By TonyRussi (68.210.2.125) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 12:57 pm:

The last time I saw Mitch Ryder was at least 10 yrs ago.I can't remember any discussion about him recently, does anyone have any info?Performing,touring, etc. I think he is the epitome of "Blue eyed Soul".One of the handful of white artist that I actually bought records by in the 60's.

By Russegal (64.166.136.86) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 01:59 pm:

I've always had a place in my heart for Mitch Ryder...I grew up on the same street as his original drummer and used to love to listen to them rehearse. Naturally this drove my folks nuts....

I'm pretty sure he's still performing. You can access his "official" website at www.mitchryder.de/. I've just been to the site and it look like it's been completely redone.

I sure do agree with you...he was one of the best!!!

By David Meikle (62.252.128.6) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:14 pm:

I often wonder how "Break Out" and
"You get your kicks" did in the States.

At one time they were cult status on the NS scene.

Can anyone help?

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:20 pm:

Mitch Ryder appears at the MotorCity Casino quite often.

By David Meikle (62.252.128.6) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:23 pm:

Sis

I have never been to any of the casinos.

Is there something on quite often?

David

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:28 pm:

What dates you will be here? I will get a schedule for you for May. Then you can decide whether you want to go to any of the shows. The shows are free. You may even get a chance to see Joe Weaver.

By David Meikle (62.252.128.6) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:33 pm:

I'd love to see Joe Weaver. I was reading something about him a few months ago and thought, goodness me he goes right back to the beginning.

He sounds really fascinating.

We'll be there from May 21st through May 26th.

By stephanie (64.63.221.87) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:38 pm:

I saw Mitch Ryder on the Hollywood Squares a year ago when Mary Wilson and other rock and roll people were on. In the day he was known to put on a hell of a live show and he had a really tight band. He still sings well but I remember about 10 years ago he was complaining about having some money problems. He tours but its in Germany and other places overseas, they love this guy in Europe.
Stephanie

By Ralph (209.240.198.62) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:39 pm:

Mitch did a lot of recording at Tera Shirma after he and the Wheels split up. I don't know any titles though. Harry Balk would sign the Wheels to Impact and also record them at Tera Shirma but I can't say what became of those sessions either. And I JUST got off the phone with Harry before I saw this thread.

By Sue (63.85.105.20) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:45 pm:

"Break Out" did well here but I can't give you any numbers.

Of course, Billy Lee (Mitch) was EXTREMELY popular in Detroit. As a kid I used to watch him on Club 1270, when he was so shy he wouldn't even face the camera while Dave Prince or Joel Sebastian was interviewing him. As Billy Lee and the Rivieras, he used to play the Walled Lake Casino all the time, and I dreamed of being old enough to truly be a hipster chick and get to go there.

Billy has always complained about money issues, rightly so. I got to know him well because my publisher at Creem, Barry Kramer, managed him for a while, and the band would practice at the Creem space. Even after Barry no longer managed him, he carried Billy on our Blue Cross for quite a while ...he still can put on quite a live show on his good nights, he put on a dynamite one in '95, a benefit for newspaper strikers, at Memphis Smoke in Royal Oak.

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:46 pm:

They haven't posted the May schedule on the web yet, but you can see a picture of Mitch Ryder here. Scrool down to his name, and click on it.
http://www.motorcitycasino.com/mar03sched.php

By Sue (63.85.105.20) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:47 pm:

p.s. Billy likes to talk about sneaking into the Village club on Woodward and learning his chops from all the R&B singers ...

By LTLFTC (12.210.76.205) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:52 pm:

I saw Mitch last summer at a little street fair here in Lansing. He was in really good voice - no where near as animated on stage as he used to be ( how could he be ? ), but he sounded just fine. He had a pretty good band ; Robert Gillespie on guitar etc. He was pretty laid-back (my son called the gig 'Paxil on Main Street' heh heh) and talked quite a bit between songs, but sounded cool and the crowd dug him.

SteveK

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:52 pm:

Sue - Do you know whether BBQueen the daughter of BBKing?

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:57 pm:

Jim G - If you read this thread, I wish I had known Straight Ahead was going to be at the casino on March 31st. Marion should have informed us.

By Sue (63.85.105.20) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 05:58 pm:

BB Queen isn't his daughter, no. She isn't claiming that, is she?

I'm glad Billy/Mitch is getting some casino dough, although it shocked me to see a huge billboard with his face on it ...

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 06:03 pm:

No, I've never seen BBQueen.

I see the MotorCity Blues Stars, which includes Joe Weaver, are going to be at the casino in April. I'll let you know when the May schedule comes out.
http://www.motorcitycasino.com/apr03sched.php

By MEL&THEN SOME (195.219.7.30) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 06:04 pm:

Mitch Ryder has had a few rare/northern soul dancers on the all-nighter scene from years ago.
The very first one I got to hear was 'You get your Kicks/Takin'all I can get'way back in 1971/2.I still have it today on the New Voice Label(no.814).
Another I heard just after the above was the and still is the floorstomping dancer that I still have today on a uk 45 but was issued on the us Label of New Voice once again(no.811)called
'Breakout/I need help'.

Today my legs turn to jelly if I try to dance to it as it is a moooooover.
And another ultra-fast moooooover is the outrageously fast(but I love them)'Devil with the blue dress'and also 'Little Latin Lupe'.
A few one time huge dancers from yet another native of good old Detroit.
Mel.

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 06:13 pm:

Mel - I remember "Devil with the Blue Dress."

Sue - Are you going to see "Bill Pinkney & The Original Drifters" on the 18th of April?

By Kegtapper (65.58.33.253) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 06:33 pm:

Anybody got a picture of Mitch Ryder.

Wasn't he the one that founded the Detroit Wheels- on the short/lived distributed "INFERNO'label?

By MEL&THEN SOME (195.219.7.5) on Thursday, April 10, 2003 - 08:35 pm:

Detroit Wheels
'little Sue Dixon'
and
'Think about the good things'
on
Inferno Records
Numbers 5002&5003.
mel.

By Bigjime (198.81.27.6) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 01:44 am:

"Break Out" by Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels reached #62 on the Billboard Charts, but was much bigger in Detroit. Takin' All I Can Get only charted for one week, at number 100 (You Get Your Kicks was the b-side).
The Detroit Wheels had one record on Impact, released under the name "The Wheels" it was a version of Dancing In The Streets - Impact #1029, released in June of 1967.

By KevGo (64.115.26.80) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 11:20 am:

Sue:
I have Mitch Ryder's "Detroit/Memphis Experiment" album on Dot Records (produced by Steve Cropper) which is a great album.
In the liner notes he alludes to being ripped off by the music business "machine". Was he referring to his deal with Bob Crewe at Dyno-Voice/New Voice Records? I know that Bob tried putting Mitch on the "supper club" route with the "Joy" album on DynoVoice which flopped (as an album).
Kevin Goins - KevGo

By Sue (63.85.105.20) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 11:32 am:

Kevin,
Yeah it was Crewe. That album was exactly when Barry Kramer of Creem was managing Billy/Mitch.

Having Cropper produce was Barry's idea, at least that's what he always said.

Barry (my former publisher/boss) and Billy/Mitch were born on the same day and were two peas in a pod, personality-wise. Almost makes me believe in astrology.

By waz (65.196.14.9) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 11:43 am:

How about his one-album band "Detroit" with Johnny "Bee" Badanjek on drums and Dick Hunter on guitar? They did the best version of Lou Reed's "Rock and Roll". Who recalls a local promo version of that song with the couplet:
"Then one day she hit the Detroit station
It was W-K-N-R"!!!!

By Kegtapper (65.58.39.193) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 01:42 pm:

Thanks Mel&ThenSome-
I too have the Complete Motown listing of all the recordings. Great to see that I'm not the only one "STUCK IN THE 60/70s".

Heres one for ya. Got any OLD Pics of Detroit Wheels? Now thats a hard find!

EC Mayo
[aka Kegtapper]

By dave (207.241.133.153) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 02:08 pm:

Saw Mitch about a month and a half ago at "Jambalayas" in Laingsburg. He was in great voice, had a really good band...good show. Looked a little weak, but the performance was great.

By MEL&THEN SOME (195.219.7.80) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 02:10 pm:

Hey Kegtapper,
if I say that I have got pics of the Detroit Wheels etc.then I am going to sound all big headed.
And if I also say that I have the Album with Mitch and the Wheels all standing on the Tyres and things in the scrapyard,then I am going to be classed as a right Lardy-da,arnetI.
Well Okeh then,
yes I have the above mentioned things plus a small biography about all the White artists out of the various Detroit areas in the 60s.
A book with pics and all records and numbers and more pics of all they did.
Regards
Mr.Swell-Head(mel).

By mc5rules (148.61.97.30) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 02:16 pm:

I've got an MP3 copy of the WKNR version of Rock and Roll...it's great!

By KevGo (64.115.26.80) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 02:22 pm:

Sue:
Thanks for the 411. Amazing that Mitch was ripped off by the same man who brought us Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons, who was able to acquire their masters from Crewe years ago (something I'm sure Mitch would love to have - he deserves it).
Kevin Goins - KevGo

By kegtapper (65.58.39.193) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 02:34 pm:

Mel:
Actually No, I would not say that you are a SWELL HEAD. Many people just don't collect, except in this forum. Perhaps its my being 'solo' trying to find stuff, made me feel isolated in my task. I think I forgot more than I now know.

Now comes the beg&grovel...
can I have one. Please?

Please write me directly, I would like converse off-forum mailto:kegtapper@brew-meister.com
I am really a nice person off-line, that was not intended to be a put down. Actually it was a poorly worded compliment

By MEL&THEN SOME (195.219.7.26) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 04:25 pm:

Kegtapper,
Let me know via my mail address if you have recieved the 1st pic please.
mel.

By radiogoon (206.148.224.186) on Monday, April 14, 2003 - 01:22 am:

Saw Mitch at Razzles Nite Club in Waterford April 4th, he was jammin with a local/national drummer...Skeeto Davis. He's up there on Thursdays a couple times a month. Still trying to get up the nerve to get on stage with him, I've gotten the offer a couple times. One's things for sure, Mitch has still got the chops!

Dr,Z

By TonyRussi (68.18.50.144) on Monday, April 14, 2003 - 08:12 am:

Thanks everyone for the Mitch Ryder updates.Let him know he has loyal fans in Florida who'd love to see him at the House of Blues Orlando.

By Lauren (24.236.132.219) on Thursday, August 28, 2003 - 06:48 pm:

Mitch was the headliner here in Oscoda this summer at our bandshell on Lake Huron. He still can rock and roll with the best of them. It was a great show.