Friday, August 9, 2013

The Friday Flash

re:  DON'T MISS:  
Mike Baker And The Forgotten 45s presents "The Soundtrack Of The Eagles"
Sunday, August 25th 12 - 4 pm (Central Time) on 88.1 WLTL The Soundtrack Of The Eagles is a radio companion to the DVD / cable documentary "History Of The Eagles".  This radio special is a timeline of The Eagles music and solo careers from 1969's "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man" Bob Seger System through the 70s, 80s and beyond.  
Mike Baker And The Forgotten 45s on TuneIn   

http://tunein.com/program/?ProgramId=39516&StationId=30810


Frannie made my day when she bought tickets to the upcoming "History Of The Eagles" show at the All State Arena as a birthday present this year!  Can't wait to see this new, revamped show ... quite likely the last time the band will tour.  (kk)   

re:  JIM SHEA / Y103.9:  
Former Y103.9 Morning Host Jim Shea will be back in our area next Sunday (August 18th) performing stand-up musical comedy at the Longshot on Route 120 in Lakemoor.  It's an "open mic" setting that runs from 3 - 6 pm and, schedule permitting, we're hoping to attend as well.  (Jim's was the very first radio show I ever appeared on ... and he asked me back numerous times.  It'll be great to see him again.)  While Jim is now out of radio ... and the oldies / greatest hits format of the station no longer exists ... Shea still has a loyal legion of fans here in the area ... so come on out and say hello.  (Y103.9 is now "The Fox" and broadcasts classic rock because ... as we all know ... you just can't have enough of THOSE stations in the same city ... I think we're up to six now aren't we?!?!?)  kk  
Click here: Long Shot Sports Pub Lakemoor IL    

And, speaking of Jim Shea ... and, coincidently, The Eagles ... watch for a very special EXCLUSIVE report from Jim next week in Forgotten Hits regarding a "Classic Music Moment".  Stay tuned!  

And, speaking of Y103.9, imagine my surprise when I heard from Jeff James the very next day!!!  (Maybe he'll show up at The Longshot, too!  Who knows?!?!  In fact, with an "open mic" format, there's no telling WHAT we'll be exposed to that day!!!)   Jeff reports that all is well ... 

Hi Kent -  
Sorry I have not been in touch lately but with summer in full swing I have been out on the mountain bike as much as possible.    Still get a chance to check out your cool site and whenever I want to chime in with something , well I get distracted with something else ... uugh!    Anyways, keep the oldies alive man – right now I still spin for the public at some of the local car shows in Chicagoland.  
As always still adding records to the vault and with the warm weather was out in the garage building some nice album and 45 rpm cabinets for all the new additions.  
Take care, Kent, and for goodness sakes get away from the computer and enjoy the warm weather before it’s too late again – haha!  
Jeff James  
Man, I miss listening to you two guys on the way to and from work (or for as long as the signal held out anyway!!! lol)  Sounds like everybody's doing well and still in touch with the music.  Would love to see you at Jim Shea's thing ... and still want to come on out to the record vault for a personal tour.  (We never did get to film our week of Great B-Sides!!!)  Thanks, Jeff!  (kk)  

By the way, Stew Cohen, long-time news guy at Y103.9 FM, has a new book out about the history of WYEN.  (I think HE might be there next Sunday, too!  Bring some books to sign and sell, Stew!)  You can find more information about it here:  Click here: The WYEN Experience: Stew Cohen: 9781475969610: Amazon.com: Books  

re:  PAINFULLY AWKWARD ALBUM COVERS:  
My Eyes! My Eyes!  
Shelley   

re:  SOUL STREET:  
First of all when I saw your topic of the day, I thought well Kent is gonna play Funky Street, Love On A Two Way Street, Dead End Street, and if I thought about it long enough, I'd come up with three more. However, no issues with the six you chose, especially the Flirtations, Nothing But A Heartache. Great song.  
Jack  
"Nothing But A Heartache" is perhaps the greatest song never recorded by Martha and the Vandellas ... The Flirtations TOTALLY capture the sound of that bygone era.  (How on earth did this one peak at #25?!?!?)  It always ranks right at or near the top of Rich Appel's I.R.S. Countdown every year (as in It Really Shoulda ... Been A Top Ten Hit) ... and deservedly so.  Be sure to hop on over to Ron Smith's website and cast your vote for it in his Labor Day 500 Countdown, too!  What a great track!  
Funny 'cause after I posted these random six I noticed how much songs like "Natural High", "Side Show" and "Do What You Wanna Do" seemed in some way inspired by the great sound of The Stylistics ... but most of these songs co-existed during The Stylistics' reign on the charts.  Bloodstone's "Natural High" hit #5 in 1973, Blue Magic's "Side Show" went to #5 in 1974 and Five Flights Up peaked at #25 with "Do What You Wanna Do" in 1970.  The Stylistics really hit their stride in 1972, scoring five Top Ten Pop Hits in the next two years with "You Are Everything" (#9, 1972); "Betcha By Golly Wow" (#3, 1972); "I'm Stone In Love With You" (#9, 1972); "Break Up To Make Up" (#5, 1973) and "You Make Me Feel Brand New" (#1, 1974).  kk  

Kent:  
Every time I hear that Five Flights Up classic I think I'm hearing the soul counterparts to the New Colony Six. I mean, it just sounds like a Ronnie Rice track through and through.  
David Lewis  

And then, after we ran Chet Coppock's All-Time Top Ten R&B Favorites ...  
Well Chet, this isn't necessarily my best shot, as I'm still waking up. Actually while your top ten soul / r&b classics wouldn't necessarily be mine, for the most part, I don't have a problem with it. However there's always a catch isn't there? We disagree on I Heard It Thru The Grapevine. Even though it was released first by Marvin Gaye (it just sat around as an album track for over a year before Motown issued it as a single), I think it's Gladys Knight who nails it. I thought that way in late 1968 when I first heard Marvin's version and almost 45 years later, I still feel that way. Not that Marvin's take sucks, far from it. I just think in this case Gladys nails it. Chet, I know Sundays are a bad day for you, but you gotta come down to one of the record shows.   
Jack  

Kent,
I always enjoy what others think or believe are the top ten r' and b' songs of all time, at least according to Chet. Whether one agrees or not, is not the point.
His choice for #8, what a classic still today from the Jive Five.
His choice for #6 by David Ruffin is one I haven't heard on the radio in years.
Finally, his choice for #4 by Jackie Wilson, is one I had never heard of. I did locate it on the internet and played it. Personally, I liked it.  I did hear (hint) that a certain Dr. by the name of Seuss liked it.
I did check and the record did not chart nationally, which I know you knew. I knew it never played here in OKC.
Larry
 
Jackie Wilson's "Who Who Song" was a new one on me, too.  I'd never heard of it before and, checking all of the pop charts ... and Billboard's R&B Chart ... I don't show it ever charting at all ... so I'm guessing Chet must have fallen in love with it as an album track or something he heard in a club.  (My folks used to go to The Checkerboard Lounge every time Sonny Charles and the Checkmates came through town ... they LOVED these guys!!!)  I did find a YouTube clip, however ... so check it out and see what you think.  (kk)  
Click here: ? Jackie Wilson - The Who Who Song - YouTube  

And, speaking of soul classics, check out the line-up for this year's Soul Train Cruise ... as well as some other amazing shows coming up!  

re:  COOL SHOWS:  
Talk about your Who's Who of Soul Artists, look who's headlining this year's Soul Train Cruise ...  
Earth Wind and Fire, Gladys Knight, Jeffrey Osborne, The Whispers, Freddie Jackson, The Ohio Players, Jennifer Holliday, Billy Paul, Jonathan Butler, Con Funk Shun, Regina Belle, The Bar Kays, The Dazz Band, The Mary Jane Girls, The Original Lakeside, A Taste Of Honey, DW3, Alonzo Bodden and Biz Markie.  
More info here:  
http://www.soultraincruise.com/2013/Fall  

Tomorrow night is the Sail Rocks show we've been talking about at River Edge Park.  We're hoping to have a full review up on the website on Monday.   
Click here: Home - RiverEdge Park | Aurora   

We've also been telling you about all of the great shows coming up at Ron Onesti's Arcada Theatre in St. Charles ... in fact, we're going to quite a few of these in the months to come.  
Click here: Arcada Theatre | Oshows  

Later this month (August 23rd to be exact) The Happy Together Tour rolls back into Aurora, IL, with a stop at The Paramount Theatre.  The line-up this year features The Turtles, Mark Lindsay (of Paul Revere and the Raiders), Chuck Negron (of Three Dog Night), Gary Puckett (of The Union Gap) and Gary Lewis and the Playboys ... between them, they've had over 60 feel-good Top 40 Hits ... and tickets are only $59, available through The Paramount Theatre Box Office ... Tickets are $59.50. ParamountAurora.com  
There's even a pre-show party / get-together for $10.00 more held in the Grand Gallery from 5 to 7 pm. This is a great opportunity to join fellow oldies music fans as well as sample amazing appetizers prepared by local restaurants and dining partners and enjoy a refreshing drink from the cash bar while you peruse silent auction items.  

And, speaking of COOL shows, our FH Buddy (and former Beach Boys Manager) Fred Vail got a chance to check out Brian Wilson live in concert, with special guests David Marks and Al Jardine!  Here is his report:  

Hi Kent!  
We just returned from our summer vacation to DC -- with a brief side trip to Pittsburgh, PA -- where, on Sunday, July 21, my wife, Debbie, daughter Taylor, and I, were able to spend the afternoon and evening with my old buddies, Brian Wilson, Al Jardine and Dave Marks -- along with Al's wife Mary Ann and Dave's wife Carrie. 
It's been several years since I visited with Brian and Al, and over seven years since visiting with Dave. We got to the venue just in time for most of the sound check, stayed for the first set, but left right after intermission to drive back to DC.  
As I've said a number of times -- whether it's Al Jardine and Dean Torrence -- with members of the Beach Boys band(s), Mike Love's "Beach Boys" with Bruce Johnston, or Brian Wilson and his band, with all the various configurations, that since the tragic passing of Carl Wilson on February 6, 1998, the real 'star' of any of these shows is 'the music.' Fortunately, all three configurations have great bands, but Brian's, featuring Jeffrey Foskett, Paul Mertons and The Wondermints, adds something very special to their performances. I think one of the reasons for this is the fact that the entire band -- which totaled 12 (including BW, AJ, and DM) in Pittsburgh -- are so passionate about the music -- and all idolize Brian Wilson.  
I've been booking bands for fifty-one years now - since 1962 - and did my very first Beach Boys show a year later on May 24, 1963, at the Sacramento Memorial Auditorium -- and Bri's band is simply the overall best of any band I've seen, booked, or promoted. I've seen two other bands who were also outstanding -- Paul Simon's and Barry Manilow's (please, no laughing out there) -- but you have to see them to know just how good they actually are -- and Barry treats all of his musicians as 'stars' often letting individual members step out front and center to be featured on a solo performances.  
The Pittsburgh show at Stage AE -- an open air venue -- was hampered by rain during the sound check -- and the threat continued into the night's performance -- but it didn't put a damper on the crowd -- who danced, stood and cheered for most of the night.  
The concert began with "California Girls," always Brian Wilson's favorite 'live' tune, followed by "Catch A Wave," which has always been one of my favorites. Two back to back ballads, "Surfer Girl" and "In My Room," were highlights in the first set, but there were others, including the song that closed the set, "I Get Around."  
There is something very special about Bri's band -- particularly Jeffrey Foskett -- whose rendition of "Don't Worry Baby" took me back to '63-'64 when Brian was at his youthful best. "Heroes and Villains" was another highlight, as was the youthful vocals and appearance of Al Jardine, who not only has the best voice of any of the remaining founding members, but looks ten years younger than he is. All-in-all, a stellar night -- with rave reviews from the Pittsburgh Star Gazette and nine out of ten stars from members of the audience who reviewed it after the show.  By the way, I just saw a clip from the 50th Reunion tour DVD -- mentioned by several forgottenhits.com readers -- and it was fantastic. Outstanding film and sound quality. Over an hour of it is posted on youtube.com -- so watch it and judge for yourself.   
Brian Wilson and 'the boys' music has lasted over 51 years and the three generations of fans continue to be blown away whenever they hear the music on the radio, performed as part of a movie soundtrack, or attend a 'live' performance. I just wish that Dennis and Carl Wilson had lived to see the band's continued popularity. Fortunately for all of us, Brian, Mike and Alan continue to salute their fallen band mates at each performance they give -- regardless of which band you see. 
Fred Vail / Treasure Isle  
Music City, USA -- Nashville, TN    
Great review, Fred ... we missed the 50th reunion show (my daughter got to see it ... and I swear it was over in a blink of the eye!) and then missed Brian's stop at Ravinia here a couple of weeks ago, too (where it also down-poured all night long!)  Would have loved to have seen ALL of the guys together ... and I'm SO glad that Brian has invited Al and David along for the ride this go 'round.  The DVD proves just how solid these guys still are ... impeccably filmed with EXCELLENT sound ... recommended to all.  It's cool, too, to see how the new songs they performed fit right in with all of the classics ... truly a timeless band.  Thanks so much for writing!  (kk)  

I had an occasion to click on Mitch Ryder's website to see if he was still active. He is and he's currently on tour with a stop in the Chicago area at the Star Plaza, Merrillville, IN,  9/27. It figures that I'm in town two weeks earlier. Would have loved to see him.
Jack  
Mitch was doing a series of shows with Paul Revere and the Raiders ... it may have even been that oldies cruise ... but I believe he's part of this year's "Where The Action Is" tour.  (Now THERE'S a hell of a show to see ... Paul Revere and the Raiders, Mary Wilson of The Supremes, Mitch Ryder and The Association!!!)  More info here:  Click here: Paul Revere & The Raiders | Tour Dates   
(I'll tell you what ... if you still have a chance to get tickets for this one, do it ... Paul Revere and the Raiders put on one of the best live shows I've ever seen!!!  Highly recommended.)  kk