Rolling Stones – Fade Away (U.S. Television Appearances 1964-1969) (Apocalypse Sound AS97)

Fade Away (U.S. Television Appearances 1964-1969) (Apocalypse Sound AS97)

The Complete Ed Sullivan Shows, CBS Studios:  October 26th, 1964:  Around And Around, Time Is On My Side.  May 2nd, 1965:  The Last Time, Little Red Rooster, Everybody Needs Somebody To Love.  February 13th, 1966:  Satisfaction, As Tears Go By, 19th Nervous Breakdown.  September 11th, 1966:  Paint It Black, Lady Jane, Have You Seen Your Mother Baby Standing In The Shadow?  January 15th, 1967:  Ruby Tuesday, Let’s Spend The Night Together.  November 18th, 1969:  Gimme Shelter, Love In Vain, Honky Tonk Women.  January 15th, 1967 (rehearsals):  Ruby Tuesday, Let’s Spend The Night Together.  “Hollywood Palace” TV Show, ABC studio, Hollywood – June 3rd, 1964:  Not Fade Away, I Just Wanna Make Love To You.  “Shivaree”, Los Angeles – May 16th, 1965:  Play With Fire, The Last Time, Down The Road Apiece, Little Red Rooster.  “Shindig” ABC TV – May 20th, 1965:  Down The Road A Piece, Little Red Rooster, The Last Time, Play With Fire, Satisfaction.  “The David Frost” TV show – June 16th, 1969:  You Can’t Always Get What You Want

Fade Awaycollects together The Rolling Stones’ television appearances throughout the sixties.  The bulk of this collection the Ed Sullivan show, but it also includes their very first several days before their first US tour on “Hollywood Palace,” “Shivaree,” “Shindig” (two American Bandstand style shows), and part of an appearance on British television in 1969.  The Rolling Stones appeared on Ed Sullivan six times between 1964 and 1969.  In the sixties no other television show had the ratings and cultural impact than that show and no other medium offered the amount of exposure.  The first time was in the fall of 1964 right before their second ever US tour.  They attended rehearsals in New York on October 23rd.  It is speculated they only tested the camera angels and sound levels and didn’t actually play anything. 

The following day, October 24th, was extremely busy for the band.  That morning they were interviewed on “Murray The K’s Swinging Soiree” on WINS in New York and also appeared the “Clay Cole Show” on WPIX in New York where Mick and Brian Jones were interviewed as spoke to the audience.  That evening they began their tour with two shows at the Academy Of Music.  Taping for Ed Sullivan occurred the following day, October 25th.  The picture quality is very good but dated and in black and white.  Sullivan announces that the band will be in both parts of the show before they play Church Berry’s “Around And Around.”  The reaction of the girls boarders on Beatlemania and Sullivan has to quiet them down at the end of the song (“you promised my little chickadees!”)  The second half of the show the Stones play the Jerry Ragavoy tune “Time Is On My Side.”  It is interesting to point out that, in contrast to The Beatles’ appearance eight months before, Mick is clad in sweatshirt and with messy hair, already making a distinction.

Their second appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show” was on May 2nd, 1965.  They played four songs and three, “The Last Time,” “Little Red Rooster,” and “Everybody Needs Somebody To Love,” were broadcast.  (The fourth was the instrumental “2120 South Michigan Avenue.”)  It is again in black and white and in identical quality as the 1964 tape.  It is very clear but the white are very bright showing the age of the videotape.  Unlike the first show where they appear on a bare stage, this time there are chandeliers as props.  This broadcast is noteworthy since, after the first and “The Last Time,” they perform the Muddy Waters cover “Little Red Rooster.”  With Brian Jones playing slide, it is the first glimpse of the raunchy bluse influence of the band and they deliver an extraordinary performance of the piece.  

This is followed by The Stones’ two appearances on Ed Sullivan in 1966.  The first was on February 13th, the day after the release of their single “19th Nervous Breakdown.”  This and all of the following tracks from Sullivan are in color.  The video quality is again very good and clear with a hint of saturation in the whites.  The first song is their biggest hit to date “Satisfaction.”  “As Tears Go By” features Mick and Keith with a string playback for accompaniment.  They would fly to Australia for their first tour downunder.

The second taping that year occurs at the beginning of the eighteenth season of “The Ed Sullivan Show” and is in the midst of a very busy time for the band.  The spent Sepember 7th – 9th at RCA Studios in Los Angeles mixing “‘Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing In The Shadow?”  Then they flew to New York to film a promo for the song (the first promo, the so called “nurse-promo” with the band dressed in drag.)  On September 11th they taped for Ed Sullivan.  They perform three songs including the latest single and reveals the progression of their arrangements courtesy of Brian Jones.  He plays sitar on “Paint It Black” and dressed in the height of Indian fashion.  On “Lady Jane” he is seen playing the dulcimer for what is a terrific performance of the song, and the final number “Have You Seen Your Mother” is performed with Keith on piano.  All three songs are played with live vocals over taped backing tracks, the first time they did this on the show.  And Charlie Watts is wearing groovy looking glasses.   

The January 13th 1967 appearance coincides with the release of their latest single “Let’s Spend The Night Together” backed by “Ruby Tuesday.”  They play the B-side first with Wyman on double bass, Keith on piano and Jones playing the recorder, and the performance of the A-side is notable for the changing of the chorus to “Let’s Spend Some Time Together.”   

Their final appearance on Ed Sullivan was almost two years later.  In their first tour in three years, they played two shows at the International Amphitheater in Chicago, Illinois on November 16th, 1969 then flew to New York and taped their set for Sullivan.  Three songs from the set they played:  “Gimme Shelter,” “Love In Vain,” and “Honkey Tonk Women” for broadcast on November 23rd.  They then flew to Detroit for their November 24th show at Olympia Stadium in Detroit.  The only thing missing from this is an interview with Jagger, but the musical performances are in tact.  For the latter two songs Jagger wears the cape he used on stage during that tour, but the Omega on the black shirt is missing. 

Since all of the Sullivan appearances are grouped together, the next selections travel back in time beginning with their very first performance on American television.  The June 3rd, 1964 “Hollywood Palace Show” was taped in Los Angeles was several days before the first show of their first tour on June 5th in San Bernardino.  They play “Not Fade Away” and “I Just Wanna make Love To You.”  Both are edited and the former was broadcast on September 12th and the latter on June 13th.  It is funny seeing the inebriated host Dean Martin introduce the band.  “Now something for the youngsters.  Five singing boys from England who sold a lot of Valiums.  They’re called the Rolling Stones.  I’ve been rolled when I was Stoned myself.  I don’t know what they’re singing about…”  After “I Just Wanna Make Love To You” Martin comes on and says, “The Rolling Stones.  Aren’t they great?  (rolls eyes)  After the show they’re leaving for London.  They’re challenging The Beatles to a hair pulling contest…Well I’m gonna let you in on something.  These singing groups today are under the impression they have long hair.  Not true at all, it’s an optical illusion.  They just have low foreheads and high eyebrows.  We’ll have a short intermission and don’t go away.  You wouldn’t leave me alone with the Rolling Stones would you?”

The next two parts of the DVD features appearances on “Shivaree” and “Shindig,” two “American Bandstand” style pop music shows in the mid sixties.  They were taped within a couple day of one another with the first for “Shivaree” on May 16th in Los Angeles.  They play four songs.  “Play With Fire” and “The Last Time” were telecast on June 5th and repeated on August 28th, and “Down The Road Apiece” and “Little Red Rooster” on July 10th with a repeat on December 11th.  The Stones spent May 18th preparing the backing tracks for the appearance.  The video quality is very good and clear black and white with the time counter at the bottom of the screen.  Host Gene Weed introduces the band as the play in the middle of a mob of screaming girls and go-go dancers for “Down The Road Apiece.”  Keith in particular seems to be having a lot of fun.

The taping for “Shindig!” occured several days afterwards on May 20th.  They play the same four songs as on “Shiavree” with the addition of a fifth, their latest hit “Satisfaction.”  The video quaity is good but dated and in black and white.  Hosted by Jimmy O’Neill, they take a different tactic in presenting the band.  Instead of the mob of screaming girls, each song is given a different setting.  “Down The Road Apiece” is recorded live with a backing horn section (who are inaudible) and dancing girls behind the band.   “Little Red Rooster” has live vocals over a prepared backing track and begins with a door that opens and is comprised of a tight close up of Mick singing the track.  Only when Jagger plays the harp does the camera pull back to offer a glimpse of the rest of the band.

“The Last Time” also has live vocals over a prepared backing track and shows the band on a Venetian style set playing the song.  “Play With Fire” again has live vocals over a prepared backing track.  It begins with the band standing around a white Rolls Royce in a picture that comes to life when the vocals start.  Mick is the only member participating in the song and the band and especially Brian Jones looking very bored.  Before “Satisfaction” O’Neill comes on to say how bouncy the show will be and the band mime to the rejected first take of “Satisfaction” from May 10th, 1965.  Visually this is the most uninteresting of the five, featuring the band playing on a dark stage.  The performance is incomplete and has the closing credits rolling over the band.  An interview with Mick Jagger and Brian Jones was done on this show but is omitted on this release.  

The final bit is the Stones’ appearance on the David Frost show playing “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.”  Unlike the others, this is from the BBC but is still a nice addition.  This is released on NTSC region 0 to be compatible with all DVD players.  This material can also be found on Ed Sullivan Show and The Ultimate TV Masters, both on Shot Gun Entertainment.  This is an excellent one disc title with the relevant television appearances and is worth having.