When I heard this song, I had to find out who it was. I was watching Late Night with the Devil, and this song played. I finally looked at the Soundtrack and to my surprise, it was Flo and Eddie. Flo (Phlorescent Leech) is Mark Volman, and Eddie is Howard Kaylan. Mark and Howard were the two founding members of the 1960s band The Turtles. The Turtles had a large vocal sound. Kaylan is a very good singer, and when combined with Volman, it made a unique sound for the Turtles.
After the Turtles broke up, Howard and Mark Volman went by the name “Flo and Eddie” for legal reasons (old Turtles contract). They made a career of unusual rock-comedy albums and developed a following. They immediately began playing with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention and were there when Frank was pushed off the stage at the Rainbow. They were also in the Zappa movie, 200 Motels.
Flo & Eddie were what happened when two of the strangest, funniest, and most musically savvy minds to ever pass through the Top 40 were given free rein. This song was never a hit. It didn’t even scrape the charts. But like most of the best Flo & Eddie material, it was an inside joke with enough melody to trick you into thinking it WAS a hit. It’s a song about being past your prime, sung with the kind of confidence that says you never bought into the hype in the first place. If this came on the radio between Pablo Cruise and Seals & Crofts, you might not notice anything was different until you realized it was mocking both of them while sounding just as good.
The song opens with a clean piano, all smooth and clean guitars, but the lyrics are just… off. The chorus says “keep it warm,” but what is it, exactly? A bed? A place in your heart? An old seat at the Hollywood Squares? Richard Dawson’s seat on Match Game? Kaylan delivers it with such sincere charm that it takes a few listens before you realize it’s about disillusionment, being outdated, all the while dressed up in a Beach Boys falsetto.
The production was immaculate. Jim Pons (also ex-Turtle, ex-Zappa) lays down a bass line that fits the song perfectly. The arrangements swirl like mid-70s L.A. excess seen through a cracked, warped rearview mirror.
The song was on their 1976 album Moving Targets.
Keep It Warm
Write another song for the moneySomething they can sing, not so funnyMoney in the bank to keep us warm
Stick another grape in the juicerOr fill your guts with grease and get looserYou are what you eat, so eat it warm
Roll another joint for the GipperGet the Gipper high, he gets hipperStick it in his mouth and keep him warm
Elect another jerk to the White HouseGracie Slick is losing her DormouseTake her off the streets and keep her warm (oh-oh)
Fight another war if they make youSqueal on a friend or they’ll take youThe future’s in your lap, so keep it warm
Warm, here in your arms (ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh)Safe from all harm, where I belong (ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh)Warm, cozy and calm (ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh)Another dawn, together warm (ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh)
My Woody’s broken down by the beach nowAnd TM’s gotten far out of reach nowTell the Mahareesh to keep it warm(We’re picking up good vibrations)
And George is suing Paul, suing RingoAnd immigration wants John and YokoAll they need is love to keep them warm
Kill another whale with your powerShoot a bunch of kids from a towerSnipe them in their cars, blood keeps them warm
Or make a better world from the old oneMake yourself a baby and hold oneHold her in your arms and keep her warm
Keep her warm, keep her warmKeep her warm, keep her warmKeep her warm, keep her warmKeep her warm, keep her warmKeep her warm…
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