Painting my love song - Henry Gross

On his third album 'Show me to the stage', Henry Gross mixed Rock & Roll songs with Phil Spector and Brian Wilson influences. A good example of the Brian Wilson sound on his album is the single 'Painting my love songs', released in the summer of 1977.

This single did not chart in any territory, but it very nearly made the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 4872
Found: Da Capo, Utrecht, May 21, 2010
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Painting my love song' / 'String of hearts'

Springtime mama - Henry Gross

After Henry Gross had a worldwide hit with the single 'Shannon', he released his second album 'Release'. The second single taken from that album was the uptempo 'Springtime mama'.

This single almost reached the gold status in the USA, while peaking at number 37 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. In Europe, this single failed to impress the record buying public.

My collection: 7" single no. 4871
Found: Da Capo, Utrecht, May 21, 2010
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Springtime mama' / 'Overtone Square'

Shannon - Henry Gross

Henry Gross was born on April 1, 1951 in Brooklyn, New York. Encouraged by his mother, he moved into music at a young age, starting to perform in local clubs when he was only 14 years old. While at college, he was a founder member of the band Sha Na Na, which he left in 1970 to pursue a solo career.

In 1976, he recorded what was to become his signature song, 'Shannon'. The lyric was about the death of Beach Boy Carl Wilson's Irish Setter of the same name. The single reached number 6 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 25 in the Dutch Top 40 and number 32 in the UK singles chart. The song was picked as a favourite by Kim Wilde during her radio show 'Secret Songs' on Magic FM last year, which is how I first heard it. I'm glad to have located a copy, as the song grabbed me right away.

My collection: 7" single no. 4500
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Shannon' / 'Pokey'