Paul Davis--I Go Crazy (1977)

     Paul Davis was born in, and died in his hometown of Meridian, Mississippi in 2008. In between was two decades of steady, if not underrated work.      He began in the mid 60's with a couple of local groups before getting a gig as a writer for Malaco Records out of Jackson, Mississippi in 1968. Just a year later he was signed to a recording contract with Bang Records, where he would spend all of the 70's.      His first time on the charts was in April of 1970 with a remake of The Jamels' hit,...

Read More

Mac Davis--Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me (1972)

     By 1972, Mac Davis had become a bit of a hot songwriting commodity. He had written several hit songs for other, "In the Ghetto" and "Memories"  for Elvis (he also wrote "A Little Less Conversation" which would become a hit years after the King's death), "Watching Scotty Grow" for Bobby Goldsboro and "I Believe In Music" for the group Gallery.      He had also begun a solo career aiming for country music, but having a definite crossover feel. It wasn't until 72' however, that he hit the big time...

Read More

The Sunday Morning Vault: Bobby Darin--Mack the Knife (1959)

     Although not always successful, it would not be a stretch to call Bobby Darin one of the most versatile performers (if you define it through quantity) in the modern era. From teen pop to Frank Sinatra style crooning, folk rock, rock, and even a bit of Motown, Darin squeezed a lot of material in his 37 years on this planet. Not all of these attempts were successful, but if you take the time to look at his body of work, he accomplished much more than you would expect.      Almost 40 years after his death...

Read More

Danny Wilson--Mary's Prayer (1987)

     One-hit wonders are a fascinating breed. Sometimes quirky, almost always different from the music around it. Every so often it stands out so well that it transcends the era in which it was based. Which leads us to the Scottish band Danny Wilson.      Gary and Kit Clark had played in a couple of bands in the early 80's before meeting up with Ged Grimes and forming a group called "Spencer Tracey". The estate of the deceased actor didn't take kindly to the group taking that name, so they changed it to "Danny...

Read More

Danny and the Juniors--At the Hop (1957/58)

      Danny Rapp, Frank Maffei, Joe Terranova, and Dave White  had been singing together since their teen years in Philadelphia in the early 50's. They did the usual high school dances (under the name Juvenairs) and such until they were heard by John Madera who had an interested in rock and roll from the management side. Madera was impressed and introduced them to Artie Singer who was a vocal teacher, and also head of Singular Records.      Singer liked one of the songs that  White had written called,...

Read More

Charlie Daniels Band--Uneasy Rider (1973)

     Charlie Daniels had been performing since the 1950's, and spent much of the 60's as a Nashville session musician and songwriter, being mostly known for co-writing the song, "It Hurts Me" which Elvis recorded. As his name started to grow outside of the country genre, he was featured as a bass player on recordings by Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohan.       As he began to explore his musical options, he began not only to perform with his own band, but help mentor other southern rock groups, most notably...

Read More

Reflections on Donna Summer by her former music director.

Scott Hallgren is a friend of mine who had the privilege of working with Donna Summer for seven years. Since her death, I had been hoping to get some thoughts and stories. Hope you enjoy reading them as well. His website is:  http://scootmanmusic.com/ I had the pleasure of working with Donna 1998 - 2005; all of it on keyboards, 4 of them as her pianist, 3 as her musical director. If I'd only known as an 8 year old, driving around in my Mom's Chevette, listening to Donna on AM radio... Ahh, the stories - WAY too many to tell, whether it...

Read More

Dale & Grace--I'm Leaving It Up To You (1963)

     Dale Houston and his singing partner, Grace Broussard were both from Louisiana. He was from Ferriday and she was from Prairieville. Dale was pretty much self taught at the piano and by the age of 18  had a regional hit  "Lonely Man" that reached number 75 on the national charts. He struggled along as a songwriter and singer when in 1963 he was introduced to Grace Broussard who had been singing in bars for several years along with her brother Van. The two began working on an old song by the duo Don & Dewey...

Read More

Sunday Morning Vault: Daddy Dewdrop--Chick-A-Boom (1971)

     Every so often I find a song that deserves to be re-heard just because it was a hit in it's time. Daddy Dewdrop is the pseudonym for songwriter Dick Monda. He has written for a host of other artists, but his main claim to fame was a song he recorded in 1971. "Chic-A-Boom" reached the top ten in the spring of 1971, and never had another song come close to the top 40. You can read more about him here: http://daddydewdrop.com/...

Read More

The Cyrkle--Red Rubber Ball (1966)

     The Cyrkle originally began as The Rhondells. Founded by Don Dannemann (guitar, lead vocal) and Tom Dawes (bass) who were students at Lafayette College in Easton Pennsylvania. Earl Pickens (keyboards) and Marty Fried (drums) were added, and were soon playing at college frat events and other places locally then regionally.      They were playing on Labor Day in 1965 in New Jersey when discovered by Nathan Weiss who was a friend of Beatles' manager Brian Epstein. Epstein signed the group and changed the name...

Read More

Donna Summer (1948-2012)

     Thankfully Donna Summer's talent allowed her to go far beyond disco. At the same time, I'm thankful for that dance sub-genre because it allowed her substantial talents to even be heard. She was considered the "Queen of Disco", but her abilities allowed her to break free from the backlash that effected most of her peers in the early 80's and go into a different direction, without totally disassociating herself from it's many fans. In the 90's she was still a major player, especially in the UK. With the re-emergence of dance...

Read More

Cymarron--Rings (1971)

     My hunch about certain things in music is probably like most of you. Sometimes right, sometimes wrong, but usually interesting because the arts in general are so subjective.       It had been a long time since hearing the song, "Rings" from the soft rock group Cymarron. It's one of those songs that's is as lite and airy as the meringue on Grandma's banana creme pie, and has as much nutritional value. However, that isn't why you listen to songs like this, they are pure pleasure while you listen,...

Read More

Burton Cummings--Stand Tall (1976)

     Burton Cummings was the lead singer of The Guess Who through most of their existence. He first joined the band in 1965 as a keyboardist, but took over singing duties when Chad Allen left the band. The Guess Who had a long stretch mainly as a single band for ten years, but in 1975, Cummings chose to head for a solo career.      His first album reached the top 40 on the strength of, "Stand Tall". The ballad was a bit of a different sound for Cummings, and it went to number 10 on the pop charts in late...

Read More

Culture Club--Karma Chameleon (1983)

     The term, "new romantics" refers to a sub culture of the new wave sound of the late 70's/early 80's. Actually they were more about fashion than music, but the music was always an important part of things as well. Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, ABC, and Culture Club were all a part of this sub-genre. Their love of fashion and distinctive visuals dovetailed headlong into MTV which gave all four bands the exposure they wouldn't have seen otherwise.      None were more distinctive than George Alan O'Dowd...

Read More

The Cuff Links--Tracy (1969)

     Am not sure what it was about 1969/70 and studio musicians, but some of pop's more enduring hits came as studio "creations" rather than from artists who made it by what would be considered normal means. I wrote a blog last year about Tony Burrows and his contributions to a host of singles during this period. Another musician who had success under other names was Ron Dante.      Ron had success as a writer of jingles for television and radio as well as a session singer. He was approached with two singles...

Read More

Sunday Morning Vault: The Crystals--He's A Rebel (1962)

     It's hard to think today how little control artists had in the first years of rock and roll. Stories about bad contracts and rip offs have always been a part of the landscape as unscrupulous record companies and managers took advantage of men and women who just wanted hear their records on the radio.       In the early 60s,  Barbara Alston, Mary Thomas, Dolores "Dee Dee" Kenniebrew, Myrna Girard, and Patrica "Patsy" Wright made up The Crystals. They signed with Phil Spector's Philles Records,...

Read More

Crowded House--Don't Dream It's Over (1987)

     Am not totally sure why, but with all of the music that was so wedded to the 80's, whenever "Don't Dream It's Over", comes on the radio, I instantly return to that decade. It's a timeless tune which launched Neil Finn and his group Crowded House onto the charts for the first time in the US. Neil and his brother Tim fronted the group Split Enz in the 70's and early 80's. After splitting up the band in 1984, Neil and drummer Paul Hester formed Crowded House.      With success in their native Australia,...

Read More

Christopher Cross--Sailing (1980)

     In a blog not too long ago, I referenced, "luck" as a ingredient in the success of an artist or a song. Those who say, "you make your own luck" obviously never tried their hand at music. There are not many career directions that are determined, not only by hard work, but by the whims and tastes of an audience that for the most part you never see. One of the things we do at, "The Rock and Roll Omnibus" radio show is to not only celebrate the hits from the past, but also to give due to those who produced quality music which...

Read More

Crosby, Stills, and Nash--Suite: Judy Blue Eyes (1969)

     David Crosby had been with The Byrds, Steven Stills from Buffalo Springfield, and Graham Nash from The Hollies. The first two had been known as fairly combustible personalities at their previous stops, but were itching for the next musical project. In fact, Crosby and Stills had been jamming informally.      Crosby knew Nash since 1966 when The Byrds had toured the UK, and revisited again when The Hollies toured California a couple of years later. So the night that Cass Elliot invited them all to a party...

Read More

Jim Croce--You Don't Mess Around With Jim (1972)

     It was the 1st of October and I was sleeping on the couch in our living room. When ensconced within the four walls of our house, the radio was always playing and during the winter I fell into slumber with KSHE95, our local "underground" station being my lullaby.      This morning was strange however. Being used to waking to the latest from The Strawbs, The Beatles, or King Crimson, I was hearing Jim Croce, which for this station was quite unusual. It was the song, "Operator" and even at the age of 13, knew...

Read More

The Crests--16 Candles (1958)

     The Crests were formed in 1955 by J.T. Carter and included Talmadge Gough, Harold Torres, and Patricia Van Dross (the older sister of singer Luther Vandross). The next year, when vocalist Johnny Mastrangelo (later known as Johnny Maestro) joined the group, they began to take shape. They had a minor hit  with, "Sweetest One" in the summer of 1957 on the Joyce label, it was late in 1959 however that their fortunes began to change.      "16 Candles" was written by Luther Dixon and Allyson R. Khent,...

Read More

Sunday Morning Vault: Marshall Crenshaw--Someday, Someway (1982)

    Over the years of studying popular music, one comes to the conclusion that most of the hits over the years were that way because they ARE good. However, to just dismiss all other songs as unworthy is musically throwing the baby out with bath water. Anyone who has spent time attempting a career in this business can tell you that many variables come into play for a song to even get a record deal, much less making a hit out of it. Some will play for awhile, and decide to quit music after awhile to pursue more lucrative interests. ...

Read More

Creedence Clearwater Revival--Fortunate Son (1969)

     I've read a book or two on CCR, and it always leaves me sad. It also leaves me wondering about the kind of childhood that Tom and John Fogerty had to cause such a rivalry later on.      For a much too brief time (if you don't count their last album,  'Marti Gras'...which wasn't very good, it was less than three years) Creedence was THE American band. Forty years later, it still defines much of what was good about late 60's/early 70's rock.      However, most of that time they...

Read More

Cream--Sunshine of Your Love (1968)

     The word "supergroup" in the music world was coined for Cream. All of these years later, we have understood that more than just ability goes into a group working together. Things like personal chemistry...which was a problem from the beginning with this group.      Cream was formed from Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker, both who were feeling stifled in the groups they were with. Jack Bruce had been in the Graham Bond Organization with Baker, and man were well aware that the two really didn't get along,...

Read More

Billy "Crash" Craddock--Rub It In (1974)

     Billy Craddock got his start in the 50's as a rockabilly singer. He was signed to Columbia records and was positioned to be their "Elvis". It never quite turned out that way as the biggest hit he could muster was, "Don't Destroy Me" which eked in at number 94 on the charts. Craddock was however a major teen idol in Australia during that time.      The sixties brought on a long dry spell as he drifted from one label to the next. Mercury, King, and Chart all tried to be the one to make him a star. By the late...

Read More

Coven--One Tin Soldier (1971)

     One wonders if 40 years from now, our children (grandchildren? great-grandchildren) will look at something like the "twilight" series and read about the frenzy that accompanied it and scratch their heads and smile, as they attempt to figure out what the fuss was about.       I wonder that same thing looking back at the "Billy Jack" series. Tom Laughlin directed, co-wrote and starred in the movie. When a distributor could not be found, Laughlin took the film to theaters himself. It bombed when first released...

Read More