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Post by JerseyGirl on Apr 22, 2021 17:53:58 GMT -5
Rest in Peace Les McKeown, Singer of the Bay City Rollers: 1955-2021 ROCK CELLAR MAGAZINE STAFF ON APRIL 22, 2021 Les McKeown, the lead singer of Scottish pop/rock band Bay City Rollers during the group’s peak in the 1970s, has passed away at the age of 65. McKeown’s social media channels sent along the news on Thursday, on behalf of his wife, Keiko, and son, Jubei: It is with profound sadness that we announce the death of our beloved husband and father Leslie Richard McKeown. Leslie died suddenly at home on Tuesday 20 April 2021. We are currently making arrangements for his funeral and ask for privacy after the shock of our profound loss. Thank you. Keiko and Jubei McKeown. Les McKeown kept busy in recent years, and even had plans for upcoming Bay City Rollers performances, so his passing does come as a bit of a shock. The Bay City Rollers achieved monumental international success in the ’70s after McKeown assumed lead vocal duties when he replaced Gordon Clark. McKeown sang lead vocals on their No. 1 U.K. hit, a cover of the Four Seasons’ “Bye, Bye, Baby”: Here’s a bit more on the life and career of Les McKeown and the trajectory of the Bay City Rollers, via the Guardian: Fashions changed, and the band’s popularity waned in the later part of the decade. McKeown left in 1978, aged 22, as the group turned towards an updated new-wave sound, but rejoined them for various reunion tours, most recently in 2015. He had success in Japan in 1979 with his debut solo release All Washed Up, and released eight further solo albums. The most recent, 2016’s The Lost Songs, comprised songs he had written while on the road with the Bay City Rollers in the 1970s. May Les McKeown rest in peace. www.rockcellarmagazine.com/les-mckeown-dies-bay-city-rollers-singer-rip
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Post by JerseyGirl on Apr 22, 2021 17:58:09 GMT -5
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Post by JerseyGirl on Apr 22, 2021 18:06:13 GMT -5
Les had a bunch of dates outside of the United States scheduled for this year.
Here is his biggest hit:
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Post by HUDGE "JerseyDan" on Apr 22, 2021 18:31:53 GMT -5
S A T U R...D A Y...NIGHT...I remember seeing them on tv in the mid 70s. No idea what tv show it was, but it was on like Every Saturday morning.
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Forum Lord
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Post by Forum Lord on Apr 22, 2021 19:21:58 GMT -5
Definitely a chick band. Zero interest here. Dan, I'm surprised at you!
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Post by HUDGE "JerseyDan" on Apr 22, 2021 20:10:48 GMT -5
Saturday morning cartoons, and that same video of them playing always came on. I was prolly watching HR Puff N Stuff or some dumb shit.
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Post by MDfan aka The MD Well Man on Apr 26, 2021 2:58:41 GMT -5
More like the Bay City Corn Hollers (nothing to do with pitching corn bags in a hole)
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neets
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Post by neets on Apr 28, 2021 11:04:27 GMT -5
S A T U R...D A Y...NIGHT...I remember seeing them on tv in the mid 70s. No idea what tv show it was, but it was on like Every Saturday morning. OMG! They were everywhere in the UK mid 70s. It was terrible. That tv show was their own show - it might have been twice a week, I seem to remember it was on one evening a week, as well as Saturday morning. It was called Shang-a-lang after one of their songs. For anyone that liked proper music it was hard to get away from. As you can probably guess I was not a fan.
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Post by JerseyGirl on Apr 28, 2021 18:43:46 GMT -5
S A T U R...D A Y...NIGHT...I remember seeing them on tv in the mid 70s. No idea what tv show it was, but it was on like Every Saturday morning. The band was very popular in the US for a while in the 70's. They had their own Saturday morning TV show. Not sure if it was more than one season. The leader singer died suddenly. He had a bunch of dates scheduled for this year.
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Post by HUDGE "JerseyDan" on Apr 28, 2021 19:29:24 GMT -5
S A T U R...D A Y...NIGHT...I remember seeing them on tv in the mid 70s. No idea what tv show it was, but it was on like Every Saturday morning. The band was very popular in the US for a while in the 70's. They had their own Saturday morning TV show. Not sure if it was more than one season. The leader singer died suddenly. He had a bunch of dates scheduled for this year. Was it like The Monkees? Only memory I have is of them playing that one song...Lol
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Post by JerseyGirl on May 2, 2021 20:16:24 GMT -5
Saturday morning cartoons, and that same video of them playing always came on. I was prolly watching HR Puff N Stuff or some dumb shit. 'Saturday Night' was the band's biggest hit. The Krofft Superstar Hour was renamed The Bay City Rollers Show. It ran from September 9, 1978 to January 27, 1979. In 1975 The Rollers had a 20-week British children's pop show called 'Shang-a-Lang' after one of their songs. On the show the Rollers performed their music and did little comedy skits in between the Kroff shows. H.R. Pufnstuf was part of "The Lost Island" segment along with Sigmund the Sea Monster. They were trying to stay out of Dr. Deathray's clutches. The other segment was called "Horror Hotel" featuring Witchiepoo. There were H.R. Pufnstuf characters in this segment. By the way Wizz Kidd this chick band sold at least 60 million records.
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Post by HUDGE "JerseyDan" on May 2, 2021 21:26:51 GMT -5
Saturday morning cartoons, and that same video of them playing always came on. I was prolly watching HR Puff N Stuff or some dumb shit. 'Saturday Night' was the band's biggest hit. The Krofft Superstar Hour was renamed The Bay City Rollers Show. It ran from September 9, 1978 to January 27, 1979. In 1975 The Rollers had a 20-week British children's pop show called 'Shang-a-Lang' after one of their songs. On the show the Rollers performed their music and did little comedy skits in between the Kroff shows. H.R. Pufnstuf was part of "The Lost Island" segment along with Sigmund the Sea Monster. They were trying to stay out of Dr. Deathray's clutches. The other segment was called "Horror Hotel" featuring Witchiepoo. There were H.R. Pufnstuf characters in this segment. By the way Wizz Kidd this chick band sold at least 60 million records. Wow! So my memory was right on...Lol. I was just about 10 years old when the show was on. Seems like another life it was so long ago watching that stuff. Great find JerseyGirl!
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Forum Lord
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Post by Forum Lord on May 2, 2021 21:45:56 GMT -5
By the way Wizz Kidd this chick band sold at least 60 million records. To who? Who buys this stuff? Hard to believe they were bigger than Skynyrd and Hatshit put together!
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Post by JerseyGirl on May 3, 2021 0:09:24 GMT -5
By the way Wizz Kidd this chick band sold at least 60 million records. To who? Who buys this stuff? Hard to believe they were bigger than Skynyrd and Hatshit put together! Here are their singles: These are albums charted. They were popular in Japan besides The United States, Britain, Canada and Australia.
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Post by JerseyGirl on May 3, 2021 0:14:16 GMT -5
Bay City Rollers suing former label for millions By Dean Goodman MARCH 20, 20077:06 PM LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The members of the Bay City Rollers, a Scottish teeny-bopper band that briefly enjoyed worldwide stardom in the 1970s, sued their former record label on Tuesday, seeking millions of dollars in unpaid royalties. According to the suit against Arista Records, filed in the U.S. District Court in New York, the group said they sold at least 70 million albums worldwide but received only a single royalty payment of about $254,000 in more than 25 years. The suit does not estimate how much the band is owed, in part because of incomplete royalty statements, but “we know it’s in the millions,” Joshua Krumholz, one of their attorneys, said in an interview. A spokesman for Arista Records, a unit of Sony BMG Music Entertainment, declined comment. Sony BMG is a unit of Sony Corp. and Bertelsmann AG. The suit lists the five members who were in the band during its mid-‘70s heyday -- singer Les McKeown, guitarists Eric Faulkner and Stuart Wood, bass player Alan Longmuir and his brother, Derek. Also listed is Duncan Faure, who replaced McKeown in 1978 after the band’s fortunes had faded. The Bay City Rollers, decked in their trademark tartan costumes, inspired a wave of “Rollermania” around the world as screaming girls flocked to their concerts and snapped up their records. Breathless reports at the time often focused on pools of urine at their shows left by over-excited fans. After conquering Britain with such top-five hits as “Shang-A-Lang” and “Summerlove Sensation,” the Bay City Rollers topped the U.S. charts in early 1976 with their first American single, “Saturday Night.” They achieved legendary status in Japan, and were also big in Australia. The fame never translated into much financial success for the band because of low royalty rates. Also, the band did not write some of its biggest hits, such as “Shang-A-Lang” and “I Only Wanna Be With You.” The lawsuit says Arista executives over the years have repeatedly promised to pay royalties but did not know who to pay. The suit says that was a “pretext intended to deprive (the band) of the royalties to which they are entitled.” The suit claims, among other things, breach of contract and fiduciary duty. In addition to seeking compensatory and punitive damages, it demands a full accounting statement as well as the transfer of all master recordings and any copyrights. The money could come in handy. McKeown tours small venues with a group dubbed Les McKeown’s Legendary Bay City Rollers. Krumholz said Derek Longmuir is a nurse, while another former member is a plumber. www.reuters.com/article/us-baycityrollers-idUSN2039758620070321
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Worm
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Post by Worm on May 8, 2021 20:04:27 GMT -5
I got a 20 spot for a member who can get a pic of KGs Bay City T-shirt. It’s there, I bet.
I had an 8 track of this band years ago, my buddy who turned me on to AC-DC was heavy into them. ??, I know.
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Post by JerseyGirl on Sept 10, 2021 19:47:37 GMT -5
Les was planning to tour when he passed away. So he was not going through a major illness when he died. It was not COVID. They are saying it natural causes and heart disease.
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Cagey-1
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Post by Cagey-1 on Sept 10, 2021 20:52:24 GMT -5
That last line is sadly so true in the music bizness. It is how outsiders buy their way in. Drugs and alcohol. If you want to party with the band bring big baggies and or big tatas or both!
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