In 1958, Cashbox, Billboard and the Jukebox Operators
of America named Connie Francis as the #1 Female Vocalist. She was named Top
Female Vocalist by all the trades for six consecutive years – a record never
surpassed. As well, England’s prestigious New Musical Express also named her
the World’s #1 Female Vocalist. She earned two gold records for Who’s Sorry
Now? and Stupid Cupid.
On a global scale, Connie Francis was the top-selling
female vocalist of the Sixties and, despite the sensational advent of Madonna,
the longevity of Diana Ross and the multi-format generations of the 80's and
90's, she remains the most commercially successful female singer of all time
with an estimated world-wide sales figure well in excess of two hundred
million.
Today, Connie Francis is widely involved in some very
interesting and diverse projects.Of
greatest importance and passion is that of helping returning American Veterans
of war. Connie Francis is the national spokeswoman for Mental Health America’s
S.T.A.R. Campaign (Stress, Trauma, Awareness and Recovery) an important
national campaign to raise awareness of what veterans are facing every day of
their lives.Another long-awaited
autobiography “Among My Souvenirs, The Real Story” was released in 2017.
Some of her biggest hits
include …
Who’s Sorry Now … Lipstick on Your Collar … Stupid Cupid …Where the
Boys Are …Everybody's Somebody's Fool … Among My Souvenirs …My Heart Has a Mind
of Its Own … My Happiness …Second Hand Love …Vacation …Frankie …Together …Baby's
First Christmas … Many Tears Ago …Don't Break the Heart That Loves You …
Carolina Moon …Breaking in a Brand New Broken Heart …
and the list of hits goes on and on …
Wow....she had 35 top
forty hits
Purchase Among My Souvenirs: The Real Story (Volume 1)
December 12, 2017 by Connie Francis at amazon.com
The stories she shares with an extraordinary cast of
characters are, indeed, funnier, stranger and often far more shocking than
fiction. Few stars have experienced the rollercoaster ride that marked the life
of Connie Francis. Fewer still possess the willingness, wit, insight, intellect
and disarming self-deprecation to write a book of such unflinching nature. It
is truly a joyful, comedic and emotionally disturbing book to read. Far more
horrifying than any best-selling writer of fiction would dare to contemplate.
https://eastcoastmusichalloffame.org/ C O N N I E F R A N C I S EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW ON INTERVIEWING THE LEGENDS with R A Y S H A S H O onBBS RADIO CLICK BELOW TO LISTEN
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And don’t forget to purchase a
copy of my book entitled Check the Gs -the true story of an eclectic American
family and their Wacky family business ... available now at amazon.com.
There are many words that can be used in describing the musical attributes for classic rock music legends KANSAS.
Words like profound, intricate, symphonic, epic, spiritual,
progressive, and hard rock. The bands classification may even be
considered a genre within a genre, or some sort of a musical enigma.
Kansas original drummer and co-founder Phil Ehart compares the group’s eclectic musical elements to their longtime disciples The Allman Brothers Band … but I’ll simply classify KANSAS as "American Progressive Rock Heroes."
While observing and studying the bands intricate orchestral rock
reverberations during my high school youth, and sharing the passion of
music with a clique of rock aficionados, there had always been a genuine
certainty that each member of Kansas had graduated from the most
esteemed colleges with the highest of music degrees. It made perfect
sense at the time, how else could anyone create or mastermind such
elaborate musical masterpieces.
After all those years, the answer was finally revealed to me in this
interview with drummer Phil Ehart. The members of Kansas did not attend
fancy colleges or music schools and hadn’t obtained the highest of music
degrees. In fact, they couldn’t even read or write music. This has to
be the most fascinating component for so many legendary music artists,
and it never ceases to amaze me. The fact that musicians become
legendary based on pure genius and naturally gifted talents. And the
list is staggering …The Beatles, Elvis, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Wonder,
Lionel Ritchie, and Ronnie Montrose to name just a very few. In fact …
most rock musicians only played by ear.
In 1970, Topeka natives, Phil Ehart, Dave Hope, and Kerry Livgren formed the inception of what would become one of the greatest American classic rock bands of all-time.
Legendary American publisher, producer, talent manager, and songwriter Don Kirshner
(The Monkees, The Archies) dubbed as “The Man with the Golden Ear,”
signed the group to their first recording contract as Kansas in 1973.
Their self-titled album Kansas was
released in 1974 establishing the bands symphonic rock arrangements
while fundamentally spotlighting elements of classical violin. The band
toured extensively and instantly developed a huge cult following. The
original line-up featured Phil Ehart (drums and percussions), Dave Hope
(bass guitar), Kerry Livgren (guitars, keyboards, vocals), Robby
Steinhardt (violin, vocals), Steve Walsh (keyboards, lead vocals), and Rich Williams (guitars).
Kansas followed-up with the releases Song for America (1975) and Masque (1975).
The track “Song for America” is a complex musical arrangement
overwhelmed with epic delights. “Icarus” (Borne on Wings of Steel) and
“The Pinnacle” from the Masque album are inspirational
masterpieces, and although not yet a commercial success, Kansas had
already established itself as one of the most exceptional rock acts in
the U.S.
Their fourth album Leftoverture (#5
Billboard album charts) released in 1976 spawned their first
commercially successful Top 40 hit, “Carry On Wayward Son” (Certified
Gold #11 on pop singles Billboard chart). The album also produced one of
Kerry Livgren’s most inspirational penned compositions, “The Wall.” It
was apparent that Livgren’s proficient lyrics, the bands virtuoso music
abilities, along with commercial success and headlining status had
introduced Kansas to superstar caliber.
Kansas continued its momentum by releasing Point of Know Return producing the Top 40 hits, “Point of Know Return”(#4 Billboard Hit) and “Dust in The Wind” (Certified Gold #6 Billboard Hit). Leftoverture and Point of Know Return each sold over four million copies.
The bands sold-out concert performances were captured in a double-live album entitled, Two for the Showin 1978. Their sixth studio album Monolith generated
yet another Top 40 single entitled, “People of the South Wind” which
referred to the meaning of the ‘Kaza’ (Kaw) Native American people,
after whom the state and band are named.
The album Audio-Visionsgenerated,
“Hold On” (#40 Billboard Hit) the last Top 40 hit by the original
line-up. Kansas had personal changes throughout the 80s. Kerry Livgren’s
lyrics became notably Christian influenced. Steve Walsh left the band
and was replaced with John Elefante. Vinyl Confessions (1982) was their first album with Elefante as lead singer. The following release Drastic Measures generated the single, “Fight Fire with Fire” (#41 Billboard charts).
Livgren and Hope both left Kansas in1982.
In 1985, Steve Walsh returned to Kansas but without Livgren, Hope and
Steinhardt. Bassist Billy Greer (Streets) and guitarist Steve Morse
(Dixie Dregs) were also added. Their tenth studio album Power spawned, “All I Wanted” (#19 Hit) the last Kansas single to reach the Billboard Top 40.
In 1990, a German promoter was able to reunite all original members
of Kansas except for Robby Steinhardt for a European tour. At the end of
the tour Dave Hope left but Kerry Livgren remained until 1991.
Their fourteenth studio album, Somewhere To Elsewhere released
in 2000 marked a reunion of the original Kansas line-up. Billy Greer
was also featured on the album. Kerry Livgren composed all the album’s
tracks.
In 2000, Kansas supported Yes during the Masterworks Tour.
Kansas continues to be a strong concert headliner. Based out of
Atlanta, Georgia nowadays, the band has always been a crowd pleaser in
the Tampa Bay area. The band headlined Fun ‘N Sun Fest at Coachman Park in Clearwater to a huge gathering in 2011.
Kansas recently played the Rock Legends Cruise II event earlier this month and will be headlining a show at Ruth Eckerd Hall
in Clearwater on Saturday, January 19th with a rock symphony orchestra.
It will mark the first time that Kansas has played at Ruth Eckerd Hall.
You can purchase tickets at www.rutheckerdhall.com or call (727) 791-7400 for more information.
The current KANSAS line-up is …Phil Ehart (drums), Rich Williams (guitars), Steve Walsh (vocals, keyboards), Billy Greer (bass), and David Ragsdale (violin). Phil Ehart and Rich Williams have appeared on every album that Kansas has released. Phil also manages Kansas.
I had the pleasure of speaking with Kansas co-founder and original
drummer Phil Ehart recently about the bands spectacular musical journey.
Here’s my interview with drummer/percussionist/band manager/ and co-founder of classic rock band Kansas …PHIL EHART. Ray Shasho: Happy 2013 Phil! Phil Ehart: “Yea, same to you, we’re lucky to be here.” Ray Shasho: Where did you celebrate ringing in the New Year? Phil Ehart: “The band was actually home this New
Years. We’re based in Atlanta now and not always home obviously, so it
was good to be with the family and everything … not bad at all.” Ray Shasho: How many children do you have Phil? Phil Ehart: “I’ve got two kids … a fifteen year old
boy and a ten year old daughter. I married a woman quite a bit younger
than I and we had our little girl when I was fifty two years old.” Ray Shasho:So you’re not even close to becoming a grandfather yet? Phil Ehart: “Hey, I’ll be lucky if I can make it that far. (All Laughing) Ray Shasho: You look like you take good care of yourself, I
wouldn’t worry. How were your children first introduced to Kansas music?
Phil Ehart: “Probably just coming to see me play
…let’s go see dad work. And then some of their friend’s parents know
what I do for a living, so mainly from just coming to see dad going to
work. It’s not like we have classic rock music playing around our house
all the time. They both kind of have the thing that they do. Of course
they hear me down the hall practicing my drums and I also manage the
band, so they hear me on the phone all the time and conducting all the
band business. But they’re just good kids and not in awe by any means
about what I do; they just say dad plays drums … well, that’s cool. So
let’s get back to texting somebody. (All laughing) But it’s just so
low-keyed at our house, and what I do is something we don’t make a big
deal about and so they keep it all in prospective.” Ray Shasho: Kansas is about ready to set sail on the Rock Legends II Cruise. Phil Ehart: “I’ve never done one of those so we’re
kind of anxious to see what that’s like. Everybody I talk to says it’s
really cool. We know so many of the bands, having all come up together,
so it’ll be fun to see them, and yea, we’re looking forward to it.” Ray Shasho:Kansas will be performing at
Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater, Florida on Saturday January 19th with a
symphony orchestra. How does the band decide which venues will get that
full experience of performing with an orchestra? Phil Ehart: “It’s the people at Ruth Eckerd Hall
that invited us. We’ve been trying to get into Ruth Eckerd for many-many
years. It’s a place that everybody has played except us. When this
offer came we jumped on it. The routing just never worked out in past
years, but it worked out really well this time. We’ve done a lot of
symphony shows … I think probably over fifty of them, so when the offer
came in we jumped all over it. We’ve wanted to play the venue and love
that part of Florida, and that orchestra comes very highly recommended
…we’re really looking forward to it.” Ray Shasho: How difficult is it synchronizing the band with a symphony orchestra? Phil Ehart: “Instead of having five people onstage,
all of a sudden you’ve got fifty five people onstage. Larry Baird is our
conductor and has done all of our symphony dates with us. So he’s very
cognizant of our music and of course has done all the charts. He knows
what he’s conducting and has worked with that orchestra before. The
orchestra rehearses with Larry for a couple of hours and then we come in
and rehearse with them for about four or five songs. So by the time we
start, we’re pretty locked in and everything is worked out before we do
the shows.” Ray Shasho: I’ve always found it fascinating … no matter
where Kansas plays their music… at an outdoor festival or in a symphony
hall …the band always sounds like a full-blown orchestra, even without
an orchestra… it’s truly amazing. Phil Ehart: “(All Laughing) Well, yea we do …with
the keyboards and the violin, we’re able to kind of create a lot of
orchestral textures with our music and that’s on purpose. That’s why
moving into the orchestral thing, it wasn’t really hard for us. For a
lot of bands it just doesn’t work. It may work for them on a few songs,
but for us it works on every song. And that’s because we’ve always had
that sort of orchestral sound to our band anyway. So the orchestra just
enhances that. It’s pretty cool to be up there and hearing that, it gets
you pretty fired up.” Ray Shasho: When I was in high school, we always thought that
everyone in Kansas had music degrees from the most elite colleges and
studied theory … is that true? Phil Ehart: “No, none of us had. Other than David
Ragsdale on the violin, you kind of have to have that training to play
the instrument, but the rest of us are all self-taught. None of us went
to music school or had any formal training at all. We didn’t read or
write music. I think you’ll find the majority of my peers are not
trained and are self-taught.”
“But we’re very proud of our music and take it very seriously. We
work very hard, it takes a lot of practice, and we’ve certainly not
mastered the instruments by any means. You’ve got to stay up on it,
practice, and work hard.” Ray Shasho: You left Topeka and went to live in England for awhile… what was that experience like? Phil Ehart: “I had pretty much played with everybody
in Topeka, not that I was better than anybody in Topeka, I just thought
I was going to go play somewhere else and see what was outside of
Topeka. I guess I could have saved myself a bunch of money and gone to
Kansas City. (All Laughing) But I went there because I thought I’d like
to go there. So I spent a number of months there and played with some
folks and then my visa ran out … so I came back. Not that I was anything
special and England was waiting for me with open arms by any means. I
had played in Topeka for a number of years …lets go somewhere else and
see what’s there. It was a good experience, but it just made me realize
that I liked playing with the guys, so I came back, started calling
people, and eventually it turned into Kansas.” Ray Shasho: We’re all glad you came back Phil. I’ve seen a lot of great drummers in my time … and I
consider you one of those great drummers. I know it’s sort of rare to
witness a Phil Ehart drum solo … I’ve seen you solo and would love to
see more of them. Phil Ehart “(Laughing) I don’t know about that. I
appreciate the guys letting me have a drum solo but it’s just one of
those things, I like playing songs a lot more than I do soloing. A lot
of Kansas songs are just freakin’ drum solos anyway. There are so many
different parts and sections that you have to go through and play them
well and it’s almost like playing a drum solo. But for me, I just like
playing with the band.” Ray Shasho: When I talked with many of the older drummers and
asked them who influenced you into playing the instrument, many say DJ
Fontana (Elvis’ drummer), and many of the younger drummers would say
John Bonham. Who influenced you in becoming a drummer? Phil Ehart: “Easily, the guy who influenced me the
most is Ian Paice of Deep Purple. That guy and the band, Deep Purple in
general was just always my favorite. They were intricate but they also
rocked. But, they were very good and are still very good at what they
do. And Ian Paice was definitely my biggest influence without a doubt.” Ray Shasho: In an earlier interview that you did, you
compared the logistics of Kansas to the Allman Brothers Band, and I’d
never thought that way before, but now I understand where you’re coming
from. Many people think of The Allman Brothers as just a southern rock
band, but their music is eclectic and complex. Phil Ehart: “Oh yea, those guys were very
complicated, a lot of different time signatures for a blues band. Great
melodies and sound, great players … The Allman Brothers really
influenced our band.” Ray Shasho: Phil, Is there a particular album or song that is a favorite of yours? Phil Ehart: “People ask me that sometimes and I say
if you had to buy only one album that sort of covered where we were at a
particular time, it probably would be Leftoverture. Even though it doesn’t have “Dust in The Wind.” That and Point of Know Return
…those two albums were really us at our peak. But I like a lot of our
time periods and when you’ve been around going on forty years, we’ve
played a lot of stuff. We’ve got a lot of material and I like most of
it.” Ray Shasho: Congratulations on forty years … that’s incredible! Phil Ehart: “Thanks … we signed our recording contract in 1973.” Ray Shasho: My favorite Phil Ehart drumming
piece is the “Song for America” track. And like you said earlier, it’s
almost like you’re doing a drum solo throughout the track anyway. Phil Ehart: “That’s definitely a full drum workout.” Ray Shasho: Another tune I enjoy from the Song for America
album is a song that you co-wrote called “Lonely Street,” which is a
hard rockin’ blues number. What was the inspiration behind, “Lonely
Street”? Phil Ehart: “Actually four of us wrote it … I came
up with the time signature beat. We sort of wrote that as a four piece.
We were in the rehearsal hall and I was just messing with the beat and
Steve came up with some stuff and we went from there. But that’s one
attribute that we have … we can sound many different ways.” Ray Shasho: People will usually interpret lyrics in their own
way … but Kerry Livgren’s lyrics always seemed to generate a spiritual
message since the very beginning. Phil Ehart: “Kerry’s lyrics were always meant to
mean to you, what they mean to you. However you hear them, however you
experience them, whatever they say to you … that’s what he intended.
It’s for you to have your own interpretation.” Ray Shasho:Every once in awhile Kerry will still contribute to the band, correct? Phil Ehart: “Every once in awhile he will, yes, he’s doing great.” Ray Shasho: Is he still a Christian artist as well? Phil Ehart: “Not so much anymore … here and there, yea.” Ray Shasho:Phil, here’s a question that I
ask everyone when I conduct an interview …If you had a ‘Field of Dreams’
wish to play or collaborate with anyway past or present, who would that
be? Phil Ehart: “I guess because it’s such a stretch and
will never happen, one guy I really admired is Robert Fripp from King
Crimson. He’s one of those guys that is just an incredible talent,
guitar player, always wrote the coolest stuff, and is in all the great
bands. Fripp is just such a reclusive type of a guy, and I know some
guys who have played with him, but he’s just a talent that I’ve
respected for such a long time, and has never veered from what he’s
wanted to do and what he’s believed in, so a lot of respect in that.”
Ray Shasho: I love it when rock stars sort of humble
themselves when talking about their own rock heroes. When I talked with
Jon Anderson from YES, he told me that he was really nervous when he met
George Harrison and didn’t know what to say to him. Phil Ehart: “I remember one time we opened for The
Rolling Stones and it was 90,000 people at Cleveland stadium. It was us
and The Stones and Mick Jagger walked in our dressing room to see how we
were doing and we all just looked at him. He said, “How’s everything
going?” And there was complete silence … we all just looked at him. Then
he said, “Is everything okay?” Silence again … we were all just
dumbstruck. He must have thought we were just complete idiots. Mick
just caught us off guard, we were just absolutely stunned … but he was a
really nice guy.” Ray Shasho: I was a big fan of Don Kirshner. I think the music industry is missing those types of innovators. Phil Ehart: “You Tube has kind of killed innovation.
I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, but you don’t have to prove yourself
anymore because you can just put something on You Tube and millions and
millions of people can see it and come and see you play, or not come and
see you play. You Tube has a lot of pluses but also has a few minuses.
What record companies will tell you now is get a video made, get on You
Tube and rack up the views. When you’re up to one hundred thousand views
or half a million or whatever, come and see us. And so that’s what the
record companies do, they want you to build your own type of following
so they won’t have to mess with it. A lot of young kids have discovered
us thanks to You Tube. Like I said, it’s got a lot of pluses and a few
minuses.”
“But Don Kirshner was really the first one to do rock bands on TV
with Rock Concert. That was kind of the first You Tube you might say
because that’s where a lot of people saw bands on Rock Concert, and we
were on there six times. We actually got to do six songs I should say.
But we were very fortunate to have him come along in our career.”
“I thought it was odd that Don had The Monkees and The Archies and
then had us …just very weird. Don totally left us alone, he was
supportive, wrote the checks to get us recorded …he did want a single
really bad. He’d say, “Guys, we’re going on the fourth album now, but I
really need to get something on Hit radio now.” There was plenty of
stuff on FM. So when, “Wayward Son” came along we really made his day.
And for all of us, it really helped a lot. But Don just loved and
supported us, and we loved him, and it was a great thing.” Ray Shasho: Phil, you are an advocate for Autism? Phil Ehart: “My son has Autism, so I kind of live
it. It’s the kind of thing that’s in my life, and it’s an epidemic
spreading across the world, and it’s something that any chance I can do
to help make people aware, than I do that. Yes, I’m definitely an
advocate. But he’s doing well, he’s fifteen and a great kid, loved very
much, and we just take it day by day.” Ray Shasho: How’s Autism research coming along? Phil Ehart: “They have some hypothesis and ideas but
as of this moment nobody knows what causes Autism and 75% of the cases
are boys. Young parents who want to have kids are terrified. In
California they have 15 to 16 kids a day diagnosed with Autism … its
epidemic and very scary.” Ray Shasho: Phil, what’s next for Kansas? Phil Ehart: “Our plan right now is to make it
through our fortieth anniversary this year. So we’re going to go out and
celebrate that and tour it and we’ve got some irons in the fire, but we
want to enjoy our fortieth year as a band and that’s what we’re going
to do.” Ray Shasho:Phil, we’ll see you and the rest
of Kansas on Saturday, January 19th for the bands very first appearance
at Ruth Eckerd Hall, and with a symphony orchestra. Thank you so much
for being on the call today, especially on a Saturday and for all the
inspirational music Kansas has given to us over the years. Phil Ehart: “Thanks Ray and we really appreciate the interview, see you in Clearwater.”
KANSAS will be headlining a show at Ruth Eckerd Hall in
Clearwater on Saturday, January 19th with a rock symphony orchestra. It
will mark the first time that Kansas has played at Ruth Eckerd Hall.
You can purchase tickets at www.rutheckerdhall.com or call (727) 791-7400 for more information. KANSAS official website www.kansasband.com
Coming up …Dr. John (The Night Tripper) and Pete Best (Original drummer for The Beatles)
Contact classic rock music journalist Ray Shasho at rockraymond.shasho@gmail.com Purchase Ray’s very special memoir called ‘Check the Gs’ -The True Story of an Eclectic American Family and Their Wacky Family Business … You’ll LIVE IT! Also available for download on NOOK or KINDLE edition for JUST .99 CENTS at amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com-Support Ray so he can continue to bring you quality classic rock music reporting. ~~Pacific Book Review says Ray Shasho is a product
of the second half of the 20th century, made in the USA from parts
around the world, and within him is every trend in music, television,
politics and culture contributing to his philosophical and comically
analytical reflections collected in his fine book of memories. I found Check the Gs to
be pure entertainment, fantastic fun and a catalyst to igniting so many
memories of my own life, as I too am within a few years of Ray. So to
all, I say if you have a bit of grey hair (or no hair), buy this book!
It’s a great gift for your “over-the-hill” friends, or for their kids,
if they are the history buffs of younger generations trying to figure
out why we are the way we are.
