By Bob Berry

The Colonel.

The nickname might not mean much to you, or, heaven forbid, you might think of Elvis’ manager, Tom Parker.

Songwriter, Producer, lead guitarist for Booker T and the MG’s, one of the great session guitarists. Nickname still might not mean much to you, but it will.

Because when Sam Moore and later, Joliet Jake yell “Play It, Steve”, you know exactly who I’m writing about.

Steve “The Colonel” Cropper.

Who co-wrote “In The Midnight Hour” and “Knock On Wood”. Who produced (co-wrote and played guitar) on Otis Redding’s posthumous Number One Song, “Sittin’ On The Dock Of The Bay“. Who laid down the classic licks on Booker T and The MG’s “Green Onions“, “Hang ‘Em High”. Who, with the MG’s, was part of the house band for the classic Stax Records artists like Eddie Floyd, Wilson Pickett, Carla Thomas, Sam and Dave.

Steve Cropper celebrates his birthday today (10/21). Join  Keener 13 in wishing “The Colonel” Happy Birthday.

And dare we say it? Play It, Steve!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFZ-YXm03r4

By Bob Berry

Plane crashes.

From Buddy, Richie and The Bopper, to Otis Redding, Rick Nelson, Jim Croce, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and so many more, plane crashes have taken too many rock and roll souls.

And on October 20th, 1977, a plane crash near Gillsburg, Mississippi took Lynyrd Skynrd.

Formed in Jacksonville, Florida, named for their high school phys-ed teacher, Leonard Skinner. Scratched and clawed for recognition, wrote some of rock’s great anthems, and became one of the great live bands of all-time.

They beat the odds, sang “Songs about the Southland“, and had a blast doing it. And, having lived in Florida since 1999, I can tell you they are beloved in their home state the way those of us from “The D’ feel about Motown’s stars and Bob Seger.

May the souls lost that day, and of their band mates lost over the years, rest in peace.

By Bob Berry

(Updated 10/19/2015 with the new Star Wars trailer previewed on Monday Night Football, 10/18, below)

I blame most of my affection for the movies  on Detroit’s Bill Kennedy.

The long run (1956-1983) of his “Showtime” show on Channel 9 and  his “Bill Kennedy at the Movies” on Ch. 50, complete with the stars and stories, and Bill’s over-the-top delivery; gave me an appreciation for the movies (and old Warner Brothers films) that continues to this day.

And, so, when LucasFilms unveils the official poster (left) for the new Star Wars film, The Force Awakens, I’m in, I’m geeked and I’m sharing! 🙂

Especially with news that “an exclusive look” at the new film was shown during Monday Night Football tonight (10/19) on ESPN.

10/20 Update: Here it is, if you have followed the previous two trailers, all we know is the visuals are stunning!

Star Wars: The Force Awakens premieres December 18th.

By Bob Berry

Chuck Berry turns the Big 89 today, 10/18.

He’s one of the original Six inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame.

He’s a guitar innovator and a poet, who showed the way for every guitar player who followed. Especially those English chaps, from John, Paul and George to Keith Richards, Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton and the rest of the British Invasion.

His songs are indelibly printed into our collective musical DNA. “Maybellene”, “Roll Over Beethoven”, “School Days”, “Memphis”, “Rock And Roll Music”, “Sweet Little Sixteen”, and (the partly biographical) “Johnny B. Goode“.

As John Lennon said, “If you tried to give rock and roll another name, you might call it ‘Chuck Berry’.”

We’re serving Keener’s Sunday Brunch on the dance floor today, as we honor  a true National Treasure.

Hail, Hail, Chuck Berry!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGblpBpEFNU

By Bob Berry

Funny how checking out one thing can lead to a whole new thing.

Wednesday’s Rolling Stone featured a story and just released audio of “American Trilogy“, coming October 30th in the new Elvis LP, If I Can Dream: Elvis Presley With the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.  It’s one of my favorite Elvis songs, so naturally I checked it out. (two thumbs up, btw)

But it was the next video that led me to the Keener Friday Song. The remix of 1968’s “A Little Less Conversation” by Dutch composer/producer Junkie XL.

Killer tune, killer re-mix.

Originally done for a Nike 2002 World Cup campaign, the video builds with the song, the action and edits coming at you at 128 beats a minute!

Get ready for some seat dancin’, and enjoy the Friday Song on Keener13.com!

By Bob Berry

Keener’s Scotty Regan tells a great story about The Four Tops, and their lead singer Levi Stubbs.

It seems one day Scotty was walking into Motown’s offices on W. Grand Blvd, when he runs into Levi, and asks how he was doing. The answer (which I am paraphrasing) threw him for a loop:

“Man, Holland-Dozier-Holland just had us record our worst song ever. They had me singing like a black Bob Dylan..”. And off Levi steamed.

As it turns out, Levi was wrong, twice. “Reach Out, I’ll Be There” became the Tops’ second Number One single, 49 years ago today, October 12th, 1966.

And he forgot that Levi Stubbs, pushed to imitate Dylan or not, was always, unmistakably, Levi.

I hope you enjoy Throwback Thursday, with “Reach Out” (and Scotty helping out on vocals!) recorded live at The Roostertail for Keener’s Motown Monday. May Levi, Larry and Obie rest in peace, with thanks for the joy they brought us, then and now.

By Bob Berry

Some say the answer to the question is simple: it was your senior year in High School.

So, for me, 1968 works pretty well. “Hey Jude”, “Love is Blue”, “People Got To Be Free”, “Dock Of The Bay”. Great tunes, great memories on instant recall.

Some say the answer is based simply on the significant music released. And on that basis, 1965 is your year.  “In The Midnight Hour”,  “Satisfaction”,  “Like a Rolling Stone”, “My Girl”, “Wooly Bully”, and a couple of albums by The Beatles, Help and Revolver.

But for the sake of discussion, try 1957 on for size. “Wake Up Little Susie”, “Come Go With Me”, “Little Darlin'”, “Party Doll”, “School Days” and “You Send Me”. On the strength of those alone, you got a new soundtrack for American Grafitti!

And there’s one more. One of the singularly iconic songs in the history of rock and roll, a monster that was Number One for 9 weeks, and was on the charts for almost a half a year!

You just knew Elvis was in here somewhere!

By Bob Berry

I have long thought the greatest songs are the ones where just one or two lines can bring back memory, and enable you to sing the entire lyrics.

Think Lennon & McCartney, the Great American Songbook writers, the Brill Building contingent, and Motown’s Smokey Robinson and Holland-Dozier-Holland.

Or think Paul Simon.

“A winter’s day, in  deep and dark December…”.

“When I think back on all the crap I learned in high school..”.

“When you’re weary, feeling small…”.

“And it was late in the evening, and all the music seeping through…”.

“The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls, and tenement halls…”..

Paul Simon’s songs , with Art Garfunkel or as a solo artist, are beautiful poetry. They are highly personal, autobiographical, endlessly romantic, even at their most bitter or cynical. They are also, thinking “At The Zoo”, “You Can Call Me Al”, and, of course, “The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feeling Groovy)”, just plain fun.

Today (10/12), on his birthday, we at Keener13 feel lucky to have enjoyed his great gift.

By Bob Berry

“Blue”.

You probably know him as Melvin Franklin. You may only know of him as the “and the band played on” guy from Motown’s Temptations.

Melvin, who hooked up with Northwester High School classmate Otis Williams to join Otis’ first group The Distants in 1958, was the soul, the fat-bottom, “the glue guy”, the one, who along with Otis, never left Motown’s original and greatest Fab Five.

Until he died, far too young in 1995, of complications from cortisone treatments for arthritis.

Today, 10/12, would have been “Blue’s” 72nd birthday. Put on some of those old Motown Records and listen closely to Melvin’s rich bass voice on these vocal only mixes of The Temptations’ hits, from “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg”, to “My Girl” and yeah, “Papa Was A Rolling Stone“. You might be amazed at what you have never heard before.

But do it after you listen to this stunning mid-song solo. Love you, “Blue”, R.I.P.

By Bob Berry

Deciding what song was on the menu for this week’s Keener Sunday Brunch was an easy choice, and a good excuse to break out the cake and ice cream!

Happy Birthday to one of the great “blue-eyed soul”singers-and survivors,  2014 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Darryl Hall of Hall and Oates.

Survivor? Consider that Darryl and partner John Oates released their first album in 1972, changed labels 3 years later, and finally cracked the Top Ten with “Sara Smile” in 1976. And then kinda went along with a hit or so a year until they exploded in the 80’s, with multi-million selling albums like Voices, H2O and Private Eyes

Great “blue-eyed soul” singer? You bet, just listen to Darryl’s roots in Philadelphia’s soul traditions shine through, be it a ballad like 1974’s  “She’s Gone“, or mid-tempo dance tunes like “Kiss On My List” and “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do“.

Enjoy Keener’s Sunday Brunch with Darryl Hall and John Oates.

By Bob Berry

“If someone thinks that love and peace is a cliche that must have been left behind in the Sixties, that’s his problem. Love and peace are eternal.”-John Lennon

Today would have been John Lennon’s 75th birthday.

We at Keener 13 can think of no greater gift to John’s memory than to honor the spirit of his dream.

Imagine is the Keener 13 Friday Song.

In the words of your old mate Ringo Starr, “Peace and Love”, John.

By Bob Berry

Today, 10/7, is the anniversary of one of the most-controversial moments in World Series history.

It wasn’t a called strike, a play at the plate, or a fan “going Bartman“. In fact, it was during pre-game for Game 5 of the 1968 World Series with the Tigers and the St. Louis Cardinals.

It was Jose Feliciano, appearing at the the personal invitation of Tiger icon Ernie Harwell, singing his very personal interpretation (and instantly controversial) of our National Anthem.

And boy, did it hit the fan!

“Un-American” might have been the most PG thing that was said to describe his singing. And, yeah, it was different, but to my ears then and now, hardly disrespectful. Hardly the lows of Roseanne, or Carl Lewis in later years.

Jose’, who had been on top of the charts with his version of The Doors‘ “Light My Fire”; saw his career among English-speaking audiences fall apart in the aftermath, save for 1970’s “Feliz Navidad“. And, in a nice moment of closure, was cheered when he reprised his performance at Comerica Park in 2010, after Ernie Harwell’s death.

BTW. There is one other “note” to this story. Ernie, who was also a songwriter (with “lots of no-hitters“) had been put in charge of selecting the singers for each of the 3 home games at Tiger Stadium. For Game 4, and with no disrespect to Mr. Feliciano, his National Anthem singer hit a home run!