Knock One Time…
Wednesday, December 10th, 2014
…and hold out some money…and you’d be surprised who answers. Tony Orlando himself! He’s the guy with the cheesy mustache and the two hot girls collectively known as “Dawn” flanking him on those great album covers of the 1970’s. He crooned his way into our hearts with Knock Three Times (ya know, twice on the pipe), Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree, and the grammatically incorrect He Don’t Love You (Like I Love You). Those tracks went to number one on the Billboard charts, so I’m quite familiar with him. And he cracked the top ten with songs like Candida, Say, Has Anybody Seen My Sweet Gypsy Rose?, and Steppin’ Out (I’m Gonna Boogie Tonight). Read the rest of this entry »
As a fan of classic rock from the 1960’s – not to mention a fan of Lucille Ball – I most certainly sat up and took notice at one of the guests who appeared at the Hollywood Show in Los Angeles on October 5, 2013. I was quite aware of the rock trio of Dino, Desi, & Billy – comprised of Dean Martin’s son Dean Paul Martin, Lucy and Desi’s son Desi Arnaz Jr., and the one that no one had heard of: Billy Hinsche. Naturally it was Billy who was making the personal appearance. 
I wouldn’t say that it has been my dream to meet 80’s pop sensation Debbie Gibson, but it is just surreal enough to be one of those events that only occur in one’s dreams. Her style of music wasn’t exactly my cup of tea in the late 1980’s, as I delved into the pop metal scene and then after a year, drifted into alternative rock and indie pop. In fact, I scoffed at that sugary pop music ushered in by Madonna, Whitney Houston, and Debbie Gibson. But upon review of this music at a later date, I find it much less objectionable, particularly the number one Billboard hits Foolish Beat and Lost in Your Eyes, and a couple of others that hit near the top of the charts, namely Only in My Dreams and Shake Your Love. 
To my credit, singer Trini Lopez only cracked the top 20 twice, so it’s not all that unusual that I really had never heard of him prior to the early 1990’s. Both of these songs, If I Had a Hammer and Lemon Tree, were cover songs at that. But the later of the two achieved a iconic status for a whole other reason than being a passably catchy tune…at least to me. Yes, it may sound weird but I learned about Trini Lopez from watching Seinfeld, in which they used the song as a minor plot device. 