"I'll Never Fall in Love Again" - Tom Jones (1969)

This is one of those records which can transport me back to a time and place so vividly that I can still feel the raindrops pelting the car on the side of the road outside Miami in 1969. We were on a road trip to St. Augustine, and then down to Miami, to see my mother's cousin who owned a nightclub there. The music on the car radio ranged from rock to pop to folk to Broadway show tunes.

That's the way it was then. With only the AM radio for entertainment, and no "ear buds", families shared the time, and music, while in the car. It was a good system, and as I've said, I can still feel the rain pelting the car, and see and hear the thunder and lightning raging outside the windows of our 1966 Pontiac. This version of the Tom Jones hit differs only slightly from the released version, but when you watch him sing, it opens a whole new dimension to the song. He's really feeling it.

Although this Tom Jones song was over a year old when we made the trip, I do remember it coming on a few times, especially when we pulled over to wait out that violent thunderstorm. It's a very distinct and pleasureable memory, safe in the car with my parents. And I even remember the follow up song being Bob Dylan's "Lay, Lady, Lay", which my Mom really liked. This was our last vacation together as a family.

This is another song from "Nashville Skyline" which my Mom enjoyed. She said he finally had found his voice. Funny thing was, I was wondering what had happened to it! Great song and great memories...

Rooftop Reviews - Top Ten for April

Every blogger has something, like Google Analytics, which enables the blogger to track what people are reading. Some are just counters which list every “hit”, including spammers. Others are pinpoint accurate and display the actual physical location of who is looking at your site and when. That’s scary. Why would you even care?

I use a very simple version of Google Analytics; which simply means that I have forgone the “bells and whistles” which give all of that useless information. I simply want to know what the people who read this are actually reading. My site is “destination based”, which is a fancy way of saying only 21% of my “hits” are repeat offenders. That’s not bad considering the other 79% bump into my site when looking for information about a specific topic. That’s what is meant by “destination based”. I’m amazed that Rooftop comes up that often in searches. And; I have to admit; a bit proud.

I’m also happy that the “Top Ten" posts are split among so many different categories. There are 2 pieces about photos; one of which is mine. 2 pieces about politics; which I used to try and avoid. There is 1 travel piece; 3 posts about music; one about a movie; and of course I’m really happy that “It’s Only me” holds the number 3 spot this month.

So, in the tradition of the old AM radio stations which I still love so well, here are the Top Ten for April;

  1. “Candy Cigarette” by Sally Mann

  2. Obamas Secret Tax- Give Me a Break

  3. “It’s Only me” by Robert Williams

  4. The Vance Hotel – Statesville, N.C.

  5. “Foul Owl on the Prowl” – Quincy Jones  (1968)

  6. Disposal of the Quran

  7. Joe Seneca - Bluesman

  8. “The Seven Foys” with Bob Hope and James Cagney

  9. “Old Barns and Pianos” – R. Williams

10. “One Meat Ball” and other Depression Era Songs

"Hello Walls" - Faron Young (1961)

Willie Nelson wrote this song, and his jazz like version is wonderful in so many different ways; from the melody he plays so well, to the slightly deeper voice than that used here by Faron Young. But I would imagine that Willie Nelson still listens to this version, too. It has a certain purity about it, which eludes even Mr. Nelson’s talented fingers. And that’s hard to do!

The song went #1 on the Country and Western charts and eventually hit the Pop charts as well, where it enjoyed 13 week run before petering out. The following year saw the emergence of Mr. Nelson as a recording artist in his own right, and to no one’s surprise he included this song on his first album “And Then I Wrote” in 1962. It is still a staple of his performances and I believe it’s also the same guitar as well! That thing has more holes in it than there are craters on the moon.

I think what I like about this version is that it gives me a peek into the world which I knew I was missing out on as a kid in Brooklyn. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t trade my childhood in Brooklyn for anything. It was a great training ground for many of the problems which come our way later in life. I often feel sorry for those who were not raised there.

But, at the same time, I am cognizant of the fact that there was this whole other way of living to which I was not privy, even though I was aware of its existence. My little 6 transistor made in Japan radio gave me a taste of it every night in the darkness of my bedroom, where I listened to anything coming over the dial. The goal was, of course, to get the Grand Ol’ Opry, but that was rarely possible. Wheeling, West Virginia was a long way off, and to get it well, you really needed to go to the roof of the 7 story apartment building we lived in at 1310 Avenue R and East 14^th Street.

Now, going to the roof at night to listen to the radio was not the best idea, as my parents were very strict and our apartment was kind of like a prison camp. This was great training for my later adventures in the Navy, as I was used to regimentation and discipline. But there’s always more than one way to skin a cat, so I took a coil of thin copper wire which I got a the Hobby Shop on Avenue S, and ran up to the roof where I dropped the coil to right outside our second floor, rear window, which faced due South. Going back downstairs I took the wire in and hid it along the window jamb, where it was virtually invisible. At night I took the excess wire and attached it to my radio by winding it around the whole body and then connecting the loose end to the wire at the window.

This all sounds simple but had to be done after my brother was asleep. He was the type who would constantly run to my parents about anything I did at all which might be prohibited. Again, this was great training for the military and even jail, where snitches abound. You have to learn to work around them in order not get caught doing something wrong.

At any rate, these precautions were worth their weight in gold, as they opened up the whole world to me. Even today I keep 2 shortwave radios. And when the night is just right; preferably a cold, starlit one; I turn it on and listen to the static as it  gives way to news from the BBC, or the weather out of Belgium, along with a million voices speaking in tongues which I may not even recognize, but love hearing anyway. It reminds me that we are all connected, even if only by the the airwaves.

Hey, can you believe that this started out to be about Faron Young? 

Paul Harvey - The Boy Who Couldn't Come Inside

When I was growing up Paul Harvey was a staple of AM radio. His “The Rest of the Story” series always began with an air of mystery about them, only to have that mystery solved by the end of his 5 minutes or so. And, the upbeat endings gave the listener a much needed respite from the ordeals of an average day. His topics ranged from history to entertainers; and from fables and myths to morality. And, if you disagreed with him on political issues; and some did dismiss him as a kind of “John Birch Lite”; his voice was still something which you could not ignore.
 
As a kid I always had a transistor radio close at hand, along with a wristwatch, and I would tune into Paul Harvey at noon; and if my memory serves me correctly, he was also on another station at 4 PM, which I also managed to listen to regularly.

In this story, Mr. Harvey tells us the tale of a boy from the “other side of the tracks”, and how a short meeting with Lonzo Green changed his life, and affected the whole world.

"Heat Wave" Martha Reeves and the Vandellas (1965)

I can think of no more appropriate song for the current weather situation than this "oldie but goodie" from 1965. Many of my happiest memories seem to be centered around that year. Being 11 years old was a magical time for me in Brooklyn, where I grew up. And summertime was the ultimate season. School was out by the end of June, not to be re-visited again until after Labor Day in September. Those 8 weeks seemed eternal. There was so much time, and so much to do.

As the years passed by, and I got older, the summers got shorter; as did the years. But whenever the temperature soars above 95, or so, and I hear this song, I am 11 years old again, riding my bicycle down the shady side streets of Brooklyn. And, in my mind I am headed for the beach with a towel wrapped under the seat.

"Rainbows Over Your Blues" - John Sebastian (1970)

No one who has seen the film "Woodstock" can forget the very stoned John Sebastian coming out to perform this song. This version is live from, I think, the Mike Douglas show in 1970. I used to come home from school and find my Mom watching some pretty cool stuff on that show. And Mr. Douglas was no slouch himself. He's the man that got John and Yoko to guest host his show for a week in 1970, or maybe 1971.

Anyway, feeling a bit lazy today, and thinking of the old songs from the summer of love. With temperatures rising here, it's hard not to feel like going up and laying on the old roof in Brooklyn. With only a 6 transistor radio; 7 stories up and less than 1 mile from the ocean;  I was king of the sky! The old AM radio stations made many a summer day tolerable back then. Well; cartoon tomorrow; and see you Sunday!

RAINBOWS ALL OVER YOUR BLUES

John Sebastian - 1970

I been waiting my time just to talk to you,

You´ve been lookin´all down in the mouth and down at your shoes.
Well, baby, I came to give you the news,
I´ll paint rainbows all over your blues.

I heard you been spending a lot of your time up in your room,
And at night you been watchin´ the dark side of the moon.
You don´t talk to nobody, if they don´t talk to you.
So, Buddy and me came here to sing you a tune.

"I give up" is all you´ve really got to say,
It´s time to find a new life style 'cause this really ain´t the way.
Let´s go for a bounce on my trampoline,
I can show you the prettiest mountains that you´ve ever seen.

You better run to your closet,
and fish out your blue suede shoes,
I´ll paint rainbows all over your blues.

Tom Jones - 1968 on BBC Four

This is one of those records which can transport me back to a time and place so vividly that I can still feel the raindrops pelting the car on the side of the road outside Miami in 1969. We were on a road trip to St. Augustine, and then down to Miami, to see my mother's cousin who owned a nightclub there. The music on the car radio ranged from rock to pop to folk to Broadway show tunes.

That's the way it was then. With only the AM radio for entertainment, and no "ear buds", families shared the time, and music, while in the car. It was a good system, and as I've said, I can still feel the rain pelting the car, and see and hear the thunder and lightning raging outside the windows of our 1966 Pontiac. This version of the Tom Jones hit differs only slightly from the released version, but when you watch him sing, it opens a whole new dimension to the song. He's really feeling it.

Although this Tom Jones song was over a year old when we made the trip, I do remember it coming on a few times, especially when we pulled over to wait out that violent thunderstorm. It's a very distinct and pleasureable memory, safe in the car with my parents. And I even remember the follow up song being Bob Dylan's "Lay, Lady, Lay", which my Mom really liked. This was our last vacation together as a family.

Movie Review: Talk To Me with Don Cheadle

This is one of those movies based on real life events that we often take for granted.

AM Radio was king in the early 1960's. With fast paced DJ's rapping between songs and commercials often done by the DJ's themselves there was something more intimate about radio back then. But as the Nation changed so did the expectations of the average listener. They wanted something more relevant to what was happening in the community. At Radio Station WOL- 1460 AM in Washington D.C. this was apparent in the falling ratings.

Into this vacumn comes former Inmate Petey Greene. A chance meeting with the Program Director of WOL during the latters' visit to a relative in prison leads Greene to believe that he has a job waiting for him at WOL when he gets out. He has been doing "broadcasts" inside the Correctional Facility and fancies himself to be a top notch DJ.

When he is released after a very comical situation he heads straight back to D.C. and his old girlfriend (played by Taraji P. Henson and you gotta love her in this role!) Together they invade WOL to claim His job.

WOL is a Black Soul station run by a stuffed shirt white guy, played by Martin Sheen. The black Program Director, Dewey Hughes,is played by Chiwetel Ejiofor.He
promises,and then manages to deliver,the job as DJ. The repurcussions of this dramatic change are worth seeing.

The lead DJ at the station, "The Hawk",is played with great effect by Cedric the Entertainer. His story could provide a whole other movie! And his potrayal of the "Nighthawk" is right on the money. He has issues with the new DJ that ultimatley get worked out to everyones satisfaction.

With the racial divisions of the 1960's as a backdrop and the Assassination of Martin Luther King, Greene rises quickly to fame. He is changing the way radio is done. He is the precursor to Richard Pryor, Howard Stern, even George Carlin.

But the forces of commercialism and profit propel Greene on a stairway to stardom that he neither wants nor is looking for. It all comes apart when he appears, unwillingly, on The Tonite Show and realizes that he has nothing to say to white America. So he fades away at the height of his popularity.

But he left his mark forever on the media in the form of the freedoms we take for granted today. The movie is very fast paced and with a tremendous soundtrack of Motown and Soul Music this movie is worth the time. First released in 2004 I don't know how I missed this one!