(Above: My parents had the LP. I have the 8-track.) Composer Galt McDermot passed away today, one day short of his 90th birthday. McDermot was responsible for setting the words of James Radio and Gerome Ragni to music for inclusion in a stage show the two had written - Hair: The American Tribal Love Rock … Continue reading Rest in peace, Galt McDermot: Oliver, “Good Morning Starshine” (1969)
Author: Len
Rest in peace, Joe Osborn: The Association, “Windy” (1967)
(Above: Trust me, you have heard this man at work.) In many walks of life there are those that receive the credit, the adulation, and the recognition while a lot of the actual heavy lifting is done by others. Rock and roll is no exception. Yesterday I got word that bass player Joe Osborn passed … Continue reading Rest in peace, Joe Osborn: The Association, “Windy” (1967)
School’s out for winter: The Billboard Hot 100 for December 15, 1984 (and what we probably listened to instead)
(Above: I was clearly enjoying my junior year of high school and in no hurry to go on break.) Friday, December 14, 1984 was the last day of school before the Christmas break began. If I remember correctly, we got out early from school that day, and a bunch of us went to Dave-we-called-Fritz's house, … Continue reading School’s out for winter: The Billboard Hot 100 for December 15, 1984 (and what we probably listened to instead)
Elvis comes back: “If I Can Dream” (1968)
The most-watched television show of the 1968-1969 television season aired fifty years ago tonight. Singer Presents... Elvis was assembled from performance footage that had been taped earlier that summer, edited down to a 50-minute special, and aired on NBC. It gathered 42 per cent of the television audience on December 3, 1968. Perhaps more importantly, … Continue reading Elvis comes back: “If I Can Dream” (1968)
Bedrock and roll: The Beau Brummels, “Laugh Laugh” (1965)
(Above: Hitting the prehistoric big time.) Back in the day when we had a broadcasting major at GVSU, we had a course called "Life on Television." (Remind me to bring one or both of those things back one of these days.) In the end days of the course, I evolved it into a television history … Continue reading Bedrock and roll: The Beau Brummels, “Laugh Laugh” (1965)
Snow’s coming: Manfred Mann’s Earth Band, “Stranded” (1980)
(Above: Mayday, this is Echo Hotel.) The first winter storm warning of the season is upon us for 2018. Unfortunately, it's hitting a good portion of the plains and upper Midwest on the busiest travel day of the year: the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Each year more travelers fly on this day more than other, and … Continue reading Snow’s coming: Manfred Mann’s Earth Band, “Stranded” (1980)
Plenty of variety: The Billboard Hot 100 chart, November 15, 1980
(Above: Kenny Rogers, somewhere between psychedelia and chicken.) By the middle of November I was entrenched in my new school. My parents decided to move to Orland Park near the end of my sixth grade year; in fact, I commuted to Helen Keller School for the last three months of the term that spring. I … Continue reading Plenty of variety: The Billboard Hot 100 chart, November 15, 1980
Rest in peace, Roy Clark: “Yesterday, When I Was Young” (1969)
Country music legend Roy Clark has passed away at the age of 85. I have to admit - Hee Haw was not something that I watched. Growing up as a kid in the Chicago area, I didn't have much exposure to Country music. Sure, there were radio stations playing it, like WMAQ (during the "WMAQ's … Continue reading Rest in peace, Roy Clark: “Yesterday, When I Was Young” (1969)
Fifty years ago today: WGRD’s Hot 30 In the Furniture City, November 14, 1968
(Above: The late Wayne Thomas - GR's Ron Britain, right down to singing the weather forecast.) Fifty years ago the country was preparing for a change in government - Richard Nixon had just been elected the 37th President of the United States. In Southern Illinois a couple that was married five months ago was preparing … Continue reading Fifty years ago today: WGRD’s Hot 30 In the Furniture City, November 14, 1968
Video killed the radio star: “Network Video Hour,” Lewis University Television Network, November 6, 1988
(Above: I may have a similar shirt, but that hair ain't comin' back.) In the two years I spent as an undergrad at Lewis University from 1987-1989 before setting out on my own to try and start a radio career, I probably spent more time in the radio station than anywhere else, including classrooms. One … Continue reading Video killed the radio star: “Network Video Hour,” Lewis University Television Network, November 6, 1988
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