Glad you enjoyed it, Linda, as the story didn't turn out to be what I expected at all. Have to agree that Stills came out with a bang-up song and the quietness is what grabs me too.
Great piece, Ellen! Lots of info I wasn’t aware of. FWIW was the very first song my very first band ever played and recorded back in high school! I was percussionist and I didn’t have a shaker so I used a 1/2 full jar of vitamins!
Thanks for pointing that out to me. I tend to avoid political substacks these days unless they're satire or heavy on humor. I can't afford skyrocketing blood pressure! So I don't see music references except in the many music stacks I now subscribe to. (Too many. I can't keep up!)
Did not know about the money. I did know that Stills and Tork were good friends, that Stills had tried out to be a Monkee and wasn't selected, and encouraged Tork to go for it. Were there connections beyond that? Intrigued by that whole Laurel Canyon crowd!
The money that Rayburt Productions made with Screen Gems due to its success with the Monkees helped to finance 'Easy Rider'. And one of the reasons Jack Nicholson was even in 'Easy Rider' was because he was Bob Rafelson's friend and the co-writer of the Monkees movie, 'Head'...a movie which Dennis Hopper also made a cameo in.
The Stills/Tork connection is precisely as you laid out above. If there's any further connection I'm not aware of it, though it wouldn't surprise me if there were.
That's really interesting, and the Head article is a well-referenced piece of history, not to mention providing the entire shooting script. What a find! Thanks so much for sharing that (as I want to do a longer piece on the Monkees at some point).
". . . too tight capris. . ." , heaven forbid! Great piece Ellen. I knew the song was about the LA "riot" but never heard about Stills' experiences in Latin America, very interesting.
That's pretty wild. I watched some of Riot on Sunset Strip and the band playing was quite good, but not sure if it was the Chocolate Watchband or the Standells. I just loved the name of the band and had to mention them.
Had a neighbor, Joe was his name, who ushered us in where we were introduced to Buffalo Springfield, CSN&Y, Neil Young (the messiah) early years in addition to Panama Red, Columbian Gold and Maui Wowy. His immortal words "roll from the center" still ring true.
Sounds like there are some good stories there, or at least some good advice. Have you written about this? Welcome a link if you have, or encourage you to post if you haven't as many would enjoy hearing more.
Reckon it'll turn up in the hillbilly stories. You know, Ellen, I never got to know Stephen Stills and the interview you posted tells me I would like that man. And he sure can worry those strings! You da' bomb...
If you don’t know what the title “For What It’s Worth” means, you weren’t in the scene back then. To me it says everything. A common expression at the time, often used to parenthesize a serious comment. Colloquial use: “For what it’s worth ( to you), I would like to see you pay more attention to ( insert qualifier here). I heard this preface to a criticism so many times from the 50’s through the 70’s.
You're right, I was a kid at the time and heard that expression from adults and on TV, but wasn't in the scene so to speak.
The story behind how the song got that title comes from Stephen Stills and seems to have been a case of misunderstanding by label head Ahmet Ertugun. I do enjoy inside anecdotes like these and share them whenever I run across them.
Glad you enjoyed it, Linda, as the story didn't turn out to be what I expected at all. Have to agree that Stills came out with a bang-up song and the quietness is what grabs me too.
I know! Who allowed the beatnik into this band?!
Thank you for the back story on this song; I had no idea. It may be my favorite protest song of that time, too.
I had no idea either until I researched it. Quite a story, and very different from what I had expected.
The Man couldn't take their music...
You gotta love the lingo from that era! We need to resurrect it.
Agreed. The music used much of it.
Now if we could just bring back muttonchop sideburns, love beads, and suede fringe jackets...
You might enjoy this podcast (I've only listened to the first episode, but it was good) about the Seattle teen dance ordinance: https://www.kuow.org/podcasts/let-the-kids-dance?gad_source=1
Thanks, Nick. A more modern example of what happened on the Sunset Strip. I'll bet there are more.
Really great song! Stevie Nicks covered in concert when in town two months ago.
She wrote one with the same name -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwQhSg1G2OQ
Was it a cover or her own? Either way, envious you got to see her in concert, Dan!
Yes, she actually did the cover. Very cool! She opened for Billy Joel. It's actually the third time I've seen her as a solo artist. Love Stevie!
That had to be an amazing concert with both Stevie and Billy. Lucky dude you seeing that.
Great piece, Ellen! Lots of info I wasn’t aware of. FWIW was the very first song my very first band ever played and recorded back in high school! I was percussionist and I didn’t have a shaker so I used a 1/2 full jar of vitamins!
That is priceless, Steve. Talk about musical innovation!
It's a fun song, and deservedly a classic.
I thought I had read something else about it recently and, In an interesting moment of "great minds think alike" it happens that Kareem had talked about it 2 weeks ago. Good company :) https://kareem.substack.com/p/trump-and-vance-serve-up-a-feast
Thanks for pointing that out to me. I tend to avoid political substacks these days unless they're satire or heavy on humor. I can't afford skyrocketing blood pressure! So I don't see music references except in the many music stacks I now subscribe to. (Too many. I can't keep up!)
That makes sense.
Every time I see 'Easy Rider', I think about where the money to make it came from. *tips hat to the Monkees*
And of course, the connection with Stills and Tork...
Did not know about the money. I did know that Stills and Tork were good friends, that Stills had tried out to be a Monkee and wasn't selected, and encouraged Tork to go for it. Were there connections beyond that? Intrigued by that whole Laurel Canyon crowd!
The money that Rayburt Productions made with Screen Gems due to its success with the Monkees helped to finance 'Easy Rider'. And one of the reasons Jack Nicholson was even in 'Easy Rider' was because he was Bob Rafelson's friend and the co-writer of the Monkees movie, 'Head'...a movie which Dennis Hopper also made a cameo in.
The Stills/Tork connection is precisely as you laid out above. If there's any further connection I'm not aware of it, though it wouldn't surprise me if there were.
Great article on 'Head' here... https://sotcaa.org/head/head_changes01.html
That's really interesting, and the Head article is a well-referenced piece of history, not to mention providing the entire shooting script. What a find! Thanks so much for sharing that (as I want to do a longer piece on the Monkees at some point).
No problem! And I'd be all in on anything Monkees - I've adored the band for decades.
Me too - I've put it on the priorities list.
". . . too tight capris. . ." , heaven forbid! Great piece Ellen. I knew the song was about the LA "riot" but never heard about Stills' experiences in Latin America, very interesting.
Thanks, Hugh. Honestly, the reaction was over the top and ludicrous. More about that in the next piece.
Great reference of Pandora’s Box and Riot On Sunset Strip. I actually saw The Chocolate Watchband there. Very underrated garage band.
That's pretty wild. I watched some of Riot on Sunset Strip and the band playing was quite good, but not sure if it was the Chocolate Watchband or the Standells. I just loved the name of the band and had to mention them.
Had a neighbor, Joe was his name, who ushered us in where we were introduced to Buffalo Springfield, CSN&Y, Neil Young (the messiah) early years in addition to Panama Red, Columbian Gold and Maui Wowy. His immortal words "roll from the center" still ring true.
Sounds like there are some good stories there, or at least some good advice. Have you written about this? Welcome a link if you have, or encourage you to post if you haven't as many would enjoy hearing more.
Reckon it'll turn up in the hillbilly stories. You know, Ellen, I never got to know Stephen Stills and the interview you posted tells me I would like that man. And he sure can worry those strings! You da' bomb...
Meanwhile, here's a somewhat lengthy introduction into my strange and unusual world: https://daviddrayer.substack.com/p/the-spell-of-ai-36f?r=28bk2b
If you don’t know what the title “For What It’s Worth” means, you weren’t in the scene back then. To me it says everything. A common expression at the time, often used to parenthesize a serious comment. Colloquial use: “For what it’s worth ( to you), I would like to see you pay more attention to ( insert qualifier here). I heard this preface to a criticism so many times from the 50’s through the 70’s.
You're right, I was a kid at the time and heard that expression from adults and on TV, but wasn't in the scene so to speak.
The story behind how the song got that title comes from Stephen Stills and seems to have been a case of misunderstanding by label head Ahmet Ertugun. I do enjoy inside anecdotes like these and share them whenever I run across them.
Thanks for reading and commenting, Muriel.