May 12, 2018 - JS - Mother's Day Weekend

Rockin' Remnants




Rockin' Remnants is broadcast from WVBR-FM Ithaca. Check out our webpage, like us on Facebook, and tune in to 93.5 or stream the show every Saturday night from 6-9pm! (Or download the WVBR+ app now available for iOS and Android!)







Date:  5/12/18
Host:  John Simon
Feature:  Mother's Day Extravaganza



The luck of the draw: I get the Mother's Day Weekend show tonight on Rockin' Remnants, 2 1/2 months after losing my own mom. Time to turn lemons into lemonade: tonight will be all about the mamas! Maternal advice, mamas' comfort, motherly love, the wrath of the protective lioness/mom.... 6-9 p.m. on 93.5 FM or wvbr.com.

 

Birthday Calendar


May 6 – Bob Seger – age 73
           

May 7 – Jimmy Ruffin – born in 1940
            
May 9 – Tommy Roe – age 76
            – Billy Joel – age 69
            – Dave Prater (Sam & Dave) – born in 1937

May 10 – Larry Williams – born in 1935     


May 11 – Eric Burdon – age 77
           
May 12 – Burt Bacharach – age 90

            – James Purify – age 74
            – Steve Winwood – age 70







Playlist


[songs in bold are from the spotlight date of DATE; yellow song titles are YouTube links; songs with * were requests; all chart information comes from the Billboard Top 100 (for chart dates before/during July 1958) or Billboard Hot 100 (for chart dates during/after Aug 1958) unless otherwise noted]





6-7pm 



OPENING THEME:  Good Old Rock ‘n’ Roll – Cat Mother & the All-Night Newsboys (1969, #29, produced by Jimi Hendrix)

Shop Around - The Miracles (1/61; #2 Pop, #1 R&B for eight weeks - the first million-seller for the Motown family of labels AND its first Billboard #1. Berry Gordy named Smokey a "vice president" at Motown because of this record!)

Mama Didn't Lie - Jan Bradley (1/63; #14 - she had one hit and this was it!)

Only The Strong Survive - Jerry Butler (3/69; #4 Pop, #1 R&B - from the pens of Gamble & Huff AND Butler and featuring the mighty Philadelphia studio band MFSB. Good motherly advice here!)

Mother & Child Reunion - Paul Simon (2/72; #4 - his first solo hit. Many would follow, but this one is just right for tonight's theme.)

*  Mama Said - Shirelles (4/61; #4 Pop, #2 R&B - classy NYC girl group smash)

Hey Leroy, Your Mama's Callin' You - Jimmy Castor (12/66; #31 Pop, #16 R&B - Latin-tinged NYC novelty record on the Smash Records label)

Clapping Song (Clap-Pat-Clap-Slap) - Shirley Ellis (3/65; #8 - one of a string of novelty dance records from the pen of Lincoln "Bo Binkin" Chase. "My mama told me if I was good-y...")

 

* Have You Seen Your Mother Baby - Rolling Stones (10/66; #9 - psychedelic rocker complete with horns and exotic instruments and irreverent lyrics. The Stones were just warming up at this stage but they were already on fire!)

You Can't Hurry Love - Supremes (9/66; #1 Pop and R&B - one of a string of four consecutive #1's for the girls from Detroit, who could also do no wrong at this point.)

45 Corner:  I'll Always Love My Mama, Pt. 1 - Intruders (6/73; #36 Pop, #6 R&B - co-written by Gamble, Huff, McFadden & Whitehead and delivered by one of Philly's finest vocal groups, backed by the blazing instrumentation of MFSB, the house band.)

* Take Time to Know Her - Percy Sledge (4/68; #11 Pop, #6 R&B - recorded in Muscle Shoals, this one was actually played by Percy Sledge himself at Steven Van Zandt's 1982 wedding!)

* Lady Madonna - Beatles (3/68; #4 Pop, #1 UK - Paul McCartney wrote and played this one in the style of Rock 'n' Roll pioneer Fats Domino. Ironically, Fats' final charting single would be a cover of this very record!)

  

Whatever Will Be Will Be (Que Sera) - Doris Day (6/56; #2 for three weeks - the wholesome and lovely Ms. Day had a big hit with this whimsical slice of motherly advice. Two other acts took a crack at it and landed on the charts. Keep listening....)

 

Que Sera Sera (Whatever Will Be Will Be) - Five Keyes (7/63; #47 - this rather raunchy version stood the song on its head  -  and inverted the title.)

* Mammas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys - Waylon & Willie (2/73; #42 Pop, #1 C&W for four weeks - this superstar duo won a Grammy for this performance in the C&W Duet category.)

* Mama Tried - Merle Haggard (7/68; #1 C&W for four weeks - this was a smash on the Country charts that never even scraped onto the Pop chart. The Grateful Dead would cover it in many a live show, though....)

7-8pm

Slow Down - Larry Williams (4/58; dnc - this was the b-side of his "Dizzy Miss Lizzy," and one of the Beatles clearly bought this record - they'd record both sides, making Larry Williams a wealthy man!)

Gonna Give Her All the Love I've Got - Jimmy Ruffin (4/67; #29 Pop, #14 R&B - great dance record about redemption and determination on Motown's "Soul Records" imprint)

Hold On, I'm Comin' - Sam & Dave (4/66; #21 Pop, #1 R&B - featuring the Memphis Horns and Stax Records' studio band Booker T & The MG's.)

Mainstreet - Bob Seger (4/77; #24 - a biographical tune about growing up, with guitar work from studio player Pete Carr.)

Heather Honey - Tommy Roe (4/69; #29 - follow-up to the #1 smash Dizzy with many of the same studio players, but not nearly as successful as its predecessor.)

Gimme Some Lovin' - Spencer Davis Group (4/67; #10 - written by the organ-playing singer Stevie Winwood when he was still a teenager. Tonight we hear a new stereo mix.)

Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood - Animals (4/65; #15 - lead vocal by the scrappy young Eric Burdon.)

* Big Shot - Billy Joel (2/79; #14 - a hard-rockin' tune by the Long Island piano man. The DJ had intended to play Captain Jack by request and hit the wrong button and incorrectly back-announced the record. Sheesh!)

* Always It's You - Everly Brothers (5/60; #56 - this was the B-side of their very first single for their new label. The A-side went all the way to #1 for four weeks! It serves as a dual request: to Bill's wife Gail, and to listener Abby's mother.)

I'm Your Puppet - James & Bobby Purify (9/66; #6 - a stone-cold Soul classic by the two cousins from Florida)

* Come and Get Your Love - Redbone (1/74; #5 - soulful Native American Rock hit, going out by request. If we've got 'em, we'll play 'em for you.)

* Music Box Dancer - Frank Mills (1/79; #3 - this orchestral instrumental from the Canadian pianist was a favorite of the caller's mother. Her name was Muriel Rose and she had nine children in eleven years. Dance on, Muriel!)

* Mama Told Me Not to Come - Three Dog Night (7/70; #1 for two weeks - two people called in to hear this zany piece of motherly advice from the pen of Randy Newman. That ain't the way to have fun, son!)

* Baby Love - Mother's Finest (8/77; #58 - late-Seventies funk on the Epic Records label for Mother's Day! Cool request.)

8-9pm



*  Too Many Fish In the Sea - Marvelettes (1/65; #25 Pop, #15 R&B - the Funk Brothers were at their rollicking best on these mid-Sixties hits. This one was called in from Virginia!)

* Your Mother Should Know - Beatles (1968; dnc - from their Magical Mystery Tour LP. Cryptic yet catchy!)

* I Can Never Go Home Anymore - Shangri-Las (11/65; #6 - a slice of angst-driven mother/daughter tragedy, called in by our own Jazz man. Listener Betsy says "The Shangri-Las were a badass group. Way before their time." Agreed!)

 

* The Look of Love - Dusty Springfield (7/67; #22 - from the pens of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, written for the film Casino Royale. Today was Burt's 90th birthday. Let's show him some love.)

* Pieces of April - Three Dog Night (11/72; #19 - pretty ballad from the pen of Dave Loggins, requested by a listener who has his finger on the pulse.)

Rock 'n' Roll Lullabye - BJ Thomas (2/72; #15 - a moving tribute to teen mothers who were barely babes themselves. This is a stunning record!)

Dry Your Eyes - Brenda & The Tabulations (2/67; #20 Pop, #8 R&B - another tearjerker about a young single mother trying to comfort her baby while she tries to do all of it alone.)

What's Going On - Marvin Gaye (2/71; #2 Pop for three weeks, #1 R&B for five weeks - the title track of his groundbreaking LP addresses grand themes like War and Poverty and Racism - with a beat! "Mother, mother...there's far too many of you cryin'.")

Que Sera, Sera - Mary Hopkin (7/70; #77 - Paul McCartney played guitar and bass, Ringo played the drums and young Mary Hopkin added a mournful twist to this old chestnut.)

  

Home of The Brave - Jody Miller (8/65; #25 - a mother's plaintive lament about schools and bullying and the hard realities of institutional inflexibility.)

Harper Valley PTA - Jeannie C. Reilly (9/68; #1 - an out-of-the-blue anomaly: a crossover C&W hit about the day an angry mother "socked it to" the hypocrites in charge of the local PTA. Look for Pat Paulsen in the short film version of the song  -  one of the first music videos on record!)

 

45 Corner:  Harper Valley PTA Gossip - Effie Smith (11/68; #43 R&B - Harper Valley PTA sparked a made-for-TV movie, along with this spoken-word novelty record by the Black comedienne.)

* Those Were the Days - Mary Hopkin (10/68; #2 for three weeks BB, #1 for six weeks in the UK - this was technically the first single released on the new Apple Records label  -  simultaneously with The Beatles' Hey Jude. The Beatles down held down the top slot here in the States for nine weeks, but not in their native land. The caller said that this had been her mother's favorite song. We'll let it close the show tonight.)

 

CLOSING THEME:  Sleepwalk – Santo & Johnny (1959, #1 for two weeks)











Host Next Week (5/18/18):  Jan Hunsinger with a series on "mini-themes"





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.