August 19, 2026
August 18, 2026
45 RPMs 106: Peter, Paul & Mary – If I Had A Hammer
Peter, Paul & Mary - 1968
promotional photo
On Saturday, August 18, 1962, Peter, Paul & Mary released one of my favorite songs by them, If I Had a Hammer also known as The Hammer Song. With Mary Travers on lead and Peter Yarrow and Paul Stookey backing her, as with most of their songs, the harmonizing of the trio is absolutely sublime.
photo by Styrous®
The group's repertoire included traditional songs, songs written by Yarrow and Stookey, early songs by Bob Dylan, and songs of other "folk-revival" musicians such as Pete Seeger.
I'm not so enamored of the "B" side of the record; the theme of Lemon Tree is much too negative for me but as they say, you can't please everyone,
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A - If I Had A Hammer, written by Hays*, Seeger* - 1:58
Side 2:
B - Lemon Tree, written by Will Holt - 2:52
Companies, etc.
Side 1:
A - If I Had A Hammer, written by Hays*, Seeger* - 1:58
Side 2:
B - Lemon Tree, written by Will Holt - 2:52
Companies, etc.
Record Company – Warner Bros. - Seven Arts Records, Inc.
Published By – Ludlow Music, Inc.
Published By – Boulder Music, Inc.
Published By – Dolfi Music Inc.
Pressed By – Columbia Records Pressing Plant, Pitman
Published By – Ludlow Music, Inc.
Published By – Boulder Music, Inc.
Published By – Dolfi Music Inc.
Pressed By – Columbia Records Pressing Plant, Pitman
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (A side runout etched): EX-12718 P
Matrix / Runout (B side runout stamped): E-12461-1G P
YouTube links:
Peter, Paul & Mary –
Matrix / Runout (B side runout stamped): E-12461-1G P
Peter, Paul & Mary – If I Had A Hammer (The Hammer Song) / Lemon Tree
Label: Warner Bros. - Seven Arts Records – 7100
Series: Back To Back Hits
Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Reissue
Country: US
Released: 1967
Genre: Folk, World, & Country
Style: Folk
Label: Warner Bros. - Seven Arts Records – 7100
Series: Back To Back Hits
Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Reissue
Country: US
Released: 1967
Genre: Folk, World, & Country
Style: Folk
Viewfinder links:
YouTube links:
Peter, Paul & Mary –
Styrous® ~ Tuesday, August 18, 2026
Bert Savoy articles/mentions
Julian Eltinge articles/mentions
August 17, 2026
Happy Birthday Mae West
Today is the birthday of Screen Siren, actress, singer, and screenwriter, Mae West who was born on Thursday, August 17, 1893, in Brooklyn, New York, She was delivered at home by her aunt, a midwife.
She was the eldest surviving child of Mathilde Delker (originally
"Doelger" and later Americanized to "Delker" or "Dilker") West, a corset and fashion model, and John Patrick "Battlin' Jack" West, a former prizefighter who later
worked as a "special policeman" and founded a private investigation
agency.
Mae West - 1932
photo: L.A. Times
West was five when she first entertained a crowd at a church social, and
she began appearing in amateur shows at the age of seven and frequently won prizes at local talent contests. She began performing professionally in vaudeville in the Hal Clarendon Stock Company in 1907, at the age of 14. As a child performer, West used the stage name "Baby Mae" (the baby may behave like this), and later tried various personas, including a male impersonator.
She was recognized as a prominent sex symbol of her time, she was known for portraying sexually confident characters and for her use of double entendres, often delivering her lines in a distinctive contralto voice. Her distinctive walk was said to have been inspired or influenced by female impersonators Bert Savoy and Julian Eltinge, who were prominent during the Pansy Craze,
West began performing in vaudeville and on stage in New York City before moving on to film in Los Angeles.
August 16, 2026
Busby Berkeley ~ I Only Have Eyes for You
The film Dames, a Warner Bros. musical comedy film directed by Ray Enright with dance numbers created by Busby Berkeley premiered on Thursday, August 16, 1934.
In the film probably the most outrageous dance sequence of Berkeley's career, if not in movie history, occurs. I Only Have Eyes for You is simply over the top and has to be seen to be believed!
In the film probably the most outrageous dance sequence of Berkeley's career, if not in movie history, occurs. I Only Have Eyes for You is simply over the top and has to be seen to be believed!
In 1959 the Flamingos, an American doo-wop group formed in Chicago in 1953, recorded their cover version of I Only Have Eyes for You. The song was writtten by composer Harry Warren and lyricist Al Dubin. The song was written for the 1934 film Dames, in which it was performed by Dick Powell.
They have since been hailed as being one of the finest and most influential vocal groups in pop and doo wop music history. In 2001, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Their cover of I Only Have Eyes for You, was ranked number 158 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
Viewfinder links:
Net links:
August 8, 2026
Der König in Thule, Tom White & Barcelona
Der König in Thule (The King in Thule) is a German poem about love and loss by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, written in 1774. Hector Berlioz used it in his opera, The Damnation of Faust which was presented on December 6, 1846, at the Opéra-Comique, in Paris with a French translation.
One night, a year or so after I met Tom, I played the opera, with Joan Sutherland singing the role of Marguerite, for him; when he heard the aria, The King in Thule, he was riveted and moved to tears. He was mystified that, as had happened so many times to him before, although he didn't understand the language he could be so emotionally moved. I told him about the concept of ethos: the power of music to influence emotions, behaviors, and even morals with no verbal cues. Although he had a great knowledge of music history, this began my introducing him to the intangible power of music to influence a person even with no musical background references. How certain chords, modulations and progressions inherently have a resonance that triggers an emotion or reaction of some kind.
He in turn began to teach me ways of viewing art that had no basis in having knowledge about it which lead him to introduce me to The Ways of Seeing by John Berger, a book that criticizes traditional Western aesthetics by raising questions about hidden ideologies in visual images; he also introduced me to Jacques Lacan and many other personages which gave me new perspectives on viewing art. I taught him how to hear music and he taught me how to see art. We enjoyed a marvelous symbiosis.
Well, back to Berlioz that night, all those years ago, when the opera was finished, he said that when he died, if there was a memorial for him, he wanted The King in Thule aria to be played. He only mentioned it that one evening but on many occasions when he came to my studio he would ask me to play that aria for him.
Last December when he died, some fifty years later, I remembered what he had said that night, so, I created a video for him (link below) with The King in Thule aria as the soundtrack and photos of our fifty year relationship accompanying it. The video fills me with a mixture of joy, nostalgia and an ache in my heart every time I watch it.
His second wish was that his ashes would be taken to Menorca, an island off the coast of Barcelona in Spain. That is the second promise to him I will keep in a couple of weeks.
Hector Berlioz ~
Tom White Celebration of Life - July 11, 2026 The Conversation ~ How John Berger changed our way of seeing art
The Guardian ~
Independent ~ Through the looking-glass: Berger's groundbreaking book
Internet Archive ~ All the rage : the story of gay visibility in America
Learn Lacan ~ Logic of Fantasy
Frederica von Stade ~ The King of Thule
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)