Bob Dylan

My sixties vinyl, I gave away in 1970 when I emigrated. My '70s & '80s Vinyl are in my basement storage. My CD's are in the living room "cluttering up" the place - my wife says! My digital collection is on this computer as I type. I couldn't sleep last night -- listened to Bob in the dark, again & again, with headphones plugged into my iPhone , as my wife slept uncluttered. Wherever I am, there's Bob !

Daddy Cool and oldies playlist for a friday. (Or any day.)

 I recently played the sultry tune , Fever by Peggy Lee a hit from 1958 on my Radio Cobequid show.  Here is the original by Little Willie John's and his RnB hit from 1956. To me it sounds somewhat sexier.

Another hit from that year is Church Bells May Ring by The Willows. A group from Harlem that had a hit with this song on the RnB charts and then in 1957 the song was chosen by Canada's Diamonds  singing group as the follow up to their big hit Little Darlin' and their version made the Top 20 in Billboard. Of course, this was very common in the fifties where a black group's hit (still called Race Music by many stations,) was covered by a "white" group who by virtue of wider radio exposure, became the bigger hit. I am sure many will remember the hilarious scene in the  Dreamgirls movie where this was played for laughs.  Listen for the bell ringing in the song. The bells are played by a young Neil Sedaka who happened to be in the studio. This is another fairly rare song which I had difficulty getting any details about in Wikipedia and my source books. Then through the wonders of  the internet sales pages,  I found 18 copies for sale at the absurd price of $1.32 !

After them is Rosie and the Originals with Angel Baby. Rosie Hamlin was the lead singer. She is quoted by John Lennon in a Seventies interview as one of his favourite singers. High praise for a singer with not many hits to her credit. It reminds me of my exam time in London. I should have been revising for my O levels but was tuned to the Radio Luxembourg listening for the new releases in early 1961 -- this was one I loved back then.

 

SONGS

Fever 3:22 Peggy Lee

Church Bells May Ring 2:26 - The Willows

Angel Baby 2:47 - Rosie and the Originals.

Gene Autry

 As  children   my sister and I were obsessed by the Cowboys of the American west, and poured over the comics my American aunt sent to us in Calcutta. (Talk about confusing cultures, we were kids in India wanting to "go west" and fight Indians. Thankfully we were not truly harmed by these childish episodes and sorted out our terminology! Although I do think it unfair that she always got to be the "good guy"  and I ended up a dead bad guy ..)  

 

One of those early heroes was Gene Autry. We had recently moved to London when Gene and his troupe performed at the Empress Hall at Earl's Courts. My family went to see him there.  Gene and his horse, Champion, the Wonder Horse,  came into the audience.  He was right in front of me!

It was an amazing moment for a wide-eyed 12 year old.

One of my favourite songs is Gene Autry singing the Cole Porter tune Don't Fence Me In. Love it !!

 

More Beatles Playlist and dialogue from my radio shows.

Kingsburyman is also Daddy Cool   Remembering The Beatles.

 

On this Blog, I am celebrating 1968. The Beatles had returned from India at the beginning of spring, disillusioned by the Maharishi and his hanger-on's. While there, though, they worked on a lot of tunes which became the fertile material for the album released late in  1968 as a double album, nowadays  referred to as "The White Album" ; Although back in 1968, it had no title except the words "The Beatles"  simply embossed on the cover.  The very first pressings, certainly in Britain, were actually individually numbered in sequence. Those early numbered albums are highly collectible now.

First on the Playlist is Glass Onion from the white album.

 

 

SONGS

 Glass Onion 2:18 The Beatles
Fixing A Hole 2:37 The Beatles

 

Glass onion was followed by Fixing a hole; originally on Sgt. Pepper's album but also used in their Yellow Submarine animated movie.

 

Coming up is Instant Karma from John Lennon & the Plastic Ono Band, followed by Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, and another hit from 1968 -- Judy In Disguise by  John Fred and his Playboy Band. At  the time, Lucy in the Sky was supposed to be a veiled reference to the drug LSD. The Beatles vehemently denied it back then, claiming that people were reading too much into a co-incidence. Now, they readily admit it was very much their LSD imbibing phase. John Fred's song was clearly meant as an homage to the Beatles tune, he even makes the phrase "Judy in Disguise" sound like "Judy in the Sky". Including a lot of other psychedelic imagery in the lyrics.

  

SONGS

Instant Karma 3:24 John Lennon & Yoko Ono   2
Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds 3:29 The Beatles Rock Sgt. Pepper's
Judy In Disguise 2:59 John Fred  Hits Of 1968 

 

Still featuring  Beatles material from the White album are songs featuring girl names in their titles. Dear Prudence, Martha My Dear, Sexy Sadie and Julia. That last one Julia, is by John written to his Mother Julia Lennon, who, when his father died while John was only 5, Julia Lennon left him with his aunt Mimi who raised him. Julia died young herself when John was only 17. A lot has been made of the possibility that the song is also for Yoko Ono who John referred to as "Mother".

 

SONGS

 

Dear Prudence 3:56 The Beatles Rock
Martha My Dear 2:29 The Beatles Rock
Sexy Sadie 3:15 The Beatles 
Julia 2:57 The Beatles Rock The Beatles (White Album) [Disc 1] 1
 

In England, films were first released in an area know as the "West End " of London, where there were a lot of cinemas. Sometimes after weeks or months of playing in the West End, the films got released to suburban theatres. Being young and trying to keep up with what's the latest hits, my friends and I often went to the West End we did not want to wait for the suburban release.  In 1966, we had gone to see, I think, James Coburn in Our Man Flint. I was walking In Leicester Square to get to the tube to go home, when I spotted a Rolls Royce outside a theatre. I was walking passed it thinking "Nice, wonder whose it is?" when a young couple came running out of the cinema -- I was now between them & the Roll's open door, The young Man crashed into me, knocking me over. He stopped, helped pick me up and asked "You all right, Mate?" I was and gave a dumb-struck nod to Paul McCartney and Jane Asher. "You sure?" -- I was. They smiled, jumped into the Rolls and sped off.

 

Here is a tune Paul was working on in early 1966: Paperback writer.

 

SONGS
Paperback Writer 2:20 The Beatles (1966)

You Won't See Me 3:20 Beatles Revolver

Taxman 2:39 The Beatles Rock Revolver 

 

After Paperback writer we heard You won't see me from Rubber Soul and Taxman, which was from the Revolver album. Taxman is sung by John, but was written by George Harrison who had just discovered how high their Tax rate was -- 95% hence the line where the Taxman says "There's one for you, nineteen for me". The high level of taxation on their creativity was also a spur to setting up Apple Corp to have more ownership& control of their productivity.  

 Now two songs from Ringo & John's solo careers. First is Ringo's cover of the Platter's 1950 hit Only You. Done as a smooth ballad not in the Do-wop style. Love by John Lennon's Plastic Ono Band phase. Also a haunting slow love song.

 

SONGS 

Only You (And You Alone) 3:24 Ringo Starr
Love 3:23 John Lennon & The Plastic Ono Band

A trio of memorable tunes from their early days : First a couple of covers sandwiched around  one of their most popular love songs.

Arthur Alexander's Anna (Go To Him). The only singer-songwriter of this era who was covered by The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan. Then the Beatles' All My Lovin', and followed by Larry William's Dizzy Miss Lizzie from their Hamburg days, but also in the movie Help!

  

SONGS

Anna (Go to Him) 2:57 The Beatles 

 All My Lovin'  2:05 The Beatles
Dizzy Miss Lizzy 2:57 The Beatles  

 Here are the Beatles with 2 rarely heard songs from the White album, Good Night and Long, Long, Long, but before them is the fun song from Sgt. Pepper : Good Morning, Good Morning. I hope you are listening to this on your stereo radio or Tuner because the Beatles and George Martin had a lot of fun with the sound effects and the Stereo separation. The fox hunters on horses run from one speaker to the other as do the barking dogs!!  This was a very popular song in 1967  for the Summer of Love stoners to experience via headphones. Cool, Man!

 

SONGS

 Good Morning Good Morning 2:41 The Beatles
Good Night 3:14 The Beatles
Long, Long, Long 3:06 The Beatles
 

More songs from Beatles For Sale & Revolver, and a smattering of other faves , but starting with

 Good Day Sunshine which is from Revolver

 

SONG 

Good Day Sunshine 2:09 The Beatles 

As an opening to their more well known songs we are also presenting a couple of early tunes -- Besame Mucho (approximates to Kiss me a lot in Spanish,).

It was a 1940's hit which indicates the wide background of tunes the early Beatles played to keep the drunken masses happy in the bars in Hamburg. This is their take on the tune done for their  audition for a contract with Decca Records.

That's Alright, Mama, a blues song from Arthur Big Boy Crudup, which was also Elvis Presley's first release done for Sun Records. It was not a hit. 

 The Beatle's recording is from the POP Goes the Beatles BBC radio show in 1963.

Then a Demo of a John Lennon song Continuing story of Bungalow Bill.

 

 

SONGS

Besame Mucho [Artist-Test] 2:37 The Beatles
That's All Right (Mama) [Live: BBC For "Pop Go The Beatles" 16th July, 1963] 2:56 The Beatles
The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill [Home-Demo] 2:33 The Beatles 

 

While in India, the  Beatles wrote a bunch of songs. On their return they set about making Demos of them at George Harrison's house.

The demo heard here, was recorded on George’s four track Ampex tape machine and features The Beatles playing acoustic guitars, along with some banging on furniture, handclaps, etc., for percussion. Accompanying John’s lead vocal, we hear a second vocal track with John speaking to Bungalow Bill and some rudimentary jungle animal noises in the background.

 Playing this now in the Summer of 2015 is exceedingly apropos. There is all the world wide  attention on the killing of Cecil the Lion in Africa; John wrote this about an incident in India when one of the people with the Beatles left for a break and went hunting; He came back with his trophy shot.

You can find quite a lot on the Internet if you wish to dig deeper. Here I'd rather press on with a great tune from George:  Awaiting on You, from his solo album, All Things Must Pass; plus a solo hit for Ringo -- Back Off Boogaloo, and the weird but catchy, Maxwell's Silver Hammer.

 

 SONGS

Awaiting on You All 2:49 George Harrison  All Things Must Pass
Back Off Boogaloo 3:20 Ringo Starr 

 Maxwell' Silver Hammer 3:30 The Beatles 

 

Now 3 perennial Beatles favourites and sing along tunes. Everybody knows these.  All My Lovin' ; All You Need Is Love and , If I Fell in Love.

 

 SONGS

 All My Lovin' 2:05 The Beatles 

All You Need Is Love 3:47 The Beatles 

If I Fell in Love 2:24 The Beatles  

 

If I fell was John's first attempt at a Ballad and he said the precursor to In My Life. If I fell was for Hard Day's Night movie. In my life was on Rubber Soul.

 

Now Can't Buy Me Love the big hit from March 1964. It was still  number 1 in the week of April 4 1964 when the Beatles had all 5 places in Billboard's Hot 100, with a further seven singles in the charts. Then follows Girl and Run For your Life from Rubber Soul and Got to Get You into my Life from Revolver.

SONGS

Can't Buy Me Love 2:13 The Beatles

Girl 2:32 The Beatles 
Run for Your Life 2:21 The Beatles
Got to Get You into My Life 2:29 The Beatles 

 

 The back ground material for this Blog comes from two books -- Ian MacDonald's' Revolution of the Mind and Beatlesongs by William J. Dowlding plus Wiki of course.

 

 

PLAYLIST SONGS

 Glass Onion 2:18 The Beatles
Fixing A Hole 2:37 The Beatles

Instant Karma 3:24 John Lennon & Yoko Ono
Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds 3:29 The Beatles Rock Sgt. Pepper's
Judy In Disguise 2:59 John Fred  Hits Of 1968 

 

Dear Prudence 3:56 The Beatles Rock
Martha My Dear 2:29 The Beatles Rock
Sexy Sadie 3:15 The Beatles 
Julia 2:57 The Beatles Rock The Beatles (White Album)

 Paperback Writer 2:20 The Beatles (1966)

You Won't See Me 3:20 Beatles Revolver

Taxman 2:39 The Beatles Rock Revolver

 

 All My Lovin' 2:05 The Beatles 

All You Need Is Love 3:47 The Beatles 

If I Fell in Love 2:24 The Beatles 

 

Can't Buy Me Love 2:13 The Beatles

Girl 2:32 The Beatles Rock
Run for Your Life 2:21 The Beatles
Got to Get You into My Life 2:29 The Beatles 

Sir Peter O'Sullevan - Obituary from The Independent. with due acknowledgement.

Peter O'Sullevan was one of my father's favourite racing commentators and writers. Dad poured over O'Sullevan's column in the Daily Express  religiously looking for Tips !!
We watched his BBC broadcasts together often. Dad was not a book lover, but he had Peter 's books & autobiography on his bedside table always.
Similarly, Dad always favoured Lester Piggott's mount. A truly great rider who needs to be rehabilitated in the public canon. He was railroaded. I love the Queen's comment on the case.

Sir Peter O'Sullevan's voice provided the soundtrack to horse racing for more than six decades. (My emphasis.) His commentaries, whether at the Grand National, the Derby, or during wet afternoons at the gaff tracks, had a distinct air of hard-earned authority as he called home the greats such as Arkle, Red Rum, Desert Orchid, Sea Bird, Nijinsky, Dancing Brave. He became a legend himself and led an extraordinary life, both on the Turf and beyond.

Another broadsheet writer remarked that the voice had a mellifluous beauty, and mused: "The sound of Sir Peter calling the horses should be one of our exports into outer space to signify the depth of our civilisation." That last bit gets somewhat carried away, something that O'Sullevan himself would never do, at least not on air. His style – perhaps best once characterised as a "hectic drawl" – remained grounded, focused on the specifics of the action.

When working on BBC radio or TV broadcasts (51 years), or writing for the Daily Express for 35 years (a time of that paper's heyday), O'Sullevan never showed a trace of conceit, was invariably frank, had friends from all walks of life (the Etonian, horse-breeding high Tory Jakie Astor called him "Peter O'Socialist"), and built a formidable array of contacts to help inform followers of his Express copy and tips, and his own wagers.
{ Sir Lester Piggott, considered the greatest English jockey of the post war generation was found guilty of tax evasion, he was stripped of his peerage and sent to prison. Peter O'Sullevan was a great supported of Lester. My parenthetical observation.}

While sitting next to the Queen at Windsor sometime later, O'Sullevan decided to express his feelings on the matter. Recounting the occasion to a Daily Telegraph interviewer in 2014, he said: "So I thought this was an opportune moment, and launched into my Lester spiel to Her Majesty, who put down her knife and fork, and looked at me quite seriously for a moment.
"She put down her knife and fork, as I say, and said: 'I Iike the way you put it, but he was rather naughty, you know. He was not only rather naughty, but he was very stupid, because he paid it [his tax bill] on a bank that hadn't come up in the case, and hadn't been investigated.' "

{The Queen is a horse lover, too, and loves the Races. She is also, obviously, well informed of the country's peccadillos!}

Horses, though, were the first priority. Knowledge of racing was proven in a trial following a job interview with the Press Association's Fleet Street racing department, where he began working in October 1944. He started working for the BBC in 1946, with his first Grand National radio commentary in 1947.
In 1950 he joined the Express, and a year later married Canadian-born Pat.
CHRIS CORRIGAN
Sir Peter O'Sullevan, broadcaster and journalist: born Kenmare, Co Kerry 3 March 1918; Kt 1997; married Patricia Jones (died 2009); died 29 July 2015.

 

 

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Annoying phone calls cont'd

I wrote the following two years ago : -

I am sure that there are many other people/households who are being taunted by annoying phone calls. What I would like to know, is how can a company get away with using # s such as 000 000 0000? And more annoyingly, today 613-704-0070 called me, of course it was a scam and I was not willing to listen all the way through -- yet, I could not hang up the phone, nor disconnect from that number. I pressed Off. Then, talk again, and the female voice was still rabbiting on !! Three  attempts to disconnect did not work.

How can they get away with this?
I have blocked the number now... but it still disturbs me that the phone company permits some business to have a number that is a permanent link.

OK,WHY is this still happening. We have an election coming up; Let's all remember to quiz the politician begging for our attention to pay attention to our needs. How come companies carrying out fraudulent practices get non-functioning telephone numbers. Let us make this illegal and fine the phone company along with the perpetrators.

(yes, yes, there are lots of other things for the politicians to address too. I have not forgotten.)

Miksworld Play list -- Oldies

Welcome, I am Michael Lavalette and this is When  The Lights Come On Again.

 SONGS
You Are My Sunshine 2:36 Bing Crosby

That was Bing Crosby's version of You Are my Sunshine. A hit from 1939 that has become one of the State Songs of Louisiana because it was a hit for country singer Jimmie Davis who also served as Governor of that State ,twice. This wonderful song has been covered by many others in different genres.

Another beautiful song that has been a hit for many others is Love Letters In the Sand. Here is Pat Boone's 1957 hit. Then a Satisfied Mind by Porter Wagoner followed by Moonglow by Morris Stoloff.

SONGS

Love Letters in the Sand 2:14 Pat Boone 
A Satisfied Mind 2:43 Porter Wagoner
Moonglow & Theme from 'Picnic' 2:51 Morris Stoloff & His Orchestra
This version of Moonglow is actually a medley of the older hit with the Love theme from the 1955 movie Picnic. It was a pop hit too for Morris Stoloff & the Columbia Pictures Orchestra.

 Now, Jo Stafford with another of her hits from this era -- Make Love to Me, followed by Shine on Harvest Moon by Vera Lynn, The UK forces favourite, and Patsy Cline with He Called me Baby.

 SONGS

Make Love to Me 2:42 Jo Stafford
Shine On Harvest Moon 3:32 Vera Lynn 
He Called Me Baby 2:39 Patsy Cline

That Patsy Cline song was re-done as an RnB hit in 1969 for Ella Washington. I love both versions.

 One of my mother's favourites songs was Amapola.  Yet again, I remember trying to get this song  for her in the record store at the height of the Rock and Roll and Beatlemania to no avail. Now, I found it easily on the internet from home !

Amapola  is by Helen O'Connell & Bob Eberly they  were featured vocalists with Jimmy Dorsey at one time.  Helen O'Connell was described as the darling of the G.I.s in WWII.
And the fabulous Half As Much by the Great Hank Williams. Then, You Always Hurt the One you Love by the Mills Brothers, another perennial hit.

SONGS
Amapola 3:26 Helen O'Connell & Bob Eberly
Half As Much 2:45 Hank Williams 
You Always Hurt the One You Love 3:25 The Mills Brothers
Coming up are 2 country songs and one from the American Standard songbook.

Keep a Knockin' But You Can't Come In by Bob Willis & The Texas Playboys. Very much in the Western Swing tradition. However, a similar song was also a rock n roll hit for Little Richard & others covered it too. While they sound similar, I found nothing linking them on many music web pages. Maybe I should write a book about this song!

 Deep In The Heart Of Texas, a rousing version by Bill Schallen and Skeets Herfut.

followed by a swinging Mr. Sinatra doing You Make Me Feel So Young.

.

SONGS
Keep a Knockin' But You Can't Come In 2:34 Bob Willis & The Texas Playboys
Deep In The Heart Of Texas 2:42 Bill Schallen & Skeets Herfurt with Alvino Rey Orch.
You Make Me Feel So Young 2:58 Frank Sinatra

A tune from the 1930's, Fascination , here a 1957 version from Nat King Cole. Then I'll Walk Alone, a No.1 hit for Dinah Shore in 1944.  This obviously resonated with an audience affected by the separation of the war. However, it remains popular into the Sixties as both country and Pop genres recorded it.

After, Stormy Weather by the lovely Lena Horne, and the vivacious Rosemary Clooney and the unique Come-on-a my-house.

SONGS

Fascination 2:29 Nat "King" Cole 
I'll Walk Alone 2:46 Dinah Shore 
Stormy Weather 3:24 Lena Horne 
Come On-a My House 1:58 Rosemary Clooney

That was Rosemary Clooney a big star and aunt to George Clooney who went on to have many more hits in the 1950's.

Coming up is one-hit wonder, Harold Dorman with Mountain of Love. Harold had not other hits but this song was covered successfully by others in the Sixties.  A classic do-wop tune from the early 50's. Earth Angel by the Penguins. As a youth in London reading the music papers, the Letters' Pages were filled with people's opinions on the first "true rock & Roll" hit. This was one contender.

Finally tonight, the ever mellow Platters with Twilight Time.

 SONGS

Mountain Of Love 2:25 Harold Dorman
Earth Angel 2:58 Penguins
Twilight Time 2:48 The Platters
 

You have been listening to When the Lights Come On Again with Michael Lavalette on 97.5CIOE-FM. Obviously, you can connect with me by tuning in, or alternatively, go to our web page at 97.5Communityradio.ca  the show streams Live on Mondays at 9pm Atlantic Summer Time.

 

If you had tuned in on July 15th, this is the show you would have heard.