The AI-Team, Vol 2

"I pity the fool who don't like these songs!"

 Old School's the Rule 

 In the Battle Against 

 The Anime From Within! 

No, dear friend. That's not a typo in the title at the top of the page.

 Today's post does not focus on The A-Team.

 

It focuses on

The AI-Team...

delightful characters

emerging from the

rapidly expanding

 cutting-edge

technology of

Artificial

Intelligence

art.

Yessum, we're in the middle of an AI boom,

and today's post offers a mix of past and present...

...20th century boomer songs and dazzling

AI art renderings of the 21st century.

  

In a recent post hosted by

Dr. Mary Harris from the

TV series Mary Kills People,

you heard three Mary songs:

"Sweet Mary," "The Wind

Cries Mary" and "Along

Comes Mary."  In this

edition of AI-Team,

Shady Del Knight is

once again going all

girlie on you, playing

ten of his favorite songs

that also have a girl's

name in the title.

To illustrate the theme

of the post, the songs

are accompanied by

modern AI-generated

images of women

and girls.

How many of these

 girl name songs do

you know, remember

or like hearing for

the first time?

Lulu

Our first featured girl song is a real Lulu. Released

at the height of the surf-rock craze, this gem of

the genre swept the nation like a tidal wave.

 Jan And Dean tell the tale of the whale, introducing

the queen of the surfer girls-- "Honolulu Lulu!"

"Honolulu Lulu" - Jan And Dean

(Sept./Oct. 1963, highest chart pos.

#11 Hot 100/#10 Cash Box)

Linda

At the start of that same year, 1963, Jan & Dean released this

next song as their last single in the doo-wop/teen pop vein.

 (The record that followed, the chart-topper  "Surf City,"

firmly established J&D as a hit-making surf-rock duo.)

What an interesting story behind this song! It was written

for a baby girl who went on to fame as Linda McCartney,

the wife of Beatles' dreamboat Paul McCartney!

In 1942, while on a tour of Europe during WWII,

American songwriter Jack Lawrence dedicated

a ditty to Linda Eastman, the one-year-old

daughter of his attorney Lee Eastman.

The song, published in 1946 after Lawrence left the military,

was recorded by several artists, but Jan And Dean's version

is the grabber. Penetrating the top 30 in the spring of '63,

here's the toe-tapping song about-- "l-l, l-l-l, l-l-l-l-Linda!"

"Linda" - Jan And Dean

(Apr./May 1963, highest chart pos.

#26 Cash Box/#28 Hot 100)

Susan

In the mid 60s, American record buyers were going wild

over British bands. To imply that they too came from the UK,

a polished, horn-driven, blue-eyed soul and psychedelic pop

band from Chicago were given the name The Buckinghams.

1967 was the biggest year for The Bucks. All 5 of their top 40

hits charted that year... leading Billboard magazine to name

The Buckinghams "The Most Listened to Band in America."

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

Here's lead singer Dennis Tufano and The Buckinghams with the

last single in the group's 1967 hot streak, a song about-- "Susan!"

"Susan" - The Buckinghams

(Dec. 1967/Jan. 1968, highest chart pos.

#6 Record World/#7 Cash Box,

#11 Billboard/#7 Canada)

Sally #1

Our next girl name song was originally waxed by rock & roll

legend Little Richard. In 1956, Richard's single spent 19 weeks

 atop the R&B chart and brushed the top 5 on the pop survey.

Eight years later, The Beatles, who admired Little Richard

and performed his hits during their concerts, released

a great cover. I found a brilliantly remixed version and

reimagined video for your listening and viewing pleasure.

 From May, 1964, here are The Beatles with Paul McCartney

on lead singing the praises of-- "Long Tall Sally!"

"Long Tall Sally" - The Beatles

(from May 1964 album The Beatles' Long Tall Sally,

rel. as single and reached #1 in Sweden & Denmark

in June, July & August 1964)

Jenny

Rock & Roll titan Little Richard is also the inspiration

behind the next featured girl song. In 1957, Richard's

original entitled "Jenny, Jenny" peaked at #2 on the

R&B chart and went top 10 on the pop survey.

 In late 1965, rock & roll/R&B wildman Mitch Ryder used

"Jenny, Jenny" in a mashup with "See See Rider Blues"

aka "See See Rider" aka "C.C. Rider," a blues song

from the 1920s about a lover who sleeps around.

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

Here are Mitch Ryder and his band The Detroit Wheels on

Hullabaloo doing their top 10 hit-- "Jenny Take A Ride!"

"Jenny Take A Ride!" - Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels

(Jan./Feb. 1966, highest chart pos. #10 Hot 100/#17 Cash Box,

live performance on Jan. 24, 1966, episode of Hullabaloo)

Pam

Now here's another Beatles song with the name of a girl in the title.

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

From the September, 1969, album Abbey Road--

"(You should see) Polythene Pam!"

"Polythene Pam" - The Beatles

(from September 1969, album Abbey Road)

Elenor #1

Check out this groovy girl song by The Turtles,

the LA-based psychedelic pop band led by

Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman.

 With deliberately goofy lyrics, the ditty was penned as

a satire of the group's biggest pop hit "Happy Together."

 One of the first pop recordings to utilize the Moog synthesizer,

the Turtles' single had a vibe that listeners couldn't resist

and the record made the top 5 in the fall of 1968.

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

Here are Howard & Mark ("Flo & Eddie") doing

their latest hit live on Kraft Music Hall!

"Elenor" - The Turtles

(Oct./Nov. 1968, highest chart pos. #5 Cash Box,

#6 Hot 100/#4 Canada, Sept. 1968 live perf.

on TV show Kraft Music Hall)

Sally #2

Now here's the second Sally song in today's lineup.  R&B singer

and songwriter Mack Rice wrote and first recorded this ditty

in 1965. Rice's version reached its peak at #15 on the R&B

chart, an achievement that was eclipsed the following year

when gravel-voiced R&B great Wilson Pickett covered it.

 Pickett's record went top 5 on the R&B survey and crossed over

to the pop chart, penetrating the top 20 on Cash Box and the

top 5 in Canada. Pickett's version is also ranked #114 on

my list of The 200 Greatest Hits of the Shady Dell.

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

Here's "The Wicked Pickett" with a single that made

Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Songs

 of All Time - "Mustang Sally!"

"Mustang Sally" - Wilson Pickett

(#6 R&B/#16 Cash Box/#23 Hot 100/#4 Canada,

#114 The 200 Greatest Hits of the Shady Dell)

Renee

The Left Banke was a baroque psychedelic pop band

based in New York City. Millions of fans across America

and around the globe were saddened when news broke in

 January, 2020, that the group's lead singer, Steve Martin,

later known as Steve Martin Caro, died at the age of 71.

 Martin possessed one of the most beautiful and distinctive

voices in all of pop music, as you will hear as he sings

one of the most evocative songs ever recorded, the

band's debut single, a top 5 hit in the fall of 1966.

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

Here are Steve Martin and The Left Banke with a song regarded as

 the definitive work of the baroque pop genre-- "Walk Away Renee!"

"Walk Away Renee" - The Left Banke

(Oct./Nov. 1966, highest chart pos. #2 Cash Box/#5 Hot 100,

#129 The 200 Greatest Hits of the Shady Dell)

Eleanor #2

Earlier, The Turtles paid musical tribute to "Elenor."

To conclude today's show, here's a different girl song

with a different spelling of that same name. Released

along with "Yellow Submarine" on a double A-side

single in August, 1966, from the Beatles' Revolver

album, resulting in two chart-topping worldwide

hits, it's the story of a lonely, ageing spinster

by the name of-- "Eleanor Rigby!"

"Eleanor Rigby" - The Beatles

(#1 UK/#11 Hot 100/#12 Cash Box,

from Aug. 1966 album Revolver)

I hope you liked these girl name songs of the past

and new AI generated images of women and girls.

Meet more enchanting members of

 The AI-Team 

next time, and remember... 

 Old School's the Rule 

 In the Battle Against 

 The Anime From Within! 

 See you next time! 

UNDERACHIEVERS! The 50 Most Underrated Records of the 1960s, Pt. 2

 Hi! I'm 

 Shady Blue... 

one of the founding fathers

of the Shady Bunch DJ team

on S-P-M-M Retrosonic Radio.

I host an oldies show called

 STUCK LIKE GLUE  

 on SHADY BLUE  

 And I'm 

 Shady Green... 

one of the other original

Shady Bunch DJs here

at Shady's Place and

your Host with the Most

on a magic carpet ride back

to the Swingin' Sixties called

 SHADY GREEN 
 AND HIS 

 WAYBACK MACHINE 

Blue and Green are mixing together, joining forces to bring you

a 5-part, 50-song series dedicated to great records of the 1960s

that shoulda been, coulda been and woulda been major hits

but, for one reason or another, failed to get the attention

they deserved at the time of their release.

 Along with the records we're playing, we've hung cool vintage

pictures and art illustrations on the walls to enhance the mood.

  So listen to the next 10 songs and then let me know.

How many of these long lost relics you remember?

Tell me which songs you like as I present Part 2 of

 UNDERACHIEVERS! 

 The 50 Most Underrated 

 Records of the 1960s 

The first Underachiever of this volume is the

warm weather ditty "Summer Means Fun."  

The original was recorded by Bruce & Terry, a duo

formed by a pair of producers at Columbia Records. 

Bruce was Bruce Johnston, a member of The Beach Boys.

Terry was Terry Melcher, son of actress/singer Doris Day. 

 Another gnarly version of "Summer Means Fun" was

waxed by the surf/hot rod group The Fantastic Baggys,

a studio creation of P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri, two of

the leading songwriters and producers of the 1960s,

and released on their 1964 album Tell 'Em I'm Surfin'. 

Surf-rock kings Jan & Dean laid down their own version

of the song and released it on their 1964 album

The Little Old Lady From Pasadena.

"Summer Means Fun" is a groovy song - too cool for school -

and with three great recorded versions, at least one

of them should have been a top 40 hit.

  

Instead, only one version was released as a single, the original

by Bruce & Terry, and it performed poorly, halting at #72 on

the Billboard chart in August, 1964, a genuine Underachiever.

Let's listen now to all three versions of this underrated,

underachieving surf-rock anthem-- "Summer Means Fun!"

"Summer Means Fun" - Bruce & Terry

(Aug. 1964, highest chart pos. #72 Hot 100)

"Summer Means Fun" - The Fantastic Baggys

(from 1964 album Tell 'Em I'm Surfin')

"Summer Means Fun" - Jan & Dean

(from 1964 album The Little Old Lady From Pasadena)

"Boy meets girl and love begins."  So sang Little Anthony

And The Imperials on their dreamy doo-wop ballad

"(Just) Two (Kinds Of) People In The World."

Another great ballad about young love was recorded by a duo

that consisted of two Pennsylvania vocalists, Marcy Jo (aka

Marcy Joe) of Pittsburgh and Eddie Rambeau of Hazleton.

Their single, "Lover's Medley," combines "When I Fall In Love,"

a 1952 hit recorded by Doris Day, and "The More I See You,"

a song introduced by Dick Haymes in the 1945

movie musical Diamond Horseshoe. 

Throughout the summer of 1963, this record by Marcy Jo and

Eddie Rambeau was big in WSBA-Land (York and Central PA),

but nationally, it never broke free of the Bubbling Under chart

and never rose above position #132, making it one of the

most notable Underachievers of all time! 

"Lover's Medley (The More I See You And When I Fall In Love)"

- Marcy Jo And Eddie Rambeau (July/August 1963,

highest chart pos. #132 Bubbling Under)

"Bus Stop" by The Hollies was a huge hit, and therefore it is not

my next featured song. I posted this vintage pinup illustration

of a "bus stop bim" because I like it 😀😀😀 and because

it actually does help illustrate the theme of the next song. 

In Part 1 of this series, published in January of this year, a single

by Marvin Gaye, "Stubborn Kind Of Fellow," was the first of the

50 Underachievers on my list to be unveiled.  Today, in Part 2,

I present "Hitch Hike," the single Marvin and Motown released

immediately after "Stubborn."  This up tempo ditty is such a joy

and such a treasured gem today that it seems a crime it stopped

at #30 on the pop chart, never reached the top 40 on Cash Box

and even fell short of the R&B top 10!  Here's Marvin Gaye

on Hollywood A Go-Go performing-- "Hitch Hike!"

"Hitch Hike" - Marvin Gaye

(Feb./Mar. 1963, highest chart pos. #30 Hot 100/#41 Cash Box,

#12 R&B, perf. on Nov. 27, 1965, ep. of Hollywood A Go-Go)

The pop girl group The Angels is best known for

their 1963 smash hit "My Boyfriend's Back"

featuring Peggy Santiglia on lead vocals.

The previous year, with Linda Jansen as lead singer,

the group recorded "Cry Baby Cry," a song that

stood the test of time to become a genre classic.

 Released in January, 1962, the weepy ballad peaked just

inside the top 40 on the Billboard and Cash Box charts.

  I say "Cry Baby Cry" is an Underachiever, because it deserved

to finish in the top 10, the top 5 or even go all the way to #1! 

"Cry Baby Cry" - The Angels

(March/Apr. 1962, highest chart pos. #35 Cash Box/#38 Hot 100)

Now let me shine the spotlight on one of the Shady Dell's greatest hits...

... and one of the biggest misses nationally.  The song in question is

"Take Some Time Out For Love" by The Isley Brothers, ranked #17

 on my list of The 200 Greatest Hits of the Shady Dell. Yet, it fizzled

on the national charts, reaching its zenith at #66 on the Hot 100 and

#72 on Cash Box.  Even more shocking, this Northern stormer,

this dance-friendly Motown soul song, did not even appear

on the R&B chart!  Can you say "Underachiever"? 

"Take Some Time Out For Love" - The Isley Brothers

(June 1966, highest chart pos. #66 Hot 100/#72 Cash Box)

The Chicago-based band New Colony Six was responsible for two

of the most memorable soft-rock love song recordings of the 1960s.

One of them is cued up on my turntable and ready to go for a spin.

This beautiful song deserved to finish in the top 5 winner's circle,

but it stopped short of the top 20.  Listen now to New Colony Six

and the moody and mellow-- "I Will Always Think About You."

"I Will Always Think About You" -  New Colony Six

(Apr./May 1968, highest chart pos. #22 Hot 100,

#22 Cash Box/#14 Canada)

Notice how many of the Underachievers on my list have long titles?

 I believe that songs with one, two or three word titles typically out-

 perform songs with long cumbersome, hard to remember titles.

 Here's another long title Underachiever, another song

written and first waxed by P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri,

the writers/record producers who called themselves

The Fantastic Baggys during the surf-rock craze.  

In 1965, Sloan and Barri along with exec producer Lou Adler,

founder of Dunhill Records, jumped into the folk-rock genre,

forming The Grass Roots, and act that drew members

from a San Francisco band called The Bedouins.

Willie Fulton, lead singer and guitarist for The Bedouins,

sang lead on "Where Were You When I Needed You," the

Grass Roots' first charting single. It's a gem of the genre,

yet it stalled around the top 30 on the U.S. chart when it

should have cracked the top 10 as it nearly did in Canada!

"Where Were You When I Needed You" - The Grass Roots

 (July/Aug. 1966, highest chart pos. #28 Hot 100,

#33 Cash Box/#12 Canada)

Now here's a rough and tumble song by the bad boys of British rock

The Rolling Stones. Today, "Street Fighting Man" is recognized as one

of the band's most popular and controversial songs. Yet, at the time of

its release as a single in the U.S. in the summer of 1968, the rowdy

ditty ran out of steam halfway up the Billboard chart.  The single

performed better on Cash Box, hitting the top 30 mark but,

even so, it never broke through as it should have to

become one of band's major hits. 

 Incidentally, the original picture sleeve issued with the single is

extremely rare nowadays and can fetch more than $10,000 on eBay.

Listen now as The Stones tell the tale of a-- "Street Fighting Man!"

"Street Fighting Man" - The Rolling Stones

(Sept./Oct. 1968, highest chart pos. #30 Cash Box/#48 Hot 100)

Future's so bright, he gotta wear shades, and he wears his sunglasses at night!

This next number is hip, happenin' and clean outta sight. It's the best known

song by Mickey Lee Lane, a Brill Building songwriter of the 1950s

who evolved into a rock & roll recording artist of the 60s.

Mickey's only charting single is an Underachiever because

it's such a catchy, danceworthy song that it should have

made the top 10. Instead it barely broke into the top 40.  

Put your dancin' shoes on.  Here comes R&R wildman

Mickey Lee Lane with his claim to fame-- "Shaggy Dog!"

"Shaggy Dog" - Mickey Lee Lane

(Nov./Dec. 1964, highest chart pos. #38 Hot 100 & Cash Box)

Speaking of cool sounds, this last irresistible ditty

is off the chart. (Unfortunately, I mean that literally,

as in "uncharted.") It's the big bold sound of

April Young, a little known singer from

Philadelphia who shoulda been a star. 

  

April burned up the boss lines on radio stations

up and down the East Coast with her single

"Gonna Make Him My Baby."

Produced by Jerry Ross, April's record is a prime example of

the so-called East Coast Wall-of-Sound, a production technique

that imitated what Phil Spector was doing on the West Coast. 

Released in the spring of 1965, April's platter caught fire on

radio stations across the region.  It reached #27 on WARM

Wilkes-Barre, #36 on WSBA-910 serving York, Lancaster

and Harrisburg, #53 on WMCA New York and was ranked

way up there at #3 on Portugal's list of the Top 10

Girlpop/Girlgroup Songs of the 1960's.

Back home in Philly, April's record made the top 20

on the market's AM radio giant WIBG. In the words

of producer Jerry Ross who, incidentally, fell in love

with April Young and married her, the local success

of her single earned her the nickname

"The Daughter of Wibbage-land"

Yet, April's single was an epic fail on the national chart,

a textbook example of an Underachiever!  Here now

is one of the most exciting records ever made in

girl pop, girl group or any other category.

 Listen to the husky voice of April Young sounding like

Cher on steroids engulfed in a towering wave of

 sound as she sings her signature song-- 

"Gonna Make Him My Baby!"

"Gonna Make Him My Baby" - April Young

(May/June 1965, uncharted nationally, Top 20 WIBG Philly,

#36 WSBA Mighty 910 Lancaster-York-Harrisburg,

#27 WARM Wilkes-Barre, #53 WMCA New York,

#3 Portugal's list of the Top 10 Girlpop -

Girlgroup Songs of the Sixties)

Okay, how many of these

underappreciated and

underachieving records

of the 1960s do you

remember? Do you

like any of them

so much that you're

 STUCK 

 LIKE GLUE?  

Did these moldy oldies

make you feel like you

just took a trip in my

 WAYBACK 

 MACHINE? 

Stick around!

 There are 3 more parts of this series...

30 more songs that need your love and

a forever home on your record player.

See you soon on the next edition of

 UNDERACHIEVERS! 

 The 50 Most Underrated 

 Records of the 1960s