Monday, August 24, 2009

Classic Rock Videos

ROLLING STONES - Tumblin' Dice

Rock/Pop Tidbits

John Fogerty's comeback album, 1985's "Centerfield", included a couple of songs titled "Zantz Can't Dance" and "Mr. Greed", which were believed to be attacks on Fogerty's former boss at Fantasy Records, Saul Zaentz. Zaentz responded with a lawsuit, which forced Fogerty to issue a revised version of "Zaentz Can't Dance", changing the lead character's name to Vanz.

The Knack's lead vocalist, Doug Fieger, is the older brother of famed attorney Jeffrey Fieger, who defended doctor-assisted suicide advocate, Dr. Jack Kervorkian.

Three Dog Night's 1972, #1 hit "Black And White" was written in the mid-1950s about the 1954 US Supreme Court's landmark decision banning segregation in public schools. Some of the verses were changed in the Three Dog Night version. The original second verse went "Their robes were black, Their heads were white, The schoolhouse doors were closed so tight. Nine judges all set down their names, To end the years and years of shame".

Diane Renay, who was born Renne Diane Kushner, initially wanted to be billed as Renay Diane. She chose the "Renay" spelling to keep it from being mis-pronounced as "Ree-nee". Unfortunately, Atco Records misunderstood and printed early copies of her first recordings that said "Diane Renay". Rather than make an issue out of it, she decided to leave it that way. The record, "Navy Blue", went on to reach #6 in the US in 1964.

Joey Scarbury, who reached #2 on the Billboard chart with "Believe It Or Not" in 1981, was discovered by singer-songwriter Jimmy Webb's father, who wandered into a furniture store and heard the 14 year old's mom praising her son's singing ability. His initial recordings were not successful and it took another 12 years for Joey to have his big hit. Although he never cracked the Top 40 again, he did record the soundtracks for ER, The 40 Year Old Virgin and Fahrenheit 9/11.

By 1968, around eighty-five different manufacturers had sold over 2.4 million cassette players world wide and in that year alone, the cassette business was worth about $150 million.

In August, 2008, ABBA's "Gold" compilation rose to #1 on the UK album chart for the fifth time since being released in 1992, making it the oldest ever UK #1 album to return to the top of the chart, 16 years after release.

"For What It's Worth" by Buffalo Springfield got its title when Stephen Stills first played the song for the group, saying "Here's a new song I wrote, for what it's worth." When he finished playing, he was asked what the title was. Stills said he didn't have one. Someone then replied, "Sure you do. You just said it."

David Rose, who had a Billboard #1 hit in 1962 with an instrumental called "The Stripper", also wrote the theme for the TV show Little House On The Prairie.

In January, 2005, on what would have been Elvis Presley's 70th birthday, "Jailhouse Rock" was re-released in the UK where it went straight to #1. At over 47 years after its original release, it became the oldest recording ever to top the UK charts.

The lightest Elvis ever weighed as a six foot tall adult was 170 lbs in 1960 following his discharge from the U.S. Army. The heaviest was at the time of his death, which was 260 lbs.

Top 5 eBay Vinyl Record Sales

Week Ending 08/22/2009


1. LP - David Bowie "Ziggy Stardust" Acetate alternate tracks - $4,772.00

2. LP - Velvet Underground & Nico self-titled Mono White Label Promo - $3,119.00

3. 45 - The Suedes "13 Stories High" / "My Girl" Psychedelic - $2,375.00

4. 78 - The New Yorkers "There's A Cradle In Caroline" / "I'm Living On Love" - $2,246.00

5. LP - The Beatles "A Hard Days Night" Record Club Issue - $2,226.99


As always, a special thank you to Norm at http://ccdiscoveries.blogspot.com for this great data. Stop in and listen to their unique radio show Accidental Nostalgia with Norm & Jane On Radio Dentata Thursdays 4PM PDT/7PM EDT

This Date In Music History - August 24

Birthdays:

David Freiberg - Quicksilver Messenger Service/Jefferson Starship (1938)
Mason Williams - 1968 hit "Classical Gas" (1938)
Ernest Wright - Little Anthony and the Imperials (1941)
Joe Chambers - Chambers Brothers (1942)
Jimmy Soul - "If You Wanna Be Happy" (1942)



Marshall Thompson - Chi-Lites (1942)
John Cipollina - Quicksilver Messenger (1943)
Jim Brady - Sandpipers (1944)
Ken Hensley - Uriah Heep (1945)
Malcolm Duncan - Average White Band (1945)
Jim Fox - James Gang (1947)
Jean-Michel Jarre - French instrumentalist (1948)
Michael DeRosier - Heart (1951)
Jeffrey Daniel - Shalamar (1955)
Mark Bedford - Madness (1961)
John Bush - Anthrax (1963)
Andreas Kisser - Sepultura (1968)
Kristin Osborn - SheDaisy (1970)


They Are Missed:

Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup was born in 1905. The bluesman's "That's All Right Mama" was Elvis Presley's first single. Admirers like Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart, and Fleetwood Mac have also covered his songs (died March 28, 1974 - age 69).

Jim Capaldi, drummer for Traffic, was born in Evesham, Worcestershire, England in 1944.

The original swinger, lounge lord Louis Prima died in 1978 (age 66).

81-year old Al Dvorin, the announcer who popularised the phrase "Elvis has left the building," died in a car crash in 2004, on his way home from an Elvis convention in California. Dvorin was in a car driven by Elvis photographer Ed Bonja. Dvorin was never paid for recordings of his words, and was bitter towards the multimillion pound Elvis Presley Enterprises. In the early 1970s, Colonel Parker asked Dvorin to inform fans at a gig that Presley would not be appearing for an encore. He took the stage and announced: "Ladies and gentlemen, Elvis has left the building. Thank you and goodnight."

Producer Gene Page died in 1998 after a long illness. Worked with Barbra Streisand, Barry White, The Righteous Brothers, Dobie Gray, Bob and Earl. Produced Whitney Houston's 'Greatest Love of All' and Roberta Flack's 'Tonight I Celebrate My Love.'


History:

Buddy Holly was in the audience as Little Richard played Lubbock, Texas' Cotton Club in 1956.

Elvis Presley recorded the classic hit "Love Me Tender" in 1956.



In 1959, a headline in Billboard read, "Rock and Roll Ain't Ready For The Ol' Rockin' Chair Yet." The story said rock & roll was losing popularity a year ago, but the record buyers now like Elvis Presley, Fats Domino and Lloyd Price along with newcomers, the Drifters, Everly Brothers and Ricky Nelson.

In 1963, Little Stevie Wonder was the first artist to make the #1 position on the pop single chart, the pop albums chart and the R&B singles chart all at one time. In fact, nobody had made the pop single and album charts at the same time. The album is The Twelve Year-Old-Genius and the single is "Fingertips, Part Two."

The Doors started recording their first album at Sunset Sound Recording Studios, West Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, California in 1966.

17-year old singer and guitarist Bruce Springsteen joined a group called Earth in 1967.

In 1967, Patti Harrison convinced her husband George and the rest of the Beatles to attend a lecture at the Park Lane Hilton given by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. They go and send a note to him requesting a private audience. In the meeting, the Beatles offer themselves as disciples. He accepts and invited them to an indoctrination course for spiritual regeneration two days later. They attended along with Mick Jagger and his girlfriend Marianne Faithfull. Brian Epstein was invited but declines. Afterwards, John Lennon compares the experience as "going somewhere without your trousers."

Steppenwolf's "Born To Be Wild" hits #2 on the pop chart in 1968.

The Who's drummer, Keith Moon, drives a Lincoln into the pool of a Holiday Inn in Flint, Michigan in 1968.

Iron Butterfly's "Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida" was released in 1968.



Paul Anka with Odia Coates started a three week run at #1 on the US singles chart in 1974 with the insipid cut '(You're Having My Baby', Anka's 24th US top 40 hit.

Queen started recording 'Bohemian Rhapsody' at Rockfield studio’s in Monmouth, Wales, in 1975 (the song was recorded over three weeks). Freddie Mercury had mentally prepared the song beforehand and directed the band throughout the sessions. May, Mercury, and Taylor sang their vocal parts continually for ten to twelve hours a day, resulting in 180 separate overdubs.

In 1977, outlaw country crooner Waylon Jennings—not long after being named honorary police chief in Nashville—was arrested on cocaine charges.

"I Wanna Be Your Lover" by Prince was released in 1979. It was his first U.S. hit.

B.B. King celebrated his 30th year in show business at a special celebration held at the Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles, CA in 1979.

The Cars performed at New York's Central Park in 1979 for an audience of a half million people.

John Lennon's killer, Mark David Chapman, was sentenced to prison for 20 years to life in 1981. Over the next few months, Chapman would claim many times to have been beaten by fellow inmates, some of whom allegedly tried to kill him with items like scissors. And we feel bad for you?

Huey Lewis and the News started a two week run at #1 on the US singles chart in 1985 with "The Power Of Love."

In 1989, the Who performed "Tommy" at the Universal Amphitheatre with special guests Steve Winwood, Elton John, Phil Collins, Patti LaBelle and Billy Idol.

In 1990, Sinead O'Connor refused to perform if the United States National Anthem was played before her show at the Garden State Arts Plaza in Homdel, New Jersey, as is custom. A patriotic uproar ensued and several radio stations banned her music.

Also in 1990, Judas Priest successfully defended themselves against a lawsuit, after two fans attempted suicide while listening to the Stained Class album. Both fans eventually died, one immediately from a shotgun blast, and the other on a second attempt three years later by a methadone overdose. The prosecution claimed that there were subliminal messages in the group’s music that caused the two seventeen year olds to carry out the suicide pact in 1985.

Pearl Jam drummer Dave Abruzzese quit the band in 1994 (or was fired, depends on who you ask). He reportedly wanted to study music formally. He was replaced by Jack Irons.

In 1994, Geffen Records announced Nirvana was planning to release a double album—the first since Kurt Cobain's suicide four months earlier. The album was to include previously unreleased live performances recorded between 1989 and '94. However, the remaining bandmembers later decided against releasing such an album for the time being.

Christina Aguilera's self-titled debut album was released in 1999.

Music News & Notes

Larry Knechtel Dead at 69

Larry Knechtel, a keyboardist who won a Grammy for his arrangement of Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” has died of an apparent heart attack at age 69. Knechtel was born in Bell, Calif., and performed live and in studio recordings with a wide range of artists, including Neil Diamond, Randy Newman, Ray Charles, The Beach Boys, The Doors, Elvis Presley, Hank Williams Jr. and Elvis Costello. He also played keyboard on the Dixie Chicks' Grammy award-winning album "Taking the Long Way" and performed on the Hammond organ for the group's tour of the same name.

In 1971, Knechtel joined Bread with whom he recorded the albums Baby I'm A Want You and Guitar Man and toured as the band's bassist. After the breakup of the group, Larry continued working with leader David Gates.

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R.I.P John E. Carter

Lung cancer has claimed the life of two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee John E. Carter at age 75. Carter was the last surviving founding member of the Flamingos, a doo-wop group he left in 1960 to join the Dells, a quintet formed by some of his high school friends from Harvey.

The Dells' 1954 breakout hit, "Oh What A Night," sold more than a million records when it was reissued in 1969 with Carter on falsetto lead.

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Steven Tyler News

The Boston Herald and Rock Radio are reporting that Steven Tyler may be back to his hard drinking ways and it could have been a factor in his falling and breaking his shoulder during an Aerosmith show. A source told the paper "Truthfully, he’s a liability for the band. He’s uninsurable because of all the accidents and canceled dates. All of this didn’t happen overnight. The fall was just the final straw. Everyone is very worried about him."

It's also being said that the rest of the band are, in effect, on strike against Tyler until he is once again sober, stopping work on their upcoming album.

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Vinyl Collective Top 10 Sales of the past week

1 CHUCK RAGAN “Break Our Bread” 7 85 copies
2 CHAD PRICE “Smile Sweet Face? LP Transparent Brown vinyl 56 copies
3 TIM BARRY/ FRANK TURNER split 7″ black vinyl 30 copies
4 7” Record Jacket Sleeves (20) 7-1/4″ x 7-1/4 28 copies
5 EVERY TIME I DIE “New Junk Aesthetic” LP 27 copies
6 TIM BARRY/ FRANK TURNER split 7″ all 3 colors set 26 copies
7 TIM BARRY/ FRANK TURNER split 7″ blue vinyl 23 copies
7 HEAVY HEAVY LOW LOW “Turtle Nipple…” LP brown/pink 23 copies
9 MARIACHI EL BRONX “S/T” LP 22 copies
10 BOUNCING SOULS “20th Anniversary Series: Volume Three” 7″ 21 copies
10 CHAD PRICE “Smile Sweet Face” CD 21 copies
11 BOLLWEEVILS “Heavyweight” LP 16 copies
11 BROADWAY CALLS “Good Views, Bad News” LP green vinyl 16 copies
11 NORMA JEAN 4 x LP Vinyl Box Set colored vinyl set B limited to 700 16 copies
11 EVERY TIME I DIE Big Dirty LP purple w/ black splatter 16 copies
11 NINJA GUN “Restless Rubes” LP transparent green vinyl 16 copies

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Cooper Making Guest Appearance

Alice Cooper is writing a couple of songs and will sing on Slash's upcoming solo album. Also guesting on the album will be Ozzy Osbourne and Flea.