Brian Wilson gets all the respect and Jan Berry’s been forgotten and I’m gonna try to rectify that right now.

“THE LITTLE OLD LADY (FROM PASADENA)”

Because it’s the one you know.

When I first heard this in the summer of ’64 I had no idea where Pasadena was, but I was enraptured nonetheless.

I can still remember hearing this on the transistor blaring over the pavilion at the beach in Fairfield, Connecticut as I waited for them to deliver my ten cent fries.

She may be the terror of Colorado Boulevard, she may be implored to go, but the magic is in Dean’s harmonies, and the way the song starts with the chorus and soars with the Super Stock Dodge.

Back when what you drove was more important than what was in your pocket, when we were all optimistic, when cynicism had not yet been born and we were all yearning to go to California.

SURF CITY

TWO GIRLS FOR EVERY BOY!

I bought a ’34 wagon and we call it a woodie

And that’s how the term was popularized, that’s the power of popular music.

You know it’s not very cherry, it’s an oldie but a goodie

And there’s another term new here but a cliche now!

And during the chorus you can literally see them on the waves.

Frank Zappa didn’t want us to hear surf music ever again, but that was before surf music itself was forgotten.

This is so inherently joyous that if it was played on the radio today people would stop in their tracks, unable to move, wondering what this alien sound coming out of the speakers was. Yup, it sounds like the soundtrack to a Pixar movie, something so different, yet so exquisitely good, that it’s embraced right away.

BABY TALK

Let’s go back to the beginning, the initial Lou Adler and Herb Alpert production that was a top ten hit, REALLY!

Sounds dated, but that doesn’t mean you won’t love it!

JENNIE LEE

Well, this tribute to a stripper, was really the first, in ’58, but Dean was in the Army and Arnie Ginsburg sat in for him.

LINDA

Yup, Linda Eastman, Paul McCartney’s beloved, written about her when she was all of one year old…

A cover, but Jan & Dean made it their own.

LLLLLLLLINDA!

DEAD MAN’S CURVE

The one! The one that took the deceased teenager trope and jetted it to the stratosphere, killing almost all competitors, as well as the genre itself.

Let’s race all the way to Dead Man’s Curve

There’s no one in Los Angeles who doesn’t reference it. Everybody knows every twist and turn of Sunset Boulevard, L.A.’s most famous drag.

But this was before they straightened it.

I was cruisin’ in my Sting Ray late one night
When an XKE pulled up on the right

And here we are, plunked right down in the midsixties, after a horn intro that immediately enraptures.

The street was deserted late Friday night
We were buggin’ each other while we sat out the light
We both popped the clutch when the light turned green
You should ‘a heard the whine from my screamin’ machine
I flew past La Brea, Schwab’s and Crescent Heights
And all the Jag could see were my six tail lights
He passed me at Doheny then I started to swerve
But I pulled her out and there we were
At Dead Man’s Curve

And if that don’t make you want to move to L.A…

Yup, back when Van Nuys Boulevard used to be gridlocked, when everybody was drivin’ and draggin’.

And there’s ultimately a spoken interlude you’d never be able to get away with today and…

This is a dated masterpiece, definitely of a time, but it’s still just as rewarding as ever.

THE NEW GIRL IN SCHOOL

The flip side to “Dead Man’s Curve,” but a chart hit itself, an infectious ode to the new student in high school, come on, you remember that!

If you don’t sing along with Dean, you ain’t got a voice!

RIDE THE WILD SURF

From the movie starring Fabian, this was the title track.

I owned the album, I just couldn’t get enough, I even went to see that flick, I’VE STILL GOT TO TAKE THAT ONE LAST RIDE!

TELL ‘EM I’M SURFIN’

I played this so much my father used to sing along, and he hated my music!

Yup, nothing equated surfin’…not baseball, not the girl with the pool…just pack Jan a lunch and he’ll be on his way!

SIDEWALK SURFIN’

Grab your board and go sidewalk surfin’ with me!

Yup, once upon a time that’s what it was called, back before polyurethane wheels, when you went around a corner and…slid.

Yup, there was a skateboarding phase in the midsixties that died out before the midseventies technological renaissance and this, a remake of the Beach Boys’ “Catch A Wave,” was the anthem.

I FOUND A GIRL

One of the last chart hits, but still definitely worth a listen.

THE ANAHEIM, AZUSA AND CUCAMONGA SEWING CIRCLE, BOOK REVIEW AND TIMING ASSOCIATION

I knew it because it was the flip side of the “Ride The Wild Surf” single!

I had no idea where these towns were, but I knew I had to get closer to this sound, I had to move to the west coast, I begged my mother, I had to wait to graduate from college, but it was not a moment too soon. People always ask me what made me move to California and I always say the Beach Boys, and that’s true, but it’s Jan & Dean too, I was a fan of theirs first.

THEME FROM THE T.A.M.I SHOW (HERE THEY COME FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD)

Yup, Jan & Dean were the hosts of the live concert movie almost as famous as “Monterey Pop” and “Woodstock,” the one that brought James Brown to a white audience, where he upstaged the Rolling Stones and Felice was part of the audience at the Santa Monica Civic.

But this take is from Jan & Dean’s live album, “Command Performance,” not only my first live disc, but one of my first albums ever, I played it so much the grooves turned grey. I play it now and it sounds like nothing so much as…me.

SURF CITY-LIVE

This is the opening cut on “Command Performance,” and as great as the radio single was, I prefer this, because of the ENERGY!

MORE COMMAND PERFORMANCE

“Dead Man’s Curve,” “Sidewalk Surfin'”, they’re better on “Command Performance,” I’m gonna include the entire LP so you can know what it was like to be little Bobby Lefsetz, alone in his bedroom in a house dominated by females dreaming of a better life in…L.A.

And it IS!

CONCLUSION

For a long time they were forgotten. Then their story was told in a ’78 TV movie, and then they were forgotten again.

You see Jan Berry had an accident himself on Sunset Boulevard, and was never the same.

The act reunited, I went to see them at the Starwood, it was bizarre and creepy but a necessary pilgrimage nonetheless, because they were my heroes.

And Jan Berry was no loser, he had two years of medical school under his belt when he crashed his car.

And Dean Torrence went to USC and ultimately became a graphic designer responsible for the covers of some of your favorite LPs.

But somehow they’ve been forgotten to history, they’re in the rearview mirror.

And Brian Wilson’s deserving of all his accolades, but Jan Berry was no slouch, he too could write and produce. He was a true wunderkind.

And I doubt I’ll be able to convince those who were not there, but if you were, you remember it… When our heroes sang about a life we could all share, out in the elements, having FUN!

Rhinofy-Jan & Dean Prime

It’s staying light so late!

I know, it’s almost Memorial Day. But Memorial Day is no longer the 30th, or was it the 31st? I’m forgetting, it’s been too long since holidays became expedient, Monday affairs so everybody could have a long weekend.

Used to be it was Memorial Day that was hot, Labor Day cooled off.

But not in Los Angeles. I’ve gotten sick on more than one Memorial Day, dressing for hot when it turned out to be cold, shivering in my shorts.

Yes, summer is coming, and I’m not prepared for it. The hot days. Everybody going on vacation. I prefer to work. I want everyone home and paying attention.

But one thing I love is these long days. Although they are confusing me. I sit in front of the computer thinking I’ve got hours left in the day and then I look at the clock and it’s almost over!

It’s getting dark long after 8 in L.A. Long after 9 in Toronto. But it’s only going to last another month, and then the days will be getting shorter again, counting down the hours until Christmas, when we start going in the other direction again.

And when you’re young the world doesn’t spin fast enough.

But when you’re old, you want to slow it down.

I want it to stay light this late for a few months, I want to savor it. The yellow. The brightness. The feeling that life is all about endless possibilities.

And sure it’ll be hot in July and August, but every day will be a bit shorter, it will be depressing.

I can’t help think about growing up, playing baseball, I lived to play baseball, back when you told your mother you’d be home for dinner and walked out the front door to god knows where.

You’d get on your bike, I’d get on my bike and ride to the school where we’d play. Eventually Little League. Which began practice on April 1st and games at the end of the month. Which means you had to start throwing in March, to be ready.

But this was back before the Major League started in March and played until November. The season was over the first week of October and it rarely snowed in April.

And unlike today, we went to school through the middle of June, and never had to return until after Labor Day. Now everything’s sped up, kids are out in May and suddenly August is a school month. As for colleges, it seems they don’t even go to school at all.

And I never want to go back to school. You’re supposed to learn but too few of the teachers are stimulating, especially as you enter higher education. I prefer following my muse, my interests, that’s what I love about the Internet, the ability to dig down deep.

Do kids lie in the backyard and stare at the sky anymore? Marveling how the clouds move?

Do they take their sleeping bags out and look at the stars, and wake up to the sun long before their parents, and go inside and watch cartoons?

Wait, that was before it was a badge of honor to never sleep, when kids arose before parents, before adults boasted that they got up at 4:30, why would you want to get up so early? Don’t you love the night time?

I do. It’s when everything slows down, when the driven wind down and the night owls like me inherit the earth.

So much of my life is lived in the darkness. But not now. It’s like I’m in the bonus round, the recipient of a natural plus that thrills me, that I don’t want to let go of.

But it’s going to evaporate.

And at some point, I won’t even be here.

So I want to savor it. As those younger than me believe they’re going to live forever, but those of us wise enough to know better marvel at the simple things, knowing that possessions are overrated, that a German car is nice, but not necessary, that it’s what you feel inside that counts, because what you show to the outside no one’s looking at.

In my dreams, and they should be Jimmy Page’s too.

I love the fact that Robert Plant refuses to go out, but there’s a huge demand to hear Zeppelin’s music, and Jimmy wants to play. He should go on the road with Pat.

Who?

The guy from Train.

Did you listen to his vocals on the Gregg Allman tribute album?

Deep and resonant, perfectly suited for Jimmy’s work. Furthermore, Pat’s got a history of singing Zeppelin stuff, does it in concert, most famously “Ramble On.”

And the truth is even if Plant went out, he can’t hit the notes. His voice has changed. And Queen keeps going out with different singers to huge demand.

But they call it Queen, and Freddie Mercury was the star.

But Jimmy Page was always as big as Robert Plant. Everybody knew it was Pagey’s band.

So how ’bout it Jimmy?

Don’t say you tried this once before, with the Black Crowes. Timing is everything, in music as it is in tech. And you were just too early.

But now, with Arnel Pineda successfully fronting Journey, and Pat Monahan already having a name, the audience is ready to be dazed and confused.

Don’t be afraid. Look at it like the breakup of the Yardbirds, forming a new band wherein you’re gonna do some of the old material, well, a lot of the old material.

You want to play, you want to go on your victory lap.

Don’t be afraid, you’ll be embraced with open arms (sorry about the Journey pun…)

Jason pounds the skins nearly as well as his dad. John Paul Jones adds the texture. You…execute the riffs, bring out the bow and…

It’d be one thing if you said you were retired, that you had arthritis, that you didn’t want to do this. But the truth is you do.

And the truth is everybody would be disappointed in a Zeppelin reunion, everybody would compare it to what once was. This… Would be a whole new thing, you’d get the benefit of the doubt, there would be love instead of negativity.

Furthermore, first time around sales would be incredible. You’d underplay just a bit, blow people away, and then everybody would come back, with their kids in tow. Come on, if Jason himself can play these songs to throngs, why can’t you?

Call it the New Led Zeppelin! Ha!

Train/Pat Monahan “Ramble On”

1. Never e-mail an MP3.

If you’ve never heard of SoundCloud, why should I bother listening to your MP3, which clutters my inbox, it indicates you’re not savvy enough to know how technology works.

2. No away messages.

Is that really how little your job means to you, that when you’re away from your desk you’re not working? The truth is, you are. And you’re checking your messages. Why do you have to clutter our inboxes with your away messages, which you frequently leave turned on, even though you’re back in your office.

3. Permission marketing.

Seth Godin wrote the definitive statement, read it here:

Permission Marketing

In other words, don’t assume you’re friends with people you’re not. Just because you’ve got someone’s e-mail address, that does not mean they want to hear from you. When you abuse a relationship that does not exist, you tarnish all future conversation/connection, assuming there is any.

4. Assuming everybody knows something.

People are more out of it than ever before, acts that sell out arenas can’t tell you who’s number one on the radio charts. Not only should you inform people what you’re talking about, don’t put them down when they don’t know what you’re talking about.

5. Long e-mail.

I hope you feel good when you write it, because no one reads it. Get to the point, especially when people read on mobile devices.

(And don’t send me snarky responses putting down the length of what I write. You opted in, you’ve gotten this far, if you don’t like it, sign off.)

6. Don’t ask for a retweet/promotion.

You don’t like spam, why do you think the rules don’t apply to your project, why do you think it’s the job of someone with an audience to spread the word? It might even be charity, but do you know how many charitable efforts there are? Furthermore, isolated promotion rarely yields results. And think about the effect on the reputation of the person you’re asking the favor of before you do…ask for the favor. And better to do a favor before asking for one, and a favor is not turning the reader on to your own “great” music.

7. Stop sending CDs.

It makes you feel good, that you’ve done something. But the new Macs don’t even come with a CD drive, where am I gonna play it?

8. Stop inviting people to become part of your LinkedIn network.

I blame the service more than the individuals, because it harvests e-mail addresses, which are currency, but I’m stunned by all the people who want me to be part of their circle who I don’t know, what next, a favor?
I don’t care how many “likes” you’ve got, how many “friends,” this online currency is next to worthless. How much money did you make? How good is what you’re selling?

9. Don’t keep your music off streaming services.

Let me understand this Coldplay and the Black Keys, you want to prevent people from streaming so you can sell a measly 100,000+ albums. Furthermore, all the money’s in concerts. You should be paying people to listen to you! The hardest thing today is to make a new fan/get people to check you out, anywhere music can be played, your stuff should be there. It will be, just like Kid Rock is on Spotify. What advantage does AC/DC have not being on digital services? This ship has sailed, almost no one listens to an album straight through, that died with vinyl and the cassette, and you’re ultimately gonna be on the service anyway. What, you want a first week sales pop to influence retailers? What retailers? As for the media…the publishing of streaming statistics as opposed to SoundScan is only a motion away. Either you’re part of the problem or you’re part of the solution, and now even Spotify is being proactive, by posting on its service that you refuse to play.

10. No advance streams.

These make no sense. Get paid if people are listening, to try and drive sales of CDs and files via streaming previews is inane.

11. Eliminate the service fees.

Go to all-in ticketing. The present system of add-ons is fan abuse.

12. Allow everybody to buy tickets at the same time.

Oh, this will never happen, you love those fan club and AmEx fees.

13. Don’t forward something you like but the recipient won’t.

This is what is wrong with web recommendations, they don’t take into account the person receiving them.

14. Don’t think being good is good enough.

Making it is so much more than that.

15. Don’t put down those who’ve made it.

That’s so last century. I get it, you’re better, they’re untalented doofuses.
Instead of decrying their success, figure out how they got there, what made them successful. The truth is they’re smarter and more realistic than you. You might even be talented, but when it comes to business and personal relationships, you may be dumb.

16. Don’t add me to your mailing list.

I don’t care if it’s opt-out. And do you know how many of these get caught by spam filters anyway?
Ask first.
And you know what the answer is…NO!

(Start with your friends, who actually know and care about you. If you’re good, they’ll tell their friends, and some of them will eventually be friends/trusted filters of mine, and I’ll hear about it that way.)

17. Stop tweeting unless you’re famous.

No one is reading it.

(That’s why I stopped, and I’ve got 60,000 followers, but I’m not famous!)