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SPECTROPOP - Spectacular! Retro! Pop!
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There are 20 messages in this issue.
Topics in this digest:
1. Re: Early Elton
From: Dave Marheine
2. Johnny & Sylvie
From: Frank
3. Re: Early Elton
From: Eddy
4. Johnny Hallyday
From: Richard Williams
5. Re: Early Elton
From: Eddy
6. Johnnie Johnson, RIP
From: Country Paul
7. Re: Early Elton
From: Stewart Mason
8. Toni Wine
From: Austin Roberts
9. Collins working on King Records documentary film
From: Karen Andrew
10. "Jerry Landis" vs. Bat Carroll; Razz-Ma-Tazz=Street Song; KIMN; missing verses
From: Country Paul
11. Record shops
From: Peter Lerner
12. Re: Johnny Hallyday / expiring copyrights
From: Frank
13. King Records documentary film
From: Karen Andrew
14. Love Potions 9 & 10; Cyrkle; JB's finds; double tracked teen idols
From: Country Paul
15. Re: Photo from Nashville
From: Joe Nelson
16. John Fred gone
From: Gary Myers
17. Alison Wonder, R.I.P.
From: Mick Patrick
18. Re: John Fred gone
From: Billy G Spradlin
19. Claire Francis & Birmingham (UK) Groups
From: Austin Powell
20. Re: The Hollies' "Stop! Stop! Stop!" album
From: Billy G Spradlin
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Message: 1
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 13:51:09 -0000
From: Dave Marheine
Subject: Re: Early Elton
Phil X Milstein wrote:
> Can anyone help steer me toward a collection of the soundalikes
> session(s) (i.e. covers of current big hits) that Elton John
> recorded early in his career? ... Even just a listing of the titles
> he recorded in that mode would be helpful.
"Chartbusters Go Pop!! 16 Legendary Covers From 1969/1970 As Sung By
Elton John" contains:
1 Natural Sinner Fairweather-Low 2:48
2 United We Stand Hiller, Simons 2:46
3 Spirit in the Sky Greenbaum 3:35
4 Travelin' Band Fogerty 2:15
5 I Can't Tell the Bottom from the Top Fletcher, Flett 3:39
6 Good Morning Freedom Cook, Greenaway, Hammond ... 3:05
7 Up Around the Bend Fogerty 2:34
8 She Sold Me Magic Christie, Herbert 1:56
9 Come and Get It McCartney 2:12
10 Love of the Common People Hurley, Wilkins 2:29
11 Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours Garrett, Hardaway, Wonder 2:27
12 It's All in the Game Dawes, Sigman 2:19
13 Yellow River Christie 2:30
14 My Baby Loves Lovin' Cook, Greenaway 2:41
15 Cotton Fields Leadbelly 2:45
16 Lady d'Arbanville Stevens 3:33
My pal Murphy picked this up for 99 cents at Wal-Mart last year. In
addition to various versions of the 16 song collection on various
record labels, All Music Guide also lists a 20 song version which
adds:
Young Gifted & Black Irvine, Simone 3:02
In the Summertime Dorset 2:51
Snake in the Grass Blaikley 3:02
Neanderthal Man Creme, Godley, Stewart 3:34
These appear to be legitimate releases, "licensed from Castle
Communications, Pickwick International", in the case of the disc I
have (on the Purple Pyramid label).
The Nick Drake songs, on the other hand, would probably be classified
as bootlegs, and therefore can be found on eBay:
ELTON JOHN the lost demo sessions of '69
This is a brand new silver-disc cd released exclusively on Ebay...
In 1969 the famous producer Joe Boyd produced this demo album
promoting various songs written by John Martyn, Nick Drake, Beverly
Martin, Mike Heron, and Ed Carter who were members of the Warlock
publishing stable. The session featured Elton John - Piano and
Vocals, Linda Peters (soon to become Linda Thompson when she married
Richard Thompson) - Vocals, Jim Capaldi - Drums, Simon Nicol -
Guitar, Pat Donaldson - Bass, with arrangements by Del Newman. This
album practically disappeared until the end of the '80s but is a
truly magnificent showcase of Elton's early talents. There are a
very few white label vinyl copies of this album in existence (about 7
are accounted for) making this a very rare collection indeed.
TRACK LISTING:-
1 STORMBRINGER (John Martyn)
2 WAY TO BLUE (Nick Drake)
3 GO OUT AND GET IT (John Martyn)
4 WHEN THE DAY IS DONE (Nick Drake
5 TIME HAS TOLD ME (Nick Drake)
6 SATURDAY SUN (Nick Drake)
7 SWEET HONESTY (Beverly Martin)
8 YOU GET BRIGHTER (Mike Heron)
9 THIS MOMENT (Mike Heron)
10 I DON'T MIND (Ed Carter)
11 PIED PAUPER (Ed Carter)
Lead Vocals:- tracks 1-7 by Elton John, tracks 8-11 by Linda Peters
There's also a CD including "DJM Demoes" in addition to the Nick
Drake songs out there. Hope this is more than you needed to know!
Dave Marheine
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Message: 2
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 15:44:30 +0200
From: Frank
Subject: Johnny & Sylvie
Phil X Milstein:
> I will, though, revert my comment to music by asking if (Johnny)
> Hallyday and Sylvie Vartan are still married.
Nope... They've been divorced for quite a long time now and Johnny
had the time to re-marry at least two or three times since. As for
Sylvie she's married to Tony Scotti (of the Scotti Brothers) and
lives in L.A.
Frank
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Message: 3
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 16:16:57 +0200
From: Eddy
Subject: Re: Early Elton
Norm D Plume:
> I think (Elton) recorded these with Linda Thompson (or Peters as
> she then still was), and they sound an intriguing combination. Any
> idea where one can get these?
Officially known as the Warlock Sampler, a publisher's demo LP
included 11 songs, all recorded at Sound Techniques, Chelsea in July
1970. Side one has You get brighter, This moment, I don't mind, Pied
pauper and Go out and get it. On side 2 there's Stormbringer, Sweet
honesty, Way to blue, When the day is done, Time has told me and
Saturday sun. Side 2 are all Elton lead vocals. Side 1 has all the
Linda Peters lead vocals, except for Go out and get it, which has an
Elton lead with Linda on backing vocals. Ten of these have appeared
on bootleg, omitting This moment. All tracks feature a full band with
obviously Elton on piano. I have no details on the other musicians,
but I'm presuming Caleb Quaye (gtr), Tony Murray (bs) and Roger Pope
(dr). Go Out and Get It is playing in Musica now. For those
interested, I've uploaded the entire album at:
http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/Rockofages/files/
Eddy
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Message: 4
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 15:37:14 +0100
From: Richard Williams
Subject: Johnny Hallyday
1. Phil Milstein asks if Johnny Hallyday and Sylvie Vartan are still
married. The answer, malheurusement, is very much non. Both of them
remarried, Sylvie to one of the Scotti brothers (Tony, I think). For
the latest info, see Paris-Match almost any week.
2. Re the correspondence between Phil and Frank on the subject of
expiring copyrights, raised bvy Hallyday's attempt to wrest the
ownership of his masters from Universal: it's a difficult one, which
strikes at the heart of the historical integrity of labels such as
Motown and Stax, in particular, and in those case at the question of
authorship of a recording. In general, though, it's worth asking why,
having recouped their costs and made their profits, should a label be
able to sit on an artist's recordings for the rest of time? Wise
artists with shred managers make production deals which ensure that
the ownership of the masters reverts to them after a period of, say,
five or 10 years. Not everyone, of course, negotiates from such a
position of strength. But, as my friend Charlie Gillett suggested to
me yesterday, the record business should borrow a piece of standard
practice from the book industry: if a publisher lets a book go out
of print for, say, 18 months, the full rights automatically revert to
the author. Had Lou Johnson, to take a Spectropop favourite, been
able to negotiate such a such a deal with Big Top, then we might be
able to buy his great original versions of various Bacharach-David
songs on CD today.
Richard Williams
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Message: 5
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 16:37:13 +0200
From: Eddy
Subject: Re: Early Elton
Dave Marheine
> The session featured Elton John - Piano and Vocals, Linda Peters
> (soon to become Linda Thompson when she married Richard Thompson) -
> Vocals, Jim Capaldi - Drums, Simon Nicol - Guitar, Pat Donaldson -
> Bass, with arrangements by Del Newman.
Thanks for the info here, Dave! For those who are familiar with the
original RPM label cover for the Reg Dwight's piano goes pop, I've
uploaded the original cover design for it in the photo section at
http://url123.com/wkexy : The happy Hammond goes pop on the Hallmark
label.
Eddy
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Message: 6
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 10:42:32 -0400
From: Country Paul
Subject: Johnnie Johnson, RIP
Johnnie Johnson, Floyd Cramer, Leon Russell, Allen Toussaint, Fats
Domino and whoever was pounding chords on so many of the End-Gone
sessions (mainly the Chantels) are the main influences on my non-
classical piano playing. This is from today's (April 15) AP wire.
Country Paul
---------
Chuck Berry Remembers Johnnie Johnson
By CHERYL WITTENAUER
Associated Press Writer
UNIVERSITY CITY, Mo. - Rock 'n roll legend Chuck Berry had just
returned from a European tour when he learned at Chicago's O'Hare
Airport that his longtime friend and collaborator Johnnie Johnson was
dead at age 80. Late Wednesday, he went directly to Blueberry Hill
nightclub in this St. Louis suburb, where Berry and Johnson had
played together as recently as a year ago, to remember "the man with
a dynamite right hand" with whom he shared a half-century of music
and memories. A master of boogie-woogie, Johnson was "my piano player
who no one else has come near," said Berry, 78, still spry and dapper
in a royal blue shirt, a silver bolo tie, pleated charcoal slacks and
mariner's cap.
Through 50-plus years of riffs and syncopation, late-night jams - and
later a painful lawsuit - Berry and Johnson only grew in their mutual
admiration and respect. "Johnnie and I have always been friends,"
said Berry, who teamed with Johnson for hits like "Roll Over
Beethoven" and "No Particular Place to Go."
Johnson died Wednesday at his St. Louis home; the cause of death was
not immediately known.
Johnson, a self-taught pianist with a low-key persona, never won the
fame heaped upon Berry. But he eventually became known as the "Father
of Rock 'N' Roll Piano" and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall
of Fame in 2001 in the "sidemen" category.
Johnson's and Berry's long collaboration helped define early rock 'n'
roll and put St. Louis on the music map along with the budding team
of Ike and Tina Turner. Each performed at clubs on both sides of the
nearby Mississippi River. On New Year's Eve 1952 at The Cosmopolitan
in East St. Louis, Ill., Johnson called Berry to fill in for an
ailing saxophonist in his Sir John Trio. The struggling and unknown
Berry, who says he was playing more then for enjoyment than money,
rushed over. "He gave me a break" and his first commercial gig, for
$4, Berry recalled. "I was excited. My best turned into a mess. I
stole the group from Johnny." Johnson never held it against him.
"Midway through the show, Chuck did a hillbilly country number with a
bluesy vein, and it knocked people out," said Blueberry Hill club
owner Joe Edwards, a friend of both men.
Johnson later recalled Berry had a car that allowed them to travel to
more distant clubs - the Blue Flame, Blue Note and Club Imperial.
Berry played so well he became front man for the band, which took his
name. Their long partnership, forged in the '50s, would run steadily
for another 20 years. They still performed occasionally in the 1980s
and '90s.
Edwards said their collaboration formed the bricks of rock 'n roll,
and that the two stirred hillbilly and blues in one pot to create a
unique sound. Johnson often composed the music on piano, then Berry
converted it to guitar and wrote the lyrics. Berry's "Johnny B.
Goode," was a tribute to Johnson. After he and Berry parted ways,
Johnson performed with Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, John Lee Hooker
and Bo Diddley, among others. Still, there were rough spots in the
pair's collaboration. In 2000, Johnson sued Berry over royalties and
credit he believed he was due for the songs they composed together.
The lawsuit was dismissed two years later. Berry said he always
wondered who was behind the lawsuit, because "Johnnie would never
initiate a complaint such as that. Johnnie would never have waited 40
years to sue."
Berry said he would perform a tribute concert in Johnson's honor,
ideally at downtown St. Louis's roughly 70,000-seat Edward Jones Dome.
"We'll fill that sucker," he said.
Though Berry said he'll miss his friend and his music, he's not
melancholy. "My turn is coming very soon," he said. "Would you shed a
tear for Chuck? I hope not, because I don't see why one should weep
when something inevitable must come. "At 78, I'm glad to be anywhere,
anytime."
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Message: 7
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 13:15:57 -0400
From: Stewart Mason
Subject: Re: Early Elton
My copy of the Elton John soundalike songs is called CHARTBUSTERS GO
POP!: 16 LEGENDARY COVERS FROM 1969/70 AS SUNG BY ELTON JOHN,
copyright 1998 on the Purple Pyramid label, which I believe is the
reissue arm of the Cleopatra label. The small print says the tracks
were licensed from Castle Communications, so I bet Castle/Sanctuary
has reissued them as well.
As a fellow Bostonian, Phil, it might help you to know that I bought
this CD in the remainder bin at the Stop and Shop in Brighton for
something like $5 -- the next time you're shopping for groceries,
have a look and you might get lucky.
S
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Message: 8
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 12:23:22 -0400
From: Austin Roberts
Subject: Toni Wine
James Botticelli:
> It's like Toni Wine's "My Boyfriend's Coming Home For Christmas" on
> Colpix. During the piano solo in the middle she sobbingly talks
> about how "hawd" it is to be without him. Brooklyn ain't backwoods
> but it sure is distinguishable.
She married a Southern guy (Chips Moman) for awhile and may have
tried to emulate his accent (lol). Who knows; all I know is she's
quite a lady and put the T in talent.
Take good care, Austin R.
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Message: 9
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 13:42:25 -0700 (PDT)
From: Karen Andrew
Subject: Collins working on King Records documentary film
Friday, April 15, 2005
Collins working on King Records documentary film
By C.E. Hanifin, Cincinnati Enquirer staff writer
In the 1950s and '60s, King Records secured a prominent place for
Cincinnati on the musical map. Renowned funk artist Bootsy Collins,
who got his start as a session player there, thinks that the Evanston-
based label's legacy can help put the city back at the music world's
center. (Evanston is a Cincinnati neighborhood)
As part of Collins' ongoing campaign to honor King Records' history,
he recently began filming a documentary. On Saturday, he invited
several musicians who worked with one of the label's biggest stars,
James Brown, to his Clermont County home for tapings for the film,
titled "Kings & Queens of King Records."
Collins says he wants young people to know the stories of King
Records veterans such as MC Danny Ray, trombonist Fred Wesley and
singers Bobby Byrd and Vicki Byrd, whom he met while they were all
working with Brown during the '60s.
Their musical success stories will inspire Cincinnati's next wave of
stars, he says.
See the rest of this article at this link. Of course, in a few days
you may have to pay for it. Way to get around that is get on your
Google or other search engine and copy in the headline:
Collins working on King Records documentary film:
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050415/ENT/504150350
Karen Andrew
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Message: 10
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 16:35:06 -0400
From: Country Paul
Subject: "Jerry Landis" vs. Bat Carroll; Razz-Ma-Tazz=Street Song; KIMN; missing verses
Once again, so far behind, so much catching up to do....
Old business: I did check out Bat Carroll's "A Different Kind of
Love" (Ace [US] 603) to contrast it to Paul Simon's unreleased
version on the "Work In Progress Vol. 1" CD. Gotta say, Simon's
version has it hands down over Carroll, in tightness of the
accompaniment, vocal style and arrangement. Why it was never released
is a mystery. Interestingly, Carroll's flip side, "Grow Up," is
written by Mac Rebennack [Dr. John], and in a heavier arrangement
could have been a pretty good track; here it's just lightweight
fluff. However, the little piano lick indicates it may well be the
good Doctor on the keyboard. I'm still curious to hear Bat Carroll's
"Aw Who" (Ace 570, 1959) anthologized several times on CD: perhaps it
rocks harder than these two.
Dave The Rave:
> Speaking of rare 45's, I have another 45 in my collection that I
> call the original beginnings of "I Can't Quit Her". Remember "New
> York's My Home (Razz-A-Ma-Tazz)" on Aurora 164? Please tell me
> something about this song.
Check out the Kitchen Cinq's "Street Song" (LHI) - same song.
Sean:
> Amazing what you find posted in Spectropop and on the web! On this
> page - http://www.moonrakers.us/KIMN%20jingle%202.mp3 - is the
> KIMN, Denver version of the WABC, New York "Jimmy Smith Sonovox
> jingle."...[I]n New York, the Sonovox sang "WABC" instead of the
> KIMN slogans....I'd love to have an mp3 of this version or the
> original....
...and thanks to Les Peterson of the Moonrakers, I do. And so do you,
as I've taken the liberty of playing it to musica. Les reports it
comes from a long out-of-print KIMN oldies LP; this dub is from his
copy.
Tony Leong:
> [D]id you know that the Dixie Cups sang a whole extra verse during
> the break of "Gee Baby Gee", and Mary Weiss sang a whole verse
> after her dialogue with MaryAnn and Margie at the fade out of "Give
> Him A Great Big Kiss"???
I didn't know - what was cut out? (Or will I find out as I keep
catching up?)
Country Paul
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Message: 11
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 21:22:31 +0100
From: Peter Lerner
Subject: Record shops
Kingsley tempted me with the following:
> I plan to visit the wonderful Revolution records in Diss, Norfolk
> (an old style emporium where they know about and still enjoy a wide
> range of music) to see if I can find it!
Can we compile together a list of other great outlets for rare vinyl.
I have no idea if this place is good, but frustratingly I got lost
driving in Birmingham (UK not Alabama today) and had to drive right
by Reddingtons Rare Records. And I can certainly recommend Velvet Fog
in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney, Australia.
Peter
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Message: 12
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 2005 10:00:08 +0200
From: Frank
Subject: Re: Johnny Hallyday / expiring copyrights
Richard Williams:
> Re the correspondence between Phil and Frank on the subject of
> expiring copyrights, raised bvy Hallyday's attempt to wrest the
> ownership of his masters from Universal: it's a difficult one, which
> strikes at the heart of the historical integrity of labels such as
> Motown and Stax, in particular, and in those case at the question of
> authorship of a recording. In general, though, it's worth asking
> why, having recouped their costs and made their profits, should a
> label be able to sit on an artist's recordings for the rest of
> time? Wise artists with shred managers make production deals which
> ensure that the ownership of the masters reverts to them after a
> period of, say, five or 10 years. Not everyone, of course,
> negotiates from such a position of strength. But, as my friend
> Charlie Gillett suggested to me yesterday, the record business
> should borrow a piece of standard practice from the book industry:
> if a publisher lets a book go out of print for, say, 18 months, the
> full rights automatically revert to the author. Had Lou Johnson, to
> take a Spectropop favourite, been able to negotiate such a such a
> deal with Big Top, then we might be able to buy his great original
> versions of various Bacharach-David songs on CD today.
This is indeed a very difficult and tricky subject. I agree with
Richard that producers who don't exploit masters for a certain time
should see their rights revert to the artists. However it is quite
difficult to define the amount of profit after which a producer
should lose his rights. And such a policy could lead to a situation
where producers might refrain from producing artists for fearv they
should lose their rights afetr a while.
Frank
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 13
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 14:13:34 -0700 (PDT)
From: Karen Andrew
Subject: King Records documentary film
Sorry, to add this to my original message but I wanted people to see
the one paragraph at the bottom of the article:
Collins currently is seeking additional musicians and staff members
who worked at King Records during its run from 1943 to 1971 to be
interviewed.
If this is any of you or you know of someone, I guess send an e-mail
to the reporter to try to get contact info.:
E-mail chanifin@enquirer.com
Karen
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 14
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 17:16:25 -0400
From: Country Paul
Subject: Love Potions 9 & 10; Cyrkle; JB's finds; double tracked teen idols
Billy G. Spradlin mentions the Clovers' "Love Potion #9." There's an
alternate version with the end line:
"It felt so good that I'm goin' back again,
I've got to see what happens with Love Potion #10."
Was this recorded before or after the hit version (with "#9"
throughout)? Was it a punch-in or a whole other vocal track? And,
last question, what's the backstory/reason for all this? Anyone know?
Previously:
> [B]ack to The Cyrkle - are none of the members performing anymore?
> That's one 60s group I'd enjoy seeing together again!
I sent a note with that question to Don Dannemann; if he answers I'll
let you know.
JB's finds:
> Mitchell Torok - Pink Chiffon - Guyden (a hit from way back then)
So was his "Caribbean," which was also covered by Hank Snow. He also
wrote the early Jim Reeves hit "Mexican Joe.") More at
http://www.icebergradio.com/artist/25761/mitchell_torok.html . I
always liked "Pink Chiffon" - really pretty; Torok was in his late
20s then, singing about a prom. Hmm....
JB also found:
> Carol Kay & The Teen-Aires - I'll Never Change - Crest
Isn't this the B-side of the Holly/Valens/Bopper memorial tearjerker
"Three Stars" by Tommy Dee? As I remember, that was the hit that put
Crest on the map. (It's interesting how most labels at the time
changed their label dersign to something fancy once they had a hit,
but Crest, despite the potential of its name, kept its silver-on-blue
block print throughout its existence.)
Mikey:
> Double tracking is used MOST to make a weak vocalist sound
> passable. That's why the producers of poor singers like Gary Lewis,
> Billy J Kramer, Fabian, Frankie Avalon, etc ALWAYS double tracked
> and triple tracked their vocals. Double tracking does not make a
> bad singers flaws more visible, it hides them.
Yes, Fabian was indeed an awful singer (self-admittedly), but without
digging out the one or two I have by him, I don't remember any
double-tracking on his records. (Perhaps they would have benefitted!)
I disagree with your assessment of Frankie Avalon, who is a quite
respectable singer; the early stuff, like "Gingerbread" and "De De
Dinah," is said to have been recorded with him holding his nose
(literally) to get a "teenier" sound. (Both tracks genuinely rock,
actually, and the backing vocal group on "Gingerbread" really gives
the record some polish.) But I don't remember double-tracking on
those, either, and certainly not on "Venus" and his other "mellower"
songs.
Country Paul
(still catching up)
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Message: 15
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 2005 00:00:19 -0400
From: Joe Nelson
Subject: Re: Photo from Nashville
Nick Archer:
> Ed Salamon graciously hosted another Spectropop Nashville meeting
> this past Sunday. I've posted a photo to the photo section. Left to
> Right, Skip Woolwine WSM radio, Buzz Cason/Gary Miles (Everlasting
> Love, Sandy), Bill Lloyd (Foster & Lloyd, Sky Kings), Tony Moon
> (Dante & the Evergreens, producer Lemonade Charade), Austin Roberts
> (Rocky, I.O.U.), Larry Weiss (Bend Me, Shape Me, Rhinestone
> Cowboy), Ed Salamon, Nick Archer.
Just out of curiousity, just below the gold record on the wall between
Austin and Larry it looks like the top of another head peaking out
(almost looks like Michael Jackson). Any idea who or what that is?
Joe Nelson
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 16
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 21:31:11 -0700
From: Gary Myers
Subject: John Fred gone
John Fred dead at 63
By MARY FOSTER
Associated Press writer
NEW ORLEANS -- John Fred Gourrier, the singer best known for his 1960s
hit -- "Judy in Disguise (With Glasses)" -- died Friday at Tulane
Hospital.
Gourrier, 63, who went by the stage name John Fred, had been ill for
months, said his former manager, Lynn Ourso, of the Louisiana
Department of Economic Development.
"He had a kidney transplant seven months ago," Ourso said. "Two months
after that he had another operation to remove his old kidneys, and
that's when things went wrong. He'd basically been in and out of the
hospital since then."
John Fred & His Playboy Band had a regional following in the South
when they recorded their parody of the popular Beatles' song "Lucy in
the Sky With Diamonds," in 1967. Written by Gorrier and fellow band
member Andrew Bernard, "Judy In Disguise" was recorded in New Orleans
with the Fats Domino band on Dec. 17.
By Jan. 20, 1968 it had replaced another Beatles song, "Hello
Goodbye," as the No. 1 song in the nation. The song, well
orchestrated with a snappy beat, remained at the top of the charts
for two weeks.
"I have a great picture of John with the Beatles when the band toured
the United Kingdom at that time," Ourso said.
Although "Judy in Disguise" was the only Top 40 song the group ever
had, Fred had made the charts before.
Fred formed his first group while he was still in high school and
recorded a song titled "Shirley."
"That made the charts and he was invited to do the Alan Freed show in
New York," Ourso said. "After that show he got a call from Dick Clark
to be on American Bandstand. He told him he couldn't do it because he
had to go home to play in a basketball game."
Fred was a student at Catholic High School in Baton Rouge at the time,
Ourso said, and the basketball team was in the state championship
race.
Fred played college basketball for a while at Southeastern Louisiana
and worked as a high school basketball coach at times. "He performed
all his life," Ourso said. "There was always a band." The last
performance was about three years ago, Ourso said. "We played for the
Senate every year, He loved that gig."
Fred is survived by his wife, Sandra, and one son.
gem
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Message: 17
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 2005 10:57:33 +0100
From: Mick Patrick
Subject: Alison Wonder, R.I.P.
Mark Maldwyn:
> Will Cheryl Barrymore be included on the remembers section?
I'll remember Cheryl, not for the behind the scenes role she played
in the career of Michael Barrymore (in fact, I will *forgive* her for
that) but for the singles she made under various stage monikers. Two
of her best two records - "Once More With Feeling" using the name
Alison Wonder, and "I'll Forget You Tonight" as by Cheryl St Clair -
are available on "Dream Babes: Am I Dreaming" (RPM 137) and "Dream
Babes, Vol 3: Backcomb'n'Beat" (RPM 233), respectively. Bob Stanley
of St. Etienne compiled the former and co-compiled the latter. Maybe
some of you have those CDs. If not, I recommend them.
My pal Clunkie is presently putting together a feature article for
S'pop. So watch this space. In the meantime, I've posted a nice shot
of Cheryl to the S'pop Photos section, which can be found here:
http://photos.groups.yahoo.com/group/spectropop/lst Find an obituary
here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,1450723,00.html
R.I.P.
Mick Patrick
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Message: 18
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 2005 11:21:40 -0000
From: Billy G Spradlin
Subject: Re: John Fred gone
Gary Myers wrote:
> John Fred & His Playboy Band had a regional following in the South
> when they recorded their parody of the popular Beatles' song "Lucy
> in the Sky With Diamonds," in 1967. Written by Gorrier and fellow
> band member Andrew Bernard, "Judy In Disguise" was recorded in New
> Orleans with the Fats Domino band ...
Humm... that's interesting, Robin Hood Brians (Robin Hood Studios)
told me via e-mail a few years ago that he recorded the entire song
in his studio in Tyler Texas. (Which was built behind his parents
house and still operating today).
Really a shame to hear about his death, he was quite a legend in
Lousiana/Texas and gave Shreveport's Paula Records their only #1
national Pop hit.
Billy G.
http://listen.to/jangleradio
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Message: 19
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 2005 11:29:24 +0100
From: Austin Powell
Subject: Claire Francis & Birmingham (UK) Groups
First, welcome back Claire - we all wish you a speedy convalescence...
U.K. Bonds, The Bulldog Breed and (I think) The Nightriders were all
represented at the time they signed to Polydor by an agency in
Birmingham called ADSEL - Arthur Douglas Smith Entertainments
Limited. The company worked from offices in one of the city's high-
rise office blocks at the time. Very plush. I believe another of the
groups that came under the deal were Giorgio and Marco's Men who
released "Girl Without A Heart" c/w "Run Run" on Polydor 56101 in
1966. There were about half a dozen bands signed to Polydor in the
same deal... Were any of the others Claire's productions I wonder ?
Austin P
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Message: 20
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 2005 10:58:54 -0000
From: Billy G Spradlin
Subject: Re: The Hollies' "Stop! Stop! Stop!" album
Bill Mulvy wrote:
> "Tell Me To My Face" is a great song that never appears on any
> Hollies greatest hits CDs even though it was on a major greatest
> hits LP in the sixties. What's up with that?
Wasn't that "The Hollies Greatest Hits" LP on Imperial? That was
another hodgepodge of singles and album cuts. It came out in 1967,
maybe whoever compiled it included that song because of Keith's cover.
> FYI "The Hollies 30th Anniversary Greatest Hits" album features
> remixed versions of the songs which improves their impact. "Bus
> Stop" is stunning with the vocals on both channels while retaining
> the stereo separation on the instruments. "I Can't Let Go" is
> great as well. The b-sides are also in stereo for the first time
> on this collection.
There's some remixed tracks on that set that sound great on headphones
like "Baby That's all". But (remastering engineer) Ron Furmanek (who
usually does fine work) blew it on the remix of "Look Through Any
Window". I was hoping it would be simular to the mono 45 version but
he butchered it by removing the reverb and turning down the background
vocals. But until the (expensive) EMI-UK "Long Road Home" box set it
was the most comprehensive Hollies compilation I had found.
Billy
http://listen.to/jangleradio
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