S.O.D. "Garden Party" by Rick Nelson and the Stone Canyon Band

11/6/2015     Whoever was around to know about the historic concert or actually be there on October 15, 1971, probably knows what this tune is about.  That night, Nelson was booed off stage while performing "Country Honk", a version of the Rolling Stones' "Honkey Tonk Woman".  He was playing and singing fine but his appearance with the up-to-date clothing and long hair ruined  his fans' image of him I suppose.

     References in "Garden Party" are many such as "Yoko brought her walrus, referring to John Lennon and Yoko Ono.  Then there's "Mr Hughes hid in Dylan's shoes wearing his disguise", which does not refer to Howard Hughes as many believe but is about George Harrison and the fact that he used "Mr Hughes" as his traveling alias.  Nelson and Harrison were good friends and next door neighbors at one time.  

     Nelson left the stage during the booing, watched the rest of the concert back stage and did not even return for the finale.  Also on the bill for the concert were Bo Diddley, Bobby Rydell and Chuck Berry.  The 1972 country rock song song was written by Nelson and was his last Top 40 hit, topping the Easy Listening chart for 2 weeks.  

     He was born Eric Hilliard Nelson, 1940 in Teaneck NJ.  On December 31, 1985 Nelson and his entire band were taken from us in a plane crash.  Let's not end this on a sad note, listen to some of his music, He Was Great!!!!