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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: Ides Of March
From: Orion
2. Re: John Fred gone
From: Charles Ulrich
3. Re: Ides Of March
From: Bill Mulvy
4. Re: Ides Of March
From: Michael Thom
5. Re: "Please Don't Ever Leave Me"
From: Dan Nowicki
6. Goodbye the Fabulous Singlettes
From: David Walker
7. Re: John Fred gone
From: Clark Besch
8. Ashes Folk Rock
From: Kingsley Abbott
9. Sunny by Bobby Hebb
From: Ed Salamon
10. Judee Sill
From: Kim Cooper
11. Collector's Choice Music
From: Rob
12. "Murry Wilson Given Global Push As Artist"
From: Phil X Milstein
13. Re: Paul Revere & ...
From: Bob Radil
14. Re: Frankie Avalon
From: Laura Pinto
15. "The Boxer"
From: Joe Nelson
16. Lesley Gore Concert
From: Clarke Davis
17. Lesley Gore
From: John
18. Border flop?; Gore scores
From: Country Paul
19. Lou Johnson - Magic Potion
From: Michael Edwards
20. Cathy Carroll ; Rita Pavone ; Judy ( in Disguise) and some atrocities.
From: Julio Niño
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Message: 1
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2005 18:22:52 -0500
From: Orion
Subject: Re: Ides Of March
Mike Bennidict:
> The Ides of March were probably only known nationwide
> for a 1970 hit called "I'm Your Vehicle," but there were
> others which I know of being from the Chicago area. ...
Bob Rashkow:
> As a fellow Chicagoan, I can tell you that not only did
> they chart nationally with "You Wouldn't Listen" and "Roller
> Coaster" (although they were much bigger hits in the Midwest),
> but they also managed to get "L.A. Goodbye" (1971) on the
> charts on Warner Bros., even though it too was only a
> regional Top 10. Very talented group as a garage/pop band,
> who unfortunately in 1970 got on the brass/jazz bandwagon.
> That said, all of their WB LPs are great, at least as good
> as anything Chicago or Blood, Sweat & Tears were doing at
> the time.
I remember while serving in Germany in 1970 the rumor going
around that the lead singer of BS&T was actually singing
behind the scenes for The Ides of March. The music was very
much in the same vein. However, I enjoyed listening to BS&T
much more.
Orion
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Message: 2
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 10:43:45 -0700
From: Charles Ulrich
Subject: Re: John Fred gone
Irving Snodgrass:
> John Fred Gourrier was born in 1941 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
> His father, Fred Gourrier, had played professional baseball
> with the Detroit Tigers organization.
I believe that that is true as worded above. But he was not
actually on the Detroit Tigers. Rather, he played on one of
their minor league farm teams.
Not sure if that constitutes a "famous athlete".
--Charles
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Message: 3
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2005 19:23:59 -0500
From: Bill Mulvy
Subject: Re: Ides Of March
Mike Bennidict wrote:
> The Ides of March were probably only known nationwide
> for a 1970 hit called "I'm Your Vehicle," but there were
> others which I know of being from the Chicago area. ...
Mike, "I'm Gonna Say My Prayers" is a great song that was
never released at the time.
It could have been a single, it was that good.
It's on the Sundazed CD "Ideology" with the other early hits.
Bill Mulvy
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Message: 4
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2005 19:57:01 -0500
From: Michael Thom
Subject: Re: Ides Of March
Bobster wrote:
> As a fellow Chicagoan, I can tell you that not only did they
> chart nationally with "You Wouldn't Listen" and "Roller Coaster"
> (although they were much bigger hits in the Midwest), but they
> also managed to get "L.A. Goodbye" (1971) on the charts on
> Warner Bros., even though it too was only a regional Top 10.
> Very talented group as a garage/pop band, who unfortunately in
> 1970 got on the brass/jazz bandwagon. That said, all of their
> WB LPs are great, at least as good as anything Chicago or Blood,
> Sweat & Tears were doing at the time.
I agree. "Common Bond," in particular, is a superb album.
I've posted both "Nobody Loves Me!" and its B-side, "Strawberry
Sunday", to Musica. The group's only release on Kapp, it marked
the beginning of their long association with Rand Productions and
showed the direction they would take when they later signed with
Warner Brothers, though they'd previously incorporated brass in
their later Parrot sides, "My Foolish Pride" and "Hole in My Soul".
"Nobody Loves Me!" is, in fact, quite similar to their first WB
single, "One Woman Man." The group's WB releases are collected
on the excellent Rhino Handmade double CD, "Perfect Strangers:
The Warner Bros. Recordings," which includes both WB LPs ("Vehicle"
and "Common Bond") and the WB non-LP sides: "High on a Hillside"
(flip of "One Woman Man"), "Lead Me Home, Gently" (B-side of
"Vehicle"), "Home" (flip of "Superman"), "Melody" (A-side after
"Superman" and before "L.A. Goodbye") and "Giddy-Up Ride Me" (final
WB A-side).
During the WB years, Peterik also wrote and produced sides for
other Chicago-area artists, such as "Training Wheels" by Kris
Erik Stevens, issued on Chicago's Sunlight label, which also
issued three singles by the New Colony Six.
After leaving WB, the Ides signed with RCA and recorded two LPs,
"World Woven" and "Midnight Oil." While not as consistent as
their WB LPs, both include excellent material. "Mother America,"
issued as a single preceding "World Woven," is prime Jim Peterik
material with a great arrangement. Their only other RCA single
was "Hot Water" (from "Midnight Oil").
The Ides then split, and Peterik cut a solo LP for Epic," Don't
Fight the Feeling" (also issued as a single), and a later non-LP
single, "Closest Thing to My Mind," and produced songs for Essence
on the Epic label under the Sweet City imprint. He also turned in
a great lead vocal on "Run Back to Mama" as a guest on Chase's 1974
LP, "Pure Music," and on "The Song Is Over" (the Who song) issued
on Chase's Churchill LP, "Watch Closely Now," recorded by a new
version of the group after most of the members were tragically
killed in a plane crash.
For fans of '60s pop and rock, the Ides' earlier Parrot recordings
are an absolute must. As S.J. Dibal noted, get the Sundazed
"Ideology" CD for those classic recordings.
The Ides reformed in 1990 and not only still perform regularly,
but do so with all six original members. The group performs
songs from throughout their career, plus new songs and songs
that Peterik wrote and performed with Survivor. Their more
recent studio and live recordings are available through their
fan club: http://www.theidesofmarch.com/
Michael Thom
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Message: 5
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 03:39:31 EDT
From: Dan Nowicki
Subject: Re: "Please Don't Ever Leave Me"
Stewart:
> I used to love a group called "The Cyrkle."...they had a
> sweet little song called "Please Don't Ever Leave Me" which
> I thought was very under-rated...does anyone know how "high"
> it ever got in the "Top 100" of its time?...that song is ripe
> for a re-making, in my view.
The pop-garage group P-Nut Butter of Phoenix, Arizona, covered
"Please Don't Ever Leave Me" in 1967. (Outside of Phoenix, P-Nut
Butter is probably best known for their version of Sloan and
Barri's "What Am I Doin' Here With You," which came out nationally
on Tower in 1966.) Anybody interested in hearing their take on
"Please Don't Ever Leave Me" (along with "What Am I Doin' Here
With You" and their interpretations of Sloan and Barri's "Look
Out Girl" and Goffin and King's "The Girl From Chelsea") should
get a copy of the just-released CD titled "Battle of the Bands:
P-Nut Butter Vs. The Vibratos." (The Vibratos were another local
Phoenix band who had a local hit in 1964 with their cover of
the Beatles' "I'll Be Back.") If interested, look for it on eBay,
the only place it is for sale outside the Phoenix metro area.
Dan Nowicki
Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.A.
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Message: 6
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 20:01:36 +1000
From: David Walker
Subject: Goodbye the Fabulous Singlettes
After making their debut at the Space Theatre (part of the Adelaide
Festival Theatre complex) in 1986 the Fabulous Singlettes are
calling it a day.
Patrick McDonald's item in The Advertiser, Adelaide, 20th April
2005 declares " After 20 years, the Fabulous Singlettes are
hanging up their famed beehive wigs".
The brief article cites Naomi Eyers as the groups founder and only
remaining original member, that 7 others have been through the
ranks including current members Melissa Langton and Melissa McCaig.
The article should be available via the web but if anyone wants
more info on the article contact me offline. I will give you the
gist of the article.
Also having a quick look at The Bandshop web will give you a brief
bio of the group and some sound and video bites.
David Walker
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Message: 7
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 05:15:10 -0000
From: Clark Besch
Subject: Re: John Fred gone
Phil X Milstein wrote:
> They also did "No Good to Cry"? I knew of remakes by The Allman
> Bros. and the Poppy Family. That'd pretty good since the original
> Wildweeds' version only got to #87 on Billboard although a mega-hit
> here in the northeast. In Hartford it was #1 on this date in 1967.
James Botticelli:
> It was also recorded by Jimmy James & The Vagabonds in an
> excellent version on, I think, Atco.
Gotta say the Wild Weeds song is tremendous and even better in stereo
on their new CD! In fact, their new Cd comp is just great stuff.
Need to check out John Fred and Jimmy James versions....
Clark
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Message: 8
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 16:11:37 +0100
From: Kingsley Abbott
Subject: Ashes Folk Rock
The new Peanut Butter Conspiracy CD on Big Beat - Spreading from
The Ashes - has on it The Ashes' (previous name of early line-up)
version of Jackie De Shannon's song "Is There Anything I Can Do".
It was a single on Vault in 1966, and is a very interesting
Spector-tinged slab of Folk Rock, well worth a listen.
Kingsley
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Message: 9
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 15:33:54 -0000
From: Ed Salamon
Subject: Sunny by Bobby Hebb
I've read in a number of sources that Bobby Hebb's "Sunny" was
inspired either by JFK's death and/or Bobby's own brother's death.
On Wednesday, Bobby and I were at the Night Train To Nashville
exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame, and I remembered to
ask him about it. Bobby was rather adamant (as I pressed the
issue) that neither event influenced him to write the song. He
said "I just wanted to write a song about how you can choose your
own disposition. You can choose to be sunny or sad. I choose to be
sunny". He also said that he has consulted with psychologists over
the years about the meaning of the song. Perhaps someone just noted
that the two deaths preceded the writing of "Sunny" and presumed
the connection.
Ed Salamon
Nashville, TN
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Message: 10
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 08:41:39 -0700
From: Kim Cooper
Subject: Judee Sill
Country Paul is right. The new "Dreams Come True / Hi – I Love You
Right Heartily Here" double album of Judee Sill rarities is just out
on Water/Runt in the US, remastered by Jim O'Rourke. It's not a great
lost album, but is certainly an interesting addition to her exquisite
discography. "Emerald River Dance" (a home demo, never before heard in
any format) is one of her finest songs, and the 68-page illustrated
oral history tells her weird life story with laughs and compassion.
Definitely recommended for fans of esoteric experimental California
pop.
Kim
Scram
http://www.scrammagazine.com
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Message: 11
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 15:41:45 -0000
From: Rob
Subject: Collector's Choice Music
Why do Collector's Choice Music feel the need to ruin every single CD
cover by stamping their name on them? This totally ruins the cover
art. Are they that desperate for publicity? All you have to do is
turn it over to find out who put the CD out. Plus, $6.95 for standard
shipping, even if you're only buying 1 CD?! Come on guys, even Tower
offers free shipping for purchases over $20.
Rob
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Message: 12
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 11:49:31 -0800
From: Phil X Milstein
Subject: "Murry Wilson Given Global Push As Artist"
Doing some spring cleaning last week, I came across a printout
I'd made from a microfilm copy of the November 11, 1970* edition
of Billboard of an article promisingly titled "Murry Wilson Given
Global Push As Artist." Thinking some of y'all might find this
(circle one) interesting/illuminating / amusing, I've scanned the
article and posted it to the Photos section. The oddest sentence
in this rewritten (if that) press release claims that "The Beach
Boys are also boosting their manager-father's album with a personal
promotional campaign of their own." With gigs at the Brooklyn Bridge
and some swampland in Florida, perhaps?
Enjoy,
--Phil
*This is indeed the date I jotted down at the time, but I'm inclined
to think that in my haste I wrote "1970" but meant "1967."
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Message: 13
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 16:11:46 -0000
From: Bob Radil
Subject: Re: Paul Revere & ...
Dave Gofstein:
> I'm guessing it was an attempt to court a "hipper" image. About
> the same time we had The Young Rascals turn into The Rascals,
> The Beach Boys contemplate becoming Beach (really!), and I have
> an LP The Brooklyn Bridge recorded under the name The Bridge (a
> pretty good album, actually, in which they do mostly songs by a
> very young Loudon Wainwright III).
>From what I understand, The Young Rascals were originally "The
Rascals" but Atlantic wanted a younger image for them. They went
back to simply "The Rascals" starting with "A Beautiful Morning".
At that point they also no longer did separate 45/LP mixes.
Grand Funk Railroad was simply called "Grand Funk". It was later
shown that way on the label, but I think it had more to do with
ex-manager, Terry Knight owning the rights to the origial name.
Corrections, anyone?
Bob Radil
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Message: 14
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 18:01:39 -0000
From: Laura Pinto
Subject: Re: Frankie Avalon
Jim Fisher wrote:
> I saw [Frankie Avalon] in a Grease revival a couple of years back
> here in LA, and after the show he came out and did a few non-Grease
> tunes. He actually sounded pretty good. I always been a fan so
> perhaps I cut more slack than I should have, but he really was
> not too bad! I think his worst was probably on "Bobby Sox To
> Stockings," where at about 55 seconds into the tune he sings,
> "doubt as what to SAY." The "say" is not pretty. He repeats the
> line toward the end, and it's better the second time around.
Hi,
I'm seeing that 'Grease' revival with Frankie this coming Sunday,
April 24th, for the second time! The first time was a year and a
half ago, and I just had to see it again. I'm really looking forward
to seeing Frankie reprise his role as Teen Angel. Nobody does it
better. (Well, actually, I've never seen anybody else in the part
so I can't really say that with any accuracy!)
I agree with you, though, about "Bobby Sox to Stockings." Frankie's
singing was very flat in that song and not just on the word "say."
His best tracks, in my opinion, are "Venus" and his 'Grease'
showstopper, "Beauty School Dropout." And I highly recommend
this 'Grease' revival, with Frankie, to all Spectropoppers who
live within shouting distance of one of the show's runs.
Laura
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Message: 15
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 14:02:49 -0400
From: Joe Nelson
Subject: "The Boxer"
Ken Silverwood:
> At the back of my mind exists the sound of The Bachelors on
> Val Doonican's late '60s BBC TV show singing "a come-on from
> the girls on 7th Avenue," from Simon & Garfunkel's "The Boxer",
> where, as we know, they really got the come-on from whores.
> Oh!, how we jeered. (Hope I've not misheard S & G).
A few years back, Paul Simon did a concert in Central Park where,
from what I understand, the crowd went nuts every time he sang
anything to do with New York City. I have this image in my mind
of the audience applauding wildly at Simon's homage to the city's
darker side (the "come-on from the whores" line in particular),
seemingly oblivious to the fact that the song was hardly a tribute.
Joe Nelson
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Message: 16
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 18:21:24 -0000
From: Clarke Davis
Subject: Lesley Gore Concert
What a wonderful report on Miss Gore's performance! Thank you
for making me feel as though I were there myself.
Also, I wanted to throw my "two cents" in regarding one of the
most exquisite recordings I ever heard in the pop genre. "What
Am I Gonna Do With You (Hey Baby)" is not only the very best
recording I have had the pleasure of listening to in its category,
but I agree that the nuances and understanding reading of the song
is just mesmerizing!
How anyone could think it "horrible" I just don't get. She flat
out nails that song to the wall! My all time without question
L. Gore tune!
That being said, "California Nights" is pretty dreamy, too.
Glad to hear she's still in good shape, and wowing the crowds!
Clarke Davis
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Message: 17
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 18:26:38 -0000
From: John
Subject: Lesley Gore
Hi,
Is a Lesley Gore discography available? USA preferred, ta.
John
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Message: 18
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 14:43:54 -0400
From: Country Paul
Subject: Border flop?; Gore scores
Rex Patton wrote:
> ... While he was in there, Russ played John an acetate of
> Elton John's followup to his flop first single, "Border Song,"
> to see what he thought of it. John said he knew "Your Song"
> was a hit from the moment he heard it and told Russ he
> should definitely put it out.
I don't remember it as a flop; although it didn't blister its way
up the charts, it served (at least in Providence, RI) to pave the
way for Elton John not to be a stranger when "Your Song" hit.
Interesting that, in the US, it was a one-off release on Congress
(division of Kapp).
David Young, thank you for the exuberant review of the Lesley Gore
/Chorus concert. Makes me wish I'd been there, too....
Country Paul
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Message: 19
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 2005 01:09:51 -0000
From: Michael Edwards
Subject: Lou Johnson - Magic Potion
Rob Pingel writes (as a footnote to a very informative list of
Lou Johnson titles):
> To the best of my knowledge, none of the following Big Top,
> Big Hill or Hilltop tracks have ever been issued on CD:
> Magic Potion (Instrumental) (Bacharach-David) Big Hill 552
> Produced, arranged & conducted by Burt Bacharach
The UK re-issue label, Goldmine, has this out on two CDs:
"Midnight Brew - 22 Stormin' Northern Soul Instrumental Classics"
(GSCD126) and
"Big Top Soul Cellar - 30 Northern, Sixties and Classy Soul Sides"
(GSCD 125)
The vocal version of "Magic Potion" seemed to be a natural for UK
beat groups scouring US sources for material in the early 60s.
The definitive version was probably by the Searchers but fellow
Liverpudlians and Pye label mates, Johnny Sandon And The Remo 4
also released a nice version.
Mike Edwards
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Message: 20
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 2005 19:02:08 -0000
From: Julio Niño
Subject: Cathy Carroll ; Rita Pavone ; Judy ( in Disguise) and some atrocities.
Hola Everybody.
I would like to thank David A. Young for playing in musica
Cathy Carroll's "I Wish You were A Girl". I like it very much.
It's a very suggestive variant of the "I want to be the other
gender" topic, that include Lesley Gore's" I Wish I Were a Boy"
and "Wenn Ich ein Junge wär" (If I was a boy), by Rita Pavone.
I don't know if this latter was versioned in English, but there
are several great versions in Spanish, Rocio Durcal ( who like
Rita looked sometime rather boyish, and looked very confortable -
and sexy- dressed in masculine clothes) recorded it in 1964 ,
although my favorite Spanish version is by Sonia ( who also had
a certain androgynous touch), recorded on Belter.
Talking about Rita Pavone, I love the wonderful tracks she
recorded in English, in 1964 ( NYC) and 1965 ( Nashville), one
of my favorites is the beautiful "Little by Little". I wonder
if some of them had some repercussion in USA.
Dave Monroe wrote some days ago:
> JF&HPB must have had some sort of
> following in Spain, see, or, rather, hear also the cover
> of "HHB" by Los Gatos Negros, as well as "Judy con Difraz"
> by Los Salvajes (they also do a killer "Baby Come Back"
> ["Vuelve Baby"], among other things). There's also a
> crazed version of "JID" performed by a (perhaps fictional)
> punk band in Alex de la Iglesias' Acción mutante (1993),
> but there was no OST release, and I can't locate who might
> have recorded it. But the film is out on DVD.
Hola Dave. There are several Spanish sixties versions of "Judy
con Disfraz" (Judy In Disguise), one of the more popular, as
well as the one by Los Salvajes you mention, is the cover by
Los Sirex. The members of Los Salvajes were famous because of
their very fashionable clothes and attitude, they used to say
proudly that they looked totally English.
Last night I saw again "Acción Mutante" by Alex De La Iglesia
(a fun crazy movie about a gang of inept terrorists composed of
cripples and amputees, marginalised in a world obsessed with
health and beauty, that decided to kidnap the daughter of a rich
businessman). According to the credits of the film, the version
of "JID" that can be heard in the movie was performed by Pedro
Sánchez (I have no idea who is he). In the same insane and full
of blood scene the song that plays during the massacre is the
happy go lucky and naive "Aires De Fiesta " (party ambiance)
by Karina, which is rather perverse.
Chao.
Julio Niño.
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
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