Monday, March 26, 2018

Rockin' Rod and Big Jo



 
Today, a very special number from our friends at Air Records. Air seems to have been a community war-horse for the song-poem factories. I don't really understand how this worked, but material from multiple companies - including at least four or five of the large ones - ended up being released on Air, as often as not with two different companies' product showing up on the two sides of the single.
 
On one side of this record, we have Rodd Keith, not just in his Film City guise as Rod Rogers, but in this case as "Rockin' Rod Rogers", which sounds much more exciting. And a lovely example of his work it is, too. The sad saga about Rod's lost love, "Big Jo", lopes along over a thick Chamberlin arrangement, complete with a sweet, if simple, solo.
 
Play:
 
On the flip side is a song by Nancy Sherman. She pops up here and there on about a half-dozen song-poem singles, all on the smaller labels, aside from Air. I featured her once before, on a much better track than this one. This track "I Believe You", sounds like it might have come from the Globe song-poem factory, but I'm really not sure. It's fairly non-descript, except for the bridges, where it briefly crosses over into torch song territory.
 
Play:

 

2 comments:

Stu Shea said...

You really get a sense of Rod's big-band proclivities from the Chamberlain arrangement on "Big Jo." Thanks for posting!!

Timmy said...

Both sides are a world apart, but they are also both in the same universe... That being the universe of Great Schmalkiness..... THANX!