August 19, 2023 - JS - No Theme

 

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!)

 

Thanks to our sponsors Island Health & Fitness and Rasa Spa for their support every week!

Date:  8/19/23

Host:  John Simon

Feature:  No Theme

 

I wasn't scheduled to be back on until September, but was gifted this last-minute opportunity from my buddy KV. No real theme tonight, but lots of good tunes and a pretty cool birthday calendar. C'mon by!

 

 

(scroll down to find a glossary of terms)

 

 

Playlist

 

 

·      YouTube links follow certain entries

·      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

·      a glossary of terms is below the playlist

 

 

 

6-7pm 

 

 

 

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

 

Oh My Angel - Bertha Tillman (5/62; #61 - she was a "one-hit wonder," and this was it. Not really a "hit," per se - but a very tasty ballad. Tonight we hear a specially-rendered stereo version, making it that much tastier.)

 

One Step Ahead - Aretha Franklin (5/65; #119 Pop, #18 R&B - young Aretha had been signed to Columbia Records, who knew that they'd discovered a special talent - but they never quite knew what to do with her. She sang some standards, some torch songs, some Jazz numbers and even a version of "Bill Bailey Won't You Please Come Home." This was one of her final Columbia releases, and it sounds closer to her Atlantic material, which would finally elevate her to "Queen of Soul" status.)

 

You Never Can Tell - Chuck Berry (8/64; #14 - Chuck Berry spent 1962 and 1963 in jail on trumped-up charges, but came back with a string of great new singles. This one came on the heels of "Nadine" and "No Particular Place To Go," making it a trifecta of Rock 'n' Roll classics.)

 

Save It For Me - 4 Seasons (9/64; #10 - the Jersey Boys were at the peak of their collective powers, and were holding their own during the height of the British Invasion. This was the follow-up to their #1 smash "Rag Doll," and they were just warming up!)

 

I Think We're Alone Now - Tommy James & The Shondells (2/67; #4 - here's another NYC-area band that was in peak form, and singlehandedly keeping Roulette Records in the black. Their follow-up to this single would be "Mirage," which actually used this same backing track  -  but played backwards!) 

 

Sailor Boy - Chiffons (8/64; #81 - "Soldier Boy" had been a big hit for The Shirelles, and this one was clearly intended to capitalize on their rivals' success. It's a sweet little record that didn't do very well. Tonight we hear it on a slightly scratchy 45 from a radio station library.)

 

Hello Stranger - Barbara Lewis (5/63; #3 Pop, #1 R&B for two weeks - this is a song written by Barbara Lewis and featuring background vocal support from The Dells, who were a fixture at Chess Studios in Chicago. Atlantic signed the contract and bought themselves a bona fide hit!)

 

I Fought The Law - Bobby Fuller Four (1/66; #9 - this is the first of two "incarceration-related records" as I announced on the air. Rolling Stone Magazine ranks this one at #177 in its list of the 500 greatest singles of all-time. Bobby Fuller was well on his way to a successful career until he died under suspicious circumstances. The music business was fraught with danger and shady characters.)

 

I've Gotta Get a Message to You - Bee Gees (8/68; #8 Pop, #1 UK - this brother act was proving itself more than a fluke and a novelty, but no one could predict how far they'd go in the late Seventies as they continually reinvented themselves and changed with the times.)

 

Lazy Day - Spanky & Our Gang (10/67; #14 - Gregory James played this same song two weeks ago, but tonight we hear the rare version that used to only be available on their vinyl Greatest Hits LP: listen at about the 1:30 mark for a series of "hellos" across the stereo field. By the way, this is the perfect weather-day for a song like this!)

 

*  Wear Your Love Like Heaven - Donovan (11/67; #23 - more sunshine Pop from the Fall of 1967. This one goes out from Scottie to Peggy with love. It's Scottie's birthday tomorrow, so it goes out to him too!)

 

What Does It Take (To Win Your Love) - Jr. Walker & The All-Stars (5/69; #4 Pop, #1 R&B - just as Herb Alpert had done a year earlier, sax player Junior Walker sang this sweet melody using his "indoor voice" as opposed to barking out the words and blaring his horn. The result was his second #1 single! BTW - co-writers included Johnny Bristol and Harvey Fuqua.)

 

Don't You Care - Buckinghams (3/67; #6 - this Chicago outfit charted five Top Ten hits in 1967, making them the most successful singles band of the year. James Holvay wrote many of their hits, and continues to record to this very day.)

 

45 Corner:  There's An American Flag On The Moon - Jon & Robin (8/69; dnc - the Summer of '69 was famous for Woodstock which ended on August 18th, the Manson murders in Laurel Canyon and the Moon Landing, which mesmerized the world on July 20th. This novelty record was recorded to commemorate the occasion. Tonight we hear the yellow vinyl radio station promo 45, corny as it may be!)

 

Armstrong - John Stewart (9/69; #74 - clearly moved by the magnitude and universal appeal of the event, veteran Folk songwriter John Stewart recorded this tasteful gem. Capitol Records rush-released it, but it failed to make as much noise as it deserved. We'll fix that tonight.)

 

Volunteers - Jefferson Airplane (8/17/69; NR - the Jefferson Airplane were scheduled to play late Saturday night, but they finally took the stage at 9am on Sunday  -  after sets by The Grateful Dead, CCR, Janis Joplin, Sly & The Family Stone and, finally, The Who. Hence Grace Slick's intro: "You have seen the heavy groups. Now it's morning maniac music." Unless you were there, you probably didn't realize that that intro was deftly edited onto the record. Here it is in true context.) 

 

*  Fly Me To The Moon - Frank Sinatra (8/64; NR - this was recorded on the Sinatra/Basie LP It Might As Well Be Swing, and the Apollo 11 astronauts apparently brought a tape recording of it on the mission - which they then played from the moon! Suggested by listener David in Vancouver to wrap up our Apollo 11 tribute.)

 

 

 

7-8pm

 

 Birthday Calendar

 

 

August 13 – Dan Fogelberg – born 1951

August 14 – Dash Crofts (Seals & Crofts) – age 84

            – David Crosby – born in 1941

 

August 15 – Bobby Helms – born in 1933

            – Jimmy Webb – age 77

 

August 16 – Eydie Gorme – born in 1928

            – JT Taylor (Kool & Gang) – age 70

 

August 17 – Belinda Carlisle (Go-Gos) – age 65

 

August 18 – Maxine Brown – age 84 

 

August 19 – Ginger Baker (Cream) – born in 1939

            – Johnny Nash – born in 1940

            – Billy J. Kramer – age 80

             – Ian Gillan (Deep Purple) – age 78

 

 

Part of The Plan - Dan Fogelberg (2/75; #31 - duet vocal with Graham Nash. Producer Joe Walsh played 12-string and slide guitar, while multi-instrumentalist Dan Fogelberg provided acoustic and electric guitars, piano, organ and multiple vocal lines.)

 

Song With No Words (Trees With No Leaves) - Crosby & Nash (5/71; NR - duet vocal with Graham Nash from Crosby's album If I Could Only Remember My Name. Beautiful interweaving vocals over a classic open-tuned Crosby guitar.) 

 

Diamond Girl - Seals & Crofts (5/73; #6 - duet partner Jim Seals passed away last year, but these guys scored three #6 records between 1972-1976. This is the one in the middle.)

 

My Special Angel - Bobby Helms (10/57; #7 Pop, #1 C&W for four weeks - according to Billboard, Bobby Helms charted twelve times. Six of those times were with "Jingle Bell Rock," but this one stands alone as his biggest hit  -  especially on the Country chart, where it spent four weeks at #1.)

 

By The Time I Get To Phoenix - Glen Campbell (10/67; #26 Pop, #2 C&W - songwriter Jimmy Webb got his start as an unsuccessful writer for Motown, but this is the song that landed him on the map when Johnny Rivers heard it and recorded it. Glen Campbell's version won two Grammy awards, and Frank Sinatra is quoted as saying it is "the greatest torch song ever written." Tonight we hear the punchy mono version.)

 

I Want To Stay Here - Steve & Eydie (7/63; #28 - we continue our spotlight on birthday duets with this confection written by the duo of Gerry Goffin and Carole King. Steve and Eydie famously met on television's Tonight Show, and they performed together until Eydie's retirement in 2009.) 

 

Oh No Not My Baby - Maxine Brown (10/64; #24 - this one is a virtual duet vocal with an uncredited Dee Dee Warwick, again written by the duo of Goffin-King. Maxine was reticent to cut the song, but she took the demo home to practice. The next morning she woke up by an open window to hear neighborhood girls singing it while skipping rope, and she knew that it would be a hit.)

 

Too Hot - Kool & The Gang (1/80; #5 Pop, #3 R&B - the Jersey Funk band changed their groove with the addition of vocalist James Taylor in 1979, and their new cosmopolitan sound yielded a string of big hits on both charts.)

 

Our Lips Are Sealed - Go-Go's (8/81; #20 - Belinda Carlisle handled lead vocals until she struck out on her own. They were one of the first all-girl bands that wrote their own material and played all of the instruments.)

 

As Time Goes By - Johnny Nash (3/59; #43 - before tapping into his Jamaican roots, Johnny was being molded as a Johnny Mathis-style crooner. One of his first successful recordings was with this song from the film Casablanca, heard here in stunning stereo.)

 

Bad To Me - Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas (5/64; #9 Pop, #1 UK for three weeks - three of their first four charting singles were written by Lennon-McCartney, who paved the way for lots of British Invasion groups in the spring of '64.) 

 

White Room - Cream (10/66; #6 - lyricist Pete Brown passed away several months ago, and this record clocks in at #376 in the RS500. Tonight we hear the mono 45 version, edited down to 3:04 from the five minute album version. Ginger Baker's drumming leaps out in mono!)

 

Smoke On the Water - Deep Purple (5/73; #4 - the lyrics were written by lead singer Ian Gillan, and tell the tale of the fire that burned down the studio they were recording in. Rolling Stone ranks this record at #434 in the RS500.)

 

 

 

8-9pm

 

*  Follow You, Follow Me - Genesis (4/78; #23 - Peter Gabriel had left the band and they weren't sure what they were going do - but then drummer Phil Collins took the mic and the band released their album "Then There Were Three." The rest is history! Going out to Bob in the hills of Newfield.)

 

Tribute to Jerry Moss co-founder of A&M Records with Herb Alpert:

Alpert and Moss famously launched their record label on a handshake, in a garage and humble beginnings as they each contributed $100. Thanks to their early success—revenues reportedly grew from $500,000 in 1964 to $30 million in 1967. The stunning environment became a magnet for talent and A&M Records grew into the largest independent record label in the world, as it championed the art of the artist.

 

 

The Lonely Bull - The Tijuana Brass Featuring Herb Alpert (10/62; #6 - this was A&M Records' very first release, and the band name was suggested by Jerry Moss. Herb Alpert recorded it in a garage using studio players, but it was the beginning of a new band, a new sound and a new record label.)

 

Come Saturday Morning - Sandpipers (6/70; #17 - this song from the soundtrack to The Sterile Cuckoo peaked at #83 in late 1969, but it was its nomination for an Academy Award and the success of the movie that led A&M to reissue it several months later. This time it cracked the Top 20, although it lost the Oscar to Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head.)

 

Peace Train - Cat Stevens (9/71; #7 - in addition to these three acts, A&M signed artists ranging from Joe Cocker and The Carpenters to Procol Harum and Joan Armatrading. Cat Stevens, though, was one of their biggest sellers.)

 

Someday Soon - Judy Collins (2/69; #55 - Stephen Stills played acoustic guitar as well as bass on this track. Buddy Emmons played pedal steel and James Burton played the electric guitar licks. The writer was Canadian Ian Tyson. It was the perfect song for a Colorado girl to sing, and a near-perfect record, to boot.)

 

You're Only Lonely - John David Souther (9/79; #9 - JD Souther was deeply entrenched in the Laurel Canyon scene, and worked closely with Linda Ronstadt as a writer and duet partner. When it was time to record, he enlisted a bunch of his friends as back-up singers. This song includes Jackson Browne, Phil Everly, Glenn Frey, Don Henley and Don Felder. It was his only Top Ten hit as a solo artist, although he co-wrote three chart-toppers with the Eagles.)

 

Just Don't Want To Be Lonely - Ronnie Dyson (8/73; #60 Pop, #29 R&B - Ronnie Dyson was discovered in the Broadway cast of Hair, and his impressive vocal range led to a recording contract with Columbia Records. He pursued a career in theater and released a string of records, but he never fully caught on. The Main Ingredient would take this song to greater heights, but this is my favorite version.)

 

(What A) Wonderful World - Art Garfunkel (1/78; #17 - this is a case where Artie called in a couple of HIS heavyweight friends to join him on a re-make of Sam Cooke's classic - which was co-written by Herb Alpert, by the way. James Taylor and Paul Simon were two of the era's greatest writers, and between them they added one more verse to this harmonic convergence.)

 

45 Corner:  White Bird - It's a Beautiful Day (1/69; #108 - band leader, composer, violinist and singer David LaFlamme passed away last week at age 82. This was probably his "greatest hit," getting LOTS of airplay on FM radio in the Seventies and beyond, but that was the 6+ minute version. Columbia Records released this 45 edit that took much of the air out of the majestic album version. If you missed it last week [as I did], here it is again on a scratchy radio station promo 45.)

 

Never Give You Up - Jerry Butler (5/68; #20 Pop, #4 R&B - the Chicago Soul singer known as "The Iceman" had relied on his lifelong friend Curtis Mayfield for material and production and career guidance, but finally signed with Gamble & Huff for a change of sound and fortune. His Philly material is some of his best work, and this is right up there with anything being released in the late Sixties!) 

 

The Fever - Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes (8/76; dnc - two of the greatest bar bands on the Jersey Shore shared venues and personnel and material. The other one was called "The E Street Band," and member Bruce Springsteen passed some his leftovers to Steven Van Zandt and Southside Johnny. This is one of those, and for a while this B-side was the only recorded version available - although WVBR had a rare pressing by the E Street Band that got a lot of play back in the Seventies. For my money, we're hearing the definitive version tonight.)

 

 

 

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

 

 

 

 

 

Glossary of Terms:

dnc = did not chart

nr = not released as a single at the time

AC = Billboard’s chart for “Adult Contemporary” records

BB = Billboard Magazine, which publishes the Hot 100 chart (previously known as the Top 100), along with several other charts

Bubbling Under = songs that were ranked but fell below the top 100

C&W = Billboard’s chart for “Country & Western” records

R&B = Billboard’s chart for “Rhythm & Blues” records

RRHOF = Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

RS500 = Rolling Stone Magazine’s ranked list of the top 500 singles of all-time

 

 

 

 

Host Next Week (9/26/23):  Gregory James with a spotlight called "Chart Makers and Heart Breakers."

 

 

 

Thanks for tuning in - and for voting us Ithaca's Best Local Radio Show in this year's Ithaca Times Readers' Poll! 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.

 

Thanks, too, to our sponsors Island Health & Fitness and Rasa Spa for their support every week!