A Great Song from 1958

The Fascinators were quite popular on the East Coast in the late 50s and early 60s. This song is the best of the best from this group, a truly outstanding DooWop ballad.

Enjoy.

This song was played first around the St. Louis area back in 1963. As you can see by the record number, this was actually the A-side of this 45. However, the B-side, "Wildwood Days," became the hit recording for Bobby Rydell back in the summer of '63.

Enjoy

Beatles For Sale Remastered

My look at the new Beatles remastered CDs continues with Beatles For Sale. In England, this was their 4th LP release. Here in America, the bulk of this album was better known as Beatles 65. For me, as lover of and a collector of Beatles music, this is the first decent sounding recording they did in stereo. You might know that the first 4 Beatles CDs originally released in 1987 were taken from the mono masters. This was a decision that I liked at the time they came out. When I learned of the new CDs, I decided the first one I would covet would be Beatles For Sale. Well, after listening to the disc, I think I was right on with that decision.

A one word description of this CD is “stunning.” However, I’m not one to limit myself to one word descriptions. Let’s just say this CD has the general characteristics of the other new remastered discs. The bass is enhanced, as is the overall charity of the recordings. The surprise, for me are the sounds I’d never heard in the first CD reissues. And, there are a few tracks that really stand out.

Here’s a brief track-by-track description. No Reply and I’m a Loser are awesome. There are little sounds I’d not heard before in both songs. The first of the tracks that make me say “WOW” is Baby’s In Black. On this gem you hear all sorts of different things, especially with the guitar playing, that just stand out making this song a must hear.

Rock and Roll Music does Chuck Berry proud. On one verse, one of the guitars disappears for some unknown reason and this is heard quite clear. Paul’s I’ll Follow The Sun has always sounded good, on vinyl and on CD. Well this version sounds even better to my ears.

Now we’re up to another one of those special tracks, John’s remake of Dr. Feelgood and the Interns Mr. Moonlight. The unique organ part is brought out in this remastered goodie. Plus you really hear John’s voice crack when he opens the song screeching “Mr. moonlight.” What a treat for the ear.

Next Paul does his best Little Richard on Kansas City/Hey Hey Hey Hey, which is actually a medley of two songs from Little Richard. The version of Kansas City is a remake of the Little Richard version of the often recorded song. And boy it sure sounds great.

Then comes another of the gems on this CD, Eight Days a Week. I was actually tipped off to listen for this one with a write-up I’d read on the Internet. It’s much fuller then the 45, LP version, or the version on the first Beatles For Sale CD from 1987. Everything in this song from the hand clapping to the harmony stand out crisp and clear.

The next two songs are Buddy Holly’s Words of Love and Carl Perkin’s Honey Don’t. Both are remakes of the originals and both continue with this bright, full sound on the new disc.

Every Little Thing is another of those songs that really stick out as nothing short of outstanding on this new recording. You hear the instruments in a new way, especially the timpani Ringo plays. It adds it’s booming sound to the enhancement on this disc.

I Don’t Want to Spoil the Party is another delight and a surprise. This is one of those Beatles songs I’ve sort of dismissed, or passed by in the past. The new remastered version makes it hard to pass over now. All the clear sounding guitar work and the always great John and Paul harmonies are great.

Paul’s What You’re Doing is next and like the rest of this outstanding work, it sounds great. You hear the piano work, and all the rest of the instruments as clear as a bell. It’s like you’re there when they recorded the song.

Finally, George rocks out with another Carl Perkins remake, Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby. You hear the little things in the guitar work that make this a rockabilly delight.

Overall, this is another gem of a disc to listen to over and over and over again. Like the other discs I’ve talked about, the packaging, pictures and video for the computer, are great. A final thought on these CDs is I told myself I was just going to get Abbey Road, the White Album, and Beatles For Sale for the moment. Well, after hearing all three of these disc sets, I find I will buy others. Sgt. Pepper will probably be next for me.

The Beatles (the White Album) Pt. 2

Some of the more dramatically different sounding tracks on this set are on disc two. We start with Birthday and Yer Blues. In both cases, the overall sound is brighter and fuller then the original 1987 CD release. Listen for those little things in the background that I’ve been talking about. The keyboards on Birthday are crisp. The guitars on Yer Blues are clean sounding. Paul’s Mother Natures Son continues with the more fuller sound theme. The horns in the background boom out over the acoustic guitar and the clear vocals.

Now we’re up to four tracks that stand out as much improved sounding songs. Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except for Me and My Monkey has a lot going on; and I mean more than just an eleven word title. That cow bell rings lout like it never has in previous issues of the song. Put the headset on, and listen to the driving guitar reverberate across your brain. John gets two in a row with the haunting Sexy Sadie. I’ve always found this to be a unique sounding song; and you can hear it all now on this remastered gem. Once again, there’s that haunting guitar over a piano with echo on it. And, there’s that background vocal.

Helter Skelter surprised me. This has been one of my least favorite songs on this recording; but I have to admit, the newly remastered sound brings it to a new light. Long, Long, Long carries on with that haunting thing again. Just listen to that organ and the overblown vibrato.

Revolution 1 was intended to be a single release off of the album. It was decided the song was too slow and that turned out to be a good thing for Beatles fans because they then recorded the version we got on that first Apple 45; however, the LP version sounds great. The horns in the background come out to the foreground. Then Paul gives us Honey Pie; this is a track that can go overlooked, but don’t overlook it when you get the new CDs. It’s reborn anew now.

I was tipped off about Savoy Truffle before I heard the new CD. On the disc, I find sounds I never dreamed were part of the original recording. It almost sounds like the horns in the background were rerecorded; but they were not. This song might be the most dramatic in sound improvement on this set. George wrote a fine tune; and now we really hear it.

The next two tracks are pretty much John Lennon. Cry Baby Cry sure sounds good. The now familiar echo on John’s voice rings out. I guess John owes a special debt to Les Paul for inventing that technique. Then John Lennon takes on another ‘magical mystery tour’ with Revolution 9. You might be tempted to pass over this 8 minute and 22 second experiment; well do yourself a favor and put the headphones on and give it a listen, at least once. You’ll hear things you didn’t hear before.

Disc two finishes up with Richard Starkey singing the vocals on the orchestral Good Night. Like most orchestral music on CD, this is a keeper when it comes to sound. The strings, the harp, the voices, we hear it all.

In conclusion, I was not disappointed with the White Album. I had planned to get a copy of this set, along with Abbey Road, when I heard they were going to do all this remastering. Oh, by the way, you do get a copy of the poster that was part of the original LP, although this one is smaller in size.

There is one other CD I had initially planned to get, and I’ll tell you about it next; so keep watching the blog.

The Beatles (the White Album) Pt. 1

I recall when the “White Album” first was released on vinyl in 1968. It hit the stores on November 22nd, a date that lives in infamy in American history. It was a clear,cold early Winter morning and I decided I must get the record on opening day, so-to-speak. So I walked from my house to Florissant Records. I believe it was approximately a mile from my parents house and got my first copy of The Beatles, aka The White Album on vinyl. The recording was unique; the record label was very unique; the packaging was unique.

As mentioned in my Abbey Road review, I bought the first issue CDs when they came out in 1987. ‘And I loved them.’ Like Abbey Road, the new remastered White Album has an overall sound that is better than the first CDs. Unlike Abbey Road, there are certain songs that almost sound totally new on this CD set. And the packaging is superb, including the use of the B-side label on disc two and the more recognizable Granny Smith green apple on disc one’s label. That is still one of the coolest labels ever made. You would expect that from The Beatles.

I’m not going to spend time with each and every song. After all, there are 30 tracks on this two disc set; and even the not-so-good stuff sounds good on the remastered issue. What I will do is talk about some specific tracks that as stated above, almost sound totally new.

The White Album has more stuff going on behind the music than any other Beatles record, including Sgt. Pepper; well, the new CD set brings those little things to the front. This is another “listen with the headset on” CDs. And when you listen, listen to everything. ‘Don’t pass tracks by.’

Side one starts with the plane landing in Russia on Paul’s Beach Boy inspired Back in the U.S.S.R. We hear it all loud and clear as a bell. The piano on the opener rings across the roar of the jet engine. Hand clapping, background vocals, enhanced bass guitar and the lead guitar blast across your ears like a rocket. Then track one fades out and John’s Dear Prudence fades in as it always has; but this time it’s clear, crisp and downright haunting. Listen to all the sounds and that guitar work and those backing vocals. Outstanding stuff. Glass Onion is next sounding like a reborn piece of art. Hear that flute on the last verse. And then it’s Polka time as Paul gives us the classic Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da; listen to that “banging on the piano,” and all the hand clapping and the voices in the background. “Swing your partner round and round” and sing, sing, sing along.

Now please don’t overlook a thing on these CDs, including Wild Honey Pie; you hear it in a refreshingly new way along with The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill. I used to play that one at parties. “All the children sing.”

The next two songs continue with an underlying theme of haunting sounds that are peppered throughout this collection. At least I’ve always thought they were haunting tunes.

George Harrison’s While My Guitar Gently Weeps is a masterpiece of recording excellence; much thanks to Eric Clapton for that lead guitar that now pierces the ears over all the other instruments. The organ, the castanets, bass and drums blend with the harmonies. Then there’s John’s VERY haunting Happiness Is a Warm Gun that never sounded better then on this new collection. Listen to yet another ear piercing guitar lead after the first movement of the song. Tell me that’s not spooky sounding.

What was side two on vinyl is the second part of disc one. Martha My Dear, I’m So Tired, and Blackbird sound so good they must be heard to understand what I’m talking about.

The next two songs deserve a little more here. Piggies is another of those born again tracks I’ve been eluding to here. It sounds brand new here. The harpsichord chimes out and the acoustic guitar can be heard plain as day along with the strings and tambourine. I love the ending on this one. Sounds great; sounds better then great. Now on Rocky Racoon, it is my opinion that Paul’s A string on his acoustic guitar is slightly out of tune. But it still sounds clear along with the harmonica, honky-tonk piano, and everything else that’s heard on this one.

The next two songs continue with this little silliness going on. Ringo sings about his lady friend who lost her hair in Don’t Pass Me By and Paul asks the musical question Why Don’t We Do It In The Road? Well, why don’t we?

Disc one finishes with Paul’s tribute to Don and Phil Everly, I Will; and it sure sounds good on this new remastered set. Then it’s back to that haunting theme with Julia, an most underrated gem from John Lennon.

That’s it for disc one. Disc two is coming up in the next installment; so stay tuned right here.

Seeing might be believing

Following up on the Abbey Road remastered CD review, here is a comparison picture of the actual wave file of Come Together from the original 1987 CD release, and the new remastered version. These files are unaltered. You can see the difference as well as hear it on the CD.

Saving the Best for First Pt. 2

We turn the old record over, if we had the old record, and get onf of the most classic album sides of all time, all crisp, clear and sounding better than we’ve ever heard it sound. I think these songs speak for themselves so I’ll talk about some of the neat parts about the side.

I must have listened to Here Comes The Sun over a thousand times in the past 40 years; now when I listen, I really hear the song. The acoustic guitar, bass, drums and that mellatron really come out. George’s vocals ring out over the music. One thing that stands out is the separation of the lead vocal and the background vocals. All the instrument layering is brought to life anew now.

Because and it’s multi track vocals are outstanding. As I’ve said over and over already, it all sounds so crisp and new. I love the synth flute at the end, always have loved it.

Now we get to the part of the CD where you have to take these next songs as one unit. When You Never Give Me Your Money starts, you hear a much sharper sounding guitar over Paul’s piano; then, the rest of the stuff all falls into line, as it always has. The guitar under Paul’s vocals, “Oh that magic feeling,” resonates like never before, as it does going into the last part of the song. Then the vocals fade out and we get the clear sounds of night, the clanging ship’s bell, then the crickets come in and listen for the talking. And then we get the Sun King and it’s panning guitar from left to right and Oh those Beach Boys’ like vocal harmonies.

Then Mean Mister Mustard, with the piano, tambourine, overdrive bass and vocals and then POW! Polyphene Pam blasts over the speaker. Listen for the break after the first verse and the little guitar riff that may have gone unheard before. I hear a woodblock during the guitar solo and some background chatter, probably somebody counting; I never heard that before. Then Paul takes over with She Came Into The Bathroom Window. Listen to the acoustic guitar; you might have paid attention to it before, but you will now. How ‘bout Ringo on the tom toms. Loud and clear.

Golden Slumbers sounds fabulous. When Paul’s voice cracks when he sings, “Smile awaits you when you rise,” we really hear it now. Then we Carry That Weight and it really carries through with all those sounds. I get lost in this stuff. And then, it’s The End and does it end with a bang. Ringo’s legendary drum break, and John, Paul, and George, each with their guitar solos ripping through your head as you listen, over a continuing drumbeat. Then the boys sing their famous, “And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.” Maybe they did know it was the end for the Beatles as a group.

Oh, don’t forget Her Majesty. We better not forget Her Majesty.

And one more thing about the new CDs is the packaging. It’s as outstanding as the discs. There’s lots of pictures and even a little video you can watch on your computer. Simply marvelous.

I recommend getting the new CDs, especially if you’re a die-hard Beatles fan.

Saving the Best for First PtI'' 1

I'm going to talk about the new remastered Abbey Road CD in two parts.

The Beatles remastered Abbey Road is great, from it’s packaging to the famous Apple label on the CD itself, to it’s sound; it’s great.

I knew when I bought the remastered Abbey Road that it was going to be the best of the bunch as for as overall

sound quality. Well, I was correct.

The first thing I noticed is the enhancement of Paul’s bass throughout the album. It’s a lot better than the first CD reissue from back in 1987. I should point out I thought the original CD releases of the Beatles material was great; and I still think so, especially the mono issues which I will discuss later. That being said, the remasters are even better.

Come Together does just that; it comes together, from the opening salvo when John says “shout, to the drum roll, to the guitars, to John’s once-echo vocals and everything in between.
The guitars sound bright and ring through during the whole track. The sound of Ringo’s snare drum punches through and then the electric piano break comes through will brilliance. The lead guitar at the end of the song rings out over all the other instruments. What an opening number.

Then we get George Harrison’s masterpiece, Something, with the same overall sound as the opener but with the addition of the organ, symbols, and mellatron. Outstanding to say the least. The harmony is clear, the guitar solo sounds better than ever. Ringo’s drums ring over all the layered sounds. And as I said, that organ just sounds brilliant.

Maxwell’s Silver Hammer has always been one of my favorite Paul McCartney songs; I’m pleased with how it sounds on the new CD. The clanging anvil on the chorus, the mellatron again all throughout the

song, the piano, and Paul’s vocals all ring out. Oh yeah, there’s that enhanced bass sound again. Great!

I should point out that Abbey Road utilizes a lot of panning instruments and vocals that sound even better through headphones. I remember when I was younger listening to this album, laying down on the floor, taking the stereo speakers and putting them on either side of my head, so I could hear all the neat recording techniques. Well, they really bellow out on the new CD.

Oh Darling is outstanding as well. I dig those background vocals, the constant guitar strum and Ringo’s drumming. Wowsers! All of it is crisp and clear like you’ve never heard it on the new disc.

Next we go under the sea with Ringo and Octopuses Garden with it’s great guitar intro and the panning underwater sounding vocals on the instrumental break. Put on your swim fins and you won’t be disappointed with this goodie.

Finishing up what was side one on the old record is I Want You (She’s So Heavy) which is the biggest surprise for me on this CD. I’d never been a major fan of John’s Rock & Blues ditty but this remastered gem has changed that. The crisp sound of the guitar, organ, bass and drums, underneath John’s screeching vocals really comes across on the new CD. I make special note of the organ and the instrumental interlude between verses. Sounds like I’m right there at Abbey Road with the boys. The song ends with it’s famous guitar riffs and the crescendo of sounds building up and coming to a sudden stop at the end, and I do mean sudden. You hear things you may not have heard before; sounds like a windstorm or something that keeps going until the end.

I'm Back

Well, it's been all summer plus since my last post. I plan to make up for that in the next few days so stay tuned.

With the release of the Beatles remastered CDs, it’s time for me to talk about what we’re hearing on these CDs. Yes the vocals are brighter; there’s definitely more bass, especially with the earlier albums.

There’s always those little things going on in the background that you swore you’ve never heard before. But wait a minute. Those sounds were there on the older CDs, and even on the vinyl.

I remember back in the 80s when I bought a CD from ACE of England called “Dion Hits.” At the time, it was the absolute best sounding collection of Dion’s Laurie recordings. The folks who do the remastering at ACE always do a good job to this day. One track, “Runaround Sue,” stuck out. I heard the drummer hit one drumstick with the other during one of his fills. I knew the sound the sticks made because I had played drums myself and often hit the sticks together in that fashion. After convincing myself that I’d not heard that sound on any other copy of “Runaround Sue” that I had on vinyl, I went back and listened to one of the particularly bad recordings and low and behold, the sound of the drumsticks hitting each other was there. I just never noticed until that CD.

Yes I know there have been some very bad, some criminally bad mixes of songs over the years in the Rock & Roll era. However, with the advent of the digital age, which began with the first CDs in the 80s, there have been some masterful remastered, remixed, recordings.

These CDs sound great. But are they really better then the first generation of Beatles CDs that came out in 1987; only time will tell.

Coming up: Abbey Road

I Wonder Why

This is the best video that I've seen from Dion & the Belmonts singing I Wonder Why from back in the day. I suspect it's from American Bandstand, but I'm not totally sure.



Enjoy.

Happy Anniversary

Well I almost got shut down on this due to DSL problems. However, they have been resolved. Today is my wife Adrienne and my 30th Wedding anniversary. There are some other friends who also are celebrating their 30th this year. So, here's Barney Rubble and the Bedrock Four with a little diddy for all people celebrating their Wedding anniversary.

Enjoy.

Coming Clean Pt 1

Well it’s time to come clean on a few things. I’ll start with this.

It seems there’s this movie that will come out on May 8th. It’s about a bunch of people on a starship galloping though the galaxy. I think their names of Kirk and Spock.

Those of you who have known me for a long time are aware of my fondness for this Wagon Train in space. So it should come to no surprise to find that I am very much looking forward to the J. J. Abrams film.

BTW: Adrienne, my wife, is a big fan as well.

You can learn about the new Star Trek movie at www.trekmovie.com.

I'm Back with more Patty McCoy

Sorry I've been away from the blog for some time, busy with other things, but I'm back!

Patty McCoy and the Renegades were from St. Louis and had a couple of songs on the Counsel label. This song came out in the spring of 1963 and has a Phil Spector flavor.



Hope you enjoy the tune.

Baseball Cards and Rock & Roll

I remember back in 1989 when the very first set of Upper Deck baseball cards came out. These were what would be known as “premium” baseball cards, at least back in ’89 they were. These cards were link nothing that preceded them. They were more like fancy playing cards then the traditional cardboard picture cards we all came to know and love through the years.

The other two cards I’m picturing here at two Cardinals rookie cards. The first is #8, Cris Carpenter, not the same Chris Carpenter from the current Cardinals; this Cris Carpenter was a highly regarded pitcher in 1989. Unfortunately, his career would not amount to much.

The third and final card shown is from the “high number” set, #754 Todd Zeile. I remember that Zeile’s 89 Upper Deck card was one, hot tamale. Zeile had good years with the Redbirds, but his career never reached the expectations the media and the fans put on him.

The entire set was expensive for its day and I recall not being able to justify paying $100+ for a complete set. So, I made a deal with a collector friend who was getting married the next summer. I would disc jockey Willie and Ann’s reception and for payment, I’d get a factory box of 1989 Upper Deck baseball cards. Hey I couldn’t turn that down. I got to play music for a bunch of friends, a lot of Oldies at that reception; these folks were like me and really enjoyed the old Rock & Roll.

The not so good news is the Upper Deck set did not sky rocket in value over the years. But I never collected baseball cards for the money. It was the joy of collecting the cards that drove me. It still does to this day; although I don’t buy too many of the new product.

February 3rd, 1959

I remember hearing the news of the plane crash that took The Big Bopper, Richie Valens, and Buddy Holly from us. I was nine years old and listening to Rock & Roll on a daily basis. We had “Chantilly Lace” by the Big Bopper and “Come On Let’s Go” by Richie Valens on 45’s. However, we had no records by Buddy Holly & the Crickets in our modest collection. Come to think of it, I would not get any Buddy Holly songs in my collection until the early 70’s when I bought the Decca release, “Buddy Holly, A Rock & Roll Collection.” At the time of the accident, I had no idea that Dion & the Belmonts were even on the tour. It could have been mentioned on some newscast, but I don’t recall it.

I wouldn’t become aware of just how significant of a contribution Buddy Holly would leave on American popular music until the British Invasion. I knew most of his hits; but it didn’t occur to me that Holly was as important to the history Rock & Roll as he would turn out to be. I had no idea how good Richie Valens was either, not to mention the talent of one Jiles Perry “J.P.” Richardson aka The Big Bopper. All of this would change as I grew older and wiser.
Don McLean would call February 3rd, 1959, “the day the music died.” I’m not going to dispute that here. In fact, I just might add to the mystique of this fateful day when these three stars fell from the sky outside of Mason City Iowa. I will say this, Charles Hardin Holley, may be the most underrated Rock & Roll performer of all time. Buddy Holly had talent. Buddy Holly could play the guitar and he could write songs and better yet, he was starting to become quite a producer. I often wonder what the Rock & Roll music scene would look like today had Holly not lost his life that night. Just how far would he have gone in the business. I wonder if the events following his death would have happened in the way they did, especially the British invasion. Many British acts, including The Beatles, Herman’s Hermits, and The Rolling Stones were heavily influenced by Buddy’s music.

So I guess I could go on and on about the great loss on February 3rd, 1959. Sufficient to say, the music world lost a potential rising star in Valens, a fine entertainer in the Big Bopper, and a major Rock & Roller in Buddy Holly. Let their music live on, and on, and on.

I envite you all to check out The Mystery Train Wreck; there's a link in the blogs I follow section to the right of this page. Ed has assembled some nice videos of these stars.

Way to go Chief!

The St. Louis Cardinals 100th Anniverary Baseball Card set pt 6

Here's the final pages from the McDonalds St. Louis Cardinals 100th Anniversary set from 1992.

These are pages 6 and 7.

Bob Gibson, Whitey Herzog, Harry Brecheen, Howard Pollet, John Tudor, Bob Forsch, Bruce Sutter, Lee Smith, Todd Worrel

Al Hraboski, Checklist

Bob Gibson is the best Redbird pitcher I've ever seen. Bob Forsch pitched not one, but two no-hitters for the Redbirds. Forsch along with his brother Ken, are the only brother act to have both pitched no-hitters; Ken was with the Astros. "The White Rat" Whitey Herzog is one of the best managers I can remember. Then we have the Four Firemen, and of course the obligatory checklist.

Hope you've enjoyed the cards. This was a fun set to collect; but I ate a lot of Micky D's stuff during the time the set was available.

The St. Louis Cardinals 100th Anniverary Baseball Card set pt 5

Here are the next nine cards from the McDonalds St. Louis Cardinals 100th Anniversary set from 1992.

Tommy Herr, Ozzie Smith, Joe Torre, Terry Pendleton, Ken Reitz, Vince Coleman, Willie McGee, Bake McBride, George Hendrick

"The Wizord," Ozzie Smith is perhaps the greatest Cardinal of the last part of the 20th Century.

One of my First 45's

The Flying Saucers Pts. 1 & 2 by Buchanan & Goodman came out in August of 1957. This was one of my brother and I's first 45's.



Enjoy.

The St. Louis Cardinals 100th Anniverary Baseball Card set pt 4

This is the forth page from the McDonalds 1992 St. Louis Cardinals 100th Anniversary card set.

On this page are some of the greatest Cardinals that I remember having the privilege of seeing on the field:

Dick Groat, Ken Boyer, Lou Brock, Mike Shannon, Curt Flood, Joe Cunningham, Reggie Smith, Ted Simmons, Tim McCarver

I must point out that the greatest Cardinal third baseman that I have ever seen is in the middle of the top row. I know there are those who loved Scott Rolen; he was a great third baseman. But I believe Ken Boyer was the greatest Cardinal to play that position.

DooWop from St. Louis!

Got a goodie for you here. This is Patty McCoy & the Renegades from my own home town, St. Louis MO. This was released in 1962.



Hope you like it as much as I do. Enjoy.

The St. Louis Cardinals 100th Anniverary Baseball Card set pt 3

Well it's still very cold here in St. Louis, so I thought I would do part 3 of the McDonalds tribute set of baseball cards for the 100th anniversary of the St. Louis Cardinals back in 1992.

And so here is the third set of cards. This page contains the following Redbirds:

Mart Cooper, Burleigh Grimes, Red Schoendienst, Stan "The Man" Musial, Enos Slaughter, Keith Hernandez, Bill White, Orlando Cepeda, Julian Javier

Finally we see some players I actually saw playing baseball for the Redbirds, starting with the greatest Cardinal of them all, Stan "The Man" Musial.

The St. Louis Cardinals 100th Anniverary Baseball Card set pt 2

It's about 5 degrees here in St. Louis, a perfect time for more baseball.

Here is the second installment of the St. Louis area McDonalds restaurants 55 card commemerative set celebrating the St. Louis Cardinals 100th anniversary, 1892-1992.

Page two features:

Terry Moore, Chick Hafey, Pepper Martin,Bob O'Farrell, Walker Cooper, Dizzy DeanGrover Cleveland Alexander, Jesse Haines, Bill Hallahan

Swingin' Street

This is a song that Dion recorded in late 1962 and it was never released.

Enjoy.

The St. Louis Cardinals 100th Anniverary Baseball Card set pt 1

In 1992, St. Louis area McDonalds restaurants issued a 55 card commemerative set celebrating the St. Louis Cardinals 100th anniversary, 1892-1992. Here are the first nine cards in the set.

This page features:

Jim Bottomly, Rip Collins, Johnny Mize, Rogers Hornsby, Miller Huggins,
Marty Marion, Frank Frisch, Whitey Kurowski, and Joe Medwick

More to come later.

Feelin' No Pain, the Version People Remember

Here's my first YouTube attempt. This is the song "Feelin' No Pain" written by Dion for the movie "Ten Girls Ago." The movie never saw the light of day; the song was given to Dion's back-up group, The Del Satins. This is their version of the song.

Enjoy.



I like this much better then the version Dion himself performed for that movie that was never released.

The Passions

This is one of those groups that I actually do not remember from the time their songs were popular. Larry Miller, who did the original KADI Oldies show, told me back in 1972, that this group was quite popular in the New York area back in the late 50's and early 60's. The first time I came in contact with this song was on Laurie's "Greatest Golden Goodies" LP that I bought back in 1971. I came across this YouTube clip and thought I'd share it with all of you.



An interesting thingg about "Just to Be With You" is that the demo version of the song was sung by Carole King and Paul Simon.

Enjoy.

The Day the Music Lived

Back in late 1986 I received a package from Columbia House with a CD that I was eagerly awaiting. I hurriedly put the disc into my CD player and was stunned. I immediately called my friend Bob and shouted out, 'listen to this, Buddy Holly is alive and singing in my living room.'

The disc was "Buddy Holly, From the Original Master Tapes on MCA. At the time I had not heard a lot of music on CD. And while a lot of people were complaining about the coldness of digital reproduction, I was taking a different approach. This technology was allowing me to hear things I'd never heard before on vinyl records. This would continue over time with other CDs that I have in my collection; some of them I will mention from time to time. And while I know there has been another Buddy Holly CD set that actually improved on the sound quality of this CD, I have a warm spot in my heart for this disc.

So, as we approach the 50th anniversary of the death of Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and The Big Bopper, I like to remember that day the music lived in my living room.

Minnie the Moocher

This is a little bit off the beaten path of my blug; but I'm gonna do it anyway. Time for me to out cartoon my buddy the Chief.



One thing I forgot to mention in the initial post; I remember seeing this cartoon when I was a kid, but I became reaquainted with Minnie the Moocher during the early 70's when I first heard the Dr. Demento show. Of course in 1979, The Blues Brothers again rekindled my interest in this song.

Lost Dion Clip

I've been hearing rumblings on the Internet about this clip for 12 years. I no longer wonder why it was a lost clip. But it is still interesting to see. It is from a film that was never released called "Ten Girls Ago."

Enjoy.

Our Record Players

I was talking the other day about the record players we had back in the day. My buddy reminded me that record companies made record players under their name. What more likely happened is a few companies made the players and put more familiar names on the outside of the outfit. Even Lionel made record players in the early 60's. Here's a picture of an RCA 45 only record player from the 50's. The guts of the machine look very much like the Decca record player my family had. Of course, after a while we had to put a bottle opener on the tone arm in order to play the records without scratching them. Sure wish I still had the old Decca.

Decca also made guitars back in the 50's.

This one's unbelievable

Here's a song from a guy who would go on to Las Veges and entertain millions.



Again enjoy.

One for All the Folks from St. Louis

My fellow St. Louisians, this is a song from a St. Louis radio legand, KXOK DJ, Nick Charles. I don't know the actual date of the record; but judging from it being on the Satelite label, that means it's an early Stax recording. Nick probably did this when he was in Memphis, before he landed on 630, KXOK.



Enjoy.

"Rock & Roll Forever Will Stand"

For the New Year, here are The Showmen:



Enjoy!

This stuff will work until I get a YouTube account going, or set up a podcast; both are in my plans for the not-to-distant future.

One of the GREATEST Cartoons of All Time

"Gimmy a ticket; gimmy a lot of tickets; I'm a splurgin'"