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Showing posts with label rock n roll. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rock n roll. Show all posts
Friday, March 4, 2011
TGIF Rock-n-Roll Oldies: Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen - 1971
0 comments Posted by queen at 12:00 PM"That story is true, and I'm here to say:
I was drivin' that Model A..."
Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen was a pioneering American country-rock band founded in 1967 in Ann Arbor, Michigan: they're known for such hits as "Hot Rod Lincoln", "Smoke Smoke Smoke (that Cigarette)", "Don't Let Go", as well as an exceptional cover of boogie-woogie standard (and Andrews Sisters hit) "Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar" that also managed to chart...
The band’s style fused country, rockabilly, and blues together on a base of boogie-woogie piano. It was among the first country-rock bands to take its cues less from folk-rock and bluegrass and more from real hardcore barroom country- they became legendary for raucous, extended live performances.
Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen was formed in 1967 with a newly-recruited George Frayne (7.19.1944 Boise, Idaho), who then took the stage name Commander Cody. The band’s name was inspired by 1950s film serials featuring the character Commando Cody... and from a feature version of another serial, King of the Rocket Men, came the "Lost Planet Airmen."
After playing for several years in Michigan bars, core members migrated to San Francisco, where they promptly landed a recording contract. They subsequently released the 1971 debut album Lost in the Ozone. The record brought the group's best-known hit, a version of the rockabilly standard Hot Rod Lincoln, which went Top Ten on the Billboard US singles chart in early '72 (featured video below).
Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen then headed-off for Texas, where they made their 1974 live recording Live from Deep in the Heart of Texas.
The band released several moderately-successful albums through the first half of the 70s. After appearing in the Roger Corman movie Hollywood Boulevard, Frayne disbanded the group in 1976.
Interestingly, Geoffrey Stokes' 1976 book Star-Making Machinery featured Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen as its primary case study of music industry production and marketing. Stokes relates the difficulties the band had recording its first album for Warner Bros. Records: the label wanted a hit album along the lines of the soft country-rock of The Eagles, but this band was not interested in losing their rough-edged style and adding a bunch of layered harmonies.
Staying with the stage name Commander Cody, George Frayne had a subsequent solo career, touring and releasing albums from 1977-on. He released some later albums under the Lost Planet Airmen name. Recent releases have been as The Commander Cody Band.
And back in a time when I wasn't into country music really -say, late teens/early 20s- I sure was plenty into "Hot Rod Lincoln"- went out and bought the record, too. How could any red-blooded American gearhead not relate?
But I couldn't find a live version with decent sound to post, so here's the '45' single with a hot rod slide show somebody put together... what a great tune:
Hot Rod Lincoln - 1971
Commander cody, commander cody and his lost planet airmen, hot rod lincoln, smoke smoke smoke (that cigarette), beat me daddy, George Frayne, oldies, rock n roll, 1972, 1971, video xxx Commander cody, commander cody and his lost planet airmen, hot rod lincoln, smoke smoke smoke (that cigarette), beat me daddy
Friday, February 25, 2011
The Zombies are an English rock band formed in 1961 and led by Rod Argent on piano and Colin Blunstone on vocals.
The schoolboy chums who came to be known as The Zombies got their start playing at a St. Alban's rugby club, but soon rose from unknown local act to score major US hits later in the decade, such as "She's Not There", "Tell Her No", and "Time of the Season".
Their 1968 album Odessey and Oracle -comprising twelve songs by the group's principal songwriters, Argent and White- ranks #80 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the '500 Greatest Albums of All Time'.
The Zombies signed to Decca and recorded their first hit "She's Not There"- which was released in the Summer of 1964 and peaked at #12 in the UK. This minor-key, jazz-tinged number, distinguished by its musicianship and Blunstone's breathy vocal, was unlike anything heard in British rock at the time.
It was first aired in the United States in early August 1964 on New York City rock station WINS by Stan Z. Burns, who debuted the song on his daily noontime "Hot Spot". The tune began to catch on in early fall and eventually climbed to #2 in the US.
Like many other British Invasion groups, The Zombies were sent to The States to tour in support of a new hit single. Among their most memorable early U.S. gigs were Murray the K's Christmas shows at the Brooklyn Fox Theatre, where the band played seven performances a day. Hugh Grundy later recalled also contributing to the sets by the Shangri-Las -not as a musician... but by revving a motorcycle brought backstage as a sound effect for their performance of "Leader of the Pack"-
In January 1965 the band made their debut on live U.S. television, playing "She's Not There" to hysterical teen girls on NBC's Hullabaloo. "Tell Her No" became another big seller in the United States (in 1965), but failed to make the Top 40 in the band's native UK.
The Zombies signed to CBS Records, for whom they recorded the album Odessey and Oracle. (The word odyssey was misspelled by cover designers.)
Because the band's budget could not cover session musicians, they used a Mellotron, a device designed to imitate orchestral sections. By the time Odessey and Oracle was released in April 1968, the group had disbanded. The album sold poorly and was only given a U.S. release because musician Al Kooper, then signed to Columbia Records, convinced his label of the album's merits. An album track, "Time of the Season", written by Argent, was released as a single and eventually (1969) became a nationwide hit (#3).
After The Zombies disbanded, Rod Argent formed a band called Argent, with Chris White as a non-performing songwriter. Colin Blunstone started a solo career after a brief period outside the music business... he also later worked with the Alan Parsons Project...
The Zombies, She's Not There, zombies, oldies, rock n roll, video, british invasion, 1964, Tell Her No, Time of the Season, Rod Argent, Colin Blunstone
Friday, January 14, 2011
The Animals were an influential English rock group from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, formed in the early 60s. They later in the decade relocated to the bustling London scene.
Known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, the band is best known for timeless classics such as "The House of the Rising Sun", "We Gotta Get Out of This Place", and "It's My Life" (below).
The Animals presented a unique blend of rock-oriented pop hits along with R&B material to fill out the albums. Considered in the U.S. as part of the British Invasion, The Animals underwent numerous personnel changes over the years and like so many others of the era, suffered from poor business management.
Later -under the name Eric Burdon and the Animals- they moved to California and yet again achieved commercial success, this time as a psychedelic rock band. Hits of this era include "San Franciscan Nights" and "Sky Pilot". Guitarist Andy Summers was with the band in this period, who later went on to found The Police along with Sting and Stewart Copeland.
The band broke up in 1969, with the cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" released subsequently.
The original Animals lineup had a brief reunion in 1977 and then again in 1983. There have been several partial regroupings since then under various names, along with legal wrangling over the rights. The Animals were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994...
The Animals, Eric Burdon, Eric Burdon and the Animals, It's my life, The House of the Rising Sun, We Gotta Get Out of This Place, oldies, rock, rock n roll, 1965, 1966, 1967, xxx, The Animals, Eric Burdon, Eric Burdon and the Animals, It's my life, The House of the Rising Sun, We Gotta Get Out of This Place
Friday, January 7, 2011
Bread was a rock band formed in Los Angeles, CA. They enjoyed 13 hit songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart between 1970 and 1977, in the process pioneering a new genre later to become known as 'soft rock'.
Bread consisted of David Gates , Jimmy Griffin, Robb Royer, Mike Botts, then Larry Knechtel (replacing Royer in 1971).
Before forming Bread, Gates had worked with Royer's previous band, The Pleasure Fair, producing and arranging the band's 1967 album, The Pleasure Fair. Royer then introduced Gates to his songwriting partner, Griffin, and the trio joined together in 1968 and signed with Elektra Records, choosing the name Bread in 1969.
Bread's first single, "Dismal Day" in the Summer of 1969 flopped, but the second album On the Waters established them as a major act in 1970 with the #1 hit "Make It With You".
For their next single, they released a re-recorded version of "It Don't Matter To Me", a Gates song from their first album. This single was a hit as well, reaching #10.
The band began touring and recording the 1971 album titled Manna (#21), which included the Top 5 hit single, "If". In January 1972 Bread released Baby I'm-a Want You, their most successful album, peaking at #3 on the Billboard 200. The title song was established as a hit in late 1971 before the album was even released. Follow-up singles "Everything I Own" and "Diary" also went Top 20.
The next album, Guitar Man, was released ten months later and went to #18. The album produced three Top 20 singles, "The Guitar Man" (#11), "Sweet Surrender" (#15), and "Aubrey" (#15), with the first two going to #1 on Billboard's adult contemporary chart.
Despite the band's success, tensions existed between Gates and Griffin. By 1973, fatigue from constant recording and touring had set in and personal relationships began to show strain. There was also some dissatisfaction with the songs planned for a sixth album. Bread decided to go their own ways with solo projects, but to limited success.
The Best of Bread compilation album from 1973 became a standard in everybody's collection, a huge commercial success that peaked at #2 and remained on the chart for over two years. A follow-up, The Best Of Bread, Volume Two, was released in 1974 and went to #32.
The reunion of the group in 1976 came in the form of the LP Lost Without Your Love, released in January 1977. The title track, again written and sung by Gates, was the band's last Top 10 hit...
Bread: Guitar Man - 1972
Friday, December 17, 2010
The Troggs are an English rock band from the 60s known for timeless hits "Wild Thing", "Love Is All Around" and "With a Girl Like You", all million-selling singles.
The Troggs were from the town of Andover in southern England (originally The Troglodytes). The band formed in 1964, and were discovered by The Kinks' manager Larry Page the next year.
The most famous hit was surely the single "Wild Thing", #2 in the UK and #1 in the United States in July 1966. Its combination of a simple heavy guitar riff and flirtatious lyrics helped it to quickly become a garage rock standard. It was recorded in one complete take at Olympic Studios in London. Oddly -and due to a dispute over US distribution rights- "Wild Thing" was released (along with the first album of the same name) on two seperate labels: Fontana and Atco.
The band's success in the US was limited by not touring there until 1968, but they continued with a number of other hits such as "With a Girl Like You" (a UK #1 in July 1966, US#29) and "I Can't Control Myself" (UK #2 in September 1966).
Then came "Anyway That You Want Me" (UK #10 in December 1966), "Night of the Long Grass" (UK #17 in May 1967), and "Love Is All Around" (UK #5 in October 1967 and US number 7 in May 1968).
With further chart success eluding the band, they split up in March 1969. But after a couple solo efforts, the band reformed with a cover version of the Beach Boys hit "Good Vibrations" that unfortunately did not catch-on. Then, a reggae version of "Wild Thing" also failed to chart.
In 1991, The Troggs recorded Athens Andover, an eleven-song collaboration between themselves and three members of R.E.M., released in March 1992. The Troggs then tried to make the most of the new exposure with bizarre collaborations on new versions of "Wild Thing", milking it dry with actor Oliver Reed, English snooker player Alex Higgins, then yet anther version the following year featuring Wolf from the TV show Gladiators, which actually reached #69 in the UK.
Today, The Troggs are considered a highly influential band whose sound was one inspiration for garage rock and punk rock. Iggy Pop, The Buzzcocks, and American trailblazers The Ramones all cite them as a significant influence.
Jimi Hendrix also famously covered "Wild Thing" during their appearance at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival, introducing it as the British/American joint "national anthem", and climaxing with Hendrix burning his guitar... an iconic moment.
Friday, December 10, 2010
The Hollies are an English rock group, formed in Manchester, England in the early 1960s. The band was not named -as popular legend has it- after Buddy Holly, but rather for the holly decorating the house of founding member Graham Nash at Christmas-time 1962.
The Hollies are amongst the most musically-flexible survivors one can imagine, and the band became one of the leading British groups of the era, enjoying considerable international success delivering hits in varied styles.
Along with The Rolling Stones and The Searchers, they are one of the few British pop groups of the early 1960s that have never officially broken up and that continue to record and perform here in 2010. The Hollies were inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame earlier this year as well.
The Hollies are known for their bright vocal harmonies. Though initially known for its cover versions, the band moved towards written-to-order songs provided to them by such writers as Graham Gouldman. Soon after, the group's in-house songwriting trio of Clarke, Hicks and Nash began providing hits.
When Graham Nash left in December 1968 it was due to a number of issues. Nash was by then feeling something of a prisoner of his early pop success; like John Lennon and George Harrison he too disliked the screaming of fans drowning out the songs in concerts. He felt imprisoned within The Hollies "pop group identity" too, when he wanted to write more personalised songs of a reflective nature not necessarily utilising vocal harmonies, and was clashing with producer Ron Richards over material.
Furthermore, he disagreed with the group's decision to make their next album one entirely comprising Bob Dylan songs. Nash relocated to Los Angeles, where he joined forces with former Buffalo Springfield guitarist Stephen Stills and ex-Byrds singer David Crosby to form one of the first supergroups, Crosby, Stills and Nash. Nash told Disc magazine at the time: "I can't take touring any more. I just want to sit at home and write songs. I don't really care what the rest of the group think."
Their album Hollies Sing Dylan reached the #3 position on the UK chart, but the record flopped in the US> The next album Hollies Sing Hollies did not chart in the UK, but the U.S. version called He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother included the hit single of the same name and reached U.S. #32.
Nash's departure saw The Hollies again turn to outside writers for their single A-sides, but the group's British chart fortunes rallied during 1969 and 1970 and they scored four consecutive UK Top 20 hits (including two consecutive Top 5 placings) in this period, beginning with the Geoff Stephens / Tony Macaulay song "Sorry Suzanne" (Feb. 1969) which reached #3 in the UK, followed by the emotional civil rights–themed ballad "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother", which featured the piano playing of Elton John, and which reached #3 in October 1969.
The next single, "I Can't Tell The Bottom From The Top", again featured the young Elton John on piano and reached UK #7 in April 1970, charting in twelve countries.
Later EMI lifted a track from their album Distant Light, the Creedence Clearwater Revival-inspired song, "Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress", which reached #2 in the US.
In 1974 they scored what was to be their last major new hit single with the love song "The Air That I Breathe" -Phil Everly- which reached #2 in the UK and US.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Vanity Fare (often misspelled due to the similarity of the novel and magazine title as Vanity Fair) were a UK pop/rock group formed in 1966, best remembered for the hit Hitchin' a Ride, which found worldwide success in the Summer of 1970.
The school friends formed the band in Kent, England in 1966, originally calling themselves The Avengers. They played local clubs until they were spotted by entrepreneur Roger Easterby who became their manager and producer, and who then facilitated obtaining their first recording contract.
As Vanity Fare, they achieved a UK hit single with their very first release, a cover of I Live For The Sun (originally recorded by The Sunrays in 1965) in the summer of '68.
Following two more singles, Summer Morning and Highway Of Dreams, both of which failed to make the UK Singles Chart, they then released their biggest UK hit: Early in the Morning. It reached #8 in that country in August 1969 and #12 in the US in early 1970. In the end, the record sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.
For their next release Hitchin' A Ride (below) they added a keyboardist- and to great effect: the song was an instant success, providing a second million-selling hit. It reached #5 in the US Billboard Hot 100 and #16 in the UK in January 1970, as well as selling briskly in quite a number of other countries.
And I've liked it since I first heard it -when just 8 years old- as an early 70s AM radio standard on my Panasonic ball-and-chain radio...
Vanity Fare, Hitching a Ride, Hitchin a Ride, Vanity Fair,
Early in the Morning,
I Live For The Sun, rock n roll oldies, Saturday Night Oldies, TGIF, rock n roll, 1970, 1971, 1969, 1968, 1967, Vanity Fare, Hitching a Ride, Hitchin a Ride, Vanity Fair
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