I know a lot of you have heard me talk about Bill Dees. Bill is a true original, one-of-a-kind piece of Rock and Roll history. He is best known for his work as a co-writer with Roy Orbison on big songs like “It’s Over” and “Oh, Pretty Woman”. His songs have been recorded by the likes of Loretta Lynn, Johnny Cash, Mac Wiseman and The Germs. No kidding, The Germs.
I have known Bill for about 10 years or so. We have written songs together and I played on and co-produced (with Lou Whitney) his first two releases (“Saturday Night At The Movies” and “Castin’ My Spell”) as well as this forthcoming record entitled, “Where Does The Time Go”.
Bill has asked me to do some writing for his new website including a bio and weekly updates. As of now the site is up live.
Also, for a limited time, the site is offering a free download of a track from the new record. The song, “Billie Sol”, is one that I wrote with Bill by the way.
So, go on over and check out Bill Dees.
O.K., if you have been around here for any length of time, you have heard me talk about Bill Dees before. And, you may remember that he has a record, that Lou Whitney and I produced, that will be coming out in the near future.
Back in the ’50s, Bill was in a group called The Five Bops. They recorded two songs for the legendary Norman Petty in 1957 (I think that is the correct year.). One of the tunes “Jitterbuggin’”, written by H.F. Ritchie, got a bit of regional airplay and, on the strength of that, the Bops opened a few shows for Bill’s future songwriting partner, Roy Orbison.
The record is rare and, to some, sought after. Bill said he saw a copy for sale at a used record store in London, during the ’80s, and it was priced at 80 pounds.
You never know what you are going to find on the web. I just did a search for The Five Bops and found this site, LoneStarStomp, where you can listen to “Jitterbuggin’”. And also, this photo.
That’s Bill standing on the right. I’m going to have to ask Bill who the extra Bop is.
Anyway, go over and listen to “Jitterbuggin’” and check out the ending, which is real similar to the main riff from “Tequila” by The Champs. “Tequila” came out in ‘58 so, it makes you wonder if one of those guys heard the Bops record. The lick on “Jitterbuggin’” is played by Tommy Allsup but, Bill tells me that H.F. came up with the idea and that they had been playing it long before they ever got to the studio.
By the way, the author of LoneStarStomp goes by the name of WesTex and has another very interesting site called Diggin’ It!!!; seems to be a very knowledgeable source for early rock and roll.
Old Neil Young just keeps getting the press coverage. From Reuters.
An East Carolina University biologist, Jason Bond, discovered a new species of trapdoor spider and opted to call the arachnid after his favorite musician, Canadian Neil Young, naming it Myrmekiaphila neilyoungi.
Bond discovered the new spider species in Jefferson County, Alabama, in 2007. He said spiders in the trapdoor genus, who tend to live in burrows and build trap doors to seal off their living quarters, are distinguished from one species to the next on the basis of differences in genitalia.
Don’t know if I would feel comfortable with the genitalia evaluation in all of this, if I were Mr. Young but, I guess you take what you get on that sort of thing. I someone is gracious enough to name a trapdoor spider after you, you should be polite and take it as a compliment.
Anyway, this trapdoor spider business is sure to cause some rumbling over at Friday Night Cage Match/Fondue Party/Evolving Conversation/Dancing About Architecture Vol.8. This thing isn’t over folks and feel free to weigh in or change your answers(s) now that this new information has come to light.
By the way, this isn’t the first time a species has been named for a musician.
A species of beetle that looks as if it is wearing a tuxedo — the whirligig beetle, or Orectochilus orbisonorum — was named earlier this year after the late rock ‘n’ roll legend Roy Orbison and his widow Barbara.
How in the world I missed this news is beyond me as I am in frequent correspondence with many of the foremost Roy Orbison fans. What up with that people?
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