Clarence "Big Man" Clemons-RIP

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band: Live 1975-1985, 1986, Columbia

Set of 5 records, could bring $25-75 dollars in near mint condition.

I don’t know about you, but for me, a well-played saxophone can evoke emotions that come from some subterranean place in my psyche.   Mournful and filled with regret, or joyful to the point of jubilation, the saxophone is an emotion machine.

And nobody played the sax like the “Big Man” Clarence Clemons, who passed away this week.   It wasn’t just his stature (6’4”) that made Clemons a big man.   He played big, and he lived big.

He’s best known for his long-time collaboration with Bruce Springsteen in the E-Street Band, but he played with lots of artists over the years and recorded solo as well.

RIP, Big Man.

This song, featuring Clemons, is especially poignant now that he’s gone: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1wg9jyvfN0&feature=share

How Sweet It Is...

Everything's Archie (Box)

KES-103 (DJ) Box with LP, photos buttons and a press kit (later Calendar/ KES became Kirshner)

In near mint condition this 1969 release may be worth $100-150

It’s the week after Easter and I’m suffering from a decided lack of willpower when faced with all the leftover candy the bunny left at my house. I know it’s bad for me, but I can’t stop thinking about how much I like Jelly Bellies. Just like I know some music is bad for me, which brings us to today’s subject: The Archies.

How can a band made up of cartoon characters be a good thing? I don’t know, but I do know that I’ve had their song “Sugar, Sugar,” stuck in my head all morning as I’ve tried to resist the empty calories that are tempting me at every turn. It irritates me so much I just want to bite the ears off a chocolate bunny.

This song was among the biggest hits in the sub-genre dubbed “bubblegum pop” of the late 60s and early 70s. The infectious song went to number one in the Billboard charts in 1969 and marks the only time a fictional band has made it to the top. Listen at your peril–it will bore into your brain and get stuck there until ALL the Peeps and Cadbury eggs are gone.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JywK_5bT8z0

Message Received

Single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?" Band Aid, Columbia, 1984. B-Side "Feed the World" Near mint--pristine--you might get up to $10 bucks for it.

There are times when I really WANT to love a song, but just can’t manage it. Intentions may be good, the message may be worthy and the musicianship may be top notch, still certain songs just fall flat.

The number one single on this day in the UK in 1984 was “Do They Know It’s Christmas?,” a song written by Bob Geldorf and Midge Ure and performed by the many artists who contributed their time and talents to Band Aid, the proceeds going to bring relief to the famine-ravaged people of Ethiopia. Everything good--except the song. It’s not a very good song.

I’m bothered by that lyric “Well, tonight thank God it’s them instead of you.” I’ve never found that kind of schadenfreude or hubris--or whatever it is that makes us think it’s okay to wish this on someone else to spare ourselves—to be an attitude to be encouraged.

This single isn't highly collectible since it sold 3.5 million in the UK alone. It remained the top-selling single there until Elton John’s tribute to Princess Diane “Candle in the Wind” displaced it in 1997.

When I hear the song now, I just try not to cringe and remember the purity of the intention to help those in need. I hope it made a BIG difference.

Maybe soon a new generation of musicians will band together to raise money for a worthy cause and a new Christmas song will be written—I have hope!

In a Chord

"Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" was a single and added to later albums. The album above, on the Gordy label, 1968, could be worth around $40 for the mono white label promo, in near mint condition. One of the more collectible Temptations albums. Course, it's that near mint caveat that's important here.

If you were like me you wore out your Temptations albums.

One this date, December 2, in 1972, the number one song on the Billboard charts was: “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone,” by The Temptations.

The album mix of this song runs to 11 minutes and 47 seconds, and the composition features only ONE chord throughout–B-flat minor. Throw in a whole bunch of instruments: an assortments of guitars with effects pedals, horns, drums, bass guitars, electric piano, maybe a Wurlitzer in there somewhere. Top it off with vocals and handclaps. Sounds like a recipe for disaster, but instead it became a soul classic.

The song, written by Motown songwriters, was originally composed for a group called The Undisputed Truth. They recorded their version in 1971 and it was a moderate success.

But when the Temptations applied their particular vocal magic to the song in 1972 it shot to number one on the Billboard charts and won three Grammys.

Not too shabby for a song that’s a 12-minute downer, but definitely no Parent-of-the-Year award in the offing for Papa.

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As a side note, the group The Undisputed Truth is collectible as well. Most of their albums run in the $20-30 range for near mint. They definitely get points for campy psychedelic soul. And in a twist, their single U. S. hit was "Smiling Faces Sometimes," which rose to #3 on the charts and had previously been recorded, with only moderate success by--yes, The Temptations.

ABBA-DABBA DO

ABBA, Super Trouper Atlantic, 1980. Worth about $10-15, near mint.

ABBA is not particularly collectible, but if you happen to have The Abba Special

2-record DJ edition, Atlantic, 1983, that's worth about $50-75, near mint

At the risk of being shuffled off to a home for the terminally dweeby I have to confess there was a time when I really loved putting ABBA on the turntable and dancing around the living room. Who knew the Swedes could rock out like this? But I guess in a cold climate it's advisable to play something you can move to.

On this day in 1980 I was probably dancing around with my firstborn child in my arms when ABBA’s Super Trouper hit #1 on the charts. It was a deliriously happy time.

ABBA was huge in the 1970s, a colossal commercial success. The four musicians were each accomplished in their own right and their blend seemed a perfect storm of talent. And while I’m in a confessing mood, I thought it was cool that two married couples comprised the group and even found the cutesy name clever–then. Course, now it sounds like what a group of middle-schoolers forming a band would come up with “Hey, how about each of our first initials?” Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Benny Andersson, Bjorn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Faltskog. ABBA. That'd be way kewl, right?

Alas, just as disco was destined to fade quickly, so did the marriages–and ABBA. But their songs live on and I hope someday to dance around the living room with a grandchild in my arms and ABBA’s “Take a Chance On Me” blaring from the speakers.

You Can Get Anything You Want...

Arlo, then and now.

All the guy wanted was a good Thanksgiving dinner with friends. And look what goes and happens…

Arlo Guthrie told the whole convoluted story of what transpired when he headed up to Stockbridge, Massachusetts to have Thanksgiving dinner with Alice and Ray Brock and a gaggle of friends in 1965. It took up one entire side of his 1967 LP.

Can this really be the 55^th Anniversary of the infamous “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree?” Seems impossible that more than a half-century has passed. I watched a bit of the movie on Netflix last night and it now looks amateurish and dated in a sweet “hey, guys, let’s put on a show” kind of way. It was a treat to see Arlo Guthrie looking so baby-faced and cute. I’m glad he’s kept on keeping on through the years.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone and remember to dispose of your holiday trash in a lawful manner or Officer Obie might come to haul you away.

The Little Song that Could

If you're lucky enough to find a near mint copy of this

1961 Herald release it could be worth up to $500.

It's the "near mint" part that's the catch.

It’s tiny, but mighty. The number one song in the U.S. on this day in 1960 clocked in at just one minute and 30-something seconds. But what a minute plus it is!

It is reputed that Maurice Williams wrote the song when he was a teenaged boy trying to convince his date to forget about her curfew and---well, “stay, just a little bit longer.” Don’t know if it worked with the girl, but the song certainly has staying power.

I believe Maurice and the Zodiacs still hold the record for the shortest song ever to make the charts in the U.S. There are differing accounts about how long the actual recording is, but all tally up to a minute and 30-something seconds.

In any case this song proves that good things do, indeed, come in small packages. It’s hard to imagine that scene in Dirty Dancing–all the staffer kids from the wrong side of the tracks having their gyration-fest–without Maurice doing the begging.

Later the song would be recorded by the Hollies, by The Four Seasons and other bands. Jackson Browne had a nice crack at it, too. But, in the end, this is definitely a case of “ya gotta dance with the one what brung ya”. So today maybe you’ll let Maurice convince you to stay for a while and just close your eyes and listen. Or get up and dance around your living room. It’s a great way to spend a minute and 37 seconds. But I warn you, this song will get in your head and....STAY.