I post a weekly diary of historical notes, arts & science items, foreign news (often receiving little notice in the US) and whimsical pieces from the outside world that I often feature in "Cheers & Jeers".
OK, you've been warned - here is this week's tomfoolery material that I posted.
CHEERS to Bill and Michael in PWM, our Laramie, Wyoming-based friend Irish Patti and ...... well, each of you at Cheers and Jeers. Have a fabulous weekend .... and week ahead.
ART NOTES — an exhibition entitled Another World Lies Beyond: Chinese Art and the Divine— featuring over one hundred works dating back as far as the twelfth century — will be at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York to January 5th.
At the Met until January 5thENVIRONMENTAL NOTES — earlier this decade, a Danish energy firm based upon coal and oil (with some natural gas and wind) found its core businesses struggling. A new CEO re-oriented its business model, and today the firm (re-named Orsted, after Hans Christian Ørsted, the discoverer of electromagnetism) is the world’s biggest offshore-wind developer, admired by both environmentalists and investors alike, as its share price has doubled in the past two years.
THURSDAY's CHILD is named Violet the Cat— a Michigan kitteh who went missing three years ago, then was found covered in maggots, flies and fleas and her microchip was outdated … yet the county animal control director was able to do some digging on Facebook and reunite her with her family.
Violet the CatAS THE US OPEN TENNIS tournament winds-up: your weekend read is this BBC essay about the statue unveiled of former tennis champ Althea Gibson— who as a black woman was not allowed to compete in major tournaments (until a former champion pressed her case), went on to win a Grand Slam and how she was ill-prepared for retirement, but received recognition and help later in life.
CHEERS to a nice dinner to celebrate number sixty-three with old friends the other night at my favorite restaurant of old that is still in operation (so many have closed). This is the Skunk Hollow Tavern in Hartland Four Corners, Vermont. A place with a touch of sophistication inside a woody, down-home atmosphere … and sometimes has served as an election night gathering for local Democratic politics.
FRIDAY's CHILD is named Fiji the Cat— the mascot of the Nova Scotian tall ship Picton Castle, who went missing (during a tour of the Great Lakes) in Erie, Pennsylvania … but has been located and will be reunited with her shipmates.
Fiji the Tall Ship CatHAIL and FAREWELL to the veteran stage and film star Carol Lynley— best known for her film roles in Blue Denim and The Poseidon Adventure, yet whom I also recall as a frequent guest on many TV shows of my mis-spent youth — who has died at the age of seventy-seven.
BRAIN TEASER - try this Quiz of the Week's News from the BBC.
SEPARATED at BIRTH — film star Taylor Lautner (Twilight) and retired NBA star Kris Humphries (who was also very briefly married to Kim Kardashian).
Taylor Lautner (born 1992), Kris Humphries (born 1985)...... and finally, for a song of the week ...........................… last week, I noted the all-female band Fanny, noting that in its five years: the last year featured a new guitarist named Patti Quatro. She comes from a musical family of note, which deserves an overview (too much history for in-depth profiles of them all here, least of all another more famous sister).
It begins with Art Quatro, who became an engineer for General Motors’ Fisher Body division. In his spare time he played organ in a jazz quartet and was also the house organist for the Detroit Red Wings hockey team at the Olympia Stadium. He had six children: five daughters (four of whom had some musical exposure) and one son who also had a musical career, all of which came at his encouragement. After his retirement he moved to Texas and performed recitals for residents of nursing homes and care facilities. Art Quatro died in October, 2008 at the age of ninety-four.
After seeing the Beatles when they performed in 1964 on TV (and later in concert at the Olympia) several of his teenage daughters went about starting a band, which they named the Pleasure Seekers. They had some initial success but like other bands (especially teenaged ones) they had something of a revolving door of personnel. The photo belows shows a mid-point line-up: Diane Baker (whose father played piano in Art Quatro’s band) on drums, Eileen Biddlingmeier (rhythm guitar) flank three of the Quatro sisters: Suzi (bass), Arlene (keyboards) and Patti (lead guitar). Nancy Quatro joined as vocalist later in 1969; other members came-and-went.
Diane Baker (L), Eileen Biddlingmeier (R) In-between: Suzi, Arlene & Patti QuatroThis garage band was in the right-place-at-the-right-time: able to find work in local clubs and able to find an audience eager for their up-tempo pop-rock sound. By the following year they had a single release “Never Thought You’d Leave Me”, b/w “What a Way to Die” — the B side was used in the 1988 film Blood Orgy of the Leather Girls. They had enough success regionally to be signed by a big label (Mercury Records) in 1966, with one single release “Light of Love” — before they parted ways, as the label wanted them to be either a lightweight pop act or a sex symbol band.
By 1969, they were determined to adapt to the changing musical landscape, and the band changed its name to Cradle. Arlene had by this time transitioned into co-manager along with her husband and the band toured relentlessly, even performing for US troops in Vietnam. Eventually, the band Fanny was able to have the big label album success that the Pleasure Seekers/Cradle had sought (and as mentioned, Patti joined them in 1975 for their final year). Cradle began to disintegrate as the 1970’s dawned — but not before they (briefly) had their one male band member — the late drummer Jerry Nolan, who went on to join the New York Dolls. The various members of the two bands have met at times for reunions.
Nancy Quatro (vocals) turned her band management into a career, also co-running a music publishing business with Patti. Arlene Quatro (keyboards) left the music business (become an environmental writer) and is the mother of Twin Peaks TV star Sherilyn Fenn. Besides joining Fanny as lead guitarist, Patti continued as a session musician, co-runs the aforementioned publishing house and for many years ran a tour service company for traveling musicians.
The oldest of the Quatro siblings (age 76 today) is keyboard player Mike Quatro, who has had an eclectic career. As an eighteen year-old in 1959, he made a guest appearance on … the Lawrence Welk Show. He moved into music promotion in the 1960’s throughout the region (among the first using CCTV in the Midwest). He went on to release several progressive rock albums in the 1970’s, selling well regionally yet not gaining a consistent national audience. He focused more on promotion and his own video production company, Quatrophonic before returning to performing again. Over the years, one of the songs has had performed/recorded was King Crimson’s In the Court of the Crimson King.
Mike Quatro in the 1970’sPerhaps Mike’s most famous role as promoter was convincing the noted English music promoter Mickie Most to listen to his sisters’ band Cradle in 1971. He was not impressed with the band, but he was with their bassist Suzi Quatro— and he saw her as a solo act, trying to fill-the-void left by the death of Janis Joplin the previous year … but unlike other promoters, he promised to let her find her own level — and she relocated to England, where she has remained since.
Her career is too extensive since to cover in detail in this family profile — yet except for several years in the late 70’s, her fame has come largely in Britain, Australia and Japan. Her 1973 single Can the Can (with a thunderous drum beat) was her breakthrough song in Europe.
It was an (intended) one-time 1977 guest appearance on the TV show Happy Days — in the role of musician Leather Tuscadero, after producer Garry Marshall saw Suzi’s poster on his daughter’s wall and offered her a spot without an audition — that saw her emerge in the US. She made other guest appearances, yet turned down the notion of a spin-off (not wanting to disrupt her musical career). At that time, her single Stumblin’ In (a somewhat more mellow tune) reached #4 in the US, her highest charting hit.
Later she branched into acting (during a lull in her chart success) on the London stage (notably in Annie Get Your Gun) and also had radio and TV shows in the UK.
At age sixty-nine, she has sold fifty million records world-wide, has a 2014 boxed set containing her greatest hits, has a new 2019 album release and next month will see the release of Suzi Q — a career retrospective documentary.
Suzi Quatro in the 1970’s …. and during this decadeIn listening to the original Pleasure Seekers singles … to me, the one that not only holds up well but truly swings Motown-style: is the B-side from their 1968 single “Light of Love”. And below you can hear “Good Kind of Hurt”.
I can't help from crying You ain't done nothing wrong You just made me feel so good Because I've been without you so longI thought you would hurt me So I put you off and made love a game Now I feel so bad for all the time I've wasted But I feel so good, I should be ashamed
Your love's just like candy For the sweet tooth I've got Now I've had a taste and I just don't want to stop I never knew hurt could be such a good feeling for me
I've got a good kind of hurt I can't describe I've got a good kind of hurt You really make me come alive
x xYouTube Video