What blows my mind is BGs non relationship w/RE;He gives them a label,indirectly mentions RE once in his auto.Re was a major force @ motown...4 a while.Accordin to Rivera BG killed a project that Gordy,jr. wanted to do w/ Pete.On the other hand...it seems like RE may have been a bunch of difficult,destrutive pain in the asses.BG had a company torun...if not 4 BARNEY ALES.
RARE EARTH,AND THE RARE EARTH LABEL NEVER WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF IT WERN'T FOR BARNEY ALES. BERRY NEVER WOULD HAVE STARTED ANYTHING LIKE THAT. HE HAD HIS ACTS AND FORMULA WORKING GREAT.
MOTOWN HAD A SET WAY OF DOING THINGS AND R.E. WENT AGAINST THAT GRAIN FROM THE BEGINNING.THEY DIDN'T EVEN KNOW HOW TO PROMOTE THE GROUP.WE WERE THE ROUND PEG IN THE SQUARE HOLE.THE RODNEY DANGERFIELD OF THE COMPANY.
THE ONLY PAIN IN THE ASS THAT R.E. HAD GOING FOR THEM WAS OUR MANAGER RON STRASNER.IF IT WASN'T FOR HIM,AND BARNEY,NOTHING EVER WOULD HAVE HAPPENED.
Blow it. I went under the name of Will for my last post...it seems Jeff didn't think I belong here cos' I've never seen Rare Earth play live. Well, I decided I shouldn't have to hide. Anyway, I've already explained why that is in a previous post.
Ray mentions Ron Strasner. His name was always on the record sleeves as Manager of the band and I used to have this image of him as a sort of J R Ewing type of character. Funnily enough, only last week I was wondering if he's still around and had a look on the internet. I didn't realise he managed the Four Tops and probably represented other Motown acts in his time.
As for Berry Gordy, one of the chapters in Pete's book describes how, on being introduced, he addressed him as "Berry" rather than "Mr Gordy" and got a "strange look". It sounds like Berry was a little more concerned about the way Diana Ross was showing some attention towards Pete, maybe to Wind Mr Gordy up.
Pete says that he and Gil were taken in a limo to meet Berry at his home and that was his one and only meeting with him. Does that mean the rest of the band never met Berry? Surely he must have taken a look at them when they were at the studios? Then again, how many of the other Rare Earth label artists eg XIT, Wolfe, Sunday Funnies etc ever met Berry Gordy. R. Dean Taylor would be the obvious exception.
Whilst Motown didn't seem to know how to market RE, I think here in the UK the record stores didn't, and still don't, know how to market Rare Earth either. Were they a rock band or were they a soul band? Even today you will find their compilation CDs under "soul" in one store and "rock and pop" in another.
RONNIE WAS A BUZZ-SAW FOR US.WHEN I SAID HE WAS A PAIN IN THE ASS,I MEANT TO MOTOWN.HE GOT MANY GOOD THINGS DONE FOR THE BAND.
AT A TIME WHEN ARTISTS WITH MOTOWN WERE TRYING TO PAY BACK HUGE PRODUCTION BILLS,AND ONLY MAKING MONEY LIVE. RONNIE PUSHED THROUGH A DEAL WHERE WE ONLY HAD TO PAY $50.00 A SONG!! NO MATTER HOW MANY HOURS IN THE STUDIO. THAT'S THE KIND OF MANAGER AND FRIEND HE WAS.ALSO.....HIS CONTRACTS WERE A HAND-SHAKE....NO PAPER.
HE WENT ON TO MANAGING P-FUNK,AND OF COURSE,THE FOUR TOPS.THEY CALLED HIM THE FIFTH TOP.THAT'S HOW MUCH THEY CARED FOR THE MAN.I'M SORRY TO SAY THAT RON PASSED AWAY A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO.
I WAS AT MOTOWN AS EARLY AS 1961 WITH A BAND I HAD AT THE TIME.WE MET BERRY,AND ALL THE OTHER ARTISTS THEN.OVER THE YEARS,AS A STUDIO MUSICIAN,I SAW HIM IN PASSING SEVERAL TIMES.I DON'T EVER REMEMBER HIM COMING TO SEE R.E. IN THE STUDIO.WE DEALT MAINLY WITH BARNEY ALES,AND HARRY BALK.
MOTOWN PUSHED R.E. THROUGH R&B AVENUES.IT'S WHAT THEY DID.EVERYBODY THOUGHT THE BAND WAS BLACK FOR A WHILE.
IT'S UNDERSTANDABLE THAT THERE'S A MARKETING PROBLEM.OUR MUSIC WENT IN MANY DIRECTIONS.BUT....TO ME IT'S UNFORGIVABLE THAT MOTOWN NEVER INCLUDED THE BAND ON ANY OF IT'S SHOWS AND SPECIALS.
That's one of the things that's always burned me as well. Motown acts as if this "little white band" never existed in their history. A band that sold millions and frankly a band that was hugely popular all over the world. If marketed properly, RE could have been one of the most popular acts in the world. Reverse discrimination? It's like Berry enjoyed the fruits the band produced but maybe didn't want them to be thaaat big...
Perhaps it would have been different had Berry himself discovered the band...
WHAT ACTUALLY WENT DOWN AT THE TIME WAS THAT BERRY HAD THIS NEW GROUP CALLED THE JACKSON FIVE. BARNEY HAD THIS NEW GROUP CALLED RARE EARTH.THEY HAD A COMPETITION TO SEE WHO COULD MAKE THEIR GROUP BIGGER. CAN YOU GUESS WHO WON??
BY THE WAY,I'D JUST LIKE TO SAY THAT YOUR DAD WAS ONE OF THE BEST BASSISTS THAT I EVER WORKED WITH,AND ALSO ONE OF THE MOST GOOD HEARTED MEN THAT I'VE EVER KNOWN.
Thanks a million for the kind words. Coming from you, knowing all the people you've played with and met those words mean alot to me.
I'm just proud to be part of the Rare Earth family. It never ceases to amaze me how deep a connection Rare Earth has had with their fans. And its definitely nice to see that the music is so alive and strong to this day. People all over the world love Rare Earth music.
Funny you should remark about Ronnie being referred to as the "fifth Top" as I always thought of him as the "Eighth Earth", Tom Baird being the seventh of course. It was clear that he worked very closely with the band. I recall seeing a UK press artical about the Mafia getting a foothold in music management. Ron Strasner and Rare Earth were mentioned within the article. Peter does make a reference to this in his book. I'm sorry to hear he passed away.
Regarding Motown, many artists have stated they felt neglected at Motown. Some big names left and had success elsewhere, Gladys Knight, Four Tops, Jimmy Ruffin, Johny Bristol, Edwin Starr, Detroit Spinners and of course Marvin Gaye. But many lesser known artists, Barbara Randolph for example, felt they never got the backing from the company. Maybe it was a case of Motown having such a wealth and depth of talent at that time that they couldn't handle what they'd got?
Would Average White Band have faired as well as they did in the UK had they been signed to Motown? There's a thought!
Thats a very good point ukdave.Dont 4get the Spinners&Isley Bros.RE actually covered ITS A SHAME.Apparently available 4 a short time durin the early 90s.Strangely...GORDY had a close prof. relation w;TERRANA...an original RE member.
Yes I forgot about the Isley Brothers. They went onto really big things with their own T-Neck label.
I was just looking at the index of Berry Gordy's autobiography. It has no mention of Rare Earth, either as a group or label. Instead, that period in the timeline seems to focus on the discovery and marketing of the Jackson 5, which pretty much backs up how JP2 saw the situation. Ironically the J5 (except Jermaine) also left the organisation, according to Gordy, citing dissatisfaction at the lack of promotion of their records.
As for RE recording "Its A Shame", I'd love to hear that, along with "Inner City Blues", two great songs. I recall a UK press review of "Band Together" referring to them covering old Motown hits. It said Rare Earth always know which stones to look under and which ones to leave alone, suggesting they always chose the right ones. Quite a compliment.
never heard of earth doin its a shame and inner city blues, i dont believe it exists and if they were, then it would be a rivera version of earth from early 90's. earth collectors are pretty meticulous guys, they wouldnot have missed these recordings if an official release no matter how small a label
So it must be peter's version of Rare Earth that done it if you say he confirms it. Probably pulled from sale because Gil Bridges owns the name Rare Earth and I doubt if he would have been amused, lol.
Rich, You are correct. My brother and Berry were very close professionaly. They would mix togetherand taunt each other as to who was getting the better mix. At times they would disagree so vehemently that they would be shouting at each other in the control room. Finally, Russ coined his famous " going for the throat " line when he was really serious about getting the right mix. Berry grew to expect that line and would sit back and smile whenever Russ uttered those words, knowing Russ was about to blow him out of the water with THE mix. Berry, who was tired at times of dealing with the complexities of Motown would remark to Russ How much fun he was having mixing with him. I think the studio is where Berry belonged and he missed it.
Is anyone still out there who remembers Ron Strasner? He was a very close friend of mine. I'm still very sad about his passing away. What a wonderful person I had the priveledge of knowing. What I keep wondering about is, is there any way to get this man recognized for the great things he did for Rock n Roll and the bands he managed and helped? Many of them like you say on a handshake. That kind of honer is not to be taken lightly among people these days especially in this business. Realize these posts are old and just hoping for a response and some help with getting a person recogized that well deserves it and worked very hard behind the scenes. Like he told me...he was known as "the pit bull" for some of the deals he pulled off. I only knew him for a few years as a good friend, but he's someone I will never forget and count my blessings that I knew him. If anyone has any ideas...please contact me at qtrhorse4me@cox.net
Ron Strasner was actually my grandpa. I only saw him twice when I was a little kid, but I have his passport, two rare earth "In Concert" gold albums and two Parliament Gold records which is awsome and some of his other things. I wish I would have known him better but thats how it is. I hope you find a way to get him more recognition. it would be an honor for me. Please write back on this post
