5. Ricky Skaggs: Music Of America
Back in the day, radio stations used to get shows on what were called "transcription discs." They were bigger than albums, but they worked the same way. As times changed, eventually radio stations did get regular-size records like these. Although by the time this series was produced, times were changing again and shows like this were also being fed by satellite to better-equipped stations.
According to the letter enclosed with the records (notice I'm not calling this an album), this was the first of six nationally-syndicated country music concerts scheduled for air during the summer of 1987. Bluegreass great Ricky Skaggs started things off. George Jones and Janie Frickie shared the bill for the next one, then Dwight Yoakam and Exile, Conway Twitty and Earl Thomas Conley, The Gatlin Brothers and guest stars, and Ronnie Milsap to round things out.
This is the entire program, commercials and all, on 3 LPs. This is the only one of the series that was there, and there were two copies. Even to someone like me who's been in radio, it's a little jarring to be listening to an album and then be interrupted by a commercial while a record is playing. But I have to admit it's fun.
4. Do You Know Me? American Express commercials
You couldn't go too far in the '70s and '80s without seeing someone flash their American Express card and asking, "Do you know me?" Just about everyone did it, it seemed. The first? Norman Fell, aka Mr. Roper from Three's Company. (He didn't even ask the question; that started later.) The last, 10 years later, was horrormeister Stephen King. And that was just their TV ads. This single-sided disc with the title glued onto the cover has 60-second spots in the form of guessing games. Could you identify Gladys Knight, Manhattan Transfer's Janis Siegel, Rex Smith, Larry Gatlin & The Gatlin Brothers, Bill Withers and Peter Allen? I was 3 for 6.
3. Dr Pepper: The Most Original Soft Drink Ever
I almost missed this one. It sure looks like a Broadway show album, right? Well...as it turns out, this is a showcase for a new-for-1974 Dr Pepper ad campaign, hence the title. The main theme was written by someone you may have heard of: Randy Newman. Two of the contributors, you may not have heard of (but you have definitely heard): Jake Holmes, of the US Army's "Be All That You Can Be" fame; and Dick Behrke, otherwise known as King Richard. Some remember him from the Bobby Darin Show; more don't remember him as the leader of the Fluegel Knights...a group I happen to cherish.
This record (again, not an album, per se) takes listeners through the history of Dr Pepper, from its humble beginnings in Waco, Texas to 1974. And it looks like some trip: Muddy Waters, Anita O'Day, Eubie Blake and Doc Watson are all along for the ride.
2. The Chicago Bears Shufflin' Crew
Any time you mix athletes and music, you're sure to have an interesting album. The 1969 New York Mets, The World Wrestling Federation (back when they could legally call it that), and the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders are just a few examples of what could happen. And with a roster that includes Walter Payton, Willie Gault, Mike Singletary and William Pre-"Refrigerator" Perry, anything probably does happen. You probably would feel a little guilty buying this album strictly for its novelty. So to soften the blow, Da Bears donated "a substantial portion of the proceeds" to charity.
1. Jim Henson's Fraggle Rock
Yup, that last one's a Doozer. I always thought of the Fraggles as kind of a subsidiary of the Muppets. Definitely recognizable as Henson creations, but somehow in a different league. A kid I used to know had HBO and was really into the Fraggles. Me, not so much. (I didn't have HBO like he did, so I suppose that didn't help much.) Apparently this is a 1987 re-release of the original 1984 album with one song missing. I may have the original, too.
Now that I have these and filed the appropriate report here...I guess I should get to listening to some of it, hmm?
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