Chris Beachley

Maybe Granny from Beverly Hillbillies was of greater interest. That's right, they actually pressed something by her!!!!!!!!!!!!! It should be obvious of how Spinners bloomed when they got out of being valets for the Temps. MoTown took a talent like Robert John and had him do a re-make of Newbeats. His A&M and Atlantic show his talent and he later zoomed to the top with Sad Eyes. It's obvious that the inner circle Detroiters and especially the skinny girl from the Supremes were as far as they looked. To digress from Motown, an ABC promo man called me to his house to play the latest Four Tops - "I Just Can't Get You Out of My Mind" - He says "Great record huh.......... sorry, all the promo budget is going to Freddie Fender!!!"

Ok - speculation is over - I had a record shop in Charlotte that Sonny Woods (Midnighters) and friend of Jackie Wilson came to visit. He told me the story of Tarnapol and henchmen hanging Jackie out window to re- sign or renew an expired contract. Jackie WANTED to go to MoTown, but Nat would not let him go. Of course we all saw the scene in 5 Heartbeats where they hung the guy out of the window............. was this some kind of sick inside joke. One night Smokey was a guest on Larry King and I could not believe I got thru........... I asked Smokey about it and he hemmed and hawed like he did not know (Nat was still alive then - nuff said) I was friends with Joyce McRae (now Mrs. Sam Moore) and she was with Jackie, taking care of him until they ran her off. She told me same story and of the horrific treatment Jackie got in nursing home (once beaten with arm of wheelchair) I have one of Jackie's leather suits, a roadie shirt (prized possessions) When he came to Charlotte once, I called and requested an interview - He told me to come to rehearsal - he had a cowboy hat and a half pint bottle in his back pocket. We talked and I was ready to pull out of parking lot. Thump, Thump, Thump - Jackie Wilson taping on my window "Hey will you give me a ride............. O Hell Yea " We talked and he invited me to be his guest that night. As you know, he took salt pills to sweat, so he was sopping sweat............ "I've done my show..... What do you want to hear?" Being a smartass, I shouted "You Can't Keep a Good Man Down" (his first with Dominoes) He laughed and said, "This afternoon, I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Chris Beachley, he has all my old records" My feet did not touch the floor as I left there that evening and if I could, became a bigger fan. Jackie had the voice, the dance and the capability to have been a MoTown artist, moving to Vegas and still getting down should he get a show outside the area. Seeing Bobby Wilson gives me chills. Not the chops, but the genes Thank God for video and vinyl - Mr. Excitement lives on !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!