2020

And so begins another week. Here at the Mermaid Lounge, we’re trying to accomplish the impossible: Programming a week in advance. It’s a valiant effort, but the jury is OUT. Nevertheless, we have a lot of info here for you.

***The very first juke box at the Palais Royal Hotel in San Francisco***

November 23, 1899: The first jukebox was placed at The Palais Royale Hotel in San Francisco (see photo).

November 23, 1962: The Beatles auditioned at St. James’ Church Hall in London for The BBC, which was looking for people with potential to be on TV. The Beatles failed. I wonder if the guy who made that decision kept his job.

November 23, 1963: Jimmy Gilmer & The Fireballs have the top R & B song with Sugar Shack.

November 23, 1964: /The Beatles release the single, I Feel Fine. The B-side is She’s A Woman.

The Rolling Stones are late for the radio shows Top Gear and Saturday Club, and were banned by The BBC.

November 23, 1965: The Beatles film promos for I Feel Fine, Ticket To Ride, Help!, Day Tripper and We Can Work It Out at Twickenham Studios in London. The BBC paid 1,750 pounds for the broadcast rights, and then deals were made with other broadcasters around the world.

November 23, 1967: The Who played the New Barn at The Lions Delaware County Fairgrounds in Muncie, Indiana.

November 23, 1968: Little known fact, here: After Dusty Springfield had recommended Jimmy Page to Ahmet Ertegun, head of Atlantic Records, Led Zeppelin manager Peter Grant finalized their recording contract.

Steve Miller debuted on the charts after his first single, Living in The USA.

The Beatles tied the existing rock era record (held by Bobby Darin’s Mack The Knife) with a ninth week at #1 for Hey Jude.

Judy Collins’ version of Joni Mitchell’s Both Sides Now enters the Top 40, where it will peak at #8. It will also win The Best Folk Performance of the year.

November 23, 1970: George Harrison released his first solo single, My Sweet Lord, in the US.

November 23, 1972: Bob Dylan arrives in Durango, Colorado, to film the movie Pat Garrett & Billy The Kid (Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door).

November 23, 1975: Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody goes to #1 on the UK charts, where it will remain for nine weeks.

November 23, 1976: Wings kicked off a 19-date UK tour at The Royal Court in Liverpool.

November 23, 1983: Tom Evans of Badfinger committed suicide after the band decided to break up.

Born On This Day

November 23, 1939: Betty Everett, of The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s In His Kiss) fame, was born in Greenwood, Mississippi.

November 23, 1940: Freddie Marsden, drummer for Gerry & The Pacemakers, was born in Liverpool.

November 23, 1954: Bruce Hornsby, one of the greatest keyboardists ever, leader of Bruce Hornsby & The Range and keyboardist for The Grateful Dead, was born in Williamsburg, Virginia.

And that is it, children. Today’s lesson is over.

“Homecoming” is Our Album of The Week, Laura Nyro is In The Spotlight, and The Psychedelic Express Rolls Through, Sunday, November 22, 2020

How are we this fine morning, Music Lovers? It’s Sunday, a day of rest. It’s the perfect day to tune in, turn on, and drop out. Who said that?

***Laura Nyro, one of the most amazing songwriters of all time.***

Here’s your Sunday Funday line-up!

11:00 a.m. Album of The Week: Homecoming by America NEW!

Here we go, everybody claiming this is a “surprise” pick for me. I remember in my younger days people being surprised that I liked much of America’s music. Hey, I’ve never been a head-banger. In fact, you don’t hear that stuff on this station, for the most part.

America is really good at what it does. Call it soft rock; call it whatever you want. But America has made some very creative music. The albums Homecoming, Hat Trick, and Hideaway have some incredible music on them. Tune it in today’s Album of The Week to see what we mean.

3:00 p.m. In the Spotlight: The Music of Laura Nyro

Laura Nyro’s contribution to popular music is undeniable. She’s a brilliant songwriter, having delivered Wedding Bell Blues, Stoned Soul Picnic, Eli’s Coming, and many other songs. Most have been hits for other people, but Laura Nyro singing them is something to behold. Today, we put her In The Spotlight.

7:00 p.m. The Psychedelic Express: Various Artists

Some of the best mind-bending tunes on the planet from The Electric Prunes, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Cream, The Doors, Pink Floyd, and others!

10:00 p.m. Murder Most Foul by Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan’s 2020 release about John F. Kennedy’s assassination was aired here when released, and added to the general rotation. Today, we will replay it at 10:00 p.m. on the 57th anniversary of JFK’s assassination.

Here’s what you’ve got to do: Tune us in. This is the easiest thing on the planet to do. Open a tab and click the link at the bottom of this blog entry. No lie. That’s all, folks. We’re not lying.

www.tinyurl.com/Ungovernable-Radio

Your Brain Might Be Full After Today’s College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 11/22/20

It’s one pistol of a day at the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge! We have got a lot of musical news for your history lesson today. I don’t know how we could possibly put anybody but The Beatles in the main photo today. You’ll see why.

***We couldn’t possibly put anybody but The Beatles in this blog post today.***

Here’s today’s musical historical happenings:

November 22, 1957: Two sixteen-year-olds named Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel appeared on ABC-TV’s American Bandstand as Tom & Jerry where they sang Hey Schoolgirl. The rest, as they say, is history.

November 22, 1961: Bob Dylan completes the recording of his debut album.

November 22, 1963: The Beatles release their second album in the UK called With The Beatles. It knocked their debut album out of the #1 spot, and then proceeded to give The Beatles 51 consecutive weeks at the #1 position on the UK Album Charts.

November 22, 1965: Stevie Wonder releases his hit Uptight (Everything’s Alright).

November 22, 1967: George Harrison begins recording the soundtrack to the movie Wonderwall.

November 22, 1968: The Beatles release their self-titled double album set called The Beatles. It becomes better known as The White Album.

November 22, 1969: The Beatles sit atop the album charts with the spectacular Abbey Road.

November 22, 1981: Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Woods of The Rolling Stones join Muddy Waters on stage at the Checkerboard Lounge in Chicago.

November 22, 1983: The Pretenders release their great single, Middle of The Road.

November 22, 1986: Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble launch their 149-date American and European tour at the Towson Center in Towson, MD.

November 22, 1988: Pink Floyd released their live album, The Delicate Sound of Thunder.

November 22, 1990: Freddie Mercury of Queen issues a public statement confirming the rumor that he has AIDS. He passes away on November 24, 1991 from the illness.

November 22, 2010: After just one week of availability on ITunes, The Beatles’ music sold more than 450,000 albums and 2 million individual songs.

November 22, 2010: The Beatles (aka, The White Album) returns to the Top 10 of the Billboard 200 chart after its 50th anniversary reissue on November 9.

Born on This Day

November 22, 1943: Floyd Sneed, drummer for Three Dog Night, is born in Calgary, Ontario, Canada.

November 22, 1944: Jesse Colin Young, lead singer and bassist for The Youngbloods, is born in Manhattan.

November 22, 1946: Bass Guitarist Aston “Family Man” Barrett of Bob Marley & The Wailers is born in Kingston, Jamaica. Seems the nickname “Family Man” was a good one. He is reported to have fathered 41 children.

November 22, 1950: Steven Van Zandt (aka, Little Steven), songwriter, guitarist, arranger and producer with Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band, is born in Winthrop, MA.

Tina Weymouth, founding member and bass player with Talking Heads, is born in Coronado, CA.

November 22, 1963: President John F. Kennedy is shot and killed in Dallas, Texas. His death inspires many songs, including The Beach Boys’ Warmth of the Sun, and Bob Dylan’s 2020 release, Murder Most Foul. We will play Murder Most Foul this evening at 10:00 p.m.

And that is it for Sunday at The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge. Stay tuned for today’s line-up!

Another Day in The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 11/21/2020

It’s yet another day at The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge. Yesterday’s entry was prolific. Today’s, not so much.

***The Zombies, 1964 – Rod Argent, Colin Blunstone, Hugh Grundy, Paul Atkinson and Chris White (seated) ? Chris Walter (Photo by Chris Walter/WireImage)***

Today’s action in rock history:

November 21, 1960: George Harrison, merely 17 years old, is deported back home from Germany because he is too young to play with the band. They are forced to play without him at The Kaiserkeller Club in Hamburg.

November 21, 1964: The Supremes made it four weeks with their #1 R & B song, Baby Love.

The Zombies, one damned fine band, had one of the biggest hits of their career with She’s Not There at #5.

November 21, 1969: T-Rex played at The Free Trade Hall in Manchester, England.

November 21, 1970: Two months after his death, Jimi Hendrix had the #1 song in the UK with Voodoo Chile.

November 21, 1975: Queen releases the album A Night At The Opera in the UK.

November 21, 1980: Steely Dan releases the album Gaucho, which includes appearances by guitarists Rick Derringer and Mark Knopfler.

November 21, 2013: Forty-three years after their break-up, The Beatles had their 31st Top Ten album with On Air–Live at The BBC, debuting at #7 on the Billboard 200.

That’s today’s light lesson. Hey, it’s Saturday, so that’s a good thing. We’ll be back with today’s line-up in just a bit.

Put On Your Thinking Caps: It’s Friday at the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge!

Good Morning, Music Lovers! Apparently, the 20th of November is a banner day in rock n’ roll history. Let’s not waste any time!

***Keith Moon, on a day when he was apparently not creating problems.***

Here’s today in music history:

November 20, 1955: The song that changed music forever, Rock Around The Clock, by Bill Haley & The Comets, went to #1 on the UK charts. It would re-chart six more times until 1974.

Bo Diddley appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. The show requested that he play Sixteen Tons. When he went on stage, he instead sang Bo Diddley. They banned him from further appearances in punishment. (Give me a fucking break, Ed.) As Tom Petty said, “Elvis was king, but Diddley was daddy.”

November 20, 1961: Bob Dylan began recording his debut album. It was completed over two days at Columbia Recording Studios in New York. Some of the songs recorded the first day are Song to Woody, Fixin’ to Die, and Baby Let Me Follow You Down.

November 20, 1965: The Supremes had their sixth #1 single in the US with I Hear a Symphony.

November 20, 1966: The Supremes again were at #1 on the US charts with You Keep Me Hangin’ On, their seventh single.

November 20, 1967: The Strawberry Alarm Clock was at #1 with Incense And Peppermints, one of my all-time favorite songs. The opening riff is what did it for me. Oddly enough, the band hated the lyrics so much, they had a friend who was attending the recording sessions sing it instead. It worked.

November 20, 1968: Janis Joplin’s manager approaches Mike Bloomfield and Nick Gravenites about creating her a new backing band, which becomes Janis Joplin & The Kozmic Blues Band.

November 20, 1971: Isaac Hayes hit #1 on the US singles charts with The Theme From Shaft.

November 20, 1974: Keith Moon collapsed on stage when his drink was spiked with horse tranquilizer (I wonder who did that). A 19-year-old drummer in attendance at the Cow Palace volunteered to replace him and the concert went on. Moon would also collapse on stage in Boston in 1976 when yours truly was in attendance. That was allegedly from the flu. The concert was rescheduled.

November 20, 1975: The Who kicked off a North American tour at the Summit in Houston. After that show, Keith Moon was arrested for disorderly conduct. What a guy.

November 20, 1976: Paul Simon joins George Harrison on stage on SNL where they perform Here Comes The Sun and Homeward Bound together. both John Lennon and Paul McCartney were in New York at the time and watched the show.

November 20, 1991: The Rolling Stones sign a deal with Virgin Records to make three albums over six years.

Born on This Day

We’ve got so many here, we’re making this a separate entry.

November 20, 1940: Jim Horn, American saxophonist, woodwinds player and master session musician is born. He played on solo albums by three members of The Beatles, and was on stage for George Harrison’s Concert For Bangladesh in 1971. He also played flute and sax on Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys and flute on The Stones’ Goats Head Soup album.

November 20, 1941: Matthew John Rebennack, or Dr. John, was (thankfully) born. He was a pianist, guitarist and singer who was a session musician from the 50s until his death in 2019 at the age of 77. Dr. John came into his own as a performer in the late 60s when he released his album, Gris-Gris. He is absolutely one of my all-time favorites.

November 20, 1942: Norman Greenbaum of Spirit in The Sky fame, was born in Malden, Massachusetts.

November 20, 1946: Duane Allman, undoubtedly one of the greatest guitarists of all time and leader of The Allman Brothers Band is born. If you’ve listened in on our Skydog playlists, you’ll see he was one of the most sought-after guitarists on the planet, playing with everyone from Wilson Pickett to Eric Clapton. He dies tragically in a motorcycle accident in 1971 in Macon, Georgia.

November 20, 1947: Joe Walsh, singer, songwriter, guitarist with The James Gang and later, The Eagles, is born. Did you know that Joe Walsh is Ringo’s brother-in-law?

Whew! That’s it for today, Musicologists! We’ll be back with today’s line-up in a bit!

Here’s Today’s Lesson From the College of Rock N’ Roll Knowledge: 11/19/2020

Good Morning from The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge. It’s another busy day in musical history, as you will see.

***Tom Petty & Dave Grohl on stage during the Heartbreaker’s 30th Anniversary Tour.***

Here’s today’s lesson plan:

November 19, 1955: Carl Perkins records Blue Suede Shoes at Sun Studios in Memphis. It will be Perkins’ biggest hit, reaching #2 on Billboard.

November 19, 1966: The Supremes enjoy their eighth US #1 hit with You Keep Me Hangin’ On.

November 19, 1971: B.B. King celebrates his 25th year in music by kicking off a European tour in London.

November 19, 1973: Led Zeppelin begins recording demos for their album, Physical Graffiti.

Meanwhile, Bob Dylan releases his 13th studio album, simply called Dylan.

November 19, 1975: The J. Geils Band records Blow Your Face Out (a fucking great album) at Cobo Hall in Detroit.

November 19, 1976: Van Morrison’s Moondance album receives a Gold Record. The album spawns two hits. In addition to the title track, Into The Mystic is released.

November 19, 1982: Led Zeppelin releases its final studio album, Coda, which is a collection of unused tracks written before drummer John Bonham’s death in 1980.

November 19, 1983: Tom Evans of Badfinger died at the age of 36. Like his and mate, Pete Ham, Evans also hanged himself. The story of what record company and manager greed and avarice did to Badfinger’s career is one that should be told. We will touch on that in the blog sometime.

November 19, 1994: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers perform You Don’t Know How It Feels and Honeybee on Saturday Night Live, with Dave Grohl of Nirvana and The Foo Fighters on drums.

November 19, 1995: Bruce Springsteen’s thirteenth album, The Ghost of Tom Joad, is released.

A 60-track album called Beatles Anthology I is released and sets a single-day sales record of 450,000 units.

That’s it, children. Take notes. There’ll be a quiz later (just kidding).

Wake Up! It’s Time for The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge!

Good Morning, Students! Here’s today’s lesson from The Mermaid Lounge. Some days we have more than others. Take notes. There’ll be a quiz later.

***Joe Walsh, Randy Meisner, Don Henley, Glenn Frey and Don Felder of The Eagles perform on stage at Ahoy on May 11th 1977 in Rotterdam, Netherlands. (Photo by Gijsbert Hanekroot/Redferns)***

Here’s your lesson for today!

November 17, 1938: Canadian singer Gordon Lightfoot is born in Orilla, Ontario.

November 17, 1944: Gene Clark, singer-songwriter for The New Christy Minstrels and The Byrds, is born in Tipton, Missouri.

November 17, 1966: The Beach Boys had the #1 spot on the UK singles charts with Good Vibrations.

November 17, 1967: A 16-date UK package tour featuring Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, The Move (Jeff Lynne’s first band before ELO and The Traveling Wilburys), The Nice, and Amen Corner played at the City Hall, Sheffield, UK.

November 17, 1971: Rod Stewart & Faces release A Nod Is As Good As A Wink…To a Blind Horse. This is their third LP together.

November 17, 1980: John Lennon releases Double Fantasy. Three weeks later he is shot and killed outside The Dakota.

November 17, 1994: Bob Dylan tapes his episode of MTV Unplugged in New York City.

November 17, 2003: Let It Be…Naked is released, removing the strings and other big sound artifacts added by Phil Spector in the original production.

November 17, 2007: The Eagles have the #1 album with Long Road Out of Eden, their first studio album since 1979.

That’s it from the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge! We’ll be back in a while with today’s programming.

Welcome to Sunday and Our New Album of The Week & The Sixties Rotation!

Good Morning, Music Lovers! Today we have a brand new album of the week, and we have our monthly five-hour, uninterrupted Sixties Rotation. This is the music that is in our DNA here in The Mermaid Lounge.

***The Sixties. It’s in our DNA here at #BecomeUngovernable Radio.***

Here’s today’s line-up!

11:00 a.m. Album of The Week: The Main Refrain by Wendy Waldman NEW!

The Main Refrain is one of the finest albums ever made from someone many may never have heard of. Those of us who were listening to Linda Ronstadt and Maria Muldaur, however, know Wendy Waldman because they introduced her to their followers. Fame may have eluded her over the years, but her contributions as a writer, singer and producer are immense. She remains one of the most well-respected singers of her generation among her peers. Linda Ronstadt appears on this album, and they combine their voices beautifully on The Eagle and The Owl. Pay attention, children.

3:00 p.m. The Sixties Rotation, Volume 2: Various Artists

Our monthly homage to the inspiration for this radio station with more than five uninterrupted hours of streaming. The Beatles, The Grateful Dead, The Rolling Stones, Canned Heat, The Guess Who, The Doors, The Who, Janis Joplin, Them, The Zombies, Jimi Hendrix, The Searchers and many others take a trip through The Mermaid Lounge today.

Before and after all of this great programming we have Open Stream because we run 24/7 uninterrupted, with no charge, no meaningless chatter, and no advertising. This would be an excellent day to join us.

www.tinyurl.com/Ungovernable-Radio

Yes, There is Even a Sunday Session at The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge!

Good Morning, Students! We are back with yet another lesson in the fine art of rock n’ roll trivia here in The Mermaid Lounge. We have all the salient rock n’ roll details every day.

***The Star Club, Hamburg, Germany. The Beatles blew the doors off the place in 1962.***

Here’s today’s lesson:

November 15, 1932: Petula Clark (born Sally Olwen Clark) is born in Epsom, Surrey, England. Later in life, songs like Downtown and I Know A Place would make her famous.

November 15, 1956: Johnny & The Moondogs (consisting of John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison) appear in the final round of Britain’s TV Star Search at The Hippodrome Theatre, Manchester, where they perform Think It Over and It’s So Easy. Unfortunately, the did not have enough money to stay overnight, so they returned home before being able to finish the competition.

November 15, 1965: The Rolling Stones debut on NBC-TV’s Hullabaloo Show where they sing Get Off Of My Cloud.

On this day, The Beatles also finished recording Rubber Soul.

November 15, 1966: The Jefferson Airplane record Somebody To Love, which would reach #5 in in the summer of 1967.

Also, The Doors officially sign with Elektra Records in a deal for the band to release seven albums.

November 15, 1969: Janis Jopin is arrested at her concert in Tampa, Florida, and is charged with using “vulgar and indecent language.” The charges were later dropped.

November 15, 1972: Although I’m generally not into ‘soft rock’ on this day America released a most excellent album called Homecoming. We will soon feature it as our Album of The Week.

And finally, Hamburg, German’y’s famous Star Club — where a very young group called The Beatles once played — announced it would be closing its doors forever.

That’s it from the college of rock n’ roll knowlege. Stick around and we’ll give you today’s line up a bit later!

It’s Saturday at The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge!

Yes, it’s Saturday here, but retail hell still exists and we are still cookin’ here at the College of Rock n’ Roll knowledge. Shit happens no matter what day of the week it is!

***Diana Ross & The Supremes doing what they do best.***

Today in rock music history:

November 14, 1960: It’s Now or Never by Elvis Presley becomes the fastest-selling single ever in the UK, selling 780,000 copies a week.

Also on this day, Ray Charles goes to #1 for the first time ever with Georgia On My Mind, his ninth hit.

November 14, 1962: The Beatles played the final show of a 14-night run at the Star Club in Hamburg, Germany. We will soon be featuring these performances here at $BecomeUngovernable Radio.

November 14, 1964: The Supremes reign at the top of the charts for the third week with their first hit, Baby Love.

November 14, 1967: Pink Floyd opens for The Jimi Hendrix Experience, and play the first show at Royal Albert Hall in London.

November 14, 1970: Gladys Knight & The Pips release If I Were Your Woman.

Also on this day, Santana releases their version of Black Magic Woman. Most people do not know that the song was originally written by Peter Green, and released by Fleetwood Mac in 1968, when they were a blues band.

November 14, 1971: Rod Stewart & Faces release Stay With Me.

That’s today’s lesson in a nutshell, Musicologists. Please sign on to follow the blog on the right sidebar and it will be delivered to your email daily. We will be back in a bit with today’s line-up!