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 Tiffany in Bloom: Stained Glass Lamps of Louis Comfort Tiffany will be at the Cleveland, Ohio Museum of Art to June 20th.
WHILE HER COUNTRY HAS among the highest rates of female genital mutilation in Africa, the leader of the group Safe Hands for Girlsbelieves progress is being made, one Gambian community at a time.
ARCHAEOLOGISTS plan to excavate part of a cemetery in Tulsa, Oklahoma — to seek the remains of black residents massacred by white mobs in 1921. As many as 300 people were killed, one of the worst instances of racist violence in U.S. history.
THURSDAY's CHILD is named Teddy the Cat— a Connecticut kitteh who took months to heal from a deeply embedded collar …. and is now up for adoption.
A STUDENT GROUP in is believed to be the first group in the nation of Bolivia to address national hunger/malnutrition on a continuous basis by focusing on food loss (edible food discarded by producers) and food waste (discarded by consumers) — and now have working relationships with supermarkets, restaurants, hotels and catering services.
YOUR WEEKEND READ is that of a Chicago blues guitarist who travels the world on long weekends … yet “didn’t give up the day job”: remaining a Chicago Transit Authority bus driver the past twenty-six years, while wanting to avoid writing songs about “partying, big booties or barbecues”.
FRIDAY's CHILD is named Pumpkin the Cat— an English kitteh who has been “banned” from a Tesco supermarket ….. in a manner-of-speaking …. but not really.
BRAIN TEASER - try this Quiz of the Week's News from the BBC.
SEPARATED at BIRTH— Canadian TV star Nina Dobrev (The Vampire Diaries) and American TV star Victoria Justice (Nickelodeon’s Victorious).
...... and finally, for a song of the week ...........................… if all he had done was act as a songwriting partner and producer for both Duane Eddy and Nancy Sinatra, he would have earned a place in music history. Yet the eccentric “cowboy psychedelia” of Lee Hazlewood as a performer, a songwriter/producer for others, someone who spent time in East Asia and Europe and the bizarre range of musicians who have covered his songs: makes his a story that needs to be told anew, a dozen years after his death.
Barton Lee Hazlewood was born in Oklahoma in 1929, with a family that moved frequently due to his father’s oil worker occupation. He married his high school sweetheart and was drafted to serve in Korea, although he became a DJ for Armed Forces Radio, where he found his calling. Returning home, he became a radio station DJ in Arizona (while studying broadcasting part-time).
In 1955 he founded his own local record label and the following year wrote a song “The Fool” that when recorded by a local rockabilly singer (with a heavy reverb sound similar to Sam Philips at Sun Records in Memphis) became a Midwest regional hit. His first break came when he partnered with promoter Lester Sill, who had worked with both Lieber & Stoller as well as the Coasters).
Lester Sill introduced him to a local twangy guitarist (actually born in upstate New York) named Duane Eddy— who went on to land fifteen Top 40 singles beginning with Rebel Rouser in 1958 — and Hazlewood’s recording techniques were observed by one of Lester Sill’s associates named Phil Spector.
In the early 60’s, Duane Eddy made the decision to produce his own work (partly over royalties) and Lester Sill formed a separate partnership with Phil Spector (which led to Spector’s own successful career before his downfall). At this time, Hazlewood moved to Hollywood and tried his luck at recording his own material with limited success (although positive reviews) in 1963.
In 1965 he was asked by the A&R man at Reprise Records (Jimmy Bowen) to produce a trio of teens named Dino, Desi and Billy— the first two being sons of Dean Martin and Desi Arnaz. That year of 1965 they had some minor hits (plus a #17 with I’m a Fool), then Hazlewood produced Girl of the Month Club for Dean Martin’s daughter Deana and Dean Martin himself had a #21 hit with Hazlewood’s own song, Houston. And this led him to his big break.
Although signed to her father’s Reprise record label, a series of non-hits left Nancy Sinatra in 1965 in danger of being dropped by the label. Frank asked Jimmy Bowen to try something new and Bowen asked Lee Hazlewood to visit Nancy at her mother’s home. Lee was rather skeptical of the notion and their conversation was more small talk … when Frank himself entered the house and (knowing of Hazlewood’s track record) said how glad he was the two would work together. Lee guessed that the decision … had thus been made for him. By the end of 1965 she did have her first chart success with Hazlewood’s tune “So Long Babe”.
During their early meetings, Lee auditioned several of his songs, including one that he felt was meant for a man. Nancy disagreed, saying it would not sound violent but rather empowering coming from a woman. And when they went into the studio to record These Boots are Made for Walking, Lee suggested a change from her normal feminine voice, to sound instead like … a “sixteen year-old who does … ummm …. truck drivers”. And rather than be offended: at age twenty-five, Nancy relished the chance to escape the “Daddy’s little girl” label and the song shot-up to #1.
They had other hits together over the next few years, including three duets together: Sand, Summer Wine and one of Hazlewood’s most noted songs, Some Velvet Morning— which has been recorded by acts as diverse as Vanilla Fudge, Lydia Lunch, and the Hungarian jazz guitarist Gábor Szabó (whose song “Gypsy Queen” Carlos Santana made famous). In addition, Frank Sinatra played a song off an album to Hazlewood, asking him if he liked it. “I love it, and if you don't sing it with Nancy, I will.” He replied, 'We're gonna do it, book a studio.'" And with Hazlewood producing it, Something Stupid reached #1 in 1967.
During the late 60’s, Hazlewood also recorded his own concept albums, which developed a cult following (if not great sales). He started his own LHI label and which most famously signed the International Submarine Band featuring Gram Parsons but later refused to release Parsons' contract so his work with the Byrds could appear on the country-rock classic Sweetheart of the Rodeo. His own label debut was 1969's The Cowboy & the Lady, recorded with Ann-Margret. Lee Hazlewood was not a good businessman, and the label folded in 1971.
In the 1970’s, he began to feel wanderlust and eventually moved to Sweden, as his own quirky recordings garnered critical praise yet poor sales in the US. He had more success in Europe, but retired for the entire decade of the 1980’s.
Lee Hazlewood made a comeback tour with Nancy Sinatra in 1995 (to promote her album One More Time), had a 1999 album and made other guest performances in the years to come. In 2005 he was diagnosed with terminal renal cancer and recorded a final album Cake or Death. He died in August, 2007 at the age of seventy-eight.
There are several compilation albums of his work as well as a 2002 tribute album recorded by several bands. And that reflects the cult status he had achieved with indie and underground bands: among those recording his music are Primal Scream, Nick Cave, Megadeth, the Tubes and Sonic Youth.
In reviewing his solo work (much of which I had never heard) I was drawn immediately to his 1966 tune My Autumn’s Done Come— an interesting take on his life — and below you can hear it.
Kiss all the pretty ones goodbye Give everyone a penny that cries You can throw all my tranquil pills away Let my blood pressure go on its wayYouTube VideoLet those “I don't care” days begin I'm tired of holding my stomach in No more slinky Vogue dolls for me I'll take Sears & Roebuck dolls gladly
Bring me water short and Scotch tall A big long black cigar and that ain't all Hang me a hammock between two big trees Leave me alone, damn it, let me do as I please
'Cause my autumn's done come My autumn's done come