ROCKOLLECTIONS: 1967 AND THE SUMMER OF LOVE PT.4 - MY LAST SHOW AT WLSO

I MUST RELUCTANTLY INFORM YOU THAT THIS IS MY FINAL SHOW AT WLSO.FM!

Moving along with our look at 1967 and The Summer Of Love, not to mention a long look at that cute blonde pictured here, lol!
One of many musical lessons I learned that year was that songs could be Poetry.
They could bring an economical use of words to paint pictures in your mind, regarding the standard topics of the day, as well as venturing into new musical subjects and territory.
1967 was one astoundingly exciting year for music!
So to open this chapter, a listen to just a few of those more literate offerings (with more to come as we move along in the series).
Songs that could read as Poetry on the written page…even without Music!
Which of course is not to say that there are not beautiful melodies attached to them.
After that stop along the way, I’ll play a LONG song that I venture most people haven’t heard, as it never gets played today.
In fact, it never got played much back then- Scott Muni on WNEW-FM was the ONLY DJ I ever heard play it!
If you have heard it before, it will undoubtedly bring back a memory…hopefully a fun one.
But you may have forgotten all about it- and I mean its very existence.
It is a song with a very strange story about a nightmare train ride, complete with a surprise ending that has always amused me.
Frankly, I can’t think of another song that, for me, ends with a punch line, lol!
I am talking about The Endless Tunnel by a group called Serpent Power, with its electric banjo…HUH?…and psychedelic, anything-goes experimental sound.
It was very much a product of its time, that burgeoning Brave New World Of Music coming at us from all angles in 1967!

AGAIN, THIS IS MY FINAL SHOW HERE AT WLSO.FM!

Enjoy this last one, until July 20th, when I will expire and it will be REMOVED, along with ALL my archived shows going back to 2006.
I’ll let the owner explain why this is happening, if he wants to.
I’ll have a NEW address at Podomatic.com from now on, but unfortunately when I put a show up there, I have to take one down.
So you will only have about six weeks to listen to a show at this other place, then it goes away…dissolving into space.
I would love it if you would all come along with me to the new address, I truly hope you do, as I have some great new, exciting and unique ideas for presenting our music in different ways.
So this Rockollections weekly venture will not a change in the slightest, not a bit!
It will just have moved.
But I must sadly acknowledge that with change, some listeners are always lost along the way.
It has been real nice visiting with you for all these years- invited into your homes, onto your computers, phones, MP3 players, etc.
I thank you for that with all my heart.

Here's the link for one final time, and only good for a matter of days...maybe, at WLSO.FM:

http://wlso.fm/wordpress/archives/2311

And here is that new, odd-looking link to Rockollections at Podomatic that will last longer, and I will be using from now on:

http://radiopell.podomatic.com/entry/2012-07-11T22_17_01-07_00

See you at the new hangout!

Mike

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Comment by Mike Pell on July 19, 2012 at 7:59pm: RJ,

Good riddance to bad rubbish eh, lol?

You were gonna get more into Richie Havens weren't you?
Seems you like him.

I think he got beat out in the last 12 1/2 minutes, lol!

That Endless Tunnel by Serpent Power is just a fantastic song, but I never played it because I thought it was too long and nobody would know it anyway.

And that ending always makes me laugh!

Regarding your notes, I agree, very Doors- and that electric banjo just adds a unique element to it.

Mid-Eastern...yeah I can hear that.

And it naturally follows that since I played it last week, you would hear it this week, lol!

Is this Jon in disguise?

Excellent choice, and mine too, the Golden Pell to Serpent Power.

Only competition for me was Eric Andersen and the first Donovan track, but all good songs in this episode.

In my humble opinion.

Thanks for listening and writing...and hey, I thought my wearing an MIA bracelet for you was damn funny, lol,

Mike

Comment by RJhog (Admin) on July 18, 2012 at 2:26pm: Good riddance to WLSO. Hello Podomatic!

Another nice group of tunes. I thought that Eric Anderson song that you love so much was nice as well as that first Donovan track. I really liked the Richie Havens tune, so much so that it was gonna be the GP winner, but it got beat out at the last minute...or should I say the last 10 minutes?

The Endless Tunnell by Serpent Power was so cool. Here's some notes I made about it as it was playing...and playing...and playing:

...Very Doors"esque".

...Had some bluegrass moments (probably b/c of the electric banjo)

...Had some Mid-Eastern moments towards the end.

...You played it last week, I heard it this week (that, of course, is because they recorded it in 66 on one coast and it wasn't available on the other coast 'til 67, or something like that).

...Golden Pell to Serpent Power.

Comment by Mike Pell on July 14, 2012 at 5:08pm: Could happen after a bachelor party!

Ashamed to say I have been part of putting drunk, soon-to-be-married guys on buses and trains to faraway places while they were passed out!

Gee, I hope God doesn't remember that, lol!

You CAN be on Amtrak and not know where you are going...or how you got on to begin with.

Comment by Jon on July 14, 2012 at 2:37pm: If I'm on an Amtrak and don't know where I'm going....well, we'll leave it at that!

Comment by Mike Pell on July 14, 2012 at 1:10pm: You MISSED the fat ladies, lol?

The song seems to be so little-know I couldn't google any lyrics for them.

It's not a 60's thing, and that was it, just as funny to me today as ever.

I mean imagine you are on Amtrak and you don't know where you're going.

You ask the engineer and he says "I don't know...I'm just following the tracks!"

You'd go nuts and say, Hell I KNOW THAT! But to WHERE, LOL!

You are indeed a character, lol!

Comment by Jon on July 13, 2012 at 6:56am: I thought the birds HAD pecked out his eyes. And missed the fat ladies.

But, that was IT? That was the joke? I don't get it. Must be a 60's thing.

Comment by Mike Pell on July 13, 2012 at 12:53am: Jon,

The punchline is that after 13 minutes of the song, with him asking the conductor "Where are going?", and us wondering too, he gets to the Engineer driving the train, asks him the same question, (gonna ruin the joke for everybody now), and the guy says, "I don't know...I'm JUST FOLLOWING THE TRACKS"

Goddam BRILLIANT!

And he says earlier the bird TRIED to peck out his eyes!

How about the platoon of fat ladies wanting to have sex with him on the train, as he's trying to get past them?

Goddam BRILLIANT, LOL!

I'll scream...DO YOU HAVE THE PUNCHLINE NOW?...NOW THAT YOU'VE RUINED IT FOR EVERYONE WHO HASN'T HEARD IT?

I rest my case, lol!

Mike

Comment by Jon on July 12, 2012 at 5:11pm: So what the hell was the punchline in that Serpent Power song? I listened to the end of it a couple times and still can't get it BUT...IF HE HAS NO FRIGGIN' EYES, HOW CAN HE GET WHERE HE'S GOING??????????

A bird pecked out his damn eyes, he said so!

Pretty cool song though, kinda reminded me of the Doors a bit. BUT STILL...WHAT'S THE PUNCHLINE???

Ok, I scream no more.