A landmark date to be sure. (Remember 09 - 09 - 09 when the entire Beatles' catalog was remastered and reissued ... and The Beatles Rock Band hit store shelves for the very first time?!?!? Can you believe a year has gone by already?!?!)
Anyway, we received SO many comments from you guys last week that we can't possibly fit them all into a Sunday Comments Page ... not even into one of our "Super-Sized" Editions ... so keep watching the web page this week as several of the topics that generated the most buzz last week are given spotlight features of their very own.
Meanwhile, on to the stuff that fits!!!
re: DENNY LAINE:
>>>Denny Laine was scheduled to make his first-ever convention guest appearance in Trumbull, CT back in the mid-80’s and couldn’t get into the U.S. at the time, but his ex-wife, Jo-Jo, and his children Laine and Heidi attended. (Charles Rosenay)
>>> Did he REALLY name one of his kids Laine Laine?!?!? (kk)
That is exactly what I was going to ask.
I would have had my name legally changed to "I Hate You Dad Laine".
Kristy
lol ... EXCELLENT! (kk)
re: HIT RECORD SALES FIGURES:
>>>Do you know of any site or place I could find out how many sales a song sold?Like Up Up and Away? (Denny)
>>>I could have sworn that we ran a link for a site like this before that showed ACTUAL sales for all of the big hit records ... but I can't find it anywhere in the archives. Let's see if we get any response by running this in our "Helping Out Our Readers" feature.The thing you have to remember is that a lot of the record companies misrepresented the actual sales of a record to avoid having to pay royalties ... according to the "official statistics," Motown Records NEVER had a million seller ... they didn't want their artists knowing how well their records were doing because then they'd come asking for more money!According to Joel Whitburn's latest book, "Up, Up And Away" sold UNDER half a million copies ... which is virtually IMPOSSIBLE to believe. It was a HUGE hit and a National Top Ten Record. Anybody out there aware of an accurate site that'll give us these figures? (kk)
The RIAA and Soundscan both have websites, but if they provide any specific sales data, they're probably available only to industry people who have a subscription. I doubt anyone else could provide that info accurately and / or legally.– Randy
You can find out about song sales by going to www.riaa.com
Click on "Gold and Platinum" ... Then click on "Searchable Database".
You can then search by artist or song title or album.
Artist: FIFTH DIMENSION
Title: UP-UP AND AWAY
Certification Date: 03/26/1970
Label: SOUL CITY
Award Description: GOLD
Format: ALBUM
Category: GROUP
Type: ST
Ken Voss
This is a good start ... and will show whether or not a record reached Gold or Platinum status ... but it doesn't show ACTUAL recorded sales of any given recording ... and I think we were looking for something more specific. (In other words, if a song WASN'T certified Gold or Platinum, you won't find it here.)
It IS interesting to see, however, that "Up Up And Away" DID, in fact, achieve Gold status ... but apparently for the LP and not the hit single, making the information in Whitburn's "Top Pop Singles" book correct. (kk)
re: THE TYGERS:
I really loved "Little By Little" by Tony's Tygers. Went out and bought their LP when I heard the record. It actually made the Hot 100, so must have sold well!
Clark
I don't show the "Little By Little" LP charting at all in Billboard ... can you send more details? Thanks! (kk)
>>>Oh, I see how it is, the females get the free autographed CDs and LPs, while us males get a hard time. That does it, I'm changing my name to Joan, not John!!! LOL!! (John)
>>>Thanks, John ... err, Joan ... I mean, John! (kk)
Hi Kent,
I received the CD and the album from The Tygers yesterday. Not only did they autograph each of their pictures on the CD but Craig wrote the original autograph on his picture on the album cover. This would not have played out like this if not for you.
I was reading the Sunday blogs page and I see where John / Joan is feeling slighted. All I can say is, sucks to be him! TeeHee (love those double ee's )
Stacee
This just SO sets me up for a "I love those Double-D's" comment, Stacee ... but I'll pass ... and just say that I'm glad you got your Tygers souvenirs ... how VERY cool of the guys to send these along! (kk)
re: THE BEACH BOYS:
Beach Boys Jukebox Movie Musical Plans « WCBS-FM 101.1
Kent ...
Have you seen this? It didn't work on Broadway.
Frank B.
I can't believe their music didn't work in that setting ... yet the music of The Four Seasons and ABBA became HUGE Broadway successes. (Billy Joel's music did OK, too!) Maybe this one'll be the one. (kk)
School Boys, Rover Boys, Beach Boys ... I think there should be a rule --- regardless of your age, when your hair turns gray or your head is bald --- you have to replace "boys" with men in a group's name.
P.S. I should talk ... my friends still call me Junior. I guess I'm breaking my own rule.
Frank B.
Brian Wilson Still Has Love for Beach Boys Songs « WCBS-FM 101.1
Speaking of Brian Wilson, he made an appearance on Jay Leno's show a week or two ago, performing a cut from his new "Reimagining Gershwin" album. You can check the clip out here (kk):
Click here: YouTube - Brian Wilson - "They Can't Take That Away From Me" 9/23 Leno (TheAudioPerv.com)
His band sounds absolutely AMAZING!!! (Brian ... not so much!) Check out our brand new Neil Diamond Comments Page tomorrow and you'll get to hear a track that Neil recorded with Brian Wilson a few years ago, too! (kk)
re: FREDDY CANNON:
Hi Kent,
Thanks for the chart info and the Mr. Cannon trivia as well.
I'm a Music trivia junkie, so it's never too much.
One of my favorite shows I saw was back in the mid 70's when I was in college. It was Bobby Vee, Del Shannon, and Freddy Cannon. I was a big fan of them all as a kid and it was a lot of fun to see them together.
It's funny I suppose, but even at the time I never thought of them as oldies artists. They were just performers that I loved and I was as thrilled as if they'd have been the current #1 on the charts.
I think I'll finish my coffee, and go home and rock out to some Freddy.
Bill
re: THE SPOKESMEN:
Hi Kent,
Thanks for the posting re the Spokesmen’s new CD. As you point out there are no bonus tracks. The addition of these in the form of the non-album 45s such as “Enchante” / ”Today’s The Day” would have made for a great package. Thanks for the mp3 of “Michelle”. As for the title song, both it and “Eve Of Destruction” have a lot of relevance today as we wrestle with the issues that seem to divide our country. History has helped “Dawn Of Correction” in that, in today’s political environment, it has a progressive feel and message. The group was just 45 years too early!
I also recall seeing the Spokesmen perform Phil Ochs’ “There But For Fortune” on a TV show. The Spokesmen singing Phil Ochs? They did a nice job (the track is on this CD) and given Phil’s left-wing leanings, the performance surely did enough to assuage those upset by their re-write of Barry McGuire’s “Eve Of Destruction”.
On a lighter note, the b-side of “Dawn..”, “For You Babe” (also on this CD) is listed in Kingsley Abbott’s book, "500 Lost Gems of the Sixties” – a book well worth acquiring before used copies are listed on ebay for $100!
Mike Edwards
I'm sure The Spokesmen came under some pretty harsh criticism at the time for taking their political view on what proved to be a VERY unpopular war. (In fact, John Madara and I talked about that very topic during our FH interview ... see below.)
Meanwhile, Barry McGuire just recently posted a brand new "Eve Of Destruction" video, bringing things up to date for 2010 ... really NOT a very pretty picture today. (kk)
Click here: YouTube - Eve 2012 Barry McGuire
Hello Kent, Barry here,
The times we live in dictate the necessity of this email to you.
If you have a few spare moments, take four minutes of your life and click on: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HS0m-TBBOyM
Give it a look and a listen. You might have to watch it two or three times. It's one of the heaviest things I've ever done. Please feel free to post this for all your readers to see ... and forward it to anyone that you think might benefit from viewing it. If you have any comments, please email them to me at my personal email address: barry@barrymcguire.com
Thank You so very much,
Barry
www.trippinthesixties.com
www.barrymcguire.com
'60's FLASHBACK:
A topic that seems to come up from time to time here in FORGOTTEN HITS is the subject of PROTEST SONGS ... with America entrenched in yet another seemingly endless (and pointless) war, several of our readers have suggested that EVE OF DESTRUCTION may once again be the most appropriate song of the day.
Back in 1965, after BARRY McGUIRE topped the pop charts with his rendition of the P.F. SLOAN anthem (our buddies THE TURTLES ALSO recorded this tune), JOHN MADARA felt compelled to voice his OWN opinions as to the current state of affairs, circa 1965. He quickly assembled his songwriting partner DAVID WHITE (along with WIBG DeeJay RAY GILMORE ... who, by the way, is NOW working as SEAN CASEY in Boston) and went into the studio and cut THE DAWN OF CORRECTION ... and released it as a brand new single by THE SPOKESMAN.
In no time at all, the record started climbing the charts, eventually peaking at #22 in CASH BOX MAGAZINE. We couldn't help but wonder ... in hindsight ... with The War in Viet Nam escalating ... and more and more opposition to the war rising at an even FASTER pace at the time ... what his thoughts were now, some 40-years after the fact.
FORGOTTEN HITS: Obviously DAWN OF CORRECTION was a quickly-put-together "Answer Record" to EVE OF DESTRUCTION ... and these types of records seem to have not only a short "shelf life" when it comes to relevancy, but also have to come out almost IMMEDIATELY on the heels of the other hit record to make any sense at all. Did you first try to place it with any other artists or was it just quickest and easiest to go into the studio and cut the record yourselves to get it out right away?
JOHN MADARA: We wrote the song on a Wednesday, recorded it the following Monday, and it was released by the end of the week. We did not have an artist at the time to record it, so we did it ourselves. We did take a positive stand with our lyrics and tried to answer Barry McGuire's statements in his lyric.
FH: LOL ... yeah, I guess that qualifies for "immediacy"!!! (lol) Your record was a very "positive" record as to the state of the country at that time ... or at least it STRESSED the positive aspects of what we had accomplished as a country. Did you catch any flack for that ... war protestors were really just first coming into the spotlight at this time.
JM: We had positive reactions and negative reactions. One of the reactions was when the Spokesmen worked with the Byrds on the Hollywood-A-Go-Go TV show. After we performed the song, we were hanging out later on with David Crosby and the Byrds and David said to us, "Do you guys really believe that shit you're singing?" Also, we could not perform the song on many of the TV shows that we did, i.e., Shindig, American Bandstand, etc.
FH: In hindsight, when the War in Viet Nam was deemed to be a war we couldn't win ... and probably some place we shouldn't have even been ... did you have any regrets or change of heart regarding recording this song? (By then, it was probably, at best, a "forgotten" novelty track ... but I mean did you PERSONALLY have any regrets?)
JM: In 1966, after recording Joey Heatherton for Decca, we started dating for the next two years, and I was invited in 1966 to go on the Bob Hope tour to Vietnam with Joey. I always felt a little uncomfortable about the lyrics. After the trip to Vietnam, I saw what our soldiers were going through and how much the war made no sense at all. I definitely had some personal regrets with "The Dawn Of Correction" lyric. When we wrote the song, we were never for the war, we were just for America, and we felt that "The Eve of Destruction" was a slap against America. Because of the anti-war sentiment, "The Dawn of Correction" was obviously taken the wrong way.
Ah, John Madara! I saw the ad for The Spokesmen in my e-mail box.
Still waiting for those great Philly producers to release Bunny Sigler's only Top 40 hit in stereo, on CD! Pretty bad when you have to remind the producer it was published in stereo on LP!!!
Heck, I want the entire Cameo / Parkway catalog in stereo on CD! Like I'm supposed to believe it doesn't exist!
I'm such a grouch! :-)
Nice page, Kent!
Thanks!
Best,
John
re: JOEY HEATHERTON:
Your item mentioning JOEY HEATHERTON (the former Mrs. Lance [NFL] Rentzel) reminded me of one of her 'acting' roles ...
she played the 'decoration' on IT TAKES A THIEF with Robert Wagner ...
With her in his arms, he describes her as '10 pounds of gorgeous in a 5 pound sack' ... a line only AL MUNDY could get away with (with a straight face) ... (gary) RENFIELD
www.RIPRenfield.com
re: CHEESECAKE:
There are SOME readers out there who've accused us of running the Herb Alpert / "Whipped Cream" album cover a few times too many over the years. (Jeez ... you run something a couple hundred times and pretty soon you're an extremist!!! lol)
And lately we've featured The Knack's "My Sharona" picture sleeve a time or two ... as well as a recently submitted nude Joey Heatherton CD cover. Face it folks, sex sells ... always has, always will. So, since we seem to be on the subject, here's another note from "Jersey John" in this regard:
Here's a question for you or readers ... I enjoy finding risque LP / CD covers. It seems they are sometimes named "cheesecake" covers or the like. Like with Mary Tyler Moore, in her early modeling years.Where did the phrase "cheesecake" come from for these images?
Here's one (part LP scan) from a Honky-tonk piano LP from maybe late '50's ... http://www.angelfire.com/empire/abpsp/cheesecake1.jpg
Thanks!
Best,
Jersey John
I don't know the origin of the term "cheesecake" ... but it's been with us for quite a while now. Any other ideas on this topic? (kk)
Nice!!! Although I don't believe she ever recorded any songs, she was certainly found on many LP covers!!! Came from what appears to be a Japanese celebrities magazine of the past! Mary Tyler Moore! (with Joey Heatherton and others on the flip side)!!!
http://www.angelfire.com/empire/abpsp/mary-tyler.jpg
Best,
John
Yes, her photo's been all over the place ... I think she did a couple of Elvis movies, too, if I'm not mistaken. (kk)
Recently on in your website, the name of Lada Edmund, the Hullabaloo Girl, was brought up. I think you will agree with me, but the word Jr. follows her name. Offhand, I think that is the only girl I can think of who has the name "junior" following her name.
Larry Neal / The Wax Museum
While I'm not personally familiar with Lada Edmund Jr.'s Hullabaloo Career, it sounds like she's done a WHOLE lot more than that over the years ... check out her website (where autographed pictures are also available!)
Click here: personal trainer, Lada St. Edmund Home
(I think you'll find the "About Lada" Page quite interesting!)
She seems to have QUITE the cult following, too!
Meanwhile, you're right ... I can't think of another single female "Jr."!!! (kk)
re: BOB LIND:
KK,
Thanks so much for the kind thoughts on Bob Lind's dvd! You totally got it!
It was an honor to be involved. Bob is a true hero of mine. :-)
Jamie Hoover
Thanks so much, Kent, for devoting your time and energy to this project ... that means so much to me.
All the best to you,
Bob Lind
Thanks, Bob. FH Readers can pick up THEIR copy from Bob's website (kk):
Click here: Bob Lind - The Merch Table
re: LON VAN EATON:
I really like Lon and Derrek Van Eaton's later A&M 45 from 1975, "Who Do You Outdo". It even came with a cool pic sleeve. Probably the most overlooked goodie on the Best of Apple set is Chris Hodge's "We're on Our Way". LOVE that powerful production!
WLSClark
We featured Hodge's hit a couple of times before in Forgotten Hits ... most recently here: Click here: Forgotten Hits: We're On Our Way
Thanks again to David Salidor, Mark Bego and Lon Van Eaton for choosing Forgotten Hits as the means to tell the world about Lon's brand new projects ... how cool is THAT?!?!? (kk)
(By the way, "Who Do You Outdo" was produced by the legendary Richard Perry ... throw in a couple of Beatles and it's pretty safe to say that Van Eaton has worked with some of the very best along the way!)
Sure, throw my name in to the pot as a possible winner of the Apple "Best Of" CD. Not everything released on that label was exactly great -- in fact, some of their singles, as is true of all labels, was and remains real junk. But the hits -- including some forgotten ones, like Chris Hodge's "We're On Our Way" -- and selected album tracks which should have been issued as singles (such as George Harrison's "Awaiting On You All") are definitely worth owning.
Gary Theroux
There has always been some real affection for Chris Hodge's "We're On Our Way" amongst our list members ... kinda surprising in a way that it only reached #36 in Cash Box and didn't even make The Top 40 in Billboard (where it peaked at #44). Here in Chicago it was a #17 Hit. We've always received a pretty good response to this one whenever we've featured it before in Forgotten Hits ... so we'll run it again today ... and be sure to check out the link above to find our last feature on Chris from the FH web page. (kk)
Kent ...
I've been a huge Lon & Derrek Van Eaton fan since ... well, way before I joined "The Rip Chords"!
Back in the 60's I was playing in a band that rehearsed in a barn in Bucks County, Pa. Our bass player, Richard Bush, (who went on to co-write "A Woman's Got The Power" for Clarence Clemmons), answered an ad for a used Acoustic Bass amp ... and lo and behold, it was being sold by the Van Eaton Brothers.
We knew them from the band "Jacobs Creek" (I still own that album, on Columbia). Of course, we all bought the "Brother" album when it came out, and even saw them perform live with a full band opening up for David Bowie at The Tower Theater, and as a Trio at a cool folk club called The Main Point (now closed, unfortunately).
I never got to know them personally, but did meet Derrek a few times, and he was always very cool. They were a true success story from my "neighborhood", so to speak. Glad to see they are being talked about again.
Please say hello to Lon & Derrek for me ... they are amazing musicians,and influenced me very early on.
Mitch Schecter / The Rip Chords
re: NEW RELEASES:
And, speaking of Lon Van Eaton, thanks to everybody who entered to win a copy of the brand new "Best Of Apple Records" CD ... we'll pick our winner later this month ... which means that if you haven't registered yet, you've still got time! Simply send an email at forgottenhits@aol.com and ask us to enter you in our Apple CD Give-Away. Lon Van Eaton (who appears on the CD with his brother Derrek, one of the last acts The Beatles signed to their brand new label) will autograph a copy of the new CD for one lucky Forgotten Hits Reader! (Meanwhile, check out this VERY cool video promoting the new CD!)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/mpd/permalink/mGQKH182H6RAK
>>>Davie Allan has a new cd coming out Tuesday 10-05-10. (Mickey Cooksey)Kent,
Thanks for adding Mickey Cooksey's post about the new album. It's quite a departure in that it's all "home demos" and all vocals. What it shows is that I was into music totally unlike what I've done on my studio recordings and record releases. A few of the old tracks (some going back to the 60's) touch upon "folk" and "country". There is plenty of guitar (fuzz, clean, acoustic) but it's the vocals and the songs that take center stage.
Thanks again,
Davie Allan
This CD is available through Davie's website:
Click here: Davie Allan and The Arrows
I also wanted to tell you about two new CD releases that are available through Collectors' Choice Music, featuring our FH Buddy Billy Hinsche ... two 1966 Dino, Desi and Billy albums have just been released on CD for the very first time! You can pick up both "Memories Are Made Of This" and "Souvenirs" from the Collectors' Choice website: www.ccmusic.com!
re: THE BEATLES AND THE ROLLING STONES:
The comparisons have ALWAYS been there ... and will probably never really end. For me personally, I always felt that The Rolling Stones were one step behind The Beatles ... and, most often, by design. For example, The Beatles used a sitar on "Rubber Soul" and a few months later The Stones released their new single, "Paint It, Black", built entirely around the sound of a sitar. The Beatles came up with their landmark "Sgt. Pepper" LP Cover, leading us all into the psychedelic era (even noting "We Love The Rolling Stones" on the cover) and The Stones' next LP, "Their Satanic Majesties Request" is full of psychedelic images (including little "flash" buttons of The Beatles' individual faces in their Pepper costumes!) The Beatles release "All You Need Is Love" (with Mick Jagger and Marianne Faitfull sitting on the floor singing along) and The Rolling Stones release "We Love You" (with John and Paul singing background vocals) ... there were just TOO many of these instances to be coincidences to my way of thinking. Even John Lennon, in his soul-baring interview with "Rolling Stone Magazine" finally admitted that although The Beatles and Stones were once very close (and hung around London together in the early days ... and were very respectful of each others' music ... remember that it was Lennon and McCartney who gave The Stones their first British Hit when they recorded "I Wanna Be Your Man", a song done by Ringo on The Beatles' second album ... and also an event that inspired Mick and Keith to start writing their OWN material from that point forward, realizing that it was the ONLY way they'd have a long-term future in the rock and roll arena) ... Lennon finally had THIS to say about The Rolling Stones (whether fueled by hurt or anger or simply a moment of reckoning):
I was always very respectful about Mick and the Stones, but he said a lot of sort of tarty things about the Beatles, which I am hurt by, because you know, I can knock the Beatles, but don’t let Mick Jagger knock them.
I would like to just list what we did and what the Stones did two months after on every fuckin’ album. Every fuckin’ thing we did, Mick does exactly the same — he imitates us. And I would like one of you fuckin’ underground people to point it out, you know ... “Satanic Majesties” is Pepper, “We Love You,” it’s the most fuckin’ bullshit, that’s “AllYou Need Is Love.”
I resent the implication that the Stones are like revolutionaries and that the Beatles weren’t. If the Stones were or are, the Beatles really were, too. But they are not in the same class, music-wise or power-wise, never were.
I never said anything ... I always admired them, because I like their funky music and I like their style. I like rock and roll and the direction they took after they got over trying to imitate us, you know, but he’s even going to do Apple now. He’s going to do the same thing. (This comment was in regard to The Rolling Stones starting Rolling Stones Records, which released their music for the next twenty years! kk)
He’s obviously so upset by how big the Beatles are compared with him; he never got over it. Now he’s in his old age, and he is beginning to knock us, you know, and he keeps knocking. I resent it, because even his second fuckin’ record we wrote it for him. Mick said “Peace made money.” We didn’t make any money from Peace.
-- John Lennon
While this unwritten rivalry was probably good for BOTH bands, each inspiring the other to greater heights, the full extent of this has never fully been explored ... till now.
I happened to see this book at the bookstore the other day ... and then received a press release for it a day or two later ... written by two of Chicago's leading music critics, it sounds interesting ... check it out:
THE BEATLES VS. THE ROLLING STONES:
SOUND OPINIONS ON THE GREAT ROCK ‘N’ ROLL RIVALRY
By Jim DeRogatis & Greg Kot
THE FIRST BOOK THAT FULLY ANALYZES ONE OF ROCK'S TOP DEBATES:
WHO ARE THE TRUE ALL-TIME KINGS OF ROCK ‘N' ROLL ...
THE BEATLES OR THE STONES?
MINNEAPOLIS: Voyageur Press has joined forces with Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot -- renowned Chicago rock journalists, critics, and co-hosts of the nationally syndicated public radio program Sound Opinions -- for the new book, THE BEATLES VS. THE ROLLING STONES: Sound Opinions on the Great Rock ‘N' Roll Rivalry.This lovingly assembled tome -- the first that compares and contrasts two of rock's most successful and legendary acts -- arrives on October 15th, 2010. The 194-page volume, illustrated throughout with rare photography and memorabilia, and a uniquely designed “flicker” image alternating the Beatles and Stones on the cover, follows more than two dozen topics of debate, with cases being made both for the lads from Liverpool and rock's proto-bad boys. From the Cavern and Crawdaddy clubs through head-to-head comparisons of specific albums (e.g., Exile on Main St. or The White Album?), members' roles within the bands, the Svengali-like managers, influential producers, musical influences, movies, and more, this is the book that dares confront the topics over which fans have clashed for almost 50 years.
Both the Beatles and the Rolling Stones have been household names since the 1960s, and continue to thrive to this day. Dropping classic albums such as Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Beggar's Banquet, Revolver, and Let It Bleed one after another, the Beatles and the Stones duked it out not only on the charts, but in the hearts of rock fans worldwide. Few rock bands can be listed as more influential than these acts, as they not only broke ground musically, but also affected fashion, politics, and even how we view society in general.
From the beginning to the end of THE BEATLES vs. THE ROLLING STONES: SOUND OPINIONS ON THE GREAT ROCK ‘N' ROLL RIVALRY, readers will be engrossed in a thought-provoking and extensive analysis of what made each of these groups so special, original and enduring. No “stone” is left unturned, as both authors have teamed to assemble a must-read book. And with the Beatles being the best-selling rock band of all time in album sales and the Rolling Stones ranked as the top-grossing live band of all time, it's bound to be one fierce battle!
ABOUT JIM DeROGATIS & GREG KOT: Jim DeRogatis is a full-time lecturer in the English Department at Columbia College Chicago and the co-host of Sound Opinions. He spent 15 years as the pop music critic at the Chicago Sun-Times, continues to blog about music at Vocalo.org, and is the author of several books about music and culture, including Velvet Underground (Voyageur Press) and Let It Blurt: The Life and Times of Lester Bangs.
Greg Kot has been the Chicago Tribune's rock music critic since 1990. He co-hosts the nationally syndicated rock 'n' roll talk show Sound Opinions (soundopinions.org) on public radio and is the author of Wilco: Learning How to Die and Ripped: The Digital Music Revolution.
For more information on this and other Voyageur titles, go to www.voyageurpress.com.
THE BEATLES VS. THE ROLLING STONES:
Sound Opinions On The Great Rock N' Roll Rivalry
By Jim DeRogatis & Greg Kot
While all of the press release material and all of the website information shows an official release date of October 15th, I saw this at our Borders Book Store last week when I went to pick up my copy of the brand new "Billboard Top 40 Hits" book by Joel Whitburn ... ALSO available now in fully updated form! BOTH books are highly reccommended by Forgotten Hits. (kk)
re: THE MONKEES:
Kent,
Just a comment or two about today's FH's.
First, you stated you were a big fan of the Monkees.Here in OKC back in 1969, their recordings of MOMMY AND DADDY as well as LISTEN TO THE BAND were very very big. Without checking, I don't know how they did nationally, but I would say they were bigger hits here in OKC comparable to what they did on a national level.
Larry
I didn't discover "Listen To The Band" until MANY years later ... by then, The Monkees' LPs had pretty much stopped selling ... and neither of the tracks you mentioned charted here in Chicago. (In fact, "Mommy And Daddy" didn't chart at ALL, "Bubbling Under" in Billboard at #109!!! Technically, it was the B-Side of the single ... "Good Clean Fun" fared SLIGHTLY better, reaching #82 in Billboard in the Fall of 1969.)
"Listen To The Band" has since become a Monkees favorite (and one of Mike Nesmith's best-known tracks with the band.) Originally, it, too, was considered to be the B-Side to the Carole King / Davy Jones ballad "Someday Man" (which actually DID get some airplay here in Chicago but never charted.) Dee Jays flipped the record over and soon "Listen To The Band" became the bigger charted hit, eventually peaking at #57 in Cash Box Magazine (and #63 in Billboard.) kk
We reviewed Micky Dolenz's new CD "King For A Day" (A Tribute to the Music of Carole King) a while back on The Forgotten Hits Website. Now "Endless Summer Quarterly" Publisher David Beard has an interview with Micky, too, running in his own publication (as well as in an abridged form in "Goldmine Magazine."
Here's a link to the "short scoop"! (kk)
http://www.goldminemag.com/?s=micky+dolenz&x=0&y=0
In fact, Brad Waddell ran links for our Forgotten Hits Review in his Monkees / Flexquarters online fanzine this past week ... along with some other cool Monkees news!
There's a brand new book out called "Monkee Business: The Revolutionary Made-For TV Band", written by the master of Monkees history, Eric Lefcowitz - Updated with all new interviews!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0943249007?ie=UTF8&tag=flexquartemonkee&linkCode=as2&camp=
1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0943249007
Product Description: The Monkees had everything-a popular TV show, hit records, and adoring fans. Everything but control over their careers. Author Eric Lefcowitz chronicles the kaleidoscopic journey of Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork, following each of the four Monkees, together and apart, from 1965 to the present day. A must-read for music fans, Monkee Business is the definitive biography of a rock androll legend.
About the Author: Eric Lefcowitz is the author of The Monkees Tale (1985), Tomorrow Never Knows: The Beatles' Last Concert, Are You PC? (1992), Have a Nice Day: Rhino's History of Rock'n'Roll -- The 70s (1995), and What to Expect in the Year 2000 (1998). He began the website Retrofuture.com in 2000. He has written for the New York Times and many other publications.
Mickey and Peter will be in attendance at the Hollywoodshow in Burbank this weekend (October 10-11)
http://hollywoodshow.com/
WOW!!! Some GREAT people are scheduled to be here for this show. If you're able to attend, please report back to us! (kk)
Meanwhile, here's where you'll find Davy Jones this weekend!:
Davy Jones is still a believer
By: Greg Archer
Still going strong: Davy Jones — who hit it big with The Monkees — still performs and makes appearances, including last year at the Country Music Awards.
SAN FRANCISCO — There was a time — actually not that long ago — when teen idols boasted class and style. They were looked up to, not just consumed as some kind of meal on the mass entertainment menu like many of them are today, which makes somebody like Davy Jones a particularly interesting creature.
The former teen dream of the 1960s was, well, interesting — and, by his own admission, “interested” in what was really going on around him. That will be evident when Jones hits the Rrazz Room for a three-night gig later this week in a show he calls very “up close and personal.”
“These days, you have to be in the tabloids to ‘get noticed,’” he says of the changing times, “but I’m am still ‘new’ to some audiences.”And cherished by others who already know of him.Having shot to fame as the fourth creative peg of the super group / TV sensation The Monkees — which also included Micky Dolenz, Peter Tork and Michael Nesmith — more than four decades ago, Jones and the rest generated major buzz with hits such as “Daydream Believer,” “I’m a Believer” and “Last Train to Clarksville.” Concert tours fueled the group’s celebrity, but Manchester-born Jones stood out on stage, as well as with his own projects, and also in other television appearances. (TV’s Marcia Brady gushed that she’d never wash the cheek Jones kissed in his appearance on “The Brady Bunch.”)
These days, Jones’ life is still festive. Now in his 60s, he’s the grandfather of three and still somewhat of a honeymooner after remarrying last year. He still performs across the country, often connecting with music groups such as The Turtles, The Association and others, who were part of the “good times.”
“My career has been varied — theater, personal appearances — so I am able to jump around and about,” he says. “Television was a great place to have started and people remember. I am very happy about that.” But there must be a secret to his longevity.
“I’ve never been a terribly ambitious person,” he says. “I’ve been really lucky that my ‘career’ has come to me, from various ideas and such. The Monkees were very big, generation after generation. So I consider myself lucky. I can still get up on stage and tell my stories.”
If you go to see Davy Jones:
Where: Rrazz Room, Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St., San Francisco
When: 8 p.m. Friday; 7 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday; 7 p.m. Sunday
Tickets: $45 to $47.50
Contact: (415) 394-1189, www.therrazzroom.com
http://www.sfexaminer.com/lifestyle/Davy-Jones-is-still-a-believer-104308959.html
Hi!
I thought your members, friends and fellow Monkees fans would like to know that DAVY JONES will be appearing at Queensborough Performing Arts Center (on the campus of Queensborough Community College – 222-05 56th Avenue, Bayside, NY 11364) on Saturday evening, November 20, 2010 at 8 pm!
For tickets and information: 718-631-6311 and www.visitqpac.org
Specific page for Davy Jones show: http://www.qcc.cuny.edu/qpac/showInfo.asp?showID=6
Vinny
Former Monkee Peter Tork to speak at Tulare County Drug Court graduation
BY DAVID CASTELLON
Peter Tork, the former member of the 1960s music group, the Monkees, will be the keynote speak at the Tulare County Drug Court graduation next month. The public is invited to the ceremony at 7 p.m. Oct. 28 at the Visalia Convention Center, Tulare County Superior Court Judge Glad Roper told the county Board of Supervisors Tuesday as he gave a presentation on the program, an alternative to prosecution in which convicted drug offenders work with county agencies to kick their addictions. Roper said about 207 people likely will graduate this year, adding that the program has a recidivism rate of about 5 percent.
Celebrities who have had drug problems have frequently spoken at the graduation, and Roper said the 68-year-old Tork — who starred in the Monkees television show in the 60s and recorded music with his co-stars — has a history of drug and alcohol abuse. Tork left the Monkees in the late 1960s but has reunited occasionally over the years with his bandmates and also performs his own music these days.
http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com/article/20100921/
NEWS01/100921016/Former+Monkee++
Peter+Tork++to+speak+at+Tulare+County+Drug+Court+graduation
And then this from chart statistician Randy Price, regarding a comment we made about The Monkees' topping Billboard's Hot 100 Singles Chart for seven weeks in 1966 / 1967 with their monster hit "I'm A Believer" ...
>>>"I'm A Believer" debuted on Billboard's Chart on December 10, 1966 ... and stayed on the chart for 15 weeks. That means it spent 21 days on the chart in 1966, two of which were at #1; the other 84 days (including 47 of which were ALSO spent at #1) occurred in 1967. (kk)
Be careful of deriving figures for "days on the chart" from the weekly chart dates. From 1962 onward, both Billboard and Cash Box used week-ending dates for its issues and for the charts they contained. That means the Billboard chart dated December 10, 1966, was published a week earlier (December 3), and the data that made up the charts were gathered even earlier than that. That said, I certainly agree that Whitburn's methodology, placing "I'm A Believer" as the #1 hit of 1966, does not reflect reality as we remember it.
– Randy Price
It simply wasn't a recognized hit for 1966 ... but because Whitburn's books are universally deemed to be the chart bible, nearly EVERY book written since ALSO lists "I'm A Believer" as 1966's biggest hit ... all we're trying to do (and all we EVER try to do) is present the most accurate truth possible ... and even if "I'm A Believer spent TEN extra days on the chart in 1966, it STILL was one of the biggest hits of 1967 ... because even Billboard Magazine cut off their year-end point accumulation by the 30th of November ... at which time "I'm A Believer" hadn't even debuted on the charts yet! (kk)
A pair of cool Monkees tracks:
(The reasons for choosing THESE two tracks will make more sense tomorrow after you read our Neil Diamond Comments ... but since we had SO many Monkees comments today ... and, since Neil didn't WRITE this song ... I figured I'd lump it into today's Sunday Comments Page instead) ...
First up, the "hit", well-known version (from their chart-topping "Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn and Jones, Ltd." LP) ... and then the ultra-rare Canadian Single Version (quickly pulled from the market, signaling the end of The Don Kirshner Era) ... it's "She Hangs Out" by The Monkees!
re: THE DEADLINE DASH / GENERAL OLDIES STUFF:
The weekend of October 22nd is very special.
I'm involved in the old-time radio convention which is held in New Jersey right near Newark airport.
I will be there on Thursday / Friday / Saturday
That Saturday is my music panel of which Ed Rambeau is part of this year along with famous Dee jay and personality Dick Heatherton (his sister is Joey and his father was Ray who you might recall as The Merry Mailman on TV here in New York.
All the details can be found at http://www.fotr.net/
You can contact me if you have any questions.
I hope to see you there.
DJ Stu Weiss
Cool ... oldies radio yet ANOTHER Joey Heatherton tie-in!!! We seem to be on a roll! (kk)
Here's a GREAT new video from the Bellamy Brothers, who I met back in '82 in Billings, Mt. and have been friends with ever since. In fact, I played their first #1 hit record, "Let Your Love Flow", as a baby DJ at WJLY-FM in Virginia Beach back in '76 using turntables no less. Enjoy and CRANK IT UP!!!
Wild Bill Cody
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4j_9IQ6wzk
"What you do and say today, it don't go away to stay, it'll just come back to burn your ass tomorrow"
I always liked The Bellamy Brothers ... good to hear something new from them again! (kk)
Glad to see "Flying Blue Angels" get a little love, Kent.
Several weeks back, I actually included the novelty song in my Labor Day column offering a musical salute to a wide range of occupations: http://is.gd/fOctt
It may not have made Billboard's Hot 100, but it was a Top 5 hit here in the Twin Cities in late 1961: http://is.gd/fOcK0
It's now back on YouTube, too: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFbQ8V1_n1E
Don Effenberger
Well, Doug Thompson will certainly be happy to see that! I was not familiar with this song until he mentioned it last week ... thanks, Don! (kk)
... and THIS just in ... under the wire ...
re: SOME MORE SAD NEWS:
Solomon Burke, once called "the greatest soul singer of all time" by Atlantic Records producer Jerry Wexler, and self-proclaimed "King of Rock and Soul", died Sunday (October 10) at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, where he was scheduled to perform on Tuesday. It appears he suffered a heart attack on a flight from Los Angeles. Though other sites say 71 or even 74, his official web site says he was 70. Born in Philadelphia sometime between 1936 and 1940, he started out as a minister and gospel singer there, known as the "Wonder Boy Preacher". Solomon also attended mortuary school and later owned a funeral home in Los Angeles. He recorded gospel music for Apollo Records as early as 1954 before turning to secular tunes, signing with Atlantic Records in 1960. His first single, "Just Out Of Reach (Of My Two Open Arms)," topped out at #24 Pop, #7 R&B in 1961. It was followed by such soul hits as "Cry To Me" (#44 Pop, #5 R&B - 1962), "If You Need Me" (#37 Pop, #2 R&B - 1963), "You're Good For Me" (#49 Pop, #3 R&B - 1963) and his biggest hit, "Got To Get You Off My Mind" (#22 Pop, #1 R&B - 1965). All told, Solomon appeared 32 times on the Pop charts and had 18 top twenty R&B hits between 1961 and 1978. He was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hallof Fame in 2001.
Kent ... Solomon Burke dies at Dutch airport - Yahoo! News UK
Another sad death to report.
Frank B.
That's it for now ... join us tomorrow for some REALLY cool Neil Diamond stuff! (kk)
