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SPECTROPOP - Spectacular! Retro! Pop!
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There are 14 messages in this issue.
Topics in this digest:
1. Re: Colgems artists - Lewis & Clarke
From: Mark
2. Re: Bob Lind @ musica
From: Mark Wirtz
3. Re: Brill Building Larry
From: (That) Alan Gordon
4. Colgems & Colpix
From: John Fox
5. Re: “He’s Raining In My Sunshine”
From: Laura Pinto
6. Sonny, Cher and Gold Star
From: Dave O'Gara
7. Re: John Townley to musica
From: Kurt Benbenek
8. Saint Etienne's compilations
From: Dave Monroe
9. Sonny, and Cher
From: Phil X Milstein
10. Lines from "Tweedle Dee"
From: Al Kooper
11. "Me About You"
From: Steve Harvey
12. Re: Sonny Bono
From: Richard Hattersley
13. "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know"
From: Al Kooper
14. Re: Brill Building Larry
From: Orion
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Message: 1
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2004 12:12:10 -0500
From: Mark
Subject: Re: Colgems artists - Lewis & Clarke
If it's not available on CD, maybe someone could post up "The Tiger
Makes Out" by Lewis & Clarke, as it has always defied my ability to
locate a copy fo the song anywhere but the film...Thanks.
-Mark
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Message: 2
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2004 09:27:55 -0800 (PST)
From: Mark Wirtz
Subject: Re: Bob Lind @ musica
Rob:
> Now playing: Bob Lind's "Goodbye Neon Lies" (World Pacific 77879),
> the 1968 A-side of his last 45 before moving to New Mexico for
> three years. He returned in 1971 with the solid "Since There Were
> Circles" LP (Capitol).
Bob is alive and well and active and vital and performing and writing
like a mofo. I predict that his new composition "Home In Time For
Twilight" will emerge as a future classic!
One of Bob's biggest fans,
Mark W.
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Message: 3
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2004 10:29:55 -0700
From: (That) Alan Gordon
Subject: Re: Brill Building Larry
Mike Rashkow wrote:
> O.K., I've been waiting and waiting for someone to bring up this
> unique Broadway legend. Larry from the Brill Building. We all know
> him--he'd be there on the sidewalk, in front of the Brill all day
> all the time, giving people the Bronx Cheer and being a general cut-
> up and annoyance. Insults to all--without discrimination. A really
> strange guy. I think he made his living by running packages from the
> Brill to other places, but I'm not sure. All hands on board with what
> they know of and remember of Brill Building Larry.
I may be giving away my age, but there was a famous amusement spot in
Coney Island called Steeplechase. Among the many attractions there, a
clown would bolt out of the blue and with some kind of electrical wand
touch an unsuspecting person and give them a mild shock. That was the
same feeling I got when I was either coming in or exiting the Brill
building. Brill building Larry would ALWAYS shock me with a finger, or
a sudden burst of profanity. Sometimes he would wait till you passed him,
other times he would start his tirade as he saw you coming. After a while
we kind of got used to each other.
I was signed to a publisher who had as its chief bookkeeper a wonderful
older women, she has a daughter who is a very successful woman in her
own right. After years went by, at lunch one day she told me her former
husband was Brill Building Larry. It was a very sad story. When he was
a younger man he was tall, successful businessman. I say tall, because
anyone who remembers Larry will know he was a short man in his later
years. I would also see him in Central Park, and in other spots in New
York. Picking trash out of waste baskets. A sad tale but in one's book
of life there are many characters.
Best, That Alan
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Message: 4
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2004 17:50:00 EST
From: John Fox
Subject: Colgems & Colpix
Larry Lapka writes:
> I need some help from Spectropoppers. I have started a new
> Yahoo group dedicated to the Colgems record label
I see you're covering the 1966-1971 era. Equally interesting
would be pre-1966, with the "Colpix" label (Shelly Fabares, etc.)
I would love to hear what Shelly has to say about her brief
recording career (rumor has it she was forced into recording
"Johnny Angel" et al), her starring in Elvis movies, etc.,
particularly since she probably has had the most consistent and
longest acting career of any of the teen actors-turned-singers
(not counting Sally Field, who really shouldn't count, right?).
John Fox
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Message: 5
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2004 19:06:34 -0000
From: Laura Pinto
Subject: Re: “He’s Raining In My Sunshine”
Michael Edwards wrote:
> ... One of the very best recordings by Jay & The Americans is "He's
> Raining In My Sunshine" ... was written by S'pop member, Ron Dante
> along with his partner, Gene Allan. I hadn't realized that Ron and a
> version out too – on Mercury in 1968, apparently. Laura Pinto does a
> great job on Ron's behalf here on the site and I wondered if she knew
> whether or not Ron's version is available anywhere. An mp3 to musica
> would definitely be appreciated. As good as J&TA's version is, I'm
> very curious to hear Ron's version. Great song, Ron.
Hi Mike,
I have Ron's single on a 45 - not mint but sounds OK. Believe it or
not, I've never heard the Jay & the Americans version, only Ron's,
which is terrific - good song.
I'll get it into musica as soon as I can.
Thanks,
Laura
P.S. Ron's away from home at present for a concert and may or may not
have Internet access ... I'll make sure he sees your post.
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Message: 6
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2004 23:08:03 -0000
From: Dave O'Gara
Subject: Sonny, Cher and Gold Star
I gotta say thanks to all that responded to my question about the
Gold Star studio, Spector, Levine, etc. It was great reading the
stories of how the sounds were achieved and I especially enjoyed
the inclusion of Sonny Bono's work. As a teenager, I really was
into the Sonny and Cher and Cher solo recordings. Though I didn't
know of the behind-the-scenes production techniques, I did know I
loved the results. "Just You", "What Now My Love", "Little Man",
"It's The Little Things", Cher's "Bang Bang" and "You Better Sit
Down Kids" were all spinning on my turntable as often as anything
else I owned. I'm glad to see Sonny get his due, at least here on
S'Pop. Thanks for bringing back the memories!!
Dave 0'
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Message: 7
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2004 21:28:11 -0000
From: Kurt Benbenek
Subject: Re: John Townley to musica
Clark Besch wrote:
> Now, with the playing of the great Arkade song "Sentimental Lisa" to
> musica, I thought I'd see if I could squeeze a song onto musica by our
> newest Spectropop addition, John Townley of The Magicians. Obviously
> a good buddy of (That) Alan Gordon, I have not heard much of John's
> music outside The Magicians. Karl Baker tells me he had a "Family Of
> The Apostolic" LP in 1969, as well as two singles. Have heard none of
> these, but DO have the third and last 45 by John Townley & The
> Apostolic Family, titled "Just Another Day" on Vanguard 35122 (which
> I'd date at early 1970). It's really a great song and perfect for the
> 1970 era. In fact, he could have even fit in with Austin Roberts and
> The Arkade! Wouldn't that have been quite a S'pop story!
We posted John's double album "Family of the Apostolic" on our website
several months ago (with John's blessing) and I've been eager to hear
more material from that era. Thanks for sharing "Sentimental Lisa" -
I'd say nearly everything John's done musically is worth hearing, and
this cut is no different. We musn't forget that John also opened the
first independent recording studio on the East Coast (Apostolic Studios)
and he's quite the sea shanty expert!
Kurt Benbenek / HPS
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Message: 8
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2004 10:29:02 -0800 (PST)
From: Dave Monroe
Subject: Saint Etienne's compilations
I've mentioned these here before, but as I finally really get to
listen to them, I'm convinced that there might be at least a few
here with some interest in a couple of recent compilations selected
by English (and I do mean English ...) pop trio Saint Etienne (or,
at least, by resident DJ extraordinaire Bob Stanley). First, there's
their 2 CD, 46 track/3 LP, 26 track installment in Family Recordings'
The Trip series ...
http://www.familyrecordings.com/releases09.htm
Samples at ...
http://www.juno.co.uk/products/156878-01.htm
http://www.juno.co.uk/products/156878-02.htm
Also, Songs for Mario's Cafe ...
http://www.juno.co.uk/products/148357-01.htm
Sorry, the Sanctuary/Castle Records site requires some sort of plug-
in I don't have and can't download. But excellent, albeit light,
listening all 'round ...
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Message: 9
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2004 21:34:47 -0800
From: Phil X Milstein
Subject: Sonny, and Cher
Mark Wirtz wrote:
> Far from being mere Spector mirrors, Sonny's production concepts were
> in fact quite different from Spector's. While Spector went for his
> legendary "wall of sound," his goal to bombard the listener with
> unbridled power, drive and only loosely restrained chaos, that
> "wall" was, true to the image of its definition, only a 2 dimensional
> illusion.
Hear, hear! I wholeheartedly agree that Sonny's been sorely underserved
by the critical cogenescenti, and is way overdue for a more thoughtful
inspection of his work.
However, even the greatest of talents have their off days, and lately
I've been fascinated by one of Sonny & Cher's. It amazes me that their
version (actually, a Cher solo, perhaps even her first) of "Unchained
Melody," found on the debut S&C longplayer "Look At Us," was even
released, that's how off their day was that they recorded it. The poor
girl was quite obviously suffering from a wretched cold, most likely
acquired (as colds so easily are) during their incessant touring in the
wake of the success of "I Got You Babe." But, with such intensive time
commitments as sudden success usually generates, they were probably
having a hard time getting into a studio to finish off the LP, and thus
found themselves between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Headcold
or not, Cher had no choice but to record that day.
With her head cavities sounding as if they were harvesting an especially
prolific batch of mucus (or "mucous," for you English readers), Cher
nonetheless gamely approached the hallowed Gold Star microphone. In a
moment that is, I admit, not quite the equal of such famous in-too-early
vocal infractions as in The Kingsmen's "Louie Louie" or the Mamas &
Papas' "I Saw Her Again," Cher started to sing on the fourth bar,
instead of on the fifth as the arrangement called for. Ever the trouper,
though, she caught herself so quickly that the resultant artifact sounds
more like a gastronomic error than it does a mental one.
The number's most revealing problem, though, comes during Cher's rest
between the first verse and second, where she quite audibly SNIFFLES. It
is the only such moment that I know of that's ever been released on
record, as appears to reveal as much about the post-session editing
process as it does the cutting itself.
Syllables calling for nasal tones, such as "time" -- unfortunately, a
key word in Hy Zaret's deathless lyric for "Unchained Melody" -- or
"mountain," present Cher with her biggest challenges of the day, and
leave her sounding as if she'd rather be home in bed, with a bottle of
Vick's Vabo-Rub at hand and an old Bogart film on the tube, than toiling
away in some airless and windowless recording studio. Finally, when she
emits the melismatic "to me" that concludes the lyric, you want to tuck
her in and spoonfeed her a bowl of chicken soup. (Fortunately, the lyric
does not place much emphasis on the dreaded "L" sound!)
One can hardly blame the singer, though, for the horrendous distortion
that occurs on the pair of "still mine"s that form the song's peaks. I
could be wrong, but to me this break-up sounds as if it's fully encoded
in the original tape, rather than that the version I'm listening to was
transferred from a worn 45, or was levelled too high when it was dubbed.
Again, the wrap-up of this session appears to have been done with one
eye on the VU meters and the other on the front door, so as not to leave
Mr. Postman waiting for the package that would, any minute now, be
wrapped up and addressed to "Mr. A. Ertegun, NYC NY."
While in this S&C mood, I recently re-examined EMI's 1990 "Legendary
Masters: The Best Of Cher," comprised of her solo/Imperial material.
I've been most struck by the song selection, in particular a handful of
songs I'm not otherwise familiar with. Highlights among these are Graham
Gouldman's semi-psychedelic "Behind The Door" (which seems to anticipate
Cher's "gypsy" mode of the early '70s); Bob Lind's sublime "Come To Your
Window" (a companion to "Behind The Door"?); a trio of over-the-top
contributions from Sonny's pen, "Magic In The Air," "But I Can't Love
You More" and "She's No Better Than Me"; Doug Sahm's "It All Adds Up
Now," which sounds familiar but which I can't quite place from
elsewhere; and the four big hits which prop up the collection like
table-legs, "All I Really Want To Do," "Bang Bang," "Alfie" "You Better
Sit Down, Kids (the latter of which is remarkable both for its pre-modern
use of divorce as poplyric fodder, as well as for its blatant gender
reversal, with a female singer embodying a lyric written in the male
person).
Yet too many of the songs here evince the problem Phil C. described,
previously in this thread, as "the vocals sometimes sound[ing]
disconnected from the track." This, too, might be the effect of
arrangements written more elaborately than the time they were alloted in
the studio was able to live up to; the balances often sound sloppy, the
tempos rushed, and Cher herself not always quite up to the challenges
she was given. Given the slipshod nature of so many mid-'60s albums,
these problems are not only understandable, but even make the
overreaching on display here almost commendable, given how easily the
team could have filled up those minutes that weren't intended to be
45-worthy. Furthermore, there's not a single track on the album (of the
22 in all) that isn't, at very least, interesting, which is more than I
can say about a lot of "best of" collections.
Finally, I would like to put in a word for Cher-as-singer, if not on
every number she's ever recorded at least in general terms over the long
haul of her career. To my ears she has a terrific natural instrument
and, especially once she got some seasoning under her belt, the
knowledge of how best to deploy and control it. Putting her achievements
in this arena in even deeper relief is the fact that her original vocal
mentor and model was hardly the second coming of Enrico Caruso! That the
other avenues of her life and career have overshadowed her singing
talent is a fact largely of her own doing, of course, but I sincerely
hope that one day Cher the singer will finally get her due.
Bang bang,
--Phil M.
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Message: 10
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 2004 09:37:03 EST
From: Al Kooper
Subject: Lines from "Tweedle Dee"
I asked for a translation of:
> hunkies, hunkies peices bite
> I'm gonna see my baby tonight
Claire Francis:
> My psychic vibe says: Winfield said the first thing that came to his
> mind because he forgot the words, and he sang his thoughts about
> making love to a white chick? Is there a lead sheet on this song. I
> would like to know if I am right, or just a crazy mixed up psychic!
You're crazy mixed up.
This was such a concern to me that I flew from LA to NY for the
Atlantic Records 40th anniversary show, got backstage so I could ask
the then-elusive LaVern Baker what those words meant. With Graham Nash's
help, I cornered her in the dressingroom and asked foe HER translation:
"Sh*t, I dunno - Ask Winfield Scott - he's the guy that wrote it."
I believe Mr. Scott had passed by then and now I must go to the
hereafter not knowing what those words meant since 1958....
S'poppers HELP!!!!!!!!
Al Kooper
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Message: 11
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 2004 08:04:38 -0800 (PST)
From: Steve Harvey
Subject: "Me About You"
Question for (That) Alan Gordon:
Was there a curse on your song "Me About You"? It's a great tune,
perhaps my favorite of the all songs you've written. However, I
think about all the artists that recorded it (The Turtles, The Lovin'
Spoonful, Jackie De Shannon, Gary Lewis) and yet it wasn't a top
ten hit. So what's the story?
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Message: 12
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 2004 15:36:18 +0000
From: Richard Hattersley
Subject: Re: Sonny Bono
Rick Hough:
> ... Cher's fourth Imperial Lp "With Love" may have bombed but the
> arrangements and production single it out as an enchanting
> masterpiece.
Yeh there are some gems on that album. "Behind The Door" and "But I
Can't Love You More" are the standouts for me. Thanks for your
interesting post Rick. Nice to hear that Sonny was so humble on
hearing he was appreciated.
Richard
www.wiz.to/richardsnow
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Message: 13
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 2004 09:44:02 EST
From: Al Kooper
Subject: "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know"
Me, previously:
> I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know by Donny Hathaway was
> magnificent, but they changed a key line in the song. "I could be
> President of General Motors" was relegated to "I could be king of
> everything" by producer Jerry Wexler ...
Phil M:
> What do you suppose was the reason for that? A similar sort of thing
> as why Ray Davies had "Coca Cola" changed to "cherry cola" in England?
> Or was Wexler trying to turn the song into one about himself?
When confronted with this complaint Wexler knowlingly replied:
"Al.......... A black man could NEVER be President of General Motors"
Think he genuinely missed the point ???
Al Kooper
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Message: 14
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 2004 09:46:35 -0600
From: Orion
Subject: Re: Brill Building Larry
(That) Alan Gordon:
> ... when I was either coming in or exiting the Brill building. Brill
> building Larry would ALWAYS shock me with a finger, or a sudden burst
> of profanity... I was signed to a publisher who had as its chief
> bookkeeper a wonderful older woman, she has a daughter who is a very
> successful woman in her own right. After years went by, at lunch one
> day she told me her former husband was Brill Building Larry. It was a
> very sad story. When he was a younger man he was tall, successful
> businessman. I say tall, because anyone who remembers Larry will know
> he was a short man in his later years. I would also see him in Central
> Park, and in other spots in New York. Picking trash out of waste
> baskets...
These small tidbits from the past of all you who were there is great.
I never knew anything about the Brill Building until I started reading
this group. The stories of your lives, particles of your day help me to
feel as if I was there. Thanks so much for allowing me to be a part of
such a special group of great people.
Orion
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