From the MCRFB NEWS archive: 1968

Music Happenings In and Around Detroit Town, 1968

DETROIT — (02/1968) — Bill Cosby appeared in concert at Cobo Arena Friday (January 26). With him will be the Pair Extraordinaire. . . . Clay MacMurray, formerly with Jay Kay Distributors here, has been appointed Midwest promotion manager for Venture Records. . . .  Solid Hitbound Productions announces the release of four new singles this week on the Parliaments, J. J. Barnes, Steve Mancha and Little Sonny. . . . Paul Anka headlined for one week, Jan. 8-14, at the Roostertail supper club. Other acts during that week included the Lazy Eggs and the Utopias.

Two Motown acts, the Monitors and Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers appeared in a Motown Revue at the 20 Grand Driftwood Lounge Jan. 12 -18. . . .  Nina Simone and Detroit’s Gerald Wilson and his band are booked into the Masonic Auditorium for Saturday (27). . . .  The Sam and Dave Revue will come through here Feb. 2 at Cobo Hall, presented by LBJ Productions. . . Aretha Franklin is scheduled to appear in concert early next month, also at Cobo Hall. Sharing the bill with her will be the Young-Holt Unlimited and Erma Franklin, backed by an orchestra with strings. . . .  The Fantastic Four will make their 20 Grand debut with the Detroit Emeralds Friday (26). . . .  The entertainment lineup for the annual Autorama at Cobb Hall, Friday through Sunday (19-21) include the Bob Seger System, the Rationals, the Scott Richard Case, the Camel Drivers, the Amboy Dukes and the Tallasmen. . . .  Pianist Seymour Bernstein played a series of concerts at the Detroit Institute of Arts during the week of Jan. 12, after Kaebi Laretel had to cancel because of illness. Bernstein performed unnamed selections, then called for children in the audience to suggest titles. Their impressions of the music were surprisingly close to those of the composers’. . . . On Friday Jan. 12, Al Hirt and Pee-Wee and the Young Set appeared in concert with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Sixten Ehrling. The concert took place at the Ford Auditorium, and was a benefit performance for the Symphony’s pension and maintenance funds. . . .  Disk jockey Tom Shannon will do his second TV production with WJBK Channel 2. Shannon will discuss the record business with other disk jockeys. A Sonny and Cher movie feature will be included as part of the program. END.

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(Information and news source: Billboard: February 10, 1968)