One unusual music-related item I have.
The story is that at one point in time the Kinks recorded at a studio that had a bar nearby that had a pinball machine called Ramona, from the late 40s. Ramona was made famous in The Hard Way where Ray yells "Ramona" at one point, nonsensically for all except hard-core fans. "Ramona" was also included in the recent BBC radio performance of Arthur, where the radio station is called "Radio Ramona".
This is the back glass of the Ramona pinball machine. I plan to frame it with back-light. No rush, I have nowhere to hang it.
More about Ramona, from the great Frank Lima:
Someone asked me about this on another thread but I thought it deserved it's own thread so here it is...The subject is does Ray shout Oh RAMONA during the Hardway and if so why?. ..I have the answer directly from the horses mouth...
Yes and here's the little trivia info on that as to why he screams " OH RAMONA " in The Hardway as told directly to me by Ray himself...
When the Kinks were touring the US prior to Schoolboys coming out around 1972 and 73, Ray was and still is a huge soccer fan ( Arsenals are his team btw! ) any way back then when they were playing and staying in the NYC area there were very few places that got the satellite feed of soccer games from over in the U.K. and Europe but leave it to Ray to find one! He found a place over on the Queens side of the 59th St bridge I think it was it could have been one of the other bridges but that's not too important, I think it was what ever bridge takes you over to Woodside Queens, ( I should know this I live in this area and have been over those bridges many times ) anyway this bar in that area that had the satellite feed for the soccer games and was a favorite haunt for Ray to go when he was in NYC and they had a night off from a show...in this bar they had one of those old fashion Pinball Games with all the lights, bells and whistles and it was one of those theme ones, this theme was sort of like a gypsy fortune teller theme and it had the big picture of this gypsie woman on the big part of the machine where the scores are and all the other lights and the name of the machine or the Gypsie woman was you guessed it RAMONA so when Ray would play this pin ball game and get into it you know pushing the flippers and slapping the sides when ever he got excited and got extra points or a free ball and the machine started making all the noises and lights flashed he would yell either " OH RAMONA " or COME ON NOW RAMONA, so a couple of years later when they were in the studio recording " Schoolboys in Disgrace " and specifically The Hard Way, he shouted it out during the recording session for what ever reason and there you have it !
The story is that at one point in time the Kinks recorded at a studio that had a bar nearby that had a pinball machine called Ramona, from the late 40s. Ramona was made famous in The Hard Way where Ray yells "Ramona" at one point, nonsensically for all except hard-core fans. "Ramona" was also included in the recent BBC radio performance of Arthur, where the radio station is called "Radio Ramona".
This is the back glass of the Ramona pinball machine. I plan to frame it with back-light. No rush, I have nowhere to hang it.
More about Ramona, from the great Frank Lima:
Someone asked me about this on another thread but I thought it deserved it's own thread so here it is...The subject is does Ray shout Oh RAMONA during the Hardway and if so why?. ..I have the answer directly from the horses mouth...
Yes and here's the little trivia info on that as to why he screams " OH RAMONA " in The Hardway as told directly to me by Ray himself...
When the Kinks were touring the US prior to Schoolboys coming out around 1972 and 73, Ray was and still is a huge soccer fan ( Arsenals are his team btw! ) any way back then when they were playing and staying in the NYC area there were very few places that got the satellite feed of soccer games from over in the U.K. and Europe but leave it to Ray to find one! He found a place over on the Queens side of the 59th St bridge I think it was it could have been one of the other bridges but that's not too important, I think it was what ever bridge takes you over to Woodside Queens, ( I should know this I live in this area and have been over those bridges many times ) anyway this bar in that area that had the satellite feed for the soccer games and was a favorite haunt for Ray to go when he was in NYC and they had a night off from a show...in this bar they had one of those old fashion Pinball Games with all the lights, bells and whistles and it was one of those theme ones, this theme was sort of like a gypsy fortune teller theme and it had the big picture of this gypsie woman on the big part of the machine where the scores are and all the other lights and the name of the machine or the Gypsie woman was you guessed it RAMONA so when Ray would play this pin ball game and get into it you know pushing the flippers and slapping the sides when ever he got excited and got extra points or a free ball and the machine started making all the noises and lights flashed he would yell either " OH RAMONA " or COME ON NOW RAMONA, so a couple of years later when they were in the studio recording " Schoolboys in Disgrace " and specifically The Hard Way, he shouted it out during the recording session for what ever reason and there you have it !
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Thought maybe the ending was a lil schlocky and coulda been better, but still
