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Andy Williams Sings MacArthur Park Live


Teasing the Korean

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It's good to see my old friend John Sumner playing drums there (best seen around 4:55).  John died here in Toronto, where he had lived for the last three decades, just a couple of months back.  There were some wonderful stories told about John--a totally interesting man--at a lovely memorial service for him.

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11 hours ago, Ted O'Reilly said:

It's good to see my old friend John Sumner playing drums there (best seen around 4:55).  John died here in Toronto, where he had lived for the last three decades, just a couple of months back.  There were some wonderful stories told about John--a totally interesting man--at a lovely memorial service for him.

He looks like Dennis Wilson wearing an Afro wig! 

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14 hours ago, Teasing the Korean said:

He looks like Dennis Wilson wearing an Afro wig! 

Sorry, but since I only vaguely know what Mr. Wilson looks like...    Seeing as how that has nothing to do with the music, please look again and maybe refer to the performance, perhaps referring to the drummer, who had a hard task moving along some 5 dozen musicians.

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1 hour ago, Ted O'Reilly said:

Sorry, but since I only vaguely know what Mr. Wilson looks like...    Seeing as how that has nothing to do with the music, please look again and maybe refer to the performance, perhaps referring to the drummer, who had a hard task moving along some 5 dozen musicians.

Sorry, but looks and aesthetics have EVERYTHING to do with music.

Do you think 70s big band/jazz rock performances would be any good if the players didn't have mutton chop sideburns, comb overs, aviator-frame glasses, and powder-blue polyester tuxedos?

Edited by Teasing the Korean
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22 minutes ago, Teasing the Korean said:

Sorry, but looks and aesthetics have EVERYTHING to do with music.

Do you think 70s big band/jazz rock performances would be any good if the players didn't have mutton chop sideburns, comb overs, aviator-frame glasses, and powder-blue polyester tuxedos?

I like the way Andy left the stage when the orchestra took over, and then came out all in white to sing the last part .Must be symbolic or something...

Ted's right; the drummer played the schist out of that chart, and I liked the way they let the guitarist rock out on parts of the instrumental section. 

Jimmy Webb talks about the time that he was writing great tunes like that as a period when emotion was burning out of his brain, and it just seemed to wind up as notes on the staff. Sounds right to me.

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2 hours ago, Teasing the Korean said:

Sorry, but looks and aesthetics have EVERYTHING to do with music.

Do you think 70s big band/jazz rock performances would be any good if the players didn't have mutton chop sideburns, comb overs, aviator-frame glasses, and powder-blue polyester tuxedos?

"Sorry, but looks and aesthetics have EVERYTHING to do with music."  Yeah, that's why I have NEVER just listened to it....always waited until the DVD came out.  Which was a long wait from 1952 when jazz first appealed to me.  :)

...anyway, John Sumner was a very fine jazz drummer, and had a vast music collection, especially knowledgeable about the '40s through '60s West Coast era, when he was growing up and learning.  He was originally a Californian, latterly Canadian and a welcome addition to the Toronto music scene.

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5 hours ago, sgcim said:

Jimmy Webb talks about the time that he was writing great tunes like that as a period when emotion was burning out of his brain, and it just seemed to wind up as notes on the staff. Sounds right to me.

That Reunion album he did with Glen Campbell always seemed a little "off" to me, with the exception of this song, which is exactly as you describe there.

That's some angry shit right there.

 

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6 hours ago, Teasing the Korean said:

Do you think 70s big band/jazz rock performances would be any good if the players didn't have mutton chop sideburns, comb overs, aviator-frame glasses, and powder-blue polyester tuxedos?

Wow, (almost) all of that, MacArthur Park, AND a chance for Ted to play Name The Canadians...talk about a Perfect Storm not named Dorian, this is Thread Serendippity Doo of the highest order!!!!

 

 

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Stan Kenton did this electrifying version (after 3:34) on his 'Live at Redlands' album, August, 1970.

The band goes wild at 3:34 after a lame attempt singing the basic lyric -- waving their arms in circles at the point of "looking at the sun".

I had the pleasure of sitting front row center when they did this at Boise State in 1972 and it was indeed a thrill.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EM6HacD_5hu

  

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2 hours ago, Bill Nelson said:

Stan Kenton did this electrifying version (after 3:34) on his 'Live at Redlands' album, August, 1970.

The band goes wild at 3:34 after a lame attempt singing the basic lyric -- waving their arms in circles at the point of "looking at the sun".

I had the pleasure of sitting front row center when they did this at Boise State in 1972 and it was indeed a thrill.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EM6HacD_5hu

  

It says, "video unavailable". I think Peter Erskine was in the band during that time period, and the thought of seeing him and other guys in the band being forced to sing the lyrics of the song while waving their arms in circles is so pathetic, that there must another video of this somewhere.

I'm still trying to figure out the symbolism involved in the Andy Williams  version, where he comes out for the last verse dressed all in white. It's gotta involve either the theme of resurrection , or maybe even The Second Coming; they thought in grand terms back then...

 

23 hours ago, Teasing the Korean said:

Sorry, but looks and aesthetics have EVERYTHING to do with music.

Do you think 70s big band/jazz rock performances would be any good if the players didn't have mutton chop sideburns, comb overs, aviator-frame glasses, and powder-blue polyester tuxedos?

I like the way Andy left the stage when the orchestra took over, and then came out all in white to sing the last part .Must be symbolic or something...

Ted's right; the drummer played the schist out of that chart, and I liked the way they let the guitarist rock out on parts of the instrumental section. 

Jimmy Webb talks about the time that he was writing great tunes like that as a period when emotion was burning out of his brain, and it just seemed to wind up as notes on the staff. Sounds right to me.

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1 hour ago, sgcim said:

I'm still trying to figure out the symbolism involved in the Andy Williams  version, where he comes out for the last verse dressed all in white. It's gotta involve either the theme of resurrection , or maybe even The Second Coming; they thought in grand terms back then...

In his mind, he had turned into Elvis. Nothing more than that.

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20 hours ago, JSngry said:

Wow, (almost) all of that, MacArthur Park, AND a chance for Ted to play Name The Canadians...talk about a Perfect Storm not named Dorian, this is Thread Serendippity Doo of the highest order!!!!

 

 

I could indeed name all the players...would you like me to?  There's a whole dang bunch of them no longer with us.  (But the garb and hair live on...)

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1 hour ago, Teasing the Korean said:

Our hero hits it out of the park with Q's theme from The Pawnbroker.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aEBDL1T4JM

 

The guy was a tremendous ballads singer, and he married Claudine Longet, the beautiful, boyfriend shooter! Who knew that The Pawnbroker had a love theme?

Who was the guitar player on AW's MacArthur Park? Mandel, Grusin and Elliot; all working on the same show. 

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I like Williams's 60's Columbia work quite a bit.   Have some on shelf with Sinatra's 50's Capitol albums and some early Johnny Mathis.  As far as the wardrobe change, I think some sweet green icing had melted onto the black tux

 

Edited by felser
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