Devils & Blue Dresses: My Wild Ride as a Rock and Roll Legend

Little Tenderness.” There will never be a more moving voice such as his in music. Ever. “Mr. Pitiful” was a hit for him when I first arrived at Trude Heller’s. But being on stage and having him wrap his arm on my shoulder, rocking back and forth together as we sang a duet was one of the highlights of my musical life.
    Lou Reed: I appeared on stage with Lou at the Masonic Temple in Detroit.
    Paul Revere and the Raiders: I did many Dick Clark shows with them and live performances, too. I continued working shows with Mark Lindsay after he left. Many of these groups that changed people or broke up have legal stories that could fill a book.
    The Righteous Brothers: “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling” was the song I listened to on the radio as I drove up and back to Michigan State to visit Susan. Later on in my career, I was told by Mr. “Unchained Melody” that I was one of the best white R&B singers he had ever known.
    Johnny Rivers: The rumor was that Johnny was very difficult to work with. Piss on that. Everyone on this list had to be difficult to work with at one time or another. We’re all only human and the lifestyle we’ve chosen leaves us vulnerable to intrusions from all sorts of disagreeable persons. He does a very professional show.
    Smokey Robinson and The Miracles: My first recording by this group was a song called “Way Over There.” I don’t think it ever was a hit outside Detroit, but that was the beauty of Motown. By living in Detroit we got to hear the test models before they went national. I saw Smokey perform in the early days in Detroit. What a marvelous voice. Smokey was also a very good businessman, and beyond Jackie Wilson, got Motown off to its start. Marv Johnson could be included in that bunch as well.
    Tommy Roe: We did a date in the Midwest together, and I was a fan of “Sweet Pea.”
    The Rolling Stones: For me . . . silence is a virtue.
    The Romantics: Again, a Michigan group. I played with them on a number of occasions, the most memorable was singing in front of them with guitarist/songwriter Robert Gillespie at the baseball All Star Game in Detroit.
    The Ronnettes with Ronnie Spector: An oldies show with higher priced talent on the bill. Some of these groups I mention had hits, but some had hits with very special voices. Here is a very special voice.
    Diana Ross: I ran into her before Berry Gordy had finished his grooming process. It altered my take on the group as a whole, but we are talking about numbers. They had a lot of them. Somehow I don’t think Diana is going to die on welfare.
    Leon Russell: From the time I met him and Denny Cordell in Washington State, until the time I saw him perform at a club that held two hundred people, I’ve wanted to understand his story.
    Sam and Dave: When I first broke into the top ten, Sam and Dave were there to greet me. I’ve always thought that “Hold On, I’m Coming” was Stax and Booker T. and the M.G’s at their finest.
    Bob Seger: One time I went out to Bob’s house on a lake to write, or try to write, songs. My little son Joel had fallen asleep on Bob’s bed, and had wet the bed. It was the last time I was invited. Over the years Bob, in spite of Punch’s protests, has been very respectful of me. I return the respect. “Turn the Page.”
    Sha Na Na: The best part of this story is how the powers that be tried to eliminate their appearance at Woodstock. Revisionist history never works guys. Give them their due. Call Woodstock what it was, not what you want it to be. This is as sick as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I worked with Bowser (Jon Bauman) on a few gigs.
    The Shangri-Las: Quite a few appearances on oldies shows. Fun to be around.
    Del Shannon: He was on a TV show I did with Mary Wells. Del had some demons he couldn’t get rid of.
    The Shirelles: They were my early soundtrack before I went to New York. The one song I especially like was “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow.” That was hot when I was in love for first time as a teen. What great memories! I didn’t know for a long time that the song was written by Carol King. I loved the group arrangement on it.
    Paul Simon: I’ve always wanted to work and record with Paul Simon because of his ability to create exciting music. I often thought that my voice on his music would be something special.
    Percy Sledge: I saw him from the side of the stage as the cue to take the knee-drop was given. This was in the 1960s, maybe about 1967. My manager said, “I want