A Master Hitmaker And Pure Gentleman....Eddie Schwartz (Pt.2)!

We pick up Part Two with Eddie saying how thrilled he was at having three songs recorded by Joe Cocker for his Unchain My Heart recording.

Also in Part Two, Eddie speaks of his difficulties producing the Doobie Brothers; his venture into the country music realm producing Brenn Hill and his regard for Paul Carrack, who sang Eddie's song "Don't Shed A Tear" to the number one spot on the charts.

The last few songs on the show are performed by Eddie himself from his CD, Tour de Schwartz and....as I mentioned, is my wife's favorite record. I think you'll enjoy these particularly insightful songs.

Eddie also tells the story of his mother who always wanted Eddie to be a lawyer and gave him a briefcase every time she had the opportunity. Eddie wound up with a closet "full" of briefcases.

Eddie Schwartz is now a highly regarded musician, writer and businessman. A man who likes to "give back" a little of what he was given to musical newcomers; Eddie is now a member of SOCANN, the Canadian organization which deals with music copyrights pertaining to Canadian writers and publishers. SOCANN came about as the merger of BMI and ASCAP and is now the only performing rights society in Canada.

Eddie has walked one long, hard road to get to this point in life. He deserves all credits due.

This is one very interesting interview and the music is superb. Here's the list:

1)...."Hit Me With Your Best Shot"....Pat Benatar
2)...."Don't Shed A Tear"....Paul Carrack
3)...."Dance Like The Fire"....Brenn Hill
4)...."The Doctor"....The Doobie Brothers
5)...."Special Girl"....Eddie Schwartz
6)...."A Young Man's Eyes"....Eddie Schwartz
7)...."Bourbon Street"....Eddie Schwartz

Listen to....Master Hitmaker And Pure Gentleman....Eddie Schwartz (Pt.2)!

A June Pointer Story!

The Back Story:

In 1990 I took the Pointer Sisters on a Middle Eastern USO tour of duty
stations in what was then Operation Desert Shield.
We were due to be met in Bahrain at the airport by a representative of
the Bob Hope office who would, we were told, meet us with visas, shepherd us through the immigration process, get us settled in our hotel, and give us nightly briefs on the next day's events.

After a several hour delay at London Heathrow due to striking baggage handlers, on arrival in Bahrain we were met only by a US Air Force major, "Major Bob" as we soon dubbed him. Needless to say, as many road stories go, there was no one with the promised visas from the Hope organization. Hope and his crew, we soon learned, were held over on the front lines in Saudi Arabia meeting and greeting the troops who were dug in there, and shooting B- roll for the NBC TV Special that would be taping live in Bahrain which would pay for the entire trip and then some for Mr. Hope and company.
That's how it worked in those days. Hope would get the acts for the TV show which was a paying gig and USO and the DOD would get you for the rest of the week visiting
troops. It was win win for everyone.

Meanwhile, we were now on foreign soil without visas, had not yet been processed through immigration, and there was no one, as promised, to take care of those little minor details that occur when groups of celebrities tour. And, quite a group it was. While the men, like Johnny Bench and Lee Greenwood, had all arrived a day early and were easily admitted into Saudi because they were males, the women infidels of the tour, we were told, were denied entry by the Saudis.

That left the 3 Pointers, their significant others, myself, Ann Jillian, Marie Osmond, and a TV actress who was big at the time, Kristina Haaj, and their spouses, in our host's absence, in my charge.

Being a quick study in those days, it didn't take me long to realize that by being the only Professional Tour Manager (employed at the time by the Pointers, I might add) in the country at the time, I was the only one in the bunch capable of keeping this tired, hungry, and angry mob from descending into total anarchy. And, since I was about to spend the next week and a half amongst them, out of self defense I quickly and aggressively took charge, gathered all the passports, and proceeded to negotiate our entry into the country.

Two hours and a gross overpayment for visas later, Major Bob, his crew, and
I finally got everyone in our DOD provided bus and on the way to the Diplomat Hotel which would be our base for the entire tour.

The June Pointer Incident:

Each morning a bus crewed by two buffed out young Marines would be waiting in front of the hotel at the specified time. On the floor between them was a duffel bag containing some comm eqt, and a few military weapons.

One morning, June greeted the young Hispanic driver and asked him where he was from. "LA, Ma'am" he replied. "Is that a real gun?" she said. "Yes Ma'am. We were thinking of doing some drive by's later" he said in an exaggerated Cheech Marin tone. She almost busted a gut laughing and from then on, everyday she made a point of spending some time with him and his partner while we waited to get underway. June was always outgoing and adventurous in that way.

Each day the bus would take us to either a Helicopter, or a small boat, which would convey the entire troupe to duty stations either on a battleship, carrier, hospital ship,or a MASH unit at a land locked base out in the boonies,. Sometimes the choppers would just land us directly on a ship. Consequently, we were on the choppers enough to each have staked claim on a seat that was our individual seat.

Tour bus and road etiquette dictates that you don't claim jump another persons seat. Only the greenest of rookies would even attempt a low move like that.

Enter the husband of another Pointer Sister. Getting on the chopper that morning Mr. Sensitive pushes past June and takes her seat next to the bulkhead. June turned to me to vent her anger with a few choice and colorful epithets. My usual reply to June in a situation like that was " Now Miss June, it just ain't worth it." She leaned over and said in my ear: "Yeah, but Karma is a mother f-----, and what goes around comes around!"

Settled in and en-route to the hospital ship Mercy somewhere in the middle of the Persian Gulf, we sat back to enjoy the trip.

After awhile I could see the postage stamp sized White Hospital ship below us in the far distance. At that point Mr Sensitive, Kermit, if you will, unbuckles his seat belt and gets up from his (June's) bulkhead seat next to the hatch door. Just as he stands up, as if on cue, the hatch door blows out of the chopper and begins to tumble down to the Gulf. in less time than it takes to write this, one of the two Navy Seal crewmen grabs "Kermit" by the lapels, throws him against the opposite bulkhead, covers him securely with his own body and mouths to me, "he goes in, I go in".

What seemed like it took ten minutes in my mind actually occurred in seconds as I continued to sneak glances at the hatch door still tumbling down to the Gulf in slow motion.

Without missing a beat June leans over to my ear again with a Cheshire cat grin and says: "I told you, Karma is a mother f-----!"

We landed safely on the Mercy and the female pilot who had befriended June (to the point of giving her the only remaining headset so she could listen in on all the comm traffic during the flight) told June and I that in her many years of flying choppers she had never seen or heard of a hatch door blowing out like that.


Jim Cantale
ESI Events/Los Angeles

Alexis Korner....King Of The British Blues Scene!

From: AMG
By: Bruce Eder

Without Alexis Korner, there still might have been a British blues scene in the early 1960s, but chances are that it would have been very different from the one that spawned the Rolling Stones, nurtured the early talents of Eric Clapton and made it possible for figures such as John Mayall to reach an audience. Born of mixed Turkish/Greek/Austrian descent, Alexis Korner spent the first decade of his life in France, Switzerland, and North Africa, and arrived in London in May of 1940, just in time for the German blitz, during which Korner discovered American blues. One of the most vivid memories of his teen years was listening to a record of bluesman Jimmy Yancey during a German air raid. "From then on," he recalled in an interview, "all I wanted to do was play the blues."

After the war, Korner started playing piano and then guitar, and in 1947 he tried playing electric blues, but didn't like the sound of the pick-ups that were then in use, and returned to acoustic playing. In 1949 he joined Chris Barber's Jazz Band and in 1952 he became part of the much larger Ken Colyer Jazz Group, which had merged with Barber's band. Among those that Korner crossed paths with during this era was Cyril Davies, a guitarist and harmonica player. The two found their interests in American blues completely complementary, and in 1954 they began making the rounds of the jazz clubs as an electric blues duo. They started the London Blues and Barrelhouse Club, where, in addition to their own performances, Korner and Davies brought visiting American bluesmen to listen and play. Very soon they were attracting blues enthusiasts from all over England.

Korner and Davies made their first record in 1957, and in early 1962, they formed Blues Incorporated, a "supergroup" (for its time) consisting of the best players on the early '60s British blues scene. Korner (guitar, vocals), Davies (harmonica, vocals), Ken Scott (piano), and Dick Heckstall-Smith (saxophone) formed the core, with a revolving membership featuring Charlie Watts or Graham Burbridge on drums, Spike Heatley or Jack Bruce on bass, and a rotating coterie of guest vocalists including Long John Baldry, Ronnie Jones, and Art Wood (older brother of Ron Wood). Most London jazz clubs were closed to them, so in March of 1962 they opened their own club, which quickly began attracting large crowds of young enthusiasts, among them Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Brian Jones, all of whom participated at some point with the group's performances--others included Ian Stewart, Steve Marriott, Paul Jones, and Manfred Mann. In May of 1962, Blues Incorporated was invited to a regular residency at London's Marquee Club, where the crowds grew even bigger and more enthusiastic. John Mayall later credited Blues Incorporated with giving him the inspiration to form his own Bluesbreakers group.

Record producers began to take notice, and in June of 1962 producer Jack Good arranged to record a live performance by the band. The resulting record, R&B from the Marquee, the first full-length album ever made by a British blues band, was released in November of 1962. The album consisted of largely of American standards, especially Willie Dixon numbers, rounded out with a few originals. At virtually the same time that Blues Incorporated's debut was going into stores, Cyril Davies left the group over Korner's decision to add horns to their sound. Korner soldiered on, but the explosion of British rock in 1963, and the wave of blues-based rock bands that followed, including the Rolling Stones, the Animals, and the Yardbirds undercut any chance he had for commercial success. His more studied brand of blues was left stranded in a commercial backwater--there were still regular gigs and recordings, but no chart hits, and not much recognition. While his one-time acolytes the Rolling Stones and the Cream made the front pages of music magazines all over the world, Korner was relegated to the blues pages of England's music papers, and, though not yet 40, to the role of "elder statesman."

For a time, Korner hosted Five O'Clock Club, a children's television show that introduced a whole new generation of British youth to American blues and jazz. He also wrote about blues for the music papers, and was a detractor of the flashy, psychedelic and commercialized blues rock of the late 1960s, which he resented for its focus on extended solos and its fixation on Chicago blues. He continued recording as well, cutting a never-completed album with future Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant in early 1968. Korner's performing career in England was limited, but he could always play to large audiences in Europe, especially in Scandinavia, and there were always new Korner records coming out. It was while touring Scandinavia that he first hooked up with vocalist Peter Thorup, who became Korner's collaborator over the next several years in the band New Church. After his dismissal from the Rolling Stones, Brian Jones considered joining New Church; Korner, however, rejected the idea, because he didn't want his new band to be caught up in any controversy. In 1972, he became peripherally involved in the breakup of another band, inheriting the services of Boz Burrell, Mel Collins, and Ian Wallace when they quit King Crimson.

It was during the 1970s that Korner had his only major hit, as leader (with Peter Thorup) of the 25-member big band ensemble CCS. Their version of Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love" charted in England, and led to a tour and television appearances. In response, Korner released Bootleg Him, a retrospective compiled from tapes in his personal collection, including recordings with Robert Plant, Mick Jagger, and Charlie Watts. Korner played on the "supersession" album B.B. King in London, and cut his own, similar album, Get Off My Cloud, with Keith Richards, Peter Frampton, Nicky Hopkins, and members of Joe Cocker's Grease Band. When Mick Taylor left the Rolling Stones in 1975, Korner was mentioned as a possible replacement, but the spot eventually went to Ron Wood. In 1978, for Korner's 50th birthday, an all-star concert was held featuring Eric Clapton, Paul Jones, Chris Farlowe, and Zoot Money, which was later released as a video.

In 1981, Korner formed the last and greatest "supergroup" of his career, Rocket 88, featuring himself on guitar, Jack Bruce on upright bass, Ian Stewart on piano, and Charlie Watts on drums, backed by trombonists and saxmen, and one or two additional keyboard players. They toured Europe and recorded several gigs, the highlights of which were included on a self-titled album released by Atlantic Records. In contrast to the many blues-rock fusion records with which Korner had been associated, Rocket 88 mixed blues with boogie-woogie jazz, the group's repertory consisting largely of songs written by W. C. Handy and Pete Johnson.

After a well-received appearance at the Cambridge Folk Festival in the early 1980s, there were rumors afterward that he intended to become more active musically, but his health was in decline by this time. A chain smoker all of his life, Korner died of lung cancer at the beginning of 1984.