Motown/Detroit Riots Article...

[DWSheffer]

https://www.yahoo.com/music/detroits-67-riots-halted-music-helped-recalibrate-sound-040444042.html

Good story on the Motown angle. I like the last photo of Martha in front of the Fox......she looks great!
Darin

[marv2]

Hey Darin, Martha has told the story for years of how she was asked to tell people about the riot and to go home from the stage of the Fox theater.

[DWSheffer]

Hi Marv....I too have read her account of sending the crowd home in other books. As I was born almost a decade after the fact, when viewing the photos of this terrible time, "Ball of Confusion" always plays in my head. In fact, I just played it.....
Darin

[marv2]

Hi Marv....I too have read her account of sending the crowd home in other books. As I was born almost a decade after the fact, when viewing the photos of this terrible time, "Ball of Confusion" always plays in my head. In fact, I just played it.....
Darin

Well I was around during the time of the riots LOL! Neither "Dancing in the Streets [[1964), nor "Ball of Confusion" [[1970) were even a thought at that time.

[marv2]

I remember the riots combined with then nightly news reports on Vietnam were "upsetting" to a lot of us kids at the time.

[jsmith]

The show that was being staged @ the Fox when the riots broke out ....
... the new movie [[released this summer) about the event features a section where the Dramatics are returning to their hotel through the riot torn streets ...
13302

[marv2]

That one JSmith gets a big WOW! How on Earth were you able to find it?

[marv2]

I remember one of the Dramatics talking about that exact show.

[StuBass1]

I had worked a gig at Cobo Hall that Saturday night and drove up the Lodge Fwy past the riot area around midnight. Woke up the next day hearing about what had occurred. As I also mentioned...We performed for the thousands of Federal Troops stationed at the Fairgrounds at the band shell the next weekend at the request of officials wanting to give the soldiers something to do......

[marv2]

I had worked a gig at Cobo Hall that Saturday night and drove up the Lodge Fwy past the riot area around midnight. Woke up the next day hearing about what had occurred. As I also mentioned...We performed for the thousands of Federal Troops stationed at the Fairgrounds at the band shell the next weekend at the request of officials wanting to give the soldiers something to do......

Stu, someone needs to collect remembrances such as yours so that those that were not around and study the great riot will get a comprehensive view. I was only a kid at the time.

[StuBass1]

I was actually pretty much a kid too...like still in my teens, but a working musician at the time too...I had put an orchestra together for a formal event at Cobo and was also bandleader for The Strides...I vividly remember the State Fair thing, because my groups lead singer had just received his draft notice and we wanted to keep him out...I had heard a true story about another performer [[we all know who it is) directly from his manager who had also received a draft notice and took a dive off a stage in Cleveland claiming a back injury which kept him out of the service since he had a hit record at the time...We suggested that it would be cool if our lead singer took a dive in front of thousands of Federal Troops and could stay out of the draft...Right up to the time of the performance he considered it...but sort of decided not to do it and ended up going into the army and unfortunately I visited him at the military hospital several months later after getting his leg shot up in Vietnam...We replaced him with another lead singer and the group, The Strides continued on for another year or so...later for a few of the guys, including the guy who got shot in Vietnam, formed a group called CJ & Company...

[marv2]

I was actually pretty much a kid too...like still in my teens, but a working musician at the time too...I had put an orchestra together for a formal event at Cobo and was also bandleader for The Strides...I vividly remember the State Fair thing, because my groups lead singer had just received his draft notice and we wanted to keep him out...I had heard a true story about another performer [[we all know who it is) directly from his manager who had also received a draft notice and took a dive off a stage in Cleveland claiming a back injury which kept him out of the service since he had a hit record at the time...We suggested that it would be cool if our lead singer took a dive in front of thousands of Federal Troops and could stay out of the draft...Right up to the time of the performance he considered it...but sort of decided not to do it and ended up going into the army and unfortunately I visited him at the military hospital several months later after getting his leg shot up in Vietnam...We replaced him with another lead singer and the group, The Strides continued on for another year or so...later for a few of the guys, including the guy who got shot in Vietnam, formed a group called CJ & Company...

You see Stu, awesome story! Was that famous singer Edwin Starr? Also, did the Strides play gigs in Toledo, OH ever? It was all a very stressful time, a different kind of stress than we're living through now.

[StuBass1]

No not Edwin...Can't say who...but someone we are all familiar with...Can't recall a Toledo gig...I do remember skipping school and taking a Trailways bus to Toledo in Jr High school to buy fireworks to sell for the 4th of July...LOL

[marv2]

Yeah they still have a big fireworks store there on Telegraph Rd. LOL!

Come on, just one small hint about the singer. It's years. The government won't get him. LOL

[marv2]

Dennis Edwards?

[marv2]

Stu, I am only joking about trying to find out who the singer is. I respect that you cannot tell everything. That is how it is with myself.