Saturday, May 07, 2011

Mae West: Roy Hall Great Balls

MAE WEST recorded an LP "Great Balls of Fire" [MGM label, 1972] — — and one track was "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On," that great rockabilly standard. Produced by Ian Whitcomb, Mae's tracks were backed by The Hot Rockers.
• • Mae-maven and faithful reader David Pekrol wanted to add this comment: This album was actually recorded in 1968 but shelved for 4 years until they could find a distributor. The original test pressing showed the album still needed some work. . . . Mae recorded "Love Potion #9" for the record --- --- but for some reason they didn't put it on the released album. It's unfortunate because it is very good.
• • Covered by 70-something young-at-heart Mae West, the energetic "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" was still so associated with Jerry Lee Lewis that the individuals who created it in 1954 were overshadowed.
• • James Faye "Roy" Hall was born in Big Stone Gap, Virginia in the month of May — — on 7 May 1922. An elderly neighbor taught him to play the piano and also demonstrated the unfortunate habit of losing himself in drink. Playing in a band, writing songs, drinking heavily, and pursuing his instincts about entertainment led Hall to open a hang-out in Nashville called the Music Box (later renamed the Musicians Hideaway) where he played piano and wet his whistle. In 1954, a young man approached Hall for a job. He was Jerry Lee Lewis and Roy paid Jerry $15 a night to do duets with him. That same year Roy Hall and a black musician named Dave Williams took a trip to the Everglades that resulted in a rock and roll classic: "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On." In March 1955, Big Maybelle made the first recording for the Okeh label, produced by the young Quincy Jones. In September 1955 Decca signed Hall and he recorded a few songs for this label including "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On." The version by charismatic Jerry Lee Lewis became far more popular, though. The royalties owed to Hall were handsome, however, when he was sued by his ex-wife, she wound up with most of the profits.
• • Roy Hall kept on kept performing around Nashville, Tennessee where he died at 61 years old on 2 March 1984.
• • Happy Birthday to Lee de Broux • •
• • Lee de Broux played the role of Jack West, Mae's father, in the 1982 bio-pic "Mae West." Born in La Mesa, California on 7 May 1941, busy Lee turned 70 today. Last year the character actor was seen in three separate indie films.
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Does the current crop of "chick flicks" reveal there is "A New Woman" type on the silver screen? Denver Post Film Critic Lisa Kennedy writes: "Whitney Cummings is the funniest woman I know," Michael Patrick King, longtime director of "Sex and the City," has said about the comic before he added: "If she's really a woman." It's a good line — — from the guy who brought us Mae West's love child, Samantha Jones, no less. But it teases a legit concern. No, not about Cummings' X-chromosome bona fides, but about who loves — — and benefits — — most from the mainstreaming of the ribald. ...
• • Source: Article: "Emancipated, yes, but empowered? The problem with bawdy women" written by Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post Film Critic for The Denver Post; posted on 6 May 2011
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started seven years ago in July 2004.
You are reading the 1923rd blog post. Unlike many blogs, which draw upon reprinted content from a newspaper or a magazine and/ or summaries, links, or photos, the mainstay of this blog is its fresh material focused on the life and career of Mae West, herself an American original.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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9 comments:

  1. I represent songwriter Mike Stoller of Leiber-Stoller, who wrote "Love Potion No. 9" He's never heard the Mae West version and asked me to find out if there's any way he can get a file copy? Thanks. Alan Eichler, aeichler@earthlink.net

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Alan Eichler: Thank you for your visit.
    • • Actually, I have no idea but the Mae West Estate might know. Contact the Estate via Corbis and they will put you in touch with the attorney.
    • • Good luck!

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  3. Hello to who may ever see this post.
    I have one of these original test pressings and am looking to sell it any info from anyone would be greatly appreciated.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. • • Lots of fans might see your post, however, they will not know how to get in touch with you -- since you chose to be incognito.
      • • Good luck, Mr. or Mrs. Anonymous.

      Delete
  4. Is it possible that all of the television work that Miss West filmed that was either never aired as in the 1959 segment of Person to Person or just shown once as in the case of the Dean Martin Show will resurface and be aired? Walter

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  5. • • Hi, Walter! A copy of the "Person to Person" (CBS-TV) footage has been found -- but I was told CBS was not the source.
    • • Will the CBS suits permit it to be aired? Why not, right? What objection can there be now that viewership is more liberal-minded about innuendo.
    • • If I hear anything, I'll post about it on the blog.
    • • Thank you for your visit, Walter.

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  6. That s great news! I was shocked to see the inclusion of a clip from the P To P interview in the recently aired Mae West Dirty Blond TV special. Thank you so much for your reply. Walter

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  7. • • Yes -- and that footage was a bootleg copy, squirreled away in a cellar.
    • • Some footage has been lost forever. For example, WOR-TV's 5 interviews with Mae West on "The Joe Franklin Show" were recorded over -- not archived.
    • • Come up and see us again, handsome.

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  8. Sad to hear that Mae s appearance on Joe Franklin has been destroyed. There is so little footage of her. She had a canny business sense and realized that over saturating the public with appearances would detract from her mystique but of course we die hard fans never get enough of her. Thank you for your wonderful research. Walter NYC

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