Gail Renard was 16 when she heard that John Lennon was going to be staying over in Montreal.  She crashed his party with a friend via a fire escape at Montreal’s Queen Elizabeth Hotel.  Ringing the doorbell during a change of security, Yoko answered the door and let her in for an interview.

Gail stayed for the week of the famous bed in and the recording of ”Give Peace a Chance.” Lennon is recalled as speaking with Gail’s mother on the telephone and gaining her approval; every night Gail went to her own home and bed to sleep.  During the day she acted as Lennon’s liaison to the press, played with Kyoko Lennon in the nearby park, made arrangements for tambourines for the recording session, and hobnobbed with the celebs including Tommy Smothers, Timothy Leary, and Allan Ginsberg.

She felt secure in her surroundings and recalls how when an amorous member of the press attempted to kiss her, John intervened and chased him off.  Among the several mementos that he gave her was the song board to Give Peace a Chance which was recently, almost 40 years later, auctioned off at Christies for almost $850,000.  He’d told her, ”hang on to it, it will be worth something one day.”  They had originally guessed that the piece would fetch between 200 and 300,00 pounds.  Renard, an award winning radio and TV writer, commented, saying, ”It’s all monopoly money to me.”

Read an interview with Gail Renard here.Â

Ozzy was recently awarded an undisclosed sum in a judgment against the Daily Star.  The Star had published an article suggesting that Ozzy was too ill to present awards at a recent, British awards ceremony, and said that he had collapsed twice prior to the ceremony, and relied on an electric buggy to get around the set. In addition to the financial award which was donated to Sharon Osbourne’s favorite charity, Ozzy received a profuse apology from the newspaper declaring the allegations untrue and admitting that they never should have been published.

In other news, the Osbournes will be hosting a six episode variety series that will be launched on the Fox network at Christmas.

Click on this text for a link to a question and answer article interviewing Canadian guitarist Randy Bachman about his experiences with late guitar legend, Jeff Healey.

One of Canada’s best kept secrets is a folk singer/country singer named Stompin’ Tom Connors.  Fiercely Canadian, he returned a number of Juno awards one year in protest of those artists who had shifted their emphasis to the ”south of the border market.”  Stompin’ Tom earned his name for the way that he kept his beat by rythymically stomping his foot as he played.  After receiving complaints about wearing down stage floors he began to bring his own sheet of plywood to stomp on.  Generally ignored by pop radio, Stompin’ Tom nevertheless acquired a huge, inter-generational following and along with Don Messer, Tommy Hunter, Hank Snow, and others, has become an icon and source of national pride.

Here’s a recent snow sculpture of Stompin’ Tom that was an entry in a snow sculpture contest and below it is Stompin’ Tom’s response.

”To Abram, Asher and Ben Waterman, and Team Prince Edward Island. All I can say is WOW! And Congratulations on the great job you guys did on the Snow Sculpture ”Stompin’ Tom & the Hockey Song”. Your theme could not be more ”Canadian” and I hope you win the competition. It’s awsome!”

Heart’s Ann and Nancy Wilson will release both cd and dvd versions of ”Dreamboat Annie Live,” on October 23rd.  The show was recorded in April of this year during the ”Love Rules,” tour.  Also of note, Ann Wilson released her first solo album on September 11th this year.  Check out the news at heart-music.com

A new Stevie Ray Vaughn, signature model Stratocaster will be released by Fender on December 12th. It will be called the Stevie Ray Vaughn, ”Lenny,” named after Stevie’s wife, Lenora. The total number available of this new model will limited to a batch of 185.  The Stevie Ray Vaughn signature is rumored to be priced at $17000.00–a little steep for my wallet.

Don Ho, the legendary Hawaiian icon has died of a heart attach at age 76. Donald Tai Loy Ho, who was Hawaiian, Chinese,
Troubled by heart problems for a few years, he had a pacemaker implanted last fall. In 2005 he underwent an experimental stem cell operation in Thailand. Though maintaining a paired down schedule in recent years, Ho’s last performance was on Thursday.

Like a huge percentage of visitors to the big island, I visited his club in Honolulu one time in the ’70s and had a delightful time.  Ho had a remarkable gift for responding to whatever the particular evening spontaneously delivered and that night it was Glen Campbell who with Don’s gentle coaxing, got up from his table, strapped on a guitar, and sang several tunes including his then-recent hit, ”Rhinestone Cowboy.”

David Bowie is reissuing the classic 1974 album, ”Young Americans” with Virgin/EMI on June 5. During the preceding ”Diamond Dogs” tour he had dropped hints that he was moving in the direction of R&B and this album nailed it. Notables brought in for the original recording included John Lennon on guitar and backing vocals as well as Luther Vandross who also provided backing vocals and some of the vocal arrangements.

In more recent Bowie news he was featured in a spring 2007 episode of SpongeBob SquarePants as the character, Lord Royal Highness. He commented: ”It’s happened. At last. I’ve hit the Holy Grail of animation gigs. Yesterday I got to be a character on….tan-tara…SpongeBob SquarePants. Oh Yeah!!” ”We, the family, are thrilled. Nothing else need happen this year, well, this week anyway.”

U2’s Bono (Paul Hewson) will be honorarily knighted, announced the British Embassy in Dublin. Because he is not a British national he will not be able to use the title, ”Sir.” Congratulations were expressed by British Prime Minister, Tony Blair in a letter saying, ”You have tirelessly used your voice to speak up for Africa.”

A statement on the band’s website said the singer, who has lobbied Western leaders to increase aid to developing countries and cancel Third World debt, was ”very flattered” to receive the award.

It added that he hoped it opened doors for his campaigning work against extreme poverty in Africa

Ian Hunter of Mott the Hoople fame sang, ”My brother’s back at home with his Beatles and his Stones/We never got it off on that revolution stuff..” Well, maybe he got off on Herman’s Hermits instead. Selling over 60 million records, the Hermits, headed by Peter Noone, dominated the airwaves with such classics as ”I’m Into Something Good,” ”Mrs. Brown You’ve got a Lovely Daughter,” ”I’m Henry the Eighth I Am,” ”No Milk Today,” ”Dandy,” and ”Don’t Go Out Into the Rain,” among dozens of others. They made a couple of fun, movies as well.

As to the origin of the band’s name, Wikipedia points out that Peter had been a ”child TV star playing Stanley Fairclough in Coronation Street and was only 15 when he achieved international fame as teenage heart-throb, Herman. On stage, Noone initially used his existing stage name Peter Novak. The change to Herman came after the owner of a pub that they were rehearsing in, remarked on his resemblance to the character Sherman in Peabody’s Improbable History, a supporting cartoon in The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show, which they misheard as Herman. The group, who by now were a popular dance hall and youth club attraction, and managed by Harvey Lisberg and Charlie Silverman, changed their name to Herman and The Hermits, and it soon became abbreviated to Herman’s Hermits.”

Fun was really the key to Peter Noone (Herman) and the Hermits. Their music was never about the politics and turbulence of the sixties; their contribution was creating welcome distractions in the midst of chaotic times. As a nine year old in 1965 I believe I was more excited at the prospect of watching the band on Ed Sullivan and also more insistent with my parents that I absolutely ”had to” be allowed to stay up and watch them then I had been with the Beatles.

The amazing thing is that they’ve recently regrouped, sort of. Peter Noone has toured as a solo act for many years. He will be touring again in 2007 including a stop in my current home town. He’s been appearing with his revamped band for nine years according to a report from his web site…

Noone’s still into something good

In correspondence Noone professes a non-sectarian belief in God.

On the anniversary of the death of John Lennon, Yoko, his widow, continues to call for peace. She says, ”Every year, let’s make December 8th the day to ask for forgiveness from those who suffered the insufferable.” In the full page, New York Times add she also urges readers to take responsibility for failing to intervene on behalf of victims around the world.

’Know that the physical and mental abuse you have endured will have a lingering effect on our society,’ she writes in a portion of the letter directed to victims. ’Know that the burden is ours.’

The death of John Lennon rivaled the death of JFK in terms of worldwide impact. Many people recall specifically where they were when they heard the news of Lennon’s murder. Do you remember? I remember that I was riding in a car with friends, driving from Edmonton Alberta to a Bible College in Camrose, Alberta. The news stunned us all. How tragic that man who appealed to the nations to ”Give Peace a Chance,” was so skeptical of Jesus Christ, whom the Bible calls the Prince of Peace.

Useful Link: The John Lennon Museum

Official Link: John Lennon . com