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About The Artist
The Association is a pop music band from California in the sunshine pop genre. During the 1960s, they had numerous hits at or near the top of the Billboard charts and were the lead-off band at 1967's Monterey Pop Festival. As of 2010, they are still performing.
Beginnings
Jules Alexander (born September 25, 1943, Chattanooga, Tennessee) was in Hawaii in 1962 serving a stint in the Navy when he met Terry Kirkman (born December 12, 1939, Salina, Kansas), a visiting salesman. The two young musicians jammed together and promised to get together once Alexander was discharged. That happened a year later; the two eventually moved to Los Angeles and began exploring LA's early 60s music scene (Kirkman even played in groups with Frank Zappa for a time before Zappa went on to form The Mothers of Invention). Eventually, at a Monday night hootenanny at the LA nightclub The Troubadour, in 1964, an ad hoc group called The Inner Tubes was formed by Terry, Jules and Doug Dillard, whose rotating membership contained, at one time or another, Cass Elliot, David Crosby and many others who drifted in and out. This led, in 1965, to the forming of The Men, a 13 piece folk-rock band. This group had a brief spell as the house band at The Troubadour. After a short time, however, The Men disbanded, with six of the members electing to go out on their own (some of the remaining players continued on as Tony Mafia's Men, one of the others, Mike Whalen, joined The New Christy Minstrels). At the suggestion of Kirkman's then-fiancée, Judy, they took the name The Association. The original lineup consisted of Alexander (using his middle name, Gary, on the first 2 albums) on vocals and lead guitar; Kirkman on vocals and a variety of wind, brass and percussion instruments; Brian Cole (born September 8, 1942, Tacoma, Washington) on vocals, bass and woodwinds; Russ Giguere (born October 18, 1943, Portsmouth, New Hampshire) on vocals, percussion and guitar; Ted Bluechel, Jr (born December 2, 1942, San Pedro, California) on drums, guitar, bass and vocals; and Bob Page (born May 13, 1943) on guitar, banjo and vocals. Page's time in the band was brief; he was soon replaced by Jim Yester (born November 24, 1939, Birmingham, Alabama) on vocals, guitar, and keyboards.
The new band spent about five months rehearsing before they began performing around the Los Angeles area, most notably a regular stint at The Ice House in Pasadena and its sister club in Glendale. They also auditioned for record labels but faced resistance due to their unique sound. Eventually, the small Jubilee label issued a single of "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" (a song originally recorded by Joan Baez, later popularized by Led Zeppelin) but nothing happened. Finally, Valiant Records gave them a contract, with the first result being a version of Bob Dylan's "One Too Many Mornings".
The Men were first managed by Doug Weston, owner of the Troubador, before switching to actor Dean Fredericks, who remained onboard when the Association was formed and helped get them the Valiant deal. In 1966 Fredericks turned the reins over to Pat Colecchio, who managed the group for the next eight years.
First success
That national break would come with the song "Along Comes Mary", written by Tandyn Almer. Alexander first heard the song when he was hired to play on a demo version and persuaded Almer to give The Association first crack at it. The recording went to #7 on the Billboard charts, and led to the group's first album, And Then... Along Comes the Association, produced by Curt Boettcher. A song from the album, "Cherish", written by Kirkman, would become The Association's first #1 in September 1966.
The group followed with their second album, Renaissance, released in early 1967. Somewhat surprisingly, the band changed producers, dumping Boettcher in favor of Jerry Yester (brother of Jim and formerly of The Modern Folk Quartet). The album did not spawn any major hits (the highest charting single, "Pandora's Golden Heebie Jeebies" stalled at #35) and the album only reached #34, compared with a #5 showing for its predecessor.
Changes
In late 1966 Warner Bros. Records, which had been distributing Valiant, bought the smaller label (and with it, The Association's contract). In 1967, when Jules Alexander left the band to study meditation in India, he was replaced by Larry Ramos (born Hilario Ramos on April 19, 1942, Waimea, Kauai, Hawaii) on vocals and guitar. Ramos had previously performed with The New Christy Minstrels and recorded solo singles for Columbia Records. He would later lead sing (along with Russ Giguere) The Association's two biggest hit singles, "Windy" and "Never My Love".
With the lineup settled, the group returned to the studio, this time with Bones Howe in the producer's chair. The first fruits of this pairing would be the single "Windy" ( sample (help·info)) written by Ruthann Friedman. It reached #1 on the charts in July 1967, and was followed closely by the album Insight Out which made it to #8 in June. On June 16, 1967, The Association had the unique honor of being the first act to perform at the Monterey Pop Festival. (The Criterion Collection DVD of the festival includes their performance of "Along Comes Mary" on disc 3.)
The group's winning streak continued with their next single, "Never My Love", written by Don and Dick Addrisi; it went to #2 in Billboard and #1 in Cash Box in October 1967. It became the group's only double-sided charted record as its B-side, "Requiem For The Masses", made a brief showing on the Billboard chart. Like "Cherish" and "One Too Many Mornings", "Never My Love" had a vocal arrangement that was provided by Clark Burroughs, a former member of the Hi-Los.
"Never My Love" has been accredited by BMI as the song with the second most US airplay in the 20th century.
After rejecting the recording of an entire cantata written by Jimmy Webb, which included the song "MacArthur Park", the group, in early 1968, produced its fourth album, Birthday, with Bones Howe again at the controls. This album spawned the top 10 hit "Everything That Touches You" and another top 40 hit in "Time for Livin". Later that year, the group released a self-produced single, the harder-edged "Six Man Band". This song would also appear on Greatest Hits, released in November.
Comings and goings
In early 1969, Jules Alexander returned to the group, which now made The Association a seven-man band (they acknowledged by changing the title and lyric of "Six-Man Band" to match.) The first project with the seven-piece band was music for the soundtrack of Goodbye, Columbus, the film version of Philip Roth's best-selling novel. The title track, written by Yester, rose only to #80, an ominous sign in retrospect. John Boylan, one third of the unknown Hamilton Streetcar, and who would become one of the most important record producers of the '70s and '80s, worked with the group on the soundtrack and stayed on board for the next album, The Association. Not surprisingly, many of the tracks have a decidedly country-rock feel. None of the singles made any impact, so the group re-teamed with Curt Boettcher for a one-off single, "Just About the Same", a reworking of a song Boettcher had recorded with his group, The Millennium. This failed to hit as well.
Despite all this, the band remained a popular concert draw and on April 3, 1970, a Salt Lake City performance was recorded for The Association Live. In 1971 Russ Giguere left the band; he would release a solo album, Hexagram 16, that same year. The Association replaced him with keyboardist/singer Richard Thompson (no relation to the English singer-songwriter, guitarist), who had contributed to previous albums and would go on to be known primarily in jazz circles. 1971 also saw the release of Stop Your Motor. Despite some good tracks (notably a cover of Jimmy Webb's "P.F. Sloan" with Brian Cole imitating Roy Rogers in the bargain), the album was their worst selling to date, reaching only #158 on the Billboard chart.
Stop Your Motor also marked the end of The Association's tenure at Warner Bros. In early 1972, they resurfaced on Columbia with Waterbeds in Trinidad!, produced by Lewis Merenstein (best known for producing Van Morrison's Astral Weeks). The album fared even worse than Stop Your Motor, reaching #194, while a single of The Lovin' Spoonful's "Darlin' Be Home Soon" failed to break the Hot 100. For the band, however, the worst was yet to come.
Breakup and reformation
For their 1972 tour, the group expanded to nine members, bringing in session players Wolfgang Meltz and Mike Berkowitz on bass & drums respectively to add more musical versatility on stage and free up Brian Cole & Ted Bluechel to concentrate on singing only. But on August 2, 1972 Cole was found dead in his Los Angeles home of an overdose of heroin - he was 29 years old. For the rest of the 1970s, The Association was in a state of flux, releasing singles now and then along with sporadic touring.
At the end of 1972, Kirkman departed, as did Meltz and Berkowitz. The group was then moved over to the CBS distributed Mums label (which had been formed by Bobby Roberts, formerly of Dunhill Records) and put out a new single "Names, Tags, Numbers & Labels". It failed to make much of an impression, though, and Mums folded by the end of 1974.
Thompson left at the beginning of 1973 and the remaining foursome of Alexander, Bluechel, Yester & Ramos brought in new members Maurice Miller (vocals, drums, percussion), Art Johnson (vocals, guitar) and David Vaught (vocals, bass, and later a member of the Lopez Beatles) and continued touring. Jim Yester was briefly replaced by his brother Jerry later this same year, only to return in 1974. When Jules Alexander left soon after to join Russ Giguere in a new vocal outfit, Bijou, Jerry again came in to play with the group until the end of that year.
1975 saw the band now on RCA and they put out another single, "One Sunday Morning". An album called The Association Bites Back was to follow but never got released. Membership was a bit fluid in 1975-76. Dwayne Smith (vocals, keyboards) joined and appeared on the above single but was replaced by Andy Chapin by the end of 1975. Ramos departed as well in mid-1975 replaced by Larry Brown (vocals, guitar), who came in for three years. Art Johnson stayed onboard for a short while longer but was likewise gone by the end of '75. The increased tour schedule led to Chapin's departure in 1976. (He later played for artist Rick Nelson and perished along with Nelson and his band when his plane crashed on December 31, 1985.) Chapin was replaced, first by Jay Gruska, who'd just finished a stint with Three Dog Night, and then by David Morgan in mid-1976.
During this period the band was offered a production deal with Mike Curb who wanted them to record a disco version of the prior hits, "Cherish", "No Fair At All" and an original song which Larry Brown wrote and sang entitled "It's High Time To Get High". Reportedly, Curb was dissatisfied with the drum tracks and wanted to bring in session drummer Jim Gordon to play and the band refused, sinking the deal.
In 1978 Brown left to concentrate on session work and was replaced by Cliff Woolley. But the prime gigs were fewer and far between by this time and Yester left leaving Bluechel as the only original member. Keyboard man Ric Ulsky stepped in at this point and the group had two keyboardists for a short time. Russ Levine(who'd played with Bobby Womack, Donna Summer and Ultimate Spinach) also arrived to replace Miller on drums. But the band then dissolved shortly afterwards leaving Bluechel with a huge debt. To help clear away some of it, he leased the group's name to another company on November 1, 1978 who put a fake Association out on the road.
In 1979 the surviving key members: Terry Kirkman, Jules Alexander, Russ Giguere, Ted Bluechel, Jim Yester & Larry Ramos, along with Richard Thompson and new bassist Joe Lamanno, reunited at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles for an HBO special called Then and Now (Kirkman was working for HBO at the time) and a charity show hosted by Ed McMahon called Ed McMahon and Company. This led, in the early '80s, to a few singles on Elektra (one of which, "Dreamer", made the Hot 100 with virtually no promotion) and more touring.
In 1980 the originals(with Ric Ulsky returning in place of Thompson and Jules taking over the bass) went back on the road for a concert tour. With the genuine article back out touring, the bogus band was eventually put out of business.
Jim Yester left again in 1983 and the group added Keith Moret(bass, backing vocals) as Alexander went back to playing guitar. Moret only stayed briefly until Joe Lamanno returned in 1984. That same year the group was invited to appear on the Happy Together Again tour, a multi-bill of 60s acts produced by David Fishof headlined by the Turtles and also including Gary Puckett and Spanky McFarlane of Spanky & Our Gang. Brian Puckett (Gary's brother) was drummer on that show behind Gary & Spanky and also played with the Association during their set. But by the end of the year, there was a mass exodus as Kirkman, Bluechel, Ulsky, Lamanno and Brian Puckett all departed.
In 1985 the band carried on as Jules, Russ and Larry recruited new members: Paul Beach (vocals, bass, who'd also played in the Happy Together Again show band), Bruce Pictor (vocals, drums, percussion) and Donni Gougeon (vocals, keyboards). Gougeon was briefly replaced in 1986 by Chris Urmston, but was back by the following year. Paul Holland took Gougeon's place in 1988 before moving over to bass in 1989 when Beach quit. Gougeon then rejoined for a ten year stint 1989–1999, succeeded by Bob Werner, who had been the band's light man and road manager in 1974-75 and fill-in member, as needed, from 1994 on. Jules Alexander turned in his notice in early 1989. Larry Ramos's brother Del, who was doing sound for the group, then began adding his voice to the mix from that point on. Eventually, he was promoted to full onstage membership and now plays bass for the group.
During the 1980s & 1990s the group's recorded output was minimal. They recorded a few new tracks and some covers of popular 60s songs for a few compilation albums on the Hitbound label made through Radio Shack's Tandy Corporation in the mid-80s, re-recorded some of their older material for another album, Vintage, for CBS in 1983 and put out another album full of cover tunes, The Association '95: A Little Bit More, in 1995. But most of what has been released from the 80s on have been various collections of their hits.
In September 2003, they were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, joined by former members Yester, Alexander, Kirkman and Bluechel at the induction ceremony at Cafaro Field, a Cleveland Indians Minor League Baseball Stadium in Niles, Ohio. Yester, Alexander, Kirkman and Bluechel again rejoined the others for the taping of a PBS 60s rock music special 60s Experience on December 9, 2004 at Dover Downs Showroom in Dover, DE.
Currently, the band includes Russ Giguere, Larry Ramos, Jim Yester (who rejoined again in 2007 as Bob Werner departed after an eight year stint), Del Ramos, Bruce Pictor, and most interestingly, Jordan Cole (son of Brian) on keyboards who joined in 1999. The Association still tours, playing up to 70 dates a year, mostly on bills with other similar styled acts of that era, like The Grass Roots, The Buckinghams, Tommy James of Tommy James and the Shondells, Gary Puckett, etc.
On June 3, 2008 Pat Colecchio, the group's manager from 1966–1974 and again in the early 1980s, died after a long illness.
Information from Wikipedia
Cherish
Cherish is the word
I use to describe
All the feeling that I have
Hiding here for you inside
You don't know how many times
I've wished that I had told you
You don't know how many times
I've wished that I could hold you
You don't know how many times
I've wished that I could mold you
Into someone who could
Cherish me as much as I cherish you
Perish is the word
That more than applies
To the hope in my heart
Each time I realize
That I am not going to be
The one to share your dreams
That I am not going to be
The one to share your schemes
That I am not going to be
The one to share what seems to be
The life that you could
Cherish as much as I do yours
Oh, I'm beginning to think
That man has never found
The words that could make you want me
That have the right amount
Of letters, just the right sound
That could make you hear, make you see
That you are driving me out of my mind
Oh, I could say I need you
But then you'd realize
That I want you, just
Like a thousand other guys
Who'd say they loved you
With all the rest of their lies
When all they wanted was to
Touch your face, your hands
And gaze into your eyes
Cherish is the word
I use to describe
All the feeling that I have
Hiding here for you inside
You don't know how many times
I've wished that I had told you
You don't know how many times
I've wished that I could hold you
You don't know how many times
I've wished that I could mold you
Into someone that could
Cherish me as much as I cherish you
And I do cherish you
And I do cherish you
Cherish is the word
The Association
1966
YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOMED
Email Address
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WHAT THEY ARE SAYING ABOUT...
- Ya gotta love Robert Palmer. 'Was a very talented man. I really enjoy some of his music. Thanks Larry.
- Barry H. 2/18/11
- Love the voice of Teddy Pendergrass! Becky T. 2/4/11
- I love the Philly soul sound of Blue Magic! Keep 'em coming, Larry.
BB 1/28/11- Amy Pritchett & Avery Dylan. Two stories long overdue. As these two rise up in the Athens Music scene, they want their voices heard. The Obama Blues does just that. If you ever get the chance to see these two in concert...from experience,you won't be disappointed. JWP 1/7/11
- Sweet! What a GREAT song! Keep the hits comin' Mr. Freeman! You're the BEST! Amy P. 10/15/10
- Wow! Who turned on the time machine. Many great nights at Frog Pond, Terry's, Old College, the Sigma Chi house or wherever Dirk & Tony were playing. Good fun, Great music!! Still love seeing Dirk around A town. Fred L. 8/5/10
- Nice! Amy P. 8/5/10
- Just discovered this site! What an enjoyable trip down the musical memory lane. Thanks, D. Buck
3/26/10- Wow, what a great "blast from the past" to hear "Lost Between Two Worlds"! Saw Tony here in Columbia TN last summer and Dirk will always be a brother to me!
Peggy J. 2/13/10- Love this web site! B. Free turned me on to it and now I can't wait to log in on Friday morning!
M. Small 11/06/09- Congratulations for all for work! I love the music of Dione Warwick ... A hug. Later. Felipe C. 10/21/09
- Just found out about your web-site, it's wonderful! I'll be watching for my friday e-mails, thanks Freddy Seagraves (The Jesters Band) 9/22/09
- Just found this website - WOW!! AJ 8/08/09
- Great song! "Wildflower" Brings back a flood of memories!! Thanks for all the time you put into this fun site!
7/23/09- I remember listening to Skylark on a Mini Radio walking to Burney Harris Middle School from Normal Town
8th grade !!! R.Free 7/17/09- "Three Dog Night was my first "rock" concert at the Coliseum at UGA when I was in 7th grade! I wonder if the lead singer can still fit into that tight white fringed jacket?" L.N. 7/3/09
- First date with my wife, Three Dog Night, Omni in Atlanta, July 29, 1973....seems like yesterday.
Thanks Larry! C.A. 7/3/09- Hey Larry. Love Robert Palmer and I Loooove that smooth sound. How about some Lionel Richie.
Thanks. Mom. 6/26/09- Randy and Tina Raburn turned me
on to this (Robert Palmer) and Ilove it. Out in Oregon.Thanks. V.T. 6/26/09- LOVE the stories behind the performers and their songs.
Robbie 5/24/09- Ain"t heard that one "Brother Louie" in a while. hoss858 5/24/09
- You (Dirk and Tony) are one of my fondest memories of UGA!!!!! My best friend and I STILL sing, "Silly Little Girl" when we are on road trips together! Deb Mc. 6/23/09
- Larry, thanks for turning me on to this album (Yesterday & Today - The Beatles) way back in 19XX! It's remained one of my favorite Beatles albums of all time.
Dennis M. 6/19/09- Thanks for the lyrics to Louie Louie. I've always thought that they were the Kingsmen's lyrics recorded under the influence of Jack Daniel. Now we know it was rum. A great tune. I've never heard anybody say that they didn't like it. rjenkins 5/29/09
- Love the site! Sheree 5/8/09
- Have never seen a female lead singer play the guitar like that--Go Larry,thanks for your efforts to entertain your classmates! tbirdamf 5/8/09
- OMG, I didn't recognize this one (39-21-40 Shape) till it started playing! Love it.
Dale 4/19/09- Larry, I just had to get up and move with (Shake A Tail Feather) that one! Keep it up!
Jeff 4/3/09- That really was a blast from the past! The last time I saw Dirk and Tony perform was at Jon Tuck’s graduation party in the mid seventies. What a party! Love the photo. And we all thought we looked so cute back then – foolish folks! Thanks for the memory. Leslie P. 3/20/09
- I have the songs on my Ipod now in the car...............cruisin' in the afternoon just got better!
L.D. 3/20/09 - Great site!! I really appreciate Dirk and Tony spotlight.They've entertained multitudes when they worked together and still are today on their own.
R. Jenkins 3/20/09- Thank you, thank you, Larry! I always enjoy the music you select but this (Dirk and Tony) is the best yet!! Talk about memories!
Melody P. 3/20/09- "Oh yeah - played this many times today. I sent it on to a few folks who are not on the list. The pictures almost made me sad - too much time has flown by. Loved hearing the song again. So glad you were able to get it on there. I think I played it 3 times at least." Betsy K. 3/20/09
- Dirk, Looking GOOD my brutha!! I love the earlier pics of you and Tony. I hope to get to Athens again one of these days, soon, and hear you sing. You are a treasure! Bobby D.
3/20/09- Awesome!! Debbie G. 3/20/09
- Loved hearing this song again!!! When will y'all be playing together again? Gilbert M. 3/20/09
- Good morning & Happy first day of Spring!!!! What a great way to start my morning, Dirk and Tony!
Patti W. 3/20/09- You did a wonderful job on this week!!!! Dirk and Tony takes ya back a long way to some good times!!!
Thanks, Rhonda T. 3/20/09- Tina R. shared this and it was great fun. Thanks from Oregon. 03/13/09
- Great to see you bashing the drums in the group video that your mum sent, we spotted her dancing. Also enjoyed the music played by the group. Uncle Jack & Aunt Carole in the U.K. 02/19/09
- Thanks bsh69r, I missed that. Two heads or more are better than one.
02/17/09 friday@fridayinathens.com- Correction: The song that's played here was done by Scott McKenzie and is called "San Francisco". The MP3 is mistitled. Aside from that, I love your site...absolutely a great site and will keep revisiting it. :-) bsh69r 02/16/09
- Really enjoying the site. Love the featured act (The Zombies) and their music. Great work you do.
A service. Barry H. 02/06/09
- This ("Ain't That Peculiar") used to be the song back then! Heidi R. 01/29/09
- One of my all time favorite groups "The Intruders", doing one of their best! I play this one on my home system at least once a week. Your buddy, Dirk H. 12/05/08
- You’ve created something wonderful with your Friday website. Something positive to look forward to each week. Can’t wait to see what’s on the plate for this week. Leslie P. 11/17/08
- Thanks for the wonderful music I enjoy it... Great site Connie 9/11/08
- Larry, Live for "Fridays"....I even get up and put on my tornado red shoes and tap along to the songs!!!
A.P. 7/11/2008- Growing up as an "old school" listener, I love this kind of music. Thanks so much for putting real music on so we all can hear what it was like back then. This music is NOT DEAD, it's still alive; and people like "us", the listeners keep it alive!
Babedoll 7/9/2008- This "Private Number" was always a great song. Too bad they did not have more hits. I loved this song. Harper 7/9/2008
- Don and Juan were one of the great Doo-Wop singing Duo's out there. Love 'em! "All That's Missing Is You" is one of their rarest records! Northern Soul! Brian Y. 7/2/2008
- Larry; What would Friday's be without you and Friday is Always coming in Athens? Jimmy J 6/30/2008
- Thank you for this site, I'm french and
I have 40 years. I am a collector of vinyl and American music oldies, soul, funk. Il are very few in my french cas.Je this site is fantastic because I found some artist American and that I discovered the other, bravo and keep this site. 5/20/2008- Hey! I haven't heard this song since I was visiting LLC in the summer of 1972. I was crazy about her... wow! Thanks for sharing this song with the public! MSH 5/19/2008
- The words to this song (Expressway to Your Heart) are quite interesting. Larry keep the tunes coming.
TC jJ 5/19/2008- First timer for me. I love your terrific format and exciting info. I feel like I'm back in Athens. ES 5/14/2008
- IT DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS----THIS IS THE BEST!!!! Unknown 5/9/2008
- I love it. I am learning about all of these singers and I'm only
16 years old. Unknown 5/8/2008- Hey you,
I LOVE that song by the Casinos this week. I think it's one of the prettiest "pop" songs ever written and a great slow dance song. :) I keep getting a flash back of a girl/boy party in 6th or 7th grade. I remember slow dancing with someone - maybe Kevin. I can almost see the room (someone's basement/ rumpus room) and I know the guy had on a sweater but I can't quite see the face. I'll keep you posted. Anyway - thanks for playing it for me. Take care. B. - 4/25/2008- Larry - Thanks so much for Otis!
Can you find "Then You Can Say Goodbye" by The Casino's? Thanks! Betsy 4/18/2008- Thanks for sharing the one hit wonder.
I'm surprised this only made it to #7 as its played quite often as an oldie. Keep the sounds coming. JJ 4/13/2008- Lovin the tunes, Larry.See ya in June. Randy R. 3/21/2008
- Mr. Larry; Thanks for all you do for us little people.
Sincerely JJ 3/7/2008- Thanks Larry! Nothing like a Dirty Old Woman! Betsy
3/3/2008- This is very cool.My kind of music. Thanks. George S.
2/29/2008- Larry, Does anyone remember the days at Legion Field with POCO & Pure Prairie League and the music park behind the pool and all the good times concerts concerts?
Bill M. 2/29/2008- Mr. Green sure does have a smooth voice. I'm surprised he didn't do even better. JJ 2/18/2008
- Hey Larry - Ever heard of "Dirty Old Woman" by Denise La Salle? You make my Fridays. Betsy
2/15/2008- Enjoyed Joe Cocker. Thanks folks. - Jim 2/8/2008
- This is a great song. Larry keep the tunes coming.
TC YF JJ 2/8/2008- A WONDERFUL site- Thanks for keeping GOOD MUSIC- Alive. - Big Doc-Bdge, GA 2/8/2008
- Greetings to all at FIA!
I've been longing to hear "The Bus' by the late, great Billy Preston. Any chance you got that in your vaults? Here's to a soulful 2008! Carlos - Cleveland, OH 1/29/2008- Hey Larry, I just read about Miles and Jimi being friends. How about some Hendrix soon.
Love the website, Joy 1/18/2008- Great to get the Twelve Days of Christmas.
Thanks, Pat M. 12/28/07- A great way to enjoy the history of music and the beautiful sounds of the blues. Robert B. 12/7/2007
- Enjoyed your special on the Rolling Stones. I would like to see more on Blues Artist old and young. Keep it Groovin. Robert B. 11/28/2007
- Larry, Johnny Guitar Watson really brings back some wasted brain cells! Wore out the grooves in that album the year it came out. Thanks David L. 11/9/07
- Watson is the man!!! Your Bro. Young Robert! 11/9/07
- OMG, This song (Humble Pie - Thirty Days In The Hole) so reminds me of you Larry and 1972! LOL Andrie - 10/5/07
- I love this website, I have to listen to this each and every day. Thank you very much. I will share this with all my
co-workers and friends. Nate 9/30/07- Love this site! I call it "Continuing Music Education"! I know the songs, but I didn't know all the stories behind the people who performed them. Andrie - 9/23/07
- Can you dig up Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel by Tavares? Thanks! D. - Cleveland OH 8/17/07
- The site is wonderful Larry and the music is just awesome!!! I love visiting It's Friday In Athens!!!! Please keep this going forever!!!! - Dierdra L. - President/CEO, Getan Records, THE LIGHTHOUSE GOSPELETTES!!! Athens, GA 7/29/07
- It's Friday? How about "Don't Roll Your Bloodshot Eyes at Me" for a little local flavor? Mark B. 7/27/07
- Consider the Manhattans on Friday’s! Frank P. 7/27/07
- Larry!!!! You MADE my day with "Build Me Up"! I'm on vacation in Santa Barbara and sent it to my co-workers with the threat that I can now play it anytime I want! Psych! Hello Don M in the bay area and to Betsy! Everyone raves about your site, Larry! It's awesome! Gratefully yours, Scotty 7/20/07
- Hey Larry, Before the summer's over we need something from the summer of love for its 40th anniversary. It's for us in the bay area. Don M. 7/13/07
- Hey Larry The music is just great.Would also like to hear'The Horse' by Cliff Nobles. Thanks. Double Divine 7/6/07
- Hey Larry, Remember those instrumentals that played before the top of the hour on AM Radio? How about "The Horse" by Cliff Nobles or "Soul Finger".
Thanks! Betsy K. 6/30/07- Larry, If I ever need a D.J. Guess what,You The Man!!! Thanx: Corndog 6/22/07
- Yes! it's Friday and I'm up here jammin' in Cleveland, OH. How about some Soul Generation - Body & Soul (That's the Way It's Got to Be) Ya'll remember that one? Have a great weekend! losplus 6/22/07
- How about Earth, Wind and Fire? Angie G. 6/6/07
- Hooray for Friday!! Mary A. 6/1/07
- This group (The Four Tops) is great. Thanks VM Jimmy J. - 5/25/07
- Thanks for a Friday of Dusty Springfield, The Look of Love. Erica from Red Lobster, thanks for the look. - F.L. 4/5/07
- I love this site! Any chance I could hear "Coldest Days Of My Life" by the Chi-Lites? - 4/4/07
- I would love to hear "Unchained Melody" by the Righteous
Brothers or "Fats" Domino's "Ain't That a Shame" or "Blueberry Hill." Thanks, Patrick - 3/30/07- Hey Larry! You are amazing! I have my whole office dancing to these! Just great! Can you do a BeeGees for my boss and slip in Build Me Up Buttercup? I sing it anyway at work, may as well have the music to go along with it (the more to torture my co-workers with! Looking forward to all the Fridays-with-Larry! :) Scotty - 3/30/07
- Oh, my goodness, you found "Black Pearl." I nearly fainted this am, when I opened the site. Thank you sooooo much. Blessings P.W. Smith - 3/30/07
- Please add "Black Pearl" by The Checkmates...not sure what year, but thinking mid 60's. Thanks sooooooo much.
P. Smith - 3/23/07- This is a great website. My mom always listened to the "Oldies" station here, and I wanted to be just like my Mom, so I started listening to it and I loved it, and this website has some of my favorites. M. Pierce - 3/22/07
- Hey, I love the t-shirt. I have had it on
since I got home from Arizona. You did a good job. That was a great song last Friday (Wang Dang Doodle) - didn't know it but who ever requested it is someone I would like to hang with. And then
today we had The Zombies....that took me back to 8th grade and one of my first boy/girl parties. They were always held in someone's basement and the lights would go off by 9:00. That song always seem to bring on lots of smooching. I will not be naming names.... ;) Thanks again, Betsy- This is awesome!!! Thanks for the great site and fabulous music!! WooHoo!! Jen B. - 2/18/07
- I could not have picked a better artist. Thanks, Pat M.
- Thank you Larry - You have made my day! Betsy K.
- Mr. Larry, I really enjoyed Roy Head-Hey Hey. YF
Jim J. - 2/5/07- This always gets my Friday off to a great start! Love it!
Debbie - 1/26/07- Every once in a while my mornings are worth rising for, this has been one of them with Tina Turner.
Thanks Bill S. - 1/19/07- Keep up the good work. JJ - 1/19/07
- Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year 2007! I remember at this time in 1969 we were really gettng into Abbey Road! But oh, how I love the sweet soul music of the 60's and 70's as well. Thanks for your work in keeping this music alive. And keep on sending it, Brother! Dennis M. - 12/29/06
- Moonchild Diva in Motown - found the site by looking for Billy Stewart! I think you answered my question...who played bass on Billy's recordings? SO THANK YOU for clearing up the mystery! - 12/11/06
- Billy Stewart , alright, one of my favorites. Also, Jerry Butler, Major Lance, Willy Tee....
Your friend, Dirk H.- Thanks for Billy Stewart Larry - You have made
my day! Betsy K. - 12/8/07- I look forward to Friday's email. This is great.
Linda L. - 12/8/07- Wow! From your personal E-Mail account. I forward "Its Friday in Athens!!!" on to my friends often. The folks here at work are trying to figure me out. Their 56 year old C.E.O. sits in his office every Friday morning booming out R&B. Though it works for me, its not the type of behavior they expect from someone in my position. BLUES BANKER!
T. Turgeon - - Thanks for Joe T. Luv'd it! Roy Head and the Traits?
Hope you had a good Turkey Day. T. Turgeon - 11/27/07- I keep waiting for Jackie Wilson and Billy Stewart....I have
decided that like me, you have an older brother or sister who had you listening to this music as a kid. Hope all is well your way. Betsy K. - 11/25/06- How about a little Joe Tex? T. Turgeon
- Thanks, "I LOVE IT! Makes my day! M.N. - 9/29/06
- WOW WOW WOW AN OUTSTANDING REVIEW OF THE real STYLE OF MUSIC - Atlanta Cooking - 9/23/06
- In my time, this is the most fascinating music I have ever heard. **86 - 8/17/06
- Keep up the great and extremely important work. We met I believe at Michael Guthrie's house a few weeks ago at the HVARII Reunion. I am a great lover of our R&B and it's great to see someone who truly cares about it. Ole!
T. Turgeon - 8/2/06- Again, the "It's Friday" series is great - I love it every week and have sent it on to so many folks -
thanks again. Betsy K.
- Aretha is my personal favorite so far! Peggy M.
- LOVE THIS...I NEED SOMETHNG TO GET ME THROUGH THE DAY !!!! C. Lady - 6/3/07
- Great! Perfect! Dance Music I Love It!!! Laine L.
- I think you missed your calling as a DJ! Nicki S.
- Keep 'em coming!! I really enjoy listening to "my kind of music". Thank you. Mary M.
- I like getting your email every Friday, keep it coming!
Carlas A.
- DON'T FORGET THE 'QUEEN OF SOUL'........ ARETHA!!!!! YOUR MAKING MY FRIDAYS. RONK
- MY FRIENDS REALLY LIKE FRIDAY IN ATHENS! ONE IS SENDING EVERYONE AT THE COURTHOUSE AN EMAIL. Ron H.
- THANKS SO MUCH EACH WEEK! Nancy W.
- This makes me smile! Ray C.
- Great job, keep up the good work. Terry T.
- I SAVE UNTIL FRI AFTERNOON, BY 5:00 P.M. I'M REVVVVED!!! RONK - 5/19/06
- Thanks for this humanitarian service to get us crunk for district wide planning. Wilson Pickett reminds us to put a “spotlight on Otis Redding y’all”. Yeah,yeah, oh yeah. Fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-Faaa! Karl S.
- Thanks. What a pleasant surprise to get to work and open this e-mail- glad I started with yours first. Melanie B.
- Thanks for the Friday emails Larry!! I really enjoy them.
Kim S.- Thanks for the sound of good music. I really do love my oldies but goodies. E. Luke - 5/19/06
- Thanks!!! This is great! Jane B.
- Great site! How about some Sam Cooke??? - 5/19/06
- Thanks for the music! Steve P.
- I love this! Thanks. Dianne M.
- I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy your Friday emails. Thanks for including me! Betsy K.
- I appreciate the link – good stuff!
Jon W.- I LIKE IT!!!!!! Thanks and HAPPY FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!! Barbara S.
- THIS IS GREAT!!!!!! Susan R.
- So in your spare time you try to cheer up everyone? Thanks, Lori R.
- I love these songs. Thanks. Terri S.
- Awesome……Thanks for doing this, we all look forward to it every week. I’ve sent it to everyone I know!
Debi D.- I needed this today! Thanks. Susan S.
Good selection for this fabulous Friday!!!!!- Thanks for the Music this morning. I think I could listen to this all day, if people didn't think I was crazy for MOVING in my chair. Have a great weekend. Joyce G.
- This is awesome! Thanks, Debi D.
