Sat, 25 September 2010
Welcome to Light On Light Through, Episode 79, in which you will hear the complete 65-minute interview Patrick Rands did with me about my music, in June 2006. I drove up to WZBC Radio studios outside of Boston on a beautiful early summer afternoon for the interview by Partick Rands on his "Test Patterns" radio show on WZBC (Boston College) Radio. With my 1972 LP, Twice Upon a Rhyme, re-issued in mini-CD by Big Pink/Beatball Records in December 2008, and to be re-issued in a vinyl re-pressing by Whiplash/Sound of Salvation Records in November 2010, I thought this interview, in which Patrick played 14 of my songs (many rarely heard before) to be especially significant. A complete playlist and links to the music on the Web follow below ...
I had first come to know Patrick after his review of Rhino Handmade's Come to the Sunshine compilation CD in 2005 - the CD has my group The Other Voices (aka The New Outlook) singing "Hung Up On Love," a song I wrote with Mikie Harris, produced by Ellie Greenwich & Mike Rashkow, and released on Atlantic Records in 1968.
Patrick played "Hung Up On Love" and a dozen other recordings that I wrote, sang, produced (or all three) on our show in 2006. As a special coda, I performed my new song, "Lime Streets," for the very first time at the end of the show. I had written it just a month before the interview. Patrick was good enough to lend me his daughter's cool little keyboard for my rendition - it was my only instrumentation, so I was practically unplugged.
A complete list of the songs played on the show follows. Patrick has a nice 'n' easy interview style, and I really had a good time.
Among the secrets revealed for the first time on the show: how Ed Fox and I wrote "The Lama Will Be Late This Year" (and who, exactly, was 'Hawaiian Herb'?) . . . .the real reason that jazz-man Boris Midney left the Soviet Union . . . what song got in the way of The Vogues releasing their recording of my song, "Unbelieavable (Inconceivable You)", on Reprise Records? . . . . and how old was Linda Kaplan when she wrote "Skyscraper" with me in the late 1960s? ( well, a lot younger than when she later wrote the famous "Toys 'R Jingle" . . . . "I don't wanna grow up . . . .")
And the playlight is as follows:
1. No Olympian Height(s) - recorded by The Other Voices (The New Outlook), Paul Levinson, Stu Nitekman, Ira Margolis (Stu singing lead), song written by Brute Force, produced by Ellie Greenwich & Mike Rashkow, 2nd single released on Atlantic, 1968
2. Hung Up On Love - recorded by The Other Voices (The New Outlook) - Paul Levinson, Stu Nitekman, Ira Margolis (but Mike Rashkow singing lead) - song written by Paul Levinson & Mikie Harris, produced by Ellie Greenwich & Mike Rashkow, B-side of both May My Heart Be Cast Into Stone, and No Olympian Heights, singles released on Atlantic, 1968 (included on Rhino's Come to the Sunshine CD, 2004)
3. Picture Postcard World - recorded by The Definitive Rock Chorale - studio group with Ellie Greenwich, Toni Wine, Ron Dante, etc - song written by Paul Levinson, produced by Ellie Greenwich & Mike Rashkow, released on Decca, 1968
4. Unbelievable (Inconceivable You) - recorded by The Vogues - song written by Paul Levinson, produced by Dick Glasser for Reprise, 1968, but never released
5. Sunshine Mind - recorded by Donna Marie (who sang in the Archies) - song written by Paul Levinson, produced by Jimmy "Wiz" Wisner, released on Columbia, 1968
6. Love Colored Glasses - studio demo recorded by Mikie Harris, written by Paul Levinson & Mikie Harris, 1968
7. Teacups and Tapestry - studio demo (artist unknown), written by Paul Levinson and Boris Midney, 1969
8. Skyscraper - studio demo by Linda Kaplan (later wrote "Toys 'R U" jingle), written by Paul Levinson & Linda Kaplan, 1968
9. Ring Around My Rosie - recorded by Protozoa - song written by David Fox, produced by Paul Levinson, Ed Fox, and Herb Abramson, Buddah Records, 1969
10. Merri- Goes-Round - recorded by Trousers (studio group; Bruce Scott singing lead) - written by Paul Levinson & Ed Fox, produced by Paul Levinson & Ed Fox, released on Wizdom Records, 1969
11. Not Yet Ready to Say Goodbye - recorded by Paul Levinson, with Ed Fox and Peter Rosenthal (Paul singing lead) - written by Paul Levinson & Linda Kaplan, produced by Paul Levinson & Ed Fox, released on Twice Upon A Rhyme LP, HappySad Records, 1972 (musicians on this album also include Don Frankel, Jay Sackett, Alan Fuhr, Boris Midney)
12. The Lama Will Be Late This Year - recorded by Paul Levinson, with Ed Fox and Peter Rosenthal (Ed singing lead) - written by Paul Levinson & Ed Fox, produced by Paul Levinson & Ed Fox, released on Twice Upon A Rhyme LP, HappySad Records, 1972 (musicians on this album also include Don Frankel, Jay Sackett, Alan Fuhr, Boris Midney)
13. Alpha Centauri - recorded by Peter Rosenthal (home demo) - written by Paul Levinson & Peter Rosenthal, 2000
14. Lime Streets - live performance by Paul Levinson, written by Paul Levinson, 2006
And you'll also hear nice medley of New Outlook folk rock under some of the interview near the beginning...
Links to the music on the Web:
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Wed, 12 September 2007
I'm still thinking about Scorsese's No Direction Home - likely because I watched another piece of it, again, last night ... the "Meet the Press" section... Dylan was the quintessential anti-interview in the 1960s... Q - How many protest singers are there? A - Dylan - About 136 ... Q - About or exactly 136? A - Dylan - 142... He bristled and laughed at questions, and pretty much refused to answer them. Most of this was well-deserved - the questions were vacuous, even ridiculous... If ever there was an example of the merit of I. A. Richards' advice that the creator of a work is the last person you should ask about the meaning of a work, Dylan in the 1960s would be it. This was the case with Dylan even when he wasn't being sarcastic. In an early radio interview, he tells Studs Terkel that "A Hard Rain" is not about atomic rain - it's just about something important about to come down. I. A. Richards would say that shouldn't prevent anyone from hearing apocalypse in that song. So how seriously should we take Dylan's commentary that is the backbone of Scorsese's movie? Now in the 21st-century, Dylan seems to have little problem reflecting honestly on his work. Actually, I first noticed this in the excellent interview Dylan gave to Ed Bradley on 60 Minutes a few years ago. The reasons for the change in Dylan's interview performances are complex and multiple, like everything else about Dylan. The questions today are not as stupid as those in the 1960s. Dylan in the 1990s began to redefine his interviews as part of his serious creative work - rather than part of his spoofs - likely because he finally saw them as useful on the path to understanding himself and his impact, which has always been his goal. All of which is good for us. Category:Music
-- posted at: 6:59 PM |
Tue, 11 September 2007
I continue to be fascinated - haunted, even - by Martin Scorsese's 2005 film about Bob Dylan, No Direction Home. I'd seen large pieces of it before, but saw the whole movie for the first time just a few nights ago. Dylan's performance of "With God On Our Side" at the Newport Folk Festival with Joan Baez in the summer of 1963 is the high point of the movie. His voice never sounded better - Joan Baez's voice has always sounded great. She takes him by the hand out on stage, and the two waifs open up with what is probably the most powerful anti-war song ever written - we all go to war irrationally thinking and claiming God's on our side. This is exactly what Mike Huckabee said in defense of staying the course in Iraq, when Ron Paul spoke out in last week's debate about the war being wrong, strategically, as well as unconstitutional. Dylan's lyrics are, sadly, as searingly relevant today as in 1963. But by 1964, Dylan was singing another kind of song at the Newport Festival - "Mr. Tambourine Man". This was the pivotal transitional song. The lyrics are sublime, but they never had much relevance to any current event. The Newport crowd applauded, willing to give Dylan the benefit of the doubt. He was, after all, still acoustic, and still sincere. But Dylan was singing "Like A Rolling Stone" in 1965 in Newport, with electric backing. In just two years, he had morphed from the most powerful, splendid, social critic ever known in folk song to a caustic, psychedelic commentator on the human condition. Someone who even, for the first time, it seemed, may even have been sarcastic and condescending to his audience. For all of that, he got booed... I've always loved both of Dylan's phases. But given the state of the world today, I miss the Dylan who sang up there with Joan Baez, and still wonder at the transformation. The assassination of JFK, Dylan's wanting some of the fame enjoyed by the Beatles, just needing to move on to other things - these were no doubt important factors. But, somehow, insufficient, either singly or in concert, to explain just what happened to Dylan....
Category:Music
-- posted at: 10:42 PM |
Fri, 7 September 2007
The following is a letter my wife Tina just saw on eBay - being sold along with a copy of my album, Twice Upon A Rhyme - I wrote the letter shortly after the release of the album, in September 1972 ... (Tina was my girlfriend, back then)...  See also The Lama Will Be Late This Year Category:Music
-- posted at: 1:12 AM |
Tue, 21 August 2007
I've getting a few requests for the above, so I thought I'd post it here. First, the lyrics (which you can read while you're listening), then the story ... written by Paul Levinson & Ed Fox, 1969 (a brief question-and-answer period) (cameo appearance by the Hawaiian Herb Singers) Children don't you know it's past your bedtime People all been cold for such a long time (chorus) It's time alright and yet it's not the right time (chorus) the story ... Ed Fox and I wrote close to a hundred songs in the Fall 1968 - Winter 1969. He usually wrote most of the music and I wrote most of the lyrics, but not always. One night, in November, I dropped by Ed's brownstone apartment on East 85th Street after dinner. Ed had a copy of some newspaper in his hand, and pointed to a headline - "The Lama Will Be Late This Year" - something about the Dalai Lama's trip to somewhere being delayed. "Good title for a song...," Ed said, and I agreed. I wrote the lyric in about 10 minutes, and Ed wrote the music ... We recorded and mixed it in a variety of studios in New York City from 1969-1971. Ed's singing lead, and I'm doing the harmony (falsetto) with Ed. Pete Rosenthal's playing at least 2-3 guitars, and electric harmonica. I'm playing piano and tablas, and Jay Sackett's on bass. We put "The Lama" on our 1972 album, Twice Upon a Rhyme ... over the years, it's been lauded in Japan and Scandanavia (by Patrick the Lama - understandably) ... In a separate post, maybe, I'll someday tell you the secret of Hawaiian Herb... More details about Twice Upon A Rhyme are my music page, and my MySpace music page. Category:Music
-- posted at: 5:53 AM |
Thu, 16 August 2007
I was just listening to Bob Shannon on WCBS-FM "oldies" radio in New York. It's good to have him back. As some of you may know, Bob and the WCBS-FM dj staff were abruptly banished a few years ago, when WCBS-FM Radio became "Jack" radio. I'll resist the four letter word that fits with "Jack" and rhymes with fit, but let's just say that "Jack" didn't fit New York City or oldies music, and this sarcastic, automated, sour format brought down what good music the format managed to play. "Jack" was brought in to increase the ratings and revenue of an oldies station that was already doing fine in both areas - "Jack" was inoculation against the graying oldies audience. Well, every once in a while, commerciality comes through heroically, and, in Jack's case, it turned out that the ratings actually dwindled under his format. And so Bob Shannon and some old and new, fully human, disc jockeys were brought back along with the good name and sounds of WCBS-FM oldies radio in New York City last month. You know, there's no substitute for a human, not-pre-recorded disc jockey. Especially when he has the easy, encyclopedic knowledge of rock music, as Bob Shannon has, along with a great, sparkling sense of humor. Welcome home, Bob! See also: Poetic Justice: Oldies Return to WCBS-FM Radio!
Category:Music
-- posted at: 7:08 PM |
Sat, 4 August 2007
I first fell for the Starland Vocal Band in the summer of 1976. My wife and I were on our honeymoon in London, and the BBC was playing "Afternoon Delight" at least a couple of times an hour. The record has everything - vibrant harmonies, catchy tune, and a clever and well crafted lyric. I agree with every word of it. Why wait until the cold dark night if you can have it right now, in the afternoon. Plus, it's fun easily seeing the person you're making love to... Bill Danoff wrote a classic song. The Starland Vocal Band is often cited as a classic one-hit wonder. Although Bill Danoff and Taffy Nivert Danoff (half of the Starlight Vocal Band) had earlier written "Take Me Home, Country Roads" with John Denver, and often performed with him, nothing much happened with the Band after "Afternoon Delight". Doesn't matter. Bill and Taffy and Margot Chapman and Jon Carroll made a record which, although it's only one, can stand up to the best of the Mamas and Papas and the other great harmony groups. Why I am a writing about them now? I just came across their page of MySpace, and put in them in my Top Friends - which, in a way, they've been for years... One other thing ... I just noticed - I may have already known but forgot - that the Starlight Vocal Band's second album is titled Rear View Mirror. Like Light On Light Through, Rear View Mirror is a phrase that Marshall McLuhan loved to use...
at the 1977 Grammy Awards... (The Starlight Vocal Band won a Grammy for the Best New Artist of 1976) ...
Category:Music
-- posted at: 9:01 PM |
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Light On Light Through (Music) Paul Levinson talks about social media, politics, TV, outer space, good food, science fiction
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