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Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

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  • #16
    Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

    Originally posted by Frankie's Market View Post
    I'll give you a example of just how important looks are to the teeny-booper crowd: when auditions were held for the Monkees, one of the most talented who showed up was Stephen Stills. (At the very least, he was definitely more skilled as a guitarist than any of the four who were ultimately selected.) But Stills was rejected because of his receding hairline. It had nothing to do with his abilities as a singer or a musician. But that's show biz for ya.
    Exactly - but the producers weren't looking for musicians anyway, they were casting a TV show. They already had Dolenz & Jones under contract. And Nesmith & Tork were pretty decent musicians, the former already having a couple recordings out; Tork auditioned because Stills suggested he do so (as he probably had more of the "look" they were seeking).

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    • #17
      Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

      Originally posted by Leo Lakio View Post
      Exactly - but the producers weren't looking for musicians anyway, they were casting a TV show. They already had Dolenz & Jones under contract. And Nesmith & Tork were pretty decent musicians, the former already having a couple recordings out; Tork auditioned because Stills suggested he do so (as he probably had more of the "look" they were seeking).
      Yep, that was pretty much the POV that musical producer Don Kirshner had. He envisioned the Monkees' role in the studio as restricted to providing vocals, while he would select the material and the musicians. In that sense, Kirshner thought of himself as being a sort of Phil Spector, the non-performing creative genius in the control booth who used vocalists and musicians as interchangeable parts to create aural masterpieces.

      Of course, the Monkees themselves didn't see it that way and they (esp. Mike Nesmith) chaffed under the restrictions. But's that a topic for another time. The point is that when it comes to groups marketed to the 16-and-under demographic, image and looks often take precedence over musical ability.
      Last edited by Frankie's Market; February 21, 2010, 07:58 PM.
      This post may contain an opinion that may conflict with your opinion. Do not take it personal. Polite discussion of difference of opinion is welcome.

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      • #18
        Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

        You mean to tell me that the girls thought Ringo Starr was in the same league looks-wise as Paul, John or even George?

        I think there was a pecking order in the looks department in many groups like New Kids on the Block, the Osmonds, Back Street Boys, NSynch, etc., I wouldnt be surprised if certain people who didnt know the names of some of the less famous band members, would clarify them as the "ugly ones" of the group.

        I'm not sure I agree that ALL the participants of a band have to appeal to fit the image of what a teenage girl would have a crush on, for that matter I knew lots of girls who considered Rick Nielsen on the quirky, cool and even "cute" side too. Yes, he didnt have matinee idol looks, but he stood out as did his wild and fancy guitars that people probably looked at more than he.

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        • #19
          Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

          Originally posted by Kalihiboy View Post
          You mean to tell me that the girls thought Ringo Starr was in the same league looks-wise as Paul, John or even George?
          The Beatles wasn't a "manufactured" band, in the same sense as The Monkees, NKOTB, etc.

          And Ringo was very popular with the girls at the time he was recruited to join The Beatles, even more so because he was already established as a member of an already successful group (Rory Storm & The Hurricanes, iirc).

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          • #20
            Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

            Originally posted by Kalihiboy View Post
            You mean to tell me that the girls thought Ringo Starr was in the same league looks-wise as Paul, John or even George?

            I'm not sure I agree that ALL the participants of a band have to appeal to fit the image of what a teenage girl would have a crush on, for that matter I knew lots of girls who considered Rick Nielsen on the quirky, cool and even "cute" side too. Yes, he didnt have matinee idol looks, but he stood out as did his wild and fancy guitars that people probably looked at more than he.
            I'm not talking about girls who merely thought that Rick was "cool." Were there actually teenage girls who considered him an idol, in the same manner as say, Shaun Cassidy in the late '70s? IOW, these girls had large posters of Rick in their bedroom? They proudly walked around in school with multiple pictures of Rick on the cover of their binders? Really???

            If so, then maybe that was an Illinois thing. I witnessed no evidence of that happening in Hawaii or anywhere else.

            But the definitive evidence of whether a celebrity was considered teen idol material or not would be if that person made the cover of magazines like Tiger Beat or 16. And to the best of my knowledge, Rick was never the subject of attention in those kinds of mags. He might have been featured in something like Creem or Rolling Stone, but those weren't teeny-bopper publications.

            OTOH, Ringo made the cover of Tiger Beat and 16 numerous times, both by himself and with the other Beatles. Why he rated as a teen idol and Rick didn't? I don't exactly know. It probably had something to do with his personality and charm. Also, his character was made the center of attention in both A Hard Day's Night and Help! movies.

            In their own ways, Rick (zany onstage sweaters) and Ringo (ring on every finger) were quirky. But Ringo's appeal extended far beyond being an eccentric.
            This post may contain an opinion that may conflict with your opinion. Do not take it personal. Polite discussion of difference of opinion is welcome.

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            • #21
              Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died


              One look at this guys huge... vintage guitar collection, and you know he's a stud, even with the geeky looks and music.
              https://www.facebook.com/Bobby-Ingan...5875444640256/

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              • #22
                Maybe because...

                Originally posted by Frankie's Market View Post
                Ringo made the cover of Tiger Beat and 16 numerous times, both by himself and with the other Beatles. Why he rated as a teen idol and Rick didn't? I don't exactly know.
                ...one of them was a Beatle!
                https://www.facebook.com/Bobby-Ingan...5875444640256/

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                • #23
                  Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

                  Originally posted by Frankie's Market View Post
                  Why he rated as a teen idol and Rick didn't? I don't exactly know. It probably had something to do with his personality and charm. Also, his character was made the center of attention in both A Hard Day's Night and Help! movies.
                  The Beatles popularity reached further down the age ladder to the pre-teen set as their Beatles cartoon aired every Saturday morning during the mid 1960s. As a kid I got to know many of their songs not only through what I heard on the radio, saw on the Ed Sullivan show, but also through that cartoon.

                  I was only 8 when The Beatles made it to Ed Sullivan in 1964. Was hooked on to their rock n roll sound ever since.

                  The Beatles were one of the few bands to break out of the teenybopper mold and into serious music as they progressed through their album releases in the 7 to 8 years they enjoyed chart dominance and popularity.
                  I'm still here. Are you?

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                  • #24
                    Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

                    Mel is right on the mark about The Beatles (and you're only two years older than I, buster!); I should add their cartoon series to the thread about TV shows that you wish would be issued on DVD.

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                    • #25
                      Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

                      Originally posted by mel View Post
                      The Beatles were one of the few bands to break out of the teenybopper mold and into serious music as they progressed through their album releases in the 7 to 8 years they enjoyed chart dominance and popularity.
                      The Beatles certainly made great strides with each album they made. But these were baby steps compared to the artistic progression made by.... THE BE SHARPS.
                      This post may contain an opinion that may conflict with your opinion. Do not take it personal. Polite discussion of difference of opinion is welcome.

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                      • #26
                        Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

                        Originally posted by Frankie's Market View Post
                        The Beatles certainly made great strides with each album they made. But these were baby steps compared to the artistic progression made by.... THE BE SHARPS.
                        The Beatles were good, but they're no Beatlemania.

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                        • #27
                          Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

                          I saw this today on npr.org

                          http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...ryId=124397021

                          Originally posted by npr.org


                          Sharona Alperin is now a realtor in West Los Angeles.





                          March 6, 2010
                          Over 30 years ago, a band called The Knack catapulted to stardom with its hit, "My Sharona." It also made a star out of its muse, a woman named — not surprisingly — Sharona.
                          The Knack's lead singer Doug Fieger wrote the song for the then-teenager who would become his girlfriend, Sharona Alperin. Fieger died last month after a battle with lung cancer. Alperin, who stayed friends with him, was one of the people at his side during those last days.
                          Web Resources

                          'My Sharona' Music Video (YouTube)
                          'My Sharona,' Performed Live (YouTube)

                          Sharona Alperin is now a real estate agent in Los Angeles. But she still remembers when she was introduced to Doug Fieger, by his girlfriend.
                          "I was about 16 or 17 at the time," Alperin told host Guy Raz. "He was nine years older than me. And within a month or two later, he told me that, 'I'm in love with you, you're my soulmate, you're my other half, we're going to be together one day.' And I was madly in love with my boyfriend at the time, and so it took a year for me to leave my boyfriend."
                          Alperin remembers the day when she first heard "My Sharona" — before she and Fieger were an item.
                          "One day, on my lunch break from my clothing store, I went to their [The Knack's] rehearsal," she says. "And I saw maybe Burton [Averee] or Doug [Fieger] say, 'Should we play it? Should we play it? All right, let's play it for her.' And I sat down. Cut to: I'm driving back to the clothing store, and I'm thinking, 'Did I just hear a song with my name in it?'"
                          The cover art of the single "My Sharona" actually features Alperin posing in a revealing tank top and tight jeans. For some time, she was famous in her own right.
                          "That was, like, my normal outfit, what I wore all the time, by the way," she says, laughing. "I guess I didn't look at myself as a celebrity, but people were very excited when they met me. And I remember going on tour, and seeing sometimes people dress up. And I'd say, 'What are you dressed up as?' And they would say, 'Sharonas.'
                          "Not everybody knew that Sharona was a person, or they thought maybe it was a thing. I think in Japan, they might have thought it was the male organ — that's what I heard."
                          Fieger and Alperin eventually got married to separate people, but they remained in touch. Fieger died on Valentine's Day this year, but Alperin says she went to see him frequently in his final months.
                          "A lot of his idols, people that meant so much to him in the music industry, came to pay their respects to him," she says. "And it was really beautiful."
                          Last edited by HanaleiRay; March 6, 2010, 10:45 AM.
                          ~~~~~~
                          Hanalei Bay Resort | Waipouli Beach Resort | Kuhio Shores

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                          • #28
                            Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

                            NPR did a similar story on Spencer Elden. He was the baby swimming after that dollar bill Nirvana's Nevermind album of 1991-92.

                            http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...oryId=92833535
                            I'm still here. Are you?

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                            • #29
                              Re: Doug Fieger, lead singer of "The Knack" has died

                              Ha, that's pretty funny.
                              ~~~~~~
                              Hanalei Bay Resort | Waipouli Beach Resort | Kuhio Shores

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