Florne Nesmith on Sterling

 

Vocal Florne Nesmith / Dale Brooks · Melody Aces

CP-2444 - I Cried A Tear
CP-2445 - Stupid Cupid      

Sterling S-199

1959

The Best Of The Unknown Songwriters (Grand Recording Co.)

(no artist named) -- Sounds Of Music:  "The Best Of The Unknown Songwriters"

Side one - 28349
I'll Follow Along Behind You (Dallas Green)
You Got To Be A Habit With Me (Herschel E. Guy)
Yours With All My Love (Eleanor McKissick)
Break Bread With Your Brothers (Herschell E. Guy)
Our Flag (Victor D. Harris)
A Lonely Man (Robert E. Whitehead)

Side Two - 28350
The Jolly Jolly Life (Ellsworth J. Leach)
Heal My Soul (Martin Blackwell)
Denied The Claim (Loretta Keseric)
All Wrong (Julia P. Pruett)
Someone I Used To Know (R. A. Harrison)
Wake Up The Daisies (Frances E. Lowe)

Grand Recording Co., 1354 Hancock St., Quincy, Mass.  One of the several song poem companies owned by Ted Rosen. 

In running his Halmark label as a perverse parody of a legitimate record company, Ted Rosen went beyond the constrained thinking of other song-poem entrepreneurs. Lesser minds in similar positions sought to foster the illusion of legitimacy via the inclusion of, at minimum, the recording artist's name amid the printed information on their labels. But Rosen ignored such trifling conventions, reserving the space instead for the listing of the song-poet's home address, an appeal to vanity one step beyond that of his competitors. You might equally think that a company that operated entirely through the mails might prefer to publish its own postal address on the labels. Bah! There again, Ted Rosen scoffed.

...more American Song-Poem Archives

Popular Electronics ad, July 1973

A reader of the Asbury Park Press (New Jersey) asked for some advice in 1974 regarding songs he had written:

I have written some songs which I hope to sell. Can you give me any advice on having them recorded for sale? What about companies which offer to help songwriters? J.D., Brick Township 

 And here was the answer:

The odds against the nonprofessional who hopes to successfully sell songs are immense. It's like having the insurance salesman who Hives next door fill your tooth it can be a painful and unhappy experience. Talent Inc., North Quincy, Mass., is one company which has advertised that it can help songwriters. It has conducted an extensive business with hopeful songwriters by mail. The company has admitted to a long list of misrepresentations cited in a Federal Trade Commission complaint.   Understanding those misrepresentations, may guide you in any future dealings.   First. Talent Inc. failed to tell those with whom it contracted that the company has never produced or recorded a song for a customer that earned any royalties.   The company misrepresented its size and earned employes used pseudonyms so that it appeared there were more employes than there actually were.   In misrepresenting its size and ability to help the company also used the names Grand Recording Co., Cathedral Recording Co., Chapel Recording Co., Country and Western Recording Co., Music Hall Recording Co., and Meloday Lane.   The company and its principals misrepresented that songs were "evaluated" and that some were not accepted; that songs recorded would be released by record companies and that songwriters could expect to earn royalties. Talent Inc. misrepresented that it maintained a copyright service and that writers should copyright their work. The company misrepresented that it charged only minimum or special prices, and falsely claimed it had songwriters to write music for customers' lyrics and that its employes consulted with vocalists, vocalists groups, and background orchestras. Customers were not told, according to the FTC complaint, that when their songs were recorded the background music was "pre-recorded" and was not provided by a live orchestra. Customers were falsely encouraged to believe that radio stations might be interested in playing records made by Talent Inc.   The FTC complaint says the records made were hand cut and were unsuitable for use in commercial promotion. Customers were also encouraged to buy various "services" sold by Talent Inc. in the mistaken belief that these services could help promote their records. To sum up, since no one earned royalties, it's clear that the only ones helped by Talent Inc. were its owners. Be cautious in dealing with any company offering to help sell your songs. The misrepresentations mentioned above are common to other companies.

Asbury Park Press from Asbury Park, New Jersey · May 22, 1974 .Page 40

Norman Burns (Sterling 524)

Norman Burns And Singers

27287 -  Friendship
Virginia Wiech And Lew Tobin

27288 - Is It Wrong
Isaac Mandel And Lew Tobin

Arranger Art Kempel

Sterling 524


From http://bobpurse.blogspot.fr/2016/07/he-dont-wanna-be-right.html

The Personals

The Personals

14635 - Dance All Night
14636 - To Be One

Personal 1001

16363 - Don't Say You Love Me
16364 -  To-Morrow
Personal no #
Hills Sound Service, Worcester, Mass.

A four man rock and roll band from the central Massachusetts area. Group members Mike Gribauskas and John Barton. "Dance All Night" was heard locally on radio stations WORC-AM and WAAB-AM.


Label shots : The Basement Walls
Audio file : YouTube (Rusty Potts)

Jean Meadows with The Tydes

Jean Meadows with The Tydes

13109 ~ Summer's Gone

13110 ~  I Want to Learn Because of You

Universal C7-115

1964

Label was probably an offshoot of Universal Recording Studios, 26 Colton Av. West Springfield, Massachusetts.  owned by Flem DeAngelis

Bob Healy And "The Generation Gap"

Bob Healy And "The Generation Gap"

39951 - Fields Of Need

39952 - Six Days On The Road

E.A.R.S Truck (Recorded By the)
Remix By Keith Wing
Hills Sound Service
Worcester, MA.

 

1979

Bobby James & the Dristells

Bobby James

15993 - True Blue

 (Coyle, Mead Music BMI)

Bobby James & the Dristells
15994 - Let's Go
(Coyle, Mead Music BMI)

Lant 66009

Agawam, Mass.

Probably recorded at the Universal Recording Studios, 26 Colton Av. West Springfield, owned by Flem DeAngelis since 1956 and serving the Western part of Massachusetts, Upstate New York and Connecticut.

Both sides written by Robert Coyle and published by Mead Music (BMI)

Buddy Dean and the Enchantments

Buddy Dean and the Enchantments

CP-5529 -  Say Mamma

(J.Meeks-J.Earl)

CP-5530 -  Is It Such A Crime 

(H. Audett)

D-J 1961-1/2

1961

D-J Record Co. was located at 289 Belmont Street in Fall River, Mass. according to Billboard (24 October 1960). On the same label in 1962  :  Johnny & The Blue J's.

Buddy Dean died in 2013.

Let’s Beat The Clock

Norm Burns & The Five Stars

29045- Let’s Beat The Clock 

Martin Willcott & Lew Tobin

Shelley Stuart, Norm Burns & The Satallites
29046 – Give Me Another Chance

Dennis Haynes & Lew Tobin

Arranger : Roger Baker

Sterling Records #565
Ace Distrib. Box 64
Boston, Mass.
1972

Norm Burns, regular warbler from the Lew Tobin's song-poem stable, seems here to be a little more concerned than usual.  NORM ROCKS!

"Bobbie" and the Valiants on Arco

"Bobbie" and the Valiants

16309 ~ Rambunkshus

Mundy-Millander

16310 ~ Goofin' Around

Frank Beecher-Johnny Grande

Arco Records SC-100
A product of Stereophonics Corp., New Bedford, Mass.

1966

The virtual community has almost no memory at all of "Bobbie" and the Valiants.  One early reference to the band is found in The Beacon, the Cape Cod Community College newspaper., in which Elsie Rodriques wrote that her and her fellow students "danced to the music of Bobbie and the Valiants of New Bedford." from 8-12 p.m.  (that's was a Friday.  Friday, September 1962, 28  precisely).   And, probably happy with their music, Rick Lippard was of the opinion "that they should be invited back at a future date". 

Rambunkshus is actually "Ram-Bunk-Shush" the 1957 Bill Doggett hit,  a tune that had been first recorded by Lucky Millender  (King Records #4534, 1952).

Goofin' Around is the Bill Haley tune performed in the movie Don’t Knock the Rock and issued on Decca Records in 1956 (LP and EP only, not on single).

"Skip" Connors on Circo

"Skip" Connors

16643 ~ White Rose
16644 ~ Hearts Win You Lose

Circo Records 102

A Product Of Stereophonics Corp.
New Bedford, Mass.

1966

Stereophonics was owned and managed by W Edward Metcalf.  Sound engineer (and also acting as producer) was Carl German. From 1966 to 1966, some 50 singles were issued on Circo and Arco, two labels who shared the same numerical series.

In 1968, Stereophonics was renamed Metcalf Recording Studios with records issued unto the seventies on labels such Sadbird and Laurel.

Arco/Circo discography (45s only, but at least one LP was issued : "Fabulous New Organ Sounds of Dave ' Mr Talent'  Fredericks".

Frenchy And The Underground Railroad

Frenchy And The Underground Railroad

26941 - We're Lonely /(Frenchy, ASCAP)

26942 - Trip (Real Carpentier, ASCAP)

Sterling 518

1970

★ 

At the time of the recording, the personnel (13-14 years old, except Frenchy, eight years older) of the group consisted of Frenchy (Yves Carpentier) on vocals, Real Carpentier on vocals and bass, Gene Daigle on vocals and guitar, Bob Fissette on guitar, Rob St. George on drums, and Dave LaCasse on vocals and percussion. The band was managed by Ron Bachand and Alfred Brissette.  

 

The band story is told by Mr. Bellino in his latest post (at Rip It Up R.I.)  a blog celebrating the glory of rock and roll and garage bands from the state of Rhode Island in the 1960s.

 ★

 

If confirmation was needed, this is a proof that Lew Tobin's Sterling Records wasn't just a song-poem operation,   If the bulk of the label ouput was amateur poems put in music by Lew Tobin and "sung" by Norm Burns, Gary Roberts, Mel Moore and al. ,  occasionally local bands were recorded. 

 

Real Carpentier today

http://www.reverbnation.com/realcarpentier

The Firesiders on Sterling

 

The Firesiders

 

9881 ~  Spring

9882 ~  Jump And Twist

 

Sterling Records #268

1963

Two instrumentals

 

Quite surprising but, yes,  this is on the same song-poem Sterling label owned by music veteran Lew Tobin in Boston, Mass.

Lew Tobin had operated Five Star Music Masters since the early forties and  Sterling Records since 1954.  The earliest record on Sterling I was able to find is #103,   "His Final Address" sung by Roy Jones with Lew Tobin's orchestra.  "This tribute to Hank Williams is both late and unimpressive" simply wrote the Billboard reviewer (Billboard, February 27, 1954).  Hank Williams, incidentally also recorded on Sterling Records, obviously a different label (out of New-York).

 

Lew Tobin and Sterling Records were still active as late as 2002 : that year, in September, they recorded "America's Song" a poem written by Blanche Shipley (1914-2002), a retired teacher, who pieced and tied many quilts after her retirement. 

 

Sterling label discography

The Five Gents on Veiking

The Five Gents

7233 - Sandy
7234 - Baby Doll

both : B. and T. Mancuso; Orifice; Veiking; Soprano

Veiking Records 101

 Waltham, Mass.

1962 

Brothers Tom and Bob Mancuso joined by  Jeff Sykes and his brother Tim formed  “The Golden Echoes” in the late 70s and performed all over the New England area. 

Probably recorded by Lew Tobin  in Boston ( same Rite account #111 )

Both sides can be downloaded at the White Doo-Wop Collector blog HERE

Bernie & The White Soul Band

Bernie & The White Soul Band

35375 - Shake Your Bootie It's Bootie Time Pt 1
35376 - Shake Your Bootie It's Bootie Time Pt 2
 

wr. B. McBride, J.Thomas, Al Goodrich, S. Silvo

Produced by Bernie

 

Soul Brother Records

56 Outlook Drive

Hills Sound Service, Worcester, Ma

SAMPLE

Unlisted soul/funk.  Bernie is perhaps Bernie S. McBride, born in 1948.
 

Label picture & sample : ebay (SteadySounds)

Note : address of label is presumably in Worcester.  How was the neighborhood around Outlook Drive in 1975, I do not known, but googling "56 Outlook Drive Worcester" brings today no funky results.  Samples :

4 Feb 2009 – Alfred Harper, 49, of 56 Outlook Drive, Worcester, charged with violation of an abuse prevention order, continued to March 2 on $500 cash bail; ...

12 Jan 2010 – Robert K. Sorrell, 24, of 56 Outlook Drive, Worcester, charged with firearm use in a felony, trafficking in cocaine, and conspiracy to violate a ..

12 Nov 2012 – Caleb Saysay, 17, of 56 Outlook Drive, Worcester, charged with larceny from a person, amended from armed robbery, continued without a...

ETC.

The Odyssey on Artane

The Odyssey

22935 ~ Karin Ann

22936 ~ You're A Fool

Both wr Kettles
Publisher : Mead Music BMI

Artane Records 68022

Brimfield, MA

"Pop" ballads w/organ

Certainly recorded at the Universal Recording Studio, located in West Springfield, MA. The studio, owned by Flem DeAngelis, made custom recordings for the local as well for regional artists from Connecticut and Uptsate New-York. All these records were published by Mead BMI. The studio Rite account was #1100.



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Robert G. Kiko, Massillon song(poem) writer (Sterling 585)

Norm Burns and the Five Stars

27841 – Hard Head (Charles Starr & Lew Tobin, ASCAP)
27842 – Star Bright (Robert G. Kiko & Lew Tobin)

Sterling 585

Arranger : Roger Baker

1971

<--- Massillon song writer Robert G. Kiko holding the record "Proud Town," a song about Wilmot and the Wilderness center (Preview Records 1990)

Robert G. Kiko, 53, a custodian at Lorin Andrews junior high school, wanted to write lyrics for he had been thinking of doing records. Two of his records recently were sent to disc jockeys across the country. Another is being waxed.

His friends encouraged him to publish some of his poetry. Kiko has written a lot of poetry. Along with fishing and traveling, poetry has been a way to relax for him. He began writing poetry while in the Air Force in 1941 and he hasn’t stopped. Back in Massillon after the war, Kiko wrote poetry and used to leave it on desks of teachers.

Miss Edna Dix, an English teacher at Lorin Andrews, encouraged Kiko to do something with his poetry, he said. After talking it over with his wife, Anne, he wrote away to four or five record companies.

His first record, « Star Bright, » is a song about our times.

« I don’t expect to be a rich man over it, » Kiko said about his newly realized dream.

[Above information is edited from an article published in the Evening Independent, Massillon, Ohio, January 26, 1972]


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Nite Riders / Dave

NITE RIDERS

19311 ~ She's Mine
(Daniels - Thebado – Hassett)
Nite Publishing Co.

DAVE

19312 ~ Tornado
(Dave – Louie)
Nite Publishing Co.

Hills Sound Service, Worcester, Mass.

1967

The Nite Riders at Elm Park
At Elm Park, clockwise from bottom left: David, Bill, Dean and Chucky
Info and pics (and sounds too!) at Garage Hangover website HERE

The Nite Riders were :

Dave Daniels - guitar vocals
Dean [surname ?] - rhythm guitar
Bill [surname ?] - bass
Charles "Chucky" Franczak - drums
Bernie Thebado - rhythm guitar

*

Norm Burns (Sterling 336)

Lew Tobin’s Orchestra
Vocal : Norman Burns

Sterling 336

14415 – A Moment of Happiness (Marin H. Gonzalez & Lew Tobin)
14416 – Seaman Blues (Hattie Clayton Fields)

1965

Source: The Wonderful and the Obscure

There is a Marin H. Gonzalez on YouTube singing "cucurucucu paloma"

"cucurucucu paloma is one of the sadest songs in our latin language,i have been asked to try and translate the mening to the inglish language ,it is not easy,but i think i have come close,it is a hard song for me to sing ,but i did the best that i can,i hope some boby likes it.marin"

My intuition is that is the same Marin Gonzalez who is the writer of the Sterling A-side.

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Norm Burns (Sterling 615)

Sterling 615

Norm Burns And The Satellites

30863 – What Kind Of Fool Do You Think I Am? (Ronald Scott-Lew Tobin

"...a much more typical example of the run-of-the-mill bland side of the Norm Burns experience..."

Norm Burns And The Five Stars
30864 – Since You Came Into My Life (Frank G. Williams-Lew Tobin)

"Norm's painfully uncomfortable vocal - possibly the worst I've ever heard from him..."

Information, picture and comments are from "The Wonderful and the Obscure" blog.
See "The Soulful Norm Burns" (and hear both sides).

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