Kent, 

Open the gates ... begin the derby ...

There is so much great music from the era we cherish that is painfully underrated. So much for the buildup.

I love "Traffic." Always have and I will always wonder what they could have accomplished had they had a ten year run instead of three hours.

With that in mind, I place in nomination, "Low Sparks of High Heeled Boys" as the most over looked song in music history ... 12 minutes of musical challenge!

I love the solos, the chords changes and the mood swings. The song strikes me on about seven emotional levels.

Of course, with a  running time of 12 minutes, most station managers, music directors and jocks quaked in fear when promo guys played the cut.

Question: Was " Sparks" ever released as a single?

I do recall buying the album - a million seller on the mainland - about 1972, the same year I was staff announcing at WFLD and doing the Roller Derby with Anne Calvello, Joannie Weston and Charlie O'Connell.

The polls are open. 

I'd really dig hearing the FH regulars name their all time underrated songs ... "Sparks" is certainly one of the 200 greatest rock 'n roll songs of all time.

Chet Coppock
Author: Buffone - Monster of the Midway

Absolutely one of my favorites, too ... and one I've never gotten tired of hearing (although I, too, will admit to hearing it less and less over the last several years ... and that's just crazy ... 'cause doesn't this make for the perfect "bathroom break" song for every dj in town?!?!)

A masterpiece to be sure ... in fact, I also love "Rock And Roll Stew" and "Light Up Or Leave Me Alone" from the same album, both of which featured Jim Capaldi on lead vocal, a rarity in and of itself in the world of Traffic, which was clearly Steve Winwood's band.

Editing "Low Spark" to a single would have destroyed the very essence of its total appeal ... thank God (to the best of my knowledge) this was never done and we never had to endure a butchered rendition.

Because of our commitment to focusing ALL of next year to reliving 1967, we're not really in a position to compile our usual listener polls ... but I AM willing to entertain your nominees before the clock runs out on December 23rd.

So let's hear your favorites ... and we'll run 'em when we can between now and then.

Meanwhile, give another listen to this Classic Rock Classic ... and drift off to wherever it takes you.  (kk)

SWEET 16: THE BIG KISS OFF

Our next regularly scheduled SWEET 16 feature is still ten days away ...

But I woke up inspired this morning and wanted to greet each and every one of you with a big, wet kiss ...

Sixteen of them in fact!  Enjoy!

Monday Morning Quickie!

1967: 
Dear Kent ... 
Please add me to the '67 list ... a big time and year for me as I mention this year in a new book I'm writing on what it was like to be an A&R Executive and a staff producer at the major labels ... title so far is "You're as Good as Your Last Three Minutes".  I truly look forward to FH every week. 
Thanks for all the good memories. 
Denny Diante  

1967 doesn't mean too much to me. I was an old married man trying to feed a family by then. That said, if I am not put on your list for 1967, I will stalk you until 2067. 
Hil  
LOL ... I'm sure we can find a spot for you!  And you may enjoy 1967 more than you think ... some pretty INCREDIBLE movies released that year!  And you'll surely enjoy at least HALF of the music we're going to feature.  Glad to have you with us!  (kk)  
I enjoy all your stuff even when I can't relate to it as strongly or as closely as you and many of your readers. My musical "head", for want of a better word was already formed before R&B and Rock and Roll so everything for me was adjustment and acceptance. Liken it, if you will, to the adjustment all of us had to make with each progression in technology where we had to adapt. I based my reaction to all the new music on the old music that was already firmly implanted. Took years for me to go from Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole to Little Richard and Elvis! I'm still working on Elvis, by the way. LOL. Then came The Beatles who just scared me until they and I settled down together! 
Thanks for all you do. I love reading the comments, yours and others from another generation. Extremely interesting! 
Hil  

Kent,
I've got to be a part of the 67 activities.
In 1967, I was the #3 morning DJ on KMOR in Salt Lake City playing what would be called "light country music".  I met numerous recording stars that appeared in town that year including the Smothers Brothers, Glen Campbell, Robert Goulet, Jimmy Durante, Wayne Newton and Jimmie Rodgers.  I owned a brand new 1967 MGB and, other than my on-air shift, I was able to come and go as I pleased from the station as long as my other duties were up to date.
In 1968, I met and married my first wife, and that ended the good times with a thud.  I still am grateful for 1967, as it was a joy to wake up every day.  
Jim Southern 
Here's hoping you'll share more of those golden memories with our group moving forward.  Thanks, Jim!  (kk)   

Hi Kent,
I wanted to take a moment to say, love your new "Front Page" to include your Forgotten Hits description, testimonials, and current promotion of the '67 Feature.
Also, THANK-YOU for keeping Forgotten Hits a "political-free zone!"  In Forgotten Hits, we are all simply music-aficionados with no other categories to divide us.  What a welcome oasis!  The very radio stations that used to provide us with music and memories have now dissolved in a desert of division which they mistakenly call entertainment.
Thanks for the harmony and hard work ... I really appreciate it!
Regards,
Tim Kiley 
I admit it ... we're pushing the '67 Series in a big way ... a WHOLE lot of work went into this ... and I'm hoping that everyone on the list will do the same by helping to spread the word.
DeeJays ... talk to me about putting together a daily or weekly feature spotlighting these Fifty Year Flashbacks ... you're going to find a wealth of information here ... and please send your listeners to the site so they can enjoy our efforts, too.
And artists ... we're counting on you to share your memories from the fly-on-the-wall perspective that only you can provide. 
Take a look at our new "front page", as Tim describes it ... I think the easiest thing to do is to refer "newbies" to forgottenhits.com ... there they'll not only find many of our classic archival pieces ... but also a "front and center" link to the brand new '67 Series, kicking off December 30th. Sign up NOW if you haven't already ... I think you're really going to enjoy this!  (kk)  

The State Of Radio Today:  
It's an ongoing battle - and the very root of our existence. 
Is radio better today than it was in 1999 when Forgotten Hits first started? 
In many cases, it is ...  LOTS more options (especially through the Internet and Satellite services)  

Our latest soap box moment sparked a few quick responses ... 

Let's be honest kids, the past and the future of Rock And Roll is not on the AM or the FM dial.
It is on the internet and on satellite radio.
I don't listen to internet radio, as my computer speakers are crap and my hearing is shot. 
However, about six months ago, I spent my lunch money on a new car stereo, and had satellite radio installed. OMG!  Every day, I hear any number of songs that I have never heard played on the radio. I've yet to hear anything by the following artists:  Journey, Boston, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Foreigner, Def Leppard, Genesis / Phil Collins, Fleetwood Mac, etc. There are channels that play them, but my dial is stuck at Little Steven's Underground Garage. 
You want music from the 50's thru today? This is the real deal.
The other day, I got in the car and the first song I hear is When You Walk Into The Room, the original, by Jackie DeShannon. Then it's followed up by the Searchers cover version. Music from all genres except the 250 songs that have been played to death on classic rock / oldies radio.   Also many a time you get the story behind the song.
It's not cost prohibitive, and you can just choose a music package. Commercial radio doesn't want to listen to you, so don't listen to them. I'm not going back.   
Jack    

Hi Kent -
Loved  the banter between Big Jay Sorensen and Forgotten Hits. 
I wondered if the other Geoff was Geoff Barker? 
Regards -
Geoff (Dorsett) 
We've got Geoff Dorsett and Geoff Lambert on the list ... both British DJ's ... does that mean we're missing one?!?!  Somebody get Geoff Barker on the line right away!!!  He's gonna want to take part in our salute to '67, I'm sure!  (kk) 
UPDATE: 

There is a gent who mails you from the south of England who is fortunate enough to also be called Geoff. Me, I am known in my musical circles as Rockin’ Lord Geoff and, as much as I may have at one time wanted to be a DJ / radio producer, I am quite happy just to collect records and research the history of fifties R n R. I have been fortunate enough to have visited Sun Studios, Studio B and Norman Petty’s studio in Clovis. It is the other Geoff who you write so admirabley about lol.

Geoff (Lambert)

I've thought a lot about your main subject today ... the constant airplay some songs get while other great music just sits on the sidelines.  Many DJs are too young to remember the tune-age that turned us on.  But you'd have to be just plain lazy not to look up what was popular what year and by whom.  Maybe they just need a vintage DJ to teach them how to be sure what they're playing was considered good by the majority of the populace in any given year like you're doing with 1967.  I will hear songs by some very popular singers that I don't remember being played around here ... not that they aren't good ... but on whose whim, I am moved to wonder.  Almost anything that was recorded in the golden R&R decades is better than anything I hear that is new ... but maybe that's just my 'old fogey' coming out.  I've never stuck to any one genre and felt moved to comment on the Country Music Awards show this year that it was just plain pitiful.  They aren't making Chuck Berrys, or George Joneses, or even the Gershwins any longer. 
Patti 

Hola Kent,
What is that guy Big Jay whining about ? ha ha
I thought we were still relevant and that the music of the 50's, 60's, 70's still resonated with a 'Yuge' number of people.  (Why else would PBS offer all those wonderful Oldies, Doo Wop, Disco, and Folk Music shows in order to raise money? They know where the money is!!!)  ha ha

The way Big Jay complains, you'd think the 'Day the music died' was when Glenn Miller's Plane went down. 
I believe Oldies Music is alive and well, just not courted by the young'ns that control the airwaves now who are attempting to create something that isn't durable or as memorable ... certainly money left on table. 
Oh, one more thing ... I am a fan of your blog and it was 'news' to me that you are prejudiced toward the Chicago sound!!!  
Cheers, 
CharlieOFD 
I can't wait for '67 revisited.  

And one from the guy who started it all ... 

Kent ...
#1 = Thanks for printing my rant. You made my day.  For a brief moment I thought I was as famous as Chet Coppock.  Then reality set in. Nobody can rant like Chet.
#2 =  My idea for short term series.  Play the artist's first Billboard Hit ... plus a Christmas Hit.
Elvis = "Heartbreak Hotel" plus "Blue Christmas."
# 3 = Do I have to sign up for 1967? (Back to the Marine Corps for me ).  Add me to the list.
Belated Happy Anniversary. Keep up the great work.
Frank B.
Hey, I'll betcha you can get a couple of the jocks on the list to run with your Christmas idea.  Anybody???  (kk) 

This And That:  
Check this out ... The Turtles have won their lawsuit against Sirius/XM ... to the tune of $99 million!!!  Ok, fine ... if this is true ... then lunch is on YOU guys next time you're in Chicago!!!  (kk) 
Check out the details below ...  

Sirius settles pre-1972 airplay lawsuit. Now maybe we'll start hearing oldies again.
Ken Voss  
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/29/arts/music/turtles-siriusxm-1972-copyright-settlement.html?_r=0 

On Saturday, December 3rd, The City Of Chicago named a street after Gene Chandler / The Duke Of Earl at 5900 S. Racine Avenue.  (Thanks, Frank!)  kk

Frank also sent us this clip of a 16 year old Canadian kid singing "Blue Christmas".  I remember we featured this a year or two ago ... but now he's guested on Ellen ... and won himself a trip to Graceland where he will perform at their Christmas ceremony!  Check it out!  (kk)

And this Kristen Stewart video for the brand new Rolling Stones track ...

(Dang we should just call today's edition "Frankgotten Hits!!!") 

You and I were both fans of the show American Dreams. 

Timothy Craig has ties to Richland Center.  His dad is Vilas Craig of the Vicounts. 
Tim sent this to me today and I thought I would forward it to you.  He had a brief cameo in that great show.  Timothy is a singer songwriter in Nashville.  
Phil


Here are some photos from Los Angeles back when I played the role of Phil Everly of The Everly Brothers along with Mark Luna as Don. We performed a song called Gone, Gone, Gone on the NBC Television Series - American Dreams. I was sporting a huge blonde rug on my head, It's about to happen to me in the other photo, I know! Lol ...   
Tim

 

Oh yeah, I remember this episode ... because the Everly Brothers sang "Gone Gone Gone", NOT one of their better known tunes but definitely one of my favorites.  ("American Dreams" had a way of digging out that obscure track now and again ... anybody remember the episode when they featured a song sung by Rosie Greer?!?!?)  Thanks, Phil!  (kk)




Here are The Buckinghams performing at the Tree Lighting Ceremony in Elk Grove Village last week.  Holiday 2016 video thanks to Ralph Riani for posting on Facebook.  

jbkrug  
I heard about this but didn't get to see it.  (A real shame because Elk Grove Village is only twenty minutes away!)  Thanks for sharing.  (kk)

It's Another One Of Those Great Forgotten Hits Soapbox Moments

We haven't had one of these in a while ..

But the timing of these two emails was just too good to pass up.

So indulge me for a few minutes again this week as we let our passion for the music take over this weekend's column.

Kent ...

Scott Shannon isn't talking to me anymore ... so I have to send my WCBS-FM complaints to you.
In the month of December,  from 7 PM to Midnight, WCBS-FM is playing Christmas music.

One month a year, it's okay to go back to 1940's for Bing's "White Christmas."

One month of the year, it's okay to go back to 1957 for Elvis' Christmas album.

One month of the year it's okay to go back to 1954 for the Drifters "White Christmas."

But from January to November, we can only play 1970's and 1980's music.

I guess they think that people like me only listen to the radio one month a year.
Elvis Yesterday:  I have cassette tapes of WCBS-FM playing Elvis' top 25 Hits.

Elvis Today:  The only song they play is original version of "Burning Love" from 1972.
They won't even mention the fact that in the last two years Elvis' digital albums with The Royal Philharmonic were million sellers thanks to remakes like "If I Can Dream" and "The Wonder Of You."
We both know there will be more of these albums to come. I guess WCBS-FM will continue to ignore the new Elvis albums and keep playing "Burning Love" ... except for the month of December.

Frank B.

 

It's frustrating, I know ... and it isn't just WCBSM-FM ... this seems to be the mentality from coast to coast these days.  Even Billboard Magazine now seems to ignore all of its chart information before the first "official" Hot 100 Chart in August of 1958 ... that means that Elvis' 24 Billboard Chart Hits (ELEVEN of which went to #1!) don't even make the cut anymore.   GREAT tracks like "Hound Dog", "Don't Be Cruel" "Blue Suede Shoes", "Heartbreak Hotel", "Love Me Tender", "All Shook Up" "Teddy Bear" and "Jailhouse Rock" have virtually been wiped from existence.

And, with a totally straight face, radio programmers, consultant and owners of many of the reissue lables will tell you that they only market to people who "are still alive"!!!  Meaning that some of the greatest music ever created will soon disappear forever, without the chance for future generations to discover it and fall in love with it all over again, just like we did.

The thing they don't understand is that there had been no precedent for rock and roll.  I promise you that despite their hardest efforts, this music will NOT disappear ... new people WILL continue to discover and embrace it.  I see it every single day as kids now seven decades removed from the original onslaught of rock and roll and still diggin' these sounds.  The shame is that all these so-called "know it all"'s have got it wrong ... and can't even see the big picture here ... yet they're the ones in control!!!

Think about this ...

When Elvis hit in 1956 and revolutionized the sights and sounds of music, was the rest of the world listening to music from 1890?  When The Beatles hit in 1964, did they stand out because everyone else on the planet was listening to music from the early 1900's?  When disco erupted in 1978, were the rest of the population doing the dances of 1918?  Michael Jackson's big comeback in the 1980's .. was that no big deal because everyone on earth was still drooling over Valetino?

The world has never had to deal with a force the likes of rock and roll music ... because think about what I've just said ... people today still have a DEEP love and affection for the music of the '50's, '60's, '70's and '80s, even tho it's some 60 Something Years Later!!!  It still MEANS something to us ... we can still FEEL It ... we still embrace it ... and so do our children and even THEIR children.

This "fad" that was supposed to disappear in fifteen minutes in 1956 is still with us ... and it's just as strong as ever.

Throw out ALL the old rule books ... because they don't apply here.  You won't find millions of Americans standing in line for next week's jitterbug contest ... you won't find them lined up at special screenings of Rudolph Valentinos' Greatest Hits either ... because they'll be at the theater watching the new Ron Howard film "Eight Days A Week" about The Beatles' touring years from 50+ years ago.  You'll also still find the likes of The Beatles and Elvis and The Beach Boys and Paul Simon and Dion and any huge number of others cracking the top of the charts with their latest releases.

THROW THE PLAYBOOK AWAY ... it doesn't apply here.  And pull your heads out of your collective asses and face the fact that Rock And Roll Music Is Here To Stay!  Take a trip down memory lane with the Oldies But Goodies ... grab your best girl At The Hop ... do The Twist, The Limbo, disco your ass off if you want to ... this music ISN'T going away ... so you might as well embrace it.  (kk)

 

The email we received today from noted deejay Big Jay Sorensen makes many of these same points ... but Jay's ready to throw in the towel and give in to these bastards.  I say NO WAY!!!  

A guy like Scott Shanon can play by the corporate rules and rule the ratings with his WCBS-FM top-ranked morning show ... but he combats that by spearheading The True Oldies Channel 24/7 playing the music he REALLY loves for the listeners who really want to hear it.  (I think it's how he holds on to his sanity!!!)

Me-TV-FM is doing their best to keep "timeless and memorable music" alive through their programming list, playing songs that have been absent from the airwaves for DECADES!!!

Internet oldies shows take the time to do the research and play both the hits and the near-hits ... because they know and understand that we fans remember them ALL!!!

 

Here is what triggered this response ... (for the record, Geoff is a long-time disc jockey in the UK ... or a "radio presenter" as I guess they like to call themselves!!! ... and he misses seeing other sheets like ours dedicated to preserving the memory of the great music.)  To an extent, having just celebrated our 17th Year Anniversary, we very well may be one of the last ones. (Of course I've always thought we were one of the BEST ones, too!  Lol)

 

Anyway, here's Geoff's original query ... along with Big Jay's response and rant.  (Today truly is another Forgotten Hits Classic Soap Box Moment!!!)

 

>>>Kent - I have been very interested in music since way before Bill Haley told us we are gonna rock around the clock. Over the years I have had e mail dealings with good knowledgeable folk like your good self.  One who seems to be missing in action the last few months is a guy called Big Jay Sorensen. His link says things like “has been assaulting the airwaves for four decades, in some really extraordinary places, as Disc Jockey, Talk Show Host, News Anchor, Beat Reporter, Commercial Production Director ... and occasionally even as Program Director and Operations Manager”.  I just wondered if you might know him or as to why he stopped the lists.  Take care.  (Geoff)

 

>>>Big Jay Sorensen is a Forgotten Hits Regular ... he's been on our list for YEARS ... and you'll still find his emails coming through on a somewhat regular basis.  I know he's bounced around a bit over the past couple of years ... but I'm sure he'll see this and want get in touch with you.  (kk)

 

Which, of course, is exactly what happened!

 

Kent ...

I saw that your listener "Geoff" (didn't mention where he was from) was saying I fell off the radar, or something like that.

Please inform Geoff that while I did stop writing my weekly exhaustive blog about Big Jay's Big Week in Pop Music History, I am alive and well. 

I just didn't see the reason to continue in the music direction after I was told I wasn't "tight and bright" enough anymore after about eight years at WCBS-FM in NYC. 

Like many of your FORGOTTEN HITS readers who still yearn for "Youngblood," by the Coasters and "Build Me Up Buttercup" 30 times a day, the station simply isn't what it used to be for Oldies Record Pigs. It can't be. Nor should it be.

I have said it before and I'll say it again, today's 40-year-olds graduated High School in 1994. That is the center of what TODAY'S classic hits stations want to reach. Read that sentence over again. 

And given that for most people the age of 15 is the center of what your favorite nostalgia music is ... you realize that five years either way of that number (of let's say a 40-year-old today) then that median year is 1991. So, if that theory holds, then the years 1986 through 1995 are the years’ today's 40-year-olds enjoy when they are looking for nostalgia. 

And if that theory holds, then if you are 65 today, YOUR median years (if you graduated at age 18 in 1969), your years are from 1964 through '74. 

How many stations (a select few AM's) are still playing that music? 

The reason they aren't, largely is purely based on what advertisers want ... and it ain't us.

Sure, if you want to tout the latest arthritis medicine or chair lift to the second story of your home, or to get an AARP card, then an "OLDIES" station might work. 

But Madison Avenue and the ad buyers (who have always been about 24 years-old) wouldn't know Steppenwolf from Steppin Fetchett ... because they've never heard of either one. 

Perhaps in some markets advertisers might WANT that 65-year-old. But frankly their research tells them that you can't change the buying habits of "old" people. That's what they say.  

If I ruled the radio world, I'd make WABC MusicRadio 77 again. Right now. And currently I'm ON that station as the sidekick / announcer for my old friend Joey Reynolds.

He does a Sunday Night Live show called The LATE Joey Reynolds Show 9 pm et and on KABC AM in LA at 6pm pacific. Soon to be available on VIDEO ... and listenable on iHeartRadio's app each week. You can hear podcasts of the shows at www.WABCRadio.com. 

And I'd do the same with WLS-AM ... And KFI-AM ... and WFIL-AM ... etc. ... You get my drift.   Nostalgia is subjective. I want to hear songs I know ... with a melody ... with lyrics ... sometimes fun, sometimes angry ... sometimes bubblegum, sometimes hard rock or pure soul as WE REMEMBER when we were kids. 

Sadly, I am living in a pipe-dream. It would only happen if the conglomerates blew up and died. That COULD happen as some of us know. 

It may seem as though I'm speaking from both sides of my mouth about this whole DEMOGRAPHIC thing. I guess I am. I think a 50 year-old would listen to the top 40 music of the ‘50s, '70s, and '70s ... IF it is presented properly. Maybe a 40 year-old would as well. Well, maybe not the '50s ... but if it's fun and, (and here is the key) ... IF they would allow REAL PERSONALITIES back on the radio, it just might work.

Sadly, many of the people who did it so well from the 50s through the 70s are either dead, retired or not in good health. Sure there are some left ... or perhaps the second generation jocks like ME who can aptly recreate at least the tempo and sound of the era could make it work. I have friends who would LEAP at the chance to prove it.

Listen to my tapes when 66 WNNNBC did "THE TIME MACHINE" in '87 and '88, complete with reverb, Pams jingles and the forward moving tempo that was top 40 radio in its hey-day. Subscribe to www.ReelRadio.com. You can also hear the ORIGINAL dudes who made it so much fun to listen to back then. 

Would Madison Ave. react kindly to this pipe-dream? Dunno. As long as the 24 year-old buyers are conducting the business — likely not. But if “programmatic buying” really took hold with all that ad inventory, and instead of Erectile Dysfunction and Snake Oil medicine-men and money-handlers buying time by the hour on even the biggest AM stations in America on weekends and stopped playing UFO shows all night on almost every spot on the dial across the land on weeknights, it might stand a chance. Or maybe there is so much noise on AM today that didn't exist back in the day … it would be a wasted thought because of LED lights, computers, smart phones ... etc. ... meaning almost nobody can listen to AM unless they are three blocks from the transmitter. (I’m sorta joking.  Sorta.)

I know I'm rambling ... but when Geoff asked where I was (and he sounded like an older gentleman) it got me thinking. I love the music from the eras I mentioned above, just like KENT and all the thousands who read his column daily. He puts his LIFE into this thing. Imagine having a regular job and then working another 40 hours per week on a BLOG?!?!?!?! That's what I believe he does. His passion is unmatched. He is a bit too Chicago-centric for MY musical tastes, but we all LEARN a lot if you didn't grow up listening to WLS, WCFL, etc. 

Geoff, I stopped trying to do a weekly column that took sometimes three days a week to put together, because I didn't see the return ... neither via email, social media ... (the same 30 people LIKED it ... but likely never READ it) ... NOR was I able to monetize it. I did it initially because I was only working part-time and HAD the time to put into it. You can look at my former work at www.BigJaySorensen.com ... it's all still there. But it took its toll. 

So now I'm STILL in the radio field, part of a revolutionary idea of doing a VARIETY show on RADIO. OMG. Are they crazy??  

We've had many of our heroes on the show ... ranging from Frankie Valli, to Gene Cornish of The Rascals, to Lou Christie to songwriter Chip Taylor ("Angel Of The Morning" and "Wild Thing") on the show, along with people like Tommy Chong, Andrea McArdle (Annie) and comedians like Pat Cooper, Vic DiBitetto, Dave Konig and so many more. It is a little this and a little that. On a SUNDAY night no less. So ... we think if there is anyone left listening to radio on a Sunday night, we might as well entertain them with some big stars, some small stars and just plain interesting people. 

SO that's where I am Geoff. I am HONORED that you asked Kent about me in his blog. 

Thanks.

And if anyone wants to write to me, do it at BigJaySorensen@gmail.com.  I will reply.

BE BIG!

Big Jay Sorensen