Rock & Roll Tidbits

Rocky Burnette's "Tired Of Toein' The Line" was written in half an hour and was originally released as the "B" side of a single called "Clowns From Outerspace.” After EMI Records re-released it as an "A" side, the song became a #8 hit in the US.

The inspiration for Tommy Tutone's 1982 hit "867-5309 / Jenny" actually came from a girl named Jenny whose parent's phone number really was 867-5309.

In the late 60’s, Maurice Gibb (of the Bee Gees) loved to drive his cars, especially his Rolls-Royce. However, he had a problem; he was so short that he had to sit on a phone book to see over the hood.

Danny and The Juniors got their big break when they were called to fill in for a group that failed to show up for Dick Clark’s American Bandstand show in Philadelphia. They lip-synced "At The Hop,” which then took off like a rocket to #1 in the US. A few years later, Chubby Checker was invited to make his first TV appearance on Bandstand when Danny and The Juniors didn't show.

When Bob Dylan became a born-again Christian in 1978, he tried to convince his record producer Jerry Wexler to join the flock. No matter how hard he tried, Dylan’s efforts were futile as Wexler explained: “Bob, you’re dealing with a sixty-two year old confirmed Jewish atheist. I’m hopeless. Let’s just make an album.”

Elvis Presley was always known as a spiritual person. In fact, he always wore a Christian cross, a Star of David and the Hebrew letter Chi. As Presley stated: “I don’t want to miss out on Heaven due to a technicality.”

For a religious man, Elvis had some odd quirks, including shooting at television sets whenever annoying performers were on. One of his favorite ‘shoot the TV’ episodes was whenever singer Robert Goulet was on a show.

In the spring of 1966, jam rockers the Grateful Dead moved to Rancho Olompali off of California Highway 101. They posted a sign out front stating: “No Trespassing- Violators will Be Experimented Upon.”

Vocalist David Dee of the British rock group Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich, was a former policeman who was at the scene of the automobile accident that took the life of American rocker Eddie Cochran and injured Gene Vincent in April 1960. Dee rescued Cochran's guitar from the wreck and held it until it could be returned, undamaged, to Cochran's family.

It’s reported that while Fleetwood Mac was recording their legendary album “Rumors” in 1977, the group snorted so much cocaine that they insisted that their dealer be credited on the LP. The dilemma was solved when the dealer was killed before the album was released.

During this same recording session, Fleetwood Mac spent four days trying to tune a piano; then wound up bringing in nine different pianos- only to decide to not even use a piano after all.

While he was living with his fiancée Linda Ann Woodrow and his song writing partner Bernie Taupin, Elton John became depressed. But Taupin and Woodrow found him before he could harm himself. However, it was only a half-hearted attempt as Taupin explains: “He had his head in the gas range oven, but he only turned the gas on to low and left the kitchen window open. He even thought to take a cushion to rest his head on.”

After recording the iconic album “Pet Sounds,” Brian Wilson decided he needed to do some redecorating. So he turned his den (where his piano was located) into a giant sandbox so he could “feel the sand under his feet” as he wrote music.

Early manufacturers of Jukeboxes never referred to them as "jukeboxes,” they called them Automatic Coin-Operated Phonographs. The term "juke" is Southern US slang for dancing.

Keith Moon of the Who was one strange fellow. After his wife Kim left the rocking drummer in 1973 she sighed, “He’ll wake up in the morning and decide to be Adolph Hitler for the day. And he is Adolph Hitler.”

The late Freddie Mercury of Queen and his friends often enjoyed feasting on marijuana-filled brownies. On one particular rowdy night, the police arrived and asked the stoned rockers to quiet down. Mercury offered the officers some brownies, which they happily ate. Recalled Mercury, “I would love to have been a fly on the windscreen of their police car after about half an hour.”

In December, 1962, The Four Season's version of "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" reached number 23 on the Billboard singles chart. The song was originally a hit for George Hall in 1934.