Wednesday, August 23, 2006

The Lost Tapes

Once upon a different time, a time when hair was abundant, bills were un-heard of and the smell of pizza wafted in the air; there were three boys and a tape recorder. With the tape rolling and the humour flowing, the 2000 Listen n’ Look Marachance 22001 42222 XXU2TOBWX, in other word the alphabet radio station, was born. Though there was only ever one demo tape preserved, many more were taped and re-taped.

Long before there were CD's, and shortly after the advent of the LP, the cassette recorder became the tool of choice for the adlibbed recordings. It first started with a small tape recorder, internal microphone and some bored kids. Jazzy John and Stylin’ Steve were the first DJ's to offer their one a kind and often mis-understood humour to the radio waves. After dancing to the beat of "The War Song," "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) ," and "Shout" they realised that not only did they have the uncanny ability to groove but also a remarkable ability to write their own lyrics to these great hits. The first hit, "Farts," to the tune of "Shout", topped the charts. "Fart, fart let it all out, these are that farts that you can do with out." Everytime the song aired the fans went nuts, often urging them to take their act to the basement. John and Steve had several successful years of recording, often highlighting local talent such as Jeff "Piercing" Piercy and Chad "I wish I could sing" Bridger. It was not uncommon to hear melodious tunes of the electric organ smattered amongst the recordings, often spurring organ standoffs, where each DJ would out play the other with original pieces.

Over the years the broadcasts became less frequent and often included recordings of Magnum P.I. and other television shows. The radio show needed a boost. In '87 new influences sparked a revival and a burst of energy to the radio show with the multi-talented, bushy haired one man act, Mr. Man, known to his friends as Jason. Beneath the squeaky voice, fantastic sense of fashion, and hair products, was a maniac who filled the radio waves with his quick wit and musical talents. He drew from his well of experience as a robot builder and movie producer to create the Mr. Man recording studio right in the living room of his home. The studio produced a countless number of hits. No song rocked the charts more than "Gobb-la, Gobb-la." This was the much acclaimed theme song for a movie about Big Bird riding around town on a bicycle. Unfortunately the star studded movie did not make it to the big screens despite its brilliant script. During the illustrious 2.5 years of the studio, the careers of Mr. Man, Stylin’ Steve and Jazzy John flourished. Unfortunately due to tight budgets and aging technology the same master tape was used for each recording session and many of the historical broadcasts have been lost. Until now...

After nearly 20 years of collecting dust in an attic the final broadcast has been found and revived for your listening pleasure. Be prepared to sit back for an afternoon of side splitting laughter, tear jerking humour, and awe inspiring vocals. Unfortunately, John was not available for this recording, and sitting in was one really annoying "unnamed" kid. He paled in comparison to John's unique delivery of knock knock jokes, and only held back the remaining talent of Jason and Steve. However on that farewell broadcast the dynamic dual did pull it off one of their best shows, and created a masterpiece; one for the archives; one to be remembered forever and enjoyed by all once again. In the famous words of Mr. Man, "And we're back and we're back and we're bad. Ooooh yeah...."

Enjoy!

Radio Broadcast

5 Comments:

  • Oh my goodness. Too freakin' funny. I'm still laughing. (Your write up was equally as funny as the recording, btw- though I'm sure you meant dynamic "duo" not dynamic "dual".) So funny. I could hardly recognize your voice, though I'm sorry to say Jason, yours was quite recognizable (but it might simply be your jokes- "the 2000 Listen n’ Look Marachance 22001 42222 XXU2TOBWX" is classic Abbott). And Steve, I had no idea your accent was ever so thick. This is hilarious. And who's the third party?!

    By Blogger John Mutford, at 1:35 PM  

  • I don't recall the name of the guy who was there with is. Daniel something or other. His parents were friends of Jason's, and were visiting. I think I have tapes of us at home somewhere as well. You me and Jeff making up songs on the organ. There were some great songs penned back then.

    As for getting a reply from Abbott, I highly doubt it. He has threatened to burn the tape and erase all knowledge of his squeaker.

    ~2q

    By Blogger Qurios, at 6:41 PM  

  • ...I'm speechless...

    from laughing.

    And thankful that I met you as an adult, once you got it all out of your system, and your voice began to register to human range.

    Oh, nice accent…

    By Blogger Christina, at 10:25 AM  

  • Due to an embarassed and cranky guy, the one they call Jason "Squeaks", the mp3 is looking for a spot to be hosted. Oddly enough the file continues to be deleted from the Gutworks servers. If you would like a copy of the hilarious radio show, I will send you a CD free of charge.

    ~2q

    By Blogger Qurios, at 11:43 AM  

  • Here are some comments left via email.

    "This is killing me. I am going to split my sides."

    "I can’t stop listening"

    "Where was this when he was having his wedding? You should have played it at the reception."

    "This is pure gold."

    By Blogger Qurios, at 11:45 AM  

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