What is it about nice people that attract total idiots?Nice people are martyrs. Idiots are evangelists.

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Friday, April 22, 2016

Time Machine week 69



Well, since I can't do any better than "the Rolling Stones began their first North American tour in Montreal" for our target year of 1965, let me start with this:

Prince has been added to the list of music legends who have died in the year of the Grim Reaper 2016.  The 57 year old singer may not have been one of my top favorites, I may have bad mouthed him for being one of those "not MY music on social media" types, and I may think that his concept of the afterlife ( as explained on 1999) doesn't jive with mine, but gee whiz, I'm beginning to feel like I'm soon gonna be all alone here.  I mean, do you realize we have lost main players from at least 16 R&B #1s, 16 pop #1s, and 60 country #1s- JUST #1s?

I read the news today, oh, boy
about a lucky man who made the grade...






So with that somber note, let's head onto a less somber Time Machine, in which we will have:  a blowout panel #1; the Stones, Beatles, the Bachelors, Sandy Shore, and the Supremes- all on one song; the return of Round Robin; and a six degrees headed off by a dummy, and proving that nowadays, it seems everything goes through Status Quo!  So get out of that Little Red Corvette, climb in the Bobby G. designed multicolored chameleon-mode-stuck-on-jukebox musical Tardis, and we'll party like it's 1965!*

*BYO hallucinogens...

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This week's panel consists of:  KAAY Little Rock, WIBG Philly, KBTR Denver, WKNR Detroit, KXLF Butte, KTSA San Antonio, WAKR Akron, KYA San Fran, KELI Tulsa, WLAV Grand Rapids, WQAM Miami, and WAXY Louisville.  This august bunch produced 24 different songs, including the non- top four #1s I'll Never Find Another You, by the Seekers, and and one I did a feature on last year on May 8th's  TM- because it was on the KYA charts that week as well!  From the semi-legendary TM vol. IV week 23:

Story number two involves the number one from (ironically) San Francisco called Land of 1,000 Dances.  Wait a minute, Chris, you don't know THAT one?   Actually yes, especially the top ten version from wicked Wilson Pickett.  But this version was by a gentleman calling himself Round Robin.  Robin, whom I found out was really Robin Lloyd, was the "West Coast Chubby Checker", and was being promoted on variations of a dance tune called Do The Slauson (Slauson being a street in his LA neighborhood). The Slauson was actually based somewhat upon a song that should be familiar from last week's feature- Bob and Earl's Harlem Shuffle!  His version of LO1,000D crapped out at 135, but he had other singles- and other careers- that were more successful.  He recently posted on a fan forum saying he had been the owner of a company that builds custom homes- "huge, wonderful custom homes", a bandmate on the same forum said- in the Dallas and Plano area for the last 27 years.


So, in other words, KYA had his Land of 1,000 Dances up there for at least three or four weeks.  As a non-charter nationally, though, it becomes our lowest charter on the Panel list.  The lowest one that DID chart?  Bobby Vinton's Long Lonely Nights was #5 in Little Rock but #63 nationally.

Speaking of Land Of 1,000 Dances, the version by Cannibal and the Headhunters also got Panel mention, and was nationally at #34.

And about that Panel Four- which was won in a 47-27 rout, with the winner collecting EIGHT number ones?

Fourth, with no #1s (aww!) and 11 points, the Kinks and Tired Of Waiting, which was #5 on Cashbox this week.

Third, with 14 points and the #1 of Little Rock, Petula Clark with I Know A Place, the national runner-up.

Second, with 27 points and the #1 from Butte, the mind-bent Wayne Fontana and his Mindbenders with The Game Of Love, which topped the national chart.

And at #1, the national #3- stay tuned.

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Three new M10 debuts this week- and one will sound a bit familiar.  The one at #10, however, is not that one.  Actually this lovely young lady came to me courtesy of the lovely young lady currently incubating my future grandcub.  Jessica introduced me to Ruth Behre- who records as Ruth B- who last Thanksgiving graduated from YouTube star to releasing her first EP.  And here's the song I like best on that record:






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So once upon a time in 1977, Status Quo set out to make a music video.  Problem being, their bassist Alan Lancaster, was in Australia with no intention of running back to London to shoot it.  So, in typical Status Quo style,  they dressed up a life-size dummy to look like him, gave "him" a bass guitar, and went on without Alan.  I would have loved to have given you a screen shot, but the video is "owned by UMG (Universal Music Group)" a Franco-American music conglomerate which, like the late Prince, doesn't believe in sharing on social media.

Anyway, the song they were singing was a cover of John Fogerty's Rock All Over The World, from his 1975 solo lp.  That record also had his original of the tune Almost Saturday Night (which peaked at #78), a song I fell in love with when covered in 1981 by Dave Edmunds (which hit #54).  That was on Dave's lp Twangin'.  That lp also contained a song made most famous by George Jones, his 1964 country hit The Race Is On.  And that song, covered a year and change later  (aka target year 1965) by Jack Jones, is the highest national chart hit (#12) that got no panel love.

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Our second debut this week comes from lats week's UK top ten! At #9, I give you Jimmy Ruffin...





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And now, in honor of her 90th birthday Thursday, and with Prince, Merle, and all the other late losses in our lives in mind, a few words from the Queen, Elizabeth II:


Grief is the price we pay for love.


And with that, it's time to...





10- Here we have a band I know I've run into before- but apparently not posted about- the Barron Knights.  The first time I heard them, they were doing a sound alike of various groups being selected to the Army, in a tune called Call Up The Groups.  Funny stuff, and their follow up- one of them, anyway, is the song at #10.  This one imagines many of those same acts- The Stones, the Supremes, the Bachelors, Sandy Shore, Val Doonican, and the Beatles- being drummed out of the music  business and having to work for a living.  It was called Pop Go The Workers, and one section was the "Beatles" to the tune of Love Me Do...

Paul's In Liverpool
And John is shifting coal
and George is down a hole, 
but Ri-i-i-ingo's...
...on the dole...


9- And actually, the song they parodied the Stones on was the one at #9- The Last Time, which was #10 across the pond this week.

8- A massive country crossover that peaked at #3 on the pop chart in March in the US, Roger Miller's King Of The Road.

7- The Yardbirds would reach the top ten in America in July with For Your Love.

6- Also reaching its height here in July (#23), one of my favorites from Donovan, Catch The Wind.

5- In America, Bobby Goldsboro (say, he's getting a lot of mentions lately) would hit top 20 with his tune Little Things; in the UK it was Dave Berry's cover that sat here.

4- Another song that has had a previous TM mention is Unit Four + 2 and Concrete And Clay.  In America, this song was at 86 on its way to a top 30 finish.

3- Cliff Richard with one of those rare songs he actually got to chart here back then- even if it was only at #118- The Minute You're Gone.

2- Van Morrison's band Them was another "wait till July" club member, when they (or Them) would hit #24 with Here Comes The Night.

And tops of the pops?  Well, that song was at 42 in the US of A, on its way to #1 (after spending 4 weeks behind the Panel's #1 this week)...



....the Beatles with Ticket To Ride (which Laurie thought was a Carpenters original until I educated her...)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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And now, the rest of the M10...


8- Erin Passmore and Rah Rah move up one with Fix Me.

7-  The Strawberry Runners with Miss Emi Knight are also up one spot with When We Were Good.

6- Our third debut comes to us from Australian band Redspencer, who sound like a wonderful mix of the Alan Parsons Project and the Strawberry Alarm Clock with this one...






5- With a big boost from what is in my top 3 favorite videos of all time, Carrol jumps five spots with Bad Water.

4- Nada Surf #1- Cold To See Clear slips from 2 to 4.

3- Lucius climbs back UP a notch after two weeks of falling with Madness.

2- Nada Surf #2- Believe You're Mine climbs yet another notch to #2.

And the #1s?

 M10 says...




A third week at the top for the Jayhawks with Quiet Corners and Empty Spaces!!!!!!!


And Panel says...





....Herman's Hermits with Mrs Brown You've Got  A Lovely Daughter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


And that's a wrap for another week.  Tune in next time when the funeral procession Time Machine lands in...1975!

13 comments:

  1. Hi, Chris!

    The rock reaper has indeed been working O.T. this year. As you recall, Prince's protege Vanity died just a few weeks ago.

    I'm happy to see Wibbage, the powerhouse plant in Philly, among your surveyed radio stations in this post.

    1965 was a great year in music - period - case closed - next case. "I'll Never Find Another You" is my favorite recording by the Seekers and one of my favorites of the 60s decade. I remember reading about Round Robin, "the West Coast Chubby Checker," but I was not exposed to his music back east. One thing I have learned in 8 years of blogging is that blog friends who grew up on the West Coast listened to different artists and different styles of music than I did. It's as if we grew up in two different countries! Remember Johnny Carson's recurring bit on The Tonight Show in which he played Art Fern, the "Tea Time Movie" announcer? Part of the sketch involved giving a complicated set of driving directions through the L.A. area. As Wiki reminds us: <>

    "I Know A Place" is my favorite Petula Clark recording. Did you know that "The Game of Love" started long ago in the Garden of Eden? :)

    I like "2 Poor Kids" by Ruth B and agree that she is a cutie and should be entered in your next Beauty Contest. I remember, like and owned "The Race Is On" by Jack Jones, the guy who sang the theme from Love Boat. I'm really happy that you are giving the underrated Jimmy Ruffin his props. I own a rare D.J. copy of the Stones' hit "The Last Time" on green vinyl. The 45 rpm disc cost me $75 and I bought it more than ten years ago. It might be worth a gazillion by now but it can be yours, all yours, good buddy, for half a gazillion!

    My mom and dad constantly tried to steer me away from rock 'n' roll. I remember them buying me Roger Miller's King of the Road album for my 16th birthday. Ironically, I actually enjoyed every track on that long play and it opened me up to an appreciation of country music that I still have today. Thumbs up for the Yardbirds' "For Your Love," Donovan's "Catch the Wind" (covered nicely by Paul Revere & the Raiders), and Bobby G's "Little Things," a recording I liked 1000X more than the weepy "Honey." Unit Four + 2 had the hit with "Concrete And Clay" but in my neck of the woods it was the version by Eddie Rambeau that went radioactive.

    Hey, the Carpenters did a terrific job with "Ticket To Ride" and (spoiler alert) I have it in the pipeline on SDMM. I rather enjoyed the song by Redspencer and the Mrs. Brown" song by Herman's Hermits was one of my favorites back then. Years later, circa 1989, I met Peter Noone when he came to our Tampa TV station for an interview promoting an oldies show he was in.

    Thanks, Chris, and have a Scrappy weekend! (I also want to thank you for leaving a kind message for 104 year old Margaret Schneider. Her daughter Kathleen is posting the replies on my blog this week and has responded to your comment.)

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    1. A bit groggily I come to the answering post today, so bear with.

      I have a BBC story in my little hideaway about just how hard the reaper's been this year. Prolly post on it next week.

      I think I will stay with Downtown for Petula- a certain memory attached to it...

      I'm glad you agree with me on Jimmy. However, even for a great tune like The Last Time, I haven't half a gazillion to spare. Nor anything that ends in "illion".... heck, anything involving money...

      Concrete and Clay I instantly remembered once hitting the chorus as a childhood favorite, and the Raiders take on Catch The Wind I really liked.

      Now there's three of my blog friends that met Peter Noone. The closest I came to celebrity was being waved at by Harry Belafonte.

      I read Kathleen's very nice comment. These are good people. See ya next time!

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    2. For some reason, when I put brackets around my Wiki quote, the whole thing disappeared. Here is the missing section of my comment which explains where I was going with Johnny Carson's Art Fern sketch on The Tonight Show.

      From Wiki:

      Another freeway routine in the same theme centered on the "Slauson Cutoff", a slang term Carson popularized to describe the truncated Marina Freeway (which ended abrubtly at Slauson Avenue in Culver City). Art Fern would advise drivers to take a series of freeways until they reached the Slauson Cutoff, and would then advise them to "Get out of your car, cut off your slauson, get back in your car," often followed by peals of laughter from the audience, led by McMahon.

      Thanks, good buddy!

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  2. He may have made the grade, but Prince don't sound too lucky to me.
    On the bright side, I'm 57, too.
    Wait. Did I just write "bright" side?

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    1. They're getting closer and closer to us, buddy...

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  3. I'm so glad it's Friday! I plan to stay at home this weekend, I know that has nothing to do with you post, but did you see that post on FB about Prince in New York Times? Loved it. Such a sad loss

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    1. Did not see that post- did see the meme with Keith Richards reading the obits and laughing, saying, "Hey, Mick! Guess who we outlived this week!"

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  4. I see you came, you commented, you left. You didn't give me a summer song.

    That isn't how we do it, CW.

    Don't say I never gave you anything...

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5jW9bFaE_w

    :)

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    1. Hah! Funny because I have a long running feud with Al Green over all his songs sounding like Let's Stay Together!


      I apologize, I am very worn out today. A stressful week got topped off by snapping at Laurie over absolute stupidity, and as I told my boss, "I feel like a few too many strands of my bailing wire have been snipped." Better now, but cognitive functions are struggling a bit. I'll be over in a sec with choice #3...

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    2. Well, if it's any consolation we tend to snap off most to the ones we love most. I don't think I'd say that to Laurie, though, if she's still ticked with you. Maybe later.

      I sure do hope that 1) the stress goes away or 2) you find a healthier way to combat it. Isn't it funny how (so often) the things that stress us out most mean the least to us in the end??? Things like work... which are important... but not the be and end-all of life.

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  5. Chris:
    "The year of the Grim reaper"...sure seems that way.

    Did know that about Pickett (great song) did not know that about either Cannibal OR someone named Robin Lloyd.
    --Rock All Over The World - Status Quo, OK.
    Can;t say I heard either the Fogerty OR Edminds version (but I will, trust me).
    --REALLY like that Jimmy Ruffin tune - reminds me of Sam Cooke (ah, those good old days).
    (good pick)
    --Had a feeling the Beatles would top the UK chart this week...the time was perfect.
    --Redspencer - not bad...wouldn't turn it off.
    --Can't argue with EITHER of the choices for #1 this week (now or then).
    As Shady said - 1965 was a GREAT year for music.

    Keep on Rockin' up there brother.

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    1. Funny, I haven't listened to the SQ version yet...

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