Monday, May 11, 2009

The Swinging 60's As Seen On Television

I'm interrupting the usual flow of jazz videos to share two clips I found that show how downright bizarre rock songs were often staged on 60's and 60's TV shows.

The first clip is Kenny Rogers And The First Edition doing their initial hit, "Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Is In)" on the Smothers Brothers show in what I guess is supposed to be an approximation of the song's wigged out lyrics although Kenny looks about as psychedelic as an insurance salesman. The drummer is Mickey Jones was doing Bob Dylan's legendary electric tours with The Band whenever Levon Helm wasn't around.



Next is The Mamas and the Papas doing "California Dreamin'" on NBC's Hullabaloo show. You might wonder why they were doing the song on a set full of plumbing and bathtubs. Then halfway through the song, you find out and the answer makes even less sense. From the few clips I've seen of Hullabaloo in recent years, it's obvious the show was out to make as much use of its dancers as possible no matter how goofy that made things.

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