Don’t Look Back, Them (1965)Them, a garage-rock/blues band from Belfast, Northern Ireland, formed in April 1964 and had major hits the following year. George Ivan “Van” Morrison went solo in 1966; the band scored more hits and continued to record and perform into the 1970s.
Kay Kyser (& his Kollege of Musical Knowledge) performed one of the strangest compositions I’ve heard recently. Invented in 1939, the Sonovox (or Talk Box) was featured in many advertisements, and used for the voice of the talking train in Disney’s Dumbo. [Found here via here.]
Possibly the best lip sync of Maurice Williams & The Zodiacs ever. (That’s John and Adrian according to the YouTube post notes.) Whoop, la-di-dah.
The Wheelgrinders are three hep cats from Vancouver B.C. cranking some entirely bitchin’ roots rockabilly. [h/t Gord S.]
Glad this week is over. The wind is picking up, so keep an eye on the weather forecasts. Have a great weekend – be back here tomorrow just for the helluvit.
Hee Haw Breakdown, Nolan Cormier & The L.A. Aces (1971)From Lousiana Cajun Music Special, Swallow Records 1988: “Cut in 1971 at the first recording session of Swallow’s last recording studio, this Cajun ditty became an instant hit regionally, and then skipped over the Atlantic to become a popular Cajun hit in England as well.”
Stack O’ Lee Blues,Mississippi John Hurt (1928)The song was published in 1911 and first recorded in 1923 by Fred Waring’s Pennsylvanians, but the origin predates both, as a song called Stack-A-Lee was mentioned in in the Kansas City Leavenworth Herald, in 1897 as being performed by “Prof. Charlie Lee, the piano thumper.”
The St. Louis Globe-Democrat, 28 December 1895 Shot in Curtis’s Place
William Lyons, 25, a levee hand, was shot in the abdomen yesterday evening at 10 o’clock in the saloon of Bill Curtis, at Eleventh and Morgan Streets, by Lee Sheldon, a carriage driver. Lyons and Sheldon were friends and were talking together. Both parties, it seems, had been drinking and were feeling in exuberant spirits. The discussion drifted to politics, and an argument was started, the conclusion of which was that Lyons snatched Sheldon’s hat from his head. The latter indignantly demanded its return. Lyons refused, and Sheldon withdrew his revolver and shot Lyons in the abdomen. When his victim fell to the floor Sheldon took his hat from the hand of the wounded man and coolly walked away. He was subsequently arrested and locked up at the Chestnut Street Station. Lyons was taken to the Dispensary, where his wounds were pronounced serious. Lee Sheldon is also known as ‘Stag’ Lee.
Had some good karma come visit in the past week: doc called and said there’s nothing important to discuss, Gord sent me some cool prints, and my workload has expanded. Then it balanced itself somewhat: a computer crash did some minor damage, and snakes ate my catalytic converter at 3am yesterday. Life happens.
Have a great weekend, and we’ll be back twitchin’ & bitchin’ tomorrow.
Too Experienced, The Bodysnatchers (1980) 2-Tone RecordsThe Bodysnatchers, an all-female rock steady group from the UK, had potential. This cover of the song written by Keith Anderson (aka Bob Andy) appeared on the B-side of their second single, fulfilling their contract with 2-Tone Records. The company folded soon after and The Bodysnatchers played their last gig in October of 1980, but morphed into The Belle Stars and signed on with Stiff Records.
In 2019 Pellegrino sued Epic Games for allegedly using his likeness when designing the “Phone it in” dance emote. “Because of his externally rotatable feet, he eventually developed his own unique dancing style and his signature and original movements – viz., the Signature Move,” reads the filing.
Stop Overlooking Me, The Cairos (1966)Founded in 1964, folded in 1967, Shrine Records is considered the rarest of the soul labels. “Miss Ray, Barry Gordy‘s second wife, started Shrine Records with her new hubby after both bounced from Motown. Shrine (located in D.C.) issued the peppy “Stop Overlooking Me” b/w “Don’t Fight It” in 1966; it flopped just like the other 18 singles bearing the Shrine logo.”
Cat City (2017) by Vewn. “I wanted to portray a world where a character’s experience in the physical world is a reflection of their emotional turmoil. In a way, it parallels my own experience of growing up and leaving home to pursue what I thought was my dream, and then slowly realizing it wasn’t what I thought it would be.”
-Victoria Vincent
Woman Don’t Lie & Somebody Loan Me A Dime – Luther Johnson, with Sonny Thompson on piano (1973). The second [3:50] is a cover of a Fenton Robinson song.
Tacky Raccoons 