More Tributes to Phil Everly ... And All The Latest Details About Some GREAT Up-Coming Shows

January 8, 2014, 4:48 am

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re: Phil Everly:

Kent -

So sad to hear about Phil Everly's passing Friday. For a primer on the roots of rock and roll go to "you tube" and listen to the Everly Brother's reunion concert at the Albert Royal Hall, an hour well spent, as I never got a chance to see them in person.

Mike De Martino

President of the Lovejoy Music Club

Truly one of the great harmony singers of the rock (or any other) era is gone. Phil Everly passed away at a Burbank, CA hospital on Friday. He was 74.

I'm lucky to have seen them several times, including 'live' in their KY hometown ten or twelve years ago -- and at the California State Fair, Sacramento, in 1959. Between '57 and '60, their record sales were only rivaled by Elvis and Pat Boone (even though the RRHOF continues to snub Boone). They had four #1's in their first seven or eight releases and over thirty Top 30 hit records -- at one time averaging a hit single every three to four months.

There is simply nothing greater to us music junkies than true sibling harmonies -- be it the Andrews Sisters of the WW2 years, the McGuire Sisters in the early and mid-50's, The Beach Boys -- at their height -- in the 60's, and the Bee Gee's in the late '60's and 70's. To be fair, I'd have to add the Jackson Five and The Osmonds to the list, but there is really no comparison in my opinion as some of their biggest singles featured Michael and Donny.

Don may have gotten a lot of the credit, being the older brother and lead singer, but if you take away Phil's incredible harmonies, there simply wouldn't be that great 'sound.' (Note: Two great country singers who were not related but whose sound 'fit like a glove,' Buck Owens and Don Rich, also had great vocal harmonies, and their duel lead guitar rifts pretty much made the Buck Owens 'sound.')

Whenever I give a tour of historic RCA Studio "B," I always play two or more of Don and Phil's greatest hits, including "All I Have To Do Is Dream" and "Cathy's Clown," both recorded there. It just doesn't get much better than that. And to think all these artists of that era -- including Elvis, Orbison, Cline, Brenda Lee --were recording two tracks (an "A" and a "B" side) in less than three hours. No overdubs, no vocal tuning, and mixing it on the fly. Now, we're typically spending 35 to 50 hours, or more, per song, including a day and a half -- and upwards of six days -- to mix it. It was strictly God-given talent that ruled the early rock era.

Rip, Phil. We're gonna miss ya -- but we are truly blessed by the great musical legacy you leave behind.

Fred Vail / Music City, USA

The loss of Phil Everly is personal one for me. Was there ever any singing duo greater or who achieved as much musical perfection as Don an Phil Everly? I can close my eyes and still see us all hanging back stage at the Alan Freed Shows swapping stories and guitars with Eddie Cochran, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry and others! Those are days I will treasure until my life on this earth is finished. It was a magical time and none of us kids really knew if R&R would last -- or if we'd have to eventually leave the music industry and get a day job! Phil was a great talent and I will sorely miss him. God Bless His soul!

Charlie Gracie

Charlie Gracie, standing second right with pal, Eddie Cochran, the Everlys (Don & Phil) and Singer / pro-golfer, Don Cherry (Band of Gold, fame) in Chicago in early 1957.

My heart is so incredibly saddened by the passing of Phil Everly. The Everly Brothers' music was a huge inspiration for me growing up. As brothers, those harmonies just sound so sweet and tender. I think it's a family thing. I could never get enough of their voices.

-- Brian Wilson

Vintage Vinyl News ran several other celebrity tributes on their site the other day ... here are a couple ...

Phil Everly is gone. Touring with Phil and Don was one of the thrills of my life. I love you Phillip - Godspeed.

Nancy Sinatra

Phil and Don were the most beautiful sounding duo I ever heard. The Everlys were there at the crossroads of country and R&B. They witnessed and were part of the birth of rock and roll.

Paul Simon

I always admired the Everly brothers. Now, Phil has passed. He wrote "When Will I Be Loved". I'd say always!

Paul Williams
and you can read the rest here:

Click here: VVN Music: Tributes Pour In For Phil Everly

Kent,

With all the banter about Phil's passing and the Everly Brothers, I'm surprised there wasn't a mention of their 1966 release titled "GONE GONE GONE".

They performed it on Shindig and, for a moment, some thought this would be a comeback song, but it didn't chart well, despite the hint of Bo Diddly and other influences in the guitar work.

These are among several You Tube links that'll take you there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ5yUqK9ClE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEZ_Ay8AVG4

Enjoy!

Peace.

Bill Fortune

(Bussiere)

"Gone Gone Gone" has long been a Forgotten Hits favorite ... we've featured it a few times and I agree, it felt like a "comeback hit" of sorts at the time ... but we were just too deep into The British Invasion to appreciate it at the time. (It actually charted in '64, peaking at #31 but reaching #11 here in Chicago.) I remember being completely blown away when they featured it on "American Dreams" a few years ago as part of an American Bandstand segment ... showed the musical staff to have a pretty deep appreciation for more than just the usual "tried and true" hits. Betcha quite a few radio stations around the globe featured it this weekend in Phil's memory. (kk)

A real fine blog post a out Phil that stretches further from most of the obit write-ups:

http://blogs.tennessean.com/tunein/2014/01/04/earth-lost-an-angelic-harmonizer-in-phil-everly/

musicisinmysoul

re: Some Great Up-Coming Shows:

Ron Onesti seems to have cornered the market when it comes to "must see" shows in the Chicagoland area. Just wait till you see who he's added to the agenda now!!!

Click here: oshows

FEB 6 & 7 CHEAP TRICK

FEB 14 GROOVIN THE SIXTIES starring Gary Puckett & The Buckinghams with a full orchestra

FEB 23 A HARD DAY'S NIGHT

(Beatles film) Sing-A-Long to Benefit Open Door Clinic

MAR 1 AIR SUPPLY

MAR 15 GORDON LIGHTFOOT

MAR 16 Former Members of ELO

MAR 28 THREE DOG NIGHT

MAR 29 EDDIE MONEY

MAR 30 Ricky Nelson Remembered (starring Matthew and Gunnar Nelson ... and a tribute to their father)

APR 12 LITTLE ANTHONY & THE IMPERIALS*

APR 13 Paul Revere & The Raiders

APR 18 CTA Tribute to CHICAGO with Danny Seraphine, Billy Champlain and Larry Braggs (Tower of Power)*

APR 19 FOGHAT

APR 26 SURF CITY ALL STARS with Dean Torrence (of Jan & Dean) and the original Beach Boy band

MAY 2 THE MONKEES' MICKEY DOLENZ

MAY 3 ECHOES OF POMPEI (an incredible tribute to Pink Floyd)

MAY 17 BLUE OYSTER CULT

MAY 30 HERMAN'S HERMITS(starring Peter Noone)

JUN 7 LOU GRAMM (of Foreigner)

SEPT 13 EXILE

SEPT 20 FELIX CAVALIERE'S RASCALS WITH SPECIAL GUESTS THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE

OCT 3 JOHNNY RIVERS

OCT 5 AL STEWART

OCT 24 GARY WRIGHT

OCT 25 TOMMY JAMES & THE SHONDELS

NOV 7 BJ THOMAS

NOV 15 LITTLE RIVER BAND

NOV 22 THE SPINNERS

Full details on the OShows Website:

Click here: oshows

↧

Our Movement To Bring The True Oldies Channel Is Underway ...

January 9, 2014, 4:27 am

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≪ Previous: More Tributes to Phil Everly ... And All The Latest Details About Some GREAT Up-Coming Shows

... but we still need your help!!!

Somehow ... someway ... we need to continue to get the word out to the radio fans of Chicago who want our oldies back!!!

The timing is right ... scroll back to read Monday's post to get completely up to speed ... and then help us spread the word through any means available to you.

Chicago LOVES their oldies ... we've been an oldies town since the late '70's and early '80's ... and we're tired of hearing the same tired 200-300 songs playing on EVERY radio station in town!!!

Kent,
I agree 1000% and now that Cumulus has two more rock stations in Chicago, it's time that WLS-FM be returned to Oldies! Every one of their legendary jocks would embrace such a change. It is SO logical and would tap a demo that not only HAS money they also HAVE the time to spend it. WHY is radio being SO blind to the obvious? I'm out in Las Vegas at the CES but return this weekend I will do my best to help out. Can you get Rob Feder to do a piece on this? He has readers and that equals power!
Rock on Kent.
Art Vuolo, Jr
Actually, we appealed to Feder (and Chicagoland Radio and Media, too) to help us with our cause ... or, at the very least, spread the word to all the listeners out there frustrated by the same diet of repetitive music that plays relentlessly non-stop on every station in town ... but so far we've heard nothing back. Nothing from the television media either ... and the ONLY way to get this movement off the ground is to spread the word and gain the support of the listeners who will faithfully embrace this station.
Again, folks HAVE to help us to spread the word or this dies on the vine right now. (kk)

UPDATE: Yay!!! Chicagoland Radio and Media ran a link to our cause in today's column!!! Let's get this movement underway!
Kent Kotal's popular blogsite Forgotten Hits has started a grass roots campaign to get the Oldies format returned to WLS-FM. More details on this can be found HERE.

In response to your / our plea, it would be great if you could post all the important email addresses and even phone numbers if you think that will work to get the oldies army into action. I’m trying to find Lew Dickey’s addy as I type.

Thanks for your leadership.

Scott Schultz,

McHenry

We've been trying to track down Lew Dickey's email address, too, but so far no luck. However you can write, fax or call Cumulus Broadcasting via the information below. (Of course first it'd be nice to generate some support here at home ... so don't be shy about contacting the media outlets right here in Chicago, too!)

CUMULUS BROADCASTING INC.
3280 Peachtree Road, NW Suite 2300
Atlanta, Georgia 30305
TEL. (404) 949-0700
FAX. (404) 949-0740

The word WILL get out ... we just need to nudge it along a little bit right now! Imagine if we just get two guys over at Cumulus kicking this around between themselves while admitting, "Hey, you know ... that's really not a half-bad idea!!!" (kk)

I hear ya loud and clear man. How can we contact higher management? I have already sent my plea to WLS / FM and the company that bought the LOOP.
It sure is funny ... you would think radio would cater to the over 30 crowd ... any one younger probably does not listen to radio the way we do (or used to)!
Mike De Martino
President of the Lovejoy Music Club
It's programming with blinders on, targeting the completely wrong audience for all the wrong reasons. I think you may be right ... today's audience may not even GET the radio!!! Give us a REASON to listen, and we will! And then the advertisers will have the captive audience they so desire! (kk)

Kent -
Just read your Monday cumulus posting and I completely agree with you. For the past year I no longer listen to any AM or FM station in Chicago. Instead, I have 7000 songs on my ipod which plays those songs at random. When in the car I only listen to Sirius XM 50's and / or 60's channels.
But I miss hearing good radio voices talking directly to me such as Scott Shannon. And it doesn't have to be original voices as frankly Fred Winston (who was one of the funniest during his heyday) and John Landecker now just sound tired (I'm not sure if this is due to station edicts or the fact that they're just being tired)
In any event, your request to contact Cumulus is a great one. However you failed to give info as to how best to contact them. Please post instructions in order for us to best reach those who can make a decision to do what you suggest.
Steve Davidson
See the info above, Steve ... and then let your fingers do the walking ... and the talking! (kk)

I see you’re trying to talk WLS into doing oldies.
I grew up in Chicago, and listened to WJJD starting in 1956 and all the others. WLS, and later the WLS / WCFL competition, were the highlight of the sixties, of course. Being a writer, I’ve interviewed all the jocks I could find in 1982. WLS would have an unrivaled source of the most unbelievable material from the 1960s. It would be really unique if they played one a day.
Mike Callahan
Both Sides Now
It would be like NOTHING else on the radio today ... allowing the station to stand apart from ALL the others in town ... and all the while paying fitting homage to the legacy of this great, great station. I'm telling you, it's a KILLER idea ... now how do we get folks to listen??? (kk)

Hi Kent:
What a station like WLS should do is just air the old unscoped airchecks of their stations! There are hundreds in circulation and Lord knows how many are not. If the archivists have more of these, that would be great Radio! Just like it was in the 60’s, where all the great old jocks will be live again. Wouldn’t it be great to turn on WLS and hear Clark Weber, Art Roberts, Ron Riley, Larry Lujack, Dick Biondi, etc. I think so.
Ken Freck
A BIG part of the problem with radio today is that the people who are programming it ... and controlling what we hear ... have absolutely NO grasp of what has worked in the past ... in their minds, it's all from a bygone era and it's not the audience they're seeking. Too bad ... THAT was the era that made radio the giant it was. (kk)

And, speaking of Clark Weber, check out his comment below to see where part of the disconnect is.

Hi Kent;
I enjoyed reading your plea for the return of "Entertaining Radio" in Chicago. One of the perks of being "An Old Coot" is that I remember radio in its "Heyday" and am well aware of what created it and more importantly what's killing it. We all recognize that one of the foundations of creating that "super" station is to convince Lending Institutions that even though the asking price is 10, 15 or 20 times earnings that the buyers can generate enough money to pay off the loan within a proper time frame and still make a profit. I can think of perhaps a half dozen or more of Chicago stations that are making good $'s today and the rest are floundering.

The proposed new owners then decide what formats are still making money. Country, Urban, Spanish, Talk with the money demo's of 18/44 and 25/54. Your friendly Ford Store (and a host of other sponsors) are not interested in 50 plus even though that demo buys 48 percent of cars. The 60 plus demo is in most cases unsellable to radio sponsors even though those listeners (I prefer calling them customers) have the most disposable income of all who tune in to radio.
Scott Shannon was a master of the "Oldies' format and his show skewed older and that's a tough sell and that's why it was dropped! My agency started selling the 55 plus demo back in 1996 and believe me radio stations can't make money with that demo. Truth be told many radio stations can't make money today regardless of what demo they are targeting.
Last but certainly not least is to listen to the way radio station treat their sponsors. While listening to the BIG 89 a few weeks ago one of the commercial stop sets contained at least 7 and perhaps 8 or 9 30 second spots as I lost count! In that stop set were two car commercials back to back! Speaking as anad agency, what the f*** can I possibly create that will make my clients commercial stand out in that hodge podge of spots. The listener is trained to tune out that segment of the program anyway because its merely commercial noise (Along with Looney traffic reports every 10 minutes that are read at 150 mph) waiting for the next song. By the way the station has also jacked up the rates so that 60 sec spots are so expensive on purpose. They can jam more 30 second spots in a stop set and they discourage 60's. After the commercial flight is over the client calls me and says radio doesn't work and he won't use it again. He's right and many agencies use other media that are just as or more effective then radio.
Last week the Fort Myers Florida newspaper ran a story that the Lombardo family of Sanibel was upset that there was zero interest in their turning over all of the masters and arrangements of the famous Guy Lombardo band. Lombardo and his Royal Canadian's were one of the premium big bands of the 30's, 40's and 50's. The Lombardo's fail to realize that their Uncle's fan base is dead and the music is so dated that current generations don't care for it. That's the same fate that waits music of the 50's, 60's and 70's ... it's the fate of all once popular music. Sorry!
Some good points to be sure ... but that all still boils down to the people in charge not knowing how to USE radio to the best advantage. (NOTHING will make a listener turn away faster than one of those six minute commercial blitzes you just talked about. Radio was NEVER foolish enough to break the listeners' attention span for more than 30 seconds ... that's why so many of the jocks even did their own commercials! Once you've switched over to something else, you might not come back! Isn't that Radio 101???)

The argument has been made for years now that the audience is dying off that appreciate the music of the '50's, '60's and '70's and therefore this music is simply disappearing ... it's the "circle of life", radio-style. These folks claim that THIS is the reason the music of the '20's, '30's and '40's became extinct ... simply a natural evolution.

But I disagree.
NO other music has ever captivated and endured the way rock and roll music has. The other day we ran a list of at least fifty ads that are currently running using old rock songs in their campaign. The music is prominently featured in movies and television, theme parks, advertising commercials, jukeboxes, reality show singing competitions and even six-year-old's birthday parties! It's literally everywhere you turn.
It's fun, feel-good music that sticks in your head ... and, as such, generations from now people will still be singing "Happy Together" and "Daydream Believer" and "Hound Dog". (Do you REALLY think for a minute 30, 40 or 50 years from now folks will be walking around reciting some angry rap lyrics at breakneck speed? It ain't gonna happen!!! They'll be far more likely to break into a chorus of "Do Wah Diddy Diddy Dum Diddy Do"!!!)
The music has proven itself to be timeless. This wasn't the case with the sounds of the '20's, '30's and '40's ... it didn't endure ... it didn't "comeback" and start a nostalgic phase. Heck, there must have been 20 Elvis Birthday Celebration Shows in Chicago alone this past week!!! (Somebody made a comment yesterday that Rick Saucedo has now played Elvis longer than Elvis himself did!!! And it very well may be true!!!) And don't even get me started on all the 50th Anniversary Beatles Celebrations that are being put together over the next few weeks!!!
There's never been anything else like it ... not for Bing ... not for Frank ... not for ANY of the big band leaders or killer vocalists that entertained our previous generations.

And this music continues to hold up against ANYTHING that has come out since. No, not all of it ... without question, a good percentage feels "dated" and would sound grossly out of place on radio today ... but I'll betcha in a week's time I could come up with a "definitive play list" of about 6000 songs that STILL sound great on the radio, still spark a special memory and will still captivate an audience regardless of age group ... and not one of those songs would have to be newer than 1980. Not to mention the fact that working from a list like that wouldn't require the non-stop repetitive repeats that are driving listeners away the way radio is today.
Variety and personality have NOT gone out of style ... we're just stuck with a generation of "leaders" who don't understand it or know how to use it ... and that's a shame ... because THAT is what will spell the death of radio once and for all. (kk)

↧

The Friday Flash

January 10, 2014, 4:54 am

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≪ Previous: Our Movement To Bring The True Oldies Channel Is Underway ...

re: This And That:

Big news this week is that David Letterman is trying to get Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr to perform together again on the stage of The Ed Sullivan Theater for the 50th Anniversary of The Sullivan Show when The Beatles first appeared on February 9, 1964. (Several other MAJOR events are already planned, including live tribute shows at The Apollo Theater and a Grammy Night Celebration / CBS Television Special called "The Night That Changed America".)

Who would have ever dreamed ... in their WILDEST fantasies ... that 50 years later this hot new "flavor of the month" fad known as The Beatles would still be relevant and able to turn the whole world on its ear with their every move. On January 21st, Capitol Records will release the complete US Collection of Beatles albums as originally released here in America ... album titles like "Beatles '65" and "Beatles VI",
'Yesterday' ... and Today", "Something New" and "Hey Jude" that didn't appear anywhere else in the world ... but album configurations that we grew up with (and wore the grooves out on) throughout the '60's.

Of course it will NEVER be the same without John Lennon and George Harrison ... but a Paul / Ringo collaboration ("All My Lovin'", anybody??? Or how about their duet on "Act Naturally"???) would still be pretty cool to see. (kk)

(The Beatles Live on The Ed Sullivan Show, circa 1964)

I stopped at Barnes and Noble on the way home from work today and the shelves are stocked full with Beatles books and magazines ... once again, people are making money by riding the coat-tails of The Fab Four. FH Reader Dave Barry tells us about another new book (this one written by noted Beatles Historian Mark Lewisohn) that sounds kinda interesting:

Check out the two sentences below I have highlighted in turquoise. My interpretation is that the U.K. release of this book has twice as many pages as the U.S. release. Is that your interpretation? If so, why would I want to buy the U.S. book, knowing that it's heavily abridged?--dB

JANET MASLIN
Published: December 11, 2013
On Oct. 12 or Oct. 13, 1961, Paul McCartney and John Lennon visited the Hôtel de Beaune in Paris, near the Seine, to have their hair cut by a friend. Mark Lewisohn, billed on his book jacket as “the world’s only professional Beatles historian,” may know more about this seminal pop-cultural event than anyone else on the planet, including Mr. McCartney. The budding Beatle might have been too caught up in the moment to remember its exact details. Mr. Lewisohn has had some 50 years to parse them.
TUNE IN
The Beatles: All These Years, Vol. 1

By Mark Lewisohn
Illustrated. 932 pages. Crown Archetype. $40.
In “Tune In,” the first installment of a projected three-volume history of the Beatles, Mr. Lewisohn describes how Jürgen Vollmer, a photographer then friendly with the Nerk Twins, as those two Beatles sometimes called themselves, obliged their wish to look less Liverpudlian and more Left Bank bohemian. So he cut Mr. McCartney’s hair first into what Mr. Vollmer called a Caesar style and what the guy on the other end of the scissors called “a kind of longhaired Hitler thing.” It looked better when it grew in.
Cuttings from both Beatles’ hair were stashed under the bed; their present-day eBay value is incalculable. The next morning the hotel concierge found the mess and was furious. “She would not be the last to scream over the Beatles’ hair,” Mr. Lewisohn writes.
And Mr. Lewisohn is not the first to describe that screaming. But he is the most scholarly and painstaking, and he is the most serious historian to have examined the Beatles’ lives and work. The results can be dubious at times, when the minutiae becomes too microscopic or when he assumes that what he has not uncovered cannot be known. As for romantic entanglements, for instance, during that same Paris sojourn, Mr. Lewisohn writes about Lennon, “It isn’t known if he and Paul got l’amour in Paris.” It probably is known to Mr. McCartney, who has cooperated with Mr. Lewisohn on many of his other Beatles projects. But Sir Paul stayed mum on this one. “Tune In” is liable to be approached slowly and suspiciously. It’s an opening salvo that doesn’t get beyond 1962. This edition, with text that runs 803 pages (lengthy notes and index are extra), turns out to be an abridgment of a two-volume version that was published in Britain and is nearly twice as long. And much more expensive. (That version is available by mail order from Britain; it hasn’t come out in the United States.) The most eager readers have little choice but to tackle both versions, a maddening battle plan. And this abridgment could have been short enough to be more approachable. But it is not: Mr. Lewisohn’s sometimes arrogant emphasis on research trumps his desire to make “Tune In” reader-friendly.
Still, the intrepid reader who enters the portals of “Tune In” is probably in the presence of slow-gestating greatness. The finished history promises to have monumental stature, and this warm-up may turn out to be its most revealing installment. Mr. Lewisohn executes the difficult trick of introducing five major characters — John, Paul, George, Ringo and Liverpool — and patiently establishing each before their paths cross. It is invaluable to view each band member as a separate individual, as in the case of Richy Starkey, a.k.a. Ringo Starr, who is the brashest, sexiest and sickliest of the four before he becomes a Beatle, three-quarters of the way into “Tune In.”It’s also eye-opening to read Mr. Lewisohn’s revisionist versions of the most widely propagated myths about band members’ early years, especially when it comes to Lennon’s romanticizing of his mother. “Tune In” pays close attention to the many American influences on the young pre-Beatles. (Was Lennon’s early group the Quarry Men or Quarrymen? Of course Mr. Lewisohn has a footnote for that.) They hit adolescence just as rock ’n’ roll records became buyable, and “Tune In” keenly chronicles the favorites that they would draw on or recycle, even for their name: Beatles was a play on Buddy Holly’s Crickets, simple as that. And he astutely points out that they had to experience their own versions of Beatlemania to inspire it later: Holly and Elvis Presley drove them wild.
George Harrison never forgot the sight of Eddie Cochran at a live show, brushing back his hairdo and murmuring “Hi, honey” to an adoring fan. Mr. Starr, after seeing Johnny Ray dropping postcard photos of himself out a hotel window, knew this was the life for him. If there is one overall point that “Tune In” makes emphatically, it’s that the Beatles didn’t happen by magic. They envisioned a highly original goal and then fought toward it, every step of the way.
Once readers get over the hump of tuning in to “Tune In” and accepting that it must be read at a very leisurely pace, Mr. Lewisohn’s nuances can be fully appreciated. He captures the internecine struggles and bonds that were so important to forming the band’s winning formula. There is much illuminating biographical material on both Brian Epstein and George Martin and keen insight into why they became essential to the Beatles’ success.
Then there are the extra Beatles, about whom much misleading information exists. These were teenage boys, after all, and they had friendships and rivalries. Mr. Lewisohn provides an in-depth explanation of why the bassist Stu Sutcliffe brought out Mr. McCartney’s possessiveness about Lennon, though Sutcliffe’s girlfriend, Astrid Kirchherr, had a strong influence on the band’s early look. As for Pete Best, the drummer who is one of many contenders for the moniker Fifth Beatle, Mr. Lewisohn treats him harshly. The book presents detailed evidence that he was recruited in desperation when the band needed a drummer for its stint in Germany and dismissed for two good reasons: he couldn’t keep a beat, and Mr. Starr was better.
“Tune In,” which starts out as a doorstop and evolves into a rich cornucopia for those with the patience to stay with it, concludes suspensefully on the last night of 1962, with the Beatles on the brink. The text’s last words, from Lennon: “It was just a matter of time before everybody else caught on.” And one last, welcome word on the final page: “Intermission.”

re: Saying Goodbye:

McCartney, of course, wrote, produced and performed on The Everly Brothers' 1984 comeback hit "On The Wings Of A Nightingale" (#50), not a bad track but not one I've heard played in memory of the recently departed Phil Everly ... so we'll run it here today in Forgotten Hits ... along with Macca's comments about losing Phil:

Phil Everly was one of my great heroes. With his brother Don, they were one of the major influences on the Beatles. When John and I first started to write songs, I was Phil and he was Don. Years later, when I finally met Phil, I was completely star-struck and at the same time extremely impressed by his humility and gentleness of soul. I will always love him for giving me some of the sweetest musical memories of my life.

-- Paul McCartney

From Vintage Vinyl News: Paul Simon also noted the Everlys' impact on the Beatles – as well as on his own duo with Art Garfunkel – in a 2004 Rolling Stone article. "The Everly Brothers' impact exceeds even their fame," he wrote at the time. "They were a big influence on John Lennon and Paul McCartney and, of course, on Simon and Garfunkel."

Got this from our FH Buddy Fred Vail ... and he's right ... when you see the accumulated list for the year, it REALLY has an impact. Today we remember some of the artists we lost in 2013.

This past November, I read an article that approximately 550 to 600 World War 2 veterans -- all members of 'the greatest generation' -- are dying on a daily basis. Proportionately, 2013 - 2014 has taken it's toll on dozens and dozens of some of the greatest pioneers of pop, rock, and rockabilly music. So far, in 2014, we lost one half of what could easily be called the greatest duo (and certainly the most influential) in the history of rock and roll, Phil Everly. We also lost one of the most noted lead singers, Jay Traynor of "Jay & The Americans" and lately of "The Tokens."

2013 took a far greater toll. We lost hundreds of singers, musicians, songwriters and a few key non-performer legends, perhaps, most notably Grammy Award winning producer / engineer Phil Ramone, "Crawdaddy" creator / publisher / author Paul Williams, impresario / promoter Sid Bernstein (95 years old and still snubbed by the RRHOF), Bobby Martin, producer / engineer and one of the architects of "the Sound of Philadelphia," producer / engineer Andy Johns (Stones, Hendrix, Rod Stewart, Clapton, Zeppelin), "Shindig" host / radio deejay Jimmy O'Neill and the incomparable 'star' of WLS and WCFL Radio, Chicago's Larry Lujack.

When we read about these fallen trailblazers in Forgotten Hits -- every few weeks or a few times a month -- it does not hit you like seeing them all in one place.

But below are 'some' of the folks who influenced our lives with their musical contributions.

RIP:

"Forgotten Hits" regular and friend, Alan O'Day (that one REALLY hurt - kk)

Former Mouseketeers and hit makers "Annette" and Dick(y) Dodd (The Bel Airs and Standells)

Patty Andrews (The Andrews Sisters)

"The Singing Rage, Miss Patti Page"

Marshall Lytle (Bill Haley and The Comets)

Bob Engemann (The Letterrmen)

Lou Reed

Bobby Blue Bland

Jewel Akens

Eydie Gorme

Richard Street (The Temptations)

Bobby Rogers (Smokey Robinson and The Miracles)

Jim Sundquist (The Fendermen)

Stanley Knight (Black Oak Arkansas)

Ray Manzarek (The Doors)

Floyd "Buddy" Mc Rae (The Chords / "Sh-Boom")

Reg Presley (The Troggs)

Leroy Bonner (Ohio Players)

Rick Huxley (The Dave Clark Five)

Ken Hodges (Spanky and Our Gang)

Robert "Bobby" Smith (principal lead singer, The Spinners)

Marvin Junior (The Dells)

Virgil Johnson (The Velvets)

Richie Havens

Shadow Morton

Tony Sheridan

Claude King

Peter Banks ("Yes")

Eydie Gorme

Clarence Burke (Five Stairsteps)

Joe Kelly (Shadows of Knight)

Drummer Tommy Wells

Gordon Stoker (The Jordanaires)

Marshall Sewell (The Edsels)

Alvin Lee

JJ Cale

Billy Adamson (The Searchers)

Pete Haycock (Climax Blues Band)

Allen Lanier (Blue Oyster Cult)

Doug Grasser (Ohio Players)

I'm sure there are a number of you out there who can add to this list --and, sadly -- there were dozens more including a number of additional musicians and songwriters.

We owe a debt of gratitude the wonderful musical legacy they left us.

Fred Vail

Treasure Isle Recorders, Inc.

Music City, USA

Right off the bat you can add these names to the list:

Sammy Johns ("Chevy Van")

Larry Verne ("Please Mr. Custer")

Bobby Parker (who we interviewed a couple of years ago in FH ... and very likely was screwed out of the royalties for the popular '60's song "You Got What It Takes", a hit for both Marv Johnson and The Dave Clark Five) Bobby also recorded the hit "Watch Your Step", the guitar riff from which John Lennon said inspired him to write The Beatles' #1 Hit "I Feel Fine". (It's always sounded a lot more like The Allman Brothers'"One Way Out" to me!!!)

Country Singer Jack Greene

Noel Harrison

Apple Records artist Jackie Lomax

Hugh McCracken (guitar whiz session player)

Emilio Pericoli (Al-Di-La)

Tompall Glaser

Marvin Rainwater (he spoke with Forgotten Hits many moons ago)

The legendary Slim Whitman

and Country Superstars George Jones and Ray Price

as well as (in addition to legendary DJ Larry Lujack), our FH Buddy "Wild Bill" Cody

Yep ... a VERY tough year for saying goodbye. (kk)

re: Diggin' The Charts / The Saturday Surveys:

Kent,
I thoroughly enjoyed looking through the radio surveys of other radio stations here in the country and to see what records made the surveys and which ones didn't that would turn out to be big hits on a national level.
You mentioned that the song GEORGIANNA was big in Chicago and didn't make the national charts. You said you didn't understand that. Many years ago, a man in record promotions told me that the question could be answered in one word and that one word was PAYOLA. I have had record promotion men look at weekly surveys and would and or could tell which ones were considered to be of the PAYOLA type. Who knows? Would be interesting to know just how many copies were sold at the various record shops in Chicago.
Finally, I learned something today. I was familiar, though not all that much, of the singing group Dave, Dee, Dozey, Beaky, Mick and Tich. I did not know they recorded the song BEND IT. That particular song by that group didn't chart here in OKC. However, a local group which called themselves the Noblemen did record it. For the week of March 16, 1967 here in OKC, their version of BEND IT peaked at #2. It was on CJL record label with a flip called STOP YOUR RUNNING AROUND.
Larry Neal

I have ALWAYS loved the song "Bend It" and it got a TON of airplay here in Chicago despite never making any of our local charts. (Even WIND used to play the heck out of this one.) My Mom loved it, too, and bought (and played) the 45 ... a couple of us kids bought copies, too.

I didn't learn until many, many years later that Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich recorded two DRASTICALLY different versions of the song ... we covered this AGES ago in FH (and I'll have to dig through the archives to see if I can find that piece) as apparently some folks thought the version we featured the other day was perhaps a little too "suggestive" for its time. To this day, I still don't get it ... and thought this song should have been a MONSTER hit here. (It never charted in Billboard and only spent one week at #100 in Cash Box. Back home in Great Britain (where these guys were a HUGE success), it peaked at #2. GREAT track as far as I'm concerned. The song that DID chart for them was the infinitely inferior "Zabadak" from 1968. Go figure. (kk)

UPDATE: No need to go digging through the ancient 2002 - 2006 archives ... I found highlighted excerpts up on the current website after all. You can check out this article, posted after Dave Dee died in 2009:

Click here: Forgotten Hits: Dave Dee Dies

I'm reading Mac Gayden's autobiography "Missing String Theory," and in one chapter he writes about his hit song "Everlasting Love." He states that the record (original Robert Knight recording) reached Number 13 on Billboard, and would have reached the Top Ten if Monument Records had agreed to buy a full page ad in Billboard . They refused, and the record stalled, then dropped. Have you heard of this kind of situation?

David Lewis

Unfortunately yes, and although not openly talked about in outside circles, apparently it was a fairly common practice exercised by all of the major publishing trades at the time. (Suffice to say that payola was NOT confined to radio stations and disc jockeys!!!) In fact, word is it still continues to this day, just in different "work around" formats. There has long been talk about which artists have gotten the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame nod in the past based on which record labels bought the $25,000 tables for the awards ceremony. Makes you wonder if ANYTHING was real back then. How do you truly trust ANY of the chart information when you know that tactics like this were going on behind the scenes.

And don't miss our brand new weekly feature, The Saturday Surveys, spotlighting charts from around the country. Be sure to check back tomorrow to see this week's edition! (kk)

↧

The Saturday Surveys (1-11)

January 11, 2014, 5:00 am

≫ Next: The Sunday Comments ( 01 - 12 - 14 )

≪ Previous: The Friday Flash

Three more great charts for your perusal in our brand new 2014 Saturday feature!

First up, a Top 20 Chart from KPOI in Hawaii!!! (How many Hawaiian charts have you seen before?!?!?)

We've told you that Chicago's own New Colony Six were EXTREMELY popular over there ... and here you'll find their latest hit "Long Time To Be Alone" (a song that petered out at #93 in Billboard ... and only climbed as high as #13 here at home) sitting at #8 ... on its way DOWN the chart after reaching #1 a few weeks earlier! (It was this record that allowed the band to fly over to the Hawaiian Islands for a series of shows in 1972, still one of Ronnie Rice's all-time favorite New Colony Six memories!)

Other than that, Hawaii was pretty much in-tune with the rest of the country ... although "American Pie" seems to be inching its way up the chart here rather than the full head-on attack it had nationally.

The Twist was all the rage in Louisville, KY, this week in 1961. You'll find Chubby Checker on top of the chart with his '60's anthem "The Twist", followed at #2 by Joey Dee and the Starliters and "The Peppermint Twist". Checker was climbing the charts with his follow-up hit, too ... "Let's Twist Again" is sitting at #16 in its second week on the chart.

Local group Cosmo had a Top Ten Hit with "I'm A Little Mixed Up", a track we featured AGES ago as part of our "Show Me Your Hits" feature where we spotlighted local, regional hits by artists that never made Billboard's Chart.

Here's a pretty amazing chart out of Oklahoma City, circa 1971.

Check out the #1 Song ... "D.O.A." by Bloodrock ...

This track was banned on numerous stations at the time.
(It IS pretty dark!!! And definitely not the kind of track you'd see the kids dancing to on American Bandstand!!!)
Seeing this one in The Top Five alongside such teeny-bopper fare as "Knock Three Times" by Dawn and "I Think I Love You" by The Partridge Family REALLY makes this typically "FM-Only" track stand out even more from the rest of the pack!

Then again, look at the hodge-podge of variety on the radio back then. Those really WERE the days ... when you could hear Bloodrock, Santana and Led Zeppelin all played during the same hour as hits by Lynn Anderson, Jerry Reed and Perry Como!!! (Man, what a different time it was!!!)

Another Forgotten Hits favorite on this list ... "Games" by Redeye, a track that peaked at #27 in Billboard but was already in the WKY Top 20!

All of this week's charts come courtesy of Clark Besch ... thank you, Clark!

Be sure to check back NEXT Saturday for more great Top 40 Memories! (kk)

↧

The Sunday Comments ( 01 - 12 - 14 )

January 12, 2014, 8:10 am

≫ Next: Sonny Geraci Benefit Concert Update

≪ Previous: The Saturday Surveys (1-11)

re: Diggin' The Charts:
Kent,
You were absolutely "right on" when you said that D.O.A. by Bloodrock wouldn't be the typical record one would dance to on American Bandstand. I went and pulled my 45 copy of it and the version that WKY played, needless to say, was the edited version which was 4:15 in length.
Also, it was great hearing GAMES by Redeye. I can't even come close to telling you the last time I heard that one on the radio. Incidentally, when I saw the word Redeye, it reminded me of an instrumental by the Champs out of the year 1960. Their instrumental REDEYE made our local survey here, aka WKY radio. I got it out and as one would say, "play it one more time".
Larry
I would have had to see it to believe it before I EVER would have thought that "D.O.A." could have topped ANYBODY'S Top 40 List ... but the proof is in the pudding as they say. (That's part of what makes looking at these old charts so much fun ... they point out the REALITY of the situation ... not some distorted or "hyped-up" memory!)
As for "Games", one of MY favorites, too ... and a #3 Hit here in Chicago ... where it performed MUCH better than its #22 national chart showing. I've gotta believe this one's worth at least the occasional spin two or three times a year ... wouldn't you agree? (kk)

I really enjoyed the charts you posted today. The one from Hawaii was interesting. What I really got a kick out of was the posting of the song D.O.A. I had forgotten all about that song and I think I know why ... 1971 ... senior year ... LSD ... good trippin song ... maybe too good ...

Stacee

Hi Kent,

The WKLO survey dated January 14, 1961, must have been a typo regarding the year because the Lettermen didn’t even have a contract with Capitol at that date and “When I Fall In Love” on this survey wasn’t a hit until a year later than the date posted on this survey. Now there's some real trivia for ya!

Thanks,

Gary Pike

Actually several astute FH readers wrote in to say that the date on this survey was off by a year ... it was really the January 14, 1962 chart. (You wouldn't believe the number of mistakes we've found on these surveys ... an issue nationwide apparently ... dates ... misspelled artists' names ... incorrect song titles ... some of these are just a mess!!! Evidently not much proof-reading going on at the time!) But thanks for the heads up ... this proves that folks are not only looking these charts over ... they're looking them over with a fine tooth comb!!! (That tells me that we've got another hit on our hands!) kk

Hey Kent,

I just wanted to point out that someone at WKLO still had 1961 on their mind, as that particular survey was for January 14th, 196*2*, but the old year was inadvertently entered onto the survey.I just did a countdown this past week on my radio show of the top songs this week in 1962 (most were on the WKLO survey), and almost thought I made a huge mistake! Uncle T. Jay

LOL ... in the first batch of surveys that Clark sent me I found THREE, I believe, that had the wrong year's date on them ... being so close to the turn of the new year, the staff working on these were probably so used to writing last year's date that it slipped right by them. (On a couple, Clark, or whoever the original owner of the survey was, crossed off or corrected the year ... looks like they missed it on this one!) kk

Hey Kent,

I love the new Saturday feature. I have been playing a few of the notable 'should have been biggers' on my Saturday night program. My two favorite stations growing up were WLS and WISM in Madison, Wisconsin. Both stations featured many local bands and took chances on good records that didn't make a big national splash.

WISM DJ and Music Director Johnathon W. Little is the brother of Jane Little who was in the Underground Sunshine (Birthday). I would love it if someone could find an old WISM chart. Those are kind of rare.

Phil Nee - WRCO

re: This and That:

Kent,

I loved your 18-hour trip through "the wild side."You had several of my favorites, particularly "Any Day Now (My Wild Beautiful Bird)" -- the song I've nominated every year (for at least three years) as my choice for No. 1 for Rich Appel's IRS list -- as the song most deserving that "It Really Should" have been a Top 10 hit.I also applaud your inclusion of Jan and Dean's "Ride the Wild Surf," Brook Benton's version of "Walk on the Wild Side" and the Beach Boys'"Wild Honey."The only "significant omission" that I saw -- hah, in my opinion -- was, actually my favorite Dee Dee Sharp song -- the 1963 song, "Wild!" which reached No. 33 on Billboard.
It's worth a listen:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxRmwvd3jhg
Best,Don Effenberger

Dee Dee Sharp's hit was on and off the list three or four times before I finalized it ... but that youtube link will give fans a chance to hear it now. Thanks, Don! (kk)

re: Up-Coming Shows:

Short notice on this one ... but maybe a few of our West Coast Readers can still take advantage:

Good Evening,

Hope this finds you well!
I wanted to let you know that Micky Dolenz of The Monkees will be performing LIVE in a star-studded benefit concert at The Pasadena Playhouse, on Monday, January 13th at 8 pm. This is a one-night-only special fundraising performance, benefiting The ALS Association - GoldenWest Chapter. In addition to the performances, the evening will include a silent auction and a VIP post-show meet-and-greet. Proceeds will provide critical funding for The ALS Association Golden West Chapter’s mission priorities in care services, public policy, and cutting-edge global research toward treatments and cure.
It's an amazing chance to see some incredible artists, and truly supporting a vital cause.

Info & tickets here: http://www.pasadenaplayhouse.org/box-office/special-events/onestarrynight.html
We would be so grateful if you would tweet, post on Facebook, email your contacts, and help to promote this benefit in any way possible.
Thanks for your support!
Jonathan White
Co-Producer, ONE STARRY NIGHT

Sorry this is going up so late, Jonathan ... we're still playing major catch-up here ... but hopefully some of our readers will want to get onboard for this good cause. (By the way Micky's coming back to Chicago in May to the Arcada Theatre ... hoping we can catch up with him there!) kk

Here's the latest word on a couple of Beatles Anniversary Tribute Shows coming up for our East Coast Readers:

Got this from Ron Dante:

Hi kk -

Here is a show that all our friends might like to hear about.

It take place a NYC Townhall on February 8th with a terrific line up.

Ron

AMERICA CELEBRATES THE BEATLES -

All-Star Gala Charity Concert, February 8th

NYC FAB 50 is proud to announce "AMERICA CELEBRATES THE BEATLES," taking place at Manhattan's Town Hall on Saturday evening, February 8. It is one of the star-studded charity concerts being held as part of "NYC FAB 50: Celebrating The Music of The Beatles" 50th Anniversary Celebration.

On February 7, 1964, The Beatles touched down on U.S.soil for the first time. Fifty years later, New York and the NYC FAB 50 Committee will be hosting several celebratory concerts with proceeds benefiting Food Bank For New York City. This once-in-a-lifetime event will "come together" on Saturday, February 8th, 2014, capping off a series of events under the "NYCFAB50" series.

Tickets for "AMERICA CELEBRATES THE BEATLES" will go on sale to the public through Ticketmaster next week, and there will be another special pre-sale exclusively for Beatles Examiner readers. The gala concert will feature veteran music legends, including an artist who had songs written for him by one of The Beatles, a singer whose only hit knocked The Beatles out of the #1 position on the charts, another singer who share the stage with John Lennon in New York at Madison Square Garden and a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame who released a single in 1964 titled “I Wanna Be a Beatle.”

Tommy James was admired by George Harrison so much that the Beatle wrote some songs for him to record. Between 1966 and 1969, Tommy enjoyed 14 Top 40 hits. From 1968-70, when artists like Jagger, Fogerty, and Morrison were in their heyday, Tommy James & the Shondells sold more singles than any other pop act in the world, many of them written, co-written, or selected by James. Most memorable were hits like "Hanky Panky,""I Think We're Alone Now," "Mony Mony," "Crimson and Clover,""Sweet Cherry Wine," "Crystal Blue Persuasion,""Tighter and Tighter," "Draggin' the Line" and "Three Times in Love." Tommy James has sold over 100 million records, has been awarded 23 gold singles, and 9 gold or platinum albums.

Gary DeCarlo wrote and sang one of the world's most famous rock anthems "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" under the band name Steam. The #1 hit has sold 7 million copies and has the distinction of replacing The Beatles'"Come Together/"Something" single at the top of the charts in 1969.

Melanie was one of the stars of Woodstock, appeared on the Ed Sullivan and Dick Cavett shows, and has sold over 80 million records. She sang with John Lennon on stage at the One-to-One Live in New York City concert at Madison Square Garden in 1971. She is best known for her hits "Brand New Key,""What Have They Done To My Song Ma,” "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)” and The Stones’ “Ruby Tuesday.”

Gene Cornish is the guitarist of The Rascals. From 1965–70, the band recorded eight albums and had thirteen singles that reached Billboard's Top 40 chart. In 1997, as a founding member of the Rascals, Cornish was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Before he was in The Rascals, he fronted his own band “The Unbeatables, who released the single “I Wanna Be a Beatle” in 1964.

Also confirmed for the star-studded evening are such artists as...

Greg Hawkes is best known as the keyboard player for The Cars, one of the greatest rock bands of the late 70s and 80s, but his first band, The Aardvarks, covered Beatles songs. He saw The Beatles in 1964, played keyboards on a record with Paul McCartney, and has recorded “The Beatles Uke,” an entire album of Beatles classics played on the ukulele.

Fred Schneider is the front-man for the world’s most famous party band, The B-52s, who have sold over 20 million copies and scored such hits as “Love Shack,” “Rock Lobster,” “Private Idaho” and “Roam.” The group recorded a version of The Beatles “Paperback Writer,” and Fred recorded a version of Beatles’ buddy Harry Nilsson’s hit “Coconut.” John Lennon loved The B-52s.

Ron Dante was the voice of The Archies. In an era dominated by The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, “Sugar Sugar” was the #1 selling record of 1969 in the U.S. That same year, Dante hit the Top 10 with the single "Tracy.” From 1973-1981, Dante was Barry Manilow’s record producer, and even sang back-up on Manilow’s recordings, including the 1974 #1 single "Mandy.”

Walter Egan, best known for the 1978 gold record, “Magnet and Steel” also wrote “Hot Summer Nights” which included such musicians as Nicky Hopkins (played piano with John Lennon) and Robbie McIntosh (from The Pretenders and Paul McCartney). He saw The Beatles live at Carnegie Hall on February 12, 1964!

Marshall Cranshaw played John Lennon in "Beatlemania" and Buddy Holly in the film "La Bamba." The singer/songwriter/guitarist's debut album, "Marshall Cranshaw" was acclaimed a pop masterpiece, and it spawned the Top 40 single “Someday, Someway. Over three decades he has released 13 albums, and has hosted his own radio show, “The Bottomless Pit,” on New York’s WFUV.

Ian Lloyd was lead singer for The Stories in the 70s. With one of the most distinctive and powerful voices in the history of Rock music, Ian Lloyd has been heard across the globe beginning in 1973 with his performance on Stories' #1 hit "Brother Louie" and then "Mammy Blue." Lloyd's vocal credits include Foreigner and many others.

John Ford is the London-born guitarist from the prog-rock band The Strawbs. In 2009 Ford won Best Indie Rock Artist of the Year from the Progressive Rock Hall of Fame, and in 2010, was inducted with the other Strawbs members into the PRHoF. One of his producers was Tony Visconti, who also produced Badfinger and David Bowie (among many others).

Beverly Bremers is the popular singer who hit the charts with the unforgettable song “Don’t Say You Don’t Remember.” She appeared in the original Broadway production of “Hair,” played in the L.A. stage production of “Rocky Horror Show” and is proud to have seen The Beatles live in concert twice in New York.

Randy Jackson is the lead singer, guitarist and leader of heavy metal band Zebra. Jackson grew up in New Orleans listening to The Beatles and Led Zeppelin. Legendary Long Island producer Jack Douglas, who produced John Lennon, helped on Zebra's early records.

Larry Kirwinis an expatriate Irish writer and musician, most noted as the lead singer for the NY-based Irish punk rock band, Black 47. He wrote the brilliant play about The Beatles, “Liverpool Fantasy” which was staged in 1986 and he has published several books, including a novel version of “Liverpool Fantasy.”

Siobhan Magnus is the powerhouse singer best known as a finalist on “American Idol” in 2010. She is best remembered for her rendition of “Across The Universe” on a show that featured all music by Lennon & McCartney. Her version of "Helter Skelter" garners rave reviews whenever it's performed live.

Aztec Two-Step released their first album in 1972. Since then, Rex Fowler & Neal Shulman have spent a lifetime making music together as the folk-rock duo Aztec Two-Step, remaining one of acoustic music's

Sonny Geraci Benefit Concert Update

January 13, 2014, 6:11 pm

≫ Next: Helping Out Our Readers

≪ Previous: The Sunday Comments ( 01 - 12 - 14 )

We had no Internet Service this morning so I couldn't post this when I originally intended ... but sometimes things have a way of working themselves out ...

Tonight's posting now includes new updates in this RIDICULOUS travesty ... and, by the time the news airs tonight at 10:00 in Ohio, I've got a hunch there'll be even MORE to the story!!!

re: Now That's Just WRONG!!!:

Kent,

I received this post from several musicians. This one is from Chris Montez. I want to pass it on to you. I am so upset about the outcome, but I must believe that there are so many of us who are loud that 'right' will win out.

Shelley

PLEASE SHARE THIS POST FROM Ronn Scala!!!!!

On February 14th and 15th The Gold Flashes Radio Network will be doing a 16 hour marathon benefit show for SONNY GERACI. I am going to try to right a great wrong that happened with the funds that were raised in Streetsboro, Ohio. As most of you all know by now, as of today, NONE of the money raised for SONNY GERACI has been given to his family. This was no fault of RAE, DENNIS, or THE KOCISKO FAMILY. The owner of the Z-PLEX has taken the money ... and has refused to tell or has given the total amount raised to the GERACI family. A police report has been filed against this man. So, with the help of some of the GREAT acts that preformed in Streetsboro, I will do this marathon show in order to raise monies for the Geraci family to help Sonny through this terrible time. There will be LIVE auctions of memorabilia donated by the souls who performed in Streetsboro. Donations will also be accepted. The show will begin FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 14TH at 6 pm EST, and I will be broadcasting LIVE until 10 AM EST on SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15TH. There will be LIVE guests as well as the LIVE auctions throughout the 16 hours of the broadcast. Interested parties may contact me here on Facebook, email me at, champbelts2000@comcast.net, or call me. PLEASE HELP ME RIGHT THE WRONG!!!!!!!.

God Bless -

Ronnie

VERY disturbing news ... I had REALLY hoped this would have been resolved by now.

This came last night from Dennis Tufano, understandably upset (and rightfully so) ... we'll continue to keep you posted as things develop:

Kent -

Just as the posting states, the owner of the venue refuses to release the funds he collected at his venue to the Geraci Family. After multiple emails scheduling the transfer of the funds, he only makes excuses. The case has been given to the Streetsboro Police and the TV stations are covering the situation. This guy even withdrew his donation of the cost of the venue ($5000) and took the money out of ticket sales and put it in his pocket. The lowest of the low is to steal money going to a family in need. He also on his expenses report included a charge of $900 for some horrible steam table pasta and frozen meatballs which was supposed to be for the acts. Nobody ate it but his staff. All the acts complained to us that it was not good. Two days of pasta for $900???? Hello?

So, not only did he "allegedly" embezzle the funds but he took $5900 off his donation to pocket.

I hope he spent it on prayers because he will need them.

Thanks for your concerns.

Dennis Tufano

I also talked with Bob Gaetjens, the reporter whose column we referenced last week when word of this incident went wide. Bob said that he was not giving up on his investigation ... and expected to post an update soon.

Just a few hours later, this article appeared in The Gateway News in Streetsboro ...

Owner ‘Chef’ Bill Thompson turns over reins of Streetsboro’s Stringz & Wingz

Complaint regarding donations sent to prosecutor’s office

by Bob Gaetjens | EditorPublished: January 13, 2014

Stringz & Wingz Owner “Chef” Bill Thompson said he’s giving up ownership of the restaurant and entertainment venue at Streetsboro Plaza, effective Jan. 15.
Taking over as owners are current minority partners Steve Mathis and Robert Kale, as well as General Manager Kyle Kendrick, according to a Jan. 13 news release from Thompson.
Kendrick said he's "just an employee" at the facility and isn't becoming an owner.
"There's nothing that's been turned over to me," he said.
Streetsboro Family Days Founder Chuck Kocisko filed a police report Dec. 30, which alleged Thompson hadn’t yet paid to Streetsboro Family Days about $28,726 from a fundraising concert for Streetsboro Family Days regular Sonny Geraci’s family, according to Streetsboro Police Lt. Darin Powers.
Thompson said bad publicity from the event moved him to part ways with Stringz & Wingz.
“That way, [the new owners] can salvage the business,” he said. “I’ve just been dragged through the mud.”
Geraci has been recovering for about 18 months from an aneurysm, and the funds are to be used to help defray medical costs. Powers said the case has been handed over the Portage County Prosecutor’s office.
Thompson said he plans to pay $23,860 to the Geraci family directly sometime this week via his attorneys, bypassing Streetsboro Family Days in the transaction. Thompson said he had earlier planned on donating about $4,796 in expenses that he no longer plans to donate, which accounts for the lower figure he plans to pay the family.

A few comments to the paper criticized "the haters" who seem to forget that Bill Thompson is a family man running a struggling business and perhaps needed these funds to right things in his own world. (WHAT?!?!?) The guy point blank misrepresented himself, took advantage of a family that has already been grieving for a year and a half now and then reneged on not only his original promise to donate an additional $4796 but failing to meet two previously imposed deadlines to turn the money over. Let me get this straight ... we're supposed to feel SORRY for this guy?!?!? (kk)

The haters? You mean the decent, non thieving people of Streetsboro that are angry their donations didn't go where they were supposed to, putting a dark spot on that town? He out right stole ... I'm sorry, borrowed ... the money to get himself out of a jam, thinking he could make it back up with his next big venue. The problem with that is he can't control his mouth or his temper on social media so he's lost a lot of customers. He let his "mini me" Kyle run the place and let's be honest, he's not very personable. The food was great when chef Bill made it, otherwise it was cold.
The truth to this whole situation is Chef Bill kept money that didn't being to him. Pay pal, paperwork, counting money ... all excuses, especially when all the money wasn't accounted for at least two weeks after the event.
The excuses need to stop. He is being sued by his former landlord and has been in trouble for bad checks. Eventually greed catches up with you and you pay the price. The people of Streetsboro are not stupid and are no longer buying the excuses.
get real 6789

Hi Kent,
I have heard that Streetsboro Family Days has given over their part of the fundraising money to Sonny. I can't confirm that and I don't know the amount, maybe you can find out??

As of today, January 13, no money has been given to Sonny's family from Stringz & Wingz. I know it's upwards of $24,000. A police report has been filed and charges are pending with the Portage County Prosecutor's Office.

I also know that all three major TV stations are at Stringz & Wingz right now as I type this so I'm sure there will be something on the news tonight.

I also heard that Streetsboro Family Days plans to donate their start up money for their annual festival to Sonny to try and right this wrong. I don't know how accurate that is either. Maybe someone else can verify.

Here is a link to a news article that was posted online today ... http://www.thegatewaynews.com/news%20local/2014/01/13/owner-chef-bill-thompson-turns-over-reins-of-streetsboro-s-stringz-wingz

It'll be interesting to see if there are any new developments after this story runs on the news tonight. But for right now, people are pissed!!! I know several FH readers made donations to this cause out of the kindness of their hearts to help one of our fallen idols ... and this clown has absolutely NO rights to this money ... he didn't do ANYTHING!!! Stay tuned ... I'm sure there's more to come! (kk)

↧

Helping Out Our Readers

January 14, 2014, 4:18 am

≫ Next: More Of Your Radio Comments

≪ Previous: Sonny Geraci Benefit Concert Update

re: Helping Out Our Readers:

>>>Most folks probably don't realize that Phil Everly recorded "The Air That I Breathe" first, prior to the hit Hollies version! (kk)

Albert Hammond actually had it out first, on his It Never Rains In Southern California LP in 1972. Phil followed in 1973.

Tom Diehl

I suppose that would make sense ... since he WROTE the song!!! (lol) Thanks, Tom! You'll find it below. (kk)

I've still got to give MAJOR props to The Hollies for hearing something that just wasn't there in the original ... Albert Hammond's version is about as stripped down as can be ... and the Phil Everly take (featured the other day in Forgotten Hits) really just adds the typically expected Everly Brothers-sounding harmony ... but The Hollies do a full-blown assault on this track, with layers of vocals enhancing the song's richness and fullness. Years later Julio Iglesias would record it again with The Beach Boys providing the background vocals! (kk)
Click here: ? Julio Iglesias The Air That I Breathe w Beach Boys [1984] 1100 Bel Air Place.flv - YouTube

I was reading your fine blog and came across this discussion from 6/14/13 regarding the Youngtones and a song called Come On Baby. This song was put out on the Brunswick label in August of 1958, record number 9-55089. Hope this will solve that little mystery for that Scottish gentleman.

Pete G.

Please thank Glenn Murphy for the question about the New Colony Six and, just in case it would be news to you, Kent, Gerry (Van Kollenburg) told me that “Run” was the flipside of I Don’t Really Want To Go”.

Ray Graffia, Jr.

Thanks, Ray. We featured that A-Side a while back in Forgotten Hits. "Run" doesn't sound like anything else at all that The New Colony Six recorded ... I'm not sure I could have picked it out of a line-up myself!!! (kk)

With all of the freezing rain yesterday and today, I thought this was a good song to play.
Do you remember this song by a group with ties to Wisconsin?
Phil - WRCO

I sure do ... I used to LOVE this song ... can't believe it never charted. I remember buying the whole album for this tune but, as I recall, it was about the ONLY listenable track on the entire LP! I had no idea The Movies had Wisconsin ties.

GREAT suggestion ... and perfect for the deep freeze we've all been in for the past week or so ...

Although I think HALF of our snow has melted now thanks to all the rain. (Much better till it freezes up at night and makes it even more treacherous than before!) And I heard there's supposed to be another polar vortex coming, too ... gotta love it! Thanks, Phil! (kk)

The leader of The Movies was Michael Morgan of the Messengers.

Phil

Wow! I had absolutely no idea! That puts you one up on me!!!

This song always reminded me of "Back When My Hair Was Short" by Gunhill Road ... another GREAT Forgotten Hit you can feature on your program. (When's the last time anybody heard THAT one ... outside of Forgotten Hits that is!!!) kk

Hi,

I found your site while I was looking for an old song online. I wondered if you have any info on a song I think was called "It". It was on the flip side of a 45 record and one side had "The Twelve Days of Christmas With the Cleveland Browns". I'm curious who wrote and performed the song It. I hope you can help me!

Thanks in advance ~

Allison S.

Wow - this is going to be a tough one ... obviously a VERY specialized recording for a very special market ... but we've got a lot of listeners in the Cleveland area so let's give it a shot! Keep watching these pages, Allison ... you never know WHAT we're going to come up with ... we just may surprise you!!! (kk)

And then ... I swear ... not thirty seconds later ...

OK, I found it!!! It was a record put out by Walter and Bennett Elliott ... and I found TWO copies for sale at Gemm.com ... and you can pick up a near mint copy for just two bucks!!!!

Click here: The Twelve Days Of A Cleveland Brown Christmas/It - Elliott Walter&Bennett: LP - GEMM.com
And you can listen to itagain here:

Click here: ? It by Elliott, Walter & Bennett - YouTube Thank you so much! You're the greatest. Thanks again!

Allison

↧

More Of Your Radio Comments

January 15, 2014, 4:28 am

≫ Next: Thursday This And That

≪ Previous: Helping Out Our Readers

re: Bringing The Oldies Back to WLS-FM:
To All:

I'm a long time member of the "Forgotten Hits" newsletter and website. You may have gotten a few emails similar to this one recently. I will make my point brief.

I no longer listen to Chicago radio AT ALL. Since I got satellite radio in my car (and internet radio at my desk), I'm no longer being held hostage to songs like "Brown Eyed Girl" 800 times a day. And I will not resume listening to local Chicago radio until you start playing songs people actually want to hear.

The current playlist makes me want to punch a wall, I'm so sick and tired of it!!

Kristy White

>>>Variety and personality have NOT gone out of style ... we're just stuck with a generation of "leaders" who don't understand it or know how to use it ... and that's a shame ... because THAT is what will spell the death of radio once and for all. (kk)

LOL! Kent ... as always I appreciate your web page. To comment on your radio airplay hits, I tend to agree. I think the reason why the songs from the 20's, 30's and on didn't survive is because they were never marketed. No one had the money to continue playing them and giving them the publicity and air play that they deserved. A lot of the songs were from the "Depression Era". Luckily my Mom was good about passing those songs along to me and helped to nurture in me a huge appreciation for music. Perhaps you remember "Bye Bye Black Bird." or "You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby," or "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles," "Has Anybody Seen My Gal," etc. Like the oldies, those songs still live. They have a way of taking on a life of their own. I don't think radio will ever die as long as there are audiences who still like the oldies and people that appreciate good music. That is music that makes them happy. You might be interested to know that when I visit the nursing homes, I still see the folks enjoying the songs that were from 80 and 90 years ago. Amazing! Good music has a way of becoming part of one's dna. You're right when you say the "leaders" don't understand the music or how to use it. But I see that it is "seeping" into advertisements and movies so perhaps there is hope.

Blossmwrld

Like I've said, at this point we'll take it any way we can get it! It was certainly not the intent of these artists when these songs were written for their songs to be used in commercials to sell candy bars and insurance ... but right now it's keeping the music alive, introducing it to a new audience and hopefully along the way generating a few royalty checks and licensing deals for the original songwriters and artists. (Witness Paul Evans' email from a couple of weeks ago ... he's THRILLED that his music is being used in television commercials right now!) Honestly, ANYTHING to keep it out there is a plus ... but the most LOGICAL venue to make this happen continues to ignore its potential and magnitude ... and that's just a shame. (kk)

Kent,
Just letting you know I hear your plea! I have been thinking about my place in this situation and have decided to write a letter to the address you provided and also fax same. I am a fairly decent writer, and this way I have provided something they can hold in their hand. (yeah ... and tear it up, too) I can also send follow-ups, questioning them on how they perceive their situation. Of course the question of children, education, their reactions ... maybe some quotes from their journals just might pop up in the print. It is always worth a try. If we don't look ahead and expect better, then we are reduced to looking behind and feeling incomplete.

You keep saying that this music is timeless and that future generations will enjoy it as much as we did, if only given the chance. Well Kent, my son just sent me a video of my 13 month old granddaughter using his phone to find, play, and listen to The Beatles. Apparently she does this on a regular basis. Take THAT Cumulus Broadcasting! Not just MY children, but my children's children.
Shelley J Sweet-Tufano

About five years ago we were driving our daughter and three of her friends to some after school function and, naturally, I had the oldies station on in the car (because we HAD one back then!!!) Pretty soon I heard the girls singing along ... with nearly every song that came on the radio. And then, just faint enough to hear, one of them whispered "I hate to admit it ... but I really do love the oldies" to which another replied "So do I." I couldn't help but smile. No, they would NEVER tell their folks ... or risk becoming social outcasts by admitting this to their friends ... but in the safe, secure, privacy of my back seat they let their guard down a little bit and confided in each other.
We hear it performed at their school concerts ... again, back in the day when we HAD oldies radio in Chicago it was not at all uncommon to find Paige calling the radio station on a Saturday Night and requesting the great Motown classic "It Takes Two" or "Love Will Keep Us Together" by The Captain and Tennille or "Yo Yo" by The Osmonds. As recently as a year and a half ago (when she was sixteen) Paige asked me one morning, "Why is EVERY Beatles song so good? What did THEY have that the other groups didn't have? ... Every song you play by them ... and every song I hear by them ... is just SO much better than the rest. No WONDER they were so popular!" (Two MAJOR enlightening factors in this epiphany were the facts that she had just watched ... and fallen in love with ... the Beatles movie musical "Across The Universe" ... and had just discovered Side Two of "Abbey Road", which she then played incessantly for about the next three weeks!!!)
Sunday afternoon while flipping thru the television channels I found a PBS station that was running a back-to-back marathon of programs filmed at The White House ... concerts by many of today's contemporary stars ... and the one thing that ALL of these had in common was they were salutes to the music of our generation, some 40 to 50 years later ... "The Motown Sound" ... the "Songs of Hal David and Burt Bacharach" ... the "Songs of Carole King" ... the "Songs of Paul McCartney" ... many Gershwin Honorees by the President and Mrs. Obama ... but ALL saluting and performing the music that we keep maintaining will never die. That's because this music is TIMELESS ... for ALL generations to enjoy.

Look at the PBS T.J. Lubinsky Concerts that air constantly ... check out many of the concert programs on Palladia ... ALL featuring the music of our generation that radio for SOME crazy reason thinks is no longer relevant or marketable.

It's the blind leading the blind, hiding behind consultant research that doesn't in any way, shape or form reflect reality. (See my analysis below in my comments back to former Y103.9 deejay Jim Shea ... and then FIND me that person that these consults continue to insist exists!!!)

It's just RIDICULOUS!!! (kk)

I, too, like Scott Shannon's True Oldies format ... that's why I listen via his web app since that's the only way we have in Chicago now to hear that format. But I do agree with you that Cumulus should think about placing it on one of their HD channels here in Chicago.

Rich R.

There's just something about being able to push the button and hearing it on the car radio. It just isn't the same when it's computer background music and you have to be sitting at your desk in order to hear it! (kk)

No way does Cumulus allow oldies to return to WLS-FM. The format of oldies ... music through the mid-70s ... is not advertiser friendly.
There is also the fact the station would have many, many, over 60-year-old listeners.
I need to explain some realities which are unpopular:
1. Whatever oldies format works in another city or town, doesn't mean it will work in Chicago.
2. Oldies would attract listeners under 60 ... however, not enough to satisfy the advertising agencies. Their flawed thinking is younger people are more impulsive and willing to buy new technology. Whether it be cars, smart-phones, HD TV sets, etc. I am not saying older people do not have disposable income. That's not it. It's the notion of getting the older people to respond to the advertising the way the younger people do. It's not fair, but many things in life are not. WLS-FM, needs younger listeners. Oldies will not deliver enough of them.
3. Bottom line: Pretty much what you hear on WLS-FM, will continue to be heard. It seems like this station is making a deliberate attempt to shake off much of its past.
4. For the those who may not be aware, radio is strictly a business. One function is to entertain. However, advertising revenue is the deciding factor in what formats are heard in major cities. Personally, I love Jazz music. Will I hear it on an over-the-air FM signal in Chicago? Not likely. For those who like Dance music or say, Active Rock? Forget it. Not a chance it will be playing in Chicago on a major FM signal. This is the reality. What it boils down to are niche formats as I have described and again I will say ... what plays well in Peoria or Rockford, will not necessarily work in Chicago.

Dave DuBrow

A couple of flaws in this line of thinking, the most OBVIOUS one being exactly what we've been alluding to on the website ... the powers that be at WLS-FM are IDIOTS if, in fact, "the station is making a deliberate attempt to shake off much of its past." That alone would stand as one of the biggest bone-head decisions of all time if true. WLS is one of the very few stations left that can rightfully bill themselves as one of the "greatest radio stations of all time" ... other spots on the dial would KILL to have their legacy. (The reason I think it's NOT true is the simple fact that the station has gone out of its way to bring back the legendary jocks who were on the station back in their hey-day ... that's why you've still got guys like Brant Miller, John Records Landecker, Dick Biondi and ... until recently ... Fred Winston broadcasting from the WLS bandwidth. They just brought in a HUGE Chicago name from the past by way of one-time top morning man Robert Murphy and continue to employ Greg Brown, whose name is synonymous with oldies music thanks to all his years at Magic 104. All things being honest, I don't think they know WHAT they want ... or how to go about achieving it!

As stated before, there are at best a handful of stations nationwide that hold the historical legacy that WLS has ... failure to capitalize on this and use it to the station's best advantage only proves my point that the wrong people are in charge.

And secondly the oldies format DOES work in Chicago ... other than a few isolated months here and there, Chicago has had an oldies station with devoted listeners since the late 1970's and early '80's. WGLD, WFYR (the great Chicago Fire), Magic 104, Real Oldies and True Oldies have ALL made their mark here ... the city has embraced each and every one of these stations. When Magic 104 flipped over to the Jack-FM format here a few years ago, it failed miserably. Scott Shannon brought The True Oldies Channel in and listeners flocked to WLS-FM to hear their favorite music again ... and because this format is once again missing from our airwaves, I'm betting they'll come out in even bigger droves this time around if WLS simply flips back to the music that made them legendary in the first place. (And guess what station is currently occupying the old Magic 104.3 spot on the radio dial ... why it's K-Hits!!! And guess what ... although they started out promoting themselves as Chicago's '60's, '70's and '80's channel ... and, thanks to their links to the VERY successful WCBS-FM in New York should have had a REAL handle on how to program here to the Chicagoland market ... they're now simply yet ANOTHER "Classic Hits" station ... just another one of many on the dial ... at least SIX in fact, playing the exact same music.)
Simply put, Chicago doesn't need six major stations programming from the exact same play list ... besides, Cumulus already has one of those now that they've purchased The Loop, on which they're reportedly deepening the play list to better help distinguish it from WLS-FM who are already playing many of the same songs and artists ... as are The Fox, The Drive and The River. Come on ... how many times a day do we REALLY need to hear "Comfortably Numb" and something by Led Zeppelin ... not to mention the always present "Jack And Diane", Steve Miller, Fleetwood Mac, The Who and Boston? We truly have reached the point where when nearly ANY given song comes on the radio today, you can no longer tell which station it's on because they're all playing the exact same thing ... and more and more lately, at the exact same TIME!!! You switch from one station to another, only to find that the exact same song is playing there, three words apart from what you just turned off!!! How does a radio maintain ANY identity with THAT sort of programming? There is no longer ANYTHING unique about any one of them to make them stand out from the rest of the pack. (kk)

I was going thru some surveys for upcoming posts and ran across one that was sufficient for your WLS plea to play GOOD and lost oldies! This comes from a WDRC Hartford, Connecticut, survey from Feb 5, 1971. It could be an ad for FH, but change the "Big D" to WLS and there you have your ad for your project!! Where are the cool ideas for contests anymore?? Ever hear a contest on radio these days that is actually a great idea, or one that ties in with radio programming like this??

Clark Besch

And then this, too, from Clark, remembering when serious thought and creativity went into making YOUR radio station stand out from the rest, a lost art to be sure.

Kent,

Dan Hughes is a big radio fan of the old days and sent me this about the charts:
Clark,
Your note on KDWB / WDGY reminds me of a couple of stories.
First, in 1963, KDWB was seen as the "hip" kids' station, and WDGY was the older "establishment" station.
KDWB was 630 on the dial, and they called themselves something like KDWB - Radio 63 (it rhymed). And all through the year 1963, they played a three-second promo at least once an hour: "63. That's easy to remember."
And I remember a great little promotion they did one winter. Just before top-of-the-hour news, they played a guy with a deep voice saying, "In the past hour, KDWB played 19 songs. Guess what station played just 15 songs?" and then right into the legal ID and the news.
Finally, you'll love this:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10153436924295294&set=o.117838651605001&type=2&theater
Best,
-- Dan

I read your blog post about the possible departure of Chicago's WLS 94.7 FM as an oldies station. Does Chicago's K-Hits 104.3 FM count?

Also: I stopped listening to WLS 94.7 FM Chicago when the station dropped from Sunday mornings Casey Kasem's American Top 40 - The 1970's in November of 2013 after two and a half years carrying the show. Now I wish that 93.9 WLIT My FM would pick up Casey Kasem's American Top 40 - The 1980's!

Darryl Heine

K-Hits seems to have also picked up the same "Classic Hits" format and play list as the other stations in town. They started out playing legitimate hits of the '60's, '70's and '80's (although always FAR more '80's than '60's ... take "Beatles Wednesday" out of the mix and you'll find very little music at all from the '60's on the station anymore, despite their slogan promising to play "The Greatest Hits of the '60's, '70's and '80's") ... but now they seem to have gone the Classic Rock / FM Rock route, too, by featuring more of the kind of music you'd expect to hear on WLS-FM, The Drive, The Loop, The River and The Fox. That gives us SIX stations in town now feeding us the exact same music ... enough to make ANYBODY stop listening. (How come their high-priced consultants haven't figured THAT out yet?!?!?)

Once Upon A Time I made an open-ended offer to K-Hits when they first started out to help with some programming ideas. This was right around the time Jan Jeffries shook things up at WLS-FM and their ratings took a huge plunge and K-Hits actually overtook them in the Chicago Ratings Book. But K-Hits is a CBS affiliate station ... and WCBS-FM out of New York is a very successful oldies station, proving again that it's not the format that doesn't work ... it's knowing what to DO with the format that makes the difference. Sadly, they weren't interested in any "outside advice" ... and now just keep diving deeper and deeper into the album rock arena, leaving more and more listeners behind in the process. (If THAT'S the music I want to listen to, I'm going to switch over to a station that does it a WHOLE lot better like The Drive or The Loop ... and NOT somebody who's going to sprinkle in some Top 40 Pop or Disco into the mix!!!) Make up your mind what you want to be, K-Hits ... 'cause right now you're not winning over ANYBODY! Your falling ratings should tell you that. Has ANYBODY in radio EVER questioned the possibility that maybe ... just MAYBE ... the consultants are wrong ... and listeners are fed up with the same diet being fed to us day after day after day literally everywhere we turn? (kk)

Kent,

WLS-FM needs to improve its playlist, drastically. Why, on one Sunday, when it was live and local, I had the pleasure of hearin’ ‘Ring of Fire’ by Johnny Cash, AND ‘the Gambler’, by Kenny Rogers Can’t get variety like that anyplace else. I’m all for adding more music and variety to the playlist. Many forgotten top 40 hits, from the 60s thru the 80s.

Dave Wollenberg,
Wheaton

Hi Kent,
Just catching up on Forgotten Hits and loved hearing "Games" by Redeye. So much GREAT music out there that doesn't see the light of day anymore. I remember "consultants" telling us "it's better to be playing a hit when your competition is playing a song that isn't a big hit!" After a while you have to ask yourself, how much vanilla can you give the public before they finally scream for chocolate -- and what has more listener value in the long run, a song that is played over and over 10,000 times or a song that hasn't been played in awhile and surprises your audience and gets them to say to themselves: "Wow, I haven't heard that one in ages and that sure brings back memories!" When is the last time you heard songs such as "Painted Ladies" by Ian Thomas (brother of comedian Dave Thomas) -- just because it didn't make the final cut on focus group number 500 doesn't mean it isn't good music and doesn't have listener value. Even Classic Rock stations who have purported to disdain the high-rotation lists of Oldies and Top-40 stations now find themselves doing the same rotational sins they have condemned others for. "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Stairway To Heaven" no longer have the listener draw and magnetism they once had, not because they aren't GREAT songs but because high-rep playlists have driven the public to high levels of saturated listener-fatigue. You mix that in with a deregulated media and about five corporations programming the masses and you have about as much variety as the ketchup aisle at Wal-Mart. The keyword is safe -- the by-product is BORING! And they wonder why listenership is down and people are seeking other avenues. This country now has about as much local and regional media taste and identity as a homogenized Burger King menu. You keep going to the corner cafe for your burger and McDonald's will get the message. You would hope the media giants would be more concerned with taking care of their customers then they are with their share-holders but as we have seen more often than not, that's not the case. You and your friends quit listening to vanilla radio and eventually they'll get the message, because to them a wallet's whisper is louder than a listener's scream!
Peace,
Tim Kiley
Unfortunately, radio has been insulting the intelligence of their audience for decades now, hiding behind consultants and research that claims they're giving their listeners what they really want ... because they're not smart enough to want more ... they're not capable of absorbing more.
I just checked ... between 1956 and 1986, just over 4800 songs made Billboard's Top 20 Hot 100 Pop Singles Chart.
A radio station that's programming 200 songs accounts for 4% of its potential source material ... 300 songs, 6%. Heck if you just said "I'm going to throw HALF of this list out the window because it's dated" ... or "it doesn't test well" ... or any number of other half-assed reasons ... that would STILL leave you with 2400 songs to choose from.
Do something NEW with this information!!!
Here's a radio challenge for you ... programming advice free of charge, first come, first served.
For 2014, pick 2,014 songs from this very list ... Top 20 songs that DON'T get played on the radio anymore ... and PLAY THEM!!! Promote the heck out of it! Let your audience decide. You can still program in the same crap you're playing all day long ... but dedicate your station each and every hour to playing at least ONE of these 2014 chosen few. Why, it'd take you almost three months to play them all!!! But for three months your listeners will be treated to an unexpected surprise ... something they'll want to stay tuned in for just to see what surprise you've come up with next. My guess is they'll not only LOVE it, but will also start offering their OWN suggestions of GREAT Forgotten Hits!!!
Will SOMEBODY out there PLEASE do this so we can prove these consultants wrong once and for all?!?!? (kk)

Hi Kent,
True Oldies ... it should be everywhere!

The big station here (So Cal) is KRTH and it's mostly 70's and up with no 50's at all ... ouch!

Thanks,

Davie Allan

Hi Kent,

Your sentiments are beautiful. Your cause is just. You are absolutely right about the format.
However ...
And not to be discouraging here, but the guy you have to convince in Jan Jeffries. I will relate my one experience with the man and you tell me whether or not he is a psycho.
I was working part time at the AC station (Star 97 I believe they called it) in Nashville in 2000, between full time jobs. I was filling in on the midday show. I was new and perhaps did not fully understand the format. The lunchtime hour music log listed three request positions. Right off the bat I got a request for "The Reflex" by Duran Duran. I aired the call and played the song, dropping "Manic Monday" by the Bangles.
Jan Jeffries walks into the studio about 40 seconds into the song (we have never met, he is just in visiting from Atlanta) and says he'd like to see me after the show in his office.
I stroll in, expecting a nice "get acquainted" sit down. But instead he grills me about dropping the Bangles in favor of Duran Duran. I told him I saw the request position, etc., and he listens patiently and then proceeds to lecture me about how "Manic Monday" is one of the top testing songs with Women 25-34, and how on earth could I have not known that ... and his tone was as if he was trying to fathom this obvious death wish I had for my career, because I had obviously nuked any possibility I might have had with the company. For playing fucking DURAN DURAN, okay? That some 25-34 year old woman actually requested!!! It's not like I played "Dead or Alive", right?
Soon afterward they put me over on the jammin' oldies station which they flipped a few weeks later to alternative rock and I stopped getting hours and took a morning job in Evansville.
My point is that the whole Dickey organization is based on research ... finding what people want (meaning what is most familiar to them) and providing it, thus making it more familiar. That is the basis of their corporate creedo. That is what you are asking him to change. This is like asking Arnold Schwartenegger to do Shakespear.
Jim Shea
LOL ... LOVE it!!! Thanks, Jim. The ONLY up-side to your note is the fact that Jan Jeffries is no longer in the position of power at WLS-FM ... and, in fact, it was under HIS regime that the ratings TRULY sunk ... so much for research and know-how. (I've said this a million times but these "research consultants" are clearly asking the WRONG people!!! I defy you to find me ANYBODY on this planet who will tell you:
"Well, what I REALLY want is to hear "Jack And Diane" eight to ten times a day ... and when you're not playing that, could you please play Steve Miller and "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey instead? OK, sure, I understand that you can't ONLY play these three songs and artists ... so go ahead and stick "More Than A Feeling" by Boston in there half a dozen times as well, ok? And maybe six or seven things by Fleetwood Mac or Bob Seger or Billy Joel. And don't forget "Tiny Dancer"!!! Lord knows we can't go a day without hearing THAT one six or seven times!!! But that's it, ok?!?!? Because, truthfully speaking, I'm just not intelligent enough to absorb any more than that. OK? Got it?  Thank you ... oh, and please mark me 'Loyal Listener #1'."
Cumulus is in the VERY enviable position to be able to make a noticeable change here ... and they already own one of the most powerful stations in the history of radio ... and I've just GOT to believe that they want to make people forget the complete disaster this station has experienced over the past 12-15 months. Suck it up ... save face ... and give the listeners what they REALLY want. The timing is perfect ... and the time is NOW!!! (kk)

Cumulus is VERY committed to Classic Hits formats ... so I doubt you will get too far, despite the total logic behind your argument. There is no logic to be found within the walls of Cumulus' corporate headquarters.
Anonymous by Request
Yes ... but maybe we can tap into something here ... as far too often these corporate big wigs fail to see the obvious. Cumulus now has FOUR stations on the air here in Chicago ... including a Classic Hits format, a Classic Rock format, an Indie / Alternate Music format and an All-Talk format ... and, from what I understand, the option for one more station that just as easily could have gone Country. That pretty much gives them one of everything ... a WIDE variety of options on the dial ... and you know the old saying ... throw enough shit against the wall and sooner or later something will stick. But since there are already four OTHER "Classic Hits" stations already playing the exact same music in town, why not diversify and give the listeners something different. If you've just GOTTA hear "Jack And Diane" one more time today, you've got about half a dozen places to go to do so ... program something DIFFERENT and see if you can't pick up a completely DIFFERENT demographic in the process.

We need to reach these people ... they need to hear it from the listeners themselves!

Write ... Call ... Email ... Let Your Voice Be Heard!!!

And for God's sake "Don't Stop Believin'"!!!

(fade to black)

There MUST be something to that, right?!?!? I mean I hear Steve Perry preach it at least a dozen times a day!!!

Here's that information again:
CUMULUS BROADCASTING INC.
3280 Peachtree Road, NW Suite 2300
Atlanta, Georgia 30305
TEL. (404) 949-0700
FAX. (404) 949-0740

feder@robertfeder.com
chicagolandrm@gmail.com
scott@trueoldieschannel.com
Right now Robert Feder and Scott Shannon are still ignoring us ... so we need to go to THEM ... THEY have the power to let the Chicagoland listeners know of our efforts ... there is strength in numbers ... we just need to reach the right audience. We just need them to let the listeners of Chicago know that a movement is underway. Please write again and let them know that Chicago wants its True Oldies Channel back!!! (kk)

↧

Thursday This And That

January 16, 2014, 4:40 am

≫ Next: 50 Years Ago Today

≪ Previous: More Of Your Radio Comments

re: It Just Keeps Getting Better:

Still no resolution in the Sonny Geraci Benefit Concert travesty ... as of this morning, NO money has yet to change hands. Meanwhile, Bill Thompson, the guy who collected all the money, has closed up shop ... and somehow feels like the victim here because of the relentless press hounding him to turn over the payment to the Geraci family.

“Until further notice,” Stringz & Wingz is closed, said Owner “Chef” Bill Thompson in an interview Jan. 14. Thompson said bad publicity from the event moved him to part ways with Stringz & Wingz.
“That way, [the new owners] can salvage the business,” he said. “I’ve just been dragged through the mud.”
-- from the Streetsboro Gateway News follow up article written by Bob Gaetjens

Hold on here just a minute ... so Thompson says he's been "dragged through the mud" by the media ... for STEALING nearly $30,000 raised in the Sonny Geraci Benefit Concert?!?!? Why on earth would anybody think badly of him for THAT?!?! They need to seize these funds, charge him with theft and then put him in a mental institution where he can have his head examined to see HOW in the world he can portray himself as the victim here!!! Frickinunbelievable!!!!! (kk)

Hi Kent,
My name is Christine Haylett.  My husband and I are the owners of Guitar Shack and Once Loved Threads in Streetsboro. I've been a volunteer with Family Days for eight years and they are like a second family to me. I was reading your blog and I have been completely disgusted with this whole fundraiser fiasco. Sonny is an awesome man and has brought so much to our community for family days.
I wanted to let you know the community has come together with planning a series of fundraisers so that Family Days can still take place this year. Guitar Shack is kicking off the series of fundraisers on January 24th. There will be music and a Chinese auction.   The fundraisers will continue thru June with area businesses.
What happened was a travesty but rest assured this town will not let it rest till all that was wrong is put right again. Have a great night,
Christine
Good to hear ... and I will make mention of this. I'm just appalled at how this guy is making himself out to be the victim here ... when it's quite clear what he's done. The concert was put together with the best and noblest of intentions ... what a shame that one selfish jerk can put the whole town through such a negative publicity spin. Please keep us posted. Thanks, Christine. (kk)

Who is this cretin that is keeping the Geraci family's money? Somebody out there has to have a relative named Guido that is skilled with a Louisville Slugger and would love to tee off on some kneecaps ... fuhgetaboutit.

A "C" note to some palooka is a whole lot cheaper than a gaggle of lawyers who would take a cut. There are so many pissed off people who could possibly be blamed. Just an unrealistic thought. Frontier justice used to work ... wha hoppened.

Alex Valdez

I just can't believe this guy has the gall to play the victim here ... when the ONLY person to blame is himself! (kk)

Thank you, Kent for your resources. This is a travesty and needs to be made public.

This low life actually posted that he was being dragged through the mud because of this and left his partnership in the club to save the club's reputation. But, in my opinion, it sounds to me like his partners are dumping him so they won't be liable.

Thank you again for supporting our efforts to make things right for Sonny and his family.

Be well -

Dennis Tufano

People all over the country are talking about this right now. Fans who dipped into their pocketbooks to make a donation to a noble cause are outraged ... this money needs to be redirected to its proper source, the Geraci family. It was our love for Sonny and all the joy that he has given us through the years that inspired these donations in the first place. I can assure you that NONE of us intended OUR funds to go to Chef Bill Thompson! (kk)

re: 50th Anniversary:
Last week we told you how David Letterman was trying to reunite Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr to perform on his Late Night Program in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of The Beatles' first performance on The Ed Sullivan Show. (Letterman's show is broadcast from The Ed Sullivan Theater ... so it really would be quite a coup!)

I don't know if they never came to terms ... or if they'll still show up there to perform ... for that matter, Paul McCartney seems to be QUITE a fan of making surprise appearances on Saturday Night Live, too, so expect ANYTHING to happen between now and the second week of February.

Meanwhile, it HAS been announced that Paul and Ringo WILL perform at this year's Grammy Awards (where The Beatles will be presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award.) The Grammy people are being very careful NOT to use the word "together" ... although I've got to believe that they will join up for something, even if they each perform solo first. The ceremony takes place later this month (on the 26th). A special Grammy anniversary special called "The Night That Changed America", featuring an all-star line up of artists performing Beatles tunes ... and they just might show up there, too! The show will tape on the 27th, the day after the Grammy Awards Ceremony and then air on February 9th, the 50th Anniversary of The Beatles' first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. (kk)

Hi Kent,
Real good to read of Tommy Roe’s involvement with the 50 year Beatles’ celebrations.
Tommy and Chris Montez had big UK hits in 1962 with “Sheila” and “Let’s Dance” respectively. They then toured the UK in March, 1963, on a bill that included the Beatles and another UK group, the Viscounts, whose line up once included Gordon Mills, later manager of Tom Jones and Engelbert.
The timing landed Tommy and Chris right at the beginning of Beatlemania, as “Please Please Me’ was #1 in the UK and the “Please Please Me’ LP was released during the tour. Here’s a piece of memorabilia I found on the web:

Best wishes,
Mike Edwards

50 Years Ago Today

January 17, 2014, 4:00 am

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In the scheme of things, it's kind of scary to think that many of us can look back and recall in vivid detail the events we experienced 50 YEARS AGO!!! Has it REALLY been 50 years?!?! Where did they go??? (Suffice to say, we're all getting old!!!)

But I wouldn't trade these memories for the world ... look at what we had the chance to experience first-hand in our lifetimes!

That being said, the 50 Year Anniversaries kick off this week as The Beatles made their first significant U.S. Chart appearance this weekend in 1964.

We'll be looking back all year long at significant dates and events ... The Beatles may have opened the door (or, more appropriately, kicked it down!), but soon an entire wave of new artists invaded our shores ... and The British Invasion had begun.

We'll retrace those steps chartwise each week. (For the purpose of this series, actual Billboard and WLS chart dates are being used, regardless of issue dates or "week of" or "week ending" dates ... from what I've seen so far, they seem to coincide pretty accurately, reflecting the advancement of British Rock on both the national and local level, as we witnessed here from Middle America.)

So today we look back at January 17th / 18th, 1964 ...

The Beatles debut at #45 with "I Want To Hold Your Hand" on the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles Chart, the highest debut of the week (and their first "OFFICIAL" U.S. chart showing)

As we all know by now, WLS first charted The Beatles in March of 1963 when "Please Please Me" (by "The Beattles") made an appearance near the bottom of the WLS Silver Dollar Survey for two weeks. It never rose above #35 … but WLS is credited with being the first radio station in America to play a record by this hot new quartet from Liverpool.

The Beatles wouldn't make another appearance on the WLS Silver Dollar Survey until January 17, 1964 … when "I Want To Hold Your Hand" premiered at #40.

Top Ten Hits this week include "There! I've Said It Again" by Bobby Vinton (#1 on both charts), "Drag City" by Jan and Dean, "Surfin' Bird" by The Trashmen", "Popsicles And Icicles" by The Murmaids and "Hey Little Cobra" by The Rip Chords. These five tunes were Top Ten Hits common to both charts. A week later The Beatles would join these hits in The Top Ten.

Surprises on the WLS Chart -- "California Sun" by The Rivieras was at #4 ... it wouldn't even premier in Billboard until a week later. Lesley Gore's "You Don't Own Me" held down the #5 spot ... the following week it would reach #1. (It remains one of my favorite songs and recordings of all time.) A novelty hit "Dumbhead" by Ginny Arnell was at #8 ... it was at #59 in Billboard and never reached their Top 40. Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs were at #9 with "Daisy Petal Pickin'", their follow-up hit to the chart-topping "Sugar Shack" and "Java" by Al Hirt was already a Top Ten Hit here (at #10), something it wouldn't become in Billboard for another four weeks. (Imagine that ... WLS LEADING the pack instead of just following the crowd like they do today.)

Ironically, the dates in January and February of 1964 coincide exactly with the dates THIS year ... so January 17th and 18th fall on Friday and Saturday just like they did way back when.

This all comes to an end on February 28th, however, as 1964 was a leap year ... and 2014 isn't ... but it's still kinda cool to see these dates fall EXACTLY 50 years later!!!

More to come, ideally throughout the year, as we retrace The British Invasion as it unfolded. You'll see the full impact these artists had on the charts ... and how even long-established artists here in The States struggled to get their songs played on the radio.

↧

The Saturday Surveys (1-18)

January 18, 2014, 5:00 am

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≪ Previous: 50 Years Ago Today

Three more vintage charts, courtesy of Clark Besch, for our new Saturday Survey Feature in Forgotten Hits!

First up this week, a 1965 chart for WHK in Lorain, Ohio.

Look at Robert Goulet all the way up at #3 with "My Love, Forgive Me", a #18 Billboard Hit that I can honestly say I don't think I've EVER heard played on the radio. (It didn't chart here in Chicago on WLS, the big Top 40 radio station at the time ... but reached #33 on our Top Tunes Of Greater Chicagoland survey. Even so, I certainly don't remember ever hearing it ... yet apparently it was still a big hit in other parts of the midwest.)

British Artists are well represented with Petula Clark at #1, the latest Beatles two-sided hit at #4, The Searchers at #10, The Dave Clark Five at #16, Gerry and the Pacemakers at #26, The Kinks at #39, Chad and Jeremy at #41 and The Zombies premiering at #48. (Although he was much bigger in England than he was here in The States, P.J. Proby doesn't make our list because he's actually a Texas boy!)

"Dusty" by The Rag Dolls falls to #15 from its Top Five berth the week before ... this song only made it to #55 in Billboard but has come up several times before in Forgotten Hits.

England Dan and John Ford Coley had a much bigger hit with "Gone Too Far" (a #23 Billboard charter) in the Denver area than they did nationally ... it looks like this one topped the KTLK Chart for at least a couple of weeks in 1978. (It's an all-but-forgotten track by this popular duo today ... if you hear anything at all by them anymore, it'll most likely be "I'd Really Love To See You Tonight" ... radio seems to have forgotten that these guys had SIX Top 40 Hits during their three year chart run!)

Check out #24 to see that "Gold Dust Woman", a "Rumours" LP track, was charting as an "extra", along with their current hit "You Make Loving Fun" at #6.

A couple more 1978 Forgotten Hits favorites include these tracks: "The Way I Feel Tonight" by The Bay City Rollers, "Strawberry Letter 23" by Brothers Johnson and "Back In Love Again" by LTD ... ALL deserving of that occasional radio spin once in a while!

We found a couple of Top Ten surprises on this WLBB Chart from 1968 ... "I'm In Love" (a GREAT Wilson Pickett track) and "Cover Me" by Percy Sledge both ranked right up near the top of the charts alongside established hits like "Woman Woman" by The Union Gap, "Judy In Disguise" by John Fred and His Playboy Band, "Chain Of Fools" by The Queen Of Soul, Aretha Franklin, "Hello, Goodbye" by The Beatles and "Daydream Believer" by The Monkees. (You'll find Chicago's Buckinghams up there, too, with their latest hit, "Susan" ... as well as Monkees' songwriters Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart with their first smash, "I Wonder What She's Doin' Tonight".)

↧

The Sunday Comments ( 01 - 19 - 14 )

January 19, 2014, 7:56 am

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re: 50 Years Ago:
You might want to mention that this coming week marks the 50th anniversary of the debut (at #80) of "I Want To Hold Your Hand" on the Cash Box Top 100. It's the chart dated 1/11/64, which (as was the case with all three major trade charts) was a Saturday week-ending date; i.e., the issue was published on Saturday, Jan. 4, and appeared on newsstands the following Monday.)

Randy Price

These dates get tricky ... our own local charts, for example, would be announced on Friday ... that's when Dex Card would play down the brand new WLS Silver Dollar Survey ... and I remember a few years back when we got all kinds of flack for celebrating what WE felt was the correct anniversary of The Beatles holding down The Top Five Spots on Billboard's Hot 100 Chart because we were using the "week ending date", meaning that they actually assumed those positions seven days earlier ... only to find that Billboard themselves saluted the chart date as THE date rather than the fact that it clearly said "week ending" before that date on their published chart.

Since then, we've adopted the same approach ... and you'll see that as we salute the coming of The Beatles and the whole British Invasion, we'll consistently address our dates based on the date shown on any given chart. Also, for consistency's sake, we'll only be addressing these records' performance in Billboard Magazine and the WLS Silver Dollar Survey ... although we WILL be running a variety of 1964 charts throughout the year as part of our brand new Saturday Surveys feature. As such, you'll find "I Want To Hold Your Hand" listed as premiering in Billboard on January 18th (the Saturday date) at #45 and on WLS on January 17th (the Friday date) at #40. (kk)

In NYC, we got a head start on I Want To Hold Your Hand which was already #1 this week, 50 years ago.

Mark

The Beatles (cocky Brits that they were) said that they would not come to America until they had a #1 Hit here. In hindsight, it really wasn't that bold a request ... they had already topped the charts all over Europe ... and in Great Britain alone "I Want To Hold Your Hand" would be their FOURTH straight #1 single (following "Please Please Me", "From Me To You" and "She Loves You".) I think at this point they were pretty confident of their appeal ... America still seemed HUGE to them ... and no British act had ever really conquered here before. (Before I get a TON of emails, yes, The Tornados hit #1 here in The States before The Beatles did ... but pandemonium did not then ensue ... nor did they ever have another hit to speak of here. And "Please Please Me", while never OFFICIALLY #1 on the main chart in Great Britain DID reach #1 in virtually every other ancillary chart. I consider "Twist And Shout" a #1 Hit here in America for the same reason ... the ONLY major U.S. Trade that didn't show it there was Billboard ... it was #1 across the land and in all the other major music publications.)

This is going to be (as Peter Noone once described it) a "fun romp through time" as we pay tribute to all of the songs and artists that turned our world upside down back in 1964. Yes, it started with The Beatles ... but it certainly didn't end there. (kk)

Kent,
I began thinking about this as I read the pieces about the 50th anniversary Beatles tribute.
Go back to the mid to late 60's and think about E. Rodney Jones, Bill "Butterball" Crane, Ed Cook and the golden voice of Herb Kent on WVON.
kk, you are the man ... the leader of the pack. In 2015, there should be some type of celebration to salute the impact 'VON had on radio ... not just local radio, but American radio in general. As you now, the station was billing a bundle in those days.
I'll never forget being invited to sit in with Butterball and Rodney as they did their shows. I was just a grass-green white kid who was enamored by Otis Redding, Jackie Wilson and Motown. The Regal and Spann's "Burning Spear' became my regular hangouts.
Can you imagine seeing the original Temptations for just two bucks as I did at the Regal?!?
WVON earned and deserves a big time 24 karat gold PROP! Chet Coppock
Host: Chicago Blackhawks Heritage Series
Actually they just had their big 50th Anniversary Celebration ... and they aired vintage clips all day long ... then toasted themselves with a party and concert that evening. I'll betcha you could EASILY assemble a crew of folks (fans, loyal listeners and jocks) to do it again! (kk)

How about this anniversary?: The Northridge Earthquake (that's where my wife and I lived at the time ... nightmare!!!
Davie Allan
Focusing on the GOOD memories from 50 years ago, Davie! (lol) In Forgotten Hits, it was The Beatles and The British Invasion that rocked our world! (kk)

Hi Kent:

On the January 12 issue of WRIT in Milwaukee, “I Want To Hold Your Hand” starts at #7.

Ken

Tommy Roe's connection to the Beatles in 1963 has resulted in his participation in the Fab Four anniversary celebrations -- but what about the other headliner on that tour: Chris Montez?   I went to Chris' website to see what he was doing in conjunction with the anniversary and was surprised to learn that the most recent entries in his performance schedule are from 2011.   Does anyone know what's going on with Chris?
Gary Theroux
Actually, we heard from Chris about a week ago ... he was one of the artists outraged by the complete mishandling of The Sonny Geraci Benefit Concert by the scumbag who scampered off with all the money! I know that he's still performing and doing shows ... and have NO idea why his website is so out of date. (I do know that he's performing at this year's Surf Ballroom Winter Dance Party ... as is Tommy Roe ... but my understanding is that all of these shows have long since sold out.)
Click here: Schedule of Events - Surf Ballroom
Since we heard from him through one of our readers (who got the notification through Chris' Facebook Page), we asked her to please have Chris contact us and bring us up to date on his latest comings and goings. Haven't heard anything back yet ... but as soon as we do, we'll be sure to pass the info along! (kk)

Kent,
You are absolutely right that the Billboard Hot 100 chart of January 18, 1964 marked a turning point in American popular culture. May I make some other points about that week's music?
Just as they rose, others fell. Some artists who had long been fixtures on the American pop music scene started their decline then. "Forget Him" (#4) would be Bobby Rydell's last Top 40 hit. "For You" (#19) would be Rick Nelson's last Top 20 hit until the quirky "Garden Party" in 1972. Chubby Checker, already in decline from his "Twist" days, had two songs that week: "Hooka Tooka" (#30) and "Loddy Lo" (#36); he wouldn't have a Top 20 hit for the rest of the 1960s. "Whispering" by Nino Tempo and April Stevens (#11) would be their last Top 20 recording.
As Forgotten Hits has pointed out many times, one characteristic of the British Invasion was the covering, by British artists, of American songs -- and the new records' eclipsing the popularity of the originals. This week, the Billboard survey has one: "Do-Wah-Diddy" by the Exciters (#79), later redone by Manfred Mann, who added an extra "Diddy" to the title. (On next week's survey, two more appear: "Gonna Send You Back to Georgia" by Timmy Shaw, redone by the Animals as "Gonna Send You Back to Walker," and "When You Walk in the Room" by Jackie DeShannon, later redone by the Searchers.)
Henry McNulty
Cheshire, Connecticut
I think it'll be interesting to watch it all unfold again, exactly as it happened (with the benefit of 20/20 hindsight.) At the time everybody thought this was some crazy new fad which, too, would pass ... but 50 years later we'll still talking about it ... because this music changed the world. Thanks, Henry! Stay tuned ... lots more to come! (kk)

re: Survey Says:
Forgotten Hits Readers are enjoying our new Saturday Surveys Feature. A reminder from Jack Levin ... if you're a survey collector, he will be at The Chicagoland Record Show all day today in Hillside, IL, with a stack full of surveys to sell!

The Messengers 45 “That’s The Way A Woman Is” is the 2^nd largest local hit ever in Milwaukee. #1 for three weeks in ’71.
If you notice #34 on your 1-16-65 survey from Ohio, it’s by “Cherilyn”. That is the first solo chart hit by Cher!
Ken
Somebody on the list sent me some Canadian charts and I was looking through them yesterday ... I was surprised to see Andy Kim charting in Canada in 1964 ... four years before any of us down here knew who he was! They were even promoting an upcoming concert by Andy as well as an in-studio interview. (Of course Cher ALMOST charted earlier as Bonnie Jo Mason with her tribute to Ringo, "Ringo, I Love You"!) kk

Kent,
This if FYI. Here in OKC the song by Robert Goulet peaked at #17. Also records by Andy Williams and Jack Jones were on the surveys. Your traditional rock and roll singers.
Also, on WLLB's survey at song position #16 with Bobby Goldsboro's PLEDGE OF LOVE, that song peaked at #5 here in OKC. Don't believe, however, it charted nationally. But it was a huge hit.
Larry

Hello Kent,
I don't believe you when you say you can't recall that Robert Goulet hit ... cripes, it was high on the Greatest Mob Hits playlist!!! And you say you are from Chicago? As soon as I read the title 'My love scusa me arriverderci roma scusa me!' raced through my mind ha ha

It's song like that I learned my limited Italian! ha ha!

Once again the weekly chart lists are wonderful and we are off to a great start. I received Joel Whitburn's "Hot Country Songs" for Christmas, another gem to pass the time with as I sit snowed in after the weatherman predicted slight precipitation! ha ha

It's the Best Football Day of the Year Sunday .. enjoy and Go Pats. ( I still remember 86 ;( )

Enjoy the day.

CharliOFD

I've been trying to substantiate reports that Elvis shot up his radio the first time he heard Robert Goulet sing "My Love, Forgive Me" ... but so far I've come up empty. I guess for now we'll just have to let that TV incident stand alone. (kk)

Hi Kent,
WIXY was huge around here, even though it was not a powerful signal. I loved that they had a Top 60 chart, which they counted down at least once a week. I always listened to hear the obscure songs near the bottom of their Top 60. WHK had a Top 40, but they changed their format shortly after WIXY started playing rock music. KYW / WKYC had a Top 22, but after WIXY went to Top 60, WKYC briefly switched to Top 44, and expanded their playlist quite a bit. The other station that was big here was CKLW, which came in very clearly across Lake Erie.

I'm looking forward to your new feature.  I still have all of my old charts, both from the radio stations, and my personal charts that I did for about 6 years. I started with a Top 20, quickly went to Top 40, briefly tried to do a Top 100 like Billboard, and eventually settled on Top 50.
Doug
Back in the days when I made my own charts, I called it The Sound 60 Survey ... there was just too much good music out there to limit the list to 20 or 40 tunes! (lol) I wish I still had those ... held on to them for years before finally tossing them. It'd be fun to look back at them now. (I based my chart on the combination of the national trades and our local Chicagoland Charts to come up with a more representative "midwest" chart ... in my own mind anyway!) I think a lot of people are going to dig this new feature ... hoping readers will start to send in copies of charts from their own collections. (kk)

It was great to see local Cleveland band Bocky and The Visions "I'm Not Worth It" at #20. A great reminder of a time when stations supported their local artists. I got to see them once when they came to Pittsburgh, where some of their songs got airplay. they were a really dynamic live act.
Ed Salamon

re: The Sonny Geraci Benefit Concert:
Despicable!
Sandy

Kent ...
We are all heartbroken over the news of what has happened in Streetsboro, Ohio, following the Benefit for Sonny Geraci concert. That guy has got to surrender the money that was raised.
Mitch Schecter
The Rip Chords
We've been doing our part to draw attention to this grave travesty ... the oldies nation is outraged ... and this money has got to be seized. (kk)

re: Some Awesome Monkees News:
Michael Nesmith will join Micky Dolenz for the 2014 Monkees ConventionFor Monkees Fans, this is 49 years in the making! Be a part of history as Michael Nesmith joins Micky Dolenz for his FIRST ever Monkees Convention being held at the Hilton Meadowlands in NJ March 14, 15 and 16th of 2014.
Promoters Phyllis Paganucci and Jodi Blau Ritzen of Then and Now Events have announced that not only will Michael Nesmith be joining Micky Dolenz at the convention, he will also be performing his new
show Movies of the Mind Saturday, March 15 at 9 pm. Tickets are available on wwww.monkeesconvention2014.com
This magical weekend will include performances from Micky Dolenz, Coco Dolenz, Christian Nesmith and Circe Link, Jonathan Nesmith, Jessica Nesmith. Actress Ami Dolenz will be signing copies of her new
children’s book and answering a Q and A along with her sisters artist and photographer Emily Dolenz and Micky’s youngest daughter actress and business partner in Dolenz & Daughters Fine Furniture Georgia
Dolenz.
With all of their families in attendance, The Monkees will also be presented with their awards of induction into the American Pop Music Hall of Fame as voted on by the fans late last year. No celebration would be complete without a special tribute to the late and great Davy Jones.
Other guests of the convention who will be greeting fans and signing autographs will be Butch Patrick, Donna Loren, Valerie Venet, Henry Diltz, Gary Stroble, Gary DeCarlo, Geri Reischel, May Pang, Larry
Storch, Beatles Artist Shannon, David and Jennifer Alexander, The Monkeemobile and more.
Along with incredible performances from Buddy Blanc’s Romeo Delight with special guest Micky Dolenz, Coco Dolenz will perform, Circe Link performing a full show, Jonathan Nesmith with members of The
Outerspaces and Mother of Winter, The Characters, The Frodis Capers, The Monkeephiles, The 1910 Fruit Gum Co, you can look forward to singing late into the night with fan favorites of last year The Blue
Meanies. Sunday we are excited to present Britton Payne’s off-broadway show Here We Come ~ A Monkee Parody. This show has gotten rave reviews from all who have attended its performances.
There are sure to be surprise performances as well with a lineup of legends like this.
There will be meet and greets opportunities with all of our guests.
A Monkees Memorabilia Market Place will be open as well.
For tickets to the convention and for the tickets to the Movies of the Mind Show starring Michael Nesmith (a limited engagement) and hotel information please visit www.monkeesconvention2014.com and for updates you can check out the facebook page Monkees Convention.
Note: As of now Monkee Peter Tork has a conflicting schedule and is not set to appear.
A very special thanks to our sponsor, John Rose, owner of Cella Bagels, Sky Tan and Jazz Audio located 1198 Middle Country Rd., Selden, New York 11784(631) 320-1213.
Contact:
Jodi Blau Ritzen
Jodi and Phyllis
Monkees Convention 2014
March 14, 15 and 16th
Sheraton Meadowlands
Be There or Be Square
www.monkeesconvention2014.com
And this just in ...
Michael will also be performing a show with his band at the convention!
Hey Hey. Just as a reminder, if you are interested in seeing Michael Nesmith's Movies of the Mind show, tickets are limited and will NOT be sold at the door. Even if you have not purchased your convention passes, make certain you order your seat now before this sells out. The maximum capacity for this is only 1000 people. Get yours at the official website. Any questions, contact us. This is becoming bigger then we could have dreamed and are so excited for all of you.
http://www.monkeesconvention2014.com/ticket-hotel-info

re: The Everly Brothers:

IF YOU WANT TO HEAR AN INCREDIBLE SONG, THIS IS ONE OF MY ALLTIME FAVORITE "SHOULDABEEN" HITS! ... JUST AN INCREDIBLE STORY SONG ... AND DONE BY THE EVERLY BROS. GET A COPY OF THE LYRICS AND READ ALONG WHILE YOU LISTEN. YOU CAN GET IT ON YOU TUBE ... "MAY YOU ALWAYS DRIVE A CADILLAC" IS THE TITLE. THIS SONG HAS HAUNTED ME SINCE I FIRST FOUND IT OVER 20 YRS AGO.

SCOTT SHANNON

Click here: ? always drive a cadillac, everly brothers - YouTube

This one comes from their 1986 LP "Born Yesterday" ... almost sounds like a Springsteen song, doesn't it??? (kk)

Here's one of MY favorite undiscovered gems, done by a group called Big Daddy. They took the Rick James hit "Super Freak" and redid it in an Everly Brothers style that is just too cool for words! Give it a listen.

Kent ...

Check out our pal Bob Greene's article.
Frank B.

"He's so good," Phil Everly said.

We were sitting in a corner booth at a rural cafeteria in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky.

Phil was talking about his older brother, Don. Having spent time with the Everly Brothers on the rock-and-roll road over the years, I had long noticed something:

Whenever they were performing, Phil fastened his eyes right on Don's. As they were creating their heartbreaking harmonies, he seldom looked away. I didn't want to ask him about that in front of his brother, but, with just the two of us there, I did.

"I have to pay attention every second with my harmonies," Phil said. "It's like playing tennis with someone who is really great. You can't let your mind wander for even a microsecond, or you'll be left behind."

When Phil died this month at the age of 74, I recalled that conversation. I first met him and Don during my years on tour with Jan and Dean; there were occasions when we found ourselves as part of shows at the same venues, sharing the same backstage areas, dining at the same pre-concert buffets. There are a lot of unlikely things that I managed to become used to during those years, but one thing I could never get over -- one thing that never ceased to feel like a dream -- was knowing the Everly Brothers. Their talent, the beauty of their voices, was something not entirely of this Earth. They were a miracle.

I was still of elementary school age when, early one morning, the clock radio snapped to life and before I could open my eyes a new song sounded in the darkness: "Bye Bye Love," two voices blending in a way I'd never heard before, and it was electric, it was that kind of unanticipated jolt. The disc jockey said the singers were called the Everly Brothers, and the thought that I would ever meet them, get to know them, travel with them, would not have seemed possible. But such things, if you're very lucky, can happen.

In the days after Phil's death, the tributes to him from fellow musicians made me understand anew that, as famous and accomplished as those singers are, they, too, were in awe of him.

Paul McCartney said that he and John Lennon used to pretend they were the Everly Brothers: "When John and I first started to write songs, I was Phil and he was Don. Years later when I finally met Phil, I was completely starstruck and at the same time extremely impressed by his humility and gentleness of soul." Paul Simon: "Phil and Don were the most beautiful sounding duo I ever heard." Vince Gill: "I honestly believe I've spent the last 40 years, on every record I've been part of for somebody else, trying to be an Everly. ... I've spent my whole life chasing that beautiful, beautiful blend."

In the five years starting in 1957 they had 25 top-40 hits -- "Bye Bye Love,""Wake Up Little Susie,""All I Have to Do Is Dream,""Cathy's Clown,""(Til) I Kissed You,""Let It Be Me," so many others -- but the numbers are the least of it. The sound of their voices was so pure, so achingly gorgeous, that to listen was to be humbled and filled with wonder. It's not surprising at all that, across the Atlantic Ocean, of course the young-and-unknown Paul McCartney and the young-and-unknown John Lennon would listen to the Everlys on imported-from-the-U.S. records and try to be just like them.

When I heard that Phil had died, I sat and did my best to recall moments in his presence, not wanting to forget a single second of them. He was soft-spoken and seemingly quite shy; there was an underlay of pain that somehow felt omnipresent, and that he didn't feel compelled to dwell upon.

Music fans remember the death of Buddy Holly in 1959, but few recall the funeral. Phil did: He, not yet old enough to vote, was one of Holly's pallbearers. Whatever may have hurt and disheartened Phil, he didn't bother other people with, but you could find it in his music. The first words to a song he wrote later in 1959, and that he and Don recorded: "I've been made blue / I've been lied to / When will I be loved?"

The fact that he and Don went through long periods of estrangements and silence is not a secret, but the silences ended each time a show began. The breathtaking sound of those voices intertwining was enough to bring listeners to tears. On Labor Day weekend in 1999 they made a trip together to the woods and hills of the part of Kentucky coal country where their father had gone to work in the mines at the age of 12. I was writing a column for Life magazine at the time; the Everlys invited me to come along.

Don and Phil drove separate cars. I rode with Don up Route 431 in Muhlenberg County. He said: "The town where I was born doesn't exist anymore. It was called Brownie -- just a few miles from here. It was a coal mining camp. When the coal was all gone, they tore the town down."

Later that day I sat in that bare-bones cafeteria with Phil, and he told me: "There's an acceptance of us here. They know who we are. They know our kin."

The brothers, on the strength of their hits, found a life for themselves far from the old coal mines. But if they never quite fit in with the gleaming and glitzy rock idols who were their fan-magazine-cover contemporaries, it's probably because, as boys, they had so little in common with the others. "I had this haunted feeling all my life," Don said to me one day in Kentucky. "Of being odd man out."

I told Don what Phil had said: how Phil had explained his reason for staring into Don's eyes as they sang, how Phil had said how much he admired his brother's gift.

Don told me: "It's like a third person. When Phil and I sing, there are times that what comes out is not either of us, but the voice of a third person."

On that trip we had been joined by the great Life photographer Harry Benson. Late one afternoon, by the shore of Lake Adela, with forest all around, the four of us watched the sun getting ready to set. There had been a drought -- little rain for summer months on end.

The brothers stood there in the quiet and then Phil turned to Don, gestured toward the treeline, and said: "It's browner this year."

Don, looking toward the water's surface, said: "The lake's down."

The shorthand of home. Whatever friction may have divided them from time to time, they never took it out on their audiences. When I asked Phil about it -- the constant effort to excel -- he said: "We've never tried to fluff it. We've always tried to make it better."

That they did. One of my favorite songs of theirs was never a major hit: "Gone, Gone, Gone." Yet with Phil's passing the thought occurs that, because of the music he and Don gave us, he, and they, never will be gone. And that long-ago question of Phil's -- "When will I be loved?" -- has an easy answer: Forever.

-- Bob Greene

re: David Cassidy:

You were right about David Cassidy ... the word is WAS.
Larry

DAVID CASSIDY DRUNK DRIVING - Three times caught ... how many times not caught?

Always hits a chord with me. My cousin's husband, an astronaut that didn't get to space yet, was killed by a drunk driver in Florida. Also killed his three passengers (children) on their way to the movies. Left a wife and kids, friend's kids, and his own either dead or fatherless.
Laugh it off, Cassidy ...

gary renfield

Yeah, it just seems wrong that THIS guy would get a second chance, much less a third or fourth. Good point on the "how many times NOT caught" question ... no way of knowing ... but it sounds like he clearly has a problem. We've seen evidence of it at a couple of shows, too, where it was quite obvious from the stage that he was not "quite right" that night. Too bad. (kk)

↧

Our Latest Radio Rave-Out

January 20, 2014, 4:38 am

≫ Next: Article 2

≪ Previous: The Sunday Comments ( 01 - 19 - 14 )

re: The Love of Oldies Music ... and Bringing It Back to Chicagoland Radio:

kk,

Loved listening to the Beach Boys'"That Why God Made the Radio" while reading the oldies discussion. Proof that the sounds of the 60's are still relevant.

If the oldies are only listened to by boomer oldies like me, then why are three and four generations standing, dancing, clapping, singing at every Beach Boys concert? McCartney. The Stones. Rascals.

Maybe we should dump "oldies" and label our music: Great Songs, Great Singles, Great Sounds. For young people from 8 to 80.

Phil

PrayForSurfBlog.blogspot.com

Our FH Buddy Mason Ramsey (he of "RockAndRollHeaven.net") programs "Music For The Ages" ... with NO restrictions whatsoever regarding when this music came out ... good music is good music ... and it's not uncommon for him to dig out something from the '40's and play it right alongside something from the charts today. The idea (much along the same concept we've been touting for a while now) is that we all grew up listening to this same music ... we were all exposed to these different genres at some point and time in our lives ... so it ALL means something to us. Rewound Radio uses the slogan "It's not how old it is ... it's how GOOD it is" ... unfortunately, we've seen "oldies" become the LAST word you want to utter on the radio ... which is why I give such high praise to Scott Shannon for incorporating the into his station's namesake. He very well may be the last of a dying breed!

Incredibly, WLS-FM has now gone outside for programming help. For the first time ever, instead of an in-house programming director, WLS pays a fee to a consulting firm specializing in the Classic Hits format. As such, their playlist has expanded a little bit. All this despite the fact that they have amongst their resources through Cumulus Broadcasting Scott Shannon, a guy who has been recognized by Billboard Magazine as the Programmer of the Year on multiple occasions. What a REAL shame it is that these guys can't even see what's right in front of their faces! (kk)

Though not related to bringing the oldies back to WLS-FM, it’s disappointing to read today that American Idol producer Per Blankens has stated that this season’s show will feature less golden oldies and more current music that the contestants, and presumably the younger audience, can relate to. I say too bad for that.

Mike Ogilvie

Mississauga, ON.

Honestly, on this one I have to agree ... these kids (many of whom are 16 and 17 years old now auditioning for shows like American Idol and The Voice) cannot relate to music that came out some 40 years before they were born. And let's face it ... they don't stand much of a chance of becoming new, contemporary artists by singing it because we can't even find this music on many of the radio stations that are supposed to be playing it!!! In order to compete today, you've got to sound hip and current. American Idol is worried ... the big competition show now is The Voice ... they've got this down to a science and the chemistry shown on that program between the judges is something that Idol has NEVER been able to capture. I stopped watching YEARS ago (although I hear Harry Connick, Jr. is quite good in his new role.) For that matter I really enjoyed the first season of American Idol with then brand-new judge Steven Tyler ... until he just clammed up midway through the year ... but let's face it, it's a singing competition ... it's SUPPOSED to be about the singers, not the judges and/or coaches. In that respect, I think The Voice does a better job of bringing you both. It's called "great chemistry".

Did you hear what Jimmy Fallon said after the Idol premier last week?

American Idol kicked off its thirteenth season tonight. Wow ... you know, it's really amazing ... because they start out with THOUSANDS ... and then it's down to 20 ... then to 10 ... and then to 5 ... and then, finally when it's ALL over, you've got just ONE person left still watching.

Totally cracked me up! (kk)

Hope the momentum you started to bring "oldies" back to Chicago works.

I love your work!

Regards -

Geoff

I wish we had similar stations in Dallas to what you propose (I know you used to travel here quite a bit based on our older emails) ... BUT ...

The person who posted about the aging of the listeners is dead on. We are no longer in the money demo and your idea, while good, is not going to succeed. It's just about money, not the music. Life is like that.

Rich

FH Reader Danny Guilfoyle sent us this blurb about an online Internet versions of WCFL (or, at the very least, a SALUTE to Super 'CFL)

“Fan of classic Chicago radio creates a cyber ’CFL.”

J.R. Russ “has spent a thousand hobby hours to create an Internet version of WCFL (1000), the free-wheeling Chicago station that during the 1960s and 1970s was the home of Larry Lujack, Jerry G. Bishop and Barney Pip.” That’s the Chicago Sun-Times’ Dave Hoekstra, profiling “a labor of love” by Russ. J.R. says that “rather than a tribute station, stuck in the ‘60s and ’70s, I call it a salute station, which captures the essence of the original,” but plays some newer music. His traffic grew after Lujack’s death on December. 18. Read the Sun-Times story about the original WCFL where the jocks were “more unleashed,” and the current J.R. Russ version of it here. Note that J.R.’s also got the “Chickenman” comedy series, created by then-WCFL production genius Dick Orkin.

Kent -

Just read your Monday cumulus posting and I completely agree with you. For the past year I no longer listen to any AM or FM station in Chicago. Instead, I have 7000 songs on my ipod which play songs at random. When in the car I only listen to Sirius XM 50's and/or 60's channels.

But I miss hearing good radio voices talking directly to me such as Scott Shannon, but it doesn't have to be original voices as frankly Fred Winston (who was one of the funniest during his heyday) and John Landecker now sound tired (not sure if it was due to station edicts or just being tired). In any event, your request to contact Cumulus is a great one. However you failed to give info as to how best to contact them. Please post instructions in order for us to best reach those who can make a decision to do what you suggest.

Steve Davidson

Here they are again for the benefit of anyone who may not have written in yet:

CUMULUS BROADCASTING INC.
3280 Peachtree Road, NW Suite 2300
Atlanta, Georgia 30305
TEL. (404) 949-0700
FAX. (404) 949-0740

feder@robertfeder.com
chicagolandrm@gmail.com
scott@trueoldieschannel.com

And please help us to spread the word through whatever social media networks you use ... let people know what we're trying to accomplish here! Our voice gets much louder when we all speak as one! (kk)

About Chicago and REO performing on tour together - so why don't they have a date scheduled anywhere in CHICAGO????? And regarding radio playlists, how come I hear Gerry Rafferty's song so often, but never hear any Cat Stevens or John Denver???? (I know, John Denver?? Sorry, but I loved his music, and I'm not afraid to admit it!)

They were so popular back in the day, had numerous hits, and are kinda similar to Rafferty (and what else did HE do?), yet no one ever plays them. What about the Beach Boys? Never even hear THEM!! And why not feature some of the hits by Chicago artists, such as 'Hold On' by the Mauds instead of Sam & Dave's, or something other than just the Buckinghams (sorry Bucks), when we had practically a whole survey list of artists from this town? And since Chicago had so many hits, when will they be recognized in the HOF???? I know this has been talked about before, but come on, what the heck does it take????? How many petitions?

Also Kent, if you go to cso.org there's a really nice biography of the band Chicago. (Under Chicago returns home, I think it said).

Thanks, I feel better now!

Marlene

I couldn't believe when I saw the tour schedule and didn't see a Chicago stop on the list ... so two of our area's biggest bands ever are FINALLY touring together ... and they're not even gonna play one for the home crowd so that we can go and see them?!?! What's up with that?!?!? (Personally, I think they're saving that announcement for later ... what better place to cap off the tour than right here at home?)

While I've never been a John Denver fan there is no denying his impact and popularity at the time. (It's kind of like when K-Hits counted down The Top 40 Artists of the '70's and left The Carpenters off the list ... there weren't too many artists bigger than they were ... they just don't "test well enough" to fit the K-Hits format.)

And sadly, this is the way radio continues to rewrite history ... like the comment elsewhere in today's page, they want you to believe these artists only had one or two hits, despite the fact that sometimes dozens of other legitimate hits are completely ignored. ("We've only got room on our station for ONE Jimmy Buffet song ... so we're just going to play the hell out of it ... besides, people would rather hear six more Steve Miller songs today instead anyway!")

As for Gerry Rafferty, I used to LOVE "Baker Street" ... couldn't get enough of it ... but I, too, now turn it off due to overexposure. Too much of a good thing is no longer a good thing. For the record, he, too, had several other hits ... "Right Down The Line" (actually, I still hear that one quite a bit ... and I've yet to grow tired of it), "Home And Dry", "Days Gone Down" and "Get It Right Next Time" all made The Top 40. Throw in his hits with Stealers Wheel ("Stuck In The Middle With You" is another WAY over-played oldie ... but "Star" is one of those GREAT Forgotten Hits that NEVER gets played) and that's a pretty good assault on the pop charts.

Finally, I couldn't agree more ... a radio station should recognize their city's legacy of local artists ... The Drive probably does the best job of this in Chicago (now that Jeff James is off the air over at Y103.9, they're about the ONLY ones who do!) Want to create a station that FEELS like Chicago? Then play those great local hits by The Ides Of March, The Cryan' Shames, The New Colony Six, The American Breed, etc., along with the bigger national hits by Chicago and The Buckinghams and Styx. (kk)

I found this quite by accident while researching the latest Sonny Geraci Benefit Concert news ... FH Readers (and oldies music fans) may wish to check it out:

Click here: Sunday Oldies Jukebox radio station turns 16 - The Gateway News | Streetsboro, Ohio

>>>You switch from one station to another, only to find that the exact same song is playing there, three words apart from what you just turned off!!! How does a radio maintain ANY identity with THAT sort of programming? There is no longer ANYTHING unique about any one of them to make them stand out from the rest of the pack. (kk)

Kent -

Some good news! Just to let you know that in the past couple of years CBS FM the oldies channel in NYC has finally changed their oldies format. They have had to learn how to compete with satellite radio by playing more of a variety of oldies. They are now also limiting the advertising. I hope that the radio stations in Chicago will get the memo and get on board. Also, I have Comcast cable tv with "Music Choice" which started their oldies format about a year ago and play a variety of music ranging from Solid Gold Oldies, Classic Hits, songs of the 70's, 80's, 90's, as well as Country and Western, Hip Hop, Jazz, current stuff, etc. It's refreshing to see that there has been a change in music oldie coverage in the local NYC area. They had to do something also to compete with satellite radio. I pay the basic cable rates to get this music service. Getting Chicago to turn their format around is analogous to turning an ocean liner around with a wooden oar. One day at a time. I believe you are on the right track. There's strength in numbers. It's important for a lot of baby boomers to speak up and be heard. I sent an email to the email addresses at the Chicago radio stations that were included in your text. Hope it helps. Try to be patient and keep the faith.

Blossmwrld

It's like I said a couple weeks ago ... the television networks have had to "up their game" in order to compete with cable ... radio is finding itself in the same boat when it comes to competition from Satellite and Internet Radio, both of which right now blows them away when it come to programming. The biggest difference is that the television networks still have to conform to certain restrictions when it comes to things like censorship ... as such, they can only give us so much ... radio, on the other hand, has no such restrictions enforcing them to play the same two or three hundred songs repeatedly on end ... they CHOOSE to do so because they're lazy and they're blind to the MILLIONS of listeners they've lost who have found something better elsewhere off the dial. Think about it ... people would rather PAY to hear the music they want to hear than to endure the torture another day of what terrestrial radio has to offer. How truly, truly sad. (kk)

Radio was SUCH an exciting thing here in Chicago in the years gone by. Columnist Rob Feder posted this link over the weekend, showing a news segment that Bob Sirott (himself a former WLS great) put together, spotlighting the "Chicago Radio Wars" of the early '80's ... when the choices of good, solid entertainment made it difficult (if not almost impossible) to tune in to all the good radio that was available to us then. (Boy, have things changed!!! You truly cannot tell one station from another these days as they all seem to be working from the same playbook ... subtitled "boring"!!!!)

You can read all about it ... and watch some long lost classic clips ... here:

Click here: Eureka! Sirott unearths ’83 treasure | Robert Feder

Listen to these clips and you quickly realize that what made these jocks the huge successes that they were was the fact that they bucked the system and paved their own path, regardless of what the program director felt they SHOULD have been doing. It was THIS type of adventurous attitude that has always made the difference. Personality radio ... good music ... not the exact same crap that every other radio station and disc jockey in town is doing. (Seriously ... do the people in charge of radio today have ANY sort of clue as to what makes GOOD radio???) kk

Sorry as I don’t get a chance to read your board as often as many here but did catch today’s and Jim Shea hit it on the head! (By the way, HI JIM !!!!!!!!!)

Until someone comes along that won the lottery and buys a station and hires people that KNOW the music and how to PROPERLY format the rock and roll from the 1950’s through the 1970’s, it is not going to happen.

In regards to Jim’s story with the Programmer – when I was doing afternoons on Star 105.5 the consultant (yep back when they used them for programming) slammed me a new one when I played COME MONDAY instead of MARGARITAVILLE by Jimmy Buffett as I was up to HERE with hearing that song for the 56,456th time on that station. He told me (and I quote) “By playing that song, I just LOST 200 listeners” As I kiddingly tell my kids, corporate radio wants you to believe Jimmy Buffett only had ONE hit along with the likes of Aerosmith – Yardbirds, etc etc etc.

As a matter of fact I am working on a deal on possibly joining a well-established internet station with a LPFM for doing some weekend fun – if something comes from this you will be the first to know!
Jeff James

It was another declining year of revenues for Chicagoland radio stations. Among the year’s biggest losers were the two Cumulus Media stations, with news / talk WLS AM 890 dropping 12 percent to $13.0 million and classic hits WLS FM 94.7 dropping 25 percent to $7.9 million. The company just doubled down on its investment in Chicago with the takeover of classic rock WLUP FM 97.9 and modern rock WIQI FM 101.1.

-- Robert Feder

Whatever you're doing ISN'T working!!!!! WE think we have a solution. (Seriously, at THIS point, what have you got to lose?!?!?) kk

Kent --

The complete revenue figures for Chicago radio are included in an article I read this morning.

WLS-FM ranks twenty-second in the Chicago market with a large drop from the prior year.

Big trouble and management probably doesn't want to take any risks, but now might be the right time to try it. Good luck with your campaign.

Danny

Thanks, Danny ... SOMEBODY over there needs to open their eyes and at least CONSIDER making a change. I mean seriously ... could it really get any worse than it already is?!?!? (kk)

That revenue figure for WLS is really bad. To put it into context, I was the GSM of seven Clear Channel stations here in Rochester. The largest of the seven, WHAM-AM averaged about 7 million in revenue a year and the Rochester population is only 211,000. Chicago's is around 2.7 million.

Danny

Cumulus ... let us help you recapture your share of listenership here in Chicago. We have an audience of oldies fans primed for the return of The True Oldies Channel! (kk)

We've had good response to our campaign ... and many of you have picket up the baton and written in to sources who may be able to help our cause. I've heard from a couple of people who have suggested that with as many sinking radio stations out there as there are, we could probably put together a committed group of investors and BUY a radio station and program it the way we like ... and suppose that IS an option. But for me the key to this whole thing working is that it HAS to be WLS-FM ... NOBODY else has that kind of built-in name recognition ... NOBODY else will be taken as seriously as WLS will be because of their unparalleled legacy. We need to make it happen THERE.

On the plus side, Cumulus seems concerned an committed to building a more solid base here in Chicago ... they've made enough moves of late to indicate that they're in this for the long haul ... so again we ask you to just CONSIDER what we're saying here ... folks have to spread the word and get the message to the powers that be at Cumulus in order to make it happen ... and then Cumulus has to do THEIR part and hire a sales force that knows how to market to this "older" audience by not insulting them. Just like radio doesn't like to use the word "oldies", listeners don't want to be reminded of the fact that they're getting old!!! It makes sense, doesn't it??? We DO spend our money on things other than adult diapers and assisted living! Cars, travel (especially cruise ships), casinos, insurance, investments ... THESE are the "hot buttons" that might make an older demographic respond. Cater to THOSE needs and you just might have a hit radio station on your hands! (kk)

re: Idiots!:

And for all these so-called experts and consultants who insist that oldies music is dead, may I suggest that you look no further than the two biggest movies of the year, "American Hustle" and "The Wolf Of Wall Street", BOTH of which are chock-full of music from our generation.

We saw "American Hustle" yesterday and couldn't believe the amount of '60's and '70's music featured, including KEY scenes spotlighting "Delilah" by Tom Jones, "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart" by The Bee Gees and "Live And Let Die" by Paul McCartney and Wings.

Other music prominently featured in the film includes "I Feel Love" by Donna Summer, "Dirty Work" by Steely Dan, "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" by Elton John, "Overture 10538" by Electric Light Orchestra (as well as a previously unreleased ELO track called "Long Black Road" , which I've already downloaded for my permanent collection), "A Horse With No Name" by America, "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is" by Chicago, "I Saw The Light" by Todd Rundgren, "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone" by Temptations, "Evil Ways" by Santana, "Jean Genie" by David Bowie as well as dynamite cover versions of "Don't Leave Me This Way" and "White Rabbitt" by Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes and Mayssa Karaa respectively. In addition, we're also treated to an assortment of jazz tracks by the likes of Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Oscar Peterson, Frank Sinatra and Thelonious Monk.

Later that same evening we re-watched "Silver Linings Playbook" (a film that actually employed many of the same actors present in "American Hustle", including Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence and Robert DeNiro ... enough, in fact, to make one wonder if they couldn't have save a few bucks by filming both movies simultaneously! lol) Check out the track list on THIS award-winning film:

"My Cherie Amour" and "Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing" (both by Stevie Wonder), "Misty" by Johnny Mathis, "What Is And What Should Never Be" by Led Zeppelin, "Hey Big Brother" by Rare Earth (when's the last time you heard THAT one on the radio ... a legitimate Top 20 Hit from 1972), as well as a version of "Sway" (the old Bobby Rydell / Dean Martin hit), Frank Sinatra's "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" and songs by Dave Brubeck and Les Paul and Mary Ford, along with a VERY cool duet between Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash.

To cap off the evening, we watched the Season Two Premier of "The Following", in which one of the killers finds his victim's i-Pod, scrolls through the tracks it contains and mutters "Oh ... '70's freak, eh? KILLER play list!!!" He then proceeds to serenade and entertain his already dead victim by dancing to KC and the Sunshine Band's "That's The Way I Like It" and romantically singing along with England Dan and John Ford Coley on their hit "Nights Are Forever Without You". This music ISN'T dead ... only his latest victim is!

The other big Oscar-nominated film right now is "The Wolf Of Wall Street" (which we haven't seen yet ... but is reportedly three solid hours of sex, drugs and roll and roll ... the "F-Bomb" is dropped a record-breaking 506 times in three hours!) includes music by Billy Joel ("Movin' Out"), Elvis Presley ("Can't Help Falling In Love Love"), Sir Mix-A-Lot, The Jimmy Castor Bunch ("Hey Leroy, Your Mama's Callin' You"), Cannonball Adderley ("Mercy, Mercy, Mercy"), Romeo Void, The Foo Fighters and performances of "Goldfinger", "Mrs. Robinson" and "Cast Your Fate To The Wind" as well as tracks by Howlin' Wolf, Bo Diddley, John Lee Hooker, Elmore James and Eartha Kitt!

I'm also reminded of recent Broadway Hits (and later film versions) spotlighting the hits of ABBA ("Mamma Mia") and The Four Seasons ("Jersey Boys") and cannot help but wonder what planet these know-it-all experts are living on ... because it SURE isn't the real world that the rest of us live in! For God's sake, take the blinders off ... and program the music that listeners REALLY want to hear!!! (kk)

↧

Article 2

January 21, 2014, 4:58 am

≫ Next: The British Invasion

≪ Previous: Our Latest Radio Rave-Out

re: CHRIS MONTEZ:

>>>Tommy Roe's connection to the Beatles in 1963 has resulted in his participation in the Fab Four anniversary celebrations -- but what about the other headliner on that tour: Chris Montez? I went to Chris' website to see what he was doing in conjunction with the anniversary and was surprised to learn that the most recent entries in his performance schedule are from 2011. Does anyone know what's going on with Chris?

(Gary Theroux)

Hi Kent,
I'm just finishing up my latest column for "The Beat" ... and it's an interview with Chris Montez.
First of all, what a genuinely nice fellow.  We first met several years ago when I was in the Rip Chords and we were both doing a t.v. show for P.B.S. called "At The Drive-In," so it was good catching up with him.
Chris is heading off to England for an extensive tour with Chris Farlowe, Wayne Fontana and others and then he and Tommy Roe are headlining at the Cavern Club in Liverpool for two shows on August 26, at the International Beatles Week Celebration there.
As you know, Tommy is doing the 2/11 concert in Washington, D.C. I'm happy to say that "The Beatles" will be portrayed by my friend Scot Arch's group from the Philadelphia area, Beatlemania Now! This ought to be terrific!
Save a Chicago Italian beef sandwich for me!
All the best,
Bob
Bob Rush, D.C.
"The U.S. Beat with Dr. Robert"

Thanks to a nudge from Dr. Bob, I heard from Pam Dixon, who coordinates a lot of the publicity for Chris Montez these days, including posting new information on Chris' Facebook page. She tells us:

Chris’ Facebook page is his active “site” for all show dates and information. I am his administrator on that page but he gets photos to me from shows and I post right away. I am in the process of getting all of the dates on there for the Solid Silver 60s tour, which starts the end of March and ends mid May. I don’t have complete details for International Beatles week yet but Chris will be performing with Tommy Roe August 26th at the Cavern Club in Liverpool.
You can link to the page here. https://www.facebook.com/ChrisMontez1

Yes! Chris will be at the Surf Ballroom Winter Dance Party on Saturday Feb 1!

This date is also listed on Chris’ “events tab” on his page:

Spring Doo Wop Cavalcade - American Theatre - Lancaster, PA

Saturday, March 1, 2014, at 2:00 pm EST

I will update the events tab as concerts come in.

Pam Dixon

re: SURVEY SAYS ... :
Kent -
The chart that was featured on Saturday was from the WHK 1420 Cleveland top 40 station in 1964. The stamp on the top that indicated Lorain, Ohio must have been stamped by a music retailer in the Lorain, Ohio area. The WHK auditorium at 5500 Euclid Avenue is still standing and is part of the legendary location that has been the Cleveland Agora for many years, and also housed the later offices of Cleveland International Records, owned by the late Steve Popovich. The station operated out of that building for many years and I worked out of that building from 2000 to 2009 for Cleveland International. The station was NOT located in Lorain - WHK was a legendary top 40 station here in Cleveland before WIXY took over and in 1964 had Johnny Holliday (see the LP Cruisin' 1964)
CLAY PASTERNACK
Rocky River, Ohio

Kent,
Citizen Bill here (Joe Klein's friend).
I was fascinated by the copy of the WHK January 16, 1965, survey for a number of reasons.
First off, Lorain, Ohio??!! WHK, to my knowledge has always been a Cleveland station, licensed to Cleveland - 1420 AM. They gave up Top 40 within a couple of years of that survey being printed, but that's another story.
Also interesting is THE RACE IS ON by (the now late) George Jones showing up on a Top 40 chart. That song was about as country as you could get. I wonder, just wonder if they meant to type Jack Jones (no relation) who did a non-country cover. You're a trivia guy, so you probably remember Dex Card playing it a few times.
I know that Ron Britain worked at WHK, and I think he may have been there around the time of that survey.
There's my two cents.
Bill

Funny to get two emails on this one ... my guess is that Clay (and his assessment above) is correct ... the local record store where this survey was distributed simply stamped THEIR address or location on the chart.

As for "The Race Is On", I have always LOVED the Jack Jones version ... and we've featured it a few times before in Forgotten Hits. It is one of the earlier 45's that I added to my collection. (Got it from my neighbor Sharon Kolar when she "outgrew" it and passed it over to me!)

Ironically BOTH "Jones" artists had chart hits with this song ... but NEITHER version makes logical sense to be on the Cleveland chart in the middle of January. The George Jones version came out in September of 1964, and went all the way to #3 on Billboard's Country Singles Chart. It would seem odd to be charting "pop" nearly four months later (although it DID stay on Billboard's Country Singles Chart for nearly SEVEN MONTHS ... so I guess it's possible!) Meanwhile, the Jack Jones "pop" version didn't debut in Billboard until the last week of February of 1965 ... so it's hard to imagine WHK playing THIS version five weeks earlier. All this scientific research narrows it down to ... WHO KNOWS?!?!? I guess it could have been EITHER version! (lol ... but my BEST guess would put it on the George Jones version.) kk

Kent,

Just FYI, here in OKC our local top 40 radio station (WKY - AM 930) made the new music available on the survey on Thursday mornings at 9:30. So for the week of January 16 - 22, 1964, where the 18th was Saturday, here are some interesting tidbits of what was on the survey.
The PICK HIT OF THE WEEK was THAT'S MY GIRL by Dee Clark.
They had a record listed at the bottom as well which was the MAKE OF THE WEEK. This was the two sided hit by the Beatles I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND / I SAW HER STANDING THERE. Three weeks later it would be at position #1.
SURFIN' BIRD by the Trashmen was number one that week with LONG TALL TEXAN by the late Murry Kellum as number two. LONG TALL TEXAN had been number one the week before.
Finally, another record on the survey which I always liked was Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs' DAISY PETAL PICKIN' (She loves me, she loves me not, she loves me, she loves me not).
Larry Neal

re: To (RE)-Clarify:
Because we know we're going to get called out on EVERY single detail we publish (yeah, makes for a REAL fun Sunday!!!), we've tried to PRE-clarify some of these points in the hopes of avoiding emails like these ...

Hi Kent -
Great Sunday comments as usual.
Just one minor point - Please Please Me did not make number one in UK.In January, 1963, it stalled at number 2. It was kept out of top spot by:

Cliff Richard =The Next Time / Bachelor Boy
The Shadows = Dance On
and Diamonds = Jet Harris / Tony Meehan
All Three of these tunes were number one in January of 1963.
The Beatles had to wait until 2nd May, 1963, for their first UK number one single = From Me To You - it stayed seven weeks at the summit.
Regards -
Geoff Dorsett

and this ...

Regarding The Beatles, you said:
>>> " ... no British act had ever really conquered here before." (kk)
Well, actually, at least three did. Yes, The Tornadoes was one, hitting #1 stateside with "Telstar" in 1962. But there was also Laurie London, a British boy who was was 14 in 1958 when he topped the Billboard charts with "He's Got The Whole World In His Hands." And six years before that there was Vera Lynn, England's most popular singer during World War II, who remained at #1 for NINE WEEKS in 1952 with "Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart." The only Beatles single to ever match THAT accomplishment was "Hey Jude"!
Vera's record REALLY hit home for countless GIs who had met and fallen for women in countries other than their own during World War II -- or been separated from their hometown sweethearts by the war. German composer Eberhard Storch wrote the song as a message to his wife while he was hospitalized and it was his version that Vera heard sung in beer halls in Switzerland.  She got John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons to write an English language translation and then recorded the song with a mass choir of British soldiers and airmen.  The resulting single became the first recorded by a foreign artist to reach #1 in America on the Billboard charts. In fact, "Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart" is tied with "Hey Jude" as the third longest-running #1 hit by a foreign artist in Billboard history (behind Elton John's "Candle in The Wind" and the Celine Dion / Calvin Harris duet on "We Found Love"). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WsuLH4sulA
Vera's other hits to score in the U.S. included "You Can't Be True, Dear,""Again,""Yours" and "We'll Meet Again." The latter recording is the one heard at the tail end of the 1964 feature film "Dr. Strangelove."
Gary Theroux

One at a time ...

As stated in my original piece, "Please Please Me" made #1 on MOST of the British Charts ... just not the "official" chart, which showed it at #2. (Same thing happened here in America with "Twist And Shout" ... since it didn't make #1 in Billboard, it's not "officially" a #1 Hit, despite topping the chart in both Cash Box and Record World ... as well as the Top 40 chart in virtually EVERY major American city.) Perhaps one of the most famous Beatles-related quotations of all time is George Martin's comment after the "Please Please Me" recording session: "Congratulations, gentlemen ... you have have just recorded your first #1 Single."

As for the other comment, I thought I had made it quite clear by using the word "conquered" ... neither The Tornadoes, Laurie London OR Vera Lynn caused the incredible pandemonium brought about by what was quickly coined "Beatlemania" ... in fact, none of these acts really had any lasting success at all to speak of ... and certainly not the type that anyone would still be celebrating and talking about some fifty years later.

Here again are my original quotations copied and pasted from the Sunday posting:

Before I get a TON of emails, yes, The Tornados hit #1 here in The States before The Beatles did ... but pandemonium did not then ensue ... nor did they ever have another hit to speak of here. And "Please Please Me", while never OFFICIALLY #1 on the main chart in Great Britain DID reach #1 in virtually every other ancillary chart. I consider "Twist And Shout" a #1 Hit here in America for the same reason ... the ONLY major U.S. Trade that didn't show it there was Billboard ... it was #1 across the land and in all the other major music publications.

Jeez, I can't even pre-empt the comments from coming in by clarifying myself in advance!!! (kk)

Hi Kent -
I think "Please Please Me" is their best ever single ... it's power pop at its very best from first to last.
Geoff

The boys sure did a fine job of turning this one around ... especially since it was originally written and conceived as a Roy Orbison-like, powerful, drawn-out version. Speeding it up and adding the "harm" ... harmonies and harmonic ... certainly made all the difference! (kk)

re: This And That:
GRAMMY® NOMINATION SPURS RELEASE OF THE ROLLING STONES LIVE 1965: MUSIC FROM CHARLIE IS MY DARLING THIS MONTH FROM ABKCO RECORDS

ABKCO Records will digitally release The Rolling Stones Live 1965: Music From Charlie is my Darling on January 21st. The thirteen song set dates back to the breakthrough period of the Rolling Stones original lineup -- Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts, Brian Jones and Bill Wyman -- as chronicled in the critically acclaimed film Charlie is my Darling- Ireland 1965 -- and is in contention for Grammy recognition later this month.
A Super Deluxe edition of the film was released in 2012 that included companion audio CDs which resulted in a Grammy® nomination in the Best Historical Album category for Teri Landi, Andrew Loog Oldham and Steve Rosenthal, the compilation producers, along with mastering engineer Bob Ludwig.  In honor of the nomination, ABKCO is offering a digital version of this limited CD release to fans everywhere.
The performances, as captured on Live 1965, provide fierce, elemental testimony to the Rolling Stones coming into their own as interpreters of blues-rooted material as well as to the emerging songwriting acumen of the Jagger / Richards team.
The thirteen tracks include “Everybody Needs Somebody To Love,” which Mick Jagger sang in tribute to the late Solomon Burke on the 2011 Grammy telecast, as well as Bobby Troup’s “Route 66,” Willie Dixon’s “Little Red Rooster” and “Pain In My Heart” written by Allan Toussaint and covered by Otis Redding. Other tracks include Don Ray’s boogie-woogie classic “Down The Road Apiece,” “Time Is On My Side,” the Jerry Ragovoy-penned standard that Irma Franklin first recorded and Hank Snow’s country burner “I’m Moving On.” Original material on The Rolling Stones: Live 1965 includes the rave up “I’m Alright,” collaboratively written by all five members of the band, Jagger / Richards’ “Off The Hook,” the studio version of which is on The Rolling Stones Now! and “The Last Time,” the band’s first British single to carry the Jagger / Richards credit line.
Live 1965: Music From Charlie is my Darling track listing:
1.     Show intro
2.     Everybody Needs Somebody To Love
3.     Pain In My Heart
4.     Down The Road Apiece
5.     Time Is On My Side
6.     I’m Alright
7.     Off The Hook
8.     Charlie’s intro to Little Red Rooster
9.     Little Red Rooster
10.  Route 66
11.  I’m Moving On
12.  The Last Time
13.  Everybody Needs Somebody To Love (Finale)

From Bill Hengels ...

Some fun stories behind the songs ...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKi0C22S5qo&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Of course it all starts with the songwriter ... and check out these three artists from the '70's who are teaming up for a performance at B.B. King's in New York City! http://www.bbkingblues.com/bio.php?id=3499

I noticed you included Sammy Johns ("Chevy Van") in artists that went into the eternal 2013.
Sammy was the leader of The Devilles which were big dogs in Charlotte, NC back in the day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMVUd-NOLQo
But most importantly Sammy Johns should be credited for more than anything as being one of the earliest pioneers of "Christian Americana" if there be such a title.

The LP "Sammy Johns" included these two original Christian tunes that are standouts and on the sessions were the very cream of the crop of musicians: Larry Knechtel, Jim Gordon,James Burton, Buddy Emmons,Chuck Rainey, Dean Parks, Herb Pedersen Mylon Lefevre, The Blackberries and Buck Herring doing the engineering with LP illustration by J. Flournoy Holmes.

Sammy Johns - "Friends of Mine":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wixlCaBvh28

Sammy Johns - "Way Out Jesus":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P--Hvc5TRcc

The entire players on that LP do not get the recognition of this monumental achievement but someday they will.

I know and now some of you do, too.

I love his lyric "We'll get high recalling memories so fine" in "Friends of Mine". That was way out!

Sammy was an original Jesus Freak.

Vibramutant

Live from Daryl's House is back from a year-long hiatus and kicks off a new season with ZZ Top's Billy F Gibbons guesting with Daryl Hall and the gang. Billy brought along his Austin B3 buddy Mike Flanigan as well as Martin Guigui ("Martin G"), from Argentina by way of LA, to flesh out the sound in a groove-filled way. Peformances include ZZ Top's "Thunderbird,""Sharp Dressed Man" and "LaGrange" and Sam & Dave's "I Thank You" as well as "Bank on Your Love" and "Love You Like A Brother" from the Hall & Oates songbook plus Jimmy McGriff's "Kiko."
Added bonus: Billy shows Daryl how to make his signature Renegade Guacamole ... pause the program a few seconds after the 26 minute mark to take down the Renegade Guacamole recipe -- it goes great with football!
The episode, the 63rd, debuts in HD on the Palladia music channel on Thursday, February 6 at 11 PM / Eastern but you can watch it right now online if you click here http://ow.ly/sHOiU
-- Bob Merlis

Kent,
During your Thursday's Comments, you mentioned in passing Tommy Facenda's 1959 song HIGH SCHOOL U.S.A.. You were right about 28 versions being recorded. I am fortunate to have all 28 versions, except mine are on vinyl, not CD. I also have a version which was national in nature.
I believe I read years ago in a record publication that the OKC version was the last one that he recorded. It was also brought to my attention years ago from a friend of mine that in the OKC version, one of the schools mentioned is really an elementary school and another one is really a Junior College.
I just got my version out and I believe I heard mention not one but two schools that were elementary in nature.
Larry

A WHOLE lotta research had to go into this, finding the names of all the area high schools for each locale that had its own version ... especially in the pre-Internet days!!! (kk)

FH Reader Bill Hengels sent us this awesome "Lost Chicago" Website ... boy, you don't realize how many of these are gone until you see them. If you grew up here in The Windy City, these photos will definitely hit home. (Check out some of the other tabs here, too ... it's a trip down memory lane!) kk
Click here: CraigsLostChicago

And then this from Ken Voss ...
Remember the teen clubs from those years?

Kent -
The 12 Days of A Cleveland Browns Christmas was a HUGE hit here in Cleveland the year it was released. It was on a label called PAID (#COB 9) and it reportedly sold over 100,000 records during its run. The label was based in Nashville. They also had a record by Vince Vance and the Valiants, who later had a lot of success with Christmas records, with a single called "Bomb Iran" This also came out in 1980 (PAD #109)
CLAY PASTERNACK
Rocky River, Ohio

Hi Kent,
Speaking of "The Air That I Breathe", ever heard this version before? I hadn’t.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuT15Iat5hY
Rockin’ Lord Geoff (in England)
Actually, YES ... in fact, this is the same clip I referenced that day ... pointing out that the background vocals on this are handled by The Beach Boys ... although I NEVER would have guessed so by the sound of it! (kk)

And, speaking of The Beach Boys, John Madara just sent me this clip ...
Hi Kent ...
Here is the version of At The Hop by The Beach Boys. I hope things are good with youmy friend!
Best Regards ...
John

I definitely can relate to this Better Half comic in today's paper (Jan. 17) - I think your readers can, too. Alice M., Michigan
http://fb.comicskingdom.net/social/callback?feature_id=Better_Half&feature_date=2014-01-17&widget_id=176

re: DIGGIN' FORGOTTEN HITS:
A belated Happy New Year Kent!

Lovin' "Forgotten Hits" -- I still remember giving you a Forgotten Hits "Shout Out" with " Take Me Back" by The Flock - 5 or 6 yrs back on "The Saturday Night Party" show on 94-7 WLS.

Best in 2014!

Danny Lake -- Weekdays Mon - Fri ( 1 to 4 pm )

94-7 WLS - Chicago

↧

The British Invasion

January 21, 2014, 6:48 pm

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re: NOW THIS I JUST GOTTA SEE!:

The British Are Coming: CNN Special Presentation of "THE SIXTIES: The British Invasion",Executive Produced by Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman -- Premiers Thursday, January 30th -- Extraordinary series THE SIXTIES from Playtone, Herzog and Company begins, May, 2014

Multiple Emmy^® Award-winning executive producers Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman (HBO's John Adams and The Pacific) and Emmy^® Award-winning producer Mark Herzog (History's Gettysburg) of Herzog and Company (HCO) will reignite the landmark musical revolution of 1964 in this special presentation from their CNN Original Series. The one-hour special, THE SIXTIES: The British Invasion, will premier on CNN / US on Thursday, January 30th at 9:00 pm ET and PT. The full 10-Part Episode CNN Original Series THE SIXTIES will begin in May, 2014.

The British Invasion begins with the breakthrough performance of The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show, which was watched by a record-setting 73 million viewers, blazing a culture-changing path through America fifty years ago next month. The Beatles' success was quickly followed by other British bands hoping to conquer the hearts of America teens. Those siren calls of The Animals, The Kinks, The Hollies, The Dave Clark Five, The Who and the Rolling Stones are all revisited in this paean to the power of the music that defined a generation -- and remain vital and relevant today.

The Ed Sullivan Show introducing The Beatles to America aired on Feb. 9, 1964, and their thrilling, mesmerizing appearance launched a revolution in fashion, hairstyles, advertising, politics, and sexual mores that have influenced virtually every aspect of modern American life. Throughout the special, soul song legend Smokey Robinson; Graham Nash (of The Hollies and Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young); Ahmir“Questlove” Thompson, music journalist, record producer and drummer for the Grammy^® Award-winning band The Roots; rock columnist David Wild; Micky Dolenz of the American musical group, The Monkees; and more, all provide insights into how the “British invasion” was actually a reciprocal flow of influences back and forth with American artists. The legendary era of Bob Dylan, Motown, The Beach Boys, and others, laid down the beats that formed the soundtrack of a generation.

THE SIXTIES: The British Invasion follows the strong ratings success of THE SIXTIES: The Assassination of JFK (1963), which was seen by 21.0 million total viewers and 8.2 million viewers in the coveted 25 to 54 age demo. The Assassination of JFK (1963) and The British Invasion will air again when the full THE SIXTIES series launches in May, 2014. The 10 episodes of THE SIXTIES focus on the indelible impact of technology, drugs, music, “free love,” and civil rights, bringing new insights to the landmark events and extraordinary people which shaped our history and character as Americans – and changed the world.

I don't know about you guys but I'm REALLY excited about this hot new CNN / Tom Hanks series ... and I'm really tempted to watch it ... but if I do, I'm afraid I'll miss quite a few Journey songs, Steve Miller songs and John Mellencamp songs on the radio during those ten hours ... which, as we ALL know, EVERYBODY out there would MUCH rather hear than this forgettable music of the '60's. (Isn't that what all the consultants keep telling us? This music is dead ... and, for all intents and purposes, so are we?!?!?) Gee, I wonder how many MILLIONS of viewers will prove them wrong THIS time!!! (Doesn't really matter 'tho ... because they STILL won't get it ... they're right and we're wrong ... even when it slaps 'em right in the face!) kk

Forgotten Hits will be celebrating and remembering The British Invasion all year long ... and what a GREAT year it's going to be with specials like this, Paul and Ringo reuniting on The Grammys®, and the special February 9th Beatles Tribute Program "The Night That Changed America" ... this HUGE wave of nostalgia will continue throughout the year, celebrating anniversary after anniversary ... yet radio is STILL refusing to acknowledge (and capitalize on) the INCREDIBLE, long-lasting impact it has had on each and every one of us ... and our hunger to relive those moments and memories. Sorry guys, but I feel cheated ... don't you??? (Would you PLEASE write to the media DEMANDING the return of the oldies to our radio dial?!?!?) kk

Personal Note to Peter Noone: I don't want you to feel slighted ... and I want you to know that I didn't leave your name off the list ... the above is the official press release sent in by the advertising agency helping to promote this hot new television special. Also noticeably absent from the list are Peter and Gordon, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Petula Clark, Dusty Springfield, Chad and Jeremy, Freddie and the Dreamers, Manfred Mann, The Searchers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, The Zombies, The Yardbirds and more. Hopefully ALL of these great artists will be profiled in the series. (kk)

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Article 0

January 22, 2014, 4:40 am

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re: On The Radio:

Chicago Media Columnist Rob Feder just ran the final tally for the December radio ratings period and once again those know-it-all consultants have been proven right ... Chicago really DOES need six stations playing the same Classic Hits / Classic Rock format. Just a casual glance at the ratings will prove how right they really are ...

#1 - by a LANDSLIDE - is the new My-FM (93.9, formerly The Lite), programming their annual 24 / 7 Christmas Music Blitz. How big? An 11.6 share ... nearly DOUBLE their nearest competition. (In all fairness ... as Robert Feder points out in his column ... traditionally it will now go on to lose two-thirds of its audience as it returns back to its regular adult contemporary format.)

How did our know-it-all rockers fare? Well, let's see ...

WLS-FM (the guys we keep saying NEED to switch back to oldies if only to save themselves) were at 2.4. (I'm sure those numbers please the folks back at Corporate! In the all-important 25-54 demographic, that number drops to 1.7, or good enough for 24th Place on the list of Top 30 Radio Stations in Chicago. Woo-Hoo!!!)

WLUP (newly acquired by Cumulus) was ALSO at 2.4. (Their numbers actually improve in the 25-54 demo.) WDRV (The Drive) fared a little bit better with a 3.3 share, or about HALF of the city's #2 station WVAZ (who scored a 6.4 playing "urban adult contemporary" music.) K-Hits (yeah, the guys we offered to help) fell to a new low of 1.7 (meaning nine out of every ten Chicagoans would rather listen to the same Christmas songs played over and over and over again than ANYTHING K-Hits has to offer) and suburban rockers The River and The Fox scored so low they didn't even place on the list.

Clearly, we have absolutely NO idea what we're talking about ... thank you, Chicago listeners, for proving this point once again. (It just keeps getting better, doesn't it???) Hmmm ... maybe My FM should switch to a 6-week "Love Songs" format for Valentine's Day and see if they can keep the streak going. And then there's Easter ... surely there must be SOME way to bunny-hop back up the charts. Heck for the 4th of July they could play Katy Perry's "Fireworks" every other song ... instead of every fifth song like they do now. Follow that up with a very special "Christmas In July" two-week marathon and before you know it, it'll be time to spin those holiday classics again for real!!! (I'm only half-joking ... we've hit a low point here in Chicago where you could program almost ANY new idea, no matter HOW ridiculous it might seem, and still get people to tune in and listen to it, just because it's something better than or different from what we're being force-fed now. Which again begs the question ... why not oldies? What have you got to lose? Or, more to the point, how many more listeners can you afford to lose?)

And here's something interesting ... the formats that scored ahead of Classic Rock / Classic Hits include Urban (2 stations), All News (3 stations), Current Contemporary Top 40 (B-96 and Kiss-FM) and Country. Perhaps the saddest news of all ... the All-Mexican Channel now draws more listeners than WLS-FM ... but there's nothing they need to fix there ... they believe they're giving Chicago exactly what it wants to hear. (You just keep telling yourselves that, guys! Lord knows you've been proven right so far!) kk

Fifty Years Ago This Week:

As we continue to re-live the 50th Anniversary of The British Invasion (be sure to see last night's special posting for some VERY exciting news), here is a recap of how the Brits fared on our U.S. Charts fifty years ago this week:

1/24 and 1/25/64 - I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND jumps to #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles Chart, right behind LOUIE LOUIE (#2) and THERE! I'VE SAID IT AGAIN (#1), a 42 point jump on the charts. Meanwhile SHE LOVES YOU premiers at #69.

Also new on the chart this week: DUSTY SPRINGFIELD debuts at #77 with I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU, becoming the first of what would become known as The British Invasion to make their way on to the U.S. charts.

Here in Chicago, on the WLS Silver Dollar Survey, "I Want To Hold Your Hand" jumps from #40 to #8 this week … Beatlemania has taken over The Windy City ... and The Fab Four haven't even appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show yet!

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Helping Out Our Readers

January 23, 2014, 4:15 am

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Hi -
I just discovered your Forgotten Hits website and am enjoying the trivia. I am writing to you because I saw that there was a contest last year and the prize was a copy of a book I have been searching for. I was turned on to music in the early 70's and followed the Billboard charts passionately and listened to Casey's show every Sunday morning for 4 or 5 hours with a pen and pad and wrote down every title. (Did not realize there was an actual magazine that kept a list weekly for a few years!)
I would really like to know when they plan on reprinting and selling the book, if ever, again. I went to the Joel Whitburn website and it is always 'unavailable.'
Thank you
Zoltan Deak
Norwalk, CT
I know Joel's book had completely sold out when our trivia contest ran ... which is what made one of his personal copies such a cool prize to give away.
Joel recently reprinted the '60's Chart book ... so I asked him if any plans were underway to do the same with the 1970's edition. (kk)
Kent,
As you probably know, printing books has become extremely expensive. We've had a number of "big" ones this past year, including "Hot Country Songs", "Top Pop Singles""1950s Chart Book" and now "Cash Box Pop Hits", which is printing this Friday. We should have some stock in on Monday (with lots of preorders to fill!) So, there just hasn' t been a lot of room to catch up on reprints of out of stock titles.
I definitely plan on re-prints of the Billboard 1970s, 1980s & 1990s books spread throughout this year.
I'm also working on a new book project which I hope to have out in two to three months. It has something to do with "Top Pop Playlists" surrounded by picture sleeves in full color for EACH MONTH per year! When I have some samples I'll send them to you, but right now I'm still working on the layout, years covered, etc. It will probably be a perfect book for those looking for "Forgotten Hits" that we all loved so much. I'll keep you posted.
Joel
Man ... ALWAYS something new and exciting coming from this guy!!! And he keeps finding new ways to present the material to us, which I love! Stay tuned for exclusive "sneak peeks" right here in Forgotten Hits ... and as soon as we get word about a '70's Chart Book Reprint, we'll let you know, Zoltan! Glad you're enjoying Forgotten Hits. (kk)
Hi Kent,
Really? Wonderful! That would be amazing.
Thank you for asking him. I'm excited. I am so desperate to own one that I am involved in a bidding war at this very moment on Ebay. Now I hope someone else tops my current high offer!
Much appreciated,
Zoltan
Well, be patient ... and maybe we can save you a few bucks! (Besides, Joel doesn't make any extra money when his books are sold at these "collectors' rates" ... and he'd rather offer them at a fair price value / bargain anyway!) kk

Hi Kent,
This is a LONG SHOT!!! ... But maybe you or one of the dedicated Forgotten Hits fans can pull this one from somewhere. I'd like to know the song and artist of an instrumental (the worst kind of song to not the know the title to) track used in an episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
Here's the episode on Hulu. This is front the 1st season, and the song appears around 9:15 and continues throughout a very odd scene for The Mary Tyler Moore Show, with an outdoor montage of footage.
http://www.hulu.com/watch/668
The title of this episode is "Bess, You Is My Daughter Now" from the show's first season. This song has been used in the series at least one another time, albeit in a short snippet only. It might just be generic TV music, but this full length song leads me to believe this track might exist somewhere. Now I have a hunch the artist might be Patrick Williams, who was responsible for scoring several films and shows.
Here's some of his work:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Williams_(composer) and his personal website confirms some work on The Mary Tyler Moore Show: http://www.patrickwilliamsmusic.com William's body of work is quite extensive. Anyway, it is a long shot, but any way somebody might be able to put a name to the song I linked to, or maybe even a confirmation that it is indeed part of Williams' work?

Thanks Kent and FH Readers,
AJK
I investigated Patrick Williams' site and, based on what I'm hearing here, I'd have to say that it's a real strong possibility that he supplied the music for this track. It seems his "incidental music" used in both The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Columbo regularly get comments and requests.
But it ALSO sounds like most of these snippets never even got song titles ... he was just told to fill "x" minutes of screen time and come up with something based solely on that criteria.
He also doesn't own any of the rights to his own music ... so he has no way of making it available to interested parties and, surprisingly, it sounds like there have been THOUSANDS of requests over the years.
As such, you may have to live off you Hulu Clip ... or burn just that musical segment to your computer.
Here's a copy from Jason Lee, an associate Of Patrick Williams with a bit more detailed explanation. (kk)
Hi Kent,
My name is Jason Lee. I work with Patrick Williams, and was forwarded your message in hopes that I could assist you.
It's a tough inquiry, as all of that music is owned by FOX (formerly MTM Enterprises). Often times there were no actual "titles" to the pieces other than a cue# and the length of the piece. Pat does not have any of the music from that show in his personal archive, as it's owned by FOX, so it's pretty much impossible to track down the information you're looking for unless you were to contact the studio directly ... and even then, I can't imagine it being an easy task.
Pat gets requests almost daily for his music from the Marry Tyler Moore Show and especially the work he did on Columbo. Unfortunately, we're not able to re-release any of this music or make it available for people to enjoy. Thanks for your inquiry, Kent. Sorry I don't have a better answer for you.
Have a great rest of your week.
Best,
Jason

Kent,
Hope you and family had a nice holiday.
I have a question as you are the man.
One of the cover tunes I played in my 60's garage band was "Midnight Hour". Of course Wilson Pickett (and scores of other artists) did the song. I think that some local band had a release of it, too, since I remember hearing it on the radio, but never had a copy on record. Do you know who's the artist? If so, how can I procure that song?
Thanks,
Bob
I'm guessing it's the Michael and the Messengers' version that you're remembering, which did very well here in Chicago. Give a listen to the track below and see if this one rings the bell. (Of course The Rascals' version got quite a bit of airplay, too, but I figure you've already ruled that one out.) Michael and the Messengers have come up several times the past couple of weeks in Forgotten Hits ... we're actually trying to put a short piece together on these guys with the help of Gary Myers, who wrote the book on the History of Wisconsin Rock. (kk)

Ya, that's the one. I know Wilson Pickett's and the Rascals' versions are infinitely more soulful, but that one

sticks with me - my garage band had the cheesy Farfisa organ sound too. It was cool to hear it again!

Thanks, Kent

Bob

Hi Kent,

I'm trying to produce a documentary about the local Boston, MA, music scene in the 60's and was writing to ask if you could post this on your website. I'm trying to find any archive video from the mid 1960's concerning some local Boston, MA, Rock Bands that anyone might have in their archives that they could share or may know of that might have aired on any local TV or news shows on any networks from the years 1966 - 1969. The main bands I'm looking for footage of are Orpheus, Pandoras, Ill Wind, Teddy & The Pandas, Rockin' Ramrods, Barry & The Remains, Ultimate Spinach, Beacon Street Union or any one else associated with thatscene at that time. I know a lot of these bands had done some TV over those years so I'm hoping some may be around.

I read your newsletter all the time! It's always very cool. Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

Lenny Scolletta

lennys09@verizon.net

Happy to put this out there, Lenny ... good luck. (Interested parties can contact Lenny directly through the email address shown above.) kk

Aside from the known stories about raiding each others' dj staff, why was it some major songs hitting Number One on WLS would make a paltry showing at CFL, as in for example, Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody", which only charted for two weeks on the latter, and some songs never made the playlist that went on and did well nationally. In hindsight, it looks almost suicidal,business-plan wise …
Regards,
Tim Abbott
Hi Tim!

You're right about the jocks moving from station to station during this era ... but that also goes to show you just how well known ... and how well-LOVED these jocks were here in Chicago back in the day. (How often do you see that today ... especially in a time when SO much of radio is automated or voice-tracked ... there is very little connection between the guy on the radio and the guy listening at home anymore, other than some of today's Top 40 stations that have kept the trend going ... and those stations that incorporate talk into their music mix.

Naturally, the two stations competed for audience share and often one station would jump on a record that the other station passed on ... but by and large, their charts were very similar over the years. Sometimes they'd air different versions of the same songs ("Beautiful People" and "Son Of My Father" immediately come to mind ... WLS played the Bobby Vee and Giorgio versions, respectively, while WCFL opted for the versions cut by Kenny O'Dell and Chicory.)

The Queen example, however, is not a fair analysis ... the reason "Bohemian Rhapsody" only charted for two weeks and stopped at#31 is because WCFL shut down in what would have been the record's third week on the chart. The final WCFL Chart published was dated February 21, 1976, which was "Bohemian Rhapsody"'s second (and final) week on the chart. (kk)

And, speaking of WCFL ...

>>>J.R. Russ “has spent a thousand hobby hours to create an Internet version of WCFL (1000), the free-wheeling Chicago station that during the 1960s and 1970s was the home of Larry Lujack, Jerry G. Bishop and Barney Pip.” That’s the Chicago Sun-Times’ Dave Hoekstra, profiling “a labor of love” by Russ. J.R. says that “rather than a tribute station, stuck in the ‘60s and ’70s, I call it a salute station, which captures the essence of the original,” but plays some newer music. His traffic grew after Lujack’s death on December. 18. Read the Sun-Times story about the original WCFL where the jocks were “more unleashed,” and the current J.R. Russ version of it here. Note that J.R.’s also got the “Chickenman” comedy series, created by then-WCFL production genius Dick Orkin.

Kent,
Do you have the website for this station??
Clark
The link in your email is SUPPOSED to take you there ... but I personally have tried numerous times now to access the station and have yet to connect. I either just keep spinning or being redirected to other areas, none of which allow me to listen to the site. I'm hoping that someone else on the list had better success with this and can provide us with a new link so that others on the list can enjoy it, too. I'll keep you posted. Help anyone??? (kk)

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The Beatles Are Coming!

January 24, 2014, 4:49 am

≫ Next: The Saturday Surveys (1-25)

≪ Previous: Helping Out Our Readers

Actually, The Beatles Blitz is already here ... virtually everywhere you turn lately ... and there's a whole lot more coming as we countdown to the major anniversary of The Beatles' first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. SO cool to hear that Paul and Ringo will be performing together for this very Special 50th Anniversary Event. Yoko Ono and Olivia Harrison will also be on hand to help celebrate ... although neither one of them had even met their husbands John and George yet at this point in time.

Which begs the question: How might The Fab Four be celebrating this year, were they all still with us? Of course, one can only speculate ... but as you look back over the events since the passing of John Lennon 34 years ago (incredible to think that he has now been gone nearly as long as he was with us!), you cannot help but wonder.

Of course several of the REAL Beatles anniversaries already passed last year ... but there was something about conquering America that still reigns supreme.

SO much has happened in the last 20 years alone. The "Threetles" reunited to get "The Beatles Anthology" out ... I have to believe that John would have contributed heartily to that event had he been here to do so. (Then again I suppose any one of them could have procrastinated, refusing to live in the past, but one would hope for such a momentous event, they would have reunited in spirit if nothing else.) The documentary had been planned for ages, originally to be called "The Long And Winding Road" after the band's final #1 hit.

George Harrison campaigned for the Cirque de Solei "Love" tribute that is still playing at The Mirage Theatre in Las Vegas, a culmination of Beatles music set to visual delight. (Paul, on the other hand, was the driving force behind "Let It Be ... Naked", a stripped-down version of The Fab Four's final album the way he felt the band had always envisioned it, pre-Phil Spector tampering with the tapes.)

The continual revamping and improving of their recorded catalog most certainly would have happened with or without them, simply from a technological standpoint.

Might they have gotten together sooner? Perhaps the emotion of any one of the events would have been enough to spark something, especially working on "Anthology". Under the circumstances, Paul, George and Ringo added their contributions to a couple of rough Lennon demo tracks ... certainly the possibility exists that NEW music might have ensued if all four guys got wrapped up in the emotion of what they were working on.

The only thing that's certain is the uncertainty ... we'll never know.

SO much is planned ... yet I cannot help but feel that more can be done. "The Night That Changed America" will tape the day after The Grammy Awards Ceremony (which will also feature Paul, Ringo, Yoko and Olivia) ... and then air on the actual 50th Anniversary of that first Sullivan appearance on February 9th. Although I'm sure some vintage clips will be worked into the program, it seems like a television special devoted to the entire Sullivan catalog would also be in order.

And shouldn't SOMEBODY be airing "Anthology" now, too? Whether it be the abbreviated ABC Mini-Series Television Special or the full-length ten hour commercial release it seems like SOMEBODY (ABC? VH1? Palladia? PBS?) should have jumped on this. Plus it would probably help spark new sales for this collection, much as the release of their American Albums Catalog did this week.

What about a movie marathon? "A Hard Day's Night", "Help!", "Magical Mystery Tour", "Yellow Submarine" ... a weekend event in the making.

Which begs, of course, the OBVIOUS question ... WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON WITH "LET IT BE"?!?!?!

For over 25 years now we've been promised that this film would FINALLY be released ... but it has yet to see the light of day. (I am one of the fortunate few who owns a copy on VHS. In fact, back in the late '70's, when "Let It Be" was released on both VHS Tape and Laser Disk, I bought a copy ... for something like $89!!! ... and I didn't even own a VHS player yet!!! I just knew that this was something I needed to own and, thankfully, I've held on to it all these years.) It just seems that a legitimate, cleaned up DVD / BluRay edition is LONG overdue. No, it's not their finest moment ... and maybe they feel in retrospect it portrays the break-up of the band ... but it is a KEY event in the story, featuring some great, timeless music, as well as their final live roof-top performance. It deserves to be seen ... and owned!

Fans continue to write in about the momentous event ... here are just a few of your letters from last week:

>>>The Beatles’ first American television appearance 50 years ago next month — said to be the most significant moment in pop music history — also marked a turning point for Top 40 radio. Nowhere was the British invasion welcomed more warmly than at WLS AM 890, where the Fab Four dominated the Silver Dollar Survey on Chicago’s 50,000-watt giant for rest of the decade.

Click here: Feder flashback: WLS meets the Beatles | Robert Feder

>>>By mid-December, British copies of “I Want to Hold Your Hand” started getting airplay in key markets , such as Washington and Los Angeles. Capitol moved up its release date to December 26. “She Loves You” and all the other early singles were re-released to millions of eager fans ready to spend their Christmas gift money. In the week following Christmas, they had five hits on the charts and by the end of January, had sold 2.6 million singles. By the time The Beatles appeared on “The Ed Sullivan Show” on February 9, 1964, they were already cemented as the biggest viral sensation in music history.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/maxrobins/2014/01/21/how-the-beatles-went-viral-in-america-in-six-weeks/

Hi Kent,

Coincidentally, Forgotten Hits is featuring 'The British Invasion' which I took part in.

The National Guitar Museum has awarded me 'The Lifetime Achievement Award' for my part in the history of the guitar. I've copied the details below. Your details of the TV Show at the end of the month mention many of the records I was on, so it's very relevant.

Such recognition by the Museum is a first for British session musicians, as was my having an evening at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame a couple of years ago where I talked about the impact of British music on the American scene, just as the USA music had on the UK music scene. Wonderful how the interchange jumped the 3000 miles of 'the big pond.'

Keep up the good work, Kent and I hope we can meet up one day.

Very best wishes,

Vic

www.vicflick.com

The National GUITAR Museum Announces Presentation of “Lifetime Achievement” Award to Vic Flick . . . The Man Behind The World’s Most Famous Guitar Riff.

NEW YORK, December 24, 2013: The National GUITAR Museum announced that Vic Flick, the guitarist who played on hundreds of London sessions — and is best know for playing the guitar on the James Bond theme – will receive its “Lifetime Achievement” Award for 2013. Flick is the fourth recipient of the award, following David “Honeyboy” Edwards in 2010, Roger McGuinn of The Byrds in 2011, and the legendary B.B. King in 2012.

Flick’s work spans four decades of popular music, from movie soundtracks to jazz to rock and roll. “It is arguable that Vic created and played the one guitar riff that has been heard by more people than any other in history,” says HP Newquist, the executive director of The National GUITAR Museum. “In 1962, Vic played guitar on the soundtrack to "Dr. No"– in the process creating the James Bond theme song. His sinister opening riff has been featured in dozens of Bond movies ever since, and the popularity of the Bond franchise means that hundreds of millions, if not billions, of people all over the world have heard Vic's playing. We’re honored to be able to recognize his contribution to the guitar with this award.”

Flick was so well respected in the London session scene that he was recruited to play guitar on the soundtrack to The Beatles' film "Hard Day's Night." He was asked to help promote the Fender Stratocaster when it was introduced in the UK, and over the course of his career he performed on albums by artists as diverse as Tom Jones, Nancy Sinatra, Herman's Hermits, and Henry Mancini . . . not to mention many more soundtracks. His stellar work was recognized in 2012 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Stillmaking the occasional public appearance, Flick published his autobiography, appropriately titled "Vic Flick, Guitarman," in 2008. More on Vic's career and accomplishments can be found at http://www.vicflick.com/

About The National GUITAR Museum

The National GUITAR Museum is the first museum in the United States dedicated to the history, evolution, and cultural impact of the guitar. Its touring exhibition, “GUITAR: The Instrument That Rocked The World” debuted in 2011 and is currently on display at the Fleet Center in Balboa Park in San Diego, CA. The Touring Exhibitionconsists of more than 70 guitars, along with engaging, entertaining, and educational displays that include historical artifacts, video screens, and computer interactives designed to appeal to visitors of all ages. In the next few years, the exhibit will become the basis of The National Guitar Museum and its permanent home.

The Museum’s Board of Advisors includes guitar greats Tony Iommi, Steve Vai, Ritchie Blackmore, Johnny Winter, Steve Howe, Liona Boyd, and Pat Kirtley.

Congratulations, Vic, on the well-deserved (and long-overdue) accolades ... you were certainly in the thick of it and it's great to see you finally getting some of the recognition you have long deserved.

Again, please feel free to comment throughout our salute to The British Invasion ... we'll be rekindling memories all year long in Forgotten Hits! (kk)

Kent,

As Forgotten Hits is looking back -- as we all are -- at the Beatles' arrival in America 50 years ago, I think it's interesting to see what the mainstream media, and others, considered their most important trait: not their music, but their hair.

The Hartford (Conn.) Courant, where I was a writer and editor from 1968 to 1995, certainly exemplified this in news stories, letters, and editorials from early 1964.

From an Associated Press story of February 8: "Britain's way out Beatles, equipped with rag mop hairdos and guitars, invaded the colonies Friday. ... The Beatles collectively are sort of a sheep-dog version of Elvis Presley."

Letter-writers to the newspaper complained about "your front page picture of Ed Sullivan and his gallery of four other freaks ... to inspire thousands pickle-headed female morons to slobber over these refugees from barber shops and normal habitats."

The Courant itself opined: "They apparently are likeable, harmless young men with ordinary singing voices, who use the gimmick of haystack hairdos to attract attention. ... the bushy-haired boys whose sex is not immediately apparent."

The idea that long hair equaled femininity was mirrored in the 1965 song by the Barbarians (#55 on the Billboard Hot 100) which argued, "With your long blond hair / You look like a girl ... You're either a girl / Or you come from Liverpool." (By 1967, the Barbarians refused to play this song in concert. I am attaching a photo I took in spring 1967 of Victor "Moulty" Moulton of the group; note the long hair).

It was quite a while before America settled down to recognize that the most important thing about the Beatles was not the length of their hair.

Henry McNulty

Cheshire, Connecticut

Without question, The Beatles' hair received every bit as much coverage as their music in the early days ... it was the butt of virtually EVERY comedian's joke ... and the focal point in every major newspaper and magazine. It was just something we had never seen before ... The Beatles had NO idea how great an impact this would have on world fashion the first time they combed it down in Moe Howard fashion! (lol) In hindsight this probably wasn't even a preconceived marketing ploy ... but boy, it sure worked! (Kids were even buying Beatles wigs!!! Check out this picture of FH Reader Mike Mertes, wearing his and strumming his brand new axe! lol)

Even the radio guys got in on the act. Most famously, here in Chicago, the WLS Jocks were all pictured on the Silver Dollar Survey with their Beatle hair-cuts ... hysterical because back then a couple of these guys were already losing their hair!

But, as I'm putting together our new Saturday Surveys feature, I found that our station wasn't the only one! Here's the K-Men in THEIR Beatle gear, too!

I've told this story several times over the years ... by the timing is probably most appropriate now.

Unlike apparently MANY teen (and pre-teens) in January of 1964, I had absolutely NO clue who The Beatles were until they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on February 9th. (I was only ten years old at the time and hadn't even really discovered listening to the radio yet ... although this, too would change, six months down the line.)

Anyway, Sunday Night we all sat down to watch The Ed Sullivan Show together as a family (like families all over America did) ... and we couldn't stop laughing at the way the girls in the audience screamed while The Beatles sang. I didn't really know any of their songs yet ... but thought they were pretty good.

The one who first caught my eye was George Harrison ... several times during their performance, our family discussed how much George looked like my Dad's Army Buddy Bud Baer ... except for the long hair and all. In fact, when The Beatles appeared again the following week ... and then again the week after that, we all kept laughing and teasing my dad about his buddy Bud Baer being on TV. (We had been on camping trips together so we knew Bud pretty well. When he stopped by to visit he couldn't believe that we had been making fun of him for looking like one of those long-haired weirdos on tv!!!)

The Beatles made such an impression on me that I didn't even remember their name the next day ... but boy, EVERY girl in school sure did ... that's ALL they were talking about. Even in fifth grade, the girls were going ga-ga for The Beatles!

The Monday night after their first Sullivan appearance my dad took all three of us boys for haircuts. (Yes, barber shops were open on Mondays back in 1964!) The barber ... who had been giving the Kotal boys crew-cuts for YEARS, kept kidding around about giving us Beatle hair-cuts ... (I was game!) ... again, everywhere you turned that Monday, The Fab Four were the central topic of discussion. I even clearly remember him telling my dad how if these haircuts ever caught on, he'd soon be out of business!

Virtually ALL of the newspapers and magazines focused on their hair rather than their music ... it was unlike anything we had ever seen before ... and within the next couple of weeks boys who had enough to do so were soon combing their hair forward into what WE called the "Moe Howard look", rather than The Beatles Cut.

Before their third appearance I was hooked ... I had already bought "I Want To Hold Your Hand" / "I Saw Her Standing There" and "She Loves You" / "I'll Get You" ... and played them constantly. When my mom took me shopping to buy their first album I remember being really confused ... "Meet The Beatles" and "Introducing The Beatles" were displayed side by side in the album racks, prominently displayed where you couldn't miss them in the store. When I asked about them, the store clerk told me that "Meet The Beatles" was the one I wanted ... "that other one has a bunch of old stuff on it that was recorded before they were famous." (Yeah, right!) Little did anyone know that soon those "Introducing The Beatles" tracks like "Please Please Me", "Love Me Do", "P.S. I Love You", "Do You Want To Know A Secret" and "Twist And Shout" would soon be racing up the charts right along side their "new stuff" on the "Meet The Beatles" LP.

It seemed like only a matter of weeks before EVERY record on display had some sort of Beatles take-off displayed on its cover ... "The Beatle Buddies" were a bunch of girls dressed in turtlenecks and posed just like The Fabs on their "Meet The Beatles" album cover, with half their faces covered in a shadow. Beatle rip-off albums were everywhere, too ... "Jolly What! The Beatles and Frank Ifield On Stage" (implying a LIVE album when, in fact, you just got three or four recycled tracks from the "Introducing The Beatles" album ... an album that was recycled itself in several different configurations including one packaged with a Four Seasons Greatest Hits album, Vee Jay Records' other big predominant recording act. (I finally gave in when the "Songs, Pictures And Stories" LP was released with the gatefold cover. Even though it was the exact same track line-up I had ignored up till then, I just HAD to have this album.)

I remember walking home from school with three girls from my class (Cindy, Sue and Beth ... wow, we were ten years old and I STILL remember this) because they knew the words to EVERY Beatles song by heart and would sing the entire "Meet The Beatles" album to me on the way home from school. (Clearly, I just couldn't get enough ... I needed to hear this music during every free, available moment!)

As the year wore on, so did my Beatles record collection ... 45's mostly, especially if they had picture sleeves, which nearly ALL of The Beatles' singles did. I remember having GREAT debates about which side of the record was the better song ... because nearly every single Beatles record was also a two-sided hit ... and my allegiance changed regularly between the A-Side and B-Side, simply because BOTH sides were so great!

As I said earlier in the week, I find it hard to believe that I can recall SO many details from 50 years ago with the absolute clarity that I can ... nobody EVER believed this music would last ... and yet it has in some fashion inspired every bit of music to come since, just as The Beatles themselves were inspired by the early days of American Rock And Roll.

I've said it 10,000 times and I'll say it 10,000 more ... this music is TIMELESS ... NO other music has EVER had the incredible lasting impact that this music has had. We are SO fortunate to have lived through this experience first hand ... and I am SO pleased to be able to share these memories today with those who may have missed it the first time around. There has NEVER been a more exciting time in music ... it deserves to be heard and it deserves to live on. And this year the entire world is doing exactly that. (kk)

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The Saturday Surveys (1-25)

January 25, 2014, 5:00 am

≫ Next: A Saturday Chart Bonus

≪ Previous: The Beatles Are Coming!

We've got another fine selections of charts for your enjoyment today. (Special thanks to Clark Besch for sending these along.)

Everybody thinks album rock started on the FM Dial in the late '60's / early '70's ... but these weekly Top 40 Charts ... from some of the most popular AM Radio Stations in the Country ... continue to prove otherwise.

Look at The Beatles' track "Michelle" from their "Rubber Soul" album charting at #6. (David and Jonathan would have a reasonably sized-hit with their cover version as ... INCREDIBLY ... Capitol Records never released this track as a single here in The States. The way they regularly milked The Beatles vault for additional releases, this truly came as quite a surprise at the time.)

Our FH Buddy Bob Lind is at #5 with his biggest hit, "Elusive Butterfly" while Peter Noone and Herman's Hermits sit at #2 with "Listen People", also shown as an album track here. (It became SO popular that MGM finally had to release it as a single a few weeks later ... and what a great track it is!)

You hear "Zorba The Greek" in television commercials all the time now ... people forget that this was a MAJOR hit for Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass back in the day.

Other surprises on this chart: "Moulty" by The Barbarians at #19 ... this track never climbed any higher than #90 in Billboard. "Like A Baby" by Len Barry, "Night Time" by The Strangeloves and "The Cheater" by Bob Kuban are also Top 20 Hits on this WBZ Chart from this week in '66.

Wow! Look at this chart from WKY in Oklahoma City!

Ed Ames sits at #1 with "My Cup Runneth Over", edging out The Monkees and their monster hit "I'm A Believer" for at least the second week in a row.

Jim Edgar (who?!?!? A local talent perhaps???) is at #5 with "Apartment #9" ... and the #6 spot is shared between Don Cherry and Jack Greene with "There Goes My Everything", a hit nationally for Engelbert Humperdinck. Except this is nearly six months BEFORE the Engelbert version was released as a single here!

"Stand By Me" is a MUCH bigger hit here ... it's kind of a clever version where Spyder Turner mimics the vocal styles of several other FAR more successful soul singers than himself! (lol)

And one of my all-time favorites, "Summer Wine" by Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood is locked in at #12, up five places from the week before.

You'll find quite a few Top 50 Hits on this chart that seem to be unique to the Oklahoma area. FH Reader (and former Okie DeeJay) Larry Neal has shared chart information with us for years now ... they certainly did seem to have a different approach to calculating the hits!

Kent,

You wanted to know who Jim Edgar was. Back in the 1960's, Jim Edgar and his group, the Roadrunners, were probably without question, the number one band of all time here in the state of Oklahoma. They were the pioneers of the local music scene. Other bands tried to imitate them, but none could come close to the dominance they had on the music scene they had here in Oklahoma.
They primarily had four records which made our local top 40 radio station's weekly survey. The four records were as follows:
1. LITTLE PIG / RAINS which came out in 1963 on Chan Records. RAINS was a Jim Edgar tune with LITTLE PIG being the same song that Dale Hawkins recorded earlier in 1958. Both sides were equally played here in OKC.
2. FUNNY HOW I FEEL / TREASURE OF LOVE from 1964 on DJB Records. FUNNY HOW I FEEL was again a Jim Edgar composition with TREASURE OF LOVE being an uptempo version of the song that Clyde McPhatter recorded in 1956. Again, both sides were equally played here in OKC. Personally speaking, his FUNNY HOW I FEEL is my all time favorite Jim Edgar tune.
As for the information about the song THERE GOES MY EVERYTHING by artists Jack Greene and Don Cherry, you are correct in that both versions did well and charted well here in OKC. Back in the sixties, there were quite a few, many in fact, country records that would cross over. Jack Greene also had another crossover hit here in OKC with his 1967 song ALL THE TIME recorded on Decca as well as his THERE GOES MY EVERYTHING. Maybe Jack Greene recorded the song in late 1966 which is why it made the survey in early 1967.
As for Don Cherry, whose biggest hit probably was BAND OF GOLD back in 1956, well, he had Oklahoma ties is some ways. As I remember he had relatives living in Oklahoma and every year for I don't know how long, he came to Oklahoma and participated in a golf tournament here. Back in the sixties, Don Cherry recorded for Monument Records and every record that was released by him on that label, was played here on our local top 40 radio station. Probably his biggest hits here in OKC on that label were I RUN TO THE DOOR in 1967 and I LOVE YOU DROPS in 1965 as well as the one you mentioned.

3. TENNESSEE STUD which came out in 1966 on major label Scepter Records. This of course was his version of the 1959 Eddie Arnold tune. It was somewhat more of an upbeat version that Eddie Arnold's ... TENNESSEE STUD peaked at #5 here in OKC in May of 1966.

4. APARTMENT #9, as you said, made it to #4 here in OKC back in early February of 1967. It was on the Hama Record label.

As far as I know, Jim Edgar is still alive and well here in Oklahoma. For many years, as I understand it, he worked for the Ditchwitch Company in Perry, Oklahoma.

Larry Neal

Check out this chart from 1970. Most of the usual suspects are here ... but so are a handful of surprises!

"Jennifer Tomkins" by The Street People at #5 ... that's one of Rupert Holmes' earlier bands

"Early In The Morning" ... a GREAT Forgotten Hit ... by Vanity Fare at #9

The New Colony Six at #12 with "Barbara, I Love You", probably my LEAST favorite single by them ... but still a major surprise since it only reached #78 nationally

"Mornin' Mornin'" by Bobby Goldsboro and "She's Ready" by Spiral Starecase in The Top 20!

"God Only Knows" by The Vogues and "Freight Train" by Duane Eddy in The Top 30?!?!?

And "Crazy Annie" by Evie Sands, the Nazz version of "Hello It's Me", "Monster", a great Steppenwolf track and "Compared To What" by Della Reese rounding out The Top 40. (Talk about diversity!!!)

Speaking of which, look at "Heartbreaker" by Grand Funk Railroad and "You Got Me Hummin'" by Cold Blood bringing up the rear!

This chart is WILD!!!

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A Saturday Chart Bonus

January 25, 2014, 10:30 am

≫ Next: Recent And Up-Coming Shows

≪ Previous: The Saturday Surveys (1-25)

In addition to running our brand new Saturday Surveys feature, we've also been celebrating The British Invasion Anniversaries as they pop up ...

Today we combine BOTH features with this Super Chart, courtesy of Randy Price ... a chart dated January 25th (which is EXACTLY 50 Years Ago Today!) showing The Beatles reaching the national summit for the very first time.

The Super Charts are a conglomeration of research based on ALL of the available tracking of this era, including record sales, radio airplay, jukebox plays, distribution records and sales as well as the published and documented findings of all of the major music trade publications. In my opinion, it is the most comprehensive, complete portrait of how this music truly fared at this exact moment in time. (A record's given standing in any single publication often varied by any number of chart positions. This is because each of the major trades polled different sources in order to compile their charts. The biggest selling feature of The Super Chart is that it combines ALL of these resources into one complete, comprehensive chart, thus portraying "the most accurate" representation of each record's popularity.)

You'll see that in addition to holding down the #1 Spot, The Beatles are also debuting at #67 this week with "She Loves You". Dusty Springfield (who we spotlighted earlier in the week) jumps up 23 points from #97 to #74 with her first U.S. Hit "I Only Want To Be With You".

While not quite an "invasion" yet, The British are definitely coming!!!

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