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SPECTROPOP - Spectacular! Retro! Pop!
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There are 8 messages in this issue.
Topics in this digest:
1. Re: Star Spangled Banner
From: Rex Strother
2. The Jodelles
From: Louis Wendruck
3. Gillian Hills and Vogue Records UK
From: Tom K. White
4. Bobby Vee's "Come Back When You Grow Up"
From: Michael B Kelly
5. Patience and Prudence compilation
From: Julio Niño
6. Johnny Ramone, R.I.P.
From: Unsteady Freddie
7. Re: "Wide Awake In A Dream"
From: Charles Ellis
8. New @ S'pop: The Angelettes / The Dickens
From: S'pop Projects
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Message: 1
Date: Thu, 16 Sep 2004 08:51:25 -0600
From: Rex Strother
Subject: Re: Star Spangled Banner
My friend Chris always felt the Star Spangled Banner would be easier for
everyone to sing, if you simply used the melody from Gordon Lightfoot's
"The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald". Thus - The "Wreck of the Star
Spangled Banner" is now available for your listening pleasure at:
http://www.lowlights-now.com/audio/star-spangled-banner.mp3
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Message: 2
Date: Thu, 16 Sep 2004 12:41:55 -0000
From: Louis Wendruck
Subject: The Jodelles
Can anyone provide any information or song clips of the Jodelles ?
The Jodelles were a London-based group comprising lead singer Jo
Kester, and Trinidadian-born twins Anne and Annis Peters. The twins
had previously worked as backing singers for Billy Ocean, and Jo had
also done some acting. The tracks were produced by Ken Gold and
issued in 1983. There was a great video to go with "My Boy," set in
a toga party. They also did at least four TV appearances performing
either "My Boy" or "Girls Fall In Love." (written by Ian Chapman)
I have a photo of them on my Eurodisco Yahoo Group at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/eurodisco
Besides this information above, I would like to get more information
about them and the type of singing they did.
Thanks,
Louis in West Hollywood, California'
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Message: 3
Date: Thu, 16 Sep 2004 17:56:16 -0000
From: Tom K. White
Subject: Gillian Hills and Vogue Records UK
Hello again, long time no see, been a busy guy lately, I have missed
so much! For a start, finding Gillian Hills in Musica has really
made my week if not my year. I'm trying to get hold of everything I
can on mid 60s to early 70s Vogue Records UK and while i've made
some great finds in recent months the Gillian Hills has completely
elduded me until now (not counting the B-side on the Dream Babes
album). I agree with most of the comments, it is truly delicious and
it's a pity that it wasn't on the double CD Twistin' The Rock
previously mentioned.
Just out of interest, does anyone know anything about the Vogue
label in the UK and how and why it ended up putting out so much
French material and why it's almost impossible to find any of it
that isn't by Francoise Hardy? I'm going to write a book (or at
least some articles) about French 60s pop at some point in the not
too distant, so any info anyone had would be appreciated. Also if
anyone knows why much of the same material came out on Kapp in the
US I'd also be interested.
A plus tard!
Tom K
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Message: 4
Date: Thu, 16 Sep 2004 12:35:18 -0400
From: Michael B Kelly
Subject: Bobby Vee's "Come Back When You Grow Up"
Previously:
> This conversation led to the story on "Come Back When You Grow Up".
> When KOMA radio in Oklahoma City had their DJ reunion early this
> year, my fave KOMA DJ, Dale Wehba, talked about hearing a local band
> play the song live and he thought it would be good for Vee.
>From my book "Liberty Records:"
The very next Liberty release was an original song by an old Liberty
standby that could not have come at a better time. "Come Back When You
Grow Up" was a mild, small-combo ballad by Bobby Vee. The story was of
a boy in love, or at least the object of love, from a younger girl who
needs to get a few more years under her belt before the boy could get
that close to her. "Come Back When You Grow Up" reached #1 on most
charts, and was the biggest selling record of Bobby’s entire illustrious
career. Yet it was "only" #3 on Billboard's Hot 100. Why? The record was
a sleeper and a slow waker-upper. It had to be released a ouple of times
and jump-started into hitdom. When it was first released n mid-year, it
was assigned Liberty Record number 55964 with Bobby singing an unusual
but highly appealing flip side called "Swahili Serenade." Then it was
immediately reissued as 55964 again, but with a new flip, "That's All
There Is to That." In fact there was more to it than that. The song did
not become a big hit. But into the summer, Liberty began to sell copies
here and there around the country. Apparently most of the scattered
sales were in smaller towns, the kinds of places that can’t make a
record a hit like New York or Los Angeles could. In response to these
sales, Liberty reissued "Come Back When You Grow Up" as 55982. The flip
side was "That's All There Is to That" on some copies. But other copies
carried yet another tune, "Growing Pains" on the back. This time the
record finally took off, and ultimately reached #3. However, it sold
more copies than any other single Bobby Vee ever had on Liberty (or
elsewhere, for that matter), including his #1 hit "Take Good Care of My
Baby." The only reason it did not reach #1 was that the sales were
spread out over so many weeks that the punch was too diffused to be
registered conventionally.
Doc
http://www.DocRock.us
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Message: 5
Date: Thu, 16 Sep 2004 19:08:37 -0000
From: Julio Niño
Subject: Patience and Prudence compilation
Hola Everybody.
Thanks a lot to Jeff Petschow and Mike Miller for the quick information
about "Wide Awake In A Dream".
I'm listening to the new Patience and Prudence compilation issued by
Collector Choice. I only knew two of theirs songs: "Tonight You Belong
To Me" and "A Smile And A Ribbon" (which I first heard on the soundtrack
of the wonderful movie "Ghost World"). With those whispering foggy
voices and considering their age, they sound like if they could be Mr.
Quilty's favorite singers. I think there's a certain flair of
perversity in many of the songs (or maybe it's just me that I'm needing
a good session of electroshock). The collection includes six tracks
credited to P&P with Mike Clifford (who has been the subject of some
discussion recently here at S'pop) although in fact Mike's voice can
only be heard in a couple of them. The selection and the succinct and
informative notes are by Brian Gari.
Chao.
Julio Niño.
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Message: 6
Date: Thu, 16 Sep 2004 11:07:39 -0700 (PDT)
From: Unsteady Freddie
Subject: Johnny Ramone, R.I.P.
So sad to learn 55-year old guitarist JOHNNY RAMONE (born John Cummings)
died in his sleep yesterday after a 5-year battle with prostate cancer.
Will probably devote a segment on my next TWANG SHEBANG "show" on
http://www.myrealbroadcast.com
OK OK, surf-instro purists, calm down -- THE RAMONES from my not-so-lofty
viewpoint had a powerful surf-rock musical message. After all, they did
cover SURFIN' BIRD, SURF CITY, CALIFORNIA SUN, DO YOU WANNA DANCE?, and
their ROCKAWAY BEACH always sounded to me like the Beach Boys at 600
miles an hour!
Just caught the amazing documentary "END OF THE CENTURY" still playing in
the theatres -- highly recommended. One cannot argue how influential the
Ramones were in what evolved into "surf punk", no?
1-2-3-4!
Unsteady Freddie
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Message: 7
Date: Thu, 16 Sep 2004 18:06:08 -0000
From: Charles Ellis
Subject: Re: "Wide Awake In A Dream"
Julio:
> I've been listening today to an old compilation of the Blues Busters
> that included a song that I've always liked, "Wide Awake In A Dream"
> (which I first heard in the version of the ultrasoulful Alton
> Ellis, also Jamaican). In an interview with The B.B. included in the
> notes of the record, they say that they found the tune on a record of
> someone called Wallace, they liked it and recorded it, and thus the
> song is credited to that Wallace.
In the late 1960s, James Brown band vocalist Vicki Anderson (who later
married Bobby Byrd of The Famous Flames) recorded a song called "Wide
Awake In A Dream". I wonder if it's a version of the same song you're
talking about......
Charles Ellis
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Message: 8
Date: Thu, 16 Sep 2004 20:28:44 +0100
From: S'pop Projects
Subject: New @ S'pop: The Angelettes / The Dickens
The S'pop Team are pleased to announce the publication of two
new feature articles, now accessible via the home page:
http://www.spectropop.com
Thanks to all involved in their production, especially authors
Julie Abbott Hammersley, Phil Milstein and Ian Slater. More
details below.
Enjoy.
The S'pop Team
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New @ S'pop
The Angelettes
by Julie Abbott Hammersley
>From Ian Slater's introduction...
The Angelettes were a young British quartet from the Manchester
area who played their own instruments. Too smooth, melodic and
professional to be regarded as a "band", their beautiful
harmonies were the most characteristic feature of their music.
These are well displayed in most of their records, notably their
first: "Don't Let Him Touch You", which should have been a big
hit. But for the fault on their Top Of The Pops TV outing, maybe
it would have been. This song, like much of their output, was
written and produced by Jonathan King, the multi-talented
extrovert who was behind so many British hits of the late '60s
and the '70s. Later, they worked with Bryan Ferry, doing the
vocal backings on his "These Foolish Things" LP. This is
Spectropop's tribute to this talented early 1970s group. We are
very grateful to original member Julie Hammersley (née Abbott)
for most of the material in the article.
Direct link: http://www.spectropop.com/Angelettes/index.htm
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New @ S'pop
The Dickens, You Say
by Phil Milstein
... In 1971 The Dickens whipped up Scepter Records #12322, 'Sho'
Need Love'/'Don't Talk About My Music', a single that appears in
both NRBQ-related and Scepter discographies, yet, except to those
willing to shell out three-figured sums on eBay, remains utterly
unavailable. Their one record was pressed only in a small quantity
of white-label promo copies, most of which were apparently
destroyed after its release was squelched, by executive fiat, at
the last minute. The episode is an apt metaphor for the story of
The Dickens, which is that of a spectral joke-band that bumbled
its way into existence, yet in so doing drafted plans for two or
three of the new rooms music was about to inhabit ...
For the story in full, lavishly illustrated, and told as only Phil
Milstein knows how, proceed directly to:
http://www.spectropop.com/Dickens/index.htm
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