Blizzard of 2015 snow day

What to do when you're stuck inside due to a blizzard? Have the band over and go-go dance, damn it! Go baby, gooooooooooooooo!

time for a go-go lesson...

...from Denise Drysdale, Australia's premiere go-go dancer.

Sunday morning dose of The Beatles

This is a live tv broadcast from 1963, just months before The Beatles arrived in the United States. I love how they play the music for the closing credits. Lots of audience shots!

1963 threads

Here's a film about what Montgomery Ward was offering for 1963.

Germany's beat club

Here's a complete episode from 1965. More and more.

Tuesday morning dose of 1964

Saturday morning dose of Beatlemania

The Beatles arrive in NYC in 1964. Get out your earplugs!

rock stars with their parents

Check out this 1971 Life Magazine exposé about rock stars at home with their parents. Rock those boots Elton John's mom!

Catch a revue tonight...

If you're under 12, you get to see James Brown for 99¢. Groovy!

Are you a modernist?

Cathy McGowan, known as the Queen of the Mods and host of Ready Steady Go!, appears on To Tell The Truth and answers questions about being a mod from a 1964 broadcast.

Play Your Hunch

Jerry Leiber and Burt Bacharach on the game show in 1958.

let's go-go

I've always been fascinated with rock and roll history, popular culture, and how people dressed, groomed themselves and danced during different eras. The fad dances of the 60s crack me up the most. Seems like people really needed to let go. Yeah baby, yeah!

Record shops had listening booths to preview the latest hits.

Head down to the discotheque and Watusi the night away.

Friday morning dose of 1965

Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames on Ready Steady Go!

haircuts

One man's story of his relationship with the barbershop.

Happy New Year!

Don't let your party get too out of control. Whooooooooaaaaahhh!

Santa's been naughty

Christmas music

My family had three Christmas albums (above) that were played incessantly for weeks until Christmas. The Grants Department Store Christmas album and the Andy Williams album are from 1965.

However, my favorite Christmas music is from the 1963 Phil Spector album featuring Darlene Love. Since 1986, she has performed on Letterman and this year's version was flawless. Hallelujah!

Sunday morning dose of go-go-ness

Where are you getting your go-go boots? Why Sears, of course.

From the 1965 Sears catalog. Comes with 5 records. I'm sold!

Tommy James and the Shondells

Thanks to Alex from Lost and Found on WMBR in Cambridge, Massachusetts, this is my new favorite song. More and more.

Friday night dose of Aretha

Aretha and her girls delight in Stockholm, Sweden from 1968.

Merry Christmas!

'Tis the season to buy, buy, buy! So get in the mood already.

Sweet Soul Music

Legendary artists from Stax Records in Memphis perform during a Stax Volt Revue in Norway from 1967. Whooooooooohooooooooooo!

she's naughty

Saturday morning dose of The Beatles

Happy Thanksgiving!

Let's not forget what Thanksgiving is all about. Pass the turkey!

Sunday morning dose of 1965

Grab your kazoo and play along with the incomparable Otis Redding.

Lou Rawls

Needed to get in the mood for a fun Friday night out. Mmkay.

Thursday morning dose of The Beatles

Every generation has their own music, but they were the best!

uptight and outta sight

Tom Jones and Stevie Wonder belt out a medley from 1969.

Muriel's Wedding

The ABBA post got me thinking about 1995's Muriel's Wedding starring the astounding Toni Collette. If you love ABBA and you've never seen this film, you are in for a real treat. Loves ya Muriel.

Help! I'm still stuck in the 70s

Put on your favorite hooker outfit and sing. You know you want to.

Wait Till Your Father Gets Home

Another show I remember from the cheesy 70s was this. It always confused me as to why daughter Alice came home from her date disheveled during the show's intro. It's because she was date raped. WTF?! The 70s were messed up. The show ran from 1972-1974.

Zoom tv show

A coworker recently mentioned that she's good friends with a former Zoomer. If you were a kid during its 1972-78 run, you watched Zoom every night at 6 on PBS. I haven't seen these show openings in 40 years yet I remember these kids so well. Send it to Zoom!

Happy Halloween!

The Monster Swim and The Monster Mash performed by Bobby "Boris" Pickett on American Bandstand from 1964.

1967's Summer of Love

Far-out footage of San Francisco and Swinging London from 1967.

Saturday night dose of 1966

A crime-fighting rock group with matching boots. Groovy man.

exit, stage left

Who was Snagglepuss anyway? A big, pink, gay lion? Theme songs.

RSG leaves me saying OMG

Spectacular live Motown performances from 1965 on the British
tv show Ready Steady Go! thanks to Dusty Springfield.

Click on the YouTube post above for a larger view.

The Searchers

Beautiful color film of The Searchers, circa 1963/64.

What was your first word?

Believe it or not, mine was Batman. According to my family, I would stand in front of the tv and sing when the Batman tv show theme came on. It premiered in 1966, shortly before my first birthday.

Here I am on Christmas morning in 1966. Notice my sister Mary in the background with curlers in her hair. In the 1960s, my sisters would sleep all night in soup-can-sized curlers with their heads hanging off the bed so they could go to school with a flip hairdo.

Here's Mary's 11th grade school picture from 1967 with a pretty snazzy flip. In case you want to sing along with the Batman theme, here are the lyrics:

Batman

Batman

Batman

Batman

Batman, Batman, Batman,

Batman, Batman, Batman,

na na na na na na na

na na na na na na

Batman!

mods, rockers and beatniks

If I want to be a beatnik, does that mean I can't bathe anymore?

go away already

My friend Glenn and I recently returned from a trip to Amsterdam, Paris and Venice. I first went to Amsterdam and Paris on a school trip when I was 14. The trip cost $750 and I paid for it myself with my summer-job money. It was one of the best decisions I've ever made and I'll never forget it. Is there a place you've always wanted to visit? Go there! There's nothing like traveling. It's the best gift you can give yourself and the memories will last forever.

 Here I am in Paris on the Eiffel Tower in 1980.

The Grand Canal in Venice viewed from the Rialto Bridge.



When in Amsterdam, hop on a bike and join the locals.