The Capuchin Monkey experiment is classic. Full video here, and it’s worth watching. Frans de Waal‘s joke about OWS is wrong, but the rest is good IMO.
Good God are these guys scary monkeys. One errant gust of wind at that height would blow ’em away. [via]
The Specialsonly had one album, but it put Ska back on the map for pop music. The late Amy Winehouse did a horrible cover of the song.
Let’s see. How do we wrap this up on a positive note? Got it.
The Specials Live in Glastonbury 2009. With that we’re out of here. Be back here for Real Gangster Time tomorrow for more inane fun.
Science declares 4 seconds of shaking removes 70% of the water off a wet dog, and 20% lands on you. Do aquatic mammals, like whales, orcas, dolphins & porpoises, shake off air? NEW STUDY! [Your tax dollars at work. Found here.]
The Specials revived ska in the 70s, and did the dog.
Rufus Thomas knew how to walk the dog decades ago, until his demise in 2001.
Due to some unfortunate happenings in the private sector, we’re going to cut this episode short. Have a great weekend, folks. Be back here tomorrow for more slices of the stupid pie. =)
I don’t know how The HorrorPops missed showing up on my radar screen. Too much awesome in this psychobilly band from Denmark.
Before The HorrorPops came these guys. The M3T30RS‘ version of “Rawhide” ain’t too bad, especially considering they’re from the U.K., and according to some are the originators of psychobilly.
Antedating The M3T30RS came San Diego’s own Billy Bacon & The Forbidden Pigs, presented here in a gloriously crappy 35mm film. The missus and I were fortunate to see FP at their prime. Great show.
Just prior to The Forbidden Pigs, there were The Stray Cats, but y’all know about them.
Before The Stray Cats were even born, there was Eddie Cochran, arguably one of the most successful early Rockabilly recording artists. Sure it’s lipsynching but he faked the entire crowd out with the giant TV set, and his fans were given free chewing gum just to go along with it.
With that, have a great weekend, folks. See y’all back here tomorrow.
Folks, some of y’all have wondered how and why we choose videos for the Saturday Matinee Posts. Actually no one axed us, but here’s how we do it anyway.
First, we find something odd, like this one. Then we apply advanced tublication, with links, to create a theme of sorts, and we run with it, like this:
Desert Bus Demo video. Woosk has a description of the game, and here’s a link to a related charitable fundraiser.
So now we’re lookin’ for bus in all the wrong places, and about all we find is The Who’s “Magic Bus,” one video of Roger Daltrey singing the annoying children’s song, and the Bus Boys, featured here about a year ago.
Instead of a bus song, let’s look for a sub song instead:
Now we’re sittin’ and scratchin’ and still lookin’ for another sub song. Everybody’s already seen Bob Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues” video (including the Weird Al parody) and we find this:
Red Hot Chili Peppers, doing a Dylan/Punk/Funk mashup. Personally, I think it sucks, but it took cojones to do it, and that’s really what it’s all about.
But the theme/thread is not complete without a knot. At this point, we’re gonna take “sub” and drop one letter, leaving the letters U and B, and add the final score of a blowout soccer game. The knot becomes obvious:
UB40‘s “Rat In The Kitchen” is a brit/reggae classic, and our post is complete.
But to be honest, sometimes we just throw up a bunch of last-minute unrelated videos and pretend that a lot of thought went into it, but you’ll never be able to tell the difference because we’re that good.
Even if you think the video posts are random, they aren’t. Around here there’s a reason for everything, even when there isn’t.
1973. Ugh. Rock N Roll was losing its edge, and then some unknown band like Focus got a lot of airplay, at least for a few minutes. We did our best to ignore the yodeling, except for the Popeye part. Here’s a rare live version of “Hocus Pocus,” with Gladys Knight(?!) doing the intro.
1973 also brought this to our FM converters so we could hear it on our AM car radios. Golden Earring‘s greatest hit, “Radar Love,” wasn’t their best song, but it was great roadtrip music.
1973 had THIS highlight, though: Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” (before he went weeny on us).
1973 music sucked on a whole lotta levels never seen before. Top BillBoard hits included:
“You’re So Vain” by Carly Simon
“Crocododile Rock” by Elton John
“Bad Bad Leroy Brown” by Jim Croce
“Top of the World” by the Carpenters
“There’s Got To Be A Morning After” by Maureen McGovern
“Tie a Yellow Ribbofdpnoa oh man I can’t type any more of that garbage without gagging.
BUT THERE WAS THIS:
Gladys Knight was awesome. We were all Pips in the days of old (“Whoo-whoo!”). Then I lost my direction again with this:
Edgar Winter’s “Frankenstein” was being played on the radio about the same time brother JohnnyRick Derringer was getting airplay for “Rock And Roll Hoochie Coo.” [cbullitt corrected me in the comments section.]
Johnny Winter was better at the blues, but he cranked on Dylan’s “Highway 61.” (Look for G.E. Smith on rhythm guitar.)
Dang. I could take this string for another dozen utoobage links, but I’ll cut it here… temporarily.
* “SatMat” means “Saturday Matinee.” It looked better abbreviated on the title.
? and the Mysterians’ “96 Tears” was a classic. Rudy “?” Martinez (vocals), Bobby Balderrama (guitar), Frank Rodriquez (organ), Frank Lugo (bass) and Eddie Serrato (drums) were from Saginaw Michigan, according to BillBoard’s Top Pop Singles (which categorizes them as a punk band — go figger).
I learned “Question Mark’s” real name years ago from a black girl who played bass left-handed without re-stringing. She said her mom went to school with him.
I’m embarrassed to even include this clip of “The Riddler” from the obnoxious Batman TV series. Okay, no I’m not. Deal with it. Frank Gorshin was the best as the Riddler, but even I didn’t make it through this clip. Lemme know how it comes out.
Frank Gorshin plays chicken in the 1956 movie “Hot Rod Girl.”
Okay, let’s drop this hot rod question mark stuff right now. Gonna have a SHINDIG!
Oh, man, this is a load o’ gold raised from the pits of hits, so hold on to your stax o’ wax and move to the groove of SHINDIG! Good God! Too hot to handle and too cold to hold, so cash in this golden goodie for a Woodie, ’cause here’s a sample o’ soul times infinity! If you don’t know who’s playin’, then I’m not sayin’! ROLL IT!
Bluegrass has its roots in northern Britain according to my ear. The chord patterns of early country music from Appalachia follow those of Scottish and Irish reels. In the immigration wave of the early 1800’s, the Scottish and Irish tended to venture southward, away from the constrictions of the north, to where they could work their own land. No wonder that early southern recordings sound similar to those of Ireland and Scotland.
Bill Monroe & his Bluegrass Boys popularized it and gave the style it’s moniker: Bluegrass. This song (video from 1956) is a tribute to Pendleton Vandiver, Monroe’s uncle. Monroe joined his uncle Pen’s band as a kid; his sound dates back to the turn of the century.
The Dillards were the Darlings clan on the Andy Griffith show. The Dillards decided that L.A. had more to offer than the Missouri Ozarks, and advertised themselves on the streets in the early 1960’s.
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band were influenced by the Dillards, and took Jerry Jeff Walker’s “Mr. BoJangles” for a ride.
What I was really looking for when all this linkyness began was New Grass Revival‘s version of “Steam Powered Aeroplane,” one of the prettiest bluegrass songs I ever heard:
"Well I went away on a Steam Powered Aeroplane.
Well I went and I stayed and damn near didn't come back again.
Didn't go very fast on a steam powered aeroplane,
The wheels went around, up and down, and inside and then back again.Sittin' on a 747 just watching them clouds roll by,
Can't tell if it's sunshine, if it's rain.
Rather be sittin' in a deck chair high up over Kansas City,
On a genuine old fashioned oil finish Steam Powered Aeroplane.Well I'd could be PILOT on the Steam Powered Aeroplane.
I'd pull that pilot wheel 'round, then back again.
And I'd wear a blue hat, YEAH, on the Steam Powered Aeroplane,
With letters go 'round the brim and then back again.
Sittin' on a 747 just watching them clouds roll by,
Can't tell if it's sunshine or if it's rain.
Rather be sittin' in a deck chair high up over Kansas City,
On a genuine old fashioned oil finish Steam Powered Aeroplane."
Here’s the songwriter, John Hartford, with Tony Rice, Vassar Clements and others. (Yeah, his vocals don’t do justice for the song.)
Great pre-sunrise morning roadtrip music, just like Pat Metheny’s “New Chataqua Highway,” or anything by Django Reinhardt and Stephan Grappelli.
[Bunk’s compiling his roadtrip list for next month. Lemme know your favorites.]
Raccoon enters through pet door. Scopes out the kitchen.
Will he go for the cat food? Nah.
Will he go for the dog food? Nope.
This one knows exactly what he wants and knows how to get it.
She’s obviously tech support for Microsoft. (To be honest, I’d prolly be doing the same thing if I hadda work in a cubicle like that.)
Nancy Cartwright’s 2004 interview in Australia.
“I’m Bart Simpson, man. Who the hell are you?”
I don’t own Leslie Gore. She owned me up until I saw her hairdo and horseface. Bunky just sealed his eyeballs shut and listened.
I remember hearing this on the battery powered transistor radio I got for Christmas that I hid under my pillow, and Skeeter Davis sounded so purty. She’s another one who had a great voice and a bad hairdo. (I’d never seen her until a few minutes ago, but I was in love with her when I was about 8.)
Then there’s k.d. lang. Just ’cause she gotta big caboose and a butch haircut doesn’t mean I don’t like her music.
And then there’s poor Baz. [Tip o’ the tarboosh to Phil. He says it’s been around for a few years, and somehow he knew that I’d like it by saying so on his Blog From Down Under.]
Speaking of Down Under, some time ago, when WordPress was revamping it’s vamps, I was unable to add the video above to this post. Found a new link for it by accident, so here it is.
Noodlin’ is catchin’ de fishes widdout dem bait in tackle. Feel ‘roun’ fo de ho in de mud, reach innan grab ‘im what dere. Justin Wilson be done do dat, too. Noah fence.
There are professional noodlers, and the good ones are missing fingers because snapping turtles nest the same way. (Once they got you, turtles won’t let go.)
Then there’s this. It’s cool, too, except for that giggle at the end.
Lookee here folks… this particular post has no theme, so it makes complete sense to post a coupla completely unrelated videos here.
“The Commitments” was a very underrated movie about a bunch of Irish misfits that came together with a love for 1960’s American R&B and pulled it off before self-destructing. Put it on your “must rent” list if you’ve not seen it.
Here’s the real deal that’s too hot to handle and too cold to hold: The Wicked Wilson Pickett’s “Land of 1000 Dances.”
Otis Redding followed in Wilson’s footsteps. Here’s “Try A Little Tenderness.” Look for Steve Cropper, Duck Dunn, Al Jackson and Booker T. Jones (Booker T. & the M.G.’s) backing him up.
Tacky Raccoons 