You stayed up on the record business by knowing who was doing what. You watched the Phil Spectors. That's what told you what to do, what was hot.
I came in after the Smokey Robinsons, Temptations, Clovers, and Clyde McPhatter and the Drifters. I came along at that level, when there was harmonizing.
The Mothership is in the Smithsonian now. That's probably one of the biggest displays there.
I was at the Apollo Theater all the time, skipping school, and I worked in a barbershop. That's how I started with doo-wop. Now I've come full circle. I did all kinds of music. I used to work on Broadway and Tin Pan Alley.
Record companies would rather you stay dumb, not even think of it as a business, so they can either rip you off or get you out of the way in five years to make way for the new groups.
Once you reach a certain age with radio stations, you've got to be an oldie but a goodie. If you wanna do something new, you've got to find a new way to present it to people.
