Perhaps the Guiltiest of Guilty Pleasures for a Rock Fan

With the possible exception of ABBA (who we’ll talk about at a later date, trust us), there was no band who took more flak from “serious rock fans” than the Pre-Fab Four.

Criticized from the beginning because they were not a band who came together in the traditional sense, the Monkees were “cast,” mere actors signed to pretend to be a rock band on television show. Adding insult to injury, it was quickly revealed that the lads didn’t even play on their own records! So “serious rock fans” quickly wrote them off.

But how valid was the criticism? In truth, not very.

Yes, they were cast as actors on TV sitcom, but they all had genuine musical ability. Davy Jones had entertained Broadway audiences as the Artful Dodger in the musical Oliver! He had even been signed as a singer to Columbia Pictures’ (the studio that produced the Monkees’ TV show) Colgems record label. Michael Nesmith had already written “Different Drum,” which became Linda Ronstadt’s first big hit. Peter Tork had been playing guitar in the L.A. club scene and Mickey Dolenz turned out to have one of the great rock & roll voices of that era.

What’s more, although we didn’t know it at the time, many of the bands we idolized were not playing on their own records! The group of elite session musicians known as The Wrecking Crew not only played on the Monkees’ records, but they also were playing on every Beach Boys album from Today through Pet Sounds. Outside of Roger McGuinn, the Byrds didn’t play on their first album either. It was the same guys who were playing on the Monkees’ records.

So cut the Monkees some slack. Their songs were written by some of rock’s most gifted performers including Neil Diamond, Carole King, Jeff Barry & Ellie Greenwich, Harry Nilsson, Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart and many more. Mike Nesmith developed into a legitimate songwriter and performer, scoring several solo hits and getting credit for developing the market for music videos with his landmark Elephant Parts – the first collection of music videos ever marketed (released pre-MTV). And because of very strenuous pushing, mostly by Nesmith, the Monkees got control of their own recordings beginning with their 3^rd album, Headquarters.

If you haven’t listened to them lately, you’ll be surprised at how well their music has aged.

Having been back together on a “sometimes” basis since 1986 and having released their most recent album, Good Times, in 2016 (including a posthumous track recorded by Davy Jones), the Monkees have earned a place of honor in rock & roll history.

Those of us of a certain age can remember when TV didn't broadcast 24 hours a day. After the Blue Angels had gone screaming across the sky as "The Star-Spangled Banner" played in the background, most stations put up what was known as a "test pattern." The stations kept broadcasting these cards until they resumed programming the next morning. They were also displayed when networks or local stations lost their transmission signal from remote locations. These were cards designed to help technicians calibrate broadcasting equipment as well as home TV sets.

When color came to dominate television, the test pattern was replaced by color bars, although even those are no longer needed to tune contemporary broadcasting equipment or flat screen TVs.

The most famous test pattern was one of the first - developed by RCA in 1939. It's known as "the Indian head" test pattern because of its inclusion of a Native American in full headdress.

For a time, NBC (owned by RCA) created an additional test pattern, featuring the network's biggest star:

Of all the songs Janis Joplin recorded in her brief, but spectacular career, one of the best-known and most fondly remembered is “Mercedes Benz.”

Few remember now that Janis was also interested in poetry and often attended poetry readings. Her tongue-in-cheek paean to consumerism began as a quick poetry jam between her and songwriter Bob Neuwirth in a bar in Port Chester, NY. They built their short poem around a line written by poet Mike McClure.

About an hour after the poem was completed, she performed it live during her show that night at the Capitol Theater in Port Chester, inventing an acapella melody on the spot.

It was promptly forgotten until she had finished recording her second solo album, “Pearl.” With the pressure of the major session work behind her, Joplin stepped to a microphone while the tapes were still rolling and announced she was about to sing “a song of great social and political import.”

She quickly ran through her little “Mercedes Benz” performance. One take. She also recorded a quick birthday message to John Lennon that included her rendition of Roy Rogers’ theme song, “Happy Trails.” Those would be the last two songs she ever recorded.

Only three days later, she would be dead of a drug overdose.

When Columbia released “Pearl” posthumously, producer Paul A. Rothchild decided to include “Mercedes Benz.”

The song quickly caught the fancy of FM deejays. Radio listeners also fell in love with the tune.

Today it has been covered by more than 30 other recording acts.

(And yes, we know the car in the photo is a Porsche! It belonged to Janis. She did not own a Mercedes-Benz.")

Repair shops have a bad reputation. One reason why is most of us don’t really know much about our vehicles. When a repair person tells us our framastat and carburatic overgloid needs replacement, we just nod and sign the repair order.

One of the most common cons is the Oil Change Add-Ons: Many repair shops advertise a very low price on oil changes. Once they get your car in their service bay, they’ll tell you about all the other things you need – like a new air filter or a coolant flush. Unless you know and trust your repair shop, treat these tactics with skepticism, especially if your car has been running just fine.

BTW – Many of the coolants used in today’s vehicles are good for 100,000 miles.

Many us find sleeping all the way through the night more of a challenge than we did a few years ago.

Here are some of the most common cause…and cures!

1. Eating Too Close to Bedtime – And eating the wrong kind of foods (especially those that are high in sugar) can have you waking up during the night. Your body is spending too much energy trying to digest and that will keep you awake

Cure: Avoid eating food within 3 hours of bedtime. Also, when you d have your evening meal, go for fruits veggies, fish and nuts.

2. Medicine – Whether it’s prescription drugs o0r over-the-counter medication, many of them can interfere with a good night’s sleep. Believe it or not, over the counter sleeping pills can also interfere with sleep when they’re used habitually instead of every once and awhile.

Cure: Check with you doctor. Let him or her know the medication you take and see if they may a cause and what you might do as an alternative.

3. Back Pain – Many of us have it and as we move about in our sleep, the pain can wake us up.

Cure: Try using massage, heat or even acupuncture as ways to treat back pain. There is also some research that shows drinking tart cherry juice twice a day might reduce pain and increase sleep by as much as 84 minutes a night.

4. Undiagnosed Sleep Apnea – Snoring is only one of the symptoms of sleep apnea. So lack of snoring doesn’t mean you’re in the clear. The biggest symptom is being very tired during the day.

Cure: Talk to your doctor. Getting the correct diagnosis is the first step. Then he or she can recommend the remedy that may be best for you.

Good news for guys with nagging wives. A recent study showed, men who are married to women who nag them are less likely to develop diabetes.

Sorry guys. The same study showed women with nagging husbands received no health benefits.

Besides the obvious sexism, implying single women were somehow going ketchup-less...do you find anything, oh, somewhat suggestive about the woman's pose and what she's running her finger over?

Planning on hitting the road this summer? You may be able to save money on your transportation if you’re willing to a little searching.

There are companies that need to move vehicles (even RVs) from one location to another. Now, these are one-way trips, so you may have to find other ways to get yourself back home, but it’s worth investigating.

Some sites you may want to visit:
transfercarus.com
thriftynomads.com
imoova.com

Important legal stuff: BoomtownAmerica.com is not affiliated with nor does it endorse any of these websites. We advise you check things out for yourself and as always, make sure you read the fine print or consult with an expert before you enter into any agreement.