The Encyclopedia of Dead Rock Stars (376 page)

The group’s first hit was ‘It’s No Sin’ (1951, US Top Five) - a record that was prevented from going all the way to number one by a simultaneous release by Eddy Howard, but still went on to shift over one million copies in America. The Four Aces then signed with Decca and released further gold and silver 45s: these included the quartet’s best-known songs, the Academy Award-winning standards ‘Three Coins in the Fountain’ (1954, US Cash Box number one; UK Top Five) and ‘Love is a Many Splendored Thing’ (1955, US number one; UK number two), plus other big-sellers such as ‘Stranger in Paradise’ (1953) and ‘Mr Sandman’ (1954).

Leaving for a solo career in 1956, Alberts saw nothing of the success of his earlier group. He reinvented himself to great effect as the anchor man to a children’s talent show: his long-running ABC hour
Al Alberts’ Showcase
introduced the world to the likes of Sister Sledge and Teddy Pendergrass - a singer who survived him by just two months (
January 2010).
Al Alberts died from kidney failure on 27 November 2009 at his home in Arcadia, Florida.

DECEMBER

Wednesday 2

Eric Woolfson

(Glasgow, Scotland, 18 March 1945)

The Alan Parsons Project

Scottish-born Eric Woolfson was a man of many parts; during his varied career he was a singer, a songwriter, a musician, a manager and even briefly a politician (with the UK’s shortlived Social Democratic Party). At just eighteen, his proficiency as a pianist kept the young Woolfson in session work and impressed Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham, who invited him to write songs for Marianne Faithfull, The Marmalade and The Tremeloes, among others. (It’s suggested that Woolfson’s songs have since been recorded by over one hundred artists.)

With the seventies inviting new sounds and styles into British pop culture, Woolfson then tried his hand at pop management – and was, again, instantly successful. The first signing was Carl Douglas, at first glance perhaps not the most likely of stars; however, Douglas’s Grammy-winning ‘Kung Fu Fighting’ (1974) topped the charts on both sides of the Atlantic (eventually selling a staggering eleven million copies worldwide), making the singer, for a short time, a household name.

By contrast, Woolfson’s second signing was writer and producer Alan Parsons, with whom he was to forge an enduring creative relationship. The pair founded The Alan Parsons Project, a progressive/soft-rock act that employed a series of guest vocalists and musicians throughout a long and prosperous existence. Here, the figures became even more startling: Woolfson had made a return to songwriting, his work now enjoying sales of fifty-million-plus for the band. Woolfson was a decent singer himself, though generally provided only a guide vocal which was then developed by names such as Colin Blunstone (ex-The Zombies), Gary Brooker (Procol Harum) and Allan Clarke (The Hollies). Nonetheless, it is Woolfson’s voice that can be heard on the group’s biggest chart single, ‘Eye In the Sky’ (1982, US number three). The enduring success of concept albums such as
Tales of Mystery and Imagination
(1976) and
Eye in the Sky
(1982) continues to this day, however the collaboration went its separate ways during
Freudiana
(1990).

This kind of conceptual composing drew Eric Woolfson toward musical theatre, which became his metier thereafter. The musician and writer died in London after a lengthy battle with kidney cancer.

Golden Oldies#103

Aaron Schroeder

(Aaron Harold Schroder - Brooklyn, New York, 7 September 1926)

Another major player in early rock ‘n’ roll, Aaron Schroeder made his considerable mark by composing (or co-writing) seventeen of Elvis Presley’s early hits. Of these, five topped the US charts: ‘I Got Stung’ (1958), ‘A Big Hunk o’ Love’ (1959), ‘Stuck On You’ (1960), ‘It’s Now Or Never’ (1960 - a song he and co-composer Wally Gold reportedly completed within a half hour) and ‘Good Luck Charm’ (1962).

Schroeder had been a mere staff writer at Hill & Range when he conceived Elvis’s hits, the writer proceeding to pen some five hundred popular songs in his time. He claimed further prestigious credits with many other big-name artists including Rosemary Clooney - whose ‘At a Sidewalk Penny Arcade’ (1947) had been Schroeder’s first success - plus Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, Roy Orbison, Carl Perkins, Bobby Vee and even Barry White. This positive response prompted Schroeder to found Musicor Records in 1960, the company largely in existence to promote the early career of his discovery, Gene Pitney. Musicor also oversaw the career of established country star, George Jones.

Unlike his cartoon namesake, Schroeder was a composer who refused to work for peanuts: despite his reputation as a songwriter, he also developed a name as something of a sharp practitioner in business and, after a series of lawsuits, was eventually forced to sell off his interests to United Artists.

Aaron Schroeder passed away in Englewood, New Jersey on 2 December 2009 after a lengthy battle with primary progressive aphasia - a rare form of dementia related to Alzheimer’s disease.

Monday 7

Bruce Allen

(Omaha, Nebraska, 7 September 1955)

The Suburbs

(Various acts)

They may have looked and sounded more like British contemporaries such as The Psychedelic Furs or Japan, but respected altrock quintet The Suburbs were pure Midwest, born and bred. The band were rare in that they managed to maintain the same line-up for their entire career, floppy-fringed guitarist Bruce Allen having founded The Suburbs with guitarist/singer Blaine John Chaney in 1977. With the roster completed by Chan Poling (keyboards), Michael Halliday (bass) and Hugo Klaers (drums), art-school graduate Allen augmented his input by designing the band’s distinctive ‘blank generation’ logo. In terms of American newwave bands, The Suburbs were probably the first to inject aspects of funk into their sound. Mercury signed the group on the strength of their
Dream HogEP
(1982). While the label supported The Suburbs the best they could, The B-52’s were also happy to promote the group, the Georgia stars frequently inviting The Suburbs to open for them.

Although The Suburbs had a devoted regional following, they never really charted in a major way, with their best-recalled song probably ‘Waiting’ (Twin/Tone, 1982): this cut, however, surprised all members of the group by making serious headway in the national club playlists. The Suburbs switched to A&M in 1985, but their fortunes weren’t especially improved – despite some fine production work by Bobby Z, of Prince’s band. The label then dropped an act that they felt were ‘yesterday’s news’, and, frustrated by a lack of profile, The Suburbs finally called it a day in 1987.

Bruce Allen – who played in several other bands, including Minnesota garagerockers The X-Boys – died following a series of health issues that had culminated in triple bypass heart surgery in Hennepin County.

Tuesday 8

Dean Fasano

(Mountainside, New Jersey, 16 January 1955)

Message

Prophet

A stalwart of the New Jersey rock circuit, distinctive vocalist Dean Fasano rubbed shoulders with some of the region’s biggest names; unfortunately, he also suffered from poor luck and, ultimately, ill-health. The singer had spent many nights in front of the mirror, emulating his favourite front men before leading the first of several hard-rock bands as a teenager.

While most of these weren’t to last beyond a few sessions in somebody’s garage, Fasano’s voice improved immeasurably, provoking a potential deal from Led Zeppelin’s Swansong label. Jon Bonham’s death
(
September 1980
) effectively put paid to this, the label disappearing with the band, so Fasano set about starting a new group with guitarist Richie Sambora. Message (as they were named) also featured bassist Alec John Such and drummer Andy Rubo. Although the group were effectively hawking their own debut album out of the car trunk, Message managed to earn a support slot with Joe Cocker, and, in 1982, a major label deal looked imminent. Once again, this was thwarted: the band’s travels crossed paths with another young NJ singer – one Jon Bon Jovi – who decided he wanted Sambora and Such for
his
group, resulting in Message’s split.