Rockin' Remnants
Rockin' Remnants is broadcast from WVBR-FM Ithaca. Check out our web page, like us on Facebook, and tune in to 93.5 or stream the show every Saturday night! (Or download the WVBR+ app now available for iOS and Android!)
Date: June 15, 2013
Host: John Simon
Feature: 6-15-68
Tonight you get a 4-hour edition of Rockin' Remnants, with a look at mid-June 1968. American Soul and Rock ‘n’ Roll mixed with cross-over Jazz hits, Brill Building Pop Music, a rare vocal turn by trumpeter (and label-founder) Herb Alpert, and an out-of-the-blue anomaly written by Jimmy Webb and recorded by British actor Richard Harris, which clocked in at 7+ minutes long - and would reach #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the early Summer of 1968! Surrey down to…..Rockin’ Remnants!
Birthday Calendar
June 9 – Jackie Wilson – born in 1934
June 10 – Shirley Alston (The Shirelles) – 72 years old
– Janet Vogel (The Skyliners) – born in 1942
June 12 – Len Barry – 71 years old
June 13 – Marvin Tarplin (Miracles) – born in 1941
June 14 – Rod Argent (Zombies/Argent) – 68 years old
June 15 – Ian Matthews – 67 years old (Fairport Convention; Matthews Southern Comfort)
Rock and Roll Trivia
Clue 1. This R’n’R Hall-of-Famer got his start as an uncredited session guitarist on a string of ‘60s pop hits before becoming a household name in the late ‘60s.
Clue 2. He went on to become an in-house producer-and-arranger for the Immediate Record label before finally leaving to replace guitarist Jeff Beck in the Yardbirds.
Clue 3. The final incarnation of The Yardbirds morphed into one of the most successful rock bands of the ‘70s, and their most acclaimed song was somehow never released as a single - yet it consistently tops “greatest song” lists.
(scroll down to find the answer below the playlist)
Playlist
(songs in bold are from the spotlight date of 6-8-66; yellow song titles are YouTube links; songs with * were requests)
6-7pm
OPENING THEME: Good Old Rock 'n' Roll - Cat Mother & the All-Night Newsboys -1969 - peaked at #29 on the Billboard Hot 100, produced by Jimi Hendrix
Stoned Soul Picnic – Fifth Dimension [#53, headed to #3 Pop and #2 R&B for 4 weeks!]
Time for Livin’ – Association [at #41, headed to #39. Their final Top 40 record]
* Tighten Up – Archie Bell & The Drells [at #6 this week, down from 2 weeks at #1]
This Guy’s In Love With You – Herb Alpert [at #2, headed to a 4-week run at #1]
Soul Serenade – Willie Mitchell [at #33, down from #23 and #10 R&B]
Ain’t Nothin’ Like the Real Thing – Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell [#11, down from #8 Pop and #1 R&B]
Baby You Come Rollin’ Across My Mind – Peppermint Trolley [at #92, headed to #59]
Never Give You Up – Jerry Butler [at #35, headed to #20, #4 R&B]
It Happened Today – The Skyliners [late 1959, on the scratchy 45]
Walk, Don’t Run – The Ventures [#2 in the Summer of 1960]
Each Time – The Searchers [an LP track featuring soaring vocals and 12-string guitar]
When You Walk In The Room – Jackie DeShannon [1 week at #99, January ‘64]
It’s You – The Millennium [studio group assembled by Curt Boettcher recorded an entire Pop/Psych album for Columbia Records in early 1968; this was released as the first single from that album and went absolutely nowhere….]
You Send Me – Aretha Franklin [at #81, headed to #56 Pop, #28 R&B; this was the b-side of Aretha’s big hit called Think, which was headed to #7 Pop and #1 R&B]
* Shoo Be Doo Be Doo Da Day – Stevie Wonder [at #28, down from #9 Pop and #1 R&B. This was after his “Little Stevie Wonder” period, but before his “artistic genius” period]
7-8 p.m. (birthdays) and more from June 15, 1968
Since I Don’t Have You – Skyliners [#12 in early ’59; Ms. Vogel committed suicide in early 1980 at 37 years old]
Tonight’s the Night – The Shirelles [a Top 40 hit from late 1960, co-written by the birthday girl from Passaic, NJ]
(Your Love Keeps Liftin’ Me) Higher & Higher – Jackie Wilson [the original 45 on Brunswick Records from the Summer of ’67, featuring the uncredited Motown musicians called “The Funk Brothers” (moonlighting behind Berry Gordy’s back….]
My Girl Has Gone – The Miracles [from the Fall of ’65, featuring the tasty guitar playing of Marv Tarplin]
She’s Not There – The Zombies [their first hit, written by Rod Argent]
Tell Her No – The Zombies [co-written by Rod Argent; follow up to their first hit]
* Stand By Me – Spyder Turner [originally recorded as a demo of his vocal abilities, this 1967 record mimicked some of the biggest Soul stars of the day, including Jackie Wilson, Smokey Robinson and Chuck Jackson]
A Fork in The Road – The Miracles [recorded live in Detroit, circa 1965. Not released until 2012, but a fine showcase of Marv Tarplin’s guitar work AND the Motown revue at work]
* Woman, Woman – Gary Puckett & The Union Gap [their first big hit, featuring an instrumental track recorded by The Wrecking Crew]
Medley: My Girl/Hey Girl – Bobby Vee [at #63 this week, down from 3 weeks at #35]
Listen Here – Eddie Harris [at #97, headed to #45 Pop, #11&B]
Yours Until Tomorrow – Vivian Reed [at #115, headed only to #113 Pop, #44 Pop. This Carole King composition was recorded by numerous artists including Dee Dee Warwick, Gene Pitney and Cher, but none ever charted nationally - although this version was a Top 20 hit on NYC’s WMCA in June of 1968]
* The Horse – Cliff Nobles & Company [a Top 10 hit originally intended as the instrumental b-side of a vocal version by Cliff Nobles - who never appeared on the hit song that featured his name!]
8-9 p.m. (‘70s Hour)
* Vehicle – The Ides of March [this band started as a bunch of high school chums with a dream before morphing into a “horn band.” This record hit #2 in the Spring of 1970]
* Rubberband Man – Spinners [#2 Pop in the Fall of 1976]
Groovin’ On The Sunshine – The Tokens [from the Summer of 1970 on Buddah Records, this flop single featured the theme song from the new experimental PBS children’s show called “Sesame Street!”]
What a Wonderful Thing We Have – Fabulous Rhinestones [#78 in August of ‘72]
Book of Love – Fleetwood Mac [a Lindsey Buckingham composition from the “Mirage” LP]
* Wildflower – Skylark [blue-eyed soul band from Vancouver, BC]
Magic – Pilot [#5 hit from the Spring of 1975]
Woodstock – Matthews Southern Comfort [written by Joni Mitchell, this version reached #23 in the spring of 1971]
Walkin’ In Rhythm – Blackbyrds [this combo formed at Howard University and reached #6 with this record in early ‘75]
Harry Hippie – Bobby Womack [from late 1972, this 2-sided hit featured Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” on the b-side]
Waiting In Vain – Bob Marley & The Wailers [charted in the UK in 1978]
Going to California – Led Zeppelin [from their 4th LP, featuring the answer to our trivia question]
9-10 p.m. (bonus hour! Back to June of 1968)
Angel of The Morning – Merilee Rush & Turnabouts [at #14, headed to #7]
Take Time To Know Her – Percy Sledge [at #37, down from #11 Pop, #6 R&B]
* MacArthur Park – Richard Harris [at #5, headed to #2]
* Mony Mony – Tommy James & The Shondells [peaking at #3 this week]
I Could Never Love Another – Temptations [peaking at #13 Pop, #1 R&B. The final Temptations single featuring David Ruffin, who’d just been fired from the band after a stormy and contentious -- but hit-filled -- stretch]
I Can’t Hear You – Betty Everett [from June of 1964 on UNI Records]
1-2-3 – Len Barry [reached #2 in the Fall of 1965]
Can I Change My Mind – Tyrone Davis [3 weeks at #1 R&B and made it to #5 on the Pop chart in early 1969]
A Little Like Lovin’ – The Cascades [their first release on RCA Records stalled at #116 in August of 1963; their career was pretty much over]
Be Young, Be Foolish, Be Happy – The Tams [at #108 this week, headed to #61 Pop and #26 R&B]
* 59th Street Bridge Song – Harpers Bizarre [#13 in early ‘67]
* Sky Pilot – Eric Burdon & The Animals [headed to #14 in two weeks]
Goodnight My Love – Jesse Belvin [this classic radio sign-off song never charted on the Billboard Pop charts when released in 1956, although it hit #5 R&B]
CLOSING THEME: Sleepwalk - Santo and Johnny - 1959 - #1 for two weeks
Trivia Answer
A: JIMMY PAGE. In the 60s, he worked as an uncredited session guitar player on hits including "Downtown" by Petula Clark, "Tobacco Road" by the Nashville Teens, and "Here Comes the Night" by Them. He is best known for his work with Led Zeppelin, whose song "Stairway to Heaven" was never released as a single. (Congratulations to Dan from Ithaca, who correctly answered the question and won four tickets to Darien Lake!)
Host Next Week (June 22): Kim Vaughan with a spotlight on 6-22-57
Thanks for tuning in! You can listen to Rockin' Remnants every Saturday night from 6-9pm on WVBR (93.5 FM in Ithaca, NY) or at wvbr.com/listen.
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