Radio Aircheck - WIFE Indianapolis 1968

The WIFE studios at 1440 N. Meridian Street

A little weekend fun here. I haven't posted any old radio airchecks in the past, although I have quite a few of them. Here's one from my hometown of Indianapolis.

WIFE, 1310 AM, was the top 40 giant of Indy for years. They changed their call letters to WIFE from the old WISH-AM around 1963 and were the only real rockers in town for several years. This allowed them to take a fairly conservative approach to top 40 radio, that'd capture both the kids and some adults. It seemed to work, as their numbers were huge well into the 1970's, by which time they were getting rock and roll competition from WNAP on the FM dial and, eventually, both WXLW and WNDE on AM.

Jay Reynolds, the disc jockey heard here, spent much of his career in Indianapolis. He also worked at WABC in New York during the first half of the 1970's. WIFE remained a top 40 rocker until about 1980 when they switched to an adult contemporary format and then changed call letters and formats several times over the years.

The aircheck is 55 minutes in length. The music runs the gamut, just like you'd expect from the top 40 stations of the day, from the latest pop hit by Bobby Goldsboro, to the rock and roll of the Amboy Dukes to the soul music of Sam and Dave. There's a newscast, plus some classic radio spots for Indianapolis Raceway Park, Mountain Dew, Burger Chef and our friends Sam and Dave pop up again as pitchmen for Country Club Malt Liquor.

Here it is, from August 8, 1968.

Little Willie John Triple Play

Little Willie John: Do You Love Me (King)

Little Willie John: Leave My Kitten Alone (King)

Little Willie John: Let's Rock while the Rockin's Good (King)

Hello again, all. Looks like it's been a while since anything was posted on the ol' blog, so I thought I'd break the silence with a little tribute to someone considered an influential R&B legend who recorded for King in the 50s and early 60s and scored 14 times on the R&B charts. His best known hit is "Fever," which was covered more famously by Peggy Lee who went Top Ten with it. He was convicted of manslaughter in 1966 and would die under mysterious circumstances in prison in 1968. James Brown recorded a tribute to his music a few years later. He was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in 1996. The person I speak of is Little Willie John.

I tried to sum up John's history in a bit of a nutshell as it is fairly well-covered on the Web and elsewhere. The records we serve up today are three of his more uptempo records, with one of them being a full-on bonafide shaker. Don't get me wrong, all of them are great, but "Do You Love Me," from 1960, is a fave with John shakin' and shriekin' all over a super-fast groove that barely pauses for breath until it finally comes to an abrupt stop at the end. Believe me when I tell you it's a cooker of a record.

The other two, "Let's Rock While The Rockin's Good" (1958) and "Leave My Kitten Alone" (1961 for my copy...I believe it was released earlier in 1959 as well) are also quite fine in their own right, both showing John equally at home with more typical R&B surroundings. On both of these records, John is backed by a girlie chorus and his vocals blend in well with them. What else can I say? Try 'em all.

If you want to check out more about Little Willie John (and you should), you can Google his name and you'll find several items about him, including a Wikipedia entry. But what really matters is his music and I'm told John cut a lot of great records. Here are three of them.

3 quickies from the fifties (well, almost)

Hello again, everyone. I've been in a bit of a posting mood, so I'd like to talk about a couple of records I just got and a record that's an all-time fave. In fact, all three of these records are (if they're not there already) all-time faves and their roughly from about 1957 to 1960. Read on and enjoy.

The Noblemen: Dirty Robber (USA)

This is the all-time fave I was telling you about. It was originally issued at two different times on two different labels in 1960. Those labels are Profile and USA. I've got a suspicion that USA must have picked it up from Profile, as a second Noblemen 45 called "Dragon Walk"/"Thunder Wagon" was issued on that label shortly after. That's a great instro 45, but this one is, too, with lots of wailin' sax, poundin' guitar and frantic drums. "You're a dirty robber! Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!!!"




Robert Williams and The Groovers: Loud Mufflers/Cranberry Blues (Tip Top)

Here's yet another group I couldn't find any information on. I did a Google search for this and all I could find was its listing on various radio show playlists and a couple of comp listings. I do know that "Loud Mufflers" had some action on the "Teenage Riot" comp LP and that both songs may have seen action on some of the Buffalo Bop comp CDs, but that's about it. What you need to know, however, is that both songs kick ass! "Loud Mufflers" is a ditty about some kid who keeps getting stopped by the cops because "Loud mufflers make too much noise." "Cranberry Blues" is faster and is about people going crazy with cranberry fever. Both sides feature awesome guitar work with killer guitar breaks, while "Cranberry" even features a frantic drum solo midway through. Can't go wrong with this.




The Five Stars: Pickin' on the Wrong Chicken (Note)

It's a little hard to get a handle on this group because there were several groups out there who shared this name. The Five Stars of this record put this to wax in March of 1958 on the Indianapolis-based label Note. Then, Hunt, a label which had some success with the Virtues' "Guitar Boogie Shuffle" and which had some Dick Clark involvement, picked up the disc and reissued it on their label. The Goldmine Guide to 45 R.P.M. Records also lists this as being issued by ABC-Paramount. Whatever the case, this is a bouncy doo-wop number that speeds along its merry way and keeps cookin' right up to the end. It kind of has a Bill Haley feel except that it's a little faster. Also, Indianapolis rocker Ronnie Haig played guitar on this record and Wes Montgomery is said to have played on it also, though I can't confirm it.



So there you go. Three very fine records to get you started on the good foot this week. Hope you enjoy.

Spyder Turner - "You're Good Enough For Me" (MGM)

Once again we have a b-side that's better than the actual hit. Spyder Turner reportedly didn't like his novelty version of "Stand By Me," in which he did his impersonations of Jackie Wilson, David Ruffin, Billy Stewart, Chuck Jackson and Smokey Robinson. Yet, it ended up being his only chart-making hit rising to #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 in February of 1967. It did even better on the soul chart going up to #3. On the b-side of the record, however, there's a real boot-shaker of a tune which is our focus for this entry.

A bit of info on Turner: Born Dwight Turner in West Virginia in 1947, he settled with his family in Detroit after years of moving around to various locations. There, in his teen years, he began singing in glee clubs and with various doo-wop groups. By the mid 60s, he and his band The Nonchalants were working up and down all the bars in town. After the band broke up, Annie Gellen, host of the "Swing Time" TV show out of Lansing, Michigan, arranged for Turner to submit an audition tape to MGM. Thus, his version of "Stand By Me" was born. Turner later told Blues and Soul magazine that MGM "felt it was good enough. I didn't agree. I didn't like it but I wanted a record deal so I went on ahead and did a B-side for them." (This information comes from Wayne Jancik's book "The Billboard Book of One-Hit Wonders.")

That B-side is really where the action is on this record with Turner and his chick back-up singers working up a sweat singin' and stompin' while the back up band keeps up a steady beat that never lets up. Turner's delivery is smooth and cool while the back up singers chirp "Good enough, you're good enough for me baby." The whole result of this is that we got a full-fledge soul mover and shaker which easily trumps the better-known A-side.

Turner is still recording and performing today. You can get the latest info on him at his website http://www.spyderturner.com/. Also, another record by Turner you should seek out is his recording of "Ride In My 225" on Fortune Records, which came before "Stand By Me." That's another great record worthy of your ears, but that's another time and perhaps another blog entry.

St. Louis Record Show Finds

Okay, Brian gave you the lowdown on the recent Indy record show. Here's what I was digging up in St. Louis, the very same day. It was a pretty good record show, with most of my finds coming at three tables. I sprang for a few "more expensive" items but, per usual, a good deal of this was under two bucks each.

Candy Phillips: Timber (Atlantic)
Brenda & the Tabulations: Baby You're So Right For Me (Dionn)
Frank Frost: Jelly Roll King (Phillips International)
Al "TNT" Braggs: Home In That Rock (Peacock)
Dee Clark: Crossfire Time (Constellation)
The Mauds: Brother Chickee (Mercury)
Stop Inc.: Second Line (JB's)
Pat Shannon: Maybelle (Decca)
Chuck Johnson: Elephant Fair (Invicta)
P.W. Cannon: Hey Hey (Hickory)
Kenny Smith & the Loveliters: Night Beat (Fraternity)
The Five Jets: The Shake (Jewel)
Benny Spellman: Fortune Teller (Minit)
Eddie & Ernie: The Cat (Eastern)
The Pyramids: Pyramid's Stomp (Best)
Carl Perkins: Hambone (Columbia)
The Hawks: The Grissle (ABC-Paramount)
Joe Haywood: I Would If I Could (Enjoy)
The Rays: Elevator Operator (XYZ)
Danny Overbea: Stop (Apex)
Howard Tate: Stop (Verve)
Bobby Jones: The Boogie Train (Capri)
The Esquires: You Say (Bunky)
Johnny Daye: I Need Somebody (Stax)
Little Mack Simmons: Givin' Me A Hard Time (Duo Sound)
Calvin Lee: Valley of Tears (Minit)
The Astors: Candy (Stax)
Bobby Powell: That Little Girl of Mine (Whit)
The Impressions: Check Out Your Mind (Curtom)
The Cleftones: She's So Fine (Roulette)
Jimmy McCracklin: Arkansas (Imperial)
Jimmy McCracklin: It's Got To Be Love (Imperial)
Lee Rogers: You're The Cream of The Crop (D-Town)
McKinley Mitchell: No Love (Like My Love) (One-derful!)
Spyder Turner: You're Good Enough For Me (MGM)
Jimmy Reed: Dedication To Sonny (Boy Williamson) (Exodus)
The Ventures: Diamond Head (Dolton)
The People's Choice: I Likes To Do It (Phil-L.A. of Soul)
The People's Choice: The Wootie-Te-Woo (Phil-L.A. of Soul)
Lightnin' Hopkins: Move On Out, Part 2 (Jewel)
The Meters: Doodle-Oop (Josie)
Jackie Lee: The Chicken (Uni)
Jimmy & Stan: Tahiti (Murco)
The Swingers: The Groove, Part 1 (Ranwood)
The Gay Jays: Chicken Back (Josie)
The Raging Storms: High Octane (Flame)
The Noblemen: Dirty Robber (USA)
Landlords and Tenants: Back Up Part 2 (Buddah)
The Ray Men: Baby, What'cha Want Me (Diamond)
Eddie Purrell: The Spoiler (Volt)
The 5 Spots: Mr. Fortune/Black Rock (Soma)
Gene Allison: Now That We're Together (Cherokee)
Bob Luman: Red Hot (Imperial)
The "5" Royales: Tell The Truth (King)

Indy Show Finds - May Edition

Well, another Indy record show has come and gone and it's time once again to report my findings to you. This wasn't the best Indy show because there were fewer 45 dealers this time and really not that many people there, unless they all came in the morning. (I didn't get out there until around 12:30, as I had somewhere else to be in the morning hours.) That said, I usually manage to find something, so I came back with another pile of 45s, which I now share with you.

Wilson Pickett: Soft Soul Boogie Woogie (RCA Victor)
Billy Cobham: Crosswind (Atlantic)
Stevie Wonder: Every Time I See You I Go Wild (Tamla)
The Marvelettes: As Long As I Know He's Mine (Tamla)
Eddie Floyd: Soul Street (Stax)
The Cowsills: The Impossible Years (MGM)
Herman's Hermits: I Gotta Dream On (MGM)
The Pretty Things: Honey I Need/I Can Never Say (UK Fontana)
The Dramatics: Hey You! Get Off My Mountain/The Devil Is Dope (Volt)
Solomon Burke: How Big A Fool (Can A Fool Be)(Bell)
REO Speedwagon: 157 Riverside Avenue (Epic...It's an early one, so help me)
Jr. Walker and the All-Stars: Groove Thang (Soul)
Billy Boy Barton: Monkey Business (Gulf)
Etta "Miss Peaches" James: Number One/I'm A Fool (Modern)
Little Johnny Tayler: Keep On Keeping On (Ronn)
The Archies: Everything's Alright (Kirshner)
Bill Black: Closin' Time (Hi)
Bobby Bland: Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City (Dunhill)
Carla Thomas: Some Other Man (Is Beating Your Time) (Stax)
The Five Stars: Pickin' on the Wrong Chicken (Note)
Bill Doggett: Night Train Pts. 1 and 2 (King)
The Midnighters: Work With Me Annie (King...a reissue I think)
Bill Haley and His Comets: Rock-A Beatin' Boogie (Decca)
Dion: Be Careful of Stones That You Throw (Columbia)
Earth Wind and Fire: Evil (Columbia)
Johnnie Taylor: Take Care of Your Homework (Stax)
Barbara Mason: Come To Me (Arctic)
Paul Kelly: Chills and Fever (Dial)
Issac Hayes: Type Thang (Enterprise)
The Marketts: Out of Limits (Warner Bros.)
The Doors: Tightrope Ride (Elektra)
Johnny Cassell: Gotta Dance (Smash)
Buddy Miles: We Got To Live Together Pts. 1 and 2 (Mercury)
Ramsey Lewis: Wade in the Water (Cadet)
Bobby Freeman: Oughta Be A Law (Double Shot)
Eugene Church: I Ain't Goin' For That/Miami (Class)
Ruby Andrews: (I Want To Be) Whatever It Takes To Please You Pts. 1 and 2 (Zodiac)
James Brown: Let's Go Get Stoned (Smash)
Billy Very & Judy Clay: Country Girl - City Man (Atlantic)
Robert Williams and the Groovers: Cranberry Blues/Loud Mufflers (Tip Top)
The Counts: Wailin' Little Mama (Dot)
The Dave Clark Five: All Night Long (Epic)
The Bob Seger System: Lucifer (Capitol)
The Rivieras: Rockin' Robin (Riveria)

And that's about it. Not the most spectacular of finds, but not bad either.

Will be back in a while with another post or two, probably Bobbie Graham or Dean Parrish...or both. We sill see.