MetaFilter posts tagged with 1970s

History of Montreal disco(s)

joeclark — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 11:58:12 -0800

Funkytown: The Montreal Disco Era. Studio 54? Qu’est-ce que c’est? By the late 1970s, “Montreal had platinum-status admission to the VIP lounge of coolest-of-the-cool disco cities.” An oral history of the city where no one bats an eye at going out to dance at 1:30 AM in –20°C weather. (Contains links to MP3 of CBC Radio documentary.) Incidentally, the film Funkytown mentioned in the comments is an upcoming bilingual historical comedy-drama about the Montreal disco scene that, by the looks of it, will feature some really bitchin’ wardrobe.

PROG ROCK SPECIAL - PART 2

philip-random — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 18:23:27 -0800

Times were tough. Hair was long, complex and strange, and so were the songs. Where were you 35 years ago, and why weren’t you surrounded by stack of keyboards wearing a sequined gown? So-called Progressive Rock may still be with us in some form or other, but it’s never been as absurd, as popular as strangely relevant and all encompassing as it was for a few short years back in the 1970s. A few more notable hairstyles, freakouts, and very long songs ... Soft Machine Utopia (featuring Todd Rundgren) Pink Floyd (keeping it peaceful) Camel Strawbs Grobschnitt Deep Purple Queen Rush Jethro Tull ... and (why the hell not?) Frank Zap pa + more Yes. Previously.

Oh, Rom...

kittens for breakfast — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 11:39:28 -0800

Rom: Spaceknight was an improbable comics success: Based on a toy series that consisted of one figure (Rom), the comics series debuted in 1979 and lasted an unlikely 75 issues, featuring art from such luminaries as P. Craig Russell and Steve Ditko (previously, previously and previously). The series was written by Marvel Comics mainstay Bill Mantlo, who retired from comics and became a public defender (the legal kind), only to suffer a tragic accident in the mid-1990s that left him in need of constant medical attention. A 2007 benefit for the writer -- Spacenight: A Tribute to Bill Mantlo -- will be followed by Spacenight 2, an auction of original Rom-related artwork that can be viewed here.

Friday Night, 1974, and there's nothing going on

philip-random — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 15:34:10 -0800

Here’s a cool concept. Top breakthrough bands of the day playing LIVE on TV late every Friday night. Such was The Midnight Special - from 1972 - 1981 (though the glory days were the early to mid 70s, that lost decade somewhere between the meltdown of the hippie dream and the coincident eruptions of PUNK + DISCO upon planet rock). Burt Sugarman was the man behind it all. You name ‘em. They played it. From the sublime to the ridiculous ... ABBA Argent Badfinger Bee Gees (pre disco) Earth Wind + Fire Electric Light Orchestra (again) Guess Who Manfred Mann's Earth Band Curtis Mayfield The Steve Miller Band Ted Nugent Billy Preston Todd Rundgren T-Rex Thin Lizzy War Gary Wright All apologies for the hairstyles but, as some wise guys said, those who forget history are condemned to repeat it.

"No One Told Me the Price of Admission Would Be...a BROKEN HEART!"

kittens for breakfast — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 16:43:13 -0800

The Woodstock Festival ended forty years ago today, on August 18, 1969* -- and roughly, um, two years later, Marvel Comics was there! Writer Gary Friedrich and (wildly overqualified) artist Gray Morrow bring you an improbably cleanly tale of romance that first appeared in issue #14 of Marvel's My Love (November 1971): "It Happened at Woodstock!" (Guest-starring Janis Joplin, among others.) *...Although the story in question would have you believe it was 1968.

“I remember from the get-go, it wasn’t a normal crowd.”

NotMyselfRightNow — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 07:19:37 -0800

Thirty years ago today was the infamous "Disco Demolition Night" at Chicago's Comiskey Park. It didn't go exactly as planned: "In the warm air that night, baseball’s routine and soothing sounds mixed with the tribal cadence of off-color chanting, the drifting scent of marijuana and the sight of vinyl records descending through the summer dusk like Frisbees." It wasn't the first time a 70s baseball promotion went astray. Considered by some "the worst idea ever," "Ten Cent Beer Night" at Cleveland Municipal Stadium five years earlier ended when "a large number of intoxicated fans – some armed with knives, chains, and portions of stadium seats that they had torn apart – surged onto the field, and others hurled bottles from the stands." (Previously on MeFi)

Behind the Mask - Michael Jackson's rarest recording?

0bvious — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 10:40:57 -0800

Michael Jackson penned and recorded lots of songs, many of which remain unreleased. Perhaps the most infamous, and rarest recording, is his version of Behind the Mask. Legend has it that upon hearing Yellow Magic Orchestra's original track, somewhen around 1979, Quincy Jones fell in love with the track, and he and Michael worked together on their own version. Jackson wrote new lyrics for it - adding to those of Ryuichi Sakamoto and Chris Mosdell - and eventually recorded it during his Off The Wall sessions. For unknown reasons the track never made the final cut of, arguably, Jones' and Jackson's greatest work. Not long afterwards Greg Phillinganes, Jackson's keyboard player, released his own version of the song, which was later taken up and re-recorded by Eric Clapton for his 1986, Phil Collins produced album, August. The track has since been recorded/remixed by Human League, Senor Coconut, Orbital and others. Does an original Jones/Jackson recording of the song even exist? Perhaps, as the world continues to mourn the star's sad death, someone will finally allow us a listen.

Foundation and Letching

Artw — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:12:23 -0800

Isaac Asimov on how to be a dirty old man.

Fallsburg High School 1974-1978

nasreddin — Wed, 06 May 2009 16:43:49 -0800

Over a thousand photos from Fallsburg High School, 1974-1978. Bonus: non-annoying interface. (via)

The Biology Textbook That Wished It Was A Progressive Rock Album

jonp72 — Tue, 05 May 2009 07:07:29 -0800

This is your biology textbook. This is your biology textbook on drugs. Any questions?

"Oh, lord love you, Stephen. How I admire your arrogance and rage and misery. How pure and righteous they are and how passionately storm-drenched was your adolescence."

Artw — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 22:19:48 -0800

Long before becoming a national treasure and celebrity Twitter addict the 16 year old Stephen Fry sent a letter to his future self, to which he has now responded, in a letter first published in the 25th birthday edition of Gay Times.

Who Are The People (and the Muppets) In Your Neighborhood?

jonp72 — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 18:32:35 -0800

In honor of the 40th anniversary of Sesame Street, let's take a few moments to honor those Sesame Street humans overshadowed by their Muppet counterparts. Check out Bob (Bob McGrath) singing Danny Boy in Japanese on a 1966 broadcast of To Tell The Truth or singing a Japanese ballad. Watch Gordon (Roscoe Orman) as the big pimpin' title character in this original trailer for the film Willie Dynamite. See Maria (Sonia Manzano) as a lady trucker on B.J. & the Bear or getting menaced by Jeff Goldblum in the movie Death Wish. And Mr. Hooper (Will Lee) plays Pac-Man in an Atari commercial. Meanwhile, the Muppet stars of Sesame Street have gone some interesting evolutions as well in their career. Check out the Cookie Monster prototype in this Munchos commercial or this Computer Monster skit. The original prototype of Grover was a thieving Muppet named Gleep who appeared on a Christmas sketch on the Ed Sullivan show with Arthur Godfrey as Santa Claus, but Grover also appears as Fuzzyface in a 1st season appearance on Sesame Street with Kermit. Last but not least, this Monsterpiece Theater production of Me Claudius features Elmo with a much raspier voice than the childlike Muppet who monopolizes the show today.

I miss the 1970s

CunningLinguist — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 14:29:52 -0800

Times Square before Disney: Ads for 1970s "Leisure Spas" (SLYT)

No Need to Atone for Your Synths

jonp72 — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 11:59:03 -0800

Not all groups with synthesizers in the 1970s and 1980s were lame Top 40 acts with keytars. Some groups of the era used synths for spastic keyboard bleeps, herky-jerky tempos, and angst-ridden aggression in a style now classified by record collector geeks as synthpunk, minimal synth, or minimal wave. Several famous New Wave acts dabbled in the style before providing soundtracks for Molly Ringwald movies (OMD, Electricty) or singing about waitresses in cocktail bars (the Human League, Being Boiled), but vintage videos from synth punk acts all over the world can be found all over YouTube. New York City Suicide, Ghost Rider Suicide, Frankie Teardrop Dark Day, Arp's Carpet Los Angeles Catholic Discipline, Underground Babylon The Screamers, Vertigo The Screamers, 122 Hours of Fear Nervous Gender, Miscarriage San Francisco The Units, Unit Training Film: Warm Moving Bodies Tulsa, Oklahoma Los Reactors, It's A Wonderful Life Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Billy Synth & the Turnups, I'm So Sick of It South Florida Futurisk, Meteoright Futurisk, Army Now France Metal Urbain, Panik Australia The Primitive Calculators, I Can't Stop It The United Kingdom The Normal, T.V.O.D. Fad Gadget, Collapsing New People Spain Aviador Dro, La TV Es Nutritiva Los Iniciados, Marca de Anubis Japan P-Model, ArtMania P-Model, Health Angel

Words Are Made of Letter People

Thin Lizzy — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 09:29:06 -0800

The Letter People started as a collection of vaguely trippy drawings by illustrator Elizabeth Callen in the early 70s, but viewers of Midwestern PBS in the 70s and 80s might have learned to read from the Letter People puppet show produced by PBS station KETC in St. Louis. Set in the black void of "Letter People Land", the show allowed each character to introduce him or herself with a song, from the laid back, Carole King vibe in Miss A's song, to the bizarre sound collage of Mr. X (audio with fan-made video). And of course cashing in on the nostalgia craze, the new and improved letter people without references to junk food or the pesky marital status of the vowels. Sing along with the other Letter People songs: Mr. B, Mr. C, Mr. D, Miss E, Mr. F, Mr. G, Mr. H, Miss I, Mr. J, Mr. K, Mr. L, Mr. M, Mr. N, Miss O, Mr. P, Mr. Q (and his lack of a song), Mr. R (an introductory skit from the show- the song that follows was only recorded for the album), Mr. S (voiced by Joneal Joplin, local actor and favorite of the St. Louis theatre scene), Mr. T, Miss U, Mr. V, Mr. W, Mr. Y, and Mr. Z. Feel like it's a bit of a boyzone with all those consonants? Watch the vowel ladies band together and get their girl-group on.

Web of Horror!

kittens for breakfast — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:44:06 -0800

Web of Horror #1 (December 1969): Re-presenting the short-lived and impossibly obscure horror comics magazine that featured early work from such luminaries as Ralph Reese, Jeff Jones and Bernie Wrightson. Link via Journalista (may be NSFW). The remaining two issues, it is promised, will appear on the site in the next few days. Meanwhile, some related odds and ends: A VERY '70s Ralph Reed strip from Playboy (NSFW) A Jeff Jones biography (featuring some NSFW art) Jones's Edgar Rice Burroughs calendar, which will transform you -- if stared at too long -- into a braces-having fourteen-year-old boy who smells like Cheetos and Sprite A 1999 interview with Bernie Wrightson that covers his black-and-white horror work A brief but pretty great retrospective of Wrightson's art

Prog Rock Special - part 1

philip-random — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 18:17:58 -0800

It’s been a long, weird and expensive week all over. Why not stay in tonight and watch guys (mostly) with long hair playing strange and difficult music from a long lost decade? Gentle Giant, King Crimson and Hawkwind just not enough? How about a little more (or perhaps way too much) Van der Graaf Generator, Can, FM, Roxy Music, Edgar Winter, Captain Beyond, Guru Guru and, of course, Jethro Tull and Yes. Warning. Some of these are not complete versions. You may be confused.

When the Wind Blows

Artw — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 23:48:37 -0800

This is the Wartime Broadcasting Service. This country has been attacked with nuclear weapons. Communications have been severely disrupted, and the number of casualties and the extent of the damage are not yet known. We shall bring you further information as soon as possible. - The BBC releases its script for use in the event of nuclear war.

Vanhacking

Miko — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 21:14:16 -0800

In a time before the Prius, the custom conversion van ruled the roadways. Pushing the boundaries of the airbrush form, testing the limits of mobile interior design, featuring the latest in automatic pink leather bed, compact toaster, 8-track, and love machine technology, the 70s van was celebrated in song and cinema. You started with a factory model, new or used, and ended at a place limited onlyby your creativity, your budget, and your old lady's patience (NSFW). Ford could make you a man.If push came to shove, you could even live in your van. It was fantasy on wheels: van-tastic, man. More from the 1977 movie Supervan. Even more from that movie. A van show clip from The Van. George Barris rehabbed the Supervan for its 1977 movie appearance. The Guild of Automotive Restorers returned it to its former glory in 2003 - step by step photos here. My closest personal connection to the world of conversion vans was through the Little Van Goes Design Kit, which let you use relief templates to customize your own fantasy van.

Pocket Calculator Show

serazin — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 09:14:53 -0800

Pocket Calculator Show. via: Beware of Blog

Blacula is Dracula's Soul Brother

burnmp3s — Sat, 24 May 2008 18:22:19 -0800

Shaft was so cool that he had his own theme song. Shaft walked across the street whenever he wanted to. Shaft was a complicated man. But not all Blaxploitation heros were Private Dicks. They could be a Pimp, a Power-Hungry Criminal, a Coke Dealer, or a Male Prostitute. One was a Former Green Beret, one was a Bounty Hunter, and one was a Prize Fighter. Some were Foxy Ladies, such as Vigilante Nurses, US Special Agents, or Escaped Convicts. They might even be a Karate Master or a Vampire. The stars of the Blaxploitation era, among them Richard Rountree, Fred Williamson, Pam Grier, Jim Kelly, William Marshall, Tamara Dobson, Rudy Ray Moore, Jim Brown, and Ron O'Neal, were some of the first legitimate black film stars. They came after the first major black film actor, Sidney Poitier, and before later stars like Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy. When the era ended in the mid 1970s, so did most of their careers. Although many stayed in show business as actors, none found many significant starring roles in later films. One of the most distinctive characteristics of the genre is the music. Other than Isaac Haye's theme to Shaft, Curtis Mayfield's Superfly soundtrack is probably the most famous. Other major artists such as James Brown and Marvin Gaye wrote soundtracks too. In fact, nearly every Blaxploitation film had a decent soundtrack. The Blaxploitation genre itself lasted only a few years. Since then, there have been many parodies, in the form of brutal satire, nostalgic throwbacks, modern genre spoofs, or random pop-culture references. Quentin Taratino is probably the most vocal advocate of Blaxsploitation films, going as far as to cast Pam Grier as the lead in Jackie Brown. John Singleton also directed a "remake" of Shaft starring Samuel L. Jackson, but his version managed to drain all of the charm and groove out of the original. Although some recognize the political statements that the films made, and the subtle impact that they made to today's culture, as a whole the Blaxploitation films continue to get no respect.

"We made up worlds as dirty as our minds."

amyms — Sun, 18 May 2008 20:26:22 -0800

The Doll Games emerged in Berkeley, California, at a time when race, gender, politics, and sexuality were fiercely and publicly debated... The Doll Games held up a funhouse mirror to their times, and what survives of them are historical documents of a wobbly, comical sort. But the Doll Games transcend their epoch. Intricate, obsessional, moral, violent and sexual, funny and tragic... Obedient to no rules except those its practitioners invented for themselves, completely collaborative, the Doll Games defined a truly interactive art form. In this theater of two, every audience member was a co-creator. [some text and pics NSFW]

Beats The Hell Out of The Neutron Dance

StopMakingSense — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 05:01:05 -0800

The Pointer Sisters rehearse. So imagine how they sound with an audience.

Old logos

tepidmonkey — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 20:57:51 -0800

120 pages of old logos, scanned from a 1970s book called “World of Logotypes.”

Grievous Angel

madamjujujive — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 07:56:37 -0800

Gram Parsons fans take note - there's a recent new biography and a release of 90 minutes of vintage Flying Burrito Brothers. Some rare footage has also recently surfaced online: performing with FBB and duets with Emmylou Harris 1, 2, 3. Other items of note: Emmylou talks about Gram in 2000; British biographical sketch; Keith Richards on Gram in Rolling Stone; an interview with Manuel, the designer of the famous Nudie suit. Prior mefi post by transient with much biographical info. Obit post by keswick for Sneaky Pete Kleinow - Flying Burrito Brothers steel guitarist extraordinaire who died last year Trailer for Fallen Angel, documentary about Gram's life. Emmylou's career after Gram's death 1962 Gram singing Rip It Up with the Legends - sound and photo only Free Parsons downloads offered by Amoeba NYT review of the new Gram biography Prior mefi post on Manolo by IndigoJones - the man who tailored Gram's famous suit Hickory Wind - 1975, performed by Emmylou Harris Hickory Wind - performed by Keith Richards at the Gram Parsons Tribute Concert