Wisdomoftheoldies

What ever happened to Paul and Paula?

Sun, 14 Nov 2021 22:46:01 +0200

If you turned on the radio in late 1962 or early 1963, you almost certainly would have heard a young couple singing about their desire to tie the knot.

Hey, hey Paula, I want to marry you
Hey, hey Paula, no one else will ever do
I've waited so long for school to be through
Paula, I can't wait no more for you
My love, my love

Hey Paul, I've been waiting for you
Hey, hey, hey Paul, I want to marry you too
If you love me true, if you love me still
Our love will always be real
My love, my love

“Hey Paula” was a song recorded by the duo Ray Hildebrand and Jill Jackson. Hildebrand was a student at a small college in Texas and Jill was the niece of the owner of the boarding house where Ray lived.

“Hey Paula” sold 2 million records and remained the #1 tune on the Billboard Charts for the entire month of February, 1963. Evidently, Ray and Jill were never an item. But what about the young lovers in the song?

According to statistics, high school sweethearts who marry as teens have a 54% chance of their marriage lasting a decade. Only 19% of those teens ever attend college. So, it’s highly likely Paul and Paula went their separate ways by 1974.

Still, it is one of those songs that makes you speculate about what may have happened.

For instance, Carol King in “It Might as Well Rain Until September” spends months sitting home writing letters, waiting for her sweetheart to return. But what if the unnamed boyfriend met someone else while away? Would Carol kick herself for frittering away an entire summer?

In “Meet Me at Midnight Mary”, Mary’s Dad is the boss man who thinks her boyfriend is a total loser. But we learn she has married him anyway despite a potentially bleak future.

Soon as I have some money

For a home and everything
We won't have to keep it a secret
That you've got my wedding ring.

Boy, wait till Daddy finds out! Did her folks have the marriage annulled? Or did the newlywed work hard and become a big man in town?

Then there is Lesley Gore in “Judy’s Turn to Cry.” How long will it take for that fickle creep Johnny to turn his attention to some other cute chick?

We can only guess. So what do you think?

Are Paul and Paula somewhere looking forward to their 60^th wedding anniversary? Or was their marriage on the rocks decades ago?

Chuck Berry had a more optimistic take on young love in “You Never Can Tell.”

It was a teenage wedding, and the old folks wished them well
You could see that Pierre did truly love the mademoiselle
And now the young monsieur and madame have rung the chapel bell
"C'est la vie", say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell.

Drop me a note if you get an invite to the P & P anniversary bash.

A second day the "music died. "

Mon, 08 Mar 2021 20:34:04 +0200

Over 60 years ago a tragedy struck the world of rock and roll when three of its brightest stars fell from the sky. It was February 3^rd, 1959 when a plane carrying Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and J.P. “the Big Bopper” Richardson crashed into an icy field in Iowa.

What greatness awaited Buddy Holly?

Valens was 17 and Richardson 28. Buddy Holly was only 22 but had already released three albums with hits including “Peggy Sue” and “That’ll be the Day”. His brief musical career influenced performers from the Beatles and Mick Jagger to Bruce Springsteen.

Small wonder February 3^rdis often referred to (with inspiration from Don McLean) as “the day the music died.”

When you think of Buddy Holly, it is easy to wonder what might have been. Where would his unique talents have taken him?

This past February 3^rd,I started thinking about another uniquely talented singer who left this earth far too soon: Jim Croce.

Just months after “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” hit the charts, Jim Croce died in a plane crash near Natchitoches, Louisiana. He was 30 years old. His first solo album had been released the year before and included the hits “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim”, “Operator” and “Time in a Bottle”.

Croce and son Adrian James

Croce had been trying to make it as a singer/songwriter since 1966. To make ends meet he often took odd jobs and was in the Army National Guard for a short time. After his son was born in 1971, he paid the bills driving trucks and working construction. During those days he wrote songs about unusual characters he met at bars and truck stops.

In fact, most of Croce’s songs were inspired by observing everyday life. During his stint in the Army he watched soldiers lined up to call home, often receiving “Dear John” news from girlfriends and wives. The result was the song “Operator (That’s Not the Way it Feels).”

Operator, well, could you help me place this call?
See, the number on the matchbook is old and faded
She's living in L. A. with my best old ex-friend Ray
Guy, she said she knew well and sometimes hated

-Jim Croce

The posthumous release of Croce's third album I Got a Name in December 1973 included three hits: "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues," "I'll Have to Say I Love You in a Song" and the title track. The cleverly written “Car Wash Blues” is one of my personal favorites.

Well, I had just got out from the county prison
Doin' ninety days for non-support
Tried to find me an executive position
But no matter how smooth I talked
They wouldn't listen to the fact that I was genius
The man say, "we got all that we can use"

Now I got them steadily depressin', low down mind messin'
Working at the car wash blues

-Jim Croce

“Time in a Bottle” is one of Croce’s most beloved songs. Interestingly, it was never intended to be a single. However, after his untimely death, the song was re-released and hit #1.

Time in a Bottle (music and lyrics)

As with Buddy Holly, it is easy to wonder what might have been. Thanks to so many of his thoughtful and engaging songs, he is remembered as one of the most superb songwriters and guitarists of his time.

But Croce’s future was about to take a dramatic turn before the plane crash. He found himself becoming increasingly homesick while touring. He wrote to wife Ingrid he had decided to take a break from music to be with the family. He wanted to write short stories and movie scripts for a living. Maybe pursue a master’s degree.

The letter arrived after his death.

Hot fun in the summertime

Wed, 27 May 2020 20:15:21 +0200

Growing up in the 1960s, we looked forward to the Memorial Day weekend knowing cold weather was officially behind us and those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer were just around the corner.

That three-day weekend also signaled school was out, shorts were in, and the radio needed be cranked up high. Really high. Because the tunes blasting from our car and transistor speakers would become soundtrack of our lives from June till September.

Over that decade, we were fortunate to have an amazing array of songs to accompany us while having fun in the sun, cruising with friends, dancing, or maybe having a summer fling.

The best of those songs stay in our hearts forever and never grow old. I love “I Get Around” as much today as when I first heard it in 1964. They also bring back very vivid memories. I can almost hear the surf and smell the hot dogs sizzling when I listen to “Under the Boardwalk”.

Everyone has a cherished summer favorite. Here are a few of mine. Did I miss one of your classics? Let me know.

In the meantime, during this most unusual and worrying summer, please practice social distancing. And don’t forget he Coppertone.

My 60s summer picks (in no particular order.)

1. “The Twist.”

Add caption

Chubby Checker’s catchy dance tune (originally recorded by Hank Ballard) was at the top of the charts throughout the summer of 1960. The dance became hugely popular because virtually anyone from kids to seniors could do it. It hit #1 in September and again in the winter of 1961. To my knowledge, it is the only song to hit #1 twice (using the original version).

2. “The Locomotion “by Little Eva

When the husband and wife songwriting team of Carole King and Gerry Goffin penned the song, they didn’t originally envision it as being an actual dance. Their baby sitter Eva Boyd recorded the song as a demo and later invented a dance she performed during personal appearances. It hit number one in July of 1962. After the song became a million seller, Little Eva gave up her babysitting job and bought a place of her own.

3. “I Get Around” by the Beach Boys

A single from the album All Summer Long, “I Get Around” is an irresistible mixture of surf guitars and doo-wop harmonies. The bass was played by a then-unknown studio musician named Glen Campbell. The song hit #1 in July of 1964.

4. “The Letter” by the Boxtops

At 1:58, “The Letter” was the last #1 hit to be shorter than two minutes. It was at the top of the charts during the entire summer of 1967 and finally reached the top spot in September. It sold over 4 million copies.

5. “Hot Fun in the Summertime” by Sly and the Family Stone

“First of the fall and then she goes back
Bye bye bye bye babe!
Them summer days, those summer days.”

Makes me think about going back to the University of Florida in September, saying goodbye to friends and home. What an exciting time that was for me.

6. “I Can’t Help Myself” (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch) by the Four Tops

This Holland-Dozier-Holland smash was the first Top 40 hit in England for the Four Tops. In the US, it hit Number One twice in the summer of 1965. It is one of the most popular Motown songs of the decade and for good reason. Try to listen and not sing along! The bracketed title 'Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch' appears only on certain oldie reissues of the single.

7. “Tossin’and Turnin” by Bobby Lewis

June 2, 1961 Bobby Lewis performed “Tossin’ and Turnin’” on American Bandstand. Within a few weeks it rose 34 spots on the charts to become #1. It stayed at the top for seven weeks and remained on the on the Billboard Top 100 for half a year. The lyrics talk about hearing the milkman at the door. The milkman may be a thing of the past, but this song never grows old.

8. “Summer in the City” by the Lovin Spoonful

During the summer of 1966 New York City experienced a brutal heatwave with temperatures that stayed above 90 degrees for more than 34 days. At the same time, the opposition to the Vietnam War was also reaching a boiling point with riots and protests breaking out across the country. “Summer in the City” was the perfect song for that moment in time. You can hear the street noise – car horns and jackhammers. You can almost feel the stifling heat. But New Yorker John Sebastian reassures us that “despite the heat, it will be all right.” The back of your neck may be dirty and gritty by day, but when the sun goes down, it is a different world.

9. “Under the Boardwalk” by the Drifters

Rolling Stone named it one of the top 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. No argument here.

10. “Sunny Afternoon” by the Kinks

Released in June of 1966, the singer laments getting busted by the taxman and losing his girlfriend (who runs off to her ma and pa in his car). Poor thing can’t sail his yacht so all he has left is an ice cold beer and a sunny afternoon. Not too bad, actually!

11. “California Sun” by the Rivieras

A catchy one hit wonder that is as fun to listen to today as was back in 1964. Three dances of the day are mentioned: the twist, the shimmy and the fly.

12. “Theme from A Summer Place”

In the film, Sandra's hateful Mom wouldn't let her date Troy!

The instrumental by Percy Faith was part of the score for the movie A Summer Place starring Troy Donahue and Sandra Dee. It was the top selling single of 1960 (stayed at #1 for 9 weeks) and became the top instrumental for the entire decade of the 60s. It was also the first movie theme to win a Grammy for Record of the Year.

13.“Turn Down Day” by the Cyrkle

In my mind, it is perfect song about enjoying the summer even though problems and worries may be around the corner. The song was released in 1966 when Vietnam was on the minds of many. The lyrics tell us “things that are waiting to mess my mind will just have to wait till tomorrow.” So enjoy the moment while you can, then face what you have to when you have to.

14. “Palisades Park” by Freddy Cannon

Written by Chuck Barris (of Gong Show fame) the song featured some fun amusement park sound effects, screaming riders and a distinctive organ. It peaked at #3 in June 1962.

15. “Summer Breeze” by Seals and Crofts

Okay, so it is a 70s song, but it’s my blog and I’ll choose it if I want to! It’s a great feel good song describing peaceful contentment as a man comes home from work to find his love waiting for him with “not a care in the world.” I love that the jasmine is in bloom and “July is dressed up and playing her tune.” A perfect snapshot of a summer’s day.

A Valentine from me and Motown

Sat, 08 Feb 2020 19:02:24 +0200

Sending all you oldies lovers a Valentine. Here is the article from Variety naming the top 60 Motown songs of all time. There were some great ones! I think my fave is "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" by David Ruffin. What is yours?

Sadly this survey kind of loses me in 1993. Just not the same as the old days. But then again I am a Golden Oldie myself.

Just click on this link and Enjoy!

Laugh, laugh some more!

Fri, 01 Nov 2019 19:56:49 +0200

Not a lot has changed in the world since I wrote Laugh, Laugh I Thought I'd Die last year.

You can still turn on the news or open a paper and there isn't much to laugh about. If anything, things could be worse. Frankly, I'm so tired of depressing news my head wants to explode.

So I did what I usually do when I need a break from stress and unpleasantness: I turn to music.

Over the years I've posted some music-related cartoons and jokes that have made me smile. Could you use a few more smiles just about now?

I thought so.

So here are some of my faves.

Leave it to Mr. Spock to have the lyrics right!

Here are some others that tickled my funny bone.

The perfect cartoon for a former advertising copywriter!

A few more funnies!

For all you "Sound of Music" fans.

Finally, I still laugh out loud every time I see this spoof on "Rikki, Don't Lose That Number." Ricky Ricardo had it all the time!!

Now, don't you feel better?? I thought you would.

Meeting the Beatles (55 years later)

Tue, 12 Feb 2019 18:44:06 +0200

On February 13, 1964, I was fortunate enough to snag a brief interview with the Beatles when they arrived at Miami International Airport to appear on the Ed Sullivan Show. I was 13 and star reporter for my junior high newspaper.

55 years later it is still a thrill to remember that amazing day. My school friends from way back when still talk about it. If you’d like to read the story, just click on this link to find the posting “I meet the Moptops.”

http://www.wisdomoftheoldies.com/2017/02/i-meet-moptops.html

And here is the Miami Herald article from the 50th anniversary they have re-posted. A certain junior high reporter is featured prominently.

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/miami-beach/article225472800.html?fbclid=IwAR3AVZim08uVQ6U8gVXkXOaMDVtpZEQwDxD7G4ZhKvUyenOduSmHS3u_Uss

Who could have predicted what the Beatles would go on to accomplish? And how decades later, we would still adore the Fab Four.

Today there is even a Beatles Channel on Sirius XM radio. I recently listened to Peter Asher hosting a show where he played the Top 100 Beatle songs as voted by listeners in a survey. The stories he told about many of the songs were really cool. I wish I’d taken notes.

So, I decided to mark my interview anniversary by compiling a few interesting tidbits about the Beatles and their songs. I hope you enjoy them.

* The Beatles received $10,000 for performing three times on the Ed Sullivan Show.

* Elvis Presley sent a congratulatory telegram to the Beatles before their first Sullivan appearance.

* A front-row ticket to the Beatles first American concert cost $4.

* Paul wrote “When I’m Sixty-Four” on his Dad’s piano when he was 16.

* John and Paul used to hang out in Woolton Cemetery in Liverpool. It adjoins St. Peter’s Church where the two first met. There were two headstones of note in the cemetery. One had the inscription Eleanor Rigby. A few yards to the right was a headstone for someone named McKenzie. According to Paul, the title character in the song “Eleanor Rigby” was originally going to be Daisey Hawkins. (Just doesn’t sound right, does it? “Daisey Hawkins picks up the rice in the church where a wedding has been...”)

A Tommy Steele statue dedicated to Eleanor and "all the lonely people"

* Paul played the very inspiring piano opening on George Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.” Eric Clapton played the guitar. George paid Eric back by co-writing the Cream hit “BADGE” under a pseudonym.

* Mae West initially refused to have her image on the cover of the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, but changed her mind after receiving a personal letter from the band. Other famous women on the cover include Marilyn Monroe and Shirley Temple. Elvis and Gandhi did not make the final cut.

Who's who on the Sgt. Pepper cover (thank you whoever did this!)

* “Back in the USSR” caused a slight anti-Beatle backlash. The John Birch Society claimed it “encouraged communism.” Mike Love of the Beach Boys suggested Paul talk about girls around Russia like they had sung about girls across America in “California Girls.” It was Side 1, Track 1 on "The White Album." (Which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year.)

* John was on acid when he wrote “I am the Walrus.” (Duh.)

* All four Beatles had to like a proposed song for it to be included in an album. If one didn’t fancy the tune, it could be vetoed.

* “Good Day Sunshine” was inspired by “Daydream” by the Lovin’ Spoonful. John and Paul were huge John Sebastian fans.

* “Here Comes the Sun” was written by George Harrison in Eric Clapton’s garden. George said it expressed his relief to be away from Beatle turmoil if only for a day.

* Paul McCartney’s “Blackbird” was inspired by Bach’s ‘Bourree in E Minor’. He recorded 32 takes and the final one was the keeper.

* “The End” was the final song on the Beatles last recorded

album. Paul wrote these final words with Shakespeare in mind. “I wanted it to end with a little meaningful couplet, so I followed the Bard and wrote a couplet.

“And in the end the love you take

Is equal to the love you make.”

Thank you John, Paul, George and Ringo for a brief eight years (1962-1970) of amazing music. And a special thanks from a certain junior high reporter who took a risk and got the story of a lifetime.

I discovered a Beatles photo exhibit in Australia in 2011.

You can be sure I’ll be back to celebrate the 60^th anniversary February 13, 2024. Mark your calendars and join me.

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah.

P.S. On a different topic, I am really annoyed by the song writers/owners/whoever who sold out some great tunes to drug advertising like “Oh, Oh, Oh it’s Magic” performed by Pilot. And Michael Jackson’s “ABC.” They almost certainly be condemned to hang along with the “Ring Around the Collar” copy writer.

Joy to the World (and I don't mean the Three Dog Night version)

Sat, 24 Nov 2018 21:00:49 +0200

Friends, I thought I'd share this posting again from two years ago. Enjoy and Merry Christmas to all!!

Not long ago I received a message from Facebook reminding me of a “memory”, a posting I’d written back in 2011.

In that posting I talked about a holiday special that was coming up – “ A Very Gaga Thanksgiving".

Here was my comment from 2011: I guess I'm showing my age but I fondly recall the Perry Como specials. It wasn't Thanksgiving without Mr. C singing “Bless this House”.

For those of you who loved those programs as well, here's Perry's version of “O Holy Night”. With all due respect to Lady Gaga (and I do like many of her songs) I can’t imagine her doing justice to “There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays”.

Five years later I still love the traditional tunes from “Up on the Housetop” and “We Need a Little Christmas” to “God Bless Ye Merry Gentlemen”. We used to sing these songs in school (again, I’m showing my age.)

But I also have come to love some of the new takes on old treasures. Who could resist Kermit the Frog belting out “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”?

Some newer songs and performers have joined my holiday playlist. I was blown away by Jordan Smith’s rendition of “Mary Did You Know” on The Voice last year. It literally gave me chills. Small wonder Jordan won the entire competition.

Perhaps my favorite of all time is a little known tune by Peter, Paul and Mary called “A ‘Soulin”. There’s just something about it that strikes a chord with me. Sorry for the poor video quality – simply close your eyes and listen.

You can find some lovely lyrics in holiday songs. “I’ll be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams.” “Through the years we all will be together, if the fates allow.” “Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by.”

And some dumb ones, like this line from “Little Saint Nick”: “Christmas comes this time each year.”

No matter what your musical tastes, we all have a favorite we long to hear every year. What is your special song? Listen and enjoy because the season is short.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas.

Joy to the World (and I don't mean the Three Dog Night version)

Sat, 24 Nov 2018 19:00:31 +0200

Not long ago I received a message from Facebook reminding me of a “memory”, a posting I’d written back in 2011.

In that posting I talked about a holiday special that was coming up – “ A Very Gaga Thanksgiving”.

Here was my comment from 2011: I guess I'm showing my age but I fondly recall the Perry Como specials. It wasn't Thanksgiving without Mr. C singing “Bless this House”.

But I also have come to love some of the new takes on old treasures. Who could resist Kermit the Frog belting out “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”?

And some dumb ones, like this line from “Little Saint Nick”: “Christmas comes this time each year.”

No matter what your musical tastes, we all have a favorite we long to hear every year. What is your special song? Listen and enjoy because the season is short.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas.

Laugh Laugh, I Thought I'd Die

Tue, 25 Sep 2018 20:19:21 +0200

Turn on the news or open a paper these days and there isn't much to laugh about. Frankly, I'm so tired of the bickering and lack of civility my head wants to explode.

So I did what I usually do when I need a break from stress and unpleasantness: I turn to music.

Over the years I've posted some music-related cartoons and jokes that have made me smile. Could you use a smile just about now?

I thought so.

So here are a few of my faves beginning with an original Rick Kollinger cartoon he created for my piece about "MacArthur Park". If you'd like to read the posting, here you go: http://www.wisdomoftheoldies.com/2015/01/

Later, I spotted this lost and found ad:

Here are a few others that tickled my funny bone.

And this just goes to show that what goes around, comes around.

Finally, I laughed out loud when I saw this spoof on "Rikki, Don't Lose That Number." Ricky Ricardo had it all the time!!

Now, don't you feel better?? I thought you would.

What ingredients make a great summer song? (Hint: Justin Beiber isn't one of them.)

Sat, 28 Jul 2018 20:24:16 +0200

Ah, those Summer Nights

Last week, the NPR program Marketplace did a feature on how music companies go about crowning the biggest “Song of the Summer.”

The segment described a tune released by DJ Khaled that was expected to be the hot hit of the 2017 vacation season.

The song was titled “I’m the One” and featured Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance the Rapper, and Lil Wayne. In the music video, “they’re at a mansion hanging by the pool. Bieber is in a bathing suit and women are dancing around in bikinis.”

The piece went on to talk about the evolution of the summer song from Tin Pan Alley to 60s surf tunes. Then at some point, according to the story, the song of the summer changed. It no longer had to be about summer! It didn’t have to be about sunshine, beaches, sweltering cities, romances (and broken hearts), parties or road trips. It just had to be popular in summer.

Say what??

Come on NPR, wake up and smell the Coppertone!

Now here’s a real summer song:

Or how about this classic?

You can almost feel the ocean breeze with this one.

By the way, the guy on the left in the video is my good friend Don Dannemon. The Cyrkle is touring again and Don’s voice is as great as ever. (And in case you wondered, that “boing” towards the end was a sitar.)

Here are a few more nominations worthy of Summer Song of the Year.

“Sunny Afternoon” - the Kinks

“School is Out” - Gary US Bonds

“A Summer Song” - Chad and Jeremy

“Summer in the City”- Lovin’ Spoonful

“Hot Fun in the Summertime” - Sly and the Family Stone

“Summer Breeze” – Seals and Crofts

“Under the Boardwalk” – The Drifters

“Summer Nights – John Travolta and Olivia Newton John

“Good Vibrations” – The Beach Boys
"Sandy" - Ronnie and the Daytonas

And one of my all time favorites

“California Nights” – Leslie Gore
"Dancing in the Streets" - Martha and the Vandellas
Ken Merson, the "Merson Person" and host of the fab 60's Countdown (#Sirius 60s on 6 channel ) on Saturday afternoons told me about his favorite summer song:
"It's got to be "Dancing in the Street" by Martha & The Vandellas. The second I hear that drum intro hit followed by the brass section intro, I'm ready to dance with reckless abandon. Once Martha Reeves sings "Summer's here and the time is right for Dancing in the Street", then it's official!

In the old days, lots of kids went on vacation with their parents and had to leave a boyfriend or girlfriend behind. When we had to say goodbye for the summer, we wrote letters! Some arrived with this inscription on the back: SWALCAKWS.

Did it ring a bell? Did you remember?

Sealed With A Lick Cuz A Kiss Won't Stick.

Now here is our final tune. It’s a slow dance.

And of course, a Ladies Choice. Enjoy. And happy summer.

The summer song inspired by war

Thu, 12 Oct 2017 00:06:28 +0200

Ken Burn’s recent series on PBS about Vietnam brought back all manner of memories about those distressing days. It got me thinking about high school friends who were sent there to fight and never came home. And friends who did return but were never quite the same.

Vietnam has been called the first rock and roll war. Certainly many of the tunes we heard on the radio during mid to late 60s came to be connected with the era. The The Vietnam War soundtrack contains 120 songs from artists including Bob Dylan, the Beatles, Pete Seeger, Wilson Pickett, and Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Some, like Marvin Gaye’s“What’s Going On”, were inspired by stories of family members who were serving at the time.

One song not on the soundtrack also has a link to the Vietnam War – “Mr. Dieingly Sad” from the summer of 1966. At the time, none of us listening knew the catchy beach ditty came to be as a result of the conflict.

I recently learned the writer, Don Ciccone, penned the tune just before shipping out to Vietnam. His girlfriend at the time had an unfailingly sunny disposition while he was frightened and worried about what was to come. He was Mr. Dieingly Sad.

“Just a breeze will muss your hair
But you smile away each little care
And if the rain should make you blue
You say tomorrow is anew
Blue be your eyes, blonde your hair
You realize beyond a care
Life's in a hurry, but
You've got no worry, you're
So mystifyingly glad
I'm Mr. Dieingly Sad.”

Don Ciccone was born in 1946 in Jersey City, New Jersey. He started playing the guitar at age 12 and was performing two years later. At 15, he auditioned for a popular Jersey band, The Vibraphones. At the time, the band was looking for a rhythm guitar player who could also sing.

In 1964, the band changed its name to The Critters to sound more like other popular acts of the day such as the Animals, the Byrds and of course, The Beatles.

The band’s first single was “Younger Girl”, a cover of Lovin Spoonful original. While taking a break during the recording of John Sebastian’s tune, Don started rehearsing a song he’d written. The band’s producer Artie Ripp overheard Don practicing “Mr. Dieingly Sad”. Ripp was so impressed, he stopped working on “Younger Girl” and went immediately into the studio to record “Sad.”

“Sad” is a hauntingly wistful song that seemed to be about a boy in love who wishes his girl would adore him as much as he adores her. And time is running out! Summer is almost over, fall is on the way and the romance will likely end.

But in a 2010 interview with Goldmine magazine. Don Ciccone said it wasn’t about love gone wrong at all. “The whole story is I knew that I was going to get pulled into the military. We were at war, and the draft was happening. So that was the reason for the lyric of the song. Everything was great for her, and I said it in a nice way. I was glad that it was great for her. But it wasn’t so great for me, because I could see myself going to war.”

The “Younger Girl” album was released while Don and two other members of The Critters were in Vietnam. “Girl” only made it to #42 on the charts but “Mr. Dieingly Sad” topped out at #17.

After release from the Air Force, Don went on to join the Four Seasons for ten years. He sang lead vocal on “December 1963 (Oh What a Night)” and “Who Loves You”. He later toured with Tommy James and the Shondells.

Don passed away after a heart attack last October. We’ll never know if he ever saw his beautiful, lighthearted summer love again.

Did she write to him? Did she wait for him?

As for me, every time I hear the song, the melancholy melody takes me back to Miami Beach the summer before I started 11^th grade. I can hear my friends talking about what a new school year might bring. I can hear the sea gulls cackling. I can almost smell the salt spray and the Coppertone.

And before long, a gentle ocean breeze will muss my hair.

A total eclipse of the heart (oops, I mean Sun.)

Tue, 08 Aug 2017 21:53:17 +0200

In case you hadn’t heard, an eclipse is coming.

I am more than well aware of this fact because here in western North Carolina, you simply can’t get away from it.

Virtually every business from the local spice shop to dog groomers are selling “official” eclipse glasses. And every store already has t-shirts for sale that announce: “I saw the Eclipse in ____" (You fill in the blank.)

Apparently everyone from Asheville and Hendersonville to Highlands will be able to see this rare event. And they can buy a t-shirt to prove it to the unlucky folks who aren’t in the direct path!

Here’s what NASA has to say: On Monday, August 21, 2017, all of North America will be treated to an eclipse of the sun. Anyone within the path of totality can see one of nature’s most awe inspiring sights - a total solar eclipse. This path, where the moon will completely cover the sun and the sun's tenuous atmosphere - the corona - can be seen, will stretch from Salem, Oregon to Charleston, South Carolina. Observers outside this path will still see a partial solar eclipse where the moon covers part of the sun's disk.

National Public Radio reminds us that during the event, “many astronomers and citizen-scientist volunteers will gaze up towards the sun and join a long line of eclipse scholars that includes Plutarch, the Babylonians, ancient imperial astronomers in China, and even Thomas Edison.”

Sunshine Superman Thomas Edison

To be honest, I’m not all that excited. But for the folks who are, I will pray it doesn’t rain.

In the meantime, I thought it would be fun to look back on some great oldies that “revolve” around the sun. Here are a few of the all-time most popular songs as determined by voters on the website, Ranker.

“Here Comes the Sun” by the Beatles.

George Harrison wrote the song in Eric Clapton’s garden using one of Clapton’s acoustic guitars. In a documentary called The Material World, Eric talked about writing the song with Harrison. “It was one of those beautiful spring mornings. I think it was April, we were just walking around the garden with our guitars. He (George) was just a magical guy... we sat down at the bottom of the garden, looking out, … and he began to sing the opening lines and I just watched this thing come to life."

“Sunny Afternoon” by The Kinks

“Warmth of the Sun” by the Beach Boys

“I’ll Follow the Sun” by the Beatles

“California Sun” by the Rivieras

“Don’t Let the Sun Catch you Crying” by Gerry and the Pacemakers

“Lucky Old Sun” by Ray Charles

“Summer in the City” by The Lovin’ Spoonful

(Which interestingly, does not contain the word “sun”.)

“The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore” by the Walker Brothers.

Of course there are dozens, maybe hundreds of songs about some phase of the sun. Do you have a favorite?

The approach of the eclipse made me think about the song “Blinded by the Light”, written by Bruce Springsteen and performed by the Manfred Mann Earth Band. Towards the end of the song we hear:

“Mama always told me not to look into the eye’s of the sun.

But Mama, that’s where the fun is.”

Is that where the fun is? NASA says no, no, no.

That's my long-time friend Don in the center

I was also thinking about one of my favorite songs “Red Rubber Ball” by the Cyrkle. Lead singer Don Dannemon explained that the character in the song learns his lesson after falling for a cheating woman, overcomes heartbreak and faces a bright future. "He's had enough and is totally over it."

"And I think it's gonna be alright
Yeah, the worst is over now
The mornin' sun is shinin' like a red rubber ball”

Thank goodness for the Cyrkle and songwriter Paul Simon, there was no eclipse scheduled for that day.

Oldies with a foreign accent

Sat, 22 Apr 2017 17:49:09 +0200

When was the first time you heard a song on the radio with lyrics from another language? Lyrics you didn’t quite understand?

For me, perhaps it was the 1958 song (a Eurovision song winner!) “Volare” performed by Domenico Modugno. I heard some lyrics that to me sounded like “mel blue de yucky boy blue.”

Actually, the correct phrase was “Nel blu degli occhi toi blu” which translates to “In the blue of your blue eyes.” Who knew?

And I also just discovered volare means flying in Italian. See what you can learn by reading Wisdom of the Oldies? By the way, “Volare” made it all the way to Number 1 on the Billboardcharts.

On second thought, maybe the first song I recall in a foreign language was “La Bamba” by Richie Valens.

Para bailar La Bamba
Para bailar La Bamba
Se necessita una poca de gracia
Una poca de gracia
Para mi, para ti, ay arriba, ay arriba
Ay, arriba arriba
Por ti sere, por ti sere, por ti sere

Here’s the English translation (which in my opinion does not have una poca de gracia ). Or maybe it was my seven years of Spanish class that made me prefer the original words.

In order to dance The Bamba
In order to dance the Bamba
You need a little bit of grace
A little bit of grace
For me, for you, ah up, ah up (or higher and higher)
Ah, up, up (literally faster, faster)
By you I will be, by you I will be, by you I will be

In 1963 an artist named Kyu Sakamoto struck gold with “Sukiyaki”. It is the only Japanese record to break into the American charts and it stayed at #1 for three weeks.

The original title was “Ue o Muite Aruko" which means "I Will Walk Looking Up". In the song, a broken-hearted young man looks at the sky while walking to keep his tears from falling.

The head of England’s Pye Records heard the original song while in Japan on a business trip. The label released an instrumental version by Kenny Ball and his Jazzmen (“Midnight in Moscow”) in the UK, but changed the name to “Sukiyaki” believing English audiences would find the title easier to remember. Capital Records released the original in America keeping the foody title.

Kyu Sakamoto had more than 15 hits in Japan and also appeared in several movies. He died in the Japan Airlines plane crash that killed 520 people in 1985.

That same year another unlikely song with foreign words hit the top of the charts in 1963. “Dominique” by The Singing Nun.

Jeanine Deckers entered the Fichermont Convent in 1959 at the age of 25. She had been writing songs since childhood and often entertained her fellow nuns with tunes played on her guitar nicknamed Sister Adele.

In time, she asked the convent if she could record an album to help finance the order’s Congo mission. One of the tunes, “Dominique” captured the fancy of an executive at Phillips records and they offered Jeanine a contract.

The Mother Superior said yes on two conditions: all funds earned must go to the convent and she could not use her own name. The stage name “Sister Smile” (Soeur Sourire) was chosen. Jeanine hated it.

The catchy tune about the founder of her order, St. Dominic, became an instant hit in Europe and topped the charts in the US for four weeks. “The Singing Nun” album sold more than two million copies.

Life after “Dominique” fame was not easy for Jeanine. She encountered jealousy and backstabbing when she returned to the convent. And she found it increasingly difficult to readjust to the restrictions of religious life.

She left the convent in 1967. Before long, Belgian authorities demanded she pay back taxes on her earnings. All royalties went to the convent but Deckers had no receipts to prove it. Money worries escalated and she became addicted to alcohol and drugs. The Singing Nun committed suicide in 1985.

After that sad tale, I turn to one of my favorites “Ma Belle Amie” by Tee Set. This jaunty tune by a Dutch quintet hit #5 in February 1970 and stayed there for five weeks.

Ma belle amie,

You were a child of the sun

And the sky and the deep blue sea.

Ma belle ami,

Apres tous les beaux jours
Je te dis merci merci

The French lyrics translate to “After all the beautiful days, I tell you thank you, thank you.”

So merci, merci mes amis for joining me on this journey to foreign songs, words and lands.

I’d love to hear about your favoritos!!

I meet the Moptops

Sat, 11 Feb 2017 19:20:59 +0200

                    A certain junior high reporter takes a risk
                        and lands the scoop of a lifetime.

“It isn’t enough to be a good writer,” Clarence Sligar routinely told his third period journalism class of 8^th and 9^thgraders. “A top notch reporter must also be determined, persistent and curious.”

Unfortunately, Mr. Sligar didn’t mention getting a story sometimes required nerve. The willingness to take chances. And spunk.

Those lessons would be learned February 13, 1964.

For weeks we’d heard the Fab Four would be coming to Miami to appear on the Ed Sullivan Show. And for weeks, the Miami Springs Junior High newspaper staff was buzzing with ideas about how and where to try for an interview. With limited transportation options, the nearby airport seemed our best chance.

Exuding confidence and pride, Mr. Sligar went to the principal to ask that his team be allowed to leave school early that day. The plan was set: as star reporter, it would be my task to engage the Beatles in an interview when they arrived at Miami International.

Armed with permission slips from our parents and a construction paper PRESS badge, our school photographer Kenny and I set out on assignment. After a classmate’s Mom dropped us off at the airport terminal, we wove our way through groups of hapless passengers, throngs of reporters and over 7,000 fans.

Twenty minutes of inspired maneuvers delivered us through the swollen queues of Beatle admirers at the end of a carpeted corridor. A frazzled guard at the VIP gate glanced curiously at the PRESS badges pinned to our shirts, then unhooked the chain for us to pass. In the distance a logjam of frustrated teenagers hissed and booed as we left the concourse.

The cover of the Beatle interview issue

The scene outside was unnerving. Hundreds of fans dotted the airport roof; scores of others were mashed against the interior concourse glass. Each plane appearing on the skyline set off waves of screams that grew more intense as the Beatle plane tarried. Patience and good will began to melt in the hot afternoon sun.

Mercifully, a man with a foghorn announced that National Airlines flight #11 from New York had landed. To confirm the arrival, my companion and I navigated crab-like through the crowd. Within minutes, the Beatle’s jet was less than fifty yards from where we stood.

Ordinary passengers deplaned to the hoots and cheers of the massive welcoming committee. To prolong the agony, several unknowns paused at the top of the steps to wave and throw kisses. Someone emerged in a Carnaby Street suit and pageboy wig. The restless crowd was not fooled or amused.

At last a moptop appeared in the doorway sending the entire concourse reeling with delirium. The throng lunged forward as the four Beatles descended the silver stairway. Police meshed arm-in-arm and shoved back. Girls on the roof screeched and fell to their knees in ecstasy. Behind us the first of more than twelve windows and doors shattered.

Beatlemania had arrived.

The principal's office fielded calls for interviews with me

Police formed a human barricade as the Beatles sprinted quickly across the tarmac. With only an instant to make a move, I ducked beneath their outstretched arms and bolted for the idling limousine. I glanced back to see Kenny sprawled on the ground groping for his camera.

A straggling Beatle pulled his legs into the car and slammed the door. I was too late. Tears of fear and disappointment pricked the backs of my eyes. The police I’d just outrun were now only steps away.

In despair, I grabbed the door handle and knocked furiously on the glass. Suddenly, the window slid down. Eyeing my PRESS badge, John Lennon leaned over and banished my pursuers with a wave of his hand.

The police stepped away as I pulled out my list of questions. “How do you like America?” I promptly forgot the answer then stumbled over my next inquiry. John answered patiently; Paul and Ringo jumped in with silly remarks and giggles. It was difficult to determine who was having the most memorable experience.

On cue, the limousine started to move and I trotted along still clutching the door handle. Before long, police barricades crumbled and the limo pulled away. John blew me a kiss. The window slid shut. The interview was over.

An Australian art gallery featured the Beatles in the US. Imagine!

Kenny rushed to my side and we hugged, not believing what had just happened. How did a risk-averse, goody two-shoes work up the gumption to get the story at any cost?

Years later it occurred to me that I couldn’t bear the thought of facing my beloved journalism teacher empty-handed.

Back on the tarmac, a group of admirers surrounded me and asked for my autograph. At thirteen, I’d hit the big time.

When the limousine was nothing more than a speck on the horizon, fans and reporters wandered away. Turning to take one last look, I whispered John I love you.

I hope he heard me.

For What Its Worth

Sun, 06 Nov 2016 19:02:25 +0200

Decisions, decisions. We’re faced with them every day. What to eat for dinner. Who to vote for. Red or white wine. Should I stay or should I go?

Many years ago, I was faced with a very difficult career decision. I had the choice of staying in a safe, comfortable writing job or taking a more challenging position where I’d either make a name for myself or be out on my ear very quickly.

That weekend, I couldn’t muster the confidence to make a final decision. Then, driving to work Monday morning, I happened to hear “Wasted On The Way” by Crosby, Stills and Nash. The lyrics gave me the mental shove I needed.

Oh, when you were young

Did you question all the answers

Did you envy all the dancers

Who had all the nerve?

Look around you now

You must go for what you wanted

Look at all my friends who did

And got what they deserved.

Unfortunately, the oldies don’t contain the answers to all of life’s mysteries. But if you listen closely, you might discover food for thought. There’s advice, social commentary, observations about life and living. Proverbs and truisms. Bright little gems you may have missed before.

So next time you’re looking for a little inspiration, common sense or unbiased guidance, don’t consult a shrink, Plato or tarot cards.

Just turn on the radio.

Nobody’s right if everybody’s wrong.

“For What It’s Worth”

Buffalo Springfield

You can’t please everyone

so you’ve got to please yourself.

“Garden Party”

Rick Nelson

No lover’s promise ever came with a maybe.

“Stars”

Simply Red

I took off my watch and found I had all the time in the world.

“Time for Living”

The Association

Wake up and get your education

So you can keep your family alive.

Get away from negative situations.

They will only bring you a lot of frustration.

“Only the Strong Survive”

Jerry Butler

Why in the world are we here?

Surely not to live in pain and fear.

“Instant Karma”

John Lennon

People say believe half of what you see,

and none of what you hear.

“I Heard It Through The Grapevine”

Marvin Gaye

A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest.

“The Boxer”

Simon and Garfunkel

God grant me the serenity to remember who I am.

“Games People Play”

Joe South

When I’m 33, I’ll quit. That’s the time when a man has to do something else. I can’t say what it will definitely be. I couldn’t bear to end up as an Elvis Presley and sing in Las Vegas with all those housewives and old ladies coming in with their handbags. It’s really sick.

-Mick Jagger, 1972

What a drag it is getting old.

“Mother’s Little Helper”

The Rolling Stones

Don’t hang on. Nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky.

It slips away. And all your money won’t another minute buy.

“Dust In The Wind”

Kansas

Young and beautiful,

someday your looks will be gone.

“Love Will Keep Us Together”

The Captain and Tennille

Lighten up while you still can.

“Take It Easy”

The Eagles

Well it seems to me that you have seen

too much in too few years.

“19th Nervous Breakdown”

The Rolling Stones

Old Cody, Junior took me over

Said “You’re gonna find the world is smoulderin.”

If you get lost come on home to Green River.

“Green River”

Creedence Clearwater Revival

You can spend all your time making money,

you can spend all your love making time.

“Take It To The Limit”

The Eagles

And you, of the tender years

Can’t know the fears

That your elders grew by.

“Teach Your Children”

Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young

For you know that it’s a fool

who plays it cool

By making his world a little colder.

“Hey Jude”

The Beatles

“There’s no time to lose,” I heard her say.

Catch your dreams before they slip away.

“Ruby Tuesday”

The Rolling Stones

They while away the hours

In their ivory towers

To be covered up with flowers

In the back of a black limosene.

“Games People Play”

Joe South

Don’t trust your soul

to no backwoods Southern lawyer.

“The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia”

Vicki Lawrence

All work and no play

has just cost me a wife.

“Take A Letter Maria”

R.B. Greaves

You shouldn’t let other people get your kicks for you.

"Like a Rolling Stone"

Bob Dylan

We are but a moment’s sunlight

fading in the grass.

“Get Together”

The Youngbloods

No matter what you do,

You’ll never get away from you.

“Kicks”

Paul Revere and the Raiders

Where life’s river flows

No one really knows

‘Til someone’s there to show the way

To lasting love.

“Everlasting Love”

Carl Carlton

Without love, where would you be now?

“Long Train Running”

The Doobie Brothers

When you believe in things

that you don’t understand

then you suffer.

Superstition ain’t the way.

“Superstition”

Stevie Wonder

Oz never did give nothing to the Tinman that he didn’t already have.

“Tinman”

America

Love has a nasty habit of

disappearing overnight.

“I’m Looking Through You”

The Beatles

Your ever-lastin summer, you can see it fadin’ fast,

So you grab a piece of something that you think is gonna last.

“Reelin’ In The Years”

Steely Dan

You, always contemplating happiness,

in case it should find you—

Can’t you see that it’s all around you?

“Pied Piper”

Crispian St. Peter

A friend will always be there

if you’re wrong, or if you’re right.

“I Wonder What She’s Doing Tonight?”

Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart

But there never seems to be enough time

to do the things you want to do

once you find them.

“Time In A Bottle”

Jim Croce

Hey farmer, farmer,

put away the D.D.T now,

Give me spots on my apples

But leave me the birds and bees.

“Big Yellow Taxi”

Joni Mitchell

• The more I see, the less I know for sure. - John Lennon

When I was younger, so much younger than today

I never needed anybody’s help in anyway.

But now these days are gone, I’m not so self-assured.

Now I find I’ve changed my mind,

I’ve opened up the doors.

“Help”

The Beatles

Do you only care about the bleeding crowd,

how about a needy friend?

“Easy To Be Hard”

Three Dog Night

It’s a long, long road

from which there is no return.

While we’re on the way to there

why not share?

“He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother”

The Hollies

Life is too short to have sorrow.

We may be here today and gone tomorrow.

“Tell It Like It Is”

Aaron Neville

You see, war is not the answer

for only love can conquer hate.

“What’s Going On”

Marvin Gaye

It’s so easy to hurt others

when you can’t feel pain.

“Rich Girl”

Hall and Oates

Q. What’s the smartest thing you ever heard anybody in rock & roll say?

A. Be-bop-a-lula, she’s my baby. - Paul Simon

If I’d never loved

I never would have cried.

“I Am A Rock”

Simon and Garfunkle

Life is very short and there’s no time

for fussing and fighting, my friend.

“We Can Work It Out”

The Beatles

No one can tell what the future knows.

“This Is It”

Kenny Loggins

You may say that I’m a dreamer.

But I’m not the only one.

“Imagine”

John Lennon

Now I’m not the kind

to live in the past.

The years run too short,

and the days too fast.

“Time Passages”

Al Stewart

You gotta make your own kind of music,

sing your own special song.

Even if nobody else sings along.

“Make Your Own Kind Of Music”

Mama Cass

Yeah, city folk drivin in a black limousine,

A lotta sad people thinkin' that's mighty keen.

Thank God I’m A Country Boy

John Denver

And in the end,

The love you take

Is equal to

The love you make.

“The End”

The Beatles

47 years later, the cake is still out in the rain. (And still in our heads.)

Sat, 23 Jul 2016 21:43:16 +0200

Cartoon courtesy Rick Kollinger

My freshman year at the University of Florida, my English professor gave the class an intriguing and unexpected essay assignment.

Having heard the song “Chewy, Chewy” by the Ohio Express on the radio one morning, he wondered if there were any thoughtful tunes on the pop charts. He challenged us to pick a contemporary song and write about the meaning of the lyrics.

I chose “MacArthur Park.”

I opened the essay with this snippet of one of Millay’s sonnets. To my 18-year-old brain, it seemed to capture the meaning of the song in a nutshell.

That April should be shattered by a gust,

That August should be leveled by a rain,

I can endure, and that the lifted dust

Of man should settle to the earth again;

But that a dream can die, will be a thrust

Between my ribs forever of hot pain.

- Edna St. Vincent Millay

I went on to write “ dreams and aspirations are an inseparable part of the human spirit. The death of a dream destroys part of that spirit and leaves in its void only the hope that life will go on, that another dream will come another day.”

Old postcard painting of MacArthur Park

“In the song MacArthur Park, a dream has died. Located on the somewhat-seedy fringe of downtown Los Angeles, the real MacArthur Park is a 32-acre refuge for the elderly and wanderers. Here, perhaps near the duck pond, the ingredients were added to someone’s dream – a yellow cotton dress, men playing checkers by the trees.”

I won’t bore you with the entire essay, but I speculated that a once “fevered” love had gone cold, and although the narrator believes he can go on, he knows the ingredients that created his dream can never be duplicated.

MacArthur Park in more recent times

I finished by writing “MacArthur Park is the story of the ingredients that nurtured a dream. The death of that dream blurs the memories, perhaps through tears of sorrow.”

All these years later, people are still guessing what MacArthur Park is about and what possessed Jimmy Webb to write it. Did he have a bet with Richard Harris he could pen a #1 song for the Irish singer and actor? Was it about drugs? Did he purposely compose a 7-minute song to annoy British record producers? Or was it indeed about a love affair gone wrong?

Last October, writer Jimmy Webb provided some answers during an interview with Newsweek.

“…it's just a song about a girlfriend of mine, Susie Horton, and this place on Wilshire Boulevard where we used to have lunch and feed the ducks which is called MacArthur Park. And the truth is that everything in the song was visible. There's nothing in it that's fabricated. The old men playing checkers by the trees, the cake that was left out in the rain, all of the things that are talked about in the song are things I actually saw. And so it's a kind of musical collage of this whole love affair that kind of went down in MacArthur Park.”

Jimmy Webb

As it turns out the girl who broke Webb’s heart eventually got married in MacArthur Park. Unable to stay away, he went to the park and hid in a gardener’s shed during the ceremony. Apparently the heavens opened up and the rain running down the shed window made the wedding cake look like it was melting.

Webb also said, " I remember that that was also when I wrote 'By the Time I Get to Phoenix' because this affair was winding down to a kind of dreary close, and I was thinking, 'Well, I'll just go back to Oklahoma,' and so I wrote 'By the Time I Get to Phoenix.' Of course, I never even got in the car and turned on the engine to go back to Oklahoma. But it's related to 'MacArthur Park' in that sense. It comes from the same period when I was experiencing things and pretty much transferring them immediately into music."

"My writing technique, my style, is a lot different now, so in a way, it's a lot more accessible and easier to understand. Back then, I was kind of like an emotional machine, like whatever was going on inside me would bubble out of the piano and onto paper.”

So it sounds like the take on ‘MacArthur Park’ I thought up way back in 1969 wasn’t far from the truth.

Happily I got an “A” for my efforts, but my professor wrote, “why did it happen here?” in the margin by the section where I talked about the actual park.

Now we know, Dr. Childers. Now we know.

Shedding new light on "He Ain't Heavy"

Tue, 29 Dec 2015 21:50:18 +0200

Well, it appears I stand corrected.

While driving down to Florida before Christmas I was listing to the Sixties Satellite Survey on Sirius XM Radio. The program was counting down the Top 40 hits from that week in December 1969.

Host Lou Simon introduced the Hollies song “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother” and explained how the title had originally come from a 1926 Mary Pickford silent film.

Say what?

Like many people, I’d always believed the title came from the 1938 movie Boys Town starring and Spencer Tracy as Father Flannigan. (Actually, the phrase was spoken in Men of Boys Town.)

So I decided Wisdom of the Oldies needed to take a closer look.

In his 1884 book The Parables of Jesus, James Wells related the story of a tiny Scottish girl who was seen carrying a large baby boy. After watching the girl struggle, a bystander asked if she was tired. Surprisingly, the child replied “ No, he’s not heavy; he’s my brother.”

The story of the little Scottish girl was also mentioned in a 1918 publication by Ralph Waldo Trine titled The Higher Powers of Mind and Spirit. This time, after someone noted how heavy the child must be, the girl answered 'He's na heavy. He's mi brither.’

Roe Fulkerson, the first editor of Kiwanis magazine published a column in September 1924 carrying the title "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother". The article talks about Fulkerson's sighting of "a spindly and physically weak lad" carrying a baby and "staggering towards a neighboring park".

"'Pretty big load for such a small kid,' I said as I met him." "'Why, mister,' he smiled, 'he ain't heavy, he's my brother.' "

This was the first time the phrase was spoken as it would be written years later in the song.

According to the Boys Town publication Teachable Moments, Father Flanagan was paging through a copy of Idealmagazine in 1943 when he saw an image of an older boy carrying a younger boy on his back. The caption read, “He ain’t heavy, mister… he’s my brother.”

Immediately, the priest was reminded of a similar scene at a Boys Town picnic many years before. Father Flanagan wrote to the magazine and requested permission to use the image and quote. The magazine agreed, and Boys Town adopted them both as its new brand.

Mary Pickford

So what about America’s Sweetheart? Supposedly in a 1926 silent film drama, Mary Pickford portrayed a “plucky heroine” carrying a child on her back. When a stranger offered to assist, Mary’s reply was shown on screen on a title card: “Thanks Mister, but I don’t need any help. He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother.”

So there you go. Maybe too much information for some about the title origins of that 1969 Hollies smash hit.

I find it fascinating.

Here are more interesting tidbits about the song:

It was written by veteran songwriters Bobby Scott (who also wrote “A Taste of Honey”) and Bob Russell. Russell was fighting cancer at the time and died not long after the song was released.

The song hit Number 1 in the UK and Number 7 in the US.

Joe Cocker turned it down.

A young Reg Dwight (later known as Elton John) played piano and was paid 12 pounds for his work.

Just a few things to contemplate next time you hear the song on the radio.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Shame

Thu, 05 Nov 2015 21:31:30 +0200

The 2016 Nominees for the Hall of Fame have been announced and include some of my all time favorites! The J.B.s, Yes, Nine Inch Nails and N.W.A.

Say what?

Well they did stoop to include Chicago and The Spinners. How in the world did two great groups like that make the list?

Chicago has sold over 40 million albums with 23 gold albums and 21 Top Ten singles. “If You Leave Me Now” and Make Me Smile” are two of my all time favorite songs.

The Spinners first hit “I’ll Be Around” sold over a million copies alone.

On the other hand, one of the 2015 inductees, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band had what has been described as a “brief existence and produced little in the way of commercial success.”

Say what?

So now you know who may get in in 2016. Let’s take a look at artists and groups who are NOT in and probably never will be:

Neil Sedaka, Connie Francis, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Sonny and Cher, Barry White, ELO, the Doobie Brothers, Steppenwolf, Harry Nilsson and the Turtles.

Outraged yet?

How about Johnny Rivers, the Moody Blues, Jan & Dean, Grand Funk Railroad, Joan Baez, Bon Jovi, Joe Cocker, Jim Croce, the Bee Gees, Leslie Gore, Mary Wells and the Ventures.

There are many more deserving artists out in the cold, but my head is about to explode, so I will stop there.

Perhaps one of the most infuriating omissions, in my opinion, is Neil Sedaka.

I have been fortunate enough to interview Neil twice. Once when I was Star Reporter for my junior high school newspaper. Then again a couple of years ago. Neil has always been most gracious with his time, which is another reason why he is so beloved in the business.

Neil's career started in 1957 and took off in 1959 when Connie Francis recorded hiss tune, “Stupid Cupid.” He and Howard Greenfield’s composition of “Where the Boys Are” was Connie’s biggest hit.

Naturally, I don’t have to remind you about all the great songs he wrote and recorded himself. “Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen” will be in our brains when we’re in our 70’s. By the way, he’d sold over 25 million records by 1963.

The British Invasion put an end to many male singer’s careers, but Neil continued working as a songsmith and produced hit records for Frank Sinatra, Tom Jones and the Fifth Dimension.

Of course, everyone knows Sedaka was Back in the 70’s. “Love Will Keep Us Together” was a number one hit for the Captain and Tennille as well as a Grammy winner as Record of the Year.

I asked Neil which song he thought was his finest. He replied he hasn’t written it yet.

I also wondered if he truly missed “The Hungry Years.” He told me he didn’t write that song about himself, he wrote it for Sonny & Cher.

So there you have it, the fabulously talented Sedaka, and 60’s superstars Sonny & Cher, all snubbed by the Hall.

Who do you think should be in?

Maybe Neil will write another smash at age 76 and someone on the nominating committee will sit up and take notice.

If I could turn back the hands of time

Fri, 10 Apr 2015 22:20:58 +0200

Did you ever say no to an offer or opportunity then later regret it?

Many singers from the golden age of rock and roll had first dibs on certain songs, but decided to give them a thumb’s down.

Chances are, they all eventually wished they could turn back the hands of time.

Ray Stevens was given the first opportunity to record “Raindrops Keep

Falling on My Head” but turned it down. So did Bobby Goldsboro (perish the thought!) The song became a million seller for BJ Thomas, and also won an Academy Award.

“Tie a Yellow Ribbon” was first offered to Ringo Starr. It sold 3 million copies in the U.S alone.

According to Davy Jones, the Monkees turned down “Knock Three Times” (sold a million copies) and “Love will keep us Together” (best selling single of 1975.)

“Sunday will Never be the Same” was rejected by the Mamas and Papas as well as The Left Banke. Spanky and Our Gang took it to #7.

“Bye Bye Love” was rejected by 27 artists.

Aretha Franklin turned down “Son of a Preacher Man”. Dusty Springfield’s version became a Top 10 international hit.

“This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)” sung by Natalie Cole also got the thumb’s down from Aretha.

Bonnie Tyler’s hit “Total Eclipse of the Heart” was originally meant for Meat Loaf.

“Darlin’” was first written for the group that became 3 Dog Night. It was released by the Beach Boys in 1967 with Carl Wilson as lead singer.

“Here You Come Again” was written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil and was initially offered to Brenda Lee. After mulling it over for more than a year, Brenda decided not to record the song and it became the first crossover hit for Dolly Parton. It was #1 on the country chart and #3 on the pop chart.

“This Diamond Ring” was initially written with the Drifters in mind. They turned it down as did Bobby Vee. It launched the career of Gary Lewis and the Playboys and hit #1 in February, 1965.

Originally given to Herb Alpert who shelved it, Dionne Warwick also passed on a song that a brother-sister duo from Downey, California decided to record. "(They Long To Be) Close To You" became a monster number one hit, spending four weeks at the top of the charts and was the breakthrough song for the Carpenters. It also won a Grammy.

The Bellamy Brothers #1 hit “Let your Love Flow” was originally turned down by Neil Diamond.

"What's Love Got To Do With It" was rejected by Cliff Richard and Donna Summer and later become the defining comeback tune for Tina Turner.

Tom Jones said no to “The Long And Winding Road" before Paul McCartney decided to include it in what would become both the Beatles' final album and the Beatles' final #1 hit.

The Marvelettes turned their noses up at “Where Did our Love Go?” which became a smash for The Supremes.

Lesley Gore was given the first shot at “A Groovy Kind of Love” but her producer decided not to let her record a song with the word “groovy” in it. The Mindbenders took it to #2 on the Billboard charts.

The Searchers weren’t impressed by Del Shannon’s song “I Go to Pieces”. Peter & Gordon asked Del if they could record the song and it was one of their biggest hits.

Heart took “These Dreams” to #1 after Stevie Nicks nixed it.

Connie Francis was the first singer offered “Angel of the Morning” but thought it was too risqué for her audience. Juice Newton’s version spent three weeks at #1 and sold over a million copies.

Ah, 20-20 hindsight.

Mama Said

Wed, 18 Feb 2015 21:15:39 +0200

It has been estimated that the late Ann Landers received more than 1,000 requests for guidance every week. Considering there are millions of willing sources of advice already available, it’s surprising Ann stayed so busy.

For starters, you can count on the mothers of the world to offer their counsel on every subject under the sun. And what mothers don’t cover, fathers will. Then you have sisters, brothers, friends and nosy neighbors. All are more than happy to give their two cents’ worth at any time.

It’s only natural that these voices of prophecy should be echoed in the oldies. And just like in real life, some words to the wise are heeded, others aren’t.

In “Good-bye Yellow Brick Road,” Elton John ignores his father’s advice, then lives to regret it. Bill Withers appreciates his brother’s concern, but doesn’t mind a bit that he’s being used. Neil Diamond begs his girl not to listen to her family. The Four Tops aren’t sure whether to believe the neighborhood gossip. And in “Maybe I Know,” Lesley Gore (may she Rest in Peace) is certain her boyfriend’s a cheat, but hasn’t a clue what to do about it.
Well, Mama did say there would be dilemmas like this.

My mama told me she said “Son please beware,

there’s this thing called love and it’s, ah everywhere.”

And she told me it can break your heart

and leave you in misery.

Since I met this little woman

I feel it’s happened to me.

“Too Late To Turn Back Now”

Cornelius Brothers and Sister Rose

When I became of age my mama called me to her side

She said “Son, you’re growing up now,

pretty soon you’ll take a bride.”

And then she said just because you’ve become a young man, now

there’s still some things you don’t understand, now.

Before you ask some girl for her hand now,

keep your freedom for as long as you can.

“Shop Around”

Smokey Robinson and The Miracles

• People at school told me I couldn’t make it, that I’d wind up making potholders. - Stevie Wonder

You know my Papa disapproved it
My Mama boo and hooed it.

But I told them time and time again:

“Don’t you know I was made to love her.”

“I Was Made To Love Her”

Stevie Wonder

• At a time when he was having marital problems himself, Ernie K-Doe rescued a song from writer Allen Toussaint’s trash that became an anthem for everyone who’d ever had the mother-in-law blues.

She thinks her advice is a contribution

But if she would leave that would be the solution.

And don’t come back no more.

“Mother-In-Law”

Ernie K-Doe

All through this long and sleepless night

I hear my neighbors talking

“She don’t love you.”

Saying out of my life into another’s arms

she’ll soon be walking.

“Shake Me, Wake Me (When It’s Over)”

The Four Tops

• Before he died, Gale Garnett’s father -- a carnival pitchman and music hall entertainer -- advised his daughter to find her own place in the sun. Although the glow of success lasted for only one song, she did shine at the 1965 Grammy Awards when she won “Best Folk Recording of the Year.”

My Daddy he once told me

“Hey don’t you love you any man.

Just take what they may give you,

And give but what you can.”

“We’ll Sing In The Sunshine”

Gayle Garnett

Oh, how you tried to cut me down to size

telling dirty lies to my friends.

Well my own father said

“Give her up, don’t bother.

The world isn’t coming to an end.”

“Walk Like A Man”

The Four Seasons

My brother, he sit me right down

and he talked to me.

He told me that I ought to not

let you just walk on me.

And I’m sure he meant well,

but when our talk was through

I said “Brother, if you only knew

you’d wish that you were in my shoes.”

“Use Me”

Bill Withers

• In 1971, I’d gotten out of military school, had a bad draft board experience, a father in the FBI, and of course, there was Nixon. I had so many people trying to tell me what to do, I guess I revolted against a panorama of authority figures in the song. - Jonathon Edwards

He can’t even run his own life,

I’ll be damned if he’ll run mine.

“Sunshine”

Jonathon Edwards

Love you so much, can’t count all the ways

I’d die for you girl and all they can say is

“He’s not your kind.”

They never get tired of putting me down

and I never know when I come around

just what I’m gonna find.

Don’t let them make up your mind.

“Girl, You’ll Be A Woman Soon”

Neil Diamond

• Fourteen and fifteen-year-olds are really intense. They write in journals and they think really deep thoughts and spend a lot of time being real philosophers in a way. - Janis Ian

Come to my school, baby

Everybody’s acting deaf and blind

Until they turn and say

“Why don’t you stick to your own kind?”

“Society’s Child”

Janis Ian

They said stay at home, boy, you gotta tend the farm

Livin’ in the city, boy,

Is gonna break your heart.

But how can you stay, when your heart says no,

How can you stop,

When your feet say go?

“Honky Cat”

Elton John

• While waiting for a stoplight to change, a ragged girl rushed up to Bob Gaudio’s car and started washing his windshield. The girl’s face so haunted the Four Seasons member that he eventually wrote a song about her. For her trouble, she got a $5 tip. He drove off with a clean windshield and the inspiration for a gold record.

I’d change her sad rags

into glad rags if I could.

My folks won’t let me ‘cause

they say that she’s no good.

“Rag Doll”

The Four Seasons

How many times did she fall for his lies?

Should I tell her

or should I be cool?

“Silence Is Golden”

The Tremeloes

• Woven into the lyrics of this Holland-Dozier-Holland hit are the names of two friends Diana claims are ill-suited to give her advice: fellow Supremes Mary and Flo.

All day long I hear my telephone ring

friends calling, giving their advice.

From the boy I love I should break away,

‘cause heartache he’ll bring one day.

I listened once to my friends’ advice,

but it’s not going to happen twice.

‘Cause all advice ever got me

was many long and sleepless nights.

“Back In My Arms Again”

The Supremes

My folks moved to New York from California.

I shoulda listened when my buddy said

“I warn ya. There’ll be no surfin’ there,

and no one even cares.”

“New York’s A Lonely Town”

The Tradewinds

• The only time a group ever made it to number one while on active duty was with a song inspired by the beat of teletype machines in a Marine communications center.

My buddies tell me “fly to him, sigh to him,”

tell him I would die for him.

Tell him he’s the one.

“Easier Said Than Done”

The Essex

They told me “Be sensible with your new love,

don’t be fooled thinking this is the last you’ll find.”

But they never stood in the dark with you, love,

when you take me in your arms and drive me

slowly out of my mind.

“Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me”

Mel Carter

• On the occasion of my first broken heart, a kind teacher told me “boys are like buses, another one will be along in ten minutes.” Obviously, Lesley Gore didn’t have such good counsel. She sticks by her jerky boyfriends in every song .

I hear them whispering when I walk by,

“he’s going to break her heart

and make her cry.”

I know it’s me they’re talking about,

I guess they all think I’ll never find out.

“Maybe I Know”

Lesley Gore

Honey don’t go; don’t leave this scene;

be out of the picture, and off the screen.

Don’t let them say “we told you so;”

they tell me you’ll love me

and then let me go.

“Being With You”

Smokey Robinson

•My father told me not to go into music which I couldn’t understand because he’d once been a musician himself.

-Elton John

I should have stayed on the farm.

I should have listened to my old man.

“Good-bye Yellow Brick Road”

Elton John

People say you’ve been making out o.k.

She’s in love, don’t stand in her way.

“Hurts So Bad”

Little Anthony and The Imperials

My folks were always putting him down.

They said he came from the wrong side of town.

They told me he was bad,

but I knew he was sad.

“Leader of the Pack”

The Shangri-Las

Some jealous so and so wants us to part

That’s why he’s telling you

That I’ve got a cheatin’ heart.

Don’t believe all those lies,

Darling just believe your eyes.

“My Heart Is An Open Book”

Carl Dobkins, Jr.

I hate to say it but I told you so.

Don’t mind my preachin’ to you.

I said don’t trust him, baby,

now you know.

You don’t learn everything there is

to know in school.

“Laugh, Laugh”

Beau Brummels

One time or other, everybody listen to me,

You lose somebody you love.

But that’s no reason for you

to break down and cry.

“Everybody”

Tommy Roe

Ev’rybody tells me I’m wrong

to want you so badly.

But there’s a force driving me on

I follow it gladly.

“Bend Me, Shape Me”

American Breed

Mama told me not to come. She said “That ain’t no way to have fun, son.”

“Mama Told Me”

Three Dog Night

I remember what my Mama told me

she said “Girl, stay in your class.

You got a lot of growing and learning to do,

so girl, don’t you go so fast.”

“Mama Didn’t Lie”

Jan Bradley

I need love, love to ease my mind

I need to find, find someone to call mine.

But Mama said you can’t hurry love,

no, you’ve just got to wait.

She said love don’t come easy

It’s a game of give and take.

“You Can’t Hurry Love”

The Supremes

My eyes were wide open,

but all that I could see

were chapel bells tolling

for everyone but me.

But I don’t worry

’cause Mama said there’d be days like this.

“Mama Said”

The Shirelles

So cheers to all those advice givers in oldie goldie land. Now tell me YOUR favorite piece of advice from a classic tune!