How the Good Shines Through

SOME GOOD YEARS - The Cowsills

I love music documentaries. One of the best I've seen is "Family Band: The Cowsills Story," which would be excellent even if the titular act hadn't sold millions of records. It's simply a compelling look at the ups and downs of a large family over the course of three decades or so.

 

A short version of the band's history (since the long version is in the film and on Wikipedia): four brothers from Rhode Island formed a band in 1965, were later joined by their sister and another brother, and then by their mother (and another brother from time to time in later years). They were managed by their father, which didn't end well.

Among other hits, the Cowsills had two singles that made it to #2 on the Top 40: "The Rain, The Park and Other Things" and "Hair." Famously, the band inspired "The Partridge Family" television series.

There were departures and fallow periods, but Bob, Susan and Paul Cowsill carry the torch to this day, continuing the family tradition of excellent musicianship.

Back to the documentary: it ends with a song Bob wrote, "Some Good Years," a look back at personal history with affection, wisdom, and harmonies that evoke the Beach Boys without being derivative. It's an earworm of the best kind.

Bob has generously taken time to answer my questions about "Some Good Years":

"Some Good Years" is a track from this 1998 LP

 
1 - Did you record a demo or any alternate versions, or is the finished record essentially what you heard in your head as you composed the song?  

Bob Cowsill: I recorded "Some Good Years" along with two other songs from "Global" ("She Said To Me" and "Is It Any Wonder?") alone.  I played all the instruments except drums and the keyboard descension part on "Some Good Years," which I asked Gary Griffin to play because I couldn't. All I had to do was sing it to Gary and he could reproduce it - very talented.

 

I had no plans other than record some songs I had written because that's what you did with songs. You recorded them - with or without a label or a reason - well actually, the reason being you've written songs, now what? Well, you record them.   

 

I was in the middle of these do-it-alone sessions when we (me, Paul, Susan) took a meeting with Dick Clark and turned down his invitation to join his cavalcade of stars on a summer tour, and during the post-meeting we were having I mentioned I have these songs I've been working on and that triggered us all going into the studio and recording "Global," John included.  I had pretty much finished "Some Good Years" so we added Paul and Susan and John to the backgrounds already there and beefed those up, then added John on the drums (I had used a drum machine to construct the track with).  

2 - The song was recorded and released a few years before the release of the "Family Band: The Cowsills Story," but it plays over the end credits so perfectly it sounds as though it was written for the film. What did inspire the song, originally?

BC: I had always loved what I called "Retirement videos" of athletes. They always had a great song playing while they showed the best highlights of the player's career.  So what I did was I specifically wrote "Some Good Years" with the idea of getting it to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for his retirement video.  The original lyrics were all about Kareem and his history.  I still have them buried with everything else in my garage so will at some point dig those out and frame them or something.  

 

So eventually I realized pretty much every one has had some good years and even the bad and harsh parts of someone's life smooth out over time and don't seem as harsh anymore.  

 

 

3 - Did you arrange the harmonies yourself or did everyone pretty much know what to do after all the years of singing together.

BC: On that particular song I was sort of loose in the candy field and could do whatever I wanted just working alone on things so that vocal arrangement was all done (I just kept using my own voice to build the vocal stacks) by the time Susan, Paul and John showed up, so I just added their voices to what was already there.  I actually used my wife, Mary, for the girl answer ("they were some good years) and ended up adding Susan to that and keeping them both in the end.

 

4 - In the wonderfully "unplugged" live version from 2008, you and Susan and Paul all look so very happy to be singing this song. What do you recall from this performance?

BC: We recall how exciting it was to meet Florence Henderson and sit and visit with her.  We're always happiest when performing and singing because that's what brings this family together so if we're singing anywhere we're hanging out with each other and the kids and it's always very rewarding.  To be asked to sing on a TV show like that is so fun and it involved meeting Florence Henderson and it was all very exciting.

5 - You give thanks to DJ Barry Scott in the liner notes to the Global LP; what's the story with his being the first to play "Some Good Years" on the radio?

BC: Barry Scott was wonderful ... is wonderful.  He brought us together for a show in Boston (think late '89 or so) when we really weren't doing much of anything and we all flew in and played at a place called Zanzibar's.  We hadn't played in years and that was a big deal for us. Bruce Johnston, Paula Abdul and John Stamos were there and we just enjoyed it so much.  So we always credit Barry Scott for bringing us out there and triggering us getting back together for a while back then and recording and all.  Barry is a Boston DJ and he played "Some Good Years" even when it wasn't released or on a label - he just thought it was a great song.

Barry Scott

6 - Your brother Paul plays keyboards on the rest of the LP, but you and Gary Griffin do on "Some Good Years" (Paul does sing background vocals). Why was this song different?  

BC: Well, like I was saying, it was just me at the time when we started those three songs but Paul was going to provide the sound for "Global" with the Roland D-50.... the Roland D-50 is the keyboard sound of "Global" and Paul immediately took over keyboards as soon as we started. I was actually thrilled I wasn't going to play everything - which is fun to do if you're working alone but now we were at full monty and that wasn't going to be necessary.

7 -The song is a positive look at one's past; have you always been an optimist or was this a lesson learned along the way?

BC: Both - but I was always impressed as I got older that things that I thought were horrible or tough in my past softened over time and didn't seem such a big deal.  It's like the recruit who complains of boot camp and tells everyone how hard and unforgiving boot camp is and the tortured letters to home and the "suffering" .... and then later in life you meet these guys and their attitude is, "Oh yeah boot camp....that wasn't as bad as I thought at the time."  

 

So, it's that kind of natural progression I think the brain does where we can better understand the harder things that happened in our past and realize they weren't as bad as we thought.  Every experience has a good side to it and I believe the good part stays with us while our brain softens the bad part.

There are some wonderful legacy videos on YouTube where people have used "Some Good Years" in exactly the way it was intended, so I always feel extra good when I see that and am glad they were touched and motivated that way by the song.

***

The Cowsills launched a podcast this year...

...and you can stay in touch with them at the Cowsills website and on Facebook.

Restless from the cradle

UNCHAINED - Jude Johnstone 

Before the internet, there were three main ways to discover new music. 

Radio was the primary source due to the amount of time spent listening, but playlists were always limited and geared toward very commercial songs unless you were lucky enough to live near a station that gave DJs a lot of latitude.  

Friends and family were useful, but limited in how much they could discover that you didn't already know.  

The third way source was record stores. A handful of albums I encountered while browsing LPs struck me so hard at first listen that I still recall the time and place I discovered them.

In late 1996 on a cold, grey day I entered a record shop in Washington, DC; the store was playing a CD with a cold, grey cover photo: Johnny Cash's "Unchained."  "What is this sound," I asked myself? I loved Cash's classic songs but it been a long time since I'd heard anything new and memorable from the Man in Black. What I was hearing on the speakers was magic. I grabbed a copy, paid, and went home to play the album over and over again.  It's still a favorite.

"Unchained"

Somehow, I had missed his comeback album "American Recordings" two years earlier, just Johnny and his guitar soloing on an eclectic collection of superb songs.

"Unchained," which went on to win the Grammy for Country Album of the Year, likewise featured a diverse set of amazing songs, this time sung with full backing, including members of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Fleetwood Mac, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, among others.

Many of the songs were written famous musicians - Petty, Beck, Hal David, Chris Cornell, the Carter Family, and three by Cash himself. But the two songs at the heart of this masterpiece were written by lesser-known individuals: "Spiritual," by Josh Haden, and the title track, "Unchained," by Jude Johnstone. Both songs concern human weakness and suffering while pleading for divine assistance. Haden's is a slow burn to a howl, Johnstone's more contemplative, a reckoning of one's shortcomings. Cash, needless to say, embodies both songs with breathtaking emotion. 

Johnstone has written terrific songs for a number of artists, winning the BMI Songwriter's Award in 1993 for Trish Yearwood's #1 country hit, "The Woman Before Me." Her songs have been used on various television series and she is a talented vocalist and keyboard player, having released eight albums of her own.

Jude Johnstone

I recently reached out to her and truly enjoyed hearing her thoughts about the history and legacy of "Unchained."  As you will read, I did have to start out with a confession...

1 - I'll be honest; I hadn't looked at the credits on the Cash's "Unchained" LP since I bought the CD when it came out; over the years I came to think of it as a song that Johnny wrote for himself because the song suits him as perfectly as any song ever has. My apologies! I recently read the credits again and saw your name, thankfully. Did you write it specifically for him or was it something you were already working on?

Jude Johnstone: No, no. I write the songs for myself and then sometimes other people record them. I actually wrote Unchained quite awhile before Johnny did it. I just didn’t have a record deal to put my own version out until a few years later. Was still just a label that me and my manager made up to release my own records on. That’s why it came out after John’s recording. He was actually listening to my demo of it when he recorded it, which was a much more raucous, gospel version like the one on my debut CD, "Coming Of Age." He just heard it like a hymn in his own head. And sung it that way.

2 - How did you find out that the album itself would be titled after your song, which must have been a thrill?

JJ: I heard that Johnny Cash was playing a show at the Fox theater in Bakersfield. I lived on the Central Coast of California about two hours from there. I had heard that he had recorded a song of mine for his new project but I didn’t invest in that emotionally 'cause I knew that he would probably record 20 or 30 songs and the odds of my actually making the record were probably pretty slim. But I wanted to meet him, so I called his management and told them he had recorded my song and asked if I could come and meet him briefly before the show? I got the word that my name would be on a list, so my husband and I and our two small kids drove to Bakersfield. My husband was originally from there and his folks still lived there so we dropped off the 5-year-old, Emma, with her grandma and took the 4-month-old, Ray, with us. She was still nursing and hadn’t spent any time away from me so my plan was to have my husband walk her around in the parking lot outside the club while I dashed in to meet John. And then we would meet in the balcony afterward where we were to be seated so I could nurse her to sleep and we could watch the show. 

 

So, I went up to the manager and said, “Hi, I’m Jude Johnstone, here to meet Johnny; I wrote a song that he’s recorded?” The manager just looked at me and said “And?”

Worried, I stuttered, “I... I called ahead, I think he’s expecting me..” He sighed and said, “Wait here.” And disappeared behind the stage. 

 

The audience was just starting to filter in. The bus was parked directly off the stage as usual and he came back after a few minutes and said “Okay, follow me.” He took me across the stage, over the cables and onto the bus. There was John and June who graciously greeted me. We exchanged warm hugs and conversation and then June says, “Where’s your husband?” And I explain that he is out in the parking lot with the baby so I can meet them. June says, completely seriously, “Babies love me. Do you want me to go out in the parking lot and find them? I can take the baby so he can come meet John.” For a half a second, I imagined how PRICELESS this scene would be and said, “No, that’s quite all right.” After a few minutes, it was time for Johnny to go on so I went up into the balcony, as planned, nursed my daughter to sleep and settled down to watch the show. 

 

About halfway through the set, Johnny says, “I wanna introduce you to my California songwriter friend Jude Johnstone!" And the spotlight starts searching for me! I have a sleeping baby on my breast! In a moment, I quickly pull her off me praying she doesn’t wake up. Just then, the light finds me and I stand halfway up, wave to the audience and sit back down again. Then Johnny says, “I wanna play you Jude’s song. It’s called UNCHAINED. It’s the title track of my new album.”

3 - Your version, released five years after Cash's, has more of a bluesy, gospel feel with Bonnie Raitt on slide guitar. You've mentioned that you had someone else play piano on the record. Since you are a very good pianist yourself, what did you want that person to bring to the performance?

JJ: Yes, Bonnie Raitt and Jennifer Warnes are singing the backup vocals on my recording and Bonnie is on the slide guitar. (Producer) Garth Fundis and I had John Hobbs play the piano on it cause the song has a real churchy, gospel feel on the piano that you have to be really well versed in that style to play. And he just killed it like we knew he would.

 

4 - "Old man swearing at the sidewalk and I am overcome." That image and emotion really sticks with me. Was it based on an actual person you saw or is it fictional?

JJ: Yes, it was an actual person. I was just walking on Hollywood and Vine to my publisher Bug Music’s office, back when I lived in Hollywood (1979-92). The old man was just a typical sight on the corner of a city like Los Angeles, and he was swearing and carrying on about the government and what have you and it just occurred to me that there wasn’t that much of a difference between HIS lost and MY lost, on a spiritual level. So I started the song way back then. And I didn’t finish it till about '92, when my friend Valerie Carter came up to Cambria, where we had moved to, to visit me. I played her the start of it and she said, “You gotta finish this thing.” So I did. She did a really sweet version of it herself with me accompanying her, that was never released before John did it. I still have a copy of it, of course.

5 - You conduct songwriting workshops. Do you use "Unchained" while teaching and, if so, what lessons can it teach aspiring writers?

JJ: Hmm, workshops. I mainly listen to what the students are working on and I might get out something of mine to illustrate a point but mostly I focus on their work and how to make it the best that it can be. Now in college lectures, I like to stretch out more, tell some stories, like the Cash story or a Bonnie Raitt or Dr. John story, and answer questions they have about how I got a certain song to this one or that one cause they are usually interested in that. And sometimes a lesson on initiative and courage.

6 - You have a 1926 Mason & Hamlin parlor grand piano. Is that what you wrote "Unchained" on?

JJ: No, I got that piano sometime later. It was given to me by my cello player Bob Liepman’s mom, Nanette, when she moved into an assisted living place. She had a boyfriend who liked to dabble on the piano occasionally so I traded my Baldwin upright, just a sort of schoolhouse piano I had for years, (which I did write Unchained on and many others) for him to tinker on, in exchange for this priceless 1926 Mason & Hamlin parlor grand that is a songwriter’s dream. My kids called it ‘the great piano trade of ‘04.’

Jude's piano

7 - For years I thought Cash sang "Oh, have I seen an angel OR have I seen a ghost" and was a little saddened when I realized that he actually sings "OH have I seen a ghost." So when I listened to your version, I was pleased to hear you sang "or." Do you believe you have ever seen an angel or a ghost - and which it was?

JJ: I believe that grace comes to us in the form of human beings when you least expect it, as in the ‘old man swearin’ at the sidewalk.’ I believe he was put there for me to see; perhaps an angel, perhaps a ghost. In either case, to teach me or startle me in some way. To shake me out of my sleep at the time. Which he did.

More Jude at her official website, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook 

Let The World All Think What They Will

NO ONE HAS TO KNOW (from "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel") 

Lyricist Tom Mizer

I interviewed the funny, frank and insightful Thomas Mizer about "No One has to Know," one of the songs he and composer Curtis Moore have written for the Amazon series "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel." Even if you aren't a fan of the show (though why wouldn't you be?), you have to be impressed by the production values.  The art department, costumers, hair stylists and others recreate the late '50s and early '60s in amazing detail.  Perhaps the most difficult challenge in this regard is the creation of original songs, which falls to Mizer and Moore. 

The producers could have used existing songs from that era - say a Johnny Mathis hit - but chose to use new music instead. When a character in the series is a historical figure, such as comedian Lenny Bruce, their actual material can be used.  When a character is fictional, such as the titular Mrs. Maisel, the writers have to come up with an original act authentic enough to make us believe it would have been fresh and funny fifty years ago.

 

So it is with Shy Baldwin, the popular singer who plays a key role in the third season of "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel." While he calls to mind a few vocalists from that era, he is not just a copy or an homage, he is a unique and complex fictional character.  How do you write a song that not only sounds like it's from that time, but also is good enough to have been a hit? On top of that tall order, you also have to use it to advance a major plot point?

 

"No One Has to Know"

The show's creator and executive producer, Amy Sherman-Palladino, wisely turned to Mizer and Moore, the award-winning duo who write songs for stage and screen.  Thomas is the lyricist, Curtis the composer.  Their efforts for the series have been recognized this year with an “Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics” Emmy nomination for another Shy Baldwin song, “One Less Angel.” Let's wish them luck when the award is handed out this month.

To me, one of the most powerful moments in "Maisel" is when Shy pulls up a stool in the middle of his show and slows things down with a beautifully aching ballad filled with subtext.  Getting to talk to Thomas about this song proved to be a very rewarding peek behind the creative curtain.

Note: While "Maisel" is not a show that relies on surprising twists and reveals, some plot points from the most recent season are discussed below, so be forewarned if you have yet to watch it.

Another note: All of these great photos were provided by Thomas Mizer.

Thomas Mizer

1 - When I asked if I could interview you about "No One has to Know," you mentioned that this song is very personal to you. How so?

Tom Mizer: The song means a lot to me for many, many reasons—professionally and personally—but I think there are two in particular that stand out.

First, Shy’s situation is incredible compelling to me. To seemingly have it all as a famous star and yet not be allowed to speak your heart, your truth, except through the disguise of a “pop song” breaks my heart. As a gay man, I can’t help but think of my privilege living in this era where I can have what was unthinkable to Shy; I’m married for goodness sake. I think of the real men and women of his era, particularly those of color, who raised their voices and paved the way for me to live my life without having to hide myself behind coded language in a song. 

But also, those lyrics are me. I was, how shall I say it, not particularly successful in romance as a young man. I would pine for love, be friends with people I couldn’t admit I was infatuated with, but assume it could never be. I tried to be that Tom when I wrote the lyrics. That lost romantic is/was me. I think maybe we’ve all been there, gay or straight, and it brings back that hopeful/hopeless feeling.

2 - Given how important this song is to Shy Baldwin's storyline, did you work from a script or were you just given a general directive about what role "No One" needed to play?

TM: The crazy truth is the very first seeds of the song were written BEFORE we knew Shy’s storyline. Amy Sherman-Palladino had asked us to write some songs for Shy and the Silver Belles and, in those first conversations, she gave us a very clear set of musical inspirations but no story inspirations. 

We were initially just trying to see if we could find the right voice for Shy, if we could write songs that would create a believable musical world for him to help build his character. But, at the same time, I made a very calculated guess that Shy might have a forbidden love during the season, whether interracial or gay, and we wrote an early draft of “No One Has to Know” hoping it would be useful down the line. We included that half-demo with the first round of examples we sent Amy. She said to stick a pin in “No One” and we’d talk more about it later in the season.

Once we did have the talk, we of course learned about what Shy’s story was and where this song would happen, so we finished it and shaped it to truly fit the moment. It was a gift and a challenge to have music be the climax of Shy’s story and we worked very hard to make sure it threaded the needle between being dramatically satisfying for the character and yet still believable as a romantic “hit.” 

In the end, I don’t think we ever saw a single, full script of the show! But we absolutely collaborated and talked and worked with Amy and Dan to make the songs as good as possible and serve the story to the best of our ability.

Curtis Moore, The Belles, LeRoy McClain, Thomas Mizer

 3 - Do you and Curtis stay in your lanes, so to speak, or did you have any role on the music and/or he on the lyrics?

TM: We absolutely have our specialties, particularly because I don’t play an instrument and I have marginal singing skills. But there aren’t boundaries in our collaboration. Curtis is a very smart editor of my lyrics, asks amazing questions, and often comes up with just the right words when I’m searching for them. I think he would say the same about my contributions to the music. I do know he will often ask me to “sing” what I heard when I wrote a lyric, mainly so he can hear my rhythms, and there are many blackmail-worthy voice recordings that exist of me doing just that.

 

4 - Doing a song that sounds like it's from 1960 means it needed to have specific musical characteristics. It's not as obvious how to do this with the lyrics - what was your approach?

TM: That’s a really interesting question! And very true. Writing lyrics for a specific era isn’t as obvious a template as music and, honestly, it’s not exactly about being period perfect. 

We spent a lot of time listening to hours and hours of music from the era, just so the feel of it would be in our bones. Lyrically, that research manifested itself differently in different songs. For “One Less Angel,” I had noticed a thread of “mythical meets the everyday” in a lot of songs from the era and so that influenced the subject matter. (I also spent serious time researching to make sure the grammatical “error” in that hook was period and colloquial. Take that, my college English professors!)

For “No One,” I tried to capture the syntax of those just pre-rock romantic songs—elegant American songbook era songs—that have very tight structures but find poetry in the simplest of words. Although those songs are related to golden-age music theater (which plays into my theater background), there were no Sondheim three syllable rhymes allowed!

In the end, it’s a gut check. Curtis and I listen and listen to feel if a word or a phrase takes us out of the moment. If you question a lyric, even if it would technically have been said in the era, then it has to be changed. There’s no place in a song for a footnote justifying the choice. You don’t want anything to ruin the illusion of the drama.

5 - Were you involved with the recording of the vocal by Darius de Haas, giving him guidance or feedback?

TM: One of the best and most unexpected parts of working on Maisel was that we were involved in the whole process from writing to recording to filming. Curtis got to arrange and conduct some of the songs and we were there for every studio session collaborating and honing the work. So many details changed in the studio, as we played with the singers and musicians.

Darius is a dream and actually someone we’d known from the theater world. It was such a bonus to find out he was the singer we’d be working with! The amazing thing to watch and be a part of, though, was the relationship that developed between Darius and LeRoy McClain, the actor who plays Shy. LeRoy was in the booth with Darius during recording. Darius was on set with LeRoy during filming. They became very close and worked tirelessly together to make the performance seamless.

For “No One” in particular, they talked in the recording booth about where Shy was mentally and they charted out when in the song he is aware of the audience and when he is singing for himself. On set, they spent time talking about how having broken ribs (Shy has just been beaten up) might affect the singing and how Shy would have to hold himself to get breath. My getting to have a creative voice with people like LeRoy and Darius, who cared as much as I did about making the moment the best it could be, made the experience very special.

On the set for the "No One Has to Know" scene

6 - When you watched the finished episode and saw Shy performing the song during a "stool set," how did it hit you?

TM: Honestly, watching it on screen the first time was more nerve-wracking than anything else, praying that we hadn’t screwed up the whole story.  “Award-winning show canceled because of bad song!”

The more emotional time was being on set when it was filmed. I was hiding in the back of the theater in Miami, nervous about the big moment happening. Curtis had already left for a prior commitment when the schedule got changed so I was alone. I was probably pacing.

Amy found me and barked at me to stop hiding and come join her by the camera. So I was standing right there, right by Amy’s side at the camera, as they filmed those takes of LeRoy giving his heart and soul to the song. It was so intimate and perfect. Amy leaned over during one take and whispered, “You did this.” Now, I know it wasn’t just me; there were so many people on set and beyond who had made it happen, but it was such a generous, kind thing to say. I’m so grateful to her. I may have ruined the next take with some very discreet crying.

7 - If you could have any singer, living or dead, perform their version of "No One has to Know," who would it be?

TM: A bunch of big-voiced, emotional singers leap to mind. Billy Porter. Barbra Streisand. Adele. But the alpha and omega of our search for Shy’s voice were Johnny Mathis and Sam Cooke. They are radically different performers and having that huge range to work within allowed us to make Shy his own person. So I’d love to hear what each of them would do with the song, one bringing his silky need, the other bringing his soul-deep pain. Mr. Mathis is still with us and still singing beautifully, so maybe…?

 For more, please check out the Mizer and Moore website and find them on Twitter at @MizerAndMoore 

James James Morrison's mother seems to have been mislayed

JAMES JAMES MORRISON MORRISON - The Chad Mitchell Trio

As a boy at summer camp, I learned a fun song about a little boy with a funny name who, in a role reversal with his mother, warned her about the dangers of wandering too far from home.  The song, "James James Morrison Morrison," as I later discovered, was recorded by the Chad Mitchell Trio in 1963.  Mitchell himself composed the tune and used the words of a poem by A. A. Milne, the creator of Winnie the Pooh.

If you are not familiar with the CMT (as I will abbreviate them), you should be, as they were a talented group that sprung from the folk music scene in the late 1950s.  Their combination of musicality, humor, and a political point of view is unique and compelling.

While adept at various types of traditional folk songs, the trio really made their mark with satirical topical songs.  Their targets included the KKK, segregation, and the John Birch Society (a far right anti-Communist organization).

The CMT also had a knack for finding great young songwriters and singing their songs - among others, Tom Paxton (whose "Ramblin' Boy" and "Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound" I also learned at camp) and Bob Dylan.  In fact, they were the first act to release "Blowin' in the Wind," a few months before Dylan and Peter, Paul and Mary released theirs.

The British writer A. A. Milne wrote a book of children's poetry titled "When We Were Very Young" in 1924, four years after the birth of his son Christopher Robin.  One of the poems within, "Disobedience," provided the words that Chad Mitchell would use four decades later to create "James James Morrison Morrison."

Illustration for "Disobedience"

You can see the track listing for "James James Morrison Morrison" below on the back cover of the CMT's "At The Bitter End" album (The Bitter End is a club in NYC where this LP was recorded live).  The essay on the back cover also mentions the song and is a good snapshot of the act in 1963.

And here is that recording:

 

If this song is new to you, I hope you love it as much as I do.  Sing it, share it, teach it.  It's a great song for group singing.

I'm happy to report that Chad Mitchell himself kindly took time recently to answer my questions about "James James Morrison Morrison."

1 - Did you know A. A. Milne's poem "Disobedience" from reading it as a child or how did you come across it?

CHAD MITCHELL: In the eighth grade, our teacher, Gail Johnson, used to read "Disobedience" to us all the time. I had never read any of A. A. Milne's works but that piece remained with me through the years.

A. A. Milne

2 - What inspired you to set it to music?

CM: Since "Disobedience" had remained with me for so long, I felt it was a perfect vehicle for performance. So, since I didn't play an instrument, I hummed and hummed until a melody finally came out.

3 - Do you recall the reaction of the other trio members, your management and live audiences when you first played it for them?

CM: Our manager at the time didn't have input to our repertoire, but the other Trio members and our musical director, Milt Okun, and our accompanist, Jim McGuinn, all loved the idea.

Editor's note: Jim McGuinn, later known as Roger McGuinn, founded the legendary rock band The Byrds a few years later.

4 - I learned this song at summer camp. Did you hear of it being popular at other camps, schools, and so on?

CM: No, I didn't but I'm really pleased it got that kind of exposure.

Chad Mitchell 1969 promo photo

5 - A. A. Milne died a few years before you recorded this song. Were you involved at all in getting permission to use his words or was that handled by management?

CM: I had very little to do with our licensing at that time, so I really don't know what happened. I do know that sometime after the release of our "At the Bitter End" album on which "Disobedience" appeared, the Disney Co. sent me a letter advising that they controlled Milne's works. Since the horse was out of the barn, I think they put it in their publishing company and gave me a percentage of the writing royalties.

6 - Did you ever hear from any of Milne's relatives, friends or associates as to what they thought about your adaptation?

CM: No, I've never been contacted by his family or friends.

7 - Are there any other memories, stories or thoughts about "James James Morrison Morrison" you'd like to share?

CM: Someone told me that Gail Johnson was made aware of our rendition and that it brought tears to her eyes. I hope that was a positive response. It remained in our performing repertoire and always delighted the audience.

Another thing that comes to mind is about a very special gift that was given to my wife, Christine, and me when our daughter, Anne-Claire, was born.

I was Director of Entertainment for The Delta Queen Steamboat Co. back in the '80s and the company's graphic designer, Shirley Davis, presented us with a calligraphy on which she had inscribed the entire version of "Disobedience." Being the expert graphic artist she was, she framed the poem with a musical staff on which she faithfully notated the whole melody in gold leaf. Needless to say, we were dumbstruck by her skill and generosity. It has hung in a prominent place in our home ever since.

Read more about Chad's music at chadmitchelltrio.com

Everything I've done was wrong

FEEL LIKE GOING HOME (Charlie Rich) - Peter Guralnick

What's the greatest record you've never heard?

Well, that's obviously an unanswerable question. If you're like me, however, every few years or so you'll hear something that blows you away and you wonder how the record could have existed without your knowledge. It's always a thrill when this happens.

A couple of weeks ago I came across "Feel Like Going Home" by Charlie Rich and had the experience mentioned above. Rich is someone whose pop hits I knew and liked, and I also love what I've heard from his early days at the legendary Sun Records.  "You Can Have Her" for Smash Records is a favorite. But FLGH was new to me.

No, one can't know all songs by all artists, but FLGH was too damn good for me never to have stumbled into it, to never had recommended to me.

What I heard was this demo version:

Rich's first commercial release of FLGH was as the B-Side to his monster hit, "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World."

A couple of decades later he included another version on what turned out to be his final album, "Pictures and Paintings."

Digging into the story behind the song, I found a good one.  

Renowned rock writer Peter Guralnick met Charlie Rich while working on a book that profiled various blues and rock musicians, including Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf and Jerry Lee Lewis. Charlie, one of his subjects, had yet to hit the big time with "Behind Closed Doors."

The book, published in 1971, took its name from a song by Waters, "Feel Like Going Home." Charlie, inspired by the feeling he got from reading the book, wrote a song with the same title.

And, to come full circle, Peter executive produced "Pictures and Paintings," including Charlie's final recording of FLGH.
You can watch Peter recounting this experience here.  

He kindly shared the following insights and opinions with me:

1 - I assume, perhaps incorrectly, that Charlie is playing the evocative piano part himself on the demo version. What can you tell us about Charlie's piano playing, given that he's best known as a singer?

Peter Guralnick: I think you can pick up on Charlie’s playing from what you hear on the demo – it’s kind of jagged, hesitant, with lots of blue notes played in between the cracks, but with a swelling, gospel-inflected orchestral sound, too. I’m not sure who exactly you could compare him to. Ray Charles and Miles Davis were among his great musical heroes, Stan Kenton, Thelonious Monk, and the hard boppers, too. In many ways he believed that less is more, and much of his playing is spare. More than anything, though, he was inclined to sing and play behind the beat – but he always caught up.

2 - FLGH was initially a b-side and didn't make it onto an album until many years later. Do you know if Charlie ever sang it in concert?  Not that YouTube has everything, but I found no live version there. 

PG:  He didn't play it often. I know he dedicated it once to President Nixon – not sure what exactly he meant by that (kind of like his song, “Peace On You”), a couple of times he dedicated it to me, though never with the impact of that first time he played it at Max’s Kansas City. But it was such a personal song, it was a quiet song, and conveyed such a sense of intimate, non-anthemic emotion that it wasn’t all that suitable for arena or stadium performances.

3 - You produced what turned out to be Charlie's last album, "Pictures and Paintings." What was his motivation to record another version of FLGH? 

PG:  He wanted to record it again, because he felt the B-side version was more Billy Sherrill than him. Charlie was the one who re-conceived of it as a gospel song, with a black choir and in his original conception (I’m not sure how this would have worked out) with Arthur Fiedler leading the Boston Pops section of the Boston Symphony Orchestra behind him. He had trouble singing it in the original key, and it was Scott Billington, the producer, who suggested the key change, which created a change in mood, too, that substituted a kind of upbeat sense of salvation for the original, haunting feel. If I had to choose, I’d choose the demo (I think most people would), but Charlie absolutely loved the new version, too, he loved the voices and the new, more hopeful mood.

4 - If you believe in Rock and Roll Heaven, who up there is singing this song with Elvis Presley and Ray Charles and Sam Cooke as Charlie smiles and sways along?

PG:  Billie Holiday? Louis Armstrong? Miles on trumpet? A still earth-bound Willie Nelson. Bobby Charles. But not together.

5 - One of my favorite records is Johnny Cash's "Spiritual," which has a lot in common with FLGH. Breathtaking vocal by an iconic singer who started at Sun Records, a song that pulls off the feat of sounding like its an old traditional tune without sounding derivative, lyrical pleading for relief from life's pain.  Maybe I'm a sucker for these types of records.  Can you recommend a few hidden gems along these lines?

PG:  “She Even Woke Me Up to Say Goodbye” and “Over the Rainbow” by Jerry Lee Lewis. Nick Lowe and Geraint Watkins – “Only a Rose.”  “It Tears Me Up” – Dan Penn.

6 - A perhaps unfair question I tend to ask people is what's their favorite cover version of a song. I don't think any measure up to Charlie's recordings, but some very talented folks have sung it - Tom Jones with Mark Knopfler; J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr.; Rita Coolidge; the Notting Hillbillies (Knopfler again); Walkabouts; and others. Which do you like best and why? 

PG:  If we’re going to talk covers I’m going to go with Bobby “Blue” Bland’s version of Charlie’s “Who Will the Next Fool Be,” which I think equals the original in an entirely different and individual way, and Jerry Lee Lewis’ version of the same song, which ends with Jerry Lee whistling the outro, and then spontaneously declaring, “Can you imagine a cat in khaki pants walking down the street, whistling?” as the song fades. Not to mention Dennis Brennan’s beautiful version of “Feel Like Going Home,” with Duke Levine backing him up.

7 - You've been called a "national resource" for your writing about music. What I don't know is if you can play guitar or piano. Do you? And, if so, do you ever sit down and belt out "Feel Like Going Home"?

PG:  Don’t play – my brother and sister do. So does my son, Jake. We all belted out “Down By the Old Mill Stream” last Saturday for my father’s 100^th birthday, with accompaniment by two mandolins (one of them my father’s) and a ukulele, played by Jake, Mike, and Josh (Budo).

Who Can Turn The World On With Her Smile?

"LOVE IS ALL AROUND" (The Mary Tyler Moore Show Theme Song) -- Sonny Curtis

Singer, songwriter and guitarist Sonny Curtis played with Buddy Holly, wrote the rock anthem "I Fought The Law" and is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Oh, and he also wrote one of the most iconic and beloved television theme songs ever. Yes, I am biased because I was a kid growing up in Minneapolis (where the sitcom was set) when the series originally aired; watching the opening credits now is as familiar and comforting as viewing a home movie... but I dare you to play this video and not sing along:

 

Sonny was kind enough to answer my questions about "Love is All Around" via email:

1 - I've read about how you got word one day that a sitcom needed a theme song, so you came up with one quickly and then went over and played it for the producers, who bought it immediately.  When they recorded the version used for the series, did you just record your voice and guitar or were you also involved in the arrangement with the strings and brass, etc?

Sonny Curtis: My friend Doug Gilmore worked for the Williams/Price Agency, who managed Mary Tyler Moore. He called one day about 11 AM and told me about the plan for a sitcom with Mary. During his lunch break, he dropped off a small synopsis that described Mary's character and what the show was about. I wrote the song in about two hours, called him and said, "who do I sing this to?" He sent me to James L. Brooks, the show's executive producer. I sang him the song and he liked it.

I was not involved in the arrangement. Pat Williams arranged the song and I sang on it at the session.

2 - Why did they tweak the song after the first season?

SC: The lyrics for the first season started with "How Will You Make It On Your Own," etc. After the first season, James L. Brooks called and said, "She's obviously made it, so we need to up date the lyrics." I did a complete rewrite and we recorded it again with a different arrangement, also by Pat Williams. I played the acoustic guitar lick on that version and overdubbed my lead vocal.  

3 - Did your success with "Love is All Around" land you any more theme song work?

SC: I wrote two other TV themes: Szysznyk and Evening Shade. Whether the MTM theme had anything to do with it, I don't know. Although, because I sang the MTM theme, I got a lot of work singing jingles.

4 - If the producers hadn't been interested in the song, what do you think you would have done with it?

SC: I don't know. I guess I would have tried to pitch it to some artist. Without it's exposure on the show, though, I wonder if it would have had commercial value. I guess we'll never know.  

5 - "LIAA" has been covered by everyone from Joan Jett to Sammy Davis, Jr. to Minneapolis' own Husker Du.  Do you have a favorite cover version?

SC: I like them all. One thing, it provided me with the opportunity to meet and hang out with Sammy Davis, Jr. for a while, which I'm proud of. He called and invited me to his palatial hotel suite to go over the song and the music with him. It was a real pleasant experience.

I guess if you pinned me down, I'd have to say Joan Jett's is my favorite.

I actually like the version we did for the show. Not because I sang it, but I think the arrangement is perfect. 

6 - Do you have a theory about why this particular song struck such a chord with viewers and listeners and has endured for all these years?

SC: I think the timing was great. It was sort of at the beginning of Gloria Steinem's feminism movement and I think the show was a touchstone for that period. Mary, Rhoda, Phyllis, Lou, Ted and the rest of the cast were fantastic. It had terrific writers and outstanding production. I think great synergy was created by doing it in front of a live audience.

The show has enormous staying power, thus the song has great staying power. Whatever the reason, I'm very proud that I was fortunate (and lucky) enough to be associated with such a wonderful part of television history. 

7 - What is your favorite television theme song or one you wish you had written?

SC: I'm a great fan of music and I probably shouldn't go down this road. There are so many good ones written by magnificent composers. I'm sure I'll leave out quite a few, but I'll give you an example of some of my favorites. I love the themes from M*A*S*H, Cheers, and the first Bob Newhart Show. And way high on my list is Welcome Back, Kotter , written and performed by one of my all time favorites, John Sebastian of The Lovin’ Spoonful.  

Many thanks to the talented and humble Sonny Curtis for the interview. Check out his official website here.