You are currently browsing the category archive for the '1950s' category.
by Cousin Justin:
The Dream Girls first released this 45 on the Twirl record label that was owned by Harry Balk and Irving Micahnik. Harry Balk was a Detroit movie theater owner that ran talent shows during down times. Harry used the pseudonym Tom King for his writing credits. Harry and Irving started the label to release Johnny & The Hurricanes hit “Crossfire”. Twirl was a conduit for Detroit talent to sign with the New York Big Top label as Embee Productions. The biggest act to come out of this partnership was Del Shannon. While the other credited songwriter on both sides is Edwin Harrell, BMI has the other credited Songwriter of “Don’t Break My Heart” as Johnny “Paris” Pocisk of the Hurricanes. Cameo-Parkway has had a long history of breaking Detroit acts nationally Including Bob Seger, The Rationals, and ? & The Mysterians. When Johnny & The Hurricanes “Crossfire” And “Red River Rock” hit the national charts they appeared on Dick Clark’s T.V. show out of Philadelphia. Bernie Lowe was the owner of Cameo-Parkway and used the local Dick Clark show to break his own talent and get new talent. The Hurricanes already had a distrubution deal with Warwick. Cameo undoubtadly wanted a chance to get another teen driven act in the roster. The catalogue # on the Twirl press is 1002, which indicates it was the follow up 45 to “Crossfire”. Was the 45 merely a vehicle for the Hurricanes to get another deal? It could explain the Edwin Harrell songwritng credit. This relationship must not have lasted long as Don’t Break My Heart was released in 1960 with “I Could Write A Book” as the flip. This may have been the first Embee produced song to land on Big Top. The Detroit-Cameo Garage Rock connection could be traced more to Terry Knight & The Pack and the Lucky Eleven label, also started in 1959……..
If Johnny Paris was the other Songwriter on these songs, the sax solo makes sense. Whether the Hurricanes are the backing group I have no idea. On the Johnny and the Hurricanes site it does state they played behind them a lot.
This down tempo track did not make it to the Big Top release
by Cousin Justin:
Up this week we end our run of early rock and roll and Rockabilly 45’s and LP’s with a solid group of Doo-Wop 45’s. Most of these are well cared for and in good condition for their age. I wanted to highlight one of the most interesting 45s for our loyal readers. As the long ass title clearly shows, this 45 is on Jake “Vernon” Porter’s Combo Label. Allmusic has a great Bio of Jake, and they start it by saying “Hipsters seeking a good example of “a swinging cat who made the scene” don’t need to look any further than this artist”, pretty glowing praise. His major songwriting credit is ”Ko Ko Mo (I Love You So)”, recorded by a lot of people. Jake is also credited with releasing Johnny “Guitar” Watson’s first 45. Both sides of this 45 were written by Porter and Gene Ford, lead singer of The Chanters. Gene was no longer a member of the group during the Deluxe Records period of their recording carrer. No No No on Deluxe hit #9 on the R&B Charts in 1961, three years after it was originally released. The lead during the Deluxe years was Bud Johnon Jr., father of Albert Johnson aka Prodigy, and half of the Rap Duo Mobb Deep. This 45 is a follow-up to one of Combo’s biggest hits “Why/Watts” from ‘54.
I Love You is the A side and a down tempo ballad. With such repetative lyrics I am sure a few of you will have it caught in your head for a few days. If you do go around singing it, you will probably get lucky.
The double AA side of the 45 features Ethel Brown on lead and Brother Woodman’s combo shows why they get the largest billing with this track. So if you got yourself a Hot Mamma play the flip and maybe she will cool down a bit.
Wolfman Mac is bringing back the horror AND the funk with a classic 50s and 60s horror film program called Nightmare SINema airing on Channel 20 in Detroit at 1:00 AM Friday nights (really Saturday morning).
From the article in the freep:
“Wolfman Mac’s Nightmare Sinema” premieres on TV 20 Friday night at 1 a.m. (technically Saturday morning), with a furry, wisecracking host presenting the best of the worst black-and-white horror movies, as well as demented skits. It’s a return to the kind of local programming that used to be a staple of the TV dial in the early days of the medium in the 1950s and into the ’60s, but was largely dumped by local stations for syndicated fare in the ’80s….
It helps the show’s bottom line that most of the films Wolfman Mac shows are in the public domain, and thus don’t cost anything to air.
But Kelly says he might soon have access to the Universal Pictures vault, so he could be presenting some classic Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff movies by Halloween. Still, he delights in the awfulness of the public domain, Ed Wood/Roger Corman/William Castle films.
“In ‘Plan 9 From Outer Space,’ the flying saucers are held up by string,” Kelly says. “It’s so campy, so bad, that it really is like happening upon a car accident. You don’t really want to stay and watch because you know it’s wrong, but you just can’t walk away.”
Yes! The host, Wolfman Mac, seems like he’ll add a lot to the program, which is entirely his creation and idea, he also works as a wedding DJ, and I guess that “horror hosts” used to be a more common thing back in the 60s. Check the same freep article for a cool list of some other famous horror hosts. Also, check out out the Nightmare SINema website here.
Apparently, advertising space is super cheap and they’ll act out the commercial for you - the guy gives an example of an ad for a dentist done by a vampire, ’cause he’s got a toothache from so much blood sucking. Maybe Cousins Vinyl should air a spot - what do you think a good idea would be? How about Wolfman Mac and Howlin’ Wolf fighting over a box of records?
Our friend Al Reid, former lead singer of the Capreez, emailed me back yesterday and said he has been busy recording again. He’s good friends with Jack Scott, and will be Jack’s guest backstage this weekend at the Valentine’s Rock and Roll Spectacular at the Ford Community and Performing Arts Center in Dearborn.
This show has quite an impressive lineup: Jack Scott, The Reflections, The Vogues, The Diamonds, and former lead singer of The Platters Sonny Turner.
by Max Conroy
I’ve been getting into 45’s lately. Up until about six weeks ago, I didn’t really get the idea behind buying singles. Usually they are chewed up even though I think the fidelity is supposed to actually be better than 33 1/3 rpm records. You pay for two songs; sometimes 45’s are free and sometimes they go for thousands, just ask The Cousins. But for the majority of rock and soul’s existence, the single has been where it’s at, what made or broke artists. Not until the mid-sixties did groups start making LP’s (Long Players) with the idea of making a work that had obvious continuity, with the car accident apex in the late sixties with contrived rock operas. R & B records never really successfully mastered the album format in the vinyl era for the most part. In the fifties and sixties, most R & B records were by and large compilation albums, consisting of a group of singles. Often a hit would be on many different albums by an artist; see how many Wilson Pickett albums contain Midnight Hour for example or check out some Ray Charles hits. There are definitely some exceptions to this point to be sure. Justin recently hipped me to Millie Jackson’s Caught Up album, and the theme of that album is as subtle as a crowbar to the teeth: cheating and she’s not talking about political elections, but getting love at the dark end of the street. Also, Curtis Mayfield records are albums. Getting back to the point, even as records became albums, the single was king. If an album didn’t have a hit, the record company wouldn’t provide advertising and the band or artist probably is one of your favorite cult bands now, but the artist has probably slept in a few gutters along the way. The idea of a single has faded away and mutated over the years. I can only remember buying a single on tape or CD a few times in my life. But commercial radio has stayed the same over the years, playing singles, but instead of attempting to sell the single, they’re pushing album sales and concert tickets and lunch pails and everything else. Payola has to still exist; I can’t think of any other reason for a radio station to play a song three times in an hour, which some do. iPods, iTunes and iEverything are probably changing it all over again. Shit, at that Sharon Jones show, Justin and I observed a DJ ’spinning’ tunes from his iPod.
I’m trying to figure out what it is about 45s that I’m suddenly attracted to. As I write this, I’m coming to realize that I have been more into records lately that were either albums put together either entirely of singles or built around a few singles with some filler, so the jump to buying 45’s probably isn’t that large of a leap. A 45 is the first appearance of a song, which gives it a certain cache, like somebody’s rookie card. Also, a lot of music from the 50s and 60s is only available on 45 unless you want it digitally and if you’re reading this, chances are you’d prefer it on record. Here’s an example that has fueled my appreciation for 45s and illustrates this point. I got a copy of the latest Wax Poetics and read the Bobby Byrd obit. and was really interested in getting some of his music as I’ve been into James Brown heavily lately. Byrd never released any studio records back in the day (he did put out an amazing live album called I Need Help), they were all singles produced by James Brown and so I went out and found the I Need Help single pretty cheap and was blown away.
There are also plenty of examples where finding a bunch of singles by someone is easier and cheaper than finding the rare album that was released compiling these singles. Case in point: Dyke and the Blazers.
I’m working on finding the rest of the Funky Broadway album.
Some 45s are also cool to have because they represent something historically, an era changing or the birth of a type of music or a record label. Last Night by the Mar-Keys was the hit that launched Stax. The record isn’t valuable, but I’m in awe of it every time I look at it for what it represents. It’s also a great jam.
Some records have an interesting story. Stagger Lee by Lloyd Price is a single that’s been written about in Greil Marcus’ Mystery Train and by Dave Marsh in The Heart of Rock and Soul. It’s a traditional song that most likely dates back to the mid 19th century about a gambler named James “Stacker” Lee. The song is essentially about a gambler getting caught at cheating and blowing his accuser’s brains out. The meaning of the song went from a cautionary tale about leading an evil existence to one celebrating the outlaw here. Traditionally the song would include Lee being hung for his crime, but Price cuts the song down to stay in the single format and, in turn, deals only with the crime. After this Stagger Lee represents, to use a quote from Marsh, “a bad motherfucker not to be trifled with.” The song went on to become a black power anthem, covered by many R & B acts. At the time Price was kept from appearing on American Bandstand because of the message and the song was also finding difficulty getting air play, so Price went back into the studio to clean it up and it went to the top of the charts. Here’s the unedited version where Stack pops a cap in that sucker Billy’s punk ass.
Some 45’s can also be incredibly valuable, but you’d have to ask the Cousins about that. I’ve only recently got the bug and am content in finding records that I dig for some of these reasons. I’m sure greed will play a part here soon. Most of all, I like 45’s because you have that song, you truly own it as it was marketed and how these people recorded it, and sometimes the B-side is just as good.
Justin whipped up a sweet batch of soul 45s this time. They’ll be selling like hotcakes, but you might catch a bargain or two because a lot are in VG condition. What does VG mean anyway? It literally means Very Good, but it really means that it’s just OK. But for a soul 45, that means it was well-played, the way a 45 should be. Now it’s your turn to enjoy it. A little warm crackling sound of well-loved vinyl never hurt anybody, now did it?
I first discovered my hometown of Ypsilanti’s Pathway label with the previously posted The Smith Family LP, Sing Your Gospel Favorites. Another find, The Pathway Quartet, with one of the Cousins’ favorite all-time songs, Jesus is a Soul Man, may or may not be related to this label, as the musical style is very similar, and the label on the LP appears to be from a private pressing.
The latest record we came across on the Pathway label is actually really good. It’s Carl and Evert with a 45 featuring the song, “I Have Found The Way.” Not a whole lot of info is out there about this label, other than it was founded around 1964 by Red Ellis, a Starday recording artist who also sang in a group called Red Ellis and the Crossmen, of whch one of the members was Evert Sanders. The Smith Family also gives a shout-out to The Crossmen, so I am guessing that they were sort of the Pathway house band. I’m not sure who Carl is or what his last name even is. The same site that I found the info about Evert Sanders also listed this bio from the cover of their album they recorded on Pathway called “That Beautiful Land”:
EVERT SANDERS was one of 8 children. He was born in Ranger, West Virginia May 9, 1934. His Father was a coal miner and Evert distinctly remembers the coal camps. When only 16 Months old, the family moved to Kentucky. When he was 16 years old, the family decided to move back to West Virginia. In 1952 Evert came to Michigan. He presently lives in Ypsilanti, Michigan with wife Dorothy and 3 children Mark, Billy and Lorinda. Evert was converted in 1956 and has been serving the Lord ever since. He sings tenor & some lead also plays bass in this album.
The Pathway label’s address is listed at 508 Maus Street in Ypsilanti, Michigan. I have been meaing to drive by that address and take a picture of the house or building - when I do I will post it again here. I have a few other records of The Smith Family, and there are at least two other addresses of Pathway - one is 9901 Stoneycreek Road in Milan, Michigan, which is just south of Ypsilanti.
I think the Pathway label is as important to Ypsilanti’s history as is the well documented song on this site, Back To Ypsilanti by Lee Osler on the Mustache record label. ”I Have Found The Way” represents the effect the migration of southern factory workers to Ypsilanti had on the musical landscape. The Ford Plant and the Bomber Plant were nearby, drawing many bluegrass picking musicians to the area, many of whom are still around today. I’ve met many bluegrass and gospel enthusiasts while chatting with neighbors or out at the local yard sales, and I think this kind of music is an important part of our history. I live on East Cross Street in a neighborhood that was built in the late 50s and early 60s in a time where small ranch houses were built to accomodate all the new workers and their families. There are old tiny churches EVERYWHERE around the area I live - at least 10 within a mile of my house.
Carl and Evert mix the sacred with the rockin’, and this goes well with their message of finding the way. This may be the crown jewel on The Pathway label.
listen:
Cousin Justin just launched an excellent batch of jazz LPs. I’ll highlight this a bit more in the morning. Most interesting is this original first press Big Maybelle Sings LP on Savoy.
This LP doesn’t surface too often, and it has sold for a hefty price before. Read more about Big Maybelle here.
…Well, it’s the morning time and I promised to highlight but the real world awaits sooner than anticipated so I have to go quick. But I will say that Justin posted a record he was coveting and I was anxious to listen to and begin negotiations for or listen to Justin’s draft offers for…but it may end up being sold. He did put a good reserve on it so I imagine we will both be happy if it goes for that in the end. Read the rest of this entry »
Every fan of rock, rhythm and blues has entertained the notion of time travel. We’ve all thought about going back in time to see our favorite musicians play. I’m speaking in regards to contemporary music; some historical events might outshine cool music if the power actually existed: the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the crucifixion of Christ, etc. What if you could somehow transport yourself to a juke joint or a street corner in Arkansas ca. 1938 to see Robert Johnson play? Or what if you could have weaseled your way into Stax to help Otis Redding carry that band’s equipment in the day he was given a chance? We could use the power like Scott Bakula in Quantum Leap, traveling in time to correct some atrocity without affecting the space-time continuum. We could tell Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens to blow off tomorrow’s show and to go get plowed in the hotel bar until the weather clears up; we could tell Syd that acid is not a good thing when taken every day; we could pull Brian Jones out of the pool.
The era that I’d choose changes daily as my tastes run hot and cold, from record to record, and article to article. One day I am the only white dude in the juke joint buying the whole place a round in 2007 money while RJ uses his lazy eye to seduce every woman in the place (somehow I never get robbed or stabbed or robbed and stabbed in the fantasy), some other days I’m in the Grande Ballroom watching the Stooges and MC5.
Several things have influenced my current destination, London 1965. I recently picked up a Mono version of the Rolling Stones Now! album (maroon, unboxed, London label, without the FFRR ear, two bars running across it, full liner notes and no mention of hi-fi recording on the label) for $10. It’s not in perfect shape, but it’s not bad at all. It’s probably my favorite early Stones album; right up there with 12 X 5. It’s got awesome covers and one of my favorite originals, Heart of Stone. After seeing the movie Stoned, about the death of Brian Jones, their cover of Little Red Rooster represents to me exactly who they were at that time (much like the album cover to December’s Children) : a badass band, doing something with an edge better than anyone else, with the power to put a room in the palm of their hand. Stoned is not really a good movie at all, but the scene where they play Rooster at the Marquee Club makes the movie worth watching. The other thing that influenced my decision to travel back to London in 1965 is a brief article I read in this month’s Mojo about the Pretty Things. The article was somewhat of a let down, only because I wanted to keep reading more about the band. They are often compared to the Stones, now and back then, and their guitar player was the original Stones bassist. The Pretties in ‘65 were playing the same type of music as the Stones, R & B covers and a smattering of great originals, but they seem a bit more primitive and reckless. If I had my way, I’d find a weekend in 1965 where the Stones played on a Friday and the Pretty Things on Saturday and I’d have a nice weekend getaway in history and here’s what I’d be screaming like a pubescent girl for.
Little Red Rooster
The Pretty Things’ Midnight to Six Man
My wife doesn’t like this record because she thinks it’s too weird, so I’m taking that as a good sign that this family gospel album recorded in Ypsilanti, MI at 508 Maus Street on the Pathway label is quite a find.
Rather than review it, I’ll just have you listen to the songs I selected and read what’s on the back cover:
I, Crit Smith, was born September 8, 1933, in Whitley County, Kentucky, near Williansburg, and there I met and married Beulah Brown, the daughter of Reverend Andy and Sarah Brown, in 1950.
I worked in a mill until 1952, then came to Detroit, Michigan, and worked in a factory until 1955. I then went into carpenter work, which I do at the present time. We are very proud of our family, all of which are saved and working for Jesus. We have three daughters: Loretta, sixteen; Barbara, fifteen; Linda, thirteen; and two sons: Eugene, eight; and Mark, two months. Mark is too young to do any singing yet, but we are trusting in the Lord that he will take part when he is older.
We want to thank everyone that has taken a part and helped us in any way in making this album, especially our pastor, Reverend Luther Gibson, of the Church of God, in Woodhaven, Michigan. We have had so many requests for records, that we felt God was inspiring us to make this album.
We enjoyed working with “THE CROSSMEN”: Roy, Evert, and Blaine; and praise God for them and their ministry.
THE SMITH FAMILY
listen, I Want To Be Robed And Ready:
listen, How Are You Raising Your Children:
This 45, I’ll Beg/Let Me Take You Out Tonight was recorded on the SRC label in Ferndale, just outside of Detroit. We don’t actually have this copy, and the audio below is taken from a bootleg Detroit doo-wop comp that I have. This has sold for over $500 before, and other 45s by The Five Emeralds are highly sought after.
I believe this was recorded around 1954, during the time where soul hadn’t quite emerged in Detroit - and instead there was a mix of doo-wop, blues, and rock n roll. I am trying to find out more about this group and label, and I’ll revise this post once I do.
Speaking of doo-wop, reader Rockin’ Richard has a doo-wop show every Tuesday night from 6-8 US Eastern time - go check it out.
listen to Let Me Take You Out Tonight:
Detroit’s legendary Fortune Record’s biggest selling act was this group of Detroit teenagers led by unique tenor Nolan Strong. This LP, along with the follow-up, Vol. II (which Justin has), is definitly worth picking up if you can find it. Detroit had some great music going on pre-Motown/northern soul era, and this album is a prime example.
All members of Nolan Strong and the Diablos were in their early teens when they were discovered by Fortune in the early 50s. They might be best known for the haunting song, “The Wind”; my personal favorite is the more uptemp, “If I”.
listen to a clip:
Originally recorded on the Sabre record label in 1961, the song Blueberry Jam was a local hit by the young Detroit band The Low Rocks, who played on the teen record-hop circuit.
According to Get Hip records, who re-released this 45 in 1995, the Low Rocks put out four singles in their 3 1/2 years as a group. They also made some radio commercials including ones for McDonalds, Fairway Car Insurance and Connecticut Fresh Milk.
Get Hip goes on to say on the liner notes that the band members: Henry Corazza (lead guitar), Mike Fascetti (tenor sax), Chris McCloud (tenor sax), David Kish (bass guitar) and Steve Booker (drums) remain good friends today. I wonder, have they ever gotten back together and played? And do they still live in the Detroit area?
When the song Blueberry Jam was recorded, the oldest member of the Low Rocks was only 17. And, according to Get Hip, they disbanded in 1962 because of increased parental pressure to “get a real job”.
The Low Rocks are a great example of early rock-n-roll and how it shaped the Detroit garage rock era that followed in the mid 60s. They put their own spin on rhythm and blues, in this case Fats Domino’s classic “Blueberry Hill”.
Listen:
Next month will be me and my wife’s 3 year wedding anniversary. I won’t get all sentimental on you - but I will share with you our wedding song, What Am I Living For. Our’s was actually the Taj Mahal modern version, but here is the original version by Chuck Willis off the Atlantic 45 from the late 50s. The words say it all.
listen:
I have mentioned John Sinclair and his book Guitar Army in previous posts.
I was given a copy of the book recently and I started reading it last night. I can tell already it will be a must-read book for anyone interested in both the history of Ann Arbor-Detroit area rock and roll and also the history of the 60s and 70s social revolution in the Ann Arbor-Detroit area.
So far, I love Sinclair’s writing style. It is very Kerouac-like in stream of conscienceness, with long, excited, jazz-like passages. He began the book by describing the music he grew up listening to that influenced the 60s and 70s rock and roll movement: 1950s artists and groups, Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Elvis, Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, The Moonglows - he made the pages come alive with images of 45s spinning, rebellious teenagers dancing, the music jumping out at me in rhythm, putting the songs in my head. It actually made it hard to sleep afterwords. He described the youth’s consciousness as being off-limits to anyone with supposed authority, and with this birth of this incredible new rock and roll music out there, they had little interest for anything else. It reminds me again of Robert Jr. Whitall, founder of Big City Rythym and Blues magazine, who was himself a John Sinclair follower, telling me about how much they loved the blues and black music in general in those days - and that is what inspired the Ann Arbor-Detroit punk based rock and roll, which is still being emulated by today’s local bands.
Another exciting part of the book is that it comes with a CD of rare recordings of speeches and music by bands and influencial leaders during the time of the movement he was leading. I noticed it has Allen Ginsberg’s “Prayer For John Sinclair” as well as “Free John Sinclair Now” by the band Up!. We actually had a copy of a 45 that had “Prayer” on one side and “Free” on the other on a private label. We came across it a couple years ago and foolishly sold it - for good money - but now of course I wish I had it to display on this site.
Anyway, when I am done reading it I’ll post an official review - I’m just excited about starting it. Justin is anxious to read it after I’m done.
