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Music et al, Roots of rock, Today in history

Chuck Berry Johnny B Goode

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Chuck Berry Johnny B Goode

released March 31, 1958
Chuck Berry Johnny B Goode
45 rpm of Johnny B Goode

“Johnny B Goode was not Chuck Berry’s first hit. He had topped the R & B charts with his first single, “Maybellene”  in 1955.  “Roll Over Beethoven” (1956) hit #2; “Too Much Monkey Business” (1956) #4; “School Day (Ring! Ring! Goes the Bell)” #1 in 1957.

And in 1957 he’d already had a R & B #1 with “Sweet Little Sixteen.”

Chuck Berry Johnny B Goode

Johnny B Goode

Berry’s “Johnny B Goode” was mostly autobiographical, though he was actually born in St Louis, not deep down in Louisiana close to New New Orleans way back up in the woods among the evergreens. But his St Louis street address was 2520 Goode Avenue. Love that trivia.

It is a song about the American Dream. It is about hope. That talent will prove out.

His mother told him “Someday you will be a man,
And you will be the leader of a big old band.
Many people coming from miles around
To hear you play your music when the sun go down
Maybe someday your name will be in lights
Saying “Johnny B. Goode tonight.”

The song has become American icon covered by dozens of performers and with Chuck’s sad death on March 18, 2017 we must carry his torch.

The song is ranked as number seven on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of “the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Many write of the similarity of Johnny B Goode’s opening to Louis Jordan’s “Ain’t That Just Like a Woman.” You can decide.

Berry’s recording of the song was included on the Voyager Golden Record, attached to the Voyager spacecraft.

Keith Richards inducted Chuck Berry into the first Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on January 23, 1986.

His bio from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame sums up Chuck Berry’s contributions: 

While no individual can be said to have invented rock and roll, Berry arguably did more than anyone else to put the pieces together. As rock journalist Dave Marsh wrote, “Chuck Berry is to rock and roll what Louis Armstrong is to jazz.” On “Maybellene” – Berry’s first single, released in 1955 – he played country & western guitar licks over a base of rhythm & blues. The distorted sound of Berry’s guitar captured the rough, untamed spirit of rock and roll. The song included a brief but scorching solo built around his trademark double-string guitar licks. It kicked off Berry’s career in style and paved the way for a steady stream of classics over the next decade.

Berry died on March 18, 2017. (NYT obit)

Chuck Berry Johnny B Goode
Music et al, Music of the 60s

Chiffons Fine Harrison Sweet

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Chiffons Fine Harrison Sweet

He’s So Fine

Chiffons

Billboard #1 single March 30, 1963

Chiffons Fine Harrison Sweet

Chiffons Fine Harrison Sweet

Chiffons

Some songs are hits and that’s that. “He’s So Fine” by the Chiffons was a #1 hit and that was that for many years. We’ll get to many years in a moment.

The Chiffons were at first a three-girl group [Judy Craig, Patricia Bennett, and Barbara Lee].  All attended James Monroe High School in the Bronx, NYC.

Ronald Mack wrote the song, was familiar with the group, and felt that they, and at his suggestion the addition of Sylvia Peterson, would be an ideal match.

Bright-Tunes Corporation recorded the song. The Tokens, famously had the hit “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” in 1961, owned Bright-Tunes and performed the music.

Chiffons Fine Harrison Sweet

He’s So Fine

Mack could not find any label to release the song until Laurie Records enthusiastically said yes.

Laurie released the song in December 1962. On this date the song hit #1.

After that hit, the Chiffons went on to have other hits such as  “One Fine Day” [by Carole King and Gerry Goffin, King played piano on the song] and “Sweet Talking Guy.”

Chiffons Fine Harrison Sweet

Seven years later…

In 1970 George Harrison released the song “My Sweet Lord” his first single as a non-Beatle.  The song did very well. In fact that year the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified it  gold by the for sales of over 1 million copies.

Then Bright Tunes filed a suit against Harrison alleging copyright infringement of the late Ronnie Mack’s song “He’s So Fine.”

Aa drawn-out legal battle between Harrison and Bright Tunes followed,

In September 1976, the court found that Harrison had “subconsciously” copied”He’s So Fine.” Judge Richard Owen said in his conclusion to the proceedings:

Did Harrison deliberately use the music of He’s So Fine? I do not believe he did so deliberately. Nevertheless, it is clear that My Sweet Lord is the very same song as He’s So Fine with different words, and Harrison had access to He’s So Fine. This is, under the law, infringement of copyright, and is no less so even though subconsciously accomplished.

The Chiffons released their own cover of “My Sweet Lord” in 1975.  Harrison’s “This Song” [1976] is all about the argument.

Fine vs Sweet

 

Chiffons Fine Harrison Sweet
Music et al, Music of the 60s, Today in history

Radio Caroline Pirate Radio

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Radio Caroline Pirate Radio

Launched on March 28, 1964

Radio Caroline Pirate Radio

By March 1964, the Beatles had landed in the USA and Pied Pipered its youth. Of course “their” music was a reinterpretation of “our” music. Filled with sophomoric hubris, we did not realize that many of their (and other British Invasion hits) were covers of earlier American hits.

In stark contrast, British youth had a difficult time hearing any rock music on their radios because of the British government’s control of the airwaves. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) limited their commercial-free stations to six hours of pop music a week!

Radio Caroline Pirate Radio

Enter Radio Caroline

Sensing  young  Brits unmet hunger for their own and American pop music, Radio Caroline,  the first pirate radio station, began to broadcast on March 28, 1964.

Radio Caroline Pirate Radio

Pirate Radio

The ironic characteristic about such radio is that it copied the style of commercial AM radio in the US. That is, top 40 format of rapid DJ patter and frequent commercials.

The approach was so successful that by 1967 ten pirate radio stations were broadcasting to an estimated daily audience of 10 to 15 million. Interestingly, the number of people listening to BBC stations did not decline indicating that the audience was a new one, one that the BBC had not had to begin with.

The British government attempted to rid the airwaves of pirate radio by passing the Marine Broadcasting Offences Act in 1967. The British government also adjusted its BBC program by increasing the number of programs playing pop music.

Radio Caroline Pirate Radio

Land-based pirate radio

Reg Calvert, known widely as ‘Uncle Reg’, ran the popular Radio City station from an abandoned Second World War fort off the coast of Whitstable. His daughter, Susan Moore, had recently published a book that explores her father’s experiences. (Kent on line article)

Radio City broadcast from Shivering Sands, an abandoned fort in the Thames Estuary. The British had erected many of these metal tower forts during World War II  to protect the coastal sea lanes. By the early ’60, these towers provided an alternate choice for someone interested in setting up a pirate radio station.

Radio Caroline Pirate Radio

Shot dead

Major Oliver Smedley was the former owner of another pirate station: Radio Atlanta. He and Calvert had a running feud about merging their operations, but Calvert felt Smedley was taking advantage of him.

He went to Smedley’s home. An argument ensued. Smedley shot and killed Calvert.

A jury found Smedley not guilty of manslaughter, accepting his claims of self-defense.

Radio Caroline Pirate Radio

US version

In 1987 the New York Times reported that  Allan Weiner and Randi Steele were the main persons of a group called Radio New York  International (RNI) that did the same thing of the coast of Long Island, NY. 

The called their ship, The Sarah–several of the men had girlfriends by that name. The group felt that none of the local the land-based stations played the type of music they wanted–which included such anti-war rock as John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance,” Country Joe’s “I Feel Like I’m Fixin’ to Die Rag,” and Bruce Cockburn’s “If I Had a Rocket Launcher.”

On July 25, the Federal Communication Commission boarded the ship and told the group it had to shut down the station. The FCC said that they did not have a license and that it was using an already assigned frequency. 

The government did eventually succeed in shutting down the station, but after RNI had sold the ship. The movie Blown Away used it and blew it up at the end of the movie.

Here is the raw footage of that 1993 explosion

Radio Caroline Pirate Radio

Still around

Radio Caroline continued to broadcast though with limited hours until 1990, but had periods of years when it was off the air completely. The way that it and other pirate radio stations were able to continue was by using new technology to broadcast, moving to different locations, or using secret land-based locations.

According to Wikipedia, There are currently an estimated 150 pirate radio stations in the UK. A large proportion of these pirate radio stations operate in London.