RIP Barry Beckett

Veteran Muscle Shoals session musician and producer Barry Beckett died Wednesday at his home in Hendersonville, TN at age 66. Though most music fans won't know his name, Beckett was a legend as a member of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and had a long career as a record producer. They were inducted into the Alabama Music Hall Of Fame last October. He was born Feb. 4, 1943 in Birmingham, AL. Beckett was keyboard player for the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section AKA The Swampers and started out playing on all kinds of soul albums in the 60s. Beckett joined this all star session band in 1966 and the first record he played on was James & Bobby Purify's I'm Your Puppet. They got the attention of Atlantic Records producer Jerry Wexler and they played on the Percy Sledge hit When A Man Loves A Woman. Wexler started bringing all his artists to Muscle Shoals including Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett. Beckett, Roger Hawkins, David Hood and Jimmy Johnson started their own Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in 1969. Beckett started to branch out as a producer. He produced I'll Take You There by The Staple Singers and Paul Simon's Kodachrome, Mary McGregor's Torn Between Two Lovers and also has produced Bob Dylan, Bob Seger, Delbert McClinton, Alabama and many others. Muscle Shoals Sound Studios was sold to Malaco Records in 1978 and Beckett continued to produce artists like Bobby Blue Bland and Z.Z. Hill until he left the studio in 1982 to become head of A & R for Warner Bros. Nashville. He continued to produce best selling artists like Hank Williams Jr. and The Forrester Sisters. In 1989, he became Vice President at RCA Nashville and produced Etta James and Kenny Chesney among others. That's just the tip of the iceberg. Beckett continued to produce artists like gospel singer Lynda Randle in recent years until he was diagnosed with cancer and then suffered a series of strokes until his death on Wednesday. So you may not know who Barry Beckett was but you've heard his music. I did find one video clip of Barry Beckett. This is Ronee Blakely with The Swampers performing Please on Saturday Night Live in the 80s. There are a couple of shots of Beckett during the clip. You may recall Blakely starred in Robert Altman's 1975 film Nashville. RIP Barry Beckett.

Carano/Cyborg to have five minute rounds

Strikeforce has confirmed that the Aug. 15 women's title match between Gina Carano and Cristiane Cyborg will be schduled for five five minute rounds. This was originally reported  last night by Jake Rossen of ESPN as a blind item mainly so he could have an exclusive for twelve hours. Strikeforce Director Of Communications Mike Aframowicz has confirmed the story with MMA Junkie. Aframowicz said this will be for this fight only but it's likely they will go to five minute rounds for other women's bouts if they have any sense. Fans and fighters have been criticizing Strikeforce for dragging their heels on making this decision. Both fighters are known for dropping bombs so I don't see this fight going the distance anyway. It certainly makes this a more interesting fight as the potential length of the fight is uncharted territory for both fighters. Also, MMA Weekly reports that Randy Couture will take charge of Gina's training when he returns from shooting The Expendables in New Orleans in a couple of weeks. He is currently studying video footage of Cyborg. One more thing. Erin Toughill has announced that she will fight an opponent TBA on the undercard of the Aug. 15 Strikeforce show and she will fight the winner of Carano/Cyborg.

Tara LaRosa to headline Aug. 1 WCSC show?

Phil Lanides of the San Jose Examiner reports that MMA superstar Tara LaRosa is in talks to headline an all women's MMA show in San Francisco. The promoter is World Sports Combat Challenge. The show is called Female Fury II and will be on Aug. 1 at the Kezar Pavillion in San Francisco. This was announced at the May 30 WCSC show. WCSC has been around since July 2007 and usually have a mix of MMA and Muay Thai bouts. The first Female Fury was an all Muay Thai show last October. But the big news is that Lanides is reporting Tara LaRosa's participation as a rumour. It has not been confirmed and there is nothing on the WCSC website. But Lanides is also Director Of Media Relations for WCSC so obviously he is an insider. So it's probably more than a rumour.

Jango Song Of The Day-Tom Rush

Artist:Tom Rush
Song:No Regrets
Album:The Very Best Of Tom Rush: No Regrets





Tom Rush was a big part of the 60s folk boom but he never had the commercial success of his contemporaries so he got lost in the shuffle and was somewhat forgotten over the years. But he has always been an excellent interpreter of songs and occasionally has written standards like No Regrets. He was born Feb. 8, 1941 in Portsmouth, NH. He started performing in 1961 while he was majoring in English Literature at Harvard. He first recorded for Prestige Records in 1962 and moved to Elektra in 1965. No Regrets is from his 1968 album The Circle Game. Rush records three Joni Mitchell songs and along with Judy Collins has been credited with exposing Joni to a wider audience. Today No Regrets is considered a standard and has been covered by Emmylou Harris among others. Rush moved to Columbia in 1970 and though he's always been critically acclaimed, his lack of commercial success prevented him from recording much in the 80s & 90s. Sony Legacy released this comp in 1999 and it covers his Prestige, Elektra & Columbia recordings and it is recommended. Tom Rush continues to live in New Hampshire and has been recording occasionally in recent years. His latest CD What I Know was released on Appleseed Records in Feb. 2009. Here's Tom Rush performing No Regrets in San Diego Feb. 2007.

Jango Song Of The Day-Fats Domino

Artist:Fats Domino
Song:Blue Monday
Album:Greatest Hits: Walking To New Orleans





Antoine "Fats" Domino is a living legend of modern music and had several smash hits at the dawn of the rock era. He was born Feb. 26, 1928 in New Orleans. He first recorded with Imperial Records in 1949. The Fat Man was his first number one R & B hit and began a long partnership with producer Dave Bartholomew. Domino continued to have success on the R & B charts but crossed over to the pop charts when Ain't That A Shame reached #10 in 1955. This began a long string of hits. Blue Monday reached #5 on the pop charts in 1956. Domino usually wrote most of his own songs with Bartholomew. And his musical style never changed from when he performed in New Orleans clubs in the 40s. Domino left Imperial for ABC-Paramount in 1963 and hasn't charted since. This comp has all his Imperial hits. Fats Domino continues to perform today. There were rumours that he died in Hurricane Katrina but he's still living in New Orleans and recently performed at a Katrina benefit concert. His music from the 50s still sounds great today. Here's Fats Domino performing Blue Monday in the 1956 film The Girl Can't Help It.

Star Trek review

Paramount Pictures had no intention of doing any more Star Trek films when word leaked that J.J. Abrams wanted to do a Star Trek film. But instead of doing a sequel, he decided to re-invent the original Star Trek. So I guess it could be called a prequel though it's similar to origin stories that they do in comic books. Of course fans were skeptical but Abrams wisely decided to cast unknowns in the film and he also brought in the writing team of Alex Kurtzman & Roberto Orci. He's worked with them in the past on Alias and Mission Impossible. The film begins with the birth of James T. Kirk as his father dies in the line of duty. The early part of the film concentrates on Kirk's rebellious nature and establishes other characters. But it kicks into high gear when Leonard McCoy smuggles Kirk onto the USS Enterprise. Obviously they have Romulan problems and the special effects and action scenes move the story along. But the whole point of the film is to re-establish these characters for the inevitable sequel. I was always a fan of the original Star Trek and didn't like the other incarnations. I think most fans will be happy with this film.





If the film has one major problem, it's that the villain Nero (Eric Bana) is way too generic for me. He just doesn't have any personality. The rumour (denied by Abrams) is that Jack Black will play Harry Mudd in the sequel. That would be interesting. Abrams wisely hired unknowns for Star Trek. It makes the characters more believable. Establishing the characters was more important than the weak villain so I'm OK with it. Chris Pine studied William Shatner but fortunately his portayal of Kirk isn't a caricature. BTW, here's a little Chris Pine trivia. His dad Robert Pine was a regular on the 80s TV series CHIPs. Zachary Quinto looks so much like Spock that it's a little creepy. He's very good. I also liked Zoe Saldana as Uhura and Simon Pegg as Scott. I didn't care for Karl Urban's take on McCoy. And of course Leonard Nimoy is always fun to watch as Spock. I'm sure they'll flesh out some of the other characters and include more humour in the sequel scheduled for a 2011 release. I thought the film was a very good starting point and I think fans of the original Star Trek series should check it out. Here's the trailer.

We want five minute rounds for women's bouts in Strikeforce

I want everyone who reads this blog to go to the link below and tell Strikeforce that fans and fighters want five minute rounds for women's matches. Strikeforce owner Scott Coker still claims that three minute rounds for women's bouts are mandated by the California State Athletic Commission. MMA fighter Molly Helsel contacted the CSAC and they told her that isn't true and the length of the rounds is a promoter's decision. So I don't know what Coker's problem is but if enough of us bug him maybe he'll get the message. Please go to the link and fill out the form. It will only take a minute.



http://www.strikeforce.com/contact/

Jango Song Of The Day-The Youngbloods

Artist:The Youngbloods
Song:Get Together
Album:Get Together: The Essential Youngbloods





Today Get Together is viewed as an late 60s anthem of peace. It was a fluke top five hit for the folk rock group The Youngbloods and they likely would have sunk without a trace otherwise. The group leader was Jesse Colin Young (born Perry Miller Nov. 11, 1941 in Queen's, NY). He had been hanging around the Greenwich Village folk scene and released a couple of solo albums in 1964. He met Jerry Corbitt and they started playing together in 1965 as The Youngbloods. Pianist Lowell "Banana" Levinger and dummer Joe Bauer joined up and their gigs in folk clubs landed them a contract with RCA. They had one minor hit with the Corbitt song Grizzly Bear. According to Young, RCA tried to sell them as a bubble gum act instead of the folk rock act that they were. Get Together was originally released in 1967 and flopped. The song was written by Chet Powers AKA Dino Valente of Quicksilver Messenger Service and had originally been recorded by The Kingston Trio in 1964. Others had recorded it too. But then in 1969 The Youngbloods version of Get Together was the theme song for a public service announcement by the National Council Of Christians And Jews. RCA rereleased the song and it reached #5 on the pop charts. Corbitt left The Youngbloods in 1969 for a solo career that failed. He was replaced by Michael Kane. By 1972, The Youngbloods split up and Jesse Colin Young signed a solo contract with Warner Bros. This comp cover The Youngbloods RCA recordings. Levinger, Bauer & Kane had an unsuccessful group called Noggins. Young, Corbitt & Levinger reunited for a Youngbloods tour in 1984 but Young has mostly recorded solo for years and he is currently concentrating on reissuing his older albums on CD. Here are The Youngbloods performing Get Together on The Hollywood Palace 1970.

Jango Song Of The Day-The Strangeloves

Artist:The Strangeloves
Song:I Want Candy
Album:Nuggets From Nuggets: Choice Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era





Today I Want Candy is considered a garage band classic. Except The Strangeloves weren't a garage band. It was their only hit. The guys behind The Strangeloves were Brill Building songwriters Richard Gottehrer, Jerry Goldstein and Bob Feldman. They had a hit with My Boyfriend's Back by The Angels. With the British Invasion in full swing, they thought it would be a funny idea to create a pop group from Australia who became rich by crossbreeding sheep. They called themselves Giles, Miles & Niles Strange and the group name was The Strangeloves. The music was actually played by studio musicians and the three did publicity wearing shaggy wigs. But when I Want Candy became a hit and reached #11 on the pop charts in 1965, they didn't really want to perform and they hired three guys to tour as The Strangeloves. While on tour in Ohio, they discovered Rick Derringer and brought him to New York to record lead vocals for The Strangeloves. Of course he would soon lead The McCoys. The Strangeloves only recorded one album on Bang Records and other than I Want Candy, the music stinks. You should get it on the Nuggets comp. I Want Candy has been covered a lot over the years, most notably by Bow Wow Wow in the 80s. Richard Gottehrer went on to be a major record producer and co-founded Sire Records. Jerry Goldstein was the producer of War. Bob Feldman founded Red House Records and died in 2006. Here's The Strangeloves performing I Want Candy on Hullaballoo 1965.

The Strangeloves - I want Candy
Uploaded by scootaway. - See the latest featured music videos.

Kyle Busch channels Pete Townsend

So a funny thing happened at Saturday's NASCAR Nationwide Series race in Nashville. The trophy for winning the race is a custom built Gibson guitar with artwork by the well known artist Sam Bass. Bass does a lot of NASCAR paint schemes. So Kyle Busch won the race and proceeds to smash the guitar a la Pete Townsend in Victory Lane. Of course fans are outraged because many hate Kyle anyway and the ESPN broadcasters are dumbfounded. Apparently he planned this. He told his crew that he wanted them to have a piece of the trophy. He told NASCAR he was going to do this and he even told Sam Bass and has promised to buy two guitars from him. Of course the guitar is very durable and I don't think it shattered the way he wanted. Kyle said yesterday that a bandsaw would cut the guitar into pieces and each member of the crew will get a piece. I thought his behaviour at last week's Nationwide Series race when he left teammate Joey Logano twisting in the wind was a lot worse but I guess he doesn't understand how silly this made him look. Check out this clip from WSMV-TV in Nashville featuring reaction by Sam Bass.

RIP Hugh Hopper

Jazzwise Magazine announced that British bass player Hugh Hopper died yesterday at age 64. He was diagnosed last year with leukemia. Hopper had been a mainstay of the British music scene since the 60s and was best known as one of the architects of The Canterbury Sound and a founding member of progressive band Soft Machine. He was born Apr. 29, 1945 in Whitstable, Kent, England and grew up in Canterbury. In 1963, he started out as bassist with the Daevid Allen Trio along with drummer Robert Wyatt. Then they formed The Wilde Flowers with Kevin Ayers and Richard Sinclair. Sinclair started Caravan but Hopper, Wyatt, Ayers and Mike Ratledge started Soft Machine. Hopper was initially the group's road manager but eventually joined as bassist. Ayers left so by 1969 the band was Wyatt, Ratledge, Hopper and they added sax player Elton Dean long enough to record the 1970 classic Soft Machine album Third. They became more of a progressive jazz group at this stage so Wyatt left in 1971. Hopper left Soft Machine in 1973 and worked with all kinds of bands including Stomu Yamashta, Carla Bley and Keith Tippett. He was interested in jazz at the time but would go in a more rock oriented direction later. He also experimented with electronics. In recent years he started Soft Machine Legacy with Elton Dean, John Etheridge and John Marshall and they toured and recorded regularly until Hopper was diagnosed with leukemia last year. His pals got together at the 100 Club in London Dec. 2008 for a Hugh Hopper benefit show. Hugh Hopper was a pioneer of British progressive music and he will be missed. Here's Soft Machine performing Backwards in Paris March 1970. RIP Hugh Hopper.

Jango Song Of The Day-George Thorogood & The Destroyers

Artist:George Thorogood & The Destroyers
Song:Bad To The Bone
Album:Greatest Hits: 30 Years Of Rock





The 1982 hit Bad To The Bone is now a rock standard and was the biggest commercial success for blues rock guitarist George Thorogood. He was in the right place at the right time and as a result, he still tops the blues charts today. He was born Dec. 24, 1950 in Wilmington, DE. Thorogood was a minor league baseball player when he decided to turn to music after watching John Paul Hammond in 1970. He put together The Destroyers and earned a contract with Rounder Records in 1974. Their debut album was released in 1977. Thorogood built his following with constant touring. But he knew that he had to graduate to a major label to get more exposure and Thorogood signed with Capitol Records. Bad To The Bone was released in 1982. It wasn't a hit initially but MTV's constant play of the video sold enough copies of the album for it to go gold. The song is pretty basic five bar blues and is clearly based on Bo Diddley's classic I'm A Man. It didn't bother Bo as he appears in the video and so does legendary pool player Willie Mosconi. The song also appeared in the hit film Christine. Thorogood's next few albums did well and he did well enough in the 90s that he remained with Capitol until 1997. This comp covers his Capitol recordings and is also available with a DVD. George Thorogood currently records for Eagle Vision and his latest CD The Hard Stuff was released in May 2006. He's still a very popular live act. Here's the video for Bad To The Bone by George Thorogood & The Destroyers.

Carano vs Cyborg set for Aug. 15 Strikeforce show

Strikeforce announced on last night's broadcast that they have signed Gina Carano and she will face Cristiane Cyborg at the Aug. 15 show on Showtime. Strikeforce confirmed afterwards to MMA Junkie that the show will be at the HP Pavillion in San Jose, CA. This is likely the most anticipated women's MMA match in history and will likely be the main event. That will be a first for North Americam MMA on TV though a women's match has been the main event on men's shows in Japan. In fact, the MIKU/Lisa Ward match is the main event on the upcoming DEEP show. Strikeforce is also selling it as the fight between the two best women fighters in MMA. Best known in North America? Yes. Best women fighters? Not even close. Gina's record is 7-0 and her last win was over Kelly Kobold on the Oct. 4 EliteXC show. Strikeforce acquired Gina's EliteXC contract in February but they still had to sign her. And she wanted a lot more money than she was getting at EliteXC and that's why it took so long. She's been keeping busy posing in Maxim and other stuff. Gina has said in interviews that she doesn't want a warmup match and wants to fight Cyborg. Cyborg's record is 7-1 and won over Hitomi Akano in April. Both are standup fighters. Some folks are in love with Cyborg's physique but she's a wild puncher. Gina has superior Muay Thai technique. So though I expect Cyborg to be favoured, Gina has proven to be a strong tactician and her technique will take over. Strikeforce owner Scott Coker said he might make this fight five three minute rounds. Scott, stop being a dope and give the women five minute rounds. They deserve that. Both fighters have problems making weight but I expect this fight to be at 145. The next opponent for the winner will likely be either Erin Toughill or Marloes Coenen.

Jango Song Of The Day-Chairmen Of The Board

Artist: Chairmen Of The Board
Song:Give Me Just A Little More Time
Album:Everything's Tuesday: The Best Of Chairmen Of The Board





The 1970 hit Give Me Just A Little More Time was the biggest hit by the outstanding R & B group Chairmen Of The Board. They were produced by the legendary team of Holland-Dozier-Holland after they left Motown to start their own label. The lead singer and group leader was General Norman Johnson (born May 23, 1943 in Norfolk, VA). He formed The Showmen as a teen and they had a hit with It Will Stand in 1961. In 1968, he decided to go solo and brought fellow Showmen Danny Woods to Detroit with him along with Harrison Kennedy of Stone Soul Children and Eddie Curtis of Huey Snith & The Clowns. Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier & Brian Holland had left Motown and started Invictus Records. The group signed and was called The Gentlemen and then changed to Chairmen Of The Board. They hit the jackpot with their first single Give Me Just A Little More Time. It reached #3 on the pop charts in 1970. The song was written by Holland-Dozier-Holland though they used phony names because Berry Gordy was suing them at the time. The group never had another pop hit though they had a lot of success on the R & B charts through 1975. The Invictus recordings are now licensed to Sanctuary Records and that's who released this comp. General Johnson had a solo career with Arista in the late 70s and reformed Chairmen Of The Board in the 80s. They still tour today. Here's Chairmen Of The Board performing Give Me Just A Little More Time 2008.

Jango Song Of The Day-The Tokens

Artist:The Tokens
Song:The Lion Sleeps Tonight (Wimoweh)
Album:Wimoweh: The Best Of The Tokens





I have to admit I loved this song when I was a kid. I'm not as fond of it today. It was one of those fluky smash hits we see in the music business occasionally. The Tokens started out as a fairly standard Brooklyn doo wop group called The Linc-Tones in 1955. Neil Sedaka was a member. The group recorded a single in 1956 and then split up. Hank Medress and Jay Siegel started a new group called Darrell & The Oxfords. They changed the name to The Tokens and recruited lead tenor Mitch Margo, his brother Phil Margo and guitarist Joe Vennen. In 1961 they had a hit with Warwick Records called Tonight I Fell In Love. This earned them a contract with RCA and The Lion Sleeps Tonight was #1 on the pop charts for three weeks. The sound was very unique at the time. It's based on a South African song and The Weavers had a top ten hit with Wimoweh in 1952. The Tokens version had new lyrics. The Tokens never could duplicate the success of The Lion Sleeps Tonight and started their own label in 1964. You can get their RCA recordings on this comp. Hank Medress left to start his own label in 1973. He died in 2007. The Margo brothers and Jay Siegel continued to work together as producers and had a group called Cross Country in the 70s. There are two versions of The Tokens currently performing. Here are The Tokens performing The Lion Sleeps Tonight in the late 60s.

Jango Song Of The Day-The Box Tops

Artist:The Box Tops
Song:The Letter
Album:The Best Of The Box Tops: Soul Deep





The blue eyed soul group The Box Tops weren't around long but they had a number one hit in 1967 with The Letter and were the launching pad for the distinguished career of group leader Alex Chilton. He was born Dec. 28, 1950 in Memphis. His dad was a jazz musician. A high school talent show performance in 1966 led to Chilton joining a group called The Devilles. They changed their name to The Box Tops to avoid confusion with another group and the other members were Gary Talley on lead guitar, Bill Cunningham on bass, John Evans on keyboards and Danny Smythe on drums. Muscle Shoals producers Chips Moman & Dan Penn were looking for a blue eyed soul group and they had a production deal with Bell Records. The first single was The Letter and it rocketed to number one in 1967. It was Billboard's number one single of the year. The song was written by Wayne Carson Thompson. He is best known for writing Always On My Mind. Evans & Smythe returned to school in 1968 and were replaced by Rick Allen of The Gentrys and Thomas Boggs. The Box Tops had another hit with Cry Like A Baby. But Penn's insistance on using studio musicians and reluctance to use Chilton's songs eventually killed The Box Tops in early 1970. This Arista comp has all their hits. Of course Alex Chilton would go on to form Big Star, one of the best and most underrated pop groups in history. Chilton has reunited The Box Tops occasionally and still leads Big Star today. Here's The Box Tops performing The Letter 1967.

Up review

Anyone who knows me knows I have been an animation nut for many years so I'm sure it won't surprise anyone that I went to see Pixar's new film Up in 3D. I own Looney Tunes Golden Collection Vol. 1-6 (I just bought Vol. 6 on eBay) and Max Fleischer's Popeye cartoons on DVD. So I love Pixar. I don't think Up is their best film but it is outstanding and you should see it in 3D. The effects are fabulous. One of the best things about Up is how the story is set up. It tells the story of Carl & Ellie Fredericksen and their admiration for adventurer Charles Muntz. They promise themselves that one day they will go to Paradise Falls in South America but it never happens and Ellie gets sick and dies. Carl is determined to fulfill the dream and turns their house into a flying machine with balloons. Boy Scout Russell tags along and they find a rare bird when they get to South America. They also find the evil Charles Muntz and his pack of electronically controlled dogs. Dug is one of those dogs but he helps Carl and Russell escape. The action is exciting and the 3D really enhances the film. Pay the extra money.





I don't think Up is Pixar's best film but it is excellent and their standards are so high that it hardly matters. If you like their other films, you'll like this. The film was directed by Pete Docter and Bob Peterson and written by Peterson. Docter has been with Pixar since 1991. He directed Monsters Inc. but has written several other Pixar films. Peterson has been with Pixar since 1994. This is his first opportunity to direct but he wrote Finding Nemo. He's also the voice of Dug. Ed Asner is perfect as Carl. His outward crustiness disguises a lot of heart and he turns out to be a nice guy. Christopher Plummer plays Charles Muntz and child actor Jordan Nagai is Russell. Delroy Lindo and Pixar regular John Ratzenberger also contribute voices. As usual, Pixar's storytelling is the best thiing in the film and the beginning of the film is set up as perfectly as anything I've ever seen. It's simply amazing how they can make animated characters seem so real. Make sure you see it in 3D and here's the trailer for Up.

Jango Song Of The Day-The Trashmen

Artist:The Trashmen
Song:Surfin' Bird
Album:Dr. Demento 20th Anniversary Collection: The Greatest Novelty Records Of All Time





Surfin' Bird is probably one of the goofiest songs to make the top ten. It was the only big hit for The Trashmen and categorized them as a novelty surf music band. The group was from Minneapolis and recorded one single in 1962 as Jim Thaxter & The Travelers. The leader of The Trashmen was drummer singer Steve Wahrer. Other members were lead guitarist Tony Andreason, guitarist Dan Winslow and bassist Bob Reed. They were playing local clubs when Wahrer got the idea of basing a song on the doo wop group The Rivingtons hit Papa Oom Mow Mow. The Rivingtons also had a hit called The Bird's The Word. Local DJ Bill Diehl convinced The Trashmen to enter a Battle Of The Bands contest in Chicago. They won and signed with Garrett Records. Surfin' Bird was released and reached #4 in 1964. Wahrer attempted to take credit for writing the song but gave proper credit after a lawsuit was threatened. The Trashmen didn't have much success afterwards and split up in 1967. You might want to get Surfin' Bird on this 2CD comp of novelty songs compiled by Los Angeles DJ Barry Hansen AKA Dr. Demento. Stanley Kubrick used Surfin' Bird in his film Full Metal Jacket and this convinced The Trashmen to reunite. Steve Wahrer died in 1989 so Tony Andreason's brother Mark is the drummer. They still tour today and they got another boost when Surfin' Bird was used in a 2008 episode of Family Guy. Here's Steve Wahrer performing Surfin' Bird on American Bandstand 1964.

RIP Koko Taylor

Legendary blues singer Koko Taylor died today at age 80 in Chicago due to complications from intestinal surgery two weeks ago. Koko did have health problems in recent years but continued to perform. Her final performance was at last month's Blues Music Awards in Memphis. She was born Cora Walton Sept. 28, 1928 in Memphis. Her love of chocolate earned her the nickname Koko. In 1953, she married truck driver Robert "Pops" Taylor and they moved to Chicago. She worked as a maid during the day and sang in clubs at night. Willie Dixon signed her to Chess Records and produced her 1965 hit and signature song Wang Dang Doodle. When Chess had financial problems in the 70s, Koko signed with Bruce Iglauer's fledgling Alligator Records in 1975 and recorded for them for the remainder of her career. Tragedy struck in 1988 when Koko & Robert were in a van accident while on tour. Robert suffered cardiac arrest and died a few months later. Koko took time off but roared back with the 1993 CD Force Of Nature. She also opened her own club in Chicago in 1994 and closed it in 2001 for health reasons. An October 2003 heart attack left Koko in a coma. But she recovered and returned to performing in 2004. Her health forced her to cut back on her schedule but her 2007 CD Old School was nominated for a Grammy. As a woman in a man's game, Koko Taylor's determination and talent made her one of the legends of Chicago Blues. Here's a video about Koko Taylor courtesy of the Chicago Tribune. RIP Koko Taylor.

Fujii vs Ishioka announced as main event of July 11 JEWELS show

JEWELS held a press conference today at the DEEP dojo to officially announce that Megumi Fujii vs Saori Ishioka will be the main event of the July 11 Shin-kiba 1st Ring show. This was set up when Ishioka challenged Fujii at the JEWELS show a couple of weeks ago. Of course Fujii was a legend as an amateur and she's 17-0 as a pro with 14 submissions. Her last win was over Chu Won Bun on the May 11 Shooto show. Ishioka's record is 7-3 and her last win was over Hanako Kobayashi Feb. 4 JEWELS show. There's no question that this is her biggest fight to date. JEWELS is selling Ishioka as The Face Of JEWELS and they're also selling it as a generational battle with Fujii representing the old guard at age 35 and Ishioka representing the youth of women's MMA at age 21. I don't think Fujii is ready for the rocking chair yet. The match will have two special rules. It is scheduled for three five minute rounds. Most matches have two rounds. And there will be unlimited ground and pound. It's not going to matter because we all know what Fujii can do. I expect the winner of this match to face the winner of the upcoming DEEP Lightweight Title match between MIKU & Lisa Ward.