Eleven 11's
kk ...
Shocked! Stunned! "Time Has Come Today", the riveting classic by the Chambers Brothers, peaked at 11???
The song is an explosion of passion, love and anger.
Gut feeling? The group's record label loused up promotion and since we're going back about 48 years I'm guessing there were hillbilly rockers that thought the song was "too dangerous."
The Chamber Brothers have always intrigued me ... why weren't they more successful? Where did the group go wrong - if indeed it did go wrong?
I gotta believe there are FH Regulars who can educate me on this subject.
Chet Coppock
Author: Fat Guys Shouldn't be Dancin' at Half Time"
"Time Has Come Today" is another one of those one-of-a-kind / "of that moment" songs that really stands alone.
(I know the first time I heard it my soul was psychedelicized!!!)
They did manger one other Top 40 Hit ... their follow-up single, a version of "I Can't Turn You Lose", peaked at #32 later that year. (kk)
Hi Kent -
Loved your 11/11 Veterans Day songs that peaked #11 on Billboard! Especially "Love Is Strange" by Mickey and Sylvia. Brought back a lot of memories. A Great Tune!!!!
Carolyn
Kent,
Years ago I, using my Billboard book, I put together list of Top Tunes and made a countdown tap. Today you put out 11 hits and it was fun to listen to them. So I thought that I would send you my list as I countdown for funn-zies of the same subject. This is it (I looked up about 80 hits).
Thanks,
Randy Anderson
1. This Is It / Kenny Loggins
2. On And On / Stephen Bishop
3. Hawaiian Wedding Song / Andy Williams
4. Love Is Strange / Mickey and Silvia
5. Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad / Meat Loaf
6. Cool Night / Paul Davis
7. Carry On Wayward Son / Kansas
8. Disco Inferno / The Tramps
9. Lido Shuffle / Boz Scaggs
10. Barracuda / Heart
11. Just Remember I Love You / Firefall
12. Something’s Burning / Kenny Rogers and The First Edition
13. Into The Night / Benny Mardones
14. One Of A Kind (Love Affair) / The Spinners
15. Drowning In A Sea Of Love / Joe Simon
16. I Only Have Eyes For You / The Flamingos
17. Rhiannon (will You Ever Win) / Fleetwood Mac
18. Peg / Steely Dan
19. Baby Hold On / Eddie Money
20. Cinnamon / Derek
My list was totally random ... I had the idea right before I had to leave for work and I probably spent all of about twenty minutes on it ... just look up songs that peaked at #11 for any given year and then chosing a personal favorite to feature. (I'm guessing your list is far more mathematical and is ranking these based on just how big a hit each title was based on week's at its peak position, in The Top 40, in The Top 100, etc.) Cool ... some other GREAT titles on this list! (kk)
Kent,
In your Random Picks I'm really glad you plugged in "How Glad I Am" by Nancy Wilson. In her first chorus, is it my imagination or does Ms. Wilson sing: "but you don't know, you don't know, you don't know, how the hell I am?" Please give a listen again and see what you think.
Thanks,
Tim Kiley
OMG, I think you're right!!! I've never noticed this before! I've never heard it this way before ... but I'm damn sure radio wouldn't have played it this way back in 1964!!! Anybody able to shed some light on this one? (Scroll back to Friday and listen for yourself!) kk
Leonard Cohen
Lots of mail last week after the passing of Leonard Cohen. While I never considered myself a fan (although I DO love his song "Hallelujah"), I've always been outspoken about Cohen being perhaps the LEAST deserving member of The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. There is absolutely NOTHING even REMOTELY "rock and roll" about his contribution to music. Still, I sympathize with his many, many fans worldwide now mourning this loss so wanted to share some of that feedback with our readers.
(Several years back I sent a copy of a BEAUTIFUL coffee table Leonard Cohen book to FH Reader Diana Parker, a serious fan, in the hopes that SHE would write an impartial, unbiased review ... but never heard back from her. Diana, now would be the PERFECT time to chime in on this!!!) kk
From FH Reader Ken Voss:
http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/obituary/7400205/leonard-cohen-dies-age-82-obituary
A nice poet and folk singer ... but he never should have been elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame!
Thoughts?
Danny
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has inducted a number of questionable artists. They would do well to realize that, often, less is more.
PP
Agreed ... Leonord Cohen, Joni Mitchell ... some very questionable choices. Where are Johnny Maestro, Link Wray and Buddy Knox? I could make a better case for Pat Boone than some of their choices.
Westfarb
I agree. Songwriters Hall of Fame? Yes. He was never, by any stretch of the definition, a rock artist.
Meanwhile, I repeat my annual mantra: where is Little Feat?
Jack
The Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame is hard up for Rock and Roll acts. They have had to reach far beyond for people to commemorate - and some are good musicians but not Rock and Roll. Face it, (as if you cared and I certainly don't), there have been no worthy Rock and Roll groups in Gawd knows how long.
grandpagofast
Yes, and yet acts like The Guess Who and The Moody Blues continue to be ignored. Thankfully at least The Zombies and Electric Light Orchestra are on the ballot this year. (kk)
Hi Kent -
I read all of the 2017 nominees and am glad to see that the Zombies are on the list. I had Colin on my radio show last Monday and I'm seeing them tonight.
I voted for them.
Regards
Geoff
There are plenty of valid qualified artists who deserve to be in the hall of fame for them to be "hard up". Who picks these inductees? They certainly are not rock and roll fans. To tell the truth, I didn't even realize Little Feat wasn't in until Jack Garner mentioned it. Unbelivevable! The way they are going could Michael Bolton get in? (please don't tell me he already is)
Westfarb
Britney Spears and N*Sync are likely future candidates, too, because of all the Rolling Stone Magazine covers they've got under their belts. How on earth did this get SO off track?!?! (kk)
The R&R Hall of Fame is a joke lately!
GMS Radio
Sadly The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame has BEEN a joke for over a decade now. What a shame ... such a GREAT opportunity to FINALLY recognize rock and roll as an art form and honor the artists who made it so ... and yet we continue to be deluged with WTF nomination like this year's Bad Brains ... yep, THERE'S an artist that rolls off the tongue as being as deserving as Elvis, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys and Chuck Berry. (kk)
From Tom Cuddy ...
LEONARD COHEN: Tributes
A wide array of artists have paid tribute to singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, who died Monday.
Among them are:
Elton John: "Leonard Cohen was unique -- a giant of a man and a brilliant songwriter. Irreplaceable. Loved him and his wonderful music."
Gordon Lightfoot: "I am deeply saddened by the passing of my contemporary, colleague, fellow Canadian and my dear friend Leonard Cohen. He loved music and his music affected millions of people around the world. He will be greatly missed. I offer my deepest condolences to his family as they grieve this tremendous loss."
Mark Knopfler: "Thank you for so many years of music and for your enormous contribution to the world of song."
Paul Stanley: "A poet, songwriter and rogue till the end. Hallelujah."
Rush: "We lost a true artist and a Canadian legend. A blaze of light, in every word. Au revoir Leonard...rest in peace." Dave Davies: "An inspirational poet who will be missed." Peter Gabriel: "His unique voice painted unforgettable pictures."
Brian Wilson: "Leonard Cohen wrote some great songs. 'Hallelujah' is one that is very moving to me. Love and mercy to Leonard’s family, friends and fans."
Bob Seger: "No one was a larger influence on my songwriting than Leonard Cohen!"
Leon Russell
I guess Leon won't be making up his date at The City Winery after all. Just as we were going to press this morning I got the news that he has passed away. How sad.
What a career this guy had ... from his early Wrecking Crew days as a studio musician, to playing with Gary Lewis and the Playboys, to his work with Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Joe Cocker and appearing in a scene-stealing segment at George Harrison's Concert For Bangla Desh ... to his own solo career both as a singer ("Tight Rope", "Lady Blue") and a songwriter (the beautiful "Superstar" recorded by The Carpenters and SO many others, "A Song For You" and "This Masquerade".)
Condolences to ALL of those close to him ... including his family and one major fan who I'm sure was devastated by this new this morning, Steve Sarley. (kk)
The Box Tops
While we're treasuring our Box Tops memories, how could you not mention "Choo Choo Train"??
I liked Chilton's Box Tops voice way more than his Big Star voice.
Dan
Yep, another good one ... and a #17 Hit in both Cash Box and Record World back in 1968 (besting their Billboard showing by nearly ten points!) kk
Hi Kent,
In your mentioning favorite songs by The Box Tops, you are right ... "Neon Rainbow" was vastly under-rated. Enclosed is another one I thought should have been another hit, "Sweet Cream Ladies".
Regards,
Tim Kiley
https://youtu.be/Wp61GgT0Ujc
"Neon Rainbow" was always one of my favorites ...
And it was "Sweet Cream Ladies, Forward March" that started this whole conversation in the first place! (A reader had written in that she had just seen The Box Tops live in concert and they omitted this track from their set, one of her personal favorites, so I suggested to our FH Buddy Rick Levy (musical director for the reformed band) that they might want to reconsider adding this one back into the line up as I know that MANY fans out there love this song.
Here is what he sent back to me in response ...
FYI, we DO the song SWEET CREAM LADIES, FORWARD MARCH in our show ... just not in every show.
The show your reader saw in Dania Beach was a short set (45 min) ...so let your fans know, yes, we get requests and try to fulfill them,as we did with A WHITER SHADE OF PALE. After our set was over, we were called back for and encore ... and fans started calling out Whiter Shade ... so we obliged.
Thanks
RICK
PS ... On the Happy Together tour, we only have a 15-17 min slot, as all the acts will play very, very short sets.
PPS ... Here's a great review of the BOX TOPS concert held November 5th at the VILLAGES, raising money for Vietnam Veterans of America.
The Box Tops bring back memories in show to raise money for Vietnam vets
By Tony Violanti November 6, 2016
Alex Chilton is gone, but the blue-eyed Memphis soul of the Box Tops lives on.
Chilton, who died six year ago, was the lead singer of the Box Tops, one of the most underrated and significant bands of the late 1960s.
Bill Cunningham and Gary Talley of the original Box Tops captured all of Chilton’s spirit and the band’s soulful sound Saturday at the Savannah Center. The two concerts raised money for the Chapter 1036 Vietnam Veterans of America.
“We’re proud to be here and play for Vietnam veterans,” Cunningham said from the stage. “We’re going to play a song they will remember, and it’s an honor to do it for them.”
Cunningham and Talley then rocked the place with a thumping version of the Box Tops’ all-time classic, “The Letter.” (To see a video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umKRQvO3K1o)
Talley sang lead and while he couldn’t match Chilton, Talley turned in a fast-paced, spirited performance on the former No. 1 hit from 1967.
Cunningham brought a softer sound to another Box Tops’ standard, “Neon Rainbow.”
“That song came out during the Summer of Love,” Cunningham said of that long ago time of 1967. “Sometimes, it’s hard to remember all the things we did back then, but I hope you remember this song.”
The Box Tops possessed a glossy, smooth sound, deeply influenced by the Memphis music scene.
Hits such as “Soul Deep” and “Cry Like A Baby,” echoed a variety of Memphis artists,. The list includes such acts as Sam and Dave, Wilson Pickett, Booker T and the MGs, Isaac Hayes, Rufus Thomas, Bobby Womack and B.B. King.
These Box Tops offered a musical tour of that time and those artists during the concert.
The set list featured r&B and rock and such numbers as “Treat Her Right,” “Rock Me Baby,” “Walking the Dog,” “It’s All Over Now” and “I’m Your Puppet.” There was also a touch of bluesy, psychedelic sounds with a cover of Procal Harum’s “Whiter Shade of Pale” and Cream’s “Born Under a Bad Sign.”
Cunningham played bass and Talley was on lead guitar as the band paid tribute to new Nobel Prize winner Bob Dylan. Cunningham said lead on Dylan’s introspective, “I Shall Be Released".
Bill Cunningham told a story about pushing Elvis’ car. Cunningham, like the rest of the Box Tops, grew up in Memphis. His father was a musician at Sun Studios and the family lived near Sam Phillips, who founded Sun and gave Elvis Presley his first break.
“One day, Elvis parked his Cadillac in the driveway,” Cunningham said. “Elvis couldn’t get it started and he needed a push to get the car in gear. So I, along with my brother and a couple of other guys pushed the car.
“Elvis was pushing, staying close to the driver’s seat door. The car kicked into gear, and Elvis jumped in the front seat and drove away.”
Then Cunningham added, with a smile: “I like to tell people, I helped Elvis get his start.”
Since we've now covered nearly the entire Box Tops hit catalog in these past few issues of Forgotten Hits, take advantage of your chance to get out and see them.
Yes, they'll be one of the headliners (along with our FH Buddy Ron Dante, Chuck Negron, The Cowsills, and, of course, The Turtles, on the 2017 Happy Together Tour ... but The Box Tops will surely have several other dates coming up before then. Be sure to check out their website to see if they're headed to a town near you. (kk)
http://boxtops.com/bttour.htm
This And That
It ain't exactly that 87.7 FM station, but MeTV.com recently began offering a streaming music popup on its main page ostensibly providing a similar selection of music ... though in this case curated by the unrelated, but also Chicago-based, AccuRadio.com.
www.metv.com/metvmusic should take you directly to it. When I punched it up today, it led off with "Na Na, Hey Hey, Kiss Him Goodbye" (irony?), and the (tacky-looking?) cover of Steam's one and only album appeared in the popup ... never seen that before.
BOB FRABLE
As explained before when the streaming site first launched just after Labor Day, it is a totally random sampling of the music typically offered on MeTV-FM, albeit totally random and without the "human touch" that makes the radio station flow so smoothly. This means that even if you and I both clicked on the "Listen" link at the EXACT same moment, we would each receive a different listening experience. (To be honest, I haven't used the stream at all since the initial launch week as I prefer the "live" broadcast so much more. However, for all the out-of-town readers who've been chomping at the bit to hear this great new station, thanks to our rave reviews, all of whom wish they had a station like this where THEY live, it's a great way to simulate the experience. You'll still hear songs you haven't heard in AGES! My sister-in-law was in from out of town a week ago and couldn't get over the wide variety of music they play ... she LOVED it!!!)
As for me, while it's still my station of choice in the car, at home on Comcast Channel 877 and on the clock radio (to both wake up to in the morning and fall asleep at night) I seem to be noticing FAR more repeats far more often and repetitively of late (although Program Director Rick O'Dell insists that this is NOT the case.) Keeping in mind that I listen sporadically at different times during the day, I don't think I should be hearing the same tunes as often as I am. They've got a playlist of well over 3000 songs ... mix it up a little ... drop in some new "adds" every week to keep things interesting ... and cut back on those "button pusher" songs that nobody wants to hear. Personal favorites??? Fine ... that's what iPods are for. When you're appealing to millions of listeners, you've got to play what THEY want to hear!!! (kk)
Looks like The Kinks are reuniting -
Ken Voss
http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/music-festivals/the-kinks-have-announced-a-comeback/news-story/7452c7973baaf785a819f6229a1ff36c
Interesting ... since not more than a couple of weeks ago the Davis Brothers said that they would NEVER play together again!!! (lol) Another artist I've never had the pleasure of seeing ... so let's hope they can keep it together long enough to make their way to Chicago. (kk)
Hi Kent -
Congratulations to the Chicago Cubs. You must be a very happy fan being from Chicago. Wow - 108 years in the making!
A triple play: Brexit, Chicago Cubs and Trump win!
Life is good!
I always loved Dionne Warwick's singing ... what a great voice and very distinguishable. Her and Bacharach were a "dynamic duo" of the 1960's.
Some great pics of the Box Tops too! Yep, a lot of sing along music!
Thanks, Kent!
Blossmwrld
I don't know that the whole country is as thrilled as you are about the Trump victory ... there are always disappointments when your candidate doesn't win the election ... but I can't recall EVER seeing this kind of outrage and display of emotions before ... feels like this cuts WAY deeper than just America's political differences. (kk)
Meanwhile, Chuck Buell sent in THIS "political clip" from the Ellen Show ... at least we can all agree to smile, right???
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