________________________________________________________________________
SPECTROPOP - Spectacular! Retro! Pop!
________________________________________________________________________
There are 13 messages in this issue.
Topics in this digest:
1. That Thing You Do! but from the '60s
From: Andres
2. Re: Terry Cashman
From: Bob Radil
3. Drifters perform at tiny, Greek island
From: Martin Jensen
4. Re: All Music Guide
From: Joe Nelson
5. Re: All Music Guide
From: Orion
6. Dr. Demento gets his Gummy
From: Kim Cooper
7. Re: Pat Lewis
From: Simon White
8. Re: Fun and Sun 60's movies
From: Nick Archer
9. Re: The Shellettes
From: Martin Roberts
10. He STILL Stands Alone
From: Florie Gray
11. Re: Morning Girl Long Version
From: Bob Brown
12. Re: baseball songs
From: Bob Rashkow
13. Pat Lewis > Aretha Franklin > Wylene Ivy > The Corvells > Patty Lace > Alan Lorber
From: Mick Patrick
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Message: 1
Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 12:19:44 +0400
From: Andres
Subject: That Thing You Do! but from the '60s
Hi, Can you guys name some other movies like this, but from the
'60s, I mean so that there was a lot of music, beautiful girls in
mini (or bikini?), jokes, sun, fun and all that! But not the Avalon-
Funicello movies, I've got all of them already. I just want to buy
some new (old) movies like this for my own 'sitting and watching'
pleasure. What would you recommend? Thanks in advance!
Andres
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 2
Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 03:27:35 -0000
From: Bob Radil
Subject: Re: Terry Cashman
Florie Gray wrote:
> Terry Cashman was indeed the Cashman from Cashman and West, and,
> earlier, was part of Cashman, Pistilli & West. Their "American City
> Suite" was quite unusual for the time -- a "pocket symphony" (to
> use Brian Wilson's term) which was very beautiful and really quite
> prescient.
Also, "American City Suite" was a number 1 single in Hartford, CT on
both WDRC & WPOP, sometime around Sept./Oct. 1972. All 7:35 of it.
Austin Roberts:
> ... Terry Cashman gave me my first writing deal when he was the
> head of ABC Music...
Hi Austin, Didn't you tell me that for a while you were part of
"Cashman & West"? Take care,
Bob Radil
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 3
Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 08:37:29 -0000
From: Martin Jensen
Subject: Drifters perform at tiny, Greek island
Stories about more or less dubious Oldies acts resurface here in
Spectropop every once in a while, so I thought I'd relate the
following experience I had last week while on vacation at the Greek
island of Skiathos.
Already the first day there I spotted a colourful poster proclaiming
that the Drifters, `the Longest Running Group in R'n'B History', was
coming to the sunny island to give three concerts at the local
outdoor amphitheatre. Naturally, I was interested and rather
suspicious since the four guys on the poster almost looked younger
than me (I'm 25). So I went to the ticket sales office to get some
more info. There, An English newspaper article on the wall shed light
on why the Drifters had found their way towards a tiny Greek island.
It turns out that an Englishman by the name of Terry Ashley went to
Shiathos on holiday last year and fell in love with the island. He
then devised a plan with the mayor of Skiathos town, the only one on
the small island, for advertising Skiathos as `Motown Island'.
Consequently, the Drifters performances would mark the first stage in
this endeavour, which I guess is kind of odd considering that they
never even recorded for Motown. :-) The newspaper article did mention
though that Terry Ashley had travelled to Detroit and were in
negotiations with the management behind both the Temptations and the
Four Tops about future performances at the local amphitheatre, which
the Skiathos town council had given him the exclusive rights to for
the summer.
Some days later, I went to the second of the three concerts, not
really expecting that much. The show was pretty strange, in a way
both depressing but also encouraging.
Depressing because the large outdoor amphitheatre, which obviously
could hold many spectators, only drew 48(!) people! It must have been
the most sorry-looking crowd I've ever witnessed in terms of
attendance. Also, the whole set-up was pretty cheesy and low-key. For
instance, prior to the show, I went down some stairs outside the
amphitheatre that led to the Men's Rooms, and who did I find standing
in line outside like all the rest of us? Three of the four Drifters!
:-D I don't know about you guys, but somehow I can't imagine
performers nowadays having to stand in line for the loo together with
the ones they are about to perform to. Onstage, the Drifters were
backed by an extremely small group, a keyboardist, a bass player, a
guitarist, a drummer and a guy playing a trumpet. And that was it.
Naturally, there was NO way these guys could reproduce the intricate
sound of Leiber & Stoller's arrangements. I cringed every time the
keyboardist tried to play the string parts convincingly on his
cheesy, 80s sounding keyboard.
Though, at the same time the concert was actually also quite
encouraging. For one thing, all four Drifters sang lead throughout
and they were way better vocalists than I had expected. Ok, so they
were no Ben E. Kings or Johnny Moores but they really did the songs
justice. Despite the limitations of the band the songs had the
required `oomph' to them and all the hits were laid out before the
small crowd. The Drifters were also really good a establishing a
rapport with the audience and made several jokes about how there were
almost more people on stage than in the stalls. :-)
And now for the age and authenticity issue: during the concert, one
of the Drifters stepped forth and admitted that, "Yes', we are way
too young to be original Drifters. We are often asked, how can you
guys call yourselves the Drifters. But all of us have performed with
some of the original Drifters and after their deaths, we have decided
to continue the Drifters tradition and sing the old classics." I
still can't decide if they then should be considered noblemen or
impostors, but I left the concert with a mixed, albeit relatively
good experience, so I guess I'll settle for the former.
One thing is for sure though… if a crowd of 48 people has been the
norm throughout the three Drifters concerts, I guess Terry Ashley
might think twice about the Motown Island and bringing the
Temptations and the Four Tops there. They'd probably draw a larger
crowd, but still, turning a small, Greek island into a soul paradise
still seems to me as an impossible idea, no matter how admirable it
is.
The official site of the `sons of the Drifters' I saw is:
http://www.thedrifters.co.uk/
with regards,
Martin
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 4
Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 09:51:27 -0400
From: Joe Nelson
Subject: Re: All Music Guide
Previously:
> Just out of curiosity, why don't people think much of allmusic?
> It's been a long time since I looked there, and I only looked a few
> times, so my comment might not mean much by now, but: 1. IIRC, some
> of the info I looked at wasn't very accurate.
I think the innacuracy was a matter of laziness, not bothering to keep
facts that could (but didn't) cross straight. A couple of errors that
come to mind just from memory was linking songwriter Tonio K. to the
Rake's Progress (a different group from the Raik's Progress, which K
had been in as a teenager and didn't get an AMG writeup). Closer to
S'Pop Nation, I also believe they dovetailed the credentials of our
own Austin Roberts with the 50s era jazz musician of the same name.
Joe Nelson
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 5
Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 11:51:49 -0400
From: Orion
Subject: Re: All Music Guide
Agreed Scott, I have sent in numerous corrections (more than 25) and
NOT one of them has ever been corrected. They are into just doing
their deal and that is how it is. They also don't pretend to be an
authority or to be 100% accurate. This statement is according to a
return email I received from them over a year ago when I sent in
several corrections. They are a "tool" but you just have to realise
that the "tool" is maybe somewhat lacking.
Orion
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 6
Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 09:01:59 -0700
From: Kim Cooper
Subject: Dr. Demento gets his Gummy
Those of you who join us at the Bubblegum Achievment Awards, on
October 7, at the Bob Baker Marionette Theatre in LA, will be in the
company of one of the most gleeful musicologists ever to strap on a
pair of headphones, our esteemed Gummy Award recipient and tireless
promoter of silly music, Barry "Dr. Demento" Hansen! He'll be joining
Joey Levine and Ron Dante on the podium, and there's much more
grooviness TBA.
more info and reservation details are here:
http://www.scrammagazine.com/october2005.html
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 7
Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 17:19:32 +0100
From: Simon White
Subject: Re: Pat Lewis
Julio Niño wrote:
> And talking about sexy voices, these days I´m in love with "Warning"
> by Pat Lewis, a song I found in a Detroit Soul compilation. I think
> Pat is a girl, but I´m not completely sure about it. Anyway I love
> her/his voice.
Pat is indeed a girl. I spent time with her in London during the
early 90's when she was working extensively with I*n Lev*ne in the
dieing days of his Motorcity Records project. She sang to me on my
33rd (or 32nd or 34th) birthday. It may have been Pat who was moved
to try and stab I*n Lev*ne with a pair of scissors or it may have
been Hattie Littles. Come to think of it, it could have been ANY of
the artists he recorded. No jury in the country would ever have sent
them to prison for it, that's for sure. She worked as an Andante, as
a member of Isaac Hayes "Hot Buttered Soul" - she's one of the girls
on "Shaft" - and with George Clinton - and Pat used to have me in
stitches with her sense of humour. One small 'bon mot' I quoted
recently in 'manifesto' magazine regards working with Clinton - "We
had glitter everywhere. In our eyes, in our hair, in our ears, we
even had glitter comin' out our ASS!" She drove me from the studio
once to pick something up and it was one of the funniest and scariest
drives I ever had - let's just say Pat wasn't used to driving a right
hand drive car on small British roads and some people in West London
have scrapes on their cars courtesy of a Detroit legend She's a VERY
talented singer and vocal arranger and hasn't been well recently. I
love 'Warning' - it's dark and very dangerous.
One day I'll tell you what Saundra Edwards said about Diana Ross.
Now I'm going back to listening to Carmen Taylor's fantabuloso "Hey
Son" which I suspect Julio, you would like too.
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 8
Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 15:10:08 -0500
From: Nick Archer
Subject: Re: Fun and Sun 60's movies
Andres wrote:
> Can you guys name some other movies like this, but from the '60s, I
> mean so that there was a lot of music, beautiful girls in mini (or
> bikini?), jokes, sun, fun and all that...
Some of my faves are "Gidget Goes Hawaiian" with Deborah Walley and
James Darren, "Ride The Wild Surf", "For Those Who Think Young",
"Palm Springs Weekend". Two Annette and Frankie car movies, "Fireball
500" and "Thunder Alley" just came out on one DVD through MGM.
A website with lots of beach movie info is at:
http://www.briansdriveintheater.com/beach.html
It's been mentioned here before, a lot of these movies are available
at: http://www.thevideobeat.com
Nick Archer
Franklin, TN
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 9
Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 23:45:31 +0100
From: Martin Roberts
Subject: Re: The Shellettes
James Moniz wrote:
> ... does anyone have any info on La'Shell and the Shellettes? I've
> had an mp3 (Northern Soul) by them called "You Better Check
> Yourself." I know it was released on Eagle records. Does anyone
> know when? And also...on a CD "A Soldier's Plea" there is another
> song I have never been able to find by them called "My Soldier Boy
> Over There". Was this the a or b-side to the other song? Anyone
> know what it sounds like? ... Any info, I'd greatly appreciate it.
The one 45 I have by The Shellettes on Eagle 102 is "My Soldier Boy
Over There". I'd have guessed 66-67. The record sounds just as the
title suggests! Quite good souly girl-group with the strong lead
vocalist bemoaning the absence of her boyfriend. The b-side,
"Something I'm Doin' Wrong". Both sides arranged Richard Tee, wr.
E.T. McNeil and K. O'Brien, the former also produced.
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 10
Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 23:54:41 -0400
From: Florie Gray
Subject: He STILL Stands Alone
Anyone else see Al Kooper tonight at BB King's? If so, I'd love to
read your comments. I'm still so blown away by the absolutely
kickass performance that I'm unable to come up with the proper
superlatives to describe the evening!
Resplendent
Transcendent
...and like Sparkle Plenty in that jacket!!!
The Funky Faculty were superb, too.
Florie
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 11
Date: Thu, 14 Jul 2005 04:50:29 -0000
From: Bob Brown
Subject: Re: Morning Girl Long Version
Thanks for all the information about "Mornigng Girl" which has long
been one of my favorite singles. I have now been able to listen to
the long version by Neon Philharmonic, which really blows me away.
It's almost a different song in a different context. I agree with the
comparison to "McArthur's Park"; very ambitious musically. It's a
shame it's not more widely acknowledged for the classic that it is. I
have also gone back to listen to Shaun Cassidy's remake (basically of
Part 2), and it holds up well too. I had never realized the reason
his lyrics were so different from the Neon Philharmonic single. It's
almost like 3 different songs in some ways; Part 1 on Neon
Philharmonic's single, part 2 by Shaun Cassidy, and then 1 and 2
together on the long version by Neon Philharmonic, with a different
lyrical context in each of the three.
Bob Brown
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 12
Date: Thu, 14 Jul 2005 02:05:09 EDT
From: Bob Rashkow
Subject: Re: baseball songs
Dan, I'm so sorry! I don't know what came over me. I threw you a
wild pitch by thinking "Last Game of the Season" was about baseball.
It's a good thing I didn't suggest "Backfield in Motion" by Mel & Tim!
One of my favorite "sports songs" is also a novelty; it came out
right at the "edge of S'pop time", 1973. It's Cheech and Chong's
"Basketball Jones"!!! They also give the game a nod in their 1974
novelty, "Earache, My Eye."
Bobster
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 13
Date: Thu, 14 Jul 2005 08:43:00 +0100
From: Mick Patrick
Subject: Pat Lewis > Aretha Franklin > Wylene Ivy > The Corvells > Patty Lace > Alan Lorber
Julio Niño wrote:
> And talking about sexy voices, these days I´m in love with "Warning"
> by Pat Lewis, a song I found in a Detroit Soul compilation. I think
> Pat is a girl, but I'm not completely sure about it. Anyway I love
> her/his voice.
It's too hot to sit at the PC. Never mind, I'll live.
Great singer, Pat Lewis, with some excellent releases to her credit.
"Look At What I Almost Missed" - fabulous record! And one could dance
to it.
Pat also did a lot of work as a backing vocalist for Aretha Franklin.
Hear her on "Call Me", for example. She also sings on Aretha tracks
like "Pullin'", "Try Matty's", "That's All I Want From You" and "Why
I Sing The Blues", along with fellow Detroit vocalist Wyline (Wylene)
Ivey (Ivy).
Previously, Wylene Ivy was a member of Detroit girl group the
Corvells. Find one of that group's tracks now playing at musica:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/spectropop/files/musica/
Details are: The Corvells "One (Is Such A Lonely Number) (Cub K9122,
1963); written by Bob Elgin and Mat Maurer; arranged and conducted by
Alan Lorber; produced by Mal Williams and Stanley Kahan. Lovely bossa
nova arrangement from Alan Lorber - well, it *was* 1963.
"One (Is Such A Lonely Number)" was also recorded by Patty Lace & the
Petticoats. Hmmm ... Patty Lace? ... Pat Lewis? ... Same person? Nah,
couldn't be. Or could it? Maybe Simon can phone her and ask?
Right, now I must go and peel off my t-shirt.
Hey la,
Mick Patrick
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
SPECTROPOP - Spectacular! Retro! Pop!
End
