Abigail Beecher was VERY popular in my Southern California high school where woodies with surfboards hanging out the back windows were legion in the parking lots. There were also a few young teachers who fit the Abigail profile. Fun times. Another one of my favorite Freddy Cannon songs was Way Down Yonder in New Orleans. That song didn’t leave my head when I first visited NOLA in 1966. Same with Palisades Park in 1970. Glad I had a chance to be there before it was demolished and replaced with luxury high rises.
The Guitar solo in Tallahassee Lassie blew me away as a 13 year old. I bought the 45rpm on Top Rank records in the UK. I had to have an electric guitar to get that wild sound.
I have often wondered if Gabe Kaplan named Freddie "Boom Boom" Washington after Cannon. Or if, perhaps, a real life inspiration for Freddie gave himself the nickname. Freddie "Boom Boom" seems to beg instant recognition. My most recent exposure to Cannon is the fun song he created in tribute to the Svengoolie show on MeTV, with a video that features pop culture luminary monster kids like Gilbert Gottfried, Patton Oswalt, and the Mads from MST3K.
Love this tribute to Freddy Cannon, Dan. By any chance do you have his 1965 album, "Action!"? It's a fun listen and the song "You Gotta Help Yourself" in particular is a standout cut on it. The Fleshtones, who in my opinion are imbued with the spirit of Freddy Cannon, covered "Abigail Beecher" on stage. Oh, by the way, as a sideburned would-be delinquent, I always took Sinatra's putdown of rock 'n' roll as a recommendation for the music!
The liner notes by Stan Cornyn on the back of the album are a big boss blast to read, capturing the go-go Where the Action Is attitude/aesthetic of the times.
"You'll never know how great a kid can feel/when you stop at the top of a ferris wheel..."
Hearing this song for the first time- with that persistent Hammond organ like keyboard ostinato and the sound effects- always got me wondering: Who was this guy? Was Palisades Park a real place? Answers: Mr. Cannon (RIP) and it was. And the fact that it was written by the same guy who created "The Gong Show", "The Dating Game" and "The Newlywed Game"...
So now the two great historical Boom Booms I know of are gone- the other was Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion of the NHL's Montreal Canadiens, so called because of the sound of his slapshot.
Everything is connected, and sometimes the most interesting connections are the ones that remain least visible. This is definitely one of those stories. Fascinating stuff, Dan. Thanks for sharing!
OK - I gotta go see Ben after that tease - & it was worth it for the Sinatra quote alone. I didn't get onto Freddy until late but when I heard Palisades for the first time I realize I sort of had it in my head all along due to their re-write of it on Beach Boys-"Summer Days (and Summer Nights) album being ingrained into my head, the only rock and roll album in my mother's collection, it's kind of funny they later covered the original - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zY180tcXYC0&list=RDzY180tcXYC0&start_radio=1
I'm not only mourning the passing of a legend, but also the mindset. I would spend any Saturday night in the early '80s as a teen at my friend's house, listening to our Boston-area oldies station WCGY and rediscovering Cannon's tunes (and the requisite background effects!), Ricky Nelson, The Platters, Elvis, Neil Sedaka, et al. I'm also mourning the time span that I was closer to that then than I am now.
"Here come the lights of an XKE now..." Love Freddy Cannon, thanks for writing about him. Have you ever seen the video of him performing "Tallahassee Lassie " live with The Gears in LA?https://youtu.be/8qcnJsoTwhA
Boom Boom...out go the lights. RIP Freddy.
Pat Travers saw it coming!
Abigail Beecher was VERY popular in my Southern California high school where woodies with surfboards hanging out the back windows were legion in the parking lots. There were also a few young teachers who fit the Abigail profile. Fun times. Another one of my favorite Freddy Cannon songs was Way Down Yonder in New Orleans. That song didn’t leave my head when I first visited NOLA in 1966. Same with Palisades Park in 1970. Glad I had a chance to be there before it was demolished and replaced with luxury high rises.
The Guitar solo in Tallahassee Lassie blew me away as a 13 year old. I bought the 45rpm on Top Rank records in the UK. I had to have an electric guitar to get that wild sound.
I have often wondered if Gabe Kaplan named Freddie "Boom Boom" Washington after Cannon. Or if, perhaps, a real life inspiration for Freddie gave himself the nickname. Freddie "Boom Boom" seems to beg instant recognition. My most recent exposure to Cannon is the fun song he created in tribute to the Svengoolie show on MeTV, with a video that features pop culture luminary monster kids like Gilbert Gottfried, Patton Oswalt, and the Mads from MST3K.
I had no idea about the Svengoolie collab. Cool!
I need to correct myself. There are two Svengoolie songs by Freddy. "The Svengoolie Stomp" and "Hey, Svengoolie"
Great piece, Dan. That "red surfboard" line/rhyme is an all time fave!
Great post Dan.
Love this tribute to Freddy Cannon, Dan. By any chance do you have his 1965 album, "Action!"? It's a fun listen and the song "You Gotta Help Yourself" in particular is a standout cut on it. The Fleshtones, who in my opinion are imbued with the spirit of Freddy Cannon, covered "Abigail Beecher" on stage. Oh, by the way, as a sideburned would-be delinquent, I always took Sinatra's putdown of rock 'n' roll as a recommendation for the music!
Oh yeah - really fun album, and the Fleshtones definitely got where Freddy was coming from!
The liner notes by Stan Cornyn on the back of the album are a big boss blast to read, capturing the go-go Where the Action Is attitude/aesthetic of the times.
Rip to a legend. Thanks for giving him his due here.
"You'll never know how great a kid can feel/when you stop at the top of a ferris wheel..."
Hearing this song for the first time- with that persistent Hammond organ like keyboard ostinato and the sound effects- always got me wondering: Who was this guy? Was Palisades Park a real place? Answers: Mr. Cannon (RIP) and it was. And the fact that it was written by the same guy who created "The Gong Show", "The Dating Game" and "The Newlywed Game"...
So now the two great historical Boom Booms I know of are gone- the other was Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion of the NHL's Montreal Canadiens, so called because of the sound of his slapshot.
Who knows: maybe they can hook up now?
Everything is connected, and sometimes the most interesting connections are the ones that remain least visible. This is definitely one of those stories. Fascinating stuff, Dan. Thanks for sharing!
OK - I gotta go see Ben after that tease - & it was worth it for the Sinatra quote alone. I didn't get onto Freddy until late but when I heard Palisades for the first time I realize I sort of had it in my head all along due to their re-write of it on Beach Boys-"Summer Days (and Summer Nights) album being ingrained into my head, the only rock and roll album in my mother's collection, it's kind of funny they later covered the original - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zY180tcXYC0&list=RDzY180tcXYC0&start_radio=1
I love discovering hidden gem 💎 artists, thanks a lot! 🔥
I recently discovered Sugar Pie DeSanto…
Love her! Have you heard “In The Basement,” her duet with Etta James? It’s one of my favorite 60s soul jams!
Yes, sir! 🔥
I'm not only mourning the passing of a legend, but also the mindset. I would spend any Saturday night in the early '80s as a teen at my friend's house, listening to our Boston-area oldies station WCGY and rediscovering Cannon's tunes (and the requisite background effects!), Ricky Nelson, The Platters, Elvis, Neil Sedaka, et al. I'm also mourning the time span that I was closer to that then than I am now.
Thanks for the education, Dan!
"Here come the lights of an XKE now..." Love Freddy Cannon, thanks for writing about him. Have you ever seen the video of him performing "Tallahassee Lassie " live with The Gears in LA?https://youtu.be/8qcnJsoTwhA
Wow - that’s a smokin’ rendition!