Those two numbers that Johnny did on the program featured above , " Dont You Know " and " Come on and Take My Hand " are from the Lee Gordon label 45 . Both those sides are so superb that I'd venture to say that it's the best Aussie rock & roll record ever --two equally fabulous songs on the one disc . I'm almost certain too , that they were actually recorded in the U.S. , where Johnny had visited to chance his artistic hand earlier in the same year as his performance here .
It's doubtful that these songs were recorded in the US. The songs have the typical Festival Records studio tinny reverb and characteristic sound. In fact it is doubtful that JOK recorded anything in the US. JOK was remarkable for four things:- 1. An amazing, electrifying, live performer - I saw him perform quite late in his career- even then he made your hair stand up with excitement; 2. An extreme level of self promotion, famously visiting as many radio stations as possible to get his records played; 3. Seriously into drugs, which messed his mind; 4. Telling porkies as part of his self promotion. The only evidence I have ever come across that JOK recorded in the US came from JOK's mouth. He certainly travelled to the US, but in the US was basically a complete flop as nobody knew him - as Lee Gordon said would happen. If he did record in the US, it would have been on the basis that, before tape recorders became cheap enough for home ownership, anybody could drop into certain recording studios, pay a dollar or so, record one song in one take (too bad if you messed it up, unless you paid for another take) and walk out with just one disc. These discs were a special type with a plastic coating over an aluminum disc. I still enjoy JOK's records though. He covered songs by big name US stars like Rick Nelson and did the songs better.
O'Keefe flew to LA armed with some of his recordings. He was trying to persuade a drug store owner to have some of his records put in a juke box. Liberty's A&R man just happened to be there heard his recordings and booked him into a recording session. Recorded at Liberty Records Gold Star Studio LA. Don't You Know written by Scotty Turnbull, Tommy Sands' guitarist. The production is streets ahead of Festival Records, which really is not surprising as this was late 1959 early 1960.
@@blueycarlton Liberty did put out a JOK 45. Somebody has uploaded it to UA-cam but they've done it by holding their phone or something near a cheap record player and the audio quality is so bad, with no treble and much distortion its useless. Were there US recordings on this release, or was it cut from Australian tapes? Or even cut from playing an Australian made 45? Small regional companies did that. Even major Australian companies like Festival and W&G when they wanted to make money on US stars but the US company couldn't or wouldn't send master tapes and instead sent a worn out mother stamping. The OP of this thread claimed Come On and Take My hand was recorded in the US. I've listened to both JOK songs titled Come On And Take My Hand (two different songs by the same artist with the same title!) provided to UA-cam by the copyright holders and both have the usual Festival sound according to my ears. I've listened to the two uploads of Don't You Know on YT provided by two different record companies. Both sound identical except that one is better balanced, which could have been done by mixer EQ when making a new cut from old tapes. Allowing for that both have the typical Festival sound, though slightly better than others. One would expect Festival to have improved their production quality as they gained experience, and came to know that JOK records sold and he was worth while doing their best. And JOK was both a perfectionist and an aggressive little shyte. If he wasn't happy with a recording he probably would have made that abundantly clear. I met JOK once when he was on tour late in his career. Quite an amazing guy, heaps and heaps of talent - and nutty as fruit cake.
@@blueycarlton Thanks for that clarification . Confirmation of what I had thought was the place of that particular recording , and , presumably the great flip side too . Incidentally , the Gold Star Studio that you mentioned was the same venue where the great Eddie Cochran cut a lot of his recordings .
@@blueycarlton This is definitely recorded in the U.S. The songs that he recorded there are to my knowledge She's My Baby, Ready For You, Come On & Take My Hand, Don't You Know Pretty Baby, and maybe Own True Self and It's Too Late, but the last two have no master tape surviving, every copy coming from needle-drops. These songs sound streets ahead of Festival, and don't have Robert Iredale's telltale production sound of vocals up front, everything else mixed down low, no kickdrum and boatloads of reverb.
Hopefully you have the second song? This is wonderful footage, any new O'Keefe footage is great! especially as this is so close to his accident. You can tell his face still hasn't fully healed here.
I do have the other song but I haven't had the chance to upload it yet. This footage was digitised from a 16mm film that I found. I also found an episode of Six O'Clock Rock from a month or so before JOK's accident and a Sunnyside Up episode featuring Col Joye. Those still have to big digitised.
Terrific to see the great Frank Wilson as well.
Wow jok. 28/12/23. 😊😊😊😊😊😊the king wow what an artist. Listento the sax. Beatifull
Brilliant to see this clip. Don't you know he was the greatest artist Australia has ever had. Rip 6/8/78 jok the wild one 😊😊😊😊😊
This was one of Johnny's best. Real rockin tune.
It’s a possibility that I watched this clip on dad’s Kreisler t.v …
Those two numbers that Johnny did on the program featured above , " Dont You Know " and " Come on and Take My Hand " are from the Lee Gordon label 45 . Both those sides are so superb that I'd venture to say that it's the best Aussie rock & roll record ever --two equally fabulous songs on the one disc . I'm almost certain too , that they were actually recorded in the U.S. , where Johnny had visited to chance his artistic hand earlier in the same year as his performance here .
It's doubtful that these songs were recorded in the US. The songs have the typical Festival Records studio tinny reverb and characteristic sound. In fact it is doubtful that JOK recorded anything in the US. JOK was remarkable for four things:-
1. An amazing, electrifying, live performer - I saw him perform quite late in his career- even then he made your hair stand up with excitement;
2. An extreme level of self promotion, famously visiting as many radio stations as possible to get his records played;
3. Seriously into drugs, which messed his mind;
4. Telling porkies as part of his self promotion.
The only evidence I have ever come across that JOK recorded in the US came from JOK's mouth. He certainly travelled to the US, but in the US was basically a complete flop as nobody knew him - as Lee Gordon said would happen.
If he did record in the US, it would have been on the basis that, before tape recorders became cheap enough for home ownership, anybody could drop into certain recording studios, pay a dollar or so, record one song in one take (too bad if you messed it up, unless you paid for another take) and walk out with just one disc. These discs were a special type with a plastic coating over an aluminum disc.
I still enjoy JOK's records though. He covered songs by big name US stars like Rick Nelson and did the songs better.
O'Keefe flew to LA armed with some of his recordings. He was trying to persuade a drug store owner to have some of his records put in a juke box. Liberty's A&R man just happened to be there heard his recordings and booked him into a recording session.
Recorded at Liberty Records Gold Star Studio LA.
Don't You Know written by Scotty Turnbull, Tommy Sands' guitarist. The production is streets ahead of Festival Records, which really is not surprising as this was late 1959 early 1960.
@@blueycarlton Liberty did put out a JOK 45. Somebody has uploaded it to UA-cam but they've done it by holding their phone or something near a cheap record player and the audio quality is so bad, with no treble and much distortion its useless. Were there US recordings on this release, or was it cut from Australian tapes? Or even cut from playing an Australian made 45? Small regional companies did that. Even major Australian companies like Festival and W&G when they wanted to make money on US stars but the US company couldn't or wouldn't send master tapes and instead sent a worn out mother stamping.
The OP of this thread claimed Come On and Take My hand was recorded in the US. I've listened to both JOK songs titled Come On And Take My Hand (two different songs by the same artist with the same title!) provided to UA-cam by the copyright holders and both have the usual Festival sound according to my ears.
I've listened to the two uploads of Don't You Know on YT provided by two different record companies. Both sound identical except that one is better balanced, which could have been done by mixer EQ when making a new cut from old tapes. Allowing for that both have the typical Festival sound, though slightly better than others.
One would expect Festival to have improved their production quality as they gained experience, and came to know that JOK records sold and he was worth while doing their best. And JOK was both a perfectionist and an aggressive little shyte. If he wasn't happy with a recording he probably would have made that abundantly clear.
I met JOK once when he was on tour late in his career. Quite an amazing guy, heaps and heaps of talent - and nutty as fruit cake.
@@blueycarlton Thanks for that clarification . Confirmation of what I had thought was the place of that particular recording , and , presumably the great flip side too .
Incidentally , the Gold Star Studio that you mentioned was the same venue where the great Eddie Cochran cut a lot of his recordings .
@@blueycarlton This is definitely recorded in the U.S. The songs that he recorded there are to my knowledge She's My Baby, Ready For You, Come On & Take My Hand, Don't You Know Pretty Baby, and maybe Own True Self and It's Too Late, but the last two have no master tape surviving, every copy coming from needle-drops. These songs sound streets ahead of Festival, and don't have Robert Iredale's telltale production sound of vocals up front, everything else mixed down low, no kickdrum and boatloads of reverb.
Hopefully you have the second song? This is wonderful footage, any new O'Keefe footage is great! especially as this is so close to his accident. You can tell his face still hasn't fully healed here.
I do have the other song but I haven't had the chance to upload it yet. This footage was digitised from a 16mm film that I found. I also found an episode of Six O'Clock Rock from a month or so before JOK's accident and a Sunnyside Up episode featuring Col Joye. Those still have to big digitised.
Sounds better at 1.2 speed