The Hassles were a

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

group in the 1960s, most notable for recording the first releases to feature

Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, pianist and songwriter. Commonly nicknamed the "Piano Man (song), Piano Man" after his album and signature song of the same name, he has led a commercially successful career as a solo ...

. The group released two full-length albums (United Artists Records) and a number of singles.Billy Joel - Before The Piano Man - A look into Billy Joel's early recordings
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History

The original line-up of the group consisted of vocalist John Dizek (September 25, 1948 – June 27, 2017), guitarist Richard McKenna, drummer Jon Small, and organist Harry Weber. In 1966 Weber was fired from the band due to excessive drug use (found dead a few years later on a railroad track) and was replaced by Howie Arthur Blauvelt and

on bass and keyboards respectively. It is with this lineup that the band recorded their self-titled debut album in 1967. Blauvelt departed the band early in 1968 but returned later on in the year. Dizek departed the band in late 1968, at which point Joel took over on vocals. The band released their second album, ''Hour of the Wolf'', in 1969, before disbanding. Following the demise of The Hassles, Joel and Small formed the duo

Attila Attila (, ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European traditio ...

, whilst Blauvelt later co-founded

Ram Jam Ram Jam was an American rock band formed in New York City in 1977, predominantly known for their hit single "Black Betty". Overview The band consisted of Bill Bartlett (guitar and lead vocals) born 1946 in South Harrow, London, England, Howie ...

. Joel later went on to a successful solo career, and Small became a video producer and director. John Dizek died on June 27, 2017 after a long illness, at age 68.

Members

*Richard McKenna - guitars (1964-1969) *Jon Small - drums (1964-1969) *John Dizek - vocals, harmonica, tambourine (1964-1968; died 2017) *Harry Weber - bass, organ (1964-1966) *

- keyboards, vocals (1966-1969) *Howie Arthur Blauvelt - bass (1966-1968, 1968-1969; died 1993) *Glenn Evans, John Abrant, and Mike Cohen - road managers

Discography

Albums

''The Hassles''

Produced by Tony Michaels and Vinnie Gorman, The Hassles' eponymous debut album was released on November 21, 1967 and featured a number of cover versions of

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

songs. The single "You've Got Me Hummin'" was number 112 for one week on the

Bubbling Under the Hot 100 Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...

chart, their only ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' chart appearance. In 1983, Billy Joel released a solo live recording of "You Got Me Hummin'" as a B-side to his hit "

Tell Her About It "Tell Her About It" is a song written and performed by Billy Joel released as a single from his album ''An Innocent Man'' (1983). The song hit the number one spot on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart for one week on September 24, 1983, replacing "M ...

" (available on the 12" maxi single, with the 'special remixed version' of the A-side).

=Track listing

= #"Warming Up" ( William Joel) - 1:38 #"Just Holding On" (

Larry Weiss Laurence D. "Larry" Weiss (born March 25, 1941) is an American songwriter and musician. He wrote "Rhinestone Cowboy", a US no.1 hit for Glen Campbell in 1975; and co-wrote "Bend Me, Shape Me", "Hi Ho Silver Lining" and several other international ...

) - 2:06 #"

A Taste of Honey ''A Taste of Honey'' is the first play by the British dramatist Shelagh Delaney, written when she was 19. It was intended as a novel, but she turned it into a play because she hoped to revitalise British theatre and address social issues that ...

" (

Ric Marlow Eric "Ric" Marlow (born Sanford Phillip Schafler; December 21, 1925 – February 28, 2017) was an American songwriter and actor, best known for co-writing with Bobby Scott the song "A Taste of Honey" which won a Grammy in 1962. The song has bee ...

, Bobby Scott) - 4:17 #"Every Step I Take (Every Move I Make)" (William Joel, Tony Michaels, Vinny Gormann) - 2:30 #"

Coloured Rain ''Mr. Fantasy'' is the debut album by English rock band Traffic, released in December 1967. The recording included group members Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood, Chris Wood, and Dave Mason; however, Mason left the band shortly after the album was r ...

" (Stevie Winwood, Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood) (originally by

Traffic Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic ...

) - 3:22 #"I Hear Voices" (Gene Boris Stashuk) - 2:53 #"I Can Tell" (William Joel) - 2:57 #"

Giving Up "Giving Up" is a popular song written by Van McCoy that was introduced by Gladys Knight & the Pips with an April 1964 single release. Chart performance "Giving Up" was a Top 40 Pop hit, reaching No. 38 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. and a Top ...

(Version #2)" (

Van McCoy Van Allen Clinton McCoy (January 6, 1940 – July 6, 1979) was an American musician, record producer, arranger, songwriter, singer and orchestra conductor. He is known for his 1975 internationally successful song " The Hustle". He has approximat ...

) - 4:16 #"

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" ( John Davenport, Eddie Cooley) - 3:19 #" You've Got Me Hummin'" (

Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, actor, songwriter, and composer. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwri ...

, David Porter) - 2:27

=1992 Re-issued CD with following Bonus Tracks

= #"I'm Thinkin'" - 2:05 #"I'll Be Around" - 2:01 #"When I Get Home" - 4:23 #"It's Not Enough" - 2:46 #"Love Luck" - 3:21 #"Look And You Will Find" - 2:58 #"Blow My Mind" - 2:14 #"Giving Up (Version #1)" - 4:08

''Hour of the Wolf''

Produced by Thomas Kay, the Hassles' second album was released on January 23, 1969. All songs on this album were original recordings written by Billy Joel, except where noted.

=Track listing

= #"Country Boy" (W. Joel, J. Small) 2:35 #"Night After Day" - 3:11 #"Hour Of The Wolf" (W. Joel, J. Dizek) - 11:58 #"Four O'Clock In The Morning" - 3:12 #"Cat" - 4:15 #"Hotel St. George" - 5:00 #"Land Of Despair" (W. Joel, J. Small) - 3:36 #"Further Than Heaven" (W. Joel, J. Dizek) - 7:16

Singles

Single "

Great Balls of Fire "Great Balls of Fire" is a 1957 popular song recorded by American rock and roll musician Jerry Lee Lewis on Sun Records and featured in the 1957 movie '' Jamboree''. It was written by Otis Blackwell and Jack Hammer. The Jerry Lee Lewis 1957 reco ...

" (B-side "Travellin' Band') United Artists label (1969)

Compilations

* In 1992, the first album was released on CD, with a number of bonus tracks. Plans were also made to reissue ''Hour of the Wolf'' on CD with bonus tracks, though it remains unreleased. * In 1999,

Razor & Tie Razor & Tie was an American entertainment company that consisted of a record label and a music publishing company. It was established in 1990 by Craig Balsam and Cliff Chenfeld. Based in New York City (with additional offices in Los Angeles an ...

re-released the Hassles' two albums as a "best of" collection on a single

Compact Disc The compact disc (CD) is a Digital media, digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then rele ...

with "Hotel St. George" missing, but also with additional bonus tracks * In 2000, a low quality re-release of ''Hour of the Wolf'' was released along with all tracks on

Cold Spring Harbor Cold Spring Harbor is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Huntington, in Suffolk County, on the North Shore of Long Island in New York. As of the 2010 United States census, the CDP population was 5,070. History Cold Spri ...

as ''Billy Joel Sings'' * In 2004, the same ''Hour of the Wolf'' tracks from ''Billy Joel Sings'' were released separately as ''Billy Joel: The Early Years.''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hassles, The Rock music groups from New York (state) Billy Joel