Sam Fletcher

[Roburt]

Sam appeared on a top Italian TV show in 1963, thanks to RCA records.

HOWEVER, this was before the Beatles / Stones breakthrough, so the music they wanted US stars to perform on this RAI Saturday night peak time show was very M-O-R ....

 

[Simon T]

44 minutes ago, Roburt said:

Sam appeared on a top Italian TV show in 1963, thanks to RCA records.

HOWEVER, this was before the Beatles / Stones breakthrough, so the music they wanted US stars to perform on this RAI Saturday night peak time show was very M-O-R ....

 

well done.

found this too

just need you to track down:

[episode 48] Della Reese Show
13Aug1969 [Press-Telegram]
recurring: Sandy Baron
Guests:
actor Art Metrano
singer Sam Fletcher
and comedian Rodney Dangerfield.

[Roburt]

... "Sam appeared on a top Italian TV show in 1963, thanks to RCA records" ...  ....

The clip from this show of H B Barum is also up on youtube (but it ain't relevant to this thread).

[Blackpoolsoul]

9 hours ago, Woodbutcher said:

Pipped to the post , I thought it had gone missing when John's channel got chopped.

 

 

Here are the words Johnny posted on FB in 2018

"If Only I Knew Then..

In 1976 as a naive wannabe, I was combing the USA trying to find Northern Soul to bring back to the UK. It was hard back then to make a trip profitable, if didn't pay dividends I couldn't see how I could afford a return trip.. The record were there, my knowledge wasn't..

I had made contact with a Beatles collector in Miami by the name of Rich Ulloa. he had just purchased a rare Beatles related 45 off me. A Tommy Quickly - Tip Of My Tongue - a Lennon and McCartney composition 1963 UK press in Mint unplayed condition. He was a very happy Fab 4 boy, so he said if I get to the states drop by, he knew a few places I may find some records.. that was the biggest understatement of my life.

When he took me to a store where the guy had moved down from Chicago with 3 trucks loaded up with Vee Jay 45's and LP's. He used to be a Vee Jay big shot, he thought he would retire in Miami and sell the records he had accumulated within the business..

It was a huge beach front store full to the rafters with sealed albums; the 45's were in the back, a labyrinth of rooms racked up with 45's. Maybe 250,000 or more. Problem was the owner was in hospital having heart surgery, but the lady manager liked my accent so she said sure go dig around, but be careful it's a mess back there (another understatement) The owner had used the rooms as a clutter-tipping point. Bicycles, Fridges, Mops, buckets, Bread bins, mixers, boxes of clothes, shoes, and every other defunct household item you care to mention.

His lifetime of jumble and chaos blocked access to the first 8 shelves all three sides of the all the rooms, so I had to climb over his detritus to start looking at the top 3 racks.. I only had 3 days before I flew home...

What a dick-head! I should have emptied each room and thoroughly looked at every record. But I was young, excited and knew just about nothing about doing a serious job on such an overwhelming load... worse than that time there was very little on Vee Jay 45's, other than Fred Hughes, Betty Everett that was a Northern Soul wanted 45 at the time. So I concentrated on labels like St. Lawrence, Champion, Exodus.. I scored like a pig. Tainted Love promo's, Batman At The Go Go promo's just a ton of stuff. I was really pleased, all mint, all 50 cents each.

Richie was super pleased too, I found a handful of Beatles Vee Jay EP's promo's in picture covers. I let him have (ffs) as I had no interest or knowledge of other priceless records at the time.. a moment that will stay with me forever..

at the very end of the building was a side wall about 8 ' by 8 ' just full of one title on Tollie.. thousands and thousands of copies of yellow label Sam Fletcher's. I didn't know the title so I played it. Thought it was ok but far too slow for a Northern Soul tune. I ignored them and went back to clambering around on the junk, randomly pulling out hand fulls of accessible 45's and finding a few I wanted, every so often.

I went to Miami Airport chuffed as hell with my finds.Amazingly my local competitor Rob Lythall of Leicester was in the same airport lounge after a holiday.. I couldn't wait to waft a few St. Lawrence promo's under his nose.. totally cruel but gave me a strange warming feeling inside...

Then when I got home, I reflected on what a crap job I did sifting through, this once-in-a-lifetime vinyl hoard... so I rang Richie and said I'd like to come back and do the job properly, clean each room out of junk and see the 80% I couldn't get at.

Then the bombshell was dropped, the Vee Jay man never recovered from heart surgery, the shop closed and nobody knows where the records went to..

I was gutted, Richie was gutted .. we lost contact and I never saw Richie again ..

But I can tell you, those 3 days still haunt me today, that indelible shining vision of wall to wall of Sam Flecther's ...

we all know that record-dealer hurt that strikes all to often when you reflect back upon your mistakes, due to inexperience and haste.

PS if anyone knows which "dump" those records went to, me and Richie would love to know.. apparently none of those records, ever turned up again.."

[Rick Cooper]

From John's description of the shop it is almost certainly the same one that me and Terry (Francis "Mr Tee) found in 77. We had spent two weeks travelling by bus from New York to Miami as a sort of holiday/sight seeing trip with frequent diversions to record shops and distributors. We were staying at a Holiday Inn in Miami Beach and one evening went looking for somewhere to eat. On the way we came across a large record shop which had all LPs on display but a small glass counter at the back with singles stacked up. From these we found about a hundred great titles. The owner said there were more in the back but they were $1 each and we had to buy at least 100. The first room had shelves on three sides but loads of stuff piled up exactly how John described it. The owner kicked us out as he was closing but we went back next day to go through the first back room. The records we found were the same as John said- St Lawrence, Chess, Constellation, Tuff, Special Agent and Champion. Some other labels but none of the majors, indie West Coast or Motown.

Even after a whole day we hadn't gone through everything in this room as there was so much stuff in the way. We could see another room off this one but to get in you'd have to squeeze on top of a big fridge through the door frame. We had to get back to New York by bus in three days so couldn't wait. In the end we hired a car to take us and the records back to a shipper in New Jersey and then to the airport. 

I'd think the Sam Fletcher records must have been in the room we couldn't get in. There weren't any in the stuff we looked through as I'd have taken at least 25. The record "I'd Think It Over" had been a huge record in the Belgian Popcorn scene from the early 70s ( getting a re-press in Belgium). Also it's the type of record and artist that the Japanese collectors would have bought.

Our visit was in 77 , June to be exact as I still have my travel docs and see that on the 24th I paid the shop owner ,Jack Howard $300, and car rental on the 27th. John says the owner died in 76 but either he got this wrong or someone else was looking after the shop. I'd think the owner , Howard, recovered but died sometime after our visit. He was a right grumpy old man with a foul mouth and bad temper, so a heart attack is quite likely.

I've no idea what happened to the stock and thousands of Sam Fletcher. I'd heard that @Dave Raistrick found the shop after us but perhaps Dave or Rod would let us know.

I vaguely remember the shop owner told us someone else from the UK had been there before us but wouldn't pay a dollar each, (50 cents or less was the norm back then). Was this John?

 

Edited Friday at 19:34 by Rick Cooper
addition

[Blackpoolsoul]

9 hours ago, Rick Cooper said:

From John's description of the shop it is almost certainly the same one that me and Terry (Francis "Mr Tee) found in 77. We had spent two weeks travelling by bus from New York to Miami as a sort of holiday/sight seeing trip with frequent diversions to record shops and distributors. We were staying at a Holiday Inn in Miami Beach and one evening went looking for somewhere to eat. On the way we came across a large record shop which had all LPs on display but a small glass counter at the back with singles stacked up. From these we found about a hundred great titles. The owner said there were more in the back but they were $1 each and we had to buy at least 100. The first room had shelves on three sides but loads of stuff piled up exactly how John described it. The owner kicked us out as he was closing but we went back next day to go through the first back room. The records we found were the same as John said- St Lawrence, Chess, Constellation, Tuff, Special Agent and Champion. Some other labels but none of the majors, indie West Coast or Motown.

Even after a whole day we hadn't gone through everything in this room as there was so much stuff in the way. We could see another room off this one but to get in you'd have to squeeze on top of a big fridge through the door frame. We had to get back to New York by bus in three days so couldn't wait. In the end we hired a car to take us and the records back to a shipper in New Jersey and then to the airport. 

I'd think the Sam Fletcher records must have been in the room we couldn't get in. There weren't any in the stuff we looked through as I'd have taken at least 25. The record "I'd Think It Over" had been a huge record in the Belgian Popcorn scene from the early 70s ( getting a re-press in Belgium). Also it's the type of record and artist that the Japanese collectors would have bought.

Our visit was in 77 , June to be exact as I still have my travel docs and see that on the 24th I paid the shop owner ,Jack Howard $300, and car rental on the 27th. John says the owner died in 76 but either he got this wrong or someone else was looking after the shop. I'd think the owner , Howard, recovered but died sometime after our visit. He was a right grumpy old man with a foul mouth and bad temper, so a heart attack is quite likely.

I've no idea what happened to the stock and thousands of Sam Fletcher. I'd heard that @Dave Raistrick found the shop after us but perhaps Dave or Rod would let us know.

I vaguely remember the shop owner told us someone else from the UK had been there before us but wouldn't pay a dollar each, (50 cents or less was the norm back then). Was this John?

 

When you say "re-press" in Belgium I think you mean......

Sounds like the same place though and if Dave went there can you ask him please if the tag does not get a reply and let us know

http://starsandstripesimports.com/

Edited Saturday at 05:19 by Blackpoolsoul

[Blackpoolsoul]

Sam sang on this wonderful Jazz track for Harper film score

 

[The Yank]

[Troy Fletcher]

Again thank goodness for your response!, I hope you understand to me this is mind blowing!;how and where did you find this great picture!, I've never seen this before!

[Troy Fletcher]

On 26/10/2024 at 01:29, Blackpoolsoul said:

Sam sang on this wonderful Jazz track for Harper film score

 

We are so taken back!, I had no idea My father sang on this album!, simply mind blowing!, I'm just looking and in shock listening i can believe it that's my father singing.

[The Yank]

11 hours ago, Troy Fletcher said:

Again thank goodness for your response!, I hope you understand to me this is mind blowing!;how and where did you find this great picture!, I've never seen this before!

       That picture was taken from the September 1, 1962 issue of Cashbox magazine.

      Here's something you might be interested in.  I don't think the project ever got off the ground but would have been quite an album. I know Betty and Jerry did team up for the "Delicious Together album". From Record World- July 18,1964-

 

Edited 6 hours ago by The Yank

[Blackpoolsoul]

2 hours ago, The Yank said:

       That picture was taken from the September 1, 1962 issue of Cashbox magazine.

      Here's something you might be interested in.  I don't think the project ever got off the ground but would have been quite an album. I know Betty and Jerry did team up for the "Delicious Together album". From Record World- July 18,1964-

 

I guess we will never know, what with Vee-Jays problems, why Tollie only released 2 LP's. Perhaps chaos was all around the business and that's why Tollie was shelved in 1965 as a label, albeit that Vee-Jay carried on fighting the law suits turning up 

https://www.bsnpubs.com/veejay/tollie.html

I find Jay's Jay Lasker quote saying, "We plan to concentrate heavily on the current type of pop single for Tollie. This will differentiate Tollie from Vee-Jay's policy of being r&b oriented." to be fascinating, but perhaps that had influence.