by Robert Wilkinson
Tonight we dance to celebrate the 2019 birthdays of the indefatigable Sag drummer Tre Cool, the enigmatic Jakob Dylan, Kenny Vance of Jay and the Americans and American Hot Wax, and the music of the Orlons!
We’ll begin with a big Happy Birthday to Ms. Shirley Brickley (December 9, 1944 – October 13, 1977) of the Philly girl group the Orlons. Formed in 1960, Len Barry of the Dovells pushed them to get a contract, and the Philly sound took flight!
They started as backup singers for Dee Dee Sharp on her hits “Mash Potato Time,” and “Gravy (for my Mashed Potatoes).” As was the practice back then, record companies liked to recycle hits to other acts in their stable, so of course Cameo-Parkway took both of these hits and had the Orlons do their own versions of “Mash Potato Time” and “Gravy”
They followed these effort with a tune that broke them into the #2 slot on the pop charts, the very danceable “Wah-Watusi.”
They followed that one with more hits in 1962-1963, including “Don’t Hang Up” (#4 US) and “South Street” (#3 US).
Though they already had hit their peak, their run of hits extended through 1963 with “Not Me” (#12 US) and “Crossfire” (#19 US).
Also from the Not Me album, “Mama Didn’t Lie,” their version of the Crystals’ #11 hit, “He’s Sure the Boy I Love” and the very upbeat “Bon-Do-Wah,” after which the group fell apart as the British Invasion hit peak intensity.
So happy and merry to you in the Great Beyond, Shirley. You died way too young.
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Our second set celebrates the birthday of Kenny Vance (Born Kenneth Rosenberg December 9, 1943), founding member of Jay and the Americans who was also a producer and songwriter. From wikipedia, "He was the music supervisor for the movies Eddie and the Cruisers, Animal House (which also featured an uncredited Robert Cray as bass player with fictional group, Otis Day and the Knights) and American Hot Wax with Tim McIntire, Jay Leno, and Fran Drescher. He wrote the theme for the score, produced the soundtrack album (which made the Top 40), and appeared in the movie as “Professor La Plano” to lead his fictional group, the Planotones, in a performance of “Rock and Roll Is Here to Stay”. The Animal House soundtrack also made the charts and sold over 1 million copies and the Eddie and the Cruisers soundtrack album sold triple Platinum. He contributed music for many other films and TV shows, and after being a guest singer on Saturday Night Live in 1977, became the musical director in 1980-1981."
Due to time constraints, I can't do a full tribute and include most of his later and current work, but you can hear his contributions to Jay and the Americans by checking out the recent post Happy 2019 Birthday to Jay Black.
In a nod to his movie work, here’s a great 15 minute collection of clips from the movie American Hot Wax which featured Kenny and the Planotones, doing “Come Go With Me,” “Rock and Roll is Here to Stay,” and other classics of the era. American Hot Wax - The Planotones
Here’s a magnificent doo wop album! Kenny Vance and the Planotones - Greatest Hits
We’ll close with an absolutely GREAT live performance of a magnificent gem, “Looking for an Echo”
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Our third set comes courtesy of birthday boy Jakob Dylan (December 9, 1969), founder of the Wallflowers and a major musical talent unto himself. Yes, the son of America’s third poet laureate also rocks, and rocks hard!
For your enjoyment, a tune that is unforgettable!
Here’s the original music video for their breakthrough hit “One Headlight”
Live on Letterman, “One Headlight” and “6th Avenue Heartache.” We'll follow these with another classic, “Three Marlenas,” move into “The Difference,” and close this brief set with “It Won’t Be Long (Till We’re Not Wrong Anymore)”
From an earlier Letterman in 2004, here are the Wallflowers and Jordan Zevon performing the Warren Zevon classic “Lawyers Guns and Money”
Here’s the audio only recording Jakob made with Dhani Harrison on the Save Darfur album of the John Lennon classic, “Gimme Some Truth”
Live on Leno in 2000, the Wallflowers give an excellent live performance of “Sleepwalker”
Here’s a great live performance in 2012 at the Love for Levon concert! Here’s Jakob’s take on the 1956 Clarence “Frogman” Henry tune “Ain’t Got No Home”
We’ll close this part of the dance with a couple from his 2010 album Women and Country. First, a live acoustic performance at Lightning100 studio of “Everybody’s Hurting” which we’ll follow with another live performance where he delivers “Nothing But the Whole Wide World”
For the encore, we have a full 30 minute set! Live at Shoreline Amphitheater in 1998, the Wallflowers! The Wallflowers Live at the Shoreline Amphitheater 1998
For the second encore, we go back to what brought us to the dance, this time with Bruce Springsteen on stage with the Wallflowers on MTV in 1997 cranking out “One Headlight”
He did an album Echo in the Canyon where he with others cover songs from the Laurel Canyon SoCal scene of the mid-60s, including tunes by the Mamas & the Papas, Buffalo Springfield, and the Beach Boys. This album led his manager to create a documentary about the project and those bands and songs which shaped so many lives back then. If you can catch the documentary Echo in the Canyon please do so. I just saw it last week and it’s a winner!
Happy and merry solar return and birthday, Mister Dylan! May you rock on for many more!
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Finally, we celebrate the birthday and music of Tre Cool! He, along with Aquarian Billie Joe Armstrong and Taurus Mike Dirnt (with a shout-out to Scorpio Jason White), are a major musical force and social conscience in our world. If you've never heard of Green Day, here's a bit from Billie Joe's birthday celebration,
As I’ve written before, in case you've been on a trip to Sirius or Alpha Centauri, Green Day blasted their way to national influence in the so-called "grunge" alternative rock movement of the mid-1980s. The band originated in Berserkley and soon blazed to global popularity through its uncompromising brand of neo-punk thrash rock that forced everyone to take note of what was happening. A major musical force and social conscience in our world, for your listening pleasure here are Billie Joe Armstrong (February 17, 1972), Taurus Mike Dirnt (born Michael Pritchard, May 4, 1972), Sagittarian Tre Cool (born Frank Edwin Wright, December 9, 1972), and Scorpio Jason White (November 11, 1973)!
And now, on with the shew. I've found early, middle, and relatively recent performances, so enjoy the many phases of Green Day! We begin this set with a basket full of great videos of Green Day doing some classics.
Let's begin with a video for a cause that really matters. Here's a great performance for Instant Karma: the Campaign to Save Darfur, Amnesty International's effort to bust genocidal war criminals. A powerful video of Green Day doing the John Lennon classic ”Working Class Hero” offering a chilling indictment of genocide! Here's their performance of "Working Class Hero" on American Idol that was said to "stun America." We can only wish that Amerika would wake up and remember.....
From Munich, their hit, ”Know Your Enemy.” Here they are in NY doing "Know Your Enemy." Also from that NY show, here's ”21st Century Breakdown.”
Let's move into some videos of early classics. From 2000 in Japan, here's Green Day performing "Basket Case" with another version from Chicago in 1994 of "Basket Case."
From Munich, a live performance of "When I Come Around." From the same show, (you really should watch this one!) the awesome "Holiday."
An interesting Live Audio 1990 performance that features fragments of several early songs set to still photos.
From a 1997 Live in the Alley performance, "Nice Guys Finish Last" with another version from the Chelmsford Festival V98 of ”Nice Guys Finish Last” and “Hitchin' A Ride” done as a medley.
Here's one of their best! From 2009 in England, complete with the crowd singing every single line, "Good Riddance (the Time of your Life)." From Japan, another great live performance of "Good Riddance (the Time of your Life)”
Recent material features some magnificent live performances. We now groove into my favorite Green Day song, "Holiday." Written as an in-your-face challenge to the Bush War Criminal administration, Billie Joe makes it clear that "This song is not anti-American. It's anti-WAR!"
This version is magnificent. From the Billboard Awards ceremony, "Holiday."
From the 2005 Bullet in a Bible tour in England, I found a bunch of their songs, which I’ve posted in the same order as the playlist! We begin with the title song from the album of the same name, here's a live performance of ”American Idiot.”
Billie Joe’s rousing the rabble! Another stunning performance of "Holiday.”
"Wake Me Up When September Ends.”
"Boulevard of Broken Dreams," (This is from their 2005 MTV performance, since I couldn’t find the 2005 UK performance on the Bullet in a Bible tour.)
"Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)”
Last year I found the full two hour show, but it’s nowhere to be found this year.
More live performances!
From American Idiot, here is their 2005 Rock am Ring performance of "Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” and from different live shows, great performances of "Wake Me Up When September Ends" and ”Give Me Novacaine.”
Here’s a great 10 minute performance in Japan of "Jesus of Suburbia."
From Berlin at Live 8 in 2005, Green Day live performing “Minority”
Also from Rock am Ring in 2005, "We Are the Champions”
Now for a few whole shows! Here’s the entire 1 hour 47 minute show of Green Day Live at Roseland 2000.
I found it again! Here’s their entire 2001 Bizarre Fest set! Green Day Live at Bizarre Fest - 2001
Here’s the entire 55 minute show of Green Day MTV Live in Italy 2005
Here’s the entire 92 minute show of Green Day Live Rock am Ring, Germany 2005
Here’s a great performance of U2 and Green Day in N’awlins in 2006 doing "Wake Me Up When September Ends” and “The Saints Are Coming," finished with "Beautiful Day.”
For our closer, I found 2 performances of covers. First, here's Green Day doing the Sonny Curtis classic, "I Fought The Law", and for the second tune, here's the Chuck Berry classic "Johnny B Goode."
Our first encore runs two hours plus! Green Day 2013 Reading Festival Performance
Our second encore is from early 2019. This is their one hour performance on iHeart radio! Green Day Live on iHeart radio - 2019
Our third encore is an hour and 26 from Madrid 6 weeks ago! Green Day - Dookie 25 Live in Madrid 2019
And if you still want more, here's the official Green Day You Tube channel where I'm sure you can get dialed in to what's up with this amazing group.
Happy 47, FEW3. Enjoy the adventure while playing the game.
© Copyright 2019 Robert Wilkinson
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