Hi, I'm Shawn Spencer,
psychic sleuth and boy toy to the stars.
psychic sleuth and boy toy to the stars.
And this is my partner, Wolfgang von Glockenspiel,
world renowned designer of erotic swizzle sticks.
world renowned designer of erotic swizzle sticks.
Not true, Shawn!
Recently, Gus and I were celebrity contestants
on the new TV game show Rock Jeopardy
and it went something... like... this.....
Shawn Spencer, you control
the board. Please select a
category and amount.
The answer is: A familiar face and
Alex, after eating up
three minutes of air
three minutes of air
time to think it over,
I've decided to take
Food Songs for 100.
Food Songs for 100.
frequent guest on TV variety shows
and sitcoms of the 60s and 70s -
actor, comedian, singer and
impressionist Guy Marks had
a hit on both sides of the Atlantic
with this novelty song parody
recalling the big band era.
(DING) Shawn...
I sense a disturbance
in the Force. It's as if
someone...or something
is trying to contact me.
in the Force. It's as if
someone...or something
is trying to contact me.
My inner eye has 20-20
vision, and my future's
so bright I gotta
wear shades.
Please hurry with your response,
Shawn. Don't let the buzzer sound.
What is "I Got Ants
in My Pants and I
Want to Dance"?
(BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ)
in My Pants and I
Want to Dance"?
(BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ)
No... no... that is incorrect. (DING)
Gus Guster, can you take it?
"Loving You Has
Made Me Bananas."
Made Me Bananas."
Just to remind you, Gus, that your
response must be in the form of a
question or we cannot accept it.
What is "Loving You
Has Made Me Bananas"?
(DING DING DING)
Has Made Me Bananas"?
(DING DING DING)
Right you are! "Loving You Has
Made Me Bananas" by Guy Marks,
a record that reached #51 in the
states in 1968 and the top 30 in
the UK ten years later.
Gus, the board is yours.
Pick a category and amount.
Food Songs for 200, Alex.
The answer is: A popular breakfast
"Loving You Has Made Me Bananas" - Guy Marks
(Apr./May 1968, highest chart pos. #51 Hot 100,
re-released in UK in 1978 and peaked at #25,
perf. on May 1978 ep. of Top Of The Pops)
Gus, the board is yours.
Pick a category and amount.
Food Songs for 200, Alex.
The answer is: A popular breakfast
cereal introduced in 1965, its adver-
tising jingle was borrowed from a
1957 hit by Jimmie Rodgers.
(DING) Shawn...
What is Count Chocula?
(BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ)
No... not what we were looking for.
(DING) Gus, over to you.
What is "Honeycomb"?
That's it, you got it! "Honeycomb" -
a chart-topper in the fall of 1957!
Gus, the board is still yours.
Please select.
The answer is: Half of a popular brother
and sister recording act of the 60s, her
first single, released in January 1951,
entitled "Don't Do It," a controversial,
racy song about a couple parked on
lovers' lane and sung in a breathy,
Who are Ma & Pa Kettle?
(BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ)
(Alex pauses in stunned silence)
No... no... not even close, Shawn.
Gus, can you take it?
Who is... who is.....
Hurry... five seconds, Gus.
No, I'm sorry, Gus. You were on the
right track, but it's April Stevens...
that's the name we were looking for,
April Stevens of the famous sibling
duo Nino Tempo and April Stevens.
What is Count Chocula?
(BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ)
No... not what we were looking for.
(DING) Gus, over to you.
What is "Honeycomb"?
(DING DING DING)
That's it, you got it! "Honeycomb" -
a chart-topper in the fall of 1957!
"Honeycomb" - Jimmie Rodgers
(Sept./Oct. 1957, highest chart pos. #1)
Gus, the board is still yours.
Please select.
Let's go with
Dirty Ditties
for 100, Alex.
Dirty Ditties
for 100, Alex.
The answer is: Half of a popular brother
and sister recording act of the 60s, her
first single, released in January 1951,
entitled "Don't Do It," a controversial,
racy song about a couple parked on
lovers' lane and sung in a breathy,
seductive manner, was banned by
radio stations. (DING) Shawn...
radio stations. (DING) Shawn...
Who are Ma & Pa Kettle?
(BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ)
(Alex pauses in stunned silence)
No... no... not even close, Shawn.
Gus, can you take it?
Who is... who is.....
Hurry... five seconds, Gus.
Who is...
Connie Stevens?
(BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ)
(BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ)
No, I'm sorry, Gus. You were on the
right track, but it's April Stevens...
that's the name we were looking for,
April Stevens of the famous sibling
duo Nino Tempo and April Stevens.
"Don't Do It" - April Stevens & "The Day Dreamers"
(Jan. 1951, B side of "The Sweetest Day")
We need to take a short break right here.
Checking the score, we see that Gus is
in the lead with 300 and Shawn is not yet
on the board. Why am I not surprised?
We'll be back with more of Rock Jeopardy
after this word from our sponsor, Shady
Del Knight's Fake Mustache Boutique.
Men, if your fake mustache isn't becoming to you...
...then you should be coming to me.
I'm Shady Del Knight, and I’m not only
the Fake Mustache Boutique president
... I'm also a client!
Come on, Shawn! You can do it.
ReplyDeleteHi, Alex!
DeleteThanks for being the early bird this time, good buddy! I figured you'd remember Shawn and Gus playing Rock Jeopardy years ago on the old blog Shady Dell Music & Memories. Somehow Shawn Spencer, with all his psychic abilities, cannot come up with the correct questions.
Thanks again for dropping by, good buddy Alex!
You got this, Shawn! Just focus... focus!
ReplyDeleteI love the first half of Rock Jeopardy. Maybe before Alex retires, he should host an actual Rock Jeopardy. I think it would be fun.
I also never heard these songs, but I am liking the sounds. I like the Guy Marks song the best.
Have a great Sunday, dear friend.
Hi, Jessica Marie!
DeleteThanks for coming over early to play Rock Jeopardy with the guys from Psych, dear friend!
Three old time recordings are featured in this edition. You've got "Honeycomb," a song that was popular the fall of 1957, April Stevens purring her dirty ditty "Don't Do It," a single released at the start of 1951, and then there's the song you liked best, "Loving You Has Made Me Bananas" by Guy Marks, a parody that harks back to the big band era. "Bananas" was a big hit in my neck of the woods, played frequently on the campus radio station when I was in the spring term of my freshman year at Penn State. Decades went by without hearing the song again or even thinking about it. Then recently I came across this video of Guy doing the song on Top Of The Pops in London and I decided to plug it into Rock Jeopardy.
Thanks again for joining the fun, dear friend JM!
Hi Shady,
DeleteIt's a bummer that these fun songs aren't played much anymore.
I hope before Alex Trebek retires, I hope he considers a Rock Jeopardy. I'm getting sad thinking about his impending retirement. I wonder what would happen to Jeopardy.
Hi again, JM!
DeleteOf the three recordings I am sure "Honeycomb" has been played most often in the 21st century. It was a major hit at the time of its release in the 50s whereas "Bananas" was only a minor hit and "Don't Do It" was an obscure and banned B side.
It would indeed be cool if there were an actual game show called Rock Jeopardy with Alex Trebek hosting. I assume that rock or pop music has been used many times over the years as one of the categories on the board. In spite of his serious health challenges in recent years, Alex is contracted to host Jeopardy until 2022, according to Wiki. I can't imagine who would replace him when he retires.
Have a terrific week, dear friend JM!
That's good to know that we have two more years with him! Hopefully he beats the cancer too. I love Alex Trebek.
DeleteHave a great day too, dear friend.
When Bob Barker left The Price Is Right, no one could imagine somebody replacing him and doing the same great job, but Drew Carey did just that. I can't wait to see who takes over when Alex steps down.
DeleteWhen I saw Honeycomb, all I could think of was the song Want Ads. But that's not even Honey Comb.... it's Honey Cone! So confusing! (what the heck is a honey cone??)
ReplyDeleteAnd the first banana song that comes to my mind is Harry Chapin's 30,000 Pounds of Bananas.
Great to see Gus and Shawn here today! :D
Hi, Kelly!
DeleteHow are you and my buddy Pat doing this weekend, dear friend? Thanks for popping in to play an invigorating game of Rock Jeopardy with Shawn, Gus and Alex!
It's funny how your mind jumped to the R&B/soul trio Honey Cone. When you asked "what the heck is a honey cone?" I got curious about it myself. According to Wiki, the members of Honey Cone all came from other girl groups, most notably Ike & Tina Turner's Ikettes and Phil Spector's/Darlene Love's Blossoms. Eddie Holland of the famous Motown songwriting and producing team Holland-Dozier-Holland, named the new act Honey Cone. Wiki sez: "Holland named the act Honey Cone for a favorite flavor of ice cream. At first, group members rejected the name, but Holland prevailed, and the ladies soon embraced its distinctiveness." Next I tried to find info about that honey cone flavor of ice cream. Most search results were for "honeycomb" ice cream, but then I found a sweet treat named "Hawaiian Honey Cones." I have no idea if Eddie really knew of a "honey cone" ice cream at the time or if he goofed and spelled "honeycomb" incorrectly. If you need more info, may I suggest that you put it in the "Want Ads"? :)
Even though I grew up not too terribly far from Scranton, PA, I never before heard the Harry Chapin song "Thirty Thousand Pounds of Bananas." It comes to a gruesome end, doesn't it? That young truck driver met an early demise because he couldn't keep his mind off his sweetie. I hope you enjoyed the Guy Marks ditty and the seldom heard 1951 B side by the pride of Niagara Falls, Miss April Stevens.
Thanks again for coming by and have a wonderful week, dear friend Kelly!
Oh, Shady.... I'm still groaning over your suggestion I put further questions in the Want Ads! 😂😂😂 Thanks for doing the Honey Cone research for me.
DeleteThat Harry Chapin song is on his "Greatest Stories Live" album. It's an excellent album overall.
Pat says hello. ;)
Hi again, Kelly!
DeleteI'll take it as a compliment that I made you groan, dear friend. :) I tend to have an insatiable curiosity about a lot of things. I spend more time than I perhaps should trying to solve mysteries like the naming of Honey Cone. 9 times out of 10, when I solve one mystery, others arise and I go back into research mode in pursuit of answers.
Thanks for the tip about that Harry Chapin album. I say this, and I'm sure my buddy Pat will agree - you have eclectic taste in music. :)
Thanks again for stopping by and for being a wonderful friend, Kelly!
Hi Shady, Alex, Gus and Shawn! Hilarious to be sure, but very clever! I've never heard of Guy Marks, but I did like the video. "Loving You Has Made Me Bananas" is kind of goofy, and, kind of classy too. The setting is cool and reminiscent of the nightclubs of the late 1930's and 1940's.
ReplyDeleteI always liked Jimmy Rodgers, and "Honeycomb" was definitely at #1, and played frequently on our pop stations. It was fun to hear the song again.
Whoa, April Stevens! And, they think our fashions today are suggestive! April has a very nice voice, kind of smoky. I guess that is what made the song (slightly racy), haha!
Fun post you guys! Good work, Alex and Shady...love the fake mustache commercial! Thank you for playing Jeopardy!
I know you are busy, but be safe and have a great week, Shady!♫
Hi, Suzanne!
DeleteIt's great to see you, dear friend. Thanks for coming! I hope you are feeling much better today. Mrs. S and I hit the road early this morning and had an excellent trip across the state. We took scenic routes instead of the interstates and in doing so avoided the heavy traffic. The weather was beautiful and we enjoyed the drive. We arrived at our destination much earlier than expected and I was happy to have a few extra hours in my day for activities like blogging.
I'm glad you enjoyed Shawn & Gus appearing on Rock Jeopardy. This is actually the 4th time the stars of Psych have appeared on my blog. They were featured in posts on SDMM in 2014, 2015 and 2017.
I'm surprised you never heard of Guy Marks and aren't familiar with his "Bananas" novelty number. It was big in my region, played often during the spring of 1968, and I bought the 45 at the time. If you listen to the lyrics they are nonsensical and hilarious, recalling the stuffy formality of the big band swing years.
I'm glad you remember Jimmy Rodgers and his biggest hit and signature song "Honeycomb." I used to watch Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts, and Jimmy appeared on the show. My parents bought Jimmy Rodger records including his other hits: "Kisses Sweeter than Wine," "Oh-Oh, I'm Falling in Love Again," "Secretly" and "Bimbombey." I wonder if you remember any of those. I certainly do because my parents played them often.
Yessum, April Stevens was quite a bombshell early on and recorded in a breathy, smoky, seductive style. Just listen to another of her teasing, titillating ditties from 1951 entitled "Aw, C'mon":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9QKX2tvdjE
Some of April's other sexy recordings in the same vein include "Put Me In Your Pocket," "That Naughty Waltz," "Teach Me Tiger" and "Love Kitten." Can you believe that April Stevens will be (drum roll) 91 years old in April of this year? Please say it ain't so!
I'm pleased that you got a chuckle from Shady's Fake Mustache Boutique spot. :)
Thank you again for coming out to play, dear friend Suzanne. Take good care of yourself and Scootie, feel better, and have a wonderful week!
LOL pretty funny there Shady. I like Honeycomb and remember it well. The others I hadn't heard and truthfully didn't really care for them. I am in awe of the amount of effort you put into your blog posts. Thanks for the entertainment! Have a great week my friend.
ReplyDeleteJanet’s Smiles
Hi, Janet!
DeleteIt's nice of you to drop by, dear friend. Thanks for coming!
Are you saying you like Honeycomb the song, Honeycomb the breakfast cereal... or both? :) Thanks for the compliment about the amount of effort I put into the posts. It's all play, I assure you. It relaxes me and I love to entertain good friends like you.
Thanks again for checking in, dear friend Janet, and enjoy your week!
Tom,
ReplyDeleteThis is a great series and your sense of humor cracks me up! It'll come as no surprise to you that I do not know any of your tunes in this post. Amy Stevens does have a breathy style but I racy isn't the word I used to describe her singing. To me, she sounds more sweet than sexy but then DH always tells me sweet is sexy so I guess in those days of innocence it her vocal expression was too smokin' hot for the radio. :) Thanks for the fun mewsical share. Have a good afternoon, dear friend!
Hi, Cathy!
DeleteThanks for swinging over for a visit, dear friend! Although you didn't know any of the songs in the post, I'm glad you got a chuckle out of Shawn and Gus as they made their triumphant return to Rock Jeopardy. Seems poor Shawn Spencer is destined to leave the show with a copy of the home game as a consolation prize. :)
It's APRIL Stevens, dear friend, April Stevens of the popular brother-sister duo Nino Tempo and April Stevens. It's funny because some of their early singles were released as by "April Stevens And Nino Tempo," but eventually they switched their names around to give Nino top billing. When I was young I knew them as April Stevens and Nino Tempo. Maybe it's my dirty male mind, but my interpretation of "Don't Do It" is "don't make me go all the way." The song was controversial for its time to the point of being banned by radio stations, and I think it would still be controversial today.
I'm so glad you had fun at Shady's Place, dear friend Cathy. Thanks again for coming and have a tunetastic week!
Nice show, friend Shady:) … and "running out of gas" on a lonely road, eh? … that trick is never a good idea … especially not in -30C … But then again that prolly saved her honour cuz they prolly wouldn't know how to find what and what to put where cuz of the multitude of layers of clothing … smiles … just sayin … anyway:))) … Love, cat.
ReplyDeleteHi, cat!
DeleteThanks for coming down from the frozen north country, dear friend! I'm glad you enjoyed the show as Shawn & Gus competed on Rock Jeopardy. I see you listened intently to the lovers' lane song "Don't Do It" recorded by 21 year old April Stevens and her backing group at the time The Day Dreamers. I'm not sexist, but it seems to me the young woman in the song was saying "no" and "yes" at the same time. You make a good point. The record was released in the dead of winter 1951. Therefore, if we are to imagine that couple parking, holding hands, smooching, etc... then they were probably so bundled up that it ruined most of their fun. :)
Thanks again for coming down to play, dear friend cat, and enjoy the rest of your week!
Oh my, better late than never I guess! This was pretty funny. I'm sure Alex would love this post and have a good laugh! I actually knew the bananas song and also honeycomb. The April Stevens song probably wouldn't go over big these days either. Let's not forget how Christmas was almost ruined over "Baby it's cold outside"! I'm going now to wax my fake mustache Pres. Shady..have a great week!
ReplyDeleteHi, YaYa!
DeleteThanks for dropping in and bringing your sense of humor, dear friend! I'm glad you enjoyed the antics of Shawn Spencer and Shady Del Knight. I am also pleasantly surprised to learn that you remember "Loving You Has Made Me Bananas" and "Honeycomb." Both songs were big in Central PA. I can hardly believe April Stevens is in her 90s. I suppose she's roughly the same age as your mother. That means she was in her mid to late 30s when she and her brother Nino were releasing singles aimed at winning over younger listeners. Perhaps being "middle aged" at the time explains why the duo had limited chart success.
Please post a selfie wearing your fake mustache. :) By the way, do you recognize actor and funny man Roger C. Carmel in that last picture? I remember Roger from the TV sitcom The Mothers-In-Law and as a celebrity contestant on Pantomime Quiz, later called Mike Stokey's Stump the Stars. I watched that game show regularly.
Thanks again for joining the fun, dear friend YaYa!
I know Honeycomb quite well but never heard of the other 2. That must be Ava Gardner you have as a pick and not April Stevens who sang that song quite well. Just don’t let the politic police out or they will claim it is a bad song and should be banned etc...another nice way to listen to these songs today
ReplyDelete