Zero to 180 – Three Minute Magic

Discoveries of a Pop Music Archaeologist

Tag: Cash-in albums

"The Wobble"
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King Cash-In Surf LP #2

Zero to 180’s sprawling history trawl “Rare & Unreleased King” made passing reference to another surf-ploitation LP issued by King Records – 1963’s Surfin’ on Wave Nine – and even threatened to make that album the focus of a future history piece … whose time has come today. Compared to Look Who’s

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"Joggin' Along"
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King Cash-In Surf LP #1

In the course of sleuthing, I stumbled upon a King surf cash-in compilation from 1964 that, upon closer inspection, revealed a trio of “mystery bands” — The Surf Jumpers, The Wild Kats and The King Surfers — that are mysteriously absent from Ruppli’s otherwise fairly comprehensive 2-volume discography of King

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"I Don't Believe You"
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Waylon Did Dylan in ’65

How humorous to browse a chronological listing of Waylon Jennings albums starting in 1964 – eleven on RCA by my count, following his debut LP At JD’s – when out of nowhere, A&M suddenly decides to issue its first and only album by Jennings, long after his brief run of singles (1963-65)

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"Uh Oh"
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“Uh Oh”: Jet Age Moderne

ABC once broadcast a 4-part television special in 1960 called The Frank Sinatra Timex Show:  Welcome Home Elvis.  This was to be the hip-swiveler’s first television appearance in three years since being discharged from military service. Poster art by Al Hirschfeld, yes? At one point, Elvis threatens to get upstaged

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"Lonesome Whistle Blues"
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“Lonesome Whistle Blues”: Train = Pain

Unnamed vocalists perfectly evoke a lonely late night train whistle on Freddy King‘s mournfully swinging “Lonesome Whistle Blues“: “Lonesome Whistle Blues” Freddy King (1961) This song was catchy enough (#8 R&B) to cross over into Billboard‘s Top 100 Pop (#88) when released in April of 1961 on Federal, a subsidiary

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"Love The Boy Who Loves You"
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The Buggs: Low-Budget Beatles

Upon playing the debut (and only) album by The Buggs, once discovers that the band, in their particularly mercenary bid to piggyback off The Beatles‘ success, utilized song titles as simple vessels for parking exotic English place names and popular dance moves, with no consideration whatsoever for the song’s actual

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"I Waited"
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Beatle Buddies: Not Actually Pals

Of all the records released in the wake of Beatlemania (click here for a comprehensive illustrated list of Beatles covers & cash-in albums) the one-and-only album by The Beatle Buddies easily wins the award for best cover with its menacing take on Meet the Beatles!: ‘fabulous Beatle sound’ Fortunately, mixed

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"Mississippi"
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“Mississippi”: Pickwick Would Never Try to Mislead the Public

I remember as a kid learning the hard way about albums disguised as hits collections that were, in fact, faithful renderings by some shadow studio group.  Soundalike LPs, if you will.  Case in point:  18 Golden Hits of 1970.  The singers and musicians who did their best to mimic the

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"Chained to Your Heart"
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“Chained to Your Heart”: Cycle Soothes the Savage Beast

The soundtrack album to 1969’s notorious biker film, Cycle Savages (starring Bruce Dern) remained out-of-print until reissued on CD in 2012.  This album contains rare cuts by cult psych bands Orphan Egg and The Boston Tea Party – with the latter contributing standout track, “Chained to Your Heart,” a blue-eyed

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"Village Queen"
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Freddy Fender’s Prison Album of Mystery

In 1975 — the same year Gusto Records acquired Starday-King Records from Leiber and Stoller’s Tennessee Recording and Publishing — Gusto released an album entitled Freddy Fender – Recorded Inside Louisiana State Prison.  I suspect Gusto might have been trying to capitalize on the popularity (as well as notoriety) of

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