She had that unmistakable voice and pioneered a rock ‘n’ roll style and look all her own.
Veronica Bennett burst onto the pop music scene in 1963 with one of the greatest pop records of all time, “Be My Baby.” As the lead singer of the Ronettes and a cornerstone of producer Phil Spector’s “Wall of Sound,” their music leaped out of your transistor radio with hits like “Baby I Love You” and “Walking in the Rain.” She married Phil in 1968 and officially took the name Ronnie Spector, but that union almost ended her career because of Phil’s strange and often violent behavior.
Eventually she got out of the marriage and slowly made her way back to performing and recording. The 1980’s found her working with Bruce Springsteen, “Little Steven” Van Zandt, Southside Johnny and many other industry admirers. Her hard work cumulated in 1986 with the Top 5 hit “Take Me Home Tonight” – a duet with Eddie Money- which re-introduced her to a loving audience. She recently created a multi-media show “Beyond the Beehive” to tell her own story in words and music and vintage memories.
When we talked in December 2010 she was just beginning to plan that new show and told me of her earliest influence, Frankie Lymon. I finally had the opportunity to tell her how much the Ronettes appearance in an early 1960’s Murray the K holiday concert had meant to me as part of the experience of attending my first live Rock ‘N’ Roll show.
The “voice that may have launched a thousand trips”, Grace Slick is best known for her work with the Jefferson Airplane. As the Airplane morphed into the Starship in the 70’s, Grace continued to record with them, while also releasing solo albums. By the 80’s the band had become an on-again off again act, but during her visit to my show on Feb 8, 1984 promoting her new album Software, she recalled one of their biggest hits.
Little Richard was the self-proclaimed “architect of rock ‘n’ roll.” Never one to be shy about his musical contributions, you cannot underestimate his importance and everlasting influence in American popular music. Born Richard Penniman on December 5, 1942, his recent passing on May 9, 2020 brought forth a stream of testimonials and appreciation from a diverse mix of music and entertainment royalty.
I met Little Richard in the fall of 1984 as he was promoting the release of his authorized biography, Quasar of Rock: The Life and Times of Little Richard. It was my first assignment as the rock correspondent for TV’s PM Magazine and a fitting way to begin my latest adventure in rock ‘n’ roll. We filmed the segment in the fall of 1984 at the Limelight, a New York City nightclub that was once a church. It was the perfect setting for the rocker evangelist who was about to be born once again.
Beginning with “Tutti Frutti” in 1955 and continuing with “Long Tall Sally,” “Lucille,” “Good Golly Miss Molly,” “Rip It Up,” “Ready Teddy,” and so many more, his signature sound and look were defining contributions to the development of rock ‘n’ roll. From Paul McCartney’s falsetto “woos” to the pompadour of Prince, Little Richard’s style transcends generations of rock performers.
Richard’s career was never a smooth one. After an amazing string of hits on Specialty Records and show-stopping performances (including TV and film) he suddenly announced that he was abandoning rock ‘n’ roll for religion. In 1958 he formed the Little Richard Evangelistic Team and traveled across the country to preach. His musical releases turned to gospel, but while on tour in England in 1962 he began a return to rock. Greeted with enthusiastic audiences and adulation from young British rockers, it wasn’t long before he was back touring as the headliner. Among his opening acts on that tour were the up and coming Beatles and later, The Rolling Stones.
His touring band, The Upsetters, featured the teenage keyboard player Billy Preston and a developing guitarist named Jimmy (later Jimi) Hendrix who joined the Upsetters in 1964. Jimi only lasted till the following year. He was fired over his tardiness, wardrobe, and especially his on-stage antics which threatened to upstage the legendarily flamboyant Richard.
Throughout the rest of the 60’s and 70’s, Little Richard recorded for a succession of record labels and often was featured as a guest performer on other artists’ records. He quit rock ‘n’ roll again in 1977 after battling alcohol and drug abuse and returned to evangelism.
In January 1986 Little Richard was one of the original ten performers inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Later that year he had a featured role in the acclaimed film “Down and Out in Beverly Hills” and soon became a frequent guest on numerous TV talk and variety shows. He resumed recording and touring and finally seemed to be receiving the recognition he deserved for his contributions to the musical genre he had helped to create.
Richard announced his retirement in the fall of 2013, just shy of his 81st birthday following a heart attack, but remained very resolute about his legacy. “When I started in show business,” he told Rolling Stone magazine, “there wasn’t no such thing as rock ’n’ roll. When I started with ‘Tutti Frutti’ that’s when rock really started rocking.”
Levon Helm is an American treasure. Beginning as a drummer with Ronnie Hawkins and the Hawks, later working with Bob Dylan and then as a founding member of the legendary Band, he was always regarded as a “musician’s musician.” In recent years that respect continued to grow and Levon’s Midnight Ramble sessions at his Woodstock studio became sold out must see events with a stellar list of all-star performers and celebrities.
He’s also an accomplished film actor with critically acclaimed performances in Coal Miner’s Daughter and The Right Stuff. His book This Wheel’s on Fire provided an insiders look into the Band’s storied history.
In 1996 Levon was diagnosed with throat cancer and his distinctive singing voice was silenced for awhile. When he stopped by for a live studio visit in November 2000 he sat in on drums with a local band, The Electrix, unable to sing, but lighting up the room with his energy and enthusiasm. We spoke about his history, the dawn of the new century and since it was Thanksgiving weekend, reminisced about The Band’s farewell performance, dubbed The Last Waltz.
Julian Lennon was twenty-one years old when we first met and talked in 1984. He had just burst onto the music charts with the hit single and album Valotte. But his presence in the music world had been established years before for supplying his father John Lennon with the inspiration for the song “Lucy in The Sky With Diamonds” as well as being the subject of Paul McCartney’s Beatles’ classic “Hey Jude.”
With the platinum success of Valotte and a 1985 Grammy nomination for Best New Artist, it seemed that Julian was destined to continue in his father’s footsteps as a long-term recording and touring musician. Four more albums followed over the next thirteen years, but a growing sense of frustration and disappointment with the music business led Julian to pursue other artistic endeavors. He emerged as a talented photographer with well received and critically acclaimed exhibitions.
In 2011 he decided to return to making music and began work on a new album. Officially released worldwide in 2013, Everything Changes is his first album in fifteen years and the title seems to be the perfect description for Julian’s approach to his life and career.
Talking with him at WFUV in November 2013, he performed songs from his new album as we discussed a variety of subjects – including why he chose to reference a well known Beatles’ lyric in his own music, reclaim his family legacy, recording with Steven Tyler, and how a comment John once made inspired Julian to create the charitable White Feather Foundation.
Of all the bands to come out of the British Invasion I always thought that the Kinks’ music was the most representative of life in England. Their long time leader and primary songwriter, Ray Davies, captured the characters of his North London upbringing (Muswell Hill) with clarity and wit. He also wound up writing and recording one of the best songs ever about Hollywood, two of the greatest rock ‘n’ roll hits of the 60’s and so many more.
In the fall of 2009 he toured and released a new album called the Kinks Choral Collection and we explored some of those wonderful Kinks Classics.
To listen to my full interview with Ray Davies click here
Creedence Clearwater Revival was one of the most successful bands of the late 1960’s and early 70’s.
Their leader, John Fogerty, emerged as a performer with one of the most distinctive vocal and guitar sounds in rock ‘n’ roll. Many of the songs he wrote and recorded became not only rock classics, but also political touchstones of the period.
Disbanding the group in 1972, he went on to pursue a solo career and continued making memorable music.
Despite his success, there were lengthy legal battles with his former record company and bandmates that made it difficult for him to embrace CCR’s legacy.
In 2005 John finally made peace with his past symbolized by re-signing with his former record company (Fantasy Records, now under new ownership). He has since released several CD’s and DVD’s including Revival which was released in October 2007.
We spoke in the fall of 2004 and again in 2007 about his latest releases, and, of course, that classic Creedence sound.
As a founding member of Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna, Jorma Kaukonen has long been an important and respected figure in rock and roll history.
Though the original Airplane disbanded in 1972 and Hot Tuna has been through various changes of personnel and status, Jorma has never stopped performing and recording. His unique fingerstyle guitar playing has been heard in numerous solo projects and together with Jack Cassady he’s often back on the road as Hot Tuna.
Jorma and his wife Vanessa own and operate the Fur Peace Ranch, a music and guitar camp in the hills of Southeast Ohio. Aspiring musicians from all over the world travel there to study with Jorma and an amazing array of guitar masters.
When he visited with me along with fellow musician Barry Mitterhoff, in January 2008 he shared some early Airplane/Tuna history.
There are a lot of different ways to celebrate New Year’s Eve, but I’ll always remember 12/31/82 as the one I got to spend with Ron Wood. Stopping by my show to promote an upcoming appearance, Ron and his entourage were clearly in a holiday mood. With a rock ‘n’ roll lineage that includes the Jeff Beck Group, the Faces, and the Stones he had some great stories to share, plus a comment about their upcoming album Undercover that made me hope the FCC wasn’t listening.
He’s played with a band called Willy and the Poor Boys and still performs with the Rhythm Kings, but Bill Wyman remains best known as the long time bass player for The Rolling Stones. He joined the Stones in Dec 1962 and for the next thirty years recorded and performed with the group as they became “the world’s greatest rock ‘n’ roll band”. Recently he reunited with them briefly as a special guest on stage as they kicked off their 50th anniversary celebration.
After leaving the Stones in 1992 to focus on getting his personal life straightened out, he has written numerous books, continued to play and record music and even opened a successful London restaurant called Sticky Fingers. An avid collector of many things, Wyman has often been called the Rolling Stones archivist. His impressive coffee table style Rolling With The Stones book is a wonderful insight into the band’s history, filled with a remarkable collection of photos, posters, ticket stubs, and stories that only he could tell.
I spoke to Bill Wyman in the fall of 2002 when the book was released and among the many subjects we covered, I wanted to learn the definitive story of how the band got their name.
