#chip davis

[prollymad]

the show just isn't the same without him in it

[kirkklan2]

260 - "Pat a Pan"

[krispyweiss]

“Convoy” Singer C.W. McCall Dies at 93

C.W. McCall, the country singer best known for his 1976 novelty smash “Convoy,” died April 1 at 93.

McCall, legal name William Dale Fries Jr., had been in hospice care after a cancer diagnosis.

Fries was working as an advertising executive in 1974 when he teamed up with Chip Davis, later of Mannheim Steamroller fame, to create the character who became the country singer McCall.

Davis wrote the music; McCall wrote the words and together they produced six LPs between 1975 and ’79. Other hits included “Wolf Creek Pass,” “Old Home Filler-Up an' Keep on a-Truckin’ Cafe” and “‘Round the World with the Rubber Duck.”

“I had a great time writing with ‘Willy,’” Davis said in a statement. “I’d go over to his house and we’d talk about the topic of a song … I wrote the music separately and I never heard his words until we got into the studio.

“What a wordsmith and what a voice. You won’t have to keep the pedal to the metal anymore. Rest up, Willy, you deserve it.”

4/2/22

[retropopcult]

"Convoy" is a 1975 novelty single performed by C. W. McCall (a character co-created and voiced by Bill Fries, along with Chip Davis) that became a number-one song on both the country and pop charts in the US. Written by McCall and Davis, the song capitalized on the 1970s fad for citizens band (CB) radio.  The success of the single inspired the Convoy film in 1978, an action-comedy directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Kris Kristofferson and Ali MacGraw.

[trans-siberian-orchestra-life]

Hey ya’ll! If anyone wants some bands similar to TSO, (most of which contain TSO memebers), here are a few of my favorites!

-Wizards of Winter (They are like a lighter, peppier TSO, lotta synth, lotta guitar! Very fun though!!! They are touring this year~)

-Kings Of Christmas (A smaller project, the songs are on youtube, and they seem to have only 1 CD, but its a good one! Very nice writing, very setimental, and really moving! It also has Tommy Farese leading! (Ornament, This Christmas Day))

-Symphony North (I just found them out, they have a lotta instrumentals, but a few really nice and detailed vocal songs! They have an album on youtube called Father Christmas, and they are also touring this year with a show called “The Bell Ringer”!

This one is not tied to TSO, but their style is similar, so I will put them here! It’s Manheim Steamroller! (Very popular, also touring, not as heavy or guitar led as TSO, and no story albums as far as I know, but they have a magical tone and a pure Christmas vibe! Worth checking out!)

Last is a group that is NOT Christmas- but they have just as much showmanship, storytelling, and magic as TSO does, it’s a group called Avantasia!!! (They are not Christmas, but like TSO, they were founded by one guy, they are a supergroup,they used to be an 80’s band, they have concept albums, storytelling, characters, and a whole lotta guitar, piano, rock songs, ballads, you name it! Heck, even TSO co-founder Jon Olivia sings a song with them!!!They are like a fall TSO to me~)

[vsthepomegranate]

Convoy (1978)

[ipsiducis]

"Well, we shot the line We went for broke With a thousand screamin' trucks And eleven long haired Friends of Jesus In a Chartreuse microbus" - C.W. McCall, Convoy

[frogshunnedshadows]

OK, serious entry in this year's Halloween Playlist: "Harvest Dance" by Mannheim Steamroller. Whom I have never, ever confused with Trans Siberian Orchestra... It's just cause they both have weird names, OK?

Sort of a pre-Halloween (or 'pre-lloween' if you will) vibe. Maybe could do double duty on your medieval playlist, which I am sure you all also have ready at a moment's notice.