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ROCKOLLECTIONS: THE CSN DEBUT PT.2 END

 

Funny, this show was broadcast on a hot August day, and now today I have been battling a cold, flu or whatever the hell has gotten into me!
I feel like crap, but listening to this debut album by Crosby, Stills & Nash helped.
Side Two is all ready to go.
And I went off on why I like the song Helplessly Hoping so much.
Besides all the alliterations included in it, there is that chorus…oh that chorus!
Brilliant to me, and my breakdown of it just shows what a true romantic I am, lol!
Always loved the song, always will.
There is the rest of the side of course, plus I had time to throw in a bonus track.
So sit back, kick off your shoes and listen to some fabulous harmonies.
I rank them right up there with the Mamas & Papas, Beach Boys and anyone else I can think of.
It’s strange, I put so much work into the Theme shows and sometimes just simply playing an album is so satisfying.
Please do enjoy the sounds.
It’s a sick man’s request, lol!

Mike

Tags: Beach Boys, david crosby, Graham Nash, Helplessly Hoping, Mamas & Papas, stephen stills

ROCKOLLECTIONS: BEATLES LOOSE CHANGE VOL.1- PT.2

Let’s continue on, shall we, with singles by the Beatles that remained only singles.
At least if you lived in the UK back when they were originally released, not appearing on any album.
There are quite a few of them, and I certainly will not be getting to them all in these 2 parts.
There will be at least another show, maybe more.
And I will be playing them in the order they came out at the time in England.
Additionally, to further muddy the waters, there is the matter of EP’s.
We had them here in America, but for some reason they were always seemingly more popular in Britain.
For those who may not know, EP stood for Extended Play- they were a cross between a 45 RPM single and a 33 1/3 RPM album.
They were the smaller size of a single but played at the speed of the larger sized album- the extended play came in because they contained 2 or more songs per side instead of one song on each side, with the slower speed compensating for the smaller size.
Damn, I am confusing myself, lol!
In this chapter I will play the Beatles 4-song Long Tall Sally EP, none of which made it onto albums over there.
And of those 4 songs, only one was written by the Beatles- and that was a bigger hit here by the Mamas & Papas.
Finally, I will close out this Volume One with one of the all-time great 2-sided hits.
There will be a Volume Two in the vague future.
For now, let’s just enjoy the music. Whew!

Mike

Tags: Beatle Albums, Beatle Singles, EP's, Extended Play, Long Tall Sally, Mamas & Papas

ROCKOLLECTIONS: TRIBUTE/MEMORIAL 2007 PT.1

It is time, a little later this year, for my annual Tribute/Memorial for the artists who passed away in 2007.
They will have a connection to Rock & Roll- however slim that might be- and we will remember some other figures who had a place in our pop culture too.
As is traditional, I’ll start with Graham Nash’s beautiful and melancholy Lost Another One.
A song inspired by his listening to the radio and hearing about George Harrison’s death- knowing that, give a listen to those lyrics.
I will be doing these in a chronological order for the most part. There will be some exceptions, but they will have their reasons.
These people can give no more, and they deserve at least one more play.
As a result, since you can’t control who or when somebody is going to die, I will be all over the musical map even more than usual.
In this opening chapter, we will cover the losses of Sneaky Pete Kleinow, pedal steel player for the Flying Burrito Brothers, actress Yvonne DeCarlo (see what I mean?), Pookie Hudson of the Spaniels, Social Distortion’s Brent Liles, Denny Doherty of the Mamas & Papas and the legendary and influential folkie Eric Von Schmidt.
Enjoy the music, they would want that.

Tags: Brent Liles, Denny Doherty, Eric Von Schmidt, Flying Burrito Brothers, Graham Nash, Mamas & Papas, Memorial2007, Mike Pell, Pookie Hudson, Rockollections, Sneaky Pete Kleinow, Social Distortion, Spaniels, Tribute 2007, Yvonne DeCarlo