Keith

At the height of his career, Philadelphia-born singer Keith (no surname) was making $15,000 a week and getting back-slapped by a Beatle who told him what a great record Keith’s 1967 Top Ten hit 98.6 was.

His second album, Out of Crank, didn’t do so well, and he parted company with his label, Mercury, signing with RCA, who felt they “may have the next Paul McCartney.” The subsequent album – The Adventures of Keith – was hinged around a loose concept of the life of a blind boy called Charley Cinders.

The LP didn’t sell, and RCA didn’t promote it.

The nadir came when US Army officials nabbed him for draft evasion in the middle of a concert tour. He was inducted and stationed for a year in New Jersey, “making coffee for generals”.

When he got out, Keith (real name James Barry Keefer) did some independent recording and joined Frank Zappa‘s 1973 touring band, trying to inject some Philly soul into toilet-joke tunes like Don’t Eat The Yellow Snow.

He eventually settled into a routine of tending bars for a living and playing local clubs in Los Angeles, drawing well, thanks to frequent oldies airplay of 98.6 there.

His Redondo Beach house had a 16-track studio, and he continued to release records, alternately under the names Keith and Barry Keefer.