Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,197 
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Post by Confessor on Feb 3, 2017 2:11:26 GMT -5
Every now and then I'll hear or read something that brings home in an unexpected way how very big the hippie thing was as a (counter) cultural movement. For example, I was reading once about George Lazenby, the guy who played Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service, and he said that the reason he never did any more Bond films was that he and his friends thought the whole idea of the suave, well dressed, well-groomed leading man was on the way out, and permanently. They thought that stuff like, say, Easy Rider (can't recall if he used that specific example) would provide the typical heroes of the immediate and foreseeable future in pop-culture, so why bother tying himself to a character type that had no future. How wrong he was, of course; but the very fact that he and others could feel that way shows how powerful the counter-culture movement was and how much it had penetrated even the cultural mainstream. That was mainly because there were a LOT of young people around at the time. This was the era when the baby boomers came of age. This is something that is often overlooked: in the 1960s, there were more people aged 18-30 than there are nowadays and a lot more than there had been earlier in the 20th century. As a result, what this unprecedentedly large demographic were doing, what they were wearing, and what music or films they liked was big news and influenced the wider society simply by sheer weight of numbers. |
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Post by Prince Hal on Feb 3, 2017 11:17:26 GMT -5
Yep, just in time for me to graduate high school and start college in 1974. I could still find underground comix in head shops at that point, but it was a visibly dwindling scene and a few years later they were all gone. It was my observation, back then before social media and the internet, that many cultural trends would start either on the East or West coast in the U.S. and slowly catch on into Middle America. By 1973/1974 the hippie movement began to decline in NY and California and segue way into the Disco era. Which kind of made sense as the original hippies were now growing a bit older and had jobs and families to support. Plus the Vietnam issue that bound them was at an end. However in middle America, young kids were now long hairs Altamont was seen more as a quick end to the Woodstock dream of giant crowds living together non-violently for days on end and sharing with each other. Not so much the entire Hippie ideal. In fact, the Charles Manson slaughters were used by hippie-haters to point out their violence Federal and state laws late in the Nixon administration about the outlawing of drug paraphernalia sold in stores also caused the demise of the head shops Suburban kids in the early to mid-70s were definitely into the hippie look, if not the life: long hair for guys, flannel shirts and jeans, long hair parted in the middle for girls, and lots of pot. And then came disco... |
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Feb 6, 2017 9:14:37 GMT -5
50 Years Ago Today- Week 2 Feb 1967
And still, for the 7th week in a row, The Monkee's I'm A Believer is on the top of the charts. Is it any wonder why DC Comics used every opportunity available to slap a chimp on a comic book cover?
The most interesting and a sign of what's to come rose up to #11 on the national charts. One of the earliest examples of psychedelic pop to hit this high on the singles charts in the USA. I give you the one and only Electric Prunes
Also zoomin' up was The Spencer Davis Group featuring, as he was known then, Little Stevie Winwood. He joined the group at the age of 14 . 2 months fro this point he would quit and form his classic rock band Traffic with Dave Mason, Jim Capaldi and Chris Wood
As mentioned previously, you can just about always count on a Motown song in the top 10. Here is the latest at #9
Another trend to bank on was the instrumental single. Radio stations loved to play them as the lead in to the news at the top of the hour. Here's February 1967's example
See you next week with the answer to the question Will I'm A Believer Ever Slip On A Banana Peel And Fall From First Place?
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Feb 7, 2017 9:31:41 GMT -5
1967-The Changing Technology in Music-Part 2
Earlier I had written about the rise of FM radio and how 1967 stood out as the key year for the creation of Rock and Pop oriented FM stations blossoming across the country. 1967 was also a key year as pertains to stereo album recordings
Stereo had been offered to the public as far back as the early 50's. But not on vinyl. They were sold on reel-to-reel tape and required a compatible tape recorder. They were quite high priced and only found a niche market. In 1957/58 RCA Records introduced Stereo on vinyl and consumers had a choice between that version and the standard mono version. Stereo albums were generally priced $1 more than it's mono counterpart.
Recording studios mixed their albums with the mono market in mind since that was the dominant portion. They would electronically convert the mono mix to stereo by using extreme separation, i.e. the guitar in one speaker, the keyboards on the other. This was not what the recording artist had envisioned and many audiophiles came to believe that the mono mix was the true version
However, stereo grew through the 1960's, pushed on by advertising and the manufacturers desire to sell high-end audio products. Very similar to the push to abandon vinyl in favor of CD, DVD in favor of videotape. By 1967, recording studios and artists were producing most music with stereo in mind. By 1967, the sales of the stereo version of an album was outweighed the mono. For all I know, 1967 was the year that happened.
Before the decade was over, mono versions of albums were a thing of the past
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,197
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Post by Confessor on Feb 7, 2017 12:27:20 GMT -5
1967-The Changing Technology in Music-Part 2Earlier I had written about the rise of FM radio and how 1967 stood out as the key year for the creation of Rock and Pop oriented FM stations blossoming across the country. 1967 was also a key year as pertains to stereo album recordings Stereo had been offered to the public as far back as the early 50's. But not on vinyl. They were sold on reel-to-reel tape and required a compatible tape recorder. They were quite high priced and only found a niche market. In 1957/58 RCA Records introduced Stereo on vinyl and consumers had a choice between that version and the standard mono version. Stereo albums were generally priced $1 more than it's mono counterpart. Recording studios mixed their albums with the mono market in mind since that was the dominant portion. They would electronically convert the mono mix to stereo by using extreme separation, i.e. the guitar in one speaker, the keyboards on the other. This was not what the recording artist had envisioned and many audiophiles came to believe that the mono mix was the true versionHowever, stereo grew through the 1960's, pushed on by advertising and the manufacturers desire to sell high-end audio products. Very similar to the push to abandon vinyl in favor of CD, DVD in favor of videotape. By 1967, recording studios and artists were producing most music with stereo in mind. By 1967, the sales of the stereo version of an album was outweighed the mono. For all I know, 1967 was the year that happened. Before the decade was over, mono versions of albums were a thing of the past Just one little nit-picky correction to an otherwise great post (bolded part). Not all stereo albums from the early '60s were electronically re-channeled mono mixes; for example, The Beatles' earliest albums all had dedicated stereo mixes that are often noticeably different sounding to their mono counterparts. Same goes for other British artists on EMI Records, such as The Hollies, The Shadows, Herman's Hermits, and Peter & Gordon, to name just a few. Likewise, many other other UK labels did dedicated stereo mixes for their artists and Joe Meek (of the Tornados' "telstar" fame) was an early innovator in stereo recording right at the start of the '60s. The super-wide stereo separation that you speak of was a byproduct of the producer's being inexperienced with stereo and the record companies wanting to show off how "seperate" stereo could make music sound. You probably knew this, but I just wanted to clarify. Of course, there were those who steadfastly preferred mono, such as Phil Spector, the Rolling Stones and Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys (the latter because he was deaf in one ear and therefore couldn't mix the band's output in stereo). As a very sweeping generalisation though, I think that British recording studios and the British record industry at large were much more progressive with regards stereo than their American counterparts. That's why more U.S. bands' stereo albums featured the re-channeled mono versions that you speak of. There are, of course, exceptions to that rule: producer Gary Usher was a great exponent of stereo recording in his work with bands such as The Byrds, The Hondells and the Peanut Butter Conspiracy, as was Bones Howe with the Mamas & the Papas and the Association. Something that annoys the hell out of me is the current revisionist notion among record collectors that '60s artists didn't consider the stereo versions of their albums to be the proper versions or that the mono versions are somehow superior sonically. The truth, as ever, is much more complicated and nuanced than that and the issue has to be approached on a case by case basis. To return to the Beatles for an example, some point to Sgt. Pepper as proof of the Beatles' own fondness for mono because George Martin spent much longer mixing the mono version of that album than he did the stereo (and the Beatles themselves were present for the mono mixing session). But those folk conveniently forget that Martin spent longer on mixing the stereo version of the previous year's Revolver than he did the mono. To my knowledge, only George Harrison ever expressed any preference for the mono versions of their albums. The truth is that once an album was mixed (either in mono or stereo), that mix would then be used as a reference for the other mix that still remained to be done -- hence why the Beatles weren't present for the stereo mixing session for Sgt. Pepper. There was no need because Martin already had the mono version to base his stereo mix on. Let's not forget that both the stereo and mono mixes were supposed to sound the same or as close as they possibly could. Oh, and yes, 1967 was indeed the year that sales of stereo albums first surpassed those of mono.  EDIT: Interestingly, 7" singles remained predominantly mono right up until about 1973, whereas mono albums had all but vanished by 1969. |
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Feb 7, 2017 12:43:08 GMT -5
1967-The Changing Technology in Music-Part 2Earlier I had written about the rise of FM radio and how 1967 stood out as the key year for the creation of Rock and Pop oriented FM stations blossoming across the country. 1967 was also a key year as pertains to stereo album recordings Stereo had been offered to the public as far back as the early 50's. But not on vinyl. They were sold on reel-to-reel tape and required a compatible tape recorder. They were quite high priced and only found a niche market. In 1957/58 RCA Records introduced Stereo on vinyl and consumers had a choice between that version and the standard mono version. Stereo albums were generally priced $1 more than it's mono counterpart. Recording studios mixed their albums with the mono market in mind since that was the dominant portion. They would electronically convert the mono mix to stereo by using extreme separation, i.e. the guitar in one speaker, the keyboards on the other. This was not what the recording artist had envisioned and many audiophiles came to believe that the mono mix was the true versionHowever, stereo grew through the 1960's, pushed on by advertising and the manufacturers desire to sell high-end audio products. Very similar to the push to abandon vinyl in favor of CD, DVD in favor of videotape. By 1967, recording studios and artists were producing most music with stereo in mind. By 1967, the sales of the stereo version of an album was outweighed the mono. For all I know, 1967 was the year that happened. Before the decade was over, mono versions of albums were a thing of the past Just one little nit-picky correction to an otherwise great post (bolded part). Not all stereo albums from the early '60s were electronically re-channeled mono mixes; for example, The Beatles' earliest albums all had dedicated stereo mixes that are often noticeably different sounding to their mono counterparts. Same goes for other British artists on EMI Records, such as The Hollies, The Shadows, Herman's Hermits, and Peter & Gordon, to name just a few. Likewise, many other other UK labels did dedicated stereo mixes for their artists and Joe Meek (of the Tornados' "telstar" fame) was an early innovator in stereo recording right at the start of the '60s. The super-wide stereo separation that you speak of was a byproduct of the producer's being inexperienced with stereo and the record companies wanting to show off how "seperate" stereo could make music sound. You probably knew this, but I just wanted to clarify. Of course, there were those who steadfastly preferred mono, such as Phil Spector, the Rolling Stones and Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys (the latter because he was deaf in one ear and therefore couldn't mix the band's output in stereo). As a very sweeping generalisation though, I think that British recording studios and the British record industry at large were much more progressive with regards stereo than their American counterparts. That's why more U.S. bands' stereo albums featured the re-channeled mono versions that you speak of. There are, of course, exceptions to that rule: producer Gary Usher was a great exponent of stereo recording in his work with bands such as The Byrds, The Hondells and the Peanut Butter Conspiracy, as was Bones Howe with the Mamas & the Papas and the Association. Something that annoys the hell out of me is the current revisionist notion among record collectors that '60s artists didn't consider the stereo versions of their albums to be the proper versions or that the mono versions are somehow superior sonically. The truth, as ever, is much more complicated and nuanced than that and the issue has to be approached on a case by case basis. To return to the Beatles for an example, some point to Sgt. Pepper as proof of the Beatles' own fondness for mono because George Martin spent much longer mixing the mono version of that album than he did the stereo (and the Beatles themselves were present for the mono mixing session). But those folk conveniently forget that Martin spent longer on mixing the stereo version of the previous year's Revolver than he did the mono. To my knowledge, only George Harrison ever expressed any preference for the mono versions of their albums. The truth is that once an album was mixed (either in mono or stereo), that mix would then be used as a reference for the other mix that still remained to be done -- hence why the Beatles weren't present for the stereo mixing session for Sgt. Pepper. There was no need because Martin already had the mono version to base his stereo mix on. Let's not forget that both the stereo and mono mixes were supposed to sound the same or as close as they possibly could. Oh, and yes, 1967 was indeed the year that sales of stereo albums first surpassed those of mono. EDIT: 7" singles remained predominantly mono right up until about 1973, by whereas mono albums had all but vanished by 1969. Thanks for the additional info Confessor. Yes, to avoid writing pages and pages on the topic, I am using generalizations and encourage anyone interested obtaining further info to use that keyboard sitting right in front of you. The amassed collection of the world's knowledge can be simply found and I would hope any topic I bring up could lead you to read on further. Or better yet, listen to the music itself I have 2 more parts in mind regarding 1967 and the changing technology of music that was occurring at that time. Hope to see you there |
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,197
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Post by Confessor on Feb 7, 2017 12:49:50 GMT -5
Thanks for the additional info Confessor. Yes, to avoid writing pages and pages on the topic, I am using generalizations and encourage anyone interested obtaining further info to use that keyboard sitting right in front of you. The amassed collection of the world's knowledge can be simply found and I would hope any topic I bring up could lead you to read on further. Or better yet, listen to the music itself I have 2 more parts in mind regarding 1967 and the changing technology of music that was occurring at that time. Hope to see you there Oh yes, I'm here to keep you honest.  In all seriousness, I'm really enjoying this series and your updates about the U.S. charts in 1967. I had loads to add on the subject of FM radio (I'm fascinated by it and even have a modest collection of FM radio airchecks from the late '60s), but for some reason didn't. I love talking music, but -- I don't know, I don't tend to really do it very much here. It's almost as if, in my mind, this place is really only for discussions related to comics. I've never been a huge contributor here on the subject of music. Anyway, I'm looking forward to the next two parts about changing technology in the music industry. |
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Feb 7, 2017 13:07:37 GMT -5
50 Years Ago Today-Music That Made Me Cringe
To be fair I should point out that, to my ears, everything was not, ahem, music to my ears. Back then, there not so many pop radio stations to listen to. In fact, I was living in NYC, one of the biggest media centers in the world, and there was but 3 AM stations playing Top 40 songs early in 1967. So to have a song that you despised causing you to change the station (remember-no remote control) would have to be dire indeed. However since these songs were on the Hit Parade, there was no escapingdespite what station you turned to
Please note, this is based on personnel opinion. What I did not like might have been a favorite of yours and vice versa.
Maybe once a month I'll give a brief rundown on the "Dark Side" of the hit list
Here's the #2 song 50 years ago today from the squeaky clean Seekers. It even had it's own movie starring Lynn Redgrave and James Mason
I liked Tom Jones, at least a bunch of his songs I did, but by the spirits of What's New Pussycat, I couldn't sit through this song. #11 mid-Feb
Novelty singles would occasionally make the Hit List and someone thought it would be hysterical to hear Senator Bobby Kennedy sing a garage rock classic. But would you really need to hear this more than once? Since it was in the top 20 between Jan and Feb you'd hear it more than that
OK, that's enough for now. It's getting painful
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,197
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Post by Confessor on Feb 7, 2017 13:16:24 GMT -5
I've always thought Tom Jones was s**t. I mean, he's got a good voice, I suppose, but he's always been so damn unhip. Songs like "It's Not Unusual", "What's New Pussycat", "Delilah", and even more recent material like "Sex Bomb" just really grate upon my ears.
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Post by Prince Hal on Feb 7, 2017 13:18:25 GMT -5
Ish Kabbible, there was WMCA, WABC and which other AM station in New York in '67? I might have thought WHN, but hadn't they dropped Top 40 music by then?
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Feb 7, 2017 13:24:34 GMT -5
Ish Kabbible , there was WMCA, WABC and which other AM station in New York in '67? I might have thought WHN, but hadn't they dropped Top 40 music by then? Whoopsie, you're right and a little wrong. WINS AM changed from Rock N' Roll to All News mid-1965. WHN was playing grandpa music during the 1960s. |
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Post by Prince Hal on Feb 7, 2017 13:25:55 GMT -5
Ish Kabbible , there was WMCA, WABC and which other AM station in New York in '67? I might have thought WHN, but hadn't they dropped Top 40 music by then? Whoopsie, you're right and a little wrong. WINS AM changed from Rock N' Roll to All News mid-1965. WHN was playing grandpa music during the 1960s. That was it! INS. I think WHN went country at one point... I favored 'MCA as I got older. |
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Feb 7, 2017 13:33:58 GMT -5
Whoopsie, you're right and a little wrong. WINS AM changed from Rock N' Roll to All News mid-1965. WHN was playing grandpa music during the 1960s. That was it! INS. I think WHN went country at one point... I favored 'MCA as I got older. I favored 'MCA too before abandoning AM for FM . They would play occasional album cuts and I enjoyed some of their DJs like Frankie Crocker and Jack Spector and Alex Bennett. Same time I hightailed it to FM they became one of the countries first all talk station I don't expect you to remember this but when they became all talk they had an overnight talk show host named Leon Lewis. If you were a regular listener, you might have heard me since I appeared a few times. |
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Post by Prince Hal on Feb 7, 2017 13:53:24 GMT -5
That was it! INS. I think WHN went country at one point... I favored 'MCA as I got older. I favored 'MCA too before abandoning AM for FM . They would play occasional album cuts and I enjoyed some of their DJs like Frankie Crocker and Jack Spector and Alex Bennett. Same time I hightailed it to FM they became one of the countries first all talk station I don't expect you to remember this but when they became all talk they had an overnight talk show host named Leon Lewis. If you were a regular listener, you might have heard me since I appeared a few times. I had moved from the area as of '76. WMCA had long before gone talk. One of my last memories of 'MCA as it bit the dust in 1970 was Dandy Dan Daniels playing Creedence's long version of "Grapevine", all 11 minutes-plus. I do remember that Barry Gray's talk show was on WMCA. Recall Lewis's name, but unfortunately no air-checks with you on them, ish. Bennett was an FM voice on AM radio. He migrated to WPLJ on the FM side pretty quickly, IIRC. He signed off with "Namaste." Groovy. I called in to Frankie Crocker to dedicate songs two nights in a row when I was 14. He was quite the cool cat. I was quite the noid. |
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Feb 7, 2017 14:17:01 GMT -5
I favored 'MCA too before abandoning AM for FM . They would play occasional album cuts and I enjoyed some of their DJs like Frankie Crocker and Jack Spector and Alex Bennett. Same time I hightailed it to FM they became one of the countries first all talk station I don't expect you to remember this but when they became all talk they had an overnight talk show host named Leon Lewis. If you were a regular listener, you might have heard me since I appeared a few times. I had moved from the area as of '76. WMCA had long before gone talk. One of my last memories of 'MCA as it bit the dust in 1970 was Dandy Dan Daniels playing Creedence's long version of "Grapevine", all 11 minutes-plus. I do remember that Barry Gray's talk show was on WMCA. Recall Lewis's name, but unfortunately no air-checks with you on them, ish. Bennett was an FM voice on AM radio. He migrated to WPLJ on the FM side pretty quickly, IIRC. He signed off with "Namaste." Groovy. I called in to Frankie Crocker to dedicate songs two nights in a row when I was 14. He was quite the cool cat. I was quite the noid. I recall-The Barry Gray show would have many nights discussing UFOs and Kennedy Assassination theories I recall-Alex Bennett was the only long haired freak DJ for the station and wound up getting fired for his anti-war stance among other things. I joined a group of about 100 people who picketed the station to get him rehired. Instead he found a job with WBAI- the public radio station then went to WPLJ. I remember when he was with WMCA, he got the station to fly him to England to investigate the Paul McCartney is Dead story and broadcast live from London. He later said he never believed that rumor but used it for a free trip to Europe. He wound up going to San Francisco where he was a very popular talk show host for many years. He also briefly teamed up with Al Goldstein, he of Screw Magazine notoriety, to create the adult cable TV show Midnight Blue I recall-Leon Lewis held the 1AM to 5AM talk show slot in the early 70s. At that time, I was in a garage rock band with my friends. Actually, it was a bedroom rock band because that's where I had my reel-to-reel tape recorder. We'd tape our original songs then call the Leon Lewis show and beg him to let us play the taped song for his show over the phone. He actually did a number of times I recall-After a few songs played on the Leon Lewis Show, my band members believed we can drive into Manhattan, wait for Leon Lewis in front of the radio station building and beg him to appear live on his show. Ahh kids, so young and naive. Leon asked us if we were members of AFTRA, the musician union, and said only members can appear on the show. Ahh kids, so gullible I recall-We stood around dejected in front of the radio station when suddenly we saw famed radio/TV horror host Zacherly leave the building. He also had a show on that station and was on his way home. With nothing else to do, we decided to tail Zacherly's car all the way to Westchester. Why? Hell if anyone knew. Zacherly must have realized by then he was being tailed and stepped on the gas. And so did we. Finally after a few minutes of chasing we stopped. Someone must have asked why we were doing this. So we drove back to Queens, NY and went to the all night Jack In The Box for 3AM tacos as per our usual and called it a night Fun days with AM radio |
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