Music Deaths in 2022: Musey, Dozier, Newton-John and Pitman

DAVID MUSEY, 73

Died 6 August 2022.  Multi-instrumentalist player with Firefall and the Marshall Tucker Band.

LAMONT DOZIER,  81

Died 8 August 2022.  Singer and member of the Motown writing team of Holland-Dozier-Holland team that brought us all that classic Motown music.

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OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN, 73

Died 8 August 2022.  Singer (pop), actress, notably for the 1978 musical film "Grease", co-starring John Travolta.  What can I say about her?  She was my second crush after Linda Ronstadt.

BILL PITMAN, 102

Died 11 August 2022.  Guitarist / session musician who played on many celebrated songs in the 1950s and 1960s.   Member of the Wrecking Crew.  Played on Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds" and Phil Spector's Wall of Sound.

Music Deaths: Joe Messina of Motown's Funk Brothers

JOE MESSINA, 93

Died April 4, 2022

Guitarist, played with Motown's in-house studio band, The Funk Brothers.

Dubbed the "White Brother with Soul."  He was one of the most prolific guitarists ever.  In 1959, Motown founder Berry Gordy recruited Messina for his Hitsville USA studio musicians group known as The Funk Brothers.  He was one of three guitarists.

These were the guys you heard on most every Motown hit in the 1960s and early 1970s.  So, if you have any favorite Motown songs from that era, most like it was Messina playing guitar.

Just some of the songs he played on:

"Dancing in the Street"-  Martha & the Vandellas

"Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)"--  Four Tops

"Someday We'll Be Together"--  Diana Ross & the Supremes

"Your Precious Love"--  Marvin Gaye and TammiTerrell

"Ain't Too Proud"--  Temptations

Music Deaths: Mary Wilson, One of the Original Supremes

MARY WILSON, 76

Died 8 February 2021

Singer with the Motown vocal group Supremes.

Originally the group was called the Primettes.  As the Supremes, they had am unprecedented 12 #1 hits including "Stop in the Name of Love" and "Where Did Our Love Go."

Music Deaths: Barbara Martin, One of the Original Supremes

BARBARA MARTIN, 76

Died 4 March 2020

Replaced Betty McGlown in the Primettes in 1960.  She joined Primette members Diana Ross, Florence Ballard and Mary Wilson.  The name was changed to the Supremes.

Barbara Martin only sang on a few early Supreme songs that did not become hits.  When she left in early spring, the group continued on as a trio.

She sang on the group's first album "Meet the Supremes" but her picture is not on the cover.

Music Deaths: Hamilton Bohannon, Motown Drummer

 HAMILTON BOHANNON, 78

Died April 24, 2020

Drummer, bandleader.  Worked with many of the top Motown artists in the 1960s.   Became a leader in the 1970s Disco Music.

In 1964, he was a drummer with Stevie Wonder's touring band.  Moved to Detroit in 1967 and was employed by Motown and provided the backing bands on many of Motown's top artists when touring.  This included Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye, Temptations, Diana Ross & the Supremes and the Four Tops.

WLS Top 40 for January 12, 1970-- Part 3: "Leaving On a Jet Plane"

I always go to You Tube and listen to every one of the Top 40 songs when I do this.  Really takes you back.  My comments come from listening to these You Tube songs.

30.  YESTER-ME, YESTER-YOU, YESTERDAY--   Stevie Winder      #7    Yeah, that great Motown sound.  Little Steveland Morris, born in 1950.

29.  LEAVING ON A JET PLANE--  Peter, Paul & Mary     #1   Two Vietnam veterans made comments and said they heard this song last and first when going to and returning from that war.  Really hits home.  Their biggest hit and last Top 100 song.

28.  EARLY IN THE MORNING--  Vanity Fare      #12      Is that a harpsicord?  Great pop song.  I always thought it was Vanity Fair.  British pop quintet.

27.  MY HONEY & ME--  Luther Ingram       #55   Never heard it before, but what a great song.  One comment said they were playing it on Chicago's WVON back in January 1970.  Probably Herb Kent, the Cool Gent playing it then.  The pride of Jackson, Tennessee.

26.  WALKIN' IN THE RAIN--  Jay & the Americans     #19    Another smooth outing for Jay.  Real name John "Jay" Traynor.  Group formed at New York University in 1959.

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "What Happened To The World We Knew When We Would Dream And Scheme and While The Time Away."  Answer below.  --RoadDog


"Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday"

WLS Top 40 for June 9, 1969-- Part 3: "Spinning Wheel"

That's right, fifty years ago.  Really?

30.  COLOR HIM FATHER--  Winstons     #7   Now that is what being  a good Daddy is all about, and they weren't even his kids.  Septet from Washington, D.C..

29.  APRIL FOOLS--  Dionne Warwick     #37    I don't recall ever hearing this song, but liked it.  Of course, the combination of Burt, David and Dionne means it will be good.

28.  SPINNING WHEEL--  Blood, Sweat & Tears     #2     Horns.  I need more horns.  The second of three straight #2s in 1969.

27.  BLACK PEARL--  Sonny Charles      #13   Listed under Checkmates.   About as pretty of a slow song as you can get.  Sonny Charles was lead singer.  From Fort Wayne, Indiana.  Their biggest hit.

26.  NO MATTER WHAT SIGN YOU ARE--  Diana Ross / Supremes   #31   Not one of their biggest hits, but that group and the Motown Sound.  Get you going.

Name That Tune (from the above songs);  "Let Me Put You Up Where You Belong."  Answer below.  --RoadDog


"Black Pearl"

WLS Top Ten for June 2, 1969: "Grazing In the Grass"

OK, so I forgot two in a row.  Sorry.

1.  GET BACK--  Beatles
2.  MORNING GIRL--  Neon Philharmonic
3.  BAD MOON RISING--  Creedence Clearwater Revival

4.  IN THE GHETTO--  Elvis Presley
5.  OH, HAPPY DAY--  Edwin Hawkins Singers
6.  LOVE--  Mercy
7.  I COULD NEVER LIE TO YOU--  New Colony Six

8.  GRAZING IN THE GRASS--  Friends of Distinction
9.  LOVE THEME FROM ROMEO AND JULIET--  Henry Mancini
10.  TOO BUSY THINKING ABOUT MY BABY--  Marvin Gaye

********************

DEBUTS

33.  WHAT DOES IT TAKE--  Jr. Walker & The Allstars
37.  SPINNING WHEEL--  Blood, Sweat & Tears

38.  WITH PEN IN HAND--  Vicki Carr
39.  COLOR HIM FATHER-- Winstons

40.  TOMORROW, TOMORROW--    Bee Gees

Name That Tune (From the above songs):  "JoJo Was A Man Who Thought He Was A Loner."  Answer below.  --RoadDog


"Get Back"

WLS Top 40 for May 12, 1969-- Part 5: "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby"

That's right, fifty years ago.   Geezers.  The number after the artist is how high the song got on the Billboard Hot 100.

20.  GRAZING IN THE GRASS--  Friends of Distinction      #3    So, that's how Hugo's song went.    Fifth Dimension II.  Their biggest hit.

19.  TOO BUSY THINKING ABOUT MY BABY--  Marvin Gaye     #4     How do you beat that classic Motown sound?  Easy to dance to, good beat.  I'd give it a 9.   Follow up to his biggest hit, "I Heard It Through the Grapevine."

18.  ATLANTIS--  Donovan     #7  OK, class.  Today's history lesson will be....   Builds and builds to the climax.   His last Top Ten.

17.  IT'S YOUR THING--  Isley Brothers     #2    Still can't listen to it and not start moving to it.  Their biggest Pop hit, but they had a real lot of songs on the R&B charts.

16.  MERCY--   Ohio Express     #30    Some more of that great, under-rated Bubblegum Music.   At 2:15 not nearly long enough.  Not a better-known song, though.  Really catchy words and music, but, B.M. is that way in all its songs.

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Those Beautiful Sailors Journeyed To The South And North Americas With Ease."    Answer below.  --RoadDog


"Atlantis"

Music of 1968-- Part 1: A Year To Remember

From the Time Life Magazine/book "Music of 1968: Rock and Roll's Greatest Year.

I really enjoy these little magazine/books and spend more than I should on them.  Lots of great pictures, concise text an plenty of information and a surprising number of them of particular interest to me.  Most are just 100 pages long so they don't take too long to read.

Of course, I am really interested in music and especially music from 1968, which was a good high school year for at good old Palatine High School in Illinois (my junior/senior year).

Now that I am a year late, I will go through the magazine and write a little of what they said about each artist.

"1968:  A Year To Remember.

"Mick Jagger summed it up best:  "But what can a poor boy do, except to sing for a rock 'n' roll band?"

"For rock 'n' roll lovers, 1968 hit the mother lode.  Psychedelia ruled, and so did protest,  Motown and Johnny Cash's twang. The Rolling Stones blasted back onto the airwaves with "Beggars Banquet."  Heavy metal was ascendant."

Buy Me An Album.  --RoadDog

TRIVIA:  In which scandalous novel is literature professor Humbert Humbert obsessed with pre-teen Dolores Hazel?


"Lolita"

WLS Top Ten for January 20, 1969: "Going Up the Country"

Fifty years ago in Chicago, these were the Top Ten and debuts in WLS, 890 AM.  Hey, 50 years = half a century.   Can You Dig It?   Man.

1.  CRIMSON & CLOVER--  Tommy James / Shondells
2.  TOUCH ME--  Doors
3.  SOULFUL STRUT--  Young Holt Unlimited

4.  WORST THAT COULD HAPPEN--  Brooklyn Bridge
5.  HOOKED ON A FEELING--  B.J. Thomas
6.  GOING UP THE COUNTRY--  Canned Heat
7.  I'M GONNA MAKE YOU LOVE ME--  Diana Ross / Supremes

8.  SON OF A PREACHER MAN--  Dusty Springfield
9.  I HEARD IT THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE--  Marvin Gaye
10.  HANG 'EM HIGH--  Booker T. & the MGs

DEBUTS

32.  RAMBLIN' GAMBLIN' MAN--  Bob Seeger
34.  I'VE GOTTA BE ME--  Sammy Davis, Jr.

35.  I'VE GOT A LINE ON YOU--  Spirit
39.  BUT YOU KNOW I LOVE YOU--  First Edition
40.  GAMES PEOPLE PLAY--  Joe South

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Oh, Now I Don't Hardly Know Her, But I Think That I Could Love Her."  Answer below.  --RoadDog

IN 50 YEARS OF LIVING YOU LEARN:  There is a fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."


"Crimson & Clover"

WLS Top 40 for January 13, 1969-- Part 2: "For Once In My Life"

Seventeen of the Top 40 were music from black acts, including 7 Motown.  A big week for black music.

35.  BABY, BABY DON'T CRY--  Smokey Robinson / Miracles     #8   Oh, that voice.  Take us into it, Smokey.

34.  I'M LIVING IN SHAME--  Diana Ross / Supremes    (D)     #10   Another social issue song.

33.  FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE--  Stevie Wonder    #2     Three great Motown songs in a row at this point.

32.  THERE'S GONNA BE A SHOWDOWN--  Archie Bell & the Drells     #21     This song gets played  a lot in Beach Music.   They're from Houston like he said in "Tighten Up."

31.  YOU SHOWED ME--  Turtles      #6   The vocals this group could do!!    Group formed at Winchester High School in Los Angeles in 1961.

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Mama Was Cooking Bread.  She Wore A Dirty Raggedy Scarf Around Her Head."

IN FIFTY YEARS OF LIVING:   People who tell you they have an excellent sense of humor are telling you that they have no sense of humor.

"I'm Living In Shame."

WLS Top 40 for January 13, 1969-- Part 1: "Abraham, Martin & John"

The Top 40 Songs in Chicago on January 13, 1969.

(D) is for debut.  The number behind the artist is the highest the song got on the Billboard Top 100.

40.  OB-LA-DI, OB-LA-DA--  Arthur Conley      #51   (D)  A reggae take on this Beatles song  Somebody says the lead guitarist on it was Duane Allman.  His last Top 100.  Discovered by Otis Redding in 1965.

39.  FEELIN' SO GOOD--  Archies    #53   (S.K.O.O.B.Y.-D.O.O.)    (D)  I guess this is not the TV cartoon dog.  Studio group formed by Don Kirshner.

38.  ABRAHAM, MARTIN & JOHN--   Dion      #4   His last  top 40.   "I just looked around and he's gone."  Brings back some memories of 1968.  At this point the song was falling out of the survey.

37.  LOVE CHILD--  Diana Ross / Supremes     #1  That great Motown sound tied to a social issue.

36.  BUILD ME UP BUTTERCUP--  Foundations       #3   (D)   Gets the folks up dancing at Captain's Quarters in Antioch, Illinois.    Also, a great Beach Music song.   Their biggest hit.

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "And Then Worst Of All (Worst Of All) You Never Call, Baby."

Answer Below.  --RoadDog



"Build Me Up Buttercup"

WLS Top 40 for December 9, 1968-- Part 4: "Promises, Promises"

25.  CLOUD NINE--  Temptations      #6    The Temps getting psychedelic with that hard life.  Originally the Primes then the Elgins.

24.  PROMISES, PROMISES--  Dionne Warwick      #19    Bacharach and David could sure write 'em.  Dionne could sure sing 'em.   From East Orange, New Jersey.

23.  I'M GONNA MAKE YOU LOVE ME--  Diana Ross / Supremes       #2    With the Temptations.   Now there's a combination for you.  Was this song by the Primettes and Primes?

22.  THOSE WERE THE DAYS--   Mary Hopkin      #2      By far her biggest hit.   Hard to believe that "Those Days" are over fifty years ago.

21.  HANG 'EM HIGH--  Booker T. & the MGs     #9   Another great instrumental.  Sounds western to me.  I can almost see that cowboy riding off into the sunset.   Title song of the Clint Eastwood movie.

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "The Childhood Part Of My Life Wasn't Very Pretty."  Answer below.  --RoadDog

PC  INCORRECT CHRISTMAS SONGS:  "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus"--  subjecting minors to soft porn.


"Cloud Nine"

WLS Top 40 For November 4, 1968-- Part 3: "Cinnamon"

The number behind the artist is the highest it got on the Billboard Top 100 National charts.

30.  CINNAMON--  Derek    #11   Group formed by Johnny Cymbal  who had a 1963 hit with "Mr. Bass Man".  After that song, he did not have much success  Reformed with the name of his brother, but Johnny did the singing.

29.  I'M IN A DIFFERENT WORLD--  Four Tops   #51   Never heard it, but a REAL GOOD song.  Classic Motown.  It's all there.

28.  CYCLES--  Frank Sinatra    #23   He's lived through many phases and right now  one a real downer, but he'll get through.

27.  COURT OF LOVE--  Unifics     #25    Formed at Howard University in Washington, D.C..  Never heard of it.  Great choreography and dig those over-sized white gloves.   I'll sure be listening to some more of this group on You Tube.

26.  SWEET BLINDNESS--  Fifth Dimension     #13   Check out the neat parade video.  One person says the parade was in Cannes, France.  And that outfit that Marilyn McCoo was wearing!!!  Must have been poured into it.  As one person said, "'LAWD HAVE MERCY!!!!"

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Let's Go Down By The Grape Vine  Drink My Daddy's Wine, Get Happy."  Answer below.  --RoadDog



"Sweet Blindness"

WLS Top 40 for November 4, 1968-- Part 2: "Both Sides Now"

35.  BOTH SIDES NOW--  Judy Collins    (D)    #8    Her biggest hit.   What a voice.  A touchy-feely song.

34.  ABRAHAM, MARTIN & JOHN--  Dion  (D)     #4   A very timely song for this era.  A come-back for Dion.  His last Top 100 was in 1964.

33.  FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE--  Stevie Wonder    #2   As good of Stevie as it gets.

32.  GOODY, GOODY GUMDROPS--  1910 Fruitgum Co.      #37   Great Bubble Gum Music.  Check out the guy with the tambourine in the video.  He sure played  it.  2:16 on pure toe-tapping pop music.

31.  BRING IT ON HOME TO ME--   Eddie Floyd     #17     Hey, this is some great soul music and what about that  bass?  Every bit as good as his better-known "Knock On Wood"  (#28-1966).

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Can You Tell Me Where's He Gone?"  Answer below.  --RoadDog

SAYINGS:  "Nice Guys Finish Last."   Sorry Leo Durocher, but not true.   Studies have shown that, on average, nice guys finish third in a field of six.  In Medieval Times, it was believed nice guys finished 26th.

"Abraham, Martin & John"

Music of 1968-- Part 1: "Rock and Roll's Greatest Year"

From the Time Life magazine.

It was a great year, but I am not sure about Rock and Roll's Greatest Year.  This was sold at newstands where they almost unbelievably still sell magazines  in this digital age.  Personally, I'm sure glad they do.  Picture of the Beatles on the front cover.

"1968  A YEAR TO REMEMBER:  Mich Jagger summed it up best: "But what can a poor boy do, except to sing for a rock 'n' roll band?"

For the rock 'n' roll lovers, 1968 hit the mother lode.  Psychedelia ruled and so did protest, Motown and Johnny Cash's twang.  The Rolling Stones blasted back onto the airwaves with "Beggars Banquet.  Heavy metal was ascendant.  The Beatles, in spite of personal resentments and professional differences, followed "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" with an LP that since has been embraced as the even more iconic:  "The Beatles,"  a.k.a. the White Album.

It Was a Great Year (When I Was 17, and I really was).  --RoadDog

Music Deaths: Joe Jackson, Father of the Jackson Five

JOE JACKSON,  89

Died June 27, 2018

Father of the Jackson Five.  Despite what was said about him, without him, we might never have had that great group.

Thank You Joe Jackson

That "I Want You back" is still one of my all-time favorite songs.

WLS Top 40 for May 6, 1968-- Part 1: MacArthur Park"

Fifty Years Ago.  "D" means debut.  The number after the artist is how high the song got on the Billboard Top 100.

40.  REACH OUT IN THEE DARKNESS--  Friend and Lover  (D)   #10  Husband and wife team, Carthy and Jim Post  A great Hippy song.

39.  MacARTHUR PARK-- Richard Harris   (D)   #2    From Limerick, Ireland.

38.  BROOKLYN ROADS--  Neil Diamond   (D)   #58   Real name Noah Kamisnski.

37.  HOW DID WE EVER GET THIS WAY--  Andy Kim   (D)    #21  Had 12 Top 100s from 1968-1974.  Had two Top Tens with "Baby I Love You" and "Rock Me Gently" which went to #1.

36.  I COULD NEVER LOVE ANOTHER--  Temptations    (D)   #13   Not one of their better-known songs, but classic Motown all the way.

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "I Think It's So Groovy Now That People Are Finally Getting Together."  Answer below.  --RoadDog


"Reach Out In the Darkness"

Music Deaths: Sylvia Moy, Songwriter for Stevie Wonder

SYLVIA MOY, 78

Died April 15, 2017.

Wrote "Uptight (Everything's Alright," "My Cherie Amour" and "I Was Made to Love Her" for Stevie Wonder.

Also wrote "It Takes Two" for Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston and "This Old Heart of Mine" for the Isley Brothers.