About halfway through the recent RTH Zoomfest, somebody brought up the topic of the Replacements, kinda/sorta as a “butwhatabout” response to a typically outrageous EPG suggestion that nothing good came out of the 1980s as far as music was concerned.

Townsman CDM gamely offered to put together a Replacements playlist that he thought might win EPG over, or just put what he thought was the placemats’ best on display, or provided a succinct overview of the band’s output, or something. We moved onto other topics, touching on — oh, I don’t remember; it was all a bit of a blur after someone started gabbing about Wishbone Ash.

Anyhow, the Replacements blah-blah inspired me to cue some of their music up for my afternoon walkabout, and I chose an LP I remembered somewhat fondly: “Pleased To Meet Me.” Sadly, I was surprised by how much of it just kinda sat there for me, after about 25 years.

Having said that, there were two tracks that still sounded sublime to these ears: “Alex Chilton” and “Skyway.” I’m not going to bother posting a link to “…Chilton,” because I feel certain Gergles will find a reason — probably having to do with the gated reverb on the snare — to hate it. But I am posting “Skyway,” because, hell, that song got even more beautiful with the passage of time.

EPG, I demand that you acknowledge the beauty and the brilliance of “Skyway” by the Replacements!

I’m sure many of you know this great old one-hit wonder. Walter Scott was the lead singer for this song by Bob Kuban & The In-Men.

But did you know this story? It’s taken from a longer article you can find here. A real case of life imitating art.

In early 1983, Walter Scott and Bob Kuban performed together for a television appearance and planned to reunite the band for their twentieth anniversary in June 23, 1984, at the Fox Theatre. After one rehearsal in October 1983, Walter Scott disappeared. In late December his wife, Jo Ann, reported to police that her husband was missing. According to Jo Ann Scott, Walter went out to buy a part for his car and never came home. On December 28th, Walter Scott’s car was found by the St. Louis police, abandoned at the airport.

The St Louis police looked for Walter Scott for over a year, but all the leads led to dead ends. Jo Ann Scott filed for divorce, alleging she’d been abandoned. She was granted a divorce and was remarried in 1986. It happened that the groom at the wedding, Jim Williams, had tragically lost his wife, Sharon, when she reportedly died in a car crash in October 1983.

Meanwhile, Scott’s parents never accepted the official story. They urged the police to keep searching for their son. In 1987, the police uncovered a new lead after Jim Williams’ son informed them that his mom, Sharon, had been having an affair with Walter Scott, and his father found out. Subsequently, the police found Walter Scott floating face down in a cistern ten feet from Jim Williams’ house. Walter Scott’s body been there for about three years. Sharon Williams body was exhumed for a new autopsy. The coroner found that Sharon Williams had died from a “blunt force trauma,” not injuries suffered from a car crash – as the first death certificate stated. Jim Williams was arrested and charged with killing both Scott and his former spouse. Walter Scott had been hog-tied by Jim Williams and then shot.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported later that “Sharon Williams died Oct. 20, 1983, and [Walter] Notheis jr. disappeared on Dec. 27, 1983. His body was found in 1987 in a cistern on property James Williams owned in St. Charles County.” It took about two days for the police to catch up with Jo Ann Scott to charge her with the same two counts of murder. But since Jo Ann was offered a plea bargain, she got a $5,000 fine and spent only 18 months in prison. But Jim Williams spent the rest of his life in prison. As the song lyrics recount: “Tough luck for The Cheater.” Indeed. And Jim Williams got his “baby” (Sharon Williams) back from Walter Scott (The Cheater), only to murder her.

Do you know any interesting rock & roll stories like this that you think the rest of RTH won’t know?

The Sidekick has a long history in other pop culture forms. Robin. Tonto. Dr. Watson. Mindy. Ginger Rogers.

But not so much in rock & roll.

When I first thought of this I figured there had to be plenty and yet I could only come up with a handful. I’m counting on Rock Town Hall to expand my list.

Here’s what defines a rock & roll sidekick to me:

• Never the leader
• Almost solely known for his sidekick role
• Long-standing stint in this role

I don’t think Keith Richards qualifies. Mick is definitely top dog, but Keith is too much a part of the mythos and music to be a mere sidekick. Feel free to argue this point.