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A few trivia items . . .
• When Three Dog Night (fka the 'Cory Wells Blues Band') from L.A. ( not! ) opened for the Rolling Stones at the State Fairgrounds in the Veteran's Coliseum in 65 - the drummer was a student at Maryvale.
• Remember a little group called the Monkees? Well Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart are credited with much of their early recordings. Bobby Hart's (Harshman) Mom worked at Diamonds, in Park Central, and the home was on Laurel Lane just South of Encanto. Ralph Destrini (Maryvale 66) lived behind her house in a converted garage. He played drums and they would come by sometimes to visit and play - tiny place.
• Some guy named Waylon Jennings was the bass guitarist for Charles Hardin 'Buddy' Holly's group the Crickets, in the last show he played. That night a plane crash ended the careers of headliners Holly 22, J.P. (Jiles Perry) Richardson 28, - 'The Big Bopper', and Richard 'Ritchie' Valens 17, (Valenzuela) early on the morning of the 3d of February 1959, after the show at the Surf Ballroom. Richie Valens made it onto the plane in the last seat by winning a coin toss with Tommy Alsup - the other guitarist for Buddy Holly.
They left Clear Lake, Iowa in a chartered Beechcraft Bonanza (N3794N), in a snowstorm, headed for Fargo, North Dakota. The crash site is approximately 5 miles North of the Mason City Municipal Airport. The crash was about 0100 hrs. The pilot was Roger Arthur Peterson 21, of Dwyer Flying Service.
A 15 year old kid by the name of Bobby Velline (shortened to Vee) and his band The Shadows was called upon at the last minute to open the show in Moorhead, Minnesota the night of the crash. Tickets were $1. The show was a benefit for United Cerebral Palsy.
The 'Winter Dance Party Tour' continued with Jimmy Clanton and Frankie Avalon substituting as the headliners (there seems to be some disagreement as to whether Fabian or Bill Parsons was the third headliner). Dion and the Belmonts and Frankie Sardo performed also. The Crickets also finished the tour - with Ronnie Smith filling in for Buddy Holly.
• It was over ten years later that Don McLean had a hit with "The Day the Music Died". Speculation abounds as to the meaning of the lyrics. I do have a very good version of the explanation of the lyrics I may put up here someday. Don McLean has steadfastedly refused to explain it at all.
• March 5th, 1963 - plane crash near Camden, Tennesee that killed country artists Patsy Cline along with Cowboy Copas, Hawkshaw Hawkins, and Randy Hughes.
• Janis Joplin played here, once. In Mesa. They had a few problems I heard. I got to see her Saturday night June 17th, 1968 at Winterland, in San Francisco, along with 'The Crazy World of Arthur Brown' and someone else I can't remember. Tickets were $3 - and the show was nearly six hours long! Me and the rocket man, Regor Tegmar, went up there for the weekend in my new Camaro. We made it there in 13 hours - nice trip with six stops for gas and food - 805 miles. Sunday the 18th we went to a big street party in Haight Ashbury. We took a little detour on the way back and ended up at the Grand Canyon for a little while. My Camaro had over 6600 miles on it when it was three weeks old, when I left, left it for Mom while I was back in Vietnam.
• Boy, that old Camaro. Wonder what it would be worth today? I also had a 1969 SS 396 El Camino - recently saw one for $45,000! In the 2007 Barrett-Jackson auction, a friend from my old unit in Vietnam called - asked if I was watching the auction - yep. The Mustang that was on right then ended up selling for $535,000! Ahh - used to be his - used to be. Funny thing is - he has three more sitting in his garage right now - undriven since 1972! Wonder ... $$
• Don't know if Elvis played here before or after this, but I saw him in 1973 - at the Civic Plaza. Not in Symphony Hall either. Strange show in the conference hall we now see car shows in. The city is in the process of more than doubling the size of the Civic Plaza too. It has been renamed the 'Phoenix Convention Center'.
• How many listened to Wolfman Jack in the '60s? Wolfman - Robert Weston Smith - came to prominence on the high power station XERF in Del Rio, Texas in 1963. The broadcast station was really in Ciudad Acuña, Mexico, across the Rio Bravo about two miles over the border. Much higher power limit in Mexico and the program could be heard on most nights all the way across the country and up to Canada too. Later he was on XERB, XEG, & XTRA (Tijuana / San Diego). And played himself in the movie American Graffiti. He died on July 1st, 1995 at 57, at his home in North Carolina.
• Everyone seems to know the Rolling Stones version of Gimme Shelter - but if you take note of the female voice on that cut - there is a MUCH better version done by her alone. Merry Clayton. Such power. Still trying to find that song - on 45, album, or CD - let me know if you see it (finally found it - on YouTube!).
• CHHS Class of 1966 President Art Hamilton was destined to be the youngest elected member of the Arizona House of Representatives. A bill had to be passed allowing him to assume his seat - as he was too young to do so legally!
• Ellen Lauper (yep, sister to Cyndi Lauper) ran for Mayor of Phoenix in 1986? - as a Socialist Party candidate. Time frame is getting too far afield. I'll stop now.
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