Back to "All Hopped Up" for a moment... It appears that the Japanese mini-LP reissue CD has gone out of print. None of the usual Japanese retailers have it in stock, although I managed to buy what seemed to be the last copy at amazon.co.jp. So if you see one around, consider buying it if you like this album. Of course you like this album! Chris P.S. Anybody know where I can find a copy of Froggy's Favorites Vol. 1"? I missed this one when it was new, and it also seems to be unavailable.
Good luck. I've never even seen a copy on eBay ... or anywhere else, for that matter. GREAT compilation. If you are unable to locate it, PM me and I'll help you hear it, in any event. It's really excellent.
Thank you, Rock. That's very nice of you. Thanks to the kindness of another Forum member (you know who you are!) I have been able to purchase a brand new copy of Froggy's Favorites Volume 1, and for a very reasonable price. I love this place. Thank you. And just look what the postman brought today... Chris
OK, sorry for going OT - now back to At Yankee Stadium. Here is my copy - a promo (the gold promo stamp was removed by the original owner) that has been signed by all four members, plus Keith and Donn (the Whole Wheat Horns, of course.) It's one of my most prized albums in my collection. Chris
When the Q learned that each of the three Phonogram pressing plants wanted their own "master" to simultaneously work with, they decided put the different version of "Ain't No Free" on one of them just to be mischievous.
Was this the best selling NRBQ album? This would be a great candidate for a deluxe reissue, with a period live show on another disc. I'd buy it again. Chris
If this forum member has another copy of Froggy's Favorites Vol. 1, I would be very interested in purchasing one! It's only one of a couple of Q CDs missing from my collection.
What happened to this thread? We need to resurrect it. TIDDLYWINKS, from 1980, would be the next album up for discussion, no? I love TIDDLYWINKS for its lo-fi return and I believe it marked the debut of Lou Albano as NRBQ's manager, right?
I agree the thread needs to be resurrected but there was never an "official" post about At Yankee Stadium, no tracklist or album cover. I never made any comments because of this.
NRBQ All Hopped Up 1977 With the passing of Tom Ardolino (January 12, 1955 – January 6, 2012), it was suggested in another thread that this NRBQ Album-By-Album Thread be resurrected in his honor, which I have to acknowledge. It was my intent that this thread be as comprehensive as possible, since there is no other place on the internet that is a definitive NRBQ resource. As you know it takes a lot of time and work to do it right, which is why it got abandoned in the first place, but I'll do my best to move it forward. Before we hit "All Hopped Up," I want to say that, in my opinion, Tom Ardolino is one of THE great unsung drum masters of the rock era - carrying and honoring the swing and traditions of jazz and rockabilly. He had a natural, musical feel to his playing, and always served the song - always in the pocket, always appropriate to the arrangement, and always playing with propulsion and emotion. In a musical world that wallows in negativity more often than not, Tom's playing vibrated with a sense of happiness and life. For me, NOBODY swung harder or with more joy in the rock world over the last 40 years. Ardolino was a resident of Springfield, Massachusetts, and knew the band already for a few years as a fan, and used to exchange offbeat reel to reel tapes with Terry, before cassettes became popular. One show, drummer Staley didn't turn up for an encore in time, and Terry gave Ardolino the nod. When Tom Staley headed for Florida to join The Breathers, Tom Ardolino joined NRBQ and the personnel locked in for 20 years. As great as Ferguson, Gadler and Staley each were in their respective rights, the magic of this particular quartet went from fiery sparks to constant current. Ardolino remained in the lineup until the band went on hiatus in 2004, returning for occasional reunion performances, and lending his support when Adams decided to reclaim the NRBQ name for a new band in 2011. While lead vocals were generally performed by other members of NRBQ, live shows often included a moment where Ardolino would take the spotlight and sing, either with a karaoke backing track or with one of the other band members drumming. In the period when Ardolino joined the band, no labels were biting in 1974, so the band started their own Red Rooster label, and put out All Hopped Up (reissued by Rounder as "Ridin’ in My Car.") This included many favorites besides "Ridin’ in my Car", like "I Got a Rocket in My Pocket", and "It Feels Good." In 1977 the group released "Ridin' In My Car" as a single from the All Hopped Up album. The song garnered a great deal of airplay in Western Massachusetts and Connecticut, but didn't break out nationally. Mercury Records thought enough of its commercial potential to license it for inclusion on the band's followup album At Yankee Stadium. Although the initial release of At Yankee Stadium contains it, Mercury chose not to renew the agreement, and subsequent pressings omit the song. "Ridin' In My Car" never became a national hit, but it has remained in the band's live act consistently since its release. All Hopped Up Release Date: 1977 1 I Got A Rocket In My Pocket [Logsdon, McAlpin] 2 It Feels Good [Adams] 3 Cecilia [Dreyer, Ruby] 4 Honey Hush [Turner] 5 Call Him Off, Rogers [Adams] 6 Doctor's Wind [Spampinato] 7 Ridin' In My Car [Anderson] 8 Things To You [Adams] 9 Still In School [Spampinato] 10 Help Me Somebody [Anderson] 11 Queen Talk [Adams] 12 That's Alright [Spampinato] 13 Bonanza [Evans, Livingston] Lineup: Terry Adams Keyboards, Vocals Al Anderson Guitar, Vocals Tom Ardolino Drums Joey Spampinato Bass, Vocals G.T. Stanley Drums Releases [Year Type label Catalog #]: 1977 LP Red Rooster Records LP-101 LP Rounder 3029 1990 CD Rounder Select 1994 CD Line 900225 1994 CS Line 900225 1999 CD Ridin’ in My Car (reissue of All Hopped Up, with unreleased songs) Rounder 2008 Japan CD Mini-LP Sleeve Lost House References: http://www.allmusic.com/album/all-hopped-up-r14245 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Ardolino http://www.puremusic.com/nrbq.html http://www.lyricsfreak.com/n/nrbq/biography.html
1st pressings on Red Rooster came with a white label 45 of "Ridin' In My Car"/"Do The Bump". The 45 is mono.
Really glad to see this thread going again, as I said earlier I have never heard this version of the album but I do have the Ridin' In My Car version. This is start of a run of albums that I really enjoy to listen to all the way through and I do almost every time I pull them out.
One correction: G.T. (Tom) Staley doesn't appear on any of the "All Hopped Up" tracks. And the original Red Rooster lp has a different running order that the Rounder/Red Rooster release. (The above track listing is the revised version. There are also slight differences to several tracks. There's a bit of studio talk at the start of the original "Rocket In My Pocket" and the original "That's Alright" was sped up slightly; the Rounder version is at actual speed. And one piece of trivia: The acoustic 12-string on "Things To You" belonged to Todd Rundgren.
Thanks, John I have the reissue LP, and don't see the original running order anywhere online. If you ever get a chance would you please share it? With the addition of Tommy to the band, the quintessential synthesis of the NRBQ sound was in place. 3 distinct vocalists and songwriters, strong and tight harmony singing, and 4 instrumentalists that each had their own unique sound and musical tastes/personalities, but meshed as a band to create a sum far greater than it's parts. Timeless, yet decidedly retro. This is NRBQ's first completely self-produced effort, and continues with the rawer garagey sonics of their previous records. Not low-fi per se, but raw and real - the mix on my vinyl copy of the Red Rooster/Rounder reissue is on the verge of mono. Part of what made NRBQ so great and interesting, was also likely a hindrance commercially - they were several bands in one, with several guys that could/would be bandleaders in their own right. "All Hopped Up" is the first album of theirs that establishes the extreme eclecticism in their song choices they would pursue for most of the Al Anderson era. The record covers the spectrum from Rockabilly (Rocket In My Pocket), sunshiney west-coast pop (It Feels Good), jump blues/jazz (Cecilia), old-school Kansas City R&B (Honey Hush), abstract musical tone-poem that has distinct Sun Ra flavor with the spooky in-the-background "Nubians Of Plutionia" percussion (Doctor's Wind), timeless Beatles-y classic pop (Ridin' In My Car), Bacharach style pop (Things To You), Everly Brothers (Still In School), Carl Perkins (Help Me Somebody), '65 Beatles/Byrds era folk-rock, tv theme music fractalized through Lumpy Gravy era Frank Zappa (Bonanza). Sounds like a dream come true for a muso, but must be perplexing and or maddening to a listener only into one aspect of the blend. From the back record sleeve: That's Alright: recorded November, 1974, Maynard, Mass. Cecilia: recorded January, 1975 Silver Springs Maryland. I Got a Rocket in My Pocket, Call Him Off, Rogers, Doctor's Wind, Ridin' In My Car, Things To You, Help Me Somebody, Queen Talk: recorded March 1975 New York City. It Feels Good, Honey Hush, Still in School, Bonanza: recorded November 1976 Bearsville, N.Y. Remixed at Bearsville Studio, Woodstock by Tom Mark. Remastered by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound. References: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honey_Hush http://luthermayhem.brinkster.net/Lyrics/AllHoppedUpLyricSheet.asp God Bless Tommy Ardolino! 1955 2012: http://youtu.be/TCVO-C3hMrg Another facet of the thread that has slowed me down at times is scanning covers I have when no great scans exist online - here's a new one for "All Hopped Up:"
I remember constantly seeing "Yankee Stadium" in cut-out bins back in the '70s, years before I knew who they were. The cover always cracked me up!
I've attached images of an All Hopped Up Rounder LP release on an incorrect label - wrong rooster! Dave
Here's the track listing of the original "All Hopped Up": Side A Ridin' In My Car It Feels Good Cecilia I Got a Rocket in My Pocket Call Him Off, Rogers Doctor's Wind Side B Things To You Help Me Somebody Still In School Honey Hush Queen Talk Bonanza That's Alright
NRBQ: At Yankee Stadium (Mercury) 1978 At Yankee Stadium (Mercury) 1978 1 Green Lights [Adams, Joseph, Spampinato] 2:54 2 Just Ain't Fair [Spampinato] 3:01 3 I Love Her, She Loves Me [Spampinato] 2:28 4 Get Rhythm [Cash] 2:58 5 That's Neat, That's Nice [Adam]s 3:09 6 Ain't No Free [Adams] 3:24 7 I Want You Bad [Adams, Crandon] 2:32 8 The Same Old Thing [Matthews] 2:21 9 Yes, Yes, Yes [Adams] 2:53 10 It Comes to Me Naturally [Anderson] 3:00 11 Talk to Me [Adams] 2:41 12 Shake, Rattle and Roll [Calhoun] 3:10 On original release only: 13 Ridin' In My Car [Anderson] Credits: Terry Adams Clavinet, Keyboards, Organ, Piano, Vocals, Wind Joseph Spampinato Acoustic Guitar, Bass, Vocals Al Anderson Guitar, Vocals Tom Ardolino Drums Keith Spring Tenor Saxophone Donn Adams Trombone Recorded at Bearsville Studios, November 1977 (not at Yankee Stadium) Engineered by Tom Mark Assistant Engineered by J.Frazer Mastering by J.Frazer and Tom Edmunds Releases: Year Type label Catalog # 1989 CD Mercury 824462-2 2004 CD Universal Distribution 9450 Trivia via SH Forums: 1. The album was pressed in three separate Phonogram plants in the U.S., so mischievously the band prepared a slightly different master tape for one of the plants. One of the alternate masters during the closing falsetto chorus of "Ain't No Free", you hear Al Anderson say "A bunch of sick guys". 2. The album's working title was "The Hicks Go Mod". In the deadwax on side one "The hicks go mod" is inscribed. 3. The Phonogram A&R guy who signed the Q was former Blues Project/Blood Sweat & Tears member Steve Katz. References: http://www.allmusic.com/album/nrbq-at-yankee-stadium-r14246 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/At_Yankee_Stadium http://beatpatrol.wordpress.com/2008/11/11/nrbq-at-yankee-stadium-1978/ http://birdswithbrokenwings2.blogspot.com/2010/12/nrbq-american-band.html http://articles.mcall.com/1994-07-24/entertainment/2995175_1_nrbq-pop-culture-jazz-band
At Yankee Stadium is popularly considered NRBQ's best and most popular album. There's no question, it is a masterfully written and performed record, with clean, clear, and natural production. It sounds like a group of human beings playing music together in one room at the same time; there is a pleasing and natural tonal quality to the capture and it has a realistic ambient soundstage. In my opinion, it is the pristine nature of the production that showcases the ballads very well (I Love Her, She Loves Me, Yes, Yes, Yes), and perhaps neuters the energy of the rockers - the record rocks without the sensation of coming unhinged that they sometimes captured. It feels very "Saturday afternoon" to me instead of "Saturday night." Perhaps this point is neither here nor there, because it is a G.R.E.A.T. record. It just sounds very polite to me, which of course NRBQ could definitely be at their most tender, but for me the record doesn't have many of those mischevious winking mischievous playful lysergically knowing winks that Terry Adams often brought to the party. The keyboard solo on "Talk To Me" is one of the rare moments I'm referring to. More absolutely stunning songwriting from the group on this album. I am always perplexed that at least a dozen of Q's songs are not in the perpetual great american songbook. Yes, Yes, Yes is the standout track for me, and in my opinion one of the most natural love songs of the pop and rock era - loving, tender, and sensitive, without being maudlin or cliche. A great, nuanced performance and recording, with nods to Joey Spampinato's vocal and stand-up bass playing. Terry's inspired and graceful solo is a great example of his best musical characteristics; melodic, unique, playful, sensitive, adventurous, composed, spontaneous, and traditional and avant-garde all at the same moment. The man is a musical genius and treasure. The 2 other highlights for me are I Want You Bad and Talk to Me. As a Beatles-kid who loves Power Pop, these are right in my wheelhouse. What's amazing about this band is that they were many bands in one. If they chose only one musical direction and focused on it, they still would have risen to the top of their field. All of their Power Pop tunes are a great example; gather them all on one collection and it would be one of the greatest of the genre (I should sit down and actually make that compilation), but they chose to be everything at one time, which in a music history sense, leaves them floating out in the ether of their own galaxy. They really had no peer.
my favourite nrbq record, because it is more consistent than the others. the highlights: Just ain't fair, I love her, she loves me and talk to me
