Mountain View
Frank Mastropolo
Talking Heads Found Their Voice on New York's Lower East Side
‘New York Groove: An Inside Look at the Stars, Shows, and Songs That Make NYC Rock’ Book Excerpt. The core members of Talking Heads — singer-songwriter and guitarist David Byrne, drummer Chris Franz, and bassist Tina Weymouth — met at the Rhode Island School of Design. Guitarist and keyboardist Jerry Harrison joined in 1977. The band pioneered new wave music in early performances at CBGB and Max’s Kansas City.
'It Was Just a Jammin’ Time': Musicians Recall Late Night Jams at Fillmore East
'Fillmore East: The Venue That Changed Rock Music Forever’ Book Excerpt. Steve Miller, Steve Miller Band: Shows could run until four in the morning. You could stay up all night. And there were a lot of jams that I would go to that that would be exactly the case. The cream of the crop of the world would be passing through town and would come by and play. It would not be unexpected to have Hendrix come in and play or Jeff Beck or any one of the really great, great guitar players or see Cannonball Adderley come in and play.
'It Overwhelmed Me': Bob Dylan on 'All Along the Watchtower' by Jimi Hendrix
‘200 Greatest 60s Rock Songs Vol. 2’ Book Excerpt. Bob Dylan recorded “All Along the Watchtower” in Nashville for his 1967 LP John Wesley Harding. The song was released as a single but failed to chart. Dylan, who played acoustic guitar and harmonica, was accompanied by Charlie McCoy on bass and Kenneth Buttrey on drums.
'My Old School' Taught Steely Dan a Lesson
Steely Dan’s Donald Fagen and Walter Becker met at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, NY, the site of 1973’s “My Old School.” The tune was included on Steely Dan’s 1973 LP Countdown to Ecstasy. The song only reached №63 but is a fan favorite. Its lyrics describe their arrest, along with Fagen’s girlfriend Dorothy White, in a marijuana raid.
There Really Was a Crazy Chester
The Band was made up of talented multi-instrumentalists and vocalists: four Canadians, Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Garth Hudson and Richard Manuel, and Levon Helm from Turkey Scratch, Arkansas. Its members met in Canada as part of Ronnie Hawkins’ band, the Hawks.
What Went On Under the Stage at Fillmore East
‘Fillmore East: The Venue That Changed Rock Music Forever’ Book Excerpt. Before he became an acclaimed television and film director, Allan Arkush was a member of the stage crew and later joined Joe’s Lights at Fillmore East. In this excerpt from Fillmore East: The Venue That Changed Rock Music Forever, Arkush recalls the area of the New York City concert hall favored by Ron “Pigpen” McKernan, singer and keyboardist of the Grateful Dead.
'The Laughter Just About Tore the Roof Off': Johnny Cash's 'A Boy Named Sue'
‘200 Greatest 60s Rock Songs Vol. 2’ Book Excerpt. “A Boy Named Sue” was Johnny Cash’s highest charting single, reaching №2 in 1969. The tune was written by humorist Shel Silverstein. “A Boy Named Sue” was recorded live at San Quentin Prison in February 1969 and appeared on Cash’s At San Quentin album.
Paul Simon's 'Mother and Child Reunion' Was Cooked Up at a Chinatown Restaurant
‘New York Groove: An Inside Look at the Stars, Shows, and Songs That Make NYC Rock’ Book Excerpt. Chef Shorty Tang opened Say Eng Lok at 1 East Broadway in New York’s Chinatown in the late 1960s. Say Eng Lok translates as 4–5–6, a mahjong hand. Like many Chinese restaurants of the era, its menu items were given poetic names. Tang served a Sichuan chicken and egg dish named “Mother and Child Reunion.”
Seinfeld's Coffee Shop Serves Up a Hit Record
‘New York Groove: An Inside Look at the Stars, Shows, and Songs That Make NYC Rock’ Book Excerpt. Singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega recorded “Tom’s Diner” for her 1987 album Solitude Standing. Vega wrote in the New York Times that the song’s title refers to a New York coffee shop better known for its use as the exterior of Monk’s Diner on the sitcom Seinfeld. “When I was at Barnard College in Manhattan, I used to go to Tom’s Restaurant for coffee, and after I graduated I also ate there before going to work. It was then a cheap, greasy place on 112th and Broadway, and it still is, in spite of its celebrity.
George Thorogood Rocks a Country Classic With 'Move It On Over'
“Move It On Over” was written and first recorded by country singer Hank Williams in 1947. Some music critics consider it one of the earliest rock and roll records. “Move It On Over” has been described as a novelty song but Williams’ fiddler Jerry Rivers disputed this in The Billboard Book of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944–2006. Rivers said Williams’ songs ”weren’t novelty — they were serious, not silly, and that’s why they were much better accepted and better selling. ‘Move It On Over’ hits right home, ’cause half of the people he was singing to were in the doghouse with the ol’ lady.”
Mountain's 'Mississippi Queen' Delivers an Avalanche of Sound
Mountain — singer-guitarist Leslie West, bassist and producer Felix Pappalardi, and drummer Corky Laing — formed in 1969. Mountain’s “Mississippi Queen” is the band’s biggest hit, reaching №21 in 1970. West told Music Aficionado that Laing came up with the inspiration for the lyrics.
Tracing Bob Dylan's NYC Roots: White Horse Tavern, Webster Hall & the Folklore Center
‘New York Groove: An Inside Look at the Stars, Shows, and Songs That Make NYC Rock’ Book Excerpt. A Complete Unknown, a film that follows the dawn of Bob Dylan’s career after the 19-year-old Minnesotan arrived in New York City, is now being filmed around town. In an excerpt from the book New York Groove: An Inside Look at the Stars, Shows, and Songs That Make NYC Rock, we look back at some of Dylan's memorable downtown spots.
Arlo Guthrie's 'Coming Into Los Angeles' Is a Trip
As Arlo Guthrie returned on a flight home to Los Angeles from London in the mid-’60s, he discovered that his friends had slipped a small amount of drugs into his gifts. Guthrie’s fear of getting busted by US Customs inspired the song “Coming Into Los Angeles.” Guthrie admits that his lyric “Coming into Los Angeles / Bringing in a couple of keys” exaggerated the size of his stash.
The Stories Behind These Great Songs Named After Women
“When I eventually met Mr. Right I had no idea that his first name was Always.” — Rita Rudner. “Come On Eileen” was a monster hit for Dexys Midnight Runners in 1982, reaching №1 in the US and seven other countries. The band was on the verge of breaking up early in the year, singer Kevin Rowland told Spin. “A good few in the band were starting to give up on the dream.
Tracing Bob Dylan’s NYC Roots: Caffe Reggio & The Bitter End
A Complete Unknown, a film that follows the dawn of Bob Dylan’s career after the 19-year-old Minnesotan arrived in New York City, is now being filmed around town. In an excerpt from the book New York Groove: An Inside Look at the Stars, Shows, and Songs That Make NYC Rock, we look back at one of the Greenwich Village spots where Dylan performed.
What You Didn't Know About Bluesman Albert King at Fillmore East
‘Fillmore East: The Venue That Changed Rock Music’ Book Excerpt. Guitarist Larry Packer first performed at Fillmore East as a member of Cat Mother & the All Night Newsboys. As a member of Sha Na Na, Packer performed a wild guitar solo on “Welcome to Fillmore East,” an all-star show recorded by PBS on Sept. 23, 1970. Other performers included the Byrds, the Allman Brothers, Van Morrison, and blues legend Albert King.
'This Is My Living Room': A Look Back at NYC's De Robertis Caffé
Easter Sunday was one of the busiest days at De Robertis Caffé in New York’s East Village. This story was published Nov. 24, 2014 on the announcement that the beloved Italian pastry shop would close after more than a century of service.
'The Sight of Her Raised My Blood Pressure': The Inspiration for the Hollies' 'Carrie Anne'
“Carrie Anne” was a 1967 Top 10 hit for British Invasion band the Hollies. The tune was written by bandmates Allan Clarke, Tony Hicks, and Graham Nash. In his autobiography Wild Tales, Nash explains that the song was first titled “Hey Mr. Man.”
Tracing Bob Dylan's NYC Roots: Washington Square Park
A Complete Unknown, a film that follows the dawn of Bob Dylan’s career after the 19-year-old Minnesotan arrived in New York City, is now being filmed around town. In an excerpt from the book New York Groove: An Inside Look at the Stars, Shows, and Songs That Make NYC Rock, we look back at one of Dylan’s favorite spots to perform: Washington Square Park.
Frank Mastropolo
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Visit www.edgarstreetbooks.com for more information about our latest projects chronicling the history of rock and roll! Frank Mastropolo is the author of a best-selling series of books on music and New York City history that are multiple winners of the Independent Publishers Book Awards. Mastropolo is a former ABC News 20/20 writer and producer, winner of the Alfred I. DuPont–Columbia University silver baton and the Sigma Delta Chi award from the Society of Professional Journalists. His rock concert photography is licensed by Getty Images and featured in the Bill Graham Rock & Roll Revolution exhibition.
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