This one's to 70's one-hit wonder Lee Michaels, another unappreciated musical genius. He mastered the Hammond organ in the 60's, turning himself into a one-man band that gained a reputation along the West Coast for his loud and raucous performances.
Even though the studio seemed the perfect home for the multi-instrumentalist, he didn't find recorded success until his fifth album, and the 1971 top 10 single "Do you know what I mean?" He couldn't repeat that success; meanwhile, the years of Hammond blasting would add until, by the time the keyboard-worshiping 80's came around, his hearing loss had already forced him into retirement. Years later, he got into the restaurant business, starting a chain of "Killer Shrimp" establishments in the Los Angeles area. Just like his music career, they were renowned for a while, then out of the business (since this spring, but they may be back in 2010...)
For all the talent he displayed and good luck that he did have, I don't know if I'd want to be Lee Michaels. But this guy does. And so does this guy. Heck, these guys don't even make music. But let's hear the one born Michael Olson, with his one AM radio hit:
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment