nonamedufus

The focus of this blog is humour. But from time to time we hearken back several decades to revisit fashion and fads (funny in itself) through music, while celebrating birthdays and other events in rock and roll. As well, Fridays on this blog are usually given over to musical groups from the 60s. But today we implement a new feature: Seventies Saturdays. In the early 70s I discovered a progressive rock group from Britain called Gentle Giant . What attracted me to them wasn't the musical instrumentation so much but rather the vocals. It was a complex madrigal type of singing and the 1972 album "Octopus" caught my ear immediately. Here's a live medley from that album which I consider to be one of their best...

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.

merci Ray

Uh, nope not that one. I'm talking about the car that's named after him. You know, car makers spend a bundle on advertising. It's surprising, perhaps, given their precarious financial situation that the advertising budgets of the Big 3 are so huge. Then again, I guess you have to spend money to make money and nothing drives (no pun intended) customers in like television ads. Over the last couple of years Lincoln has run some smart, catchy ads. It's their, what I like to call, "take off" series of ads: black and white and cool music that hearkens us back to the early days of the space program while propelling us forward to the future of cars. For example, first there was a Lincoln commercial featuring Cat Power doing David Bowie's Space Oddity... Then it was Major Tom (Coming Home) by Shiny Toy Guns... And finally it was Daft Punk doing Technologic... I think these commercials are kinda cool. They always make me sit up and take notice when they come on. And...

merci

The other day I posted a pic of this questionably nutritious bacon substitute. The video's even better...especially the sub-titles. Found at small bits and pieces

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...

It's Steve Howe's birthday today. Lead guitarist for British prog-rock group band Yes, Howe helped define their distinctive sound. His guitar is instrumental (no pun intended) in making Roundabout from the group's 1973 release "Fragile" the hit it was... (btw, I think they must have sold one helleva bunch of shampoo to rock groups in the early 70s!)

Fix Your Past

Well the weather's warming up and Easter is almost upon us. You know, when you think about it, the meaning of Easter has changed significantly over the years. Easter, and the days leading up to it, not unlike Christmas, started out as a religious observance. Some folks still hold fervently to the religious aspects associated with Easter. But at some point the focus shifted from someone who rose from the dead to a rabbit carrying eggs. Yeah, the Easter Bunny grew in popularity matched only by Santa Claus. Now imagine how Jesus Christ must feel when the occasion of his birth is eclipsed by a fat bearded guy in a red suit and the occasion of his death is better known for some giant rabbit leaving confections to rot kids' teeth. Other emerging traditions associated with Easter include painting eggs... And the ever-popular easter egg hunt... Boy oh boy, the meaning of easter has sure changed down through the ages... But it's nice to see some people are returning to the religi...

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

Damn, I hate investing all that time in a TV show only for it to be cancelled. The greatest show on TV (in my humble opinon) came to a screeching halt last night after only one season. A knock-off of a British series, ABC's Life On Mars was nevertheless an excellent show with an exceptional cast. The premise involved a cop hit by a car in 2008 who wakes up in 1973. So he felt like he was living on Mars. Indeed he met himself, as a kid, and both his parents. Last night in the season/series finale we learned he really was living on Mars - he , and the cast of characters, were astronauts waking up from a deep space sleep and about to touch down on the red planet. That's right, it was all a dream! The show was a mix of police drama meets science-fiction. It was quirky enough to draw me in week after week. It had a great soundtrack - from the 70s, natch - and the main character's awareness of the future led to some comical plot developments. And now it's gone. And without i...

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.

Beware The Ides Of March Ah, yes, the Ides of March or the 15th day of the third month. Yeah, I know it's only March 14th. But it would be too late to beware if I told you tomorrow. The phrase is best known as the fatal warning given Julius Caesar, prior to his assassination. Julius Caesar has heavily influenced our culture and society in ways you may not have known. For example, Julius Caesar is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1599. It portrays the conspiracy against the Roman dictator of the same name, his assassination and its aftermath. It is one of several Roman plays that he wrote, based on true events from Roman history. Caesar seems to have been the originator of the phrase “We have not to fear anything, except fear itself,” spoken to his wife on the eve of his death. FDR nicked the expression for an inauguration speech in the depths of the depression in 1933 when he said “…we have nothing to fear but fear itself…” Julius Caesar is respons...

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...

Bob Elliot and Ray Goulding were one of the funniest comedy duos of all time. As a Canadian, I'm partial to Wayne and Shuster. But I also loved the American team of Abbot and Costello. And of course Britain's The Two Ronnies made me split my gut. But I also found Bob and Ray immensely funny. They were often on Johnny Carson during the 70s. By that time they'd spent decades on both radio and television, beginning in the 1940s. Goulding died in 1990. Ray lives on. He's the father of Chris Elliot, funny in his own right in such things as Robbie's creepy brother in-law in Everybody Loves Raymond. And the comedic genes have been passed down to grandaughter Abby Elliot, a featured performer on Saturday Night Live. According to Ray Goulding, the billing "Bob and Ray" came from their first radio show "Matinee with Bob and Ray" which they thought sounded better than "Matinob with Ray and Bob". Here's an animated Bob and Ray in a 50s beer co...