Being an account of some things I'm interested in, what I'm doing, and reflections on my past, especially music.
BONNIE POINTER, 69
Died 8 June 2020
Singer with pop/soul vocal group Pointer Sisters.
Had several moderate hits after left the group, including "Heaven Must Have Sent You" (#11-1979.)
Sisters June, Anita and Ruth. Some of their hits:
"Yes We Can Can" (#11-1973)
"Fire" (#2-1978)
"He's So Shy" (#3-1980)"
Jump (For My Love) (#3-1984)
Here are the Top ten in Chicago fifty years ago. ^ means the song was climbing the charts.
10. ^ OUT IN THE COUNTRY-- Three Dog Night
9. INDIANA WANTS ME-- R. Dean Taylor
8. ^ THAT'S WHERE I WENT WRONG-- Poppy Family
7. ^ CANDIDA-- Dawn
6. ^ LOLA-- Kinks
5. ^ WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN-- Carpenters
4. CRACKLIN' ROSIE-- Neil Diamond
3. ^ GREEN EYED LADY-- Sugarloaf
2. ^ ALL RIGHT NOW-- Free
1. ^ I'LL BE THERE-- Jackson Five
Name That Tune (from the above songs): "I Met Her In A Club Down In Old Soho." Answer below. --RoadDog
"Lola"
STEVE PRIEST, 72
Died 4 June 2020
Bass player with the glam rock band The Sweet.
Founding member and backing vocalist. The band had a string of hits in the 1970s with songs like:
"Little Willie" (#3-1973)
"Ballroom Blitz" (#5-1975)
"Fox on the Run" (#5-1976)
"Love Is Like Oxygen" (#8-1978)
Andy Scott is the only remaining member still alive.
15. ^ IT DON'T MATTER TO ME-- Bread #10 These guys could really make a great slow song. But if you listen to their "On the Waters" album, they could also do that uptempo stuff. Follow up to "Make It With You."
14. I KNOW (I'M LOSING YOU)-- Rare Earth You've just got to love how the song started. But that long version is way too much. Short version better. Much better.
13. ^ JOANNE-- Michael Nesmith What? No more Monkees? A great country song.
12. ^ LOOK WHAT THEY'VE DONE TO MY SONG, MA-- New Seekers #14 Covering a Melanie song. British-Australian group formed after the breakup of the Seekers. Hence the new name.
11. DO WHAT YOU WANT TO DO-- Five Flights Up #37 I don't remember ever hearing this one which is too bad. This was one great slow Soul song. It did well in Chicago with it going to #9 on WCFL and #6 on WLS. Make sure you play the flip side of this on You Tube "Black Cat." One of the best Soul songs I've ever heard. I'm really surprised this group did not do better. I can just about hear Herb Kent (The Kool Gent) playing this song right now.
Name That Tune (from the above songs): "Hello Mama, Hello Mama It's Me. How You Feeling Mama?" Answer below. --RoadDog
"Look What They've Done To My Song, Ma"
JIMMY CAPPS, 81
Died 2 June 2020
Country guitarist/ Nashville session player and member of the Grand Ole Opry house band.
Here is a partial list of songs he played on:
"Stand By Your Man"-- Tammy Wynette
"The Gambler"-- Kenny Rogers
"Elvira"-- Oak Ridge Boys
"He Stopped Loving Her Today"-- George Jones
"Amarillo By Morning"-- George Strait
BOB KULICK, 70
Died 29 May 2020
Rock guitarist and session musician. In late 1972, he auditioned for a then-new band called KISS. The band with Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley and Peter Criss was very impressed by his performance, but ended up giving the job to the glitzier Ace Frehley.
^ means the song was rising up the charts. The number after the artist is how high the song got on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
20. ^ FIRE AND RAIN-- James Taylor This song sure takes me back to the Tune Room and Pow Wow rooms at good ol' NIU in DeKalb, Illinois.
19. ^ DEEPER & DEEPER-- Freda Payne Talk about you AM memories. This song didn't chart as well as "Band of Gold" but was every bit as good.
18. ^ SOMEBODY'S BEEN SLEEPING-- 100 Proof Full name of group 100 Proof Aged in Soul. A One-Hit Wonder group. One comment said that Levi Stubbs' brother was a member of the group.
17. JULIE, DO YA LOVE ME-- Bobby Sherman #5 Oh, that Julie!
16. LOOKING OUT MY BACK DOOR-- Creedence Clearwater Revival A great video of them just sitting around the house and singing and playing their hearts out.
Name That Tune (from the above songs): "Just Yesterday Mornin'. They Let Me Know You Were Gone." Answer below. --RoadDog
"Fire and Rain"
These were the top 30 songs in Chicago fifty years ago according to WLS, 890 AM.
^ means it was climbing the chart.
25. ^ GOD, LOVE & ROCK & ROLL-- Teegarden & Van Winkle #22 I'd almost forgotten this one. A real church sing-a-long. Their only top 40 so that makes them a real One-Hit ________.
24. I (WHO HAVE NOTHING)-- Tom Jones #14 Gets the full T.J. workout. This could have been a great James Bond theme song as one person commented.
23. ^ LUCRETIA MacEVIL-- Blood, Sweat & Tears #29 Horns. Got to have horns. More horns. How do you start off a song with better horns? One comment by a gal named Lucretia said this song was why she was named that.
22. WAR-- Edwin Starr #1 Pretty well sums up the Vietnam War back then. Worth absolutely nothing. Born Charlie Hatcher.
21. WE CAN MAKE MUSIC-- Tommy Roe #49 Sounds like Bubble Gum Music. I love Bubble Gum Music. Born in 1942 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Name That Tune (from the above songs): "Little Girl, What's Your Game? Hard Luck and Trouble Bound To be Your Claim To Fame." Answer below. --RoadDog
"Lucretia MacEvil"
PHIL MAY, 75
Died 15 May 2020
Lead singer of the English group Pretty Things. described as being grungier that the Yardbirds and Rolling Stones. Also called "The Poor Man's Rolling Stones." Took name from Willie Dixon song "Pretty Thing."
I'd never heard of them, but if you like 60s-70s music, give these guys a listen on You Tube.
They never had a hit in the United States which was too bad. Probably sounded more like the Shadows of Knight back in their heyday.
I especially liked "Come See Me."
These were the top thirty songs in Chicago fifty years ago according to WLS, 890 AM.
The number after the artist refers to how high the song got on the Billboard Hot 100 list. ^ means the song was climbing the chart.
HBD ^ LET'S WORK TOGETHER-- Canned Heat As sung by Bob "The Bear" Hite. See him on the video and you'll know why. This is a good song for the current messes we have. After 50 years it still wears well.
30. ^ EL CONDOR PASA-- Simon & Garfunkel A song from the Peruvian Andes. From their fifth and final studio album. Recorded in a November 1969 recording session.
29. PATCHES-- Clarence Carter Syrupy but good. A boy overcoming spirit-breaking adversity. By the man who later brought you "Strokin' and "Kiss You All Over."
28. ^ IT'S ONLY MAKE BELIEVE-- Glen Campbell I don't remember it. A cover of a Conway Twitty 1958 hit.
27. GROOVY SITUATION-- Gene Chandler Sure brings back some good old NIU college daze memories. What a great bass. Not just the Duke of Earl,
26. AIN'T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH ENOUGH-- Diana Ross Written by Ashford & Simpson. Another good song for these days.
Name That Tune (from the above songs): "I'd Rather Be A Sparrow Than A Snail, Yes I Would." Answer below. --RoadDog
"El Condor Pasa"
AIN'T WASTIN' TIME NO MORE-- Allman Brothers
BARE TREES-- Fleetwood Mac
THUNDER AND LIGHTNING-- Chi Coltraine
ALL THE YOUNG DUDES--Mott the Hoople
POLITICAL SCIENCE-- Randy Newman
ME & JULIO DOWN BY THE OLD SCHOOLYARD-- Paul Simon
BURNING LOVE-- Elvis Presley
HELLO IT'S ME-- Todd Rundren
SPACE TRUCKIN'-- Deep Purple
GOING ALL OF THE WAY-- Raspberries
AND YOU AND I-- Yes
TIGHTROPE-- Leon Russell
Name That Tune (from the above songs): "Lord Almighty, I Feel My Temperature Rising." Answer below. --RoadDog
"Burning Love"
Today's WXRT's Saturday Morning Flashback is going back to the year 1972, my last full year in college. The first half at University of Georgia in Athens, where I tried to start a colony for my Delta Sigma Phi fraternity, but it ended up as an Acacia chapter.
The second half of the year was at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb where I took nothing but education classes so I could graduate in four years. As much as I had enjoyed college my first three years, it was now time to get serious about my future.
Anyway, here is a partial list of songs played:
RESPECT YOURSELF-- Staple Singers
FREE FOUR-- Pink Floyd
IKO IKO-- Dr. John
WITCHY WOMAN-- Eagles
ANGEL-- Rod Stewart
THE WHEEL-- Jerry Garcia
SUPERFLY-- Curtis Mayfield
HAPPY-- Rolling Stones
FRANKENSTEIN-- Edgar Winter Group
Name That Tune (from the above songs): "Well, I Never Kept A Dollar Past Sunset." Answer below. --RoadDog
"Happy"
BETTY WRIGHT, 66
Died 10 May 2020
Singer of Soul and R&B. Had 33 R&B songs on the charts.
Born Bessie Regina Norris and used Betty Wright as stage name. Her best-known song was "Cleanup Woman" (#6-1971) and "Dance With Me" (#8-1978).
I really only knew "Clean Up Woman" so went to You Tube and listened to other songs and I wish I had known more of her songs. If you like 1970s female soul and R&B singers, she is the gal for you.
I especially liked "He's Bad, Bad, Bad."
Another fast summer. Why can't winter go that fast?
Pine straw is starting to fall. That is always nice because that is free mulch, but does require a lot of raking. I have two big pine islands with 15 pine trees.
The mums are blooming all over right now and I must have close to 200 of them, so quite the display of yellow to red shades all over the yard. In addition, the sedum have all those red heads. The asters are also in bloom now with the blues. Also, some kind of a wild daisy is blooming all over. These plants have hundreds of really small white flowers, but in masses so it is quite a thing to see.
The goldenrods have finished which is good because that means I don't have to be as careful now since the stingers that inhabit these when in bloom are also gone. Anything that can sting you is all over those. The sedum are still red, but when they first turn, they too are covered with little stingers.
The honeylocusts are starting to turn yellow now.
--RoadFlower
The Top Ten songs in Chicago exactly 50 years ago today.
1. CRACKLIN' ROSIE-- Neil Diamond
2. ALL RIGHT NOW-- Free
3. I'LL BE THERE-- Jackson Five
4. INDIANA WANTS ME-- R. Dean Taylor
5. CANDIDA-- Dawn
6. DO WHAT YOU WANT TO DO-- Five Flights Up
7. OUT IN THE COUNTRY-- Three Dog Night
8. LOOKIN' OUT MY BACK DOOR-- Creedence Clearwater Revival
9. I KNOW (I'M LOSING YOU)-- Rare Erath
10. JULIE, DO YA LOVE ME-- Bobby Sherman
*******************************
DEBUTS
21. LOOK WHAT THEY'VE DONE TO MY SONG, MA-- Seekers
24. SOMEBODY'S BEEN SLEEPING-- 100 Proof
25. IT DON'T MATTER TO ME-- Bread
29. FIRE & RAIN-- James Taylor
HBD LUCRETIA MacEVIL-- Blood, Sweat & Tears
Name That Tune (from the above songs): "The Stars Won't Come Out If They Know That You're About." Answer below. --RoadDog
"Candida"
LITTLE RICHARD, 87
Died 9 May 2020
One of early Rock and Roll's Big Ones.
Singer-songwriter, piano player who did Rock and Roll and R&B.
Born Richard Wayne Penniman. He was variously called "The Innovator," "The Originator" and "The Architect of Rock and Roll." His most successful efforts were in the 1950s, but he remained a force throughout the time since.
Some of his hits:
"Long Tall Sally" (#6-1956)
"Rip It Up" (#17-1956)
"Lucille" (#21-1957)
"Jenny, Jenny" (#10-1957)
"Good Golly, Miss Molly" (#10-1958)
Keep A'Rocking Little Richard!!!
BRIAN HOWE, 66
Died 6 May 2020
Rock vocalist who sang with Ted Nugent 1983-1984 and Bad Company 1986-1994.
Best known for replacing Paul Rodgers as lead vocalist for Bad Company. When Bad Company reformed, Paul Rodgers was already with the group The Firm. Brian brought more of a pop-rock sound to the group.
I listened to some songs he did with Bad Company on You Tube and they didn't miss a beat with him, though they didn't have as big of hits as they had before.
For some reason, I always have a problem telling whether a song is by Bad Company or Foreigner.
