Obscure Oldies

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Who else here digs rare or obscure oldies? I don't mean the ordinary everyday Beatles/Motown/BeachBoys/FourSeasons hits that get played a bazillion times on your local "oldies" station (although they can be cool too). I mean the regionally-popular, low-charting, rarely-heard, unjustly-forgotten, hidden-gem, virtually-unknown songs, particularly from the first ten or so years of rock-n-roll (roughly 1954-1964). Some of my favorites:

Casanova Brown--Young Sisters
Daughter--The Blenders
Raisin' Sugar Cane--The Untouchables
Our Faded Love--The Royaltones
The Deacon Moves In--Little Esther with the Dominoes
Dream Girl--Norman Fox & The RobRoys
Arabia--The Delcos
The Great Impostor--The Fleetwoods

These are just a few titles, I've got dozens more including relatively unknown songs by famous artists. Anybody else like to contribute to the list before I ramble on?[/i]

Never heard of any of them. Or maybe I did, but forgot. Probably because I listen to my local oldies station!

I probably should have pointed out that these almost certainly won't be heard on your local oldies station. In fact, they're pretty hard to hear at all! Fortunately for me, hre in the Detroit area we have an AM station that plays a lot of this stuff; it seems to be staffed by a small group of record-collector-types who buy their own air time.

One obscure oldie that always makes me cry is Queen's "In the Year of 39." It's a tragedy of relativity.

How about the oldies from the 60's and 70's? Emerson,Lake and Palmer, YES, Wishbone Ash, Pink Floyd, Stevie Wonder, Cool and the Gang, Earth, Wind and Fire.......................ok fine....you youngens never heard of them. ....well some of them are still around.

Since it's an AM station, give us the frequency. If it's a clear channel (50,000 watts and no one else on the frequency at night / there are very few of these left since the FCC stopped protecting them), we might be able to dx it from pretty good distances.

Radio has always been one of my "things." Happily, I was able to work in it for a number of years.

Younguns? Hey, some of those aren't old enough to be oldies by my definition. ELP and YES are "Classic Rock." Oldies are from the 50's and early 60's.

Now who's the youngun?

I'd like to add Free (before they became Bad Company)...'All Right Now', Humble Pie...their best being 'I Don't Need No Doctor', Cream, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, and who could forget the Lizard King:

People are strange when you're a stranger
Faces look ugly when you're alone
Women seem wicked when you're unwanted
Streets are uneven when you're down

Oops! Mine are from the later 60's I suppose, but you're more than welcome to call me a youngun too!

Nah! Again, I'm approaching this from the view of an old radio guy. Deep Purple is the only group on your list I would classify as strictly "Classic Rock." The others could fit into either format.

But, you probably are a youngun from my perspective.

i'd say ANYTHING by Eddie Cochran!

also i know you say rock n roll but i just have to mention these doo-wop songs:

The Dootones - Down The Road
The Monotones - Book Of Love
The Mystics - Hushabye
The Chords - Sh-Boom

these all put a smile on my face (which is really hard to do)

'I am the Walrus' by The Beatles.

"I am an Egg Man, I am an Egg Man, I am the Walrus...coo coocatchoo!"

The Crew Cuts version (which was the bigger hit) is a million times better.


On another note, I listen to ALOT of obscure stuff from the 50's and 60's.

Bet nobody knew Lou Reed did doo-woppy pop:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqEoTN4BGPQ[/youtube]

.Even tho' this is ultra-ancient , and the OP is long-gone from here , I so love " oldies " that...........

What's That Smells Like Fish - BLIND BOY FULLER (1938) Ragtime Blues Guitar Legend
THE SWALLOWS ~ IT AIN`T THE MEAT ~ 1951
Big Long Slidin' Thing by Dinah Washington
Harry Roy & His Orchestra "My Girl's Pu ssy" (1931)