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Jamie LePage (1953-2002)
http://www.spectropop.com/Jamie.htm
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There are 10 messages in this issue.
Topics in this digest:
1. Re: Shades of Gray
From: Clark Besch
2. Release Dates for CDs
From: David Feldman
3. Re: Nut Rocker
From: Ken Silverwood
4. Ian Anderson's granddaughter, Gillian.
From: Steve Harvey
5. Re: Stolen licks
From: Phil Chapman
6. Re: Release Dates for CDs
From: Delia Barnard
7. more stolen licks
From: "S'pop Team"
8. Re: Shades of Gray
From: Tom Taber
9. Al Hazan and the Beatles
From: Michael Edwards
10. Re: Don Ciccone (Critters, Four Seasons)
From: Stephen M.H. Braitman
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Message: 1
Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 05:39:48 -0000
From: Clark Besch
Subject: Re: Shades of Gray
Larry Lapka wrote:
> Doesn't the Raiders' version of Indian Reservation steal
> its outro from Janis Ian's Society's Child?
Larry, you are correct! In fact the same person (name escapes
me now) that did the organ outro on "Society's Child" both
suggested it for "Indian Reservation" and performed it on both
records as well!
Also, P.K. Limited put out "Shades of Grey" as an A side on
Colgems in 69. Good record. Also, the Will-O-Bees did a nice
version on Date!
Take care, Clark
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Message: 2
Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 03:01:21 -0500
From: David Feldman
Subject: Release Dates for CDs
Unfortunately, you can't make a living merely by reading
Spectropop and listening to cool music. I make mine in a
strange way. Folks write to me with little mysteries that
bother them and I try to track down the answers. For the
first time, I received a music-related mystery that
Spectropoppers might be able to help me with, and I hope
isn't off-topic -- it's something I've wondered about.
Why are CDs released on Tuesdays in the U.S. Is it related
to the Billboard chart cycle? Distribution? I know there
wasn't a uniform day during the Spectropop era. When did it
change?
And are there uniform days for releases in other parts of the
world? Any thoughts or referrals would be mucho appreciated.
Dave Feldman
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Message: 3
Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 14:23:56 +0100
From: Ken Silverwood
Subject: Re: Nut Rocker
Picture of B Bumble & Stingers in this months Mojo. Who's
that bangin' on the piano, I don't know, but it ain't Al.
Ken On The West Coast.
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Message: 4
Date: Thu, 15 May 2003 17:04:03 -0700 (PDT)
From: Steve Harvey
Subject: Ian Anderson's granddaughter, Gillian.
Alan Gordon:
> By official decree: Only Gillian Anderson will be
> allowed to play Lesley.
Hear, hear, I claim dibs on auditioning here!
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Message: 5
Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 16:02:36 +0100
From: Phil Chapman
Subject: Re: Stolen licks
Alan:
> I think "My Sweet Lord" and "He's So Fine" are so dissimilar
> in terms of production that they really are separate songs.
Isn't this the crux of the whole plagiarism issue? Copyright is
only afforded to *songs*, rather than production. For example,
the verse melody to "Chapel Of Love" is remarkably similar to
Buddy Holly's "It Doesn't Matter Anymore", but any potential
plagiarism is masked by completely different production values.
"Where Did Our Love Go" and "I Can't Help Myself" have virtually
identical melodies, but a totally different rhythm feel..and so
on. You wouldn't really notice unless you were learning to play
them with one finger.
I also think the law is interpreted differently depending
in which country the case is brought. Some courts decide
based on a matching progression of notes, other decisions
can rest on whether the judge merely thinks they sound similar.
Wasn't there an interesting case where Huey Lewis claimed Ray
Parker's "Ghostbusters" was a rip-off of "I Want A New Drug",
but the judge ruled it was actually a rip-off of M's "Pop Musik",
and I suppose, by implication, so was Huey's tune?
It could be argued that a great deal of the Spectropop era output
was written as *records*, i.e. the production & arrangement was
integral to the song, and equally responsible for its commercial
success.
All of the above is not quite the same thing as non-credited
"quoting" of other songs, such as the Shangri-las singing
"When Johnny Comes Marching Home" at the start of "Long Live
Our Love", as Andrew Jones relates:
> The closing section of the Beatles' "All You Need Is Love"
> has, among other things, the opening riff of Glenn Miller's
> "In the Mood." If I remember right, George Martin thought
> that arrangement was in the public domain when he threw that
> riff into the soup, but soon learned otherwise.
Now there's another delightful grey area. If a tune is in
the public domain (traditional) then it's fair game for
'borrowing', as is a tune whose copyright has expired.
The first copyright law (1709) protected the work for
14 years after publication, and by 1976, via various
extensions, this stood at 50 years after the composer's
death. Then in 1998 Sonny Bono got this period retroactively
extended to 70 years, and copyrights held by corporations
to 95 years. Which means that although the tune to "Happy
Birthday" has classical origins, the lyrics are still in
copyright until 2021. Also, given that Puccini died in 1924,
this latest extension could have given Andrew Lloyd Webber
cause for concern:-)
So, is the intro to Ike & Tina's "Tell Her I'm Not Home" a quote
from Tchaikovsky, or 'influenced' by the strings in the Drifters'
"There Goes My Baby"?
Phil
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Message: 6
Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 15:13:22 +0100
From: Delia Barnard
Subject: Re: Release Dates for CDs
Hello!
In the UK new albums and also singles are always released on
Monday. I think it's so that all the vans from the various
distributors do all the big drop-offs just once...and people
know to look in the shops first thing Monday for the new release...
It's just nice to have an order to things I guess... also it
makes the charts work kind of uniformly I s'pose...
Hope that helps.
I used to work in a record shop so well remember the frantic
unpacking as people would eagerly await new releases...
Delia
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Message: 7
Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 15:05:25 +0100
From: "S'pop Team"
Subject: more stolen licks
Phil Milstein:
The riff from The Ramones' "Suzy Is A Headbanger" is
a direct swipe of Eddie Cochran's "C'mon Everybody".
"Brown Eyed Girl" by The Golliwogs is "Rumble" with lyrics.
Robert Beason:
Larry Lapka wrote:
>Doesn't the Raiders' version of Indian Reservation
> steal its outro from Janis Ian's Society's Child?
Yup. And the Dave Clark 5 stole the intro from the
Raiders' "Just Like Me" for "At The Scene".
Javed Jafri:
Well here's a somewhat more obscure stolen riff caper
unmasked. The Poni-Tails "Seven in Heaven" from 1958
does some lifting from Mickey and Silvia's "Love Is
Strange" from 1957.
Phil Reynolds:
....wasn't the "stronger than dirt" riff used in the
Seed's "Pushin' Too Hard".............
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 8
Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 07:18:57 -0700 (PDT)
From: Tom Taber
Subject: Re: Shades of Gray
> Also, the Will-O-Bees did a nice
> version on Date!
I have for some time assumed the Will-O-Bees' version
came out before the Monkees' version, as I thought
hearing an earlier version on Buffalo radio would
explain the song's instant familiarity to me upon
buying the Monkee's lp. Did it?
Tom Taber
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Message: 9
Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 14:05:25 -0000
From: Michael Edwards
Subject: Al Hazan and the Beatles
I don't have my copy of Mark Lewisohn's "Complete Beatles'
Chronicles" with me, but it is hard to believe that the four
well-dressed gentlemen were the Beatles, particularly in
May/June 1962 when the Beatles were so little known outside
of Liverpool. "Love Me Do", their first UK 45, wasn't released
until October of that year, well after the B Bumble phenomenon
had faded. In addition, Pete Best was not fired until August 15th
and he was at that June 6th recording session in London that
Richard mentions. Al is specific about his visit being around
the time that "Nut Rocker" was # 1 in the UK (5/11/62, per
Richard) when Best was clearly with the band.
Mike Edwards
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Message: 10
Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 08:39:16 -0700
From: Stephen M.H. Braitman
Subject: Re: Don Ciccone (Critters, Four Seasons)
Found this interesting CD recently. It's a self-titled CD
E.P. (5 tracks) by DON CICCONE promoting himself, with a 1989
copyright date. Thus, a relatively early CD. It includes a very
Boz Scaggs-ish pop soul number "Just A Little Love," similar
style in a cover of "Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying," a good
bluesy rock number, "We'll Find Love," and an update of "Mr
Dieingly Sad." Also, most interesting, is an "audiobiography"
featuring audio clips of his radio appearances over the years
with several different disc jockeys, talking about his Critters
days, and his (then current) Four Seasons gig.
Anyone know this rarity, value of this item? Did Don Ciccone go on
to release anything commercially since 1989? What's he up to today?
Thanks!
Stephen
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