Sports Audio Archives

Some of my favorite scenes from The Sopranos are when Tony Soprano is shown driving in his SUV rocking out and singing along to ‘70s tunes, usually by BTO or Journey.

Today, I felt a little like Tony Soprano while driving to work, but instead of Journey or BTO, I was rocking out to one of the greatest albums ever released, Born To Run by Bruce Springsteen.

A strange and wonderful sensation came over me by the time the title track came on (which will always signal the beginning of Side Two to me even when hearing it on an iPod).

“Born To Run” is still such a powerful song, and I got the chills this morning as if I was hearing it for the first time all over again. Except, something was dramatically different…all of the years that have passed by, the friends that have come and gone and the life events that have taken place began to run through my mind as the song played, bringing tears to my eyes as I realized just how many years have slipped away and how much I’ve changed since I first experienced the power of “Born To Run.”

It was a coming of age album, and I just happened to be coming of age in 1975 when the album came out. This song vocalized the feelings most of us in my age group shared of needing an escape, and being on the precipice of something unknown that cannot be found in your own home town – “Baby this town rips the bones from your back / It’s a death trap, it’s a suicide rap / We gotta get out while were young / `cause tramps like us, baby we were Born To Run…Together we could break this trap / Well run till we drop, / baby we’ll never go back…” – and it all came drifting back to me this morning during its four and a half minute duration.

While listening, I experienced the same feeling of nirvana I’ve gotten many times over the years watching The E Street Band kick into this song in lit up arenas and stadiums (especially in NJ) with thirty to fifty thousand fans singing along in unison as if their lives depended on it.  And it felt great…it’s too bad that all of that greatness culminated in going to work, but that’s what happens when you don’t hit the Powerball…

Back in the ‘70s, I usually found out about new record releases either from magazines like Rolling Stone and Creem, or most importantly, from reviews in the Sunday New York Times Arts & Leisure section which were usually written by Jon Pareles or John Rockwell. Not only would I find out about artists and records I’d never heard about before, but I could also see what the album covers were going to look like in Sam Goody’s ads, hoping that I’d be able to score one of the precious platters on display during the coming week.

I distinctly remember reading the article that introduced me to Patti Smith’s Horses back in 1975, and I also remember opening the August 29^th 1975 edition of the NY Times and reading Rockwell’s headline about Bruce Springsteen’s new album: “Springsteen’s Rock, Poetry At Its Best.” I probably first heard tracks from the album, including today’s Song Of The Day, introduced by Scott Muni on 102.7 WNEW, our local FM rock station in New York City.

I can also remember seeing the album cover for the first time with a smiling, leather-clad Bruce leaning on the Big Man’s shoulder. They were comrades in arms hoping to take the world by storm with their latest opus. What we didn’t know at the time was that it was the last chance for Bruce and Columbia Records. After two failed releases for the label, it was either produce or be dropped. It’s a good thing that Jon Landau saw the future of rock ‘n’ roll…and thankfully, we did too.

Before the release of Born To Run, I had never heard of Bruce Springsteen, which might seem strange to some since I grew up in New Jersey. But after the album’s release, I went back and picked up his first two albums (as did most of my friends), and from then to now, I’ve never missed one of Springsteen’s new releases. I can’t say I’ve liked them all, especially the recent ones, but I don’t think I will ever get to the place where a new Springsteen release will instill indifference within me.

These days I don’t reach for Born To Run as often as I used to, but this morning I got both the renewed sense of youth and that feeling of the passage of time all at once, while driving on the highways of Chicago.

1967, Working on sessions for the new Beatles album Sgt. Pepper’s at Abbey Road studios in London, John Lennon recorded his lead vocal for “Good Morning Good Morning,” and Paul McCartney added a lead guitar solo to the track. Lennon had decided he wanted to end the song with animal sound effects, and asked that they be sequenced in such a way that each successive animal was capable of scaring or eating the preceding one.

1967, Pink Floyd performed at the Chinese R&B Jazz Club, Corn Exchange, Bristol, England.

1968, Steppenwolf appeared at the Terrace Ballroom in Salt Lake City, Utah.

1968, Pink Floyd recorded a performance of “Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun” for the BBC 2 TV Omnibus – The Sound of Change show at the Abbey Mills Pumping Station, East Stratford, in London. The special, which was produced by Tony Palmer, also featured performances by The Who, Cream and Jimi Hendrix focused on the “socio-political context of rock music.” The show was later broadcast in black and white on November 3rd and repeated (in color) in May of the following year.

1969, Led Zeppelin played at the Marquee Club, London.

1970, Grand Funk Railroad and Illinois Speed Press played at The Warehouse in New Orleans, Louisiana.

1970, Simon and Garfunkel were in the fifth of six consecutive weeks at number one on the US singles chart with “Bridge Over Troubled Water.”

1971, Yes appeared at Deutschlandhalle Berlin Arts Festival, Berlin, Germany.

1972, King Crimson played at the Orpheum, Hampton Roads, Virginia.

1973, The Grateful Dead appeared at the Civic Center Arena in Springfield, Massachusetts.

1973, Led Zeppelin released Houses Of The Holy in the UK. The album title was a dedication by the band to their fans who appeared at venues they dubbed “Houses of the Holy.”

1974, During a UK tour, Queen appeared at Aberystwyth University in Wales.

1974, Delta blues singer and guitarist Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup died of a stroke at the age of 69. He wrote “That’s All Right (Mama,”) covered by Elvis Presley, and “My Baby Left Me.”

1975, ZZ Top performed at the Toledo Sports Arena, Toledo, Ohio.

1976, Genesis began their first North American tour since Peter Gabriel left the band, appearing in Buffalo, New York, with Phil Collins taking over as lead singer.

1977, Kiss played the first of five sold-out nights on their Alive II world Tour at the Budokan in Tokyo, Japan.

1977, During a UK tour, Pink Floyd played the first of four sold out nights at New Bingley Hall, Staffordshire County Showground, Stafford.

1978, Aerosmith appeared at the Orpheum Theatre in their hometown of Boston.

1981, Blondie started a two week run at number one on the US singles chart with”Rapture,” the group’s fourth chart topper.

1981, Elton John’s version of The Beatles “I Saw Her Standing There” was released as a tribute to John Lennon.

1982, David Crosby was arrested after crashing his car on the San Diego Highway. Police also found cocaine and a pistol in the Crosby Stills & Nash stars car. When the police asked Crosby why he carried the gun, his reply was, “John Lennon.”

1986, The Grateful Dead performed at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland, Maine.

1992, Over a $100,000 (£58,800) worth of damage was caused at The Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre, California, when Ozzy Osbourne invited the first two rows of the audience on stage. Several others took up the offer and the band was forced to exit the stage.

2005, After playing a warm-up date the night before at the Los Angeles Sports Arena, U2 kicked off their Vertigo tour at the iPay One Center in San Diego, California. The 131-date world tour would see the band playing in North America, Europe, South America and Japan. By the time it finished, the Vertigo Tour had sold 4,619,021 tickets, grossing $389 million. It was the second-highest figure ever for a world tour.

Born on March 28: Chuck Portz, The Turtles (1944); Milan Williams, The Commodores (1948); John Evans, Jethro Tull (1948); Reba McEntire (1954); Steve Turner, guitar, Mudhoney (1965); Dave Keuning, guitarist, The Killers (1976); Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, aka Lady Gaga (1986)

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By 1971, the non-stop run of hit albums and singles by Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass was becoming a distant memory.  In fact, Alpert was more intent on producing other artists and running his mega-successful A&M record label than going into the studio to record new material, especially if it was under the Tijuana Brass moniker.

However, the Tijuana Brass brand was a potent one, and there was still great demand for more product. So a compilation of singles and previously unreleased off cuts was assembled to meet the demand of the masses. While the resultant album is nowhere near the greatness of albums like Whipped Cream, Going Places or SRO, the Summertime release does have several tracks that would sit comfortably next to anything on those aforementioned classics.

Case in point is today’s Song Of The Day, the warm and pastoral “The Nicest Things Happen.” The song was written by Julius Wechter (with his wife Cissy) who was the writer responsible for several indelible Tijuana Brass hits including “Spanish Flea” and “Brasilia.” In the spectrum of great easy listening instrumentals, this one is every bit as good in creating a pleasing mood as “Pet Sounds” by Brian Wilson (The Beach Boys), “Theme From A Summer Place” by Percy Faith, “Quite Village” by Martin Denny and The B-52’s “Follow Your Bliss.”

The album’s title track pointed in the direction Alpert would take in the future, leaning farther into the jazz idiom with an arrangement of the Gershwin classic from Porgy And Bess inspired by the recordings of Miles Davis, Lambert Hendricks & Ross, and Ahmad Jamal. It is also the first Tijuana Brass track to feature vocals by Alpert’s wife and Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66 member, Lani Hall.

Rounding out the album are TJB takes on current pop tunes of the day including versions of The Beatles’ “Martha My Dear” (marred by Alpert’s flat vocals), Gordon Lightfoot’s “If You Could Read My Mind,” a spirited take on The Beach Boys’ “Darlin’,” and a great version of Little Anthony & The Imperials’ “Hurt So Bad.” And no Tijuana Brass album would be complete without a few nostalgic gems thrown in for good measure, including a version of Perry Como’s “Catch A Falling Star” and another Gershwin classic, the rousing march “Strike Up The Band.”

The only other track of note on this album is “Montezuma’s Revenge,” which was written by Sol Lake who was also responsible for writing the TJB classics “The Lonely Bull,” “The Mexican Shuffle” (aka “The Teabury Shuffle”), “More And More Amor” and “Bittersweet Samba.”

Summertime closes the era of Alpert recording pure pop confections. It was also the last album to carry the Tijuana Brass name. His next album of all new material, You Smile, And The Song Begins, followed three years later and was credited to Herb Alpert & The TJB. It was also the beginning of the next phase of his career, finding Alpert leaving pop music behind and recording more straight ahead jazz albums.

1966, The Who appeared at the Central Pier, Morecambe, Lancashire, England.

1966, During an UK tour, Roy Orbison fell off a motorbike while scrambling at Hawkstone Park, Birmingham fracturing his foot. He played the remaining dates sat on a stool and walking on crutches.

1967, Fats Domino played his first ever UK date at London’s Saville Theatre, supported by The Bee Gees and Gerry And The Pacemakers.

1967, John Lennon and Paul McCartney were awarded the prestigious Ivor Novello award for”Michelle,” the most performed song in the UK in 1966.

1967, The Young Rascals record their future number one smash “Groovin’.”

1968, The Bee Gees kicked off a 24-date UK tour at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Also on the tour, The Foundations and Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich.

1968, The Who appear at The Forum in Montreal, Canada. Opening for them is The Troggs making their North American debut.

1968, The Beatles were at number one on the singles chart with “Lady Madonna,” the group’s 14th chart topper.

1969, Pink Floyd played at St. James’ Church Hall, Chesterfield, England, supported by King Mob Echo and Gandalf’s Garden. The set list:  Astronomy Domine / Careful With That Axe, Eugene / Interstellar Overdrive / Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun / A Saucerful Of Secrets.

1970, Led Zeppelin performed at The Forum in Inglewood, California.

1971, New York radio station WNBC banned the song “One Toke Over the Line” by Brewer & Shipley because of its alleged drug references. Other stations around the country followed.

1971, Bruce Springsteen & Friendly Enemies opened for The Allman Brothers Band at the Sunshine In, Asbury Park in New Jersey, tickets cost $4.00. Springsteen had just disbanded his group Steel Mill and within a few weeks would form Dr Zoom & The Sonic Boom with Steve Van Zandt.

1972, Elvis Presley recorded what would be his last major hit, “Burning Love,” a number two hit.

1973, Jerry Garcia from The Grateful Dead was arrested when police found cocaine and LSD in his car after being busted for speeding in New Jersey.

1973, Rolling Stone magazine reported that after becoming a disciple of Sri Chinmoy, Carlos Santana had changed his name to “Devadip,” which means “the lamp of the light of the Supreme.”

1975, Lynyrd Skynyrd played at the Bayfront Center Arena, St. Petersburg, Florida.

1976, Genesis appeared at Memorial Auditorium, Kitchener, Ontario.

1976, Paul McCartney and Wings were forced to postpone forthcoming US tour for three weeks after guitarist Jimmy McCulloch fell in his hotel bathroom and broke a finger.

1977, Genesis played at the Sports Arena, San Diego, California.

1978, The Beatles parody All You Need Is Cash featuring The Rutles was shown in the UK on BBC-TV.

1978, Bob Dylan performed at the Entertainment Centre, Perth, Australia.

1979, Eric Clapton married Patti Harrison, the former wife of George, at Temple Bethel, Tucson, Arizona. Patti applied for a divorce in 1988.

1980, Rush appeared at Memorial Arena, Victoria, British Columbia.

1981, Eric Clapton performed at Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1982, Former Small Faces and Faces bass player Ronnie Lane was admitted to hospital for treatment for multiple sclerosis.  Lane succumbed to the disease in 1997.

1984, Bryan Adams went into Little Mountain Sound, Vancouver, Canada to record “Run To You” for his fourth studio album, Reckless. It was the first single released from the album and gave Adam’s his first UK hit, peaking at number 11. The music video shot in London and Los Angeles was nominated for the 1985 MTV Video Music Awards in five different categories.

1986, Van Halen kicked off a 112-date North American tour at the Hirsch Memorial Coliseum in Shreveport, Los Angeles. This was the band’s first tour with Sammy Hagar on lead vocals.

1987, U2 performed from the roof of a store in downtown Los Angeles to make the video for “Where The Streets Have No Name.” The commotion attracted thousands of spectators and brought traffic to a standstill. The police eventually stop the shoot.

1988, The Grateful Dead played at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia.

2000, Singer, songwriter, poet and actor, Ian Dury died after a long battle with cancer aged 57. Dury had been disabled by polio as a child, formed Kilburn and the High Roads during the 1970’s. His first album New Boot’s And Panties became a punk classic spending 90 weeks on the UK chart, featured the 1979 UK number one single “Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick.”

2012, David Bowie’s landmark album Ziggy Stardust was celebrated with a blue plaque in central London. Former Spandau Ballet star Gary Kemp, unveiled a plaque at the spot where the cover of the 1972 release was shot. The location in Heddon Street, just off Regent Street, is now a pedestrian area featuring bars and restaurants.

Born on March 27:  Sarah Vaughn, jazz singer (1934); Andy Bown, bass, songwriter, Status Quo, The Herd, Judas Jump (1946); Tony Banks, Genesis (1950); Paul Wickens, multi-instrumentalist, Paul McCartney, Styx, David Gilmour, others (1956); Andrew Farriss, INXS (1959); Johnny April, bass, Staind (1965); Brendan Hill, drummer, Blues Traveler,  Stolen Ogre (1970);  Fergie, The Black Eyed Peas (1975)

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Paying homage to those who have come before you is nothing new in Country music. Merle Haggard paid tribute to Jimmie Rodgers on his classic 1969 album Same Train Different Time, and also recorded tribute albums to Bob Wills and Elvis Presley.  Buck Owens also did it on albums that saluted the influence that Tommy Collins and Harlan Howard had on him.

It’s a tradition that has continued throughout the years with one notable entry being Dwight Yoakam’s 2008 Buck Owens tribute album Dwight Sings Buck. Dwight and Buck were also very good friends who toured together in 1988 (I was lucky enough to see that tour).

This past week, country music star Vince Gill and ace steel guitarist Paul Franklin released a new album called Bakersfield which pays homage to both Merle Haggard and Buck Owens, and the Bakersfield California country sound they created. The Bakersfield sound was a guitar-driven Honky Tonk style popularized by artists like Owens, Haggard, Wynn Stewart, Jean Shepard and Freddie Hart, that came as a reaction to the string laden country hits that were pouring forth from Nashville during the 1960s.

Gill’s storied career has seen him sell more than 26 million albums, and win 20 Grammy and 18 CMA awards. Franklin is one of the most recorded pedal steel guitar session players in Nashville, whose pedal steel and dobro has been heard on over 500 records including sessions for Randy Travis, Reba McEntire, George Strait, and even Barbra Streisand and Megadeth. The two artists have also performed together before in their recurring Western Swing side project, The Time Jumpers.

Rather than record carbon copies of the originals on Bakersfield, Gill and Franklin have lengthened the solos to emphasize the interplay between Gill’s Fender Telecaster and Franklin’s pedal steel.

Today’s Song Of The Day was a #2 hit for Buck Owens in 1961. It is one of five Owens songs on the album that also includes “Together Again,” a 1964 chart-topping B-Side that features one of the greatest pedal steel solos of all time (that inspired Jerry Garcia to pick up the instrument),  “Nobody’s Fool But Yours,” a #11 hit from 1962, “But I Do,” which was originally from the 1963 tribute album Buck Owens Sings Tommy Collins, and “He Don’t Deserve You Anymore,” a 1966 track that was never released as a single from the album Roll Out The Red Carpet.

The Haggard tracks include “The Fightin’ Side Of Me,” one of Hag’s most popular singles that originally topped the charts in 1970, “Tonight The Bottle Let Me Down,” a #3 hit from 1966 that was covered by Elvis Costello in 1980, “Branded Man,” another chart topping single originally from 1967, “I Can’t Be Myself” which climbed all the way to #3 in 1970 and “Holding Things Together,” which was originally a 1974 LP track from the album Merle Haggard Presents His 30^th Album.

Together, Gill and Franklin have fashioned an album that cuts through the jingoistic ‘70s rock crap that passes for Country music today, with something that is far more rewarding and down to earth.