nonamedufus

Garage rockin' one-hit wonders Music Explosion issued a great song in 1967 and quickly faded from sight. While, branded one of the early bubblegum musical groups, A Little Bit O' Soul was a catchy tune that hit #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned Music Explosion a gold record. Highlights of this lip-synced performance include the drum-kit and the invisible organist... Note to readers/listeners This is the last 60s music post on nonamedufus . Tomorrow will be the final 70s post. But don't fear, I've created a music blog, accessible from the sidebar on this page called dufusdownbeat where I've moved all the musical content to. dufusdownbeat is where you'll find my 60s and 70s weekly features as well as articles and clips from artists celebrating birthdays and other milestones and links to interesting music sites. While humour and music remain my passions, I've merely decided to hive one off from the other and make each blog cleaner and more focused. I...

"Cue the Tape" With those words Mama Cass broke the not-so best kept secret of the 60s. Most musical groups lip-synced their performances on the Ed Sullivan Show. The Mamas and the Papas certainly lip-synced this performance of Creeque Alley. Nevertheless it's a great performance of the group's 1967 #5 autobiographical hit. Thinking back to 67, a certain 15 year-old boy was totally smitten with Michelle Phillips. Oh, and the music wasn't bad either.

I've been singing the refrain to this week's 60s tune all week, so I figured why not feature it. A famous example of the Phil Spector "wall of sound" Da Doo Ron Ron by The Crystals was a 1963 smash hit, reaching #3 on Billbaord's hot 100. The song's been covered by everyone from The Carpenter's to Bob Dylan and a version by teen heart-throb Shaun Cassidy hit #1 in 1977 (hey, there's just no explaining some things). The Crystals , a defining example of the "girl group" movement in popular music, have a fascinating history which includes Spector-produced hits in the early 60s featuring different lead singers. Da Do Ron Ron features Dolores "LaLa" Brooks . A close listen (or look) at the lyrics makes you realize "Da Doo Ron Ron" could well be a euphamism much like Sienfeld's "yadda-yadda-yadda"! I met him on a Monday and my heart stood still Da doo ron ron ron da doo ron ron Somebody told me that his name was ...

Well, it's Friday folks. Time for a walk down musical memory lane. In the 60s a musical genre emerged almost as insipid as it's successor - disco. The popularity of Bubblegum Pop ran from 1967 to 1972. And no group better epitomized this style (and I use the word advisedly) of music as The Ohio Express . Sit back and enjoy this 1968 performance in all it's lip-synched glory...

Mary Isabel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien had a hell of a voice. She was a 60s singing sensation, a British bombshell and she went by the name of Dusty Springfield - and I loved her. When Elton John inducted her into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, just 10 days after her death, he said, "I think she is the greatest white singer that there ever has been." I'm inclined to agree.

They were known variously as the Rascals and Young Rascals and they had a string of hits from the mid-60s to the early 70s. Vocalists Eddie Brigati (vocals) and Felix Cavaliere (keyboard, vocals) are probably the better known members of the group but Gene Cornish was responsible for an essential element of the group's sound on guitar. I was aware of Gene Cornish because he was born in my hometown of Ottawa, Canada in 1946. Happy Birthday, Gene. Here's a familiar tune...

He was huge in the 60s, at one point giving Bob Dylan a run for his money as the most popular folk artist of his time. Today is Donovan 's birthday. He's 63. And here is one of his more thoughtful tunes, his first ever release in March 1965. It reached #4 in the UK and #23 in the US.

Our 60s act this week actually first achieved success on the pop charts in the 50s. And today, coincidentally enough, is his birthday. The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet was an American television sit-com, airing for 14 years beginning in 1952, following a successful run on radio. Rock and roll heart-throb Ricky (later just "Rick") Nelson grew up on that show. Nelson was a popular performer in the late 50s, second only to Elvis. Today would have been his 69th birthday. Sadly Ricky Nelson died in a 1985 plane crash. But he left a string of hits behind, including this gem from 1961... Nelson could have made a living as a rock n roll revival act continuing to sing his back catalogue of hits like Travelin' Man but that wasn't for him. In fact, when he played contemporary tunes at a 50s RnR revival concert at Madson Square Garden in 1971 he was booed off the stage. But Nelson got the last laugh. The incident inspired him to write the hit Garden Party ...

Last November I introduced a weekly feature to the blog called "60s Fridays" in which, heading into the weekend, I posted music videos from the peace and love decade. It's funny to look back on the music, the lyrics and the fashion (particularly the hair!)from this era and laugh today at what we took so seriously back then. I've posted the odd birthday and obit in rock n roll but mostly I've focussed on what once were my favourite songs by my favourite groups from, as George Harrison says, "all those years ago". Adding to the mirth in watching these videos is that most are in black and white and many are "staged". Yep, it seems lip-synching is a time-honoured tradition, long before Milli Vanilli. Here are a few highlights... Tomorrow: Happy Blogoversary

Over at Humor Bloggers Dot Com we like to play a little game. The Queen of this game is Quirkyloon . She's forever posting lyrics - often obscure - leaving the rest of us to guess what song they come from. Well, this morning I think I stumped her when I posted: Gliddy glub gloopy Nibby nabby noopy La la la lo lo Sabba sibby sabba Nooby abba nabba Le le lo lo Tooby ooby walla Nooby abba naba Early morning singing song Well one of my colleagues thought I was having a heart attack and someone should call 911. And poor Quirky thought I was sendig her a Zombie lullaby. Both wrong! It's from Good Morning Starshine from the soundtrack of Hair , a peace and love musical that opened off-Broadway in 1967 and made it to film in 1979 with John Savage, Treat Williams and Beverly D'Angelo. So Quirky, darlin', this is for you...

This week's group from the 60s is an American outfit that were severely displaced by the British invasion of the early 60s. Best known as the proponents of "surfing music" the Beach Boys formed in 1961 and their story reads like a soap opera: a domineering father for a manager; drug and mental illness problems; the deaths of Carl and Dennis Wilson; the infighting and lawsuits. It's fascinating stuff...but above it all music fans know it was the harmonies and lush arrangements that made the Beach Boys stand out. Here's an interesting "performance" from 1964's American Bandstand with Dick Clark...

This week's 60s group isn't a group from the 60s at all, but a group of musicians from the 60s who formed and gained popularity in the late 90s. And given this is Easter weekend (no sacrilege intended) how appropriate we talk about the resurrection of a rock n roller. Bill Wyman quit the biggest band in the universe in 1992 - the Rolling Stones - only to rise from the dead, as it were, in 1997 with his own group, "Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings". The membership of the group is forever shifting, with folks like Peter Frampton, Georgie Fame and Gary Brooker passing through. Amazing, that at 72 he continues to rock out. His website is amazing. So's this video...

This week's 60s group takes us back to 1964 and focusses more on an individual rather than a band. The Animals was fronted by Eric Burdon and made quite an impression on North America as part of the British invasion. A piece of musical trivia: bassist Chas Chandler left the group two years later to manage Jimi Hendrix. House of the Rising Sun was a huge hit and continues to be a blues and rock classic, largely due to the voice behind the song... By 1970, Eric Burdon had moved on to front War and the superb blues/rock vocalist released Spill the Wine ... At 67, Burdon continues to perform, his fabulous voice continues to be his trademark. His latest album, Soul Of A Man , was released in 2006

"Where The Boys Are" is a 60s film about spring break in the town once known as "Spring Break USA": Fort Lauderdale. Since the 50s college kids from across the U.S. and Canada flocked to Fort Lauderdale Beach in droves - in the hundreds of thousands - to party. And that's just what the film portrayed... Times have changed. In the mid 80s Fort Lauderdale was overrun by somewhere in the area of 350,000 hot-blooded and/or drunk teenagers. Today things have changed. The city fathers have discouraged the love-in and now cater to an older, whiter-haired and richer kind of tourist. And it's to Fort Lauderdale I have come for 2 weeks, and as for older, whiter-haired and richer? Two out of three ain't bad... Here's a modern Fort Lauderdale beachfront hotel, compared to the tiny motels from days gone by, followed by an older edifice, updated. And here's a view from across the street of the famous Fort Lauderdale Beach, practically deserted. Here's whe...

I was going to save this for a future "60s Friday" post but since I'm going to be away for 2 weeks and posting might be intermittent, if at all, I decided to share it today. It's an oldie but a goodie from The Beatles early in their career, followed by an almost equally good cover of the song by The Who in the twilight of theirs (in Toronto in 1982 on one of those rare occasions when bassist John Entwhistle sings!). Shake it up baby, now! Oh and if you're wondering if I'll be thinking of you while I'm suckin' back a cool one while I'm deep sea fishing, suit yourself. See ya in a couple of weeks.

A little levity for a Friday Afternoon. Here's the Smothers Brothers in their pre- Comedy Hour days performing their classic routine "Boil That Cabbage Down"

This week's 60s group comes from Australia, mate. This tune by the Easy Beats caught my ear in 1967. They recorded it when they were based in Britain, after they'd left Australia. David Bowie covered it in 1973. One other piece of trivia about the Easy Beats. Founding member George Young produced AC/DC's first six albums. His younger brothers Malcolm and Angus are members of AC/DC. Friday On My Mind pretty much summed up how many of us approach the beginning of the week...

This ad made me think of this song...

It's Dean Torrence's birthday. Who the heck is Dean Torrence? He's one half of the early 60's surf music group Jan and Dean . Jan and Dean pre-dated the Beach Boys but weren't nearly as famous. This clip is of 1963's Surf City from their surf movie Surf Party...

This week's 60s flashback recalls British supergroup and power trio Cream made up of Ginger Baker, Jack Bruce and, of course, Eric Clapton. It's fascinating how a group which lasted only 2 to 3 years beginning in 1966 could have left such a lasting impression on the music world. Nevertheless, I'm So Glad they did.