(425) GARY LEWIS AND THE PLAYBOYS PALISADES PARK

Written by Chuck Barris, and recorded by a number of artists, Gary Lewis and the Playboys had a hit with this song in the summer of 1965. The Palisades Park referred to in this song was in New Jersey but production on this version takes us all back to the summer trip to an amusement park, on a board walk, or overlooking the ocean, and a lot of fun.

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!

(360) DEMO TREASURE CHEST! DAVID GATES, LEON RUSSEL, GLEN CAMPBELL, and ME

Here's a demo or two I would love to find and hear again!

Pat Boone paid for the session time.
David Gates was the arranger.
I was the producer.
Leon Russel played piano.
Glen Campbell and I did two instrumentals together.

I sang on two songs which were "20 Acres of Land," and "I'm Such a Fool."

Auctioneers and collectors!?

CHUCK BERRY : LEON RUSSEL'S COVER 1964 : ROLL OVER BEETHOVEN !

Leon Russel ! Really! that is him! Leon Russel is someone who I admire greatly and worked with a little in the studios as a studio musician back in the early 1960's! Here he appears on a show that was extremely popular - Shindig.

(303) SHARON SHEELEY - SONGWRITER

We're linking to the ROCKABILLY HALL OF FAME page for songwriter SHARON SHEELEY here. SHARON was Eddie Cockran's girlfriend at the time he was killed in the car accident in England and that is unfortunately, what she first became famous for. She and Gene Vincent survived the car crash. She was still dating Eddie when I first met her. I was with the Everly Brothers at the time. Sharon was great friends with Nan Morris, the agent I've blogged about - a friend of mine to this day. It was Nan who took a demo of "POOR LITTLE FOOL" to Rick Nelson. In fact the two women were near stalking Rick to get that song to him because they were so sure it was going to be a hit for him. And they were right.

Sharon Sheeley continued to write songs including in collaboration with Jackie DeShannon and Brenda Lee.

Now we've mentioned before (and on some of our Youtube postings) that many DEMOS were made that did not turn into records for the market and that on many of these DEMOS some artists performed who became famous in their own time.

Some of the Demo Makers included Glen Campbell and Leon Russel and David Gates. A few years ago demos of some of Sharon's compositions that featured these artists came out on the market. And one of the singers is P.J. Proby, another demo maker who became famous and continues to perform, and who remained a friend of Sharon's until her death a few years ago ...

(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!

(194) CHUCK BERRY ROLLS OVER THE STONES, THE BEATLES (And A Whole Lot of Other Bands) WITH ROLL OVER BEETHOVEN !

The Rolling Stones cite Chuck Berry as one of their prime influences and inspirations and they've proven it by recording or playing in concert a good number of the songs Chuck wrote. Chuck Berry's "Roll Over Beethoven" has been recorded by so very many artists, the Rolling Stones and the Beatles are just a couple of them.

Chuck Berry's ROLL OVER BEETHOVEN :



Here's John Lennon's recording of the song:


Leon Russel's version: