Mitch Miller dies at 99

[radiofan]

There'll be no more "Sing Along WIth Mitch" ..

Mitch Miller passed away Saturday July 31 at age 99 ..

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/03/arts/ ... .html?_r=1

[Jack Bennest]

An image of Miller by another master

[PMC]

That NY Times piece was excellent. His music did touch alot of people, as the piece stated.

[douglasm]

Does this mean Columbia Records will now sign rock and roll acts?

[jon]

Thanks to radiofan who pointed it out, I read the book "Hit Men: Power Brokers and Fast Money Inside the Music Business" by Fredric Dannen in June. It describes the arrival of Columbia Records to the Rock arena. Including how Clive Davis signed up almost every recording artist at the Monterey Pop Festival in June 1967. Ironically, it was the band that made a hit with "Monterey" who was one of the few acts he didn't get.

That section of the book has lots of comments about the Mitch Miller mentality at Columbia when Clive arrived.

[Jack Bennest]

The Byrds and the Airplane
Did fly
Oh, Ravi Shankar's
Music made me cry

The Who exploded
Into violent light (yeah)
Hugh Masekelas music
Was black as night

The Grateful Dead
Blew everybody's mind
Jimi Hendrix, baby
Believe me
Set the world on fire, yeah!

His majesty
Prince Jones smiled as he
Moved among the crowd
Ten thousand electric guitars
Were groovin' real loud, yeah

If you wanna find the truth in life
Don't pass music by
And you know
I would not lie
No, I would not lie
No, I would not lie
Down in Monterey


(Burdon, Weider, Jenkins, McCulloch, Briggs)
Album - The Best Of Eric Burdon And The Animals
Original release A side December 1967 Polygram
Song ref: Monterey Pop Festival June 16-18 1967