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Boomerocity.com

 

Watch current interviews with music and entertainment icons and influencers of the baby boomer generation as well as rising stars in music.

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  • Home
  • Interviews
  • BUZZ!
  • News
  • New Releases
  • Concert Reviews
  • Contributors
    • Bob Gruen's Studio
    • Bob Heimall - Cover Stories
    • Jim Kroemer - Album Art
  • About
  • Contact Us
  • 2022.01 Boomerocity Buzz

     

    WKRP in Cincinnati”s ‘Dr. Johnny Fever’ Howard Hesseman Dead

    HowardHessman 31Jan2022

     

    SLASH To Perform On 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' This Wednesday (February 2nd)

    slashconspiratorsjuly2021 638

     

    Neil Young Couldn’t Remove His Music From Spotify On His Own. Here’s Why.

    Spotify CCO

     

    Steve Vai Postponed Tour Due to ‘Stupid’ Pizza-Making Injury

    attachment Steve Vai

     

    JIMI HENDRIX IN MAUI GETS GLOBAL THEATRICAL RELEASE IN FEBRUARY FROM ABRAMORAMA

    Hendrix Maui

     

    America’s Gerry Beckley recalls band’s “rocket ship” ride that began with debut album’s release 50 years ago

    M AmericaAmerica630 012622

     

    Flashback: Dan Peek’s Last Interview Exclusively On Boomerocity (Two Parts) Here and Here

     

    ‘IRL’ Concert Platform Fever Raises $227 Million in Goldman-Led Round, Touts Demand For ‘Thrilling and Well-Curated’ Events
    Fever, an eight-year-old “global live-entertainment discovery platform,” has officially raised $227 million in a funding round led by Goldman Sachs.

     

    Peter Robbins, Original Charlie Brown Voice Actor, Dead at 65

    charlie brown

     

    Van Morrison Postpones Florida Concerts From February To April Because of COVID Surge

    Van Morrison 26Jan2022

     

    Elvis Costello Inks ‘Exclusive’ Administration Deal With BMG as Catalog Sales Rush Continues

    binary comment

     

    What Happened To The Actors From “Dukes Of Hazzard?”

    dukes 735x413

     

    Flashbock 1: The 1st Boomerocity Interview With John Scheider

     

    Flashbock 2: The 2nd Boomerocity Interview With John Scheider

     

    World Premiere: Hear Bryan Adams’ Punchy New Song ‘Never Gonna Rain’

     

    Randy Travis “More Life” Documentary Sets Premier

     

    Following UMPG Publishing Deal, Bob Dylan Sells Recorded Catalog to Sony Music

     

    2022 State of Music: Is TikTok the New SoundCloud?

     

    VENTURES GUITARIST DON WILSON DEAD AT 88

    attachment wilson

     

    Daryl Hall Announces Spring 2022 U.S. Tour With Todd Rundgren

    attachment daryl hall todd rundgren

     

    Clapton Speaks: The Real Music Observer

     

    KISS’ PAUL STANLEY REFLECTS ON TURNING 70

    attachment paul stanley in front of kiss sign pointing at the camera

     

    A New ‘Guitar Hero’ Video Game Could Be Coming

    attachment guitar hero controller

     

    TikTok Testing Support for Paid Subscriptions to Creators

     

    Queen’s Brian May to Make His Acting Debut on British Children’s Show

    brian may queen 2019

     

    GRETA VAN FLEET's JAKE KISZKA Celebrates 61st Anniversary Of GIBSON's Iconic SG Guitar

    jakekiszkagibson2022 638

     

    World Premiere: Listen to Joe Satriani’s Groovy New Single ‘Sahara’

     

    Garth Brooks Reschedules Gillette Stadium Concert

    GarthBrooks 20Jan2022

     

    The Enduring Mystery of “Magic Alex”

    Magic Alex lennon mccartney alamy

     

    Chris Daughtry Confirms Stepdaughter’s Cause of Death

    Chris Daughtry2jpg

     

    Kenny Chesney sells music catalog to Hipgnosis Song Management

    Chesney 20Jan2022

     

    Sound Credit Unleashes Version 4 — A Quantum Leap for Eliminating $1.4 Billion In Annual Missing Royalties

     

    Marty Roberts of Iconic Los Angeles Lounge Act “Marty & Elayne” at The Dresden Dies at the Age of 89

    marty and elayne the dresden loz feliz marty roberts

     

    DAVID ELLEFSON And JEFF SCOTT SOTO Have 'Something Brewing'

    jeffscottsotodavidellefsonjan2022 638

     

    Who Are the Richest Musicians? Here’s a 2021 Year-End Ranking

    who are the richest musicians in 2021 article

     

    TwinsTheNewTrend Discover Michael Jackson’s Off The Wall ( Acapella with Backing Vocals Complete )

     

    John Mellencamp Likes the Effect Smoking Has Had on His Voice

    attachment mellencamp 18Jan2022

     

    Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi Mourns the Death of His Longtime Manager Ernest Chapman

    Iommi 18Jan2022

     

    Country Legend Dallas Frazier Dead, Writer of Oak Ridge Boys Hit ‘Elvira’ Was 82

    frazier

     

    World Premiere: “Big Dreams and Faded Jeans” - Now Streaming - Listen to the first track off the companion album to Dolly’s
    upcoming novel co-authored with James Patterson

     

    Boomerocity Coulda Told You This: What Year is It? Nearly a Third of the iTunes Top 100 Taken By Oldies, New Releases Not Catching On

    Creedence Clearwater Revival

     

    55 Years Ago: Hippies ‘Turn on, Tune in, Drop out’ at Human Be-In

    HumanBeIn

     

    World Premiere: New Alex Lifeson Project “Envy Of None” Releases First Single

     

    ROGER TAYLOR DEFENDS ‘BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY’ TIMELINE CHANGE

    attachment taylor

     

    A 1964 Porsche 904 GTS Once Owned by Robert Redford Could Fetch $1.7 Million at Auction
    The gorgeous racer is one of the just 100 road-legal examples ever made

    redford904gts

     

    PIMCO, ONE OF THE WORLD’S BIGGEST INVESTMENT FIRMS, TURNS ITS ATTENTION TO MUSIC RIGHTS

     

    Primary Wave Acquires Stake in America’s (the group) Catalog, ‘Certain Name and Likeness Rights’

    America Main

     

    50 ALBUMS TURNING 50 IN 2022

    attachment 1972 collage

     

    World Premiere: JETHRO TULL Releases Video For Title Track Of First Album In Over 18 Years, 'The Zealot Gene'

     

    Elvis Costello Says He Won’t Perform “Oliver’s Army” Anymore, Tells Radio Stations Not to Play It
    The song contains the line "One more widow, one less white n*****"

    elvis costello wont play olivers army

     

    Releasing Music Is Easy, Marketing Music Is Hard. Here’s How Chartmetric Is Leveraging Data to Make Marketing a Lot Easier

     

    Bob Dylan Fires Back Against Sexual Assault Allegations: ‘A Brazen Shakedown Masquerading As a Lawsuit’

     

    Nita Strauss Makes History as First Active Rock Solo Female Chart-Topper

    attachment attachment nita strauss 2021 1

     

    Calvin Simon, Former Singer for Parliament-Funkadelic, Dead at 79

    calvinsimon

     

    World Premiere: See Previously Unreleased Footage of Rolling Stones at Altamont

    attachment Stones Altamont

     

    Sidney Poitier, Beloved Legend And First Black Best Actor Oscar Winner, Dead At 94

    sidney 4

     

    Catalog Releases Now Account for 75% of U.S. Music Consumption — With 89% of Baby Boomers Streaming Songs

    2021 Report Main

     

    Bon Jovi Announce Spring 2022 North American Tour

    Jon Bon Jovi1

     

    World Premiere: Hear Edgar Winter Cover ‘Johnny B. Goode’ Featuring Joe Walsh

     

    Watch The Beatles’ Rooftop Gig in IMAX Theaters on 1/30 as a Special One-Night-Only Engagement

    the beatles get back imax

     

    Fender CEO Andy Mooney “Not Optimistic” That Guitar And Amp Supply Chain Struggles Will Improve Any Time Soon

    fender supply chain

     

    British Recorded Music Industry Eeks a Modest 2021 Gain as 1,918 Artists Surpass 10 Million Domestic Streams

     

    With Get Back, Paul McCartney Became the Most Interesting TV Character of 2021

    Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, and George Harrison in THE BEATLES: GET BACK. Photo courtesy of Apple Corps Ltd.

     

    World Premiere: Chuck Berry Live from Blueberry Hill

     

    Cruise Control? The Iconic Porsche 928 From ‘Risky Business’ Can Now Be Yours
    Cruise like Cruise himself in this legendary vehicle-- which was also the star of its own documentary

    Porsche Risky Business4

     

    Spotify CEO Daniel Ek Officially Responds to Neil Young’s Pullout — Here’s His Complete Statement

    Daniel Ek750400

     

    Joni Mitchell Wants Songs Off Spotify In Covid Row

    Joni Mitchell 31Jan2022

     

    Keith Moon Biopic to Start Shooting in Summer

    KeithMoon 31Jan2022

     

    Wayne's World AMC Pacer 'Mirthmobile' Auctioned for Record Amount

    amcpacer

     

    THE BEATLES AND INDIA - DOCUMENTARY TO STREAM EXCLUSIVELY ON BRITBOX IN NORTH AMERICA STARTING FEBRUARY 15, 2022 ~ SILVA SCREEN RECORDS RELEASES COMPANION ALBUM THE BEATLES AND INDIA: SONGS INSPIRED BY THE FILM

    BeatlesandIndia

     

    Young Slash Wouldn’t Have Believed Guns N’ Roses’ Pandemic Tour

    Slash 27Jan2022

     

    The Zombies add North American summer leg to Life Is a Merry-Go-Round Tour

    the zombies 2022 tour

     

    Home of the Week: Inside the Spectacular $85 Million Beverly Hills Mansion That ‘Full House’ Built

    Cielo2

     

    Julian Lennon Is Selling The Beatles Memorabilia As NFTs

    john lennon 01

     

    Brian May Helps Reunite 8-Year-Old Boy With Lost Guitar

    Brian May 25Jan2022

     

    Elton John Postpones Dallas Shows Of Restarted Tour After Testing Positive For Covid

    elton john dallas 25Jan2022

     

    Neil Young Demands Spotify Remove His Music Over ‘False Information About Vaccines’
    “They can have [Joe] Rogan or Young,” Neil Young wrote in a letter to his manager and label. “Not both”

    neil young pulls music from spotify

     

    Is Old Music Killing New Music?
    Old songs now represent 70 percent of the U.S. music market. Even worse: The new-music market is actually shrinking

     

    Find Your Lane as a Musician. Ignore Everything Else.

     

    Meat Loaf’s Daughter Pens Touching Tributes To Late Singer

    meatloaf daughter 02

     

    Adele Cancels Entire Las Vegas Residency Due to COVID

    adele cancels las vegas residency article

     

    Graham Nash Condemns Anti-Vaxxer For Co-opting His Song ‘Chicago’

    attachment nash

     

    Ozzy Osbourne’s CryptoBatz Project Shares Scam Link — Thousands Stolen From Unsuspecting Fans

    ozzy crypto batz scam article

     

    Meat Loaf, Rock Legend and ‘Bat Out of Hell’ Singer, Dead at 74

    meat loaf dead 09

     

    World Premiere: Dee Snider Covers ‘Theme for an Imaginary Western’ for Upcoming Leslie West Tribute Album

     

    Indie Venues Face a Surging Concert No-Show Rate — 50% of Ticketholders Are Staying Home

     

    Steve Vai Postpones 2022 Tour from January to September; Needs Surgical Procedure

    steve vai tour 2022 crop

     

    Jimi Hendrix Experience Estates in Dispute Over Royalties

    Jimi Hendrix Experience

     

    Rocky Dijon: The Spicy Percussion Master

    sticky fingers cover

     

    Ozzy Osbourne Bit the Head Off a Live Bat 40 Years Ago Today
    He’ll never live down the infamous moment, even though the whole thing was a complete accident

    ozzy osbourne 20Jan2022

     

    Catalog Appraiser Massarsky Consulting Sells to Citrin Cooperman as Music IP Sales Rush Continues

     

    ‘Payola Is Illegal’: Lawsuit Revives Pay-for-Play Accusations in Radio Industry
    Independent radio promoter Steve Zap made more than 130 payments totaling over $300,000 to help cover bills for a West Coast radio company, according to court docs

     

    Peloton’s New David Bowie Workouts Include Exclusive Remixes

    david bowie peloton

     

    U2’s Bono Feels “Embarrassed” Hearing His Voice On The Radio

    Bono 19Jan2022

     

    Recording Academy Reschedules the 2022 Grammys For April, Moves Ceremony to Las Vegas

    when are the grammys article

     

    Microsoft Buys Activision in $69 Billion Deal – Will It Revive Guitar Hero?

    microsoft activision who owns guitar hero article

     

    Digital Burnout Fears: ‘It’s a lot we’re asking of artists’

     

    Jewel-Box Heroes: Why the CD Revival Is Finally Here
    Compact discs never had the romance of vinyl or the convenience of MP3s. But they’re still the ideal format for getting lost inside your music collection

     

    World Premiere: Loverboy’s New Song, “Release”

     

    25 Years Ago: John Deacon Plays His Final Queen Show

    attachment John Deacon Brian May Queen

     

    Fred Parris Dies: Singer On ‘In The Still Of The Night’ By The Five Satins Was 85

    Fred Parris

     

    World Premiere: ROLLING STONES UNRELEASED: ‘LOW DOWN’ (alt. version, Keith on vocals, 1997)

     

    MLK Day Finally Arrives As Paid Day Off For Most Hollywood Workers

    Martin Luther King Jr D.C. 1963

     

    40 Years Ago: A Rejected Babys Song Becomes Journey’s Signature Ballad

     

    World Premiere: Slash ft. Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators ‘Call Off the Dogs’ on Red-Hot New Song

     

    How Ronnie Spector Helped Eddie Money Score His Biggest Hit

    attachment ronnie spector eddie money

     

    ROUND HILL MUSIC BUYS CATALOG FROM WHITE SNAKE’S DAVID COVERDALE, STRIKES DEAL WITH NANCY WILSON FROM HEART

    David Coverdale 1 e1642166241596 418x236

     

    He Used Plastic Surgery to Raise Rock Stars From the Dead - Decades before hologram tours, one rogue '70s promoter found another way to put Elvis, Janis, Jim Morrison, and other late icons back onstage

    PlasticSurgeon 14Jan2022

     

    Keith Richards, Paul McCartney, Joni Mitchell Items for Auction

    attachment richards

     

    Ronnie Spector, Rock Icon Behind ‘Be My Baby’ and Ex of Phil Spector, Dead At 78

    ronnie spector

     

    DAVID LEE ROTH Addresses COVID-Related Cancelations In Latest Artwork

    davidleerothmay2021 638

     

    Burke Shelley, Singer and Bassist for Budgie, Dead at 71

    attachment Burke Budgie

     

    World Premiere: Saxon Unmasks New Single, “Remember The Fallen”, From Their Upcoming Album, “Carpe Diem”

     

    Woodstock Organizer Michael Lang Dies At 77

    attachment michael lang woodstock death

     

    World Mourns Death Of Comedy Icon Bob Saget: “Wasn’t A Kinder Person In Hollywood”

    bobsagetdeath

     

    Elton John Guitarist Davey Johnstone Says Elton’s Upcoming Shows Will Feature A Moment “You Wouldn’t Expect”

    DaveyJohnstone 10Jan2022

     

    Google Infringed On Multiple Sonos Patents, U.S. International Trade Commission Rules

     

    Peter Bogdanovich Dies: 'The Last Picture Show', 'Paper Moon' & 'What's Up, Doc?' Director Was 82

    Peter Bogdanovich dies

     

    Lollapalooza Co-Founder Ted Gardner Has Passed Away – Aged 74

    ted gardner lollapalooza founder passes article

     

    The Eagles Announce 2022 Hotel California Extended Tour Dates

    eagles tour additions 07jan2022

     

    TwinsTheNewTrend Discover Chuck Berry's 'Johnny B. Goode'

     

    Live Nation and Ticketmaster Face Class-Action Antitrust Lawsuit Over ‘Blatant, Anti-Consumer Behavior’

     

    Country Songwriter Tom T. Hall’s Death Ruled a Suicide
    The Country Music Hall of Fame member known for songs like “Harper Valley PTA” and “Homecoming” died last summer

    tomthall suicide

     

    David Bowie Estate Sells Icon’s Catalog to Warner Chappell for $250M

    david bowie press 2015

     

    Take A Peek Inside: Adele Gets a ‘Steal’ on Sylvester Stallone’s Beverly Park Mansion

    adele house

     

    The Nirvana ‘Nevermind’ Album Cover Lawsuit Has Been Dismissed By a Judge

    nirvana nevermind crop

     

    DEEN CASTRONOVO's Absence From JOURNEY's New Year's Eve Performance Explained

    deencastronovonov 03jan2022

     

    Steve McQueen’s Beloved Husqvarna Viking 360 Motorcycle Is Heading to Auction
    It's widely considered one of the most important Huskies of the 20th century

    McQueen Viking 360 10

     

     

    Hargus ‘Pig’ Robbins, Legendary Keyboardist Who Played on Albums by Bob Dylan, Dolly Parton, Dead at 84
    Blind after an accident at age 3, Robbins learned to play piano with a distinct sense of feel, which made him a go-to Nashville session musician

    HargusPigRobbins

     

    World Premiere: Listen to Jimi Hendrix Jam Two Days Before His Death

     

    Joe Rogan Officially Responds to Neil Young’s Spotify Pullout — Here’s His Complete Statement

    rogan spotify statement 1200

     

    Burt Reynolds’s Iconic ‘77 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Is Heading to Auction
    The retro gem will be offered without reserve at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale auction this weekend

    BurtReynolds Pontiac

     

    SiriusXM Relaunches ‘Neil Young Radio’ Following Spotify Takedown

    Neil Young taunts Trump

     

    Beatles’ Full Rooftop Concert Headed to Streaming Services

    attachment beatles rooftop concert

     

    Not To Be: Spotify to Remove Neil Young’s Music Following Ultimatum: ‘We Regret Neil’s Decision’

    neil young spotify 27Jan2022

     

    Lefsetz Says: “Spotify is at the bleeding edge of the civil war.”

     

    Sammy Hagar Teams up With George Thorogood for Summer 2022 Tour

    Haggar Thorogood Tour

     

    To Be or Not To Be: Neil Young Reportedly Fights Spotify Over Rogan and COVID
    In a now-deleted letter, the rocker demanded Spotify pull his music from its platform unless they removed Joe Rogan's podcast, which has spread COVID misinformation

    Neil Young 26Jan2022

     

    Reservoir Acquires Publishing & Recorded Music Catalog of Country Star Travis Tritt

    reservoir travis tritt catalog deal article

     

    Kid Rock Recruits Foreigner and Grand Funk Railroad for U.S. Tour

    attachment kid rock foreigner grand funk railroad tour1

     

    Keith Richards Announces Reissue of ‘Main Offender’ Solo LP

    attachment Keith Richards Box Set

     

    Clapton Speaks, Part 2: The Real Music Observer

     

    The Music Industry Saved Songwriter Hugh Prestwood From Homelessness.

    Is It Also Responsible for His Plight?
    Prestwood wrote hits for Randy Travis and Trisha Yearwood in the Nineties, but at 79 he was forced to launch a GoFundMe campaign when he and his wife could no longer afford rent

    Hugh Prestonwood 25Jan2022

     

    Flashback: The Boomerocity Interview With Pearl Aday

    PearlAday

     

    World Premiere: Listen to Foo Fighters’ New ‘Fraggle Rock’ Theme Song

     

    The Temptations At 60: Still On Cloud 9

    temptations wiki

     

    Quite A . . . Heady Appetite: Ozzy Osbourne Bit a Third Dove’s Head Off on Same Day

    ozzy 3rd dove head

     

    Playboy Bunnies Blast ‘Predator’ Hiugh Hefner’s Bestiality, ‘Cult’ Sex and Worse

    hugh hefner 2

     

    Louie Anderson Dies: Comedian & Emmy Winner Was 68

    louie anderson

     

    John Mellencamp’s New Album, ‘Strictly a One-Eyed Jack,’ Arrives Featuring Three Springsteen Collabs

     

    Bet It Hurt His D String: Man Steals $8,000 Guitar by Stuffing It Down His Pants

    stolen guitar

     

    The New Boomerocity Interview With Steve Vai

    Inviolate final

     

    Elton John Resumes Yellow Brick Road Tour: Set List and Photos

    EltonJohn 20Jan2022

     

    The Funny Way Van Halen, Blackmore and Gary Moore First Met Each Other

    Eddie Van Halen 3

     

    Brittany Aldean Helps a Woman in El Salvador Keep Her House With a $10,000 Gift

    attachment BrittanyAldean1

     

    An Italian Castle That Starred in One of the ‘Godfather’ Movies Just Listed for $6.8 Million
    Make an offer that the owner can't refuse

    ItalySothebysRealtyAcireale3

     

    Neil Young & Crazy Horse ‘Barn’ Documentary Coming To YouTube
    The 73-minute film provides a behind-the-scenes look at the legendary band recording their latest studio album

     

    STAIND's AARON LEWIS Passes Kidney Stone Less Than Week After Having His Appendix Removed

    aaronlewisappendnew 638

     

    Daniel Radcliffe Cast as ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic in Upcoming Biopic

    attachment weird al

     

    Rosa Lee Hawkins, Singer of The Dixie Cups, Dies at 76
    The New Orleans girl group's "Chapel of Love" hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1964

     

    Elvis Costello Thinks Rock Has Lost Its ‘Roll’

    costello1

     

    Prince Estate Valued at $156.4 Million In Settlement of Years-Long IRS Dispute

    prince estate undervalued irs article

     

    Following KKR Catalog Agreement, BMG Partners With Pimco to Buy Additional Music IP

     

    Ralph Emery Dies: Country Music DJ & TV Host Was 88

    Emery Ralph

     

    World Premiere: HEART's ANN WILSON Releases Music Video For Her Cover Version Of ALICE IN CHAINS' 'Rooster'

     

    Joe Walsh to Guest on ‘The Conners’ This Week

    attachment walsh

     

    Flashback: TwinsTheNewTrend Discover Journey’s “Open Arms” (& Talks About Perry’s Tight Jeans)

     

    Jimmy Buffett to Make a Guest Appearance on ‘Blue Bloods’

    attachment jimmy buffett blue blodds

     

    MELISSA ETHERIDGE ANNOUNCES ‘HEARTSTRINGS’ GRAPHIC NOVEL

    attachment Etheridge cover

     

    SIRIUSXM ACQUIRES MUSIC FOR BUSINESS SERVICE CLOUD COVER MEDIA

    sxm 14jan2022

     

    World Premiere: STEVE VAI Releases Visualizer For New Song 'Zeus In Chains'

     

    Music Industry Is ‘Criminal Enterprise’ Says Jay Jay French

    attachment french

     

     

    MAMMOTH WVH And DIRTY HONEY Postpone Launch Of 'Young Guns' Tour

    wolfgangdirtyhoney 638

     

    The Rolling Stones Are Getting Their Own Stamps Courtesy of the U.K.’s Royal Mail

    rolling stones stamps

     

    American Radio Stations Weigh Conditional Settlement Offer From Irving Azoff’s Global Music Rights

     

    World Premiere: Elvis Costello & The Imposters Say Goodbye With New Single, “Farewell, OK”

     

    COVID-Sniffing Dogs Are Keeping Concerts on Track In 2022

    covid sniffing dogs concerts article

     

    Dwayne Hickman Dies: ‘The Many Loves Of Dobie Gillis’ Star Was 87

    DwayneHickman300 e1641751326914

     

    Dick Carson Dies: Director Of ‘The Tonight Show’ And Brother Of Johnny Was 92

    Dick Carson Obituary

     

    China Prohibits All Music Platforms From Inking Exclusive Copyright Deals Following Tencent Music Crackdown

     

    Warner Records CEO Aaron Bay-Schuck, Gene Simmons, Daniel Glass, Others Protest Artist Boycott of Sydney Festival

     

    Hollywood Remembers “Champion Of Cinema” Peter Bogdanovich: Francis Ford Coppola, Jeff Bridges, Barbra Streisand & More Weigh In

     

    The Grammys Are Officially Postponed Due to Omicron — Recording Academy Releases Statement

    grammy awards postponed article

     

    Blues Legend Walter Trout Postpones UK/EU Tour

    walter trout tour cancellation 07jan2022

     

    Valerie Bertinelli Reveals Eddie Van Halen’s Final Words

    EVH Valerie Jan072022

     

    Right on Cue, SiriusXM Launches a Dedicated David Bowie Channel

    sirius xm launches dedicated david bowie channel article

     

    Paul McCartney: The “Unknown Beatle”

    paul mccartney unknown

     

    PRS Confirms Launch Date, Specs of John Mayer Signature SE Silver Sky

    PRS Mayer Sig Guitar

     

    TwinsTheNewTrend Discover Otis Redding's 'Try A Little Tenderness'

     

    Beatles Film Producer Denis O’Dell Dead at 98

    attachment BeatlesMovies

     

    GENE SIMMONS's New Year's Resolutions: 'I'd Like To Be A Better, Kinder, Better-Looking And Richer Guy'

    genesimmonsinvictussept2018 638

     

    Paul McCartney Tells Why Good Things Always Happen After Bad Moments

    Paul McCartney 03jan2022

     

  • Billy Vera Discusses His Career and Little Richard


    Posted June, 2015

    BillyVeraw Grammy croppedThe name, Billy Vera, may or may not ring a bell with you but you most certainly have heard his music, depending on when you became an avid listener.

    If you were glued to the radio in the sixties, you might be familiar with the he wrote “Storybook Children” and “Country Girl, City Man” that he recorded with Judy Clay and later covered by Nancy Sinatra. In the same era, he had a solo hit entitled, “With Pen In Hand”.

    He’s arguably most known for his huge hit, “At This Moment”, made famous on a couple of episodes of the hit TV show in the eighties, “Family Ties” and, more recently, enjoyed a resurgence in popularity when Canadian crooner, Michael Buble’, recorded it both in the studio and live.

    Still is admired by his fans and peers, alik, his songs have been recorded by such singers as Lou Rawls, Bonnie Raitt, Dolly Parton, Etta James, Fats Domino, Tom Jones, George Benson, and Robert Plant.

    Okay, let’s say (just for kicks and grins) that you already knew all that stuff. Did you know that Billy Vera is also a rock music historian?

    I didn’t, either. 

    Vera has lent his historical prowess to writing annotations for some very important commemorative albums and box sets, most recently being the extensive 3 CD box set of Little Richard’s most prolific work entitled, “Directly From{mprestriction ids="*"} My Heart: The Best of the Specialty & Vee-Jay Years”.

    When I received my review copy of the Little Richard box set, I also was given the golden opportunity to chat with Billy Vera – both about the box set as well as about his own career. I couldn’t pass up that chance.

    We started off with Billy sharing a brief background as to how he got involved with this project.

    “Some years ago, I was working for Specialty Records - the label that Richard recorded for. In fact, I did the first Little directlyfrommyheartcovercopyRichard box set back in 1989. Then I did a couple more single Little Richard Cds for Specialty. I produced and compiled them. I had written the notes for Concord’s Ray Charles box set - the complete ABC Paramount Singles and won a Grammy for that. I guess they came to the same well. I’m hoping for another Grammy. Ha! Ha!”

    When asked if he knew Little Richard, Vera said:

    “I met him years ago. When he got his star on Hollywood Boulevard, I was there representing Specialty Records. I think that was 1989 or ’90. The remarkable thing was that I was the only rock and roller who showed up. All the people that Little Richard influenced and all the fans that became musicians, I was the only one that was there!

    “I understood it. Guys are working. They’ve got their own jobs, their own gigs they’re playing or they’re on the road or whatever they’re doing.”

    I asked Vera what gems and surprises would he point people to in this box set and, in his mind, what is THE compelling reason to pick up this set.

    “It’s fairly complete so there’s not a lot of surprises. You’ve got all the hits from his Specialty years; from ‘Tutti Frutti’ right on through ‘Long, Tall Sally’ and ‘Good Golly Miss Molly’ and ‘Lucille’. They’re all there on CD One and CD Two. Then, on CD Three they put the best of his Vee Jay recordings from the early sixties - which his last, big chart hit was on Vee Jay, which was, “I Don’t What You Got But It’s Got Me”. That’s when Jimi Hendrix was in the band. A song written by Don Covay who had worked for Richard both as his chauffeur and as an opening act under the name, ‘Pretty Boy’. In fact, Don Covay recorded on Atlantic with The Upsetters, Richard’s band, as Pretty Boy; a song called, ‘Bip Bop Bip’. Ha! Ha! A very rare recording.”

    Circling back around to closing out his answer to my question, Billy concluded: 

    “It’s got all this stuff on the set that’s Specialty and some lesser known items - some of the early things he did for Specialty and more obscure items, as well. It’s a pretty good compilation, I would think!”

    When he boil it all down to Little Richard’s true core, as an historian as well as a fan, Billy describes him this way:

    “I was onto Little Richard early. I was eleven when I bought ‘Tutti Frutti’. The first hit. I heard it on the Alan Freed Show. I was hooked. I loved those horns. I guess that people who came to rock and roll late, they think of it as a guitar based medium. But, for me, between Richard, Fats Domino and so many of those records with those great saxophone players. To me, it’s always been about the saxophone and Richard had those four sax’s honking away, man! 

    BillyVera001“My mother took me to see, ‘The Girl Can’t Help It’ at the Roxy Theater in Manhattan, which is no longer there. A huge theater the size of Radio City Music Hall. It was a five thousand seater. We were up there. CinemaScope and TechniColor and there’s Little Richard, man, banging away on that piano with those saxophone players dancing and doing choreography. He puts his leg up on the piano and Jayne Mansfield walks by, shakin’ that thing. To me, that was the iconic visual of rock and roll.”

    And what does he think is the least known or underappreciated thing is about Little Richard?

    “Well, that’s two different items: least known and under appreciated. How many people know that when he got started, he was working a lot of frat houses in the south? In addition to the usual black theaters and black night clubs, he also had gigs playing for drunken college boys. Part of his act was, he would lift the tables and chairs with his teeth. I never saw him do that but I did see another guy do that out here in L.A. 

    “When I first moved here, I used to go to this club that had this good New Orleans band - Eddie Zip. In the middle Eddie Zip’s act, they would bring out a guy called, ‘Iron Jaws Wilson’. Iron Jaws would sing a blues or two and then, for the finale of his little fifteen minute act, he would pick up a chair with his teeth. Then, he would hook another chair onto that chair. The next thing you know, he had five chairs in his teeth! I couldn’t see how a human being could do that! Then I found out some time later that Little Richard did that in his act. 

    “You know, drunken college boys like strange things and Richard would often play in drag. He would do ‘dirty’ songs. If you’ve ever played a frat house party, they want dirty songs. In fact, ‘Tutti Frutti’ was a song that he did for those parties with different lyrics. He called it, ‘Tutti Frutti Good Booty’. Actually, that’s what excited the producer, Bumps Blackwell, into thinking that he knew that he had a hit. They had recorded in the morning, their first session in New Orleans. It was pretty disappointing. It was just run of the mill R&B. Nothing special. Bumps was afraid for his job. He said, ‘When I play what we did this morning for Art Rupe, he’s going to be mad at me and think that I wasted his money.’ 

    ‘So, they take a lunch break and go to the Dew Drop Inn. Richard was always a big ham - an attention whore. He jumps up on the piano and starts singing and entertaining people. He starts sing this dirty song, ‘Tutti Frutti Good Booty’. There was a spark to it that wasn’t in the songs that they had recorded in the morning. Bumps said, ‘Man! If I could get a clean lyric for this, something that they could play on the radio, maybe we could have a hit!’

    “He spotted a local New Orleans songwriter named Dorothy LaBosterie over there having a sandwich or some soup or whatever she was eating for lunch. He goes over to Dorothy and says, ‘Do you think you could clean up the lyric to that?’  She said, ‘Yeah, give me about ten minutes and I’ll knock something out.’ She did and they went back into the studio for the afternoon session and they recorded it. Bumps was happy. He knew his job was secure and, of course, that was one of the iconic songs of rock and roll. From the first moment when he says, ‘Wop bop a loo bop a lop bam boom!’, you knew something new was happening.

    “You put that, you put ‘Maybelene’, you put ‘Blue Suede Shoes’, and, also, the Do Wop groups - all that was rock and roll. It wouldn’t be rock and roll without any of them. But, certainly, Richard was one of the triumvirate of mad me. I include him, Chuck and Jerry Lee. All psychotics and all great. I often wondered if there’s a connection. Do you have to be that nuts to be that great? That’s probably a question that will probably go unanswered forever.”

    As we discussed Jerry Lee Lewis, Billy shared this little tidbit:

    “I sang on one of Jerry Lee’s records. Steve Cropper was producing him in 1973. I had flown in because Cropper was going BillyVera002to record me. I had somebody to bring me over to the studio and there he was. He was recording The Killer. He said, ‘You know, this song could use a little harmony with Jerry Lee. Wanna sing it?’ I said, ‘Sure!’ The song is called ‘Jack Daniels Old No. 7’ 

    “Jerry Lee was playing the piano and on that piano he had a quart - not a fifth ,not a pint, a quart - of bourbon and the more he drank, the faster he played. He was out of his mind, man, but it was a great thrill to sing a song with The Killer!”

    In answering my question as to how Lewis was to work with, Vera said:

    “He was just ‘there,’ you know? He’s the kind of guy that he seemed like he was spaced; like he was in his own world. On one hand, when you meet him, he will shake your hand and really hard, like it’s a test and he’ll look you right in the eye like he’s testing you. So you know he knows you’re there. Yet, there’s something about him that he’s almost unaware of anything going on around him. It’s hard to explain. But, yeah, he’s nuts! Richard is nuts. Chuck Berry is . . . NUTS! 

    “I worked with Chuck more than any of them. I worked with him when he was a $1,300 a night act. I worked with him when he was a $15,000 a night act. I worked with him when he was a $50,000 a night act. Many times. The man is whacked! 

    “The only one of the big ones I think is sane - at least he’s calm; he may be quietly insane - is Fats. I always thought because he’s not crazy like the others, that he gets short shrift. Fats had more hits than all of them put together. The first time I ever walked into a record store with three dollars, one of the three records I bought was ‘Blueberry Hill”. So I love me some Fats!

    “He cut one of my songs when he made his comeback album on Reprise so that was a big thrill. Then, to meet him was a big thrill, as well.”

    In a ranking of rock and roll icons, where in the hierarchy is Little Richard’s place?

    “I think that he’s right up there in the top tier. Certainly with Chuck and Fats and Jerry Lee, you know? Elvis, of course, is off to the side on his own. He’s one of a kind. He’s THE man. Nobody equals Elvis because he had more going for him than the others. He was as handsome as a Greek god so he had that sex thing going with the girls.  

    “Then, there was those who were important, regionally. I grew up in New York. You ask any singer of my age group that grew up in New York and Frankie Lymon is right there as a major, major influence . . . even though we didn’t have a high, little voice that he had. He was like a little god to all of us but, yet, you go to Memphis - ‘Frankie who?”.  

    “I guess I”m neglecting Buddy Holly but Buddy, I think, was a different animal because of the songwriting and, also, how short his career was. Of course, in New York, Dion is another icon but underrated compared to the Richard’s and the Fats’s and the Chuck’s.”

    Obviously, most casual music listeners will know you from your hits, “At This Moment” and “I Can Take Care Of Myself.” You certainly haven’t been sitting still since those hits. What have you been up to since then? I understand that you’ve done some significant acting, voiceover work, producing and, if I’m not mistaken, you’re still a prolific songwriter, no?

    BillyVeraw Grammy cropped“I don’t write so much any more. But I also had some hits in the sixties, both as a writer and as a singer. I was on Atlantic Records with a girl named Judy Clay. We had two hits, ‘Storybook Children’ and ‘Country Girl, City Man”. And, then, I had a solo hit on Atlantic called, ‘With Pen In Hand”. Then the seventies came along and I couldn’t get arrested. Everything changed so radically at that point. We played the Apollo Theater a few times. I was the white guy in all these black venues. 

    “Then, things kinda changed. All the white guys were trying to be like the black guys. That changed with the advent of the Beatles and the Stones and the British acts. Everybody wanted to be British except those of us who had wanted to be black. Then we said, “well, what do we do now?” and I just couldn’t figure it out. I couldn’t figure where to fit in. I couldn’t go be a heavy metal guy. I couldn’t be a disco guy. I couldn’t be a wimpy singer/songwriter. So I just didn’t know what to do in the seventies. I just did survival gigs. 

    “Then, in ’79, Dolly Parton recorded a song of mine called, ‘I Really Got The Feeling”. That went to number one on the country charts. Then I was back in show business, so to speak.’ That’s when I moved out to L.A. I ran into my old bass player who had moved out here a couple of years earlier and he said, ‘why don’t we start a band? We could meet some girls or something.’ That’s why we started the Beaters. 

    “Eventually, we became the hottest band in town because nobody was doing what we were doing. There was this band that was called The Knack that had a really great record called, ‘My Sharona’. So all the record labels were trying to sign acts like The Knack. Four guys, two guitars, bass and drums. Here we were, ten guys, fours saxophones, rhythm section, and a steel guitar. The people liked us but the record companies were afraid of us because they’re so short sighted. They only sign things that sound like what’s already on the charts. 

    “So it took us a year of sold out Monday nights at midnight at the Troubadour. I’d see all of these A&R guys out there in the audience, snapping their fingers after they’d hit all of the other clubs looking for who to sign. They’d come and have fun with us but they never reached for their wallets or their checkbooks! It wasn’t until after all of those sound alike flopped that they started looking for something different. Then we were as different as it gets. We had, like, three offers in one week after not getting any offers in over a year. 

    “We chose this company from Japan - Alpha Records - because I figured we’d get a better shot with them than we would with the major labels. We had, ‘I Can Take Care Of Myself’ and ‘At This Moment’ was the follow up. Their head of promotion had a fight with the boss and quit so we had nobody to promote ‘At This Moment’. The Japanese pulled the plug on the American operation. Soon, the company was out of business and we were without a record deal for another five years. 

    “I was making a living doing acting gigs which is unusual in Hollywood. Most actors don’t make a living at it. One day, I get a phone call from this guy. He goes, ‘my name is Michael Whitehorn. I produce and write for a show called, ‘Family Ties’. We were at the club the other night and we saw you sing a song that we think might be right for an episode we have coming up. I said, ‘what’s the name of it?’ He said, ‘I don’t know.’ I figured it had to be ‘At This Moment’ because nobody ever gets the name of it right. 

    “I hum him a few bars and he said, ‘Yeah! That’s the one!’ I said, ‘well, call my publisher and we’ll license the song to the show. That would be great!’ I’d had songs on television shows before. You make a few bucks and that’s the end of it. But this time was a little different. I got mail. NBC sent me a bag full of mail ‘Who’s the singer?’ ‘What’s the name of that song?’ ‘Where can we get it?’

    “I said, ‘Wow! People really like this song. Maybe I can get a record company to let me record it again.’ Nobody was interested. Yeah, nobody.

    “I was having lunch one day. Richard Foos - the guy that ran Rhino Records; owned it - he and I would have a periodic lunch. We’d have mock arguments over whose version of ‘Mustang Sally’ was the best one. So, I mentioned at lunch, ‘you know, Richard, this is what happened. How many records do you need to sell to break even?’ He said, ‘oh, we have low overhead here at Rhino. I could break even on about two thousand albums. I said, ‘what if I guaranteed you two thousand. I could sell them in the clubs, if necessary. I had my lawyer help him license the songs from Alpha. I compiled an album of from the songs I did for Alpha that the fans liked best, including ‘At This Moment’. They put out a single of it, too.

    “Rhino never put out singles. They certainly didn’t know anything about payola or getting records on the radio. By the time we got the album out, we missed the reruns of ‘Family Ties’. 

    “So, as luck would have it, they used the song again in the following season - in September in an episode when a girl breaks up with Michael J. Fox. This time, the story in the song, boy loses girl, is the same as the story of the episode. America went berserk! NBC called us up and they said they had more phone calls than at any time in the history of the network. This time, they had answers for them. They knew who the singer was. They knew the title of the song. People started calling radio stations; and people started calling record stores. 

    “This time, Rhino had records out. People started buying it. A total grass roots phenomenon! There certainly was no promotion. They hired a promotion guy. I’d go over to Rhino every morning and I’d work the phones, calling up radio stations. ‘Hi! This is Billy Vera. When I’m in town, I listen to KRAP and the good guys at 9 a.m.’ Doing promos and doing interviews. I’d do these all morning long until lunch time. That was the little bit we could do to promote the record. That was about it!

    “The next thing you know, we’re jumping over Madonna. We’re jumping over Bon Jovi. We’re jumping over all these big stars. The next thing you know, we have the number one recordin the country! A dead record!

    “The next thing you know, I’m on Johnny Carson. The next thing you know, I’m on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand. Forty-two years old and fifteen year old girls screaming for this bald headed guy! Ha! Ha!”

    One of my friends asked if “At This Moment” was written about anyone in particular. Vera shared that it was partially autobiographical. He had met a girl who had just broken up with her boyfriend and described to Billy what the boyfriend directlyfrommyheartcovercopywent through when they broke up. The story inspired Billy to go home and write the portion of the song based on his own imagination of what that guy must have gone through when the girl dumped him. However, he couldn’t come up with a good ending to the song. 

    Billy started dating the girl and a few months later, she dumped him, as well. The experience gave him the fodder to write the ending of the song – especially the line he says everyone remembers: “I’d subtract twenty years from my life . . .”

    Sometimes, the pain and challenges of life have a way of providing gold in our pockets while putting holes in our hearts. Billy’s signature song is a great example of how that sometimes can be.

    Billy Vera is still actively performing and recording. He performs both his historic hits as well as turning his fans on to his love of jazz and big band music. You can keep up with him and his career at www.billyvera.com. You can order the Little Richard box set by clicking on the widget, below.{/mprestriction}


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