re: The Marty Grebb Benefit Concert:
Here's a link to the official website ...
Check out all the cool stuff posted there:
https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=864263563644909&set=vb.566231046781497&type=2&theater
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Chicago-MUSIC-60S-STYLE-A-Concert-For-Marty-Grebb/429503770521546
I wanted to thank you for your exceptional promotion of Marty’s benefit concert over the past couple weeks. What a smashing success that was!
Tommy Scheckel
Kent,
Your coverage is phenomenal. ! I am humbled and honored to have been featured in such a professional site. Thank you so much !
Jack
Kent,
Thanks so much for the great coverage of the show for Marty. And we especially appreciate the shout out! All the guys in The Chicago Experience were honored to be a part of this great event.
As an aside, you have mentioned Psyche Pscene magazine. That was my cousin Joe Gino’s magazine. I remember as a kid, going to Joe’s studio with my father on weekends to watch them put the magazine together. Fond memories!
Please keep in touch, and let us know if you can attend one of our shows.
Best regards,
Steve Frost
www.thechicagoexperience.com
https://www.facebook.com/thechicagoexperience
http://artistecard.com/thechicagoexperienceband#!/bio
We will DEFINITELY be coming out to some of your summer shows ... thought you guys were fantastic and I want to see and hear more. Definitely one of the highlights of The Marty Grebb Benefit Concert. Thanks, Steve! (kk)
Thank you so much for sharing these memories with me ... it brought back so many, many memories of how simple and fun life was.
Bettyann
Your coverage of the Marty Grebb concert was incredible. Even though as an out-of-towner I was jealous that I couldn't be there to see this, you brought it all home in vivid living color with your series of reports. Congratulations on a job well done. I hope it raised a lot of money ... and Marty, long may you run.
Dan
re: Other Up-Coming Shows:
SO many good shows coming up ...
Locals on the list already know about the 20% Discount being offered for this weekend's Gino Vannelli concerts at The Arcada Theatre ... just visit The Arcada Website (www.oshows.com), order your tickets for the Saturday Night (with Gino's full band) and/or the Sunday All-Acoustic 2 PM Matinee Show ... and, at checkout time, punch in the special code FH2015 ... and you'll get 20% your entire ticket order.
Later that same day on Sunday, it's the first return appearance of Paul Revere's Raiders since Paul's passing last year. (The Arcada was the last place Paul Revere performed before health issues forced him off the road.)
He will DEFINITELY be there in spirit on Sunday, May 17th, as The Raiders take the stage for a 5 pm show.
Drummer Tommy Scheckel tells us ...
Just a reminder that The Raiders will be performing at the Arcada Theater in St. Charles this Sunday, early evening (May 17th at 5 PM) and I’d like to invite EVERYONE out to see the show. It’s a very special date for us since The Arcada is the very last place Paul Revere performed in this world. Paul had thousands of concerts and TV appearances dating back to the late 50s – and it all ended at The Arcada, just over a year ago. To me, The Arcada is as special a place as the Surf Ballroom. Paul will be there with us on Sunday, both in spirit and in video.
Hope to see everyone there!
Tommy
We are REALLY looking forward to seeing the new show. Yes, Paul will be missed ... but all of this great music now lives on through you guys ... so you can count on us to be there for what I know will add up to a GREAT night of entertainment. Thanks, Tommy! (kk)
In the weeks to come, The Arcada will feature
George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic (that's TONIGHT!)
A Frankenstein / Hoochie-Coo Night with Edgar Winter and Rick Derringer (May 23rd)
Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience (featuring Led Zeppelin I and II in their entirety), May 24th and May 25th
The Alan Parsons Live Project - May 29th (We'll DEFINITELY be there for THIS one!!!)
Herman's Hermits featuring Peter Noone on May 30th
Ruben Studdard's tribute to Luther Vandross - June 5th
Gene Cornish of The Rascals, June 12th
June 26th - Dr. John
June 28th - Don Felder, formerly of The Eagles
July 7th - The Bacon Brothers
July 12th - Arlo Guthrie
July 17th - Whitesnake
July 26th - Tony Orlando
And much more to come.
Already on the docket: The Stylistics, Belinda Carlisle, Firefall with Poco, Christopher Cross, Johnny Rivers, Sheena Easton, Blood Sweat And Tears (featuring Bo Bice), Kansas, Neil Sedaka, Ronnie Milsap, Leon Russell, Mickey Gilley and, just added, the return of Burton Cummings, ALWAYS a great show.
Complete ticket information on the website: www.oshows.com
The Rialto Square Theater in Joliet has lined up Engelbert Humperdinck (August 21st), Boz Scaggs (August 14th), Pure Prairie League with Firefall (November 7th) and Tommy James and the Shondells with Gary Puckett (November 13th)
Details: http://www.rialtosquare.com/calendar.asp
And this just in ... Donny and Marie make their triumphant return to The Paramount Theatre in Aurora for a five-day stay, August 12 - August 16th.
More information: http://paramountaurora.com/
By the way, The Genesee Theatre in Waukegan has booked Jay Leno for an appearance on October 29th!
http://www.geneseetheatre.com/events/all
And let's not forget RiverEdge Park in Aurora ... that summer outdoor concert series includes
REO Speedwagon - July 18th
Rock The Yacht (featuring The Little River Band, Ambrosia, Stephen Bishop, Player and Robbie Dupree
Daryl Hall and John Oates - July 31st
Earth Wind And Fire - August 22nd
Elk Grove Village is pulling out all the stops this year, too, with appearances by
Kenny Rogers (July 4th!)
Kansas (July 7th)
.38 Special (July 14th)
and Christopher Cross with Air Supply (July 28th)
re: Susan:
I prefer the uncut version, too. It might not make sense, but it's the way we remember the song, and it's the way we want to hear it. The chopped version just doesn't sound right at the edit.
David Lewis
TAG, I'm it! Here on the east coast the long version was the more often played, with the 'resized' version used only when air-time time was short. We probably all thought the DJs shortened the record themselves to fit into these times, much as they 'cut together' other tunes. OR just cut-off other tunes much to our listening displeasure. The interlude totally fits into that time frame and added a dimension of surreal, thought provoking, heartache which blasted out in the end in a no-holding back type of emotion. I never thought it was meant to be anything other than what was first produced. It fit the era. Because of that, my students never question it either. So many other artists used similar techniques, and children love emotional release. They are so much freer than they will become later on. In the present, I also never question the live performance of 'Susan' by Dennis Tufano or The Buckinghams. Short or long, in concert it drives.
Shelley
FH Reader Clark Besch tells us about an upcoming musical being put together by James Holvay. James is the guy who wrote FOUR of The Buckighams' Top Ten Hits back in the day: "Kind Of A Drag", "Don't You Care", "Hey Baby, They're Playing Our Song" and "Susan" all came from this gifted singer / songwriter.
Now he's trying to get a new project off the ground and could really use your help. Read on ...
Kent,
Maybe your FH friends can help with a new musical that has its roots firmly in the 60's music we all know and love. My buddy James Holvay is one of the driving forces and would like to help raise some funds. Maybe we can all see this when it goes on the road if we can push it some. I just contributed and I hope you can spread the word. If you are a fan of "Land of 1000 Dances" by Cannibal & the Headhunters, you are likely to love this show. James assures me the site is safe and I just donated.
Clark
I was asked to write some songs for a new musical that will be performed in November of this year in Los Angeles. So as not to bore you with a long-winded email, I've attached a document that explains what the play is about. I would greatly appreciate it if you would help make this play a reality.
Click this link:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/eastside-heartbeats-the-musical/x/3659752
and it will tell you how to contribute.
THANKS in advance for your help.
Jim
re: This And That:
Kent ...
This past week was the 55th Anniversary of the Frank Sinatra Special -- "Welcome Home Elvis."
Frank B.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YQeWHg-Ft4
A meeting of the ultimate idols at that time. (For the younger folks on the list, think the Backstreet Boys / New Kids On The Block tour from a couple of years ago! lol) kk
Sad but inevitable news as we go to press this morning ... Blues Legend B.B. King has passed away.
http://deathbeeper.com/1670501.html
Hey Kent,
I had forgotten all about Chubby Checker's recording of the song, "Do the Freddie", but remembered it, after seeing the '65 Canadian pop chart on FH. I haven't heard it since it was popular, and had to go to Youtube to listen, because I've been unsuccessful lately at clicking onto your music service. The song was actually titled, "Let's Do the Freddie", but I have seen photos of 45s with both titles on Parkway's label. I've also seen "(Are You Ready), "Let's Do the Freddie" on some charts. Even though you say Checker was more established and popular, and though he made his living, recording songs about the latest dance crazes, my friends and I were pissed at his audacity, cashing in on Freddie Garrity's "unique" choreography. The guitar chords leading into the chorus are very similar to that of Dreamer Derek Quinn's playing on "I'm Telling You Now". At the time, I thought it was a little vain of my hero to call the dance "The Freddie", but later learned that it was his management that named the dance after him, because so many fans asked "How to do the Freddie". Thus, a new song was born. On the back of the album, with the same title, are instructions on how to do the dance, written by ballroom legend, Arthur Murray, of all people! In my opinion, this was the group's best LP.
Speaking of "I'm Telling You Now", I know I heard another recording of the song that was sung by a woman, played on a local radio station, not long after Freddie's hit came out, which also pissed me off! If any of your readers know who this vocalist was, please let me know. I won't be nasty. :-)
- John LaPuzza
50 Year Flashback - May 11th, 1965
How about counting how many Brit artists are on that chart? One more thing ...
How about the Searchers with two chart riders? I absolutely love "Goodbye My Lover, Goodbye" -- the song with two titles depending on album or 45.
Clark Besch
Good News:
YMCA worth millions to Victor Willis - do you remember who he is?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/09/village-people-lawsuit_n_1503523.html
Ken Voss
Bad News:
David Cassidy will not be driving himself anywhere anytime soon.
Cassidy received his sentence in an upstate New York DUI case on Tuesday, receiving a $900 fine and fifty hours of community service. He also lost his license for six months and was ordered to install a device on his car ignition that will not allow it to start if he is intoxicated. Cassidy waived his right to appeal in taking the plea deal.
The actor was arrested in August of 2013 outside of Albany, NY at a DWI checkpoint, registering a blood alcohol level of .10. .08 is the legal limit.
Cassidy was arrested again for DWI in January, 2014 after making an illegal turn in Los Angeles. This time, he blew a blood alcohol level of .19.
The two arrests started a year of trouble for Cassidy. One month after the Los Angeles arrest, he announced the he and his wife of 23 years were going through a divorce, triggering a stay in rehab. Even though he was facing jail time in his L.A. arrest, the judge gave him five years probation and ordered him to remain in rehab until he had completed the 90-day program.
- Vintage Vinyl News
We caught David's Q&A Show at The Arcada Theatre earlier this year ... I'll be honest with you, he looks FAR from healthy these days (and went through one of his famous temper-tantrums toward the end of the appearance.) In all fairness, he was losing his voice, which was raspy from the beginning. He sang a couple of lines from a couple of standards (to piano only accompaniment) from his forth-coming album "Songs My Father Taught Me" ... but rarely stayed on point when answering Ron Onesti's questions, clearly sticking instead to his own agenda regarding topics he wanted to cover. It was NOT a very entertaining show ... and I don't feel Cassidy drew himself any closer to his fans, acting the way he did.
I have personally seen him intoxicated and belligerent on stage on a couple of occasions, berating his band members and generally just making a complete ass of himself. Perhaps, knowing the history of not only his own alcoholism but also the fact that this has run through every key male member of his family, this is beyond his control. But to take the wheel and put the lives of other, innocent people in jeopardy is inexcusable ... especially as a repeated offender ... and I think the sentence was EXTREMELY light in view of his past history. (Quite honestly even the fine is a bit ridiculous ... there probably isn't a moment in time when he doesn't have three or four times $900 on his person!)
I did, however, reread his autobiography for the THIRD TIME after seeing this show ... and I HIGHLY recommend this one to even the most casual fan. It is written in such an entertaining way ... funny, dirty, sexy, sad ... it's got it all.
You can pick up a copy of "C'mon Get Happy" here:
http://www.amazon.com/Cmon-Get-Happy-Loathing-Partridge/dp/0446395315/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1431646590&sr=1-3&keywords=david+cassidy (several used copies available)
It's now out of print, replaced by this 2009 update:
http://www.amazon.com/Could-It-Be-Forever-Story/dp/0755315804/ref=pd_sim_14_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=111FJVKWX0XWQ8C088YT
One line that TOTALLY cracked me up in David's original bio comes from his step-brother Shaun, who also became a short-lived teen idol in the late '70's.
Here's Shaun Cassidy, talking about the music his step-brother David had to record and perform on The Partridge Family: "Then suddenly he was acting on this TV show. And don't forget, 'The Partridge Family' was not just any TV show. It was very popular and it was considered very 'wholesome'. So there I was, this kid whose mom and brother were starring in this wholesome show. And David's music was invariably described as 'wholesome,' too. So I acquired a 'Partridge Family' kind of image by association. And believe me, when you're a kid going into your teens -- as I was when David's fame was reaching its peak -- 'wholesome' is not a cool thing to be. So I pushed hard to go the other direction, to establish a different identity with my peers. And I made it clear my musical tastes were 180 degrees different from 'The Partridge Family.' My cultural icons were Led Zeppelin and the Stones. When I was thirteen, I had dreams of someday going into music -- but the Partridge Family sound was the last thing I would have wanted to emulate."
And THAT, ladies and gentlemen, is why Shaun instead cut tracks like "Da Doo Ron Ron" and "Do You Believe In Magic"!!! Too funny! (kk)
re: Beatle-ish:
Roll Up Roll Up for the Mystery Tour, step right this way…
for information on the one and only original Magical History Tour!
"It's getting better all the time!"
AUGUST 22-SEPT 2, 2015
LIVERPOOL - LONDON - HAMBURG
OR
AUGUST 24-SEPT 2, 2015
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