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

open field in the park as he sang tortured lyrics. On closer inspection he was actually foaming at the mouth. I said hello and he acknowledged me, but he was either having a bad trip or was on some really bad speed.
    Alan decided early on that it was very much in my interest to go to England. Those frequent trips began right after the initial success of “Jenny Take a Ride.” One time, Susan and I met Alan in London and were escorted to the residence of Lionel Bart. Lionel was a beloved character and artist who had risen from a lower-class background and who created a timeless musical called
Oliver
, which was based on the play
Oliver Twist
. The musical was a fixture on the London stage scene for many years.
    Susan and I were guests at Lionel’s a few times, but I also stayed there on several of my solo visits to England. On this particular trip, after awakening from our jet lag we went down from our bedroom to the living area where Alan was sitting with Lionel. Everyone was focused on Lionel’s brand new color TV, rumored to be one of the first in all of England. On that first trip it was arranged for us to visit the legendary (at least in the minds of the Brits) shopping area, Carnaby Street. Whoopee!
    Fashion? Why not? It proved to me that the English were gifted at performing private wet dreams in public. But that didn’t have any effect on the way Lionel and Alan and I felt about each other. I’ll never be able to say Lionel was a fast and true friend because, over the years of his fame, thousands of entertainers and famous people would be guests of Mr. Bart. I did, however, think of Lionel as special, particularly his gift for music, because later on he was the only person I knew in music who could answer The Beatles “Sgt. Pepper” with any comparable creativity, authority, and genius. It was a release of his own music on Polygram Records which, if it had been promoted and his fame was not considered passé, could have stood the same test of time as the release The Beatles had.
    Another great memory was coming into the main room at Lionel’s to find him working with legendary composer and lyricist Leslie Bricusse as they attempted to collaborate on lyrics for “Talk to the Animals” from Dr. Doolittle. But the biggest surprise was going into Lionel’s bedroom to say good morning to find him shooting up liquid methedrine.
    Susan and I not only enjoyed the trips to England, but also trips to the Bahamas and Portugal. We were a family, but on those long trips Aunt Betty and Susan’s mother, Belle, took care of Dawn. There were times when I missed my daughter so much that I packed a little bag for her and the two of us ventured out on the road together for a short trip here or there. When we were home we sometimes had friends over for aparty, but we were mostly stay at home people who enjoyed the few blessings life afforded us.
    One of my favorite memories of my daughter was when I tried to teach her to shave my beard. She always watched the morning ritual until one day I asked if she would like to try it. I lathered my face and gave her the razor. That was the last time that occurred. Another of her favorite things was to wake up Daddy, and she did this by taking a running start toward Susan’s and my bed, leaping as high as she could, and coming down firmly on my resting stomach and sleeping body. How can you not love that? There was not one thing about my life with Susan and Dawn that I did not miss when I was away. For me, they represented life the way I thought it should be. Safe, comfortable, and filled with love. I am getting ahead of myself but it is so easy to do that when I want to gravitate to the good memories.
    I was in New York City between hits and Alan sent me to a woman who taught me the social graces and responsibilities I would need in the presence of the upper class. Things like the correct way to chew your food or hold a fork, all the way up to making polite conversation. In addition, I was sent to another woman, someone famous whose name I don’t recall, and began taking acting instruction. All of these preparations were being charged back to my royalties and I had no control over who, when, or where. I do suspect, even though it’s way too late to prove, that the Crewe brothers were charging these things back onto royalties for the Wheels, as well.

     
    Lionel Bart
    On my second trip to England, since Lionel already had a house full of guests, I stayed at an apartment that