JohnO

Mike Smith sent a taped message that was televised at the benefit shows for him at BB Kings in August (the week after the Raspberries shows). He appears to be making very slow progress, and at least has some use of his arms now (which he didn't have for about a year after the accident). If Dave C. would ever get off his butt and FINALLY release the DC5 material on CD, while it wouldn't mean much money up front for Mike, it could raise the awareness level of his problems to the point where he might be able to get more financial help. Also, a DVD is being prepared from the tribute shows (the Fab Faux, Denny Laine, Billy J. Kramer, Peter & Gordon (their first shows in 37 years!), and the Zombies), with the lion's share of the proceeds going to Mike's benefit. NOTE: Had the DC5 finally been elected to the R&R HOF, this is yet another way that Mike S.'s plight could have been made more widely known.

Billy Joe Royal is one of only 2 rock & rollers I can remember from Cincinnati, along with Lonnie Mack. Any other R&R notables from there? Just wondering.....

There was an excellent Joe South Tribute CD that came out about a year ago, featuring SF power pop God Chris Von Sneidern, soul singer extraordinaire Otis Clay and other luminaries. Pretty decent for a tribute LP.....

I kinda like Eric Cartman's "Oh, Holy Night" from the Southpark Christmas show....even if he did forget most of the lyrics after the first couple of lines.

I was a fool...and still am. (NOTE: I hate talking about stuff like this, to the point that I've pretty much blocked out most of my memories of ever being a teenager.....then again, maybe I just drank too much and did too many drugs, and I really can't remember!)

Other 60's songwriters of note: - P.F.Sloan - Graham Gouldman - Otis Redding, who co-wrote most of his material with several others, notably - - Steve Cropper - Dan Penn (also Penn/Oldham There are also a bunch of writers who, while starting in the 50's, continued to write well into the 60's - Otis Blackwell, Leiber/Stoller, Chuck Berry, etc. And on the C&W side of the house - Harlan Howard, Tommy Collins, J.Cash, M.Haggard, B.Owens, W.Nelson, etc. - who did their best work, IMO, in the 60's

Marv - If anything, the Springsteen camp got their idea from Krulik, who shot and produced "Heavy Metal Parking Lot" in 1986, I believe.

I totally agree with oldblue the Moby Grape guys mentioned above. All 5 of that band wrote - Mosley, Lewis and Spence wrote songs for the most part on their own, and Jerry Miller and Don Stevenson were a songwriting team. BTW, Bob Mosley just released an excellent new solo CD, "True Blue", on the Taxim label out of Germany. He still has those great pipes! P.S. The Easybeats's songs, including "Friday", were written by Harry Vanda - George Young....George being the older brother of Angus and Malcolm Young of AC/DC.

Addendum to last post....regarding Krulik's "Neil Diamond Parking Lot" film....I did NOT mean to imply that the ND lookalikes or poster-toters in wheelchairs are creepy, per se -what's creepy is their rabid fanaticism, which makes them very similar to the much younger kids from "Heavy Metal Parking Lot".....many of whom were undoubtedly not drugged (as I stated earlier), but probably drunk....or at least seemed that way. I understand Krulik's also started a "Harry Potter Parking Lot", which he says may top all of his other works as far as extremism in hero worship.

James - To respond to your question about why ND isn't taken seriously....over the years, the general perception of Neil has been one of a once-great singer/songwriter who's "gone Vegas", gotten too schmaltzy, and worries much more about how he looks on stage than how he gets the music across. Also, his crowds are generally older and perceived as less hip than those of similar acts, prompting such things as DC filmmaker Jeff Krulik (primarily known for the VERY scary "Heavy Metal Parking Lot") to start filming "Neil Diamond Parking Lot", which essentially shows footage of a typical ND crowd outside the old Capital Center in Landover, MD. Jeff completed about 20 minutes of this film for a sneak preview....it's very, very creepy, but in a completely different way than "Heavy Metal PL", with a lot of middle-aged Neil lookalikes, people in wheelchairs with homemade posters, etc. These people are just as crazy over ND as the drugged-out kids from HMPL were for Judas Priest.

I received it and read it all last night. Great job, guys!!!...both on the book and the cool extras. It's a great package (and I mean that in a wholesome, family value-oriented, and hetero way)!!!

Tony - There are tons of songs out there that aggravate me to no end. When I start to hear one, be it on the radio, TV, etc., I simply change channels. That's what the remote control's for! My earlier rant about snobbery isn't about the fact that you or I or someone else hates a particular song or artist. We all do. It has a lot more to do with trying to keep an open mind about and respecting others' opinions. For what it's worth, I don't care for the Black-Eyed-Peas either. As incomprehensible as I (and probably you) find it, though, these guys are selling tons of CDs. Personally, I'm just writing it off as a generation gap issue. My parents thought Elvis, the Beatles, Stones, and Byrdes were just noise. Likewise, I feel the same way about a lot of stuff on the Billboard charts nowadays....BUT I have heard it, and decided I don't like it....not the same as dismissing a band like, let's say, Raspberries in the 70s because someone didn't like Eric's hair or their white suits or power pop in general. (or ditto the Sex Pistols, Ramones, etc. because they were are junkies or played too loud....)

While a couple of us commented about this subject in posts over the past few days (regarding negative comments about the Ramones, Sex Pistols, etc.), I'd just like to add that, personally, this message board has helped me to appreciate what was, in some cases, relatively new music to me prior to starting to post and read here. For the most obvious example, I never ever really cared about or even liked much of Eric C.'s solo material prior to reading various posts here that compared his work to the Raspberries' records, rated the LPs, etc. I got on this board as the direct result of meeting people at Raspberries reunion gigs. After reading lots of different opinions about EC's solo works, I tracked down the solo LPs/CDs I had been missing (everything after "Boats" - all I had were his first 2 solp LPs), and whaddaya know? Every one of his LPs has some really excellent stuff (well, I'm still not crazy about "Change Of Heart", but....), and I'm glad I now have them, and I listen to them regularly. Another example - I had totally forgotten about Artful Dodger, who were from my area, until people started posting here about their reunion gig and their old LPs...I've since tracked down the missing pieces (3rd & 4th LP), and it's for the most part, great material. What am I getting at? I just think it's better sometimes to open one's ears up and listen to other/new/forgotten music in lieu of slagging it off because you didn't care for it 15-20 years ago. You might still dislike it...but dammit, there are obviously lots of others who do...so it's not just worthless crap to everybody. Personally, there's a lot of R&R music that I don't like...but hopefully, I'll continue to respect the fact that somebody else does...and maybe I just might change my mind once in a while if I actually listen to something that's new to me....enough of this rant. I really do appreciate this board!

Regarding the rumor about Chris Spedding playing guitar on "Never Mind The Bollocks"....per Chris himself, it ain't him on it, although he's pretty sure he did do some overdub guitar work on the original version of the LP, later released as "Spunk", and under various other names. (Spedding produced the original version as well.)

While Brian Wilson's early falsetto is very hard to duplicate, check out Jeffrey Foskett's solo or live material (the guy who does the high parts on tour with Brian W.). Speaking of Christine McVie & Raspberries similarities, what about Scott McCarl's eerie approximation of McVie/Buckingham on that cut ("Falling In Loving", I think it's called) on his solo CD "Play On"?

Yeah, I agree with you regarding the production on "Road To Ruin". I just feel the songs are stronger on "Rocket". The wildest story I ever heard about the production of a Ramones LP involves, not surprisingly, Phil Spector & "End Of The Century". Allegedly (and I got this first hand from Cyril Jordan of the Flamin' Groovies, whose band recorded at Spector's Gold Star studios), due to Seymour Stein's not paying Spector what they agreed upon for services rendered, the public never heard Phil's actual intended mix of EOTC, which, per Cyril, sounded like "a cross between the Ramones and Yardbirds in outer space"....allegedly, it would have been far and away their best-sounding work (although, frankly, I don't think a lot of the songs were all that strong anyway), and it might have finally broken them commercially. (Doubtful) BTW, Stein pulled the same stunt on the Groovies (short-changing Phil S.), who never did get their masters from Spector....bootleg versions of the 5-6 songs they recorded there have surfaced over the years, but they were taken from cheap cassette recordings that were smuggled out of the studio.

I remember a very early description of the Ramones as "Beach Boys in leather jackets, with amps turned up to 10, and no high harmonies"...and I think that's still pretty accurate. I believe the Raspberries could do most of the Ramones' better material and it would fit in nicely. Personally, I'd recommend "Rocket to Russia". If songs like "Rockaway Beach," "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow", and "Sheena Is A Punkrocker", or their cover of "Do You Wanna Dance" don;t hook you, nothing probably will. Agree 100% about the evils of music snobbery...there's no place for it in popular music...which is not to say that I like everything I hear - but I don't dismiss it as crap or noise either.

A couple of really early ones, rock & roll-wise.... Elvis' delivery was pure Arthur Crudup, and early Mick Jagger was obviously from Don Covay. I personally think early Tom Petty was obviously ripped from Roger McGuinn. I don't really hear much Dylan at all in his voice - I think he tries to phrase/deliver a lot like Dylan, though. I remember arguing with friends about Rafferty and Stealer's Wheel's "Stuck In The Middle With You." They all said "Dylan", but I thought he was basically doing George Harrison.

Sorry....what the Senator meant to say above was "dumped Joey for Johnny"....an egregious error; my bad!

Actually, I called Johnny a "jerk", not an asshole...and yeah, I know all of the stories about Joey & Johnny & Linda, having talked first hand with 2 of the principals. While most of the sh*t could have been avoided had Linda simply talked to Joey about what happened (in lieu of his finding it out via third parties), the fact is - Joey & Johnny couldn't stand each other prior to that...things just got worse after Linda dumped Johnny for Joey. Frankly, I think enough space on an Eric Carmen board has been devoted to the Ramones here....and, with obvious exceptions, I don't think most EC list members give a rat's ass about the brudders. The comment about all of their music sounding alike doesn't surprise me.....

Marvin - Actually, the Clash were inducted into the HOF in 2003. The Pistols obviously made it in on the strength of the influence they had on others....otherwise, I doubt that 1 LP (no matter how good or bad) would have gotten them in.

Actually, having passed away several years ago, Doug Sahm isn't receiving a cent if anyone buys that 5 disk box set....which is a common complaint I've heard about various labels that specialize in reissues and box sets (among them Hip-o-Select, Sundazed, and even Norton) - that a lot of their reissues are done on deceased artists, and they don't do that comprehensive a job on trying to track down the survivors or estate. A dead person can't sue you for unpaid royalties. What WB's done with the Ramones is almost criminal - had they paid even a small fraction of attention to the band when they existed, Dee Dee wouldn't have died broke in an LA flop house. Joey might have been able to afford better care or designer drugs for his lymphoma, and....well, Johnny would have still been a jerk, IMO. I also saw them well over 50 times, and never got tired of their live act.

Regarding a Raspberries box set...sure I'd buy it, but, aside from maybe some old demos and Quick/Cyrus Eire/Choir 45's, what would be new unless they also include solo material from the 6 band members or, as has been discussed, a live DVD or CD? Their 4 LPs have been remastered and reissued a couple of times over the past 10 years already. There would, of course, be problems with the multitude of labels involved if they started getting into solo material. I would, nonetheless, buy any box set just to help support the band. I used to feel the same way about buying every Ramones anthology/comp that came out, but there have been way too many that overlap too much over the past few years. (Ramones-Mania, Weird Tales, Hey Ho, Let's Go, and Loud,Fast Ramones, to name just four of them.....)

I honestly don't know if the Bears are for real or not, but....I mentioned earlier the similarities between them and the '00 Ravens and '02 Bucs. In both cases, nobody was willing to accept that these teams were for real..and why should they, with Trent Dilfer at QB and no offense aside from Jamal Lewis in the case of the former, and Brad Johnson manning the controls for the latter? Regarding the Bears' losses, I'd love to see them play Washington or Cleveland now. They lost to the 'Skins 9-7 in Orton's first ever NFL game, and to Cleveland in his 3rd, when he turned the ball over twice in the last 5 minutes. Da Bears may not be for real, but who exactly is, especially in the NFC this year? Seattle, maybe?

Just to make one comment about the Sir Douglas Quintet - Doug Sahm and his various bands over the years were FAR more prolific than the Raspberries. Just go to Amazon and look - including reissues (but not counting compilations), there are about 15 or so Sir Douglas Quintet albums, at least another 15 or so Doug Sahm albums, plus what, 4 or 5 Texas Tornados LPs (included a just-released live one)? Now, whether Sahm's material itself is worth the price they're asking, that's whether you like the man's music or not. Me, I didn't get that box set because I already had most of it on CD. The reason, BTW, for the $100 price tag on just the Mercury/Smash material (I think it's 6 albums worth of goodies) is the label. Hip-o-Select charges an arm and a leg for all of their releases. I got a CD from them of Howard Tate's "Get It While You Can" awhile back, arguably one of the 10 best 60's soul albums, and never previously available on CD, and it ran about $25. Hip-o-Select is a boutique label that deals primarily in very hard to find old LPs that were never released on CD. In the case of the Sir Douglas stuff, I'm pretty sure that just the old Smash singles in mono have been unavailable.