CHiPs - "Rock Devil Rock"

CHiPs

"Rock Devil Rock"
CHiPs - Season 6, Episode 4
Original Airdate: Halloween Night, October 31, 1982

Rock Devil Rock

"Rock Devil Rock" has gotta be one of the best episodes of CHiPs, and it's a Halloween special, to boot.  It features Donny Most (AKA Ralph the Mouth from Happy Days) as "Moloch," a Satanic KISS-styled shock rocker!  I just LOVE corny fake rock bands on old TV shows from the '60s, '70s, and '80s, and CHiPs had more than it's fair share.  Casting a gigantic dork like Ralph Mouth as the rock star is just the icing on the cake!  The twist is that mysterious events are placing his life in danger, and it seems as if the Devil himself is plotting to kill the singer.  Ponch and Jon are assigned to escort the singer's car (a Satanic painted hearse) to safety after his concert, and Ponch ends up saving his life when the hearse goes out of control.  There is a ridiculous stunt scene where Ponch climbs off of his moving motorcycle, into the moving hearse, pulls the singer out of the window and on to his motorcycle, then gets back on his motorcycle and drives to safety before the hearse crashes and explodes! It's completely over the top and impossible, like all the best CHiPs car accident scenes.  Wherever Ponch and Jon went, amazing car crashes followed them, usually involving multiple cars flipping over, crashing on top of each other, and exploding.

Gene Simmons is rolling over in his grave, and he's not even dead yet...

Fun Fact:  Kiss stopped wearing their costumes and makeup less than one year after this episode aired.  Coincidence?

Actually, though, I've been talking about Ponch and JON, but Jon is not actually in this episode.  This was from the final season of CHiPs after actor Larry Wilcox quit.  He was replaced by actor Tom Reilly as a character named "Hot Dog," but he was basically another generic blonde doofus just like Jon, and I often confuse the two when I remember his episodes.

Hot Dog Auditions to be an Extra in Breakin 2: Electric Boogaloo

Another notable person on this show was Cassandra Peterson, playing her movie host alter ego Elvira!  I always loved it when Elvira would cameo on a TV show in the 1980s.  If it was up to me, every TV show would be legally obligated to have special Halloween episodes in October, and Cassandra Peterson would be the guest star on all of them.  In fact, this isn't her only appearance on CHiPs, as she was in another one of my favorite CHiPs episodes which I may review later.

They put a spider web over Elvira's boobs to make them "family friendly."

And you know who else has a played a special role in this episode?  John Astin!  Astin directed the episode, and he is of course most famous for playing "Gomez Addams" on the 1960s TV series "The Addams Family!"  Talk about Halloween royalty!  Between him and Elvira, this episode has some serious gothic street-cred, in my book.

Directed by Gomez Addams

Rock trivia alert!  There's another mind-blowing cameo in this one as well.  During the episode, Ponch befriends a young Hispanic boy named "Flippy," and strokes his face and winks at him, but in a 100% non-child molester way.  Later, Ponch has to save the boy from an exploding petroleum tank.  While looking this episode up on the IMDB, I discovered that the kid was none other than, I-shit-you-not, Robert Trujillo -- the bass player from Suicidal Tendencies and Metallica!

Ponch Mentors the Future Bass Player of Metallica

Speaking of rock trivia, in the 1980s there was a big craze among fundamentalist christian groups to expose "secret Satanic messages" that were supposedly recorded into popular rock songs, and it caught on with the general public and became sort of an urban legend of the time.  The truth, however is that most of the so-called secret messages were just random nonsense that kinda-sorta sounded like something if you squinted your ears.  And then later there were some real ones, but that was based on people trying to cash in on the popularity of the craze, so that the people who tried to "expose" this phenomena actually ended up causing it.  This episode plays into that weird trend, with "The Devil" making death threats to the singer when his music is played backwards and at different speeds.  As a kid back then I was fascinated by backmasking and subliminal messages, so this episode really grabbed a hold of me at the time.

Stop Devil Music!

Another urban legend that got some play in this episode was when a kid was carted off on a stretcher after being poisoned by some tampered-with Halloween candy, followed by Sgt. Getraer bemoaning the fact that "it happens every year."  But here's a fun fact for you... it really doesn't:
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/halloween-non-poisonings/

A Deadly Case of Mustache Poisoning

General Sarge and Count Ponchula

Moloch - Devil Take Me





More screencaps after the break...

Bat-Music #27 - Combo Kings - Batman A Go Go

Bat-Music #27 - Combo Kings - Batman A Go Go

Combo Kings... I know pretty much nothing about this band.  There was a band known as "The Combo Kings," or "Pervis Herder and The Combo Kings" in the early 1960s that put out a couple of singles. I think this is the same band.  Honestly, I don't know.  But in 1966, the single we'll be listening to today was released.  It's "Do the Slow Fizz" by Combo Kings, with the b-side "Batman A Go Go."  Both tracks are danceable, funky slabs of Philly Soul.  Slow Fizz is the superior track, but Batman A Go Go has that Batman novelty value that makes the record memorable to this day.  Let's check them out...

Combo Kings - Batman A Go Go


Combo Kings - Do the Slow Fizz

Bat-Music #26 - Seeds of Euphoria - Let's Send Batman to Viet Nam

Bat-Music #26 - Seeds of Euphoria - Let's Send Batman to Viet Nam

"Send Batman to Viet Nam" was a popular meme (or whatever the 1960s version of a meme was) in the Vietnam Era, appearing on pins and buttons alongside other images and phrases like the peace symbol, "make love, not war," "draft beer, not students," and "war is not healthy for children and other living things."  It became a song in 1967 when the Seeds of Euphoria recorded "Let's Send Batman to Viet Nam."  This is a folk song, but it's hard to tell if it is an anti-war protest folk, or just a novelty song trying to cash-in on two subjects looming large in the culture at the time.  The same record label released "Conscientious Objector," a song that condemned conscientious objectors and war protestors, so I'm thinking "Let's Send Batman to Viet Nam" might be more of the same.  Give it a listen and tell me what you think, is this song pro or anti the Vietnam War?
 
Seeds of Euphoria - Let's Send Batman to Viet Nam

Bat-Music #25 - The Musical Stylings of Burgess Meredith

Bat-Music #25 - The Musical Stylings of Burgess Meredith

In previous installments of Bat-Music, we've looked at the records that Batman stars Adam West, Frank Gorshin, and Burt Ward made to cash in on their new-found Batman fame.  Today, we'll be looking at "The Penguin" actor Burgess Meredith's attempt.  While he was primarily an actor, Meredith did have a few records under his belt prior to the 1966 Batman TV series.  His records tended to feature a combination of singing and spoken word and included such titles as "Songs and Stories of the Gold Rush,"  "Burgess Meredith Sings Songs From How The West Was Won," and "Burgess Meredith Reads Ray Bradbury." 

A Selection of Burgess Meredith's Vinyl Records

Here's "At the Miners' Ball," a track from Songs and Stories of the Gold Rush:

Burgess Meredith - At the Miners' Ball


For his obligatory musical cash-in on the popularity of Batman, Meredith recorded a two-sided single in his persona as The Penguin: "The Capture," and "The Escape."  Both tracks feature the same music, with Meredith sing-speaking over the music William Shatner style, spinning a story of the Penguin's Capture by the Batman, and his subsequent escape.

Burgess Meredith - The Capture


Burgess Meredith - The Escape

Bat-Music #24 - Rocky and the Riddlers - Batman

Bat-Music #24 - Rocky and the Riddlers - Batman

Rocky and the Riddlers released their single "Flash & Crash" in 1966, with "Batman" on the b-side.  "Batman" is a irreverent garage rock novelty song, sort of like a low-budget version of "The Monster Mash." 

Sample lyrics: "He wears purple bun-huggers and rides a Batmobile, around Gotham City he's a real big wheel.  When he's not out fighting crime he can always be seen down in the Batcave reading wrestling magazines."

Beyond the Batman novelty track, however, Rocky and the Riddlers were a brutish group of garage rock proto-punks that hit you int the head like a velvet covered brick.

Rocky and the Riddlers - Batman


Rocky and the Riddlers - You Weren't Using Your Head


Rocky and the Riddlers - Flash & Crash

Bat-Music #23 - Nelson Riddle - Batman Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Bat-Music #23 - Nelson Riddle - Batman Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

In July of 1966, in between seasons 1 and 2 of the Batman television series, 20th Century Fox released the full length Batman motion picture to movie theaters.  The movie featured most of the main cast from the TV series, except for Julie Newmar as Catwoman, who was unavailable during filming and was replaced with Lee Meriwether.

The motion picture soundtrack was composed and conducted by Nelson Riddle, who also did the music for the TV series (except for the memorable main Batman TV theme, which was written by Neal Hefti).  Many of the same musical cues from the TV show are repeated here, but expanded upon and drawn out.  It's not really as fun to listen to as the TV soundtrack, though.  The TV soundtrack album's music is shorter and punchier, and has fun dialogue clips from the show worked in to the tracks.  But this is still a must-have album for Bat-Music collectors, and it's excellent for playing in the background as you read through a stack of Batman comic books.

Nelson Riddle - Batman Original Motion Picture Soundtrack - Main Title 


Nelson Riddle - Batman Original Motion Picture Soundtrack - Torpedoes

Bat-Music #22 - Gate Wesley & Band - (Zap! Pow!) Do the Batman

Bat-Music #22 - Gate Wesley & Band - (Zap! Pow!) Do the Batman

A solid funk groove plays, over which the singer grunts and wails various Batman-related phrases such as "Batman, baby!," "Zap! Pow!," "C'mon Robin!," "Get the Batmobile rollin'!," and "Batman time!" as well as repeatedly asks for some orange juice (I suppose recording a funk track can be some thirsty business).  Then again, Batman himself did order orange juice in the nightclub scene in the first episode of Batman, so I suppose it all comes together nicely!  So pour yourself a tall glass of O.J. and enjoy this single from 1966, as Gate Wesley & Band "Do the Batman!"

Gate Wesley & Band - (Zap! Pow!) Do the Batman

Bat-Music #21 - Al Hirt - Batman Theme

Bat-Music #21 - Al Hirt - Batman Theme

Trumpet player and bandleader Al Hirt is famous for performing the theme song to Batman's sister show Green Hornet, but he also brought his signature trumpet playing to the Batman theme on his 1966 album "The Horn Meets the Hornet."  The Horn Meets the Hornet saw Hirt reacting to the success of his Green Hornet theme as a single by releasing a whole album of TV theme songs.  In addition to the Green Hornet and Batman, the album also features the themes from Get Smart, The Monkees, Tarzan, and more.

Note: I couldn't find an upload of Al Hirt's Batman theme on YouTube.  However, the entire album, featuring the Green Hornet, Batman and more, is on YouTube.  The whole thing is worth a listen, and it's only 26 minutes long, so it won't take up much of your time.  The Batman Theme begins at 12:03.  If you just want to cut to the chase, here's a link https://youtu.be/hNC-0vr1A2o?t=12m3s that begins with Batman.

Al Hirt - The Horn Meets the Hornet

Bat-Music #20 - The Camps - The Ballad of Batman

Bat-Music #20 - The Camps - The Ballad of Batman

"The Ballad of Batman" by The Camps is a rarity in that it's a song inspired by the Batman TV show that was released in 1965... one year before the show aired for the first time in 1966.

The story goes that the band's record producer got wind of the show while it was in production, and had the band record "The Ballad of Batman" and its B-side "Batmobile" to submit to the television producers as possible theme songs for the show.

Thankfully the TV show went with Neal Hefti's classic Batman theme instead.  Otherwise we'd all be singing "we're behind the wheel, of the Batmobile, it's fun-fun-fun to drive it everyday," instead of "na-na-na-na na-na-na-na Batman," and that just wouldn't be the same.

The Camps, who also went by The Campers,  were Sonny Curtis on vocals and guitar and Jerry Allison on drums, although the duo was perhaps better known as members of "The Crickets," yeah those Crickets, as in "Buddy Holly and...," so even though their Batman theme never made it to TV, they still had a pretty decent day job to fall back on.  In fact, Jerry Allison played drums with the band for 60 years, from it's inception in the 1950s until earlier this year, when the Crickets played their final gig on February 6th, 2016.
.
The Camps - The Ballad of Batman


The Camps - Batmobile

Bat-Music #19 - The Marketts - The Batman Theme

Bat-Music #19 - The Marketts - The Batman Theme

This is one of many albums of instrumentals that was released to cash in 1960s Batmania.  it was easy to take a bunch of generic surf rock instros, slap Batman-themed names on them, and claim they were inspired by the show.  The Marketts album is a step above most of them, though.  They add things like bat sound effects, the Joker's laughter, vocal choruses with character names, and musical cues inspired by the Batman TV theme, so this album really does sound like it was legitimately inspired by the show.

Tracklisting:

1. Batman Theme
2. Bat Cave
3. Robin the Boy Wonder
4. Bat Signal
5. Batmobile
6. The Joker
7. The Penguin
8. The Bat
9. Dr. Death
10. The Riddler
11. Bat Cape
12. The Cat Woman

The Marketts - Batcave


The Marketts - Robin the Boy Wonder


The Marketts - The Joker

Bat-Music #18 - The Musical Stylings of Burt Ward

Bat-Music #18 - The Musical Stylings of Burt Ward

In 1966, the popularity of the Batman TV show had turned Robin actor Burt Ward in to the nation's latest teen idol.  Eager to cash in on his stardom, MGM signed Ward to a record deal.  The plan was to released two singles, and then a full length album.  Then in one of the weirdest pairings in musical history, they hired Frank Zappa to spearhead the project.

"Holy Odd Couple, Batman!"  Burt Ward's image as Robin was squeaky-clean, law-abiding, and all-American.  Zappa meanwhile was the king of the long haired freaks, about as far removed from wholesome Robin as you can get.  I believe this was before the release of Zappa's first album, so the people at MGM probably didn't know quite who it was they had signed to help guide their newest star to the top of the pop charts.

The biggest obstacle preventing Ward from becoming a music star wasn't Zappa writing music that was too weird, though.  It was that Burt Ward flat out could not sing.  After a few disastrous recordings with Burt singing, followed by a failed stint with a vocal coach, Zappa just had Ward talk over a musical background, William Shatner style.

One single would eventually be released, the Zappa-penned "Boy Wonder, I Love You," in which "Boy Wonder" reads from a weird letter from a fan (actually based on several pieces of fan mail Ward actually received), and a cover of Nat King Cole's "Orange Colored Sky" (a song that was also performed by Adam West).  One other song, "Teenage Bill of Rights," as well as several instrumental tracks that Ward had yet to record vocals for, were completed before MGM pulled the plug on the sessions.  These other tracks have never officially been released, but they are widely available as bootlegs.

Burt Ward - Boy Wonder, I Love You


Burt Ward - Orange Colored Sky

Bat-Music #17 - The Liverpool Scene - Batpoem

Bat-Music #17 - The Liverpool Scene - Batpoem

Adam West tackled plenty of tricky foes back in his days as the caped crusader, but none quite like this, where the Batman theme backs up spoken word poetry pitting Batman against birth control pills, LSD, and the Vietnam War.  "Batpoem" is off of the 1968 Liverpool Scene album "The Amazing Adventures of the Liverpool Scene."

The Liverpool Scene - Batpoem

Bat-Music #16 - The Flaming Lips - Batman Theme

Bat-Music #16 - The Flaming Lips - Batman Theme

This is a track from early in the career of The Flaming Lips (like maybe 1983 or 1984?), when they covered this because supposedly it was one of the few songs that they knew how to play.

The Flaming Lips - Batman Theme


Bonus Flaming Lips!  While this song is not Batman 1966 related, it was on the soundtrack to "Batman Forever," so there's still a "Bat" connection...

The Flaming Lips - Bad Days

Bat-Music #15 - Die-Cut Batman Novelty Records

Bat-Music #15 - Die-Cut Batman Novelty Records

In 1966, Synthetic Plastics released a quintet of 45 RPM singles featuring Batman, Robin, The Joker, The Penguin, and The Batmobile.  Each one featured a die-cut cover with comic book style artwork, and contained two songs about their respective characters.  They are visually quite striking, and make a great addition to any 1966 Batman collection. All 10 songs were also released on a full length LP called Children's Treasury Of Batman Musical Stories.  The song "Look Out for the Batman" uses elements of the Batman TV show theme in it's music, the rest of the songs feature original music.

"It's The Batman" Tracklisting:

1. It's The Batman
2. Look Out for the Batman

"There Goes Robin" Tracklisting:

1. There Goes Robin
2. The Wonderful Boy Wonder

"The Battiest Car Around" Tracklisting:

1. The Battiest Car Around
2. Here Comes the Batmobile

"The Joker Gets Trumped" Tracklisting:

1. The Joker Gets Trumped
2. Ho Ho Ho The Joker's Wild

"The Penguin" Tracklisting:

1. The Penguin
2. A Penguin Caper

 





A Penguin Caper


Look Out for the Batman

Bat-Music #12 - The Musical Stylings of Frank Gorshin

Bat-Music #12 - The Musical Stylings of Frank Gorshin

Frank Gorshin had a great career on the stage and screen before and after the Batman TV series.  He was most well known as a stand-up comedian and impressionist, but was also an actor who appeared in over 100 different roles on film and television. He also appeared on stage on and off Broadway, and even released a few singles as a singer.  He was an all-around performer.  So, when everyone else was releasing singles to cash-in on Batman's popularity, there was no reason for Gorshin to be left out.  His song, "The Riddler," is one of the catchiest and most fun of all the Batman novelty singles.  Below is a clip from his appearance on the Dean Martin Show, where he does some of his famous impressions of actors such as Kirk Douglas and Marlon Brando (this time with a Batman twist) before launching into a singing and dancing performance of his song.  Watch the whole thing, it's a lot of fun!

Farnk Gorshin Performs on The Dean Martin Show

Bat-Music #10 - The Scaffold - Goodbat Nightman

Bat-Music #10 - The Scaffold - Goodbat Nightman

The Scaffold were a comedic rock band from Liverpool who are mostly remembered these days because one of their members was Mike McGear (aka Peter Michael McCartney aka Paul McCartney's brother).  They wear pretty successful in England during the '60s and '70s, though, and had several hit singles and released a handful of albums.  Their second single, released during the height of Batmania in 1966, was "Goodbat Nightman," a wonderfully weird tribute to the Dynamic Duo.

The Scaffold - Goodbat Nightman

The Monks - Black Monk Time (1966)

The Monks - Black Monk Time (1966)

Released 50 years ago this month...
The Monks - Black Monk Time

The Monks were aggressive, grade-A weirdos.  Dressed in all black, with short monk tonsure haircuts and nooses for neckties, they went completely against the grain of the flower child looks and attitude of the time.

The Monks: Roger, Gary, Larry, Eddie, and Dave

Their album "Black Monk Time" follows suit. It has pounding drums, repettive rhythms, chanted or shouted vocals, and dadaesque lyrics that are anti-war, anti-establishment, and just plain antisocial, it sounded like nothing else in 1966, and is still unique to this day.  This music was completely uncommercial, and left audiences in the 1960s confused and upset, prompting one audience member to attempt to strangle guitarist/vocalist Gary Burger at a show in Hamburg, Germany.

The Monks

Over the years the band has gained a dedicated cult following, and they are now one of the most influential and respected bands of the 1960s garage rock genre.

Bat-Music #9 - The Ventures - The Ventures Play the "Batman" Theme

Bat-Music #9 - The Ventures - The Ventures Play the "Batman" Theme

The Ventures Play the "Batman" Theme contains the Ventures' version of the Batman theme song, plus the theme songs to the TV shows The Man From U.N.C.L.E, Danger Man/Secret Agent, and Get Smart.  The rest of the album is full of Ventures originals inspired by superheros and secret agents.

Tracklist:

1. Batman Theme
2. Zocko!
3. Joker's Wild
4. The Cape
5. 00-711
6. The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
7. Secret Agent Man
8. Hot-Line
9. Vampcamp
10. Up, Up, And Away
11. Get Smart Theme
12. Green Hornet "66"

The Ventures - Batman Theme

Bat-Music #8 - Les Hou-Lops - Batman

Bat-Music #8 - Les Hou-Lops - Batman

Proving Batmania wasn't limited to the United States, here's a sweet version of the Batman theme with added lyrics, sung in French!  Les Hou-Lops were a band of yé-yé boys from Québec active for a few years in the 1960s.  For a while, they all had bleached white hair as a gimmick, and called themselves les Têtes Blanches (which translates to English as the White Heads, unfortunately) but had to stop doing that after getting sued by another French Canadian band with all-white hair called Les Classels (which translates to The Clash!)

The video below is a must-see, if only to check out their weirdo lead singer as he shoves the guitar player out of his way twice when he gets in between him and the camera, employs a series of bizarro dance moves, and inexplicably lip-syncs to the female vocals on the chorus of "Batman." Fun stuff.

Bat-Music #7 - The Sensational Guitars of Dan & Dale - Batman and Robin

Bat-Music #7 - The Sensational Guitars of Dan & Dale - Batman and Robin

At first glance, "Batman and Robin," by Sensational Guitars of Dan & Dale, might seem like yet another quickie cash-in on the Batman phenomena, featuring a cover version of the Batman theme, and a bunch of generic instrumentals that you would never associate with the TV show if it wasn't for Batman inspired titles.  And, honestly, that's pretty much what it is.  But what makes this album special is the musicians behind it.  Never heard of "The Sensational Guitars of Dan & Dale?" Well, I don't blame you because they weren't a real band, it was just the name the producers slapped on this and other cheaply produced cash-in records to make them seem more legit.  But the actual musicians that recorded this in the studio were no less than Sun Ra and His Arkestra and The Blues Project.  Which in theory, should make this a good listen.  And it does, to some extent.  The band is definitely a step above what you would hear on a record like this, and there are a few creative touches here and there.  Overall, though, a cheap cash-in record is still a cheap cash-in record, and it doesn't have a lot to offer after the novelty wears off.

Tracklist:

1. Batman Theme    
2. Batman's Batmorang    
3. Batman And Robin Over The Roofs    
4. The Penguin Chase    
5. Flight Of The Batman    
6. Joker Is Wild    
7. Robin's Theme    
8. Penguin's Umbrella    
9. Batman And Robin Swing    
10. Batmobile Wheels    
11. The Riddler's Retreat    
12. The Bat Cave

The Sensational Guitars of Dan & Dale - Robin's Theme