Author Topic: Swinging Chevy Circle: Dealer Vinyl Record Giveaway "Camaro" by The Cyrkle 1967  (Read 1310 times)

SMKZ28

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Chevrolet used many interesting promotional avenues to help introduce the new 1967 Camaro to its target audience.  One of these was a 7”, 45-rpm vinyl record produced exclusively for Chevrolet dealerships to give away to licensed drivers who came in to take a test drive of the new Chevrolet offerings during the early part of the 1967 calendar year.  This record included the song Camaro by The Cyrkle on side one and the song SS-396 by Paul Revere and The Raiders on side two.  I don't believe that this was a nationwide promotion.  I only found ads referring to the giveaway in newspapers from California, Ohio, Georgia and Indiana during January and February 1967 and one ad from April 1967 in Ohio.


Listen to the song Camaro here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5hMLQ38Xms (2:20)

Listen to the song SS-396 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aJXSGgSAyU (2:34)


Both of these songs can be purchased on I-Tunes or get them free on Spotify.

1) discogs.com
2) 45cat.com
3) discogs.com



« Last Edit: April 28, 2023, 06:39:19 PM by SMKZ28 »
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

SMKZ28

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Interestingly, the song SS-396 was more than a year old when it appeared on the second side of the 1967 giveaway.  It was originally released in the fall of 1965 to coincide with the introduction of the 1966 Chevelle SS-396.  It appeared on the 1st side of another dealership 7”, 45-rpm vinyl record giveaway with the song Corvair Baby, also by the Paul Revere and the Raiders, on the flip side.  Advertisements promoting the giveaway appear in multiple newspapers during the months of November and December 1965.  This record came inside a plain brown paper sleeve.

Listen to Corvair Baby here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbhY-0u1TnU (2:15)

This song can also be purchased on I-Tunes or get it free on Spotify.

1) 45cat.com
2) newspapers.com
3/4) discogs.com
« Last Edit: April 18, 2023, 02:29:18 AM by SMKZ28 »
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

SMKZ28

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January 1967

1/2) Southern California Chevrolet Dealers: San Bernardino Sun (CA) January 23, 1967
3) George Olsen Chevrolet: The San Francisco Examiner (CA) January 27, 1967
4) Central Chevrolet: The Argus (CA) January 28, 1967

1/2) https://cdnc.ucr.edu/
3/4) newspapers.com
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

SMKZ28

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February 1967

1) E-Z Davies Chevrolet: Redwood City Tribune (CA) February 3, 1967
2/3) Big Central Chevrolet: The Atlanta Constitution (GA) February 3, 1967

newspapers.com
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

SMKZ28

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February 1967

1/2) Ferris Chevrolet: The Daily Reporter (OH) February 7, 1967
3/4) Greater Cincinnati Area Chevrolet Dealers: The Cincinnati Inquirer (OH) February 10, 1967

newspapers.com
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

SMKZ28

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February 1967

1/2) Greater Sacramento Chevrolet Dealers: The Sacramento Bee (CA) February 19, 1967
3/4) Lange and Runkel Chevrolet: Redlands Daily Facts (CA) February 21, 1967

newspapers.com
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

SMKZ28

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February 1967

1/2) McCullough Chevrolet: The Argus (CA) February 22, 1967

newspapers.com
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

SMKZ28

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April 1967

Not sure why they were still advertising this promotion in April but perhaps they forgot to take out that portion of the copy from the advertisement or they still had a bunch of the records to give away??

1/2) Schneider Chevrolet: The Galion Inquirer (OH) April 6, 1967

newspapers.com
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

SMKZ28

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According to Wikipedia,

The Cyrkle "was formed by guitarists and lead singers Don Dannemann and Tom Dawes (who also played bass guitar), and Jim Maiella (the original drummer), who all met while studying at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. Dannemann enlisted in the US Coast Guard in 1966. The other members were Earle Pickens on keyboards and Marty Fried on drums. They were originally a "frat rock" band called The Rhondells but were later discovered and managed by Brian Epstein, who was best known as manager of the Beatles. Epstein found out about the band when his business partner, New York attorney Nathan Weiss, heard them in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Labor Day of 1965. Epstein became their manager and renamed them, as a reference to the circular roundabout known as Centre Square, located in downtown Easton. John Lennon provided the unique spelling of their new name. They were produced by John Simon.

In the summer of 1966, they opened on 14 dates for the Beatles during their US tour. On August 28, they headed the opening acts performing prior to The Beatles at Dodger Stadium. Before touring with The Beatles, the Cyrkle had an engagement at the Downtown Discothèque in New York City. They were also on the bill for the final Beatles concert at Candlestick Park on August 29, 1966.

The Cyrkle is best known for their 1966 song "Red Rubber Ball", which went to No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. It was co-written by Paul Simon, of Simon and Garfunkel, and Bruce Woodley of The Seekers, and was released by Columbia Records. Later in 1966, the band had one more Top 20 hit, "Turn-Down Day" (No. 16). After the release of their debut album, Red Rubber Ball, they recorded a second album, Neon, in late 1966, and a movie soundtrack, The Minx, in 1967 (not released until 1970). They followed that with various singles and then disbanded in mid-1968.

Both Dawes and Danneman became professional jingle writers after the Cyrkle disbanded. Dawes wrote the famous "plop plop fizz fizz" jingle for Alka-Seltzer. Danneman wrote jingles for Continental Airlines and Swanson Foods. He penned the original 7Up "Uncola" song. Dawes produced two albums for the band Foghat, Rock & Roll (1973) and Energized (1974), and co-wrote the song "Wild Cherry" on the latter. Marty Fried left the music business to attend law school and graduated from Wayne State University in Detroit in 1972. He worked as a bankruptcy attorney in suburban Detroit. Earle Pickens became a surgeon (retired) in Gainesville, Florida."



Images of The Cyrkle circa 1966.  Their song Camaro was probably recorded sometime in late 1966.

1) discogs.com
2) waybackattack.com
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

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According to Wikipedia,

"Paul Revere & the Raiders (also known as Raiders) were an American rock band formed in Boise, Idaho, in 1958. They saw considerable U.S. mainstream success in the second half of the 1960s and early 1970s. The band was known for including Revolutionary War-style clothes in their attire.

Originally an instrumental rock combo called the Downbeats, the Raiders were formed in 1958 by organist Paul Revere, and included singer Mark Lindsay. After charting in 1961 with the minor hit "Like, Long Hair" and then in late 1963 just missing Billboard's Hot 100 with a cover of "Louie Louie", the band was signed to Columbia Records, under the tutelage of producer Terry Melcher. In January 1966 the single "Just Like Me"—propelled by exposure on Dick Clark's shows such as Where The Action Is—reached no. 11 on the Hot 100, followed by the consecutive Top Tens "Kicks" and "Hungry", thus establishing the band as national stars. Clark's TV shows showcased Lindsay as a teen idol and Revere as the "madman" of the group, and between 1966 and '69 they reached the top 30 with 12 hits. Bolstered by the success of the singles, the three 1966 albums Just Like Us, Midnight Ride and The Spirit of '67 all were gold-certified by the RIAA.

Mark Lindsay replaced Terry Melcher as the Raiders' producer, and the band scored with the 1969 US no. 20 hit "Let Me" and its parent LP Alias Pink Puzz, Lindsay embarked on a solo career while still a member of the group, charting with two 1970 top 30 singles including the Top Ten hit "Arizona". From early 1970 the band were credited as simply Raiders.

In 1971 the hugely successful cover of the song "Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian)" provided the Raiders with a comeback, reaching number one in both the US and Canada; the single was certified platinum in 1996. But their failure to repeat the record's success led to the band being dropped by Columbia in 1975, when Lindsay opted out. In 1976, following Paul Revere's retirement from the music industry, the Raiders broke up.

Revere's retirement was short-lived. In 1978 he went back to live performances with a show that mixed comedy and rock and roll. In 2014 Revere died of cancer, and the band's name was changed to Paul Revere's Raiders.

The group had many lineup changes during the 1960s and 70s, with their most well known lineup including: Mark Lindsay (vocals), Drake "Kid" Levin and Jim "Harpo" Valley, (guitars) Phil "Fang" Volk (bass), Paul Revere (keyboard) and Mike Smith (drums)."



Paul Revere and The Raiders image circa 1965.  According to a comment posted on 45cat.com both SS-396 and Corvair Baby were recorded on October 13, 1965.

goldminemagazine.com
https://www.45cat.com/record/csp262
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

Chuck-68-Cam

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Chuck

68 Camaro SST 350/TH400

SMKZ28

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Here are four different versions of the song "CAMARO."  They appear on a 33 1/3 vinyl record published by the Bonnard Publishing Corp. in 1966.  This disc features four demonstration versions of the song.  The lyrics are by Lou Adessa and the music by Vince Benay.

1) Guitar (Slow)
2) Guitar - Brass (Fast)
3) Guitar - Brass (Slow)
4) Guitar - Brass (Fast Gallop)


Listen to the four versions here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oI4RRHUVTx8
Scott
I don't have a 1st Gen but I have 1971 Z28 RS 4-spd, 1997 Z28 Z4C 6-spd, 2000 SS Convertible, 2010 RS 6-spd

 

anything