8-track Heaven Showcase

TOP: I had heard that GFR had reformed and was touring again, so I went looking for an official band web site. Sure enough, I found one. Looking through the site I was taken back to those days when Grand Funk ruled the 8-track player in my '68 Oldsmobile Cutlass. I decided to send a copy of "E Pluribus Funk" to Donna Wightman, webmaster for the Grand Funk web site to see if she could get it to the band. Several weeks later the tape came back to me, autographed by drummer Don Brewer! Be sure to check out their web site, and see them on tour if they come to your town.

BOTTOM: Tom Lukashow just sent me a scan of his  E Pluribus Funk cart (above) that Mel Schacher autographed in 1998! Now we just need Mark Farner for a complete set! Anybody?

When I was in college, Nitzinger was one of my favorite hot-guitar Texas boogie bands, and was the backdrop to many a dorm smoke-out! This all came about when Clif Daniel, curator of the Nitzinger web site, posted an ad looking for Nitzinger 8-tracks. I contacted him, and was informed that Mr. Nitzinger had never actually seen a Nitzinger 8-track, and wanted one for his collection. I happened to have 3 copies of this cart, so I sent one to John, one to Clif, and had John autograph this one for me.

I was selling some Brian Auger tapes on the classifieds last year when a gentleman wrote me and wanted to buy them all. It turned out that he was a personal friend of Brian Auger, and was in the studio with him in Los Angeles at the time. I told him I'd just give him the tapes if he would get me an autograph, so he did. Brian had apparently never seen any of the 8-track releases of his albums, and wast quite pleased to get them. This one is a British re-release of material recorded by  Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger and the Trinity.

In case you don't already know, Brian Auger is a British jazz-rock organist. In 1964 he formed the the five-piece Brian Auger Trinity, and in 1966, Auger organized a new Trinity which  also appeared with singer Julie Driscoll. It was this group that scored a number-five U.K. (#106 U.S.) single hit with a cover of Bob Dylan and Rick Danko's "This Wheel's on Fire," which some of you may know as the theme music to the British sit-com "Absolutely Fabulous."