Geator Gold - Vol. 2: The Duck Across the Pond!

BOOTH ANNOUNCER GARY OWENS:

...and the cow was returned to its rightful owner.

And that's the latest from S-P-M-M news...
fast, up-to-the-minute, completely fake
and proud of it. Now stand by for

 GEATOR GOLD 

on the station that's #1 for music and fun - S-P-M-M!

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

(COLD SHOW OPEN)

"Can You Do It" - The Contours

(Apr. 1964, highest chart pos. #41 Hot 100 & R&B)

A fantastic sound coming out of Detroit, those were the mighty Contours

with "Can You Do It," a record that brushed the top 40 on both charts -
R&B and pop, in the spring of 1964. If you're watching my simulcast
on YouTube you saw the def dancing of the teen kings and queens
on my good friend Dick Clark's TV show American Bandstand.

Greetings and salutations! I am The Geator
with the Heater. I am The Boss with the
Big Hot Sauce, welcoming all my yon
teenagers to another bombastic edition
of Geator Gold here on S-P-M-M...
the station that's #1 for music and fun.

We're plowing through 7-in-a-row on
the Jerry Blavat show, doin' the bop
at the Geator's sock hop... and lawd
have mercy, we won't stop til we drop.

CLICK TO START
THE VIDEO NOW!

Ready for a quack attack? Here's my man

Jackie Lee with his swan song-- "The Duck!"

"The Duck - Part 2" - Jackie Lee
(released Mar. 1973 in the UK)

That was Mr. Jackie Lee keeping us out

on the floor and beggin' for more. If you're
livin' in the U.S.A., I'm willing to bet that
was the first time you heard that particular
version of "The Duck." Quick story: Back
in the fall of 1963 the duo of Bob & Earl
wrote and recorded "Harlem Shuffle."

"Bob" was Bob Relf who made solo
singles using his own name and two
others - Bobby Valentino and Bobby
Garrett. "Earl" was Earl Nelson who
took the name Jackie Lee and had a
solo hit with the dance ditty "The Duck."

What you just listened to was Part 2 of "The Duck" which was not released
on a single in the U.S. It was issued in the UK in 1973 on the B side of
Part 1. If you are familiar with Part 1 you noticed that Part 2 contains
different lyrics and the female backing singers are featured more
prominently, making it even more of a groove than side one.

Back to Detroit we go now for a nifty number by one of Motown's top
girl groups and another version of a popular song that I'm betting is
new to your ears. It's the Marvelettes and their hit "When You're
Young And In Love," only this is an alternate version with
a spoken intro. This one's too cool for school!

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

"When You're Young And In Love" (alternate mix) - The Marvelettes
(May/June 1967, highest chart pos. #9 R&B/#23 Hot 100)

From the vaults of Motown, those were the marvelous Marvelettes
with the seldom heard spoken intro version of their top 10 hit
from the spring of 1967, "When You're Young And In Love."

Up next on Geator Gold, more of the girl group

sound, this one by a group from New York. In

1957 the duo Johnnie & Joe had a top 10 hit

with "Over The Mountain Across The Sea."

"Johnnie" was Johnnie Louise Richardson,

daughter of "Zell" Sanders, founder of the

New York based R&B label J&S, one of

the few record companies ever owned by

a woman. Johnnie was also a member of

The Jaynettes, the Bronx girl group that

hit with "Sally, Go 'Round the Roses."

CLICK TO START
THE VIDEO NOW!

In 1958 Zell signed a girl group called The Bouquets and changed their
name to The Click-Ettes. Featuring lead singer Barbara Jean English
here is one of their great ballads-- "Lover's Prayer."

"Lover's Prayer" - The Click-Ettes
(June 1959, uncharted)

On Geator Gold we play 'em from the heart... not the chart, and you just heard
the fabulous girl group The Click-ettes proving that old school is cool with
a great late 50s snuggle song for my yon teens, "Lover's Prayer."

If you're just tuning in, we're in the middle of

a 7-in-a-row block party on Geator Gold with

yours truly Jerry Blavat, The Geator with the
Heater, The Boss with the Sauce, right here
on S-P-M-M... home of The Shady Bunch.

Speaking of school, here are The Students,
a doo-wop group from Ohio that recorded
two classics of the genre, "I'm So Young"
and "Every Day Of The Week," both
songs penned by William H. "Prez"
Tyus, Jr., a high school pupil.

CLICK TO START
THE VIDEO NOW!

The two monumental songs were released back-to-back on the same 45.

Here now are The Students with the B side, "Every Day Of The Week,"

a dance number that inspired The Dovells' "Bristol Stomp!"

"Every Day of the Week" - The Students

(B side of "I'm So Young" single orig. released in

July & Aug. 1958 and charted #26 in June 1961)

Waxed in the summer of 1958 and popular three years later in the summer of '61
as the fab flip of the top 30 hit "I'm So Young," that was the up tempo side
"Every Day Of The Week" by The Students of Cincinnati, Ohio.

Fiction and Fact From the Geator's Almanac:
He is known as the singing barber of Pine Hill,
New Jersey, a town not far from Philadelphia.
I'm talking about Mr. Billy Harner. In the 60s
Billy's high voltage performances of R&B
material invited comparisons to Mitch
Ryder and earned Billy the nickname
“The Human Perk-u-lator.”

START THE VIDEO NOW!

In the 70s, Billy's records were hot in
Northern Soul clubs of the UK. Here's
Billy's biggest-- "Sally Sayin' Somethin'!"

"Sally Sayin' Somethin'" - Billy Harner

(Aug. 1967, highest chart pos. #118 Bubbling Under)

That was Billy Harner - “The Human Perk-u-lator” - and his signature song
"Sally Sayin' Something," a big hit on the East Coast in the summer of 1967.

CLICK TO START
THE VIDEO NOW!

And as all good things must come to an end,
so too must this edition of Geator Gold.

Thanks for listening. Don't touch that dial,
because my puppy pal Toto Moto is coming
up on the other side of news with a special
show called Toto's Tutorial. You don't wanna
miss it. After that, my good buddy Dell Rat
Tom drops in to play stacks o' wax on Juke-
box Giants, and I'll be back soon with more
Geator Gold... so keep it here on S-P-M-M
where the cool oldies live on and on.

To play us off, gospel-tinged disco done right, just inches across the border
into secular territory. The song is "Mighty Cloud of Joy," and the group
is called the Mighty Clouds of Joy. Now this is Jerry Blavat, The Geator
With the Heator... The Boss With the Big Hot Sauce, reminding you to
keep on rockin', baby, 'cause you only (woo-HOO!) rock once! Bye y'all!

"Mighty Cloud of Joy" – Mighty Clouds of Joy
(Feb./Mar. 1975, highest chart pos. #47 R&B)

An Amazing Life - A Daughter's Birthday Tribute to Her Mother

Tom Anderson with you today to welcome back

my very dear friend Kathleen Mae Schneider.

Kathleen is here to remind us that this is a

special day on the Shady Dell calendar.

It's time for us to remember and honor

her mother Margaret Schneider on the

anniversary of her birth. In her later

life Margaret became a celebrity on

Shady Dell Music & Memories and

earned the nickname "The Oldest

Living Dell Rat." Margaret's father

built the Shady Dell in the early part

of the 20th century and Margaret and

her family were the the first people

to reside at the estate. Now, here's

Kathleen with this year's birthday

tribute to her mother Margaret.  

An Amazing Life

A Daughter's

Birthday Tribute

to Her Mother

by Kathleen

Mae Schneider

"Life is not measured by the number of

breaths we take, but by the moments

that take our breath away."

- Maya Angelou

Pointing to the collaged "104" on the wall

above Mother's chair a few months before

her last birthday, a neighbor chuckled, "Wow,

it won't be long before we see "105" up here!

What's your secret, Margaret? How come

you've lived so long?" Mother flashed a

look across the room to me and replied,

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe God's just

keeping me going to pester my kids".

It was true that we "kids" (retirees all!)

had been through much with her those

last six years. However, instead of feeling

"pestered", I felt truly blessed to be one

of this sweet woman's caregivers.

In honor of the anniversary of Mother's birth 107 years ago on this day,

I want to share just a few of her pictures and memories that she gave me

during that time she referred to as "borrowed". We had many both

poignant and happy sessions as we looked at these photographs

together. Because she remained in sound mind and strong

spirit, she often had stories to go with them.

MARGARET SCHNEIDER'S BIRTHPLACE

This unassuming house where Mother was born on April 18, 1912, still stands

right along the main street in Violet Hill, York County, PA., at the base of the hill

where the Shady Dell is located. My grandparents operated a small general store

on the first floor at the time of her birth. Since the house has since been divided

into apartments, it looks vastly different than when the Brown family lived there.

MARGARET (FRONT ROW, FAR RT.) AND HER SIBLINGS

AND COUSIN ON THE SHADY DELL PORCH

The picture above was taken around 1914, and Mother's personality already shines

forth as a happy and contented two-year-old. She sits on her older sister's lap

along with the newest Brown family's baby, Mildred. Some of her siblings

and a decidedly un-photogenic cousin also pose for the camera. Mother

would have moved with her large family into the newly-built Shady

Dell house probably the year before, in 1913.

RECIPE FOR LONGEVITY?

Mother credited her father's homemade cough medicine for her survival at age

six from the world's first pandemic, the Spanish Influenza of 1918. Note the

list of ingredients contains turpentine - making true in Mother's case

"That which doesn't kill us makes us stronger."

(BELOW)
Nine-year-old Margaret Brown stands for her 1921 Violet Hill School
group portrait, smiling sweetly among the very classmates who cruelly
bullied her because of her father's less-than-savory reputation.
The teachers don't appear much better.

Mother's ever-present large dark bow identifies her, standing to the left of the very tall

girl with a dark sweater in the 5th row. "At least SHE was nice to me," Mother said.

Mother's shy younger sister, Mildred, with delicate features and also wearing a

large hair bow, stands in the 4th row, second from the left. Ethel, the eldest of

the Brown sisters in the picture, is 6th from the left in the next to last row,

looking none-too-happy about having her picture taken. I wonder

whether the two older girls to her left with the cocked heads and

formidable come-hither expressions were her friends or rivals!

The "Daughters of the Dell" (the Brown sisters)

can be seen better at right in this detail cropped

from the group shot. Mildred is in the first row,

far left. Margaret is in the second row, far right.

Ethel is in the back row, second from right.

Mother was fourteen and rapidly growing
into a beautiful young woman when
this picture of her was taken with
her dog named "Tiny", in Florida.

The Brown family ended up in a
"tourist" camp in Miami after losing
their Shady Dell home to bankruptcy.
The picture shows Mother next to one
of the small wooden cabins built by
the locals to contain new arrivals.
They replaced the temporary tents
belonging to the surge of "Tin Can"
migrants who poured into the
Miami community, seeking a
better life during the 1920s'
Florida homesteading boom.

The name of the group comes from the 5-gallon tin cans of fuel stowed on
early automobiles because there were few "filling stations" to service them.
Once there, my grandparents, like some of the other migrants, discovered
that the long distance "deeds" they had bought were to land that either
didn't exist or were just swamps with snakes and alligators.
The Browns didn't even stay a year!

In this picture Mother is
Sweet Sixteen! Her father
died soon after returning North.
Her mother and some of her
siblings dispersed to other cities,
but Margaret decided to stay in
York, where she lived with an
older brother and his wife, and
got a job in a sewing factory
that made coats.

Here Mother is held in my father's

arms. She met Ralph Schneider,

the love of her life, when she was

16 and he was 23. They dated for

six years before they married,

often taking excursions to the

beach with Mother's many

siblings and their families.

BATHING BEAUTIES

In the picture above, Mother, standing second from the right, poses with sisters
and members of her extended family at Bay Shore, NJ. Victorian covered-up
beach fashion was now obviously passé, judging by the women's swim suits
that left nothing to the imagination! Hubba, hubba....!!

I laughed when I found this

unsigned "Heart Trouble"

postcard from the nineteen-

twenties in Mother's attic.

If asked to visualize "Washington, D.C.", "women" and "wall"

at the same time, one probably would never imagine this:

THE CHARLESTON

Mother told me that when she and my father dated they regularly danced
"the Charleston" which was all the rage at the time. I found this picture online
while researching it. Apparently the gentleman on this picture is a senator
from Charleston, South Carolina, and he and the young ladies on the wall
demonstrate the proper groove needed for the dance by the same name.

On March 30, 1934, my mother

and father, Mr. and Mrs. Ralph

N. Schneider, posed after their

marriage in Harrisburg, PA.

They had no honeymoon

because this was during

the Great Depression and

they had to go to work

the next day!

Within a few years, the Schneider

family included two children:

James Ralph and Betty Jane.

The picture at left was taken

February 18, 1947, two years

after Mother miraculously

survived a near-death bout

with typhoid fever. Doctors

claimed the illness left her

unable to have any more

children, but in this picture,

Margaret triumphantly holds

her youngest child, one-and-

a-half-month-old Kathleen Mae.

10-year-old Betty, on the right,

was happy to have a little sister,

but 12-year-old Jim, mugging

for the camera, not so much.

He wanted a brother!

The years went by, we three

grew up and gave Mother 6

grandchildren and 5 great-

grandchildren, who continued

to be sources of joy for her

after my father died in 1980.

Fast forward to this picture of the same four of us taken a few years ago -

a true role reversal if ever there was one. Here is Margaret with her

"kids"/caregivers. Do we look like we're being pestered?

MAMA AND ME

Happy Birthday, dear Mama! Thank you for your strength and long life,

and the 72 birthdays you were by my side. I will carry your wonderful

stories and caring ways in my heart as long as I live. As you taught
me, I will share them like all good things that come my way,
especially here where Tom has given me the space to do so.

I love you more than words can express.

80 is the New 18 - Happy Birthday to My Big Brother!

My brother Keith was

born April 16, 1939.

I did the math, and unless

I am mistaken, it means that

he turns 80 this coming week!

(I am publishing this tribute now because

another VIP birthday is coming up on the 18th!)

The picture above was taken in the mid 50s

when Keith worked at the Flying A gas station

a couple of blocks from our house. My second

cousin, Albert Anderson, sent me the photo

a few weeks ago. It was the first time I ever

saw it. Thank you very much, cousin Al!

You might recall seeing my brother two months ago

in my post celebrating cousin Paula's 70th birthday.

Here above is a previously unpublished picture

of Uncle Paul, Paula, Keith and me taken

by my dad at the seashore.

Seems like only yesterday

that Keith and I were

doing the fun things

captured in these pics
taken a couple of

years earlier.

In winter we bundled up,
built snowmen and forts
 and threw snowballs
at each other.

When my little legs

and feet got bogged

down in the white stuff,

my big brother was
always there to
give me a lift.

In warm weather

months, Keith and

I enjoyed exploring

fields and woodlands

around our home in

rural York County, PA.

Thanks for the pictures,

dad, and thank you,

big brother Keith,

for happy memories

of good times spent

palling around with

 you in the country

in the early 50s!

Here's wishing you a very

happy 80th birthday,

Keith!

(...and many more!)

Shady Train - Ep. 12: Philly's Phinest!

BOOTH ANNOUNCER:

Shady Train...

the hippest trip in America!

60 nonstop minutes across the

tracks of your mind into the

exciting world of Soul!

And now, here's your host...

Don Cornelius!

Hi and welcome aboard. You're right

on time for a beautiful trip on the Shady

Train, and if the sight and sound of soul

is your pleasure and what you treasure,

you can bet your bottom we got 'em,

baby. On today's show we are saluting

The Sound of Philadelphia with some

of Philly's Phinest. If you're all set,
let's roll this train down the track
to The City of Brotherly Love
and Sisterly Affection. 


And our first guests are members of a music act that formed in the mid 70s.
Since that time the group has been responsible for some of the hottest
sounds around. They are with us today to do a song from their latest
album I'll Do My Best on the RCA label. The song is entitled
"One And Only" and they are-- The Ritchie Family!

"One And Only" - The Ritchie Family
(from 1981 album I'll Do My Best)

Our next guests are here to sing about

bad luck, but it is our good fortune to

have them aboard the big train for this

special all-Philadelphia edition. For a

dozen years these gentlemen paid their

dues, but ever since signing with Phila-

delphia International. they have been

rackin' 'em back with one big hit after

another. As they join us to do their

latest single for the label entitled...

you guessed it... "Bad Luck," let's

make some big noise, gang, for-- 

Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes!

"Bad Luck" - Harold Melvin And The Blue Notes
(May/June 1975, highest chart pos. #15 Hot 100/#4 R&B)

And we're gonna slow things down

right now with the mellow sound of

another fine Philadelphia group. As

they join us to do their latest single

on the Atco label, a biggin' every-

body's diggin' entitled "Sideshow,"

let's get some hands together, gang,

for the masters of the sweet soul

ballad-- Blue Magic!

"Sideshow" - Blue Magic
(June/July 1974, highest chart pos. #8 Hot 100/#1 R&B)

And we are delighted to have with us

three extraordinary canaries who have

earned a reputation as one of the best

groups in our business. Among their 

hits is the Shady Train theme "TSOP-

"The Sound Of Philadelphia." As they

join us to do their latest single for

Philadelphia International, a groove

that makes you wanna move real

smooth entitled "When Will I See

You Again," a warm welcome,

please, ladies and gentlemen,

for-- The Three Degrees!

"When Will I See You Again" - The Three Degrees
(Nov./Dec. 1974, highest chart pos. #2 Hot 100/#4 R&B

(Don's intro

is on video.)

"Betcha By Golly, Wow"
The Stylistics (Apr. 1972,
highest chart position
#3 Hot 100/#2 R&B)

And look out now, don't hurt yourself.

The Shady Train line's gettin' into the

swing with a pretty little thing. It's

a slick sound comin' out of Philly

that's a sho 'nuff dilly. These are

The Philly Devotions and this is

-- "I Just Can't Say Goodbye!"

"I Just Can't Say Goodbye" - The Philly Devotions
(Feb./Mar. 1975, highest chart pos. #81 R&B/#95 Hot 100)

START PLAYING VIDEO

AT 2:30 MARK!

And the young ladies you are about

to meet have more than just their

last names in common. They are

all very talented and very lovely.

As they join us to do their latest

single on the Cotillion label

entitled "Thinking Of You,"
a big welcome, gang,

for-- Sister Sledge!

"Thinking of You" - Sister Sledge
(April thru Sept. 1979, B side of "Lost In Music,"
1984 UK re-release peaked at #11 UK/#20 Ireland,
from Jan. 1979 album We Are Family)

And if that didn't get it it can't be

gotten. We wanna thank you for

joining us on this special edition

featuring some of Philly's Phinest.

We hope you'll come on back and

jam with us again next time, and

you can bet you last money it's

all gonna be a stone gas honey.

I'm Don Cornelius and as

always in parting we wish

you love... peace... and soul!

What's Cookin' with Mazola & Oils?

The following made up ditty should be sung

(by you) to the melody of the theme song from

The Patty Duke Show.

To refresh your memory of the song, click below.

Now sing the song using these lyrics:

Meet Maura...

...who's lived most everywhere,

From Zanzibar to Barclay Square.

But Janie's only seen the sights.

A girl can see from Boston Light.

What a crazy pair!

But they're like cousins,

Identical cousins all the way.

One pair of matching bookends,

Different as night and day.

Where Maura adores a minuet,

The Ballet Russes, and crepe suzette,

Our Janie loves to rock and roll,

A hot dog makes her lose control

What a wild duet!

Still, they're like cousins,

Identical cousins and you'll find,

They laugh alike, they walk alike,

At times they even talk alike --

You can lose your mind,

Mazola & Oils
are two of a kind!

NOW WATCH THE ORIGINAL

UNAIRED PILOT EPISODE:

Mazola & Oils:

"Me Maura - You Jane."

FOR YEARS THIS RARE TAPE WAS LOCKED INSIDE

A VAULT UNDER HEAVY GUARD. IT WAS RECENTLY

SALVAGED WHEN THE SAFE WAS BLOWN UP

DURING A LIVE TV BROADCAST HOSTED BY

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER GERALDO RIVERA.

YOU ARE THE VERY FIRST TO VIEW

THIS LONG FORGOTTEN EPISODE!

I'm Jane Mazola.

I'm a detective with the Boston P.D.

Homicide Unit. Care to arm wrestle?

You know I'll beat you like I beat my brother
Frankie and all the other guys on the force.

(rt.) I'm Dr. Maura Oils, Medical Examiner.

The guys (and girl) down at the precinct
nicknamed me "Queen of the Dead."

Jane and I are BFFs. We spend a lot

of time together and do lots of things

together... like take yoga classes.

meditate...

...and give each other peculiar,

provocative and telling glances.

Actually they're called PDMAs, Jane -

public displays of mutual admiration.

We're best buds, besties...

... so close we're practically
joined at the hip.

(below) Angela Mazola, Jane's mother:

I swear to you, Jane, I haven't slept a wink since you

got it in your foolish, stubborn head to become a cop.

Being a cop is a man's job. Looking pretty and

cooking meals for him is a woman's role in this world.

Look at the clothes you wear!

The man is supposed to wear the pants.
Would it kill you to put a dress on now and then?

Yes, actually it would, ma.

Jane, you need a man
in your life. There's a
cute billionaire doctor

I'd like you to meet.

I'm good, ma.

She's good,
Mrs. Mazola.
Believe me,
she's good.

Watch rizzoli & isles...

one of my favorite TV series...

now playing on TNT and Hulu...

a recipe for entertainment...
with a dash of spice!

HAPPY APRIL FOOLS' DAY!