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Sunday, December 30, 2012
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Monday, December 24, 2012
Sunday, December 23, 2012
BILL MEDLEY CHRISTMAS WITH MICHAEL GRIMM and TYRIG JOHNSON
Video was originally posted by The Grimmettes, A Michael Grimm Fan Club on Facebook.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
(445) DECEMBER 21 1970 ELVIS LETTER TO PRESIDENT NIXON YEAR
Elvis took time to write the President of the United States just a few days before Christmas in 1970. I imagine that he'd been thinking about doing so for some time and had just found the pause in his schedule to do so. He thought the President would read his letter and he was right. To me this is evidence of how Elvis thought of street drugs and crime as different than private doctors and prescriptions. I miss Elvis. We'll be taking a vacation after Christmas for a couple weeks, and should be back in time to celebrate his Capricorn birthday!
Monday, December 17, 2012
Sunday, December 16, 2012
(444) MOONGLOWS : HEY SANTA CLAUS! 1953
Christine here. Listening to this Moonglows Doo Wop from the mid 1950's I'm remined how important the saxaphone was to music in those days. I'm thinking of Wes' recordings from that period that also featured sax. (We have a variety of Wes Bryan music posted on the side bar of this blog for yiour to sample.) As much as I know about music of the early rock and roll and cover tune era after years of blogging with Wes here, I just recently learned about the Moonglows.
Saturday, December 15, 2012
(443) THE DRIFTERS : WHITE CHRISTMAS DOO WOP! WORLD TOUR FOR 60TH ANNIVERSARY IN 2012
We posted the Drifter's "Up On The Roof" which reminds me so much of my early New York City days, some time ago, but realized we hadn't linked to their official site and when we did - the announcement of a 60th anniversary World Tour!
The Drifters® celebrate their 60th Anniversary with the Diamond Dynasty World Tour 2013.
"Preparations for the 60th Anniversary World Tour are well underway, The Drifters® are proud to present their Diamond Dynasty World Tour to celebrate this auspicious occasion. Our web site is currently undergoing massive redevelopment and we are excited to announce that it will be launched on January 1st 2013 as part of the Drifters® 60th Anniversary year."
Friday, December 14, 2012
DOO WOP : MY MUSIC CONCERT : A TERRIFIC CONCERT ON FILM
This is the DVD made from the PBS special. It features some archival film along with contemporary performance recorded at the Sands Casino and Hotel in Atlantic City New Jersey in 2005. Created by T.J. Lubinsky, the DVD includes Jimmy Beaumont and the Skyliners (Since I Don't Have You!), Herb Reed's Platters, The Duprees, The Cleftones, Johnny Maestro and the Brooklyn Bridge, The Moonglows, the Bobbettes, and several other vocal groups that are keeping the Doo Wop music alive.
Excellent production, it was terrific to see, and most of these singers are still in great voice...
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Saturday, December 8, 2012
(442) VENTURES : THIS ONE GOES OUT TO OUR FRIEND ARNE!
VENTURES OFFICIAL SITE link here!
Playing DJ here, we want to send this song out to our friend ARNE, who was one of the first to post Wes Bryan songs on YouTube and who runs an impressive YouTube channel as well as being an oldies record collector!
Happy Holidays and a terrific 2013 Arne!
Thursday, December 6, 2012
BEACH BOYS : LITTLE SAINT NICK : AFTER THEIR AMERICAN INVASION OF EUROPE
BEACH BOYS 50th ANNIVERSARY OFFICIAL SITE link here!
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
THE GRAMMY MUSEUM GIFT STORE : BEACH BOYS - DICK DALE - PHIL SPECTOR - RONETTES - RIGHTEOUS BROTHERS - RITCHIE VALENS
Here are some great CDs and one pressed vinyl album that you can buy at the GRAMMY MUSEUM shop. We're pretty sure that you can go to the shop to shop without paying to tour the museum if you just want to shop and make a visit another time and there are always greeters at the door so ask!
BEACH BOYS PET SOUNDS
Includes A 180 gram VINYL RECORD LIMITED EDITION from the Capitol Records Vault!
THE VERY BEST OF DICK DALE (Surf Music!)
PHIL SPECTOR - WALL OF SOUND - 1961-1966 includes
DARLENE LOVE
THE RONETTES
THE CRYSTALS
THE RIGHTEOUS BROTHERS
THE COMPLETE RITCHIE VALENS includes unfinished songs and live at Pacoima High School - 35 songs!
If you're interested in reading past posts here at WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC about any of these artists, please use the Google Search feature to bring them up!
Sunday, December 2, 2012
MARIAN ANDERSON Quote On Friendship
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
(441) THE BLOSSOMS : FREQUENT MUSICAL ARTISTS ON SHINDIG : DARLENE LOVE AND THE WALL OF SOUND
They were the background group on so many popular records, working for Elvis Presley, Bobby Darin, and so many others. The writer of this article is right when he says they were the most unknown successful group there was!
The Blossoms covered so many songs and were frequent guests on the Shindig television show as performing artists. In the studio they are probably most famous for working with music producer Phil Spector and his Wall of Sound. You know them for the song "He's The Rebel." Here is just one of so very many videos presently on YouTube featuring their performances.
Now, over the years there were a number of different women who worked as a Blossom. Darlene Love is the Blossom most mentioned. Check our previous posts about the Blossoms and Darlene, using the Google Blogger search feature!
The Rock and Roll hall of Fame also Inducted Darlene Love in 2011, age 70, after a career of 50 years! Below the link to the bio and a long but very funny and very touching video of
ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME: DARLENE LOVE link!
Monday, November 26, 2012
STARTED THE MORNING WITH ELVIS : IF I GET HOME ON CHRISTMAS DAY
Sunday, November 25, 2012
(440) JACKIE DESHANNON : WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS NOW
When you get to Jackie's site you'll learn that this singer-songwriter is now an activist. Here is her new song she wrote about her cause, clean water in Africa.
FROM HER SITE: "Singer-songwriter Jackie DeShannon is the soulful voice behind two enduring 1960’s anthems -- Burt Bacharach & Hal David's "What The World Needs Now Is Love" and DeShannon's own "Put A Little Love In Your Heart." Beyond those standards is an artist who has created a body of work covering a diverse range of genres including rock, folk, R&B, country, gospel, reggae and jazz.
Her songs have been performed by Brenda Lee, The Byrds, Marianne Faithfull, Al Green, Annie Lennox, The Searchers, Pam Tillis, The Carpenters, Kim Carnes, The Temptations, Rick Nelson, Cher, Van Morrison, Ella Fitzgerald, Dolly Parton, Irma Thomas..."
Saturday, November 24, 2012
FRIENDSHIP IS LIKE A BOOK...
Hi friends, Christine here. I saw this one at a church crafts bazaar last weekend and had to write it down!
Friday, November 23, 2012
PETULA CLARK : DOWNTOWN : 1965 (THE PERFECT SONG FOR BLACK FRIDAY SHOPPING!)
BEARLY RAMBLING BLOG - GREAT BRITAIN link here!
Can we actually expect anyone to be at home on the computer on "Black Friday", the day after Thanksgiving when so many Americans are off work and using the Thanksgiving holiday to do their Christmas shopping? (The really organized people will also have everything wrapped and tucked away for Santa before going back to work on Monday!) Well yes, you can expect me to be home and NOT on the computer I'll probably be busy crocheting a dog sweater!
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
CHANGE IN PUBLISHING TIMES - WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC
Let's give it a try!
Christine and Wes
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
HISTORY OF SOUND RECORDING LINK
Get information about recorders with the new searchable Recorder Database! Currently over 2000 classic recorder models are included, most with pictures and manufacture dates.
and
RECORDING HISTORY BY GENERAL TOPIC:
Technology - Recording machines and their makers
Industry - The business of recorders and records
Culture - The cultural impact of sound recording
Thursday, November 15, 2012
MUSEUM OF INNOVATION AND SCIENCE UNVEILS 1878 AUDIO RECORDING
We thought this was such an interesting story! It was about 1878 before a person could record and hear their own voice, something we find easy technologically today.
In this article, we learn how computer technology allows us to hear a recording which could not be touched or played. It was mapped optically and contructed the groove in software and model what the stylus would do in response to the bumps - truly amazing!
MUSEUM OF INNOVATION AND SCIENCE link here
Monday, November 12, 2012
Saturday, November 10, 2012
(439) HOLLYWOOD A GO GO : LOCAL MUSIC TELEVISION IN THE MID 1960's
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
(438) DONNIE BROOKS : ROCKABILLY TO EARLY ROCK AND ROLL : 1965 HOLLYWOOD A GO GO
Donnie's probably most known for his hit "Mission Bells" which was a hit in 1960. By 1965 he was appearing on local television show Hollywood A- Go Go! Thank you to the posters of these historical
music performances on
Youtube! I met Donny throuh Lou Bedell.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Saturday, November 3, 2012
CHARLES LAMB Quotation on Friendship
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
BORIS KARLOFF SINGS "THE MONSTER MASH" ON SHINDIG 1965 : BOBBY PICKETT and LEONARD CAPIZZI SONGWRITERS
Monday, October 29, 2012
Thursday, October 25, 2012
(437) MAE BOREN AXTON: THE QUEEN MOTHER OF NASHVILLE and PROLIFIC SONGWRITER
As many songwriters have been known to do, Mae was out to sell her own song to the person she wanted to record it. She personally presented the song to Elvis in Nashville in 1955 at a country music convention. The video below is probably the January 1956 session with the Blue Moon Boys and session guitarist Chet Atkins.
Through the years Mae placed songs with many country music greats from Johnny Tillotson to Willie Nelson.
MAE AXTON : BLACKCAT ROCKABILLY UK SITE : By Colin Kilgour
MAE AXTON : OKLAHOMA : Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame in 1985
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
ANY VIDEO OF ERSEL HICKEY PERFORMING? HOW ABOUT WES BRYAN ?
And by the way, we know that there must be footage somewhere. Wes performed on Ed Sullivan, Dick Clark's American Band Stand (twice), the Jack Paar show, and many other regional shows in Baltimore, Cleveland, and throughout the south, as well as on shows in Los Angeles. And he appeared live on the pier in Santa Monica.
Wes performed with Ersel Hickey in stage shows in the state of New York. He also performed with Buddy Knox on his tour in the late 1950's in 48 states and some of you may have photos taken of Wes and Buddy from that tour.
Unfortunately many archival collections are organized by the show headliners, and over time what has been preserved is often the early careers of people such as Elvis Presley, people who became much more famous. I've enjoyed watching a number of Dick Clark American Bandstand videos all the way through at the Paley Center for the Media, including those commercials that seem so much more dated than the music, but they don't have a full collection. I contacted the Ed Sullivan collection but got no reply.
If you know of local repositories of film or related materials in your park of the United States please let us know!
Christine
Monday, October 22, 2012
LENNONYC (LENNON NEW YORK CITY) DVD : (JUST LIKE) STARTING OVER
I'm writing about this video DVD here at WES BRYAN- MY LIFE IN MUSIC because of the coverage of John's music making with Phil Spector as Producer in Los Angeles, and because John talks about how the Beatles used to cover early rock and roll "classics" in the studio when they need to relax, take a break, or get inspiration. He also references Elvis Presley in the section that involves his rockabilly song STARTING OVER .
To me this song has Beatlesque aspects as well as reminding me of some Electric Light Orchestra recordings. Christine
Saturday, October 20, 2012
SHINDIG MAGAZINE : COVERING MUSIC 1965 FORWARD
It looks like our kind of publication. Here's a link!
SHINDIG MAGAZINE WEB SITE
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
LISA MARIE AND ELVIS DUET : FAN VIDEO TO BE RELEASED TO THE PUBLIC
Excerpt:
"Presley’s new video, “I Love You Because,” is an emotional duet with her late father.
Due to premiere on Thursday on country music TV channel CMT and CMT.com, the video was recorded in August for the 35th anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death."
"Presley, who died at the age of 42, recorded “I Love You Because” in July 1954 at Sun Studio in Memphis, the same time he recorded “That’s All Right.”
Producer Sam Phillips deemed it unsuitable for Presley’s first single, and it ended up on Presley’s first album, from 1956, never to be performed by Presley again, according to CMT.
Lisa Marie Presley, 44, recorded her vocals to the song in August at the suggestion of producer T-Bone Burnett, as a special song for fans."
Sunday, October 14, 2012
MAE AXTON : ELVIS PRESLEY : HEARTBREAK HOTEL - MAE AXTON
Friday, October 12, 2012
(436) JOHNNY TILLOTSON POETRY IN MOTION MAE AXTON
He was also friends with Phil and Don Everly.
Little known is that Johnny is the singer for "The Mary Tyler Moore" TV show theme song.
JOHNNY TILLOTSON OFFICIAL SITE (It's terrific!)
One of several songs Johnny had out in 1965! In 1960 his hit "Poetry In Motion" was one of my favorites.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
GRAMMY MUSEUM : THE BEACH BOYS and WHITNEY HOUSTON EXHIBITS
Christine here!
Last weekend I went to the GRAMMY MUSEUM, one of my favorite places in Los Angeles. I wanted to see the Beach Boy's exhibit, celebrating their 50 years in the business and Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. The exhibit was one long wall and featured a number of guitar reproductions and copies rather than originals, which I understood but felt disappointed by. Turns out my visit was about the time the Beach Boys were breaking up - again!
AISHA HARRIS of SLATE "This is only the latest incident in years of public disagreements (and lawsuits) between cousins Love and Wilson over, among other things, writing credits and publishing rights. When the band reunited for the first time in years at the Grammys this past February, the buzz for fans was built around anticipation for a tour that would see all the surviving members on stage again. But even back in June, with the shows in full swing, trouble was brewing: Love had added some South American dates for the fall that would not include the other guys. “That’s news to me,” Wilson told Rolling Stone at the time."
LINK TO FULL ARTICLE AT SLATE
One of the most fabulous things about the GRAMMY MUSEUM is the interactive computer screens which allow you to locate music in history, by genre, and by artist, AND ALL THAT SOUND SAMPLING. It's truly an exciting educational experience.
Of great interest to me also is the costuming that various artists wore. Really, anyone studying fashion in the area should visit the museum every few months. The last time I visited the museum I got chills when I saw the simple red jacket that Ritchie Valens wore in his publicity photos, and costumes worn on stage by Michael Jackson and Neil Diamond have been featured in the past.
This time it was the WHITNEY HOUSTON exhibit that caught my attention. Now I have to admit I'm not a Whitney Houston fan, but then I'm not that much into the "power singers." As I looked at her costumes and read about her career, which I knew near nothing about, I learned that no one had won more Grammy's than Whitney.
As a woman I looked at the costumes and realized that she was about my size but I couldn't help but try on the fact that she had achieved more than the vast majority of us, and yet she had lost it all. I listened as other museum goers discussed what really was the problem with Whitney. Was it her husband? Drugs? Drugs and her husband? Or maybe simply FAME? It brought tears to my eyes to think of it.
The museum also has a WOODY GUTHRIE EXHIBIT going on right now, and let me tell you, if you happen to be reading this and are in Los Angeles, you can take METRO there and not worry about parking or parking fees around the Staples Center area.
Saturday, October 6, 2012
(435) ME AND COUNTRY MUSIC : MY ROOTS IN CHEROKEE COUNTY
I grew up hearing Country Music and I've always loved it. Rockabilly, as you probably know, has strong roots in Country. Many of my peers in the business in the late 1950's and early 1960's also had country roots, people like Buddy Knox, Jimmy Bowen and Buddy Holly, who were from West Texas, and Glen Campbell, who was from the "Deep South".
As a song writer, I was just as interested in writing for Country music artists as ever and I was able to place some of the songs I wrote or cowrote with Country artists.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
AL SHELTON Designer of RICK NELSON'S HAND TOOLED GUITAR COVER
Christine here.
The other day I stopped into a storefront art gallery and workshop of an artist named AL SHELTON. Al is famous for having designed and cast the statue of Gene Autry at the museum that cowboy star Gene Autry funded, once called the Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum but now called the Autry National Center of the American West.
AUTRY NATIONAL CENTER
He is also a renown designer of hand tooled guitar covers and other items and a painter and his life has been entwined with real and movie cowboys and cowgirls.
Al showed me a photo of Rick Nelson with a hand tooled guitar cover on his guitar that Al designed and worked years ago. He told me it went down on the plane that Rick was on when he died. He also did a lot of work that Nudie, a cowboy star costume designer subcontracted, including clothes for stars like Elvis.
Here's a NPR broadcast about Al...
NPR ON AL
Here is a link that shows Al with Matthew Nelson, one of Rick's sons, and some of the hand tooled work and art he's done.
ARTISANS LINK
This post updated September 2012
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
MAYA ANGELOU Quotation on Friendship
Monday, October 1, 2012
Friday, September 28, 2012
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
(434) MARTY ROBBINS : COUNTRY SINGER TURNED WESTERN ACTOR
So while Johnny Crawford worked on shows like the Rifleman, Marty Robbins, famous for his recording of El Paso, which sold something like 10 million copies, one of my favorites (not to be confused with Trini Lopez who was also a friend and who we've blogged about before) got a job on a show called The Drifter.
Linking to Marty Robbins Official Site!
Saturday, September 22, 2012
(433) SINGING ACTING SENSATION JOHNNY CRAWFORD : SANDY 1965 : HOLLYWOOD A GO GO
Johnny Crawford had a successful acting career, especially in Westerns. Then he was recorded at Delfi records by Bob Keane and in the mid sixties he has some hit singles and albums, a compilation is out on Delfi. He's most remembered for the acting role on a cowboy TV show that was popular called The Rifleman with actor Chuck Conners, one of the shows I watched. I've always loved the cowboys.
Linking to his full resume at a Rifleman - Conners site which has a bit about Delfi.
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
(432) JOHNNY RIVERS : 1965 : YEARS OF HARD WORK BROUGHT LUCK TO HIS SIDE
He worked so hard luck was right by his side, and by the mid 1960's he was going stong, making public performances and became known at the famous Whisky A Go Go, appearing on television, and recording cover tunes, many which we still think of as Johnny River's songs.
In 1966 he started Soul City Records, his own record company. Maybe that's because Johnny moved from one label to the next over the years (not so unusual in those days and often a means to career survival) and recorded on United Artists, Imperial, Capitol, Crown, Sunset, and Liberty, and maybe then some.
Here's a recorded Live at the Whisky Youtube presentation that captures the fun that we enjoyed going there to hear him perform.
Monday, September 17, 2012
Sunday, September 16, 2012
SHEL SILVERSTEIN Quotation on Friendship
Depends how loud you shut it.
How many slices in a bread?
Depends how thin you cut it.
How much good inside a day?
Depends how good you live 'em.
How much love inside a friend?
Depends how much you give 'em.” - Shel Silverstein
Friday, September 14, 2012
37th ANNUAL JAMES DEAN FESTIVAL : SEPTEMBER 27th – 30th, 2012
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
THE NEXT JAMES DEAN FAN PHOTO - THAT'S ME!
I was based in New York in the late 1950's though I spent more time on the road when my career went from acting to performing music. I took private acting lessons at Actor's Studio and made the rounds. This was a fan photo used by United Artists, where I was signed, to show my James Dean-like appearance. My looks were not identical to Jimmy's but even his family thought I could play him in a bio-pic about his life.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
(431) AFTER 1965 I WROTE MUSIC FOR TELEVISION AND FILM
Honoring my contract that I'd left New York to move to Los Angeles for, I'd let offers to perform again and other opportunities go by the wayside. You can't live your life over, but sometimes you can't help wondering what might have been if you took a different road.
While many of my songwriter peers also took their chances at opening their own publishing houses and recording studios, many of my singer-actor peers were trying to move their singing into acting, like Elvis had been doing, but on television.
I watched a lot of television just like Elvis did and I was eager to place songs on some of them.
Very few have the lasting career of an Elvis Presley and even Elvis, despite all the movies he made that kept him in the public eye, was feeling the effects of the changes in music, what was selling, a different sound.
My friend always kept up on the latest music. He had records that were popular in the states sent to him when he was in the army in Germany, and he had the guys go down to the record stores in Hollywood and bring back records for his home juke boxes. In just a few years he'd need a "come back." But I don't want to go too far in my story yet.
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
(430) SONGWRITERS LEIBER AND STOLLER : OFFICIAL SITE
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
(429) HOUND DOG : THE LEIBER and STOLLER AUTOBIOGRAPHY
I've been wanting to read this book for a long time and finished it over the Labor Day weekend. It was edited wonderfully so that the conversational - story-telling quality was preserved and so the story moved at a good pace.
Of interest to the readers of WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC is the material on Elvis Presley, the effects of the British Invasion on songwriters in the mid 1960's, and the Brill Building New York scene and their LA-New York bicoastal music business. Of course the title HOUND DOG is also the name of their song that was recorded by Big Mama Thornton but which Elvis Presley broke out with, and which put this song writing due into early fame.
An excerpt from the book from pages 93 and 94!
Leiber: ..."As for the amazing fact that Elvis had recorded "Hound Dog," well, I had different feelings. The first feeling is the one that washes over any songwriter when he learns he has a hit: He hears the cash register ring and the Sale! sign come up. That's a good feeling. But when I heard Elvis' version, I had a bad feeling. I didn't like the way he did it. Somebody changed the lyrics. I had written:
You ain't nothing but a hound dog
Quit snooping 'round my door
You can wag your tail,
But I ain't gonna feed you no more
But Elvis sang:
You ain't nothing but a hound dog
Crying all the time
You ain't never caught a rabbit
And you ain't no friend of mine
To this day I have no idea what the rabbit business is all about. The song is not about a dog; it's about a man, a freeloading gigolo. Elvis's version makes no sense to me, and even more irritatingly, it is not the song that Mike and I wrote. Of course, the fact that it sold more than seven million copies took the sting our of what seemed to be a capricious chance of lyrics. But, lick for lick, there's no comparison between the Presley version and the Big Mama original. Elvis played with the song; Bib Mama nailed it."
HOUND DOG : THE LEIBER and STOLLER AUTOBIOGRAPHY
by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller with David Ritz Copyright 2009
Simon and Shuster Publishers
Monday, September 3, 2012
Sunday, September 2, 2012
SONNY AND CHER ON SHINDIG : 1965
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Friday, August 31, 2012
ROCK BOPPIN BABY : SUN ROCKABILLY VOLUME 3
Weekend listening!
Give a couple rounds to this CD put out in 1996 which features Edwin Bruce, Barbara Pittman, Roy Orbison, Gene Simmons, Kenny Parchman, Dick Penner, Dickey Lee and the Collegiates, Tracy Pendarvis, Jimmy Williams, Ernie Barton, Glen Honeycutt, Harold Jenkins (Conway Twitty), Jerry Lee Lewis, Alton and Jimmy, and Carl Perkins! It's music history and a lot of fun.
Weekend reading?
We've got the latest memoir by Johnny Ramone (of the Ramones) and is he an Elvis fan!
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
(428) GENE PITNEY : SINGER-SONGWRITER, RECORDING ARTIST, PERFORMER
Saturday, August 25, 2012
POST (186) GENE PITNEY ONLY LOVE CAN BREAK A HEART : FROM OUR ARCHIVES
Gene Pitney: this blog wouldn't be complete without including him.
On one website we noticed that someone had confused me and Gene, probably because he recorded under the name Billy Bryan prior to 1960.
Gene was a songwriter who went into performance. As you may realize from reading this blog, in the Cover Tune Era the singer-songwriter was the exception. A good number of us went from performance into songwriting but Gene did both. It's difficult to do both with success and hold onto that success. A good songwriter can last past a good performer if, for instance, his looks aren't with him. And in the case of the Big Bopper - J.P Richardson and Gene Pitney, some say sadly, that it wasn't their sound or their talent but their looks that failed them on the music scene - they just weren't the idol type. Just like today Abe Lincoln probably wouldn't have had the looks and personality to make it through a Presidential campaign and to the White House.
But Gene was so talented! He co-wrote a number of hit songs for my peers including "Hello Mary Lou" for Ricky Nelson.
The web site we're linking to has a comprehensive biography of Gene and mentions a number of his songwriting successes.
And here's a BBC report of Gene's last concert before he passed into Eternal Life.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/4879846.stm
Search our blog for The Crystals! Earlier we posted them singing "Little Boy" that was written by Gene!
Thursday, August 23, 2012
HELLO to ARUBA, ITALY, SWEDEN, UNITED KINGDOM, and NETHERLANDS
Sunday, August 19, 2012
(427) BILLY LEE RILEY : SUN RECORDS PROTEGEE
Wes' cousin Dean reminded us that BILLY LEE RILEY passed away in August of 2009. We went through our archives to see what we'd posted on Billy before, and saw that the links needed to be updated.
See post (183)!
Like Elvis, Billy Lee Riley started out on that local label that became one of the most famous small labels in Rock-A-Billy and Early Rock and Roll : SUN. But here's a song Billy recorded in 1965. If you go right to the YouTube site you can read what the video poster wrote about Billy - all good.
Friday, August 17, 2012
Thursday, August 16, 2012
TO ELVIS FROM WES
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN ON ELVIS
Sunday, August 12, 2012
ELVIS CARED ABOUT HIS VOICE!
Christine here.
I recently read a book about the Beatles, by Jonathan Gould, called "CAN'T BUY ME LOVE." I found it a fascinating read. The author attempts to put the Beatles' success into more of a socio-cultural viewpoint. It's C 2007 and put out by Harmony Books.
(We'll be talking about Elvis, the Beatles, Wes, and the singer-songwriters some time later in this blog journal.)
The other day I was talking to Wes about a comment made in this book. On page 61 the author writes that the real reason for Elvis' "decline" is that the "nature" of his "ambition" was not to be a great singer, but a great star, and thus he moved towards the movies.
As you know, Wes himself came up in that era in which the movie studios wanted into the record / music business and artists were encouraged to cross over, boosting their careers in both directions. Singing in the movies, or selling more records because you became internationally famous in the movies, movies as two hour rock videos, an acknowledgement of the power of television and movie image that went beyond live performances; all these things were considered to be cutting edge marketing of talent. It was considered AMBITIOUS to be more visible.
I ran this one by Wes and how shall I put it? Wes Bryan absolutely does not agree that Elvis did not care to be a great singer or that he ever gave up on singing or being a singer. Wes pointed out to me (and you!) that he personally witnessed through the years just how much Elvis cared about music and his singing.
Elvis was like a walking encyclopedia of music, the fan of a great many other singers. He studied their technique, knew who had problems with breathing and phrasing. He studied Mario Lanza as an example, and he loved to sing along with records as well as perform his renditions of songs he loved at his parties. Music was not something he only performed on stage, but in the privacy of his home, among friends, because he loved it. Music and singing was not just about making money for him.
He collected records and gave his favorites play in his home and in his suites in Vegas and on the road. He brought home demo records for his close musical friends to hear and give their opinions on.
He called his DJ friends when he loved another singers records and asked them to give the record a spin. He personally chose many of the songs that became hits for him.
He kept a home recording studio to record songs he was considering and jam sessions frequently erupted in his home studios, at his parties, and just hanging around the house.
He established his own music publishing entities and he paid promptly and as contracted. Artists whose work he owned a part of did not deal with fraud or long delays on their intellectual property residuals when Elvis was in charge.
He stated publicly that he would personally listen to singer-songwriter demos that were presented to him. In search of a song for one album, Wes recalls that Elvis spent weeks and went through the rock and roll archives choosing from over 250 standards.
Even though he was one of the hardest working entertainers that Las Vegas ever saw, even after two shows a night, Elvis and his friends and invited guests often retreated to his private suite where they sang gospel till dawn, just for the love of it.
And there is the evidence of a well exercised voice. Almost to the end when he was ill, and we will state that those closest to him knew he was ill and attempted to cover for him, hoping he would regain his health, Elvis' voice retained its unique vibrancy.
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Thursday, August 9, 2012
(426) ELVIS MET THE BEATLES : 1965 :
It's through Wes Bryan that I got to "know" * Elvis, and got to appreciate him as a human being and started listening to his music and watching some of his films.
I knew a couple of the 70's Elvis hits, but not much else. I was a little kid Beatle's fan because of the teenagers in my life back then who were Beatles fans and had the 45's and the albums and so did some of my friend's parents! Now I know that even some of the Beatle's tunes I liked so much were actually covers of earlier rock and rollers!
We've been following 1965 here at WES BRYAN - MY LIFE IN MUSIC, and 1965 is the year that the Beatles met Elvis and Elvis met the Beatles. In various books and other media this meeting is generally said to be of disappointment on both sides. As I understand it, the Beatle's manager Brian Epstein, and Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis' manager, arranged the meeting and maybe the Beatles were in a bit of shock, or maybe it's just that they had little in common but musical fame. Elvis is said to have jammed a bit with some of them, or perhaps it was a few of Elvis' guys who did the jamming?
I listened to some Youtube videos of the Beatles, years after the fact, telling about their historic meeting with Elvis and some of what they had to say is sad. They encountered Elvis playing the electric guitar while watching TV, they didn't understand at that point why he wasn't performing because they felt they would miss the connection with the audience. (One of the reasons the Beatles stopped touring is that they understood that their screaming fans were not really listening!)
The Beatles say they didn't understand why Elvis was making movies. Elvis' music was more and more about making movie soundtrack albums at this point. (In 3 years he'd stage a "come back" as a live performer.)
As you probably know in August each year to remember Elvis there's an Elvis Week at Graceland TM. We're celebrating Elvis too!
* (A note here: I didn't mean to imply that I got to know Elvis in person like Wes did!)
Monday, August 6, 2012
Friday, August 3, 2012
FROM OUR ARCHIVES POST (306) A LITTLE REITERATION OF MY STORY JUST TO GET YOU SITUATED !
POST (306) FROM APRIL 23, 2012
A LITTLE REITERATION OF MY STORY JUST TO GET YOU SITUATED !
... But if you've been following my story, you know that I was born in Murphy, North Carolina, that I made my first recording in a kitchen in Winston-Salem, that I was discovered as THE NEXT JAMES DEAN in Akron, Ohio, in 1957, which lead to auditions in Hollywood and my living in New York City. I studied at Actors' Studio. I traveled all around the United States promoting my first couple records as the FIRST ARTIST SIGNED TO UNITED ARTISTS. Then, while on Roulette Records I toured for a couple years - in 47 states! -with rockabilly Superstar BUDDY KNOX. I became friends with Elvis Presley back in '57, one of the great friendships of my life.
I performed on Ed Sullivan, Jack Paar, Wink Martindale... so many television shows all around the country. I played live on radio stations. And then - then I moved to Southern California to work as a staff songwriter for AMERICAN MUSIC about 1960, after the KNOX tour was completed.
From the east coast to the west I moved and so did some of the people who were integral to my story. People like Elvis Presley, Johnny Rivers, and Jimmy Bowen were now also living in Hollywood for film or music...
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Thursday, July 26, 2012
ALBERT SCHWEITZER Quotation on
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
(425) GARY LEWIS AND THE PLAYBOYS PALISADES PARK
A new link for us : GARY LEWIS AND THE PLAYBOYS OFFICIAL SITE! Just as the son of Dean Martin and the son of Desi Arnez were succeeding in the music business, the son of Jerry Lewis, Gary, and his band, the Playboy's, got into the business and had a few hits.
From Gary's site; "It was the summer of 1964 when Gary Lewis and The Playboys were discovered by producer Snuff Garret. Before long, with the producer/arranger team of Garrett and Leon Russell behind them, they took their first single, "This Diamond Ring" straight to number one..."
Check out or past posts on Snuffy Garret and Leon Russel!
Sunday, July 22, 2012
HELEN KELLER Quotation on Friendship
Friday, July 20, 2012
THE BEATLES : BABY YOU CAN DRIVE MY CAR
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
THE STRAY CATS COVER EDDIE COCHRAN'S SUMMERTIME BLUES
THE OFFICIAL STRAY CATS SITE!
Monday, July 16, 2012
Sunday, July 15, 2012
FROM OUR ARCHIVES : POST (209) 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!
Friday, July 13, 2012
FROM OUR ARCHIVES : POST (58) EDDIE COCHRAN : ROCKIN THE SUMMERTIME BLUES
I met Eddie Cochran at the Sheridan Hotel in New York City, where I also met Jerry Capheart, a man who would figure big in my future one day when he signed me to be a staff songwriter at American Music in Los Angeles.
Buddy Knox called Eddie Cochran "The Blond Elvis."
In England, the Beatles had followed him and Gene Vincent around. (When it came to Rock and Roll, first the Americans invaded England, then there was a British invasion of America.) Eddie performed at an Alan Freed produced Rock and Roll show for New Years about the time I met him. It was the same show I saw Ritchie Valens perform for the first time on.
The world of early Rock and Roll was tough. Eddie carried a Derringer hand gun in his boot and I hear it came in handy more than once, like when he was threatened by the boyfriends of certain fans...
Eddie Cochran wasn't the only one who packed a gun while on tour or while walking the streets of New York but I decided I could take care of myself with my fists. I grew up rumbling with my brothers, had learned some karate and self defence while in the U.S. Army, and admired the boxers who I tried to meet when they came into the Turf restaurant for meals instead of eating across the way at Dempsey's, which was owned by the boxer Jack Dempsey. We all had security concerns that were not met by our record labels or our management. We didn't have body guards and it was up to us to protect ourselves. It was also legal to take a gun on a plane...
During my tour with Buddy Knox I performed two of Eddie Cochran's hits, "Summertime Blues," and "Come on Everybody." Here's Eddie performing those hits on television - You Tube presentations.
"REMEMBER EDDIE COCKRAN" NEW SITE above! January 26, 2011
ROCKABILLY HALL OF FAME LINK HERE http://www.rockabillyhall.com/EddieCochran.html
History of Rock - Eddie Cochran! http://www.history-of-rock.com/cochran.htm
Eddie Cochran died at the age of 21, at the height of his fame, in 1960 while touring in England, in a tragic automobile accident on the way to the airport. Gene Vincent was left with a limp in the same accident.
ALL LINKS ACTIVE JULY 2012 New Video added
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
PLEASE ENJOY OUR PAST POSTS AS WE TAKE A VACATION
If you're using our sidebar of links, and you find a link that is no longer viable, please let us know via comments.
We are always open to suggestions!
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Friday, June 29, 2012
HELLO TO OUR READERS AROUND THE WORLD - FANS OF EARLY ROCK AND ROLL !
As always, we hope you're listening along with us, reading along with us, and checking out some of the links to the artists that we blog about... Let us know if you read us in English, or use the Google Translator and what language you read this blog in.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
(424) SINGER SONGWRITER BOBBY FREEMAN : DO YOU WANNA DANCE?: COVERED BY SO MANY ARTISTS!
For the SUMMER FUN of it, here are a number of other covers of the same Bobby Freeman song.
First BOBBY FREEMAN'S ORIGINAL! "Release in April 1958 while Bobby was still in High School and he became a singing sensation which helped this song moved right up the charts to Billboards Top 10." Thanks to the Youtuber who posted this one!
(UPDATE JULY 2012: Sadly we must remove the historical music Bobby Freeman Video as Frank Sinatra enterprises owns the video and made claims on it... We still want everyone to know how great Bobby was and were thrilled to have found the video in the first place! But now I, Christine, making it up to you by presenting the RAMONES version! Beleive it or not, I like it as much as I like Johnny Rivers!)
WHO COULD FORGET my old friend Johnny Rivers' slow, romantic version?
Did you ever think we'd post the Ramones on this blog? Surprise! Surprise!
The great thing about this Bobby Freeman song is that you can listen to all these versions and want more!
Linking to the BBC Music bio of Bobby Freeman!
Saturday, June 23, 2012
AND NOW ELVIS CRYPT IS NOT FOR AUCTION
Thursday, June 21, 2012
(423) BEACH BOYS : PROMOTIONAL FOR GIRLS ON THE BEACH SHOWS OFF THE COMPETITION BETWEEN THE BEACH BOYS AND THE BEATLES
You can link to the Beach Boys on our sidebar where we just listed their site as it is today, which features their band as it is and a new CD. On this post we're linking to the IMBd movie database about the film so you can learn more! The actress Ahna Capri, who we blogged about in the past, appeared in this film. Use the search feature of this Google Blogger to locate that post and read a little Wes Bryan history.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
(422) JERRY COLE ON CAPITOL : SURF GUITARIST : STUDIO GENIUS
"Come Over to My Place" was a Shindig TV show theme song. Capitol was the hot record label in Los Angeles summer of '65. Jerry became a life long friend of mine.
Linking to Jerry Cole on Rockabilly Hall of Fame!
Use the Search feature of this blog to locate other Jerry Cole posts, including the Interview with Wes Bryan.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
(421) P.J. PROBY 1965 : RECORDING LENNON-MC CARTNEY SONGS WITH GEORGE MARTIN AS PRODUCER
On this YouTube video, of the song "That Means A Lot," we see a label that has many names familiar to this blog. P.J. was certainly a big part of the American Invasion of Britain. In fact, he loved the British as much as they loved him, which is why he went to live there and the whole legal issue was so upsetting.
"That Means a Lot," is written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon, The Beatles, who were almost everyone's biggest chart competition in '65. The Producer is George Martin, the Beatle's producer, and this is on Liberty Records, the small record label that we've blogged about a lot.
To quote the article we've linked to: "In a statement read by his solicitor, Chris Hilton, PJ Proby said: "For the last four years I have lived in fear of becoming homeless - because my housing benefit was cut off - and of being wrongly sent to prison for a crime I never committed."
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
(420) BOBBY VEE : A TRUE INVADER OF BRITAIN : MUSICALLY THAT IS!
Recently it was in the news that Bobby, a few years younger than me, has a mild form of Alzheimer's. He announced that on his own web site and the news zipped around the world. Meanwhile, back home at Tuscan, Arizona, Bobby's been recording.
We're linking to his official site above, which will also take you to his sites on the Rockabilly Hall of Fame and the Hit Parade Hall of Fame,
Just a short excerpt from Bobby's own fine site, linked above.
" If "Susie Baby" served as Bobby Vee's entrance into the world of Billboards hot 100, then 'Devil or Angel' was certainly the foundation for a string of hit records reaching the nations top 20 throughout the entire 60's era. Bobby's hits were not limited to America. By 1963 he had collected seven top ten hits in England as well as a number 2 album called "Bobby Vee Meets the Crickets" and in 1963 shared the charts for forty weeks side-by-side with the Beatles. His tours took him to Japan, Australia and Europe as well as the United Kingdom, where he is still a yearly visitor. His thirty plus year recording career has produced over twenty-five albums including a Gold Album from England for his 1981 "Singles Album" release. Back in the US, Billboard Magazine called him, "One of the top ten most consistent chart makers ever."
I met Bobby when we was about 16 years old in New York City when he was on a promotional tour for his song "Rubber Ball." Wes