The Buckinghams Part 2

Welcome back again to those thrilling days of radio, as the Lone Disk Jockey rides again! What does it take to operate a radio station? Now that has as many variables as anything that has options. Of course you will need equipment, that can be as simple as a couple of computers, a microphone, audio processing equipment, a transmitter, and antenna and something to hold an antenna up in the air. Low Power FM, of which Payson has two, are the least expensive stations to build and operate. Since for the most part all the music is on a computer hard drive, along with the commercials, etc and it is all controlled by special software designed for radio stations. The inside name for these is “A jock (disk jockey)in a box, “or “jukebox.” Some stations use satellite delivered programming that is produced by a specialized company and delivered to the station via satellite with the station having a special software program to insert commercials, weather, news, etc. Some stations use a combination of some or all the options. I consider myself fortunate to have worked in completely live radio where anything could and DID happen. Sadly the cost of operation have all but doomed totally “live” stations to being relics of a bye gone era.

Before I continue let me correct an error. In a posting I gave Credit to Duane Eddy as being Joe Gigilo's favorite guitarist. Well, Joe corrects me, and while he played a lot of Duane Eddy songs, his favorite was guitar legend the late Les Paul.

1967 saw The Buckinghams come out of the box with the number one record “Kind Of A Drag.” In those days young Disk Jockeys such as yours truly listened to the “mega stations” like WLS Chicago to hear new music, and of course copy the style of the “boss Jocks.” It was WLS where I first heard Kind of A Drag. That song was given to the group by the friend of their manager. The Buckingham's manager was looking for an original song and got it from a friend. This song was one of if not the first time that a pop bands used horns. Listening to the song again before I wrote this article , I can't imagine how it would sound without the horns. When I asked Carl about the first time he heard it on the radio he told me, “We were practicing in my basement and my father yelled down to us that our song was on the radio. We all ran up and listened, it sounds really different when you hear it on the radio, really exciting, something you never forget.” Carl told me, “to see your name on the record charts with the likes of The Beatles and The Stones, and then to see your record ahead of them was pretty incredible.”

Regarding the next song, “Don't You Care,” Carl says “If you listen to it I think you will see a giant jump in quality.” By the way, that song is Carl's favorite and mine as well. I told Carl “it is one song I enjoy singing with, BUT not on the air.”

The group continued to gain in popularity with appearances on The Joey Bishop Show, Smother's Bros. Comedy Hour, American Bandstand and of course the Ed Sullivan Show. Those were the days before the likes of MTV and those shows were a MUST for an up and coming group.

July 1967 saw Mercy, Mercy, Mercy as The Buckinghams fourth chart hit. That was followed by “Susan.” To me that song was a departure from the traditional Buckingham's style. The song I considered was some what of a “cop out” song to the psychedelic music of the day. It has some very strange effects near the end. Carl said, “when we heard it we thought there was something wrong with the test pressing, no one in the band liked it.” The song writer of “Susan” wrote it after the breakup between he and his Chicago Playboy Bunny girlfriend.

Trivia “How Did the Buckinghams get their name? “ The Buckinghams started out as “The Pulsations.” It was when they were hired to do a 13 week show on Chicago television station WGN that it was felt a new name was needed. The producers wanted something that sounded British, even those the group was from Chicago. There were many suggestions offered but the honor of naming the group goes to a Security Guard for WGN. “The name sounded British, with Buckingham Palace and such” said Carl so out with the Pulsations and enter The Buckinghams.




If you are interested in some new music by the Buckingham's, check out their website at www.thebuckinghams.com. They have several CDs available including a Christmas CD and a single performance by Carl Giammarese. My thanks to Donnalyn for being a part of my interview with Carl. One thing that still bother me, is that I never got the opportunity to interview Carl again as I ended “The Class Reunion” before I had the chance. Maybe someday.