New Recording At The End Of His Parents' TV Show & Teenagers Would Buy It.
I'm Sure They Must Have Talked About Ricky Nelson's 1972 Hit "GARDEN PARTY" (#6) But They Didn't Play That Part Of The Interview.
FB
Here’s an interesting concept for a rock and roll book I’ve not heard of or considered before …
FH Reader The Midnight DJ has just published a classic rock book called Classic Rock Fiction: Short Stories Inspired by the Greatest Music Ever Recorded. It’s based on familiar classic rock songs that he has adapted and written fictional short stories to.
Most of the book is based on songs from the 1960s and ’70s … and there are ninety in all. In fact, he’s even given us one to share with our readers.
Inspired by the 1972 song by Alice Cooper
They announced it over the intercom like a sports update. Due to declining enrollment and budget restructuring, Westbridge High School would close at the end of the school year.
Students cheered. A few teachers started to clap before they caught themselves. Most of the staff sat quietly and listened to the feedback hum fade from the speakers.
The students seized on one word: forever.
They wrote it on notebooks. They chanted it in the halls. They said it like a joke that never stopped being funny: “school’s out forever.”
They did not understand what it meant, but Mrs. Whipple did.
She had been teaching English at Westbridge for 14 years. That was long enough to remember when students pretended to listen, when administrators pretended to support their teachers, and when parents pretended to care what their children read.
The pretending had worn thin.
Mr. Price, who taught history across the hall, stopped assigning essays after one was turned in with the comment “Why should we care?” written across the top in red marker. When he told Mr. Garcia, the principal, Garcia suggested he focus on engagement strategies.
Ms. Cortez, who taught chemistry, had a beaker shattered deliberately during third period. The student claimed it slipped. No one could prove otherwise.
Later that same week, a substitute teacher left in tears after a group of seniors locked her out of her own classroom and slid desks against the door while recording her reaction for social media. The students involved received after-school detention, but they did not attend. Mr. Garcia canceled it after complaints from the students’ parents.
Westbridge students had learned the borders of consequence. They knew which teachers flinched, which ones filed reports, and which ones had already stopped expecting anything to change.
They learned Mrs. Whipple’s name quickly.
Junior Tyler Briggs asked her, in front of everyone, whether she was still teaching because she “couldn’t get a real job.” The class laughed. Mrs. Whipple sent him to the office. He returned 20 minutes later with a smile.
Senior Ashley Porter recorded Mr. Price on her phone when he asked the class to put their phones away. The clip appeared online with a caption about “Boomer meltdowns.” The administration suggested Mr. Price be mindful of optics.
Sophomore Matthew Reed liked to test limits quietly. He sighed loudly during lectures. He tapped his pencil in precise rhythms meant to irritate. When asked to stop, he asked why it mattered.
Earlier in the year, Ms. Cortez overheard Tyler tell several students that he was going to blow up the school. Police brought in bomb-sniffing dogs. Parents panicked.
Tyler claimed it was a joke. His mother hired an attorney. The district called it a misunderstanding and recommended counseling. Tyler returned to school the following week to applause.
At Westbridge, parent complaints were believed. Student behavior was contextual. Teacher authority was negotiable.
When Mrs. Whipple was called into the office for embarrassing Tyler by asking him to stop disrupting class, Mr. Garcia reminded her that “relationships come first.”
Mr. Price started counting down the days aloud between classes. Ms. Cortez stopped decorating her lab tables. Mrs. Whipple cleaned out her desk drawer slowly, taking home the books she had purchased herself and throwing out the student papers with notes that no one read.
The students treated the final weeks like a victory lap. They roamed the halls. They dared one another to skip class and sit in rooms where they didn’t belong.
One afternoon, Ashley leaned into Ms. Cortez’s doorway and said, “Guess you’re out of a job, huh?” She smiled as if she had solved something.
That night, smoke started rising from the east wing of the school. The alarm sounded.
It was loud and sudden and shrill enough to pull neighbors onto their porches. Fire trucks arrived within minutes. Police followed. Students gathered in the parking lot in hoodies and pajama pants and whispered.
Police questioned Tyler Briggs first. He denied it.
Matthew Reed was brought into the office because he had been caught in the chemistry lab when he had no reason to be there a couple of weeks earlier. He denied it.
Ashley Porter cried and said no when police asked her whether she knew anything.
The investigation lasted three weeks. Security footage was reviewed. Teachers were interviewed. Students were suspended pending questioning. The town treated it like confirmation of everything it already believed about teenagers.
The answer came from something small and overlooked: a security camera that caught a figure entering the building after hours using a faculty keycard.
The access code belonged to Mrs. Whipple. She disappeared from school without the customary farewell cake in the faculty lounge.
The fire did not destroy the building, but the fire department declared it unsafe for students. The building was condemned.
School was out forever. Not just for the kids. For Mrs. Whipple, too.
Hello, Kent -
I enjoy checking out your blog once in a while, and I admire that you have been doing it for so many years.
I thought your readers might find some interest in a new book that I’ve just published and would appreciate you sharing the details.
This link takes you to the book page at Amazon which is where someone can order a copy.
Thank you, Kent! Keep up the great work.
The Midnight DJ
A few other titles featured in the book include “Come Together,” “White Rabbit” and “Fortunate Son.” Check out the link above if you’re interested in ordering a copy. (kk)
And Gary Strobl sent us these Monkees Mementos after we announced the 60th Anniversary of the filming of the very first Monkees TV episode ...
IT WAS 60 YEARS AGO TODAY…
THE MONKEES BEGAN TO FILM…
“DON’T LOOK A GIFT HORSE IN THE MOUTH”
MAY 31, 1966
HENRY CORDEN as Babbitt
You'll find More Of The Monkees (a look back at Year One) here:
As we all know, The Monkees were an immediate hit.
Meanwhile, I think our FH Buddy Timmy may have found a new group that might have some real potential …
In fact, if I'm right, I'll betcha these gals will be busting out all over before you even know it! (kk)
