Monday, April 30, 2012

Walkin' the Dog


Patti and The Nite-Lites
Patti & Dave Haack and John Rosenbohm
Patti Haack, vocal

Walkin' the Dog

Nite Records
Clinton, Iowa

Late sixties?


A cover of the Rufus Thomas song. Curiously enough, the writer credit goes to Shelton Brooks who wrote a similar title for the Dancing Follies of 1916.

Patti and the Nite-Lites (Patti, Dave, John & Doug) had at least another record on the same label : "Honkey Tonk Woman"/"Chattanooga Shoe Shine Boy".

Recorded by Fredlo.


Fredlo was owned and operated by Fred and Lois Mauck out of their Davenport home. The Maucks lived upstairs while the ground level was occupied by the business and studio. The company functioned both as a recording studio for hire and a record label. Mr. Mauck acted as both label head and recording engineer. Aspiring musicians would pay to have themselves recorded and records made up. If Mr. Mauck sensed some commercial potential he might record and artist at no charge and release the recording as a Fredlo record on "spec" , hoping for that big national "Hit" record that all independent labels of the day dreamed of releasing.

Details of the Fredlo operation remain sketchy as both the Maucks have since passed away, but it is thought that the label operated at least from the late 50s to the late 60s.

Info above from the Iowa Rock'n Roll Music Association



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Sunday, April 29, 2012

Scoop Scoobie Doobie


J.C. and The Bishops

Scoop Scoobie Doobie


Geno Records 12348

1960 or 1961


This is a cover of the Jessie Hill song on Minit Records (1960).

Geno Records was located in Houston, Texas and possibly owned by Genoveva R. Ponce. The vocalist (J.C.) is perhaps Jesse Casas. Jesse Casas recorded with the Crystals on Geno and with the Stardusters on Pic 1.

I was able to locate this label thanks to Chicanosoul.com., where I've found several pictures of records on the same Geno label.



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Saturday, April 28, 2012

Skate Board


Cindy Kennedy


Skate Board

Belfair Records
5103 No 46 th., Tacoma, Wash.

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Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Zipper

Wally and the Rights

Zipper
(wr Wally Atkison, Tyler BMI)
The GM Record Co.
Gladewater, Texas





Walt Atkison :
First gig. My first gig was at age 14 as a drummer in a country band at the Rendezvous Lounge in Gladewater, Texas. Performed alot of Hank Williams tunes. Made $15.00.

Wynona Hoedown: At age 15, I opened up for George Jones at the Hoedown. Sang in a duo with my friend Terry Rowden. We wore red courderoy bowties and vests made by my mom Julia. The concert was live on the radio.

Wally and the Rights. My high school band. We had piano, bass, drums and me on guitar. We recorded two original tunes, Hey Now Little Girl and an instrumenatl called Zipper in Gregton Texas. Played many school events. Club dates were limited, couldn't get any adult chaperones other than my dad George.


Today is the 132nd birthday of Gideon Sundback. The Google Doodle of today honors the father of “the modern zipper”. It's perhaps the company’s most enticing Doodle yet. The sound of the zipper may evoque some delicious moments in your memory, but this Google Doodle has no sound unfortunately.



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Friday, April 20, 2012

Rare Back Chicken

Billy Murlan

(Doc Holiday, Whitlock Pub. Co. BMI)

Cherokee 101

1965

"A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma..."  Nice label design.




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Thursday, April 19, 2012

Curtain falls on Dick Clark, but not on his legacy

For divergent opinions, two links :

1/ if you are in a hurry :

Dick Clark, "the oldest living teenager" has died at the age of 82. I never fully understood his appeal, but I remember my grandfather truly disliked him. My grandfather blamed Clark for ruining music and being involved in payola in the 1950s. It is where Clark first made his fortune...
MORE HERE


2/ if you don't :

A lengthy article by Ben Fong-Torres : Dick Clark: 20 Years of Clearasil Rock, Rolling Stone's 1973 interview with the 'American Bandstand' creator


R.I.P.



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Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Telephone Baby

Don Miller - Carolyn Day

Telephone Baby
(Jim Stivers, Webster Music BMI)

Bedford Records

Produced by Bob Scherman


This is likely the same Don Miller on Melker and Libra, two records listed in the Rockin' Country Style discography. "Missile Monkey" (not listed in RCS and issued on Kangaroo Records, 1961), is available on the "Bent, Batty And 'bnoxious! " compilation.

About Carolyn Day, I known nothing.

Bedford is just one of the myriad of Los Angeles labels owned by Bob Sherman, one of the earliest independent record company owners on the West Coast. Robert Scherman born in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1920, started his career in the music business as producer for Syd Nathan's King Records and Federal Records. One of Robert Scherman most important labels was Atlas (1944-1948). He later formed and owned Skylark Records. In 1951 Scherman formed and solely owned Tampa.Records... etc. etc.

Jim Stivers, credited as the writer and backing band leader, was pianist at the Whip, a Long Beach club frequented by Eddie Cochran when Eddie handpicked him in 1958 as one of the musicians for his backing band. First billed Jim Stivers And His Hollywood Swingers, they later became the Kelly Four and recorded on Silver and Candix Records.

English rockabilly guitarist Darrel Higham (born 1970) played in the USA during six months with the Kelly Four in 1992, just before the passing of Jim Stivers the same year.



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Monday, April 16, 2012

Whiskey, Ol' Whiskey


Bill Reese and His Rhythm Kings
Vocal by Tommy Malone


Whiskey, Ol' Whiskey / I Gotta Find My Baby

Pennant Records

1955


Birmingham, Alabama label founded in 1955 and headed by Pete Doraine. The same year, the Bill Reese Quintet backed The Coronets on Sterling Records. Ten years later, there was a release on J.Mayo Williams' Ebony Records (Ebony 1055) credited to Tommie "Blind Tom" Malone with "Bill" Reese and His Ebony Studio Band.



Billboard, May 14, 1955

NEW YORK, May 7. - Pete Doraine, one-time mentor of Banner, Abbey and Allen Records, is back in the record business. The veteran music man, now a resident of Birmingham, is head of artists and repertoire for the new Pennant and Vulcan labels sponsored by an Alabama distributor, Southland Enterprises, Inc., Francis Goodman, president.

Doraine was in town this week with Sales Director Cy Aptaker to set local distribution and promotion. He has launched Pennant as a pop and country label and Vulcan as a rhythm and blues specialty. For the former label he has signed the Dick Mulliner ork and vocalist Eddie Antone ; For Vulcan, the first pactees are the Five Owls, a vocal group.

The outfit is building its own recording studio in Birmingham, and also has its own subsidiary publishing firm, Pennant Music Publishing Company, a Brtoadcast Music, Inc. Affiliate.


Pennant Records Discography

327 Dick Mulliner Orch Vocal Eddie Antone : Crazy Is The Baby / I Fell In Love Too Late,

328 -The Jim Dandies With Mr. Jo-Jo Spoons/Backroom Joe And The Boys : There's No Song Like An Old Song / Piano Roll Party

329 Mr Jo Jo Spoons : Play It Again / Alabama Jubilee

330

331 Duke Jenkins Orch. With Jo Jo Spoons : Sad Again / Mambo Blues

333 Womack Brothers : Bible Tells Me So / Buffalo Bill

334 Bill Reese and His Rhythm Kings / Vocal by Tommy Malone : Whiskey, Ol' Whiskey / I Gotta Find My Baby




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Saturday, April 14, 2012

Cheat Cheat


Bick Ford

Cheat Cheat
(Charles Blackwell, Southern Pub. Inc. ASCAP)

A Robert Stigwood Production

Musictone Records



London journalist by the name of Robert Bickford who was with the UK's Daily Mail newspaper cut the record to prove that anyone could be a pop star and even made it onto TV's Top of the Pops. The record was originally released in the United Kingdom by EMI's Parlophone Records in April 1963.



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Friday, April 13, 2012

Motorcycle Jack


Terry Ann


Motorcycle Jack
(Claire Lafferty, Canon Music BMI)

Cleveland Records

Produced by Lafferty-Furth




Note : audio and label (b&w) picture are from the CD Savage Rockin' Girls (Collector CLCD4450).

Hollywood label almost certainly owned by T.J. Lafferty & Al Furth and related to Corsair Records. Despite extensive research, I've found only two other records on the same label :

Cleveland 104
Sammy Houston & the Alamos : Summer Souvenir/Hey Swamper

Cleveland 108
The Apollo Brothers : My Beloved On / Riot


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Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Ain't Got A Nickel

Max Lowe

Ain't Got A Nickel

(F.D. & Max Lowe, Waterfall Publishing BMI)

Waterfall Records
Morristown, Tenn.

1959





Max Lowe

Born: September 7, 1937

WNOX Tennessee Barn Dance
WCRK Morristown, TN
WLIK Newport, TN
WNOX Knoxville, TN

source : hillbilly-music.com


The handful of records issued on the Waterfall label were custom-pressed by King Records of Cincinnati, Ohio. Client account #643.

#501 is Bobbby Wallin With The Monitors (that's right : first name spelled with three Bs on label)

#504 is Ray Birchfield with Serena Birchfield And Helen Auer



According to Wikipedia, Morristown notable natives and residents includes Uncle Am Stuart – early Country music fiddle player and Jane Wagner – playwright and actress who wrote The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe.



Audio file is from Collector CLCD4536 (Slow Boogie Rockin', Vol. 8)




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Monday, April 9, 2012

I'm Starryeyed


Ann Caudell

I'm Starryeyed
(Ann Caudell, Lyn Lou BMI)

Quick Records
3191 N. Watkins
(Memphis, Tennessee)

Subs. of Carroll Records, Inc.

1963?


The B-side (Longing For You) is readily available on the net, including a tampered speeded up version.

As it's almost always the case, the fellows YouTube "do-wop/northern-soul/and whatever " stakhanovists have choosen to spread the worst side on which Ann is backed by an horrendous and omnipresent Hammond organ.

The best side is certainly "I'm Starryeyed" on which you'll feel Miss Ann's breath.

Annette (Ann) Caudell wrote both sides of her record. the BMI database shows a third song : "Raindrops keep Fallin" a song she co-wrote with John Hinson And Leonard Varah.

This is the second record on the tiny Quick label (first was Sonny Lavelle).



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Saturday, April 7, 2012

Johnny Be Good


Link Davis

Johnny Be Good

Al's 1503


Houston, circa 1961
Vcl/ts with Joey Long, lead gtr; Walter 'Buck' Henson, bass; prob. Bucky Meadows or Wiley Barkdull, piano; unknown drums.

(info above from this Link Davis discography)

Link Davis at Rockin' Country Style


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Friday, April 6, 2012

Bo Diddley


Jerry Dee and the Intruders

Bo Diddley

Sara Record Co.
Sauk City, Wis.

Producer Dick Hoff

1963


According to the Wisconsin Folk Library Index, the Intruders were active from 1961 to 1964.

Jerry Dee's real name : Weslyn J. LaMuska

Band members :

Mike Schellberger, drums; Wayne Toske, guitar, James Wahl, guitar and Mick Zirngible, bass.







Weslyn J. LaMuska "Jerry Dee," 68, of Eau Claire passed away peacefully on Monday, January 25, 2010.

He was born on August 6, 1941 in Joliet, IL to John and Gladys (Bortle) LaMuska.

After graduating in 1959 from Memorial High School, he pursued a career in singing and was known as Jerry Dee And The Intruders. Weslyn had a love for singing and animals! He also sang in the choir at Bethel Church in Eau Claire. After his singing career, he started his own interior decorating business and did that for about 20 years.

For the past 10 years, he worked at Walmart as a photo lab technician.

(From his obituary published by the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram)



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