Thursday, November 10, 2011

Oaks' Bandstand

"We're goin' hoppin'(Hop)
We're goin' hoppin' today
Where things are poppin' (Pop)
The Philadelphia way
We're gonna drop in (Drop)
On all the music they play
On the Bandstand (Bandstand)"
-B. Manilow

Come afternoons at 4 PM, Mr. 'forever young' Dick Clark would traipse his swinging soiree across the TV screens of southern Maine. Believe it or not, the dancing I could give or take, but what I really enjoyed was the Rate-A-Record segment. Clark would pull two dancers aside, play pieces of two songs and had them rate them from 98-35. "I liked the words and it was easy to dance to." In the end, the higher rated of the two was played in its entirety. I thought it was pretty neat to hear songs that, in most cases, were weeks away from airplay on my favorite radio stations. I did enjoy my music. Still do. Pretty cool!

12 comments:

  1. here's something to ponder this morning, bird. once i was a go-go dancer on a 'bandstand'-like show. hope you don't snort milk out of your nose when you read this.

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  2. Ah, the secrets that are revealed on these posts!

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  3. belle photo de l'automne dans ce parc

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  4. I also enjoyed Dick Clark's program on TV.

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  5. Ah, the memories. Those were the days. Now the kids do the singles dance with the ear buds in while listening to their iPods. I think they would have so much more fun if they would tie all their iPods together and dance together.

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  6. I never saw that one, but I do remember SOOOOOOOUL Train.

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  7. A truly lovely autumn shot with echoes of summer reverberating through it!

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  8. I loved American Bandstand and watched it every day too! Great memories!!

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  9. Some of those Philadelphia girsl were cute and wore tight sweaters, too. I might have noticed that . . .

    So, brattcat was a go-go dancer on a bandstand-like show? Good thing I am not drinking milk. You would see nasal projectiles right now.

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  10. I remember American Bandstand. Would you believe I watched it with my grandmother. TRUE! She loved it too.

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  11. Love the bandstand. Somehow it doesn't seem big enough, more like a sculpture.

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