Misplaced Misunderstood

The Misunderstood
Rick Moe, Rick Brown, Tony Hill, Steve Whiting and Glenn Campbell

Psychedelic rock greats, The Misunderstood, from near-by Riverside, CA.

Drawn in September of last year and found again yesterday.

Wolf Man's Willys

The Wolf Man's '41 Willys gasser. Drawn between appointments while sitting at work. Jan. 20-22

What About Us?

Like the Coasters asked, 'what about us', Pop Hall of Fame?

More ignored founding fathers, pioneers and influential artists from unpopular genres like rockabilly, garage glam and doo-dah.

Charlie Feathers
1932-1998

Link Wray
1929-2005

The Sonics
Andy Parypa, Larry Parypa, Jerry Roslie, Bob Bennett and Rob Lind

T. Rex
Marc Bolan, Mickey Finn, Bill  Legend and Steve Currie

The Bonzo Dog Band
Clockwise from left: 'Legs' Larry Smith, Rodney Slater, Neil Innes, Vivian Stanshall, Dave Clague and Roger Ruskin-Spear.
Difficult to see: Vernon Dudley Bohey-Nowell, Dennis Cowan, Sam Spoons, Joel Druckman, and the Rawlinsons

Pete Johnson
1904-1967
Our new Epson scanner rotates this drawing slightly every time I try to scan it. Roll 'em, Pete.

Ramones Rumored Return

Wigs all around: Meet the new Ramones [l-r] Rici, Pauly, Marky and Gigi.

   Marky Ramone is rumored to be adopting some new brothers to play with. Founding Kiss members, Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons have been in talks with Ramone about touring under the Ramones' name. Simmons commented, "After going over the figures with Mark, it looks like we could make even more money being another band." Kiss will still be touring this summer with stand-in members [rumored to be earning minimum wage] while Stanley and Simmons work as Pauly and Gigi Ramone. Former Cars front man, Ric Ocasek will also be joining the family as lead vocalist.

The Original Syd and Nancy

Syd and Nancy
C. Earnhart 2013

Paul and Art

Simonon and Garfunkel
C. Earnhart 2013

Ignored Pioneers, Part 2

Some other Little Richard-style rockers. Honorable mention to Tony Harris and Big Al Downing.

S.Q. Reeder, Jr.
Eskew Reeder
ESQUERITA!
1935-1986
Some people think Little Richard was doing a toned-down Esquerita impersonation. If he was, it must have been hard for him to control, more than a couple of Richard's Specialty sessions begin with Art Rupe begging him to "please, slow it down".
Blue Cap, Paul Peek used his pull as clapper boy and got Eskew signed to Capitol Records who actually released, Esquerita!, one of the rawest albums of the 50's, just maybe a few years too late in style. Despite it's greatness, I doubt "There's a hole in my heart and my love leaked out" got much air play. 
The liner notes to S.Q.'s 1959 LP say, "...Esquerita stoutly insists on his right to wear what he calls "Esquire-ita" outfits: generally a lace-ribbed jacket-shirt with a fist-sized rhinestone brooch at the top button, and wraparound, close-fitting sunglasses splashed with smaller rhinestones. An oversized wrist watch and band hold tightly onto one chopping arm and his long hair sails skyward."



Larry Williams
1935-1980
Lloyd Price's valet and the author of  "Slow Down", "She Said Yeah", "Bony Moronie", "Short Fat Fanny", Dizzy Miss Lizzy", 'Bad Boy" and several others. When rock music was young and dumb Larry was the man. Another old pal of Little Richard's, Larry ended up producing Richard's Okeh sessions in 1966 and '67 and ten years later almost killed him over a drug deal. William's was found shot in the head in Los Angeles home. His songs have been covered by everyone from Bill Haley to The Jam.    

Don Harris
1938-1999
and
Dewey Terry
1937-2003
Don and Dewey were also more successful as songwriters with Dale and Grace's 1963 #1, "I'm Leaving It Up To You". The Searchers' and Premiers both recorded "Farmer John" and The Olympics' "Big Boy Pete" in 1960. The duo's own recordings for the Specialty label, like "Justine" and the Sonny Bono penned, "Koko Joe" were a little too crazy for the radio. The pair also backed-up former label mate, Little Richard for his 1964 comeback.



Ignored Pioneers

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is back at it again, currently trying to decide if Randy Newman is more rockin' than Kraftwerk or Chic. Oooh, what about the Captain and Tenille?
The hall could easily avoid a lot of criticism by changing their name to the more accurate, Pop Music Hall of Fame. Instead, they clutch onto their misnomer and show us annually how little they know about rock music. Face it guys, you are all about the most popular music, whether you think it sounds cool or not. The hall knows damn well they will be inducting Christina Aguilera long before Arthur Lee and Love are ever considered. They don't dig The Sonics, like me and you, they don't get it.
Here are some more caricatures of the ignored, some of rock's founding fathers who have been left out of the hall for over 25 years now. I guess they figured they had all their bases covered with the induction of Jelly Roll Morton?

Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup
1905-1974
Arthur's 1947 release of "That's All Right" was Elvis' first record for Sun in July of 1954. Elvis also recorded Crudup compositions, "My Baby Left Me" and "So Glad You're Mine". Unfortunately, Crudup's royalties were not collected in his lifetime.



Mr. Blues, Wynonie Harris
1915-1969
Wynonie hit #1 in the R and B charts with "Good Rockin' Tonight" in June of 1948. "Bloodshot Eyes", "Good Morning, Judge", "Down Boy Down", "Blow Your Brains Out" and many more great songs done before Elvis was King.



Roy Brown
1925-1981
The composer and first recording of "Good Rockin' Tonight" in September of 1947. Chosen as Elvis' second release for Sun Records in September of 1954. Roy finally did hit the #1 spot with "Hard Luck Blues" in 1950. Hard luck was right though, soon after Roy was blackballed for trying to collect his royalties from King Records.



Amos Milburn
1927-1980
Amos had a #1 R and B hit with "Chicken Shack Boogie" in December of 1948 and a #2  with "One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer" in 1953. The Rolling Stones covered Amos' 1946 tune, "Down The Road Apiece" on 1965's The Rolling Stones, Now! LP.  

Roy Hall
1922-1984
Roy's "Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On" was released by Decca in September 1955. Roy's after-hours club in Nashville, The Music Box, was where a under-age Jerry Lee Lewis played piano 'til dawn. "Three Alley Cats" from 1956 is my favorite.



More to come...

Toys in the Attic

Some of my Dad's old models found up in the attic with some very cool vintage box artwork.

AMT '55 Chevy Nomad after reattaching the bumpers and hood scoop. I remember having this one in my room when I was a kid, built by Jim Earnhart in the mid-1970's.

Nomad  detail

AMT Warren Tope Mach 1 Mustang, repainted Ford Blue over the original gloss brown.

The incomplete engine was replaced with a Cobra motor from Revell's '55 Ford Panel truck. I finished the front and back ends of the car as well.

A Mustang funny car [Mach Won maybe?] in matching brown was also found in the Warren Tope box.

Also in the Nomad box, a lifted Datsun pick-up [brown, of course] with lots of tiny chrome parts that need to be reattached.

"Lunge Box", a '33 Willys Panel gasser, built by Jim Earnhart, 1970's.

Willy's Panel detail

New Drawings

Bela Lugosi's Waiting

My 44th birthday drawing, black ink and brush 10/1/12. October 20th will be Bela's 130th birthday.

Some other early October birthdays...

The guy I consider to be the Godfather of British Rock, Eddie Cochran. Born Oct. 3, 1938 in Albert Lea, Minnesota.

 10/6/12

Johnny Ramone

Oct. 8, 1951

10/8/12

FREE! The Who's John Entwistle coloring page

Oct. 9, 1944

10/4/12

El Diablo

Lindberg '34 Ford Pickup chopped rat rod

Junkyard exhaust headers and Stromberg-style carbs

The bed has been cut down to tool box size. The gas tank, tail lights and seats are also junk parts.

Little Deuce Day Tripper

Donuts in La Puente

TV break in Lordsburg, NM

Beautiful El Paso

At the drive-in, Sweetwater, TX

Getting a trim at the Broadway Style House, Shreveport

Baton Rouge, LA

The Big Indian Shop, Shelburne Falls, MA

Chinese food in Eau Claire

Bread stop. Rock Springs, WY

Broiler Cafe, Salt Lake City

Revell's '32 3-Window Coupe [Good Guys street rod version] chopped and channeled. The flat head and wire wheels are left over from the Halloween Highboy '32 sedan. 

The background photos are from John Margolies' book, Roadside America [Taschen]