We're getting into some incredible songs. Enjoy this set!
Spain can be proud of this band at #40:
#40: Black Is Black--Los Bravos
This group was a combination of the groups Los Sonor and the Runaways. They formed in 1965 in Madrid, Spain with lead singer Michael Volker Kogel, guitarist Antonio Martinez, organist Manuel Fernandez, bassist Miguel Vicens Danus and drummer Pablo Gomez.
"Black Is Black" reached #2 in the United Kingdom and #4 in the United States and sold over one million copies. Los Bravos' follow-up, "I Don't Care" was a #16 song in the U.K. but unlike their big hit, success didn't spread worldwide. "Bring A Little Lovin'" was their next-biggest hit in the United States at #51.
Los Bravos released two albums and four singles in their career.
This group released a socially-conscious song that turned out to be their only big hit:
#39: Brother Louie--Stories
Lloyd Buonconsiglio had recorded songs released in the Seattle, Washington area and Michael Lookofsky was the leader of the Left Banke, which had hits with "Walk Away Renee" and "Pretty Ballerina". The two met and formed the Stories with Love and Madey and signed a recording contract with Kama Sutra Records. The group reached #42 with the title song from their debut album--"I'm Coming Home". Lookofsky left the band shortly afterwards.
In 1973, the Stories recorded the album About Us, which initially did not include "Brother Louie". Errol Brown and Tony Wilson of Hot Chocolate wrote the song, which was a hit for that group in the U.K. Six months after, the Stories recorded the song and reached #1 and sold over one million records.
Buonconsiglio, however, didn't believe the hit represented their work very well, and eventually left the group after their album Traveling Underground, also in 1973. Bassist Kenny Aaronson and keyboardist Ken Bichel joined the Stories and hit #50 with "Mammy Blue".
The Stories were never able to enjoy widespread success besides "Brother Louie", and broke up in 1974. Lloyd did session work with Foreigner and Peter Frampton, among others. Aaronson did session work for Bob Dylan, Hall & Oates, Foghat, Billy Squier and Rick Derringer.
At #38, the band who gave us one of the great songs from 1970:
#38: Ride Captain Ride--Blues Image
Singer-Guitarist Mike Pinera, drummer Manuel Bertematti, percussionist Joe lala, keyboardist Emilio Garcia and bassist Malcolm Jones formed this group in Tampa, Florida in 1966. Frank "Skip" Konte replaced Garcia when Emilio left the group to become a pilot. Blues Image relocated to Miami, Florida in 1968 and became the house band at the club Thee Image, one of the most innovative music venues in South Florida.
The group then moved to Los Angeles and signed a recording contract with Atco Records, releasing their self-titled debut album in 1969. Their second album Open in 1970 featured "Ride Captain Ride". Pinera and Konte co-wrote the song which rose to #4 in the United States and sold over one million copies.
In an interview with the magazine Melody Maker, elite guitarist Jimi Hendrix said that Blues Image was "one of the best up and coming bands around". Yet despite three albums and four singles, "Gas Lamps and Clay" (#81) was the best the group could do after "Ride Captain Ride".
It has been true for generations throughout history, and this band figured it out at an early age:
#37: I Fought The Law--Bobby Fuller Four
After recording a solo single, Fuller formed a band with his brother Randy on bass and drummer Gaylor Grimes. The group recorded songs at Fuller's home recording studio and went by several names, including Bobby Fuller and the Fanatics. Guitarist Jim Reese and drummer Dalton Powell came in when Grimes left.
In 1963, the group attempted to land a major recording contract but labels did not feel the band had hit material. So Fuller and his group continued to release regional hits in El Paso, Texas. They attracted a following with a remake of the Crickets song "I Fought the Law". But the group increasingly believed they needed a record contract. They eventually moved to California and signed with Del-Fi Records. Drummer DeWayne Quirico replaced Powell in the group at about this time.
The group's increasing local popularity led Del-Fi to create a label just for the band called Mustang Records. The group released the single "Thunder Reef" in 1965 as the Shindigs and their next single, "Take My Word", as the Bobby Fuller Four. Several other unsuccessful singles followed before the group re-recorded "I Fought the Law".
The song gained popularity nationally and rose to #9 in 1966. However, internal friction developed and Quirico left the band. Powell was brought back into the fold. But in July, Reese was drafted into the U.S. military and Powell announced he would leave the band. Fuller was not present at the band meeting when this all came down. Later that day, Fuller was discovered dead in the front seat of his car. Foul play was suspected, but the case remains unsolved.
After Fuller's death, the band abruptly disbanded.
Through a long series of bad choices, this artist ended her potential, her singing career and her life:
#36: Me And Bobby McGee--Janis Joplin
Joplin was born in Port Arthur, Texas, and as a teenager, befriended a group of outcasts, one of whom had albums by Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey and Lead Belly, whom Joplin later credited with influencing her decision to become a singer. Joplin joined the local choir and began listening to artists such as Billie Holliday and Big Mama Thornton.
Joplin focused on painting at Thomas Jefferson High School, then began singing blues and folk music with friends. Janis attended Lamar State College of Technology and the University of Texas before leaving for San Francisco, California. In 1964, Joplin and future Jefferson Airplane guitarist Jorma Kaukonen recorded several blues standards that were later released as the bootleg album The Typewriter Tape.
About this time, Joplin became heavily involved in drugs, succumbing to the temptation of speed and heroin, and she was a heavy drinker. In 1965, Janis's friends, aware of the physical effects of her amphetamine habit, paid for a bus fare so she could return home to Port Arthur. This great involvement by her friends helped Janis tremendously, as she avoided drugs and alcohol, wore modest dresses, and enrolled in Lamar University. But unfortunately, the change was temporary.
Joplin performed solo in Austin, accompanying herself on guitar. She recorded seven studio tracks in 1965 that were later issued as a new album in 1995 called This is Janis Joplin 1965.
Joplin's bluesy vocal style attracted the attention of the group Big Brother and the Holding Company, which had become popular in the Haight-Ashbury section of San Francisco. Chet Helms, a promoter who had known Joplin in Texas and at the time was the manager of Big Brother, recruited her to be the group's lead singer. Joplin returned to San Francisco and joined Big Brother in June of 1966. Janis debuted with the group at the Avalon Ballroom. A photograph there, later published in a book by David Dalton, shows Joplin before her relapse into drugs.
The group moved to a house in Lagunitas, California, often partying with the Grateful Dead, who lived less than two miles away. The group signed a recording contract with Mainstream Records before Joplin relapsed into drinking and intravenous drug use. Big Brother began playing at the Fillmore West and Winterland in San Francisco, at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, and at several other venues along the West Coast.
In 1967, the group released their self-titled debut album shortly after their breakthrough performance at the famous 1967 Monterey Pop Festival. The attention given to Janis caused resentment within the band. But Joplin continued for a while, playing a key role in arranging and producing the album Cheap Thrills. "Piece of My Heart" on the album became Big Brother's one and only big hit.
Then in 1968, Joplin announced she was leaving the band for a solo career. She formed a new backup group, the Kozmic Blues Band, composed of session musicians as well as Big Brother guitarist Sam Andrew. By early 1969, Joplin was shooting at least $200 worth of heroin per day. While recording the album I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again Mama!, producer Gabriel Mekler kept Joplin in his house during the recording sessions so he could keep her away from drugs and her drug-using friends.
Joplin performed in Frankfurt, Germany, Stockholm, Sweden and at Royal Albert Hall in London, among others. She appeared on The Tom Jones Show and The Dick Cavett Show on television. Kozmic Blues went gold, but Ralph J. Gleason of the San Francisco Chronicle said that Joplin should "scrap her new band and go right back to being a member of Big Brother...(if they'll have her)."
The single "Kozmic Blues" reached #41 in the United States, and Joplin was invited to sing at the legendary Woodstock Festival in New York. Joplin was unaware of the festival's existence, and told her band they would be performing at the concert as if it were just another gig. Upon arriving by helicopter, Joplin was approached by numerous reporters, and she became nervous and excited.
Joplin was excited to perform and arrived backstage, but several other bands were scheduled before her. Over the next ten hours, Joplin shot heroin and drank alcohol. Finally, she took the stage in the late hours of Saturday, August 16, 1969, after superstars Creedence Clearwater Revival. Joplin's voice was hoarse and wheezy and she found it hard to dance. Joplin was unhappy with her performance (duh!) and her singing was not included by her own insistence in the documentary film or the soundtrack of Woodstock.
Joplin also had problems at Madison Square Garden. In a duet Joplin sang with Tina Turner during a Rolling Stones concert in 1969, Joplin was described as being "so drunk, so stoned, so out of control, that she could have been an institutionalized psychotic" by biographer Myra Friedman.
Andrew, the lead guitarist who had left Big Brother with Joplin to form her back-up band, quit in the summer of 1969 and returned to Big Brother and the Holding Company without her. Joplin traveled to Brazil in 1970, where she tried to kick her heroin habit, but she fell back into the dangerous road when she returned to the United States.
Around this time, Joplin formed the Full Tilt Boogie Band, which began touring in May of 1970. The group joined the all-star Festival Express train tour through Canada, performing alongside The Band, the Grateful Dead, and Ten Years After. Joplin jammed with other performers and these performances are considered to be among her greatest.
Among her last public appearances were two broadcasts of The Dick Cavett Show. Joplin's last concert was at the Harvard Stadium in Boston, Massachusetts. In the fall of 1970, Joplin recorded tracks for a new album in Los Angeles with producer Paul Rothchild, who had produced albums for the Doors. At this time, Joplin still hadn't produced a major hit.
Joplin stayed at the Landmark Hotel while recording the album. Peggy Caserta, herself a heroin user whom Joplin had had a previous romantic relationship with, had become a dealer and had also checked into the Landmark because it attracted drug users. When Joplin learned of Caserta's presence, she begged her for heroin and within a few days became a regular customer.
After a recording session on October 3, Joplin and band member Ken Pearson went to Barney's Beanery for drinks. After midnight, Joplin drove him and a male fan who tagged along to the Landmark. The following morning, Rothchild became concerned when Joplin failed to show up at the studio. Road manager John Cooke drove to the Landmark to find her dead on the floor beside her bed, finally killed by heroin. Joplin's death came just 16 days after the death of Jimi Hendrix.
Although Joplin died before all the tracks were fully completed, there was enough usable material to compile an album. The result of the sessions was the posthumously released Pearl. It became the biggest-selling album of her career and contained a cover of Kris Kristofferson's "Me and Bobby McGee", which became Joplin's only solo hit. The single went all the way to #1 in the United States. "Mercedes Benz" from the album also received some airplay.
Joplin was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995, like so many hundreds of other artists.
There is no doubt that Joplin had a unique style and her influence on female singers that followed her is unquestioned. And her potential was enormous. But the sad fact remains that Joplin didn't live long enough to capitalize on her popularity or utilize her talent.
This garage rock group never made it big, but they gave us this rocker:
#35: Pushin' Too Hard--the Seeds
Singer Sky Saxon recorded a few 45's under the name of Richie Marsh in the early 1960's. He responded to an advertisement in a Los Angeles newspaper in 1965 to join the Seeds, along with keyboardist Daryl Hooper, drummer Rick Andridge and guitarists Jan Savage and Jeremy Levine. Levine left shortly after the group completed its first recording sessions.
The Seeds released the single "Can't Seem to Make You Mine", which was a regional hit in 1965. But their breakthrough was the single "Pushin' Too Hard", which reached #36, making it without question one of The Top Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*. But the lack of respect from radio at the time resulted in the group having just the one major hit. Future singles were once again relegated to being merely regional hits.
The group continued well into the 1970's, releasing nine albums and eight singles. They are considered pioneers of what would become known as punk rock.
Up next, the one and only hit from the #34 artist:
#34: Bitch--Meredith Brooks
At age eleven, Brooks began playing guitar in Corvallis, Oregon. In 1997, she released her debut album Blurring the Edges. It contained a song co-written by her, "Bitch".
The song reached #2 in the United States and Australia, #4 in New Zealand and #6 in the U.K.
Brooks has released six albums and nine singles in her career. The next-best song she recorded was "What Would Happen" in 1998, which peaked at #46.
This act put on a great live show, and we get a sense of that from their #1 song:
#33: At This Moment--Billy Vera & the Beaters
Vera, from Riverside California, began his singing career in 1962 as a member of the Resolutions. He wrote several songs for artists such as Ricky Nelson, the Shirelles, Fats Domino and Barbara Lewis. Vera sang the duet "Storybook Children" with gospel singer Judy Clay and wrote "With Pen in Hand" for Bobby Goldsboro.
Throughout the 70's and 80's, Vera continued to write, penning "I Really Got the Feeling" for Dolly Parton. He also fronted the 1972 reunion concert of Dion & the Belmonts. Billy moved to Los Angeles in 1979, where he wrote songs for Warner Brothers Records. Bassist Chuck Fiore and Vera formed a band to play clubs in the area, a group they called the Beaters.
On the strength of their live performances, Vera & the Beaters signed a recording contract with Alfa Records. The group was recorded live, and in 1981 this led to the singles "I Can Take Care of Myself", which reached #39 in the United States, and "At This Moment", which charted at #79.
By 1982, Alfa was out of business, but Billy Vera & the Beaters continued to play in the clubs of Southern California. In 1985, a producer of the television show Family Ties heard the band play "At This Moment". The song was featured as a backdrop for romantic interludes between Alex (Michael J. Fox) and Ellen (Tracy Pollan). Viewers began requesting the song and in 1986, Rhino Records released By Request: The Best of Billy Vera & the Beaters. The single became a #1 song upon it's re-release.
Vera and the Beaters were featured in the movie Blind Date. Vera had several other roles on television shows such as Baywatch and Beverly Hills, 90210. Vera co-produced three albums for Lou Rawls and Rawls recorded seven of his songs.
Billy Vera & the Beaters released five albums and eight singles in their career.
This group with the great guitar player may have only had one big hit, but they will always have their legendary performance at Woodstock to brag about:
#32: I'd Love To Change The World--Ten Years After
Alvin Lee and Leo Lyons founded this group formed in late 1960 as Ivan Jay and the Jaycats; they were also known as the Jaybirds and Ivan Jay and the Jaymen. They were successful in the Nottingham/Mansfield area of England. Ivan Jay sang lead from 1960-1962 and was joined by Ric Lee in 1965, replacing drummer Dave Quickmire, who had replaced Pete Evans in 1962.
The Jaybirds moved to London, where Chick Churchill joined the group. The quartet signed manager Chris Wright and changed their name to Blues Trip, Blues Yard, and finally in 1966 to Ten Years After. Alvin Lee's idol was Elvis Presley, and the group took their name from the fact that it had been ten years since Elvis burst onto the scene in 1956.
Ten Years After landed a residency at the famous Marquee Club in London, and played at the Windsor Jazz Festival in 1967. That performance led to a contract with Deram Records. In 1967, Ten Years After released their debut album. After a tour of the United States and Scandinavia, the group released the live album Undead. The album contained the song "I'm Going Home", which received enough airplay to get them a following.
In 1969, Ten Years After released the album Stonedhenge and appeared at the Newport Jazz Festival. On August 17, the group astonished fans with their famous performance at Woodstock that opened eyes throughout the music business. The band played at the Strawberry Fields Festival near Toronto and the Isle of Wight Festival in 1970.
In 1971, Ten Years After signed with Columbia Records and released the album A Space in Time. "I'd Love to Change the World" was released as a single, and it became the group's only hit, reaching #40. The band released the album Rock & Roll Music to the World in 1972 and the live double album Ten Years After Recorded Live in 1973.
Ten Years After broke up in 1974 but reunited in 1983 to play the Reading Festival. Despite 13 albums and the potential revealed at Woodstock, they never recorded anything close to "I'd Love to Change the World".
One of the big hits of 1965 gave us the #31 artist:
#31: You Were On My Mind--We Five
We Five grew out of a band called the Ridgerunners in San Francisco, California, and included Michael Stewart (baritone-bass, banjo, acoustic and electric guitar), Beverly Bivens (low tenor to high soprano, rhythm guitar), tenor Jerry Burgan on acoustic guitar, tenor Peter Fullerton on acoustic and bass guitar and Bob Jones (baritone-tenor, electric guitar). Stewart was the brother of John Stewart of the Kingston Trio and a solo artist ("Gold" from 1978). Michael Stewart did all the arrangements of the group's songs.
The group signed a recording contract with A&M Records in 1965. We Five remade the Ian and Sylvia song "You Were on My Mind" and released it as a single. The song reached #1 on the Easy Listening chart and #3 overall in the United States and sold over one million copies. We Five was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Performance by a Vocal Group for their work on "You Were on My Mind".
We Five became one of the first commercial folk-rock artists to record music for Coca-Cola. They added drummer John Chambers so they could tour in support of their hit. After completing the second album Make Someone Happy, lead singer Bivens left the group and We Five split. Before that, however, the group had a #31 song with an arrangement of the Kingston Trio song "Let's Get Together". You know the song today because in 1969, it became a smash for the Youngbloods as "Get Together".
A re-formed We Five recorded three more albums from 1968-1977. Fullerton left the music business in 1970 to minister to the homeless and needy, and founded the organization Truck of Love. Stewart became a producer, most notably for Billy Joel, and was a pioneering developer of MIDI music software.
Only 30 songs remain in our special. Be sure to catch each episode!
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