THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
903) Geno Washington & the Ram Jam Band — “Hi Hi Hazel”
This hilarious A-side by American expatriate soul stomper Geno Washington and his Ram Jam Band reached #45 in the UK, and jumped an additional three spots to #42 when released as a single by the Troggs the following year (unbeknownst to the Troggs themselves, David Berglas, https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Record-Mirror/60s/67/record-mirror-1967-08-19-s-ocr.pdf). The song was written by the songwriting team of Phil Coulter and Bill Martin. Coulter recalls that:
We came up with a half-spoken, laid-back, honky-tonk song called “Hi Hi Hazel” and did a great demo, featuring a young Scots singer called John Drummond . . . . The biggest act on the London R&B club scene right then was a black American singer called Geno Washington. He was hugely popular but had never had a hit. Bill decided that Geno was our man and he set off to Pye Records . . . . Bill was hell of a salesman. On 15 July 1966, “Hi Hi Hazel” was released as a single by Geno . . . . This was our first big shot and we were thrilled to have even achieved that single release. The real bonus would be if it could only get into the charts. . . . Although it stalled at number 45, as far as we were concerned, we’d had our first hit. We took further encouragement from the fact that the song was then included on the first album by the Troggs. We began to feel we were definitely on the right track and kept writing furiously.
Bruised, Never Broken
The Fringe by the Sea Festival enthuses about Geno:
His love of Blues and Soul music soon found him jamming with local bands in and around Ipswich and eventually led him to London where he caused a sensation singing with top R&B acts Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames and Zoot Money’s Big Roll Band at the legendary Flamingo Club in Soho. The rest, as they say, is history. Geno teamed up with some of London’s hottest musicians and Geno Washington and the Ram Jam Band very quickly became established as the most exciting live band in Britain, regularly topping the bill over World famous artistes, as nobody in their right mind wanted to go on stage after a Geno show!
https://www.fringebythesea.com/geno_washington/
davidrolfe3350 recalls that:
I played in their support band at the Majestic Ballroom in Reading around 1967. I was 16. . . . Hi Hazel was in the charts. The place was heaving. Gino’s player/manager then, I think he was on trumpet, asked if we would leave our Vox amps on stage to boost theirs. We did. At the end of Gino’s set he did Hi Hazel – more funky than the above version – and there was a classic “euphoric” stage invasion and our stuff, as well as much of theirs, was damaged. Their manager took me to one side, looked around the wreckage, took out one of the biggest wad of fivers I had ever seen and started counting out for a long time and then handed me the cash and apologized for the trouble. Meanwhile, Gino was “giving autographs” to the large number of female fans craving his attention. Heady days.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei7wYtj5vYQ
Of Geno’s genealogy, John Bush tells us that:
Initially stationed in England for the Air Force during the early ’60s, American soul shouter Geno Washington fronted a British group known as the Ram Jam Band for a series of moderate U.K. chart hits during 1966-1967. Though he was born in Indiana, Washington had the grit of a deep soul testifier like Wilson Pickett or Don Covay. While stationed in East Anglia, Washington became known as a frequent stand-in at gigs around London. When guitarist Pete Gage saw him at a club in 1965, he asked Washington to join his new group . . . . Geno Washington stayed in England after his release from the Air Force, and the band earned notice around the Southeast for an infectious live show that packed dozens of up-tempo R&B/soul nuggets into a half-hour. Signed to Piccadilly by early 1966, the group just broke into the Top 40 with “Water.” Though it was their highest-charting single, Geno Washington and the Ram Jam Band hit the charts three times in the next year with “Hi-Hi Hazel,” a cover of “Que Sera Sera,” and “Michael.” The band’s first two LPs — Hand Clappin’ Foot Stompin’ Funky-Butt…Live! and Hipsters, Flipsters, Finger-Poppin’ Daddies! — were much better documents of the band at work, and both hit the British Top Ten. Still, Geno Washington recorded only two more albums with the Ram Jam Band before splitting by 1970. . . . [In 1980,] Washington earned his only number one hit (of a sort), when Dexys Midnight Runners took the tribute track “Geno” to the top of the charts. . . .
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/geno-washington-mn0000201996/biography
The Troggs:
Grandma’s Tonic (#95 in Australia):
Gary and the Hornets (#96 in the U.S.)
Pay to Play! The Off the Charts Spotify Playlist! + Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock Merchandise
Please consider helping to support my website/blog by contributing $6 a month for access to the Off the Charts Spotify Playlist. Using a term familiar to denizens of Capitol Hill, you pay to play! (“relating to or denoting an unethical or illicit arrangement in which payment is made by those who want certain privileges or advantages in such arenas as business, politics, sports, and entertainment” — dictionary.com).
The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.
All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.
When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.
Just click on the first blue block for a month to month subscription or the second blue block for a yearly subscription.
Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! / Off the Charts: 60s Rock Revelations😊 