c.
2017 Rod Ice
All
rights reserved
(6-17)
“POW!
WHAM! HOLY SMOKE! BLAM! AAARGH! BAP! UGH! ZOWIE!”
‘Batman
Theme’ - the album, was apparently released in 1966. (Design,
DLP-249) For this writer, only five years old at the time, the record
would provide inspiration of a sort that outlasted the ABC-TV series,
my childhood and the 20th Century.
As a
kid, listening to records on my own was a high privilege.
Whenever
I could commandeer the family Slivertone ‘Hi-Fi’ for a personal
session, my sense of accomplishment soared. But I quickly grew tired
of the Disney songs that had been procured for my use.
Surreptitiously, I would dip into my father’s vinyl stash. It was a
moment of gained awareness that led me down the path toward distant
adulthood.
The
diversity of his records indicated an open mind on music and culture.
He had recorded work by Little Richard, Fats Domino, Spike Jones,
Woody Guthrie… even Andy Griffith. I soaked up each ration of sound
with the eagerness of a youthful student. At school, teachers and
friends would talk about pop songs of the day. When asked for my own
favorites, some of these names would resound in response. I often got
long stares and deep breaths in return. Heads would shake.
“Where
did you come from?” was a question I heard over and over again.
I
have no idea why or when the Batman relic entered our household
collection. Though it seems likely that my father saw it in the
bargain bin somewhere and thought it would provide a detour from the
typical children’s fare in our record rack. I am not sure if my
brother or sister paid much attention to the LP. But for me, it had a
lasting impact. Along with Frankie Stein And His Ghouls ‘Monster
Melodies’ which was a horror-themed collection, I gained much by
listening and learning.
Frankie
Stein had been another ‘novelty’ act, which ran a bit longer in
duration. At least five albums and numerous 45s were released under
this pseudonym. The music was timely and very upbeat. From an adult
perspective, I treasured each track of garage-band goodness. A
classic formula was in employed: guitar, bass, drums and saxophone.
Some compositions were obvious clones of Beatles tunes. Hoots,
growls, shrieks, chain-rattles and ominous thuds accompanied each
song. It was faux-spooky and minimal, but worked. At the age of five,
I snickered over being allowed to listen at all. Some five decades
later, I smiled with nostalgic pride.
In
that bygone era, it was a common practice to release such ‘knock-off’
albums that were inspired by popular groups, programs, movies,
dances, fads and any sort of youthful rebellion. These vinyl platters
often had little or no actual connection to the subject at hand. They
offered instrumental tunes with fanciful titles. And group names
artfully created out of thin air to disguise studio musicians who
cranked out the product for a quick dollar. The music contained in
these grooves could vary in quality, depending on the company
responsible.
The
‘Batboys’ sounded like a capable group of musicians-for-hire,
recruited to fulfill the concept. Yet their work captured the campy
vibe of the television series with authenticity. Especially for young
listeners.
Neal
Hefti had provided the template, with a theme score that was iconic
because of its simplicity. The song was covered by many groups and
artists of the period – everyone from Nelson Riddle to Link Wray.
Literally interpreted and re-interpreted by dozens of popular acts.
The ‘Batboys’ version may have offered little more than a
footnote to the craze inspired by Adam West and Burt Ward on
television. But at the age of five, I was content to listen and
enjoy.
The
track listing read like titles from an episode of the series:
Batman
Theme 2:00
Mighty
Mayhem 1:59
Cheatin’
Charlie 3:26
Uppercut
Blues 1:58
Fight
Flight 3:09
The
Villain Strikes 2:12
Out
With The In Crowd 2:11
Behind
The 8 Ball 2:13
Mars
Visitor 2:20
It’s
Murder! 2:27
Though
childhood habits soon disappeared with my own march toward puberty,
the Batman record retained its influence. This
album had two important effects on my own listening habits as I grew
older. First, I was inspired to seek out instrumental recordings by
‘real’ groups and performers. The Ventures, Shadows, Tornados,
Marketts, Chantays, Duane Eddy, Link Wray and Davie Allan & The
Arrows. A second inclination was to collect the sort of album which
the
‘Sensational Batboys’ release represented. The kind of
quick-money, ‘fad’ LPs that seemed most prevalent in 1960’s
culture.
While
many of these records were forgettable if entertaining, some, like
the De-fender’s ‘Drag Beat’ achieved a sort of iconic
obscurity. This group featured legendary studio hawk Tommy Tedesco, a
guitarist of much renown. I used to read his monthly column in Guitar
Player Magazine.
My
New York friend and collector guru Paul Race, Jr. had been in a local
group called ‘The Savoys.’ (They were famously so named for a
Plymouth automobile.) Paul offered a great deal of insight and
information on the genre, which crested just before the historic
‘British Invasion’ of popular
music. Unlike other, more pretentious friends, he found nothing askew
in my retained passion for the quirky Batman LP.
Many
years after the album first entered my consciousness, I found blog
posts and You Tube clips relating
to the release. Only then did I realize that other souls had been
equally touched by this odd relic.
Much
like the ‘Bat Signal’ depicted in the original comic series, this
vinyl artifact had sent out a beacon of Rock & Roll hope to
listeners around the world. One which, for myself, had echoed since
that primal day of discovery in 1966.
Links:
“Batman
Theme” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjtMQ91l1vs
“Uppercut
Blues” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAb9yDyvfPc
“Cheatin’
Charlie” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrNwCwOlujM
“The
Villain Strikes” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYE49fTz110
W.O.J.
Blog Post -
http://wayoutjunk.blogspot.com/2007/03/batman-theme-by-bat-boys.html
Comments
or questions about ‘Words on the Loose’ may be sent to:
icewritesforyou@gmail.com
Write
us at: P. O. Box 365 Chardon, OH 44024
Published
weekly in the Geauga Independent
No comments:
Post a Comment