More Yakety Yak About Truth in Music

I'm not sure whether to post this one in my music blog or my political blog. Guess I'll do both.

Today The New Mexican published my story about Veta Gardner, wife of Carl Gardner, the last living member of The Coasters, being upset about an imposter version of The Coasters playing The Clovis Music Festival. Initially the festival advertised that The Coasters were playing, but after complaints, the festival website was changed to reflect that these Coasters are "Billy Richards' Coasters."

As Mrs. Gardner points out, the website still says Richards' Coasters "breathed life into classic Leiber & Stoller songs like: `Charlie Brown,' `Yakaty Yak,' (sic) `Love Potion No. 9' and many more." She also said using the phrase "Clown princes of Rock 'n' Roll" is a copyright infringement.

Richards was a member of an early '60s Coasters offshoot, started by Bobby Nunn, an original member who Veta Gardner says was fired from the band in the late '50s. But he didn't record with the actual Coasters on those songs listed above or "Along Came Jones," "Searchin'," "Youngblood" or any of the Coasters hits you might remember.

The story of "the man with the big cigar" ripping off rock 'n' roll artists in the '50s and '60s is well documented. "Imposter" bands is just another way to screw the artists who created the music.

This issue -- a phenomenon that has been going on for decades -- was discussed last year in the state Legislature. (Here's my column about that .) The House passed the "Truth in Music Act," sponsored by Rep. Al Park, D-Albuquerque, and the bill made it through the Senate Judiciary Committee. But the session ended before the full Senate could vote on it. Maybe next year.

A little story-behind-the story: The issue of The Coasters at the Clovis Music Festival was first brought to the attention of Veta Gardner, the festival, myself and anyone else who would listen by a lady named Virginia Pritchett. Though she lives in Texas now, she's a former College of Santa Fe student who was raised in eastern New Mexico. Virginia is a record collector, an "oldies" fanatic who used to be a DJ at an oldies station in California. She's genuinely concerned about imposters harming the livelihood of the musicians who created the music.

She pointed me to this 1997 article in the New York Observer about Carl Gardner's long struggle against imposters.

And here's the link to the Vocal Group hall of Fame Foundation, which is leading the effort nationwide for "Truth in Music" legislation.

Here's a 2007 report on this issue by ABC's 20/20 featuring a confrontation between a real Drifter and a fake Drifters group.




Here's a video of The Coasters

eMusic August

* The World Ends: Afro-Rock and Psychedelia in 1970s Nigeria by various artists This is the latest collection from the incredible Soundways Records. I spent nearly half my monthly credits on this cool collection, but it's worth it.

In the early '70s, following the bloody Biafran civil war, Jimi Hendrix guitar and James Brown funk invaded Nigeria.

Fuzz and wah-wah seized control of African guitars. Slinky organ sounds crept into the music. And the African drum was stronger than ever.

Bands like The Hykkers, Cicada and The Semi Colon created funky little masterpieces. In "Ottoto Shamoleda" by a band called Colomach you could hear a little Santana. The Hygrades' "Rough Rider" would fit in the soundtrack of any decent Blaxploitation movie.

And I like the advice of Chuck Barrister & The Voices of Darkness: "Be Kind, Be Foolish, Be Happy."


* Reform School Girl by Nick Curran & The Lowlifes. I owe Los Alamos music fiend Russ Gordon for turning me on to this band.

Basically Curran plays some of the roughest, rawest R&B/rockabilly this side of Barrence Whitfield. This album has a lo-fi, '50s car-radio sound to it. Curran sounds as if he's channeling Little Richard filtered through the ghost of Ronnie Dawson, the late rockabilly rowdy, with whom Curran used to play.

But the title song reveals a Phil Spector side. Probably Shadow Morton would be a more apt comparison, as the song has a distinct "Leader of the Pack" vibe to it.

Curran & The Lowlifes are playing up in Nuke City as part of Gordon's Free Concert Series on Friday August 20.

PLUS:

* The 35 songs from The Very Best Of by Hoosier Hot Shots that I didn't get last month. (This only cost me five credits though because the eMusic price was 40 tracks for 12 credits and I downloaded seven tracks last month. What a deal!)

Basically these Indiana cut-ups, who started recording in the early '30s, were the harbingers of Spike Jones. The slide whistle (played by Paul "Hezzie" Triesch) was an important part of the Hot Shot sound, as was the clarinet, played by Gabe Ward.

Among the tunes in this collection are whizbang versions of American standards like "The Band Played On," "Sioux City Sue," "Toot Toot Tootsie," and "I Wish I Cold Shimmy Like My Sister Kate."

There's also some bizarre obscurities by the quartet. My favorite is "I've Got a Bimbo Down on The Bamboo Isle." I found a scratchy old 1920 version of this tune by Frank Crumit on the Internet Archive a few years ago. It's about a swell gal who "all she wore was a great big Zulu smile." As I wrote of this song in a column a few years ago, "A ship wreck never sounded so sexy."

* 9 tracks from Hillbilly Classics. Talk about deals ... This is a 73 (!!!) song collection of mostly obscurities from the '40s and '50s. Costing only 12 credits, it's definitely one of the biggest bargains I've stumbled across on eMusic for some time.

My favorites of the ones I nabbed for now are "Nothin' Clickin', Chicken" by The Down Homers and "My Dreamboat Hit a Snag" by Louis Innis & The String Dusters." I'll start downloading the rest of this when my account refreshes.

ATTENTION ACOUSTIC PICKERS

My old friend Amy Airheart Bianco (who I first met when she was a DJ at the venerable KFAT Radio in Gilroy, Calif. in the early '80s) just sent me this. She's looking for acoustic musicians.

I know you're out there. Check it out!

Calling New Mexico’s Acoustic Musicians!

The third annual New Mexico Women Author’s Book Festival is taking place this October 2nd and 3rd in downtown Santa Fe at the New Mexico History Museum. During this free event, over 100 women authors will read from their works and over 3,000 people are expected to attend during the two days.

Festival Organizers are looking for 10-12 acoustic acts to perform Saturday or Sunday inside the New Mexico History Museum. Solos, duos, trios and quartets are encouraged to apply. Acts featuring women performers are also encouraged to send in audition materials. The performance area will be upstairs, with some seating and will be acoustic with no p.a.system. (this is due to noise restrictions in the building.) The performance area has very bright sound and will attract people coming from the café and the exhibit areas. A small stipend ($50.00 per act) is available for each act to help defray travel costs.

Acoustic acts from around the state are encouraged to apply. Sets up to 50 minutes in length will be booked and the stage will be open from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 pm both days, with the last set ending by 4:50 p.m. Artists are welcome to bring their CD’s to sell during and following their sets, on the day of performance.

Please submit audition materials no later than September 1 to: Amy Bianco c/o MNMF Shops, P.O. Box 2065, Santa Fe, NM 87504-2065. For more information call (505) 982-3016 x 21.

THE SANTA FE OPRY PLAYLIST

Friday, August 6, 2010
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell

101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org

OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
Hot Rodder's Lament by Deke Dickerson
Drinkin' Ain't Hard to Do by Hank III
Rated X by Neko Case
Fist City by Eilen Jewell
Backstreet Affair by Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn
Mr. & Mrs, Used to Be by Ernest Tubb & Loretta Lynn
Super Boogie Woogie by Jerry Irby with His Texas Ranchers
Chickenstew by The Sixtyniners
Room 100 by Ronny Elliott

Corn Liquor Made a Fool Out of Me by Bad Livers
Chug a Lug by Mojo Nixon & The World Famous Blue Jays
Shelly Hopped That Train by The Cedarsqueezers
A-11 by Buck Owens
Amazing Disgrace by Dollar Store
1234 Ever by Jon Langford & Skull Orchard
The Girl On Death Row by T.Tex Edwards & Out On Parole
Mike the Can Man by Joe West
Meet Me By The Ice House Lizzie by Hoosier Hot Shots

TRIBUTE TO THE AMERICAN WAITRESS
The Waitress Song by Freakwater
Ravishing Ruby by Tom T. Hall
Mr. Sellack by The Roches
The Beautiful Waitress by Terry Allen
Diesel Daisy by Killbilly
Sweetheart (Waitress at a Donut Shop) by Dan Hicks & His Hotlicks Waitret Please Waitret by Kinky Friedman
Tip That Waitress by Loudon Wainwright III
Highway Cafe by Tom Waits

Goodnight, Dear Diary by Joe Ely
Don't Touch Me by Eleni Mandrell
I Wish It Had Been a Dream by The Louvin Brothers
I Push Right Over by Robbie Fulks
Clouds That Won't Rain by Clothesline Revival
Tom Dooley by Snakefarm
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets

Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list

SHARON JONES COMING TO LENSIC

Looks like Daptone Records is making inroads into Santa Fe. First we learned The Budos Band will be playing Corazon on August 19.

And now, Jamie from Fanman Productions informs us that the mighty Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings will play the Lensic Performing Arts Center on Sept. 27.

No word on ticket prices yet. All I know right now is that a band called Grace Potter & The Nocturnals will be opening.

Jones' show is scheduled 10 days after Barrence Whitfield is supposed to play at Santa Fe Brewing Company.

That's a lotta soul for this little town.

I wrote a quickie review of Jones' last album I Learned the Hard Way. You can find it HERE (scroll down.)