Wow. Would believe I own Western Union, the album? I am 19 years old. Which guy on the cover are you?
Dear ARS
I went through my oldies collections, and there on Time Life’s Rock Renaissance III was “I see the light”, squeezed between The Chocolate Watch Band and The Nazz, doing the wimpy version of Hello it’s me.How much royalties do you get in a year?
The song is listed as by Mike Rabon, Norman Ezell and John Durrill.
The goodlooking one.
JK… I am the one leaning out into the very forefront…making that fashion statement with the polka dot tie and checked jacket.
That first name there is me.
Not a lot of royalties, it varies, sometimes 4-5 thousand a year. Not bad considering I did the work 33 years ago.
The problem is…is that I have to walk all the way to the mailbox to get it. ;).
Seems like I remember my husband saying something like this too, aha my aging rock star friend. And I let him read the story about the shark, and he said he heard one similar to it (like the one Milossarian said), but the one he hard about involved a red snapper, because the girl was supposedly a redhead (we are NOT ALL LIKE THAT! I SWEAR!). But I’ll believe your story about the mud shark, since you’re the one that actually saw it!
And hi, omni-not!
(now I think I’m going to go call my mom & tell her I’m friends with an aging rock star…she will think I’m sooooo cooooooool!)
Uh…aha, my copy of Hammer of the Gods says the “red snapper/shark incident” involved Led Zeppelin and Vanilla Fudge. 
“Mu-ud sh-sh-sha-ark!” But I digress.
When your book is published, how will it affect the relationship you have with your students? How do you think they will react when they learn that their teacher or ex-principal lived a lifestyle so dissolute that they can never hope to match it, especially since they weren’t born in the forties or fifties?
Special note to the post-boomers: Nyah-nyah-nyah-nyah-nyah!
Aging Rock Star:
What was the worst part of being in the business?
What are your top 10 albums?
Who were your musical influences and bands?
what inspired you to get into the industry?
Rilchiam my very hazy recollection was that it was The Music Machine ( Talk Talk) but geezz I guess it could have been Vanilla fudge… it was 30 years ago, who the hell can remember for sure. There is an outside chance it was just a simular incident or I am mistaking Music Machine for Fudge. Those days were a whisky/druggie haze for me anyway.
I have never read the Hammer of the Gods book but I will purchase a copy and read it. Sorry about any confusion.
DropZone:
My students are too young to know or grasp that I had a life of rock and roll. However their parents do. Just the other day the local paper ran a picture and story here in town on The Five Americans and on the fact that Western Union has been played in excess of one million times on the radio.
Dealing with primadonna DJ’s and chickenshit record execs.
By that do you mean our albums?? We had 5 altogether.
Well at first Bo Diddly…then later british groups like The Beatles, The Dave Clark Five Small Faces and the Searchers who oddly enough “covered” western union in the 70’s in enland.
I had always had a band growing up. And I think that I was happy just having a band until I heard the Meet The Beatles album. I knew after hearing that album that I had to try and get a hit record. That album sort of “showed us the way” if you will. The first time I listened to it I said to myself…ohhh so that’s how it’s done.
Sorry to ask a mundane question, but I have wondered about this for decades. When you recorded “Western Union”, did you get permission from Western Union? Did you pay them royalties or did they pay you for the “product placement”? Did they say “thanks” or “yikes” or anything? Thanks in advance. And by the way…I liked the song!
No we didn’t get permission because we didn’t have to. There is no conflict of interest there because the music business and the telegram business are two differing entities.
Now on the other hand if I decided to set up a messenger service or something like and named it Western Union I would be clearly guilty of infringement.
Actually a lowly rep from Western Union did contact me. She wanted to try and use the song for a commericial. That would have been great as I would have made plenty on it, however the higher ups declined and instead used Dean Martin ( everybody needs some money sometimmeeeee) Dammit.
Thanks, glad you like the song.
Oh, aha, I’m sorry to hear that. Phooey on Dean Martin!
You guys are in the “Nuggets” box set.
Rilchiam thanks…the nuggets set has to pay royalites to Lehsam music in LA who in turn pay out royalites to the artists in Aug and Feb of every year. This Aug will be the first sales royalties we have received in 33 years…wish me luck on the size of the check. 
You are my hero.
If that was me, I’d use it as a .sig file, on business cards and pretty much bring it up into any and every conversation I might have with pretty much anyone from five minutes after I zipped up until I died.
Now then, gratuitous praise and envy aside, onto some questions.
Bear in mind that I have interviewed countless artists in my time, many more famous than you but none of them post here, so… 
[ol]
[li]Who was Ann? Do you still love her?[/li][li]“Guided Tour” was actually a “Guided Tour” of Sgt. Pepper, yes? (Not that there’s anything wrong with that…)[/li][li]You guys, indicative of the time, were “happy.” What thinkith you, aging rock star, of the dour and “negative” music of our current youth?[/li][li]Did you have your manager killed?[/li][li]How about some reviews of the CDs I sent ya, huh? I hope you liked some of them at least…[/li][li]And where is that reciprical package, huh tough guy? ;)[/li][li]My favorite story I ever heard about debauchery was when a member of Kiss (probably Gene) told about the first time he got laid simply because he was in a band. How powerful that was, and how much he wanted to do it more. Well?[/li][li]Bands of your ilk/era did before-they-were-called-that “videos” back then. Did you guys? Any footage around of The Five Americans in concert in some shape or form?[/li][li]Are you sick of my questions yet?[/li][li]Did you ever dabble in producing, management, or anything else behind the scenes when the band broke up? Why not, or how did it go?[/li][li]Every meet Roky Erickson of 14th Floor Elevator fame? I think you would like what he did.[/li][li]When Black Sabbath came out, wasn’t that like the heaviest shit in the world?[/li][li]What was your impression of punk when it started?[/li][li]Please say, in ten words or less, what legacy you hope The Five Americans left behind.[/li][/ol]
Okay, that’s enough for now.
By the way, I like the name choice, simply because it showed that some fuckers on this side of the pond were working on stuff while the Brits were getting all of the ink.
And if you don’t add to your ever-growing .sig that you are my hero (much better than simply being welcomed here, I mean, they can welcome you and then not like you!), I will be very hurt!
Yer putz,
Satan :wally
TIME ELAPSED SINCE I QUIT SMOKING:
Two months, two weeks, four days, 8 hours, 41 minutes and 8 seconds.
3174 cigarettes not smoked, saving $396.81.
Life saved: 1 week, 4 days, 30 minutes.
Dear Aging Rock Star,
You mentioned earlier that you got fed up with your record company demanding more “communication” songs. Was “zip code” one of these? I’m listening to “zip code” right now, again courtesy of napster :). I gotta tell you… “zip code” is a damn good song… I think i almost like it more than “Western Union” hehe.
And what was so special about the 10063 zip code?
Everyone, download “zip code” now. This song rules. Er, buy the cd I mean
Hi Aha
I see ppl askin you who did you like, who did you hate.
I mean, I would like to know who you have jammed
with, I mean sittin in a hotel room, or a studio
or in yer livin room.
Who have you just sat and jammed with on a couple of acoustics? just strummin shit playin chords, or liks.
Not on stage, but just hangin out? any well known people?
BTW, this is an awesome thread.
Dear ARS,
I was a Dallas kid in the 50s and early 60s. I remember Lu-Anns well.
Did you ever perform in “The Cellar” in Fort Worth? I think I remember your band and for whatever reason, I associate that memory with “The Cellar.”
Did you guys ever perform anywhere on the Jacksboro Strip?
Did you ever drink Lone Star or Jax beer?
Dear ARS: Do you think a person has to be born with a musical gift? That is, can someone who has never even picked up an instrument suddenly decide to become a musician/song writer in his 30’s? What would you guess the odds are against such a person “making it” in today’s youth/looks obsessed music business? Would you say he has a snowball’s chance in a supernova (I don’t believe in hell), or perhaps a snowball’s chance in a busted freezer (I’m a pessimist who doesn’t believe in hell, go figure)?
She was fictitious.
Guided tour was written about a trip through Europe. You’ll get an Eyeful when you climb the tallest tower in town. this was the trip through france of course and seeing the eiffel tower. * There’ll be no cameras taken on this portion of the trip, we’ve left them all behind they confiscated mine for taking pictures of their paradise * tells about the trip over the the Berlin Wall. Notice the song mentions windmills ( Holland). Listen to it in that context and you will see it is just a trip through 1960s Europe.
I thinketh that it is too dour. Rock and Roll is suppose to be fun ain’t it?
He never advanced us enough money to hire it done.
I liked them all and thanks. BTW I dedicated an entire thread thanking you and telling you which ones I liked about 4 weeks ago. I especially liked the red and green ones.
Ok pal my apologies on that one. I emailed Irwin at Sundazed and asked for more 5 A CDs. He is usually very forthcoming on those but he indicated that he is compiling a “Best of” Cd and that those ( western Union CDs) are now like hens teeth. Probably bullshit but I will get you that package sooner or later.
Yeah getting laid just because you play guitar is fun.
The only ones I know that exist or the old bandstand tapes and dick Clark wants 5000 dollars per minute for them.
:rolleyes:
I joined another band briefly called Gladstone. We had a top forty record called “A Piece of Paper.” Then I formed a band of my own and signed with UNI records. There I did some record of my material with Mike Post, who is a TV theme writer. He and Russ Reagan at UNI got in a huge argument over production and costs and my album went to shit. UNI didn’t need me anyway at the time they had Elton John and Bernie Taupin. I made a living that way though for a while, just signing with labels for up front money then letting the term of the contract run out if no hit record ensued.
Ummm that was 13th Floor elevator fame wasn’t it?
And they were from Houston Tex right?
Yeah I think that is when the term “Groovey” kind of officially went out of style.
You know punk has it’s own appeal. It’s one of those trends that gets old real quick but I liked it.
They made an impression on international consciousness.
Yeah Zipcode WAS one of them. Personally I like it too…maybe the best.
10036 not 63
Well the song was about zipcodes so we had to make one up. There was an UL going around for a while that it was a town in New York state or somewhere but it was stictly fictitous.
Glad you like it and please do buy the CD.