Thursday, September 12, 2013

Looking For Yul

The Companions
Joe Mendoni (left), Mike McLaughlin (center), Richie Green (right)
and my uncle Gilbert Cruz (crouching down with the bongo)

Many years ago my Uncle Gil had a Doo Wop group and they called themselves The Companions. Just the other day I decided to look for them on the internet - hoping to find some digitized versions of the two songs I remember he played for my family and I off a 45rpm record in his living room. I remember hearing that they may have enjoyed some modest airplay with their two novelty songs "Dorothy My Monster" and "I Want A Yul Brynner Haircut". They might have even recorded other songs, I'm not sure - but these two seemed to stick out in my head - and so I set upon trying to find them.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find the Yul Brynner song (which is what I was really looking for - I recall being quite amused by that one!) but I did end up locating and purchasing a Doo Wop Halloween novelty-song compilation on CD called Halloween Is A Scream, which features "Dorothy, My Monster"! Someone had even uploaded the "Dorothy" song to YouTube - which my cousin Lisa pointed out to me - but oddly enough, no "Yul Brynner" - go figure!


Super rare... "Dorothy My Monster" b/w
"I Want A Yul Brynner Haircut" by The Companions
Dee Dee Records #1047.
I just noticed the record credits The "Campanions",
not The "Companions" with an "o"....
yet ANOTHER mystery...

UPDATE!! UPDATE!! UPDATE!!
 

Friday, September 6, 2013

A little something for Flashback Friday!

Joe Vento discovers a surprise guest (Donald Jefferes) clawing at his front door.

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

I'm imagining Vento up there, swinging from a grappling hook...

Even my buddy Joe, who absolutely LOVES all things World's Fair related, would NEVER go quite as far as THIS guy did. I can't imagine risking breaking and entering charges as well as bodily harm (and perhaps death) just to get a peek at what things look like today from the decaying decks of the World's Fair Observation Towers ...