Saturday, May 20, 2006

The dream is over..........

This just in from CNN:

British pop star Freddie Garrity, former lead singer with 1960s band Freddie and the Dreamers, has died at the age of 69.
Garrity died on Friday in hospital in North Wales, his agent said on Saturday.
His five-piece band had hits in Britain and the United States with "I'm Telling You Now," "You Were Made For Me" and "Over You."

Now, I'm not going to claim to have been a big fan of Freddie and the Dreamers. Of course, I remember "I'm Telling You Now", and "Do the Freddie", but they were just one bit of fluff in one of the fluffiest decades in popular music history.

I lament Freddie's passing while at the same time celebrating the golden age of "bubble-gum" music. The Archies were the archetypes, of course, but bubble-gum was ubiquitous, and its practitioners were legion. To name a few: 1910 Fruitgum Company, Tommy Roe, Kastanetz-Katz Singing Orchestral Circus, Ohio Express....the list goes on and on. The authoritative source for all things bubblegum can be found at The Classic Bubblegum Music Homepage.

Did you love it? Did you hate it? Can you still sing along with "1-2-3 Red Light"? (Ev-ry time I try to prove I love you, 1,2,3 Red Light, you stop me....) Add your own percussion. (Hint: Clap-clap, clap.) Before anyone goes all snobbo on me, you should know that Donald Fagen and Walter Becker were in Jay and the Americans before they formed Steely Dan. You might also refer to "The Captain Cooks", XTC's bubble-gum project. I'm still tracking down a rumor that Mahavishu John McLaughlin was the guitarist for Edison Lighthouse. Do you have memories of bubblegum? Would you like to share with the class?

posted by roxtar at 8:02 PM

13 Comments:

  • I have to admit that one of my all-time favorite records is Pilot's "Album of the Same Name." Not quite Red Rubber Ball bubblegum pop, but a bubblegum-ish masterpiece from 1974 (I believe). It's still one of the catchiest, silliest records ever made, in my estimation.

    By Blogger helmut, at 12:56 AM  

  • Gotta be the Monkees for me. "Last Train to Clarksville"... "Hey Hey We're the Monkees..." Their album was the first I bought with my own allowance. Then along came Bobby Sherman.
    It is to blush.

    By Blogger Wren, at 2:31 AM  

  • Pilot! Whoa, whoa, whoa it's magic, you know.....never believe it ain't so!

    By Blogger roxtar, at 5:49 AM  

  • Smile a Little Smile for Me, Green Tambourine (how'd that get to be bubblegum?), I think I Love You, Western Union (hey Starsky!)and a special song...98.6

    By Blogger Mariwyl Labradors, at 6:56 AM  

  • Tell me th' guy in the top left isn't their lawyer. "I'm in the shot or you guys are getting 3p per sale".

    Jellyfish, the wonderful band from the early '90's, were profoundly influenced aurally and visually by that whole early '70's Marty Kroft HR Puffenstuff drivel.

    It was interesting when people who had taken a lot of acid had come of age and found themselves making kid entertainment.

    It's funny to me to think drug soaked juvenalia is innocent compared to the stuff today which can be traced right back to Ol' Scratch in about two steps.

    By Blogger Bobby Lightfoot, at 2:36 PM  

  • Looks like the guy flanking them on the lower right is a lawyer too. Dudes were in serious trouble.

    By Blogger helmut, at 3:19 PM  

  • It's worse than you think, guys...the guy on the upper right is West Virginia Supreme Court Justice Brent Benjamin!

    By Blogger roxtar, at 3:29 PM  

  • Glory be. That fatass needs to be drawn and quartered by an enraged populace. Next time I need to delay gratification I'll picture him huffin' and weezin' on top of some equally corpulent paid-for-by-local-business-
    interests street walker.

    By Blogger Bobby Lightfoot, at 2:31 AM  

  • Like a rub-ber ball

    I'll come

    Boun-cing

    back to

    you...

    By Blogger Will Divide, at 9:37 AM  

  • Look, pal.

    Every time I try to prove I love you, 1-2-3 red light, you stop me.

    Baby it ain't right, you stop me.

    Ev'ry time I make a move to love you, 1-2-3 red light, you stop me.

    Wouldja just knock it off? Come here, big fella, let me give you a hug...

    By Blogger Neddie, at 12:24 PM  

  • The bugaboos.
    The bugaboos.
    They're in the air and everywhere.
    Flying here.
    Flying there.
    Flying slowly on th' summer air.
    Air.

    By Blogger Bobby Lightfoot, at 5:00 PM  

  • I have a high tolerance for this crap. I sincerely admire Ron Dante's work with The Archies (as The Archies, really) because it's fun, it's catchy as hell - it just works.

    Then we could go down the bugglegum list and I'd be less and less thrilled with the product.

    I know Kim Carnes got her start as one of The Sugerbears, the "group" formed of cartoon bears selling Post Sugar Crisp cereal.

    By Blogger Kevin Wolf, at 10:48 AM  

  • Didn't really consider that "Freddie and The Dreamers" were bubblegum. I thought of them as the comic relief of the British Invasion.

    I can't pick a favorite.

    You might like this record.
    ...I like it more than I thought I would considering that they are all remakes by virtual unknowns.

    By Blogger The Viscount LaCarte, at 7:57 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home