By MEL&THEN SOME (195.219.7.56) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 01:49 pm:

Al Green is well documented over the years,and rightly so,but heres a bit about his early years.
Al was born on the 13 april 1946
in Memphis,but aged 13 he moved to Grand Rapids,
Michigan.
At the age of 7,he began a gospel group with his 3 elder brothers.(Walter,William&Robert)known as the Green Brothers.
In 1964 now aged 18,he left the gospel scene and formed The Creations with 3 of his friends.
Curtis Rogers,Palmer James,Gene Mason.
They had a short stint on the one night stand circuit and were signed up to the Local Michigan independant Zodiac record Label,the label had just hit the charts with Ruby Andrews hit called 'Casanova'.
They cut and released 'Footsteps/A Dream' on Zodiac records(1005).
The record hit the U.S. R&B charts,but was never followed up.
Just after the release of the Zodiac record,Curtis Rogers and Palmer Jones formed their own record Label
'Hot Line Music Journal'.
Al was their first and as it turned out their only artist.
Al was now spelling his name with the E added on the end of Green.
He then formed another soul group with his brother Robert and a friend known as Lee Virgins.They called themselves The Soul Mates.
They recorded on the Hot Line Music Journal Label(no.15000)'Back Up Train'in Michigan during 1967.With the backing of Bell Records.
The record broke out in the 'pop' as well as the R&B charts.
They followed this up with
'Dont hurt me no more'and 'I'LL Be Good To You'.And they also cut an album titled 'Back up Train'.
Unfortunatly,they were similar to the hit they had and for this reason failed to sell.And unfortunatly Hot Line Music Journal went out of buisness as a record Label.

Al went into temporary obscurity and went back tothe one night stand circuit.But whilst doing one of these shows in Midland,Texas.He was spotted by Willie Mitchell who took him off to Hi Records and from there on in his career was about to take of.

Thats the short and sweet career of Al in Grand Rapids,Michigan.recording wise(unless anyone has other info).
His 45 of 'Back up Train'was a big dancer on the uk rare/northern soul scene and was also released over here on the uk Stateside Label(no2079?)plus others.(list below).

Tere was an article in a magazine that Al was to marry Hot Wax recording star Laura Lee.
And it was also reported that they had bought their house in Inkster near Detroit.
This was around 1971/72 can anyone say if they actually tied the knot.
I apologise for any errors and would appreciate any being corrected.

Al Green&The Creations:Al Greene,Palmer Jones,Curtis Rogers,Gene Mason.
Grand Rapids,Michigan 1966.
Zodiac Records-1005
Footsteps/A.Dream.
Al Greene&The Soul Mates:Al Greene,Robert Greene and Lee Virgins.
Grand Rapids,Michigan 1967.
Hot Line Music Journal Records(HLMJ).
HLMJ-15000
Back up train/Dont leave me.9also uk Bell 111)
and (uk stateside 2079).
HLMJ-15001
Dont hurt me no more/get yourself together(also released on uk Action records(no4540)
HLMJ-15002
I'll be good to you/Lovers hideaway(Bell 107).
HLMJ-1500(Action 6008)
Hot Wire
also stop and check yourself,let me help you,Im reaching out,what is it all about,Ill be good to you,guilty,thats all it takes.

It was with Hi records that Al's big hit of 'Tired of being alone' came out.
A great artist(andthensome).
Mel.


-

By Ralph (209.240.198.62) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 01:55 pm:

Mel,
Thanks for all the info on Al Green. I have always been a very big fan of him.

By MEL&THEN SOME (195.219.7.56) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 01:58 pm:

My pleasure Ralph.

By STUBASS (206.135.204.2) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 02:05 pm:

MEL BUDDY: I TOO ENJOY AL GREEN, AND THERE IS NO DENYING THAT HE PERFORMED ON SOME BONA FIDE MONSTER HITS!!!...I DO, HOWEVER, QUESTION THE GRAMMY COMMITTEE AWARDING AL GREEN A "LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD ("THE FUNK BROTHERS" NOT WITHSTANDING)!!!...I FEEL THAT THERE ARE/WERE OTHER ARTISTS MORE DESERVING, AND MORE RECOGINZED BY THE PUBLIC AT LARGE!!!...NOW...IF THE QUAKER OATS COMPANY (HOT GRITS DIVISION) WERE PRESENTING SUCH AN HONOR...AL WOULD DEFINITLY BE MY MAN!!!...BUT DON'T GET ME WRONG...I DIG AL GREEN!!!...STU

By Livonia Ken (136.1.1.101) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 02:20 pm:

Stu,
Al's lifetime achievement is likely for both secular and gospel music. Since the Grammies honor both, he is probably more worthy than a fan of just one or the other might realize. I like a lot of his PG (Post Grits) Gospel work in addition to his more familiar stuff.

Plus, Al Green is what I sound like when I sing in my dreams. After I wake up, though, it's more like Tiny Tim.

Regards,
Ken

By Eli (151.197.41.76) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 02:29 pm:

Al's first Gospel Grammy for the song Everything's gonna be allright was writen by two close friends of mine former Pockets members Charles Wiliams and Eban Kelly.

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 02:33 pm:

Stubass - LOL Quaker Oats.

Mel - Among others by Al Green I have the Bell 6076 LP.

I believe that Al introduced Laura to the secular scene. Although I'm not sure, I don't believe they married.

By STUBASS (206.135.204.2) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 02:36 pm:

HEY KEN: I WAS HOPING TO FIND SOME DISAGREEMENT WITH MY POSITION ON THIS (OR AGREMENT FOR THAT MATTER)!!!...BY THE WAY...WHEN YOU WAKE UP FROM YOUR "AL GREEN" MUSICAL DREAMS...HAVE YOU EVER FOUND YOURSELF COVERED IN HOT CREME OF WHEAT, MOTHERS OATS, OR MALT-O-MEAL???...STU

By Horse (159.53.238.243) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 03:18 pm:

Did Someone Say Quaker Oats....?


Horse

By Davie Gordon (193.122.21.26) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 03:26 pm:

Sis,

Laura Lee had her first record issued about 18
months before Al's first - when they met she was
probably a bigger name than he was.

They never married.

Davie

By STUBASS (206.135.204.2) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 03:27 pm:

JUST KNEW YOU'D COME SNIFFIN AROUND ON THAT ONE HORSE!!!...STU

By Livonia Ken (136.1.1.101) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 04:22 pm:

Stu,
To quote a recent P-Funk lyric:

When I do it/
I'm a-stickin' to it/
Like hot grits on Al Green

Regards,
Ken

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 04:32 pm:

Thanks Davie!

Livonia Ken - LOL

By john dixon (63.101.17.207) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 04:33 pm:

thanks alot Ken, my soft drink just shot out of my nose!

By STUBASS (206.135.204.2) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 04:40 pm:

HEY KEN: IT IS FUNNY THOUGH, HOW ONE EMBARASSING INCIDENT CAN "STICK" WITH SOMEONE THROUGHOUT THEIR ENTIRE LIFE...KINDA LIKE EDDIE MURPHY OR HUGH GRANT WITH HOOKERS...OR RICHARD GERE WITH...WELL YOU KNOW...UNUSUAL PETS, ETC!!!...STU

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 05:49 pm:

Oh no!! Please don't tell me about Richard Gere. I just love that man and all of his films. Please don't tell me anything that will make me stop adoring him. No, no, no, stop StubBass, don't tell me!!!

By STUBASS (206.135.204.2) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 06:05 pm:

YEAH SIS...YEAH...YEAH...SIS...NEVER MIND...IF YOU HAVEN'T HEARD...I SURE DON'T WANT TO BURST YOUR BUBBLE!!!...I WILL TELL YOU A FUNNY LITTLE STORY THOUGH!!!...AFTER THE NORTHRIDGE EARTHQUAKE, MY TOWNHOUSE WAS QUITE CLOSE TO GROUND ZERO...AND WAS BADLY DAMAGED...AS WERE MY NERVES!!!...A NEIGHBOR OF MINE (KINDA WEIRD GUY) AND HIS WIFE...OFFERED MY EX-WIFE AND I THE OPPORTUNITY TO GET OUT OF TOWN, SINCE HE HAD A HOUSE AVAILABLE TO HIM ON THE BEACH IN LA JOLLA(NEAR SAN DIEGO)!!!...WE JUMPED AT THE OPPORTUNITY TO GET OUT OF TOWN!!!...TOOK US 8 HOURS TO DRIVE DOWN THERE (USUALLY A TWO HOUR TRIP)!!!...WE END UP STAYING AT A HOUSE BEING RENTED BY AN OLD FRIEND OF HIS WHO LIVES IN SOUTH DAKOTA...FRIEND TURNS OUT TO BE TED WIATT...THE GUY WHO STARTED GATEWAY COMPUTERS!!!...HERE WE ARE IN THIS PAD...20-GRAND A MONTH RENT...NEXT DOOR TO RICHARD GERE AND CINDY CRAWFORDS LA JOLLA DIGS!!!...OUR PAD WAS TWICE AS NICE!!!...STAYED THERE FOR THREE DAYS, TILL TEDS WIFE...WHO APPARENTLY HATED MY NEIGHBOR...WAS DUE TO ARRIVE IN SAN DIEGO!!!...WE SPLIT, AND MY WIFE AND I DROVE UP TO SANTA BARBARA...DOG IN TOW...AND STAYED ANOTHER THRE DAYS!!!...NEEDLESS TO SAY...THE GUY THAT I WORKED FOR WASN'T HAPPY WITH MY BEING GONE FOR A WEEK..AND MY TENURE THERE WAS SHORTENED...WHICH WAS FINE...THE GUY WAS AN A*S HO#E, AND I WAS HAPPY TO GET AWAY FROM HIM...HIS HOUSE WAS BARELY TOUCHED BY THE EARTHQUAKE...AND BESIDES...HE WAS STAYING AT A HOTEL IN OXNARD WITH ANOTHER WOMAN WHILE *HIS* WIFE BORE THE BRUNT OF THE EARTHQUAKE SCARE!!!...STU

By STUBASS (206.135.204.2) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 06:06 pm:

PS...MY LAST POST HAD ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH AL GREEN...BUT I MAY HAVE BEEN LISTENING TO AL GREENS "GREATEST HITS" ON MY WAY DOWN TO SAN DIEGO!!!...STU

By john dixon (205.188.209.38) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 06:50 pm:

Sis, don't fret about Richard Gere; while the Al Green/grits, Hugh Grant/hooker, and Eddie Murphy/transexual stories are not only true but documented in police reports, the Richard Gere/gerbil story belongs in the urban myth department with the Rod Stewart/stomach pump tall tale....that is, fiction becoming near-fact through constant retelling.

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 06:54 pm:

Whew, ok John Dixon, thanks I feel better now.
StuBass, don't scare me like that. :o)

StuBass, I see you're living with the high and mighty. Listen, if you should see Yanni while visiting any of your friends, would you get an autographed picture for me?

By STUBASS (206.135.204.2) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 07:03 pm:

WELL SIS & JOHN: NO FURTHER COMMENT ON R.G. FROM ME...BUT IT'S MY STORY AND I'LL STICK TO IT!!!...SOMETIMES TRUTH IS EVEN STRANGER THAN FICTION!!!...AS FAR AS YANNI...DO YOU MEAN THE MUSICIAN???...WOULD YOU SETTLE FOR JOHN TESH???...I'LL GLADLY ASK *HIM* FOR AN AUTOGRAPH...AS LONG AS I DON'T HAVE TO LISTEN TO HIS MUSIC!!!...STU

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 07:06 pm:

StuBass - Not John Tesh. His music doesn't move me the way Yanni's does. So, since I can't have Yannni's picture, what about an autographed picture from StuBass? When you make it back to Detroit for a visit, you can deliver it personally.

By STUBASS (206.135.204.2) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 07:13 pm:

YOU KNOW SIS: THAT WOULD BE A PLEASURE JUST TO MEET YOU!!!...ACTUALLY...WHEN I WAS A NEWSMAN AT W-4 IN DETROIT...I HAD THESE PADS OF STUBASS PICTURES THAT WE WOULD AUTOGRAPH AND PASS OUT AT PROMOTIONS, EVENTS, CONCERTS, ETC!!!...THEY WERE THE GOOFIEST STUBASS PICTURES THAT YOU COULD IMAGINE!!!...IF THERE ARE ANY STUBASS W-4 PICTURES OUT THERE...PLEASE BURN IMMEDIATLY!!!...STU

By acooolcat (210.201.192.198) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 09:01 pm:

I've heard of - but know little about - a Detroiter(?) named Al Green. It's a different guy who seemed to be very well connected. What can people here tell me about him?
Graham

By Sue (64.12.106.51) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 09:13 pm:

The guy who used to own the Flame Showbar?

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 09:15 pm:

Coincidently they staged the Flame Showbar in the Jackie Wilson Story, showing Jackie's audition to perform there.

By acooolcat (210.201.192.198) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 09:51 pm:

Hi Sue, That's the guy... was he involved in the recording business too?
Graham

By Sue (64.12.106.51) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 09:56 pm:

Well he signed Jackie Wilson to a management contract (taken over by Nat Tarnapol when Green died suddenly) so yeah he was active in the biz.

By stephanie (199.183.161.157) on Wednesday, February 05, 2003 - 10:18 pm:

THANKS ELI!!!

Al's first Gospel Grammy for the song Everything's gonna be allright was writen by two close friends of mine former Pockets members Charles Wiliams and Eban Kelly. >>>>

I was wondering what happened to the members of Pockets. They did that lovely record Come and Go with Me in the 80s....that thing got massive play here in the Washington DC area.
Steph

By Mark Speck (65.57.18.30) on Thursday, February 06, 2003 - 01:19 am:

Curtis James and Palmer Rodgers were also the guys behind the Palmer label. A couple of Al's HLMJ tracks have the same backing tracks as other Detroit soul tunes, I'm not sure which (songs from the Palmer label, perhaps?).

I do know that Peoples' Choice also cut "Hot Wire" and it was released on both Grandland and Palmer.

Best,

Mark

By David Meikle (213.122.38.144) on Thursday, February 06, 2003 - 04:08 am:

I'm interested in the Palmer label Mark.

Someone else has suggested a different owner, which made sense, considering the location of the outlet.

Any idea where you got that?

Was it not Palmer James you're thinking of?

TIA
David

By Mark Speck (64.158.96.69) on Friday, February 07, 2003 - 12:11 am:

Gene Merideth told me that info a while ago, David. I mentioned to him that I had a copy of Al's album (the reissue on the Kory label from 1976) and he said that there were some tracks on there with the same backing tracks to other songs.

Since I haven't spoken to Gene in so long, I really can't remember any more.

Re the Creations: wasn't the Zodiac group the same as the one who had a couple of singles on Globe?

Best,

Mark

By acooolcat (210.201.192.198) on Friday, February 07, 2003 - 03:59 am:

Palmer was part of Jay Kay Distributors.
Graham

By Davie Gordon (193.122.21.26) on Friday, February 07, 2003 - 10:24 am:

I seriously doubt that there's any connection between the Palmer label and Palmer James.

The label seems to have been an offshoot of a
Detroit based distributor as Graham said. The label had been active for about a year before
Al Greene and the Soul Mates were formed (in
Grand Rapids).

I'll have to see if I can find my notes about
the Creations but there is definitely some doubt about whether or not he's on that Zodiac single
- it looks like a Bridges-Knight-Eaton project.

Those Creations singles on Globe have definite
Chicago links but again I'll have to do a bit of checking.