Episódios

  • OS#86: 1965 Summer of Soul Volume 2

    OS#86: 1965 Summer of Soul Volume 2
    Aug 19 2025
    Greetings. Professor Mikey here, still basking in the hot soul sun of 1965. You don’t have to have heard our previous episode in order to listen to this one. But Summer of Soul Vol 1 has a lot of things you will be expecting to hear. For this edition, it is certainly more of the same. The first full year of the British Invasion was rocking the planet. The the sounds of the Mersey beats combine on the radio with great American soul power, and careers for the likes of James Brown, the Supremes, Stevie Wonder and more, were launching like 21st century outer space exploration startups.There’s a lot of music left to unpack, so insert headphones. It’s one thing that the Booker T and the MGs song Plum Nellie that’s going on in the background will no doubt inspire a Led Zeppelin lick in about 4 years. But there is so much more. We are about to get started with a twin spin from Otis Redding that includes a song that Aretha Franklin will cover quite soon.Get in the groove, we have another hour of summer to move smooth. It’s the 1965 Summer of Soul Volume II. Things go better with soul. And a little respect.Respect OTIS REDDINGI Can’t Turn You Loose OTIS REDDINGRide Your Pony LEE DORSEYAgent Double Oh Soul EDWIN STARRSome Other Guy RICHIE BARRETTTake Me in Your Arms KIM WESTONBack in My Arms Again THE SUPREMESOo Wee Baby FRED HUGHESI Don’t Know What You Got LITTLE RICHARDHold On JOE TEXBoy from NYC THE ADLIBSCandy THE ASTORSI Take Whatever I Want SAM AND DAVESnatch It Back and Hold It JUNIOR WELLESTracks of My Tears SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLESRainbow GENE CHANDLERHurt So Bad LITTLE ANTHONY AND THE IMPERIALSAsk the Lonely THE FOUR TOPSWhen Otis Redding cut Respect in ’65, it was a man pleading with his woman. Two years later, Aretha Franklin flipped it on its head — and turned it into a demand that redefined the song forever.”“ I Can’t Turn You Loose. “This wasn’t just another single — it became his stage theme. The horns blast, Otis shouts, and the crowd knows they’re in for a ride.New Orleans. Lee Dorsey’s Ride Your Pony, produced by Allen Toussaint. James Brown himself admitted he stole a few tricks from this groove.Spy games in soul music? Edwin Starr thought so. His first hit, Agent Double-O Soul, let him ham it up onstage in a tux with a toy gun — years before War made him a household name.Back in Liverpool, the Beatles never recorded Richie Barrett’s Some Other Guy, but they loved it. One of the earliest TV clips of the band shows them rocking it live at the Cavern (above).Kim Weston’s Take Me in Your Arms didn’t catch fire in ’65, but a decade later the Doobie Brothers turned it into a monster hit.The Supremes with Back in My Arms Again. This was their fifth straight number one — tying the Beatles at the time. Pure Holland-Dozier-Holland.From Chicago, Fred Hughes and Oo Wee Baby. He had the smoothness of Sam Cooke — but never quite broke through.Rarity: Little Richard’s I Don’t Know What You Got. One of the few studio cuts where a young Jimi Hendrix actually backed Richard on guitar.The Boy from New York City by The Ad Libs. In the ’80s, Manhattan Transfer brought it back to life, but in ’65 it was pure street-corner pop.Out of Memphis and Stax Records came The Astors with Candy. Booker T. & the MG’s were behind them — bopping the Memphis sound.From the Stax label, Sam & Dave with I Take What I Want. Written by Isaac Hayes and David Porter.Junior Wells and Snatch It Back and Hold It. Guitar duties? Buddy Guy.One of Smokey Robinson’s personal favorites: The Tracks of My Tears. Years later, the Library of Congress picked it for the National Recording Registry. Gene Chandler, the ‘Duke of Earl,’ reinvented himself mid-decade with smooth ballads. Rainbow showed he wasn’t just a one-hit wonder.Little Anthony & the Imperials with the heartbreak ballad Hurt So Bad. Linda Ronstadt would cover it 15 years later and land in the Top 10 all over again.The Four Tops with Ask the Lonely. It didn’t climb as high as their later smashes, but Levi Stubbs’ voice here — that raw ache — proved why he was Motown’s secret weapon.Its going to Hurt So Bad to leave the Soul Summer of ‘65 Volume 2. If you havent heard Volume 1 yet, there’s a link at the bottom of the page on Substack, where you can subscribe to the Old School newsletter for free anytime and be the first kid on your block to get the latest podcasts. You’ll find that at professormikey.substack.com.1965 was a pivotal year for the Civil Rights movement, as well as the soul music charts. Some of the most iconic and pivotal tunes of the year came right in the middle of the decade. Remember this is a free podcast, subscriptions and likes always work well, so thanks in advance. This podcast is produced for educational purposes. Any and all music heard in this program resides within the public domain, is licensed through the podcast carrier, or is used within the guidelines of fair use ...
    Exibir mais Exibir menos
    1 hora e 14 minutos
  • OS#86: 1965 Summer of Soul Volume 1

    OS#86: 1965 Summer of Soul Volume 1
    Aug 1 2025

    Hey Old Schoolers. Professor Mikey here with another attempt to bring the past back to where it belongs. In our hearts and minds. If I were building a time machine school bus, I’d make sure it had a great sound system before it had anything else. Especially a search engine. Ha ha.

    Old School loves the underground years, but in ‘65 a lot of things were getting figured out. The British Invasion was full on and the USA had surrendered to the long hair, the mersey beat,mini skirts and swinging London.

    But they all share something in common besides the paisley pants, and swinging London. All these groups and many more were enchanted and influenced by the stone cold grooves blasting out from Black America. The Stones loved the Muddy Waters of the Chicago Blues. John Paul George and Ringo stopped in the name of love to groove on those Motown harmonies. Eric Burdon lived in the House of the Rising Sun.

    So for this show we are going to the songs that were powering American soul trains and soul radio. Putting them together sounds like a street symphony of wisdom and groove, inspired by the restless need to be free and totally expressive through a music that was ascending to new heights.

    If you had the opportunity to find a late night soul station in the summer of ‘65 this is some of what you might have heard. Put on your high heel sneakers, don’t be too proud to beg, sugar pie honey bunch. Old School is turning it over for episode 86.

    It’s the Soul Summer of ‘65, in the midnight hour, in any hour. As a culture, Papa’s got a brand new bag.

    Thanks for reading Professor Mikey's OLD SCHOOL! This post is public so feel free to share it.

    Professor Mikey, about to wrap up episode 86 of the Old School, “1965 Summer of Soul.” The obvious problem, this old jukebox has swallowed up all my dimes, and there are still lots of great songs we haven’t heard yet. So lets do this. Lets make this Volume 1, and we will come back at you with a Volume 2 for our next episode. The music is already there, including more Otis Redding, more Supremes, more Marvin Gaye, plus some lesser known artists like Gene Chandler, the Marvelows, Mel Carter, Lee Dorsey, and even a 60s comeback from Little Richard. 1965 Summer of Soul Volume 2, coming soon to Substack or a podcast player near you.

    If you like the show, forward it to a friend. Professor Mikey’s Old School is produced for educational purposes, and the chance to get your groove on. The music we hear is either in the public domain, cleared by the podcast providers, encouraged by the artists and their families, or is used within the guidelines of Section 107 of the copyright act of 1976, wherein the definition of “fair use” becomes especially muddy. We prefer Muddy Waters.

    A free subscription to my newsletter takes a second and its the fastest, easiest way to get the latest episode, plus roam the stacks of what has come before. Do that at professormikey.substack.com. Come see about me.

    Thanks for listening, rock on with your bad self, and keep the music coming. Stay safe, stay cool, and keep it Old School.

    And be sure to have a good answer when you they ask you “What were you known for?”

    1965 Summer of Soul

    Midnight Hour Wilson Pickett

    Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag Pt 1, 2, 3 James Brown

    The Jerk The Capitols

    Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch) The Four Tops

    Shotgun Jr. Walker and the All-Stars

    Boomerang Jr. Walker and the All-Stars

    The Clapping Song Shirley Ellis

    Iko Iko The Dixie Cups

    Do I Love You Billy Stewart

    See Saw Don Covay

    Uptight (Everything’s Alright) Stevie Wonder

    All or Nothing Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles

    Yes I’m Ready Barbara Mason

    Tonight’s the Night Solomon Burke

    I’ve Been Loving You To Long Otis Redding

    The Birds and the Bees Jewel Akens

    Ain’t That Peculiar Marvin Gaye

    Stop! In the Name of Love The Supremes



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit professormikey.substack.com/subscribe
    Exibir mais Exibir menos
    1 hora e 3 minutos
  • OS#24 Poolside '63 🎧Audio Enhanced🏊🏽‍♂️

    OS#24 Poolside '63 🎧Audio Enhanced🏊🏽‍♂️
    Jul 21 2025

    Summer’s here and the time is right for podcasting at the pool! (Player above, Apple and Spotify links below.)

    This show is a reunion of sorts. Attendees are solid gold seniors who had no relation to each other, other than their heydays and their expiration dates. They hooked up for one mad love affair in the Troy Donahue-Connie Stevens summer of 1963, then went their separate ways. Sometimes they might see one another on a Rhino oldies collection, but other than that they were cast into that great audio convalescent care stack-o-wax we know as Golden Oldies.

    It’s a great bunch once you get to know them. Collectively they represent one of the last summits of pop culture before The Beatles hit the beaches and the rest of the fab but gear British Invasion followed. Culturally, what was on the horizon was the equivalent of sound coming to the movies.

    The artist contributions are significant. They offer a sweet last snapshot of Fifties culture that lingered well into the early Sixties. Focusing their talents on the singles market, still the only game in town, they were a mixture of young talent and old business. They played by rules that had been around too long and still managed to deliver unique and original product. Cool, young, and under contract, they rocked the radio, jolted the cash registers, and spoke to young people.

    There were so many songs that charged this magical last summer of the before times. This is only the tip of the iceberg floating in the deep end. Some of these songs haven’t been played next to each other in over a half century. They still play well together, unaware of the future, masters of their space in their time. On the beach.

    Poolside ‘63 listeners weren’t thinking of all these cultural changes as they showed up in their swimsuits with their beach towels, their lotions and potions, their flotation devices. The pool was for fun and relaxation and the tunes blasting the chlorine filled air just felt right. It felt loud.

    Special thanks to the artists who made this magic summer so unforgettable, to DJ B. Mitchell Reed, to the Coca-Cola Company, to The Chantays on Lawrence Welk) to Japan, to the Bronx, to Saigon, to country, to the blues, to jazz and everything else that got shaken up in this sound kaleidoscope from an endless summer.

    IT’S MY PARTY - Lesley Gore

    THE MONKEY TIME - Major Lance

    DA DOO RON RON - The Crystals

    SUKIYAKI - Kyu Sakamoto

    EASIER SAID THAN DONE The Essex

    IF YOU WANNA BE HAPPY - Jimmy Soul

    HEATWAVE - Martha and the Vandellas

    FINGERTIPS PT 1 & 2 - Little Stevie Wonder

    SALLY GO ROUND THE ROSES - The Jaynettes

    IN DREAMS - Roy Orbison

    PIPELINE - The Chantays

    SURF CITY - Jan and Dean

    YOU CAN’T SIT DOWN - The Dovells

    DENISE - Randy and the Rainbows

    HE’S SO FINE - The Chiffons

    MY BOYFRIEND’S BACK - The Angels

    WIPEOUT - The Surfaris



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit professormikey.substack.com/subscribe
    Exibir mais Exibir menos
    1 hora
  • OS #27a All American Red, White, and Blue Mixtape

    OS #27a All American Red, White, and Blue Mixtape
    Jul 1 2025

    Happy Fourth, happy birthday, sail away to a few American tunes! It’s a special Old School All American Red, White, and Blue Mixtape. The stories are all on the podcast, so push play. It’s a holiday.

    Recommended for: long waits at the airport, backyard barbecues, setting off fireworks, flag waving, Constitution reading, taking the Fifth, drinking a Fifth, wishing for the Fifth, steering clear of the tainted potato salad, playing volleyball in the park, testing your waterproof earbuds, slipping on the Slip and Slide, and trying not to harsh the mellow of your dear old Uncle Sam.

    These tunes for good times from all times. Audio fireworks!

    Happy 4th of July from Professor Mikey's OLD SCHOOL! Share this with someone with whom you once spent the holiday.

    The Beach Boys. "Spirit of America" Little Deuce Coupe. Capitol, 1963.

    🏖🏝☀️⛱🏝🏖

    Chuck Berry. "Back in the USA" The Great 28. Chess, 1964.

    Johnny Cash. "Ragged Old Flag" The Essential Johnny Cash. Columbia, 1974.

    Roger McGuinn. "The Ballad of Easy Rider" Easy Rider. Hip-O Records, 1969.

    Blitzen Trapper. "American Goldwing" American Goldwing. SubPop, 2011.

    John Prine. "Your Flag Decal Won't Get You Into Heaven Anymore" John Prine. Atlantic, 1971.

    Alice Cooper. "I Love America" Dada. Warner Bros, 1983.

    Bill Parsons (Bobby Bare). “All American Boy” Single. Fraternity, 1959.

    Stan Freberg. "Declaration of Independence "A Man Can't Be Too Careful What He Signs These Days"" Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America. Rhino, 1961

    Steppenwolf. “Monster/Suicide/America” Monster. ABC Dunhill Records, 1969.

    David Bowie. “I’m Afraid of Americans” Earthling. Virgin, 1997.

    Cat Power. "American Flag" Moon Pix. Matador, 1998.

    Ry Cooder. "FDR in Trinidad" Into the Purple Valley. Reprise, 1971.

    Bob Dylan. "Dear Mrs Roosevelt" Tribute to Woody Guthrie. Warner Bros, 1968.

    Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young. "American Dream" American Dream. Atlantic, 1988.

    Spinal Tap. "America" This Is Spinal Tap. Polydor, 1984.

    James Brown. "Hey America" The Singles Vol 7 (1970-1972). Hip-O Select, 2009.

    Prince. "America" Single. Warner Bros, 1990.

    Stan Freberg. “Finale: “America, America! (Reprise) Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America Vol. 2. Rhino, 1996.



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit professormikey.substack.com/subscribe
    Exibir mais Exibir menos
    1 hora e 12 minutos
  • OS#85 Scenes from the Life of Brian

    OS#85 Scenes from the Life of Brian
    Jun 20 2025

    You have probably heard snips of “Surfin’ Safari” more in the past couple of weeks than at any time since it was released in October of 1962. That song, along with “Good Vibrations” and “Surfer Girl” highlight the fleeting media tributes to Brian Douglas Wilson (June 20, 1942 - June 11, 2025) the driving force behind The Beach Boys.

    Thanks for reading Professor Mikey's OLD SCHOOL! This post is public so feel free to share it.

    Luckily, Professor Mikey’s Old School goes a little longer and digs a little deeper than the usual media minute mourn. Still there isn’t enough time in one show to access the loss of an American rock n roll legend, who ruled the charts, the waves, the shoreline, and the hot California sand. But the attempt here will be to catch a wave and sit on top of the world.

    Brian didn’t surf. He was a composer, a bandleader, a singer, a keyboard and bass player, a producer, and a mysterious and reclusive giant of the American music scene. He was also a son, a brother, a cousin, a father, a label founder, a confounding genius, and an introverted wizard.

    There are tons of Brian Wilson stories and hopefully you will have time to hear them all. The tales of the Beach Boys are not all about the waves of Waimea and Malibu, bikinis and 409s. hallucinogens and cheese burgers, hot rod boys and surfer girls .

    Rather than trying to reconstruct a bio, or review a musical output of six plus decades, or watch a video of someone professing to have never listened to a Beach Boys track until they hit it big on YouTube, I have sailed the Sloop John B in a different direction. Whats next is an unsolved puzzle pieced together like the band might have done with reel to reel 60s and 70s snippets in the Sunset Sound Recording Studios.

    All the Wilson brothers are gone now. Dennis drowned in 1983 at Marina Del Ray about three weeks after his 39th birthday. Carl contracted lung cancer that moved to his brain and claimed him at 51 in 1998. Brian was 82.

    Don’t Worry Baby, everything will turn out all right. And now let’s roll tape and do some beachcombing on Professor Mikey’s Old School # 85: “Scenes from The Life of Brian.”

    Professor Mikey's OLD SCHOOL is a rocking reader-supported podcast and publication. To receive new posts and support dope oldies, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

    Beach Boy fans! Enjoy the roaring shredding of underground surf tunes. Tune in to the MONSTERS!!🦖🦖🦖



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit professormikey.substack.com/subscribe
    Exibir mais Exibir menos
    1 hora
  • OS#84 No Hit Wonders

    OS#84 No Hit Wonders
    Jun 9 2025
    Everybody knows about one-hit wonders. They may have had long semi successful recording careers, but at only one time in their entire career did the sun truly shine on them. They had that one song that came along at the perfect time, grabbed the public’s attention, and bought them a house on the outskirts of Palm Springs.So I started digging a little deeper. Deep in the Audio Closet of No Return are many albums by people you never heard of singing songs that were not widely heard outside of their mother’s kitchen.i may have doomed this episode by getting cute and calling it No-Hit Wonders. “No hits” will never fly with Top 40 limitations or Android Smoke Signals or Twenty First Century F F F Focus Groups. The pop music world thrives on success and an artist’s ability to make money for someone in a suit he or she will never meet. It’s a business of hits, not misses.As I started pulling albums that might fit the description, I found that many of the choices I made came from the early 80s. There is no scientific explanation. I was working for a station where music reps brought me stacks of albums. But new decades are a time of promise and possibilities.MTV didn’t start until August of 1981, so what you are about to hear is a collection of people who didn’t get to be big names just before video killed the radio star. It doesn’t mean they didn’t try. And, as you are about to discover, it doesn’t mean they produced sub par rock and roll. I dropped the needle through all of these albums and found songs I think history might have sadly overlooked.So much for the “no hitter.” From the Oscar broadcast, Franke Previte of Frankie and the Knockouts accepts the honors for writing “I’ve Had the Time of My Life” for Dirty Dancing.“That was Sweetheart from Franke and the Knockouts. It came and went in 1981. But the lead singer, Franke Previte would be remember for a much, much bigger song. In 1987 he got a call from the head of Millennium Record, Jimmy Ienner, who asked him if he would be available to compose something for an upcoming movie. When he was told the title, he thought he was being asked to write for a porn flick, and he was sure his career was sinking. The movie however, was Dirty Dancing. He joined co writers John DeNicola and Don Markowitz and their song not only bumped a Lionel Ritchie song for the climactic dance by Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Gray, the trio won Oscars for the best composition of the year.”It’s easy to say these weren’t particularly successful entertainment sources in their time, which for most of them seem to be on the cusp of a new decade. Through with the 70s, the 80s on top of them. A new unscripted baby of an era fairly unsure of what is about to happen, it only knows it is going to require a lot of mousse to replicate the glitzy Fifties, and for music and movies, an acceleration of drug use, particularly cocaine, on the highway to getting things done. For this handful of musicians the possibility of failure and being forgotten in a distant future is not there, like the haunted girl lost by the heartbroken Zombies in their debut hit of the 60s.You be the judge. This show is 100% vinyl, and about the same percentage obscure. But it wasn’t for lack of trying. From England we start with The Sinceros and a prophetic song called “Disappearing.” Get ready for Professor Mikey’s Old School #84: “No Hit Wonders: The Early 80s!”But if you have listened to as many records as an ancient DJ you have either lost all your audio tastebuds, or you have figured out that the music that comes out of an artist has little or nothing to do with the size of their bank accounts. Poverty struck down and outhouse cowboys have produced tear jerkers that rolled into the driveway in the rain with beautiful songs of heartache and redemption.⚾️PLAY (BALL) LIST(Coaches note: Batting order changed at the last minute)I’m So Attractive The Photos * I Don’t Wanna Hear It The Shoes * All Messed Up and Ready to Go The Records * Fotogenic Ellen Shipley * Hey You’re On the Run New England * Sweetheart Frankie and the Knockouts * Give Me a Little Time R.A.F. * At the End of the Day Mike Rutherford * Real Life Fast Fontaine * No Turning Back Sherbs * Disappearing The Sinceros * Fade to Grey VisageVisage fading to grey means we are coming to the end of the No Hit Wonders Old School podcast, and still no hits. Hopefully you got the point. Even the biggest hit makers sometimes find themselves in creative jungles. Chopping and charting through swamps and skullduggery, sure that whatever it takes to become a success has eluded them completely. Many of these artists disappeared or went different directions. Others persevered, sometimes into miserable failure. But other times they won the rock and roll.We close with a little known thematic project called Smallcreep’s Day. The artist is Mike Rutherford. He stayed in the background for a lot of his career. He was no ...
    Exibir mais Exibir menos
    1 hora
  • OS#47a Raining AGAIN on Prom Night

    OS#47a Raining AGAIN on Prom Night
    May 31 2025
    FOR a beat down of pure syrupy nostalgia, there’s nothing like an Old School prom night. Unless it’s an old basketball court gymnasium prom night. Or a Kiwanis Hall.Everyone is in their teens which means they will never look better. Small town princesses in their royal gowns, awkward guys all greased back and stiff in their rented tuxedos. Becoming a grownup is a mystery just a few miles down the road. Maybe if the music glides into romantic and dreamy, things might slow down a bit. The lights go low, the geometry teacher can’t see how close you are dancing.Before the limo arrives, the weather does its thing. It starts raining on prom night. Windshield wipers swipe back and forth, spreading droplet jewels before more fall. Uncomfortable but flashy dancing shoes go splashy through the puddle. Inside you can hear the Thunder under the Marshals and the Fenders.The rain is falling, the night is calling, some of the corsages have been in the freezers for close to 70 years. Much of this predates classic rock. So I guess it’s Baroque. It’s definitely romantic. And it’s coming down cats and dogs.Prom culture, like teen culture, has not stood still. For this playlist we hover pretty much around the late Fifties into the early Sixties. The oldest song is from 1952, but it has such staying power it was required on prom setlists for over 20 years. A couple of modern tunes from 1966 are present, just to keep the sass in tact. But mostly the prom sweet spot coincides with the peak years for doowop, a genre that takes to the floor after the Blues and just ahead of Soul. The greatest hits of Doowop were associated with Proms at one time or another. Heartfelt love songs that drifted through dreamy harmonies. All the sweetness and tenderness that true love can inspire in the poetry of an uncertain era. The importance of Doowop is a big chapter in any popular music history. Tonight however we are in love with the possibilities of everything working out just right for ever and ever.NEW SCHOOL PROM FILLERA girl usually tries on 10 dresses before she finds the perfect prom ensemble! Corsages were meant for the waist Teens usually spend $1,500 on their prom including tickets, limo, dresses, and flowers! 62% of prom-goers take home memorabilia to remember their prom night 15% of girls see prom as equal importance as their wedding Prom Industry earns about $4 Billion each year! The average prom proposal costs $325 Most girls shop for their dress 3 months before their prom. Source: Ambassador Limousines Weird Prom FactoidsIn 1975 Susan Ford (President Gerald Ford’s daughter) invited her peers to the White House to have their prom! Her father was not in the states that night so the Secret Service took it upon themselves to be the chaperones. It was held in the East Room. Once the night was over the students went on the Presidential yacht and cruised underneath the stars!This was supposed to end about twelve, and it’s a quarter till I guess. Nobody’s really looking at the clock. Throughout the evening people have been peeling off. Most of the teachers have gone home, there are still a couple of chaperone stretching out over multiple folding chairs. Balloons have popped, confetti is coming loose.But there’s still a dozen or maybe two dozen (its really dark in here) couples, and this is serious heartfelt intoxicating busy time. The DJ shuts up, the only music that’s going to work for the up close and personal is one long dreamy set of heaven sent Doo Wop. The Flamingoes have wet feathers because it’s still raining on prom night.Right now you might be thinking of a friend who would get a kick out of this show. Think no more! Send it to them! Cheaper than a corsage!The ProgramWalking in the Rain THE RONETTESCrying in the Rain THE EVERLY BROTHERSA White Sport Coat and a Pink Carnation MARTY ROBBINSAt the Hop DANNY AND THE JUNIORSLoillipop THE CHORDETT7 Little Girls Sitting in the Back Seat THE AVONSBorn Too Late THE PONI-TAILSWIshin’ and Hopin’ DUSTY SPRINGFIELDPopsicles and Icicles THE MURMAIDSTeenager’s Romance RICKY NELSONJohnny Angel SHELLEY FABRESVenus FRANKIE AVALONRhapsody in the Rain LOU CHRISTIERumble LINK WRAYHe’s a Rebel THE CRYSTALSAngel Baby ROSIE AND THE ORIGINALSNothing Takes the Place of You TOUSSAINT McCALLI Love How You Love Me THE PARIS SISTERSAll These Things THE UNIQUESI Only Have Eyes for You THE FLAMINGOSOnce Upon a Time ROCHELL AND THE CANDLESIn the Still of the Night THE FIVE SATINSTonight Tonight The Meello KingsThere’s a Moon Out Tonight THE CAPRISRemember THE EARLSThe Angels Listened In THE CRESTSYou Belong to Me THE DUPREES 1962Come Softly To Me THE FLEETWOODSI Love You So THE CHANTELSEbb Tide THE RIGHTEOUS BROTHERSFor Your Precious Love THE IMPRESSIONSFor Your Love ED TROWNSENDIt’s Raining On Prom Night CINDY BULLINS from GREASEDon’t forget to check out OLD SCHOOL on YOUTUBEProfessor Mikey's OLD SCHOOL is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and ...
    Exibir mais Exibir menos
    1 hora e 27 minutos
  • OLD SCHOOL Redux 3

    OLD SCHOOL Redux 3
    May 23 2025
    OLD SCHOOL #7 Wild Life MacumbaOs Mutantes 1968, Barbara George 1961, Lou Christie 1966For many who were there, regardless of our powers of recall, the psychedelic 60s are fueled by musical memories. Great Britain ruled with Beatles and Stones, trailed by a loopy gaggle that included Donovan, Small Faces, and infant Pink Floyd. Living in the USA meant the Dead, the Airplane, the Electric Flag, the plastic inevitable, the acid test.But in Brazil, all those inputs were peppered with the home country heroes Os Mutantes. Weird, political, original, they were as psychedelic as the blue sands of Rio in the moonlight. They started in ‘64, regrouped and added and subtracted personnel over the years, but remain a global legend.Presenting their first song, the gateway audio drug to the endless whirl that Os Mutantes!BAT MACUMBA Os MutantesBarbara George wrote her single hit basing the melody on one of her church choir faves, “Just a Closer Walk with Thee.” The lyrics were pointed at the jerk she had married at 16. It was a blessing as well as a blessing out.In 1961 “I Know” topped the R&B charts at hit #3 on the US pop charts. As composer, she reaped the benefits of cover versions by Ike and Tina, Fats Domino, Bonnie Raitt, and Cher. British invaders Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas recorded it.Such a fun song, it’s sleeping now, awaiting a reimagined cover somewhere down the line. How do I know? I Know.I KNOW. Barbara GeorgeLugee Alfredo Giovanni Sacco turned 83 on Feb 19. His best birthday will always be his 23rd in 1966, when he had the Number One song in the country. On March 3, “Lightnin’ Strikes” went gold, signifying a million sales, mostly to teenage girls who knew exactly where Lou Christie was coming from. And where he wanted to go.Most of Christie’s hits, heavy with falsetto and naughty romance, are rough and edgy for the times. To date he is the only artist to have a record banned for including the phrase “making out.” Christie loved the bad rich boy persona that emanate from his songs, his album covers, his live performances.Lou forever comes across as the privileged white teen who shows up late for the chaperoned sweet sixteen birthday house party, rocking a plaid blazer. He’s driving his father’s Jaguar. And at some point of the party he takes two or three cool guys out to the driveway for a smoke and shows them the pistol in the glove box.Christie and his labels created this image and squeezed it into a very successful career. “Wild Life’s in Season” is a lesser hit for him, but it is such a perfect example of what Lou Christie was all about. The man, the legend, the haircut.WILD LIFE’S IN SEASON Lou ChristieKnow someone who may enjoy some time in the Old School detention hall? Please share! Thank you😎OLD SCHOOL #8 Junior and Georgie on a MissionJunior Wells 1965, George Fame and the Blue Flames 1964, Mission of Burma 1981Unlike the Underground FM sets I would put together in the early 70s as a charter member of the Association of Progressive Radio Announcers, these three song Old School shows don’t have much to do with each other. That will probably change but for these first few it’s grab bag mode. Unearthing genius locked silent for a half century is enough!If today’s bill was a show, I would be there with you on the front row. Junior Wells was a legend. Musically he was family taught by cousins Junior Parker and Sonny Boy Williamson II. On the other side of the ocean Georgie Fame fed on American blues and brought a hep cat groove to the British Invasion. Fast forward a little and Boston’s Mission of Burma plays their first gig on April 1, 1979.OK, push play please…SNATCH IT BACK AND HOLD IT Junior WellsJunior Wells, 1934-1998 enjoyed a 40 year performing career that established him as one of the baddest blowers of the blues harp. Born in Memphis, he attended the school of hard knocks in Chicago. He was performing with a group called The Aces in 1952 when he heard that Little Walter had dropped out of Muddy Waters band.By the 1960s Junior was on his own when he recorded perhaps his greatest album, the Hoodoo Man Blues. The idea was to recreate in a studio what a night in a west side lounge might sound like Especially sweet is his Chicago Blues Band, consisting of bassist Jack Myers, drummer Billy Warren, and a guitarist called Friendly Chap on the first pressings, but you don’t need a weatherman to know that axe is being wielded by Buddy Guy.Don’t even try to sit still. Junior Wells 1965…Snatch it Back and Hold It…YEH YEH Georgie FameGeorgie Fame points to Louis Jordan, Booker T and Mose Allison as major influences on his jazzy British style. Oddly enough, the sound was just offbeat and swinging enough to earn him a high rank in the British Invasion. His first hit had been recorded by Mongo Santamaria, with lyrics written by Jon Hendricks of Lambert Hendricks and Ross. London went cool cat, and Georgie has been bopping ever since.From ...
    Exibir mais Exibir menos
    48 minutos