Tuesday, January 25, 2011

This And That

re: IT'S TIMELESS!:
Frannie sent me this one yesterday. Looks like you now have the opportunity to truly create your own "timeless" soundtrack ... you have to see this to believe it!!! Kinda brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "Ashes To Ashes, Disk to Disk", doesn't it??? (kk)

http://www.andvinyly.com/

re: GAMES:
Redeye / "Games" ... I have that 45 up in the attic ... think it was on an obscure imprint called "Amaret".

Thanks to WKBW / Buffalo for playing that back in January 1971. Programmed by Jeff Kaye, with Don Berns as Music Director, they were quite adventuresome compared to other Top 40's I remember. For example, I was surprised to learn that Gayle McCormick's "It's A Cryin' Shame" died before making the Top 40. I think it made the Top 10 on 'KB. But unlike "Games", I heard "Cryin'" on a couple other stations back in the day. It wasn't long after that I started hitting the local record store each week to get the previous week's Billboard before they threw it out. After that it was easy to keep up and see who was really trying to expose listeners to great new music as opposed to just following the pack.
Enjoy the site and the great music!
Thanks.
Charlie Mitchell
DeCarlo-Mitchell Productions
Burgettstown, PA
Actually, I show it on the even more obscure Pentagram record label ... light blue as I recall. Thanks for the kind words ... our brand new "Today's Forgotten Hit" seems to be ringing a few bells out there! (kk)

re: MARGARET WHITING:
Margaret Whiting was the daughter of composer Richard Whiting, who died at the peak of his fame in 1938 at the age of 46. His creations include "On The Good Ship Lollipop," "Ain't We Got Fun," "Hooray for Hollywood," "She's Funny That Way," "Till We Meet Again" and, as Lou Christie knows, "Beyond the Blue Horizon."
At the age of seven, Margaret sang for one of her father's collaborators, Johnny Mercer. In 1942, right after helping found Capitol Records, Johnny signed the young lady to his label and the hits began -- among them, "That Old Black Magic" (1942), "Moonlight in Vermont" (1945) and "Now is The Hour" (1947).
Margaret's biggest hit arrived in 1948: the chart-topping "A Tree In The Meadow." As I wasn't born until the following decade -- and, like many people, was long oblivious to the music "before my time" -- I never heard her record until 31 years after it had been made. It's wistful, understated theme of love lost but never forgotten hit home with me and the track remains one of my all-time favorites -- as I told Margaret on one of her many visits to the offices of Reader's Digest Music during the '80s and '90s. Starting in 1969, she had recorded extensively for the Digest, including a note-for-note remake of her then 22 year old "A Tree in The Meadow." Only the fact that the RD version was in stereo gave it away.
Whiting's later hits included "Little Girl Blue,'' Far Away Places," "Forever and Ever," "Baby It's Cold Outside" (with Johnny Mercer), "Slippin' Around" with Jimmy Wakely), "Blind Date" (with Bob Hope), "My Foolish Heart," "A Bushel and A Peck," "I'll Walk Alone," "The Wheel of Hurt," "Only Love Can Break a Heart" and "Until It's Time For You To Go." Between 1942 and 1970 she scored more than 60 times on Billboard's pop, country or easy listening charts.
Ms. Whiting made many appearances on TV variety shows in the '50s, '60s and '70s. She also co-starred (along with her sister, Barbara) in the Desilu sitcom "Those Whiting Girls," which served as the summer replacement for "I Love Lucy" in 1955, 1956 and 1957. Margaret was married four times, including once to Allan Sherman collaborator Lou Busch and, at the end, to porn star Jack Wrangler. Once in a restaurant, in the course of an argument, Jack called out, "But I'm gay!" The unflappable Ms. Whiting purred back, "Only around the edges, dear." Wrangler died in 2009.
Margaret passed away on January 19 at the age of 86. She was both quite a character and a very nice woman. I'm glad I got to know her.
Gary Theroux


re: BEATLES NEWS:
George Harrison’s Sister Writes Autobiography – WCBS-FM 101.1
Kent ...
Now people I never heard of are writing autobiographies.
Frank B.
Actually, Louise was quite instrumental early in The Beatles' career here in The States, helping to get the word out and answering fan mail. If you check out our article "Who Played The First Beatles Record In America", you'll see that George came over to visit her before The Beatles even made their first trip to America in 1964 ... kind of "testing the waters" to see what was happening here musically at the time. He even sat in with a local band ... and Louise got a radio station in downstate Illinois to play The Beatles' latest U.K. record release, too.

Click here: Forgotten Hits - Who Played The Very First Beatles Record In America?
Here's a picture of Louise with long-time FH Reader "Doc Rock" taken a few years back:

John Lennon letters to be published after Yoko Ono sells rights News NME.COM
Kent ...
Do you think a couple of the letters might end with "P.S. I Love You"?
Frank B.

>>>Del Shannon's record came out here in The States before The Beatles' OWN version did! (It peaked at #67 on The Cash Box Chart in July of 1963.) kk

I believe The Beatles version of “From Me To You” is released here before Del Shannon’s. I think it’s from April or early May of ’63. Del’s is the first to chart for sure.
Ken
You're right ... "From Me To You" was released here in The States on May 6th (according to Bruce Spizer's INCREDIBLY informing Vee Jay Records book) ... but it didn't CHART here in The States until the first week of August (and even then only managed to "bubble under" on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles Chart.) Del Shannon's cover version debuted on Billboard's chart on June 29th, which is about five weeks earlier. With a significant amount of airplay on the west coast, "From Me To You" (as an A-Side) sold about 21,000 copies between its May release and the end of the year. In February of 1964, at the height of Beatlemania, it was released again, only this time as the B-Side to the "Please Please Me" single. Despite being a #1 Record back home in Jolly Ol' England, it still only managed a #41 showing here Stateside. (Perhaps more remarkably, "Love Me Do", The Beatles' first British single ... and a pretty primitive recording at that ... went all the way to #1 here in America when it was finally released as a single in April.)
"From Me To You" was the ONLY Beatles record missing from my collection for many, many years. Never released on an album here until after The Beatles broke up (it wasn't even included on the "Hey Jude" album, which finally collected all of the other U.S. releases missing from LP up through that time), I was forced to play the version by The Chipmunks if I wanted to hear this song at home!!! (I never bought the "Please Please Me" single because I had THAT song on my "Introducing The Beatles" LP ... back then, it never dawned on me that I might be missing a B-Side!!!) Didn't make that mistake again once I realized the single was long out of print and I had a hole in my collection!!! (kk)