Well, here I am again.It’s the Rockmine blog but not as you’ve known it.
My problem started when I finished one year of the Almanac and had to then start again. I love the idea of keeping information free but the almanac is something I’ve invested so much time and energy in, that I can’t just go on giving it away.
The dilemma I had was how to continue Rockmin e as a site, a blog and even as a real archive. It’s always been difficult to keep it up to date and I’ve consistently had a pile of newspapers every week that I’ve never managed to work through. When the property housing Rockmine went on the market, I realised the scale of the problem. My pile of papers needing checked for cuttings was more than 150 feet! The cuts that I had removed were no less a problem, filling dozens of boxes. All of this stuff, should be neatly filed in a bank of filing cabinets but it isn’t!
Of course, the house sale means I am moving but still don’t know exactly where or what I’m going to do. That leaves me in limbo as to whether the archive will move on. I have decided to continue the almanac and (behind schedule) get it out as a book, published by Rockmine but printed by Lulu. One thing I’m considering is selling off the cuttings but that’s a huge task. There must be hundreds of thousands of them and it’s a frightening cataloguing problem. Bizarrely, if it were catalogued, it would be a hugely valuable information list. Somewhat akin to indexing all the music content of the major daily press over the past 24 years.
Oddly, I’ve been trying to deal with this problem since the largest hard-drive it was possible to get was 270 mb! Happy days. The basis of the current Rockmine site was built on an Apple PowerBook 180c which had 3 meg of ram, doubled to 6 with Ram Doubler and pushed to 36 with MaxRam. Hey, it was a 9 inch colour screen set in what looked like a Tonka Toy computer designed by Sony. Back in those days computers were full of excitement and wonder but I don’t get excited anymore.
While I’m wallowing in nostalgia, there is a crazy tale regarding the indexing of the archive. My friend Bob, who sadly suffered a stroke nearly two years ago is a businessman with an eye for solutions to problems. When faced with the one of how to index the archive, he rose to the occasion and negotiated a deal with a prison. A new privately-run one had just opened in Kilmarnock and they needed to find work for the inmates. Every one of the prisoners had to have a job every day or the Scottish Prison Service would fine the prison. So Bob got us a deal whereby we’d get as many prisoners as we needed to scan all the music papers in the archive and annotate them.
The prison was even talking about buying the scanners and computers as it would be teaching the inmates computer skills to help with their rehabilitation and prepare them for life in the outside world. Believe it or not, the reason the scheme fell through was me. I wasn’t prepared to risk the archive being potentially wrecked by a bunch of prisoners and I wasn’t prepared to oversee them doing the work. Strange days indeed!
Well, here I am again.It’s the Rockmine blog but not as you’ve known it.
My problem started when I finished one year of the Almanac and had to then start again. I love the idea of keeping information free but the almanac is something I’ve invested so much time and energy in, that I can’t just go on giving it away.
The dilemma I had was how to continue Rockmin e as a site, a blog and even as a real archive. It’s always been difficult to keep it up to date and I’ve consistently had a pile of newspapers every week that I’ve never managed to work through. When the property housing Rockmine went on the market, I realised the scale of the problem. My pile of papers needing checked for cuttings was more than 150 feet! The cuts that I had removed were no less a problem, filling dozens of boxes. All of this stuff, should be neatly filed in a bank of filing cabinets but it isn’t!
Of course, the house sale means I am moving but still don’t know exactly where or what I’m going to do. That leaves me in limbo as to whether the archive will move on. I have decided to continue the almanac and (behind schedule) get it out as a book, published by Rockmine but printed by Lulu. One thing I’m considering is selling off the cuttings but that’s a huge task. There must be hundreds of thousands of them and it’s a frightening cataloguing problem. Bizarrely, if it were catalogued, it would be a hugely valuable information list. Somewhat akin to indexing all the music content of the major daily press over the past 24 years.
Oddly, I’ve been trying to deal with this problem since the largest hard-drive it was possible to get was 270 mb! Happy days. The basis of the current Rockmine site was built on an Apple PowerBook 180c which had 3 meg of ram, doubled to 6 with Ram Doubler and pushed to 36 with MaxRam. Hey, it was a 9 inch colour screen set in what looked like a Tonka Toy computer designed by Sony. Back in those days computers were full of excitement and wonder but I don’t get excited anymore.
While I’m wallowing in nostalgia, there is a crazy tale regarding the indexing of the archive. My friend Bob, who sadly suffered a stroke nearly two years ago is a businessman with an eye for solutions to problems. When faced with the one of how to index the archive, he rose to the occasion and negotiated a deal with a prison. A new privately-run one had just opened in Kilmarnock and they needed to find work for the inmates. Every one of the prisoners had to have a job every day or the Scottish Prison Service would fine the prison. So Bob got us a deal whereby we’d get as many prisoners as we needed to scan all the music papers in the archive and annotate them.
The prison was even talking about buying the scanners and computers as it would be teaching the inmates computer skills to help with their rehabilitation and prepare them for life in the outside world. Believe it or not, the reason the scheme fell through was me. I wasn’t prepared to risk the archive being potentially wrecked by a bunch of prisoners and I wasn’t prepared to oversee them doing the work. Strange days indeed!
Anyway, back to today, or the present at least, I’m doing more archiving than I’ve done for many years, even if it’s just putting cuttings, legal papers, whatever in clearly labelled boxes. It seems that having your house on the market is one thing but getting people to see past the piles of magazines and papers spread throughout is another thing all together. I have to admit it’s a very strange situation, carefully boxing up a lifetime’s work and having no real idea what you’re going to do with it.
One thing that I do have to deal with is the memorabilia that still fills crates and cupboards and hangs on the walls. Then there’s about 4,000 vinyl albums and twice as many singles to get rid of. So, what I’m going to do is start to list everything on here. The concept of the Garage Sale, as was, is gone. I now HAVE to clear the garage, so you can expect a plethora of music related items to turn up here. I have, in some cases, complete years of “Sounds” and “New Musical Express”, carefully wrapped in black bin-bags in either complete or nearly complete years. There are hundreds of books and magazines and dozens of standees as they seem to call the cardboard cut-outs used as point-of-sale promotions. Some of those things are WAY TOO big to post but they are hugely collectable.
I’m even thinking of renting a local shop for a few weeks to sell the vinyl. In the meantime, as I have hard copies that I paid for, am I allowed to download copies from the internet to save me the hassle of digitizing stuff?
If nothing else, that sounds like an interesting project that I can share with you! I will keep you posted…
Depending on your age, taste in music and whether or not you spend your life completely detached from popular culture, you’ll have a day “The Music Died”.
Millions across the world can tell you what they were doing and their feelings when Buddy Holly, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Elvis Presley, John Lennon, Kurt Cobain, and George Harrison died. They may span a generation but to the fans, all that mattered was that their hero had gone.
Today, another superstar’s name joins that list – Michael Jackson.
Whatever you think of him, no-one can deny he was one of the most talented pop performers ever and one of the biggest selling artists of all time.
For the last few years, Jackson’s life had been troubled to say the least but now isn’t a time to sift through his problems. I’d rather just celebrate his career with a selection of his work.
Here he is with “Ben” from the Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour from 1972.
Promo video for “Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough” from 1979.
From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Monday 16th March):
Birth
1942. Jerry Jeff Walker born Paul Crosby in Onenta, New York State.
In The Mail
1959. RCA Records in New York receive an anonymous letter informing them that plans have been made for a Red Army soldier to kill Elvis Presley during his tour of duty with the U.S. Army in West Germany. The company takes the letter seriously enough to forward it to the F.B.I.
What followed was one of the most bizarre cold war intrigues. The F.B.I. took the the threat seriously enough to assume that it was in fact a KGB plot based on their fear of the effect that rock music might have on Russia’s subjugated youth. All of Elvis’s German contacts were vetted and in the case of his homosexual barber, replaced to minimize any potential assassination attempt.
In Court
1978. Gary Glitter (34) is fined £ 100 and banned from driving for 18 months when he appears at Salisbury Magistrates Court. He admitted driving his Rolls Royce with excess alcohol in his blood last October.
In Hospital
1971. Kim Payne, roadie with the Allman Brothers Band is shot through the right thigh by an off-duty motorcycle cop who tries to give him a ticket for speeding in the band’s hometown of Macon, Georgia. The official (police) version of events is that Payne resisted arrest and broke free as the cop was trying to cuff him. Payne, on the other hand, says the cop couldn’t get the handcuffs over his leather gloves and when he started laughing the cop erupted and shot him. Bleeding profusely, Payne blacked out in the parking lot where the shooting happened. Had he not been rushed to the emergency room he could easily have bled to death. He was later charged with speeding, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. When he appeared in court later in the month, Payne was found guilty of speeding and resisting arrest and fined $ 200.
On Television
1970. Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In (NBC, U.S.A.) with Tiny Tim. All of Tim’s performances on Laugh-In are on YouTube. I think this is the right one for this date but it may not be!
Death
1968. Tammi Terrell (real name Tammi Montgomery) dies of a brain tumour at Graduate Hospital in Philadelphia. She was diagnosed last year after collapsing into Marvin Gaye’s arms onstage during a duet of “That’s All You Need To Get By”. Since then, she had undergone six operations but they were unable to save her.
Music Paper From Today
Record Mirror from 16th March 1991. A copy taken from Rockmine’s almost complete run of U.K. music papers from the last 45 years.
Babble
There was a really good piece in the Observer Music Magazine in which Paul Morley discussed the availability of musical knowledge.
The trouble with much of it lies in verification. Wikipedia, as we now know is full of inaccuracies but potentially no more than any other cyclopedia. Since it’s inception, Rockmine has tried to be the authoritative source for information. I am human and therefore, there are mistakes but the policy throughout has been to reverse engineer the history of music. Not to go looking for what books have said over the years but rather, to go back to the nearest authority. That means going back to the closest account of an event. For more than two decades, I’ve scoured daily papers, checked court filings, made lists of TV schedules and accumulated several million pieces of paper to back up what I think I know.
So, Rockmine and the Rockmine Almanac are built on a vast resource that is in the main totally wasted on giving you a handful of music related stories every day? I don’t think so. I don’t care about being the biggest, the fastest or the coolest. All I care about is ensuring that when I post a piece of information here or on Rockmine.com, it is correct. Now, before you point it out, I am aware there have been instances when my databases have failed me.
Over the years, I provided background information for everyone from the BBC to MTV and the Sunday Sport to The Washington Post. Unfortunately, that’s in the past and this is a different age both electronically and economically. Regardless of that, information still has value.
The Rockmine Almanac is vast but I want to do something with it. My initial plan is to make a concise version available as a book with a page-to-a-day format. It will probably only be 5% of the information I have but I think people still love dipping into something as tactile and satisfying as a book. Regular readers among you will be aware that I had hope to have it out by now but realistically, we’re talking about a month before I upload it to Lulu.com. It will be published by Rockmine but printed on demand by Lulu, although it will be available to order throughout the world. Some of what will be in the book can be found here or elsewhere on Rockmine for free.
Gathering the information for that and everything else on Rockmine is not without cost. My daily newspaper bill has in the past been frightening although I’ve now cut down greatly. Travelling to libraries and parking while I do my research all adds to the cost of providing what is a free service. So, as of today, in an effort to help pay some of the many bills I incur along the way I’ve added a donation button to this blog and also Rockmine’s main site.
I know some of you may find this offensive but it all helps to cover my costs which are constantly rising. Anyone making a donation of £ 1 will get their name on a donor’s page and anyone making a donation of £ 5 or more will get a permanent link to their home page or commercial website from a link page on Rockmine. Maybe this goes against the ethos of a free internet but it now seems pretty commonplace. Feel free to comment and let me know what you think.
As well as the donation button, you’ll also notice I’ve added a search facility to the blog so you can now search every entry. I’m also looking at adding a number of other widgets but I’ll discuss those more tomorrow along with what’s happening with the Rockmine Almanac.
From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Monday 10th February):
Birth
1940. James “Jimmy” Merchant (Frankie Lymon And The Teenagers) born in New York.
On Tour
1980. Sammy Hagar’s UK tour which should have started today at Portsmouth’s Guildhall is postponed. His son is in hospital in the States with kidney problems and Hagar wants to be with him.
In Court
1988. The breach of contract case brought by Zang Tumb Tumb Records against Holly Johnson finishes at the High Court in London. Mr. Justice Whitford, presiding, rules that restraints in Johnson’s contract were unreasonable. He dismisses the label’s action and refuses to grant the injunctions they were seeking to ensure that Holly would not record for another company. Giving his verdict, the judge said: “Mr. Johnson, who I found entirely reasonable, was, in my judgement, entitled to free himself from these onerous obligations… He is a singer. He wants to make a living”. Holly, who was tied into a ZTT contract as a member of Frankie Goes To Hollywood, had been looking for a solo contract with another label. The judge adjourned the case until a later date when the matter of costs will be decided. On leaving the court, Holly (27) said, “This is a great day for recording artists everywhere and I believe this will help them in the future to get better and fairer agreements. Now I just can’t wait to start work again”.
In Hospital
1998. Frank Sinatra is once again admitted to the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles following reports that “Ol’ Blue Eyes” is suffering from blood in his urine which may indicate bladder cancer.
On Television
2004. The Ellen DeGeneres Show including musical guest, Sting
Death
2002. Folk singer Dave Van Ronk dies in New York University Medical Center, where he’d been undergoing treatment for colon cancer. His management company said that during the treatment “his cardio-pulmonary system failed”. Van Ronk (65) had been an influence on many of the singer songwriters from the sixties onwards, including Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Janis Ian and Suzanne Vega.
Music Paper From Today
New Musical Express from 10th February 1968. A copy taken from Rockmine’s almost complete run of U.K. music papers. The front page is mainly given over to a rare gem of UK psych pop from The Nerve. Original copies sell for more than £ 30. Both the A and B side can be found on the Psych compilation CD, “Magic Spectacles”.
Daily Babble
As you can see from the image above, I’ve got a working A3 scanner again. Now all I have to do is work my way through the thousands of music papers I have! I need to sort my system for scanning. I pulled out 4 last night and my office is now in total disarray. I took 4 piles out from different shelves and different papers and now I can’t move around the 8 piles I created. Aarghh!
I went out to the garage to look for some other mags to scan and found a load of “Sounds”. All had paper tabs in for news stories that I was meant to include in The Almanac. What was that I was saying about having a system? I suppose I better try and tidy up – or do some more scanning…
From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Sunday 9th February):
Birth
1942. Carole King born Carole Klein in Brooklyn, New York.
On Tour
1963. On the Helen Shapiro tour, The Beatles perform at the Empire Theatre, Sunderland, Durham, playing two shows during the evening. The first leg of the Shapiro tour is due to finish tomorrow with another two shows in Peterborough but The Beatles will not be appearing. Their place will be taken for one night only by Peter Jay & the Jaywalkers as they’ll be in London recording their first album. The Beatles will be back with the tour when it restarts on February 23rd.
In Church
1991. Andrew Lloyd Webber and his new wife Madeleine have their marriage blessed at a church service followed by a reception at the couple’s mansion in Ecchinswell, Hants. They were married in secret at Westminster Register Office on February 1st. Only five close family members and friends attended. They had originally planned a full church service for today but felt the publicity would not be appropriate during the Gulf War.
In Hospital
1967. Lulu is admitted to hospital in London to have her tonsils removed. The 18 year old singer is cancelling all engagements for this month, including a series of six shows for Scottish Television.
On Television
1973. The Midnight Special (U.S.A.). Show 3. Host: Johnny Rivers. Guests: Ace Trucking Company; Albert Hammond; Merilee Rush; The Spinners; Steely Dan; Paul Williams; Wolfman Jack.
The Partridge Family (U.S.A.) in an episode entitled, “Everything You Wanted To Know About Sex…But Couldn’t Pronounce”.
Death
1981. Bill Haley is found dead on his bed by one of his children at his home in Harlingen, Texas. The rocker was fully clothed and it’s thought he died from a heart attack, probably six hours before being found. He was 55.
From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Sunday, 8th February):
Birth
1946. Alfredo Fito (Canned Heat) born Adolpho De La Parra in Mexico City, Mexico.
On Stage
1963. Shane Fenton is pelted with eggs when he appears at a lunchtime rock ‘n’ roll session at the Lyceum Ballroom in The Strand, London. Fenton was a last minute replacement for Jess Conrad and was miming when the eggs started to fly.
In Court
1980. David Bowie’s marriage to Angie ends as their divorce is finalised today. David gets custody of their son, Zowie (now calling himself Joe). Angie gets a cash settlement of £ 30,000. She’s also telling the world that she expects to make another £ 100,000 by writing her memoirs!
In Hospital
1997. The New Edition reunion tour runs into problems in Los Angeles. Bobby Brown fails to show for the gig claiming he has flu and couldn’t perform. If that wasn’t enough, Ronnie Devoe walked off stage during the set after seeing his uncle, the group’s manager Brooke Payne, collapse with chest pains in the wings. Devoe accompanied his uncle to hospital where he was checked over before being discharged to rest at home.
On Television
2008. Later… With Jools Holand. (BBC-2, U.K.) Mayra Andrade; Morrissey; Ida Maria; British Sea Power and Joe Brown. Morrissey performs four tracks. Here he is with one of them, “All You Need Is Me”.
Death
1973. Max Yasgur, the farmer on whose land Woodstock was staged, dies of a heart attack in a Florida hospital.
From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Wednesday, 28th January):
Birth
1946. Rick Allen (The Box Tops) born in Little Rock, Arkansas.
On Stage
1995. Elton John, Ray Cooper and Sting perform at the first benefit for The Elton John AIDS Foundation in New York. The performance along with dinner and an auction raises $ 1 million.
In Court
1980. All five original members of Guys And Dolls appear in court for the first day of a legal case brought by their former managers, Ammo Productions Ltd., for £ 12,900 in unpaid commission. The group have issued a counter suit claiming £ 3,418 in unpaid royalties.
In Hospital
1987. Elton John’s wife, Renate, flies into London after working for the last month in Los Angeles. She has not travelled to Australia, where Elton is still recovering in hospital but did say she has spoken to him on the ‘phone “at least once a day”.
On Television
1971. Top Of The Pops. (BBC-1, U.K.) Presented by Jimmy Savile. Badfinger; Elvis Presley (Promo); Frankie Valli; George Harrison/Pan’s People; Johnny Johnson & The Bandwagon; Martha & The Vandellas; Stevie Wonder; The Equals; The Mixtures; The Supremes/Pan’s People; The Weathermen. Here are Badfinger with “No Matter What”
Death
2000. Motown saxophonist Thomas “Beans” Bowles dies in Detroit after a ten year battle with prostate cancer, aged 71. Bowles was best known as a baritone sax player and arranger but was also tour manager for the early Motown Revues that toured the U.S.A. His career with Motown was far from smooth. He claimed to have written “Fingertips” for Stevie Wonder but never received a credit. On leaving the company, he was even forced to negotiate for the rights to his own name, which he’d unwittingly given to Motown when he signed his contract in 1962.
From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Tuesday, 27th January):
Birth
1961. Gillian Gilbert (New Order) born in Manchester, England.
On Tour
1977. Patti Smith falls fifteen feet from the stage at a gig in Tampa, Florida. She fractures the seventh vertebrae in her neck and requires 22 stitches.
In Court
1992. Country singer Sydney Devine is fined £ 75 and has 3 penalty points added to his driving licence at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court. Although he was not in court, the singer admitted driving at 79 m.p.h. on a 60 m.p.h. stretch of the A77 on October 24th last year.
In Hospital
1984. Michael Jackson’s hair catches fire during the filming of a Pepsi advert. He is rushed to the Cedars Sinai Medical Center suffering second and third degree burns to the scalp. Media interest in the story forces hospital authorities to move Jackson to Brotman Memorial Hospital for treatment.
On Television
2006. The Ellen Degeneres Show. (Syndicated, U.S.A.). Guests include Heather Headley who performs “In My Mind”
Death
1967. Italian pop singer Luigi Tenco shoots himself in a fit of depression having been eliminated from the finals of the San Remo Festival. Police say the 27 year old took his life with a single pistol shot to the head. He left a suicide note saying he had “devoted the best years of my life to singing and writing songs” and was doing this “as an act of protest against the public and the jury” for their selections for the final. Tenco was not alone. Some big names including Marianne Faithfull never made it into the final.
Babble
It’s odd how differently we see things as the years pass. Browsing old copies of Melody maker for TV listings, I came across news of a blanket radio and TV ban on a Parlophone single. Titled “Nothing Better To Do”, it was released on July 3rd, 1964, and took the mickey out of mods and rockers. The wording suggested that they had nothing better to do than invade towns.
Whether the broadcasters thought it would be a call to arms for the two factions is unclear but ABC-TV, producers of “Thank Your Lucky Stars” said, “The record is not in the best interests of the general public”. MM merely said “the BBC have shunned the disc”.
Odd then, to think that the artist singing the song would later go on to become a much-loved national institution within the BBC – Bill Oddie OBE.
From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Monday, 26th January):
Birth
1963. Andrew Ridgeley (Wham!) born in Windlesham, Surrey.
On Tour
1997. Lars Ulrich (Metallica) secretly marries his girlfriend Skylar in secret at a small ceremony in Las Vegas. James Hetfield does the honours as best man/witness.
In Hospital
1998. Joey Ramone’s appearance as DJ at Toronto’s Phoenix Club is cancelled when it’s announced that the 46 year old punk has been ordered not to work for two monts. Ramone was hospitalised for tests earlier in the month. Although his management told The Toronto Sun that “Joey’s condition is very serious” they gave no other details.
In Church
1962. The Catholic Bishop of Buffalo, New York State bans The Twist being danced, sung or talked about at any catholic school or youth event.
On Television
1978. Rockpalast. (WDR, West Germany). Roy Harper (WDR Studio-L, Koln). Here he is with “Another Day”
Death
1991. Singer Karen Young dies in Philadelphia from a bleeding ulcer.
Babble
It’s amazing the things you find by accident. Looking for the clip of Roy Harper I was more than a little taken aback to see the man himself pictured in Sky Trax “studio” back in 1985. What took me by surprise was that I set up the interview and live set that he did and apart from my own VHS copy, thought it sunk without trace. It seems that “Rock Arena” rebroadcast the “Pat Sharp Show” session.
I’d set up a small Scottish tour for Roy and was looking to get as much publicity as possible. He was touring in Europe before hitting Scotland, so Sky Trax was perfect to promote him there and would certainly help me. Anyone I contacted in the BBC or ITV stations seemed to take fright at the mention of his name and his promo video for “Elizabeth” was deemed unplayable by most stations. That meant getting Roy in to do a live set.
Sky Trax studios were hidden away behind the Post Office Tower in London and he’s pictured in a loading bay, straight off the street. they weren’t used to live sessions and we were plagued by mains hum that no-one seemed able to eliminate. Happy days indeed! Here he is with “One Man Rock ‘n’ Roll Band”:
From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Saturday, 24th January):
Birth
1941. Neil Diamond born Noah Kaminsky in Brooklyn, New York.
On Stage
1969. Lonnie Donegan takes over from Judy Garland in the middle of her 5-week season at London’s Talk Of The Town. The Hollywood star is described as “resting” in her suite at the Ritz Hotel with a nurse in attendance. Yesterday, she had walked off stage after cigarette packets were thrown at her following her late arrival.
In Custody
1980. Paul McCartney has his first meeting with the British Consul since being detained by Japanese authorities on January 16th. The meeting with D.W.F. Warren-Knott lasted about 15 minutes. During that time, the 37 year old singer said he had no complaints about the way he was being treated.
In Court
1978. The case involving Rod Stewart’s tour band continues at Glasgow Sheriff Court. Two road managers with the group, Patrick Logue (27) and Malcolm Culmore (31), charged with possessing cannabis are found not guilty. Unfortunately, the tour secretary, 29 year old Doris Tyler, is found guilty of perverting the course of justice and is fined £ 130. Police giving evidence against her said that officers answering three different telephones heard her say, “It’s Doris. The drug squad are in the hotel. Ditch everything you’ve got”. Mrs. Tyler was unable to attend the court in person as she’s in Hollywood and unable to travel on health grounds.
On Television
1980. Top Of The Pops. (BBC-1, U.K.) Presented by Mike Read. Barbara Dickson; Boomtown Rats; Buggles; Dollar; Joe Jackson; Legs & Co / Bee Gees; Matchbox; Nolans; Pretenders; Regents; Sheila & B.Devotion; The Specials; Suzi Quatro. Here are the Regents with “7-Teen”.
Death
1970. James “Shep” Sheppard, leader of Shep And The Limelites, is found battered to death in his car on the Long Island Expressway.
Babble
For those of you who thought I’d gone AWOL the last few days, I do apologise. My New Year resolution to get the blog up in the wee small hours may seem to have been abandoned but that’s not really the case.
As you may know, I’m planning to publish a concise version of the Rockmine Almanac through Lulu next month. This has meant making sure it was up-to-date and working properly – which it wasn’t. So, come Monday morning, I decided to get things in order, going through each of my databases and rebuilding them line by line. Two hard-drive failures in the last year had seen me lose numerous source files. I’d tried everything from freezing them to dropping them but somehow, last weekend managed to rescue the last of what I thought was too important to lose.
This week, I’ve been totally focused on my TV database which had 13, 052 shows. That figure is now 19,176 and I still have probably another 5,000 shows on text files I need to check and rebuild. I’ve spent ages sifting through daily TV listings in various libraries and trawling through Rockmine’s vast store of music papers for something approaching a definitive listing of pop and rock on U.K. TV but those files are the most corrupted. As a result, it’s going to take some time to add those.
That said, I’m relatively happy. What I do have, even now, is a wonderful snap-shot of what we were watching across the years. Here’s what the database throws up (so far) for January 24th:
1958American Bandstand.(ABC,U.S.A.) Frankie Lyman and the Teenagers – “Goody-Goody”
1959.The Dick Clark Saturday Night Beechnut Show.(ABC,U.S.A.) Bill Parsons – “All-American Boy”; Joni James – “There Must Be a Way” & “Sorry for Myself”; The Wild Cats – “Gazachstahagen”
1961.American Bandstand.(ABC,U.S.A.) Johnny Burnette – “Little Boy Sad”
1964.Ready, Steady, Go! (Associated-Redifussion (ITV),U.K.) The Searchers – “Needles & Pins”; The Bachelors; Cloe; Susan Maughan; Tony Sheridan; Phil Spector
1964.The Mike Douglas Show. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) Louis Armstrong co-hosts and performs.
1965. The Ed Sullivan Show. (CBS, U.S.A.) The Animals – “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”
1966. Hullabaloo. (NBC, U.S.A.) Host: Dean Jones. Guests: The Bitter End Singers, Peter Nero, Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels, Bruce Scott
1966.Where The Action Is.(ABC,U.S.A.) Ben E. King: “Spanish Harlem; Dick and DeeDee: “The Mountain’s High; Paul Revere and the Raiders: “Searchin’”
1967.Where The Action Is.(ABC,U.S.A.) J.J. Jackson: “But It’s Alright” & “I Dig Girls; The Outsiders: “Time Won’t Let Me” & “Help Me Girl”.
1968. The Johnathan Winters Show. (CBS, U.S.A.) Guests include Nancy Sinatra – “Cryin’ Time”. The Young Saints – “Feelin’ Good”, “I Know a Place”.
1970.American Bandstand.(ABC,U.S.A.) Joe South – “Walk A Mile In My Shoes”; Biff Rose
1971.Omnibus (BBC-1, U.K.) Chicago Blues
1971.The Barbara McNair Show. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) Hagood Hardy performs, “Eli’s Coming” Barbara sings “Softly, as I Leave You.”
1971. The Ed Sullivan Show. (CBS, U.S.A.) Musical guests: B.J. Thomas, Nancy Ames
1973.The Mike Douglas Show. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) Mike’s guests are The Corneilus Brothers.
1974. Top Of The Pops. (BBC, U.K.) Presented by Jimmy Savile. Andy Williams – Solitaire (Repeat); Golden Earring – Radar Love; Harold Melvin & The Bluenotes – The Love I Lost (Disc); Lulu – The Man Who Sold The World; Medicine Head - Slip & Slide; Mud – Tiger Feet; Stevie Wonder – Living For The City (Disc); Suzi Quatro – Devil Gate Drive; The Stylistics – Rockin’ Roll Baby (Disc); The Sweet – Teenage Rampage.
1975. The Midnight Special (NBC, U.S.A.) Hosts: The Marshall Tucker Band. Guests: Charlie Daniels; Charlie Daniels Band; Olivia Newton-John; Poco
1975.The Mike Douglas Show. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) Guests include singer-songwriter Paul Williams – “Family of Man”, “You and Me Against the World”.
1976.Hee-Haw. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) Guests: Cal Smith, The Statler Brothers and LaWanda Lindsey.
1976. Saturday Night Live (NBC, U.S.A.) Neil Sedaka
1976.Soul Train. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) The Jackson Five
1978. Rockpalast. (WDR, West Germany) Alberto Y Lost Trios Paranoias (WDR Studio-L Köln)
1978.The Mike Douglas Show. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) Paul Anka co-hosts and sings “Nights on Broadway.”
1980. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (NBC, U.S.A.) Sarah Vaughan; Jim Stafford
1980. Top Of The Pops (BBC, U.K.) Presented by Mike Read. Barbara Dickson – Caravan Song; Boomtown Rats – Someones Looking At You; Buggles – The Plastic Age; Dollar – I Want To Hold Your Hand; Joe Jackson – Its Different For Girls (Repeat); Legs & Co / Bee Gees – Spirits Having Flown; Matchbox – Buzz-Buzz-A-Diddle It; Nolans – Im In The Mood For Dancing; Pretenders – Brass It Pocket (Repeat); Regents – 7 Teen; Sheila & B.Devotion – Spacer (Promo); The Specials – Too Much Too Young (Promo); Suzi Quatro – Mamas Boy.
1981.Hee-Haw. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) Bruce Jenner; Reba McEntire – “Up In Heaven”; T.G. Sheppard – “I Feel Like Loving You Again”.
1981. Rockpalast. (WDR, West Germany) Michael Schenker Group (Markthalle Hamburg)
1981. Saturday Night Live. (NBC, U.S.A.) Joe “King” Carrasco & The Crowns; 14 Karat Soul
1981.Soul Train. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) Bar-Kays; Yarbrough & Peoples; Robert Winters
1985. Top Of The Pops. (BBC, U.K.) Presented by Mike Smith, Steve Wright. Ashford & Simpson – Solid (Promo); Chaka Khan – This Is The Night; Foreigner – I Want To Know What Love Is (Promo); James Ingram – Yah Mo B There; King – Love & Pride; Strawberry Switchblade – Since Yesterday.
1987.American Bandstand.(ABC,U.S.A.) The Beastie Boys – “(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (to Party)!”
1987.Hee-Haw. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) John Schneider (co-host). Guests: Louise Mandrell; The New Grass Revival.
1987. Saturday Night Live. (NBC, U.S.A.) Debbie Harry
1990. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. (NBC, U.S.A.) Hoyt Axton
1991. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. (NBC, U.S.A.) Garth Brooks
1991Top Of The PopsBBCU.K.Presented by Simon Mayo. 2 In A Room – Wiggle It (Promo); A Tribe Called Quest – I Can Kick It (Promo); Off-Shore – I Cant Take The Power; Queen – Innuendo (Promo); Rick Astley – Cry For Help; Robert Palmer – Mercy Mercy Me-I Want You (Repeat); The Simpsons – Do The Bartman (Promo); Tongue N Cheek – Forget Me Nots.
1992. The Word. (Channel 4, U.K.) Musical guests: Boy George, Jah Wobble, Sinead O’Connor, Ride, Jagdeep.
1993. Taratata. (France 4, France) Recorded 21 janvier 1993. Solos: Véronique Sanson; Kezia Jones; Les Négresses Vertes; Jocelyne Beroard. Duos: Véronique Sanson & William Sheller; Véronique Sanson & Dany Brillant
1996. Late Show With David Letterman. (CBS, U.S.A.) Musical guest: Joe Ely
1997. Never Mind The Buzzcocks. (BBC-2, U.K.) Peter Hook, Ace, Clare Grogan, Alan Davies
1997.The Rosie O’Donnell Show. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) Guests include Tori Amos.
1997. Top Of The Pops (BBC, U.K.) Presented by Phil Daniels. Byron Stingily – Get Up (Everybody); En Vogue – Don’t Let Go (Love) (Promo); Ginuwine – Pony; Outhere Brothers – Let Me Hear You Say Ole’ Ole’; Reef – Come Back Brighter; Suede – Saturday Night; U2 (Disc);otheque (Promo); White Town – Your Woman (Promo).
1998.Soul Train. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) H-Town; Kimberly Scott; Mic Geronimo
2002. Last Call with Carson Daly. (NBC, U.S.A.) Guests include JaRule.
2002. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. (NBC, U.S.A.) Guests include Chuck Berry; Little Richard
2003. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. (NBC, U.S.A.) Guests include Sheryl Crow
2003. Top Of The Pops (BBC, U.K.) Presented by Richard Bacon. - Year 3000; Daniel Bedingfield – If You’re Not The One; David Sneddon – Stop Living The Lie; Feeder – Just The Way I’m Feeling; Jaimeson ft Angel Blu – TRUE; Libertines – Time For Heroes; Panjabi MC – Mundian To Bach KE; The Everly Brothers – Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots.
2004. Austin City Limits. (PBS, U.S.A.) Keith Urban followed by Rodney Crowell
2005. The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. (CBS, U.S.A.) Guests include: Population One
2006. Last Call with Carson Daly. (NBC, U.S.A.) Guests include The Constantines.
2006. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. (NBC, U.S.A.) Jamie Foxx performs “Unpredictable” from album Unpredictable
2007. Late Show With David Letterman. (CBS, U.S.A.) Rosanne Cash performing “Black Cadillac.”
2007. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. (NBC, U.S.A.) Branford Marsalis performs “Fate” from his CD Braggtown
2008. Late Show With David Letterman. (CBS, U.S.A.) Super Furry Animals perform “Neo-Consumerism.”
2008. Never Mind The Buzzcocks (BBC-2, U.K.) Sophie Ellis Bextor, Yannis, Tim Minchin, James Lance
2008.The Ellen DeGeneres Show. (Syndicated, U.S.A.) Guests include Natasha Bedingfield
2008. The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. (CBS, U.S.A.) Guests include: Ringo Starr
2008. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. (NBC, U.S.A.) Buckcherry performs from the CD “15″
Since Rockmine first opened as a web site back it 1995, it has been non-profit making and has not charged for its service.
Both the main site and this blog have suffered as I'm sometimes too busy trying to make money to pay bills like domain fees and hosting.
If you appreciate what I'm doing, please consider making a donation of any amount. It will be much appreciated and go towards funding domain fees and the like.
My current thinking is to list all donors on a permanent page here and in a tag cloud on Rockmine. Let me know what you think.
Posted by rockmine 
Posted by rockmine 
Posted by rockmine 
