George Harrison--All Those Years Ago (1981)

     Over the years there has been many songs written either referencing or directly dealing with John Lennon. After his shocking death in December of 1980, the musical world attempted to come to grips with his legacy. There are several song that stand out, the first (and in my mind the best) was Elton John's "Empty Garden" off of the 1982 album, "Jump Up". Paul McCartney came in with "Here Today" from his album, "Tug of War", and this song by George Harrison.
     Of the three songs mentioned, this was the first one released ("Here Today" was never released as a single). George had written a song for Ringo, but Starr never cared much for it because it was a bit high in pitch for the drummer. Harrison took the song back and in the meantime, when Lennon died, he put new lyrics to song. He took Ringo's voice off of the song, but kept his drumming track, then invited Paul and Linda McCartney with former Wings member Denny Lane to come and provide backing vocals.
     At the time the single was released, some critics found it a bit trite because of the bouncy music, but lyrically it spoke of George's loss. With it's release in May of 1981 it was the first of many tributes to the fallen Beatle. It was the third of four top five hits for Harrison who would not be heard from on the American charts again until 1987's, "Got My Mind Set On You"

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Richie Havens--Freedom (1969)/Here Comes The Sun (1971)

     Richie Havens died this past Monday (4/22) at the age of 71 of a heart attack at his home in Jersey City, New Jersey. The last couple of years he had been dealing with poor health after a kidney transplant in 2010, although just retiring from performing last year. He had spent many years as an activist and educator on the subject of the environment, especially to children, but his fame was sealed due to his performance at Woodstock in 1969.
     Havens was born in Brooklyn in 1941, the oldest of nine children. Even at an early age he had an interest in the arts, having sung on many a street corner with his schoolmates hoping to be heard. In 1961, he moved to Greenwich Village to attempt to link up with others of like mind artistically. At first he wasn't inclined to perform, settling to write poetry and painting. Once he did pick up a guitar and start singing, it didn't talk long for him to be the talk of the village, which prompted Albert Grossman, who at the time was managing Bob Dylan to approach Richie about signing with him. He did, and soon had a contract with the Verve Forecast label.
     His first album, "Mixed Bag" was released in 1967 which was the first of six (!!) albums released between then and 1969. What he was becoming known for however was his spellbinding live performances. This landed him as the opening act at Woodstock in 1969.
     He certainly had enough material to perform, what was not planned however was the crowds. No one had predicted, much less planned for the tens of thousands who started showing up. This caused a massive bottleneck which caused not only delays for the concert goers, but for the performers as well who were having to be brought in by helicopter to fulfill their obligations to perform. With no other choice, Havens kept the crowds enthralled for three hours with several encores. Finally however, he was out of songs, this led him to improvise a song based on the old spiritual, "Motherless Child", what happened next was nothing short of musical magic.

      The live performance and subsequent movie catapulted his fame not only here in the US but also around the world. He actually only had one hit on the charts, and that was a cover of the George Harrison penned, "Here Comes The Sun" which reached the top 20 in 1971. Although he never stopped singing or releasing albums, Richie instead used his newly found fame to educate others about ecological issues. In the mid-70's he co-founded the Northwind Undersea Institute, an oceanographic museum for children in the Bronx. Throughout the rest of his life, he continued touring and investing his time and energy on a series of environmental pursuits.

 

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Peter Frampton--Show Me The Way (1975/1976)

      "Frampton Comes Alive" was simultaneously one of the best albums of the late 70's, and also one of the most overplayed. I remember buying the album and at first loving it, but with it being played ALL the time on AM and FM radio (when they were not playing Fleetwood Mac's "Rumors"), it soon grew dust on my shelf. Although it made him into a superstar, it also pretty much summed up his career as the subsequent studio albums fell into the laid back vibe of the albums before "Comes Alive". That isn't necessarily a bad thing, but he has always been a superior performer on stage, and the his studio work never truly caught fire in the same way. On the other hand, most musicians would give a digit to have an album that sold as well.
     Peter Frampton had been a guitar wiz and singer from an early age and attracted attention as a member of The Herd as early as 1966 (at the age of 16). Three years later, he was asked by former Small Faces leader, Steve Marriott to start a new group, thus was born Humble Pie. His star in Britain continued to rise as did his popularity with other musicians as well. He was on several popular albums at the time, including George Harrison's, "All Things Must Pass" in 1970. It was during those sessions that he was introduced to the voice box, a guitar effect that would help form his signature sound.
     He left to go solo in 1971 and released his first album, "Winds of Change" in 1972. Over the next four years, he released four albums in which he began to refine his sound. All of these albums are suggested, if for no other reason than to hear the studio versions of the songs that he made famous in 1976. "Show Me the Way" was on his "Frampton" album released in 1975. Here is that version:

     One of the things that you notice in listening is that he has a very pleasurable, melodic voice, but it seemed to miss something....a "fire" if you will. This is interesting to note because at the same time, he was gaining a solid reputation for his live shows. This led A&M to take a huge risk by releasing a double live album. This from an artist who's star was rising, but was far from a solid commodity ("Frampton" had reached #35 on the album charts). The risk payed off in a huge way as it sold 6 million copies in 1976 alone. The single reached #6 on the Hot 100.

 

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Sunday Morning Vault: Delaney & Bonnie--Only You Know and I Know (1970)

     Delaney and Bonnie were not around a long time, but they made quite a splash as the predominant white soul duo of not only the late 60's/early 70's, but of all time.
      Delaney Bramlett was born in Mississippi and moved to California to try to make it as a guitar player. His break came as a member of the house band, "The Shindogs" for the ABC music series, "Shindig" from 1964-66. It's was through this band that he met and befriended Leon Russell, who would figured in his career.
     Bonnie O'Farrell was born in Alton Illinois and migrated to LA where she met Delaney at a bowling alley where The Shindogs were playing. Within a week they were married and decided to record together. They became the first white artists signed to Stax records to a one album contract.
     That album, "Home" and it's follow up "Accept No Substitute" on Elektra, didn't make much of a splash on the charts, but the talent of the duo spread among the major artists around the world who clamored to work with them. George Harrison, who learned to play slide guitar from Bramlett in turn introduced him to Eric Clapton who invited the couple to open for his group, Blind Faith in 1969.
    Clapton, who was still searching for the group setting that he could feel comfortable with, felt so much at home with the couple, the he would come on stage with them and play during the opening set. Eric would later say that Delaney taught him everything he knew about singing. That might be overstating a bit, but there is no doubt that his music took on a more soulful turn after his association with the Bramlett's.
     They went on tour as Delaney, Bonnie and Friends in 1970 which contained Eric Clapton and a rotating group of friends who love the couple and the music that they were making. George Harrison, Bobby Whitlock, Dave Mason (who wrote, 'Only You Know and I Know'), Leon Russell, Duane & Gregg Allman, Rita Coolidge, and King Curtis all would be found jamming on any given night.
     The tour was documented on the album, "On Tour with Eric Clapton" which did what none of the studio albums could, to capture at least in part the magic of Delaney & Bonnie.

   
     

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The Chiffons--He's So Fine (1963)

     The Chiffons was a girl group in the early/mid 60's and consisting of Judy Craig, Patricia Bennett, Barbara Lee, and Sylvia Peterson. "He's So Fine" was written by Ronald Mack, who was responsible for helping the group get their start. The song went all the way to number 1, and it's follow-up, the Goffen-King song, "One Fine Day" reached the top ten as well. They continued for another few years stacking up hits. However, the story of  "He's So Fine" was far from over.
     In early 1971, Bright Tunes, who owned the rights to the song, sued George Harrison for plagiarism in his use of the tune in his, "My Sweet Lord". It wasn't until 1976 that the court decided in favor of the publishing company, the suit in it's entirety wasn't wrapped up until the mid-80's, but the court's verdict held. The court found him guilty of "unintentional plagiarism", which is an interesting term for the layman, but makes perfect sense to the musician. Most artists gain inspiration from others. It might be the subject of a lyric, a small riff, or a chord pattern.  From where I sit, Harrison (deliberate or not) took a bit too much liberty in borrowing from another song. Despite all of that, Harrison's, "My Sweet Lord" has never diminished in greatness.....nor has "He's So Fine"

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The Beatles--A Hard Days Night (1964)

     As those who know me well would attest, I'm not much of a movie watcher, and it seems as if the older I get, the less likely it is that the time will be spent watching one. However, there was a time that movies held a bit more of an allure and just like with my writing subjects, movies about music were a must watch....

     Rock stars have always had a thing for being in movies (the opposite is true as well), with very mixed success, especially when real acting is going on.  More common, if not more interesting is the actual rock film where we follow around the musician(s) to see how they live life on the road, or in the studio. Every once in a while they go beyond and truly give a snapshot of the person, such as Madonna in "Truth or Dare". However, they are mostly vanity films that are little more than collector items for fans.

     Except for the rare occurrence when some real acting chops are shown, musicians are under the best light when either asked to play themselves in a movie, or a character that mimics their real persona. The blueprint of this kind of  movie was "A Hard Days' Night". The movie not only stands as a musical, but as one of the best films, period. Part of the reason belonged to Alun Owen who wrote the dialogue. The Beatles were familiar with his work and showed an ability to capture the dialect of a common Liverpool resident. Because the result was so natural for the boys, it put them at ease and allowed for their personalities to peek beyond the words themselves.

     Richard Lester who directed the film got along so well with the group that he was asked to film their second film, "Help". He also asked John Lennon to act in a comedy several years later, "How I Won the War". There were several cameos of note as well. Patti Boyd was an extra as a schoolgirl riding on the train with the boys. She would rebuff George Harrison's advances for a date, saying that she had a boyfriend, but they would soon be a couple and marry less than 2 years later.  There was also a sighting during a concert scene of a young Phil Collins....who I'm sure we will write about in a later blog.

     The soundtrack in my opinion began the transformation of The Beatles into something more than the sum of their influences. The whole package was a charming glimpse of four boys from a northern town who was still marveling at what success was bringing them. Although marketing attempted to keep them pigeon-holed in the same personalities seen here....but we would also never see them like this again. 

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Billy Preston---Outa Space (1972)

     He had been around.....a lot.

     As a child he played organ alongside Mahalia Jackson, James Cleveland, and Andre Crouch. In the early 60's, he had already played in Little Richard's band and appeared on an album with Sam Cooke in addition to releasing his own gospel album in 1963. During that time he was touring with Richard, they traveled to Hamburg, Germany where he met a fledgling group from Liverpool called The Beatles. The meeting was a friendly one and would later be of great benefit to the group and to Preston.
 
      In 1965 he would release his first secular album (he released 7 of them in the 60's), and in 1967 would join Ray Charles' band which was where he was in 1969 when George Harrison came to see him play. Harrison was working with the other Beatles on what was to eventually become the "Let it Be" album and film. Pressures from many different places led him in exasperation to walk out for a period of time. While gone, he caught Ray Charles' concert in London. George had been the Beatle who was closest friends to Preston and the after the concert was invited to visit them all at the studio. 

      The meeting was a magical one as all of the Beatles were on their best behavior and after sitting in with them on a session invited him to record with them. The result was that the infusion of soul and excitement that Preston brought to the album saved it from being a disaster. He is the only one besides Tony Sheridan (very early in their careers) to share billing with them on a recording. The exposure was also very beneficial as it helped launch a very successful recording period throughout the 70's. 

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It's one for the money....

Sixty-nine years ago today, Carl Perkins was born in Tiptonville TN. It could be argued that Perkins was the greatest influence on the The Beatles, as John Lennon and George Harrison were both not only big fans, but imitators of his style...especially in the early days. In fact his style and influence far out weighed his actual chart action, but you cannot say, "Rockabilly" without thinking of Carl Perkins....I can't decide which video to play, and such a cast of players along with him....so I'll play em' all....happy Saturday everyone!

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Valentine's Day: The Beatles--All You Need Is Love (1968)

Nothing much else to say today....but do something for the special someone today....Happy Valentine's Day.

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Today in History: I Want To Hold Your Hand (1964)

Like many things in my early childhood, the time is foggy and the circumstances surrounding it murky. All I remember for sure is somewhere between 1966 and 67, my mom presented me with a 45rpm record of my very own. Am supposing upon reflection it was a gift to christen my new box record player. For those of you way to young to remember, it was truly in the shape of a box with the front having a mesh cover that hid the one tinny speaker. You could also close the lid and latch it for easy carrying, and the needles had a habit of breaking all of the time (probably from carrying it around..)

It's funny now to think of it because my mom's idea of Rock and Roll was Elvis and she really didn't like him all that much. We won't discuss what she (or my dad) thought of Little Richard or Chuck Berry. Anyway, someone had to have tipped her off to not only the Beatles, but to get me this specific record (I don't know who you are, but am eternally grateful). Carefully placing the record on the turntable and plopping the needle on the record (probably another reason for so many needles), the most beautiful music to my ears came out. The guitars!! The voices!! The falsettos!!

I had to play it again and again and again. The record was "I Want To Hold Your Hand" and although it had been a hit for several years and they had matured far beyond that particular recording, the fascination and love for The Beatles was born. Also instilled as time went on was a deep and abiding love for music in general as not only a hobby, but as a profession as well.

On this day, January 18, 1964, This song made it's US chart debut just 10 days after it's release opening at #45. It went on to spend 7 weeks at #1 and began the revolution of Rock music.

 

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