August 8: Born on this date in 1933 was Joe Tex, arguably the most underrated of all 60s Soul singers… Joseph Arrington, Jr. (August 8, 1933 ~ August 13, 1982)

Joe Tex made the first Southern soul record that also hit on the pop charts ("Hold What You've Got," in 1965, made number five in Billboard)...

 His raspy-voiced, jackleg preacher style also laid some of the most important parts of rap's foundation...

He is, arguably, the most underrated of all the '60s soul performers associated with Atlantic Records, although his records were more likely than those of most soul stars to become crossover hits…

 

In 1961, he recorded his composition, "Baby You're Right", for Detroit’s Anna Record Label...

as well as for the New Orleans “ACE” label…

Later that year, James Brown recorded a cover version, albeit with different lyrics and a different musical composition, winning songwriting credit, making the song a hit in 1962, reaching #2 on the R&B chart... 

(This was the start of a long running feud between Tex and Brown. Check out the Wikipedia version of that story…) 

 

It was during this time that Tex first began working with Buddy Killen, who formed the Dial Records label behind Tex. After a number of songs failed to chart, Killen decided to have Atlantic Records distribute his recordings with Dial in 1964.  By the time he signed with Atlantic, Tex had recorded thirty songs, all of which had failed to make an impact on the charts…

In 1965, Killen took Joe to Muscle Shoals, not yet a fashionable recording center, and they came up with "Hold What You've Got," which is about as close to a straight R&B ballad as Tex ever came. It was followed by a herd more, most of which made the R&B charts, a few cracking the pop Top 40…

In 1966, his "I Believe I'm Gonna Make It," an imaginary letter home from Vietnam, became the first big hit directly associated with that war. 

His biggest hit was "Skinny Legs and All," from a 1967 live album, his rapping pure hokum over deeply funky riffs. "Skinny Legs" might have served as a template for all the raucous, ribald hip-hop hits of pop's future…

He was too down-home for the slickness of the disco era, or so it would have seemed, yet in 1977, he adapted a dance craze, the Bump, and came up with the hilarious "Ain't Gonna Bump No More (With No Big Fat Woman)," his last Top Ten R&B hit, which also crossed over to number 12 on the pop chart…

Joe Tex died of a heart attack in 1982,
 only 49 years old…

 Killen, Ben E King, Don Covay, Wilson Pickett, and the great songwriter Percy Mayfield served as pallbearers…

R.I.P. JOE TEX

Ya left us way too soon…

 

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August 7, 1931: Herb Reed was born in Kansas City, Missouri. In 1953, bass singer Herb Reed put together a group of four singers called The Platters, an idea he got from a disc jockey referring to records as platters…

Herbert Reed 
(August 7, 1928 – June 4, 2012)

  

Mr. Reed was born into poverty in Kansas City, Mo., on Aug. 7, 1928, and lost both his parents when he was about 13, living afterward in the homes of various relatives. He left for Los Angeles when he was 15 and began singing in church gospel choirs while working odd jobs. Singing in amateur contests, he discovered he could make money doing what he liked best...

 

Herb Reed, on the far left

The core of the original group — Mr. Reed, David Lynch and the lead singer, Tony Williams — later joined with Paul Robi and a 15-year-old girl named Zola Taylor to form the quintet that recorded “Only You” in 1955, the first in a string of hits…

 

 

Herb Reed became the group’s most enduring presence...

As original members were replaced, he remained, singing bass on all of the 400 recordings the group made during its peak years, including four that reached No. 1 on the Billboard singles chart:

 

“The Great Pretender” (1955)

 

“My Prayer” (1956)

 

“Twilight Time” (1958)

 

 “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” (1958)

 

The Platters’ early records, like those of many black artists, had color-coded labels — usually orange, sometimes purple — to alert D.J.’s that they were “race records,” something that effectively barred them from the air in parts of the South.

 (The term was later changed to “Rhythm and Blues”) 

 

R.I.P. Herb Reed

Herb Reed, an original member of the Platters, one of the first pop groups to break the color barrier in the 1950s, died on June 4, 2012 in  Boston. 

He was 83…

 BILLBOARD Obit:

 http://www.billboard.com/news/herb-reed-platters-founder-dies-at-83-1007230352.story#/news/herb-reed-platters-founder-dies-at-83-1007230352.story

 

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Bo Diddley's August 4, 1961 release "Pills" is covered in 1972 by The New York Dolls

On August 4, 1961, Bo Diddley released a single “PILLS”…

 

The New York Dolls covered the tune on their studio album in 1973…

Comparisons?  Apples & Oranges

—THEY BOTH ROCK!!!

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July 6, 1963: James Brown’s “Live At The Apollo” hits #2 on the Album Chart and The Safaris crack the Hot 100 with “Wipe Out”!

Released just two weeks earlier, The Safaris’ “Wipe Out” cracked THE Billboard ‘Hot 100’  
 on July 6, 1963
—it would top out at Number 2…

Ironically, the tune was originally recorded as an album “filler” but ended up being one of the most popular instrumentals in The Evolution of Rock ‘n Roll…

 

July 6, 1963 was a big day for a young Mr. James Brown. His album “Live At The Apollo” went to #2 on the US Album Chart and spent a total of 33 weeks on the chart…

Track Listing:

1. "Introduction to James Brown and The Famous Flames" (by Fats Gonder) 1:49 2. "I'll Go Crazy"   2:05 3. "Try Me"   2:14 4. "Think"   1:45 5. "I Don’t Mind"   2:28 6. "Lost Someone"   10:43 7. "Medley: Please, Please, Please/You’ve Got The Power/I Found Someone/Why Do You Do Me/I Want You So Bad/I Love You, Yes I Do/Strange Things Happen/Bewildered/Please, Please, Please"   6:27 8. "Night Train"  

NOTE: In 2003, the album was ranked number 24 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. In 2004, it was one of 50 recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry…

 Not a bad day 

in The Evolution of Rock ‘n Roll…

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July 5, 2001: Ernie K-Doe, who scored a number one hit in 1961 with "Mother-In-Law", passed away at the age of 65…

 (February 22, 1936 - July 5, 2001)

Alan Toussaint

ERNIE-K-DOE, born Ernest Kador, Jr., was a rhythm and blues singer best known for his 1961 hit single, the Alan Toussaint penned "Mother-in-Law, " which went to #1 on the Billboard pop chart in the U.S.

R.I.P. ERNIE-K-DOE

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June 29, 1960 in Tropical Jon’s Evolution of Rock ‘n Roll: Jackie Wilson, supported by Dion And The Belmonts, Elmore James and The Vibrations, plays the sixth of seven nights at The Regal, Chicago, Illinois, USA

The Regal in the 60s

The Motor City’s Jackie Wilson

—MR. EXCITEMENT

was, without a doubt, still getting mileage out of his 1958 hit

LONELY TEARDROPS…

And supporting his latest effort
STOP DOGGIN’ ME AROUND…

 Jackie was supported by Dion And The Belmonts who were (unsuccessfully) trying to hang in there with covers like

IN THE STILL OF THE NIGHT…

Dion and the Belmonts were blown off the stage with acts like:

Elmore James with his latest single
TALK TO ME BABY……

AND even The Vibrations, usually an uptempo group, with their bluesy 1960 release
SO BLUE…

This was a SHOW

in Chicago's Regal Theater

in 1960!!!

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May 21, 1940: Will Bradley recorded Beat Me Daddy Eight to the Bar and several interesting versions would follow, including THE great one by Ann Arbor favorites COMMANDER CODY AND HIS LOST PLANET AIRMEN (on “Lost in the Ozone”)

 

 "Beat Me Daddy Eight To The Bar" 

was first recorded in 1940 by the Will Bradley orchestra, with Freddie Slack on piano. The recording placed in Billboard's

"Leading Music Box Records of 1941" at number ten…

A GREAT version of  "Beat Me Daddy Eight to the Bar" was released by Maurice Rocco

Check out Maurice Rocco’s  Bio

This is jazz musician, Maurice Rocco,  was born in Oxford, Ohio, Maurice Rockhold (1915-1976). He later became known as a jazz musician who played the piano while standing up. He performed briefly with Duke Ellington. His career included musical performances in several movies during the 30s and 40s and he later toured in Europe and Asia. He was murdered in Bangkok, Thailand while he was living there and performing at nightclubs.

 

Of course our favorite Beat Me Daddy Eight to the Bar came out on the

"Lost In The Ozone" album by Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen…

The Andrews Sisters , Woody Hermann, Glen Miller and even Ella Fitzgerald HAD SUCCESS WITH the tune, too!!!

A GREAT WWII JAM AND STILL GREAT TODAY…

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May 18, 1963: Jimmy Soul reached #1 on the Billboard chart with "If You Wanna Be Happy" (Making him a "two-hit wonder")

May 18, 1963:

Jimmy Soul reached #1 on the Billboard chart with "If You Wanna Be Happy", a song about the benefits of marrying an ugly woman…

In 1962, Jimmy Soul hit #22 the with "Twistin' Matilda"

 On May 18, 1963, Jimmy reached #1 on the Billboard chart with "If You Wanna Be Happy", a song about the benefits of marrying an ugly woman. It would prove to be his final entry…

 The follow-up "Treat 'Em Tough" flopped completely, after which Jimmy entered the US Army…

Jimmy Soul died of a heart attack in 1988, aged 45…

R.I.P. Jimmy Soul  

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Malaco Records produces two NUMBER ONE HITS, using the same band for both artists, all on the afternoon of May 17, 1970

May 17, 1970

 On the same afternoon, with the same band, and at the same session, two NUMBER ONE HITS were recorded at Malaco Records:

Jean Knight

 "Mr. Big Stuff"

King Floyd  "Groove Me" 

  at the Malaco Studios in Jackson, MS. 

Malaco Records is an independent record label based in Jackson, Mississippi. Malaco is and has been the home of various major soul, blues and gospel acts, such as Johnnie Taylor, Bobby Bland, ZZ Hill, Denise LaSalle, Benny Latimore, Dorothy Moore, Little Milton, Shirley Brown, Marvin Sease, and the Mississippi Mass Choir. It has received an historic marker issued by the Mississippi Blues Commission to commemorate its important place on the Mississippi Blues Trail.

A tornado on April 15, 2011

destroyed much of the company's main building and studio....

Rebuilding of Malaco Studios

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May 10, 1955: Johnny Ace hits #1 and #7 on the R&B Chart...

Johnny Ace

(June 9, 1929 – December 25, 1954), born John Marshall Alexander, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, was an American rhythm and blues singer. He scored a string of hit singles in the mid-1950s before (AND AFTER) dying of an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound…

May 10, 1955: Johnny Ace hits #1 on the R&B chart and #17(3/19) on the pop chart with "Pledging My Love"

 May 10, 1955: Johnny Ace hits #7 on the R&B chart with "Anymore"

                The Johnny Ace Webpage

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APRIL 21, 1961: The Olympics, Aretha Franklin, The Capris, Johnny Hartman and The Dells start a seven night stand at Chicago's famed Regal Theater...

April 21, 1961: THE FIRST NIGHT OF A SEVEN DAY STAND AT CHICAGO’S FAMED REGAL THEATER...

 THE SHOW INCLUDED:
The Olympics, Aretha Franklin, The Capris, Johnny Hartman and The Dells…LOTTA GREAT MUSIC FOR A SOLID WEEK STAND!!!

 The Olympics, an already well- established act, famous for very hip, but nearly novelty tunes such as the 1958 smash hit WESTERN MOVIES  and my favorite, the 1960 release titled BIG BOY PETE...

On this tour they were also introducing America to another side of the usually ‘playful’ Olympics with the ballad
"Stay Where You Are"

And they most likely did DOOLEY because it was the A-Side of

STAY WHERE YOU (which was their latest release)…

AND, without a doubt, they tore up the joint with their dance tunes like (Baby) Hully Gully...

 IT WAS CERTAINLY A PART OF THEIR SHOW AS SEEN HERE IN 1965…

 SHIMMY LIKE KATE

 And their newest dance tune  
MASH THEM TATERS 

(NOTE: This great group is still touring today! And, STAY WHERE YOU ARE is part of that show… Check ‘em out!)

Aretha Franklin, that “new kid” from The Motor City was also on the show… (“new” even though she’d already been touring for the past four years—She was 19 in 1961),..

 By the time of this 1961 tour, Aretha already had two Top 10 R&B hits with "Operation Heartbreak" and "Won't Be Long"…

(NOTE;  Check out this cool Aretha Franklin Bio video)

The Capris were still makin’ time with their already classic hit...

THERE’S A MOON OUT TONIGHT…

The Jazz Singer, Johnny Hartman was on the bill in support of his pre-Coltrane career… 

AND SO WERE THE DELLS!

OH WHAT A NIGHT(!?!)

—WHAT A GREAT SEVEN NIGHTS

AT THE REGAL!!!

THAT’S HOW IT WAS DONE IN 1961…

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