Room 222

As a grade schooler in the mid-70s, school vacations meant I got to watch daytime reruns of Room 222. Hearing the older high school kids talk slang and watching Mr. Dixon have rap sessions with his students engrossed me. It premiered in 1969 and dealt with the many hot topics of a changing world – and there were many. Sound familiar?

I think I'll move to LA...

...and become a famous go-go dancer. Yeah, that's the ticket.

Saturday afternoon dose of 1973

She drove a Plymouth Satellite, faster than the speed of light.

swimming pools

I've always had a thing for pools. I knew where most of the in-ground pools existed in my town and surrounding towns we drove through when I was a kid. Even though you couldn't see them behind the wooden fences, they were there – sometimes with the handles of the slide poking up. Summertime for me means it's time to swim so dive in. Yippeee!

What's going on?

jealousy

I love the scene of Elvis singing Got a Lot O' Livin' to Do from the 1957 film Loving You. It picks me up and I just plain dig it. Some of the gents in the crowd are seething with jealousy towards The King. Many peeps hold back from shining their light because of the criticism they expect from others. That fear prevents them from expressing who they truly are. We learn and grow from our failures and we shine when we bust through that dread of being authentic. You've got a lotta livin' to do so break on through, baby! Most of your "haters" are actually your biggest fans – they just can't get beyond their envy. Oh well.

gorillas and knee socks

Whenever I hear a song from the past for the first time, I try to guess the year it was recorded based on the musical style. Instrumental and vocal trends changed every few years or so but 1965 is one of my favorite years in pop music. Here are some groovy tunes by The Ideals from Chicago singing about gorillas, wigs and knee socks:


You Lost and I Won, 1965


Go Get a Wig, 1965


The Gorilla, 1962 (Cortland Records version)
This song is playing in this clip. Whoooooaaaaahhhhhh!

Go-Go Gorilla, 1966 (Satelite Records version)
If you like to boogie, just try to sit still during this one.


Mo Gorilla, 1963


Knee Socks, 1959
Knee socks and Bermuda shorts caused quite a stir in the 1950s.

say what?

Haven't you always wondered what animals are thinking and what they want you to know? I've been fascinated lately with watching videos about "animal communicators." Start with these if you're interested:

• Why is my dog acting up?
• This is a good one
• What are my cats thinking?
• Police horses speak – incredible!
• How to keep your animals calm
• This one blows my mind

Talk to the Animals won the Oscar for "best song" in 1968. This clip from The Lawrence Welk Show is so dweeby until the animals come out dancing. I think the lion missed most of the rehearsals. Bahahaha!

1939 World's Fair

• Elektro the Robot  • photos   • Home of the Future   • rides  
• home movies   • I'm hungry   • newsreel   • swing dancing

The 1939 World's Fair had an exhibit of scantily clad women hanging out for bored husbands to gawk at. What's with the dumpy area?

raise your vibration

I love when young people discover The Beatles and become fans. Very often when I'm feeling down, I play my early-Beatles music. Listening to tunes that you love and singing along raises your vibration, changes your mood and strengthens your immune system. Check out this talented and charismatic young man as he performs Beatles tunes – and sing.

Tom Jones

Throughout generations, many parents loathed their kids listening to "rock and roll" music. On the flip side, my mom, in photos above, dug it. She liked Elvis as a young mother in the 50s and when The Beatles came in 1964, she was groovin' along with her teen daughters. Her favorite singer, however, was Tom Jones. I've been hearing Mr. Jones since I was a toddler and these songs are like a fuzzy blanket for me even though they're about cheating and murder. The young woman, below, is so cute while she hears two of Tom's tunes for the first time.

1958 dancing

In the late 1950s and throughout the 60s, many cities created their own "American Bandstand" at the tv studio with the weatherman as host. This video is like a car crash. I can't look away. Besides, I love the song (thanks Alex). It is so awkward, innocent and white-bread. Thank God footage like this exists when kids danced together pre-twist. One commenter from the video put it this way: "no reefer there."

hey, hey, hey – what's happening?

My friend Sue recently told me that her first concert was The Doobie Brothers on Cape Cod in 1978. I immediately thought of this:



What's Happening?! (1976-79) was one of my favorite shows as a kid. Rerun (Fred Berry) was well-known for his locking. Check him out.

Here are some kids locking on American Bandstand circa 1975.

Boston's WBCN

As a teenager in the late 1970s and early 80s, radio stations were my window to the world. During junior high after getting a clock radio for my bedroom, JB105 out of Providence, RI was my favorite station for pop music. In the 9th grade while briefly diggin' hard rock, WAAF out of Worcester, MA did it for me. During the 10th grade, WCOZ was very popular and many kids wore COZ t-shirts to school. But in the 11th grade, I discovered WBCN and was obsessed. My parents bought a new car that year and without permission I slapped a BCN sticker on the bumper. It was 1982 and music was changing. New-wave was becoming big and BCN rotated this new genre into its repertoire. I would travel to Boston to Newbury Comics when there was only one store on Newbury Street to buy my 45s because Strawberries didn't carry the local music I was hearing on BCN. Below, are some of the actual 45s that I bought during that unique time in music history:

WBCN introduced me to Lene Lovich, one of my favs from that era:

hands across the water...

...and everywhere else must be kept clean. Stay safe folks!

separated at birth

Jean Knight performs Mr. Big Stuff on Soul Train in 1971.

Sunday morning dose of 1965

This 1965 Shangri-Las tune has a definite Motown influence.

keep it simple

I'm fascinated with simple, minimalistic atmospheres. Here's a segment about a 1936 art deco building designed as an experiment in minimal living. Here's another cool one from Hong Kong.

Creedence Clearwater Revival

This group had a slew of hits in such a short time span. Here are some great vintage performances from the years 1968–1972. Yeehaw!

• Green River
• I Heard It Through the Grapevine
• Lookin' Out My Backdoor 
• Bad Moon Rising
• Have You Ever Seen the Rain?
• Born on the Bayou 
• I Put a Spell on You 
• Proud Mary
• Down on the Corner
• Fortunate Son
• Sweet Hitchhiker
• Hey Tonight
• Top 10 countdown
• Their induction by Bruce into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
• Audio from greatest hits album

chicks that rock

Here's a terrific live version of Live by The Bangles. It was originally recorded in 1967 by the west-coast band The Merry-Go-Round.

hee hee hee

This scene from 1969 is so delightfully bizarre, I'm making reservations at this place immediately. The choreography is by Bob Fosse.

Voices in the Sky

Sometimes we just need to slow down, sit still, listen to a beautiful song and let the feelings flow. This has been my top choice as of late.

I challenge you to a shimmy

Instead of shooting missiles at each other, what if we had dance-offs
to solve our world problems? Do The Monkey, Trump, shake it!  :-o

Next stop: Funkytown

Subway band Lucky Chops covers James Brown and Funkytown.

That Old Black Magic

This 1959 performance makes me laugh every time. I love their chemistry. Learn about this talented husband and wife team.


Jump, Jive an' Wail, Louis Prima, 1956

Happy Christmas!

Quoting Dickens: God bless us, everyone! – Tiny Tim

Looking for a new job?

Then try to dress as professionally as possible for the best results.

Is your organ happy?

The Booker T. show still has me jonesing for more organ so I've reconnected with my old friends Cherry Wainer and Don Storer. Thank God for people like Cherry. How cute and fun was she?! I'm impressed her teeny poodle sitting on the bench could stand all that stimulation.




The Happy Organ, Dave "Baby" Cortez, 1959

Happy day-after Thanksgiving

Ate too much pie? Y'all cats and chicks will need these tips.

Booker T. Jones

I saw one of my favorites at The Narrows in Fall River last night – a new venue for me. It’s about an hour from Boston but a breeze coming home. I will definitely be going back. You can bring your own food and drink. Tables are reserved but seats are first come first served. Booker T. Jones read from his new memoir, had a brief QA with the audience, and jammed with his son and 2 other fabulous musicians. What a blast to hear him play his Booker T. and the MGs greats right there on his Hammond organ. He talked about recording Dock of the Bay, which was the last time he played with Otis Redding. While he sang it, the audience joined in with the whistling that occurs at the end of the song. I’ll never forget that. Check out this joint. Learn about Stax Records.

Hip Hug-Her, 1967


Soul Limbo, 1968


Time Is Tight, 1968

three-part harmonies

Really diggin' this video of The Hollies doing their thang. Woohoo!

Ghost Riders in the Sky

I love everything about this circa 1961 performance by Neil LaVang.

Southern California beach culture

I've always been a beach person and intrigued by the SOCA lifestyle. Have you? Then check out the history of this coastline. Cowabunga!

don't ask me...

...because I Can't Explain it. Are you a Mod, Rocker or Beatnik?

Saturday morning dose of The Stones

The Rolling Stones perform on The Ed Sullivan Show circa 1964.

Here's a great montage of the appearances on the show in the 1960s including their infamous Let's Spend Some "TIME" Together performance. The audiences were outta control. I get it though.

A lot going on here. Some approve, some don't – just like life.