(289) A BLUE MOON TODAY : REALLY! ELVIS PRESLEY BLUE MOON OF KENTUCKY!

BLUE MOON OF KENTUCKY, the signature song of THE BLUE MOON BOYS !


Elvis Presley, Scotty Moore on guitar, Bill Black on stand up base... a 1954 Rockabilly Classic!

BROWSE OUR ARCHIVES !

If you'd like to browse through our blog, you can use the Google Search feature above, click on links, or use the Archives! We've been blogging for a couple years now and we've enjoyed it!

Thanks for reading WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC!

Christine Trzyna and Wes Bryan

GREETINGS OF THE SEASON from WES and HIS FAMILY!

We've been having cold weather - high winds and visable snow on the mountains north of us - the Sierra Madre - for the last week or so, but Santa has long had to forget the sleigh and find some other way to deliver here in the land of palm trees.

Keep warm!

Wes

(288) BING CROSBY DO YOU SEE WHAT I SEE

Johnny Rivers and I were friends with Bing's son in those early Hollywood years. This song was written in 1962 and has been recorded by so many artists since, but it's Bing's version that gave us that old Christmas feeling.

PROVERB

"One joy scatters a hundred griefs."

(287) JERRY LEE LEWIS WHITE CHRISTMAS

VIDEO REMOVED Dec 3, 2010. See other Jerry Lee Lewis posts by using the Google seach feature that searches this blog.

Jerry settles down to the piano to perform a classic and is uncharacteristically mellow!

(286) FRANKIE AVALON YOU'RE ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS

Frankie came out with a Christmas album in 1962, after acting in a film called Panic In The Year Zero, a war picture. This smooth romantic song was one of the songs he recorded for the album along with classics. Frankie and his wife have eight children and are still together after all these years.

(284) FABIAN BREAK DOWN AND CRY DECEMBER 1962

My old friend from New York, Fabian (Fabian Forte), recorded a song that Jimmy Bowen and I wrote called "Break Down and Cry" and it was a hit for him! Pat Boone and Randy Wood (Dot was his label) were the producers.He recorded it as a 45 RPM single on Dot Records in 1962 (number 45-16413).



Then the song was recorded as a single on Chancellor (Number 16413).

Here's the chart for radio station KQV in Pittsburgh: http://user.pa.net/~ejjeff/kqv120162.html

Link now to Fabians official web site where you can find a link to his fan club by clicking on the title above!

Like many of my peers he has continued to sing his heart out, entertaining generations of Rock n' Roll fans!

He's been inducted into the Philadelphia Music Hall of Fame too. What a great contribution to music the sons and daughters of that city have made to American music!

Hello to MY GREAT FRIEND NAN MORRIS !

Nan Morris has been a friend of mine for years.

She's retired now but was one of Hollywood's dynamic agents in her time.

She was P.J. Proby's manager for a while and behind P.J. when he started cutting demos for Elvis Presley.

She was one of the few women who was always welcome up at Elvis'.

You could say she was "one of the guys."

It's always great to have a catch up phone call with Nan!

(283) HONEY BABY on CLOCK

Meeting all the great talent that came through those doors at American Music was inspiring to me. I had worked a bit recording in the Brill Building in New York, doing demos, listening to songs that were being written for me in mind by songwriters like Neil Sedaka. Well, when I went on to record on CLOCK records in New York, a fellow named David "Baby" Cortez wrote this one for me...



THANKS TO ARNE once again for being the first to post this on Youtube, and with so much care to the video !

Now, I had very little time to prepare to record and record this record - both sides - and I wish I'd had more time .

I sang "Honey Baby" when I visted my high school in Murphy, North Carolina, and performed a stage show there.

VANITY FAIR MAGAZINE on ELVIS preview for January 2010 !

In the upcoming January 2010 VANITY FAIR MAGAZINE, an article about the LA GRAMMY MUSEUM exhibit of AFRED WERTHEIMER's photo collection of 1956 ELVIS PRESLEY... He shot 3800 photos of Elvis in June and July of 1956.

"THE MEMPHIS FLASH" became "ELVIS THE PELVIS!"

"ACCORDING TO A 2002 HARRIS POLL, 84% of Americans have had their lives touched by Elvis Presley in some way."

(282) PJ PROBY LIVED IN A CASTLE and DROVE A ROLLS - MAKING DEMOS IS HONORABLE WORK

Like Bobby Darin and several other other music stars and singer-songwriters, P.J. Proby recorded demos for other artists.

If you can get this work today, do it! It can be a very smart move. First of all it gives you experience recording in a studio, all the equipment and possibilities open to you working in there. Other artists are recording in the same or adjacent studios. You meet singers, musicians, and producers. You get to test and train your voice. It's an in.

PJ recorded demo records for Elvis Presley, though you can hear the difference in his and Elvis' voices. This is how it worked in the songwriting business. The demo singer tried to emulate the style or sound of the singer so that he or she could really try it on. Sometimes the end result was a record that was very different from the demo anyway and sometimes the song was picked up by another artist. This kind of pitch honored the artist that may have had the song written with him or her in mind.

P.J. got his own career going and he still does! P.J. lived in a castle and drove a Rolls when he got his going. He's a hardworking and talented man and I'm happy to call him a friend!



And yes, David Gates, Leon Russel, and Glen Campbell, who were session musicians on this song, all went on to have great individual careers!

WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC RIGHTS INFORMATION

WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC RIGHTS INFORMATION

Once in a while we'll be posting a notice like this one that reminds readers that the content of this blog is Copyright Wes Bryan and Christine Trzyna with all rights reserved including Internet and International Rights.

If interested in speaking to me, Wes Bryan, please contact us at the e-mail address wewritethebook@yahoo.com

(By the way folks, don't phish us or spam us, or try to scam us; We report it all and block offenders addresses!)

We are linking to a good many web sites, favoring the official web sites of various famous and important people as well as reference sites and music videos. If we link to your site or a video you uploaded and you don't want us to reference it, please let us know, and we'll take down the link. The content of other people's sites remains their own.

Thank you for your consideration and courtesy.

Christine Trzyna & Wes Bryan

PHILIP RHODES MY FRIEND and MARLON BRANDO'S

This is a memorial for an old friend - old? He must have been 95!

I'd been thinking about Philip and couldn't find the address book I had his number in. When I called yesterday, it was only to learn from Philip's grieving wife, Marie, that Philip had passed away early this year.

Phil was a true genius in the art of movie make-up - a silent giant - and collaborated with Marlon Brando for years, to get his look just right for his films. He had known John Barrymore and was a friend to Orson Wells. Phil and I spend hours talking about Hollywood and James Dean. I enjoyed listening to Phil's stories, and his philosophizing. He was a true gentleman of the kind they don't make any more, an ascot tucked into his shirt, immaculate. The last time I saw him he was having a little "power lunch" at DuPars, a diner famous for its pies, with a group of his friends. -Wes Bryan

I met Phil through Wes at the library where he and I first met. One time Phil talked to me about making noses and adding to chins with wax. He was one of those artistic individuals who always had a project. And he would go to book sales and giveaways and load up the trunk of his car, because he had the kind of mind that always craves knowledge.

He had vivid blue eyes and a youthful quality that defied his years; he had lived in Paris in the 1920's. I can only hope that I will live as long and be able to contribute creatively as much as Phil did. - Christine Trzyna

(281) BOBBY DARIN HELL FOR HEROS

While my generation had Korea and the United States was in Vietnam, fascination for World War II pictures continued. My friend from New York, Bobby Darin, had moved to Hollywood to pursue his own acting career. I would go to movie sets and pitch songs I wrote or my coworkers at American Music wrote to pitch them to stars like Bobby.

LINK TO BOBBY DARIN'S OFFICIAL SITE HERE !

In 1962 Bobby also made a television appearance on the Judy Garland show.

DODD DARIN speaks of his dad BOBBY DARIN

Bobby's son Dodd wrote a book called "Dream Lovers." As he says he wrote it from a place of love and honesty.

I remember Bobby telling me he started TM Music, his publishing house, because he wanted his son to have something when he died. Bobby's health was never as strong as his enthusiasm. Of many of us who started out being groomed to make films as actors and records as singers, Bobby was managed to fulfill that potential.

HAPPY 80th BIRTHDAY DICK CLARK!

Today is Dick Clark's 80th birthday and we want to acknowledge his contribution to the music of the 20th and 21st century and to Wes' career! (Wes appeared on his show singing "Tiny Spaceman" and a year or so later, "Freeze.") Happy Birthday, Dick!

(280) STATE FAIR - PAT BOONE - ANN-MARGRET - BOBBY DARIN

The movie STATE FAIR, which came out in 1962, stared my friend Bobby Darin, as well as Pat Boone. I'd begun to work with and for at Pat's production company called Cooga Mooga.

One more person who we'll be blogging a bit about in the future, someone all Elvis Presley fans know to be very important to his story, the exciting singer, dancer, and actress Ann-Margret, also stared in this film.

We're linking to the IMDB on State Fair as a link so click on the title above if you want to go there!

Here's Ann singing with Pat...

THE BLOG DOESN'T GIVE AWAY THE BOOK!

ON THIS THANKSGIVING DAY, I want to say THANK YOU to WES BRYAN, who I've had the great experience of working with, and who I've learned so much from.

Some of our readers spend seconds, others read a new blog post or two, others may turn on our YOUTUBE Station and read for an hour or so. Until recently Wes and I were not aware of our readership. The news left us both surprised and happy because we started this blog in August of 2007 taking it one blog day at a time...and this really is a labor of love so we're loving it.

A lot of people are asking WHAT ABOUT YOUR BOOK?

Does the blog give away the book?

The answer is no! We feel that the blog is like bringing the INDEX of our book, which is his memoir, alive. We understand that our readership includes fans of ELVIS PRESLEY, BUDDY KNOX, ERSEL HICKEY, JOHNNY RIVERS.... and so many other early rock and rollers. We're their music fans too.

We know our book will appeal to music historians, but the book, which we have a wonderful secret title for, (Wes has spoken to the press about it only slightly, calling it "THE LONELY IDOL") is coming from the heart ... and whose heart is not for capture?  

 

Robert Frost said that if the writer sheds no tears writing, the reader won't either. We shed tears.

THANKS to our READERS, past, present, and future.

Here we come Electronic Media and Good Ol Books !

(OK, I'm still trying on taking a Kindle to bed with me!)

Christine Trzyna

DION Quote AT THE 25th ANNIVERSARY OF THE ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME

"The younger generation went to the school of "The Wanderer" and "Runaround Sue." - Dion

Quoted in the November 26, 2009 Rolling Stone Magazine - out early!

THE MYSTERY OF PETER JAMES - NO HE IS NOT P.J. PROBY

"Peter James is a real person. He is not P.J. Proby or someone else, recording under a fake name. I met him working with Jerry Capeheart at American Music. I saw him record at United Western. He did demos but he was also a producer. He was a white fellow, about 6 feet tall, thin, dark hair, and he wore an eye-patch!"

That's what Wes Bryan had to say when I asked him to help solve the Peter James Mystery that has been the talk of rockabilly and early rock and roll fans on YouTube recently.

I also contacted P.J. Proby and he says he never recorded under the name Peter James.

My own internet research brought up no evidence that Peter James continued to work after this period. But there is something new on the net everyday.

So if Peter James is out there, please contact us!

Christine Trzyna

ROBERT PLANT on ELVIS PRESLEY from Rolling Stone Magazine

From the November 27, 2009 Rolling Stone Magazine, Led Zeppelin's old singer Robert Plant wrote why Elvis Presley is his choice for one of the 100 Greatest Singers of all time. Elvis rated #3 by the way.

"I know he wanted to express more. But what he did was he made it possible for me, as a singer, to become otherworldly."

-Robert Plant

Link to ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE here!

VETERANS DAY !

HELLO TO RED WEST and CONGRADULATIONS !

We're linking to IMDb movie database for the career of Red West, who was one of Elvis Presley's friends - and body guards - for many years. Red and I wrote a few songs together when I was up at the house. I consider him a friend to this day.

Red had bit parts in Elvis' movies and then committed to an acting career. As you can see from looking at the database he has managed to get a role a year for some time and he's no quitter. RIGHT NOW "Father of Invention," is in post production and he's working on TBK" The Toolbox Murders."

ELVIS WOULD BE PROUD OF RED !

Here's Red's MySpace. Click! Doesn't look like he has much time to update it but...

http://www.myspace.com/red1936

Were Reading GQ MAGAZINE November 2009 on JERRY LEE LEWIS

JERRY LEE LEWIS WILL NOT GO TO HELL by Chris Health is the writer and we can't link to the article so run out and buy the magazine won't you?

"Such myths seemed to envelop Jerry Lee Lewis long ago. He was the crazy one who had burned both ends of every candle he could find; the rock n roll pioneer who did plenty that no one had done before and more than a little than no one would ever see the need to do again; who had enjoyed grand triumphs and a series of unimaginable tragedies; who would find himself adrift, surrounded by darkness he had sought out for himself and a whole load of darkness that had been thrown upon him; who was riven by the pulls of what he believed to be right and what simply felt right at the time; who was swamped by legend and history and rumor."

(279) BOBBY PICKETT MONSTER MASH 1962

Monster Mash was a hit and became a Halloween Classic, and while you can make a great living as a successful songwriter, and the residuals can come in for years on a "one hit wonder," Bobby's novelty song has kept ringing the cash registers for the last 47 years.

I remember how happy we all were for Bobby when this song hit!
Wes Bryan

I'm over here doing the "Transylvania Twist" since I'm related to Vlad the Impaler!

Christine Trzyna

Video replaced October 2012

CELINE DION and a SPLIT SCREEN ELVIS PRESLEY (TRICK OR TREAT!)

Wes and I watched this one together and not too far into watching it, he broke down and cried. "It just hit me," he said.

Actually he ran out of the room and I followed.

"What was it about that video?" I asked.

Wes said, "I once heard Elvis singing that song live. And then I saw Celine look at Elvis like he was there - a girl who wasn't born yet."

CICERO Quote On Friendship and Adversity

"Friendship makes prosperity more brilliant, and lightens adversity by dividing and sharing it."

- Cicero (44 B.C.)

(277) DORSEY BURNETTE and Elvis and Me THE DYING EMBER

Johnny's brother Dorsey Burnett recorded a song called "The Dying Ember" that I wrote along with a songwriter named Fred Horton. The song had been pitched to Elvis, who loved it. He began experimenting with it in his home studio at Graceland TM...

Dorsey Burnette was a prolific Memphis born songwriter in his own right, whose songs were recorded by Glen Campbell and Rick Nelson, among others.

"The Dying Ember" came out in 1962 on Dot Records as a single.

The song came out again in 1963 in stereo and on his 1992 album called "Great Shakin Fever."

YOUTUBE VIDEO REMOVED OCT 28, 2010

RINGO RECORDED JOHNNY BURNETT's HIT YOU'RE SIXTEEN

Johnny Burnett had a hit with You're Sixteen about 1961 and it went to about #3 when the song was at its height. It became a classic.



Ringo Starr made the song famous all over again...

(276) LIBERTY RECORDS - NEW HOME TO BUDDY KNOX, JOHNNY BURNETT, and THE CRICKETS

Johnny Burnette, Buddy Knox, and The Crickets were recording for LIBERTY RECORDS by '62. We're linking to Dave Edwards and Mike Callahan here, as they have made a great effort to present the history of record labels and this link links to a whole discography. (Click on the title above.)

Now as a songwriter at American Music, I had some intellectual properties that I had signed over the rights to the company for - temporarily. Those properties have been returning to me over the last several years. And one of the songs I was so proud of and originially wrote with Elvis in mind got recorded instead by Johnny's brother Dorsey Burnette...

MOVIE MIRROR YEARBOOK 1961

BUDDY KNOX and WES BRYAN - posed together - were included in the Sound Sations pages of this magazine. Articles were published on Elvis, Rick Nelson, Tab Hunter in the same.

I moved to Los Angeles and signed on as a staff song writer at American Music where my life would continue to include the famous or near famous - people I first met in Akron, Ohio, New York City, or touring through the Southern States, or while recording on United Artists, Clock, or Roulette Records...

Hello to MY COUSIN DEAN !

My cousin Dean is the member of the family who keeps tabs on my career and what's up on the Internet about me. His was the first call I got alerting me to the fact that a song of mine was up on YouTube.

Dean is respected in our family for both his artistic achievements and because he is a Vietnam War Hero.

I'm sending my love to one of my favorite cousins today. Have a great one Dean!

WES BRYAN MELODIE D'AMOUR on YOUTUBE

I want to thank Arne of Sweden and Bernard of Britain for both posting my first song on YouTube, called "Melodie D'Amour" which came out about 1960. I promoted this song on television shows and public performances in Los Angeles, and it was a song that Elvis loved.



Now we sent an e-mail to Arne and Arne wrote back:

"Hello Wes.

I'm very flattered that I get a mail from such a great artist. I (and all my music friends) have always loved Melodie D'Amour, it's a very special version of the old song, by far the best in my opinion. I haven't heard about you for a long time, I hope everything is okay? Your music will live forever, so don't ever think otherwise. I could see why both Ersel and Elvis loved your awesome version, it's very special. I'm so glad for this mail, you have not only made my day, I could live for this a long long time.

Thanks so much and take care of yourself.

Best wishes, Arne."

ARNE YOU MADE OURS ! (And we hope to install a Swedish Translator soon!)

Wes Bryan and Family

DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE MUSIC HISTORY STAR ?

We've been blogging about so many people who I met, was friends with, worked with, heard in performance, or was influenced by in my life in music. DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE STAR IN MUSIC HISTORY? Maybe someone we seem to have forgotten about ?

Use the comments to let us know!
Thanks!

Wes

JAMES DEAN SCREEN TEST MARLON BRANDO

Don't know the date on this but the rumors are true, Marlon screen tested for the role Jimmy got. We'll never know what would have become of James Dean and his career if he had lived...

NEW CODE FOR VIDEO NEEDED

GRAMMY MUSEUM FIELD TRIP

Recently 24 Los Angeles County Museums staged a free day over a weekend and I took full advantage, heading for the Grammy Museum in downtown Los Angeles.



I called Wes from the museum to tell him that I just got chills when I saw the simple red jacket that Ritchie Valens had worn for his first publicity photo. Also on display was Elvis Presley's family bible circa 1936 and letters from Elvis to a fan on Blue Moon Boys era pink stationary. Can you help but compare your own handwriting to that of the famous artist? How about a letter from Buddy Holly to his mother?

The museum boasts cutting edge techological achievement. There are NEARLY 200 MUSICAL GENRES to explore and you can watch performances, listen to famous songwriters talk about collaboration (I listened to Hal David and Carole King) or play at recording in booths with famous producers coaching you from small video screens.

Now listen. We know Grammys TM and Academy Awards TM are amazing. But we also know that the vast majority of musicians, songwriters, entertainers, actors - ARTISTS - never get near such recognition but are still deserving of praise, if for no other reason than it's damn difficult to be true to yourself as an artist and make a living.

So be inspired by the Grammy Museum and then keep on doing what you do, prizes or not!

Christine Trzyna

JAMES BYRON DEAN BLOG

Here's a myspace blog by a devoted JAMES DEAN Fan which also mentions me...

JAMES DEAN WEB SITE LINK

Keeping James Dean alive forever! This is a dynamic web site!

His aunt and uncle told me, when I spent some time on their farm, researching Jimmy, that I moved like him. I was also taller and Southern but from a rural family. I still don't think I look like Jimmy feature by feature.

ELVIS PRESLEY Quote About JAMES DEAN

"I knew by heart all the dialogue of James Dean's films; I could watch "Rebel Without a Cause" a hundred times over."

- Elvis Presley

(And when Elvis loved a song or a movie,that's exactly what he did do! Listen to it or watch it over and over! Wes)

JAMES BYRON DEAN February 8, 1931 – September 30, 1955

The next few blogs will be in Honor of JAMES DEAN.

If he hadn't died in that terrible car crash Hollywood wouldn't have been looking for The Next James Dean. But I met his good friend Christine White while a tourist in Hollywood for the first time, well before I ever thought I would be an actor or singer, long before I was discovered.

I was a fan of James Dean's, and I wanted to know everything there was to know about him, so that I could fulfill what seemed to be my destiny of stepping into his shoes as a United Artists' actor.

JAMES DEAN DRIVING VIDEO

James Dean's accident stunned my generation. I was a fan - as well as being compared to him - before I understood who he was, years before my own fame.

(275) AHNA CAPRI

I met Ahna Capri around town, at Elvis', and in Pat Boone's office. (She was in a movie with him!)

There were so many beautiful women with great personalities and Ahna was one of those. She also had a good sense of humor about herself.

Christine White, Anne Helm, and Tuesday Weld; this generation of actresses were hard working, often hired actresses, who started in television and made films too.

Some of them were famous in their time. By that I mean they were making it into the fan magazines early in their careers and then as the years went by they began to do "character" roles.

Ahna's IMDB database resume is our link here: you'll wonder if you haven't seen her work on Baretta with Robert Blake or another show.

WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC RIGHTS INFORMATION

Once in a while we'll be posting a notice like this one that reminds readers that the content of this blog is Copyright Wes Bryan and Christine Trzyna with all rights reserved including Internet and International Rights. If interested in speaking to me, Wes Bryan, please contact us at the e-mail address wewritethebook@yahoo.com

(By the way folks, don't phish us or spam us, or try to scam us; We report it all and block offenders addresses!)

We are linking to a good many web sites, favoring the official web sites of various famous and important people as well as reference sites and YouTube video. If we link to your site or a video you uploaded and you don't want us to reference it, please let us know, and we'll take down the link. The content of other people's sites remains their own.

Thank you for your consideration and courtesy.

Christine Trzyna & Wes Bryan

(274) ANNE HELM - GLAMOUR GIRL OF THE SILVER SCREEN

One of my Hollywood Hills neighbors was the beautiful actress Anne Helm. I was friends with her brother Peter ...

Ann had stared with Elvis in his 1962 film "Follow That Dream." As things were in those days, she had also dated Gary Lockwood, the football player who also dated Tuesday Weld. Small world - always!

We've linked to a glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen site that has a resume and some photos.

(272) JO-ANN CAMPBELL : HIT MAKER IN HER OWN RITE

One of the singers I enjoyed performing live with and was proud to know was the talented Jo-ann Campbell, who was a hit-making singer-songwriter in her own rite.

In 1962 she had a hit with "The Girl From Wolverton Mountain", one of my favorite songs of hers, and had a couple albums out,

A southerner by birth, Joanne could put the twang into her singing voice and move doo wop to country.

Joanne dated my friend Bobby Darin just about before he met and married Sandra Dee. Like many of us her romances were reported, for better or worse, in fan magazines.

VIDEO REPLACED JAN 2014

MARY TRAVERS MOVES TO HEAVEN

Mary Travers, one third of the three part harmony of Peter, Paul, and Mary, the folk group who became famous recording Bob Dylan's composition, "Blowin In the Wind," and who we've blogged about in the past, has passed away at 72. Mary had been battling the blood cancer called luekemia for some time. You can link to the groups official site above. The net is flooded with news stories.

(271) NATALIE TRUNDY

Famous now for the "Planet of the Apes" movies, Natalie was, like Christine White, a hard working, often hired television actress in the late 1950's in New York - a bit of history (sorry ladies!) when it comes to early television.

That's her sitting next to me in the publicity photo put out by United Artists.

Link now to her official web site!

WES BRYAN PROMOS in JAPAN

This collage of images from my early career is from Japan. I induged myself in sculpture as a creative outlet when I was in New York. That's me looking like James Dean in a hard hat. The beautiful starlet (we'll write more about her later) that they had posing with me is Natalie Trundy. Oh what United Artists could do for one of their own!

Today Japan is still one of the great buyers of Rock-A-Billy music and memorabilia and well, that's why we have the translator in Japanese installed!

KIRK DOUGLAS in STANLEY KUBRICK's PATHS OF GLORY

Called "The Most Explosive Film Ever Made" in 1957, by United Artists, with Stanley Kubrick as the producer. While I waited to play James Dean, United Artists had me doing commercials for this film. Here's the original trailer thanks to a YouTube Contributor. No I'm not in it...



One of the Best War Movies Ever Made! United Artists felt that making commercials for them that they used in their theaters would help me get comfortable behind a camera. Are any of those old commercials preserved in a film archive somewhere? I'd love to know...

SEPTEMBER 12 1962 PRESIDENT KENNEDY and THE SPACE PROGRAM

Elvis and me loved President Kennedy. On September 12, 1962 this was his invigorating speech about a dream to reach the moon. This is posted on the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, an event that shattered our idea that we're safe on our home front. How I wish we as a nation could be where we were back when Kennedy made this speech!

"We choose to do these things not because they are easy, but because they are hard..."

1962 BEATLES LIVE AT CAVERN CLUB

Christine here. Today the remastered CD's of the Beatles came out! Here's a link to a CNN report and if you watch the video with the quick interview of producer Giles Martin (George Martin's son), you learn what modern recording studio technology can do and the challenges that were faced to bring forth better quality sound on the CD format. The original masters were used. And above is a historic video of the Beatles at the Cavern Club in Liverpool circa 1962.

1962 WAS A VERY GOOD YEAR...

...for me as a singer-songwriter. I was experiencing one of the best phases of my life.

CHRIS ISAAK AMERICAN BOY MY BLOG THEME SONG

Friends, in the Profile View of this Google Blog, Christine Trzyna and I chose Chris Isaak's song American Boy as the theme for this blog.

We thought this song's lyrics were all about me!

I want to send my love TO MY FAMILY today... Let the lyrics explain...

W.S. GILBERT Quote on Friendship

"It isn't so much what's on the table that matters, but what's on the chairs."
- W.S. Gilbert

WANT TO e-mail ONE OF OUR POSTS TO A FRIEND ?

Want to share a post?
Just click on the envelope near comments below the posting and go from there!
A feature of Google Blogger!

(270) BACK IN 1962 IT WAS GIRLS GIRLS GIRLS

Elvis Presley made three films (we called them movies then) in 1962 which were "Follow That Dream," "Kid Galahad," which we posted on recently, and "Girls! Girls! Girls!, which came out in the fall.

Bringing some beautiful girls up to one of Elvis' parties was more appreciated than anything else a guy could bring. It could turn a slow night into a party for the guys. Here's the song from the movie; Elvis is once again in a military uniform.

"I'm just a red blooded boy and I can't stop thinking about girls..."

WE'VE SET THIS BLOG UP LIKE A STORY

But if you're a casual reader you may want to use the search feature above to find information about a certain artist we're blogging about! TRY IT NOW. Search for ERSEL HICKEY!

MARCH 1958 MOVIELAND MAGAZINE ELVIS LONELY?

This is the magazine that my father saw on a news stand in Winston Salem and paging through it, he saw the article on me, called "Crashing the Fame Barrier."

I was in great company:

Elvis Presley "Lonely Elvis Presley Needs Your Help."

Ricky Nelson "Are You The Girl Ricky Nelson Wants To Date?."

Debbie Reynolds "Why Debbie Has That Happy Feeling."

Dean Stockwell "Dean Stockwell's Frankest Interview".
Ava Gardner "Ava's Secret Love Affairs."

Natalie Wood & Bob Wagner "A Ring For Natalie."

Frank Sinatra & Lauren Bacall "A Warm Glow."

Dad went around the neighborhood showing people my picture and if to that point he had doubts about my actor-singer career, he put them aside and got fully behind me. That meant so much to me.

I miss my Dad.

But Elvis, lonely ??? Not at this point. He had no time to be lonely.
It was girls, girls, girls...

(269) ELVIS and SPIRITUAL FRIENDSHIP

Elvis and I had some kind of spiritual connection. We were both Christians and we read the Bible together at times and we had a lot in common, beginning with being raised in the South, but there was more.

Sometimes Elvis would say to me as I was leaving the house. "You know and I know"

He meant The Truth. Jesus Christ.

But Elvis was a bit of a spiritual explorer and he also was a believer in Reincarnation. How do I know this about Elvis?

Because he told me more than once "Wes, I've known you in our other life." He said it in a joking attitude but he meant it.

It's always feel sad when I think of how Elvis died, but I know he's alright - with God - too.

(268) THE DEATH OF A GENEROUS SPIRIT

NOT ALL STORIES OF ELVIS' generosity have been collected.
DO YOU HAVE A STORY TO SHARE?

(267) ELVIS and the HOLY BIBLE

When Elvis threw a party, of course there was a lot of spontaneous performances- It could turn into one long jam session. His living room was huge - like Grand Central Station - and sometimes there was music coming from three different locations; records playing, people singing, Elvis or one of his guests - even me - with a guitar.

Sometimes Elvis would take a seat, take out his Holy Bible, and begin to read from it to the people who gathered around him.

I can still remember girls sitting at his feet, listening to him read it, and begin to cry...

LES PAUL ONE OF THE GREAT AX MEN

Lester William Polsfuss, long known as Les Paul, passed into Eternal Life at the age of 94 yesterday, August 13, 2009. To link right to his site, click on the title above. Les invented the Les Paul Gibson Guitar, an electric guitar, that helped take Rock and Roll out of the acoustic phase into the electronic phase. (And Rock and Roll is rounding back a bit, with a acoustic guitar versions of many previously electronic hits.)

Now it's been a while since we've posted multiple links on a blogpost. But below is the link to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Les Paul page.

http://www.rockhall.com/inductee/les-paul

"The guitar that bears his name – the Gibson Les Paul – is his crowning achievement. It grew out of his desire, as a musician and inventor, to create a stringed instrument that could make electronic sound without distorting. What he came up with, after almost a decade of work, was a solid bodied instrument – that is, one that didn’t have the deep, resonant chamber of an acoustic guitar." Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

We'll let the world speak for itself on Les.

(266) HIGH JINKS = GOOD CLEAN FUN

All the joking and horse-playing Elvis and the guys were up to - the high jinks - was good clean fun. I can't emphasize that enough. No drugs!

So many people think that drugs and the music business always go hand in hand... NOT SO!

When Buddy Knox and I were touring we drove in front of the tour bus! We were young, it's true, but we crisscrossed the United States for two years and it was exhausting. Still, we carried on, performing to our professional best and no hard drinking and no drugs.

And when I hired a musician to work in the studio with me and he or she turned up on something, I could tell, and so could just about anyone else who heard it. You often hear of some "great" drummer or guitarist who performed fantastic - until they ruin their lives or overdose; I couldn't take that chance. Unusable tracks are money thrown away. A waste of everyone else's time. A good way to loose your contract. I'd have to ax the ax man on drugs.

SKY SAXON Quote on Life (In Memorial!)

“Well, I think you could retire when you die. I don't, however, believe in death, so I guess I will retire when I leave my body. But I plan to continue writing and performing in heaven”

Sky Saxon March 2009

I worked in the studio with Sky, who's my age, at a point in my career. (There's a bit about him in our book.) He was a unique individual. I love this quote by Sky, who was one of the first real " California Hippies" that this ol Rockabilly star ever met.

This quote is from one of the web sites that features Sky, http://www.skysunlightsaxon.com/ at but we're linking to his official site by clicking on the title above which announces this memorial service.

Sky Sunlight Saxon Memorial

Kenny Roland Detroit is hosting this memorial featuring the band he had with Sky Sunlight Saxon's, Flights w/Djin Aquarian from Yahowa 13. Also performing are The Lottery w/St. Jermain, Dick Peddicord Band from Blue Cheer.

The Top Shelf
2151 Market Street Redding, California
Aug 28, 2009
6:00pm - closing

(265) ELVIS PRESLEY - MICHAEL JACKSON - PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

The recent death of singer Michael Jackson of course made me think of my friend, Elvis Presley, whose death anniversary we celebrate this month. I watch the morning news and hear what's new in the investigation of Jackson's death. The implications so far have been that he was on prescription drugs and that at least one doctor may be involved in administering injections of other drugs - most likely pain killers - to him. Like Elvis, whose tours were unrelentless, Jackson was up against a big tour schedule of about fifty shows in a row.

As you probably know Jackson was briefly married to Elvis's daughter Lisa Marie Presley, who is now happily married to another man and a little less than a year ago had twin daughters. I'll leave Lisa Marie out of this post, as she was out of the marriage with Jackson.

When I first met Elvis the man wasn't even a drinker. And I believed for most of my friendship with him that any prescription drugs he was given, by doctors, had to be safe. Elvis' death in which a great number of prescription drugs were found in his system - interacting and counteracting each other - seemed to be a WARNING to everyone what could happen when even doctors didn't know when enough was enough.

So sadly, I remember Elvis at his best, in contrast to how debilitated he was in the end.

Ever since Elvis died I've been afraid to ever take sleeping pills or any prescription drug I don't really need, afraid I might become addicted. My writing partner, Christine Trzyna, is the same way, believing that holistic medicine and yoga are the better or first alternative.

We ask our readers to stay away from street drugs and to ask your doctor a lot of questions, be as informed a pharmaceutical consumer as you can be, and not to follow in either Elvis' or Micheal's footsteps in this way.

(264) AUGUST 5 1962 : MARILYN MONROE MY FAVORITE and ELVIS'

Marilyn Monroe was Elvis' favorite actress - and mine. She was an "older woman" but ahead of her time.

She was born Norma Jeane Mortenson on June 1, 1926 in Los Angeles.

On January 14, 1954, Marilyn married baseball star Joe DiMaggio at San Francisco's City Hall.

On August 5, 1962, Marilyn was found dead.

We heard all the horrible rumors that made it into books as exposes years later at the time. We were upset by Marilyn's death. The idea that anyone so young would have overdosed on prescription drugs was almost unthinkable.

Joe orchestrated her funeral, giving her the dignity and respect in death that he didn't think she got in life. No big Micheal Jackson extravaganzas like the recent one, which cost the tax payers of Los Angeles County, which is in a Great Depression-like economy right now, something like 2.5 million for the day.

.

Despite his fame, Elvis and Marilyn never met. They didn't run in the same Hollywood circles. I almost met her in New York when I was studying acting with Lee Strasberg at Actors Studio.

(263) ELVIS WASN'T "A DRINKER"

Elvis wasn't much of a drinker.

He loved to be in control at his in-home parties. He was a great host.

Elvis remembered what you drank and he would have one of the entourage, playing bartender, mix it up for you. I wasn't much of a drinker either. I believed being drunk was stupid if you wanted to make it with the girls!

He was before his time in being concerned that no one leave his parties drunk and driving. We gave each other rides home or stayed there. In one of the bedrooms or on the floor.

(262) ELVIS GAVE ME A KEY TO HIS HOUSE

I spent many weekends with Elvis and the guys at his house in Los Angeles in the early 1960's, any time my own career didn't take me out of town. I WAS GIVEN A KEY TO THE HOUSE BY ELVIS. I could come and go as I pleased but I liked to call ahead before I went up anyway. Elvis' was my home away from home.

(261) VISITING ELVIS ON SET of KID GALAHAD

Elvis had three movies that came out in 1962. When Elvis was filming he took his roles very seriously. He could read a script through once and remember his lines but he called it a night early to get a good night sleep if he had to be up early for filming.

While Elvis was filming "Kid Galahad," I went to see him and the entourage as it existed at the time (no one used the term Memphis Mafia yet - that was coined by a reporter some time later). The guys were simply "his guys," and the role they played in Elvis' life was that every one of them had a job to do. Their jobs ranged, over time, and depending on the person's capabilities, from keeping the cars detailed to finding out about beautiful women he expressed interest in. I never worked for Elvis.

Elvis' had a little house to stay in, in Big Bear, during the filming. That's where we all relaxed with Elvis, after a day of filming.



There are a lot of Kid Galahad music videos on YouTube. We picked this one because the film makers picked up on the fact that Elvis loved to have a lot of guys around, guys with musical talent, singing with him.

We're working to make WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC and even better visual experience!

Please bear with us as we experiment with this wonderful Google Blogger and a whole lot of HTML !

(260) ELVIS REMAKES KID GALAHAD - MOVIE PROMO

Kid Galahad first came out in 1937. The Elvis Presley starring remake was, I'm told, very different. I made trailers like these to promote movies for United Artists when I was first signed to them in 1957, as a way to gain experience in front of the camera. James Dean was supposed to make a remake of this film too.

In 1962 Elvis starred in the remake.


This post wouldn't be possible without historical footage from You Tube contributors, so we want to thank them!

TODAY we installed GOOGLE TRANSLATER

Today we are happy to announce that GOOGLE TRANSLATER has been installed. We'll be fine tuning this feature as we go. We are happy to be able to share with ROCKABILLY and EARLY ROCK and ROLL FANS throughout the world in other languages. We are delighted to hit the translator button ourselves and try to read our blog in your language. Who knows. Maybe this will improve Wes' German and my French.

Please understand that as always WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC
is Copyright Wes Bryan and Christine Trzyna, with All Intellectual Property Rights Reserved, including International Rights and Internet Rights.

All sites we link to, including YouTube videos, remain the property of their owners.

If interested in communicating with Wes or me, please e-mail us at wewritethebook@yahoo.com

MUCH THANKS

Christine Trzyna

(259) SO IF I WASN'T AT THE BEACH WHERE WAS I ?

at ELVIS' ! ... our friendship started in 1957 ... and would last until the day he died...

At the time I had a great house, three levels and on stilts in a canyon in the Hollywood Hills. It was woodsy and something out of story book. A house built by craftsmen.

Above me was a flying saucer house - of all things - me the guy who sang Tiny Spaceman!

The spaceship house had elevators that went straight up into it. You could see it perched on a mountain from the freeway and I think that house is still there.

I called mine "the Sugar Shack On the Hill." I bought it with songwriting residuals.

WAIT FOR ME BABY THE ORIGINAL ACETATE

There's an e-bay auction up for a demo copy, of "Wait For Me Baby" and "Freeze," including United Artists wrapper, right now. The bid is $20. Now I recorded this at Bell Sound in New York City, one of the popular studios at the time, and the same place where my friend Frankie Avalon recorded many of his, including his hit "Venus."

I was on Dick Clark American Bandstand singing "Freeze," which began a new dance craze, which Dick introduced on that show, and I sure would love to know if a Kinescope of the show exists.

But what I want to tell collectors, is that the ORIGINAL recording of "Wait For Me Baby," is possibly still out there somewhere on the original acetate and on it, I sang the song differently. In fact I think this original might have made for a better record.

(258) WAS THE TWIST DEAD ? LET'S TWIST AGAIN CHUBBY CHECKERS

Let's twist again like we did last summer !



Chubby Checker was an original rock and roller who performed songs he had written himself. But keep this in mind. Chuck's songs were covered by a great many artists and by 1963 Chuck had made more money from residuals because of the covers other artists did of his music than he did as a performer. When it came to a good song, making money was no obstacle, Black or White.

We're linking to Chubby Checker's web site at the title above (click!)

And thanks to a YouTube video provider, here's a little documentary on American dance circa 1962

LINK TO A 1957 ARTICLE IN THE LA TIMES ABOUT THE NEXT JAMES DEAN

I have a stash of magazines and articles about me, most of which my father managed to save for me. I was too busy traveling to even think about it at the time. Recently we found an article about me circa 1957 in the LA Times archive. You can get to the article by clicking on the title above. Have fun!

ALLEN KLEIN DIED IN NEW YORK - JULY 2009

Click on the title link to a news article from the Globe, a British paper, on the death of ex Beatles and Rolling Stones manager Allen Klein.

Allen managed BUDDY KNOX first, while he, Allen, was living still in the United States. He wanted to manage me too but I told him he "and the horse he rode in on" could get lost. This article makes it sound like Allen enjoyed being a jerk... well, maybe he did!

When we were on tour Buddy saved every receipt, every bill, to turn into Allen, who was supposed to do his taxes. So I figure that BUDDY KNOX was WAITING AT THE GOLDEN GATES to have a word with ALLEN KLEIN when he got there...

BUDDY KNOX SINGING ALL BY MYSELF (Which We Co-wrote) 1962

Click on the title above to get to the sound clip via RCS Discography...

e-bay AUCTION of my album YESTERDAY, TODAY, and TOMORROW now on

Here is what the auctioneer says:

"WES BRYAN "Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow" on U.S International Records (CA.) 12 tracks: Twenty Acres of Land, I'll Cry My Love, Blue Bird Over the Mountain, To Be Alone, Lawdy Miss Clawdy, All for the Love of a Girl, Don't Be Cruel, I Woke Up Dreaming, Dream Lover, Pierre La Fitte, Lonely Weekends, Half as Sweet as You.'

"Liner notes on back cover talks about his songwriting and that Wes was the co-writer and writer on 4 tracks, (Pierre La Fitte, Half as Sweet, I'll Cry My Love, To Be Alone), also mentions that he is a "long time friend of Elvis" and in the Elvis documentary "That's the Way It Is" Elvis mentions Wes by name as being a great songwriter."

Friends, here's more information. I formed my own publishing company called U.S. International Records. My cousin was the designer of the label, which has an American Eagle on baby blue. My friend Ersel Hickey wrote "Blue Birds Over the Mountain." "To Be Alone" was written by me and Buddy Knox, who also recorded it. Yes, as you know if you're reading my blog, I was a long time friend of Elvis Presley's. And yes, in the documentary it's true, Elvis did say something about me being a songwriter. The DVD version has a lot cut out, including his comments about me. I cherish his opinion just the same!

W.B. YEATS Quote on Friendship

Think where man's glory most begins and ends, and say my glory was I had such friends." - W.B. Yeats (1865-1939)

BOBBY FULLER WEST TEXAS TO THE SURF

We thought this documentary was an exceptional contribution to YouTube and Music History...



I didn't know Bobby but I went to see him perform at PJ's, a club on Hillcrest. He reminded me of Buddy Holly in the way that he played. His performances made you want to stand up and applaud.

(257) THE ILLUSIONS, SURFERS LULLABYE

A "local" California band, the Illusions, had a great fan following, and sustained their glory for several years. If you'll click on the title link you'll go to the closest thing to an official site for the band that we found on the net.

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY 2009

Hope you're celebrating this great country on this day when the founding of our nation is to be remembered! Wes

(256) CHANTAYS PIPELINE

Thank you to the YouTube contributor who posted this historical music video of the Chantays on Lawrence Welk show. Lawrence had a son who was into the music business - the rock and roll business as it existed at the time - as well. No doubt he told dad to have the Chantays on the show because surf or rock n roll was a real departure for Lawrence. This was recorded in 1962 and the show is from 1963!



Click on the link title above to get to the Chantay's own website... and yes they are also performing this summer in Southern California.

(255) SURFARIS WIPE OUT !

Surfaris - what a great name for a group, so evocative of surfing adventure! Their surf hit "Wipe Out" - recorded in 1962 - has to be one of the most memorable of all the surf music that came out in the early 1960's and is played as an eternal classic - every summer since! "Wipe Out" is famous for that invigorating drum solo. Since the Surfaris have web sites and even a Google Blogger - yes they blog too! - we're posting links to them that probably tell their story better than we could!


UPDATED July 2012 Linking to active Surfaris official site!

(254) SURFIN' SAFARI RELEASED SUMMER 1962 on CAPITOL

The Beach Boy's Surfin Safari album, released in the summer of '62 by Capitol Records, was probably one of the biggest album's besides Dick Dale's. It introduced the Beach Boys and their marketing concept - that they were surfers (when one of them had actually surfed and Brian Wilson was a "in my room" person - to the world.)

Christine here : The Beach Boy's also, I believe, marketed the concept of a new kind of woman to the nation "The California Girl." She was/is fresh faced, long haired, blond, thin, athletic, casual, friendly.

RCS DISCOGRAPHY WES BRYAN LINK

RCS - ROCKIN COUNTRY STYLE - DISCOGRAPHY is one of our favorite sites...

Check this out (and hear me sing a few!)

CLIFF GLEAVES - THE LONG BLACK HEARSE

BLOGARAMA RATES WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC

Hello Blogarama! We're happy with our three stars in the BEST ROCK BLOGS IN THE UNITED STATES - for now! Christine and Wes

(Readers - click on the link above and vote for us!

LEO BUSCAGLIA Quote on Friendship

"A single rose can be my garden... a single friend, my world." - Leo Buscaglia

(253) DICK DALE and the DEL-TONES SURF BEAT

The saxaphone, so present in the late 1950's rock and roll continues to wail in early 1960's surfing music! This was one of my favorites. Dick was probably the most popular performer of this genre. Click on the title above to get to a link for Dick Dale's official site. Dick has been treating for cancer but is alive and kicking!

The line up on this front photo on this video actually has my friend John Ashley in it. It goes from left to right Dick Dale, John Ashley, Frankie Avalon, and Annette.. Wes

TERESA PULLIUM of THE CHEROKEE SCOUT WRITES ONE ON US!

TERESA PULLIUM of the Cherokee Scout got a phone visit from Mayor Billy Hughes?

“Brian was playing the part of the Indian, and we cowboys had him cornered in an upstairs room of an old house. All he had for a weapon was an umbrella. Mintz said we’d never take him alive and he opened the umbrella, jumped out the second-story window and somehow managed to land in one piece,” Hughes said.

"During the time he and Hughes were students at Murphy High School, Mintz and his family moved to Oregon. He moved around the country a lot, trying to establish a career as an actor and managing a few bit parts in off-off-Broadway plays. He followed his true love and got into rock and roll music during the mid-1950s, a move that would change his life forever.

(click click on the title link above!)) Thanks Teresa

(252) JERRY COLE - AN INTERVIEW WITH WES BRYAN

This is from an interview I did with Wes recently during one of our meetings. Christine Trzyna

Wes Bryan:

"Jerry Cole always drove a big Lincoln Town Car. It was a massive car for a guy who was barely five feet tall. But Jerry was BIG is so many ways..."

"He had the biggest Fender amps at the time. And Jerry had a low resonance in his voice (Tequila!) that made him SOUND like he was six foot four - bigger than the sky."

"When I started producing records, I called Jerry into the studio to play every chance I got. He was a natural arranger. And he became a regular on the Shindig television show... Jerry's gift was that he could play just about any instrument he got his hands on, so when we recorded we would "stack" various instruments. He helped me more than anyone. Always a smile on his face. A one man band."

"I ran into Andy Williams at the Farmers Market on Fairfax, in Los Angeles. He said this of Jerry: He's one of the best musicians that every existed." At the time Jerry had lead Andy's band and produced a record called "Tell Mary," a hit on Capitol.

Jerry's passed away - a great loss to me. I think of him on so many different occasions. He's on so much of the music that I produced.

CHEROKEE SCOUT NEWSPAPER - MURPHY NORTH CAROLINA MENTIONS THIS BLOG

"We’re not the only business or resident who has come up with informative and interesting ways to spread whatever word they want online. One such site is by Murphy native Wes Bryan at www.wesbryan.blogspot.com, where he shares plenty of stories about his life in music.

David Brown Editor

YES, I also use the Internet from time to time to see what's going on back home by going to the Cherokee Scout website! Wes

Click on the title above to get to the Newspaper !

We get mail... JIMMIE VESTAL

Wes recently received this (edited) message and we wanted to post it.

"I met you in Winston-Salem , NC. It was at the time when your vinyl record, Melodie D'Amour, just come out. You gave me a copy and I played it on my 45 RPM record player. I was just becoming interested in music and wanted to learn how to play the guitar.

You stayed at The Colonial Hotel. My grandparents owned that hotel.
I never forgot you all these years. You made a big impression on me.

Today I'm still interested in music and I have written about 180 or more originals."

Jimmie Vestal
Pinellas Park, Florida

Wes wants to express that he's thrilled that he could inspire someone else to write songs as he toured his home state of North Carolina, and to wish you continuing success as a songwriter!

JERRY COLE INTERVIEW on ART FEIN's POKER PARTY

(251) JERRY COLE and HIS SPACEMAN SURF MUSIC

My friend Jerry Cole not only did Spaceman music, he did surf music. Here is one of his best, and what a guitarist he was! (Use the search feature of this blog to read what else we have to say about Jerry, who recently passed away!)

JERRY COLE Quote on the Musician Lifestyle

"Where there's a will for us musicians there will always be a way for us to make a living from our music." - Jerry Cole

BEACH BOYS SURFIN USA

I believe this was their first Ed Sullivan appearance...