Queer
Music Heritage home
June 2011 Show
Steven
Grossman's album "Caravan Tonight" (Mercury 702, 1974) is
a landmark recording in gay history, as it was the first released
on
a major label by an openly gay artist to address gay life.
I
have featured Steven's music on my shows for
Nov 2001, Feb 2002,
and a special 2 1/2-hour tribute show forJune
2011
Recordings
[ this page ]
Articles
& Clippings
Background
& Memories
James
Gavin Essay on Steven
Steven
Grossman Video, 1990
Steven
Grossman Video, 1975
[
September 1, 1951 -- June 23, 1991 ]
Recordings
Track
Listing - Click to Download
1
Caravan Tonight 3:34
2
Out 3:27
3
Five O'Clock Song 2:27
4
Christopher's Blues 4:08
5
Song for Bonnie 3:33
6
Song to That M&M Man 5:37
7
You Don't Have to Be Ashamed 3:48
8
Many Kinds of Love 3:52
9
Can't...Papa Blues 3:32
10
Circle Nine Times 3:22
11
Dry Dock Dreaming 6:08
Since
I put up this tribute section I've gotten SO many requests
for information
on where to obtain the album....I recommend eBay and gemm.com for
that.
And, no, I've no 'right' to make the downloads available, but I doubt
the powers to be at whoever has control of the actual rights, in some
conglomerate, will ever release the album on CD. So.....
Mercury
Records thought enough of this release to issue
it as a "gatefold" album, with the lyrics inside
and,
I've got a test pressing of the album...it has a blank label and this
sheet attached:
yes,
there was a 45 rpm record released from the LP...
and,
would you believe....the album also came out as an 8-Track tape!
Recent
Recordings
About
six weeks before Steven Grossman died, he recorded a number of tracks
which
for the most part remained unreleased (until this year, 2011). One
of them had been
remastered and surfaced on the Various Artists CD "Fruit Cocktail,"
in 1998.
"Buena Vista" was the name of that track. It was produced
by Streeter Music,
and can be found on sites like Amazon.com.
In
2002 Mark Weigle paid tribute to Steven by recording a "duet"
with
him on the song "Out," and it's a very striking version.
It appeared on
Mark's "Out of the Loop" album. Find Mark's many fine CDs
also on Amazon.com.
A
bit of trivia, Twiggy's 1976 self-titled album, also released
on Mercury, contained a cover of the song "Caravan Tonight."
Click to hear
it.
Below,
Judith Casselberry and Jaque DuPree were very close friends
of Steven's and in 1994 included one of his songs on their album
"Hot Corn in the Fire," the song "The Last Pioneers."
The
New CD, June 2011
"Something in the Moonlight"
Please
visit my special radio show for June 2011,
a 2 1/2-hour tribute to the new CD and Steven
and including very rare live material
Below,
photos from CD liner
On
to Page Two