Roger Smith's Lament, PLUS Some Truly Astonishing Plagiarism

To quote a favorite Mike Thomas single of mine: It's Spring! It's Spring! It's Spring! (I'll eventually fix the post featuring that song - the second one ever in the "song poem of the week" project - when I get to January of 2009)

And today, I have updated another month's worth of old post, this case, those posted EXACTLY eleven years this month, in May of 2010. That month, I posted an EP on Ronnie featuring a quintessential song-poem title, "You Insulted Me", a bit of supper club Rodd Keith, a ridiculous single from the ridiculous Gary Roberts, what appears to be a song-poem acetate, complete with sheet music, and a Halmark record featuring, in what may be a unique recording, Bob Storm in a duet performance.

~~

Before I even get to today's feature, I want to call your attention to, and let you hear some of, a few remarkably contemptuous releases from the very end of the road for Tin Pan Alley records. 

Seven 45's by "The Melodiers" went up for auction on eBay about ten days ago. Lengthy sound clips were shared for each side of each record, although no complete side was included. The Melodiers are a band whose work on Tin Pan Alley I've actually enjoyed to varying degrees, including one release that, despite being about a ridiculous topic, I simply love. 

And four of the seven singles sound pretty much like the Melodiers records I already own or have heard. 

But five of the six tunes on the other three 45's were inexcusable, examples of rank plagiarism several steps beyond anything I'd ever heard on a song-poem - blatant, effort-free rip offs of giant hit records of the past, showing more contempt for the song-poets, and the music industry in general, than I've ever perceived, even in the most redundant Halmark records or tossed-off late MSR record. 

To illustrate this, I thought it was essential to make a copy of the available segments of all five of these sides (and there was a sixth which was almost as obnoxious, which I didn't include), and share them with you as a medley. 

The songs are heard in the following order:

What You Were (Tin Pan Alley 1135)

Ruth Ellen My Darling 

Any Way Out (Above two on Tin Pan Alley 1129)

In Between

He Goes Through Life Every Day (Above two on Pageant 1060 - apparently a spin-off label)

Here's the medley:

Download: The Melodiers - Plagiarism Medley

Play:  

~~

I'll just give you a head's up here. If I come into position of a new-to-me record by Roger Smith, it will show up here within a few days. 

A few days ago, I came to own a new-to-me Roger Smith record, and I'm sharing it here. Surprise, surprise!

This is not Roger Smith in over-the-top, about to go out of control rock and roll. No, this is maudlin Roger Smith ("Acc. by String Band", by the way), offering a lament for love lost to death. But he's just as over the top, offering up about as weepy a performance as you'll ever hear on a song-poem. Please enjoy "(In a Grave) Just Over the Hill", and try not to cry. 

Download: Roger Smith Acc By String Band - (In a Grave) Just Over the Hill

Play:  

That's actually a well enough written song, and played well enough, that I questioned if it was a song-poem, particularly as it's not on a label I've ever seen or heard of before. On the other hand, every other Roger Smith record I've ever seen or heard has quite clearly been a song-poem. And if that's not enough, we have the flip side, which is clearly, oh so clearly, the word of an amateur. An untalented amateur. 

Among my favorite clunky lines in "Why Act So Strange?", are "although our love isn't new/it isn't old" and "you loved me awhile/and you always wore a smile".

Download: Roger Smith Acc By String Band - Why Act So Strange?

Play:

Roger and Ronnie, Margie and Hawaii

First and foremost, Happy Father's Day to all of you fathers out there, and to the fathers of everyone reading this!

Here's my solemn promise to everyone out there - when I obtain a Roger Smith 45, I will always post it here very quickly. Or maybe that doesn't mean much to anyone but me, but I sure do love the barely-in-control vocals on many of his records (at least the upbeat ones). 

Here we have a very early release on the Ronnie label (the first one documented at AS/PMA), dated to early 1961, via a mention in Billboard within a list of records believed to have "limited sales potential". That assessment was no doubt accurate, but I really enjoy one side of the record, "Margie Now", which features some lyrics about the nicknames of a certain young woman. The words seem to assume we will understand what the changes in names indicate about her, but I admit to being clueless about this. But Roger Smith sure sells it, and the pedal steel sounds nice, too. 

There is a some truly awful damage to the record, at the 2:32 point, which is really peculiar, lasting essentially two rotations of the disc, and barely visible at all on the record itself. It plays right through, though. 

Download: Roger Smith: Margie Now

Play:   

I cannot work up much (or any) enthusiasm for the flip side, "Aloha, Miss Hawaii", but it would have been quite topical at the time, given that this record was produced less than 18 months after our 50th state joined the union, and the lyrics are serviceable enough. Like the flip side, this record sounds, to me, very much as if it came from the early days of the Globe song-poem factory. 

Download: Roger Smith: Aloha, Miss Hawaii

Play:   

A Jimmy Drake Rarity On a Tiny Label

Okay, so I'm not going to claim any greatness for today's record, but it is historically important for those of us in song-poem fandom (and I'm definitely in that number) who are fascinated by the story of Singing Jimmy Drake, AKA Nervous Norvus.

And here we have a Jimmy Drake record which is mentioned on the AS/PMA website, but which has not been previously heard by the song-poem faithful. As explained at that site, this record was referenced in an ad, hence its inclusion on (and the very existence of) the Claudra Records page. That it is a song-poem record (since Drake made non-song-poem records as well) was only confirmed by the presence of Roger Smith on the flip side.

So here's the record, "Gambling Fury", in all it's low-fi glory. This record is beat to hell. It sounds like maybe it skips right into the start of the record, but I've tried playing it on a couple of turntables, and manipulating the needle, etc. It seems like it really does start the way that you'll hear it here. There is a skip a few moments later, which I have tried to correct, without success. If I succeed later, I will update the file.

Download: Singing Jimmy Drake - Gambling Fury
Play:

As mentioned, the flip side features Roger Smith. And, for the very first time, I am underwhelmed by a Roger Smith performance. The song, "Golden Yellow Moon" (which seems a redundant phrase to me, by the way) doesn't help. It's pretty uninspired ("Every year has June, that's just for a while" - really?), and the midtempo, vaguely western setting is equally bland - the sax solo seems totally out of place, too. I much prefer my Roger Smith singing in an unhinged fashion, over careening music.

Download: Roger Smith - Golden Yellow Moon
Play:

The Eyes of Santa Claus Are Going Back to New Orleans

Just in time for Christmas, I purchased a Christmas Song-Poem. This one appears on the tiny "Cenla Records" label of Alexandria Louisiana, and the songs are copyrighted in 1961, per a little bit of internet research.

Cenla Records is barely represented within the vast reaches of the internet, mostly just references to this record, and a rockabilly record from 1959 (which has sold for over $150), which can be heard here. They do seem to at least possibly be the same "Cenla Records" - the label numbers both start with "CR", although on the other hand, why wouldn't they, given the name of the label(s)? The 1959 release does not sound like a song-poem record.

This one, however, does. The side I'm featuring first, "The Eyes of Santa Claus Are Watching", by the previously unknown Susan Young, seems like a stereotypical early offering from the Globe song-poem factory. Careful listening will demonstrate that the song only has one verse, and even with that verse sung twice, a guitar solo, and a coda, the record still only lasts 93 seconds.

Download: Susan Young - The Eyes of Santa Claus Are Watching
Play:

On the flip side (and written by the same song-poet), is a real treat, at least in my book, and further proof that this is a song-poem record. Yes, it's the ridiculously over-the-top Roger Smith, here treating to his rendition of "I'm Going Back to New Orleans".

As with the flip side, there is only one verse, repeated twice and separated by a nice solo section, and this time, they manage to fill up a full 95 seconds. The band here is fairly wonderful, and the note(s) that Roger Smith sings at 0:59 should be in the hall of fame. Which Hall of Fame, I'm not sure, but it deserves enshrinement. '

Download: Roger Smith: I'm Going Back to New Orleans
Play:

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone - I'm so glad that I've been able to feature song poems, usually once a week (or at least three times a month) for nine full years now, and plan to start the tenth year in a week or two. Thank you so much for reading and listening.

The Great Roger Smith

Here's a record I've owned for all of about five hours, and I couldn't wait to share it with all of you.

Because today's featured singer is Roger Smith. He primarily recorded on the Air label, but his name turns up on a dozen other, smaller labels; in this case, the tiny "Top Rock" label. The blandest of names masks one of the most unusual singers of song-poems in the field. I have only heard a handful of records he recorded, but have loved every one of them. He had a borderline ridiculous, yet endearing way of selling a song.

The reason I have never featured Roger Smith here is that most of the tracks I own which were released under his name, I own only as MP3's, those graciously gifted to me by fellow collectors. and I have generally not featured records that I don't personally own. And the only Roger Smith record I did own, prior to today, has already been shared on another blog. I see that the post I refer to, now has dead links, so maybe I should share that record, soon, but in the meantime, here's the better of the two sides, posted to Soundcloud. It's one of my favorite records ever.

Today's offering, which doesn't quite match that track for sheer wonderfulness and insanity, is still 100% wonderful. It's called "Same Old Stuff" - a mention in Billboard dates this release to late 1961, but it seems to exist pretty much out of time, a rather peculiar and unique mix of elements of Western Swing, Dixieland and Roller Rink Organ. And if I haven't already made it clear, it's magnificent from start to finish. As if that musical backing wasn't enough to draw me in for multiple listens, Roger Smith again provides a weirdly compelling and inimitable vocal. I love this singer, and I love this record.

Download: Roger Smith, Western String Band - Same Old Stuff
Play:

As much as I've just praised the Roger Smith side of this record, I don't want to neglect the flip side, which is just as wonderful in its own way. It helps that the singer is Cara Stewart (that always helps), but in addition, this is a funny song with some inspired lyrics about the implications of having a lot of kids on one's love life. If I'm taking the lyrics literally, I believe the writer intends us to think the protagonist of the song has 15 children. Cara Stewart does her usual great job of selling the material, and Lee Hudson's group, with that indelible guitar sound, support her nicely.

Download: Cara Stewart, Lee Hudson Orch - Eeny Meeny Miney Mo
Play:

Not that you asked, but an even better song, on a similar subject (at least in the early verses) - and one of my very favorite records ever, is by Jimmie Driftwood, and can be found here.