More U.K. Obscurities On U.S. Labels: Tommy Quickly

 

TOMMY QUICKLY-The Wild Side Of Life/Forget The Other Guy U.S. Liberty 55753 1964

Liverpool's Tommy Quickly (and his uncredited backing band The Remo Four) were one of the more obscure band's that were swept in when the big men in London cast their nets on the "Mersey Sound" or "Merseybeat". Quickly managed quite a prolific career on vinyl in the U.K. with four singles on Piccadilly and two on Pye from July 1963 to December 1964 (even the Beatles didn't release as many singles during that period!). Tommy was originally born as Thomas Quigley. His career was overseen by Brian Epstein who rechristened him as Tommy Quickly in the Larry Parnes style of renaming your charges.  Having Epstein as a manager gave him access to an unreleased Beatles composition as his debut in July 1963 ("The Tip Of My Tongue", Piccadilly 7N 35137) which unfortunately failed to chart. 

Today's release was his last of two American singles. In the U.K. it was his fifth (and first on the Pye label) where it was launched as Pye 7N 15708 on October 2, 1964. It was issued here the following month. In England it gave him his only hit (#33). The Remo Four are uncredited on the label here despite backing him and being credited on the British release. 

"The Wild Side Of Life" dates back to an old US country music performer named Hank Thompson in 1952 and was revived by Ray Price in 1962, which is probably where Quickly heard it.  It's an interesting choice of a song to cover but it works surprisingly well as a beat ballad and The Remo Four provide a solid, edgy backing as the number is delivered in an uptempo style. The record did nothing here in the States despite Quickly plugging the number on the "Shindig!" TV show here where he performed it live. 

The flip side, "Forget The Other Guy" is a mundane beat ballad that's really nothing special. Next.... 

Both tracks were collected on a now out of print CD collection of all his work as well as other beat artists from '64-'65 that The Remo Four backed. 

Hear "The Wild Side Of Life":

https://youtu.be/JOy9QeEJdWg?si=WkISfg435JdFulCf

Hear "Forget The Other Guy":

https://youtu.be/TxkuuBLYBtc?si=y20dhnk_X8-RuRcs

More U.K. Obscurities On U.S. Labels: Billy J. Kramer Does Harry Nilsson

 

Billy J. Kramer-1941/His Love Is Just A Lie US Epic F-10331 1968

By 1968 Billy J. Kramer's days in the hit parade had long since vanished, he briefly was the co-host of a short lived music show "Discotheque" and was stuck in the unexciting cabaret circuit. His recording career in '68 was inaugurated with today's release.  In a much earlier post we had discussed his previous 45, a freaky 1967 one off for Robert Stigwood's short lived Reaction label. Kramer had been one of the few Liverpool acts (along with Cilla Black and of course The Beatles) who Brian Epstein retained in his stable of artists. When Robert Stigwood was brought into Epstein's NEMS company he was given Kramer which ultimately resulted in the previously mentioned 45 after Kramer's contract with EMI expired.  After Epstein's passing his brother Clive, along with Stigwood launched a record label in Britain called NEMS. Stigwood was eventually replaced in the organization by Vic Lewis and the label's debut release came in March 1968 with Billy J. Kramer's release of a Harry Nilsson composition "1941" (Nems 56-3396). NEMS did not issue any American releases so Kramer's new 45 was launched two months later in the U.S. by Epic.

American singer/songwriter Harry Nilsson was, like Randy Newman, slowly taking Britain by storm with a host of covers of his tunes thanks in no small part due to the patronage of The Fab Four who loved his debut 1967 LP "Pandemonium Shadow Show". Kramer was the first artist to cover "1941" though The Alan Price Set played it in a live BBC session. His version differs little from the original, in fact it took me a few listens to both versions back to back to make sure it wasn't the same backing track! The musical accompaniment on this version is slightly more martial and regal, with some subtle differences in the horns. Kramer's vocals have more of a bite in parts and regardless of it's lack of originality the whole thing really works for me!

Mrs & Mr. Kramer at home, 1968.

The flip "His Love Was Just A Lie" is a pedestrian orchestrated pop track. It sounds like one of those nameless tracks used as filler on one of the volumes of the "Piccadilly Sunshine" CD comp pop series right down to it's vibraphone and cello.

To my knowledge neither side has been comped anywhere, which is unfortunate in the case of The A-side!

Hear "1941":

https://youtu.be/CNUz7RYcLww

Hear "His Love Was Just A Lie":

https://youtu.be/ozUVLeFH2Xk