The Beach Boys, The Beatles, Pretty Woman, Leader of the Pack, Elvis, Andy Warhol, Eliza Doolittle, Odd Job, Karen, GI Joe and Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer? It must be the fourth quarter of 1964!
I actually FOUND that Orbison 45 discarded in the grass, somewhere in the neighborhood. I took it home, gently washed it & it played OK, albeit with a small warp! Loved "Summer Song" & still do. A friend had it on an LP. Didn't realize that "Come...Closer" was co-written by Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart ("I Wonder What She's Doin Tonight," "Alice Long" and for the Monkees, their "Theme, " "Last Train to Clarksville, & "Steppin' Stone..") My dad played "The Original Cast Recording" album of "My Fair Lady" a LOT as I was growing up. The 1956 Broadway production (with Julie Andrews instead of Audrey Hepburn) spawned a record album soon after, and in 1957, it was a perfect vehicle for Dad to show off his custom, big-speaker hi-fi set. I was 5 years old. When the movie version (1964) came out, I'm sure my parents saw it in the theatre, but since there were no VCRs yet, again for huge fans, that one-time big-screen treat was as close as you could get. I STILL haven't seen "Emily." I don't recall if your TAMI episodes mentioned it, but the earliest releases omitted the BBs over some recording rights issue. Glad that was ultimately resolved! I remember seeing that first airing of "Rudolph." It became popular and a holiday tradition in our home. Mom loved Burl Ives, a truly multi-talented guy. We never had a "Rock-em Sock-em" in our house, but I sure recall the Sat. AM TV ads, "by MARX !!!" Thanks for all the DETAIL & dedication, S.L. !!
Thanks for the great feedback and for sharing the great memories, Bill! Good eye, catching that early Boyce and Hart writing credit! I was seven when they had their big hit with "I Wonder What She's Doing Tonight." When the DJ would say their name, I thought it was a band called "Poison Heart." (I know I must have already seen the names on Monkees albums but I never put it together.) I've been researching 1957 for some upcoming episodes, and the Broadway cast recording of "My Fair Lady" definitely looms at least as large then as the movie soundtrack does in 1964.(Good point about the lack of VCRs or any other way to watch a movie except in the theater. That was definitely a huge difference between those times and now.) My recollection on the TAMI Show was that Murry arranged for the Beach Boys appearance to be cut after the original theatrical run, fearing it would hurt concert attendance over the long run, which, as I recall, lead to decades of debate about whether or not the Beach Boys had ever been in it, until the footage was finally restored. Burl Ives was definitely a great talent and I'm actually surprised that, I think, it's the first time his name has come up in one of these episodes. (I guess, with 1962 being the year of his biggest recording successes, we'll, at least, get to him again in some 1962 episodes one of these days.) We never had "Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots" either. I think I "asked for them" every year, but they were always down around seventh or eighth on "my list": too far down to actually make the cut! (Nice that you remember "By MARX!" too!) Thanks again for the feedback and memories, Bill! Always great stuff!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 I don't know how deep you plan to go into cultural events when you look at "1957," but when I think of that year these days (I was five at the time) I have some hazy memories of kindergarten, watching Dad build a bulky Heathkit transistor radio, etc.) I think of IGY (not Fagen!), the '57 Chevy, the Braves surprising the Yanks despite Mantle's brilliance, Sputnik, and Lionel Trains making a last-ditch effort to stay relevant in the hobby market (Girl's Train, Super O, and the final Showroom Layout in NYC.) I know you have a lot you can cover. Looking foraward to it.
@@burlingtonbill1 Thanks for the follow-up, Bill! There's SO much going on in '57 and I keep finding more! I had missed "IGY" and never knew about Lionel Trains' marketing (which sounds interesting and is something I want to look into for sure!) Certainly, a lot of great stuff to pack into what, I expect, will be four episodes; one for each quarter. I will definitely be looking for your feedback on those episodes! Thanks, Bill!
Santa brought me the whole kit of G.I. Joe gear. Including the jeep and trailer for the real shooting recoilless rifle. 1964 was such a long time from current times. Now a days, not sure if a decade of plastic guns as gifts was such a good idea for pre-teens.
Man! You hit the jackpot that Christmas! I got a "Joe" and some accessories, but I was never able to "score" the Jeep and trailer, which always looked great! Those were definitely "different times." Always great to hear from you, Tom!
Definitely! 1964 is such a transitional and strange era for music that I thought about doing a direct comparison between the last record charts of 1963 and the last charts of 1964. The difference is pretty astonishing! Great to hear from you, Marco!
Great episode Steve, and before you get to 1965, I wanted to give you a heads up on the most influential toy of 1965, and there can only be one toy whose influence can be felt almost 60 years later, a $1 toy made by Whamm-o called the Super Ball. 2 years after this toy came out, the 2 professional football leagues, the NFL and AFL, played their first championship game against each other. The Green Bay Packers won the first 2, which still had the long awkward title of NFL AFL league championship game, and didn't exactly roll off the tongue. One of the founders of the game, Lamar Hunt, was visiting his grandkids and saw one of them playing with this ball that had a wild crazy bounce. He asked his grandson what's the name of that toy? The grandson replied it's a super ball. He suddenly had a flash of inspiration: super ball, SUPER BOWL. He had been trying to find a more catchy name for the league championship game, and was thinking along the lines of the college championship games, like Rose bowl, Cotton bowl, Orange bowl, etc. He started promoting the 3rd one as the Super bowl, and the press instantly picked up on it. And ever since 1969, it's been called the Super bowl, and the day of the game is super bowl Sunday. A world wide event generating millions of dollars every year. And it all started with a one dollar toy from Whamm-o.....
Thanks for that, Doc! I've started putting together research for 1965, including big new toy releases and that's an important one I might have missed! And, I had no idea about the Super Ball/Super Bowl connection! I've made a note of it and will be sure to give you a "shout out" when we come to Super Ball in '65! Thanks again!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444I found a real concise video, called "how did the super bowl get its name? " On the USA today sports channel, only 2 minutes long but explains the origin of the name with enough detail, also check out the Whamm-o super ball commercials from 1965, can't wait till you get to the Beach Boys at the end of 64, it's a period that would split the band, and go on to define them. Brian would play with them after the breakdown, but only during TV appearances, like Jack Benny & Andy Williams. As for the Rudolph Christmas special, my only problem with it was the anorexic Santa who was suddenly fat and jolly by Christmas Eve. And I'd like to add that G.I. JOE shrank considerably by its mid80s revival....
@@DoctorInsomnia-qw7us Thanks for letting me know about the video. I'll check it out! Maybe the skinny/fat thing effected Santa's mood. As an adult, my overwhelming impression is that Santa is a real jerk to Rudolph and his parents about the red nose and has a lot of nerve asking Rudolph to "guide his sleigh" after completely writing him off as a red-nosed freak up to that point. Now that you mention it, maybe he was just grouchy when he was skinny and jolly when he was fat. That would explain it! (I'm sure, over the decades, I've given much more thought to this than the writers did under a deadline in '64...and probably more thought than is healthy!) Thanks for reminding me of the tiny GI Joes of the 80s! Seems Joe could overcome most anything...except the rising cost of plastic! Thanks for the great follow-up, Doc! Much appreciated and much enjoyed!
Wow! Great story; I never made the connection! Of course I remember the Super Ball -- it truly WAS amazing, though it wore out faster when you bounced on the rough driveway concrete! (Wonder why you never see them any more; according to Wiki they are still produced. Their article also noted: "In the late 1960s, Wham-O made a giant Super Ball roughly the size of a bowling ball, as a promotional stunt. It fell from the 23rd story window (some reports say the roof) of an Australian hotel and destroyed a parked convertible car on the second bounce."
@@burlingtonbill1 Great story on the "giant Australian Super Ball," Bill! I'd have thought somebody might have considered a Super Ball might not be something you can just "size up" and have it work the same way. I never noticed Super Balls wearing out...now, I realize that we pretty much always lost them (by bouncing them over the house or something) before they had a chance to get much wear. Thanks again for passing along the great comments and info!
Whoa! I had no idea that Chad and Jeremy were produced by Shel Talmy, who of course is best known for more raucous productions for the Who and the Kinks. C and J's vocal style and music were near-whispering in comparison. I guess Talmy was rather versatile.
I had no idea either until I saw the credit on the label. Definitely a departure from what I think of when I think "Shel Talmy." Thanks for reminding me of it, Joel! Always great to hear from you!
The Kinks first big hit ! Such a great and influential song. Dave Davies took a razor blade to his amp speaker to get that famous distortion! Always wished the Kinks did one more show and released one more album. “ Save it for me” by the 4 seasons made many a mix tape for me over the years! That TAMI show our BB boys were really cooking! One of the last real clips with Brian being a big part of the live act! Great stuff Steve !
Yes! Great Kinks song! They're one of the bands I actually remember seeing on Ed Sullivan "back in the day" along with the Beatles and Herman's Hermits. (No idea how I ended up seeing them, since we almost always watched "Disney" over on NBC, but, even at age 5, I remember thinking the Kinks were really cool.) Good point about the TAMI Show. With Brian coming off the road in December, both that show and the "Concert" album turned out to be "historic documents" almost as soon as they were released. Thanks for the great feedback and insights, Mike, as always!
Thanks, Don! The feedback on the singing has been surprisingly positive this week. (I'll need to give the episode another view to remember what I did!) Always great to hear from you! Thanks again!
We had no idea at the time but a lot of big names went under in 1964 because of the Beatles and the other british act's. The Beach Boys however managed to mentain their popularity by making some fantastic music. History's proved that their chart success in the States was as good as anyone up to this period in time. With the "Fab Four" dominating both the single and album charts?, making the top 10 was a major achievement. Some great TV shows and some memorable movie's also mentioned in this episode, especially "Goldfinger" a group of us actually went to see this film for five nights in a row.
Thanks for the excellent feedback and insights, John! I think a lot of people, generally, would be surprised that the Beach Boys were actually bigger "post-Beatles" than they were "pre-Beatles." I think it helped that, like the Beatles and so many of the other "British Invasion" groups, they were a self-contained unit, and fit in with that trend, but, as you point out, mainly, they were making some really great records. Very cool that you watched "Goldfinger" five nights in a row! (Now that you've mentioned it, if I was going to watch any movie five nights in a row, "Goldfinger" would be a pretty enjoyable choice!) Always great to hear from you, John! Have a great week!
Thanks for another fun episode Steve. I never had Rock ‘em Sock ‘em robots but they looked so fun in the commercials. I don’t remember getting burned with Creepy Crawlers, my Mom probably took them out of the molds. Just for reference, Easy Bake Ovens are powered by a 40 watt light bulb, so not much chance of getting burned! The cakes didn’t taste as good as they looked on TV Also one correction, when FDR was re-elected in 1936, Alf Landon only carried Maine and Vermont.
Thanks for catching that error on the '64 election! '36 was definitely a bigger landslide than '64. I should have cross-referenced my source on that. I appreciate you letting me know! I recently talked to my Mom about Creepy Crawlers. I remembered we always kept the "Thing Maker" sets on a high closet shelf. They could only come out on "special occasions." She says she did it so she could supervise and that it was a constant struggle to try to keep us from getting hurt when we'd use them (and I still managed to get burns on my fingers anyway!) I knew Easy Bake Oven used a light bulb. I had no idea it was a 40 watt...or that a 40 watt could cook anything! Thanks for the great comments and info, Joel! And thanks again for catching that error!
Great episode Steve! My parents had the soundtracks to Hello Dolly, My Fair Lady, Fiddler on the Roof as well as the Andy Williams Broadway album - all part of my childhood. I also remember going to see My Fair Lady at the movie theater. Those were the days when many movies had an overture before the film actually started. I also remember all of the excitement about James Bond and "Goldfinger." My cousin had the Corgi James Bond Aston Martin car complete with passenger ejector seat. I was a big fan of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and had several "spy" toys including a fake finger that launched a missile called Six Finger Five. My sister had the Creepy Crawler toy. My father would not let me have a G.I. Joe! (He had been in World War Two). By the way, The Honeycombs were one of the few bands to have female drummer. Whenever I hear "Have I the Right" it always sounds overmodulated. My older cousins (who were big influences on me) had the Beatles' "Something New" album as well as Beatles'wigs. My sister had a "Paul" toy doll and she got white Go-Go boots that christmas. It is interesting how The Beatles influenced so many other groups with their fashion attire - particularly their boots with the Cuban heel. Look at the Dave Clark Five's cover photo! Thanks for all the memories and I enjoy your singing!
Thanks for sharing the memories, Currin! Man! You and your family had a real treasure trove of pop culture! (At the time, I know, it was just "stuff" with no idea it would all, one day, be "rare collectibles.") Thanks for mentioning those James Bond and secret agent items! (I'm trying to put together a listing of them to, hopefully, discuss in a "1965" episode. I've added these to the list and will be sure to give you a "shout out" when we get to them.) I had forgotten, but definitely remembered when you mention it, "Six Finger." I know we had one at some point. I had seen the Corgi Bond car but had no idea it had an ejector seat. How cool! Thanks for the point on the Honeycombs drummer and I agree about "Have I The Right" being overmodulated. Thanks, again, for sharing the excellent memories, Currin!
Great to have you back, Usualmike! I was only four at Christmas 1964, but GI Joe definitely made a lasting impression on me, even then! Thanks for the feedback!
Thank you for another great episode Steve and by now in 1964, i had moved up to primary school and i can confirm that many records you mention were hits in UK too with Supremes, Gene Pitney and Roy Orbison all still popular today and Roy Orbison on particular would often joke that he had been top of the bill and had had the Beatles as warm up, which later, was the other way around , but it didnt affect their relationship as we could see many years later when he and George were part of the Travelling Wilburys , And this is a funny story about Roy Orbison and UK as exclusive to London, there are many PIE n Mash shops that are made to a secret recipe, handed down for many generations and Roy was so amazed by the taste of the secret sauce that he would buy huge quantaties of the product and hand it out with delight, to whoever he was working with, even risking being late in order for him and others to enjoy their treat and the story goes that when he was at home, he would send for the dish and would rave about it to his friends. Oh yes, in 1964 i was very aware of what was going on and was very much into the music coming from the radio and at that time, it was all about the Beatles and anything Liverpool And TV it was Fireball XL5, Animal Magic with Johnny Morris who would dub voices on to the animals to make a story and it made it look as if the animals were talking ......and of course Doctor Who and in 1964, the craze was DALEKS and i was lucky enough to own two toy battery operated daleks and one was black the other silver and both would scoot across the floor and upon hitting any obstruction would turn around and both had flashing lights , a delight for any child.
I absolutely LOVED "XL5," at least in part because of the theme song and GREAT opening sequence: czcams.com/video/6ifS2nP53Zs/video.html While writing this, it reminded me of a similar situation with "The Amazing Adventures of Superman, which we never missed after school, if we could help it! After the thrilling open, the rest of the show was somewhat "downhill." czcams.com/video/fUJJRABDxKI/video.html
@@burlingtonbill1 Yes, i too would watch and enjoy both these shows and for the very same reason Bill. They look a bit corny now, but back then, all the kids would race around the playground acting out the various situations and discussing each episide at great length and non of us were too bothered about the fact that the best " bits " were in the title sequence hahaha.
Thanks for reminding me of the Roy Orbison/Beatles tour. Seems like I remember at least one of the group saying they were slightly embarrassed when the billing was changed, because they liked Roy and felt kind of bad about it. I had never heard the great "secret sauce" story before! Now, I'm really curious to know what that must have tasted like! I remember "Fireball XL5" playing on TV here. I never hear of "Animal Magic" before, but, from your description, it sounds like something I would have loved as a kid! Those Dalek toys sound GREAT! Weirdly, because the Dr. Who series didn't play here until much later, but the two film were released here, I only knew the Daleks from the movies and assumed that Peter Cushing "was" Dr. Who. (My son was a real fan of the later "Dr. Who" with David Tennant and Matt Smith. We even got him a giant inflatable Dalek for Christmas, which stood in his room for years.) Thanks for sharing the great perspective and memories, Chris!
With all the dangerous toys marketed to kids in the 1960s, it’s a wonder more of us didn’t end up maiming ourselves. Fortunately, my parents usually recognized the danger after buying them, and thus things like my chemistry set ended up gathering dust in storage. Somehow they overlooked the spring-loaded gun with suction cup darts meant to be shot at a bull’s eye target. That seemed relatively safe until I realized I could pluck the cup off the plastic dart, turning it into a thin projectile that could easily take out someone’s eye or cause some other severe injury.
I definitely had the dart guns and the chemistry sets too. I don't remember what was actually in the chemistry sets. We never looked at the directions and just mixed stuff together at random, looking for things that would change color or smell weird. (Undoubtedly, we were taking big whiffs of whatever fumes were coming off of that stuff to smell it, too.) We also had lawn darts and were given the great safety instructions, "Just make sure you get out of the way." Along with the lack of seatbelts, it's amazing any of us made it! Great to hear from you, as always, Bill!
Wow! So much good info and another walk down memory lane. I had no idea about the Beach Boy's TV theme song. Agreed, it wasn't Christmas without watching Rudolph; Christmas toys over the next few years for my twin brother and I included Rock 'Em, Sock 'Em Robots, Creepy Crawlers & G.I. Joe's (including one with the realistic hair and Kung-Fu grip a few years later!) I guess the Strange Change Machine appeared a few years later. With toys like wood-burning kits, Creepy Crawlers and Easy-Bake Ovens for the girls, it's a wonder we survived at all. ;) I'll never understand why they didn't launch "flaming lawn darts." Oh, well. Chris
You probably could have made a million dollars with "flaming lawn darts" in the '60s! I guess timing IS everything! Thanks for the great laugh, Chris! That "Karen" theme song is a weird one. (I talked about it back in a very, very early episode.) I don't think it's ever been on an official Beach Boys compilation. I've found it on boots, always with the last couple notes of the song missing, for some reason. The only full, "official" release, sung by the Beach Boys, I've ever come across was on a CD "Tee Vee Toons Presents Black & White Classics" from 1996. I thought the "golden era" for GI Joe was with the beards and Kung Fu grip. (I remember too, that they billed it as "lifelike hair and beard." I'd hate to have seen anybody in "life" with that weird, glued-on stubble on his head and face!) I always felt like GI Joe "jumped the shark" a short time later with "Mike Power: Atomic Man" (a Six Million Dollar Man knock-off) and, then, "Bulletman The Human Bullet." Thanks for reminding me of the "Strange Change Machine." I know it came a little later. I'm going to research it to make a note for a future episode. I won't want to miss talking about that! (BTW, I never had access to an Easy Bake Oven, but I always thought those little chocolate cakes looked REALLY tasty in the ads!) Great to hear from you, Chris, and thanks for sharing the memories!
Yep, the Karen tune is strange. As far as I recall, my brother and I received the lifelike hair and KFG editions for Christmas the first year they were available. I believe there were 3 different versions available at the time, a white guy with the dark brown beard and hair, a white guy with blonde hair and no beard, and a black guy. I asked for the black guy, but received the brown haired white guy (go figure.) My brother got the blonde haired guy, which is what he wanted. Mine had the "white tiger" and cage playset, while my brother's GIJ had either a diving suit or submarine gear (we had earlier GIJ's as kids, so I may be mistaken regarding the accessories he received.) I believe I still have mine somewhere, although it's missing part of a leg (war wound.) Did you ever have any of the Marx Johnny West (Cowboys and Indians) action figures or Dinosaur sets as a kid?@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444
@@bchnwgn Wow! All of that sounds very much like the stuff we (mainly my younger brother) had. He and his best friend were a major GI Joe collectors during the "Adventure Team" and "Kung Fu Grip" years. For Christmas and birthdays, everybody would get them a "GI Joe" item and people always seemed to assume they might not have the black GI Joe, so that's what they'd get. After a few years, they had unexpectedly amassed a huge army of black GI Joes. (Seriously, the ratio was probably 10 to one!) We had Johnny West and his horse, but never had the whole set. (There was another set, also "by Marx!" called "Noble Knights" which was the same figures and horses, only with armor and done up for battling and jousting which we also had.) The biggest hazard for all of them at our place was getting chewed by dogs and a lot of them met their fate that way. Thanks for the great follow-up, Chris!
steve! you may remember me asking for some resources for a presentation about good vibrations a couple weeks ago! well, it happened yesterday and went down very well! my classmates seem to like it and i think i did the best job with my powerpoint, definitely didn’t manage to mention everything that i wrote down thank you very much:) i put a special thanks on the last slide that mentioned your channel, so hopefully some new beach boys nerds have been made
That is SO great and thanks so much for following-up! I think it's actually probably a good sign that you didn't mention everything you wrote down...It shows you were prepare with plenty of info! Thanks for the "plug" on your powerpoint slide! If anyone from you class happens to watch the channel, I hope they'll let me know. It'd be great to be able to say I picked up viewers from a college powerpoint presentation! Wish I could have seen the presentation and I'm delighted to have been able to help. Best of luck and keep in touch!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 docs.google.com/presentation/d/1hbgUehkDSVXW9w7zMdHCrQD80ndVv48E3CQauLwCsUo/edit?usp=drive_link this is the link to the powerpoint! im quite proud of it, plus theres some stuff i came up with on the spot while presenting, like how the whimsical instrumentation and fuzzy, saturated production creates almost a childlike atmosphere, a common motif of brian's songwriting (quite proud of that one)
Great stuff as usual Steve. The only thing I have from Roy Orbison is the single of You Got It. Of course, at a time everything that Jeff Lynne touched was a hit, except maybe Let It Shine. I did see where it looks like Jeff Lynne is going to tour the US. I was surprised how Rudolph was changed over the years. I had the Rock'em Sock'em robots. I also had a bearded talking G.I. Joe and a helicopter for him to fly in. I remember getting a lot of outfits for G.I. Joe at Kmart cheap at their blue light specials. I never had the Creepy Crawlers, but boy I love how we had so many dangerous toys. Anyway, thanks for the Great memories.
In a amazing coincidence, my brother just texted me that Jeff Lynne is touring while I was reading your comment! (Guess good news does travel fast!) I had the early GI Joe and the bearded "Adventure Team" GI Joe years later. I always thought the "bearded years" had the best stuff; including that great helicopter! (My younger brother had most of the equipment. I remember him "flying" Joe around the house in the yellow helicopter, pushing a button on the side with his thumb to make the blades rotate. I always felt like he grew up in the "golden era" of toys; just before higher petroleum prices forced everything to be downsized.) As you can probably imagine, a "blue light special" on GI Joes would have been a highlight for us too! Thanks for the great feedback and for sharing the memories, Michael!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 Also coincidentally, my brother is the one who told me about Jeff Lynne touring and even sent me the tour dates. It sounds like we'll probably be going to see him. He also said an album is also coming and sent me a track listing.
@@michaelthemovieattic Very cool! My brother is in Oregon so we don't get a chance to check out concerts together. He's actually a much heartier concert-goer than I am. He seems to get out to everything! Thanks fo letting me know about the upcoming album! I'll want to check that out too!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 If you're undecided, I'd strongly encourage you to do so. Great sound, best light show I've seen. Glad I went in 2016. I put off too long seeing Tom Petty.
I love when Steve sings the hits! I am so lucky to get to go record shopping with Steve, and I regularly benefit from his encyclopedic musical memory and those golden tones. Thanks Steve!
No joke. On a road trip in the late 90s I was high on weed the first time I'd heard "Well sing in the sunshine" by Gale Garnett. It made me tear up. I'm glad I didn't hear anything by Bobby Goldsboro
This time period is special for me/when I was born. Have always liked the photo of the Beatles used on the cover of the Beatles 2nd album, put out by Capitol (particularly the background light set up behind Ringo on the stage they're performing on). Didn't know who the singer was for the song "We'll Sing In The Sunshine"/Gale Garnett. Thanks for that info., Steve! The robot toys and the creepy crawler toys looked like fun to play with, but I can see the danger in getting burned making the creepy crawlers. In the early '70s, I had a G.I. Joe doll, which I enjoyed. Think Goldfinger is a great early James Bond movie (the one woman winds up getting encased in gold!). Interesting that the television special Around The Beatles ends with them performing the song "Shout", which they never perfomed live elsewhere, or recorded in the studio.
Thanks for the great feedback, Robert! Thanks, too, for mentioning the performance of "Shout" on "Around the Beatles." It seems like that show needs a proper restoration and release. (Back in the late 70s, there were "Beatle Film Festivals" that played midnight shows on college campuses. They always included clips from Shea Stadium, the "Hey Jude" and "Revolution" performance films, maybe parts of "Magical Mystery Tour" and some other concert footage, and "Shout" from "Around The Beatles." The film quality for that one was always terrible! The versions on-line now are better but it definitely seems like some restoration work would be a good thing.) BTW, I think the 70s GI Joes were MUCH cooler than the original 60s GI Joes. You "timed it right" on GI Joe! Thanks again, as always, for the great comments, Robert!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444Eventually plan on buying a DVD of the Around The Beatles Special, as well as a DVD of the complete 1965 Shea Stadium concert (Personally think this was their best concert, mainly because of the atmosphere in the audience). I'm sure you've heard about the passing of musician Eric Carmen. Didn't know he had recorded a very good version of "Caroline, No". Several years ago, picked up a budget DVD titled having Fun With The Fab Four, which has clips from various Press Conferences the Beatles did, where they would make funny comments to reporters. The DVD also has the clip from Around The Beatles, where they did the Shakespeare scene, so I've seen that.
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444Posted a reply back earlier today (For some reason it's not showing up as a follow up to your reply , Steve). So I'll try again! What I said earlier was that eventually I plan on buying DVDs of both Around The Beatles and the Beatles complete 1965 Shea Stadium concert. Hope I can find both for a reasonable price. I mentioned also the passing of Eric Carmen of the Raspberries (Not sure if you know about that). About 20 years ago, he recorded a nice cover of "Caroline, No", which I wasn't aware of.
@@robertzastrow4648 Let me know if you come across any good, affordable DVDs of either "Around The Beatles" or "Shea Stadium." I haven't really looked for them in a long time. For all I know, there may be pristine, licensed versions available that I've missed. It was definitely sad news about Eric Carmen. I was a little disappointed that the news channel where I saw the report described him only as "'Hungry Eyes' singer Eric Carmen." With his career, he certainly deserved a more detail than that! Thanks for the follow-up, Robert!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444Have seen Around The Beatles being sold on both Amazon and ebay. These might be imports, though. You have to be careful buying import DVDs, because they're usually set up for Region 2 (Meaning they won't play on U.S. DVD players). If they're set up for Region 1, then you're okay. There are two websites, etsy and videobeat, which sell DVDs (etsy sells a bunch of stuff, other than just DVDs). Have found Shea Stadium DVDs on both sites. They're not cheap, though, nor legitimate releases. Have you heard about these two websites? Have a Greatest Hits CD of the Raspberries. Have thought of them as an American version of the British band Badfinger (Think the two sound a lot alike, in terms of music styles). Have you heard about the official release either this year or next year of the Fred Vail album/CD, called Cows In The Pasture? This is the lost Beach Boys Country album, recorded at the same time the Beach Boys were recording Sunflower in the spring of 1970. Fred said in a recent Rolling Stone magazine interview that he and Brian recorded the instrumental tracks for the songs, when he (Brian) would get bored working on the Beach Boys material. Fred said at the time (1970) he himself recorded "Scratch" vocals for the songs, but before he and Brian could finish the album, Brian lost interest, so the tapes were put away. They were rediscovered a number of years ago, and a young Producer named Sam Parker talked Fred into finishing the album. Brian will be the Executive Producer, and will sing on one song. The other songs will have Fred's vocals (Cleaned up), plus vocals from Country music guest stars.
Always a tad surprised by the number of Top 10 songs and artists that I've never even heard of, sandwiched in-between the uber-familiar all-time classics. The Newbeats? Betty EvereIt and Jerry Butler? The Honeycombs? Also, I did not realize the title of Orbison's Pretty Woman is apparently Oh, Pretty Woman. Oh... I'll assume (presume?) you've listened to the entire 40 or so-minute outtake of Murry hijacking the Help Me, Rhonda session. ("I'm a genius, too, you know.") Near the end, Brian and Murry are talking--Murry criticizes the boys' singing etc, and Brian says "Do you want to tell that to Johnny Rivers?" (Or close to that). I've always wondered what BW meant by that remark...why name check Johnny Rivers there? Just crossed my mind at the mention of Mountain of Love... As for the albums, A Hard Day's Night at #1 for 11 weeks vs All Summer Long at #4 for 5 weeks strikes me as a kind of metric or index of the relative popularity of the two bands. The BBs were big, but that other band was obviously colossally ginormously huge... I bought a Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots set for my 53 yr old sister a Christmas or two ago, as a retro joke. We were both disappointed at how cheap the thing was--I recall we couldn't quite get the robots to fit into the base--or the "canvas," I suppose. And the rocking and socking robot punches never quite landed. Maybe there was better quality-control back then, because I know I had one when i was a kid...and I can recall enjoying playing with it. Were they flimsy then, too, and I was too young to notice or care...? Great vid. See ya next week...
@@burlingtonbill1 True. I can imagine both bands showing up for meetings at the Capitol Tower. "Send in the Beatles right away, and tell the Beach Boys to wait..."
I never caught the "Johnny Rivers" line on that Murry Wilson tape. No idea what Brian might have met. (In what, I'm sure, is a completely unrelated coincidence, Johnny Rivers covered "Help Me Rhonda" ten years later, in 1975, with Brian providing backing vocals.) Maybe Rivers was thinking of covering it then? I know Bruce & Terry cut a cover version after hearing the original on "Beach Boys Today!" and that Brian asked them not to release it because the Beach Boys were going to do it as a single. Could they have been feeling pressure to get their single out ahead of a proposed Johnny Rivers version? (That is, of course, wild and unfounded speculation on my part.) I know what you mean about "Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots." We got a set, maybe fifteen years ago, and you could play it but you had to be pretty careful not to overpower it or the whole thing would have fallen apart. I never had one "back in the day" so I'm just guessing that they made them a little sturdier back then. (Then again, maybe not!) Have a great week, rangergrrrl! Always great to hear from you!
It Hurts To Be In Love. Neil Sedaka recorded the song but couldn't release it because of a conflict with his record company. Gene Pitney recorded the song, had the hit but kept Neil's background vocals on it. I learned about that a few years back. Goldfinger is definitely one of my favorite Bond movies. Shirley Bassey would have her only top ten U.S. hit in '65 with the theme song. Great episode by the way
Thanks for the background on "It Hurts To Be In Love." I had no idea! I'm definitely planning to go into "Goldfinger" and the "spy-craze" a little more when we get into 1965, including Shirley Bassey's hit single, of course. (Not sure if I'm going to try singing the title to that one...It'll be tempting!) Thanks for the great feedback, as always, Angelique!
I actually FOUND that Orbison 45 discarded in the grass, somewhere in the neighborhood. I took it home, gently washed it & it played OK, albeit with a small warp! Loved "Summer Song" & still do. A friend had it on an LP. Didn't realize that "Come...Closer" was co-written by Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart ("I Wonder What She's Doin Tonight," "Alice Long" and for the Monkees, their "Theme, " "Last Train to Clarksville, & "Steppin' Stone..")
My dad played "The Original Cast Recording" album of "My Fair Lady" a LOT as I was growing up. The 1956 Broadway production (with Julie Andrews instead of Audrey Hepburn) spawned a record album soon after, and in 1957, it was a perfect vehicle for Dad to show off his custom, big-speaker hi-fi set. I was 5 years old. When the movie version (1964) came out, I'm sure my parents saw it in the theatre, but since there were no VCRs yet, again for huge fans, that one-time big-screen treat was as close as you could get. I STILL haven't seen "Emily."
I don't recall if your TAMI episodes mentioned it, but the earliest releases omitted the BBs over some recording rights issue. Glad that was ultimately resolved! I remember seeing that first airing of "Rudolph." It became popular and a holiday tradition in our home. Mom loved Burl Ives, a truly multi-talented guy. We never had a "Rock-em Sock-em" in our house, but I sure recall the Sat. AM TV ads, "by MARX !!!" Thanks for all the DETAIL & dedication, S.L. !!
Thanks for the great feedback and for sharing the great memories, Bill! Good eye, catching that early Boyce and Hart writing credit! I was seven when they had their big hit with "I Wonder What She's Doing Tonight." When the DJ would say their name, I thought it was a band called "Poison Heart." (I know I must have already seen the names on Monkees albums but I never put it together.)
I've been researching 1957 for some upcoming episodes, and the Broadway cast recording of "My Fair Lady" definitely looms at least as large then as the movie soundtrack does in 1964.(Good point about the lack of VCRs or any other way to watch a movie except in the theater. That was definitely a huge difference between those times and now.)
My recollection on the TAMI Show was that Murry arranged for the Beach Boys appearance to be cut after the original theatrical run, fearing it would hurt concert attendance over the long run, which, as I recall, lead to decades of debate about whether or not the Beach Boys had ever been in it, until the footage was finally restored.
Burl Ives was definitely a great talent and I'm actually surprised that, I think, it's the first time his name has come up in one of these episodes. (I guess, with 1962 being the year of his biggest recording successes, we'll, at least, get to him again in some 1962 episodes one of these days.)
We never had "Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots" either. I think I "asked for them" every year, but they were always down around seventh or eighth on "my list": too far down to actually make the cut! (Nice that you remember "By MARX!" too!)
Thanks again for the feedback and memories, Bill! Always great stuff!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 I don't know how deep you plan to go into cultural events when you look at "1957," but when I think of that year these days (I was five at the time) I have some hazy memories of kindergarten, watching Dad build a bulky Heathkit transistor radio, etc.) I think of IGY (not Fagen!), the '57 Chevy, the Braves surprising the Yanks despite Mantle's brilliance, Sputnik, and Lionel Trains making a last-ditch effort to stay relevant in the hobby market (Girl's Train, Super O, and the final Showroom Layout in NYC.) I know you have a lot you can cover. Looking foraward to it.
@@burlingtonbill1 Thanks for the follow-up, Bill! There's SO much going on in '57 and I keep finding more! I had missed "IGY" and never knew about Lionel Trains' marketing (which sounds interesting and is something I want to look into for sure!) Certainly, a lot of great stuff to pack into what, I expect, will be four episodes; one for each quarter. I will definitely be looking for your feedback on those episodes! Thanks, Bill!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 Be happy to try & help.
Santa brought me the whole kit of G.I. Joe gear. Including the jeep and trailer for the real shooting recoilless rifle. 1964 was such a long time from current times. Now a days, not sure if a decade of plastic guns as gifts was such a good idea for pre-teens.
Man! You hit the jackpot that Christmas! I got a "Joe" and some accessories, but I was never able to "score" the Jeep and trailer, which always looked great! Those were definitely "different times." Always great to hear from you, Tom!
Wow what an eclectic top 10 singles that qtr.
Definitely! 1964 is such a transitional and strange era for music that I thought about doing a direct comparison between the last record charts of 1963 and the last charts of 1964. The difference is pretty astonishing! Great to hear from you, Marco!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 thanks Steve.
Imo. It proves the economic business theory of supply demand and competition.
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 That would, indeed, be cool!
Great episode Steve, and before you get to 1965, I wanted to give you a heads up on the most influential toy of 1965, and there can only be one toy whose influence can be felt almost 60 years later, a $1 toy made by Whamm-o called the Super Ball. 2 years after this toy came out, the 2 professional football leagues, the NFL and AFL, played their first championship game against each other. The Green Bay Packers won the first 2, which still had the long awkward title of NFL AFL league championship game, and didn't exactly roll off the tongue. One of the founders of the game, Lamar Hunt, was visiting his grandkids and saw one of them playing with this ball that had a wild crazy bounce. He asked his grandson what's the name of that toy? The grandson replied it's a super ball. He suddenly had a flash of inspiration: super ball, SUPER BOWL. He had been trying to find a more catchy name for the league championship game, and was thinking along the lines of the college championship games, like Rose bowl, Cotton bowl, Orange bowl, etc. He started promoting the 3rd one as the Super bowl, and the press instantly picked up on it. And ever since 1969, it's been called the Super bowl, and the day of the game is super bowl Sunday. A world wide event generating millions of dollars every year. And it all started with a one dollar toy from Whamm-o.....
Thanks for that, Doc! I've started putting together research for 1965, including big new toy releases and that's an important one I might have missed! And, I had no idea about the Super Ball/Super Bowl connection! I've made a note of it and will be sure to give you a "shout out" when we come to Super Ball in '65! Thanks again!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444I found a real concise video, called "how did the super bowl get its name? " On the USA today sports channel, only 2 minutes long but explains the origin of the name with enough detail, also check out the Whamm-o super ball commercials from 1965, can't wait till you get to the Beach Boys at the end of 64, it's a period that would split the band, and go on to define them. Brian would play with them after the breakdown, but only during TV appearances, like Jack Benny & Andy Williams. As for the Rudolph Christmas special, my only problem with it was the anorexic Santa who was suddenly fat and jolly by Christmas Eve. And I'd like to add that G.I. JOE shrank considerably by its mid80s revival....
@@DoctorInsomnia-qw7us Thanks for letting me know about the video. I'll check it out! Maybe the skinny/fat thing effected Santa's mood. As an adult, my overwhelming impression is that Santa is a real jerk to Rudolph and his parents about the red nose and has a lot of nerve asking Rudolph to "guide his sleigh" after completely writing him off as a red-nosed freak up to that point. Now that you mention it, maybe he was just grouchy when he was skinny and jolly when he was fat. That would explain it! (I'm sure, over the decades, I've given much more thought to this than the writers did under a deadline in '64...and probably more thought than is healthy!) Thanks for reminding me of the tiny GI Joes of the 80s! Seems Joe could overcome most anything...except the rising cost of plastic! Thanks for the great follow-up, Doc! Much appreciated and much enjoyed!
Wow! Great story; I never made the connection! Of course I remember the Super Ball -- it truly WAS amazing, though it wore out faster when you bounced on the rough driveway concrete! (Wonder why you never see them any more; according to Wiki they are still produced. Their article also noted: "In the late 1960s, Wham-O made a giant Super Ball roughly the size of a bowling ball, as a promotional stunt. It fell from the 23rd story window (some reports say the roof) of an Australian hotel and destroyed a parked convertible car on the second bounce."
@@burlingtonbill1 Great story on the "giant Australian Super Ball," Bill! I'd have thought somebody might have considered a Super Ball might not be something you can just "size up" and have it work the same way. I never noticed Super Balls wearing out...now, I realize that we pretty much always lost them (by bouncing them over the house or something) before they had a chance to get much wear. Thanks again for passing along the great comments and info!
Love the singing Steve 😆
You are very, very kind...Seriously though, thanks, Jamie! Always great to hear from you!
Whoa! I had no idea that Chad and Jeremy were produced by Shel Talmy, who of course is best known for more raucous productions for the Who and the Kinks. C and J's vocal style and music were near-whispering in comparison. I guess Talmy was rather versatile.
I had no idea either until I saw the credit on the label. Definitely a departure from what I think of when I think "Shel Talmy." Thanks for reminding me of it, Joel! Always great to hear from you!
Great show! Thank you Steve!😃
Thanks, Michael! Happy to know it's enjoyed!
The Kinks first big hit ! Such a great and influential song. Dave Davies took a razor blade to his amp speaker to get that famous distortion! Always wished the Kinks did one more show and released one more album. “ Save it for me” by the 4 seasons made many a mix tape for me over the years! That TAMI show our BB boys were really cooking! One of the last real clips with Brian being a big part of the live act! Great stuff Steve !
Yes! Great Kinks song! They're one of the bands I actually remember seeing on Ed Sullivan "back in the day" along with the Beatles and Herman's Hermits. (No idea how I ended up seeing them, since we almost always watched "Disney" over on NBC, but, even at age 5, I remember thinking the Kinks were really cool.) Good point about the TAMI Show. With Brian coming off the road in December, both that show and the "Concert" album turned out to be "historic documents" almost as soon as they were released. Thanks for the great feedback and insights, Mike, as always!
Man I just love these history lessons! Awesome job Steve👍
I love putting these together. Great to know they're enjoyed! Thanks, Moon!
Great look back to end the year 1964 .... your singing continues to improve as you become more versatile. As always, continued success.
Thanks, Don! The feedback on the singing has been surprisingly positive this week. (I'll need to give the episode another view to remember what I did!) Always great to hear from you! Thanks again!
We had no idea at the time but a lot of big names went under in 1964 because of the Beatles and the other british act's. The Beach Boys however managed to mentain their popularity by making some fantastic music. History's proved that their chart success in the States was as good as anyone up to this period in time. With the "Fab Four" dominating both the single and album charts?, making the top 10 was a major achievement. Some great TV shows and some memorable movie's also mentioned in this episode, especially "Goldfinger" a group of us actually went to see this film for five nights in a row.
Thanks for the excellent feedback and insights, John! I think a lot of people, generally, would be surprised that the Beach Boys were actually bigger "post-Beatles" than they were "pre-Beatles." I think it helped that, like the Beatles and so many of the other "British Invasion" groups, they were a self-contained unit, and fit in with that trend, but, as you point out, mainly, they were making some really great records. Very cool that you watched "Goldfinger" five nights in a row! (Now that you've mentioned it, if I was going to watch any movie five nights in a row, "Goldfinger" would be a pretty enjoyable choice!) Always great to hear from you, John! Have a great week!
I love these episodes because I have never heard of 99% of the content lol
Now, it definitely feels like a look at a strange "alternate world" sometimes...even for somebody who was there! Thanks for the feedback, PS!
Thanks for another fun episode Steve. I never had Rock ‘em Sock ‘em robots but they looked so fun in the commercials. I don’t remember getting burned with Creepy Crawlers, my Mom probably took them out of the molds. Just for reference, Easy Bake Ovens are powered by a 40 watt light bulb, so not much chance of getting burned! The cakes didn’t taste as good as they looked on TV
Also one correction, when FDR was re-elected in 1936, Alf Landon only carried Maine and Vermont.
Thanks for catching that error on the '64 election! '36 was definitely a bigger landslide than '64. I should have cross-referenced my source on that. I appreciate you letting me know!
I recently talked to my Mom about Creepy Crawlers. I remembered we always kept the "Thing Maker" sets on a high closet shelf. They could only come out on "special occasions." She says she did it so she could supervise and that it was a constant struggle to try to keep us from getting hurt when we'd use them (and I still managed to get burns on my fingers anyway!)
I knew Easy Bake Oven used a light bulb. I had no idea it was a 40 watt...or that a 40 watt could cook anything! Thanks for the great comments and info, Joel! And thanks again for catching that error!
Great blast from the past. Thumbs up! Trish
Thanks, Trish! Happy to know this was enjoyed!
Great episode Steve! My parents had the soundtracks to Hello Dolly, My Fair Lady, Fiddler on the Roof as well as the Andy Williams Broadway album - all part of my childhood. I also remember going to see My Fair Lady at the movie theater. Those were the days when many movies had an overture before the film actually started. I also remember all of the excitement about James Bond and "Goldfinger." My cousin had the Corgi James Bond Aston Martin car complete with passenger ejector seat. I was a big fan of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and had several "spy" toys including a fake finger that launched a missile called Six Finger Five. My sister had the Creepy Crawler toy. My father would not let me have a G.I. Joe! (He had been in World War Two). By the way, The Honeycombs were one of the few bands to have female drummer. Whenever I hear "Have I the Right" it always sounds overmodulated. My older cousins (who were big influences on me) had the Beatles' "Something New" album as well as Beatles'wigs. My sister had a "Paul" toy doll and she got white Go-Go boots that christmas. It is interesting how The Beatles influenced so many other groups with their fashion attire - particularly their boots with the Cuban heel. Look at the Dave Clark Five's cover photo! Thanks for all the memories and I enjoy your singing!
Thanks for sharing the memories, Currin! Man! You and your family had a real treasure trove of pop culture! (At the time, I know, it was just "stuff" with no idea it would all, one day, be "rare collectibles.") Thanks for mentioning those James Bond and secret agent items! (I'm trying to put together a listing of them to, hopefully, discuss in a "1965" episode. I've added these to the list and will be sure to give you a "shout out" when we get to them.) I had forgotten, but definitely remembered when you mention it, "Six Finger." I know we had one at some point. I had seen the Corgi Bond car but had no idea it had an ejector seat. How cool!
Thanks for the point on the Honeycombs drummer and I agree about "Have I The Right" being overmodulated.
Thanks, again, for sharing the excellent memories, Currin!
Big U.N.C.L.E. fan here, too. I hope Steve covers it when he does "1965" someday.
Hey Steve, I have not been around for a while but I'm catching up now. I was smiling to see you mention G.I joe!!!
Great to have you back, Usualmike! I was only four at Christmas 1964, but GI Joe definitely made a lasting impression on me, even then! Thanks for the feedback!
Thank you for another great episode Steve and by now in 1964, i had moved up to primary school and i can confirm that many records you mention were hits in UK too with Supremes, Gene Pitney and Roy Orbison all still popular today and Roy Orbison on particular would often joke that he had been top of the bill and had had the Beatles as warm up, which later, was the other way around , but it didnt affect their relationship as we could see many years later when he and George were part of the Travelling Wilburys ,
And this is a funny story about Roy Orbison and UK as exclusive to London, there are many PIE n Mash shops that are made to a secret recipe, handed down for many generations and Roy was so amazed by the taste of the secret sauce that he would buy huge quantaties of the product and hand it out with delight, to whoever he was working with, even risking being late in order for him and others to enjoy their treat and the story goes that when he was at home, he would send for the dish and would rave about it to his friends.
Oh yes, in 1964 i was very aware of what was going on and was very much into the music coming from the radio and at that time, it was all about the Beatles and anything Liverpool
And TV it was Fireball XL5, Animal Magic with Johnny Morris who would dub voices on to the animals to make a story and it made it look as if the animals were talking ......and of course Doctor Who and in 1964, the craze was DALEKS and i was lucky enough to own two toy battery operated daleks and one was black the other silver and both would scoot across the floor and upon hitting any obstruction would turn around and both had flashing lights , a delight for any child.
I absolutely LOVED "XL5," at least in part because of the theme song and GREAT opening sequence: czcams.com/video/6ifS2nP53Zs/video.html While writing this, it reminded me of a similar situation with "The Amazing Adventures of Superman, which we never missed after school, if we could help it! After the thrilling open, the rest of the show was somewhat "downhill." czcams.com/video/fUJJRABDxKI/video.html
@@burlingtonbill1 Yes, i too would watch and enjoy both these shows and for the very same reason Bill. They look a bit corny now, but back then, all the kids would race around the playground acting out the various situations and discussing each episide at great length and non of us were too bothered about the fact that the best " bits " were in the title sequence hahaha.
Thanks for reminding me of the Roy Orbison/Beatles tour. Seems like I remember at least one of the group saying they were slightly embarrassed when the billing was changed, because they liked Roy and felt kind of bad about it.
I had never heard the great "secret sauce" story before! Now, I'm really curious to know what that must have tasted like!
I remember "Fireball XL5" playing on TV here. I never hear of "Animal Magic" before, but, from your description, it sounds like something I would have loved as a kid!
Those Dalek toys sound GREAT! Weirdly, because the Dr. Who series didn't play here until much later, but the two film were released here, I only knew the Daleks from the movies and assumed that Peter Cushing "was" Dr. Who. (My son was a real fan of the later "Dr. Who" with David Tennant and Matt Smith. We even got him a giant inflatable Dalek for Christmas, which stood in his room for years.)
Thanks for sharing the great perspective and memories, Chris!
With all the dangerous toys marketed to kids in the 1960s, it’s a wonder more of us didn’t end up maiming ourselves. Fortunately, my parents usually recognized the danger after buying them, and thus things like my chemistry set ended up gathering dust in storage. Somehow they overlooked the spring-loaded gun with suction cup darts meant to be shot at a bull’s eye target. That seemed relatively safe until I realized I could pluck the cup off the plastic dart, turning it into a thin projectile that could easily take out someone’s eye or cause some other severe injury.
I definitely had the dart guns and the chemistry sets too. I don't remember what was actually in the chemistry sets. We never looked at the directions and just mixed stuff together at random, looking for things that would change color or smell weird. (Undoubtedly, we were taking big whiffs of whatever fumes were coming off of that stuff to smell it, too.) We also had lawn darts and were given the great safety instructions, "Just make sure you get out of the way." Along with the lack of seatbelts, it's amazing any of us made it! Great to hear from you, as always, Bill!
Those spring-loaded pistols were a lot of fun!
@@currinsnipes9879 Definitely a lot of fun!
Wow! So much good info and another walk down memory lane. I had no idea about the Beach Boy's TV theme song. Agreed, it wasn't Christmas without watching Rudolph; Christmas toys over the next few years for my twin brother and I included Rock 'Em, Sock 'Em Robots, Creepy Crawlers & G.I. Joe's (including one with the realistic hair and Kung-Fu grip a few years later!) I guess the Strange Change Machine appeared a few years later. With toys like wood-burning kits, Creepy Crawlers and Easy-Bake Ovens for the girls, it's a wonder we survived at all. ;) I'll never understand why they didn't launch "flaming lawn darts." Oh, well. Chris
You probably could have made a million dollars with "flaming lawn darts" in the '60s! I guess timing IS everything! Thanks for the great laugh, Chris!
That "Karen" theme song is a weird one. (I talked about it back in a very, very early episode.) I don't think it's ever been on an official Beach Boys compilation. I've found it on boots, always with the last couple notes of the song missing, for some reason. The only full, "official" release, sung by the Beach Boys, I've ever come across was on a CD "Tee Vee Toons Presents Black & White Classics" from 1996.
I thought the "golden era" for GI Joe was with the beards and Kung Fu grip. (I remember too, that they billed it as "lifelike hair and beard." I'd hate to have seen anybody in "life" with that weird, glued-on stubble on his head and face!) I always felt like GI Joe "jumped the shark" a short time later with "Mike Power: Atomic Man" (a Six Million Dollar Man knock-off) and, then, "Bulletman The Human Bullet."
Thanks for reminding me of the "Strange Change Machine." I know it came a little later. I'm going to research it to make a note for a future episode. I won't want to miss talking about that! (BTW, I never had access to an Easy Bake Oven, but I always thought those little chocolate cakes looked REALLY tasty in the ads!) Great to hear from you, Chris, and thanks for sharing the memories!
Yep, the Karen tune is strange. As far as I recall, my brother and I received the lifelike hair and KFG editions for Christmas the first year they were available. I believe there were 3 different versions available at the time, a white guy with the dark brown beard and hair, a white guy with blonde hair and no beard, and a black guy. I asked for the black guy, but received the brown haired white guy (go figure.) My brother got the blonde haired guy, which is what he wanted. Mine had the "white tiger" and cage playset, while my brother's GIJ had either a diving suit or submarine gear (we had earlier GIJ's as kids, so I may be mistaken regarding the accessories he received.) I believe I still have mine somewhere, although it's missing part of a leg (war wound.) Did you ever have any of the Marx Johnny West (Cowboys and Indians) action figures or Dinosaur sets as a kid?@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444
@@bchnwgn Wow! All of that sounds very much like the stuff we (mainly my younger brother) had. He and his best friend were a major GI Joe collectors during the "Adventure Team" and "Kung Fu Grip" years. For Christmas and birthdays, everybody would get them a "GI Joe" item and people always seemed to assume they might not have the black GI Joe, so that's what they'd get. After a few years, they had unexpectedly amassed a huge army of black GI Joes. (Seriously, the ratio was probably 10 to one!) We had Johnny West and his horse, but never had the whole set. (There was another set, also "by Marx!" called "Noble Knights" which was the same figures and horses, only with armor and done up for battling and jousting which we also had.) The biggest hazard for all of them at our place was getting chewed by dogs and a lot of them met their fate that way. Thanks for the great follow-up, Chris!
Too funny, Steve. Thanks so much for sharing, and I'm looking forward to your next post!@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444
steve!
you may remember me asking for some resources for a presentation about good vibrations a couple weeks ago!
well, it happened yesterday and went down very well! my classmates seem to like it and i think i did the best job with my powerpoint, definitely didn’t manage to mention everything that i wrote down
thank you very much:) i put a special thanks on the last slide that mentioned your channel, so hopefully some new beach boys nerds have been made
That is SO great and thanks so much for following-up! I think it's actually probably a good sign that you didn't mention everything you wrote down...It shows you were prepare with plenty of info! Thanks for the "plug" on your powerpoint slide! If anyone from you class happens to watch the channel, I hope they'll let me know. It'd be great to be able to say I picked up viewers from a college powerpoint presentation! Wish I could have seen the presentation and I'm delighted to have been able to help. Best of luck and keep in touch!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 docs.google.com/presentation/d/1hbgUehkDSVXW9w7zMdHCrQD80ndVv48E3CQauLwCsUo/edit?usp=drive_link
this is the link to the powerpoint!
im quite proud of it, plus theres some stuff i came up with on the spot while presenting, like how the whimsical instrumentation and fuzzy, saturated production creates almost a childlike atmosphere, a common motif of brian's songwriting (quite proud of that one)
Great stuff as usual Steve. The only thing I have from Roy Orbison is the single of You Got It. Of course, at a time everything that Jeff Lynne touched was a hit, except maybe Let It Shine. I did see where it looks like Jeff Lynne is going to tour the US. I was surprised how Rudolph was changed over the years. I had the Rock'em Sock'em robots. I also had a bearded talking G.I. Joe and a helicopter for him to fly in. I remember getting a lot of outfits for G.I. Joe at Kmart cheap at their blue light specials. I never had the Creepy Crawlers, but boy I love how we had so many dangerous toys. Anyway, thanks for the Great memories.
In a amazing coincidence, my brother just texted me that Jeff Lynne is touring while I was reading your comment! (Guess good news does travel fast!) I had the early GI Joe and the bearded "Adventure Team" GI Joe years later. I always thought the "bearded years" had the best stuff; including that great helicopter! (My younger brother had most of the equipment. I remember him "flying" Joe around the house in the yellow helicopter, pushing a button on the side with his thumb to make the blades rotate. I always felt like he grew up in the "golden era" of toys; just before higher petroleum prices forced everything to be downsized.) As you can probably imagine, a "blue light special" on GI Joes would have been a highlight for us too! Thanks for the great feedback and for sharing the memories, Michael!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 Also coincidentally, my brother is the one who told me about Jeff Lynne touring and even sent me the tour dates. It sounds like we'll probably be going to see him. He also said an album is also coming and sent me a track listing.
@@michaelthemovieattic Very cool! My brother is in Oregon so we don't get a chance to check out concerts together. He's actually a much heartier concert-goer than I am. He seems to get out to everything! Thanks fo letting me know about the upcoming album! I'll want to check that out too!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444 If you're undecided, I'd strongly encourage you to do so. Great sound, best light show I've seen. Glad I went in 2016. I put off too long seeing Tom Petty.
@@burlingtonbill1 Thanks, Bill! I find it too easy to "pass" on concerts. I know I always have a great time and am glad that I went.
I love when Steve sings the hits! I am so lucky to get to go record shopping with Steve, and I regularly benefit from his encyclopedic musical memory and those golden tones. Thanks Steve!
Thanks, Frank! We need to get out record shopping again sometime soon. It's the closest I get to playing "name that tune."
No joke. On a road trip in the late 90s I was high on weed the first time I'd heard "Well sing in the sunshine" by Gale Garnett. It made me tear up. I'm glad I didn't hear anything by Bobby Goldsboro
@@marcofalzone6469 Steve's singing often brings tears to my eyes...
@@marcofalzone6469 That's great, Marco! You were right; never mix weed and Bobby Goldsboro! Thanks for the great comment and for the laugh!
This time period is special for me/when I was born. Have always liked the photo of the Beatles used on the cover of the Beatles 2nd album, put out by Capitol (particularly the background light set up behind Ringo on the stage they're performing on). Didn't know who the singer was for the song "We'll Sing In The Sunshine"/Gale Garnett. Thanks for that info., Steve! The robot toys and the creepy crawler toys looked like fun to play with, but I can see the danger in getting burned making the creepy crawlers. In the early '70s, I had a G.I. Joe doll, which I enjoyed. Think Goldfinger is a great early James Bond movie (the one woman winds up getting encased in gold!). Interesting that the television special Around The Beatles ends with them performing the song "Shout", which they never perfomed live elsewhere, or recorded in the studio.
Thanks for the great feedback, Robert! Thanks, too, for mentioning the performance of "Shout" on "Around the Beatles." It seems like that show needs a proper restoration and release. (Back in the late 70s, there were "Beatle Film Festivals" that played midnight shows on college campuses. They always included clips from Shea Stadium, the "Hey Jude" and "Revolution" performance films, maybe parts of "Magical Mystery Tour" and some other concert footage, and "Shout" from "Around The Beatles." The film quality for that one was always terrible! The versions on-line now are better but it definitely seems like some restoration work would be a good thing.) BTW, I think the 70s GI Joes were MUCH cooler than the original 60s GI Joes. You "timed it right" on GI Joe! Thanks again, as always, for the great comments, Robert!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444Eventually plan on buying a DVD of the Around The Beatles Special, as well as a DVD of the complete 1965 Shea Stadium concert (Personally think this was their best concert, mainly because of the atmosphere in the audience). I'm sure you've heard about the passing of musician Eric Carmen. Didn't know he had recorded a very good version of "Caroline, No". Several years ago, picked up a budget DVD titled having Fun With The Fab Four, which has clips from various Press Conferences the Beatles did, where they would make funny comments to reporters. The DVD also has the clip from Around The Beatles, where they did the Shakespeare scene, so I've seen that.
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444Posted a reply back earlier today (For some reason it's not showing up as a follow up to your reply , Steve). So I'll try again! What I said earlier was that eventually I plan on buying DVDs of both Around The Beatles and the Beatles complete 1965 Shea Stadium concert. Hope I can find both for a reasonable price. I mentioned also the passing of Eric Carmen of the Raspberries (Not sure if you know about that). About 20 years ago, he recorded a nice cover of "Caroline, No", which I wasn't aware of.
@@robertzastrow4648 Let me know if you come across any good, affordable DVDs of either "Around The Beatles" or "Shea Stadium." I haven't really looked for them in a long time. For all I know, there may be pristine, licensed versions available that I've missed.
It was definitely sad news about Eric Carmen. I was a little disappointed that the news channel where I saw the report described him only as "'Hungry Eyes' singer Eric Carmen." With his career, he certainly deserved a more detail than that!
Thanks for the follow-up, Robert!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444Have seen Around The Beatles being sold on both Amazon and ebay. These might be imports, though. You have to be careful buying import DVDs, because they're usually set up for Region 2 (Meaning they won't play on U.S. DVD players). If they're set up for Region 1, then you're okay. There are two websites, etsy and videobeat, which sell DVDs (etsy sells a bunch of stuff, other than just DVDs). Have found Shea Stadium DVDs on both sites. They're not cheap, though, nor legitimate releases. Have you heard about these two websites? Have a Greatest Hits CD of the Raspberries. Have thought of them as an American version of the British band Badfinger (Think the two sound a lot alike, in terms of music styles). Have you heard about the official release either this year or next year of the Fred Vail album/CD, called Cows In The Pasture? This is the lost Beach Boys Country album, recorded at the same time the Beach Boys were recording Sunflower in the spring of 1970. Fred said in a recent Rolling Stone magazine interview that he and Brian recorded the instrumental tracks for the songs, when he (Brian) would get bored working on the Beach Boys material. Fred said at the time (1970) he himself recorded "Scratch" vocals for the songs, but before he and Brian could finish the album, Brian lost interest, so the tapes were put away. They were rediscovered a number of years ago, and a young Producer named Sam Parker talked Fred into finishing the album. Brian will be the Executive Producer, and will sing on one song. The other songs will have Fred's vocals (Cleaned up), plus vocals from Country music guest stars.
Always a tad surprised by the number of Top 10 songs and artists that I've never even heard of, sandwiched in-between the uber-familiar all-time classics. The Newbeats? Betty EvereIt and Jerry Butler? The Honeycombs? Also, I did not realize the title of Orbison's Pretty Woman is apparently Oh, Pretty Woman. Oh...
I'll assume (presume?) you've listened to the entire 40 or so-minute outtake of Murry hijacking the Help Me, Rhonda session. ("I'm a genius, too, you know.") Near the end, Brian and Murry are talking--Murry criticizes the boys' singing etc, and Brian says "Do you want to tell that to Johnny Rivers?" (Or close to that). I've always wondered what BW meant by that remark...why name check Johnny Rivers there? Just crossed my mind at the mention of Mountain of Love...
As for the albums, A Hard Day's Night at #1 for 11 weeks vs All Summer Long at #4 for 5 weeks strikes me as a kind of metric or index of the relative popularity of the two bands. The BBs were big, but that other band was obviously colossally ginormously huge...
I bought a Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots set for my 53 yr old sister a Christmas or two ago, as a retro joke. We were both disappointed at how cheap the thing was--I recall we couldn't quite get the robots to fit into the base--or the "canvas," I suppose. And the rocking and socking robot punches never quite landed. Maybe there was better quality-control back then, because I know I had one when i was a kid...and I can recall enjoying playing with it. Were they flimsy then, too, and I was too young to notice or care...? Great vid. See ya next week...
It could also be a metric of the relative amounts of airplay and advertising expended towards each group.
@@burlingtonbill1 True. I can imagine both bands showing up for meetings at the Capitol Tower. "Send in the Beatles right away, and tell the Beach Boys to wait..."
I never caught the "Johnny Rivers" line on that Murry Wilson tape. No idea what Brian might have met. (In what, I'm sure, is a completely unrelated coincidence, Johnny Rivers covered "Help Me Rhonda" ten years later, in 1975, with Brian providing backing vocals.) Maybe Rivers was thinking of covering it then? I know Bruce & Terry cut a cover version after hearing the original on "Beach Boys Today!" and that Brian asked them not to release it because the Beach Boys were going to do it as a single. Could they have been feeling pressure to get their single out ahead of a proposed Johnny Rivers version? (That is, of course, wild and unfounded speculation on my part.)
I know what you mean about "Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots." We got a set, maybe fifteen years ago, and you could play it but you had to be pretty careful not to overpower it or the whole thing would have fallen apart. I never had one "back in the day" so I'm just guessing that they made them a little sturdier back then. (Then again, maybe not!)
Have a great week, rangergrrrl! Always great to hear from you!
It Hurts To Be In Love. Neil Sedaka recorded the song but couldn't release it because of a conflict with his record company. Gene Pitney recorded the song, had the hit but kept Neil's background vocals on it. I learned about that a few years back.
Goldfinger is definitely one of my favorite Bond movies. Shirley Bassey would have her only top ten U.S. hit in '65 with the theme song. Great episode by the way
Thanks for the background on "It Hurts To Be In Love." I had no idea! I'm definitely planning to go into "Goldfinger" and the "spy-craze" a little more when we get into 1965, including Shirley Bassey's hit single, of course. (Not sure if I'm going to try singing the title to that one...It'll be tempting!) Thanks for the great feedback, as always, Angelique!
@@thebeachboysbasementwithst6444I have a feeling that you're going to attempt to sing a first few words of "Goldfinger" and I'll be here for it
@@sexymama1966 You're probably right! I'll try to record on a day that I'm in relatively "good voice!"