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This week, the LOUIE of the Week award goes to J. Hearthill with The Valkyrians for their version of LOUIE LOUIE performance on December 3rd 2011, shared via YouTube. Their Wiki page describes this band as a “Finnish rocksteady and ska band.” Wonderful to see this kinda music happenin’ in Finland!
One of the most influential singers of the past 50 years has passed away. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Blues Hall of Fame, the Grammy Hall of Fame, and recipient of various life achievement awards, this iconic performer has left the land of the living. Etta James died on Friday morning 7:45 am, January 20 in Riverside, California, surrounded by her loving family. Richard Berry had a long friendship with Etta. Their first collaboration gave Etta a hit record that launched her solo career in 1955, two years before Richard unleashed his recording of the his most famous song, LOUIE LOUIE.
Richard’s youngest daughter Christy married Etta’s oldest son Donto, creating a family with three beautiful grandchildren. When Richard Berry died, I remember how Etta cried at Richard’s funeral, singing a beautiful gospel song to say goodbye to her dear friend. I saw a lot of unforgettable Etta James concerts over the years, and always hoped I’d be able to get Etta on camera to talk about her friend for this documentary of mine, but we never quite got it together. … and now she’s gone, leaving us with our memories.
This seems like the right time to talk about the various musical connections between Etta and Richard. “The Wallflower (aka Roll With Me Henry)” Johnny had visions of recording an “answer song” to a Hank Ballard‘s hit record “Work With Me, Annie,” and decided this group might be a perfect fit for this idea. A recording session was booked on Thanksgiving Day 1954, and singer Richard Berry was brought in to sing the role of “Henry” for this special project. Johnny took the final recording to Modern Records, and was able to get Etta & the Peaches signed to the label. The song originally known as “Roll With Me Henry” had to renamed “The Wallflower” as the original title was considered too suggestive for radio airplay. That song, released in 1955, became a big hit, hitting the #1 spot on the Billboard R&B singles chart for four weeks.
“Hey Henry” “Good Rockin Daddy”
“At Last” For her debut album, she recorded her title track “At Last,” using lush arrangements that utilized violins and other string instruments. It became her first R&B/pop crossover hit and launched her into the mainstream Billboard chart.
What most people don’t realize was that Richard Berry recorded “At Last” six years before Etta’s version. Originally featured in the 1942 musical feature film- Orchestra Wives, the song was covered by seven different musicians, including Miles Davis, Nat King Cole, and Chet Baker before Etta created the prototypical version that most people associate with the song. Here’s Richard’s version of the song.. Richard Berry “Look Out Miss James” * * * * * * …And In the End….
Donto James shared some beautiful memories of Etta’s final moments
Read the rest of Etta James’s Son Describes Her Final Moments…
Last week, we lost Johnny Otis. He was truly a renaissance man with many different talents – singer, songwriter, disc jockey, keyboardist, drummer, bandleader, talent scout, music producer, television show host, record label owner, cartoonist, painter, politician, organic farmer, and so much more. He’d been called “the godfather of rhythm and blues,” often credited as the man who discovered Little Richard, Jackie Wilson, Esther Phillips, Big Mama Thornton, and Etta James, who passed away just a few days after Johnny. Reading the obituaries of his life, we were reminded of how this white Greek man embraced African-American culture from an early age. As he told a reporter from the San Jose Mercury News in 1994, “Genetically, I’m pure Greek. Psychologically, environmentally, culturally, by choice, I’m a member of the black community.” The unique path of Johnny Otis was certainly not one of “least resistance,” but one that made perfect sense to the essence of his being. The life of Johnny Otis encapsulated a lot of major turning points in the timeline of rhythm & blues / rock ‘n’ roll music. He made a lot of things happen, opened some significant doors for some people that were transformed into major stars in the music industry, and inspired a tidal wave of appreciation for a musical genre that was commonly defined in derogatory terms as simply “race music.” I felt extremely honored to have known Johnny Otis.
In 1987, San Jose, California was the location for a newly-constructed Fairmont hotel. At the time of this construction, the Silicon Valley area was certainly a hotbed for the ever-blossoming computer industry, but it had very few luxury hotels. The San Jose Fairmont was about to change all that, bringing a big change to downtown San Jose. Johnny Otis and his band were brought in as the house band for the first year (maybe 2) of this luxurious hi-rise facility. It was a major coup for the hotel, or at least for the local music enthusiasts like myself that were hip enough to recognize the significance of this musical legend. A few blocks away from this swanky hotel was the Comic Collector Shop, run by my friend Bob Sidebottom. Bob’s shop was not only a great source for picking up comic books, but also an epicenter for folks that loved authentic jazz, rhythm & blues, rock and soul music. It was only natural that Bob and Johnny would become friends once they discovered each other. As Johnny was gracious enough to offer free admission for Bob and his entourage at the Fairmont, a group of us were more than happy to always provide an appreciative audience, often bringing in new friends that had never even heard of Johnny Otis. As Johnny Otis had to come to the San Jose area around the time I started to get serious about researching my LOUIE documentary project, an interview with Johnny made perfect sense, and he became one of my very first interview subjects after the KFJC marathon. My interview with Johnny took place at his VIP suite at the Fairmont. I remember being awestruck by a large collection of paintings and sculptures in his room. I had no idea he was such a prolific artist, as the room seemed to be overflowing with Johnny Otis originals.
In the interview, Johnny talked about his 1954 recording session with Etta James, producing the song “Roll With Me Henry,” which became the hit record that launched Etta’s career as a solo artist. Richard Berry, who wrote LOUIE LOUIE a year later, was brought in to sing with Etta, singing as the character of “Henry.” Johnny and Richard were solid friends for over 40 years. When Richard recorded his live album “Wild Berry” in the late 1960s, Johnny provided the liner notes.
When Johnny launched the Blues Spectrum record label in the 1970’s to produce contemporary re-recordings by rhythm & blues legends that could use some extra acknowledgement, Richard Berry was one of artists signed to the new label.
When Johnny began a series of Red Beans & Rice Festivals in Santa Rosa (CA) during the 1990s, Richard was one of the star performers for the first shows.
Johnny died at the age of 90 years old on Tuesday, January 17th. It’s not a bad age to live to, but it’s still a bummer that he’s no longer with us. Thank you, Johnny for making a difference! Eric Predoehl OTHER JOHNNY OTIS REFERENCES: An appreciation: Dave Alvin remembers Johnny Otis San Francisco Chronicle obituary by Aidin Vaziri
When I embarked on this documentary project of mine, a bunch of people in the Pacific Northwest told me “Ya gotta interview Kearney Barton!” I’m so very glad I took their advice. Kearney Barton recording engineer for many great bands of the Pacific Northwest, has passed away on January 17 at the age of 81 years old. In the LOUIE universe, Kearney was a giant. He recorded Little Bill Engelhart when Bill covered LOUIE LOUIE in 1961, two years before the Kingsmen released their iconic version. When the Wailers found out that Bill was recording this song, they rushed to release their recording of the song with Rockin’ Robin Roberts, which in turn, inspired a gazillion garage rock bands, including the Kingsmen, whose version borrowed heavily from the Wailers/Rockin’ Robin rendition. After the Kingsmen had a hit record with their single of LOUIE LOUIE, Kearney Barton was hired to record the band for their first album – a live performance at the Chase nightclub in Portland, Oregon. Matt Sullivan, founder, Light in the Attic Records summed up the legacy of Kearney Barton with these words:
In 2001, Norton Records released 3 CD compilations of Kearney’s memorable recordings from the Pacific Northwest, but that really just scratching the surface of a proverbial glacial iceberg. When I visited Kearney, I was in awe of a vast collection he maintained at his home studio, as well as the recording gear he still held onto. Luckily the University of Washington was able to work out an arrangement with Kearney to preserve this magnificent archive of his…
Thank you, Kearney for everything! REFERENCE: Light in the Attic Records obituary
This week of musical casualties began with the death of a pirate. Terry Dolan, of the band Terry & the Pirates, passed away on January 15 at the age of 67. My first exposure to Terry & the Pirates came about via a record store I used to frequent during my high school years. Steve Bailey, owner-operator of “Phonograph Records” in Sunnyvale, told me about a new group featuring John Cipollina of Quicksilver Messenger Service. I used to love the band Quicksilver Messenger Service, especially John’s guitar skills, but I was too young to see them during their prime, and they’d broken up ages ago. This new band with John didn’t really sound like Quicksilver to me, but they had a rootsy-blues vibe I appreciated. It was an interesting group of musicians that featured some other San Francisco veteran players like Greg Douglass, David Hayes and Greg Elmore, who was another alumni from Quicksilver.
When Steve hired Terry & the Pirates for a very special show at the Country Store in Sunnyvale, I volunteered to shoot some photos of the event. From that point on, I wound up going to a lot of their shows, including some that included their part-time keyboardist Nicky Hopkins, who recorded with the Rolling Stones, John Lennon, George Harrison, and numerous other rock ‘n’ rollers whose music were a big part of my musical upbringing. Ten or so years after my initial exposure to Terry & the Pirates, I reconnected with the universe of Terry & the Pirates, thanks to my new pal Jesse Block, another video production guy that had a great passion for music. With the death of John Cipollina in 1989, Jesse and I produced video of his memorial concert at the Fillmore Auditorium, which led to production of the John Cippolina documentary that Jesse co-directed with Jim Draper. As Jesse and I worked on the John Cippolina documentary “Electric Guitarslinger,” we captured some great stories about John, and his adventures with Terry. Terry was proud to call himself a “pirate.” He embraced the swashbuckling, carefree, loose approach to life and music. For that want to pay respects to Terry, there will be a public service for Terry at Our Lady Of Loretto Church in Novato CA. on Thursday January 26, 2012 at 11:00 AM at 1806 Novato Blvd. Gonna miss that guy… (As far as I know, he never performed LOUIE LOUIE) REFERENCE: Terry & Pirates page at Bay-Area-Bands.com San Francisco Music and Beyond – home to Keeper of the Flame This week’s LOUIE comes all the way from Indonesia. Jakarta, to be exact. Here tis… Teenage Death Star, live at Colours Pub Jakarta, sometime in August 2008. This week, to commemorate the loss of our friend Tom Ardolino of NRBQ, the LOUIE of the week will be a special LOUIE that’s not necessarily the Richard Berry song. This week, it’s NRBQ and Lou Albano performing “Captain Lou”
By the way, if you go to Terry Adams’ page, you can actually hear a song that directly inspired Richard Berry’s LOUIE LOUIE. It’s an NRBQ performance, or at least Terry and Tom singing “Havana Moon,” the Chuck Berry song. Chuck had no relationship to Richard, other than a “Berry-good” name. That’s TerryAdams.net.
The LOUIE Universe has lost another friend. Tom Ardolino, drummer with NRBQ, died on January 6 at the age of 56. The band announced Ardolino’s death on their Facebook page on Friday: “Friends, We regret to inform you that Tom Ardolino passed away today. Tom will be missed but his spirit lives on through those who were touched by him.” Tom Ardolino was 15 years old when he first heard NRBQ at a high school event, where he became mesmerized by their music. Using an address listed on the back of an NRBQ album, Tom sent off a fan letter, which was read and answered by keyboardist Terry Adams, which led to a great friendship, trading music tapes through the mail, with Tom attending attending virtually every NRBQ show in Western Massachusetts and Connecticut. Four years later at an NRBQ show at the Rusty Nail in Sunderland, Tom Staley, the regular drummer wasn’t able to return to the stage for an encore, and Terry called Tom Ardolino to the stage to play drums with the band. Not long after that moment, Tom Staley decided to leave the band, and Tom Ardolino was invited to join the band. As Tom told the Boston Globe about his entry to the band, “It was like being high on drugs all the time after that.” Tom Ardolino wound up recording and touring with NRBQ for the next thirty years. The band built up a great reputation amongst music critics and fellow musicians, including such admirers as Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards, Paul McCartney, and REM’s Peter Buck. Cartoon likeness of the band occasionally showed up on “SpongeBob SquarePants’’ and “The Simpsons,’’ whose executive producer Mike Scully, made an hourlong documentary about the band. In 1990, I had an opportunity to work with NRBQ when my buddy Jesse Block and I were hired to shoot video at a private Village Music party at Sweetwater’s in Mill Valley, California. NRBQ was the headliner of the show that also included Johnnie Johnson (Chuck Berry‘s original keyboardist), Steve Douglas (saxophonist extraordinaire), Annie Sampson (of Stoneground) and my friend Richard Berry, author of LOUIE LOUIE. It was another one of those great moments where I felt especially fortunate to be hired to work with some talented people I would have gladly paid to see perform.
Tom Ardolino, was a kindred spirit when it came to record collecting. In hindsight, it made perfect sense that I would meet him performing at a private party thrown by a record store with a collection that seemed more comprehensive than any library or museum I’ve ever visited. One of the projects that Tom worked on was a collection of songs from the MSR record label, which specialized in producing customized music for poetry provided by customers. The first release – “The Beat Of The Traps- MSR Madness” led to a whole series of similar compilations celebrating the song-poem genre. As I’ve witnessed via emails and internet social networks, there were a lot of people that loved Tom Ardolino. As Terry Adams mentioned to a writer for Boston Globe, “Tom had more friends than anybody I know, and each one had the feeling they were his best friend.” I was fortunate that I was able to Tom to share some of his thoughts on LOUIE LOUIE. As a tribute to Tom, here’s an excerpt from his testimonial, exclusive to the project.
Get the Flash Player to see this video.
Rest in peace, Tom. REFERENCE LINKS: Boston Globe obituary An extremely rare version of LOUIE LOUIE sold for $499 last week on eBay.
The Aliens were a band from upstate New York. They put out a very limited edition 45 single in 1967 with “LOUIE LOUIE” on the A-side, and “Gloria” on the B-side. Or was it the other way around? Hard to tell, as I couldn’t see any “A” or “B” type notations on the label scans. Anyways, the Aliens were composed of Ray Marion on lead guitar and lead vocals (playing a Gibson cherry red ES335), Curt Meinel, bass (Hagstrom?), Glen Kane on drums, and a guy named Howie on Farfisa organ. They were previously a LOUIE of the Week in 2009, but with the unexpected high price from last week’s auction, I thought they’d be worthy of a repeat posting. If you visit the eBay listing or the GarageHangover.com page, you can hear what this recording sounds like – FREE of charge! ENJOY! eBay posting at: The Big Nate comic strip starts the new year with a tip of the tri-cornered hat to Paul Revere & the Raiders! … and that’s a GOOD THING!
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