Music Deaths: Buddy Cage of the New Riders of the Purple Sage

BUDDY CAGE, 73

Died 5 February 2020

Pedal-steel guitarist who played with the country-rock psychedelic band New Riders of the Purple Sage.  Also session player.  Played with Anne Murray, Bob Dylan and Brewer & Shipley.

So, if you're into the NRPS and hear a steel guitar, you know who was playing it.

Music Deaths: Roky Erickson of the 13th Floor Elevators

ROKY ERICKSON, 71

Died May 31, 2019

Singer, songwriter of the psychedelic band 13th Floor Elevators from Austin, Texas.  They were a One Hit Wonder band with just "You're Gonna Miss Me" (#55-1966)

Early in her career, Janis Joplin considered joining this band.  The band was a vocal proponent of the use of marijuana and  and psychedelic drug use and as such, were constantly under  attention of law enforcement groups.  They were the first group to call it Psychedelic Rock.

If you haven't heard this song, go to You Tube.  Very interesting.  Surprised that it didn't chart higher (excuse the pun).  Also, they have an hour-long album "The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators."  Worth a listen.  They sure liked that strange sound on their songs.

Far Out, Man, Far Out.

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 40 for March 10, 1969-- Part 6: "Crossroads"

Fifty Years Ago on Chicago's WLS, 890 AM.

15.  CROSSROADS--  Cream     #28   All that great noise from just three guys:  Ginger, Jack and Eric.  A great Power Trio.  Go ahead.  Try and not move to this one.  Amazingly, they only had 5  Top 100s

14.  HOT SMOKE & SASSAFRASS--  Bubble Puppy    #14     Psychedelic Rock  Love the beginning of this song.  One of my all-time favorites.  Listened to this one LOUD and OFTEN.  One-Hit Wonders

13.  MAY I--  Bill Deal / Rhondells      #39   And, I really love Beach Music.  Originally done by Maurice Williams & the Zodiacs who did not chart with it.  .  Love the horns.

12.  LONG GREEN--  Fireballs     #73   A real Rave Up with this one.  From New Mexico.  Their last hit.

11.  RAMBLIN' GAMBLIN' MAN--  Bob Seger    #17    One of my all-time favorites.  Seger's friend Glen Frey played acoustic guitar and sank backing vocals on it.His first hit.  Michigan's pride and joy.

Name That Tune (from the above songs): " 'Cause I Was Born Lonely Down By The Riverside."  Answer below.  --RoadDog



"Ramblin' Gamblin' Man"

Music Deaths: Marty Balin of Jefferson Airplane and Starship

MARTY BALIN, 76

Died September 27, 2018

Vocalist, guitarist and co-founder of Jefferson Airplane.  Was also with Jefferson Starship on "Miracles"  (#3-1975).  Had a solo Top ten with "Hearts"  (#8-1981)

With the Airplane on "Somebody To Love"  (#5-1967), "White Rabbit"  (#8-1967)

Was also on "With Your Love"  (#12-1972) and "Count On Me"  (#8-1978).

With the KBC band with fellow Airplane alum Paul Kantner and Jack Cassidy.

Music Deaths: Ed King, Co-Founder of Strawberry Alarm Clock and Member of Lynyrd Skynyrd

ED KING, 68

Died August 29, 2018

Is it possible to get more hippie and psychedelic than Strawberry Alarm Clock?

Co-founder of Strawberry Alarm Clock  "Incense & Peppermints"  (#1-1967) and guitarist and bassist with Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Co-write "Sweet Home Alabama"  (#8-1974)

With Lynyrd Skynyrd 1972 to 1975 and 1987 to 1996 when he left the band with heart trouble.  Became member of Rock and Roll Hall of fame in 2006.

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

Dead Page: "In-A-Gadda" Man and "Rescue" Gal

LEE DORMAN, 70

Bassist with the psychedelic rock band Iron Butterfly.  Died Dec. 21st.  Their second album was massive and with that long, long song "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" and that  long drum solo.  Almost made me take up the drums.


FANTELLA BASS, 72

Grew up and lived in St. Louis.  Had some minor hits "Don't Mess Up a Good Thing" and "You'll Miss me (When I'm Gone)."  Died Dec. 26th.

But the real big hit was "Rescue Me" one of my favorites.  It went to #1 R&B and #4 on the pop charts.  Drummer on the song as Maurice White who went on to game in Earth, Wind & Fire.  Minnie Ripperton was one of the backup singers.

Iron Butterfly and Canned Heat at Galt Airport

McHenry's Galt Airport hosted a psychedelic concert a couple weeks ago with two of the better-known 60s bands: Iron Butterfly and Canned Heat. I didn't go, but would have liked to. It was billed as a Celebration of the 1967 Summer of Love. They had posters out that looked like those you would have seen out at Haight-Asbury back in that year. They were psychedelic.

There was a bit of a proble leading up to it as the airport owner did not want to hire off-duty McHenry County sheriffs and police at the rate of $50 an hour. Hey, I would sure work for that!!!

I was able to get a poster at the Woodstock Chamber of Commerce a few days after the event.

Of course, Iron Butterfly is sometimes referred to as the first heavy metal band. Their biggest hit was 1968's 17 minute-long "In-a-Gadda-da-Vida" which is supposedly an alcohol-slurred version of "In the Garden of Eden." Then, there's the seven-minute drum solo. They were supposed to be at the Woodstock Festival, but got stuck at an airport.

I have an original album by them. but it is somewhat worn. I couldn't get enough of that song. Just hearing it takes me right back to that period of my life.

Bryan Wawzenek had an interview with bassist Lee Dorman in the Northwest Herald. He said the group had never played the short version of the song, which was made by a deejay in Detroit. They had other songs, but "In-a-Gadda-da-Vida definitely overshadowed all the rest of their efforts. He didn't join the band until the fall of 1967 after a tour of duty in Vietnam.

Canned Heat formed in Los Angeles in 1965 is is considered a blues-rock-boogie band. Bob "the Bear" Hite was the lead singer and harmonica-player. They were at the 1967 Monterrey Pop Festival and Woodstock where I always thought Hite wasn't too with it on the song that was chosen for the soundtrack. They had two great ROAD SONGS: "Going Up the Country" and "On the Road Again."

Take Me Back to the Sixties. --RoadDog