MARCH 23
Rally for Decency - 1969
Praise where praise is due: You can always count on Florida to be Florida. That thought came to me when I came across information about a big celebration held in the Orange Bowl on this date back in ’69.
It was called the Rally For Decency, organized by a 17-year old kid named Mike Levesque. It was a response to the arrest of Jim Morrison, the singer for The Doors, who’d allegedly exposed himself onstage at a concert in Miami. Young Mike wanted to show the world that teenagers in Florida were not a bunch of depraved sickos, so he and some friends organized this rally. Which was a big success.
The rally welcomed everyone except ‘longhairs and weird dressers.’ Thousands of sartorially acceptable teens and adults showed up and you couldn’t swing a cat without hitting a clergyman. Celebrity entertainment included appearances by Jackie Gleason, Anita Bryant, The Lettermen and Ted Mack. (If you’ve never heard of some of these folks, just figure you’re livin’ right.)
The American Legion provided tiny flags. President Nixon sent Mike Levesque a letter of praise. The weekly entertainment periodical, ‘Variety,’ quotes Jackie Gleason as saying, “I believe this kind of movement will snowball across the United States and perhaps around the world."
The ‘movement’ snowballed its way north as far as Baltimore, where a decency rally was held on April 20th. A riot ensued and—BAM—that was it for decency rallies. Make of all this what you will.
Don Covay Birthday - 1936
Sometimes I get the opportunity to shine a light on a musical artist who may have slipped into the shadows. One such artist is songwriter and singer, Don Covay, who was born on this day in 1936. His name might not ring a bell but I’ll bet you’ve heard a Don Covay song somewhere along your way. Take, for example, Aretha Franklin’s recording of ‘Chain Of Fools’—that’s a Don Covay song.
Covay was born is South Carolina and raised in Washington, DC. He began singing in his family’s gospel group but soon switched to secular music. In 1957 his career really kicked off when he was hired to join the Little Richard Review.
Some of the songs Don Covay has written or co-written include the aforementioned ‘Chain of Fools,’ ‘Pony Time,’ and ‘See-Saw.’ Probably the biggest hit he had under his own name was 1964’s ‘Mercy Mercy,’ which was covered by the Rolling Stones later that same year. On the Stones’ version it’s pretty clear that Mick Jagger is content to just copy Covay’s vocal style. In fact, music writer, Peter Guralnick goes so far as to say that Covay was a ‘formative influence’ on Stringy Mick’s singing. ‘Mercy Mercy’ also features a very young Jimi Hendrix on guitar.
West Seattle Bridge Closes - 2020
Today is a day that lives in infamy for many Seattleites—West Seattleites in particular. This is the 3rd anniversary of the closing of the West Seattle Bridge, which was in need of repairs. For the two years it was closed, getting in or out of West Seattle was a kind of living hell—and that’s all I have to say on the matter.
