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SPECTROPOP - Spectacular! Retro! Pop!
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There are 10 messages in this issue.
Topics in this digest:
1. Re: Mixing, "Run To Him"
From: Bob Celli
2. Re: Chuck's finest moments
From: Steve Harvey
3. Re: Bobby Pedrick
From: James Botticelli
4. Re: Mixing, "Run To Him"
From: John Sellards
5. Re: Chuck's finest moments
From: C. Ponti
6. RE: Gene Radice
From: Mike Rashkow
7. Re: Gene Hughes
From: Anthony James
8. Re: Mixing, "Run To Him"
From: John Sellards
9. Re: Picardy / Ron Dante welcome / Gary Chester
From: Phil Milstein
10. Re:Chrisine Quaite (Stateside label)
From: Scott Swanson
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Message: 1
Date: Mon, 12 Jan 2004 23:55:36 -0000
From: Bob Celli
Subject: Re: Mixing, "Run To Him"
John Sellards wrote:
> Actually, I was responding to somebody else who had made the point
> about the stereo mixes being done later by engineers - that practice
> is pretty well known, probably as a direct result of the story of the
> Beatles being around for the mixing of the mono Sgt. Pepper and not
> the stereo being told again and again. But it still amazes me how
> much more emotionally involving mono mixes usually are even for tunes
> you wouldn't expect a mix difference...like "Run To Him" by Bobby
> Vee, where the Johnny Mann singers seem to build and build throughout
> the record to a great climax at the end that is greatly diminished in
> the stereo mix.
John,
I don't see the huge difference you do on "Run To Him". The song
was recorded on three track so there wasn't a whole lot of
manipulating to be done there. What I hear on the stereo mix is the
vocal centered, the string section, tom toms, piano and xylophone on
one channel and the Johnny Mann Singers and the guitars on the other
channel. The perspective is changed quite a bit from the mono mix but
I still feel the big build up to the ending. Bobby Vee told me that
if it wasn't for Eddie Brackett, the engineer at United Studios, that
none of his stuff would have been in stereo early on. It was Eddie
that was most excited about stereo. Snuff Garrett, Bobby's producer,
could care less as long as it sounded good on a transistor radio the
kids were listening to. There's an interesting story that goes with
"Run To Him". Snuff was in New York to pick up demos at Aldon Music.
They told him there would be a stack of demos with Bobby Vee's name on
them. When he arrived, there were two stack of demos, one for Vee and
one for the Everly Brothers. Since no one was around,Snuff took both
stacks and Run to Him was , of course, in the Everly Brothers pile.
Several years ago I was at Bobby's home and he let me rummage through
several boxes of acetates. I came across one for "Run To Him", Take
11A. I played it and was amazed that the entire first verse was done
just like the Everlys would have done it, only with Bobby singing a
high harmony part throughout the entire verse. It sounded great but
they obviously made the right choice with the version that was
released.
Bob Celli
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Message: 2
Date: Mon, 12 Jan 2004 20:12:10 -0800 (PST)
From: Steve Harvey
Subject: Re: Chuck's finest moments
Paul Bryant wrote:
> My choice is You Never Can Tell, where the precision of
> a novelist combines with an irresistible swing -- such
> great great lines.
Jo-el Sonnier, the Cajun accordianist, did the best
version I've heard. Something about Cajuns playing
Chuck Berry appeals to me. Emmy Lou Harris did a good
version too.
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Message: 3
Date: Mon, 12 Jan 2004 21:28:53 -0500
From: James Botticelli
Subject: Re: Bobby Pedrick
Orion wrote:
> Robert John is one of my favorite artists. It is hard to imagine he can get
> his voice so high up there. I haven't seen anything out by him in quite awhile
> which leaves me with "Sad Eyes".
"If You Don't Want My Love" is an evergreen of sorts on the Beach. And his
take on "Ooh Baby Baby" rivals Smokey's I daresay.
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Message: 4
Date: Tue, 13 Jan 2004 03:02:19 -0000
From: John Sellards
Subject: Re: Mixing, "Run To Him"
> I don't see the huge difference you do on "Run To Him". The song
> was recorded on three track so there wasn't a whole lot of
> manipulating to be done there. What I hear on the stereo mix is the
I dashed off my response without reading my original posting where I
said "greatly diminished", which does tend to imply a pretty drastic
difference. It seemed like a pretty big change to me once I heard
the mono version. I'm 32, so many of these songs I've heard only in
the stereo versions all my life!
John Sellards
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Message: 5
Date: Tue, 13 Jan 2004 03:11:57 -0000
From: C. Ponti
Subject: Re: Chuck's finest moments
Paul Bryant wrote:
> My choice is You Never Can Tell, where the precision of
> a novelist combines with an irresistible swing -- such
> great great lines.
Ok, PB, listen up and listen hard! Just a tip about the amazing
Johnnie Johnson, who played piano with Chuck. Johnnie co-wrote many of
the songs and Chuck employed and transposed many of JJ.'s piano riffs
into guitar licks. Many people feel Johnnie Johnson is the true father
of Rock 'n Roll, among them Keith Richards. This is not to diminish
Chuck's brilliant lyrics, which you cite, BUT... Johnnie is the man. He
plays the piano on "C'est La Vie", one of Rock's finest moments.
C Ponti
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Message: 6
Date: Mon, 12 Jan 2004 21:57:25 EST
From: Mike Rashkow
Subject: RE: Gene Radice
Hello Group,
Once again I am humbled by my ignorance, poor memory and quick lip.
Yesterday I posted an item saying I thought Gene Radice produced a thing
called "What Is Soul" by Ben E. King.
WRONG. Wrong again. and obligated to flagellate myself before the knights of
the turntable. That's flagellate -- don't get funny with me.
See, it was gnawing at my psyche so I went to the attic and pulled out Atco
6454. Right artist, right title -- wrong producer.
The producer was Bob Gallo. Gallo and Ben E. wrote the song.
Now, even though I had the producer wrong, this record is a pretty funky
piece of R&B -- has a lot going for it -- and I know nothing about Bob Gallo.
Something in the back of my head says he had his own studio on 42nd St., near 6th Ave.
Anyone know something about Bob Gallo besides (to paraphrase Hoyt Axton)
"helping him drink his wine"? Anyone else know this record?
Anyone care?
Anyone out there?
Anyone?
Any?
One?
Rashkovsky ( not feeling very di la-ish right now)
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Message: 7
Date: Mon, 12 Jan 2004 22:06:31 -0500 (Eastern Standard Time)
From: Anthony James
Subject: Re: Gene Hughes
Austin Roberts wrote:
> I'm singing at a show for Gene Hughes in Nashville in Feb.
> so I'll find out more and let you know. He's a great guy
> and what a voice.
Austin,
Thank you for taking the time to e-mail me about Gene Hughes. I never had
the chance to work with him, but from what I have been told about him he is a
great guy.
Anthony James
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Message: 8
Date: Tue, 13 Jan 2004 02:40:17 -0000
From: John Sellards
Subject: Re: Mixing, "Run To Him"
> I don't see the huge difference you do on "Run To Him". The song
> was recorded on three track so there wasn't a whole lot of
> manipulating to be done there.
No, you're right, it's not a huge difference but they seem to be
much closer to me in mono -- perhaps it's in having less reverb as
well. The differences are subtle, and as you say there's certainly a
difference in presence, so to me it's the small differences that
really highlight the Johnny Mann singers on the single. I didn't
mean to make it sound like it was drastic, because it's not, but
it's enough that I have a clear preference.
John Sellards
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Message: 9
Date: Mon, 12 Jan 2004 22:23:33 -0500
From: Phil Milstein
Subject: Re: Picardy / Ron Dante welcome / Gary Chester
Clark Besch wrote:
> Now going on Musica by request: "5:30 Plane" by Picardy.
> So good to know that people out there love "Montage" and
> "How Sweet it is"! This 45 is very hard to come by, as I've
> seen only my copy in all the years looking for it. Released
> early summer 1968, shoulda fit in well with Mamas & Papas
> crowd. ...
A delightful track, Clark, and thanks for posting it. But I remain in
the dark vis a vis the inquiry I posted about a week or so ago:
I wrote:
> A brief thread here in the past week or two referred to "How Sweet It
> Is," by Picardy (or The Picardy Singers). I'm a bit confused about the
> history of this record. A friend of mine included it on a CD-R he made
> for me from the soundtrack album for a 1968 movie of the same title
> (although with an "!" added at the end of the latter), but listed the
> composer as Pat Williams (with whom I'm otherwise unfamiliar). Other
> titles discussed here in the same breath as HSII (i.e., "Montage") do
> not appear on the CD dub (which, knowing my friend's dubbing tendencies,
> might be abridged from the full LP).
> The title song is a piece of joy itself -- the very essence of "sunshine
> pop," if I understand the term correctly -- and I would love it if
> someone could straighten me out on what's what and who's who with this song/album/movie.
Jimmy Crescitelli wrote:
> Welcome aboard... just want to let you know that "Sugar Sugar"
> was THE record in my Brooklyn neighborhood for many, many,
> many months... it was the first song I ever danced to...
> I was 13 years old for most of that year..... !
I was 12, and, as a big-time fan of the Archie comic books, was really
into it as well. One of the more amusing sidelights to the "Sugar Sugar"
phenomenon was its treatment on "Music Scene," a weekly TV series which
attempted to combine performances or films by interesting stars with a
consideration of that week's Billboard Pop chart. The show was hosted by
the extremely unfunny Canadian comedian David Steinberg (whose tagline
was "Booga booga," which I assure you had us all rolling in the aisles).
For the show's first season Steinberg was joined by a self-consciously
recruited (as opposed to organic) comedy troupe, only one of whom, Lily
Tomlin, ever went on to any notable success. The troupe was such a bust
that they were not invited back for the second season, although
Steinberg, who may have been harboring incriminating photos of the
producer, was.
Back to "Sugar Sugar." "Music Scene"'s commitment to Billboard dictated
that they would play that week's #1 Pop song in each episode,
accompanied by some sort of visual for it. But "Sugar Sugar"'s four-week
(I believe it was) run at the top seemed to cause a dilemma behind the
scenes at "Music Scene." They were going for a slightly older
demographic than the "Sugar, Sugar" crowd, and the fiat of having to
feature this gooey monster week after week caused the on-screen talent
to noticeably rustle. After the studio-fed animated clip that
accompanied week 1, successive segments were produced by the "Music
Scene" staff, and got stranger and more overtly derisive with each
passing week. (Mind you, this was well before the song's acceptance by
soul and other "credible" artists.) I think the last week in the run
featured a gospel chorus wailing "You are my candy girl" and "pour
your sweetness over me" at half tempo.
Billy G. Spradlin wrote:
> Right before I read this message, I came upon a web site devoted to
> Gary Chester. (http://www.angelfire.com/music5/garychester/bio.html)
> On the site it says he played drums on Gene Pitney's "It Hurts To Be
> In Love."
Thanks for the link, Billy. Loved the bit about breaking glass! I once
interviewed a NYC-based recording engineer named Gary Chester, after
which I began coming across all sorts of references to the same name as
having tubbed on many of my favorite NYC-based sessions, causing me to
wonder if they weren't one and the same cat. The bio you provided
finally confirmed that they're not, although for all I know the drummer
could still be the engineer's dad.
--Phil M.
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Message: 10
Date: Mon, 12 Jan 2004 20:11:49 -0800
From: Scott Swanson
Subject: Re:Chrisine Quaite (Stateside label)
Howard writes:
> I have the full Stateside label listing (in the
> loft) if anyone requires info let me know...
There are a few websites with partial Stateside discographies, although
they are missing most B-sides:
http://www.georgwa.demon.co.uk/stateside_records_listing1.htm
http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Venue/6784/statesid.html
http://www.btinternet.com/~davemct/singles/stateside/stateside01.html
By the way, if anyone out there happens to know the contents of "SS 427"
and "SS 436", please let me know because they're the only Stateside 45s
from 1965 that I don't have!!
Regards,
Scott
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