Wednesday, January 29, 2025

1.About Me  

Bruce Corneil... The story so far...

Yours truly is a pop culture historian which is a fancy way of saying that I like old things eye-ee movies (particularly those of the quirky, offbeat and generally unusual variety), TV shows, music, cars and architecture of days gone by. This gent explains what we do in more detail: What Is Pop Culture? | Mr. Pop Culture (mrpopculture.com). It's been a lifelong passion and great fun documenting the aforementioned subjects as a writer, photographer and video-maker. 

Being a voracious reader, I commenced my working life as a trainee manager at a major bookstore in my hometown of Melbourne, Australia. From there, I spent about fifteen years in the broadcasting and recording industries as a production operator, engineer, programmer and writer. A former member of the (now defunct) Australian Journalists Association, I was a producer in both television news and talkback radio. Moving on, yet again, I handled publicity for several organizations in the health, sports, tourism and heritage sectors (for more details have a click around the various sections of this blog to get an idea of where I've been and what I've done). During my time in the media, I travelled extensively overseas, got to visit a number of stations in the US and did a stint at the National Nine Network office in Los Angeles (I was working for the company in Australia).

In 1994, I established Flashback Videos; a home entertainment distribution, retailing and direct marketing business that specialized in retro and cult movies, TV shows and historical documentaries. I was also involved in the collectables scene as a stall-holder at Melbourne's Chapel Street Bazaar, a contributor to Collectormania magazine and an occasional guest on radio station 3AW's "Antiques and Collectables" program. 

My articles, reviews and/or photos have been published in many different magazines in Australia and the US. These have included the Big Reel, Films of the Golden Age, Paracinema, Nostalgia Digest, Cinema Record, Photographic Trader, Bookseller & Publisher, Old Cars Weekly, Australian Classic Cars and, as already mentioned, Collectormania. I also wrote the cover notes and did the preproduction artwork for more than a hundred videos and DVDs. I usually write about heritage related subjects (as detailed at the beginning of all this) and it has been one of my objectives to make the learning experience as easy, engaging and, hopefully, as entertaining as possible. In fact, following on from my interest in adult education, I completed a Certificate IV in Training & Assessment and spent three years teaching non-fiction writing at community centres. It was very rewarding to work with some talented people and be able to get their writing projects published. In addition to all of the above, I've also been a furniture salesman, delivery driver, warehouse assistant and Sunday market trader. 

So, how did this blog come about? Well, some years back I had to become a carer. Put simply, that meant that I was going to be home for most of the day. Looking around, my gaze settled upon all the boxes and folders that were filled with forty plus years of writing, photography and audio-visual production work or, more accurately, the few bits and pieces that had survived. So, I decided to set about digitizing and uploading everything both for my own memories of the people who were involved and, hopefully, because others might, possibly, enjoy some of it as well. All the "writing stuff" went onto this blog. The audio-visual material went to You Tube and the prints, negatives and 35mm slides were scanned and uploaded to Flickr where my pages now contain just over 4,500 images.

https://www.youtube.com/user/junkyardphilosopher/videos 

Original Photos : Pick of the Pics | Flickr

(Note: When you go over to the Flickr website, ensure that the middle icon
 in the set of three that appears at the top right corner of the screen (the toolbar) is highlighted. 
If it isn't, then click on it. This will ensure that photos are displayed, initially, in the correct "album" size. 
You can then click on individual photos to supersize them  
 


There's still a bit of "gear" to be uploaded including many movie, book and product reviews. But here's a few for the time being....


Movie, TV show & documentary reviews:

..... https://m.imdb.com/user/ur1942083/reviews/?ref_=up_urv_urv_sm.....

Book reviews:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/RNDI1P8TXTAQR?ref=pf_vv_at_pdctrvw_srp&ref_=cm_cr_srp_d_gw_btm

https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R2DO9OYUV0H4G5?ref=pf_vv_at_pdctrvw_srp&ref_=cm_cr_srp_d_gw_btm

https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R1DHRJK16Z607L?ref=pf_vv_at_pdctrvw_srp&ref_=cm_cr_srp_d_gw_btm


Product Reviews:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/RSUC24TOSOKJD?ref=pf_vv_at_pdctrvw_srp&ref_=cm_cr_srp_d_gw_btm

https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R2V3ALR5YL722X?ref=pf_vv_at_pdctrvw_srp&ref_=cm_cr_srp_d_gw_btm


Unfortunately, my first blog disappeared due to a technical problem, and I have only recently got it up and running again.

Anyway, that's the story...so far. Hope you find something of interest and feel free to make contact. Click on the words "older posts" at the bottom of each page to read the next item 

All the best

Bruce

Admittedly, the above profile photo does
go back a "few years" (cough...from memory...
Nixon had just left the Whitehouse).But I am loathe
to include anything more recent because I'm not in favour
of uploading distressing images to the internet. The car is a
1970 Mercury Cougar... one of many interesting classics that 
came my way in earlier times







(Please Note : I drove my car in a much more sedate manner)




(Note: When you go over to the Flickr website, ensure that the middle icon
 in the set of three that appears at the top right corner of the screen (the toolbar) is highlighted. 
If it isn't, then click on it. This will ensure that photos are displayed, initially, in the correct "album" size. 
You can then click on individual photos to supersize them. 
 
                                                                                           





                                                       

Sunday, January 19, 2025

   2. Frank Sinatra's 1974 Tour of Australia.....    


Ol' Black Eyes is Back :



Sinatra's July ' 74 Australian tour was rocked by controversy.

Things became prickly as soon as he arrived in Sydney  at 6.45am on Sunday, July 7 when he refused to meet the local media ,saying, via a member of his entourage, that he had been repeatedly misquoted on previous visits . In fact, he'd got so irritated at an airport get-together with Aussie journalists in the early ' 60s that he stormed off. It came out, years later, that, on that occasion, he had made the long and tiring flight from California to do four shows at the Sydney stadium ... for nothing , just as a favor to help out his pal - promoter and fellow American - Lee Gordon who was facing bankruptcy. That, of course, was the other side of Frank's complex personality - one that the tabloids simply didn't want to know about . 

Sinatra arriving in Sydney in 1961 (left) (Sydney Morning Herald)
 and again in ' 74 (right) (Herald Sun)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trgqMQha6zY

Sydney Morning Herald, July 8 , 1974 


Anyway, in '74 there would be no interviews, not even a quick chat. The tour , however , was scheduled to start in Melbourne  on Tuesday, July 9 and that's when the real trouble began .

All hell broke loose when the newshounds decided to make a pest of themselves by chasing the legendary entertainer around the wintry streets  near Festival Hall;  the venue where he was booked to perform .Then, rather stupidly, they tried to get up to his penthouse suite on the top floor of the Southern Cross Hotel. Sinatra's security people took a decidedly dim view of the attempted invasion. Punches were thrown and cameras were smashed.  Determined to get a comment from their hero, the media scrum (Frank dropped the "r' out of the word) followed his limo to the concert hall that night where there was yet another physical confrontation. When he finally got on stage, the Chairman of the Board unleashed a tirade of abuse during which he called his pursuers a bunch of "parasites", "bums" and "hookers".


Sinatra disembarks from his private jet at Tullamarine
 airport Melbourne (left) (Courier Mail).TV reporter  Ann Pilmer gets the
 brush off as 'Ol blue eyes makes his way to a sound check at Festival Hall (right) (The Age)


FAS with Australian television personality Graham Kennedy who was the on-stage host of 
Sinatra's one and only  Melbourne  concert (left)(NFSA). The Southern Cross Hotel
 (centre)(postcard). Frank on his way to his show with personal bodyguard
 Jilly Rizzo (Getty Images) 

Front cover and photo from the official souvenir program that was sold
 at the venue on the night of Sinatra's Melbourne concert

Festival Hall (University of Melbourne)
Frank lets rip (Herald Sun)



Suddenly (and for no apparent reason) the unions got involved . If Sinatra didn't apologize for his outburst, the staff at his hotel would not be allowed to serve him nor any member of his group  .No room service ...no service in the bars and restaurants .... no switchboard operator... no porters ...no cabs... nothing .. zero .... zilch . And that's precisely what happened when Frank told them to take a hike (or words to that affect) . 

His second Melbourne performance was canceled and his attorney, Milton "Mickey" Rudin, announced that "Mr Sinatra" was leaving. The tour was off and the "union/scandal bums" were to blame. However, the black ban was quickly extended to include ground crew at Tullamarine airport.  The superstar's plane would not be refueled so if he wanted to say "Tut- tah" to the 'World's most livable city" he'd have to line up with ordinary folk in order to buy himself a ticket to ride (or fly) from one of the commercial airlines . 'Ol blue eyes saw red and spat the dummy. But, somehow, he got back to Sydney and from there he was going home to the States.    

The Age, July 11, 1974
           

However, Frank had a couple of admirers who were high up Down Under. One was the Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam. The other was Bob Hawke, national head honcho of the combined trade union council. Australia's answer to the "Odd Couple", both men had been successful lawyers. The unlikely pair enjoyed an excellent working relationship but were vastly different personalities. The towering, stylish and urbane PM was a big fan (in every sense !) of Frank's pop singing. But Gough read the classics in his spare time and definitely wasn't into the some of the more earthy four-letter words like his musical idol. The diminutive, hard-drinking and hot-tempered union boss, on the other hand, had a real soft spot for "colorful language"  and liked to use it as often as possible. "Haw-Kee" spent much of his time chasing "broads" (to use a Frankism - see Glossary of Terms below for more information). He also took great delight in hurling abuse at wayward journalists whenever the opportunity arose. So, needless to say, he immediately twin-souled with the controversial crooner when they finally got to shake paws (Skippy style).

But there was another slight bump coming up in the road ahead before they got to do the meet and greet . It occurred when Mr Rudin "reminded" Mr Hawke that Mr Sinatra was leaving the country and nobody was going to stop him. "Not unless he can do what Moses did 3,000 years ago" Hawke replied. However, the playful response was, in reality, merely an example of Aussie humor intended to "remind" the somewhat high-handed American lawman just who was calling the shots and running the show here in the South Pacific. The situation would  (eventually) be resolved in "Island time" when and if it suited the Australian authorities which basically meant that they could still be fiddling around with it in 1987 if they felt so inclined. Messers Mickey and Frankie needed to understand that, if they tried to pour on the pressure, they could end up being stuck here on Gilligan's Isle for a very long time indeed. But Hawke's jab was just a minor power play. Behind the scenes he was, in fact, already hatching a plan that would soon bring the whole ridiculous fiasco to a swift and comparatively peaceful conclusion and see Frank winging his way back home within a matter of days.   

Sydney Morning Herald, July 12, 1974


According to the yarn that got around, Whitlam put a call through to Sinatra's suite at the Boulevard Hotel in Sydney. Gough gave Frank a chuckle  when he said "Mr Sinatra... I cannot allow you to upset such sensitive and easily offended people as our journalists... my information is that several of them are in tears... and the girls are just as unhappy" . Ol' blue eyes was tickled by such witty sarcasm. 

Hawke and Rudin finally came up with a cleverly worded statement which made it possible for everyone to move on with their egos intact. Can't remember exactly how it went now  but it was something along the lines of ....

"The Australia union movement accepts that Mr Sinatra has a unique international status and that, as an invited visitor to the country, he should be treated fairly and with respect by the media. We also accept that he has a right to express an opinion about the professional conduct of journalists (that part was an absolute scream, bearing in mind what Frank had called them). Likewise, Mr Sinatra acknowledges that he has a responsibility to extend the same level of courtesy to reporters" ..... or some such clap trap. Basically, "we've both been very naughty and we won't do it again " . 


Bob Hawke answers questions when he arrives at the Boulevard
 with Sinatra's lawyer Milton Rudin (left) (Fairfax) Boulevard Hotel 1970s (centre)
(postcard) Sinatra with Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam (right) (Sydney Morning Herald)


Still, it was certainly all for the best that they did manage to sort things out before the situation went any further. The rumor mill was positively buzzing with whispers that  Sinatra was about to call Jimmy Hoffa, Hawke's counterpart in America and ask him to black ban all Qantas flights so that they could neither land nor take off in the US. 
 
Before he left, Frank was able to do a couple of shows at Sydney's Horden Pavilion ,the second of which was broadcast live on the National Nine television network. Apparently, it was done as a "make good" / peace offering, mainly for those who had missed out on seeing him in person. It may also have  been part of a settlement deal that was made in order to keep the tour going. Happily, he provided a terrific night of entertainment and the ratings were stratospheric.   
    
The Horden Pavilion (Tammy's Turns)   

Sinatra's prize fight with the Australian unions and journalists was front page news in the States....


Los Angeles Times July 11, 1974

Los Angeles Times July 11, 1974


The entire silly ruckus had been a giant "pain in the ass" (as the Chairman of the Broads would have said).  However, there again, it merely added to the list of similar fiery antics that had long since become an integral part of Sinatra's mystique and his quirky, some might say downright creepy, "tough guy" image. At the end of the day, all that really mattered was the man's extraordinary talent. And, on that score, he delivered the goods in grand style . As it turned out, his shows in both Melbourne and Sydney received rave reviews. Also, on another more upbeat note, he had arrived in the country with an excellent new album that was doing the rounds, titled Some Nice things I've Missed. Featuring such gems as "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" and "You are the Sunshine of my Life", it was a hit with the fans .

Sinatra's July, 1974 album Some Nice Things I've Missed



More memories from the concert program . At least Frank's own company was
 pleased to see him back in Australia !

One last and very strange footnote to this utterly bizarre, almost surreal affair ....

Some years ago, I had a look back through the original Australian newspaper reports that were published  during the tour. I found the Melbourne Herald review of Sinatra's only concert in that city and..... surprise ... surprise ....to quote Gomer Pyle. There wasn't one, single mention of his inflammatory remarks.... anywhere. Indeed, the writer had nothing but positive things to say. So what does (or could) that tell us? My guess ? I reckon the news people weren't even remotely concerned about Frank's little jab. It was all just part of the fun that had been going on for years since his first visit to Australia in 1955. Although, the fact that it wasn't mentioned at all, even in passing, is very odd. 

Both the news peddlers and Sinatra were perfectly capable of fighting their own battle. The unions had no business being involved in any of it. To them, Frank's comments, which many believed were entirely justified, merely provided an opportunity to flex their muscles and to show how much trouble they could cause if they wanted to. And they were causing a lot of trouble in those days. There were strikes and go-slows almost every week and the public was becoming extremely angry about it. And that's what happened. When the tour was thrown into chaos, the unions and  the media were, indeed, blamed. Hawke and Whitlam realized that the tactic had backfired, badly, and had turned into a public relations disaster for "their guys" so they stepped in to repair the damage.

Many agreed with the views that this man
 was expressing outside of the Boulevard (Fairfax) 

Still, despite all the name-calling, it seems that, when it finally died down, Francis Albert was able to see the funny side of it. A few months later, during a performance at New York's Madison Square Garden, he quipped..."I made a mistake in Australia ... I got off the plane" !

Interesting, colorful decade... the 1970s... certainly here in Australia... or "Austria" as I could easily imagine one of Sinatra's cigar-chomping heavies calling our fair land 

Although he vowed never to return, he certainly did, on two occasions, in fact. And each, highly successful, visit went off without a hitch or as much as a vaguely discourteous word being exchanged between Frank and our local "scandal bums"... oops, I mean journalists (I used to be one MEselve !!). It seemed that the passing of the years had mellowed both the man himself and his former adversaries. Like old enemy soldiers meeting on an historic battlefield, they even got together to enjoy a drink, a few laughs and ... unbelievably.. to pose for a cheery group photo when Sinatra was here as the star attraction at the opening of Queensland's Sanctuary Cove in 1988.

However, Mike Gore, owner of the ritzy  resort , wasn't taking any chances. Making a determined effort to keep the mood light and breezy, Mike-ee gave Frankie a toy koala. It was stuffed and no doubt the bubbly entrepreneur was hoping, like crazy, that his press conference didn't end up exactly the same way. Watching Frank trying to be nice to the pad and pen brigade must have been about as relaxing as being circled by a tiger shark while you're standing in a sinking speed boat. Indeed, no doubt, some of those who had encountered 'Ol blue eyes on previous occasions may have felt that they would have been  safer trying to interview him if they had been locked  in a shark-proof cage. Mount Sinatra could erupt at any moment and spew burning lava all over the villagers of the Fifth Estate. The "enjoyable get-together" lasted fully seven minutes. But, what the hell. Everyone made an effort and it was a painless enough experience. In the papers the following day, Frank's new pals gave his show ten out of ten. 

Mike Gore, owner of Sanctuary Cove soothes the
 savage Sinatra with a touch of koala therapy...always a guaranteed way to tranquilize irritated international celebs - 
most of whom usually arrive in an utterly foul mood after they've completed the body clock - destroying flight to Australia.  

(Gold Coast Bulletin)

Sheez.... the things you have to do some times.
Frank buries the hatchet. A few years earlier, he would have , happily, buried it right in the
skull of the nearest journalist (Sydney Morning Herald, January 10, 1988)

Sinatra had become the most famous person in the world not only because of his talent but also because the media had recognized, right at the beginning , that his unorthodox, contradictory and defiantly non conformist personality was always going to make him newsworthy. Witty, charming and generous one minute - arrogant, abusive and destructive the next, he was the beautiful monster of the American entertainment industry. However, above all else, he remains the most charismatic, celebrated and influential popular singer of his or any other time.

Desert Memorial Park, Cathedral City, California (Pinterest)

Ladies and gentlemen .... Mr Frank Sinatra ....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78I0wjmgE0o&list=PLL-SJmPGOb9DIIdsVwIVVih6Er2eY_jzP

.................................................................................................................................................

Glossary of Terms (AKA "Frankspeak"):  Bums and broads - words that the Chairman of the Board used quite often...sometimes in anger. ...other times in jest  .  ...caused a few problems for him over the years. The word "bum" was never used in a favorable sense and it was usually (but not always) applied to males. Perhaps the best known bums were "scandal bums" (i.e journalists) and "creep bums" (anyone who could not be trusted). Certainly, there were never any nice bums. Just "lice bums" (or "louse bums" which referred to a pair or group of individual "lice bums" plural).

 A "broad" (female) could be either good or bad although it was generally an insult. And, as with bums, there were different kinds of broads. They could be either "stoopid", "dopey", "stinkin'" , "ugly" or "cheap" broads. But, occasionally, a "classy broad" would "make the scene" with Frank to whom he would give a momentary nod of approval by saying something along the lines of ..."That broad's got KLASS". That was, of course, until she made the fatal mistake of stepping across the line and forgetting her place in the harem at which point she would be, immediately, reclassified as an "ugly, dopey dumb ass broad". A broad could also, sometimes (in special circumstances) be a bum as well. For example, Frank may have described an Australian female journalist as being (... and remember ... this is Frank talking ... not me...) an "ugly, stinkin', dumb ass Austrian scandal bum broad".

Judging by a television appearance that Bob Hawke made on the morning of Australia's America Cup win in 1983, it seems that he may have been influenced by the brief time that he spent with Mr Sinatra at the Boulevard Hotel in Sydney nearly ten years earlier ....

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8mdHO2_Zo8

But, all of that was only one small part of Frank's personality which, happily, didn't come to the surface too often. Most of the time he was, apparently, a fairly genial sort of character who had a great sense of humor, according to a veteran studio musician who worked with him (click on link below). It was just that... well ...like all of us.. he had the occasional bad day, every now and again

The Time Tunnel.... (backinthedayblogspot.blogspot.com)

I can't take credit for the title of this piece. That honor must go to the late, great Bill Green - legendary cartoonist for Melbourne's Herald Sun newspaper. At the time of Sinatra's 1974 tour, Bill created a perfect cartoon that featured an obviously roughed-up Herald photographer standing at his editor's desk. The caption read: "Ol black eyes is back". Sinatra was so taken by the humorous take on the whole situation that he personally wrote to Mr Green and asked if he could have the original.

Read some newspapers reports about the 1974 tour via this link :

https://www.newspapers.com/search/#query=frank+sinatra&p_country=au&dr_year=1974-1974

....and enjoy an interesting English television documentary about the tour : 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXDL-zGlWr0

   3. Festival Hall Melbourne: Exit Stage Right      

Festival Hall Melbourne : Exit stage right

Festival Hall is about to be demolished. Apparently, business has been steadily declining to the point where the old place is now running at a loss, having been long since surpassed by newer and more prestigious options. But, there was time when it was Melbourne's main concert facility. Wandering around its shabby exterior it looks so antiquated – a black and blue architectural dinosaur that was never any beauty to begin with. Hard to believe that it was once an epicentre of international show business where the world’s biggest and brightest music stars did their thing in return for the thunderous applause of capacity crowds. The Beatles, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr.. they all appeared there.


Seeing stars at Festival Hall (left to right) the Beatles (1964)
 (Getty Images) Judy Garland (1964)(Getty Images) and Sinatra (1974) (Herald Sun)
 
Festival Hall during an event in the '70s (University of Melbourne)
 
Today, however, with most of the famous names of earlier times having long since winged their way skywards, the iconic landmark mainly plays host to an endless procession of irrelevant and deafening ‘alternative’ rock bands. Yet, despite its fall from grace, there’s still something about it; a quirky, nostalgic charisma, the distant echo, perhaps, of the sounds and spirits of the great and near great who once prowled its legendary stage. Standing alone, you can almost hear the replay coming back across the decades. An extra tweak of the imagination will also provide the visuals.

I see images of the headline-grabbing rhythm & blues powerhouse Johnnie Ray, frantically whipping his young audience into a dangerous frenzy in the summer of '59, his tall lanky frame draped in a stunning electric blue tuxedo and drenched in a torrent of sweat and Vodka as he twirls the mike stand and the band belts out “Flip, flop and fly". A gigantic Cadillac limo with towering fins and lots of chrome is docked in the security driveway which runs down the side of the building


From the movie There's No Business Like Showbusiness (1954) (IMDB)

Johnnie Ray in action (right) (1950s)(Getty Images) .
Backstage with  Elvis in Las Vegas (Google)

The Johnnie Ray Show Saturday 21st June 1958 - YouTube


Now I see Sinatra, in the winter of ’74, swaggering down the same alley, dressed in street clothes, wearing shades and being pursued by a scramble of TV and newspaper journalists, their cumbersome film cameras whirring as Frank’s bodyguard warns everyone not to get too close to the man. An Age photographer captures the scene. It’s a classic Melbourne moment which will remain forever in my memory.


Sinatra out front leads the way in West Melbourne

(Fairfax photo)


There was nothing trendy or fashionable about West Melbourne in those pre "gentrified" days. A rough working class neighbourhood by day, at night it became the black heart of the shadowy inner suburbs. The slightly ominous “stadium”, as many still called it, loomed over the street and seemed to scowl. Turning off Spencer Street and driving down Dudley towards the waterfront, there was both a physical and psychological sense of venturing into the nether world; of sliding towards the industrial badlands of the city’s bleak, western frontier.... and you had to get out of the car as well ! For the nicer families from the nicer suburbs there was a definite feeling of adventure and daring about a night trip to West Melbourne. And it was that curious mix of sparkling international glamour being presented smack dab in the middle of such sinister and threatening surroundings that fused together to create the sense of surrealism that was a night at Festival Hall.

Concerts at Festival Hall:

Sammy Davis Jr

Beatles 

Bee Gees

P.J.Proby 1966

Carpenters

Frank Sinatra 1959 : Audio only

AC/DC 1974

Frank Zappa 1973


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
P.S This piece was uploaded several years ago. I'm pleased to report that Festival Hall has now been saved from the wrecker's ball and it will be continuing as a concert venue

   4. Space Age Pop: What on Earth is it all About?

 Bruce Corneil


It can be as dramatic as Henry Mancini’s “Peter Gunn”, as mysterious as Martin Denny’s “Quiet Village” or as playful as Floyd Cramer’s “On the Rebound”. From Les Baxter’s “Poor People of Paris” through to Cozy Cole’s “Topsy Part 2” and Herb Alphert’s “Lonely Bull”, the musical colors of Space Age Pop are not only many and varied but also extremely vivid.

The sound was up-market contemporary and, for a while, it was everywhere on radio, TV and in the movies. Yet, for years it remained a genre without a name. It wasn’t until the 1980s that Los Angeles film-maker and record collector Byron Werner coined the phrase “Space Age Bachelor Pad Music”. Later changed to its present form, the term is now used to describe a particular style of easy listening pop which rose to prominence in the US after Word War II. Although no specific recording or date marked its exact starting point, its golden days were from the mid- '50s up to the time of the Beatles invasion of America. Mainly instrumental, album-based and adult-orientated, its creators frequently drew their inspiration from such diverse sources as modern jazz, Latin, country and rock ‘n roll. However, all these influences were skillfully homogenized in order to make them more appealing to a wider audience. But conquering the jukebox was never a priority. These discs were primarily in the business of bringing fun and entertainment into the living room by way of giving the family stereo a workout with lots of cross-channel movement (when that technology became available in the late 1950s)










Brad Bigelow, the man behind Space Age Pop.com (www.spaceagepop.com), the internet’s most comprehensive guide to the subject, says that this music cannot be easily categorized. “It’s in some middle ground and, as a result, it’s full of brilliant, bizarre and exciting sounds” Bigelow explains.

It all began with the introduction of LPs which made it possible to listen to records for longer, uninterrupted periods while high-fidelity and stereo provided vastly superior and more “life-like” reproduction. Albums had the potential to create a range of different moods which were just right for the modern American home. Hi-fis, (later to be known as “Stereos”), became an essential part of fashionable décor and an important status symbol. Preferably situated on polished floorboards, surrounded by Danish furniture and stone feature walls, they immediately identified their owners as being forward-thinkers. The rush to “Tomorrow Land” was on. Americans would soon be reaching for the moon while they stood knee-deep in LPs.

The genre is made up of several sub genres with each one boasting its own stable of artists.

Space Age Bachelor Pad” gets the ball rolling by supplying a jaunty soundtrack to after-five shenanigans. The story goes that Byron Werner initially used the label to describe the recordings of Juan Garcia Esquivel who specialized in  complex arrangements. Contracted by RCA in '57, Esquivel reached his peak with the album Latin-Esque.Exotica” offers the chance to take the “big trip” and it comes in two varieties – Jungle and Tiki. The so-called “Jungle School”, established in 1951 by the composer-conductor Les Baxter with his LP Ritual of the Savage for Capitol, is where it all began.Tiki invites the hi-fi buff to “Go Hawaiian” and drift away for musical adventures in paradise. Cool jazz pianist Martin Denny was the Boss man in charge of the Tiki hut where an attractive combination of lilting vibes, conga drums, bamboo sticks and Buddhist temple bells perfumed the air. Denny struck gold in '59 with “Quiet Village”, a sultry and hypnotic evocation of Pacific island life, complete with squawking birds and other environmental noises (see top of page). Exotica takes its name after from Denny’s debut album.


Esquivel Latin - Esque (left) Les Baxter Ritual of the Savage (center) Martin Denny Exotica (left)




Jet Set Pop” was the successor to Space Age Bachelor Pad and it encompassed the likes of Herb Alpert, Sergio Mendes and some of the more sophisticated movie music of the day such as John Barry’s “007” theme.



The Now Sound” latched onto the rhythms and instrumentations of rock ‘n roll. An MOR response to the Go-Go fad of the mid- 1960s, its leading exponents were big band veterans. Les and Larry Elgart, for example, joined forces with arrangers Charles Albertine and Bobby Scott to produce a couple of crackerjack albums which included Elgart au Go-GoCocktail” music is self explanatory. This was the stock in trade of all those piano trios which provided a pleasant backdrop to the “Lounge” bars of the world. Irving Fields was one of the star performers in this department.


Herb Alpert Lonely Bull (left) Les Elgart Elgart au Go - Go (center)
 Irving Fields Trio That Latin Beat for Dancing Feet (right)



From the start, the genre became an epicenter of artistic and technical innovation. Showcasing the talents of top composers, arrangers, producers and session players, it championed the use of many unusual instruments in popular music and pioneered stereo engineering. Bigelow believes that its contribution to the industry has gone largely unrecognized. “It introduced bossa nova, exotic percussion, electronic and other new sounds to mainstream pop” he says. However, a zany sense of fun was always close at hand in the midst of all the legitimate experimentation. As proof, a deeper plunge into this fascinating box of vinyl curios will uncover such gems as Bagels and Bongos, Zither Goes to Hollywood Accordion Fireworks and the Nutty Squirrels . Or, how about a honky-tonk piano version of the Beatles “Hard Days Night”? Even a few spoken word records can be found in the mix just to add a touch of spice.
Constantly trying out novel ideas was very much a part of the whole thing. And that’s precisely what the guitar duo Santo and Johnny did in  '59 when their composition “Sleep Walk” went straight to number one. A haunting instrumental, the tune itself was both striking and memorable. But it was the arrangement that really caught the public’s attention. With Johnny laying down a slow pulsating backbeat with his standard electric guitar, Santo etched out the melody line on a steel guitar. The result was a revelation. Hawaiian flavored pop was born and it sold a million – literally. The duo was comprised of brothers Santo and Johnny Farina from Brooklyn, New York. As kids just starting out in the business, the Farinas had to pound the streets of Manhattan with nothing more than a cheaply recorded demo in their quest to find a buyer for their brainchild. “I had to push “Sleep Walk” for over a year’ Johnny recently recalled. “Nobody was prepared to listen to a steel guitar in rock ‘n roll at that time”. Finally, the small Canadian-American label decided to take a chance and the rest, as they say, is history. Although the track is now considered to be a classic of the genre, it was well received by both adults and teenagers when it was released. Farina has no doubt as to why the record was able to breakthrough. “The sound of the steel guitar is unique to begin with and the way we used it was different as well” he explained.

Johnny Farina


Another guitar man who loved to experiment was veteran studio musician Vincent “Vinnie” Bell. Still around and playing better than ever, Bell joined the Space Age Pop race in 1956 when he worked on the Les Elgart LP For Dancers OnlyHis fancy picking can also be heard on dozens of major hits from Wilson Picket’s “Funky Broadway” and the Monkees "I'm a Believer" to Frank Sinatra’s "New York, New York”. 





Vinnie Bell (centre)
 with fellow guitar legends Al Caiola (left) and Tony Mottola (right)



A popular recording artist in his own right, he is, perhaps, best known for his “watery" guitar sound which seemed to be everywhere at one point in the  1960s. Featured on “Midnight Cowboy”, the gold single from '69 by pianists Ferrante and Teicher, it also gave its inventor his own million-seller the following year when he recorded the love theme from Airport. Vinnie has remained tight-lipped for decades in regard to how he came up with the effect. After some gentle prompting, however, the genial axe man agreed to lift the veil of secrecy just a little. “Since 1952, I had been using a special FX bank of fourteen circuitry pedals which I designed and built” he revealed. “One of them makes the underwater sound when it’s depressed”.


Ferrante & Teicher Midnight Cowboy album (left) Bell's Airport love theme album (center and right)



Bell’s interest in left-field ideas brought him into contact with French tape wizard Jean Jacques Perrey, a pioneer in electro pop who had relocated to New York.  Perrey's 1966 album The In Sound from Way Out is considered a classic of both space age and electronic pop. "Jean Jacques came to the US in the early ‘60s with an electronic keyboard instrument called the Ondioline which none of us had heard of ” Vinnie remembers. “On our first session we joined the remarkable trombonist Kai Winding. I played the guitar solo. Jean Jacques played the Ondioline”. The track the talented trio recorded was “More”, the theme to the dubious shockumentary Mondo Cane and it quickly zoomed up the charts.


Perrey demonstrated the Ondioline (lower right corner in front of piano keyboard) on American television (left)
Kai Winding's Top 40 hit "More" (center)
 Jean Jacques and Vinnie around 2010 (right) (Dana Countryman photo)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-kaquSOLo4



Invented in 1941 by Georges Jenny, the Ondioline was the forerunner of today's synthesizers. It was not only capable of making all sorts of weird and interesting effects of its own, it could also simulate the sounds of a wide variety of traditional instruments with great realism. Space Age Pop historian Dana Countryman has written a biography about Monsieur Perrey entitled Passport to the Future : The Amazing Life and Music of Electronic Pop Pioneer Jean- Jacques Perrey (right).  

Bell was also very much a technical whiz. In addition to his aforementioned "watery" guitar he came up with several new instruments which included the Danelectro Bellzouki and the electric sitar, the latter of which he played on the Lemon Pipers hit "Green Tambourine" ('67)


Vinnie in the studio around 1967 / 68 with his electric sitar (left) The Lemon Pipers 1967 hit "Green Tambourine" 
on which Vinnie played the aforementioned instrument (center) With the Danelectro Bellzouki (right) 
(Photos left and right from Stereo Candies)


Few solo singers came to the fore in this genre. However, several vocal groups did make an impression with the most prominent one being organized by Ray Conniff. A former trombonist and arranger with the Harry James orchestra, Conniff became a key figure at Columbia in the 1950s. But he really made everyone sit up and take notice with his extraordinary “wordless chorus”. Based around four male and four female singers, the guys and gals replicated the sound of an orchestra’s brass section by singing such memorable lines as “Bah-Doo-Wup-Bah-Doo-Doo-Wuh”. The shoppers loved it and Conniff'c career went ballistic thanks to albums such as S’ Wonderful ('56) and Concert in Rhythm (’57).

Ray Conniff Singers (Conniff at far right)


And what would Space Age Pop be without its string groups? Annunzio Paolo Mantovani set the style. With his romantic sound being variously known as the “Gush of Lush” and “The Niagara Falls of Fiddles”, Mantovani churned out half a dozen gold singles and eight gold albums between 1951 and ’61. He summed up his own success in very simple terms: “Maybe 25 percent of people like the Classics and 25 percent like the Beatles. I aim to please all those in the middle”.


Mantovani displays one of his gold records (left) Two of his top selling albums Film Encores (center) and Exodus (right)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyiXp9ctqpk



The Beatles may not have been the pin-up boys for the average Mantovani fan but Hollywood maestro Stu Phillips (left) could hear tremendous potential in the Fab Four’s better songs. “I was an A&R man at Capitol in 1964 when the Beatles first US album was to be released” Phillips says. “I suggested that it might be interesting if their music was recorded instrumentally and made more palatable to an older market”.

With Phillips at the helm as arranger, producer and conductor, the label assembled the Hollyridge Strings and their LP The Beatles Song Book (right) did surprisingly good business. To quote Brad Bigelow, ”The concept gave Muzaka shot in the arm and the rockers a rich supply of nightmares”. Phillips was instantly attracted by the quality of the Beatles compositions: “Those Lennon and McCartney songs were melody-driven that’s why I thought they would make great instrumentals. I tried to pick songs that I thought were going to become standards”.


Just as intriguing as the music of this genre was the way in which it was sold. Usually without the beaming faces of major celebrities, album covers had to work hard to separate consumers from their cash. As part of the strategy bold, risqué and even frightening graphics backed onto equally captivating descriptive text which rhapsodized about the sonic delights that were on offer. And irresistible titles such as Mallet Mischief, Primitiva, and Blast Off! were sure to sway the undecided. Promising pure escapism, covers promoted futuristic, exotic and sexy images.






Christopher Evans, a life-long vinyl collector based in Belgium, has put together the website Space Age Pop a-Go-Go.com which is entirely devoted to scans of classic covers. Evans, who has made a detailed study of this form of commercial art, says that the record companies liked to emphasize stereo gimmicks. “There was “Spectra Sonic Sound” and “Wall to Wall Stereo” while RCA pulled out all the stops by assuring its customers that “Stereo Action is musical movement so real, you’re eyes will follow the sound” Evans recites without missing a beat. He has a particular fondness for Les Baxter’s Space Escapade : “Two good-looking bachelor spacemen having a cocktail with a couple of extraterrestrial girls. Pure kitsch”. Sometimes the pop peddlers relied on shock value. Tiki artist Arthur Lyman’s LP Taboo, for instance, displayed a shrunken head.







Widely reviewed, these albums were the preferred listening option for most adult record buyers along with their daily shots of Sinatra, Dean Martin and Peggy Lee. But, of course, public tastes inevitably change. In time, the novelty of stereo wore off while major political upheavals and the phenomenal rise of the Beatles had a profound and enduring impact on the music scene. And it wasn’t necessarily all for the best. Some of those who were a part of the business throughout the Beatles era and beyond still feel a sense of sadness as they look back on the gradual disappearance of musical variety from the radio airwaves. Stu Phillips is one of them. “I guess a lot of those people who grew up with rock felt that light hearted instrumentals were corny” he says. Vinnie Bell on the other hand, thinks that the industry itself must take some of the blame. In its rush to cash in on mainstream '60s pop, a pack mentality developed and increasingly restrictive programming in commercial radio became the norm. “My belief is that the spontaneity among session men was halted and everyone started to copy each other. The spark went out of the whole thing” he laments.
1970s logo for Beautiful Music
 station 3AK in Melbourne,
Australia 

Bigelow is able to shed further light on the reasons for the decline: “The original fans of Space Age Pop lost interest in buying records. Also, Beautiful Music stations were being established all over the country and older people shifted from playing LPs to listening to those stations”.

As it turned out, the genre had to wait a long time to be rediscovered. As popular as it was in its day, it was largely over-looked by the first retro boom that got underway in the 1970s in the wake of American Graffiti.

The revival began slowly in '93 with the publication of two books – Joseph Lanza’s Elevator Music : A Surreal History of Muzak, Easy Listening and other Mood Songs (below left) and Incredibly Strange Music (below center), a two volume set by Re/Search Books. A little later, the musician and writer Dana Countryman came out with Cool and Strange Music (below right). (www.weirdomusic.com). Then, the Exotica mailing list was launched on the internet and Capitol released its series of Ultra-Lounge CDs.


Books : Elevator Music (left) Incredibly Strange Music (center)
Cool and Strange Music (left


Selection of Capitol's Ultra - Lounge CD collection : Exotica (left)
 Tiki (center) and Christmas Cocktail music (left)

On the vinyl front, some of the more hard to find, original albums are now attracting plenty of bids on eBay. Christopher Evans has watched prices climb over recent years. “LPs such as Les Baxter’s Space Escapade in stereo and in good condition often sell for over $100 US” he says.

Space Age Pop has made its presence felt on alternative radio as well. An ideal starting point for your “listening pleasure” would be Bigelow’s website which offers a link to a continuous stream of music which comes from the net broadcaster, Basic Hip . Darrell Brodgon, presenter of the program “Retro Cocktail Hour” on Kansas Public Radio (and the net) says that the genre attracts a lot of drive-by interest. “I’m constantly impressed, however, by how many people are drawn to this music once they’ve been exposed to it” Brogdon enthuses. Also doing their bit to keep the flag flying is LuxuriaMusic, a Los Angeles-based internet station. Program Director Chuck Kelley shares the view that interest appears to be on the rise. “I think it’s increasing. I see new people in the chat room every day” Kelley says. Brogdon and Kelley also agree that 1950s Exotica and particularly Tiki music is the big deal with their listeners at the moment.


Chuck Kelley (left) Publicity for Luxuria Music's current membership drive (center)
 Darrell Brogdon host of Kansas Public Radio's "Retro Cocktail Hour"


In a further gesture to educate the uninitiated, Bigelow provides a list of Top 10 albums, many of which have been mentioned here. But one in particular, Enoch Light’s Persuasive Percussion, holds a special place. Both a brilliant musician and a technical genius on the knobs and wires side of things, Light owned the Command label and the aforementioned disc was, until recently, ranked among the Top 25 best-selling albums of all time. Or, for something completely different, you might like to track down a copy of the Cold War instructional disc If the Bomb Falls which explains how to survive a nuclear attack.





Brogdon’s final thoughts on the subject pretty well sum up the sentiments of other devotees of these quirky sounds. “Its upbeat and futuristic spirit, together with the incredible professionalism of these old records is a joy. I also like the fact that, in those days, there were more choices for the consumer. Today, the record business is all about money and jamming the same old stuff down our throats over and over again” he states emphatically.

Of course, not all Space Age Pop was outstanding. Like every category of music, it produced its share of duds and dazzlers. When listening to these albums today, however, it’s worth remembering that they were recorded using only basic analogue technology. With the end product being physically cut and spliced together, there was a high element of art involved in the process and, on balance, what they came up with was pretty darn amazing. As Johnny Farina says “There was no comparison to the studios of today. Actually, you had to be much more creative and resourceful in the early days because the equipment was so primitive”.

But, perhaps, Joseph Lanza, the man who was primarily responsible for the rediscovery of the genre, should be given the last word. Summarizing the main value of this type of music in his aforementioned book, Lanza stated his views quite simply.....

After decades of rock, rhythm and blues, folk and wrap, a desensitized population seems to assume that if music is not heavy, loud and steaming with emotion or anger it is somehow less than good. However, there is still a place for gentler sounds that are subdued, unobtrusive and even remote which can make us feel relaxed and distracted from the troubles of the world”.



The above piece is based on a magazine article that was published some years ago. 

Author : Bruce Corneil - former radio music programmer and recording engineer