Wednesday, April 23, 2014

A Wednesday Morning Quickie

re: This And That:
With word last week that Glen Campbell had been checked into an Alzheimer's Facility, I wondered how Mark Bego was coming with his new book, first mentioned here several months ago in Forgotten Hits, written with Glen's daughter (and band member) Debby.
 
Here's the latest news from Mark himself ...
 
Kent:
Thank you so much for asking about an update on one of my favorite subjects, Glen Campbell.  You just so happen to have caught me at the right moment, and I am happy to make a statement to you about my new book on Glen.
My new book (my 61st published book!), "Life With My Father:  Glen Campbell", which I have written with Glen's daughter Debby Campbell, has been one of my most rewarding experiences I have had as a biographer.  It is published by Omnibus Press in London, and it was just recently released in bookstores in the United Kingdom on April 14, 2014.  It is also available globally on both Kindle (Amazon.com) and Nook (Barnes & Nobel) as of that date as well.  Here in America, the print version of the book will be in US bookstores on September 11, 2014, where it will be released via a sublicensing deal with Overlook Press.  Until that time it can be purchased via British Amazon.com if anyone in America wants a hard copy of it before September of this year.  While it sounds a bit confusing, I am thrilled that it is out, and people in the US can get copies on the internet. 
Now, with all of that being said, it is interesting and timely to note that while the British edition of the book was being released this past week, it was also announced that Glen Campbell has been admitted to a Nashville area facility for Alzheimer's sufferers, and is no longer living at home.  This has been sad and upsetting for Glen's family, and his millions of fans around the world.  His oldest daughter, Debby, visited with him on Saturday in Nashville at this facility, and found him to be comfortable and in good spirits.  I am so happy to have been a part of helping Debby tell her touching story about her life with her father. 
Most people don't realize that Glen has had four separate families, from each of his four wives.  He had one child (Debby) from his first marriage, three children from his second wife, one from his third, and three from his fourth wife.  For Debby, this has made it especially challenging to have had a strong relationship with her father.  However, she always made an extra effort to remain actively involved in her father's life no matter who he was married to at the time.  And, in the middle of all of this was Glen's highly publicized affair with Tanya Tucker.  Debby had the extremely gratifying pleasure of singing and performing in Glen's act for 24 years.  She was his duet vocalist, and at times she was his opening act.  She can even been heard on some of his recordings, most notably her touching duet version of the song "Let It Be Me" that she sang with Glen, which appears on the incredible 2002 boxed set:  "Glen Campbell:  Legacy."  That being said, I am happy to have this touching new book out on the marketplace at this time.  It is a beautiful, heartfelt, and often heartbreaking account of a daughter's struggles to remain in her father's life.  However Glen's fans find this book -- via Kindle, Nook, Amazon, or bookstore -- I am proud to have this book as part of my writing catalog.  Debby Campbell has become a dear friend of mine, and for me, writing this book with her has been a labor of love.  I hope everyone enjoys it, and finds it to be a gratifying and in-depth look at one of our truly great singing legends:  the incredible Glen Campbell.
Happy Easter!  Eat lots of chocolate and Peeps!  I will too ... LOL!
Cheers,
Mark
 
I finally had a chance to catch up on some TV over the Easter Holiday Weekend ... and was pleased to see our FH Buddy Tony Hatch featured with TWO songs in a recent episode of "Glee".  The show kicked off with Rachel being picked up in her new limo and heading "Downtown" ... and then, after Artie had been robbed in the subway, she accompanied her former classmate for a ride on the subway while performing Tony's "Don't Sleep In the Subway".  BOTH songs were HUGE hits for Petula Clark back in the mid-'60's. ("Downtown" topped the charts in early 1965 ... and "Subway" peaked at #5 a couple of years later.)
"Glee" has a way of reviving some classic '60's and '70's hits, often introducing a whole new generation to this music for the very first time.  For this reason, I applaud it ... and history has shown that once the kids discover this "new" music, they will often seek out the ORIGINAL versions and download those, too.  I asked Tony if "Glee" was a big hit in England ... and here's what he sent me back:
 
Hi Kent,
Thanks for your Easter Greetings.
I knew about DOWNTOWN and SUBWAY in GLEE as a result of receiving a copy of the sync details from Universal Music last year and, of course, I was delighted. (I'm always pleased when a show like GLEE or AMERICAN IDOL features one of my songs which, as you rightly observe, keeps the younger generations up to date.)
It's in Series Two and I don't think we have had that episode yet.  The show is on Channel 4 here which is one of our five 'terrestrial' TV channels. It's not on at the moment. The show has a big following.
DOWNTOWN will be 50 later this year. The song was conceived in New York in October of 1964 and recorded in London the same month.   It topped the US charts in January of 1965. SUGAR AND SPICE has already celebrated its 50th anniversary, but DOWNTOWN is the special one.
Best wishes,
TONY
 
Can you believe it?  Chicago's next album (coming out in July) will be called Chicago XXXVI -- that's 36 for those of you who didn't grow up in the age of Roman Numerals like we had when this band first started way back when!  (lol)
You can hear sneak peeks of ALL of the new tracks right here:
 
And, speaking of new releases ...
 
ABKCO has announced three significant additions to its Rolling Stones “Clearly Classic” vinyl series that launched last year. Set for reissue on clear 180-gram vinyl on May 6 are Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out! The Rolling Stones In Concert12 X 5, and Through the Past, Darkly (Big Hits Vol. 2).  The titles join Beggars BanquetLet It Bleed, and Hot Rocks: 1964-1971, which received resoundingly positive critical and consumer response upon release in 2013. All releases in the Clearly Classic series have been meticulously mastered from high resolution audio files sourced from the original master tapes, assuring optimal sound quality that exceeds both conventional CD audio and digital downloads. 
 
Looks like another music documentary is in the works ... and this one's a book, too!
Just got this from Tom Cuddy: 
 
Kent,
Today they announced Sir Paulie is coming to Lincoln for the first time ever on July 28. Competition to the Chicago Ringo event.  BUT, Ringo AND Riley and Weber sounds better to me.  :)  I may end up paying for Macca tickets IF I can even buy any when they go on sale.
Clark Besch
Macca's Chicago date was announced today, too ... July 9th at The United Center.  (Kinda tough on a Wednesday Night ... and I'm sure they'll add at least another date or two.)  Paul's plane containing all of the band's equipment was delayed on Monday and they had to cancel their scheduled show in Santiago, Chile.  He immediately rescheduled the show for Wednesday Night, honoring all of the Monday Night tickets so that fans could still catch the concert.
More and more dates are being added all the time ... and it sounds like McCartney has revamped the set list a little bit again this time to keep things fresh and new.  He also released another single from his "New" album ... but I've yet to hear ANY of these tracks featured on the radio more than once or twice.  Too bad as the LP has been critically acclaimed since it first hit the streets a few months back.
I'm really looking forward to the Clark Weber / Ron Riley / Ringo Starr thing at The Hard Rock Cafe ... these guys were my IDOLS back in the '60's ... and anybody who grew up listening to WLS at the time (which, with their 50,000 watt signal meant virtually everybody in about 42 states!) knows exactly what I'm talking about.  It is SO cool to still hear from these guys all these years later ... Weber, Riley, Bob Hale, Dex Card, Dick Biondi, Bob Dearborn, John Landecker, Bob Sirott, Kris Erik Stevens, Chuck Buell, Tommy Edwards, Fred Winston,  and several others have embraced the efforts of Forgotten Hits for trying to keep this great music ... and this great ERA ... alive.  It was such a HUGE part of our lives.  (kk)
 
When I was 11 years old in 1958 I had a paper route.  And the first thing I did when I got my very first paycheck was buy a small transistor AM radio ... so that I could listen to the radio while I did my route.  (Of course I also listened to it well into the night with my little earplug under my pillow just like so many others who have written to you over the years.)  I would fall asleep listening to Dick Biondi and Art Roberts and Ron Britain and Barney Pip ... Larry Lujack when he was still on at night ... Bob Hale ... Clark Weber ... Don Phillips "East Of Midnight" ... great memories ... and all these years later, I still remember all of those guys.  It's great to see so many of these names come up again and again in your pages ... and exciting to think about how much they meant to us then ... and how they've stayed involved for all these years.  Obviously these years meant a great deal to all of them, too.
Ed K
 
re:  Chicago Gold:
That sounds like a great idea that Jim Pilster has suggested for decades.  I agree on those artists and singers, but we need an emcee for every act!  Bring in Bob Stroud, Dick Biondi, Ron Riley, Clark Weber, Dex Card, Ron Britain, Chuck Buell!  How about some soul with Jerry Butler, Mavis Staples emceed by Herb Kent??
Clark
 
It does sound like a great event ... but you have forgotten one (at least) group from your list ... Chicago. Though very popular and still touring, they should be included in the mix.  
Scott Schultz,
McHenry
Actually, I DID mention them ... or, more specifically, the Chicago Horns ... but then added "Wouldn't it be nice to feature a couple of songs by them, too?"  And Styx ... and several others.
The main focus era for The Chicago Gold idea would be the music of the '60's ... and that's why names like The Buckinghams, The New Colony Six, The Cryan' Shames, The Ides Of March, The American Breed, The Shadows Of Knight, The Mauds, etc., come up most frequently.  Chicago, Styx and several others ushered in a new era of Chicago Gold, starting in the '70's ... and the odds of getting any of THEM to participate in an event like this are pretty slim.  Then again if you DID turn this into a week-long event ... with a different headliner every night ... you could have your "core group" making sure all the hits are heard for every performance ... but then spotlight one act as the headliner ... meaning Dennis Tufano could sing all of The Buckinghams hits one night while Carl and Nick did them on another.  (Even cooler would be a full-blown reunion ... maybe even get Marty Grebb to come in for this ... but I just don't know if we could pull that off.  Then again, preserving this moment for all posterity by filming it??? Who knows!)
This would be true of several of these acts I would think ... get at least three or four of The Cryan' Shames back up there for one more night ... maybe the current version of The New Colony Six one night and then a special reunion concert with several of the original members on another ... and Ronnie Rice and Skip Griparis on yet another.  Really, the possibilities are endless ... but first we've got to get everybody onboard ... get PBS involved ... (The Arcada Theatre photographs BEAUTIFULLY, by the way ... there are several concerts filmed there currently showing on cable right now!) ... I dunno ... I say let's get this ball in motion and see how far we can roll it!  (kk)
 
re:  The Saturday Surveys:
If you're diggin' our new Saturday feature (and it sounds like quite a few of you are) and you'd like to see WAY more surveys than we could ever possibly post, our FH buddy Clark Besch suggests you check out this site ...
It allows you to search by radio station, song and artist, and any number of other ways to find exactly what you're looking for ... and they've got a HUGE collection of charts from all over the country.  (WARNING:  Be prepared to spend some time here ... 'cause once you get started, you're going to want to keep on going!!!)
The example above was used to help out Alex Valdez of The Yellow Balloon, who was looking for chart information on their big hit "Yellow Balloon" from 1967.  Here's what Alex thought of this incredible site:
Thanks a million, Kent!
I spent the whole day pouring over this site ... what a great outlet.
Alex
Actually (and I just LOVE saying this!!!) thanks should be directed to that SUPER Survey Team of Clark / Kent on this one!!!  (kk)