Category Archives: Unknown

Categories: New York, New York City, Unknown

Sound Incorporated

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Sound Incorporated - Broadway Recording Studios demoKevin Longendyke sent in scans and transfers of a demo cut by Sound Incorporated at Broadway Recording Studios, 1697 Broadway, NY. Kevin wrote, “I found it in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The owner of the store used to have a shop in Georgia somewhere. So they could from anywhere I guess.”I have no info on the band, other than that someone has written on the labels the names Chris, Bob, Dave, John and Joe. The overall sound is poppy, commercial and well-produced. Both songs are good and either could have had some success as a single.”I Love That Girl” starts off fast and upbeat, but has a slow middle passage.

“Love Is a Gamble” has a good, if familiar hook and interesting bridge.

Sound Incorporated - Broadway Recording Studios demo

Categories: California, El Monte, Los Angeles, Unknown, US

El Monte Legion Benefit Dance

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El Monte Legion Stadium Benefit Dance ticketA reader sent in scans of the ticket and photos from a benefit dance at the El Monte Legion Stadium at 11151 Monte Vista, on July 30, 1964. The dance was hosted by Arlan Sanders, DJ with KRLA, and featured the Safaris, the Rivingtons, the Coasters, Jody Miller, The Blendells, Johnny Burnette, Ray Peterson, Bobby Sox & the Blue Jeans, The Olympics and Lucille Starr, among others.

My Mother Velma Pulbrook was once the President of a Pony/Colt Baseball League in So Cal (I might add the first woman in the country to be one). In 1964 she organized a fund raiser that played at the El Monte Legion Hall in El Monte, CA. Unfortunately she passed away about 5 years ago but as I was going through some of her pictures and stuff I ran across a ticket to the event.

There were some tremendous performers that showed up. She asked Little Richard to make it that night. He said he couldn’t but he had a couple of friends that would come by and those friends were Ike and Tina Turner. They aren’t billed because they were last minute add ons.

She always told me that a group called Jack and the Rippers played that night (although they are not listed on the attached ticket). I did find a photo though that I believe is them: it’s blurry and not fully in the picture but the bass drum appears to have the band’s name on it.

I sent the photo of a girl singing [to] Jody Miller; she was nice enough to reply that it was her. Jody Miller and Lucille Starr went on to become more famous with recordings shortly after this appearance. “The French Song” by Lucille Starr was released in early 1965 and Jody’s “Queen of the House” released in May of 1965. One of the fascinating things is that Johnny Burnette played that night and that was [possibly] his last event since he died in a boating accident on August 14, 1964.

I am still trying to determine who a few acts are, especially the black performer with the two guitar players (I am thinking it might be Bobby Sheen of the Bobby Sox and the Blue Jeans fame).

The dance was a flop if you can believe it even with all these performers. The attendance was only about 50-60 couples in total.

Steve Pulbrook

If anyone can help identify the performers in these photos please get in contact!

Unknown group (Bobby Sox & the Blue Jeans?)
Jody Miller on stage
Disk Jockey Arlen Sanders signing autograph, according to comment (see below) by Leo Olmos
Disk Jockey Arlen Sanders signing autograph, according to comment (see below) by Leo Olmos
Jack & the Rippers (?)
Categories: Gaye, Georgia, Unknown, US

The Mondels

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There’s no denying the power of the Mondells 45 on Gaye, “I Got a Feeling” / “You’ll Never Come Back to Stay”. Both songs have thick distortion on the guitar, nice organ swirls, pounding drums, and good lead and backing vocals.

The code U4KM-5024 denotes an RCA custom pressing from the first half of 1967. The scan I originally posted showed no song writing credits on the label, but as Mike Markesich pointed out in his comment below, that scan was doctored to keep the writer’s name secret until the band could be found. From the scans I now have, Roy Farmer Jr. wrote “I Got a Feeling” and Benny Thomas wrote “You’ll Never Come Back to Stay”. Both sides are published by Margie Music, BMI, and listed as A Gaye Talent Production.

The group itself is still something of a mystery to me. I did find out that the Mondels, like Red Beard & the Pirates, came from the rural hills between Blue Ridge, Georgia (Morganton, Mineral Bluff, Epworth) and Copperhill, Tennessee / McCaysville, GA, about two hours drive north of the studio in Decatur, GA, just east of Atlanta. From the same area came The Blazers, who had a self-produced LP On Fire.

An old auction listing gives a couple names for Red Beard & the Pirates: Randy Queen and “Sea Dog”. The seller also mentioned two members of the Mondels: “Billy Suites (died from auto accident) and Lamar Harper (died a couple of years ago from cancer). Actually the name ‘Tootie’ written on the record is my sister-in-law and she dated Lamar.” I contacted the seller for more info, but I can’t confirm if these names are accurate.

The Mondels is one of the rarest and best 45s on the Gaye label.

Mike Dugo interviewed a member of the Penetrations who have a record on Gaye, “A Different Kind of Man” / “I Got A Girl” but they were from Belton, South Carolina, to the north east of Atlanta.

Thank you to Mike Markesich for the scans and info on the band. Transfers from Teenage Shutdown vol. 13.

Categories: California, Costa Mesa, Unknown, US

Who is this band?

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The Wooly Ones? Or some other group?

Can anyone identify this band from the 1967 Estancia High School yearbook? They certainly look sharp. The Wooly Ones came from Costa Mesa, California, but their record “Put Her Down” / “Slings and Arrows” was cut a year or two prior to these photos.

Thank you to Barry Kazmer for sending in these photos. I’ll be posting more of Barry’s scans in the future.

Categories: California, Los Angeles, MGM, Unknown

The Majestics

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Mop Top Mike suggested I cover the Majestics, an unknown group who cut this one 45 for MGM in 1965. Hopefully we’ll be able to find some more info on this band.

The A-side is “Smile Through My Tears”, a ballad something in the style of the Beau Brummels, written by Cruz-Columbo. It’s backed with “Love Has Forgotten Me”, which I find less compelling.

Tommy Smalls produced the single independently. Mastered in late 1965, MGM purchased it for release in April, 1966. Tommy Smalls is possibly the same DJ known as “Dr. Jive” who was involved in the payola scandal in 1958. That Tommy Smalls relocated to Los Angeles, where he was an R&B DJ for KADY in 1964 then back to New York at WLIB in 1965. By 1968 he was Vice-President in charge of r&b for Jubilee Records.

The publishing was through Earl Music, BMI, though I can’t find any listing in BMI’s database for either song.

The MGM Labels: 1961-1982 by Michel Ruppli and Ed Novitsky indicates “Smile Through My Tears” and the flip as “purchased titles” and “this group was listed in files as “The Mysterians”.

Other groups called the Majestics

There were many other groups by the name Majestics. I don’t think any are related to this group, but I’ll list some of them here.

The one closest in time to this group recorded the soul classic “(I Love Her So Much) It Hurts Me” b/w “Girl Of My Dreams” on Linda 121, both songs written by Arthur Robles, produced for Faro Productions and released in the fall of 1965. The same songs (minus the horn intro on “It Hurts Me”) had a second release as by David and Ruben on Warner Bros 7316, this time listing production by Eddie Davis. A third release on Rampart in 1969 reused the original Linda stampers. David and Ruben were Art Robles’ brothers. Their group was generally known as ‘Art’s Majestics’.

Interestingly, there was another release by the Majestics on Linda 111, “Strange World” / “Everything Is Going to Be All Right” (by Chick Carlton, produced by Bobby Gross), but this is on the blue Linda label, distributed by Scepter, NY in 1963. Supposedly, this was another band entirely, black, not Hispanic.

Other Majestics include: a doo-wop group from Detroit who recorded for Contour, Chex and V.I.P.; a Miami, Florida group who cut “Cave Man Rock” on Marlin; a vocal group from Massachusetts who recorded for 20th Century Fox and other labels.

Background on unrelated Majestics groups from Soulsource and Doo-Wop.blogg.org. Thanks to Mike Markesich for the scan and transfers.

Categories: Chicago, Destination, Illinois, Indiana, South Bend, Unknown

The Tradewinds

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This unknown group recorded one of the strangest versions of Jessie Hill’s “Ooh Poh Pah Doo” I’ve ever heard, titled “Oop-Oop-a-Doo”. Unfortunately there is no name listed under the song writing credits for “Floatin'”, a cool instrumental with sax, piano and some sharp guitar.

Jim Gordon of USA Records started the Destination label to cover bands from the area around his Chicago base, though this group may be from Indiana.

The was a group called the Trade Winds that eventually morphed into Styx, but I think it’s likely a different group. Nor were they the Tradewinds from New York who recorded for Kama Sutra. Anyone know for sure?

Thanks to Geoff Brittingham for the scans and transfers of this 45.

Categories: Deland, Florida, Ormond Beach, Tropical, Unknown

The Mixed Emotions (Florida)

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The Mixed Emotions give us two beautiful downers on their only release. The songs are similar in style but each is a gem of moody garage, especially “I Lied” which is all regret and a plea for forgiveness.

“I Lied” was written by Mike Schneider and “Marie” by Mackey / Schneider. I don’t know anything else about the group, however.

Bob Quimby ran the National Songwriters Guild in Deland, Florida, pairing lyricists and arrangers and for a fee setting people’s lyrics to music and making a record for them. Tropical was one of his labels for the various song-poems he recorded (the earlier Carellen label being the other).

Local bands such as the 2/3rds used Quimby’s studio in Ormond Beach and sometimes would pay him for a vanity release, which is what the Mixed Emotions single seems to be, recorded January 19, 1967. The Mixed Emotions was released on Tropical, the 2/3rds on April, while the Offbeets had an acetate on April (“Double Trouble” / “I Wanna Do It”, as by the Nonchalants) and Tropical (“Double Trouble” / “She Lied” as by the oFfBeEtS). All of these releases share publishing – Alison Music.

Bob Quimby died in 1994, but some of his many studio tapes were released on a series of CDs called Drive-In a GoGo where you can hear these songs in better fidelity than my worn 45.

Sources include: the American Song-Poem Music Archives and Savage Lost.

Categories: California, Los Angeles, San Fernando, Sanctus, Tarzana, Unknown

The Caretakers of Deception “Cuttin’ Grass”

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Caretakers of Deception Sanctus 45 Cuttin' GrassA legendary disc since its inclusion on the original Psychedelic Disaster Whirl LP. Nothing is known about the band except they might have been from Los Angeles or somewhere in the San Fernando Valley. Tarzana is a possibility.

“Cuttin’ Grass” and “X+Y=13” were both written by T. Jones and released on the Santus Record Company label, SS-11/12, in 1967. The publishing was by Hoblong Music, produced by Long-Miller Enterprises. Half of Long-Miller was Joe Long of Encino, who had a 45 as Big Joe Long, “Just For a While” / “The Things You Do”.

The Caretakers of Deception 45 has recently been booted.

Categories: Kentucky, Louisville, Top Dog, Unknown

Nite Owls

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The Nite Owls had this one 45 on the Top Dog label of Louisville, Kentucky. Both songs sound very different from each other. “Act Your Age” is a good put-down song, written by Robby Burnfin and published by Fall City Music of Louisville.

“Act Your Age” sounds up-to-date for 1966. The flip is definitely from an earlier era, a cover of “Nite Owl”, written by Bernice Williams and originally done by the Dukays (who would later hit with “Duke of Earl” with Gene Chandler on vocals). Featuring a horn section instead of swirling organ, it could have been recorded at an earlier session.

I don’t think there’s any connection to the Illinois-based Nite-Owls who released “Come On Back” / “It’s a Hassle” on Rembrandt. I really don’t have any info on the band or their members.

Categories: AAA Recording Studios (Boston), Boston, Decca custom 200,000 series, Massachusetts, Tiger Productions, Unknown

Wild-Ones on Tiger Productions

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There were plenty of bands called the Wild Ones in the ’60s, but this group doesn’t seem to be related to any of them. A Massachusetts location is possible. The “200,608” number on the label refers to a Decca custom pressing, usually, but not always used by bands in New England. There was a group called the Wild Ones from Shrewsbury/Worchester MA with the single “Number One Girl” / “Surfin’ Time Again” on Camsul.

Mike Markesich wrote: “September, 1965 release. They are not related to the NYC discotheque performing group on United Artists & the Sears label, even tho I’ve seen that mentioned somewhere before. Nothing in copyright matches the titles, songwriters or producer name.”

The highlight is the A-side’s “Please”, a sharp rocker with a desperate singer and a very simple guitar break. “Just Me” is faster, with an even simpler, but effective guitar solo. Good, spare production with a booming sounds to the drums and clearly audible descending bass lines.

Both songs were written by Pratt and Scheurer, and produced by M.A. LaGrotte for the Tiger Productions label.

Info on the Camsul release from Till the Stroke of Dawn by Aram Heller. Thanks to Mike Markesich for the info and label scans, and to Davie Gordon for pointing out the connection to AAA in his comment below. Thanks also to the Eggman for bringing this subject up!