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Thread: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

  1. #1
    String-Bending Heretic mandocrucian's Avatar
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    Default George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    Saw the notice on FB.

    CC and The Lost Planet Airmen.....definitely my favorite country-rock outfit.

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    Professional Dreamer journeybear's Avatar
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    Default Re: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    Well, that's a shame. I really liked that band, Commander Cody and The Lost Planet Airmen. Their first album was phenomenal, got a lot of play back in the day. I'm not the only, either. A band sprang up in CT of people who modelled themselves after them, in fact were so inspired by them they even called themselves "Eight To The Bar" - and there were eight of them - and they are still at it today, after several personnel changes. Also, in recent years I did some sitting in with an outfit whose lead singer did plenty of those kinds of story songs with a ton of verses and a boogie woogie beat, including "Hot Rod Lincoln." RIP, Commander.
    But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. - Dennis Miller

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    Default Re: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    Fun band. R.I.P. Commander Cody.

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    Registered User Ed McGarrigle's Avatar
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    Default Re: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    “Mama Hated Diesels” is one of my all time favorite songs. Saw them one time. A great band.

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    Default Re: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    RIP George. Great music. Always loved their version of Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)

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    Registered User Bob Buckingham's Avatar
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    Default Re: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    How about "Lost in the Ozone Again"?

  9. #7

    Default Re: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    That's very sad. I met the Good Commander a couple of times at Dingwalls in London and had a chat with him and Bill Kirchen. Bill comes over to the UK quite a lot and I like to remind him that I was at the first ever CC & His LPA concert in the UK at the Reading Festival in August 1973. I seem to recall they had landed at Heathrow Airport 25 miles away and driven straight to the concert site and come straight on stage- a great performance- very similar to the live album that was released a few months later. I was amused by this quote from a review of that Armadillo World Headquarters live album:

    "These guys still sound like a bunch of acid-addled slobs from the Midwest, even if they live in Berkeley and spend most of their time on the road. And they've got that whole pre-rock era sewed up, whether it be jump-blues or boogie-woogie or R & B, they're filtering through their mock-country sensibility."

    They were great and deserved better. There's a book about their demise that I read nearly 40 years ago called "Star Making Machinery: Inside The Business of Rock & Roll."
    When I spoke to the Commander he mentioned that maybe they should not have gone with Warner Bros- but that was a hip label at that time. Of course, that pressing plant mistake that led to them being banned because country DJs thought they were going to play the Gospel-ish "Shall We Meet" instead led them to playing the very risqué late 30s song "Everybody's Doin' It"! Here it is! Be warned- family website etc! This track was not put on the UK album- it was replaced by the single version of "Watch My 38" a track from" Hot Licks, Cold Steel and Truckers' Favorites,"

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LInn_l146co

  10. #8
    mandolin slinger Steve Ostrander's Avatar
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    Default Re: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    Quote Originally Posted by NickR View Post
    That's very sad. I met the Good Commander a couple of times at Dingwalls in London and had a chat with him and Bill Kirchen. Bill comes over to the UK quite a lot and I like to remind him that I was at the first ever CC & His LPA concert in the UK at the Reading Festival in August 1973. I seem to recall they had landed at Heathrow Airport 25 miles away and driven straight to the concert site and come straight on stage- a great performance- very similar to the live album that was released a few months later. I was amused by this quote from a review of that Armadillo World Headquarters live album:

    "These guys still sound like a bunch of acid-addled slobs from the Midwest, even if they live in Berkeley and spend most of their time on the road. And they've got that whole pre-rock era sewed up, whether it be jump-blues or boogie-woogie or R & B, they're filtering through their mock-country sensibility."

    They were great and deserved better. There's a book about their demise that I read nearly 40 years ago called "Star Making Machinery: Inside The Business of Rock & Roll."
    When I spoke to the Commander he mentioned that maybe they should not have gone with Warner Bros- but that was a hip label at that time. Of course, that pressing plant mistake that led to them being banned because country DJs thought they were going to play the Gospel-ish "Shall We Meet" instead led them to playing the very risqué late 30s song "Everybody's Doin' It"! Here it is! Be warned- family website etc! This track was not put on the UK album- it was replaced by the single version of "Watch My 38" a track from" Hot Licks, Cold Steel and Truckers' Favorites,"

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LInn_l146co
    We’ll, they got their start in the Midwest while at the University of Michigan. What a great band, sorry to hear that the Commander has been relived of duty.
    Living’ in the Mitten

  11. #9

    Default Re: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    Years ago I watched a video on the Cafe that showed someone with a mandolin covering Hot Rod Lincoln. Can’t find it anywhere. Anybody know how to locate it? Would love to learn it.

  12. #10

    Default Re: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    There is no video on this one, but this might be the thread you were remembering?

    https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/t...n-for-5-string

  13. #11
    Registered User lowtone2's Avatar
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    Default Re: George Frayne (Commander Cody), RIP

    Sad news. Never saw the band but did meet Bill Kirchen at a festival in West Virginia a few years ago. He was still murdering the Telecaster.

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