It's no secret that entertainers often come up with stage names to simplify their real names, but that's not the case with singer Jimmy Jones, who was born in Birmingham, Alabama, as James Jones, so the "Jimmy" was just a natural nickname. We can forgive him for that. Jones was a singer and songwriter, but … Continue reading Jimmy Jones Was For Real
Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong were busy and successful music pros who wrote a lot of memorable songs for the Temptations. But one that they avoided for a couple of years would end up as a #1 hit for the group and become a signature song. Written in 1969, "just My Imagination" was a ballad, … Continue reading Anatomy Of A Song – A Surprising Super Hit
You probably remember Johnny Nash's 1972 number-one hit "I Can See Clearly Now" (you can hear it below), but it has added meaning for me because I hope to sing it myself in the not too distant future. (Well, at least hum it -- my singing voice is something along the lines of the sound … Continue reading In Pursuit Of Seeing Clearly
I remember Hank Snow's "I've Been Everywhere" from back in the early Sixties when it was a number-one hit for him. It's all about a travelin' man who has been all over the map, and he proceeds to rapidly list all the places he's been, many of them with colorful or odd names. But it … Continue reading Saluting Silly Songs – A Travelin’ Man
Monkees "Theme Song" Monkees "Last Train to Clarksville" Monkees "Valleri" Monkees "(I'm Not Your) Stepping Stone" (Originally Paul Revere and the Raiders) Jay & the Americans "Come a Little Bit Closer" Curtis Lee "Pretty Little Angel Eyes" Little Anthony & the Imperials' "Hurt So Bad" Fats Domino "Be My Guest" Boyce & Hart "I Wonder … Continue reading Masters Of Sunshine Pop
You wouldn't normally think of Akron, Ohio, an average Midwestern city, as the birthplace of a R&B group with a number-one hit in the 1960's, but that's exactly what happened when Ruby and the Romantics hit the top. Their 1963 recording of "Our Day Will Come" was a huge success, topping the charts in the … Continue reading Ruby And The Romantics – The Pride Of Akron
Radio City, the short-lived pirate radio station that operated off the coast of England for a while in the 60's, was mentioned recently in a post titled Tony Newman And The Crazy 60’s Music Scene, but if you want to know more about it we probably should start with some history. Pirate radio has been … Continue reading Screaming Lord Sutch And The Radio City Pirates
Today we're going to focus on British rock guitarist/singer Tony Newman, but don't confuse him with the drummer of the same name, a contemporary of his who had a long career that included stints with bands like T. Rex and Boxer, and also accompanied David Bowie, Eric Clapton and others. Our Tony Newman's career didn't … Continue reading Tony Newman And The Crazy 60’s Music Scene
It always tickles me when I discover a surprising connection between two completely different types of musical artists. Johnny Tillotson, the subject of today's post, has been entertaining fans for more than a half-century as a successful country/pop singer, but I think he'd be the first to agree that a lot of his early … Continue reading Connecting The Dots With Johnny Tillotson
A huge hit record from 1970 that has sometimes approached earworm status for me is a skiffle song called "In The Summertime" by Mungo Jerry. But even though I've heard it countless times in the last forty-plus years (and it's probably going through your head right now) it has never occurred to me to find … Continue reading So Exactly What Is A Mungo Jerry?
Geezer Music Club 