Rock'n'Rhythm with Glenn Fisher

11/02/2023

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYkqp1ILsgM
Yesterday we received the sad news that Burt Bacharach, whose prolific output of songs produced so many musical classics, passed away on Wednesday. Throughout my career I have been blessed with having recorded many of the world's greatest love songs, on two occasions devoting albums singling out the work of individuals. In 1968 I concentrated on a collection of magnificent songs written by Burt Bacharach in collaboration with his most frequent songwriting partner, Hal David.
The album was not without its challenges, top of the list being the whittling down of more than 100 eminently appropriate selections to just 12. Then there was the desire to display a wide range of his material, both in style and the artists who originally recorded the songs. While a lot of the numbers had, not surprisingly, been originally recorded by Dionne Warwick, other gems owed much of their success to Dusty Springfield ["The Look of Love"], Billy J. Kramer ["Trains and Boats and Planes"] — a major UK hit before Dionne's release — Perry Como ["Magic Moments"], Bobby Vinton ["Blue on Blue"] and Jackie DeShannon ["What the World Needs Now].
The album was released under the title "Connie Francis Sings Bacharach & David", but in Japan and some other territories they also named it "What The World Needs Now (Is Love)", which I considered highly appropriate. It is one of my personal favorites from the collection and, in thanking Burt for the generosity of his talent and for always being such a perfect gentleman, I am sharing this link to a remastered copy of that beautiful song.
Sleep sweetly Burt. Love, Connie.

13/01/2023

Author reflects on Lisa Marie’s tumultuous, extraordinary life

16/12/2022

26/08/2022

Y'all, it's with sadness that I learned that drummer Jerry Allison, the last of the original Crickets, died yesterday at the age of 82. Jerry and Buddy Holley were high school friends in Lubbock. They started a band and played at roller rinks and gas station grand openings around town. Eventually they named themselves the Crickets with a line-up of Buddy Holley, Allison, Joe Maudlin, and Niki Sullivan. After the band recorded with Norman Petty in 1957, they found success. Though the Crickets only released one album, it is a highly influential early rock and roll release. “Peggy Sue,” “Maybe Baby,” “That’ll Be the Day,” and “Not Fade Away” are legendary tracks today. Allison is credited with co-writing “Peggy Sue” and “That’ll Be the Day.” The story behind "Peggy Sue" is that Allison asked Buddy to change the title of a song in progress, “Cindy Lou,” to “Peggy Sue” to impress his girlfriend Peggy Sue, who later became his wife. After Buddy’s tragic death in a plane crash in 1959, Allison continued to drum with the Crickets featuring a rotating group of musicians. He was a noted session drummer who recorded with Paul McCartney, Waylon Jennings etc...

RIP Jerry Allison!

06/08/2022

Provided to YouTube by IDOLFlower of My Heart (Recorded 1954) · Buddy HollyLive, Interview and Rarities (Collector Sound)℗ Tsk MusicReleased on: 2010-12-13Ly...

31/07/2022

David Letterman interviews Rick Nelson in 1981

08/07/2022

"I was booked to do a PBS show for TJ Lubinsky in Pittsburgh, PA. Jerry Butler introduced us, and I went out and tried to sing but I wasn't able to perform. My voice was very scratchy and I was very hoarse. I went home and doctors found throat cancer... I had an operation on the vocal chords followed by seven weeks of radiation. I was told I needed to find another career, but I didn't give up. I began singing again.
Almost two years later, I went back to TJ and PBS and asked if I could do another concert. TJ was kind enough to allow me to return. I noticed that the audience had many faces that I'd seen the evening I couldn't perform. I was very embarrassed on that occasion, and I asked TJ if I could explain to the audience what had happened to me. I told TJ that he could then edit it out of the tape before it aired. He agreed to allow me to do that, and I told the audience about my having throat cancer and that it was the reason I was unable to sing on the previous show. I thought they were going to edit that out of the show, but they kept it in, and it's on this video clip. I'm so glad they left it in because many people have written to me and told me that they have cancer and that I've inspired them to never give up. That's very humbling." Written by Larry Chance for the Larry Chance and The Earls Fan Club Page.
Picture of Larry Chance & The Earls on the PBS Special. In this picture is the late Danny Girlando (RIP), Bobby T Tribuzio, Chuck Mearizo, Bob Coleman, and in front, Larry Chance
Picture courtesy of Nick Strange

19/05/2022

Baz Luhrmann’s much-anticipated ‘Elvis,’ starring Austin Butler and Tom Hanks, will hit theaters in June. The director talks to AARP about the film.

01/05/2022

26/04/2022

Unreleased recording from the '60's. Eventually included on a CD compilation in the 2000's.

26/03/2022

She really is a true legend and an American treasure.

She is probably the most famous person a lot of you have never heard of, but we’re pretty sure you have heard her. She is Carol Kaye, and today is her birthday.

Carol was a studio musician in LA during the 60's and 70's. Although she is not fond of the term, she is often referred to today as an important member of “The Wrecking Crew”.

Carol played guitar and bass guitar on some TV show themes and a couple of hit songs you have probably heard. The TV show themes that she played on included Cannon, The Streets of San Francisco, Mission: Impossible, M*A*S*H, Kojak, Get Smart, Hogan's Heroes, The Love Boat, McCloud, Mannix, It Takes a Thief, Peyton Place and the Cosby Show. She is credited with performing on the soundtracks of Hawaii Five-O, The Addams Family and The Brady Bunch along with Ironside, Room 222, Bonanza, Wonder Woman, Alias Smith & Jones, Run for Your Life and Barnaby Jones.

Carol has written books, the first of many was "How To Play The Electric Bass". She gave lessons to thousands of students, including John Clayton, Mike Porcaro, Alf Clausen, David Hughes, Tony Sales, Karl E. H. Seigfried, Roy Vogt and David Hungate. Kaye retired from studio work during the 1970s because of arthritis.

Kaye played 12-string guitar on Frank Zappa's album Freak Out!. She also played on a few songs for his next album but declined to continue, saying she found some of the lyrics offensive. Kaye later said Zappa was good-natured and understanding about her qualms and they remained on friendly terms.

Here is a partial list of the songs and albums that Carol has played on. As we said before, you might know one or two of them.

"Soul Reggae" (Charles Kynard)
"Andmoreagain" (Love)
"Homeward Bound" (Simon and Garfunkel)
"California Girls", "Sloop John B", "Help Me, Rhonda", "Heroes and Villains" (The Beach Boys)
"Natural Man" (Lou Rawls)
"Come Together" (Count Basie)
"Feelin' Alright" (Joe Cocker)
"I Think He's Hiding" (Randy Newman)
"Games People Play" (Mel Tormé)
"Cantaro" (Gene Ammons)
"Wait 'Til My Bobby Gets Home" (Darlene Love)
"Goin' Out Of My Head/Can't Take My Eyes Off You" (The Lettermen)
"Little Honda" (The Hondells)
"Hikky Burr" (Quincy Jones & Bill Cosby & TV theme)
"I'm a Believer" (The Monkees)
"Indian Reservation" (Paul Revere & the Raiders)
"In the Heat of the Night", "I Don't Need No Doctor", "America The Beautiful", "Understanding" (Ray Charles)
"It Must Be Him" (Vikki Carr)
"Little Green Apples" (O.C. Smith)
"Midnight Confessions" (The Grass Roots)
"Mission: Impossible Theme" (Lalo Schifrin)
"Mannix Theme" (Lalo Schifrin)
"Out of This World" (Nancy Wilson)
"Wichita Lineman" "Galveston" "Rhinestone Cowboy" (Glen Campbell)
"River Deep - Mountain High" (Ike & Tina Turner)
"Scarborough Fair/Canticle" (Simon and Garfunkel)
"Sixteen Tons" (Tennessee Ernie Ford)
"Somethin' Stupid" (Frank and Nancy Sinatra)
"These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" (Nancy Sinatra)
"This Diamond Ring" (Gary Lewis & the Playboys)
"The Twelfth of Never" (Johnny Mathis)
"The Way We Were" (Barbra Streisand)
"Soul & Inspiration" bass, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" guitar (The Righteous Brothers)
"Carry On" (JJ Cale) - JJ Cale Styles Book
Pet Sounds (The Beach Boys, 1966)
Neil Young (album) (Neil Young)
Light My Fire (Gábor Szabó and Bob Thiele)
Music from Mission: Impossible (Lalo Schifrin, 1967)
Song of Innocence (David Axelrod, 1968)
Songs of Experience (David Axelrod, 1969)
Release of an Oath (The Electric Prunes, 1968)
There's a Whole Lalo Schifrin Goin' On (Lalo Schifrin, 1968)
More Mission: Impossible (Lalo Schifrin, 1968)
Mannix (Lalo Schifrin, 1968)
Bullitt (soundtrack) (Lalo Schifrin, 1968)
The New Don Ellis Band Goes Underground (Don Ellis, 1969)
Dirty Harry (score by Lalo Schifrin, 1971)
Northern Windows (Hampton Hawes)
Big Man (Cannonball Adderley)
Reelin' with the Feelin' (Charles Kynard)
Charles Kynard (Charles Kynard, Mainstream, 1971)
Cameo (Dusty Springfield, 1972)
Joe Williams Live (Joe Williams, 1973)
Hugo In Wonderland (Hugo Montenegro)
Your Good Thing (Lou Rawls)
You've Made Me So Very Happy (Lou Rawls)
The Funky Organization of Henry Cain (Henry Cain)
The Zodiac : Cosmic Sounds
Pride (Pride) (1970)
Thumbs up (Ray Pizzi, Carol Kaye, Mitch Holder)(1999)
Picking Up On The E-String (Carol Kaye) (1995)
Freak Out! (Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention)1965
Absolutely Free (Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention) 1966
Cosmic Brotherhood (Bill Plummer, 1968)
"Then He Kissed Me" (The Crystals)
"Danke Schoen" (Wayne Newton)
"Johnny Angel" (Shelley Fabares)
"La Bamba" (Ritchie Valens)
"Let's Dance" (Chris Montez)
"Needles and Pins" (Jackie DeShannon)
"The Beat Goes On" (Sonny & Cher)
"You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" (The Righteous Brothers)
"The Birds and the Bees" (Jewel Akens), with a Leslie speaker effect
"Mannix Theme" (Lalo Schifrin)

Happy Birthday Carol!!! You are a true American treasure!

18/03/2022

Mike Stoller of the legendary songwriting and record producing partnership of Leiber and Stoller is celebrating his 89th birthday today.

Stoller was born in Belle Harbor, Long Island. His mother had been an actress and a member of the chorus in Gershwin's Funny Face. Nudging her son towards classical piano lessons, Stoller instead rebelled and began playing boogie woogie and bebop jazz in his teens and frequenting the R&B clubs of Harlem. When he was 16 the family moved to Los Angeles and, soon after, the naturally shy Stoller met an outgoing hipster named Jerry Leiber. The two teamed up together and began writing songs, Leiber contributing lyrics while Stoller wrote the music.

They found success as the writers of such crossover hit songs as "Hound Dog" (1952) and "Kansas City" (1952). Later in the 1950s, particularly through their work with The Coasters, they created a string of ground-breaking hits—including "Young Blood" (1957), "Searchin'" (1957), and "Yakety Yak" (1958)—that used the humorous vernacular of teenagers sung in a style that was openly theatrical rather than personal.

Leiber and Stoller wrote hits for Elvis Presley, including "Love Me" (1956), "Jailhouse Rock" (1957), "Loving You", "Don't", and "King Creole". They also collaborated with other writers on such songs as "On Broadway", written with Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil; "Stand By Me", written with Ben E. King; "Young Blood", written with Doc Pomus; and "Spanish Harlem", co-written by Leiber and Phil Spector. They were sometimes credited under the pseudonym Elmo Glick. In 1964, they launched Red Bird Records with George Goldner and, focusing on the "girl group" sound, released some of the notable songs of the Brill Building period.

In all, Leiber and Stoller wrote or co-wrote over 70 chart hits. They were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1985 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.

The Leiber and Stoller partnership lasted over 60 years before Jerry Leiber passed away in 2011.

Stoller is still writing by the way. He works most days in his Hollywood Hills home, which is filled with art, harps and pianos. The harps belong to his wife Corky Hale, a star musician in her own right. Hale played jazz piano for Billie Holiday and harp for Tony Bennett and Liberace.

Stoller says that if he ever gets writer’s block he looks up at his Songwriters Hall of Fame certificate and tells himself: “Hell, if I did it before, I can do it again.”

Stoller will be participating in an Elvis Songwriters Showcase being held at Graceland on August 11th as part of this year’s Elvis Week festivities. Students of the College will receive extra credit for attending this session.

Happy Birthday Mr. Stoller!!

14/03/2022

Bobbie Nelson, longtime pianist in her brother Willie Nelson’s band, died on Thursday, March 10, 2022, at the age of ninety-one. For nearly fifty years, she performed with his group, both in the studio and onstage, and was instrumental in his rise to country music stardom. As Willie acknowledged in a tribute addressed to her, “I would never have become the musician I am without you.”

Born in Abbott, Texas, in 1931, Bobbie was raised, along with Willie, by their paternal grandparents. Her grandmother taught six-year-old Bobbie to play piano and read music, while her grandfather gave Willie, two years her junior, instruction on guitar. The children grew up playing and singing together at home and, on Sundays, at the local Methodist church.

Married at sixteen, Bobbie performed, along with Willie, in her husband’s western swing band in Texas honky-tonks in the late 1940s and early 1950s. In 1973, after more than two decades of not performing together, the siblings reunited musically when Willie asked her to join him and his band to record tracks for his gospel album “The Troublemaker.” She went on to become a permanent onstage fixture in the Willie Nelson Family Band and to perform on many of her brother’s classic LPs, including “Red Headed Stranger” and “Stardust.”

In 2020, Bobbie and Willie published a joint memoir, “Me and Sister Bobbie: True Tales of the Family Band.” Bobbie and her brother played their last public concert together at the Whitewater Amphitheater in New Braunfels, Texas, last October. Willie Nelson always considered her the better musician.

Photo: Alan Mayor

12/03/2022

Emilio Delgado (May 8, 1940 – March 10, 2022)

He was best known for his role as Luis, the Fix-it Shop owner, on the children's television series Sesame Street. Delgado joined the cast of Sesame Street in 1971 and remained until his contract was not renewed in 2016, as part of Sesame Workshop's re-tooling of the series. He made his onscreen debut in 1968 with the Emmy Award-winning Canción de la Raza, the first Mexican-American soap opera. As of 1970, he was the artistic director of the new Mexican-American Centre of Creative Arts, which taught Chicano high school and college students from the basement of the Euclid Heights Community Centre in East Los Angeles. Delgado had remained active in theater, starring in "Quixote Nuevo," a version of "Don Quixote," before the pandemic struck in early 2020. His extensive stage work included serving as artistic director of the Barrio Theatre Ensemble of East Los Angeles. In addition, his legacy also includes years of work as a Chicano rights activist, fighting for social and racial justice. He was part of the United Farm Workers led by César Chávez, and he participated in protests against the Vietnam War. In 2020, Delgado was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. He died from the disease at his home in Manhattan, New York City on March 10, 2022, at the age of 81.

27/01/2022

Sad to see that Don Wilson has passed away. He and his group, The Ventures, were a huge influence on me. As a kid, I listened over and over to songs like Walk Don’t Run and Ghost Riders in the Sky, learning to play guitar and trying to figure out how to make a record. This music is essential Rock and Roll and Don Wilson is a Mountain! Rock On, Don.

22/01/2022

Vale Ronnie Spector

15/01/2022

Sadly the music world lost one of the greats yesterday as Fred Parris passed away after a brief illness.

Fred’s classic song ‘In the Still of the Night’ has been recognized as one of the greatest love songs of all time and the number one requested song of the doo-w*p era. Fred also wrote several other classic songs and his gorgeous voice enthralled audiences world-wide for decades.

The Five Satins family is devastated by this loss but appreciative of having shared Fred’s music with thousands of fans and friends.

Future plans for services will be posted as they become available.

Rest in peace Maestro Fred Parris. 💔