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! 

Natural Hy - Vol. 6: How Cool - Solid COLD!

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

 NATURAL HY  

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

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

(COLD SHOW OPEN)

"Ball Of Confusion (That's What The World Is Today)"

- The Temptations (June/July 1970, highest chart pos.

#1 Cash Box/#2 R&B/#3 Hot 100) 

"And the band played on." Starting us off with a heavy dose of

reality, those were The Temptations and "Ball of Confusion,"

a chart-topping hit for the Motown men in the summer of '70.

Calling all my beats, beards, Buddhist

cats, big time spenders, money lenders,

teetotalers, elbow benders, hog callers,

home run hitters, finger poppin’ daddies

and cool babysitters. For all my carrot

tops, lollipops and extremely delicate

gum drops. It's your pal on the radio,

Hyski ‘O Roonie McVouti ‘O Zoot

- “The South Philadelphia Kid” -

- "The Potentate of The Keystone

State" - callin' uptown, downtown,

crosstown, here, there, everywhere.

Your man with the plan, on the scene

with the record machine, welcoming

you to a special edition of my show

Natural Hy here on S-P-M-M.

News flash: it's winter, and I'm following Arnie Ginsburg's lead and playing

Solid Cold. Every record in today's lineup has a cold open, a cold intro.

That means no voice-overs by yours truly until we get to the end of 

the show. So hang out and chill as I spin these cool classics!

The ladies we're about to hear from next came from the world

of gospel music where they were known as The Heavenly Tones. 

They found fame on the secular side of the street as Little Sister,

backing singers for Sly And The Family Stone. In 1970, a month

before "Ball Of Confusion" started up the chart, the trio scored

a major hit of their own. Hyski digs this sound to the max.

Solid Cold now from Little Sister and "You're The One!"

 

"You're The One" (Tom Moulton Mix) - Little Sister

(Mar./Apr. 1970, highest chart pos. #4 R&B,

#20 Cash Box/#22 Hot 100)

I'm the one..."You're The One."  That was Little Sister,

the girl trio formed by Sly Stone, doing their

Hy-performance R&B hit from

the spring of 1970.

Hy Lit, your man in the tower with all the power, giving you all the boogie

you can handle in stereo. If the show's called Solid Cold, then it's apropos

that The Ice Man cometh! It's smooth soul man Jerry Butler, who took

his mama's advice about life and love and put it the words of a song.

Here's a fab slab from the spring of 1969... Mr. Jerry Butler

topping the R&B chart with-- "Only The Strong Survive!"

"Only The Strong Survive" - Jerry Butler

(Mar./Apr. 1969, highest chart pos. #1 R&B,

#4 Hot 100/#5 Cash Box, from Nov 1968

album The Ice Man Cometh)

Got to be strong, got to hold on, 'cause only the strong survive.

Mama's words of wisdom delivered in the form of a song

by an early member of The Impressions, Jerry Butler,

dubbed The Ice Man by my pal, Philly radio great

Georgie Woods - The Guy with the Goods.

If you're just tuning in, you're catching a

special Solid Cold edition of Natural Hy

here on S-P-M-M Retro Radio. We're in

the middle of a 7-in-a-row commercial-

free block party, and every record

but the last has a cold open.

Let's slow things down and go old school

with this next one, a dreamy sound from

1960. Released on Halloween that year,

it's scary to know that a great song like

this one never made the chart. It's a doo-

wop era remake of a ballad originally

penned and recorded in 1936. You've

got a date with The Fabulous Four,

and they wanna meet you "In The

Chapel In The Moonlight."

"In The Chapel In The Moonlight" - The Fabulous Four

(Oct. 1960, B side of "Mr. Twist")

Not to be confused with The Fab Four - The Beatles - or The Fantastic Four

from the Motor City, those were The Fabulous Four from right here in

Philly, a fine doo-wop group led by Junior Pirollo. They were also

known as The Four J's. That great version of "In The Chapel In

The Moonlight" went to waste as the B side of "Mr. Twist,"

an up tempo dancer that failed to make the chart.

Hyski ‘O Roonie McVouti ‘O Zoot with

you on the radio here at S-P-M-M...

where we go huntin' for the great songs

of the past and bring 'em back alive.

On my turntable right now... one

of the coolest of all Solid Cold

dance songs, a peppy platter

waxed by rockin' & rollin'

R&B, blue-eyed soul man

Mitch Ryder and his band

The Detroit Wheels. Time

to sing along with Mitch

 as he gets the joint jumpin'

with- "Sock It To Me - Baby!"

 

"Sock It To Me - Baby!" - Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels

(Feb./Mar. 1967, highest chart pos. #4 Cash Box/#6 Hot 100)

That was Motor City wild man

Mitch Ryder and his Detroit

Wheels, cracking the top 5 in

'67 with "Sock It To Me - Baby!,"

a phrase Mitch used the previous

year in his hit single "Devil With

A Blue Dress On." In 1968,

"Sock it to me" became the

catchphrase of the TV series

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In. 

Hey you midnight movers and uptown

groovers, knock me your lobes— are

you ready for this? It's another hot

sound with a cold intro, this one

from the fall of '67. Get it on,

get into it, as my main man,

Mr. Brenton Wood, asks his

baby, pretty please, just

"Gimme Little Sign!"

"Gimme Little Sign" - Brenton Wood

(Sept./Oct. 1967, highest chart pos. #7 Cash Box/#9 Hot 100,

#19 R&B, perf. on Dec. 21, 1968, ep. of Top Of The Pops)

He was born Alfred Smith, but he found success as Brenton Wood,

and that was Brenton's contribution to our Solid Cold special, his 1968

appearance on Top Of The Pops in the UK doing "Gimme Little Sign."

Uh-oh, Shady D's giving me a little sign.  He's waving me off,

so it's time for me to put away my platters, turn off

the table and head for the exit.

Thanks for joining me for this

special Solid Cold edition.

CLICK TO START

THE VIDEO NOW!

 I wanna thank my guests Little Sister,

The Ice Man - Mr. Jerry Butler, the

Temptations, Fabulous Four, Billy

And The Essentials, Brenton Wood

and this wailin' sax man - Jr. Walker

& his All Stars - playing us off with

"Hip City," a top 10 sound from '68.

Stay tuned. Coming up on the B side

of news, my buddy Ernest P. Worrell

drops by to rock your billygoat on

SPMM, the station with personality.

And I'll be back soon to take you up to the sky on a Natural Hy.

Till then, till we meet again, this is Hy Lit reminding you to

maintain your cool, don't be nobody's fool. Later, baby!

"Hip City - Pt. 1" - Jr. Walker And The All Stars

(Sept. 1968, highest chart pos. #7 R&B,

#28 Cash Box/#31 Hot 100)

Debbie the Dellette Meets The Rat Pack - Vol. 1: Lookin' For My Baby in the Basement!

(below) "Hey, get up and ask Helen

to make me a cherry coke to go."

"It's time for us to

split the snack bar

and meet up with

Debbie the Dellette

and the Rat Pack

down in the dance hall."

"Little Did I Know" - The Ducanes

{June/July 1961, B side of "I'm So Happy (Tra La La)"} 

Kicking off our jukebox hit parade with the super sound of early 60s doo-wop,

the summer of 1961 to be exact, that was "Little Did I Know" by the one hit

wonder group The Ducanes from Bergenfield, New Jersey. Released on

the B side of "I'm So Happy (Tra La La)," a single that Bubbled Under

the Hot 100 and peaked at #109, the dreamy, romantic vocal group

ballad "Little Did I Know" is exactly the kind of record that the

gang loved to play down in "the Barn" at the Shady Dell in

the late 50s and early 60s when I was a regular face

in the crowd (and queen of the dance floor). 

Hi! I'm Debbie

the Dellette!

As you know, I'm "The Hostess with the

Mostest" and president of the Old York -

Shady Dell chapter of the Top Hit

Club of America. I am here today

to introduce a few friends of mine.

Together we will play more of the

Shady Dell's greatest hits. This isn't

a radio show. We will be taking turns

dropping our coins into the slot and

playing the Dell's jukebox. Now,

I'd like you to meet four of my

pals from The Rat Pack aka

The Rodentia Intelligentsia.

THE RAT PACK

(LEFT to RIGHT)

JULIE

PETE

LINDA

DOUG

Whenever we get together, The Rat Pack will play their Dell faves,

records popular at the Dell in the mid to late 60s. I'll play a song

or two from the years I went to the Dell in the late 50s and

early 60s, like that Ducanes number you just heard.

Rat Packer Julie has taken her position at the

jukebox and is picking her first Dell song.

JULIE: Deb, I wish that you had still

been going to the Dell in the mid 60s

when The Emperors ruled. The funky

R&B band from Harrisburg featured

the late, great Edgar Moore on lead

vocals. In 1966 The Emperors had

a minor hit with "Karate" which was

covered in 1971 by Carlos Santana,

released as "Everybody's Everything,"

and became a top 10 hit on Cash Box.

The Emperors released four singles in

all, but none of the others charted.

It was a different story here at the

Dell where six of their sides were

played often and ranked high on

Shady Del Knight's list of the

200 Greatest Hits of the Dell.

I just pressed H-7 to play the

song I wanna hear. It's #65 on

Shady's survey. The Emperors--

"Lookin' For My Baby!"

DELL SONG #65

"Lookin' For My Baby" - The Emperors
(May/June 1967)

PETE: My turn, Julie. Blue-eyed soul

and white R&B were also very popular

genres at the Dell in the 60s. One of

my favorite songs in that category was

waxed by R&B rocker Mitch Ryder and

his band The Detroit Wheels. They do a

cover of "Little Latin Lupe Lu," a song

written by Bill Medley and first recorded

by The Righteous Brothers, a minor hit

for the duo in 1963. I just pushed G-9

to play the exciting 1966 update by

Mitch and the Wheels. It's the most

successful version of the song and

is ranked #132 on Shady's list of

The Greatest Hits of the Dell!

DELL SONG #132

"Little Latin Lupe Lu" - Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels

 (Mar./Apr. 1966, highest chart pos. #16 Cash Box/#17 Hot 100)

LINDA: Sunshine pop was also hot

in the Shady during the 60s, and this

cool genre group, The Buckinghams,

infused their recordings with blue-

eyed soul. The Chicago horn band

is on record as one of the top selling

acts of 1967, and I'm selecting P-5

and playing one of their hits from

that year. It's the Bucks' cover of

a jazz song recorded the previous

year by jazz sax great Cannonball

Adderley. I can hear the needle

dropping on the vinyl. Here are

The Buckinghams with the song

ranked #125 on Shady's 200--

"Mercy, Mercy, Mercy!"

DELL SONG #125

"Mercy Mercy Mercy" - The Buckinghams

(July/Aug. 1967, highest chart pos. #5 Hot 100 & Cash Box)

DOUG: Hey guys, don't forget about me.
I'd like to play a record, too. At the Dell
in the mid 60s, The Motown Sound was
huge, and these guys, the Four Tops,
were heavy hitters down here in
"the barn," with no fewer than 11
of their songs making Shady's
Top 200 list. I'm pressing R-17
because I can't wait to get out
on the floor and dance to the
highest ranked Tops song
on Shady's list. Landing
at position #60, here is--
"Shake Me, Wake Me

(When It's Over)!"

DELL SONG #60

"Shake Me, Wake Me (When It's Over)" - Four Tops

(Mar./Apr. '66, highest cht. pos. #5 R&B/#15 Cash Box/#18 Hot 100)

JULIE: Step aside, Dougy, because I've

got another great song in mind, one that

represents another major music category

at the Shady Dell - The British Invasion.

"A Groovy Kind Of Love" was penned

by American songwriters Toni Wine and

Carole Bayer Sager. The song was given

to The Mindbenders, the English group

that originally backed Wayne Fontana.

When Fontana left the act, guitarist

Eric Stewart took over on lead vocals.

The Mindbenders' version of "Groovy

Kind Of Love" reached #2 on both

sides of the pond, denied the top spot

on the U.S. Hot 100 by Percy Sledge's

hit "When A Man Loves a Woman."

"Groovy" did manage to reach #1

on Cash Box. I just punched in J-13

to play one of the most popular slow

dance records of the mid 60s at the

Dell. At #57 on the Shady survey,

"A Groovy Kind Of Love!"

DELL SONG #57

"A Groovy Kind Of Love" - The Mindbenders

(May/June 1966, highest chart pos. #1 Cash Box/#2 Hot 100)

PETE: Earlier, Doug played an exciting

dance number by the Motown boy group

the Four Tops. Now here's a mellow soul

sound from a great Motown girl group,

Martha And The Vandellas. I'm hitting

K-1 to play their top 3 charting R&B
single "My Baby Loves Me," the song
ranked #146 on Shady's list of the
200 Greatest Hits of the Dell!

DELL SONG #146

"My Baby Loves Me" - Martha And The Vandellas

(Feb./Mar. 1966, highest chart pos.
#3 R&B/#22 Hot 100/#23 Cash Box)

CLICK TO START
THE VIDEO NOW!

I hope you enjoyed our first meet-up,

a bash in the barn... the Shady Dell

dance hall... down here where all the

cool kids hang out and party hearty.

Stay tuned because we'll be back

soon to feed the jukebox and

spin more Dell gold. Now for

The Rat Pack - Julie, Pete,

Linda and Doug - I'm Debbie

the Dellette, "Your Hostess

with the Mostest,"

saying so long!

"In The Basement - Pt. 1" - Etta James And Sugar Pie DeSanto

(Aug./Sept. 1966, highest chart pos. #37 R&B)

Debbie the Dellette 5 years later

MERRY

CHRISTMAS!