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The Oldies Music Board » Do You Have ONE Favorite Concert? » May 13, 2020 1:53 pm

johnnyaa
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1959: Dion & The Belmonts at my high school, St. Cecilia's in Englewood, NJ.   Also on the bill was an all black band of about 8 musicians called Tyree Glen & the Emeralds who almost blew the roof off the gym with an array of guitars, drums, saxes and some heavy R&B.  Rumor had it that our Mother Superior was not entertained by the show and consequently this was the first and last rock n'roll show at the school.  Memories are made of this.

The Oldies Music Board » "Hushabye: The Mystics, the Music & the Mob" by Al Contrera » February 10, 2020 11:32 am

johnnyaa
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A friend sent me this book a few weeks ago and I just thought I'd mention it for anyone interested.  Contrera was a member of the original Mystics and he tells the story of the group's formation and eventual breakup as the hits stopped coming.  Entertwined in the story is a case of manslaughter which winds up with prison time for one member.  Overall it's an interesting read but I found Contrera's so many name references to friends, business acquaintenances and gangsters to at times be confusing.  He also spends a little too much time with giving us mini-biographies of some of the major music performers of the time who the Mystics performed and socialized with.  What I found particularly interesting were things like his story  about touring with the Alan Freed Show and Freed asking the acts to kick in money for gas, not to mention never getting paid for the tour.
For what it's worth I'd give it three stars.  On a personal level I have only found tthree Mystic tunes to be of particular note; of course "Hushabye", "Don't Take The Stars" and "Over The Rainbow".  The rest of their catalogue seems to me to be run of the mill doowop.  Just a humble opinion.
 

The Oldies Music Board » Miami Show Band Massacre » June 12, 2019 6:07 pm

johnnyaa
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Here's a very interesting and very disturbing documentary concerning the murder of three members of the Miami Show Band.  In their day the band had been often referred to as the Irish Beatles..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z68p4V62x0s&t=1825s

The Oldies Music Board » Tommy Sands » April 28, 2019 9:25 am

johnnyaa
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I've never been a Tommy Sands fan and thought that "Teenage Crush" was a poor attempt to cash in on the Elvis craze.  Obviously millions of fans disagreed with me at the time and I'm sure presently as well.  I think Tommy's best effort was "The Worrying Kind" but that's about it for me.  Have attached an episode of "What's My Line" with Tommy and Nancy Sinatra.  There are also a couple of interesting interviews on YouTube which are easy to find.  Enjoy!
https://youtu.be/eacwLyiVoX8

The Oldies Music Board » The Two Deaths Of Sam Cooke » March 2, 2019 10:18 am

johnnyaa
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I watched this documentary on NetFlix yesterday and had a hard time with the idea being presented that Cooke's death was a conspiracy by federal authorities. His association with and vocal support of civil rights advocates is suggested as a reason.  My feeling is that if someone wanted to knock-off Sam it would have been a lot easier to do it without creating a convoluted scenario of him picking up a prostitute and attacking a motel manager.  Your thoughts?

For anyone not familiar with the story here's a good link.
http://performingsongwriter.com/mysterious-death-sam-cooke/

The Oldies Music Board » Just how good was Duane Eddy? » February 28, 2019 12:58 pm

johnnyaa
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Thanks Tosh!  Great explanation proving that I underestimated Duane Eddy's contribution to instrumental rock.

The Oldies Music Board » Just how good was Duane Eddy? » February 27, 2019 6:16 pm

johnnyaa
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Both of my sons are accomplished guitar players but they owe none of that to their old man.  My knowledge of the instrument is rudimentary at best.  Now I've always enjoyed the majority of Eddy's output but to my ears it seems like  any decent guitarist given a twangy guitar and a Lee Hazlewood production could have become a star in their own right.  Do any of Duane's recordings require a mastery the likes of Clapton or Hendrix or could being in the right place at the right time made some of you folks rock n' roll icons?  

The Oldies Music Board » "David Crosby: Remember My Name" review » February 7, 2019 9:06 pm

johnnyaa
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Thanks for the info Lorne.  I'll be watching for this.  Whenever I think of Crosby I remember reading about him having an altercation with one of the Ed Sullivan Show staff when the Byrds made their first and only appearance.  The group was never invited back again.  Not knowing any of the details my guess would still  be that Crosby's "wildness" was the cause.

The Oldies Music Board » While you're waiting........ » January 20, 2019 1:40 pm

johnnyaa
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"Wait A Minute" - JoAnn Campbell
"You Keep Me Hanging On" - Vanilla Fudge
"Don't Leave Me This Way" -  Harold Melvin & the Bluenotes 

The Oldies Music Board » Story Time! » January 17, 2019 8:05 am

johnnyaa
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Another vote here for Jim's stories.  Keep 'em comin' Jim!

On a side note a couple of weeks ago I was surfing through some DirecTV channels and came upon the Jimmy Dean Show.  A featured performer was Tex Ritter who sang "High Noon" like nobody else could.  I'm not sure what the channel was but this station seems to run a series of the old Dean show periodically.  I recall reading a story many years ago that when Jimmy became well-known he was sometimes criticized for taking on deceased actor James Dean's name.  His response was, "Hey people!  That's my real name!". 

The Oldies Music Board » Davy Jones eligible for the draft? » January 16, 2019 9:21 am

johnnyaa
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Some years ago I came across a book called "The Rock N' Roll Years, A Chronicle of the Lives and Times of the Rock N'Roll Generation from 1955 to the Present Day" in a resale shop.  It was published in London in 1990 and features a monthly listing of both some well-known and rather obscure news in R&R history.  This one item that struck my fancy.

In 1967 any foreign national who worked and resided in the U.S. was subject to the military draft.  British citizen Davy Jones was passed as A1 by the draft board.   At the time it was reported by a US news service that should Jones be drafted, Tim Rooney, Mickey Rooney's son, would join the Monkees as a replacement.  Jones appealed based upon the fact that he was sole support of his father and managed to be reclassified as 2A which made him unacceptable for service.



 

The Oldies Music Board » Lovin' Spoonful » January 13, 2019 2:14 pm

johnnyaa
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Nothing earth shattering but I just found the following interesting.
During an interview in 1966 Zal Zanofsky said that whenever the group performed "Summer In The City" in a live venue, drummer Joe Butler had to sing the vocals.  While Steve Boone played the organ John Sebastien took over the piano.  As Zal described it, "poor John" just could not concentrate on vocals and piano at the same time.

The Oldies Music Board » The Turtles » January 13, 2019 1:49 pm

johnnyaa
Replies: 10

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I have to go with "Happy Together".  The song hooked me the first time I heard it and I remember singing it  often as I walked with my gal friend through the halls of junior college.  (That might of been one of the reasons we broke up.)
On another note the Turtles had been offered "Eve Of Destruction" to record but turned it down because it seemed too revolutionary.  I think it's clear that Barry McGuire had just the right voice for it.

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