By RALPH (209.240.222.130 - 209.240.222.130) on Tuesday, June 11, 2002 - 06:46 pm:

When we listened to Lee on the radio all those years ago we already knew he was a legend in his own time. This second thread proves that. Keep blowing that horn Lee.

By Lee Alan (152.163.195.192 - 152.163.195.192) on Wednesday, June 12, 2002 - 11:40 am:

You are all very kind. As you may know from recent postings on this site, we are releasing an entire series of CDs entitled: "Back In The Sixties Again." About six weeks ago I heard that there is a possible movie in the works that would chronicle some of my life paralelled with the Motown explosion. David Carson has been mentioned as the screenplay writer. Nothing's for sure as yet. They're looking for financing, etc. Bob Marcucci was mentioned as a possible producer....Also it appears as if the CD series could be approved as official product of the Woodward Dream Cruise. And it has been suggested that we do some of this on the air again. Unfortunately however, Detroit does not have a heritage oldies station. We are though trying to make contact with XM satelite radio to air something similar nationally. No luck so far but will keep trying. Thank you all for your overly complimentary and kind rememberances... Lee

By Marilyn (67.217.184.245 - 67.217.184.245) on Wednesday, June 12, 2002 - 03:38 pm:

Lee-
I'm cominmg down to the wire & don't want to leave you out of the book,especially since it looks like it's going to be a hot item. Please call me today if possible. I'll be home especially after 2,since I'm loaning my car to a friend for work.
Tunefully yours,
Marilyn

By Bob Olhsson (68.32.101.228 - 68.32.101.228) on Wednesday, June 12, 2002 - 07:51 pm:

Lee, I see the XM staff here in Nashville several times a week so I'll put in the good word. I already sent in a listener survey card asking them to bring back as many of the voices we've loved as possible. I sincerely believe that Lee Abrams, their programming manager really "gets" the difference between radio and background music.

But beware that what we all REALLY want from you is a shift, not just a nostalgic trip down memory lane. :-)

By Lee Alan (205.188.192.174 - 205.188.192.174) on Saturday, June 15, 2002 - 02:07 pm:

Sorry we haven't been able to get together for what you'd like to have for your book. Please contact me at my office and I'll be more than happy to p[rovide whatever you think might be helpful. If not there please leave a number and I'll call back. Thanks./..Lee

By Lee Alan (205.188.192.174 - 205.188.192.174) on Saturday, June 15, 2002 - 02:15 pm:

Bob:
Thanks for your kind words. I haven't approached Lee Abrams, but I understand that some of his experience is from here and would know about all of us crazy people. And although I am still very much in the advertising and commercial TV and Radio business I believe that because Detroit has no Heritage Station and, with today's digital capabilities I would be able to do a "shift" and if no one else enyoyed it......I would. So I would like to hear from Lee and discuss. I'll send him the Back In The 60s CD for starters if he's interested. Once again...thanks for the kind words....Best Regards...Lee Alan

By bwright (216.228.5.106 - 216.228.5.106) on Saturday, June 22, 2002 - 01:34 am:

AS a kid growing up in the early '60's in Windsor, some of my fondest memories are of 'Lee Alan 'On the horn' Thanks for a great youth, Lee, & Thanks for the trip down memory lane. Are there any recordings of the old shows available?

By M.McLeanTech (63.210.117.73 - 63.210.117.73) on Saturday, June 22, 2002 - 04:50 am:

Lee,

I posted an item about your parents, and my constant visits to their beer store.

You have not made a comment.

Why? Was this not of interest?

Mike McLean

By Lee Alan (152.163.195.211 - 152.163.195.211) on Sunday, June 23, 2002 - 08:16 pm:

Mike:

I did see your mention of my parents and their years at the convenience store. My father purchased it after suffering a stroke and selling his manufacturing business. You bought a house on St Marys. I grew up on St Marys two houses north of Midland on the east side of the street. As a teenager going to Cooley High I worked for the original owners of that store that was called:
TOBY'S. I appreciated your mention, but was heistant to comment. I lost both my parents within a six week period in 1985. The memories are still a bit sensitive. I have dedicated my entire upcoming series of CDs entitled Back In The 60s Again to my mother and father, my two biggest and most loyal fans now in heaven where I shall join them someday. Thanks - - -Lee Alan

By Lee Alan (152.163.194.209 - 152.163.194.209) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 08:44 am:

OK...I'm seeing a lot of Motown questions so here's one for you. What was Stevie's first record? No peekng in the books now. It had a very fine tone!

By John Lester (213.1.131.177 - 213.1.131.177) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 11:47 am:

Well Lee....I am glad you raised that..cos I am confused.

When Stevie's 3LP set "Looking Back" came out, it was said that it contained his first ever recording..."Thank You For Loving Me All The Way"...which preceeded his first (and with a picture sleeve, no less) 45 "I Call It Pretty Music.....".

Now since you are not allowing me to look it up...I have to use my memory (!!), the publicity at the time said that Stevie recorded earlier as Steven Judkins - but articles created confusion over whether it was called Thank You Mother (which might even be the same as the title "Thank You for Loving Me All The Way") or another song "You Made A Vow".

So Lee...I await your response in due course.

Or...maybe this is a trick question and you are gonna say that Stevie put out "Mary Had a Little Lamb"!! LOLOL

By Ritchie (62.254.0.6 - 62.254.0.6) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 11:59 am:

"Mary Had A Little Lamb" was Paul McCartney and Wings. Perhaps it was a cover of Stevie's great lost original? ;o)

By millie (68.40.198.72 - 68.40.198.72) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 03:03 pm:

Hi Lee,
The first one I remember was "Castles In The Sand", however, I'm not so sure it had a "very fine tone". Is the answer so obvious that I'm not seeing it? Was it some sort of "horn" song? You've got me stumped.

By Sue (64.12.97.11 - 64.12.97.11) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 03:05 pm:

It's "I Call It Pretty Music (But The Old People Call It The Blues)" isn't it? Not sure if there was a finely tuned horn on it or not ...

By thecount (65.59.43.149 - 65.59.43.149) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 04:47 pm:

Contract on love,then fingertips pt.1.????.COUNT

By M.McLeanTech (64.236.243.243 - 64.236.243.243) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 05:00 pm:

John Lester,

I stood right next to Stevie as he listened to the playback in the control room of his "first ever" recording: "Thank You For Loving Me All The Way." He was so moved that he cried.

On this occasion, his dress and grooming was clearly that of a person with very limited financial resources.

At the time, the working title was: "Thank You Mother." Andre Williams had a strong influance on this production, but I believe that Mickey Stevenson was the lead man on the project. I could be wrong. Andre could have been the lead man (producer/writer). I remember watching him making suggestions for improvments in this song.

Mike McLean

By Ralph (209.240.222.130 - 209.240.222.130) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 06:15 pm:

Well this is making some sense to me Mike.
I posted on The First Time Ever thread of seeing Stevie's audition and vaguely remembering him singing some song about his mther. I wonder if that was the song you refer to?

By M.McLeanTech (64.236.243.243 - 64.236.243.243) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 06:28 pm:

Ralph,

If you are saying that you were present at Stevie's first ever audition for Motown, and that you remember it being a song about his mother, then I feel that it is lead pipe cinch that we are talking about the same song.

Come to think of it, you might well have been there, since it seems that you were connected with the Sunliners. I remember them, but I don't remember you as being part of them.

Do you remember that day when the Sunliners parked their cars behind Hitsville and someone broke into the cars, while they were inside the building, and cleaned them out? That was quite an occasion.

Mike McLean

By Ralph (209.240.222.130 - 209.240.222.130) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 08:05 pm:

I was with the Sunliners at the time Mike. In fact, I remember you engineering our first sessions at Motown and your look of mild annoyance when we all started putting our hands on the board during playbacks. I also remember us asking you if you thought we had any hits in what we just recorded.I'm not sure if I remember the incident with the cars though.

By M.McLeanTech (64.236.243.243 - 64.236.243.243) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 08:48 pm:

Ralph,

My father was raised in a home where the head of the house was from Canada, had Anglo background, and was very much into the ways of Queen Victoria.

My father raised me by setting an example. I got very little disipline, but if I wanted to get anywhere with Dad, I had to get with his program.

Dad was a finatic about careful handling of phonograph records. You can pull out any old 78 album, or vinyl record from his collection, which I still have in it's entirety, or mine, and it will be in pristeen condition. No scratchs or fingerprints on the surface. I handle all my CD's in the same way.

Dad had the same attitude about the phonograph. You had damn well better have good pickup arm technique, Etc. if you wanted to get anywhere with him.

I picked up attitudes that are very "fussy and proper" about all things having to do with the recording and reproduction of sound.

I am quite serious when I state that I feel that the fact that virtually everyone I came accross in my everyday life mistreated records horribly, while I treated them with respect, was the basis for the development of my life long attitude that the human race is made up of a bunch of horses asses.

I apologize for my allowing these attitudes to show. It was not proper for me act like that. I worked for Motown, and you were a customer.

Besides: Why should I let Berry Gordy Jr. set a paper plate full of eggs and grits right on top of the linear motion mixer controls and eat it (while spilling garbidge down into the interior parts of the pots) and then turn around and get annoyed by your fellows, just because you start twisting knobs like a bunch of monkeys on LSD?

I can't help it if I am intolerant about such things. I was raised that way. Still, I must try to avoid being a hippocrite. If it's good enough for Berry Gordy Jr., it's good enough for the Sunliners!

I will say this: When you consider the fine condition of my record collection, and the horrible condition of almost everyone else's collections, you must admit that it is a tempting line of thinking into which to fall. Besides, it's a lot of fun to stick your nose into the air and act like everyone is a fool. Too much fun!

My mother always said that perhaps I was going to be a late bloomer. I am still waiting for maturity to replace manureity. In the mean time my motto is: QUIT GETTING FINGER PRINTS ON THE CD'S, YOU BONEHEAD!!!!

I hope that you enjoy this mixture of wisdom and humor.

Mike McLean

By John Lester (213.1.132.178 - 213.1.132.178) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 08:56 pm:

Mike

Well, well well.......

At last...confirmation..

Mrs Edwards has some photos of Stevie from that time....they were supposed to go in here book

By Ralph (209.240.222.130 - 209.240.222.130) on Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 10:36 pm:

Mike,
I plead guilty!! Yes...my record collection's maintenance was a disgrace by anyone's standards. You had every right to be annoyed with us. I think the big thing we discovered on the console was the echo knob and we were all trying that one out ad nauseum I'm sure. No Mike...you were every bit the pro at that particular time and we were the the pain in the ass beginners playing with the exciting new toys. You could have been well within your rights to toss us out of the control room. You definitely were the patient, albeit some what addled, dad.

By M.McLeanTech (209.245.74.238 - 209.245.74.238) on Monday, July 29, 2002 - 03:31 pm:

Ralph,

Actually, I do not remember being offended on that occasion. My bit about monkeys on LSD was pure speculation intended to be funny.

There is no need for you to plead guilty. I, not you, am the one pleading guilty here. My comments were my guilty plea to having a bad habit of being pompous and snooty about all things having to do with the recording and reproduction of sound, including music.

Mike McLean

By M.McLeanTech (209.245.74.238 - 209.245.74.238) on Monday, July 29, 2002 - 03:40 pm:

ERROR CORRECTION:

On a message posted on this thread (above) on July 28, 2002 at 5:00 PM, in the last paragraph, I made the following statement:

"Andre Williams had a strong influance on this production, but I believe that Mickey Stevenson was the lead man on the project. I could be wrong. Andre could have been the lead man (producer/writer). I remember watching him making suggestions for improvments in this song."

I have been thinking about it, and all of a sudden I realized that I had Stevie's first song mixed up in my mind with another song that involved "thank you" that Andre Williams worked on.

This text should be deleted from the posting since it is totally invalid.

Sorry about that.

Mike McLean

By Ralph (209.240.222.130 - 209.240.222.130) on Monday, July 29, 2002 - 06:24 pm:

Don't worry about it Mike.