D-Sides, Orphans, and Oddities
Episodes
Friday Mar 18, 2022
One Bad Apple
Friday Mar 18, 2022
Friday Mar 18, 2022
John Paul Joans - Got To Get Together Now (1970)
John Davidge was a politically motivated and confrontational stand-up comedian In 1970, he made a record for the UK Christmas market. His manager arranged for Eric Stewart, Lol Creme, and Kevin Godley (later of 10CC) to write the song with him. It was "Man From Nazareth" with the flip side "Got To Get Together Now". Both were recorded at Strawberry Studios and released on Mickie Most’s RAK label.
The song was tipped as a 1970 Xmas #1 but lost its momentum because the other John Paul Jones objected, necessitating that all the records be recalled, destroyed, and reprinted! The song peaked at No. 25 in January 1971 after a belated post-Xmas Top of The Pops performance.
A selection from Andrea True's Europe-only third album War Machine (1980)
Open Up Baby/Hootchie Kootchie Floozies/War Machine
Babatunde Olatunji - Soul Makossa (1973) Originally recorded by Manu Dibango, and borrowed for Michael Jackson's "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough."
Earth and Fire - Memories (1972)
Earth and Fire - 21st Century Show (1970)
Earth and Fire - Circus (1975)
Serge Gainsbourg - Joanna (1965)
OST from the film "ComeTogether" - ComeTogether/Get Together (1971)
Something Weird: Come Together is one of those great, unique, hard-to-categorize European films that would best be described as a slice of life from the "free love" hippie generation.
TONY ANTHONY plays Tony, a free-wheeling American stuntman working in Italian films, who tries to pick up two swinging American tourists, Lisa (LUCIANA PALUZZI) and Ann (ROSEMARY DEXTER). His persistence pays off and he gives them a tour of Rome in his new sports car. As the trio develop a friendship, we find that Ann is still suffering stress from an abortion, and Lisa was recently involved in a messy affair with an older married man. Tony has his own mental baggage: he was the only survivor when his unit was massacred in Vietnam. All three are searching for an intimate relationship.
Tony is hired to play a Mexican bandit in a spaghetti western in Spain -- fans of the genre won’t want to miss these scenes -- and finds himself missing the two girls. When he returns, the three take a trip to Pompeii, get turned on by the ancient erotic paintings (not an easy thing to do) and plunge into a ménage à trois. However, Tony is pretty freaked out by this and drives off to sort things out. It doesn’t take him long to return and accept the relationship for what it is. It all comes to a head with a jaw-dropping out-of-left-field ending that would never fly with today’s test audiences...
Mr. Anthony, "best known" [quotes mine] for his spaghetti western Stranger character (Stranger in Town), is hilarious (sometimes unintentionally) and his ’60s voice-over philosophy is a hoot. He’s also a real fashion casualty of the times in his floppy hippie hat and Mickey Mouse denim jacket. A standout scene shows him as a gigolo in bed with a whacked-out client, lots of poodles, and a vibrator. Gorgeous Luciana Paluzzi is best known as James Bond’s love interest in Thunderball.
Hardcore Beatles fanatics should be alerted that the soundtrack for Come Together was released on Apple Records. Co-director SAUL SWIMMER was also involved with Let It Be, and Ringo Starr and Tony Anthony starred together in Blindman.
Justin Hayward and John Lodge - Blue Guitar (1975) With 10CC.
John Lodge - Street Cafe (1980)
Robert Lamm - Song for Richard and His Friends (2006?)
Robert Lamm - Temporary Jones (1974)
The Four Seasons - Silver Star (live) (1980)
Laura Brannigan - Deep In The Dark (1983)
Dave Clark 5 - Children (197?)
The Osmond Brothers - Flower Music (1967)
Firyuza - Native land (1979)
The Searchers - Love Potion #9 (1975) A pointless reinvention.
The Residents - Bach Is Dead (first version) (197?)
Robert Lamm - A Lifetime We (1974)
Thursday Feb 03, 2022
Thursday Feb 03, 2022
It's hard to embarrass me. But when I tagged along with some friends to the theater to see Rocky Horror Picture Show, with the toast and the actors in front of the screen acting out the scenes as they played on the screen, I finally felt true embarrassment. True, inescapable discomfort. This would be...1994? Before I was even born. It wasn't Tim Curry. He was excellent. It was the feeling that people, all these young people, will do ANYTHING to belong to something bigger than themselves. We go from one thing to another.
Tim Curry - Paradise Garage (1979) Co-written with DIck Wagner, who wrote or co-wrote Alice Cooper's ballad-ish hits "Only Women Bleed", "I Never Cry", "You And Me" and "How You Gonna See Me Now".
Tim Curry - Working On My Tan (1981)
Tim Curry - Brontosaurus (1978) Written by Roy Wood for the album Looking On, the first Move album with Jeff Lynne. Pretty lethargic, but the original wasn't that peppy either.
Tim Curry - We Went As Far As We Felt Like Going Single (1975) Written by Bob Crewe and Kenny Nolan, who also wrote "My Eyes Adored You" and Labelle's "Lady Marmalade" (both 1974). Sounds pretty familiar, doesn't it? Like a cross between "Evil Ways" by Santana and the Labelle song. Maybe they thought no one would be listening in 2022. But they couldn't imagine you and me, could they?
5th Avenue Buses - Fantastic Voyage (1967) From the album Trip to Gotham City. I might buy this one somewhere down the road. The titles all have something in common. It was 1966. It was a fad, but these records were intended to tweak the guilt of parents.
A Letter Home - Child in Question (1975)
From the record company: What do you get when you mix about a dozen musicians (including members of The Animals & The Police) with a lot of drugs? An acid psych opus! What do you get when you package it in a prefab jacket with stock Christmas art and a festive title? Total confusion! We hypothesize that if you take enough drugs you may think this private press treasure is a holiday album...but we’re not so sure.
One of the artists was Andy Summers, later of The Police, but he doesn't play on this song. The album cover was just lying around the studio, I guess. They put no thought into it at all, again, thinking no one in 2022 would be listening.
Rubber Duckie - A Teenager In Love (1973) 10cc in their nascent stages.
Billy Page - Its Pop (1965) Another rip-off attempt. Boy, this comes off as disdain. In fact, there was a whole industry pushing to keep "hippie" culture irrelevant. Soon, the industry would just subsume the entire thing in TV, music, etc. This might be the same guy that created the above 5th Avenue Buses rip-off. This label also featured Don Randi, who played sessions for more artists than you can shake a stick at.
Bobby Lyle - Shaft (1975)
From Yamaha: Conceived for theaters and similar use, the GX-1 set the electronic keyboard industry on its ear. The first polyphonic synthesizer instrument of its kind, it bridged the gap between organ and synthesizer. The velocity-sensitive keyboards allowed true expression of the voices, a concept never before imagined in electronic organs. The smaller solo keyboard was pressure-sensitive. It weighed over 700 pounds.
From Wikipedia: GX-1 voices were "programmed" onto matchbox-sized cartridges. Each cartridge had 26 screw-sized dials on them to change the VCO, VCF, VCA, and envelope of the voice. 70 cartridges in total were loaded into racks that emerged from the top of the console.
From me: This keyboard featured prominently on Led Zeppelin's In Through The Out Door album. And I don't like it. Also, Stevie Wonder's Songs In The Key of Life. For example, the string-ish intro to "Village Ghetto Land." I mean, I know what he was TRYING to do. The juxtaposition and all that.
Bus Boys - Heart And Soul (1982) For a very brief time, due almost entirely to the ascendence of (and relationship with) Eddie Murphy, The Bus Boys were all over the place in the early '80s. Their schtick was working class, inoffensive, smiling, patriotic, black Rock and Roll. Nothing subversive, nothing offensive. But they were good. This album was their second, and there was just no way to keep this edifice fresh, but I like this version more than the others (Huey Lewis and the News and Exile) but it wasn't enough. Search for their videos on YouTube. They're still around.
Gayle Moran - Magic Spell (1980)
Grupo Solo - A Real Mother For You (1977)
Harry Gullett And The Wheels - The Wondering Man (197?)
Jennie Darren & The Second City Sound - River Deep Mountain High (1969) Jenny Darren would record the original version of Pat Benetar's hit "Heartbreaker". A little more convincingly, if you can believe that. Hear for yourself, ya greedy so-and-so.
Lance Rentzel - Beyond Love (1971)
Lance Rentzel - Lookin' Like Somethin' That it Ain't (1971) On Columbia, no less. A label of prestige and fine taste. And they must have been embarrassed when:
From Wikipedia:
Rentzel was leading the [Dallas Cowboys] in receiving yards, when he was arrested for exposing himself to a 10-year-old girl. At the time the accusation was made, the press revealed a nearly forgotten incident that happened when, as a Minnesota Viking in September 1966, he was charged with exposing himself to two young girls in St. Paul, and pled guilty to the reduced charge of disorderly conduct. He was not sentenced to jail, but merely ordered to seek psychiatric care. Because of the nationwide reaction and publicity from the scandal, his wife, singer and actress Joey Heatherton, divorced him shortly thereafter. Rentzel asked the Cowboys to place him on the inactive list so he could devote his time to settling his personal affairs.[14] He would miss the last three games of the regular season, including the Cowboys' playoff drive to its narrow Super Bowl V loss to the Baltimore Colts. Rentzel finished with 28 receptions (second on the team) for 556 yards (second on the team) with a 19.9-yard average and five touchdowns.
Joey Heatherton was smoking hot. She's on the left. Marty Allen is on the far right. I've played a record of HIS on my show as well.
Lark - Rubber Duckie (1973)
Louie Pascua - Rama's Song - CCP Dance Company Rama Hari Prod_ Ryan Cayabyab
Prince Blackman - Rockers Delight (1980)
Return to Forever - Do You Ever (1977) Hard to fathom: An album like this reached Top 30 status on the album chart. It was a different time.
Rex Griffin - Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby (1935 - 1946) I bet you didn't know that Carl Perkins didn't write this.
From Wikipedia:
"Everybody's Tryin' to Be My Baby" was written and recorded in 1936 by Decca artist Rex Griffin. On March 2, 1936 at the Roosevelt Hotel in New Orleans, Louisiana, it was among ten self-penned tracks recorded that day by the recently-signed artist, accompanied only by his guitar. It was released on Decca 5294 in November 1936 to little notice. Griffin copyrighted it on January 22, 1944.[4]
In March 1956, Carl Lee Perkins, who had released "Blue Suede Shoes" the previous December, was working on follow up material at Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, and brought in a song called "Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby", that he had written. Shortly after it was recorded, Perkins and his brother were in a serious auto accident, and the song and album were not released until May 1957. Perkins was listed as the sole writer when Knox Music, Inc. published it on November 12, 1957. It is unknown, but doubtful, that Griffin ever confronted Perkins, or even learned of the matter, since he died two years later, while the 1950s non-album oriented radio environment prevailed. In retrospect, Perkins contributed a modern arrangement, along with some minor lyric changes.
Saturday Nov 13, 2021
Some Great Songs From Past D-Sides Episodes!
Saturday Nov 13, 2021
Saturday Nov 13, 2021
Stevie Wonder - Light My Fire (1970) Listen to that bass player.
Syreeta Wright - Spinnin' and Spinnin' (1974) No one was EVER as hot as Stevie in the '70s, and the album this came from proves that even occupied with his own music, he can lovingly produce one of the best female-sung records of the '70s. I love this factoid from Wikipedia:
Three artists who performed on this album (Stevie Wonder, Deniece Williams, Michael Sembello) would all have Billboard number one songs ("I Just Called to Say I Love You", "Let's Hear It for the Boy", and "Maniac", respectively) within a year of each other, a decade after this album's release. Another artist on this album, Ollie Brown of Ollie & Jerry, would have a Billboard top ten single, "Breakin'... There's No Stopping Us", in the same one-year period.
The song "Come And Get This Stuff" was originally intended for Rufus, but lead singer Chaka Khan refused to do the song. Instead, Stevie wrote "Tell Me Something Good" for them which appeared on their album Rags to Rufus.
There's no word to describe how good he was in this five-year period.
This song made it to #49 in the UK, and never a peep in the US, which is a shame.
Gentle Giant - Weekend Cowboy (1970) I love their sound on these early demos. Less prog than they would become, a sort of The Band meets Harry Chapin. Through the filter of England, of course.
Godley and Creme - Random Brainwaves/I Pity Inanimate Objects (1979) When Gary Storm played this on Buffalo's WIZR 107.7, I had never heard anything like it. I still love what they did with the backing vocals.
Jimmy "Bo" Horne - Dance Across The Floor (1978)
Lawrence Hilton Jacobs - Larry's Theme (1978) He was Freddie "Boom Boom" Washington on Welcome Back, Kotter and Michael Jackson's father Joe on The Jacksons: An American Dream ("Get the switch!") but I actually find his albums in the late '70s very listenable, especially this. So much shit came out from TV stars around that era. Scott Baio was the worst.
Les Humphries Singers - Mexico (1972) Included here because doing this show helped me discover them. My one-man raison d'être is to make you a believer! It's not that good. Just a strange pre-sampling curio.
Nino Tempo and April Stevens - Love Story (1972) From Buffalo, NY! Their biggest hit was "Deep Purple" from 1963. They were siblings. God, she was beautiful. Her first record came out in 1950 (!) but her biggest solo hit was "Teach Me, Tiger" from 1960. She reprised this in 1965, but this was virtually the same recording, with dialog implying that she had kidnapped one of The Beatles in order to seduce him. Just wow. I love it.
Men At Work - Down Under (original, non-hit version) (1980)
A brief retelling of The Greg Ham Story. Don't Do Drugs.
Mudcrutch - Don't Do Me Like That (original, non-hit version) (1974) The almost note-for-note prototype for the Tom Petty hit a few years later.
The Osmonds - War in Heaven (1973)
Sammy Davis Jr. - John Shaft (1972) Ok, ok. Shaft. Ok! Shut up and let me finish my dinner.
Sha Na Na PSA (1972)
Pink Floyd - Scream Thy Last Scream (1967) I was surprised to learn that Nick Mason sang this.
Bee Gees - Lovers (1976) This is a very strange and wonderful album track from a band on its....third ascension?
Sensational Alex Harvey Band - The Dolphins (1979) I love this song as much as any I have ever played on D-Sides. I never would have heard it if not for this show.
The Langley Schools Music Project - The Long and Winding Road (1977) You should read about this. I think I read about this in RE/Search magazine.
The Residents - Give it To Someone Else (1980) Every song on The Commercial Album is about 60 seconds long. There are 20 per side.
Wild Cherry - Baby Don't You Know (1977) A wonderful, horrible attempt to recapture the lightning of the last single, "Play That Funky Music". THIS is how you follow up a fluke hit:
One more timeWell we play that funky musicAnd we were looking so good yeahElectrified funky feelingWas coming down like I thought it wouldSo we went out on the road yeahTry to get ourselves aheadAnd on the way I was surprised to discoverThat all those funky peopleHad been misled, they were shouting outBlack? NO! White? Right!, Oh what a sight!I really didn't know the suckers was whiteBaby don't you know, Baby don't you knowBaby don't you know, Baby don't you knowThat the honkey's got soulBaby don't you know, Baby don't you knowBaby don't you know, Baby don't you knowThat the honkey's got soul
Roger Nichols and Small Circle of Friends - Don't Go Breaking My Heart (1968) So beautiful, especially the "Middle 8". Just amazing harmonies.
The Free Design - Day Breaks (2001) This will be my funeral song. I don't WANT a funeral. Just a little party for people to remember funny stories about me. In life, very few people are still in touch with me in an earnest sense. People have come and gone and sometimes I look around and wonder if someone should have bought me a ball gag long ago. Still, even after all the mistakes I have made in my life and my dealings with people I have lost, I know deep down that some people will be genuinely touched by the fact that we met and decided to be in each other's lives for as long as we had. If you listen to this song and put yourself in that place, celebrate the people who DID choose to be with you, no matter WHAT you said. Everyone is broken. Everyone. You're not alone.
Co-written by my friend Bruce Dedrick.
The Free Design - Friendly Man (1971)
Adriano Celentano - Prisencolinensinainciusol (1972) This song is being used for a commercial in the US. I like to think it's because of me.
The Beatles - Revolution (Take...Your Knickers Off!) (1968)
Thursday Aug 12, 2021
Godley and Creme, and Some Obscure Original Versions
Thursday Aug 12, 2021
Thursday Aug 12, 2021
Albert Finney - Those Other Men (1977) On the Motown label. Hard times had befallen this American institution. I remember him singing this on the Mike Douglas Show. He explained the lyric, and the crowd applauded.
Bill Haley - God Bless Rock and Roll (1980) From the Producer, Kenny Denton's book about his life in music:
In March 1979 I received a phone call from Sonet Records, asking if I would like to produce 3 or 4 tracks with their artist Bill Haley. Although Bill had not sold in large volume for many years, I jumped at the opportunity to work with a Legend. I was asked to contact Bill’s manager, Mr. Patrick Maylnn. This would turn out to be a very short conversation filled with unease, as he told me there was no way I would be producing his artist Haley! This was a job for his assistant Dave Davis who doubled as Bill’s road manager, and that Bill had insisted that Davis should produce any recordings he was going to make. I contacted the record company to inform them of my conversation with Mr. Malynn; their reaction was that unless I produced the recordings for them, no sessions would take place.
A few days later I had the most charming call from Mr. Maylnn saying, ‘That if the record company had so much faith in me, they had decided to give me their blessing to produce the recordings”. Patrick also suggested that I should contact his assistant Dave Davis, as he Knew Bill so well, he would be in a position to give me a few helpful pointers. I welcomed any input that would make the sessions go smoothly, so I phoned Davis to obtain any useful suggestions that he may be able to pass on to me about Bill. Davis told me “Its very important to make sure he is in a vocal booth separated from the band, he’s a very moody type of guy, and the slightest thing could upset him, never call him Bill, only Mr. Haley”. Davis went on to tell me various other nuances about Bill that I may encounter. I was beginning to think maybe I should have left the productions to someone that knew Mr. Haley a bit better than myself.
Charro - Love Will Keep Us Together (1977) For people of a certain age, Charro was a talk show/variety show mainstay. Sexual without being sexual. Talented without record sales. She played a mean flamenco guitar! But she was also a willing parody of herself.
Clarence Carter - Jennings Alley (1976)
David Cassidy - Darlin’ (1975)
"I wanna change my image! i really wanna show people I can R O C K!! Gimme that guitar. Now find me the best producer you can get. Brian Wilson! What? He's trying to get his brothers to get him hamburgers? Ok. What about Mike Love? No? Ok....Bruce Johnson. HOW MUCH are the extras on the cover costing me?? Just...get the janitor's family..." Yes, "I Write The Songs" is on the album. And "Darlin'" was a Beach Boys single from the late '60s. Not as bad as his brother's Todd Rundgren-produced desperation from 1980.
Dennis Wilson - River Song (1977) The album "Pacific Ocean Blue" was the best post-1973 recording by any Beach Boy bar none, including the band itself.
Gentle Giant - Freedom’s Child (1970) Folky, nice demo, sort of a POC for the prog leanings that would flourish and flounder later in the decade. I like all the stuff they did during these unreleased demo recordings, but I don't really dig their first album.
Godley and Creme:
If it wasn't for Gary Storm of WIZR 107.7 in Buffalo, I never would have heard about these guys, but for a good two years, I was obsessed. The things they did with harmonies, writing lyrics, and wild sound experiments that I had never heard before amazed me. Especially "Random Brain Wave/I Pity Inanimate Objects". They were in 10CC and I tried for a good long time to like 10CC, but it just never took as it did with these guys. It didn't surprise me that they ruled MTV's early days. Their imaginations ran wild and in the video realm and its nascent possibilities, they were champions.
Godley and Creme - “Consequences” Side C (1976)
Godley and Creme - The Sporting Life (1977)
Godley and Creme - Hit Factory/Business Is Business (1977)
Godley and Creme - Random Brain Wave/I Pity Inanimate Objects (1978)
Godley and Creme - Gizmo Demonstration Record (1975) Godley and Creme quit 10CC (they should have just taken a break, but who can reason with wealthy stoners?) to develop and record with a kind of E-bow for all six strings of the electric guitar. Little teeth rubbing against the strings to create a fine sound, when it worked. From Kevin Godley's website:
In 1977 Lol Creme and I released a triple album box set called CONSEQUENCES to explore the potential of a device we’d invented years earlier called the GIZMO. It was a mechanical unit that straddled the bridge of an electric guitar and bowed the strings to simulate violin, viola, cello, and contrabass. Unfortunately, the technology and physical materials of the day weren't resilient enough to engineer a reliable product and the GIZMOTRON, as it was dubbed when brought to market in 1979, quickly faded from view (as did the album). Oh, it surfaced occasionally over the years, on the odd track by some big names, sonic experimentalists, and fans of arcane guitar effects but, at the time, it was a double whammy kick in the balls for us, so we reluctantly let it go - we had to. The GIZMO represented an extensive period of intense work and faith with negligible critical or commercial rewards, so we moved on, let the patents expire, and closed the door on that chapter of our lives.
Godley and Creme - An Englishman in New York (1978)
Like The Beach Boys, Godley and Creme have apologists who can mine and cheer for little nuggets from sonic abortions like Ism Ism, Birds of Prey, and Goodbye Blue Sky, but trust me. Stay with their first three albums. They released an album called The History Mix (Vol. 1) which was produced by Trevor Horn and featured two side-long, occasionally clever dance-mixes (?) chock full of G&C/10CC snippets recontextualized. But as big a fan as I was, no group I know regurgitated their own mythology as much as these guys. Their first three records, though, are seminal.
Original versions, anyone?
Brenda Holloway - You Made Me So Very Happy (1967)
Cissy Houston - Midnite Train To Georgia (1973) Note the spelling of "midnight" changed for the Gladys Knight version.
Linda Lyndell - What a Man (1968)
Jean DuShon - For Once In My Life (1966)
John Hartford - Gentle On My Mind (1967)
Greyhound - Black and White (1971)
Leon Russell - This Masquerade (1972)
Lou Johnson - Always Something There To Remind Me (1964)
Saturday Jun 06, 2020
Talking life 'n' love with Marko Marisic and Ken Ray Wilemon.
Saturday Jun 06, 2020
Saturday Jun 06, 2020
Neanderthal Man - Bergendy Együttes (1971) Added some chords. And some sections. Trying to lessen the dirge-like quality.
Neanderthal Man - Graham Blvd (1970) Is it me, or is it illegal to just add stuff to songs you're covering?
Gilbert, Marko, and Ken Ray - Object (2018)
Gilbert, Marko, and Ken Ray - Impervious (2018)
Crack The Sky - Surf City (1975)
Dead Kennedys - California Uber Alles (1980)
Deodato - Do it Again (1973) You should read about Deodato. He is Justin Bieber's grandfather. In law.
Grace Slick - Wrecking Ball (1981) Sounds a lot like Aerosmith.
Grateful Dead - Terrapin Station (1977)
Gilbert, Marko, and Ken Ray - Isn't She Amazing? (2018)
Gilbert, Marko, and Ken Ray - My Cecile (2018)
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Smile Of The Beyond (1974)
Gilbert, Marko, and Ken Ray - I Had a Girl (2018)
Gilbert, Marko, and Ken Ray - Sister Golden Hair (2018)
Percy Mayfield - Right On, Young Americans (1972)
Ray Conniff - I Want To Hold Your Hand (1971)
Seals and Crofts - First Love (1980)
Serge Gainsbourg - Melody (1971)
"Skinny" Johnny Mitchell - The First Annual Streak-In (1974) The b-side to the single "President Board And Jimmy Smarter". Get it? Poorly edited article about "Skinny".
Ohio Players - Streakin' Cheek To Cheek (1974)