Sunday Short Sets Celebrating the 2022 Birthday of Michael Z Gordon, Jan Berry, Johnny Burnette, David Robinson, and Hugh Masekela

by Robert Wilkinson

Today we celebrate some Aries greats who each left their mark on pop music in some way. Some of these you’ve heard of, while others made music you heard a long time ago!

Our first short set features the ginormous one hit wonder written by Michael Z Gordon (April 4, 1941), originally recorded by the Michael with his band the Marketts. For your remembrance, the iconic 1963 smash hit, “Out of Limits”

His first hit was this easy 1961 jazzy stroll titled “Surfer’s Stomp”

Here’s his 1962 hit tune with his group The Routers, “Let’s Go”

TV viewers will remember this hit by the Marketts! “Batman Theme”

He scored big with this hit he wrote for Ed Ames, “Apologize”

We’ll close this short set with another of his tunes made huge by the Roosters, one of the obscure great tunes of early pop psychedelia with phase shifting and more! "Love Machine"

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Born a day earlier than Michael Z, our next short set features the music of Jan Berry (April 3, 1941 – March 26, 2004), one half of the pioneering surf music icons Jan and Dean. Jan was a brilliant producer and integral to creating the entire “surf music” culture of Southern California. He collaborated extensively with Brian Wilson, and contributed a lot to Brian’s production style, even as the Beach Boys did a lot of backing vocals for Jan and Dean. So let’s hit the waves, and shoot the curl through the pipeline!

Written by Brian Wilson, their #1 hit that got the surf craze moving! “Surf City” Here’s a live performance on tv in 1963! Lousy video and audio, but it is history. “Surf City”

They also were part of the hot rod SoCal craze! Here’s the one that took off in late 1963 and made it to #10 on the charts! “Drag City”

Live at the TAMI Show in 1964, “The Little Old Lady From Pasadena” and “Sidewalk Surfin’”

Another obscure hotrod fave! “Anaheim, Azuza & Cucamonga Sewing Circle Book Review and Timing Association”

Some backstory. Jan and Dean met when they were both in junior high, and sang together for years. Then Dean was drafted into the Army National Guard, and while he was gone, Jan hit big with this tune celebrating a famous stripper! Here’s his first release from June 1958 of the raucous #4 R&B gem “Jenny Lee.” Jan followed that quickly with his second single released in August 1958, where you can hear several elements of proto-surf music. “Gas Money”

After Dean got out of the Army, Jan and Dean got a production deal with Herb Alpert and Lou Adler, and released this #10 hit in May 1959. Here’s a “live” performance in 1959 on Dick Clark’s show of “Baby Talk.”

He wrote this top 30 hit for the Ripchords, who were actually Terry Melcher (a huge producer in the 60s) and Bruce Johnston (later a mainstay of the Beach Boys). Hot rods and surfin’ in 1963 was definitely a bicoastal cultural phenomenon! “Three Window Coupe.”

He hung with Brian Wilson, and between the two of them they scored an outrageous number of hits, including all of the hits linked above. Then Jan got in a car wreck and everything ended not long after this became a HUGE hit. From 1964, the prescient "Dead Man's Curve."

We’ll close this with their last hit written by Jan, Brian Wilson, and Roger Christian which went to #16, the title track of the movie of the same name, “Ride the Wild Surf.”

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Our next set features the music of a tragic figure in early rock and roll, Johnny Burnette (March 25, 1934 – August 14, 1964). With his brother Dorsey and Paul Burlison, they were “The Rock and Roll Trio,” one of the biggest of the early rockabilly rock and roll age. He died tragically at a young age, and his music is legend.

Here’s his first hit which went to #11 on the charts in 1960, “Dreamin’”

He followed that later in the year with his biggest hit, one that played on a thousand dance floors! From what looks to be the same show as the previous live performance, Johnny doing “You’re Sixteen”

The next year he had a hit which went to #17, “Little Boy Sad”

He and his brother also wrote songs which Ricky Nelson turned into hits, including "Believe What You Say", "It's Late", and "Just a Little Too Much"

Here’s Ricky’s version of Johnny’s tune "Waitin' in School"

Johnny also co-wrote this classic! “Lonesome Tears In My Eyes,” and here’s the early Beatles’ Live at the BBC cover of “Lonesome Tears In My Eyes”

We’ll finish this with another of his tunes that became a rock and roll classic, performed by some well known A list acts! “The Train Kept A-Rollin’”

Our encore features the Yardbirds live at the NME cranking out their driving version of “The Train Kept A-Rollin’”

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Celebrating another Aries birthday, David Robinson (April 2, 1949) was drummer for the Cars, the Rising Tide, the Modern Lovers, the Pop!, and DMZ. Today we’ll focus on his work with the Cars, and rather than reinvent the wheel, you can get all the Cars you want by going to the Happy 2022 Birthday of Ric Ocasek

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Before we close with the legendary Hugh Masekela, we'll give a brief nod to an obscure but great English songwriter. Edwin Thomas Astley (12 April 1922 - 19 May 1998) was a British composer who wrote television music, most notably the theme to The Saint, and Danger Man. I remember thinking the music from The Saint was every bit as cool as the theme from The Pink Panther by Henry Mancini. If you haven't heard it, here's the Theme From The Saint. I also found this, which sounds very "1960" British, a la the Miss Marple movie scores. Theme From Danger Man. And this clip gives three different themes for Danger Man/Secret Agent Man, which are great! Danger Man Theme Music

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We also celebrate the birthday of the legendary Hugh Masekela (4 April 1939 – 23 January 2018), the “Father of South African jazz”, master trumpeter and global social conscience. A pioneer of what later was called "world beat," he, along with his wife Miriam Makeba, were THE leading anti-aparteid voices of the 60s and 70s. I first heard his music via the legendary Summer of Love Monterey Pop Festival, and as Burdon sang, "his music was black as night."

From this fearless musician living most of his life in exile, here are several to blow your mind! First, from Monterey Pop, the jaw dropping "Bajabula Bonke (Healing Song)."

He had a #1 chart topper in 1968, the very upbeat "Grazing in the Grass,"

Live in concert with Sibongile Khumalo, “District 6”

Live in 2012, “Chileshe”

From 2013, 11+ minutes of great live jazz called “Market Place”

From 1965, a very early live album, The Lasting Impressions of Ooga Booga Live at the Village Gate.

For our closer, 14 minutes of smooth jazz! Hugh Masekela live in Berlin - 2014

For our encore, an hour and a half live in Lugano! Hugh Masekela Live in Lugano 2009. RIP Papa Africa.

Copyright © 2022 Robert Wilkinson

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