Friday Night Cat Fight Goes BACK TO SCHOOL!

Summer's Gone...

Back To School Songs

Well, summer's gone and no songbirds are singing...time to get BACK TO SCHOOL! This week all the songs featured in the podcast relate to either going back to school or STAYING in school, because baby you know it's cool to stay in school!

You'll hear some classic tunes from Timmie "Oh Yeah" Rogers, Chuck Berry, The Beach Boys, James Brown and a lot more.

School just wouldn't be school without a little "Hanky Panky" and so this week's Friday Night Cat Fight will put The Raindrops original version of the song up against Tommy James & The Shondells chart-topper. Also this week, we honor the passing of songwriter Ellie Greenwich and doo wop tenor man Johnny Carter.

So listen, vote and STAY IN SCHOOL!

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Johnny Carter (The Flamingos, The Dells) Dies at 74!

Johnny Carter

1935 - 2009

Tenor Johnny Carter was inducted into the Rock n' Roll Hall Of Fame twice. He was a member of two of the most important rhythm & blues groups of all time; The Flamingos and The Dells and both groups rightfully grace the storied Hall.

John Edward Carter was raised on Chicago's South Side and that's where he met Jake and Zeke Carey and along with Paul Wilson and Earl Lewis formed The Flamingos back in 1952. The Careys had just relocated from Baltimore and the new group decided to call themselves The Swallows. They quickly changed their name when they learned of another group using the same name (King Recording artists). Looking to choose another bird name (bird names were all the rage with every young R&B group wanting to sound like The Orioles or The Ravens), they settled on The Flamingos.

Lewis was soon replaced by the amazing Sollie McElroy and the group was off and running, recording for the Chance label. Our boy, Johnny Carter wrote the classic doo wop tune, "Golden Teardrops" and his tenor voice echoes in the background as Sollie McElroy handles the lead. "Golden Teardrops" is considered by many to be doo wop at its finest. It just might be "the perfect record". It was the Flamingos third release for Chance Records. Johnny Carter sang lead on only a few tunes and for my money, you can't beat his voice on "Listen To My Plea" from 1954.

Chance was not capable of giving the group the success that they so rightfully deserved and so they left the label in late 1954 and signed to Chicago disc jockey, Al Benson's Parrot label. They also had a new member as Sollie McElroy departed and was replaced by Nate Nelson. Nelson and Carter sang together on their last release for Parrot, their version of the much covered "Ko Ko Mo".

The Flamingos signed with Chess Records' subsidiary, Checker and in February of 1956 scored the hit they'd been waiting for when "I'll Be Home" shot to #5 on the Billboard R&B Charts. In late 1956, Johnny Carter was called up for military duty and left the group. When he was released from service in 1958, he returned home only to find that he had been replaced in The Flamingos by Terry Johnson. In 1960, he joined another great Chicago group, The Dells. They had just lost Johnny Funches on lead tenor and the sweet voice of Johnny Carter fit right in.

Carter toured and recorded with The Dells for almost fifty years and enjoyed their great success in the late 1960s with chart-topping remakes of "Stay In My Corner" and "Oh, What A Night". He only recently took a leave from the group when his cancer was diagnosed during the summer of 2008.

Johnny Carter, one of the greatest R&B tenors of all-time passed away late Thursday, August 20th, 2009 of lung cancer. He was 74 and the last living member of the Flamingos' original line-up.

R.I.P. - Ellie Greenwich Dies At 68!

Ellie Greenwich

1940 - 2009

One of rock n' roll's greatest songwriters has passed on at the age of 68. Brooklyn born, Ellie Greenwich died in New York on Wednesday, August 26, 2009 of a heart attack, after being checking in to St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital a few days earlier for pneumonia. She wrote some of rock's most memorable songs with and without her former husband, Jeff Barry. Her song credits include "Leader Of The Pack", a smash for the Shangri-Las, "Chapel Of Love" for the Dixie Cups and several mega hits for producer Phil Spector including "Be My Baby", "Da Doo Ron Ron" and "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)".

Ellie also produced some of Neil Diamond's early recording such as "Cherry Cherry" and "Kentucky Woman" and is credited with helping Diamond move from being known only as a songwriter to being taken seriously as a vocalist.

For me, Ellie Greenwich was more than just a great songwriter, because I'm one of the people who LOVED her voice and phrasing. She recorded several great songs with Jeff Barry under the group name, The Raindrops like "The Kind Of Boy You Can't Forget" and "What A Guy". The flipside of their minor 1963 hit, "That Boy John" contained the original version of "Hanky Panky", which would become the springboard hit for Tommy James & The Shondells a few years later. As a solo singer, Ellie touches my heart every time I hear her sweet voice croon, "You Don't Know", a true, underrated classic from 1965. It's a song I play on the radio every chance I get, just so more people can hear it.

In later years, her songs have been featured in several Broadway shows and the musical "Leader Of The Pack" won a Tony Award for Best Musical in 1985.

Ellie Greenwich was one of those artists who didn't make a large splash as a headliner, but without her songs and production in the background, rock n' roll wouldn't have been as sweet and we wouldn't have so many great songs to sing along to.

The Friday Night Cat Fight - Songs About Cadillacs - 8/21/09

Women Want Cadillacs, They Don't Want No Man...

Cadillac Songs

This week, I'm adding luxury, class and style to the typical car-themed show by dedicated the entire program to songs about Cadillacs. No other car in American Popular Culture has been more sought after and no other car let's everyone else around you know that you've made it to the "big time". You left town in your daddy's old Ford, but you return in a brand new Cadillac.

You're gonna hear songs from Bo Diddley, The Ravens, Larry Dowd, Bruce Springsteen and Dizzy Gillespie just to show the variety of styles features on this week's podcast.

Then, vote for your favorite version of the classic, "Brand New Cadillac" as The Clash take on Vince Taylor.

So get into your Caddy and go...on with the show!

Click HERE To Listen To The Friday Night Cat Fight

Friday Night Cat Fight - 8/14/09

Draggin' The Strip...

Drag Racing Songs

Rev up those engines and prepare to burn some rubber as we dedicate an entire Friday Night Cat Fight Podcast to songs about drag racin'. I've left out some of the ol' standbys since you can still hear those all over the radio in favor of some of the lesser heard draggin' tunes. Of course Jan & Dean and the Beach Boys will make an appearance, but we'll also hear from Wally George, Leon Smith and The Hubcaps as well.

You'll get a chance to vote for your favorite version of the ultimate drag racing song, "Hot Rod Lincoln". So fire up those hopped up motors and get ready to burn your ears for that quarter mile on The Friday Night Cat Fight Show.

Click HERE To HEAR The Friday Night Cat Fight Podcast

Les Paul Dies at 94

Les Paul

1915 - 2009

Les Paul, a true, undisputed musical genius passed away at 94 after complications from pneumonia in White Plains, NY. Paul will forever be remembered as a technological pioneer in the realm of electric guitar development and sound recording as well as a great pop artist in his own right. Les Paul's contribution to the foundation of rock n' roll can hardly be fully measured. He developed the first solid-bodied electric guitar in the mid-1940s, that would become a rock standard in the mid-1950s. He pioneered multi-track recording as well, which gave artists the ability to experiment on recordings. Imagine how limited The Beatles or Pink Floyd would have been without the freedom of overdubs and multi-tracking? They and countless others owe a bit of gratitude to Mr. Paul.

During the 1950s, Les Paul with his wife and singing partner Mary Ford scored many hit records on Capitol. They had a signature sound with Mary's double-tracked vocals and Les' soaring, multi-tracked guitar. Les never quit innovating and through the years, he continually updated his signature "Les Paul" guitar for Gibson Guitars. Sometimes using the word "legend" to describe someone feels thin or flat, but it was and is a perfect way to refer to Les Paul. He was and is a legend and he continued to play live gigs right up to his August 13, 2009 death.

This past November, my wife Kelly surprised me with a birthday trip to Cleveland, OH, The Rock n' Roll Hall Of Fame AND the American Music Masters concert tribute to Les Paul. Guitar gods from Billy Gibbons to James Burton showed up to pay tribute to the "Wizard Of Waukesha, WI". Les closed down the show with presence, humor and some great guitar playing. It was a night that I'll never forget. I never got to see Les' weekly live gig in Manhattan, so I am very fortunate that my wife made sure I got to see and hear the great Les Paul before he died.

So please take a moment today or over the next couple of days and put on some great guitar music. Even if it's not a Les Paul record that you put on, listen for Les' influence, because baby, it's in there!

Billy Lee Riley Dies At 75 - R.I.P.

Billy Lee Riley

1933 - 2009

On Sunday Morning, August 3rd, 2009 rockabilly and Sun Records legend Billy Lee Riley passed away from cancer of the colon. He was 75 years old and the epitome of what it means to be a rock n' roller. Born into a large, poor family in Pocahontas, Arkansas on October 5, 1933, Billy Riley spent his whole life working hard to make that dollar. He began playing in various country bands after being discharged from the Military in 1954. He was a part of the famed Dixie Ramblers which also included future Sun Records engineer, producer and artist Jack Clement.

In 1956, Riley found himself on Sun Records as owner Sam Phillips reissued a song Riley had cut for the legendary Fernwood label, "Trouble Bound". Sam placed "Rock With Me Baby" on the flip side and Sun Records 245 was issued in May of 1956. Sam then released the immortal "Flying Saucers Rock n' Roll", which will still burn your ears when you hear it today. By this time, Billy Riley and his band had evolved into the Sun Records house band, playing on records by Jerry Lee Lewis (including "Great Balls Of Fire") and Sonny Burgess And The Pacers' "Thunderbird" and "Itchy".

Billy Lee Riley and His Little Green Men cut the definitive version of Billy "The Kid" Emerson's "Red Hot", but Sam Phillips failed to put any money behind it and opted to promote "Great Balls Of Fire" instead. "Red Hot" is definitely one of the greatest rock n' roll songs of all-time as it defines the rockabilly sub-genre with all of it's wild and crazy, guitar-driven stomp. It's no wonder that Billy Riley felt shafted that Sam refused to promote what would become a Sun Records classic. 52 years later, we all know who laid that sound down and I have no doubt that Billy Lee Riley will be remembered FOREVER for his contributions to rock n' roll.

Billy Riley was laid to rest in Newport, AR on Tuesday, August 4th, 2009. His longtime friends and fellow rockabilly legends Sonny Burgess, James Van Eaton and Roland Janes attended the small ceremony.

Many of Billy Riley's contemporaries will pay tribute to him with a benefit concert for his family on August 30th at 1pm at The Silver Moon Club in Newport, AR. Performing at the show will be: Sonny Burgess and Pacers, WS Holland and band, Carl Mann, Ace Cannon and band, Dale Hawkins, Teddy Riedel, Larry Donn, Travis Wammack, Smoochy Smith, JM Vaneaton and many more. If you would live to make a donation to Billy's widow, please click HERE for more information.