February 15, 2025 - GJ - Lonely Hearts

Rockin’ Remnants

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Date: February 15, 2025

Host:  Gregory James

Feature: Lonely Hearts

Birthday Calendar

February 9

Bobby Lewis            1925

Carole King (Klein)          83 years old

Barry Mann             86 years old

Barbara Lewis         82 years old

February 10

Roberta Flack 88 years old

February 11

Gerry Goffin 1939

Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett 1938  

Sergio Mendez 1941

Gene Vincent 1935

February 12

Ray Manzarek (Doors keyboards) 1939   

Michael McDonald   73 years old

February 13

Peter Tork (Monkees) 1942

Peter Gabriel 75 years old

February 15

Brian Holland  (HDH) 84 years old

Marvin Gaye    1939

Melissa Manchester 74 years old

Rock n’ Roll Trivia

In the 6:00 hour I played two pairs of songs by two different groups with the same title.  What was the title and who were the groups?   

(scroll down to find the answer below the playlist)

Playlist

* 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 subsequent dates) unless otherwise noted

* glossary of terms is below the playlist

6:00-7:00 

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

Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band   1967  NR

As portrayed in the album cutout, the fictional Sgt. Pepper was actually a photograph of the real Major General James Babington.

Lonely Teardrops  Jackie Wilson  1959  #7 H100  #1 RB

Co-composer Berry Gordy famously used the revenue generated by this record to found Motown Records. 

Lonely School Year   Hudson Brothers   1975  #57  

Bernie Taupin helped the Hudson Brothers to write the song which was released on Elton John’s Rocket Records label.

Only the Lonely Roy Orbison    1960  #2 H100 #24 RB

Orbison originally offered the song to Elvis Presley and the Everly Brothers, who declined to record it. The backing vocals were by the Anita Kerr singers.

Long Lonely Nights    Clyde McPhatter   1957  #49

Oh Lonesome Me We Five  1970 NR

From an album of covers on the Vault label called “Catch the Wind.”

Lonely Boy  Andrew Gold   1977  #7

Possibly an autobiographical account of sibling rivalry. 

Lonely Boy   Paul Anka  1959  #1

This was Anka’s first Hot 100 chart topper.

Lonely Boy, Lonely Guitar    Duane Eddy  1963  #82

The Blossoms sang the lyrics written by Lee Hazlewood.

Lonely Street  Clarence Henry  1961  #57 H100  #19 RB

*So Lonely    Police    1979   DNC

Sting has said that he based the song on Bob Marley’s “No Woman No Cry.” Requested by Scottie for Peggy.

So Lonely    Hollies  1965

This was the B-Side to their hit “Look Through Any Window.”

Mr. Lonely  Bobby Vinton    1964   #1

Epic Records declined to release Mr. Lonely as a single when it was first released. When the song was included on Vinton’s Greatest Hits album, it became an album track favorite on radio and was finally released as a single.

Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight     James Taylor  1973  #14

With this track, JT won the 2002 Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance. Michael Brecker played the cool as heck tenor sax solo.

The Lonely Surfer  Jack Nitzsche  1963  #39 

Twangy guitar was all the rage in the '60's. On this track, Bill Pitman played the melody on a six string bass guitar.

Lonesome Town  Ricky Nelson  1958  #7 H199  #15 RB

The backing singers were the Jordanaires.

The Lonely Bull   Herb Alpert and Tijuana Brass  1962  #6

The Tijuana Brass was actually Herb Alpert multi-tracked, augmented by the Wrecking Crew.

7:00-8:00

Tossin’ and Turnin’ Bobby Lewis   1961  #1 RB and H100

Released on the Beltone label. Billboard named it the number one single of 1961.

Nightingale      Carole King    1975   #9

Carole King’s daughters Louise and Sherry sang backup.

Just A Little Lovin’  Dusty Springfield  1969  B-side

The instrumental tracks for this Barry Mann composition were recorded at American Recording Studios in Memphis, which was the studio of choice for several subsequent “Memphis sound” albums in the 1960s and ‘70s.

Baby I’m Yours    Barbara Lewis   1965   #11 H100  #5 RB

The composer Van McCoy was one of the backing vocalists. 

Compared to What     Roberta Flack   1969  NR

Ron Carter played the driving bass line on Roberta Flack’s first single from her first album “First Take.”

I’m Into Something Good   Earl-Jean  1964  #38

This was the original version of the Goffin-King song that had greater success later in 1964 (and forever after) by Herman’s Hermits.

Skully Gully     Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett and The Crypt Kickers  1962 NR

Leon Russell was one of the Crypt Kickers. Robert George Pickett is pictured below.

Pretty World      Sergio Mendes/Brasil ‘66   1969  #62

I’m Goin’ Home    Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps   1961  DNC

Riders on the Storm   The Doors   1971  #14

One of Ray Manzarek’s best electric piano solos for the Doors.

Here to Love You    Doobie Brothers    1982   #65

Rosemary Butler sang backing vocals for Michael McDonald and Andrew Love played saxophone.

Shades of Gray Monkees  1967  DNC

Peter Tork split lead vocals with Davy Jones on this track from their soundtrack album for the film “Headquarters.”

Solsbury Hill Peter Gabriel  1977   #68

Peter Gabriel’s first solo single. Guitar by Steve Hunter, strings by the London Symphony Orchestra, random background voices by “Your Guess Is As Good As Mine.”

Too Hurt to Cry, Too Much in Love to Say Goodbye   Darnells  1963  #117

Lead singers on this Holland Dozier Holland song were  Gladys Horton and Wanda Young of the Marvelettes, and Louvain Demps of the Andantes.

Baby Don’t You Do It     Marvin Gaye   1964  #27

This was the first time that Motown’s top session girl group the Andantes sang back up on a Marvin Gaye record.

Just Too Many People   Melissa Manchester  1975  #30

8:00-9:00

Lonely Blue Boy   Conway Twitty  1960  #6 H100  #27 RB

Some great guitar reverb and a lot of vocal fry.

Lonely Avenue   Ray Charles   1956   #6 RB

Lonely Night  Neil Sedaka  1975  DNC   //Capt. and Tennille  1976  #3

This was Sedaka’s biggest hit as a lyricist.

Lonely Saturday Night  Don French  1959  #72

This was one of two singles French recorded for Lancer Records.

Lonely Island  Sam Cooke  1958  #26 H100  #10 RB

*Hey There Lonely Boy   Ruby and the Romantics   1963  #27

Lonesome Loser   Little River Band  1979  #6

A big hit from the Australian super group.

Lonesome Road   Stevie Wonder 1966  NR

The backing singers were The Originals and the Andantes, Motown’s in-house vocal ensembles. 

Here Comes That Feeling   Brenda Lee  1962  #89

The song was written by Dorsey Burnette and Joe Osborne.

Lonely Too Long   Young Rascals   1967  #16 H100  #33 RB

Lonely Teenager   Dion  1960  #12

This was Dion’s first solo single.

Are You Lonesome Tonight   Elvis Presley  1960   #1 H100  #3 RB

Recorded at four in the morning in a darkened studio. After the first take Presley believed, in his own words, that he “could not do the song justice.”  The producers coaxed one more take out of Elvis, which became the master for the final version.

Heartbreak Hotel    Willy Nelson/Leon Russell  1979  DNC

From their double album “One for the Road.” Mickey Raphael on harmonica, Marty Grebb on sax.

Lonely People   America   1975  #5

Dan and Catherine Peek wrote the song as an answer to “Eleanor Rigby.”

I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry  BJ Thomas & The Triumphs   1966  #8

This was the title track from his first album release. 

That Lonesome Road   James Taylor   1981

Out of a chorus of seven, the sole woman singing backing vocals on this track was Jennifer Warnes.

Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart Club Band Reprise  1967

Coming full circle on this Lonely Hearts edition of Rockin’ Remnants, you heard the vocal track that reveals what brilliant Beatle harmonies lie beneath their pulsing instrumentation. 

CLOSING THEME: Sleep Walk – Santo and Johnny (1959, #1 for two weeks)

Trivia Answer

“So Lonely” by The Police and The Hollies

"Lonely Boy" by Andrew Gold and Paul Anka

Congratulations to Dave from Ithaca for answering the question correctly and winning soup and bread from Ithaca Bakery.

Glossary of Terms:

DNC = did not chart

NR = not released as a single at the time

H100 = Billboard Hot 100

RB = Billboard’s chart of rhythm and blues records

Host February 22: Kim Vaughan 

Thanks for tuning in! You can listen to Rockin’ Remnants every Saturday night from 6-9 p.m. Eastern on WVBR (93.5 FM in Ithaca NY) or streaming on WVBR.com.

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