Natalie Teeger's Array of Sunshine: Natalie Gets it On and Cuts to the Chase!

COLD OPEN:

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"Get It On" - Chase

(July 1971, highest chart pos. #22 Cash Box/#24 Hot 100)

That was "Get It On,"

the best known recording

by Chase, the jazz rock

band led by trumpeter

Bill Chase. The single

peaked just outside

the top 20 in the

summer of 1971.

Hi there, I'm

Natalie

 Teeger!

As you might already know, I am Mr. Monk's

personal assistant on the TV series Monk.

I'm here today with exciting news.

Shady Del Knight has picked me

to join The Shady Bunch as a DJ

on his S-P-M-M radio station!

You're tuned to the second sneak

preview of my show which will

make its debut in 2022. It's called

Natalie Teeger's Array of Sunshine.

I'll be bringing you the best sounds

of the 60s and 70s - sunshine pop,

soft rock, brassy horn bands like

Chase, English imports and more -

songs that are guaranteed to put

Array of Sunshine into your day.

Would you like to ride in my

beautiful balloon? Or how

about my Flying Machine? 

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That's the name of the British studio

group formed by songwriters/producers

Tony MacAuley and Geoff Stephens.

In the fall of 1969, The Flying Machine

was way up there where the air is rare,

in the top 5 on the U.S. chart, with

the feel-good ditty-- "Smile A Little

Smile For Me (Rosemarie)." 

"Smile A Little Smile For Me" - The Flying Machine

(Oct./Nov. 1969, highest chart pos. #5 Hot 100 & Cash Box) 

That one goes out to all of the

brokenhearted Rosemaries of

the world who need cheering

up - the English studio-based

pop group The Flying Machine

doing their signature song and

big U.S. hit-- "Smile A Little

Smile For Me." 

If you're just tuning in, I'm

Natalie Teeger, Mr. Monk's

 girl Friday and every other

day of the week, giving you

a sneak peek at my new

 show coming to S-P-M-M

Retro Radio. I'm offering

Array of Sunshine

to make your day a little

 brighter and a little better.

START VIDEO NOW!

This band put Niles, Michigan, on the map with their debut single "Hanky Panky,"

originally released in 1964 on that city's Snap record label. Fast forward to the
summer of '69. Tommy James And The Shondells were riding high with a
string of hits and soaring toward the top of the chart with this song
co-written by Tommy. Here's "Crystal Blue Persuasion."

"Crystal Blue Persuasion" - Tommy James And The Shondells

(July/Aug. 1969, highest chart pos. #2 Hot 100 & Cash Box)

That was one of the songs most often

heard playing on the radio during the
celebrated summer of '69 - Tommy
James And The Shondells peaking
at #2 on the charts with "Crystal

Blue Persuasion." Many listeners
thought the song was about drugs,

but Tommy insisted he got his
inspiration from Bible verses. 

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Natalie Teeger playing the great

sounds of your lifetime and here's

another, The Grass Roots with 1971

gold-- "Two Divided By Love!"

 

"Two Divided By Love" - The Grass Roots

(Nov. 1971, highest chart pos. #8 Cash Box/#16 Hot 100/#2 Canada)

An ear-pleasing blast from your past, those were The Grass Roots, the LA-

based band that started out doing folk rock, but had their greatest success

in the late 60s and early 70s cranking out good time pop-rock singles like

that one, "Two Divided By Love," a record that penetrated the top 10

on Cash Box and went all the way to #2 in Canada in the fall of 1971. 

Natalie Teeger keeping you company

on S-P-M-M, where all the cool oldies
 come to play. I'm doing my best to

turn that frown upside down and

put Array of Sunshine into your

day. How am I doing so far?

Here's another fellow who did pretty

doggone well for himself after first

making his mark with a famous band.

It's Paul McCartney, you might have

heard of him, joined here by wife Linda

and their band Wings doing a 1978 single

that went top 5 in the UK and did even

better stateside, going all the way to the

top of the chart.  Here are McCartney

and Wings-- "With A Little Luck."

"With A Little Luck"- Wings

(Apr./May 1978, highest chart pos. #1 Hot 100 & Cash Box)

That was Paul McCartney with

his band Wings performing

"With A Little Luck," their

chart-topping single from

the spring of '78, a song

from their album

London Town.

This is your breath of fresh

air, Natalie Teeger, bringing

Array of Sunshine into your

life on S-P-M-M Retro Radio,

the station with personality.

START VIDEO NOW! 

No one spreads sunshine better

than this pair and their yacht rock

sound. Here are The Captain and

Tennille with-- "Love Will

Keep Us Together!" 

"Love Will Keep Us Together" - The Captain & Tennille

(June/July 1975, highest chart pos. #1 Hot 100 & Cash Box,

live perf. on The Midnight Special) 

A winner of a song that spent

four weeks at #1 at the start

of summer in 1975, that was

"Love Will keep Us Together,"

composed by Brill Building

greats Neil Sedaka and his

partner Howard Greenfield

and performed by Captain

and Tennille on a telecast

of The Midnight Special.

“Captain” Daryl Dragon

laid down the entire

instrumental backing

on the record except

for the drums which

were played by Hal

Blaine of the famed

Wrecking Crew. 

Before I forget, I want to remind you to watch Mr. Monk,

Captain Leland Stottlemeyer, Lieutenant Randy Disher and

me as we work together to bring the bad guys to justice

on our series Monk, now playing on Amazon Prime.

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Darn!  Boss man Shady Del Knight's giving me the signal to wrap it up.

That does it for this second preview of my new show on S-P-M-M Retro Radio.

To play us off, here's Santana with "Jingo," the first single released from the

Latin rock band's self-titled debut 1969 album. "Jingo" is a cover of a song

originally released in 1959 by Nigerian percussionist Babatunde Olatunji.

Stay tuned. Coming up on the B side of Gary Owens' news, meet Shady's

Place newbie Denny the Dell Rat and take Shady's latest Mom & Pop

Brain Buster Quiz. Now this is Natalie Teeger inviting you to join

me next year when once again I'll bring Array of Sunshine

into your world. Take care and I'll see you in '22!

"Jingo" - Santana

(Nov. 1969, highest chart pos. #37 Cash Box,

#56 Hot 100,  from Aug. 1969 album Santana)

Nice job, Natalie.

By the way, in case you

haven't heard... I have

my own band. It's called

The Randy Disher Project.

Hey, if you'd like, I can

get you tickets to our

next show. It's Saturday

afternoon...in my garage.

Top Hit Club of America Inc. - Old York/Shady Dell Chapter Volume 3: ...a Ron... a Ronnie... and a Rainbow!

Hi, I'm Debbie the Dellette...

a teenager of the 1950s

 dancing at the Shady Dell.

I am also president of the Old York -

 Shady Dell chapter of the

Top Hit Club of America!

 Today my friends and I will make  

 you regret the day you were born! 

What do I mean by that? When you hear the records my fellow Dell rats

play at today's meeting, you will wish you had been a teenager in York, PA,
in the 1950s and 60s and a regular at Shady Dell during those golden years.

Remember, as these original

Dell rats spin their songs:

"Don't just listen with your ears -

listen with your heart."

The rats are restless and eager to get started. I second that emotion.
(Debbie bangs the gavel.) The meeting of the Old York - Shady Dell

chapter of the Top Hit Club of America will hereby come to order!

As I review the minutes of our last

meeting, I recall that in volume 2,

original Dell rat Jerre Slaybaugh

joined Dell rat Tom Anderson,

and the veteran vermin took

turns playing Dell classics.

Today our good friend Dell rat

Ron Shearer returns to play

dueling banjos turntables

with Tom. Rat Ron...

the floor is yours!

 THE TEMPTATIONS 

Sup, Debbie? The Dell jukebox was home to many
records by The Temptations including their first pop
chart hit, "The Way You Do The Things You Do."
 I wonder how many people remember the B side
of that single. Most Dell rats do, and we have the
Del-chords, York's great doo-wop soul group, to
thank for that. The Del-chords were influenced
by The Temptations, covered their songs and
always made sure we knew all of the Temps'
early recordings, even most of the B-sides.
It was like a personal triumph for so many

of us when "The Way You Do the Things
You Do" hit both nationally and in the
Dell jukebox, and the B-side I am

about to play, "Just Let Me Know,"
also received heavy airplay.

"Just Let Me Know" - The Temptations

(Mar./Apr. 1964, B side of "The Way You Do The Things You Do")

 MARCY JOE 

Shady, years ago on your old blog, Shady Dell Music & Memories, you posted

"Lover's Medley: The More I See You; When I Fall In Love"... a beautiful duet

recorded by Pittsburgh songstress Marcy Jo and Hazleton's Eddie Rambeau.

I've got another great one, a solo record by Marcy Joe aka Marcy Jo, this

time backed by a group called Lugee & the Lions which consisted of

Lou Christie, his older sister Amy, Kay Chick and Bill Fabec.

Here's Marcy Joe with her 1961 regional hit (and I like

the name of the song)-- "Ronnie."

"Ronnie" - Marcy Joe aka Marcy Jo

(June 1961, highest chart position

#64 Cash Box/#81 Hot 100)

Thanks for that "Ronnie"

song, Ronny... and that

killer B by The Temps.

 Now let's hear from

Dell rat Tom who's

standing by with his

first play of the day.

 THE SIX TEENS 

 FEAT. TRUDY WILLIAMS 

Thanks, Debbie. The first song I'm going to

spin today was recorded by a Los Angeles

based vocal group called The Six Teens.

 In 1956, when they began making

records, The Six Teens were all

teenagers or younger. The group's

youngest member was their twelve

year old lead singer Trudy Williams.

 Did... did you

say Trudy?

 My wife's name

was Trudy.

In 1957, 25 years before the English new wave band

ABC scored a U.S. hit with "Poison Arrow," little

Trudy Williams and The Six Teens made a dent

 in Billboard's pop chart with "Arrow Of Love."

"Arrow Of Love" - The Six Teens

featuring Trudy Williams (Aug. 1957,

highest chart position #80 Hot 100)

Thank you, Tommy boy!
Now let's turn the table
and the mic back over
to Dell Rat Ron and
listen to a couple
more of his faves.

 JAMES BROWN AND 
 HIS FAMOUS FLAMES 

Earlier I played a record by The Temptations.

The Motown men were heavy hitters at the

Shady Dell, and so was this R&B titan dubbed

The Hardest Working Man in Show Business -

James Brown. In 1962 Brown released his

5th studio album Good, Good, Twistin' which

contains the hit single "Shout and Shimmy"

along with two other JB gems, "I Don't Mind"

and "Good, Good, Lovin'." I'm going to play

another song from the album. It was released

on the B side of Brown's 1964 single "So Long,"

a great ballad from his 1963 Prisoner Of Love

album that sold poorly as a single and merely

Bubbled Under at #132. Here's that obscure

flip side-- James Brown And His Famous

Flames doing "Dancin' Little Thing!"

"Dancin' Little Thing" - James Brown And His Famous Flames

(June/July 1964, B side of "So Long," from
 1962 album Good, Good, Twistin')

 MAJOR LANCE 

Now here's one of my favorite songs that

our hometown heroes The Delchords liked

to cover. It was written by Curtis Mayfield

 and recorded by Major Lance, the man

who hit big with "The Monkey Time."

I think Major Lance did just as good

a job on his record as the Delchords

 did in their live sets. Is Major backed

by The Impressions or by Billy Butler

and The Enchanters? It was a topic

that often came up when Dave, Buddy,

Ike and the other Chords  discussed

records that involved Curtis Mayfield. 

"It Ain't No Use" - Major Lance

(July 1964, highest chart pos.

#68 Hot 100 & R&B) 

Thank you, Ron.

Now, it's back to

you, Dell Rat Tom,

to bring today's club

meeting to an end. 

 MONICA ROCHA 

To wrap up today's club meeting, I've got a

double dose of a sensational young Latina

singer from SoCal's Inland Empire region.

 Described as "a young voice from an old

soul"... Monica Rocha covers R&B and

soul songs of the 1960s and 70s, sounds

Dell rats love, and she makes them her

own... turning them into new classics

that will surely stand the test of time. 

You just heard Dell rat Ron play "It Ain't No Use," a song written by

Curtis Mayfield and recorded by Chicago R&B singer Major Lance.

Now you're about to see and hear Monica Rocha perform another

song penned by Mayfield and originally recorded by another

Chitown soul great -- Gene Chandler. In the late winter and

early spring of 1963, "Rainbow," not to be confused with

Russ Hamilton's pop hit of the 50s, brushed the top 10

on the R&B chart and went top 50 pop. A live version

entitled "Rainbow '65 Part 1" recorded by Chandler

at the Regal Theater in Chicago, cracked the top 3

on the Black Singles survey early in 1966. Fast

 forward to March, 2021, when Monica Rocha

laid down this fine cover of the deep soul ballad. 

"Rainbow" - Gene Chandler cover by Monica Rocha

(March 2021) 

 MONICA ROCHA 

 & MALIK MALO 

Finally, Monica is joined by singing partner

Malik Malo on a cover of "Hello Stranger,"

the official theme song of the Shady Dell.

First recorded in 1963 by Barbara Lewis,

a crossover hit for the diva, "Hello Stranger"

was waxed again in 1966 by the R&B group

The Capitols and released as the B side of

their top 10 hit "Cool Jerk." Both songs on

that Capitols 45 were huge hits at the Dell.

In early 2020, Monica and Malik brought

the smooth groove back to life in fine

chicano soul style. 

"Hello Stranger" - Barbara Lewis/Capitols cover

by Monica Rocha & Malik Malo (Feb. 2020) 

I hope you had a good time eavesdropping on this meeting of the

Old York - Shady Dell Chapter of the Top Hit Club of America. 

Stay tuned for more golden greats of the 50s and 60s spun by

Dell rats Ron, Tom and Jerre Slaybaugh coming up in future

volumes.  This is Debbie the Dellette. See you next time!

Natalie Teeger's Gotcha Covered with Leonid & Friends!

Hi there, I'm

Natalie Teeger!

As you know, I'm
Adrian Monk's

personal assistant
on the hit TV series
My Mother the Car
Monk.

You might recall my appearance a few years ago on Shady Del Knight's

old blog Shady Dell Music & Memories.  Shady was nice enough

to invite me back as a guest host here at Shady's Place.

I needed to beg, coax and twist Mr. Monk's arm, but he finally agreed
to give me some time off so that I could introduce you to what
just might be the greatest cover band in the world! They're
Leonid & Friends, a Russian tribute band that specializes in
covering the songs of the American supergroup Chicago.

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

Leonid & Friends have never seen Chicago in person. They learned Chicago's songs

by listening to recordings and watching videos. The Moscow based jazz-rock band

has the uncanny ability to replicate Chicago's complex arrangements note for note.

Listen as they perform "Beginnings," a top 10 hit for Chicago in 1971.

"Beginnings" - Leonid & Friends

(Chicago cover)

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THE VIDEO NOW!

The song you just listened to, "Beginnings" was
originally released as a single at Halloween in
1969 but didn't become a hit until it was re-
released in 1971. Two years later, in the

summer of '73, Chicago scored another

top 10 hit with the song you're hearing
now, "Feelin' Stronger Every Day."
Check out this more than capable
cover by the talented band
Leonid & Friends!

"Feelin' Stronger Every Day" - Leonid & Friends
(Chicago cover)

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THE VIDEO NOW!

In 1974 Chicago brushed the top 5

with the single "Call On Me." Let's

call on Leonid & Friends to cover

the song like nobody else can!

"Call On Me" - Leonid & Friends
(Chicago cover)

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Leonid & Friends have the Chicago sound

down pat, but they cover other bands

equally well. Here they do "September,"

a top 10 hit in '79 for Maurice White's

LA-based R&B band Earth, Wind & Fire.

"September" - Leonid & Friends

(Earth, Wind & Fire cover)

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It should come as no surprise that

Leonid & Friends cover the pop jazz

band Blood, Sweat & Tears. Here's

their version of "Spinning Wheel!"

"Spinning Wheel" - Leonid & Friends

(Blood, Sweat & Tears cover)

CLICK TO START
THE VIDEO NOW!

In '84 Chicago brushed the top 15

with "Stay The Night." Here again,

our featured act Leonid & Friends!

"Stay The Night" - Leonid & Friends

(Chicago cover)

I hope you enjoyed these covers of classic

soft rock songs originally recorded by

Chicago, Earth, Wind & Fire and
Blood, Sweat & Tears, and per-

formed in recent years by the

fine Russian cover band

Leonid & Friends.

This is Natalie Teeger thanking you for joining

me and inviting you to watch our TV show

Monk now streaming on Amazon Prime.

As Mr. Monk and I leave you now, please listen

to "If You Leave Me Now," one last exquisite

cover by the fabulous Leonid & Friends!

CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!

"If You Leave Me Now" - Leonid & Friends
(Chicago cover)

Nice job, Natalie. By the

way, in case you haven't

heard... I have my own

rock band. It's called

 The Randy Disher Project.

Hey, if you'd like, I can

get you tickets to our

next show. It's Saturday

afternoon...in my garage.