Today In Oldies 10/6/2010

Friends, Romans, Music Lovers......Lend Golden Hits Radio and GHR-2 your ears......and eyeballs......for the latest news.......

• The final tote board is in for this weekend's Farm Aid concert in Milwaukee
• One of the all-time great concert films FINALLY comes to DVD next month! 
• If you actually bet on this kind of stuff, we have the number for an excellent support group you might want to join
• Rumors begin to float about who will be hitting the road in 2011.......
• If you're looking to "give something back" to the artists and music of your generation, here's your chance! 
• Phil Collins.....singer, drummer, songwriter, producer, actor..........Texas historian?!?!?!  
• Next time you're staying in a hotel and think you hear something strange, it could be Janis Joplin

Where In The World Is........Lee Michaels? 

Lee Michaels (birth name: Michael Olsen) is a multi-talented musician and performer, born November 24, 1945 in Los Angeles, California.  He was a veteran of several bands and played on sessions for the likes of Jimi Hendrix, among others, when he began his brief run at solo stardom in 1971. 

Michaels' first taste of professional life in music came in a group called The Sentinals.  From there, he migrated to a group called The Strangers, and later, The Family Tree.  In 1967, he was signed to A&M Records as a solo act.  Four albums for the label didn't produce anything resembling a hit single, but A&M's patience and Michaels' persistence eventually paid off. 

While guitars provided the driving force behind most of the major hits of the 60's, Lee Michaels took a different approach with his sound.  Using a Hammond organ as the primary instrument on most of his music, he also went the minimalist route in the studio and on the road, in most cases touring with only a single drummer.  It wasn't until his fifth album, appropriately titled "Fifth", that Lee Michaels got to spend time on the Billboard charts alongside some of his more commercially successful colleagues.  A song from that album, "Do You Know What I Mean", became an unexpected Top 10 hit, reaching #6 in 1971.  One follow up hit followed, a cover of the Motown classic "Can I Get A Witness".  No sooner was Lee Michaels on the charts than he was back off the charts.  Subsequent albums and singles came and went without denting the charts or the record store cash registers. 

By the mid-70's, Lee Michaels had had enough of the music business.  He moved to Hawaii and went into a long period of retirement, coming out only long enough to release "Absolute Lee" in 1996, years after he announced it would come out.  Nothing has been heard from him since, and he remains on the beach and happy to be free of the music business. 

From 1971, we present Lee Michaels' biggest hit.........and most pleasant surprise

Golden Hits Radio and GHR-2's Burning Question of the Day

Which 80's artist was asked to screen test for the role of Marty McFly in Back To The Future that eventually went to Michael J. Fox?  

Check back @ Everything Oldies tomorrow for the answer, and leave a Comment with your best guess! 

Yesterday's Burning Question (and Answer) of the Day

On Oct. 4, 1961, Bob Dylan played the legendary Carnegie Hall for the very first time.  In front of how many people did he perform?

Answer: In a venue whose seating capacity in the Main Hall is approximately 2,800, Dylan played to a less than capacity crowd of........50!  His financial windfall for the gig?  A mere $20. 

 

Today In Oldies 10/4/2010

A new week means the Oldies ticker is abuzz at Golden Hits Radio and GHR-2!

• Take Mamma Mia.....replace the music of ABBA with the music of The Beach Boys.....and you have a recipe for a box office smash! 
• Yoko Ono talks to Billboard about her dozens of ways to become filthy, stinking rich off her husband's name
• And now for something we've known all along......the youngsters can't hang onstage with our generation
• Farm Aid turned 25 over the weekend
• Wonder if Oprah will select this for the Book Club?
• Roger Daltrey talks about things in the works for The Who......and some dream collaborations he'd like to try
• Rod Stewart revisits the Great American Songbook once more

Where In The World Is.........Billy Swan?

From his humble beginnings growing up in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, Billy Swan was in Memphis hanging out with Elvis by age 20.  By 30, he was being compared to Elvis and even talked about as "the next Elvis".  While that never quite materialized, he has still had a long career in the music business that continues today. 

Writing, performing, and playing live from childhood, Billy Swan's big break came in 1962 when he became friends with Bill Black, Elvis Presley's original bass player.  A song written by Swan that Black and his band originally recorded, "Lover, Please", eventually became a Top 10 hit for Clyde McPhatter.  Swan soon moved to Memphis, and at one time became a friend and employee of Elvis, working on the Graceland estate as a security guard.  He then moved to Nashville, beginning to make his name as a country songwriter with hits for Conway Twitty, Mel Tillis, and Waylon Jennings.  He also diversified his musical portfolio, expanding into producing, where he found success with Tony Joe White's crossover smash "Poke Salad Annie", and band member, playing bass for Kris Kristofferson.  It was his association with Kristofferson that ultimately (and somewhat inadvertently) led to a brief flirtation with superstardom. 

Signed as a solo artist to Monument Records, Billy Swan recorded a song using an RMI organ that Kristofferson and then-wife Rita Coolidge had given him as a wedding gift.  That organ was the driving force behind a song from his first album that became a smash.  Recorded in just two takes, "I Can Help", with its rockabilly feel, hit #1 in the U.S. (on both the Pop and Country charts), Canada, and Australia, and went Top 10 in the UK.  Several major music publications began to hail Billy Swan as "the next Elvis". 

Unfortunately, the "I Can Help" momentum didn't carry Billy Swan much further.  Subsequent singles and album releases went nowhere.  Billy Swan eventually went back to Kris Kristofferson's band.  He has remained active in the music business and collaborates with other famous names occasionally, including Scotty Moore (Elvis's original guitarist), ex-Eagles bassist Randy Meisner, and Jimmy Griffin (formerly of Bread).  His association with Elvis has also had him involved in numerous Elvis tribute projects. 

Today, Billy Swan is primarily a backup and session musician.  He still writes and records sporadically, and in a recent interview, he indicated that royalties have kept he and his family fed over the years. 

From an appearance on The Midnight Special circa 1974, here's Billy Swan's shot at inheriting Elvis's throne as The King..........

Golden Hits Radio and GHR-2's Burning Question of the Day

Which member of a huge 70's musical duo was the only female backup singer credited on Pink Floyd's landmark album, "The Wall"?

Check back tomorrow @ Everything Oldies for the answer, and leave a Comment here with your best guess! 

Friday's Burning Question (and Answer) of the Day

In 1975, a group called The Ocean Liners changed their name.  With their new name, their first single hit #1!  What was that new name?

Answer: KC and the Sunshine Band