LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JAN 21, 2020…TODAY EDWIN STARR WOULD HAVE BEEN 78YEARS OF AGE. STARR WAS BEST KNOWN FOR THE SONG ‘WAR’. HIS INTENSE VOCALS ON THE VIETNAM ANTI-WAR SONG TURNED AN ALBUM TRACK FROM A TEMPTATIONS SONG INTO A MONSTER HIT. STARR WON A GRAMMY AWARD FOR HIS VERSION OF THE SONG. AFTER HIS SUCCESS IN THE EARLY 70’S, STARR MOVED TO ENGLAND WHERE HE ENJOYED A REVIVAL OF HIS CAREER UNTIL HIS DEATH FROM A HEART ATTACK AT THE AGE OF 61.
HERE’S THE ORIGINAL VIDEO FOR THE SONG ‘WAR’ FROM 1969
LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JAN 21, 2020…ON THIS DATE 36 YEARS AGO BON JOVI CAME OUT WITH THEIR SELF TITLED DEBUT ALBUM. THIS ALBUM WAS FUELED BY THE SONG ‘RUNAWAY’, WHICH WAS THE BAND’S FIRST HIT. THE BAND AT THE TIME COULDN’T GET A RECORD DEAL SO JON BON JOVI TOOK THE SONG TO A LOCAL RADIO STATION. THE DJ THAT HE TALKED TO LOVED THE SONG, AND INCLUDED IT ON THE STATION’S LOCAL TALENT COMPILATION CD. THE SONG BECAME ON OF THE STATION’S MOST REQUESTED SONGS. ON THE STRENGTH OF THE LOCAL POPULARITY, THE BAND WAS SIGNED TO A RECORD CONTRACT. IT’S FROM 1984, SO GET READY FOR SOME BIG HAIR !! HERE’S THE VIDEO FOR RUNAWAY
LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JAN 21, 2020…WILD-EYED SOUTHERN BOYS WAS THE 4TH STUDIO ALBUM FROM THE SOUTHERN ROCK BAND 38 SPECIAL. THE LEAD SINGER OF 38 SPECIAL IS DONNIE VAN ZANT. HIS OLDER BROTHER WAS RONNIE VAN ZANT, THE ORIGINAL LEAD SINGER OF LYNYRD SKYNYRD WHO DIED IN A PLANE CRASH. HIS YOUNGER BROTHER IS JOHNNY VAN ZANT, WHO STEPPED IN TO BECOME THE LEAD SINGER FOR LYNYRD SKYNYRD. THE ALBUM WAS FUELED BY THE HIT SINGLE ‘HOLD ON LOOSELY’. JIM PETERIK OF SURVIVOR CO-WROTE THE SONG ‘HOLD ON LOOSELY’ WITH 38 SPECIAL. THIS CAUSED QUITE A STIR WITHIN THE BAND SURVIVOR BEING THEY HADN’T HAD A HIT YET. THE GUITARIST FOR SURVIVOR WAS SO PISSED PETERIK WROTE THE SONG FOR 38 SPECIAL, HE REFUSED TO SHARE A DRESSING ROOM WITH HIM FROM THAT MOMENT ON.
LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JAN 20, 2020…PAUL STANLEY WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1952. HIS REAL NAME IS STANLEY BERT EISEN, AND PAUL STANLEY IS HIS STAGE NAME. STANLEY IS BEST KNOWN FOR BEING THE RHYTHM GUITARIST AND SINGER OF KISS. HE’S ALSO A GREAT SONGWRITER AND IS RESPONSIBLE FOR FOR WRITING SOME OF THE BAND’S BIGGEST HITS.
HERE’S ONE OF MY FAVORITES. A LIVE VERSION OF ‘LICK IT UP’
LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JAN 20, 2020…ON JAN 20 1978 JOURNEY RELEASED ‘INFINITY.’ THIS RECORD IS CONSIDERED TO BE JOURNEY’S BREAKTHROUGH ALBUM. AT THE TIME IT WAS BY FAR THE GROUP’S BIGGEST SELLING LP, AND FORTY YEARS LATER THE RECORD STANDS AS JOURNEY’S FOURTH TOP SELLING ALBUM. ACCOUNTING FOR STREAMING, DOWNLOADS AND ACTUAL PHYSICAL SALES “INFINITY” HAS SOLD OVER 8 MILLION COPIES TO DATE. MOST SIGNIFICANTLY THIS WAS THE FIRST ALBUM TO FEATURE STEVE PERRY ON VOCALS. ONE OF THE HUGE SONGS ON THE ALBUM WAS ‘LIGHTS’ HERE’S THE OFFICIAL LIVE VERSION FEATURING STEVE PERRY IN CONCERT CIRCA 1978
THE SECOND SINGLE FROM THE ALBUM WAS ‘FEELING THAT WAY/ANYTIME’. THE BAND ACTUALLY WROTE THE SONG BEFORE STEVE PERRY JOINED THE BAND. IT’S CREDITED TO ROBERT FLEISHMAN, GREGG ROLIE, NEAL SCHON, ROGER SILVER, AND ROSS VALORY. FLEISHMAN WAS WITH THE BAND JUST A SHORT TIME AND PERRY REPLACED HIM BEFORE HE WOULD SING ON ANY ALBUMS. ROGER SILVER IS A SF BASED POET WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THE LYRICS. HERE’S GREGG ROLIE AND STEVE PERRY WITH DUELING LEAD VOCALS ON ‘FEELING THAT WAY/ANYTIME’ FROM AN APPEARANCE ON “THE MIDNIGHT SPECIAL”
LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JAN 20, 2020…DEF LEPPARD’S 3RD ALBUM ‘PYROMANIA’ WAS RELEASED ON THIS DAY IN 1983 AND IT WAS HUGE. THIS WAS THE ALBUM THAT PUT DEF LEPPARD ON THE MAP. IT SOLD OVER 14 MILLION COPIES, AND SPAWNED OVER 4 HIT SINGLES. IT WAS ALSO THE FIRST DEF LEPPARD ALBUM TO FEATURE PHIL COLLEN ON GUITAR.
HERE’S ONE OF FOUR GREAT SINGLES FROM THE RECORD . THE SONG STARTS OFF WITH THE ‘GUNTER GLIEBEN GLAUSEN GLOBEN’. IT MEANS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. PRODUCER MUTT LANGE GOT TIRED OF COUNTING THE BAND IN WITH ‘1,2,3,4’ ON EVERY SONG SO HE STARTED SAYING THIS. THE BAND WOULD START MAKING UP STORIES ON WHAT IT MEANS. HERE’S THE OFFICIAL VIDEO FOR ‘ROCK OF AGES’
LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JAN 19, 2020…HAD SHE LIVED JANIS JOPLIN WOULD HAVE BEEN 77 TODAY. JOPLIN WAS FOUND DEAD IN ROOM 105 OF THE LANDMARK HOTEL IN LOS ANGELES OF A HEROIN OVERDOSE. THE 1979 MOVIE ‘THE ROSE’ STARRING BETTE MIDLER WAS BASED ON JOPLIN’S LIFE. JANIS IS A MEMBER OF CLUB 27, A GROUP OF MUSICIANS THAT DIED AT THE AGE OF 27. JOPLIN, JIMI HENDRIX, BRIAN JONES AND JIM MORRISON ALL DIED AT THE AGE OF 27 BETWEEN 1969 AND 1971. SHE LEFT $1,500 IN HER WILL FOR A FUNERAL PARTY. THE PARTY WAS HELD IN SAN ANSELMO ON OCT 26 1971 WITH THE GRATEFUL DEAD PERFORMING FOR THE GUESTS. HER MUSIC IS TIMELESS, AND IT LIVES ON. R.I.P JANIS ON WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN YOUR 77TH BIRTHDAY.
HERE’S JOPLIN FROM 1968 AND AN APPEARANCE ON GERMAN TV
LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JAN 19, 2020…THIS IS WHY I EFFIN’ LOVE THESE GUYS !! SO IT’S JAN 19th 2003 AND I’M IN THE PARKING LOT GETTING MY TAILGATE ON BEFORE THE OAKLAND RAIDERS GAME, AND A FLATBED PULLS UP WITH METALLICA ! METALLICA PLAYS A 6 SONG SET TO “ FUEL” THE RAIDERS ON TO VICTORY IN THEIR PLAYOFF GAME AGAINST THE TITANS. F*#K YEAHHHHHH !!! HERE’S METALLICA FROM THE PARKING LOT !!
LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JAN 18, 2020… THIRTY TWO YEARS AGO AC/DC RELEASED THEIR 10TH ALBUM INTERNATIONALLY ‘BLOW UP YOUR VIDEO’. BRIAN JOHNSON WROTE ALL THE LYRICS ON THIS ALBUM, AND IT WOULD MARK THE LAST AC/DC ALBUM IN WHICH HE WOULD BE CREDITED AS A SONGWRITER FOR THE BAND. ALL ALBUMS AFTERWARDS LISTED THE YOUNG BROTHERS AS SONGWRITERS. SOME AC/DC TRIVIA. BOTH MALCOLM YOUNG AND ANGUS YOUNG DROPPED OUT OF SCHOOL AT THE AGE OF 14 YEARS 9 MONTHS OLD. THAT WAS THE AGE THEY WERE LEGALLY ALLOWED TO DO SO. AC/DC ARE ALSO ONE OF THE SHORTEST BANDS. MALCOLM YOUNG WAS 5’3”, ANGUS YOUNG WAS 5’2” AND BRIAN JOHNSON TOWERED OVER THEM AT 5’5”. HERE’S AC/DC FROM 1988 WITH HEATSEEKER.
LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JAN 18, 2020…ONE YEAR AGO ELTON JOHN BROUGHT HIS ‘FAREWELL YELLOW BRICK ROAD TOUR’ TO THE BAY AREA. HE PLAYED THE ORACLE ARENA. HERE’S ELTON JOHN GOING BACK TO 1972 FROM A TV APPEARANCE ON THE BBC PERFORMING ‘GOODBYE YELLOW BRICK ROAD’
