GROOVY NOODLES
THE ELM TREASON NEWSLETTER NUMBER 74
SEPTEMBER 16, 2022
ELM TREASON TIDBITS
– Bobby is back at work with the New York City Department of Education at his music teacher gig. The kids are all the better for it. (Summer goes by REAL QUICK).
– Andy is implementing some major upgrades in his studio. Among new additions will be some new preamps, a bigger and better interface, new microphones, a new control surface, major computer upgrades and a Universal Audio DSP Satellite processor.
– The new album “WITHOUT A TRIBE” is still in the mixing stage. Delays (unforseen and unavoidable) are pushing back the actual release of the album to around Christmas. The band expects (AND HOPES) to begin pre-orders at the end of next month. We will keep you updated.
– There may be some REAL COOL additions to the Elm Treason ECO-SYSTEM in the very near future. The band is not only working on a new all-improved website, but we are creating lots of exclusive content we KNOW you will dig. Details will come soon. In the meantime, keep this on the back burner. It’ll be worth the wait!
Your Input: TV Themes we Adore
Whether it’s a sing-a-long theme like the theme from “Friends” or “All in the Family”… or it’s an instrumental like the theme from “SWAT” or “Game of Thrones,” we all have TV themes we dig.
We asked this question not too long ago, but we’ve nearly tripled our subscriptions since then, so we’re having another go.
So, if you would please… we CRAVE hearing from you.
Name your three favorite TV theme tunes.
The comments section is YOURS! Have at it!
Birthdays This Past Week
Some birthdays we did not mention on our Facebook page…
Dave Stewart of Eurythmics turned 70 last Friday
Tommy Shaw of Styx celebrated birthday number 69 last Sunday
Last Saturday Joe Perry from Aerosmith was 72
Jane’s Addiction drummer Steve Perkins turned 55 on Tuesday
Craig Montoya, bassist for Everclear, celebrated his 52nd birthday on Wednesday
Mickey Hart, drummer for the Grateful Dead, celebrated his 79th birthday last Sunday
Crooner Harry Connick, Jr. was 55 last Sunday
Matthew Followill, lead guitarist for Kings Of Leon, had birthday number 38 last Saturday
Last Saturday, José Feliciano had his 77th birthday
Mitch Dorge, drummer/percussionist for Crash Test Dummies, turned 60 on Thursday
David Clayton-Thomas, lead singer in Blood, Sweat, Tears, was born 81 years ago Tuesday
Peter Cetera, bassist and vocalist for Chicago was 78 on Tuesday
Jon Buckland, lead guitarist for Coldplay, turned 45 on Tuesday
Electronica musician Moby was born 57 years ago, last Sunday
Best Rock Logos?
According to RANKER.COM, these are the 20 best rock and roll band logos ever.
They are NOT listed in any order… but according to them, these are the ones that comprise the twenty best logos of all time. (Go to their website to see how they are ranked). Click HERE.
What are they missing?
What SHOULDN’T be here?
Groovy Noodles Extra: From the Pen of Bobby Steel
A few week’s ago, Andy honored his bandmate with an article talking about three specific instances when Bobby made song ideas of his infinitely better.
This week, Bobby returns the favor, sharing three of his favorite Andy Roman guitar solos.
Check it out here –> THREE ANDY ROMAN SOLOS I ADORE <—
Groovy Noodles Extra Extra: The Madison Park EVOLUTION
A couple of week’s back, Bobby talked about how he assisted Andy in salvaging a song idea of Andy’s that dated back to 1987, helping him to turn it into a beloved Elm Treason tune, “GETTING BY.”
Another song from Andy’s tattered 1987 spiral notebook also went through various transformations through the years, both before and during the Elm Treason years.
Let’s take a little journey.
Here is Elm Treason’s version of “MADISON PARK” as it appears on the “Rhyme and Treason” album. (full song):
Here is a snippet from the original 1987 demo idea:
A year later, using even more primitive equipment, the next stage in the song’s life unfolded. (Note – quality is pretty crappy, but listenable) Here is a little snippet:
During sessions for “Rhyme and Treason,” the boys recorded an early version, in a different key with a decidedly different feel. Here’s a snippet:
PHOTO OF THE WEEK
The night we saw ELO at Madison Square Garden, August 2017.
THE FIRST PHOTOGRAPH EVER TAKEN OF A HUMAN BEING… AND WHY NOT?
Taken in Paris in 1838.
8 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
Who doesn’t like a free gift? Apparently, about 500 million iTunes users who create an uproar when U2’s latest album, Songs of Innocence, shows up in their personal libraries… without charge, but also without permission.
11 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
Has this dude been around this long already? Ed Sheeran’s debut album, +, is released in the UK, where it tops the albums chart.
15 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
Led Zeppelin announce a reunion concert, with 18,000 tickets priced at $255 each doled out in an online lottery. At least a million registrations come in for the show, which is scheduled for November 26 but postponed to December 10 when Jimmy Page breaks his finger.
18 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
The Oxford English Dictionary adds the word bootylicious, defined as “(of a woman) sexually attractive.”
35 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
Reggae musician Peter Tosh is shot and killed at age 42 during a robbery in his home.
40 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
At the Los Angeles Forum, Queen play their last American concert with Freddie Mercury, On Queen’s subsequent tours with Mercury, they skip America.
42 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
John Mellencamp becomes the first male solo artist with a #1 album (American Fool) and two Top 10 singles, all at the same time (“Hurts So Good” at #8; “Jack & Diane” at #4).
53 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
Pure Irony. Before taking the stage with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young at the The Big Sur Folk Festival in California, Stephen Stills gets in a fistfight with a heckler railing them for their extravagant lifestyle. The festival is raising funds for Joan Baez’ Institute For The Study Of Nonviolence.
53 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
The start of a rock and roll tradition? No one is really sure how it started, but one of the best origin stories says that at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival festival, host Kim Fowley starts a rock tradition when he asks the crowd to hold up lighters for Eric Clapton and John Lennon.
56 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
The Monkees TV show makes its debut.
57 YEARS AGO THIS PAST WEEK
Ford offers factory-installed 8-track tape players in its Mustang, Thunderbird and Lincoln models. This marks the first time 8-track players are widely available, so you can only get the tapes in auto parts stores or Ford dealers.
Eggs-Cellent…
Daddy Dear
Memes Wool Happen
A GOOD kind of addiction
Another Funny
OUR FACEBOOK GROUP
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We will be posting more behind-the-scenes band stuff, exclusive previews, performances available nowhere else… plus all the stuff that people dig about our regular page.
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CONTACT US
Want to contact us directly with a guaranteed direct response via email? —> andy@elmtreason.com
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Copyright 2022 Realm Tones Music, LLC
The Addams Family, Combat, The Untouchables.
Literally, the Addama Family is one of the great themes ever devised. the music, the words. Just sheer brilliance. Vic Mizzy was the man who wrote it. he also wrote the theme to GREEN ACRES.
1) Barney Miller… The iconic opening baseline has been a challenge for more new bass players then I can count! And the groove of the song it’s so New York.
2) Cheers…. A goofy song sort of and yet having owned the bar for more than a decade I know how real the sentiments in this song are.
Law & Order… One of the best pieces of theme music ever written! It has tension, drama, pathos, melancholy, and certainly since the tone for a somber look at law enforcement.
Vincent, all three are among my (Andy’s) favorites – pretty much for the reasons you gave, across the board. the GROOVE of Barney Miller is so good… and the guitar work, excellent.
Cheers has one of the great all-time sing-a-long themes ever composed. Perfect.
LOVE the theme to the original LAW AND ORDER. The one used during the first couple of seasons has a slightly different vibe than the one used through the rest of the series. VERY similar, but I dig the SOUND of the latter better.
Twilight Zone – music fit so well Andy Griffith show -can’t help whistlein along. Welcome Back Cotter- silly lyrics aways reminds me of Barbarino.
Killer trio of themes there.
TWILIGHT ZONE is SO iconic. It has come to mean anything “bizarre” or “out of the ordinary.”
Dig the other two as well. Coming from NYC, the “Welcome Back” theme (sung by John Sebastian) has a special place in my heart.
Addams family, Gillian’s island, Beverly hillbillies.
Hi Ruth!
ALL deliciously singable. Whether or not one liked the shows themselves, the themes are iconic all on their own.
“Welcome back,” “Happy Days,” Hawaii 5-0
I love Hawaii 5-0 theme song!
I (Andy) have always loved the TV version of HAPPY DAYS as opposed to the “hit” version that was played on the radio. Different recordings.
I feel the same away about HAWAII FUVE-0.. I LOVE the TV recording.
I’m silly that way, I guess.
So many good ones back in the day……..
Adams Family
Hawaii 5-0
Gillian’s Island
Munsters
Threes Company
great picks!
All great pieces of music, Vinnie. It took some kind of talent to write a memorable TV theme. These were extraordinary musicians who did so.
There were two variations to the Munsters theme. They were only on two seasons. the SEASON 2 version is the one I love. That opening is just so GOOD.
My fave right now is the theme to Evil Lives Here, “What’s so amazing about grace?”. For oldies I have to say Green Acres and Friends. There we go – I managed to scan about 50 years in one sentence.
NICE.
I love EVIL LIVES HERE. Well chosen. Well done! (My wife and I watch ALL the ID network stuff when we’re just chillin’)..
Yep. Green Acres premiered in 1965…. so you’ve got 57 years of themes covered.
Hawaii Five-O
SNL
Bosom Buddies (a favorite Billy Joel song)
HAWAII FIVE-O is getting a LOT of run here. And rightly so. I remember my mom watching the show when I was a kid… and that image of Jack Lord spinning around on the rooftop while the wind kisses his perfectly styled hair….. BAD ASS!
Great trio.
Nice call on BOSOM BUDDIES!
Star Trek
Outstanding theme song!
One of the greatest EVER. Agreed, Kimberly!
What We Do in the Shadows, Hill Street Blues, Greatest American Hero, Newhart, Taxi
Taxi theme song is stellar! I love the electric piano licks!
Hey Jaymie! AWESOME to hear from you!
All wonderful picks. Know ’em and dig ’em all. That HILL STREET BLUES theme is such a terrific piece of music. I have always loved it. I’ve also always had a soft spot for the GREATEST AMERICAN HERO theme.
Thanks so much!
Welcome back Kotter sticks out the most. Also, Laverne and Shirley and I damn sure don’t know those lyrics! Shemesiel, shemiselol, hossenpepper incorporated!?!?!? Please help!!!(
Laverne and Shirley is excellent. The Honeymooners is fantastic too.
You’re actually VERY VERY CLOSE.
A schlemiel is a Yiddish word meaning someone who is a loser, inept….. A schlimazel, also Yiddish, is one who is constantly unlucky. Hasenpfeffer is actually a German stew, but why all of these are part of the song, who knows? It simply lends to its charm.
You basically have it right! “SCHLEMIEL, SCHLIMAZEL, HASENPFEFFER INCORPORATED..”
Several stories exist of how those words came to be and what they meant.
The most likely explanation is one from Penny Marshall who says it’s a childhood song she and her friends would sing while walking to school.
I can’t remember which CSI show featured this, but my favorite theme was “Baba O’Riley”. My 2nd would be the Adams Family, and 3rd would actually be the theme from the Green Hornet series.
If I (Andy) am not mistaken, the version of CSI that uses “Baba O Riley” was CSI: New York.
The Addams Family is one of the all time best.
LOVE LOVE LOVE that Green Hornet pick. Not a common one, but a terrific pick.
Thanks, Bob.
My favorite TV show theme songs
Batman
Rockford Files
Courageous Cat & Minute Mouse (that’s a cartoon though)
Simon & Simon
The Partridge Family ain’t bad either.
And as for that list of classic rock bands
WHERE’S RUSH?
HR Puf n Stuff: I know all the words
Musters: That theme rocks
Underdog
One I was just reminded of. Harry Nilsson’s, The Courtship of Eddie’s Father.
“People let me tell you about him, he’s so much fun, whether we’re talking man to man or whether we’re talking son to son.”
Underdog is one of the all-time great themes ANYWHERE.
ANYWHERE.
I (Andy) could listen to it on loop for two hours.
“…more double stops than the Belt Parkway during rush hour.” I love reading you guys!
I loved the love for Andy’s leads, Bobby. Totally agree. I would like to add one that blows me away: Living for Living (Scenes From the Playground) There’s another one that reminds me of George Harrison. I’ll reply to this later after I figure out what song I’m trying to think about.
Also, Thanks for posting the different iterations of Madison Park. I really like the early approach too. I love the audio. It’s cool to hear the evolution of a song. I’m really glad ya’ll do that.
People talk about seeing you live and that’s definitely a bucket list thing of mine, but I think I might wanna see you two work in the studio even more. I asked Yoko and she said y’all wouldn’t mind.
And that last version reminds me of Elvis with A Less Conversation. That version is really satisfactionin’ me. Plus, Edith Bunker’s visit to the recording session was a plus.
In editing, I got rid of the word Little. “A Little Less Conversation.”
Duh! The lead I love from Andy that reminds me of the Quiet Beatle is Uptown Q! I’m listening to it now and I’m also enjoying Jerry Lee Steel on piano.
And while I’m on the subject of guitars how about on “All Over Me” the three part harmony against (bongos? congas?) and then, Bobby, I think gets his guitar to talk and It’s saying purple people (clearly) “Do Da Dah Purple, purple, purple people.”
I AM NOT CRAZY!
X Files, The Virginian, Monk
Oooh, love the VIRGINIAN theme. A little off the beaten path. CLASSIC.
Nice three-fer there, Cindy. The X FILES theme has become synonymous with the unknown and the strange… much like the Twilight Zone theme.
Rockford Files, Twilight Zone, The Waltons
The ROCKFORD FILES theme is pure JOY. Man, I LOVE that piece of music. It was huge hit, too.
Bosch, Firefly, Justified, Miami Vice, more….
Hey Kim! I (Andy) am literally re-watching JUSTIFIED as we speak. Season 5 now. Love me some Boyd Crowder.
One of my most favorite is a theme from an aussie series called Rush…Yakety Sax Benny Hill show and Who are you? C.S.i and the Good ol’ Boys Dukes of Hazard and maybe The Golden Girls theme
Sweet selections!
The Golden Girls theme was actually a hit song by Andrew Gold in 1978. I was a boy, but I loved it back in the day!
I will ALWAYS love the DUKES OF HAZARD theme.
Best rock logos – Yes
Yes, one of the very best, Al.
Hawaii 5-0 was kinda rocking, Beverly hillbilly’s ok,Alfred Hitchcock had a show with a funky little time, can’t even hardly remember it now. Oh yeah, I share your opinion about the wes letter
The Alfred Hitchcock theme is actually a piece of music from the 19th Century called “Funeral March of a Marionette” by Charles Gounod. GREAT theme.
Hawaii Five O will always be one of my all time favorites.
Thank you, David!
My favorites are all over the place
True Detective
Sanford and Son
Mash
Some honorable mentions would be
Cheers
Big Bang Theory
Goliath
Sanford & Son was so funky! Loved that one
WKRP in Cincinnati.
Hill Street Blues
The Munsters
The Jefferson’s, Bosch, Taxi