All posts by Chris Bishop

Categories: Angelus, California, Encore, Glendale, Los Angeles, Whitney Recording Studio (Lorin Whitney)

The Xanadus

August 3, 2016 Chris Bishop Leave a comment

I mentioned the Xanadus when I wrote about Angelus Records, a label for Christian music based out of Lorin Whitney’s studio in Glendale. The Xanadus first single was on Angelus, even though it was not a religious record. On hearing their second single recently, I decided the Xanadus deserve their own entry.

Their first single, “Before the Dawn” features a basic ensemble of lightly-amplified guitars, tambourine and harmony singing. “Little Girl” is a ballad, even more low-key than the A-side. Both songs are on youtube but not in great sound quality. It came out on Angelus WR-4442, and then the band reissued it on their own Encore label with the same catalog # 4442.

There are only a few instrumental or pop releases on Angelus. The Xanadus single is more pop in style and subject matter, but it’s so light and innocuous it doesn’t clash with the typical Angelus subject matter.

However, there’s no way Angelus would allow the band to use the label for their second 45, the salacious and amazing “You Turn Me On” / “Bankrupt Bothered & Bewildered”, released on Encore 4443. These are sharp, cutting rockers, with good guitar breaks. “Bankrupt Bothered & Bewildered” sounds like it was recorded live, shouting and hooting in the background.

Photos in the videos are different bands.

Angelus WR-4442 – “Before the Dawn” (Boyd & Adams) / “Little Girl” (Wray) produced by J & R Productions
Encore 4442 – Xanadus – “Before the Dawn” (Boyd & Adams) / “Little Girl” (Wray) (WR-4442-45) released Feb. 1965
Encore 4443 – “You Turn Me On” / “Bankrupt, Bothered & Bewildered” released April 1965

Both Encore releases have publishing by Shat-Shep Music BMI.

At this time I know nothing about the band.

The Shat-Shep Music credit shows up on at least a couple other singles of the period. One is Gail Da Corsi ‎– “I’ve Lost In Life” / “Touch Of Yesterday” on Dolton 314. The other is the Universals “I’m In Love” / “A Love Only You Can Give” on Shepherd SR 2200, a doo-wop style 45 from 1962.

Another Shepherd release, though without the Shat-Shep credit is Ritchie Marsh “They Say” (Pat Vegas, R. Marsh, pub. by Debutante Music) / “Darling I Swear That It’s True” on Shepherd SR-2203. Ritchie Marsh is better known as Sky Saxon.

The Shepherd label came out of Hollywood.

Thank you to Dan Peterson for the scan of the Angelus 45. If you have better scans of the second Encore single, please contact me.

Anyone have more info or a photo of the band?

Categories: California, Mijji, Redwood City, San Jose, San Mateo

The Front Office “Wow” on Mijji

July 22, 2016 Chris Bishop 2 Comments

The Front Office single on Mijji seems to be a combination of two different recording groups. The A-side “Girl” is polished, Motown-type soul, written by Steve Cook and arranged by Val Garay (who would go on to engineer and produce many high-profile acts in the 1970s and ’80s) and Mark Holly.

The instrumental flip side is something else altogether. “Wow” is first-rate psychedelia done by a band who knows what they’re doing and don’t hold back. The song writing credit goes to Gilbert Day, who is also credited as producer with G. Zacharisen (possibly George Zacharisen). Satori Music, BMI published both songs, released on Mijji M3007 in 1968.

Beyond those names, the identity of the musicians on “Wow” is a mystery. This was the last release on Mijji, which had a handful of other singles. Sound 70 had two singles on Mijji:

Mijji M-3002 – Sound 70 – “There Is No Reason” / “Seven Day Fool”
Mijji M-3004 – Sound 70 – “One Too Many Mournings” / “Chicago Blues”

Day-Gardner-Brown produced both singles, and other than song writing and publishing credits for the cover songs, “Seven Day Fool” and “One Too Many Mournings” (sic), there are no other names on the labels. Sound 70 played live around San Mateo, Belmont and San Carlos, California, adjacent towns on the peninsula between San Francisco and San Jose. Sound 70 seems to have come out of the Bundles, whose songs “Mark My Words” and “Watch Me Girl” went unreleased at the time but now appear on the Big Beat CD Dance With Me: The Autumn Teen Sound.

Judging by “There Is No Reason” and the heavy drums on “One Too Many Mournings”, Sound 70 had the ability to cut a track like “Wow”, but that’s only speculation.

The only other single on Mijji that I can find is by the Venus Flytrap:

Mijji M-3005 – Venus Flytrap – “The Note” / “Have You Ever” (both by Donald Danielli – Daniel Sanchez, prod. by Gilbert Day, published by Guard Music, BMI)

The original release came on Jaguar Records J-103, owned by Barry Wineroth. It was a hit in the Santa Barbara area, but the Redwood City band also had a following in the South Bay, which may be why Mijji repressed it.

If anyone has more info or photos on the bands, please contact me.

Categories: Chetwyd, Kentucky, Lexington

Chetwyd Records Discography

July 20, 2016 Chris Bishop Leave a comment

Ed Commons started Chetwyd Records in Lexington, Kentucky in 1966. Ed wrote to me with some info about the label:

Walt Harper Quintet Encore Custom LP Harpers Ferry — Walt Harper Quintet LP on the Encore Custom label, recorded at Encore Electrical Recording Co. Pittsburgh, 1962

I had a label and recording service in Pittsburgh PA, (Encore Electrical Recording Company, label Encore Custom) before coming to Kentucky in the summer of 1965. Chetwyd preceded House of Commons. HOC began in in 1972, I believe, and the label was by then no longer in production. Currently I am the Producer/Director of Red Barn Radio, just getting ready to finish our 14th season.
Pepper and the Shakers were a Lexington group, not the one that recorded in New York [the Westland, Michigan group who cut “Semi-Psychedelic (It Is)” / “I’ll Always Love You” on Coral 62523]. There are pix of all artists, and some press and release materials.

CW-45008/9 numbers were held for sessions of the Iris Bell Trio, and were never released.
You show 45010 with a yellow label, there was a re-release with a purple label, the masters were –re eq’d, and re-mastered. The yellow actually has the better sound, and would be preferred.
45001-45007 were release as standard mono 45’s. CW-45007 was released in Compatible Stereo as were both versions of CW-45010.

45s:

CW-45001 – One of Hours – “It’s Best” (Foreman – Bogliole) / “Trifolia” (Foreman – Flynn -Bogliole) 1966, both songs pub. by Chetwyd BMI
CW-45002 – Pepper and the Shakers – “For My Babe” (Oliver Pepper Burdett) / “Need Your Love” (Clarence Scott, Joe Baltimore), 1967. both songs pub. by Chetwyd BMI
CW-45003 – Marshall Jones and the 4th Dimension “It’s Not Unusual” (Reed) / “Maryland Farmer” (Clements)
CW-45004 – Pat and Barbara – “Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying” / “Noah” 1967
CW-45005 – One of Hours – “Feel The Pain” (Foreman – Flynn – Bogliele) / “Psychedelic Illusion” (Foreman – Willcutt) both pub. by Chetwyd, BMI (RI 2392D/E) Spring 1967
CW-45006 – Maltese – “You Better Stop” / “I Want To Talk To You” both by Akers for Chetwyd BMI 1967
CW-45007 – Universal Sound – “What Now?” / “Keep On Running” 1967
CW-45008 – no release
CW-45009 – no release
CW-45010 – Intimate Cyrcle, lead Cal Settles – “Someday (You’ll Be Breaking My Heart)” by Lisa Palas, Gene Deaton / “A World of Love” prod. by Ed Commons

7″ EP:

CWCM 1001 – “The Real Meaning of Christmas” written and narrated by William Rowe (Children’s Series – 33 1/3 RPM, mono only)

LPs:

CWM 66003 – Jack Bailey – When Your Lover Has Gone (mono)
CWS 99003 – Jack Bailey – When Your Lover Has Gone (stereo)
CWM 66004 – Pat and Barbara – There Is A Time (mono, 1967)
CWS 99004 – Pat and Barbara – There Is A Time (stereo, 1967)

Although some singles note publishing by Chetwyd BMI, I can find no record of Chetwyd songs in the Library of Congress listings. See the entries on this site for more info on the One of Hours and the Maltese.

Thank you to Ed Commons for his help, and to Max Waller.

Categories: Chetwyd, Kentucky, Lexington

The Maltese of Lexington, Kentucky

July 20, 2016 Chris Bishop 9 Comments

The Maltese, February 1967, photo courtesy of Ed Commons

The Maltese came from the Winchester, Kentucky area, about 20 miles east of downtown Lexington. They cut one single for Chetwyd Records of Lexington, “You Better Stop” / “I Want To Talk To You” both written by Akers for Chetwyd BMI, released on Chetwyd CW-45006 in 1967.

“You Better Stop” has sustained fuzz notes and sounds something like the Who’s “Out in the Street”. “I Want to Talk to You” is more like the Stones doing Solomon Burke. There’s nightclub noise running in the background but it’s not quite Got Live If You Want It.

Hear excerpts of both sides. I’m not sure where I found this clip, probably from a record auction.

A few months ago I posted about another group called the Maltese, based out of northern Kentucky communities like Covington, Elsmere and Erlanger, but that was an unrelated group.

Thank you to Ed Commons for sending in the photo of the band and clearing up my confusion of the two Maltese, and to Barry Wickham for the scan of the Maltese 45 label.

Categories: Galiko, New York, New York City, Queens, Rosedale

The Innkeepers on Galiko

July 13, 2016 Chris Bishop 3 Comments

Innkeepers Creative Artists promo photo — The Innkeepers, from left: Mike Vendetti, Vito Turso, Gary Matson, Mike Lucente and Steve Saltzman

The Innkeepers came from Rosedale in Queens, New York (not Bayside as previously thought). Rosedale is close to JFK airport, along the eastern edge of Queens, bordering Nassau County.

Members were:

Gary Matson – vocals and percussion
Mike Vendetti – Gibson guitar
Vito Turso – Hammond organ and vocals
Mike Lucente – Fender bass
Steve Saltzman – drums

The Innkeepers had one excellent single in late 1966, “Never Should Have Done It” b/w “Wanted” on Galiko 895. Leon Salem wrote both songs, he was in a jazz group at Queens College with Mike Lucente.

“Never Should Have Done It” jumps into a tense mood, with a neat sliding guitar riff throughout the song and the line “life’s not worth living now, ever since the day, oh-o-o, you left me.” The drummer keeps a strong pace, and the bassist pushes the mood as each line of the lyrics crescends and crashes. The organ player compliments the repeating guitar and takes an extended solo after a brief guitar break.

The band comes up with a tight arrangement and good harmonies to back the lead vocalist on “Wanted”.

One of the Innkeeper’s most notable shows was at the Action House in Island Park, NJ, on December 4, 1966.

Ads for the show (viewable on the Mind Smoke Records site) promise an incredible lineup, including: The Mothers of Invention, the Velvet Underground, the Fugs, the Godz, the Vagrants, the Left Banke, the Wild Ones, and the Bit a Sweet.

Also, the Seventh Sons, the Fantasy Machines, the Ronettes, the Shangri-La’s, Lenny Welch, Monti Rock III, Joey Greco and the In Crowd, the Crests, the Shaggy Boys, Terry Knight and the Pack and Brian Hyland.

Besides the Action House, the Innkeepers played at Danny Mazur’s My House in Plainview NY, the Malibu Beach Club in Lido Beach, the Bull Shed in Huntington, Cinderella in Greenwich Villlage, the Shindig Lounge in Lynbrook, and regularly at The Busted Buzzard in Baldwin, NY.

The group was sometimes billed as the Inkeepers (one “n”) and the band name appears that way in one promo photo.

Inkeepers Creative Artists promo photo — The Inkeepers, from left: Steve Saltzman, Mike Vendetti, Mike Lucente, Vito Turso, Gary Matson

Salem copyrighted “Wanted” with the Library of Congress in August 1966, following it up with “Never Should Have Done It” in October, both with publishing by Leona Music Pub. Co., but on the Galiko single both list Aurora Music Pub. BMI.

The Library of Congress index shows Leon Salem copyrighting six additional titles before the end of 1966, “What Do You Find?”, “All the Time”, “Venetian Gondola”, “Reasons”, “The Truth”, “Come Back, My Baby”, though only the first of these also had the Leona Music Pub. Co. credit.

With such an accomplished group of musicians, I hope there are some unreleased Innkeepers recordings out there, yet to be heard.

Galiko had a number of other releases, most notably the U.S. Stamps, who had two singles on the label in 1967, “Come On” / “Go and Dry Your Tears” and “Pull the Wool” / “We’ll Find a Way” (by Ed Landis). I don’t know anything about that band either.

There is a Leon Salem who has a number of credits: arranger and conductor on Nanette Natal’s 1969 album Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow , “sweetening” on the Tokens “I Like to Throw My Head Back and Sing (That Good Ole Rock and Roll)”, vibes and orchestration on the Brother to Brother ‎LP Shades In Creation, and in 2018, production and writing of “Apollo Rising” by Tommy LaBella. I’m not sure if this is the same person, however.

Thank you to the members of the Innkeepers for help with this post: Gary Matson for sending the photos, and Mike Lucente and Vito Turso for information about the group.

This Innkeepers should not be confused with the band from Lewiston, Maine, whose demo “Traella (Hey Babe)” surfaced years back.

Categories: Alabama, Ludo, Montgomery

Chuck Edwards and the Apaches

June 18, 2016 Chris Bishop 9 Comments

Here’s an obscure Century Custom pressing by Chuck Edwards and the Apaches with a mix of garage and earlier rock styles that I like. “She Let Me Go” has gravelly vocals (credited to Tony and Eddie) over a great band that features good drum fills, a deep bass line and nice guitar work, plus a saxophone to tie it to the old styles.

The flip, “Lonely Apache” (written by Tony III) is a good, low-key instrumental. I don’t know any names other than what’s on the labels.

Released on Ludo Records 19796, I’m not sure of the date. The labels read “Recorded for Ludo Records by Century Custom Recording, Montgomery 6, Alabama 36106”.

Chuck Edwards wrote and produced “Dance Little Girl, Dance”- I believe he’s singing on it too – released as the Reactions on Ludo 001 b/w “Daddy’s Home” which I haven’t heard. I presume the Reactions single predates “She Let Me Go” by a year or so.

Categories: New York, Scotia, Upstate New York, Vibra-Sound Recording Studio

The Chimes of Freedom “Jungle Rock”

June 8, 2016 Chris Bishop 7 Comments

The Chimes of Freedom came from Scotia, New York, near Schenectady and Albany. “Jungle Rock” is known from Girls in the Garage, but the Dead Wax blog shows this was not an all-girl group: Mari Salato vocals, Chip Vedder vocals, Bill Pytlovany lead guitar, Paul Hamilton rhythm guitar, Jeff Austin bass guitar, and Darrell Francis drums.

Bonnie Carbin Kruger commented below that she played keyboards on this record.

Hamilton, Francis and Pytlovany wrote “Jungle Rock”, while the original A-side was “Did You Ever”, a ballad by Francis and Pytlovany.

This is a hard single to date, I don’t see anything in the dead wax other than stamped 102A/B, and the label code USS 102 is also obscure. The Robert Barry Music credit helps connect this to the Vibra-Sound Recording Studio in Schenectady.

The Times Record reported on May 4, 1970 that the Chimes of Freedom would participate in a Battle of the Bands at the Colonie Coliseum Summer Theater against three Colonie bands: Iron Image, Reverend Blackbird, and Three Steps in the Mill, plus a group called Horton Strong from SUNY Albany.

On September 11, 1970, the Troy Record reported the Chimes of Freedom would play a cafeteria dance for the Shenendehowa Festival on September 26. That’s all the press I can find on the group.

Anyone have a photo of the band?

Categories: Bay City, Deltron, Michigan, Tea

Bed of Roses

June 4, 2016 Chris Bishop 2 Comments

The Bed of Roses came out of the same Bay City, Michigan music scene as the Jayhawkers and Dick Rabbit. Like those artists, they recorded for Deltron Records.

In August, 1967, Deltron put out Bed of Roses’ first single, a cover of “I Don’t Believe You” (my copy has “ASCAP DYLAN” stamped on it) b/w a ragged raga-rock instrumental, “Hate” with no songwriting or production credits on the label.

Recently, Deltron’s parent company Delta Promotions came up for scrutiny in Daniel Ralston’s The True Story Of The Fake Zombies, The Strangest Con In Rock History, which I recommend highly, and if you like that you may also want to check out Mark Ramsey’s 2008 blog article, I Was a Teenage Fake Zombie .

I’ve read that in late ’67 the band moved to San Francisco for a short time, returning to tape a second single in a room above a record shop. However, “tea Records” is a Fenton custom label, so the band likely recorded the songs at Fenton’s Great Lakes Recording Studio.

The four-minute long “Quiet!” (written by F. Dash) was backed with “I Gotta Fight” (by J. Light), that starts out with a menacing feel, but the shouting chorus brings it out of that mood.

The single came out on tea Records 2577 in February 1968. I can find no list of band members. Copyright records show a F. Dash as a pseudonym of Fredrick Dashkovitz, the writer of a song called “My Feeling” published in November, 1968, however I don’t know if this is the same F. Dash.

Categories: Baton Rouge, Bofuz, Louisiana

The Lost Generation on Bofuz

May 27, 2016 Chris Bishop 5 Comments

The Lost Generation circa 1966: Mike Rhodes, Rod Grassman, John Herring, Bob Keating, Ronnie Easley, Ronnie Schilling — The Lost Generation circa 1966, from left: Mike Rhodes, Rod Grassman, John Herring, Bob Keating, Ronnie Easley and Ronnie Schilling.
Thanks to Pam Causey for the photo

The Lost Generation came from Baton Rouge, Louisiana and had one single on the Bofuz Enterprises label, “Let Me Out” / “They Tell Me” in 1966. Both sides are original songs.

“Let Me Out” has a great relaxed Stones feeling to it. Band members Michael Rhodes and Bob Keating wrote the song.

The flip is a different style, an echoing ballad that alternates harmonized verses with a mournful lead vocal. Mike Rhodes wrote this side.

John Herring sent in the photo above (courtesy of Pam Causey) and wrote to me about his career in music:

The personnel in the photo were the players on the Bofuz (Bonnie Fussel) record:
Bob Keating – lead vocals
Mike Rhodes – lead vocals
Ron Grassman – lead guitar
Ronnie Easley – rhythm guitar
John Herring – bass and vocals
Ronnie Schilling – drums
Mike Rhodes went on to a career in broadcasting (radio & television) primarily doing Sports for WBRZ-TV in Baton Rouge.
I later played bass and sang in a three-piece power group, The Joint Effort with lead guitarist Jerry Heinberg (Souls of The Slain) and drummer Jimmy Rink, before joining Danny Cohen (Casey Kelly) from The Greek Fountains and Joe Miceli (A.J.’s older brother and the drummer for John Fred and The Playboys) in an L.A.- based group who recorded on A&M Records as The Luziana Band.
The Luziana Band also had guitarist/songwriters Jeffrey Comanor and Sammy Rubin (ye olde Inn Crowd) at different times.

Contrary what you may read elsewhere, this is not the same Lost Generation who had a single on Tear Drop 3195: “Baby!” (Allan Green, Gary Green) / “Night Time (Makes You Lonely)” in October 1968. That group came from the area around Freeport, Texas, including West Columbia, Clute and Lake Jackson. The members were Leonard ‘Beak’ Johnson (lead vocalist), Willie Funderburg (lead vocalist), Gary Greene (lead guitar), Larry Beal (organ), Mike Roberts (bass) and Pat O’Leary (drums).

Categories: Texas, Venus, Waco, West

The Nokounts

May 22, 2016 Chris Bishop 4 Comments

The Nokounts came from West, Texas, a small town south of Dallas and just north of Waco. The band released one single in August, 1964, “Hey Girl” / “I Saw Her Yesterday” on Venus 500/501. The A-side is a strong bluesy shuffle while the flip is a fast rocker.

The Nokounts, West News, August 28, 1964 — The Nokounts in the West News, August 28, 1964

Both songs list writing credits as Kudelka – Hunt. Ron Kudelka was part of the group while 45cat lists Harmon Hunt and Bobo Wes as producers. Venus Records Inc, based in Waco, published the songs through Deb-Ka Publ.

The West News covered the band in a front-page article from August 28, 1964 titled “Nationwide Sale of Record by the Nokounts” with a lot of interesting information on the group:

Ron Kudelka, Butch Vochoska and Robert Ernst, all of West, Johnny Nash of Arlington and Randy Hudgins of Waco are members of the young group … they are looking forward to additional dates in Hillsboro, Waco and the famed teenage-nightclub “The Sugar Shack” in Dallas.
This record was also the first recording of Venus Records, Inc., a new company formed by several Hillsboro-West area people with the main office in Waco. Harmon Hunt of KHBR is president of the company and Miss LaNelle Duncan of West is Secretary-Treasurer.”
“Hey Girl” was recorded by Sellers Co. of Dallas and pressed by Wakefield of Phoenix, Arizona. Bill Lindsey of Dallas, nationally known for his hit recording of “Blue,” was the arranger for the recording company.
The Nokounts were originally organized by a group of West High Students [sic], and were first known as the Counts.

The Nokounts at the Playdium West, TX, October 17, 1964

The Nokounts at Cottonwood Hall West, TX, December 27, 1964

The article also noted their Venus 45 had distribution throughout the U.S.

An ad for a teenage dance on Saturday, October 17, 1964 at the Playdium ran in the West News of West, TX on Friday the 16th saying “The Nokounts of West … Recording Stars on the Venus Label “Hey Girl” and “I Saw Her Yesterday” … Their Second record Will Be Released in December “I’m Alone” and “I Don’t Care”.

To my knowledge that second record was not released and those songs have never surfaced.

Garage Hangover