This sounds like it could be a Song Poem, but Phil Milstein's fabulous Song Poem Archives site yields no info on the label, singer, or song. The whole shebang appears to be ungoogleable. I did find one record dealer offering a copy for $3.
Who is this Simon Smith, who sings like the best male singer in your suburban church choir? A week spent at his grueling engineering job results in some oddities in diction and phrasing, but on Sunday he really lets it fly. (just my imagination)
Also you'll notice the song uses the outdated and questionable device of telling you what the "yellow man" and the "red man" have done. Still, I am proud of my purchase. With a title like this, would you have left it in the store?
Great find Andy! You were right, it was worth it to stick around to the end.
ReplyDeleteI did take your 'ungoogleable' challenge and though I found nothing on this record or this Simon Smith, I did find the producer Bill Stith on a few small recordings (some on his own TWIN Records, referring to he and his twin brother Al) including one by the mighty Lonnie Mack.... perhaps this is the the same guy heading this Cincinnati Ohio band:
http://www.45rpmrecords.com/OH/pop/tw19671b.php
Actually it looks like it IS him as he did relocate to Florida where your record was released:
http://www.buckeyebeat.com/corvairs.html
Ah ha! GWS stands for "Great Wall of Sound" (as described on the link above), a company that distributed Stith's records in Florida.
Stith and co-producer of your 45 Bud Reneau both co-wrote this terrible 1969 homophobic oddball goof on "Big Bad John":
http://ukjarry.blogspot.com/2008/05/117-big-bad-bruce.html
That was as close as I could come. Thanks for the challenge Andy!
... and more info on George "Bud" Reneau here (more Cincinnati connection):
ReplyDeletehttp://saxonyrecordcompany.com/story-1.html
Damn Mark, you're hired!
ReplyDeleteI won't throw around the word "ungoogleable" so carelessly in the future.
I'll be checking out those links...
MORE: George "Bud" Reneau I guess was a big deal Nashville producer... worked with Del Shannon, Dobie Grey, as well as tracks on those "Where The Girls Are" girl band comps from a few years ago for Ace. Looks like he is still working in Nashville too.
ReplyDeleteHe also has writing credits or co-writing credits with/for the likes of Dolly Parton, Waylon Jennings, Roy Clark, Ray Stevens, BJ Thomas, John Denver, Gladys Knight, George Jones, and Brook Benton!
I have a copy of this recording given to me by Bill Stith himself. He produced and recorded a demo of a song I co-wrote with a college budddy of mine back in '71. The B side is a spirited version of a Jerry Reed song called "My Kind Of Love". Who or where Simon is remains a mystery.
ReplyDeleteHi Gents Your mystery is to be solved. I have recently recommenced song writing and gigging with the said Simon Smith. Now living in Pocklington Near York UK his original recording name Peter Wynne (check out Chapel of dreams on yuotube. We are recording new material too so if you forward an EMail address to edenhoop@tiscali.co.uk mark it Simon Smith i`ll forward you some tracks. regards. Eden
ReplyDeleteThankyou Eden, my mate.This is indeed the said " Simon Smith " alias 'Peter Wynne ' reading and replying.
ReplyDeleteSo nice to be remembered after all this time and appreciated. Only this very week I have been hearing The Hole That Holds The Bones on CD, as kindly remastered by Eden from my original recording done in Nashville.Forty odd years ago.!
Hi Frank, I'm hardly searching for "Bill Stith" or his brother AL. Maybe you have his contact?? I would really appreciate any help!!
ReplyDeletehere is my email adress: info[at]whatdafunk[dot]de
thanks
Daniel
Sorry, but I've had no dealings with Bill since 1971. That was the only time I got to work with him. Someone said he took up teaching music at some college or musical institute but I'm not sure on that.
ReplyDeleteFrank.
I spent a weekend with Bill and Bud in 1973 at Lake Lenier, GA. GWS stands for Great World of Sound and also Bills intials of George William Stith. Bud was my favorite. He like to Streak, smoke pot and have great sex. He had written for Gladys K and the Pips at the time. Both were crazy about Neil Diamonds album Hot August Night. We played that all weekend. Never saw them after that. Fly home on Monday. Still have the 45 of Bad Bruce That Bill gave me, and still have a casette of a private recording session that Bud gave me.
ReplyDeleteI hear that bill stith ripped of the I.R.S. in 1973 for 7 yrs. back taxes They locked up everything and killed our record deal with GWS. Hope he's dead!
ReplyDeleteI recorded "The Hole That Holds the Bones" about 39 years ago in Nashville, TN. Bill Stith had an ad in the paper advising for singers to come and record. The song was played over several radio stations. I would love to have a copy of the record if you know where I could get one. (jimburgess@carolina.rr.com0
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DeleteDoes anyone know the whereabouts of Bill Stith? My aunt (and her husband) knew Bill many years ago when he was in Miami and my aunt would like to reconnect with Bill. Since she does not have Internet access, I am trying to assist her. My email address is lew1004@yahoo.com.
ReplyDeletecwilson33054@yahoo.com my father wrote this song 40 or more years ago i would appreciate any response my cell 786 879 4166 I lived in miami all my life
ReplyDeleteI have in my hand a 45 of "The Ballad of Buffalo Creek" b/w "The Bones". Yes, it's "The Hole That Holds The Bones", credited to Bud Reneau and Ben Wilson. The artist is John Rocker, a West Virginian who had a long career in his home state but did not make it to the Opry until the day he died of a stroke while standing in the wings, waiting to go on. There's a song in that somewhere. Curiously, the label is "TRIP Universal Records Inc., division of Twin Record Productions". The label has a "World of Hits" logo. Production is by Bud Reneau and Charlie Box. The record and the session were paid for by George Daugherty, who wrote the "Buffalo Creek" side. Apparently Bud Reneau supplied his song for the B side.
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