The Classic/Retro Pop Culture Thread

Discussion in 'TV & Media' started by The Old Mixer, Jan 11, 2016.

  1. publiusr

    publiusr Admiral Admiral

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  2. The Old Mixer

    The Old Mixer Mih ssim, mih ssim, nam, daed si Xim. Moderator

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    _______

    50 Years Ago This Week

    BuzzAldrin_Rev.jpg




    Next week's gonna have a hard time topping that! Next month, on the other hand, has a rival decade-defining moment up its sleeve....


    And The Old Mixer is the size of a...rutabaga? [Looks up exactly what a rutabaga is.] Wait, so we're back on turnips again?


    Selections from Billboard's Hot 100 for the week:

    Leaving the chart:
    • "Grazing in the Grass," The Friends of Distinction (16 weeks)
    • "Israelites," Desmond Dekker & The Aces (10 weeks)

    Re-entering the chart:

    "I'll Never Fall in Love Again," Tom Jones
    (Originally charted Sept. 9, 1967, reaching #49 US, #28 AC, #2 UK; re-release reaches #6 US, #1 AC)

    New on the chart:

    "Give Peace a Chance," Plastic Ono Band

    (#14 US; #2 UK)

    "A Boy Named Sue," Johnny Cash

    (#2 US; #1 AC; #1 Country; #4 UK)

    "Sugar, Sugar," The Archies

    (#1 US the weeks of Sept. 20 through Oct. 11, 1969; #22 AC; #1 UK; #1 song on Billboard's 1969 Year-End Chart of Pop Singles)

    _______

    Apollo 11 update: The astronauts entered Lunar orbit at 1:25 p.m. EDT, and saw their first earthrise at 1:47 p.m. EDT. Mission status as of 7:00 p.m. EDT:
     
  3. RJDiogenes

    RJDiogenes Idealistic Cynic and Canon Champion Premium Member

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    Happy Apollo 11 Day, Fellow Earthlings!

    Moon Day? Lunar Day? I favor Tranquility Day myself.

    Here's my contribution to the Retro Pop Culture Thread reminiscing: I've mentioned the divan in the parlor at 105 Pleasant Street in Dorchester and that's where I was sitting while I watched the Apollo 11 adventure unfold on that big old TV that took two minutes to warm up and cast an orange glow on the wall behind it. I also had a Polaroid camera, which I used to take this:

    [​IMG]

    Not exactly HD, but Holy Crap, I was watching astronauts walking on the Moon! Best day ever for all Mankind. :bolian:

    Seriously. It's like the night before Christmas, except it's the night before landing on the Moon for the first time!

    "Houston, five more minutes, please."

    I love his joy at being rejected while disguised.

    Next time I'll know better. [​IMG]

    Don't worry, it's just a phase.

    I was expecting a bad thing, but I got a different bad thing.

    Classic.

    Absolutely hilarious.

    Fun song, and a happy memory of Saturday morning cartoons.
     
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  4. The Old Mixer

    The Old Mixer Mih ssim, mih ssim, nam, daed si Xim. Moderator

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    :techman:

    Reminds me a little too much of "SERENITY NOW!"

    Actually, that was two nights before the landing, but I was just thinking last night that it was like Christmas Eve for the Moon landing!

    Last night (July 19), the crew began listening to identifiable music at around 9:39 p.m. EDT. Their playlist included selections by John Stewart, Peggy Lee (doing covers of "Spinning Wheel" and "Everyday People," no less!), Lou Rawls, Glen Campbell, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, Bettye Swann, and The Lettermen. They hit the sack at 12:04 a.m.

    An itinerary of today (July 20)'s big events as I can piece them together on the site, all in EDT:
    7:11 a.m.: Crew wake-up
    1:43 p.m.: Eagle unlocks from Columbia
    1:44 p.m.: Separation for landing
    2:49 p.m.: Descent Orbit Insertion
    4:18 p.m.: The Eagle has landed!
    10:54 p.m.: Neil begins coming down the ladder
    10:56 p.m.: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
    11:48 p.m.: President Nixon calls the crew.
    1:09 a.m.: Reentering Lunar Module
    3:38 a.m.: Columbia Sleep Period Start
    4:24 a.m.: Tranquility Base Sleep Period​

    Somewhere in there Michael Collins would have made his first solo orbit of the Moon, so here's my Long-Distance Dedication for him:


    And switch to Tang, the Drink of Astronauts!™


    There's a better video of it on Yoko's account that's just from the Bed-In, but it includes a brief shot of John in the bath showing a little too much for board policy.

    Definitely an entertaining story song. Wish the audio quality of that clip was better. OTOH, it doesn't bleep out "son of a bitch" like the single version that I have.

    The gang from Riverdale have now taken The Monkees' crown!

    _______

    ETA: Status update as of 2:00 p.m. EDT...
    AS11-44-6585HR.jpg
    AS11-37-5444HR.jpg

    ETA: 3:00 p.m. update...
    ETA: 4:18 p.m. The Eagle has landed!
     
    Last edited: Jul 21, 2019
  5. TREK_GOD_1

    TREK_GOD_1 Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I remember it both from The Archie Show and on the radio. It was one of the few songs used for the Archies project that was listenable, along with one from 1970 called "One Big Family," from the act's fourth album, Sunshine, and would appear in a music video format on The Archie Show and Archie's Funhouse (CBS, 1970-71).
     
  6. The Old Mixer

    The Old Mixer Mih ssim, mih ssim, nam, daed si Xim. Moderator

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    Mission status, 10:56 p.m. EDT:

    11:41--Neil and Buzz put up the flag:
    ap11-S69-40308.jpg

    11:48: "Hello, Neil and Buzz...I'm calling you from 200,000 miles away to read an obviously prepared speech. No wonder Kennedy beat me."


    AS11-40-5877HR.jpg


    The iconic photo of Aldrin headlining our 50 Years Ago This Week post is taken at 12:14 a.m.
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2019
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  7. The Old Mixer

    The Old Mixer Mih ssim, mih ssim, nam, daed si Xim. Moderator

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    Mission day 6 itinerary (EDT):
    10:31 a.m.: Columbia Wake-up
    11:12 a.m.: Tranquility Base Wake-up
    1:54 p.m.: Ascent from Lunar surface
    5:32 p.m.: Docked with Command Module
    7:41 p.m.: LM jettison
    12:55 a.m.: Trans-Earth Injection
    3:40 a.m.: Crew Sleep Period Start​

    _______

    50th Anniversary Fly-on-the-Wall Listening

    On July 21, 1969, another #1 single is in the making at Abbey Road...and say, this one could be a dedication to the crew for docking the Eagle and Columbia:

    OK, it's no "Blue Danube".

    While on July 24, Paul shows us that he's still in the business of writing songs for other artists...in this case, he's recording a demo for Apple band The Iveys, who'll be changing their name to Badfinger:


    Later in the day, an impromptu jam includes John revisiting an old chestnut...

    Suddenly I feel like I could use a ginger ale.

    _______
     
  8. RJDiogenes

    RJDiogenes Idealistic Cynic and Canon Champion Premium Member

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    I had no idea Paul wrote this one. And that's quite a name change. :rommie:

    I could drink Canada dry.
     
  9. The Old Mixer

    The Old Mixer Mih ssim, mih ssim, nam, daed si Xim. Moderator

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    _______

    50th Anniversary Album Spotlight

    The Gilded Palace of Sin

    The Flying Burrito Brothers
    Released April 1969
    Chart debut: May 3, 1969
    Chart peak: #164, June 7, 1969
    #192 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
    I'd had this album for a couple of months and given it several casual listens, but sitting down to do my write-up listen on the heels of watching Easy Rider inspired me to approach it in a new light. The film offered a dramatic depiction of the gulf between conservative rural America and the counterculture, one that resulted in tragic bloodshed. Whereas one could see the mission of this band being to bridge that gulf through music.

    The album's opening, "Christine's Tune," could be seen as its mission statement, with its psychedelic/country fuzzy steel guitar:

    It probably would have been called "Devil in Disguise" if not for the Elvis tune.

    Next up is "Sin City":

    This one sounds a bit more straight-up country to my ear, though my ear is used to hearing later country that may have been influenced by this album and other country rock in its wake. Anyway, it has a spot on The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.

    The one after that is very interesting--Fusing country and rock wasn't enough for these guys...they had to bring in some soul, too! One of two covers on the album, "Do Right Woman" was the B-side of Aretha Franklin's first Top 10 single, "I Never Loved a Man," in 1967!

    (Aretha's version is #473 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time)

    "Dark End of the Street" is the other cover, also soul, from the same songwriting team (Dan Penn & Chips Moman), though I'm not familiar with a previous version. A little Wiki Fu tells me that it was recorded by James Carr in 1967.

    The first side closes with an original tune, "My Uncle":


    So I'm heading for the nearest foreign border
    Vancouver might be just my kind of town
    Cause they don't need the kind of law and order
    That tends to keep a good man underground

    Can't imagine that sort of message would have sold well with Country traditionalists in the day! Also, the final verse makes it clear that the titular relative's name would be Sam:

    Now, I don't know how much I owe my uncle
    But I suspect it's more than I can pay
    He's asking me to sign a three-year contract
    I guess I'll catch the first bus out today

    Side two opens with "Wheels," which is on the slower and more straight countryish side. I'm not sure what exactly the song is about. There seems to be an element of faith involved...though these lines remind me of Easy Rider:

    We're not afraid to ride
    We're not afraid to die
    Come on wheels take me home today

    "Juanita" definitely seems to be getting into "crying in my beer" territory.

    "Hot Burrito #1" gets a little more interesting...it almost has a mid-'70s soft rock sound to it.

    The tempo picks up a bit with "Hot Burrito #2"...which also sounds kind of '70s-ish to me, but with fuzz guitar. This one's definitely more in rock/pop territory than most of the album.

    The country is back in "Do You Know How It Feels"...actually sort of rockabilly, with a bit more energy than the slower country songs.

    The album closes with one of its more striking tracks, "Hippie Boy," a bizarre spoken-word story song which, as quoted up-post, strongly references the 1968 Democratic Convention:



    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gilded_Palace_of_Sin#Reception
    As for me...alas, my inspiration to approach this album in a new light didn't withstand the listen. For my money, the more distinct tracks on this album make for good listening, but the whole package gets a little to sameity-sameish country for my tastes. I don't see myself putting this on a lot in the future.


    Next up: Tommy, The Who

    _______

    Not much going on in the itinerary for today. Mission Status at Crew Wake-up (1:19 p.m. EDT):
    5683.jpg

    Beddy-bye will be at 1:37 a.m.:
    _______

    And the new name came from "Bad Finger Boogie," which had once been the working title of "With a Little Help from My Friends" (reportedly because John was playing the piano with his middle finger due to an injury).

    _______

    The Wild Wild West
    "The Night of Miguelito's Revenge"
    Originally aired December 13, 1968
    There's a cute gag in the teaser where Loveless is in a barber's chair with his face hidden and wearing a false pair of legs so as not to alert Jim. Jim is knocked out, taken to Loveless's weird funhouse, and treated to the hospitality of a group of thugs that includes...who else?...then is knocked out again and wakes up back in the barber shop with a different lady barber than the "Delilah" (Susan Seaforth Hayes) who was working with Loveless. The whole bizarre incident seems to have been designed to provide Jim with a clue regarding Loveless's scheme, which is themed to the "Monday's Child" rhyme.

    This one was obviously shot before the previously aired Pike episode, as it has more of an intro for him, including Jim mistaking him for Artie from behind on the train. Jim is friendly with him and is said to have worked with him before, but it doesn't come off like they'd just worked together a couple of weeks prior.

    Loveless's victims include an actress (Linda Chandler), a ballet master (Peter Bruni), a jockey (Johnny S. Luer), a judge (Byron Morrow), and a blacksmith (Don Pedro Colley). Anticipating his next victim, Pike disguises himself as philanthropist Cyrus Barlow (Walter Coy) and gets himself kidnapped.

    Jim comes across a ventriloquist act with Loveless posing as the dummy. Backstage, Loveless attacks Jim with the "ventriloquist," which is actually an steam-powered artificial man (Jim Shane) controlled by an organ to which he's connected with a hose. After escaping confinement in an underwater box that has a lavish interior and a music box playing Loveless singing a taunting ditty, Jim enters a circus big top to find that he's at a trial for Loveless's prisoners, with the other audience members being his men (including...who else?). When his scheme goes south because of Pike's involvement, Loveless escapes by shooting himself out of a cannon and leaving a talking dummy in his place outside.

    In the train coda, West and Pike drink a toast with a third glass filled for Artie, which somehow empties itself when they're not looking.

    Loveless's right-hand man, Pylo, is played by Trek guest Arthur Batanides.

    _______
     
    Last edited: Jul 23, 2019
  10. RJDiogenes

    RJDiogenes Idealistic Cynic and Canon Champion Premium Member

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    I wonder if they come from the same neighborhood as the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers.

    Good plan.

    Now that's spoken word done right. Very nice.

    "Damn. I think I left my coffee on the roof."

    Ah, these little details that one never suspects. :rommie:

    Trek used that, too. Must have had a surge of popularity or something.

    Proto-Steampunk indeed!

    That would be weird for WWW even if Artie was dead. Which he's not.
     
  11. The Old Mixer

    The Old Mixer Mih ssim, mih ssim, nam, daed si Xim. Moderator

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    Apollo 11, Day 8

    12:31 p.m. EDT: Wake-up

    3:56 p.m.: Apollo 11 crosses halfway point to Earth

    7:13 p.m.: Armstrong gives a televised speech thanking all who contributed

    11:40 p.m.: Sleep period starts
    They're really hauling ass now!
    AS11-44-6675HR.jpg

    _______

    I caught where they did a TV broadcasts showing and explaining things, like Collins jokingly demonstrating how a blob of water wouldn't part with his spoon when he held it upside down and moved it around.

    Also, these guys again...


    I thought it was a nice gesture considering the nature of Martin's absence.
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2019
  12. RJDiogenes

    RJDiogenes Idealistic Cynic and Canon Champion Premium Member

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    They must be so ready to be home by now.

    This would be a really bad time for the brakes to fail.

    Ah, that's right.

    It was a very nice gesture to put out the drink for him-- the drink disappearing was just weird. It seems more like a tribute to somebody who had passed away, implying he was still there in spirit. On the other hand, it would be funny if Artie showed up with a hangover when he came back. "Stop putting out drinks for me!" :rommie:
     
  13. The Old Mixer

    The Old Mixer Mih ssim, mih ssim, nam, daed si Xim. Moderator

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    Apollo 11, Day 9

    7:00 a.m. EDT: Wake-up

    AS11-44-6692HR.jpg

    12:35 p.m.: Re-entry

    12:50 p.m.: Splashdown!
    ha-058.jpg
    :beer:
    :techman:
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2019
  14. gblews

    gblews Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Really nice narrative of one of the most momentous events in human history. Still hard to believe we completed this impossible task using slide rules and primitive computers. I remember it well.

    Mind blowing that there are actually legions of people who don't believe we ever went to the moon. Was talking to y brother in law a few years ago about space or something, and he blurted out "we never went to the moon." After I realized he was serious I asked him why he believed this. He said, because we never went back. I explained to him that we did go back numerous times. He had no response to this.

    I went watched some vids on Youtube which denied the manned moon landings. I went into the comments section and posted something about how ridiculous it all was. I got besieged by moon deniers, admonishing me. It was damned funny.
     
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  15. RJDiogenes

    RJDiogenes Idealistic Cynic and Canon Champion Premium Member

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    Whew. I hold my breath every time.
     
  16. TREK_GOD_1

    TREK_GOD_1 Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I love this image of earth more than any other from this mission. Its the ultimate "close, yet so far away" view.
     
  17. The Old Mixer

    The Old Mixer Mih ssim, mih ssim, nam, daed si Xim. Moderator

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    _______

    55 Years Ago This Week



    Selections from Billboard's Hot 100 for the week:

    Leaving the chart:
    • "Chapel of Love," The Dixie Cups (13 weeks)
    • "Little Children," Billy J. Kramer w/ The Dakotas (15 weeks)
    • "Not Fade Away," The Rolling Stones (13 weeks)
    • "Ringo's Theme (This Boy)," George Martin & His Orchestra (1 week, but due to re-chart next week)
    • "A World Without Love," Peter & Gordon (12 weeks)

    New on the chart:

    "If I Fell," The Beatles
    (B-side of "And I Love Her"; #53 US)

    "I'll Cry Instead," The Beatles

    (#25 US)

    "I'm Happy Just to Dance with You," The Beatles
    (B-side of "I'll Cry Instead"; #95 US)

    "You Never Can Tell," Chuck Berry

    (#14 US; #23 UK)

    "G.T.O.," Ronny & The Daytonas

    (#4 US)

    "Because," The Dave Clark Five

    (#3 US)

    Total Beatles songs on the chart: 7

    _______

    Thank you! I got into the following it in real time aspect a lot more than I planned to.

    Yeah, I found that one quite striking.

    So...who's up for Woodstock in real time? I'm planning to buy the film so I can watch it at my own pace...i.e., in segments roughly corresponding to real time, but shifted a day so that it still falls over the weekend, beginning on Friday.
     
  18. Nerys Myk

    Nerys Myk A Spock and a smile Premium Member

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    This song makes be think of of riding to school on a bus driven by Sgt. Freeman.
     
  19. RJDiogenes

    RJDiogenes Idealistic Cynic and Canon Champion Premium Member

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    All very nice.

    Cute.

    A minor classic.

    Trying to sound like The Beatles, maybe? Good song, anyway.

    [​IMG] Woodstock! Yeah! :D
     
  20. The Old Mixer

    The Old Mixer Mih ssim, mih ssim, nam, daed si Xim. Moderator

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    _______

    50 Years Ago This Week



    And The Old Mixer is the size of a scallion. Most folks call 'em green onions, but they're really scallions.


    Selections from Billboard's Hot 100 for the week:

    Leaving the chart:
    • "But It's Alright," J. J. Jackson (23 weeks total; 10 weeks this run)
    • "Feeling Alright," Joe Cocker (6 weeks)
    • "Get Back," The Beatles w/ Billy Preston (12 weeks)
    • "I Can Sing a Rainbow / Love Is Blue," The Dells (10 weeks)
    • "In the Ghetto," Elvis Presley (13 weeks)
    • "Listen to the Band," The Monkees (8 weeks)
    • "The Popcorn," James Brown (9 weeks)

    New on the chart:

    "Goo Goo Barabajagal (Love Is Hot)," Donovan w/ The Jeff Beck Group

    (#36 US; #12 UK)

    "Keem-O-Sabe," The Electric Indian

    (#16 US; #6 AC; #46 R&B)

    "Share Your Love with Me," Aretha Franklin

    (#13 US; #1 R&B)

    "Green River," Creedence Clearwater Revival

    (#2 US; #19 UK)

    "Commotion," Creedence Clearwater Revival

    (B-side of "Green River"; #30 US)

    And new on the boob tube:
    • The Ed Sullivan Show, Season 21, episode 37, featuring Vikki Carr, Henny Youngman, and Gilbert Price

    _______

    All good examples of how the Beatles were their own biggest competition at this point. I'm sure that any of these could have done better as a standalone single A-side. "If I Fell" and "I'm Happy Just to Dance with You" were in the film. "I'll Cry Instead" was intended for the sequence in which the Beatles break out of the TV studio and romp around in a field, but Richard Lester decided to go with "Can't Buy Me Love" instead. A 1981 rerelease of the film added a pre-credits video sequence featuring the song, consisting of a collage of still photos. That sequence has appeared in home video releases of the film as well.

    This is the final of Chuck's little string of 1964 hits...we won't see him in the Top 40 again until his 1972 chart-topper "My Ding-a-Ling".

    Not much to add here.

    Even I think you're being a little hard on these guys! :lol: This is a pretty strong and distinctive number in its own right.