ROCK & ROLL nEWS
Felix Pappalaedi, Mountain bass player and ex-producer of the ex-Cream, played four sets at the Eastown September 26 & 27 with a back so badly injured he could hardly walk. The injury, sustained in Boston the week before, forced him to affect a walk something like that of Harpo Marx.
The CREEM Archive presents the magazine as originally created. Digital text has been scanned from its original print format and may contain formatting quirks and inconsistencies.
ROCK & ROLL nEWS
MOUNTAIN
Felix Pappalaedi, Mountain bass player and ex-producer of the ex-Cream, played four sets at the Eastown September 26 & 27 with a back so badly injured he could hardly walk. The injury, sustained in Boston the week before, forced him to affect a walk something like that of Harpo Marx. He expects to go into the hospital in the near future to have the condition rectified.
A Detroit production of Hair is planned for the old Grande Ballroom, to be produced by Dale Leonard and Dick Reynolds (ex-Pebble and Clod, respectively). The production held tryouts last week. Rehearsals start October 6 and it’ll be ready for viewing around December 19th. The show, presented with Uncle Russ’ cooperation, is non-union, possibly non-admission, and promises to have a truly bizarre performance schedule. More on this later.
A & M is planning a series of istrology albums.
Together Records, which did the Byrds’ Preflyte record (consisting of the groups’ early work) is preparing more albums of rock history. Included in present plans are a Los Angeles-based anthology (featuring the Byrds, Canned Heat and the Dillards along with Chris Hillman’s The Hillmen and David Crosby), a Frisco anthology (old tapes from the Avalon and Matrix) and a Lord Buckley archive lp.
Watch for a concert war to hit Chicago shortly. The lines are drawn between Triangle Theatrical Productions and Dick Gassen/Charles Witz’s 22nd Century Productions. 22nd Century seems to be much more progressive, will be using programs in the form of posters, and will be doing some really arty advertising: nice posters and such.
JAMES BROWN RETIRING
James Brown, renowned rhythm and blues king, has announced his impending retirement. He will cease performing before next July 4th.
Tetragrammaton is in deep trouble; the label fired nineteen people a while back in an effort to keep financially afloat. Now if John and Yoko would just.
Ronnie Hawkins, who used to be the lead singer with the Band when they were the Hawks, about ten years ago, has just signed a contract with Atlantic. Hawkins had a whole string of hits on Roulette in the fifties including Mary Lou, 40 Days and Wild Little Willie. The contract is reported to guarantee Hawkins some $500,000 in the next five years. It’s the largest recording contract a Canadian has ever received.
Watch for Humble Pie, a British super group of sorts, which features Steve Marriott and Peter Frampton, two ex-Small Faces on guitars and handling the songwriting chores. The Faces were always among the groups this country managed to ignore best, but maybe their first record from the new band (Safe As Milk Is, on Immediate) will gain the recognition it deserves when it’s released over here.
Robin Sommers, noted Motor City artist, CREEM art director, author of the infamous “Fuck Hudson’s” ad that got the MC5 fired by Elektra, bon vivant abd social lion, and his lovely wife Cheri, another CREEM creep, have just had a son, Cully Lejaren. Cully was born at 3:19 PM on September 9, 1969, weighing in at six pounds, eleven ounces. Power, as they say, to the people.
Dave Miller has returned from wherever he spent the last six months to take over his old job as m.c. at the Grande Ballroom.
DUKES MOVE TO POLYDOR
The world’s largest record company, Polydor, has signed the Amboy Dukes. The Dukes, long used to bad management and a poor recording contract with Mainstream, will get a chance to prove themselves nationally with solid and professional promotion. The title of their first Polydor album will be Marriage.
More of what the world needs: Donavan’s manager, Ashley Kozak Js starting Sugar records, which will record West Indian groups.
UNFAITHFUL
Ginger Baker has reportedly left Blind Faith; Steve Winwood made a solo appearance in New York City September 25 at Philharmonic Hall. That’s the way we like it boys, short and sweet.
GM studios has recently opened sixteen track recording facilities. GM, one of Detroit’s most popular studios (where the MC5 are currently wrapping up the mixing on their new album) has recently gone into the production/promotion field. First band to sign with GM Productions is Heads Over Heels.
Harvey Ovshinskey of the Lafayette Clinic and Open City will soon do an hour-long show Sunday nights on WXYZ-FM. During Harvey’s show Brother John’s love tapes will get a chance to cool off.
Detroit is now being treated to an all-out effort by WKNR-FM to become an entertaining and community service-oriented addition to the Detroit-Ann Arbor cultural scene. John Small and Dan Carlisle, both originally from WABX-FM,have been responsible for the two hour long specials on the Toronto Rock fcn’ Roll Revival, and also for the Abbey Road and Get Back!, Beatle album premiers. Detroit will soon be able to boast having two of the best progressive rock radio stations in the country.
Sha-Na-Na, a new group from New York City that wears the infamous DA hairdo of the early fifties and gold lame stage costumes, has signed with Buddha records of Nineteen Ten Fruit Gum fame, and will be unveiling their “tough” act in various ballrooms around the country soon.
John Mayall is supposed to be starting a record company. Called Crusade, it’ll feature primarily blues artists.
The Savage Grace have signed with Warner Bros. The group got an apparently advantageous contract, with a medium/large advance and excellent production deal.
The San Francisco Oracle, one-time champ of the psychetropic approach to journalism, lives again at 460 Magnolia Avenue, Larkspur, California, with a new staff (Travis Rivers, once managing editor, now manages Mother Earth out of Nashville, ex-editor Allen Cohen now lives in a commune in Marin County), but the same ideas about what a newspaper should look like and do. Subscriptions are $8.40 for 24 issues.
All the Lonely People, famed for their rendition of Sympathy fur the Devil, have signed a recording contract with Vanguard Records. Sam Charters had been hot after them for some time.
Capitol Records is due for a surprise; they’re about to receive Peppy’s new album instead of the new Bob Seger tape they’re expecting. Peppy is SegerV drummer; the album is called Humor Nucleosis.
Dan Carlisle, WKNR d.j., will return to Jackson prison sometime in November with four bands, including Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels and the Tribal Sinfonia.
WABX will be going to Ionia state penitentiary with Ryder and the Wheels and three other bands, October 5th. With the assistance of Mike Gormley of the Detroit Free Press, WABX will be visiting inmates who are largely under 30 and are doing time for Narcotics no-no’s.
Arthur Brown is back with a rock big band.
•COSMIC CIRCUS-
Teenage pop wizard Dave Dubay is presenting what he calls a “Cosmic Circus” on Sunday, October 26 (1 -11 pm). Cosmic on account of Sun Ra and the MC5, who will be headlining the show, and circus because it’s being held in an enormous heated tent and will feature performing animals, an arcade with hippy trippy paraphrenalia as prizes, and an appearance by Bozo the Clown (immortalized by the then — Psychedelic Stooges in their famous hit, Bye Bye Bozoes). Other performers will include The Spencer Davis Group, the Up, Ted Lucas, Brat, and the Grand Funk Railroad. Admission to the entire spectacle, which will be set up, appropriately enough, at King’s Animal Land on Gratiot near New Haven, is $5.00. It sounds like a good show, but it would have been better if they’d gotten the dancing elephants like they were supposed to.
Commander Cody and his Lost Planet Airmen, featuring good oF Billy C. Farlow on guitar, harp, vocals and jive, will make a triumphant return to the Motor City this month, highlighted by an appearance at the new Grande Riviera. The legendary “Boot” Hill has proripsed to jam with the Commander and his boys live, more or less, on the ballroom stage.
Just everybody who’s anybody in Detroit and Ann Arbor Rock and Roll attended WABX’s gala Detroit premiere of Peter Fonda’s wonderful new film Easy Rider. Wayne Kramer was there, elegant in purple jacket and blue levi’s; Michael Davis, in a cleverly contrived outfit of blue denim by Strauss of California; Iggy Stooge in an ensemble that highlighted a guitar shaped brooch of real rhinestones. Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Miller, formerly of Detroit and San Francisco and Detroit and San Francisco and Detroit and San Francisco, acted as informal host and hostess at the door. Unfortunately, Dan Carlisle, the dashing Detroit radio personality, did not attend; his absence was regretted by all. The film was well received by the assembled socialites, and all left hoping eagerly that a similar entertainment would be arranged in the very near future.
The Frut of the Loom, boyish Detroit band, were busted recently for possession of grass and hash. Since the police neglected' to obtain a warrant and according to the Fruts, the dope was planted, things don’t look as bad as they might.
Remember the teenage death song Patches? Well, Dickie Lee will soon be recording again, this time for Diamond. The rock revival rolls on.
Procol Harum have definitely broken up
ATOMIC ROOSTER
With Arthur Brown forming a big band, it might interest you to know what Vince Crane, his old organist, is doing. With Carl Palmer, the highly respected drummer with the Crazy World, he has formed the Atomic Rooster. The group will be a trio, featuring 20 year old Nick Graham, a “find” according to British sources, on bass, guitar, flute and vocals. Crane wrote most of the Arthur Brown material and will continue to do so for the Rooster.
By the way
It’s rumored that Eric Clapton is talking with a few members of the old Crickets (Buddy Holly’s group) about forming a new band.
Soupy Sales’ TV special will feature Don Ellis as musical director. Ellis just completed Moon Zero Two in England.
Klondike Mike is married.
Brownsville Station is about to release a single on the Hideout label; the “A” side is an original composition called “Rock and Roll Holiday” with the flip being yet another remake of “Jailhouse Rock”
Bob Seger’s second album, Noah, has gone into its second pressing. This is despite Capitol’s lack of promotion and the fact that the whole album is receiving airplay rather than just a couple of cuts.
