Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, Alternative music, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player. Not the slightest bit interested in politics at all.
Jason & The Scorchers had a cult following in Nashville and around parts of the world in the 80s and got some airplay on MTV at the time…they were led by frontman Jason Ringenberg and they released a couple of EPs before releasing their debut album Lost & Found in 1985. They were classified at one time as alt-country but I would add rock/punk/rockabilly in there also.
I first heard them do a live version of “The Race Is On”…the old George Jones song and it won me over. They were really a big deal in the southeast in the middle eighties and should have spread more. Their music seemed to have a kinship to the Georgia Satellites but they were a little more country. Seeing them live is an event…Jason is all over the stage.
The band was formed in 1981. They were together through the 80s till the drummer Perry Baggs was diagnosed with diabetes and could not finish a 1990 tour. They have regrouped since then off and on and altogether have released 15 albums with the last one being in 2010. In 2012 Perry Baggs passed away because of diabetes.
They played a mixture between country and rock and fell into the cracks. They seemed to rock for country and too country for rock. Live they were unbeatable.
One of the things that made the band different is Jason wanted to sound country but guitar player Warner Hodges wanted to sound like AC/DC…that interplay made them unique. This song was off of their 1986 album Still Standing. The album peaked at #91 on the Billboard Album chart in 1987.
Golden Ball and Chain (written by Ringenberg) peaked at #16 in the Billboard Rock Mainstream Songs.
Golden Ball and Chain
“Oh hello there” you coughed and smiled Your hair messed up enough, a little wild You said, “I’m sorry but it’s all a waste Not a whole meal just a little taste”
Now you’ve nothing left to fight and gain Another line another carved link of your name On the golden ball and chain
L.A. it calls and London grooms the star Get on the phone to find out who you are But happiness was a dying trend You say you saw that train around the bend
That was carrying its weight in pain The engine straining on the full weight of your name And the golden ball and chain
You saw it then, you saw the sign A drowning sailor in a jug of wine First it was her, but now it’s you No psychoanalyst is there to tell you what to do
So now you whimper like a helpless child You broke when they quit saying you were wild But your tears they are like grass in sand They speak to no one, they give no command
No there’s nothing left to cleanse the stain Another line another carved link of your name On the golden ball and chain
You are the sunshine of my life That’s why I’ll always be around
Stevie Wonder… had such a long career before he was even 18. He wrote this for his wife Syreeta Wright whom Wonder married in 1970.
Wright was from Detroit, an aspiring ballet dancer who didn’t have the money to pursue her passion and who ended up working as a receptionist at Motown in 1965. Eventually, Wright started singing on demos for Motown singers, and the label released a single of hers in 1968 under the name Rita Wright. When Diana Ross left the Supremes, Berry Gordy thought about installing Wright as her replacement but it didn’t happen.
in 1968 Syreeta Wright met Stevie Wonder. In 1969, they started dating, and they also started working together. In 1970, they got married, when Wright was 24 and Wonder was 20. By that time, they were already writing partners. Together, Wright and Wonder helped write the Spinners’ “It’s A Shame” and Wonder’s own “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours”
In 1972 they broke up. Wonder also produced the album Syreeta…Wright’s first album. He also recorded this song that year. It was no doubt who it was about. It was on the great album Talking Book. Just as he was singing this beautiful song they were breaking up. She would go on to record more music and one song with Billy Preston. She passed away in 2004 at the age of 58.
Some sources list the couple’s divorce as happening in 1972, but Wright, who died in 2004, claimed they were married until 1975. The marriage was difficult and exacerbated by their working relationship, which Wright found stifling. “I was always living in his shadow.”
He recorded this at Electric Lady Studios in New York City. It was recorded off the cuff and his band fell right in. The album Talking Book peaked at #3 on the Billboard Album Charts, #12 in Canada,#16 in the UK in 1972.
You Are The Sunshine Of My Life peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, #5 in Canada, #8 in New Zealand, and #7 in the UK. The first single off the album was Superstition…how is this for a follow-up!
This song won Wonder the 1973 Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.
You Are The Sunshine Of My Life
You are the sunshine of my life That’s why I’ll always be around You are the apple of my eye Forever you’ll stay in my heart
I feel like this is the beginning Though I’ve loved you for a million years And if I thought our love was ending I’d find myself drowning in my own tears, whoa, oh, oh
You are the sunshine of my life, yeah That’s why I’ll always stay around, mmm, mmm, yeah, yeah You are the apple of my eye Forever you’ll stay in my heart
You must have known that I was lonely Because you came to my rescue And I know that this must be heaven How could so much love be inside of you? Whoa, whoa
You are the sunshine of my life, yeah That’s why I’ll always stay around, mmm (baby) You are the apple of my eye Forever you’ll stay in my heart, yeah
You are the sunshine of my life, baby That’s why I’ll always stay around
A strong New York sound with a song written by Bruce Springsteen. Southside Johnny did some incredible vocals on this one. The album songs were written by Southside Johnny (Johnny Lyon), Bruce Springsteen, and Steven Van Zandt.
It’s a downright beautiful ballad and the vocals are about as good as it gets. This song is off his third studio album Hearts Of Stone released in 1978. Critics have called it “the best album that Bruce Springsteen never recorded.” Some also have compared it to Exile On Main Street. Steven Van Zandt produced and arranged this album.
Springsteen recorded this song during his Darkness on the Edge of Town sessions in 1977. He gave this song and Talk To Me it to Southside Johnny and Bruce didn’t end up releasing it until 1998. Springsteen also shares writing credits with Southside Johnny and Steven Van Zandt on Trapped Again which was co-written in early 1978 during the Hearts Of Stone recording sessions.
Van Zandt tapped photographer Frank Stefanko to shoot the album cover art, after meeting Stefanko when they worked together with Springsteen on Darkness On The Edge Of Town.
This album could have been huge because his record company Epic got fully behind it but then the tour got cut short. Southside Johnny: “I had cut my arm on a glass during a show in Sacramento. I was supposed to be off the road for three months at least and we were back on the road in two weeks. We had a huge tour booked. We were going to be gone for a year. The record company had actually started to get into it, but as soon as I got hurt and was off the road, they kind of said ‘That’s that’ and moved on to other things. It was bitter for me then, but over time you learn that’s just the way this business is.”
The album peaked at #112 on the Billboard Album Charts in 1978. E Street drummer Max Weinberg played on this album along with The Miami Horns.
Hearts of Stone
You stare in the mirror at the lines in your face And you try so hard to see, girl The way things were when we were at your place Everyday was just you and me, girl And you cry because things ain’t like before Well, don’t you know it can’t be that way anymore? But don’t worry baby
I can’t talk now, I’m not alone So put your ear close to the phone Cause this is the last dance, the last chance For hearts of stone
If there was something, baby, that I could do Something that would last, honey, I would But you should know better than to think that you Can return to the past So close your eyes and I’ll be there Hold you once more, not go anywhere I wish I could, babe
But I can’t talk now, I’m not alone So put your ear close to the phone Cause this is the last dance, the last chance For hearts of stone
And you cry because things get so strange so fast And you cry because nothing good ever lasts Well, I know babe Yes, I know, babe
But I can’t talk now, I’m not alone So put your ear close to the phone ‘Cause this is the last dance, the last chance For hearts of stone
This is the last dance, the last chance For hearts of stone
If you want to see where we are…and you missed a few…HERE is a list of the episodes in my index located at the top of my blog.
This show was written by Gene Roddenberry, Arthur Heinemann, and Arthur H. Singer
This is a bizarre episode…even for Star Trek. I like the episode more than some Trek fans. When you see Abraham Lincoln materialize in space and talk to you…you know you are in for a different kind of episode. I will say this… it works because of the actor playing Lincoln… he is exactly what I would picture Lincoln.
The Enterprise crew once again encounters highly advanced/highly evolved aliens, who, in this case, wish to study the concepts of good and evil and use crew members as pawns in their inquiries. This episode, a morality tale, borrows elements from some of the better episodes of the past.
Apparently Lincoln (Lee Bergere) was a boyhood hero to Captain Kirk, while everyone on the planet Vulcan revered the legendary Surak (Barry Atwater). The two heroes are teamed up with Kirk and Spock to do physical battle with the galaxy’s most notorious outlaws, with a mute Genghis Khan representing ancient Earth history. This, all in the name of defining good versus evil, life versus death
I simply love the improbable idea of a stunning recreation of Abraham Lincoln and “father of Vulcan civilization/peace/logic”, Surak from the minds of Kirk and Spock (it is established how much admiration and respect Kirk and Spock have for these historical figures) forced into combat with evil historical figures representing the worst kind of lot as rock beings on a planet primarily of lava want to study good vs. evil and judge the results.
From IMDB:
This is the final episode of the series to feature the entire ensemble cast of Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Scotty, Uhura, Sulu, and Chekov. This episode also marks the final appearance of Nichelle Nichols (Uhura) in the series.
This marks the second time TOS encounters a silicon-based life form. The first time is in The Devil in the Dark (1967). Janos Prohaska played both lifeforms, with Bart La Rue supplying the Excalbian’s voice.
Lincoln tells Kirk, “There is no honorable way to kill, no gentle way to destroy. There is nothing good in war, except its ending.” This speech, written by the Star Trek screen writers, has become so popular that some people mistakenly believe it to be something the real Abraham Lincoln said.
“The Savage Curtain” introduces Klingon founding father Kahless and Vulcan founding father Surak to the Star Trek universe. Kahless’ history played an important role in several episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993) (where he is regarded as a force for good, contrary to the sentiments expressed here), and Surak’s history was crucial to the final season of Star Trek: Enterprise (2001) which also gave a little bit of backstory to Colonel Phillip F. Green. Zora of Tiburon is the only “historic” figure introduced here who was not further developed in a later Star Trek series.
Colonel Green’s uniform was recycled into the spacesuit worn by Mork in his appearances on Happy Days (1974) and Mork & Mindy (1978).
Tiburon, homeland of the cruel scientist Zora, is named after the Spanish word for shark, and was also the homeland of Doctor Sevrin, the villain-of-the-week of The Way to Eden (1969).
The first choice for the role of Lincoln was Mark Lenard, best known for playing Sarek, but prior commitments prohibited him from taking the part.
The characters of Zora and Genghis Khan have no lines. This is probably due to budget constraints, as actors with speaking parts were paid significantly more than background actors.
The war that included Colonel Phillip Green’s atrocities was later decided to be World War III in the mid-21st century, which served as an important macguffin in later Trek productions such as Encounter at Farpoint (1987), Star Trek: First Contact (1996), and a number of Star Trek: Enterprise (2001) episodes.
This is the second and final mention in a TOS episode that it may be possible to separate the nacelles from the ship, in this case by specifically jettisoning them.
A Star Trek trading card set gave Colonel Green’s full name as Edward Featherstone Green, but this was superseded by the last few episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise (2001) where he was spoken of as Phillip Green.
Kahless is seen here in the Klingon style typical of TOS. It would seem to contradict the explanation given in Divergence (2005) for the change in physical appearance of the Klingons, since Kahless lived long before those events. However, since the image of Kahless was drawn from Kirk’s and Spock’s minds, not from “fact”, this is not necessarily a contradiction.
The appearances of Kahless and Surak mark the final respective appearances of a Klingon and (full) Vulcan in The Original Series.
The budget cuts imposed by the network for series three are noticeable here. Although, at first glance, this appeared to have a number of guest actors, at least two of them were actor/stunt performers with no lines of dialogue. The planet surface was the Desilu set with fiber-glass rocks that had been used in previous stories or borrowed from the recently canceled CBS show Lost in Space (1965), Genghis Khan’s outfit had been used at least once previously, in The Omega Glory (1968), and Kahless’ Klingon outfit had also been used previously. Note that both Kirk and Spock materialize on the planet surface without their tricorders or phasers, meaning that money could be saved by not requiring any additional visual effects. Also, many of the planet surface props, such as spears, had been used previously. In fact, the only significant spend was on commissioning the molten rock creature costume (which was connected to a smoke machine).
This episode marks the final appearance of dress uniforms in the original series.
Scott’s kilt is the 1826 Scott black and white tartan, which “..was produced for his own use by Sir Walter Scott in 1822, and that he wore it in private, in the form of a Lowland shepherd’s plaid.” In Scotland, the patterns are referred to as ‘tartan’ as opposed to ‘plaid’ preferred in America. The one exception is the design known, in Scotland, as Shepherd’s Plaid.
William Shatner struggled to keep weight off during the show’s run and found the pounds piling on as filming dragged on over the course of a season. His weight gain is particularly noticeable in this story in comparison to episodes earlier in season three.
In the teaser, McCoy says, “There is no intelligent life here.”, and is quickly proven wrong. This is the only time anybody actually says this oft-quoted phrase on the original Star Trek series.
This is one of three productions in which Genghis Khan and Abraham Lincoln appear together as characters, in spite of the fact that Lincoln was born 582 years after the Khan’s death. The others are Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989) and Clone High (2002).
Summary
When someone purporting to be Abraham Lincoln asks them to beam down to the planet below, Kirk and Spock agree to join him. Soon Surak, the greatest Vulcan of all time, is with them. They are told by a rock-like creature that they are there to do battle against four of history’s most evil characters. The rock creature’s society does not understand the concepts of good and evil and the battle between the two groups will determine which has the greatest merit. They are free to use any materials available to them on the planet and Kirk soon realizes that there are weapons to be made.
CAST
William Shatner … Captain James Tiberius ‘Jim’ Kirk Leonard Nimoy … Mister Spock DeForest Kelley … Dr. McCoy Lee Bergere … Lincoln Barry Atwater … Surak Phillip Pine … Col. Green James Doohan … Scott George Takei … Sulu Nichelle Nichols … Uhura Walter Koenig … Chekov Arell Blanton … Chief Security Guard Carol Daniels … Zora (as Carol Daniels DeMent) Bob Herron … Kahless (as Robert Herron) Nathan Jung … Ghengis Khan Bill Blackburn … Lieutenant Hadley (uncredited) Roger Holloway … Lt. Lemli (uncredited) Bart La Rue … Yarnek (voice) (uncredited) Janos Prohaska … Yarnek (uncredited)
Sometimes I need a British mid-sixties pop song and voila here we are with Manfred Mann’s Pretty Flamingo. I know most of the English invasion bands plus American acts from my friend’s dad’s record collection that we went through as teenagers. Roy Orbison, The Beatles, The Stones, Kinks, Animals, and more. I don’t remember many Mandred Mann singles except Do Wah Diddy Diddy. Maybe we missed this one but it’s a good one.
One of the most interesting footnotes about this song is the bass player. No other than Jack Bruce was playing bass on this song. It was the only number 1 song he ever played on. He had briefly joined Manfred Mann. He soon would leave and joined Cream.
Pretty Flamingo was written by Mark Barkan from a Philadelphia band called The Deep. Barkan also wrote songs for many other artists including The Archies and The Monkees. The song peaked at #1 in the UK, #2 in Canada, #1 in New Zealand, and #29 on the Billboard 100. It was released as a non-album single in 1966.
Manfred Mann’s record producer John Burgess: “‘Pretty Flamingo’ was the first song that was brought to the band from someone other than ourselves. I didn’t like it much as it didn’t have a black flavour, but I see now that it could have been done by The Drifters. Ben E King could have done a great job on it.”
This video will take you on a trip to the sixties.
On our block all of the guys call her flamingo
‘Cause her hair glows like the sun
And her eyes can light the skies
When she moves she walks so fine like a flamingo
Crimson dress that clings so tight
She’s out of reach and out of sight
When she walks by, she brightens up the neighborhood
Oh, every guy would make her his if he just could
If she just would
Some sweet day, I’ll make her mine, pretty flamingo
Then every guy will envy me
‘Cause paradise is where I’ll be
Pretty flamingo
Pretty flamingo
When she walks by she brightens up the neighborhood
Oh, every guy would make her his if he just could, ha
If she just would
Some sweet day, I’ll make her mine, pretty flamingo
Then every guy will envy me
‘Cause paradise is where I’ll be
Sha, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, pretty flamingo
Some day, I’ll make her mine (sha, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, pretty flamingo)
Yes I will, yes I will, I’ll make her mine (sha, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, pretty flamingo)
If you want to see where we are…and you missed a few…HERE is a list of the episodes in my index located at the top of my blog.
This show was written by Gene Roddenberry, Margaret Armen, and David Gerrold
The Enterprise arrives at the planet Ardana to obtain Zenite, a rare mineral that they need to combat a botanical plague on another world. Kirk and Spock beam down but find themselves caught in the middle of a class struggle between the intellectual rulers dwelling in a city in the clouds, sustained by some anti-gravity technology, and Troglytes, the miners who mostly dwell in the caves on the surface of the planet, where such items like Zenite are obtained.
This is essentially a reworking of the worker class story penned by H.G. Wells in his famous novel The Time Machine. Extrapolating from such a premise of basic inequality, where-in the elites get all the benefits through the sweat of the workers.
It proposes that, sometime in the past, one race experienced an extreme branching-off separation into two, though, scientifically, they are still all the same race. Kirk and Spock see them as the same, simply a division of the rich vs. the poor, but the egotistical intellectuals of Stratos, the hovering city, have come to see themselves, over the centuries, as a different, superior race.
I liked seeing Spock liked by Droxine. She didn’t know it was a dead end but it’s nice seeing Spock, McCoy, or Scotty be involved instead of Kirk every now and then. Over all a good solid episode.
SPOILERS
The ending was left open…will the Cloud Minders and Troglytes get along?
From IMDB:
The rest chamber on Stratos is furnished with the iconic “Ribbon Chair” by french modernist designer Pierre Paulin, upholstered here in day-glow orange.
This was one of the first TV roles for football star Fred Williamson, who later became a prolific film actor.
According to John M. Dwyer (on the TOS season 2 DVD special features), the metal artwork and sculptures that appear throughout the city were mostly parts of metal furniture, like tables, etc. that he had rented from “a guy up in Topanga Canyon”, minus the glass tops, and much care had to be taken to return them in their original condition.
It is interesting that Jeff Corey was cast as Plasus, the leader of the privileged people on Stratos. For a number of years he had been blacklisted from working for allegedly being a Communist.
The phrase “For what purpose?” is uttered several times by several characters, in different contexts.
The story line is similar to Metropolis (1927) about a two class society where the upper class lives in the utopian city Stratos in the sky, enjoying their privileged life, while the cave-dwelling Troglytes’ only existence is working in the mines for the pleasure of a few – which is a key philosophical topic about ‘the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few’ in the Star Trek universe.
When Kirk, Spock, and McCoy explain the benefits of the filter masks to Plasus, they do so from a monitor in the transporter room. This is the first and only time in the series we see a visual communication take place here.
The mine “entrance” is the same set piece that was used for the entrance to the defense computer cave in That Which Survives (1969).
The script was written by David Gerrold, one of four writers of Star Trek who had no prior TV writing credits. The other three were Jean Lisette Aroeste (‘Is There in Truth No Beauty?’, ‘All Our Yesterdays’), Judy Burns (‘The Tholian Web’) and Joyce Muskat (‘The Empath’).
Just before leaving Stratos, Captain Kirk suggests to Plasus that the Federation Bureau of Industrialization (FBI) might be of assistance to mediate the difficulties with the Troglytes.
This takes place in 2269.
Jeff Corey and DeForest Kelley appeared together in Canon City (1948).
The name Droxine supposedly means awareness, audacity and gentleness.
Jeff Corey, who played Plasus, was also a director and teacher. In fact, he was one of Leonard Nimoy’s acting instructors.
Summary
Kirk and the Enterprise arrive at the planet Ardana to collect a supply of Zenite, needed to combat a botanical plague. The Stratosians live in a city literally in the clouds, far above the planet. They are highly intelligent and devote most of their time to art and intellectual pursuits. On the planet however live the Troglites, a primitive people who work in the mines. The Stratosians face a rebellion from the planet’s populace by a group of Troglites known as the Disruptors. In the city above, one particular Stratosian, the beautiful Droxine, takes a particular interest in Mr. Spock. Kirk soon realizes that the Disruptors may have legitimate complaints and is forced to deal with them when they steal the Zenite shipment. They also discover there may be an explanation for the Troglites’ limited intellectual capacity.
CAST
William Shatner … Captain James Tiberius ‘Jim’ Kirk Leonard Nimoy … Mister Spock DeForest Kelley … Dr. McCoy Jeff Corey … Plasus Diana Ewing … Droxine Charlene Polite … Vanna James Doohan … Scott Nichelle Nichols … Uhura Kirk Raymond … Cloud Guard #1 (as Kirk Raymone) Jimmy Fields … Cloud Guard #2 Ed Long … Midro Fred Williamson … Anka Garth Pillsbury … Prisoner Harv Selsby … Guard Bill Blackburn … Lieutenant Hadley (archive footage) (uncredited) Louie Elias … Troglyte #1 (uncredited) Dick Geary … Cloud City Sentinel #1 (uncredited) Jay D. Jones … Prisoner #2 (uncredited) Bob Miles … Cloud City Sentinel #2 (uncredited) Marvin Walters … Troglyte #2 (uncredited)
I hope everyone is having a fantastic Friday. I posted a song by this band a year or so ago. I really liked their sound and songs but after posting it I got distracted by something else. CB brought this band up to me recently and I returned to them. This song is a very good power pop song. You have some power and jangle…the recipe for good power pop…this band can dish it out.
Guided By Voices was formed in Dayton, Ohio, United States in 1983. The band’s lineup has changed several times throughout the band’s history, with its only constant member being singer/songwriter Bob Pollard. They are still together and touring… Bob Pollard is with the current lineup.
Bob Pollard is terribly prolific. They have had 37 studio albums, 12 Compilation albums, 19 EPs, 39 singles, 2 live albums, and 2 books! On top of that, they have appeared on several soundtracks including Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Crime and Punishment, Scrubs, and many more. They also counted Rik Ocasek as one of their producers.
Their first EP came out in 1986 and their first LP came out in 1987. They have released 15 albums since 2016.
Chasing Heather Crazy was released in 2001 on the Isolation Drills album. The album peaked at #6 on the Heat Seekers Charts, #8 on the Indie charts, and #168 on the Billboard Album Charts.
Review by Allmusic Tom Maginnis: “Chasing Heather Crazy” is a blissed-out rocker of the sort that showcases Robert Pollard’s sharp pop songcraft skills. His infectious melody is fully fleshed out here, with big clean studio production miles removed from the scrappy lo-fi quality of past efforts, such as Bee Thousand, which first brought Guided By Voices to the attention of the mainstream press and independent rock audiences alike. Pollard also seems more comfortable delving into personal matters, addressing his lyrics with a directness that was seldom found on earlier works, which also helps bring a margin of intimacy that could otherwise be lost in the slickness of the recording.
Chasing Heather Crazy
Trailing off the likes of it
She likes it when it grows
Sending out a candidate
She’s sinking her foes
Peaking out then leveling
Wherever it goes
And her mother will greet you
And a river will reach you
Breaking out to make you slave again
Chasing Heather crazy
Chasing Heather crazy
Making sure that all the world is coming down
All the world is coming down on her
Anywhere I want to
And if you want to come too
We’ll go down where
All the girls are stumblin’ round
All the world is crumbling down around her
Staring out from otherworldly windows painted red
Doesn’t have to listen to the voices in your head
That’s a different lie
Do you remember what was said?
And her mother will greet you
And a river will reach you
Breaking out to make you slave again
Chasing Heather crazy
Chasing Heather crazy
Making sure that all the world is coming down
All the world is coming down on her
Anywhere I want to
And if you want to come too
We’ll go down where
All the girls are stumblin’ round
All the world is crumbling down around her
This song sets a mood when you hear it. I remember this song growing up and when I bought a Rolling Stones cheap greatest hits somewhere on cassette…this song was on it. They did a good version of it but it’s hard to beat the Drifters. In 1985 I was graduating and our band was recruited for a 1950s-era type of play by the drama teacher. Now, every time I hear 50s-sounding music…it takes me back to the mid-80s. This song has a 50s sound to it but was from 1964.
Under The Boardwalk was written by Arthur Resnick and Kenny Young. Resnick also wrote “Good Lovin'” for The Rascals and Kenny Young wrote some for the British Invasion band Herman’s Hermits. After Jerry Wexler, who was the head of Atlantic Records, heard it…he thought it would be perfect for the Drifters…which it was, and especially lead singer Rudy Lewis.
The band was set to record this on May 20, 1964, but lead singer Lewis was found dead that morning of either a drug overdose or a heart attack. He was only 27 years old. The singer he replaced earlier was Ben E King…the singer of Stand By Me.
The session was rescheduled for the next day, and Johnny Moore was called in to replace Lewis. Moore was with The Drifters in 1958 when their manager fired everyone in the band and brought in new members. He was a convenient replacement for Lewis and stayed on as their main vocalist.
The song was produced by Bert Berns. He was a busy man back then writing songs for many artists including Them featuring Van Morrison, Twist and Shout for the Isley Brothers, and Everybody Needs Somebody to Love by Soloman Burke just to mention a few.
Under The Boardwalk peaked at #4 on the Billboard 100, #5 in Canada, #6 in New Zealand, and #45 in the UK in 1964. It would be the Drifter’s last top ten hit on the Billboard 100 but they would hit in the R&B and UK charts.
Under The Boardwalk
Oh, when the sun beats down and burns the tar up on the roof
And your shoes get so hot you wish your tired feet were fireproof
Under the boardwalk, down by the sea, yeah
On a blanket with my baby is where I’ll be
(Under the boardwalk) Out of the sun
(Under the boardwalk) We’ll be havin’ some fun
(Under the boardwalk) People walking above
(Under the boardwalk) We’ll be making love
Under the boardwalk, boardwalk
From the park you hear the happy sound of a carousel
Mm-mm, you can almost taste the hot dogs and french fries they sell
Under the boardwalk, down by the sea, yeah
On a blanket with my baby is where I’ll be
(Under the boardwalk) Out of the sun
(Under the boardwalk) We’ll be havin’ some fun
(Under the boardwalk) People walking above
(Under the boardwalk) We’ll be making love
Under the boardwalk, boardwalk
Oh, under the boardwalk, down by the sea, yeah
On a blanket with my baby is where I’ll be
(Under the boardwalk) Out of the sun
(Under the boardwalk) We’ll be havin’ some fun
(Under the boardwalk) People walking above
(Under the boardwalk) We’ll be falling in love
Under the boardwalk, boardwalk
There are so many songs I had to leave off…I could have filled up 50 slots. This is the year music exploded into what developed into modern rock. The British were coming, they came, and they conquered. On February 9, 1964, the world changed. We all know the song that hit first… I Want To Hold Your Hand. If you want to know about that one…here is a link to the good article that halffastcyclingclub wrote for The Beatles week that I had.
I’m going to start off with the B side of that single…one of the best B sides ever. It’s a fairly well-known song also. Let’s start off with the John Lennon and Paul McCartney song I Saw Her Standing There. After this year…the world would never be the same.
The English bands started to come over after the door was kicked in by The Beatles. One of the rawest and roughest was The Animals. They do their take on this classic traditional song and it has become the standard version that most people remember and it’s been covered by artists including Woody Guthrie in the 1940s.
A garage-sounding song and a future look at punk music. The Kinks made themselves known with this raw edgy hit.
The Dave Clark Five knocked the Beatles out of the number one position on the UK charts with Glad All Over. It was written by Dave Clark and Mike Smith.
Let’s end with an American band that had been charting since 1962 but now they were getting huge. The Beach Boys with Don’t Worry Baby. This is a masterpiece of a song. One of my all-time favorites. It’s up there with God Only Knows by them also. Brian Wilson wrote this tremendous song. I bumped another great song for this…I Get Around…but I just had to. Do you agree?
If you want to see where we are…and you missed a few…HERE is a list of the episodes in my index located at the top of my blog.
This show was written by Gene Roddenberry, Arthur Heinemann, and D.C. Fontana
Not a strong episode or particularly a good one. This is one of the weakest episodes of the series. Now if you are looking for a product of it’s times episode…this is the one for you! Interstellar Hippies + Enterprise is basically what it is.
The Enterprise intercepts a stolen spacecraft as it heads into Romulan space. Those aboard are flying it in such a reckless manner that it explodes just as they are beamed out. Once aboard the Enterprise, we see that they are a bunch of space hippies. They intend to set up a new colony on Eden; a perfect planet they believe they will find. Kirk is unimpressed and plans to take them to the nearest star base…the only reason they aren’t thrown in the brig is that one of them is the son of an ambassador.
They soon start causing trouble; trying to incite younger crew members to join them and generally being obstructive. Spock seems to have an understanding with them and agrees to use the ship’s computer to help them find the planet they seek. The group is given medical scans which reveal that its leader Dr Sevrin is the carrier of a deadly disease; he is quarantined but soon after his followers release him and take over auxiliary control. From here they shut off bridge controls and take the Enterprise to their Eden in Romulan territory.
The planet, while as beautiful as all of them imagined, also has a very deadly side.
From IMDB:
Uhura does not appear in this episode. Lieutenant Palmer, who fills in, makes her second and final TOS appearance after The Doomsday Machine (1967).
The space hippie protest “Herbert, Herbert, Herbert!” is a gag, referring to both Star Trek four time director Herb Wallerstein, and long time Executive in Charge of Production Herbert F. Solow. (Spock tells Kirk that the reference to Herbert is “somewhat uncomplimentary” and that “Herbert was a minor official, notorious for his rigid and limited patterns of thought.”)
For the scene in which Spock plays his Vulcan harp for Adam (the last time he plays the instrument on the series), the background music for Uhura’s song from Charlie X (1966) is recycled.
James Doohan (Scotty) stated that this was his least favorite episode.
Charles Napier wrote some of the songs Adam sings.
Walter Koenig was highly critical of the writing for “The Way to Eden”. In particular he felt Chekov was written as too authoritative, rigid and by the book, a complete contrast from his usual and intended characterization.
Dr. Sevrin is based on Timothy Leary, a controversial psychology professor who advocated LSD as a therapeutic drug.
This episode was originally entitled “Joanna.” The character of Irina was originally to be Joanna McCoy, daughter of Dr. McCoy, and love interest for Captain Kirk, but that original script was rejected. The character of Joanna was planned to later appear in the fourth season, but Star Trek was canceled at the end of the third season.
In this episode, for the first time, Chekov’s first and middle names are spoken/revealed, Pavel Andreivich.
In some scenes, William Shatner can be seen to be wearing a corset.
Nurse Chapel’s collapse, as well as the collapse of other crew members in the corridor, is reused footage from Spock’s Brain (1968). This is why the lights go out in sickbay during that shot, while they are functioning normally elsewhere on the ship.
Dr. McCoy does have a number of salt shakers in his arsenal of “medical equipment” (as well as boat anchors) but the spinning hand scanner was a special prop made by the prop department to go with the medical tricorder. It did nothing but spin.
A brief shot of the surface of Eden is reused footage of the lakeside from Shore Leave (1966). A shot of the surface of Gamma Trianguli VI from The Apple (1967) is also recycled and used in the same scene.
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989) recycles many elements of “The Way to Eden,” including Spock’s desire to find Eden.
Skip Homeier also starred in Patterns of Force (1968) as Melakon.
In the original version of the episode, the spacecraft Aurora is a Tholian ship with AMT model kit nacelles added to it. It is shown in the preview trailer without the nacelles. For the remastered version, a new design was created.
Summary
The Enterprise intercepts a stolen spacecraft heading directly for Romulan space. Its occupants are six space-age hippies who refuse to accept authority and are unconventional in their thinking. Led by the renowned Dr. Sevrin, they are in search of paradise – the mythical planet Eden. Kirk cannot relate but Spock does and agrees to help locate the planet. Spock also concludes that Sevrin is insane. For Chekov, it’s a chance to re-unite with Irina, with whom he was in love while they were students at the Academy. When the travelers manage to take control of the Enterprise, they realize their dream and arrive on Eden, which has surprises of its own.
CAST
William Shatner … Captain James Tiberius ‘Jim’ Kirk Leonard Nimoy … Mister Spock DeForest Kelley … Dr. McCoy Skip Homeier … Sevrin Charles Napier … Adam Mary Linda Rapelye … Irina (as Mary-Linda Rapelye) James Doohan … Scott Walter Koenig … Chekov George Takei … Sulu Majel Barrett … Nurse Chapel Victor Brandt … Tongo Rad Elizabeth Rogers … Lt. Palmer Deborah Downey … Girl #1 Phyllis Douglas … Girl #2
Pure rock and roll from the 1980s. One of the few who was producing raw rock at that time. I love the riff that Bob Stinson played in this song. Paul Westerberg remembered: “Bob started on the wrong note so he bent it [up] to make it fit.”
Let It Be was the third full album by the band’s original lineup: lead singer and songwriter Paul Westerberg, guitarist Bob Stinson, bassist Tommy Stinson, and drummer Chris Mars.
This was their last album on the small label Twin Tone Records and one of their best. The name of the album was Let It Be and it has a typical Replacements story. In the spring of 1984 the band was en route to a gig in Madison when inspiration struck. “We were riding around . . . kicking around silly album names and we thought, ‘The next song that comes on the radio, we’ll name it after that,’” said Westerberg.
Just then…the sound of Paul McCartney’s voice came out through the speakers: “When I find myself in times of trouble . . . ” It was fate… Let It Be would be the title of The Replacements’ new album.
This song is credited to all of the members of the band.
Paul Westerberg: We were supposed to stop, and I guess somebody didn’t stop, so we said, ‘Take it down to hell after the lead’—we weren’t sure what to do, you can hear me yell, ‘C!’ and everybody ended back on the C chord. It was a lucky guess. Then Chris started slowing it down. He was thinking, Aw, fuck this, let’s end it. Then we picked it back up. Later we overdubbed the piano and finger snaps.“Bob started on the wrong note so he bent it [up] to make it fit.”
Favorite Thing
Yeah!
Yeah, kid, it’s a really hip With plenty of flash and you know it Yeah, dad, you’re rocking real bad Don’t break your neck when you fall down laughing Donna, wanna, Donna
Yeah, I know I look like hell I smoke and I drink and I’m feeling swell Yeah, I hear you think it’s weird But I don’t give a single shit
Yeah, man, it’s a-hip, you know what I’m saying It’s a-hip, you know what I’m saying And I hear it My heart aches, it’s a-looking for a dolly Looking for a dolly, can’t you hear it Want to be something, want to be anything
Yeah, I know I feel this way But I ain’t gonna never change Yeah, I hear, I think, I know Rock don’t give a shit, you know
You’re my favorite thing You’re my favorite thing Bar nothing
You’re my favorite thing You’re my favorite thing You’re my favorite thing You’re my, you’re my, you’re my, you’re my Thing, thing, Thing, thing, Thing, thing, once in a while Thing, thing, Thing, thing, Thing, thing, once in a while Thing, thing, thing Thing, thing, thing Thing, thing, once in a while
This catchy 1967 song was on the Grateful Dead’s self-titled debut album. This is not one of the songs that they would play for years. According to Songfacts the Dead only performed it eight times, six during a roughly four-month span in 1967. In the 1990s Vince Welnick lobbied for them to play it because he played it in some of his own bands. The last time they played it was in 2015 at Chicago’s Soldier Field on a reunion tour.
The song fit the Summer of Love in which it was born. This was before they jelled into what they became. You can tell this was influenced by the British invasion bands. The song’s title is said to have been inspired by Aldous Huxley’s groundbreaking book, The Doors of Perception. The Doors of Perception explored the idea of inner consciousness and claimed that there was a way to transcend the everyday world and access heightened experiences. The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion) is seen by some as a nod to Huxley’s ideas and philosophy.
They hadn’t found their identity yet and would soon start improvising on stage into jams. This song clocks in at around two minutes…that would change. They had the album recorded and the record company said they needed a single. They went home and wrote this song and thought…this would fit the bill. It IS a catchy song and I have to wonder if it was pushed at all by the record company?
The band’s grasp of spontaneity and jamming can be seen in the music of other jam bands like Phish and Widespread Panic. The album peaked at #73 on the Billboard Album Charts in 1967. The song was credited to the entire band. From wiki… The band used the collective pseudonym “McGannahan Skjellyfetti” for their group-written originals and arrangements. The name was a misrendering of “Skujellifeddy”, a character in Kenneth Patchen’s comic novel The Memoirs of a Shy Pornographer, plus the name of then-frontman Pigpen’s cat.
Jerry Garcia: “After we recorded the album they said, ‘We still haven’t got anything here that’d be a strong single.’ So we said, ‘Ah, a strong single, sure!’ So we went home and wrote a song.’Wow, this’ll be a good single.'”
“This was recorded after we recorded the body of the album, and [it’s] a new song; we were thinking specifically of a single, so we just played around, and came up with some nice changes and cooperated on the entire thing, and came up with the Golden Road, which is a good song; I mean it’s like really fun to sing and fun to play … and it seems like a good single, whatever that is – we thought it could be a single.”
The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion)
See that girl, barefootin’ along,
Whistlin’ and singin’, she’s a carryin’ on.
There’s laughing in her eyes, dancing in her feet,
She’s a neon-light diamond and she can live on the street.
Hey hey, hey, oh, by the way, come and (party every day)
Hey hey, hey, oh, by the way, come and (party every day)
Well everybody’s dancin’ in a ring around the sun
Nobody’s finished, we ain’t even begun.
So take off your shoes, child, and take off your hat.
Try on your wings and find our where it’s at.
Hey hey, hey, come (party every day)
Hey hey, hey, come (party every day)
Take a vacation, fall out for a while,
Summer’s comin’ in, and it’s goin’ outa style.
Well lite up smokin’ buddy, have yourself a ball.
Cause your mother’s down in Memphis, won’t be back ’till the fall.
Hey hey, hey, come right away
Come and join the (party every day)
Hey hey, hey, come right away
Come and join the (party every day)
Hey hey, hey, come right away
Come and join the (party every day)
Hey hey, hey, come right away
Come and join the (party every day)
Gonna see Miss Brer Foxhole Bright diamonds at her teeth She is pure gold down underneath
I’ve talked about it before…a title can draw a person in a song. This one begs to be listened to. Sometimes they don’t live up to the title but this one does. Although Robbie Robertson wrote this, Levon Helm’s vocals brought this piece of Americana to life. He owns this song. He grew up near Helena, Arkansas, and heard stories of traveling Medicine Shows coming in and out of town. When he was a kid he got to see some of these shows. Robertson later translated that into this song.
Helena, Arkansas was the home of the King Biscuit Time radio show. It debuted in 1941. Performers such as Sonny Boy Williamson II would be on the show. The show was the thing that really crystallized blues music in that area. It is said that Muddy Waters and B.B. King would come home from working in the fields every day just to listen to the King Biscuit hour.
This song was on their 3rd album Stage Fright. By this time, Robertson was having trouble writing songs. The brotherhood they all shared was getting complicated because of outside influences. Robertson also had a baby daughter and pregnant wife at home. The songs were great though.
Stage Fright peaked at #5 on the Billboard Album Charts, #6 in Canada, and #15 in the UK in 1970. The album has some of my favorite songs by the Band on it. The Shape I’m In, Stage Fright, and this one.
Robbie Robertson: I wrote about a traveling medicine show I had heard Levon speak of years earlier, something between a carnival sideshow and the African American origins of rock and roll. We recorded “The W. S. Walcott Medicine Show” and another take of “Daniel and the Sacred Harp” with Todd at a studio in the city, and these turned out to be a couple of our favorite tracks. That put the finishing touches on what we could pull out of the hat for this record. I was worn out from this process and trying to maintain a stable family life with my baby daughter and pregnant wife.
The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show
When your arms are empty, got nowhere to go
Come on out and catch the show
There’ll be saints and sinners
You’ll see losers and winners
All kinds of people you might want to know
Once you get it, you can’t forget it
W.S. Walcott medicine show
You know he always holds it in a tent
And if you’re looking for the real thing
He can show you where it went
There’s a young faith healer, he’s a woman stealer
He will cure by his command
When the music’s hot then you might have to stand
To hear the Klondike Klu Klux Steamboat Band
Don’t you sweat it, you can’t forget it
W.S. Walcott medicine show
I’d rather die happy than not die at all
For a man is a fool who will not heed the call
Gonna see Miss Brer Foxhole
Bright diamonds at her teeth
She is pure gold down underneath
She’s a rock and roll singer and a true dead ringer
For something like you ain’t never seen
Once you get it, you can’t forget it
W.S. Walcott medicine show
W.S. Walcott medicine show
W.S. Walcott medicine show
If you want to see where we are…and you missed a few…HERE is a list of the episodes in my index located at the top of my blog.
This show was written by Gene Roddenberry, Jerome Bixby, and Arthur H. Singer
The Enterprise crew is racked by Rigelian fever and arrives at a planet to gather raw material (Ryetalin) for treatment. Spock, Kirk, and McCoy beam down and encounter Flint, seemingly the sole occupant and owner of the planet. His actions and motives are mysteriously strange throughout the first 3 acts of the episode… he appears hostile at first, but then shifts his attitude to that of a gracious host, unveiling his legal ward, a young female whose parents died while in Flint’s employ (so he says). Kirk is immediately entranced by this girl (Rayna) of great intellect, who also seems very naive.
Flint has something up his sleeve and it’s definitely not just to say goodbye to Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. Spock rightly suspects something is wrong and tells Kirk that their host is delaying their stay at his home for unknown reasons. Spock surmises correctly that Flint knows Brahms, da Vinci, and countless other personalities to create his exquisite collection of paintings and musical masterpieces.
‘Flint,’ it turns out, is just using this name as the latest in a long line; he was previously known as Da Vinci, the composer Brahms, as well as Solomon, Lazarus, Methuselah, and Merlin, besides a hundred others. Spock had deduced as much after studying Flint’s paintings and musical compositions, which were all created recently, using 23rd-century materials: Flint was born about 6000 years ago, on Earth.
For reasons never explained, he is some kind of a mutant, an immortal – he found this out way back in his first identity when he recovered from a fatal wound. This backstory is somewhat familiar, and used in other novels, series, or films. It’s very close to a Twilight Zone episode called Long Live Walter Jameson.
When Flint delays the transfer of Ryetalin to the Trek trio and basically compels them to enter his secret room with its models of other Raynas, his intentions become clear: he wants to hold them in stasis with the Enterprise for a thousand years. Spock is in his element with this late Classic Trek episode.
He’s the first person to realize that Flint will never let them leave his home since they have discovered his secret immortality and the first to tell Flint that Rayna would hate him for holding the Enterprise crew in stasis. Rayna is not what she seems…and Kirk has fallen for her…(Video at the bottom)
SPOILERS
A really good episode. Spock does something really touching at the end. He sees Kirk severely depressed about losing Rayna. Kirk put his head down and Spock goes to Kirk and mind melds with him and made him forget so he could stop hurting.
From IMDB:
The Johannes Brahms paraphrase that Spock plays was written especially for this episode by Ivan Ditmars.
One of many Star Trek productions resembling William Shakespeare’s The Tempest and/or Irving Block’s Forbidden Planet (1956).
Flint’s viewscreen appears to be a fairly close predictor of the modern flat panel TV that would become a commonplace household device decades later, except in 4:3 rather than widescreen format.
Mr. Flint invites Kirk, Spock and Bones to his palace, which is the same as seen from afar in The Cage (1966): an Eastern palace with blue details, golden rooftops, a giant moon or other planet in the background left and a smaller, Saturn-like planet left of that. In ‘The Cage’ this is the stage for the fight between Captain Pike and the quasi-Viking giant. In the remastered Star Trek, this image was replaced with a new background.
The undercarriage of Flint’s robot, M-4, is a reused portion from the upper carriage of Nomad from The Changeling (1967).
The only time in TOS in which the stardate is given with two decimal places instead of the usual one.
In the third season blooper reel, there is a shot of the M-4 on its dolly mount, being wheeled toward William Shatner by its operator. There is also a clip of Leonard Nimoy rocking his head sarcastically while “fill-in” elevator music plays for the scene where Spock plays Johannes Brahms’ waltz for Kirk and Rayna. Ivan Ditmars’ performance was dubbed in later.
In the preview trailer, the view of Kirk’s face saying “my crew” is unobstructed. The shrunken ship had not been spliced in yet.
The closeup of the sheet music of the “totally unknown” waltz of Brahms as declared by Spock is actually a handwritten copy of a very famous Brahms Waltz. Waltz No. 1 (in B Major) of the 16 Waltzes, Op. 39. This sheet music does not replicate what is heard – the original Waltz that is “played” by Spock- which WAS written for the episode.
This episode includes the newest footage of the Enterprise seen since Mirror, Mirror (1967), utilizing the three-foot model built to demonstrate the Enterprise shape in 1964.
Actor James Daly, who plays Mr. Flint, is the father of actress Tyne Daly (Cagney & Lacey, 1981-88) and actor Timothy Daly (Wings, 1990-97).
Jerome Bixby revisited the “immortal man” theme in a novel/play filmed as The Man from Earth (2007).
Flint’s view screen appears to be the Beta III lighting panel seen in The Return of the Archons (1967). It is also similar to the one seen in Where No Man Has Gone Before (1966).
Some of the furnishings in Flint’s castle are recognizably recycled from previous episodes. Spock sits in the ornate chair used by Korob and Sylvia in Catspaw (1967). In the outer room of Flint’s laboratory, just in front of the vertical grill, is Liviana Charvanek’s “communications box” from The Enterprise Incident (1968). In the same room, the back walls are lined with the consoles from the Elba II control room in Whom Gods Destroy (1969).
In Secrets and Lies (2001), Max Evans auditions for a role in a fictional episode of Star Trek: Enterprise (2001) directed by Jonathan Frakes in which the Enterprise crew have contracted Rigelian fever and Doctor Phlox must obtain Ryetalyn to cure them.
Flint and Rayna are very similar to Rojan and Kelinda from By Any Other Name (1968), also written by Jerome Bixby.
Summary
Kirk, McCoy, and Spock beam down to what is supposed to be an uninhabited planet to collect a supply of ryetalin, an essential element to treat a serious virus that is afflicting the Enterprise crew. On the planet, they meet a human named Flint who is not very pleased to see them. He agrees to help them locate the supply of ryetalin but insists that they leave as soon as possible. His home fascinates Spock who notes that the artworks comprise unknown DaVinci paintings, unknown Brahms music, and other works all apparently original except for the fact that contemporary materials were used in their creation. Kirk is attracted to Flint’s ward, the beautiful Rayna, but she too has a secret – one that is unknown even to her.
Here is a short video…it was the only one that didn’t give me an age restriction. Here is a better video.
CAST
William Shatner … Captain James Tiberius ‘Jim’ Kirk Leonard Nimoy … Mister Spock DeForest Kelley … Dr. McCoy James Daly … Flint Louise Sorel … Rayna James Doohan … Scott Nichelle Nichols … Uhura Bill Blackburn … Lieutenant Hadley (uncredited) Roger Holloway … Lt. Lemli (uncredited) Naomi Newman … Lt. Rahda (uncredited) Sally Yarnell … Lieutenant (uncredited)
A song that was intertwined with my life growing up. It sounds so genuine because I grew up with people that talked just like the characters in the song. What an epic song that Bobbie Gentry wrote. The writing was flawless in this song and her delivery was spot on. This was the ultimate story song.
Bobbie Gentry was born and raised in Mississippi and knew very well of the Tallahatchie Bridge. When Gentry was 13, she moved to Palm Springs, California to live with her mother. While attending college at UCLA, Gentry supported herself by performing at local clubs. She transferred to the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music and began her study of music theory and arrangement.
In early 1967, Gentry started making demos of songs that she believed she could sell to other artists to record. In July, Kelly Gordon was assigned to produce Ode To Billie Joe for the label. The track “Mississippi Delta” is the song that caught Capitol’s attention, but after the first string session with Jimmie Haskell, it was decided that the song “Ode to Billie Joe“ would be the A-side single released. A very wise choice.
The song took off that summer and that ignited the album of the same name. Ode to Billie Joe replaced the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club at the top of the Billboard 200. Gentry won three Grammy Awards in 1967 (Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.) She also took home the award for the Academy of Country Music’s Most Promising Female Vocalist.
Was the song based on a true story? No, but it was inspired by the 1954 murder of Emmett Till. Till was only 14 years old when he was shot and thrown over the Black Bayou Bridge in Mississippi for offending a woman in a grocery store.
In 1976 I remember watching the movie “Ode To Billy Joe.” Believe me, the song was much better than the movie. At the time though it wasn’t that bad. The release weekend for this movie coincided with the date from the first line of the song that inspired it: “It was the 3rd of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day.”
The song peaked at #1 on the Billboard 100, #1 in Canada, #3 in New Zealand, and #13 in the UK in 1967.
She changed her name from Roberta Lee Streeter, in tribute to the Jennifer Jones movie Ruby Gentry…her songs were almost always set in and around the Chickasaw County of her childhood, semi-mythical south, with lyrics about people who were friends and neighbors. In 1972 the wooden bridge collapsed after being set on fire by vandals but was later rebuilt.
Bobbie Gentry: “The message of the song revolves around the nonchalant way the family talks about the suicide. The song is a study in unconscious cruelty.”
Bobbie Gentry: “It’s entirely a matter of interpretation as from each individual’s viewpoint. But I’ve hoped to get across the basic indifference, the casualness, of people in moments of tragedy. Something terrible has happened, but it’s ‘pass the black-eyed peas’, or ‘y’all remember to wipe your feet.'”
Ode To Billy Joe
It was the third of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day
I was out choppin’ cotton, and my brother was balin’ hay
And at dinner time we stopped and walked back to the house to eat
And mama hollered out the back door, y’all, remember to wipe your feet
And then she said, I got some news this mornin’ from Choctaw Ridge
Today, Billie Joe MacAllister jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge
And papa said to mama, as he passed around the blackeyed peas
Well, Billie Joe never had a lick of sense, pass the biscuits, please
There’s five more acres in the lower forty I’ve got to plow
And mama said it was shame about Billie Joe, anyhow
Seems like nothin’ ever comes to no good up on Choctaw Ridge
And now Billie Joe MacAllister’s jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge
And brother said he recollected when he, and Tom, and Billie Joe
Put a frog down my back at the Carroll County picture show
And wasn’t I talkin’ to him after church last Sunday night?
I’ll have another piece-a apple pie you know, it don’t seem right
I saw him at the sawmill yesterday on Choctaw Ridge
And now ya tell me Billie Joe’s jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge
And mama said to me, child, what’s happened to your appetite?
I’ve been cookin’ all morning, and you haven’t touched a single bite
That nice young preacher, Brother Taylor, dropped by today
Said he’d be pleased to have dinner on Sunday, oh, by the way
He said he saw a girl that looked a lot like you up on Choctaw Ridge
And she and Billie Joe was throwing somethin’ off the Tallahatchie Bridge
A year has come and gone since we heard the news ’bout Billie Joe
And brother married Becky Thompson, they bought a store in Tupelo
There was a virus going ’round, papa caught it, and he died last spring
And now mama doesn’t seem to want to do much of anything
And me, I spend a lot of time pickin’ flowers up on Choctaw Ridge
And drop them into the muddy water off the Tallahatchie Bridge
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