(part 93) EMAIL FROM STEVE STANLEY

Email from Steve Stanley to Bobby Jameson

I received this email from Steve Stanley today after Steve and I had a long an productive telephone conversation regarding what was being posted on my blog. I am posting the email with Steve's knowledge so you can be aware of what has happened in a positive way to both Steve and myself. I will be removing from the blog some of the posts which have Steve and I responding back and forth. I agreed to do this so as not to have a record posted publicly of the bitterness we both exchanged equally. Steve and I have resolved our differences in a way that is constructive for both parties and I applaud him for his willingness to accomplish what was a difficult task for both of us. I will post my response to this email which I am delighted to say will be quite positive. I apologize for any comments that might be lost when I made changes to the blog.

Bobby and I ironed out a lot of issues yesterday and I wanted to share some thoughts with his readers:

In 2002 I was given the assignment of annotating and art directing the Chris Lucey CD reissue for Rev-Ola. It was odd timing because I had just discovered a copy of the LP a few weeks earlier, so I was new to the material and completely unprepared for the story that I was about to uncover. I set about researching “Chris Lucey” and found that he didn’t exist, or did he? Further research led me to understand Chris was, in fact, Bobby Jameson. But where was Bobby? I kept finding people that claimed to have known him or was in his orbit, but I couldn’t find Bobby. Where was he? Everyone thought he was dead. Without any leads to make me believe otherwise, I marched on, collecting tidbits here and there. I became obsessed with his story, and as my deadline neared, and I was nowhere near finding him.

The deeper I dug, the stranger and more fascinating the story became. I had a lot of research material, and some of which I collected was entirely false—he NEVER turned Diane Linkletter on to LSD. (I profoundly regret writing that.) He didn’t open up for Ceasar and Cleo (Sonny & Cher). And he didn’t jump off the Hyatt House—it was the Pacific Theater where Bobby took his leap and (miraculously) lived to tell. I ended up interviewing a dozen or so people but was never fully satisfied with what I came up with. There was a huge chunk of reality missing from this tale.

I never really believed that Bobby was dead. A few months went by and I became dedicated to finding him. I just had to know what his story was really all about. So I hired a private investigator, used his SSI number, and found him. ALIVE. So I was really relieved to find him. We spoke for hours and I told him that he would be receiving royalties for the Chris Lucey CD. It was my belief that he would be paid fairly and promptly. I sincerely regret telling him this now because his royalty check—which was very small— didn’t materialize for another five years. It was a mistake of mine to force Bobby to revisit prior record business frustrations (read: PAIN). I apologize for that.

Now, the truth is this: Bobby didn’t want to be found by anyone. He was satisfied living a life of anonymity, far from Hollywood, U.S.A. Bobby, I apologize for taking you away from the obscurity you preferred to reside in. I hope that the path you are now on leads you to new friends, positive experiences, and inner peace.

Thanks for letting me contribute to your blog.

Best,
Steve