Willie Nelson, left, circa 90s with Tony Martell
(see Jon Scott note lower in Vox Jox)
10.19.15
By Claude Hall
and
Rollye James
Last week’s column, in spite of the fact that I missed the names of some really outstanding
record promotion people, was great in my opinion and that’s strictly because of Rollye James.
She did a wonderful job of filling in my many gaps. One of the gaps was the name of Russ
Regan, but that’s only because of the fact that most of the time I knew him, he was head of a
label, not in promotion per se. True, some promotion people never leave promotion. I recall
the day Shelby Singleton called me at Billboard in New York to tell me about “Harper Valley
PTA” by Jeanie C. Riley. He was afraid that the Billboard charts might miss the record. “I’ve
got three record plants pressing the single,” he told me. Well, as you’re aware, Shelby, head of
Plantation Records, didn’t lose that one. And I remember the day he brought her to the radio
meeting I organized at the Waldorf-Astoria and she was mobbed by radio program directors …
in fact any man standing in the ballroom. You couldn’t even get close!
I quickly emailed Russ Regan that he was one of my favorite people and I still told stories
about him and still had his coin that was pressed for the dinner when others in the record
industry honored him. I mean: Everyone likes Russ Regan! Russ Regan and Ron
Alexenberg and Morris Diamond and several others always treated me fair and were always
honest. I was grateful for these things. Very helpful gentlemen. Last week’s Vox Jox and this
week’s venture comprise literally a collector’s item because of the names of the men and
women mentioned in record promotion. And many recording artists were grateful for their
labors even in the day. For example, Ernie Farrell once mentioned to me that he still received
regular checks from Sammy Davis Jr. … long after “Candyman” had faded from the charts.
Ernie insisted that Barbara and I catch Sammy Davis Jr. at the Sands one evening. We went,
of course. What a great, stirring rendition of “Mr. Bojangles!” With dance movements. Then,
at some point in the show, Sammy announced that it was his birthday and he was feeling great.
“Maitr’ d, champagne for everyone to celebrate my birthday!” Sure, I realize he probably
celebrated his “birthday” once or twice a week … maybe more often than that …but it was a
damned brilliant promotion. I couldn’t like Sammy any better, because I’ve always liked him
… but …. In the same vein, I understand that Sonny James had a Christmas Card list that he
maintained for years after his record sales had faded away.
Russ Regan: “Thank you, I remember you very fondly. We were good friends, and those were
great days. Love you, too!”
Ron Alexenberg: “Hi, Claude. Thanks for the mention as the promotion game has really
changed since the days when I was fortunate to have met you and was the head of the
Columbia promotion team. Getting my education in promotion in Chicago with some of the
best radio relations you could have and learn from made my move into the National position at
Columbia, easy. Watching professionals like Morris Diamond, Jim Scully, Kent
Beauchamp, Pete Wright, Granny White, Fred Salem, Bert Loob, Marshall Chess,
Howard Bedno, Hal Gold, Paul Gallis, Mauri Lathawer, Arnie Orleans, Frank Rand, and
some of the national people that would visit, like Neil Bogart, Russ Regan, and Shelby
Singelton was very helpful. Having been given a regional job with Date Records, gave me the
experience of meeting so many key radio individuals and learning from them as well. John
Rook was the first to take me into his office at KQV and say ‘I know what you do, do you
know what my job is?’ and it wasn't just to listen to my hype of Peaches and Herb. Throughout
my entire career the lessons learned in record promotion and being fortunate enough to head
the best promotion teams of men & women at CBS Records & Infinity, with great success,
came from being a promotion person. After all, how many lifetime relations can you develop
like the one I have with Joey Reynolds. All the very best.”
Ron Farber: “Just received your recent column via our mutual friend, Joey Reynolds. You
might remember me -- we never did spend much time together -- first met you when I was in
college radio and later, when I did promo for several labels starting with Roulette, then Capitol
and a good run with A&M (among the others). Am presently semi-retired, living again in the
NYC metro area and have started doing unique presentations on the 'origins and evolution or
rock 'n roll' for various groups, libraries and organizations. Anyway, was in the 'thick' of the
music biz from 1970 until the late 90's. The wonderful Red Schwartz was the first to hire me
and he truly was the absolute best. Witty, cleaver and could get in the door to see anyone -- he
could barge into Paul Drew's office without an appointment. He was Dick Clark's favorite
promo man -- he drove Dick to D.C. when Dick was called in to testify during the famous
payola hearings way back when. Red was such a great personality with a true gift
for conversation. Red made Tommy James a major recording star.
“I, too, have a zillion stories about the people (the artists, recordS and radio folks) some of
which I use in my presentations. And possibly, someday, I'll actually finish that book I started
and stopped so many time. Fortunately, my memory is still quite vivid, clear and accurate. A
couple of things I'd like to correct from your recent column:
1. The Billboard offices were on West 46th in the Times Square area (not West Street as you
wrote). While in college, I had the privilege to work there during the summer of 1966 under
Andy Tomko in the charts department then known as 'record market research’. I
remember when the wire service delivered the sad news of then new hit maker Bobby Fuller
taking his own life. When Red brought me into Roulette a few years later, I would deal with
the NYC trades (Billboard, Cash Box, Record World) trying to attain chart bullets and release
reviews. I later worked them while with Capitol, A&M and other labels.
2. Was based in NYC with A&M (before they moved me to California), I covered the East
Coast and would frequently accompany artists to ‘The Mike Douglas Show’. This was done
out of Philadelphia, not the mid-west! Some great stories and memories here working the
show's talent director, Vince Calandra, and bringing people like my boss, the wonderful Herb
Alpert, Michelle Phillips and many others. Never knew who would also be booked on the
show -- met many celebs in the green room like James Coburn and Red Skelton. One time,
met the actor, Carl Weathers (then hot co-starring in a "Rocky" film). Gave him my A&M
business card. A couple of weeks later, he shows up at the A&M home base in Hollywood
saying I promised him a record deal! Good thing I did not give him an 'advance' on royalties!
3. Might just be a typo -- but when you mentioned some of the promo stalwarts out of Los
Angeles, it's not Howard but Harold Childs -- another great guy I had to pleasure of working
under for many great years. Those truly were the days!!! BTW, Jan Basham was a very good
promoter -- however, a bit of a diva (who earned that right) -- you might say that her m.o.
and technique was very different than that of Charlie (Minor). He was one of a kind and
perhaps the best ever at the craft of record promotion. And basically a real good guy. A
company joke at one time was when calling into the A&M home office (the lot) we would ask
for ‘wardrobe’. The operator did know if we meant Charlie or Harold! They were both
such fashion-plates. Yeah -- the heyday of stores like Mr. Guy & Fred Segal!
4. Lastly, FYI, you mentioned the Patty Drew record of ‘Tell Him’ on Capitol. This was her
re-doing a song she did for Capitol a couple of years earlier as lead for her group, the
Drew-Vels! Both versions did chart -- yet higher on the soul listings! Anyway, hope you are
well.”
Rollye: Nice to see someone outside of Evanston remembers Patti Drew (with an “i”), let
alone The Drew-Vels! To my ears, Patti's “Tell Him” is one of the few remakes that’s better
than the original, but I realize those are fighting words. The Drew-Vels were Patti and two of
her five sisters along with Carlton Black (an unsung soul great who wrote “Tell Him”— and
Ron, since you remember the Drew-Vels, you might remember Carlton from The Naturals,
which had a big local Chicago hit with “Let Love Be True” in ’64 on Smash, which he also
wrote-- I'm listening to it as I type). The Drew-Vels went from Capitol to Quill before typical
sibling rivalry killed the act. (Not everyone was fighting though, Carlton married Patti’s sister
Erma.) After the break up, Patti did a few solo singles on Quill before returning to Capitol,
which issued the remake (of which I wrote in last week’s column) with Carlton doing the bass
part. A few releases later, her version of “Working On A Groovy Thing” did very well in East
LA and with Beach Music fans— Patti got a kick out of learning she still has a big Beach
Music fan base, as she was born in Charleston, SC. Last I heard of her was around 1980. She
did some local club dates with Carlton (who had a lounge act, “The Front Line”).
Claude Hall: “Ron, it’s an honor to have you in Vox Jox! And please accept my thanks for the
corrections. One thing for sure, between last week’s Vox Jox and this issue you’re reading, I
think we’ve got a fairly good picture of the record promotion industry during it’s heyday …
and I’m grateful to you all! If we’ve missed anyone, please add to the fray!”
Bob Sherwood: “I read it and I did … enjoy it. As is the case every Monday!”
Ed Silvers: “Hi, Claude, I loved your latest on the record promotion guys of long ago. I
worked against most of them when I was a Miami promo man for Pan American Dist., and
then the L.A. man for Liberty Records. They sent me to the east coast, and finally to Chicago
to cover the midwest. I am old enough to remember Jerry Moss as an indie in Hollywood,
before he and Herbie started A&M! All the names made me remember their faces as young
men. I am grateful for the memories – thanks, Claude! Kindest regards.”
Bob Fead, Coming Attractions: “Thanks, Claude. What a way to open the day!”
Chuck Blore: “Dear old Claude, my old, old friend. Another week, another column, another
reason to smile. I love your memories and the way that you share them is very ... uh ... very ...
uh ... very warm and wonderful. Thank you for caring and sharing. Your older than you are,
old pal.”
Paul Cassidy: “Great article today, you mentioned nearly 100 industry friends, perhaps more.
Loved it all.”
Claude Hall: “Isn’t it amazing, the relationships that were established. Tony Richland and
Ernie Farrell … family! And there was a guy whose wife edited the movie “Blues Brothers”
and was said to have ‘saved’ the movie. After four or so decades, though, I can’t remember his
or her names! What a dolt, Claude!”
Art Wander. “Great article in the last Vox Jox on record promotion people. I probably
experienced something that didn’t happen to most PDs, though I assume they had some
memorable moments from the radio/records relationship they might want to share. My unique
experience was being boycotted by the entire record industry when I programmed WOR-FM,
New York. During my career -- so many markets, so many stations, so many record promotion
people -- I considered myself to have had a good, working relationship with the record industry
and its promotion people. I was fair. After all, experiencing Joe Galkin in Atlanta was an
adventure, despite our ‘friendly’ clashes. I’m quite confident that friend and outstanding radio
icon Ken Dowe would agree that Galkin was something else. Joe, though, was an outstanding
promotion man. He deserves a column by itself. A day after arriving at WOR-FM. I sat there
mulling over the format I would oversee and noticed record promotion people coming in all
the time, walk by my office into the studio and speak with Murray the K, Scott Muni, Rosko
and whoever was on the air. This was happening throughout every day. As I watched the
parade of promo people going in and out of the WOR-FM studio, I implemented a policy.
They could bring in new product during the day but they could no longer go directly into the
studio to talk to air people. Talking about records would be confined to the station’s two
outstanding music directors. They would listen to the product and chat with the promo person.
Also, don't come with a huge stack, just ones that would be list material. I would see them
WHEN possible, setting aside Thursdays when I would see them. Suddenly, early in 1967 –
nothing. There were no promotion people coming to the station; no records were being
delivered – or mailed to the station. No telephone calls. It was as if WOR-FM didn’t exist.
Fortunately, since we were playing many album cuts we had on hand and compatible current
singles and oldies, it didn’t affect the station sound. After about a week to 10 days, I received a
call from a record company exec stating, ‘Art, we would like to schedule a meeting to discuss
the problem’. I asked, ‘What problem?’ Answer ‘You know, about the station not receiving
any music product’. I informed him that we did not have any problem and had plenty of music
to play. But I said OK and scheduled a meeting in the next few days. It was held in the
WOR-AM boardroom. With me were my two music directors. About 15-20 of the
promo/record people were there. I welcomed them and waited. Nothing. A couple of minutes
went by with nobody saying anything. All of a sudden, one of them (I believe it was Sammy
Vargas from United Artists label) stood up and belted out, ‘We don’t need another Rick Sklar
in our City’. That opened the door to their biggest complaint – that they must see me when
they come to the station. I said that’s impossible since I was working on policies,
programming the station and having a lot to do. I assured them that when they came in the
music directors would talk to them, review their product and keep me informed every evening
about those records that would be considered. I would listen to all of those screened by the
MDs and even listen to many other titles in the evening and, often, into the night and on
weekends. I also advised them that it was important to have new material in stereo. I asked if
they were ever refused being seen by the MDs. Answer – NO. Were they ever given any false
information about possibility of being added to the playlist? Again answer NO. I asked if I
never spoke to any of them? Yet another NO. In other words they were treated fairly with the
product being listened to. As time went by we listened to both sides, also playing the flip side
of a promoted ‘A’ side. (Example -- while the ‘A’ side was ‘To Love Somebody’ by the Bee
Gees, we were also playing ‘N.Y. Mining Disaster 1941’.) Those cuts were given to me by
Brian Epstein when he visited the station well before the Bee Gees hit it big-time. We
referred to the cuts as ‘British surprise #1 and #2’ in respect to Epstein's wish not to mention
the group's name. The promotion people never heard of this. During my time at the station, I
was asked why we were not playing Glen Campbell's ‘Gentle on My Mind’. I advised the
promotion person that we were playing the John Hartford version who wrote the song and I
also mentioned that we were playing recently released ‘Ode to Billie Joe’ without anyone
promoting it. The result was I would speak with them on Thursdays and other times IF I had
the time. Again, limit the number of records to the few that would have a chance to be played.
They were again assured the product would be listened to – and considered with air people
listening at Friday's staff meetings. Trips to the studio stopped and the system went along until
RKO brought in Bill Drake, changing format, causing the exit of many people. Interestingly,
several of the promo people later spoke to me saying that they were against boycotting the
station. They also appreciated the fact that I did not disclose to Rick Sklar the comment about
New York not ‘needing another Rick Sklar’ until a decade or more later and we had a good
laugh about it. Bottom line was, they were convinced I was fair and all that mattered was what
was in the grooves. Then again, there was Joe Galkin. God, how I miss those days.”
Claude Hall: “I met Joe Galkin only once, so far as I can recall. He came over to the hotel
and picked up me and Billboard music editor Paul Ackerman to drive us to the Miami Beach
home of Jerry Wexler. He was driving one of those huge Mercedes-Benz that drove like a
ship. Jerry Wexler had just sold it to him. Joe was, indeed, an interesting person.”
Carl Peebles: “Good morning, Claude! Below is an email that I received from Red Jones just
last night. I was stunned. I'd not spoken to Red for well over a week. Thought that he was in
Florida or somewhere. Anyway, I called immediately and spoke to his wife, Dita. Did not
speak to Red. He was tired of talking as his voice is a little weak and he tires easily, overall.
They'd had more calls than you can imagine … large, large family. But, Dita said that he was
listening on the speaker phone and grinning. He is really doing very well indeed and, except
for the tiredness, is almost completely recovered. Thank God! Expect to have them over for a
steak or something or other on the ‘barbie’ as soon as he's up to it! Dita said that the helicopter
landing in their neighborhood and the ride to Grady Hospital in downtown Atlanta was an
exciting event!”
Red Jones to Carl Peebles: “Just wanted to touch base. I had a slight stroke last week (if a
stroke is slight) and spent 5 days in Grady. Backome now and was going through some things
including some liners that possibly you might like to have on CCC later. I set up a file. But
with the stroke, my voice is a bit weak. Hopefully it'll get better. With our marriage, thank
God I have Dita. A great care giver and she can take care of all situations. In case I hadn't
given you the info, our home address is 60 Greenwood Lane (closing on the Plantation Ave.
house is Nov. 9).”
Johnny Holliday, upon my request: “I would be delighted to knock out a few of my memories
at WINS. Thanks for asking. If you happen to have satellite radio we are on XM and Sirius
for every home game. They carry the local broadcast when the teams are at home. Team is
not bad this year, but it has the toughest schedule in the Big 10 … next week we're at West
Virginia, always a difficult place to play … even more difficult to win there. Hope all is well
at your end… I will have something coming your way shortly. Guess I am one of the lucky
ones to have made the move from music to sports, but oh do I miss those days at WHK, WINS,
KYA, and then here in DC at WWDC and WMAL.
“In response to your note on WINS, I am delighted that you asked about my time with them, so
here goes: I was happy and enjoying the time of my life at WHK in Cleveland when the
call came from New York. Would I be interested in flying to New York and talking to Joel
Chaseman, then the program director, about joining their lineup. I figured what the heck, sure
I'll talk to them but I was very happy at WHK working for Jack Thayer. After all,
our ratings during my show 3-7 p.m. were at an all-time high, WHK was number one, as were
all of our personalities, among them Scott Burton, Johnny Walters, Carl Reese and Party
Pat Fitzgerald. So I flew to the big apple and sat down with Neil McIntyre, the assistant PD
and Joel Chaseman. Neil had come to 101 WINS from WHK where he was the music
director and we had worked together for 5 years. Neil, in my opinion had a brilliant ear for
picking out hits and was one of the most respected guys in the business. We had a great
meeting and I told them I would go back to Cleveland and think about their gracious offer. I
met with Jack Thayer and we talked about the pro's and con's of going to New York, the
number one market in the country. To be honest, I did not want to leave the comfort zone I had
carved in Cleveland, the fellow broadcasters I worked with, the management, the listeners,
the friends I had made over the 5 years I had been with WHK. Mr. Thayer and I both shed
some tears in our meeting and he finally said to me … you have to go, it's an opportunity you
can't pass up, if it doesn't work out, the door will always be open for you to come back. He
reminded me that I would be working with some good friends, Neil and Pete ‘Mad Daddy’
Myers, who had also moved on to WINS from WHK. I talked it over with my wife Mary
Clare and we decided, let's do it. I was only 25 when I did my first show on WINS in February
of 1964. It was the best decision I ever made. Mr. Chaseman was without question the best
leader I ever worked for. In short time, he went from PD to general manager of WINS and to
this day we still have time to have lunch once in a while here in Washington where Joel is
retired after a brilliant career with Westinghouse and Post Newsweek. Being with Neil again
made the transition that much easier. Not to forget Pete Myers. When I went from Rochester,
NY, to WHK in 1959, Pete sort of took me under his wing, he was the oldest on the staff, I was
the youngest. Pete did the same thing at WINS. Whether he was Pete Myers or Mad Daddy,
this was one of the most talented and creative individuals I have ever worked with. My first
day on the air, was rather unusual. The studios were located at 7 Central Park West, above a
Nedick's of all places. Murray the K was in Miami Beach with the Beatles and I was asked to
do not only my first show on New York radio but also Murray's show from 7 to 10 that night.
Sure why not. Quite a memorable experience to say the least. To say I was thrilled to be on a
50,000-watt Westinghouse station such as 1010 WINS would be an understatement.
Thrilled beyond words might be better. Murray joined me on the phone that first night with
John, George, Paul and Ringo, all live on the phone from Miami Beach. I did Murray's show
for the next 3 days, as well as mine and when The K returned, my first meeting with him was
also quite interesting. Murray was the man in New York and truly was bigger than life. He
walked in my studio while I was on the air, introduced himself and quietly reminded me to
stick with him, and everything would be okay. He was so right. Jack Lacy was also with
WINS, a perfect gentleman on or off the air. Ed Hider was the morning man, one of the
funniest guys I've ever met. Ed is still making ‘em laugh in LA, out of the biz, but big in
owning half of Beverly Hills apartment buildings! Ken Garland would later replace Hider in
the morning. Joel Sebastian came to WINS from Detroit and we became good friends.
Murray of course was Murray, every night from 7 to 10pm, then Pete would do his Mad
Daddy thing starting at !0. Stan Z Burns was also there when I was there. We had a terrific
on-air lineup. An outstanding news team led by Charles Scott King, Stan Bernard, Tuck
Stadler, Jim Gordon, Stan Brooks, Paul Sherman and Brad Phillips. One of our
most successful promotions was our station basketball team I had started one at WHK, the
WHK Radio Oneders and found it to be a great vehicle from promotion. At WINS it was called
the WINS Winners. Adam Wade played for us as did Murray, Jack Lacy was our ‘coach’,
Hider played so did McIntyre. We played high school faculty's throughout the WINS listening
area, with schools making the money! We traveled to Conn, New Jersey, Long Island and
every game was sold out. I continued with my teams after WINS went all news and I landed a
job at KYA in San Francisco. That’s where I first met Claude Hall and his lovely wife. They
were the first friends we made, since we had never been to California before. When I finally
stopped with the charity basketball teams in 1986, we had raised about 1.6 million dollars for
schools in Cleveland, New York, San Francisco and Washington, DC. While at WINS I
was fortunate to meet Gary Smith the producer of ‘Hullaballoo’ on NBC. Gary hired me to
become his announcer and when I left WINS for KYA, I stayed on as his
announcer commuting back to NY from SF once a week to tape the shows. Murray also hired
me to do his TV special ‘It's What's Happening Baby’ for CBS. What a lucky guy I was! In
April of 1965, WINS decided to pull the plug on the music format and switch to all news.
None of us thought it would work, WINS was holding its own against WABC and WMCA.
Joel Chaseman called me at home where I was getting over the flu to give me the news. He
had renewed my contract two months earlier for another year and assured me he was getting
me every dollar that was due … and he did. So. It was a crazy move but as we all know,
worked out well!
“One of the proudest moments of my career was posting the highest ratings in New York City
at 5 pm in one of the surveys. Guess who I was up against every afternoon, Dan Ingram on
WABC! Need I say more? I never met Dan while I was in New York, but a few years ago
tracked him down and we had a wonderful conversation on the phone. Over the years since
the switch to all news, I've had numerous conversations about what if this ... what if that ... I
am a firm believer that things works out for a reason. It did for WINS and it did for me. To
this day I'm proud to have worked at 1010 WINS. It was an experience I will never forget, the
staff, the listeners, some of the recording artists I met like Frankie Avalon, Lesley Gore,
Steve Lawrence, Neil Diamond, Bob Crewe, The Four Seasons, Carol King, Liza Minelli,
The Tokens. Promotion men like Mickey Eichner, Danny Davis, Freddy DeMann,
Charlie Koppleman, Don Rubin, Sal Licata, Jerry Jerome … just to mention a few. I
played the last record on the station on a Sunday night April 18th 1965. Since the air staff had
been dismissed, save for the news staff … the last song I played was ‘Out in the Streets’ by The
Shangri-las. I stopped playing music in 1979 to make the switch to sports. For the past 37
years I've been the play-by-play voice for the University of Maryland football and basketball
games and for the past 9 years host of the Washington Nationals Pre and post games shows on
television. Toss in 28 years with ABC Radio Sports and it's been one heck of a ride. And to
think it was 50 years ago that WINS went from music to all news! I'm thankful to have been
part of it.”
Claude Hall: “Johnny, what a great article! I’m honored to feature it. The
WINS/WMCA/WABC fray was historic. I knew Murray pretty well and Scott Muni. An
interview that I did with Dan Ingram is floating around out there on the Internet. Wish I
could hear from him. I’d like to know how he’s doing. As for Ed Hider, the story I used for
years was that he came to work one morning at KFI and found someone else in his chair. I met
him once. Somewhere, somewhen in Los Angeles.”
Johnny Holliday: “1010 WINS is having a 50th anniversary celebration the evening of
November 2nd…and they've invited Joel Chaseman and I to come up to NY and be part of the
festivities. I'm gonna do my best to do just that and so is Joel.”
Rick Frio: “Hi, Claude, more sad news, another one of our record guys passed away today.
Joe Saraceno went in his sleep after a very long illness. Joe was a dear friend who worked
with many of us at Liberty Records as well as other labels. I have attached a list of his credits,
you can see he was very talented, but more important he was a great guy.”
Claude Hall: “And what a talent! Joe’s production credits ranged from ‘No Matter What
Shape Your Stomach’s In’, which I believe started its career as a commercial, to tons of LPs
and singles, including an album by Bobby Vee. I didn’t know him. Wish I had.”
Frank Shively: “Hi, Claude. Saw the shot at Bruce Bird. I worked for him at Buddah til he
left for Casablanca. My experience was, he took care of his people, he was honest and the
radio people that I dealt with in the mid-west all seemed to like him and also seemed to feel the
info he passed along was credible. Tony Richland was/is one of the very best.”
Hal Whitney: “You all must remember and most of you knew Frank Holler from his WPOP
days in the late 60's and early 70's. He was also PD and air personality at WDRC-FM in the
80s. Newington Police have confirmed that Frank died last night at his home. I don't have any
more details right now. I worked with Frank at WPOP and I always thought he was a ‘Good
Guy’. Last time I saw him was at the WPOP 45th anniversary of the change to All-News.”
Jon Scott, former vice president of special events for the TJ Martell Foundation: “This coming
Thursday is the 40th anniversary of the T.J Martell Foundation. Tony Martell has been
tirelessly working to help find cures for leukemia, cancer and AIDS. As you may know Tony
lost his son TJ to leukemia at a very early age and he promised his son he would start helping
doctors by raising money. Forty years later and millions and millions of dollars raised, Tony
has made a huge difference in all of our lives.”
Claude Hall: “Jon, my grateful thanks for the photos. And, while I’m at it, my grateful thanks
to both Johnny Holliday and Art Wander for the tales. Loved ‘em.”
Bobby Vee, left, visits a local zoo with his son Robby Vee, who has his own band and
performs throughout the midwest.
Doc Wendell: “Here's my piece on a live recording by Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie.
They were my initial introduction to jazz and made me the jazz-geek I am today. Enjoy and
hope all is well.”
Don Graham: “Hi, Claude and Rollye. Hope this finds you both well. Last Monday, the
Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters honored Tony Orlando with a luncheon at Sportsmen’s Lodge.
Gerry Fry, boardmember, send along the following links to pictures that Don Whittimore and
I took. A good shot of the dais is also available at: ppbwebsite.org My pictures are available
for downloading on Photobucket here.
Claude Hall: “Scotty Brink was in town, but we failed to make connections. Sorry, Scotty.
Next time. Mi casa est su casa.”
Rollye: Anyone writing a column will wonder about what gets response and what doesn't.
Rarely do we guess right. For instance, I never would I have thought that last week's mention
of Eddie Lambert would bring mail.
John Long: “Seeing Eddie Lambert's name in last week's column brought back a lot of
memories. My introduction to record promotion came in 1964. I was still in college and
working at WTRP in LaGrange, Georgia. I convinced the owner of the station to give me $5.00
a week extra for gas to go to Atlanta, visit the record distributors and pick up new releases.
Capitol's office was on Monroe Drive, Southern Distributors (Mercury, Philips, Smash, et al)
on Luckie Street, Southland on Techwood, and Godwin Record Distributors on Ethel Street.
Don't remember where RCA was located. I also don't remember the names of all the promo
men I called on; some included Sam Wallace at RCA, Larry King, and Joe Galkin at
Southland. I also met the grand dame of the Atlanta record scene, Gwen Kessler. I dealt with
Morris Diamond in Chicago, as well as Romeo Davis, regional out of Charlotte. Larry King
and I became lifelong friends. I haven't seen Gwen for a couple of years and many from that
era have passed away.
“I was so young, wore pants with cuffs and lace up oxfords. I was on top of the world.: $75.00
a week, an expenses account, and a Diners Club card. Now, about Eddie Lambert. He was the
guy I used to call when I didn't know what to do. That was almost daily after I got the job.
Between Eddie, Romeo, Larry King, and the weekly music meetings at Jim Davenport's
WFOM, I learned how to be a promotion man. Calling on radio stations made me realize how
much I missed it. I went back to college and radio.”
Rollye: Thanks, John. Your email brought back a flood of memories for me as well. Seeing
Joe Galkin’s name took me right back to the lobby of the Georgian Terrace, and even further
back to Macon. (I’m hoping WIBB’s King Bee, Hamp Swain, will one day be recognized in
the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame.) And seeing WFOM brought Dennis St. John to mind. His
band St. John & The Cardinals played more than a few Cobb County gigs for 'FOM and, for its
brief existence, WSMA. Dennis solved the problem of on-stage apparel by having the band
don choir uniforms. It saved money too, until the rental place started to complain about their
sweaty, dirty condition upon return, asking “What kind of church are you boys in?” It still
makes me laugh.
Gary Allyn: “I couldn’t help but reminisce with you regarding Eddie Lambert. I remember
him well. Also, Henry Stone of Tone Distributors in Miami. Henry, of course, passed a short
time ago. This is where I first met Dickie Kline-who worked as a stock boy then. Loved
Dickie..the best! I remember a Milt Oshin (not sure of spelling) down there. There was Pan
American Dist. but can’t recall the contact there. My first tour was in Miami Beach at the old
WAHR, renamed WMET while I was there in 1958-60. It was here Lenny Bruce and I became
friends. He, in turn, took this pic which appeared on the back of his “Togetherness” FANTASY
album.
“Lenny played 9 weeks at the “El Patio Club” on 17th St. next to Martha Raye’s club. It
always struck me funny as the club featured Chinese food! The El Patio was run by two small
time “syndicate” guys who were brothers... Buddy and Barney.(I’ll leave out the last name).
Barney was rather large-6’ 5”” and about 300 lbs. I was there watching Lenny perform on a
Saturday night when some Mafia fellas came in the back (not seen or heard by the customers)
and “rubbed out” a “business acquaintance” of the brothers in the kitchen. It was hard to order
Chinese cuisine after that. What a thrilling place and time to be then. Rollye, I love what you
and Claude are doing with VOX JOX. Also, thanks for the link to my blog etc. over in the left
hand column. I never miss a Monday!”
Rollye: The El Patio! What a great picture. And great stories! It really was a magical time.
When I got down there in late 1958 (still too young to enter most of the places I wanted to go),
all the old timers were reminiscing about how good it used to be— in the days when Desi
Arnaz would have the rumba line around the block on 21st Street. But to me, it didn’t get
better than it was right then. So much packed into those few blocks from 21st to 23rd, Collins
Ave to Dade Blvd. I’d walk by joints like The Gaiety, Club 23 and Place Pigalle where I
wanted to see exactly what Zorita the Snake Lady did. My imagination was better than reality,
but Tubby Boots still makes me smile, and my mouth waters over some of those meals at The
Embers.
Rollye: I’m impressed, Gary. You’ve have so many legendary call letters on your resume, but
to me, WAHR is the standout. Not for anything Allen H. Rosenson did, or didn’t do, but for
all the amazing talent that walked through the halls at 814-1st Street, yourself included. When
you got there, my buddy Cliff Hall, Jr. may still have been on staff. I hope you got to know
him. You’dve liked him. Or maybe hated him. But you wouldn’t have been indifferent. One
of my favorite people, Cliff was more of a caricature than a character. It’s hard to dissuade me
of the notion that Top Cat was based on his persona. I remember one conversation with Cliff
when he got some job for which he was maybe marginally qualified. In answer to my
incredulous query, ‘How did you get THAT job?’ he sniffed, “Office presence, baby.” Al
Martinez (another WAHR alum) once described Cliff’s ambiance as, “He gets on and off
planes well” (in the days when that required a flight of stairs outside). But then again, I think
Al described former WQAM program director Kent Burkhart that way too. I do remember
Al describing Kent’s initial consulting success as due to “perfecting the wrinkle free suit.” He
might have been on to something. Years later I never failed to notice that by night fall at radio
conventions while the rest of us were haggard, Kent was pristine. There were some wagers as
to whether he ever sat down, but sure enough, Al was right. His suit was not wrinkled, not
even creased.
Rollye: I never knew Dickie Kline worked at Tone! Henry Stone’s name in the music
industry should have been much bigger than it was. And the 70s disco era for which he is most
known, while lucrative, didn’t begin to reveal the depth of his involvement in the 50s and 60s.
A lot of talent owes Henry Stone a debt of gratitude. I was going to mention names like
Betty Wright and Steve Alaimo, but I realized I’d be writing all night. Milt Oshins was
Stone’s right hand man for many, many years. Ironic you should mention Pan American
Distributors the same week that Claude got an email from Ed Silvers (printed above). I didn’t
know Ed, but the name I always associated with them was Sam Taran. I think Taran
Distributors owned Pan American. Sam was a former boxer and coin op guy from the Twin
Cities who relocated to Miami and was known to bet on anything (shuffleboard and pinochle
come to mind). I believe Morton Marks worked for him for a while. Ed can probably fill us
all in. Pan Am went out in 1963— a chapter 11. Same year that Todd Distributors (owned by
another Twin City name, Amos Heilicher) pulled out. There's irony in that timing as both
ARMADA and ROSA held their conventions in Miami that year. (ARMADA, the American
Record Merchants And Distributors Association was something cooked up by Henry Stone,
Hy Weiss, Leonard Chess, George Goldner, Ewart Abner and Don Robey— not sure how
long they existed but their convention at the Eden Roc was memorable. ROSA, the Record
One Stop Association, might have only lasted a year— long enough for them to have a fine
convention at the same time, right next door at the Fountainbleu. The following year they
joined forces with the MOA in Chicago.)
And this week, the last word goes to Joey:
Joey Reynolds: I am watching Carolyn's dogs while she visits our grandchildren on the west
side of Florida. Meanwhile I had dog hairs in my free bag of chips on Jet Blue from the dog
that had a sign, which read “service dog”. I thought he has just gotten back from the war in
Afghanistan. Isn't that where Afghan Hounds are from? Mercedes is coming here at the end of
the month with the whole Fam damily. The new baby is already 12 pounds in 2 months.
Mercedes must have a drive thru window on her breasts, Fast food is not a good diet.
Supersize this… On to Art Vuolo’s house next week for the last jock convention, just like
the last radio contest in San Diego years ago, thank you Jerry and Buzzie. It is reminiscent of
the Peter Bogdonavich film, The Last Picture Show, you remember, when radio was black n
white before color radio? We are going to tell lies about how much we don't want to be on the
air anymore, and how I am still living off of my record hop money from the Rascals in 1966,
and that the free shrimp from the Billboard magazine party was bigger than the Gavin shrimp.
I wish radio was like it was. I am getting tired of picking up my own checks at dinner. When
I get that old feeling, I go to Forest Lawn to put some free goods on the grave of Morris Levy.
Last week I returned to NASDAQ for my man on the square TV taping in Times Square, a
segment of 98.6, (sounds like a dial position on FM). A truly different kind of syndicated TV
for people with short attention span. The title 98.6 has to do with the temperature of the
country when we are at peace. I was listening to real people from all over NOT texting or
talking about politics and the Kardashians. This is a syndicated TV weekly show starring
Roland Smith (CBS anchor), Ellen Evans (soap star), and a variety of guests over 50. People
acting OUR age for a change. "It ain't over till it's over" Apparently for Yogi Berra, it's over!
