Vinyl Tap: The Dave Clark Five - Greatest Hits
Published January 29, 2007
I get a new turntable and dust off some old records. Vinyl Tap #33:
Last week on TCM I stumbled upon one of those so godawful-it’s-a-godsend guilty pleasure teen movies from the ’60s from which you can actually feel your IQ dip into double digits, or in my case, a single digit. I’m not sure I could tell you — or really care — about the nonsense plot, but it has something to do with Mary Ann Mobley’s innocent-seeming coed character writing protest songs and getting consequently expelled, only to be helped out by an opportunistic senator out to capture the votes of the “in-crowd.”
But maybe the All Movie Guide sums it up the best when it notes that this generation-gap pap is akin to those TV comedy sketches “where 70-year-old Bob Hope plays a pot-smoking hippie.” Only not as good.
Now normally I would’ve taken in about 20 minutes of this schlock to find something more highbrow — like an Elvis Presley movie — but something else AMG mentioned compelled me to stay tuned. The saving grace of Get Yourself a College Girl is, indeed, the musical line-up - the casting of which is requisite for these kinds of films. At the same time, you had to wonder what a great group like the Dave Clark Five — serious early-on rivals to the Beatles before the Rolling Stones found Billboard satisfaction — were doing in a movie like this, performing an unfamiliar song.
And being third billed, yet. I can understand in the very early reconnaissance by the British Invasion forces the Animals being the headline performers, but for the DC5 to be relegated to a spot under — unknown then and unknown now — Freddie Bell and the Bell Boys? Ultimately, though, it doesn’t really matter. What mattered to me was the justification to ransack the record collection again. Eureka! Pure pop perfection: The Dave Clark Five’s Greatest Hits.
Gordon Hauptfleisch, alias Neanderthal Hawthorne, is Blogcritics Books Editor, free lance writer, and book reviewer for the San Diego Union Tribune. He's also an enigmatic visionary of unfathomable secrets and many a guise, or at least he plays one in his delusions of grandeur. His mandate also includes weird bugs.
In a previous life he was a leprous horse thief. But for this one you can email him in an arguably better frame of body and mind.
- Vinyl Tap: The Dave Clark Five - Greatest Hits
- Published: January 29, 2007
- Type: Review
- Section: Music
- Filed Under: Music: Pop, Music: Classic Rock and Oldies
- Part of a feature: Vinyl Tap
- Writer: Gordon Hauptfleisch
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Ah the Dave Clark 5, remember them being on UK TV quite a lot in the early 60s.
The Sheer Imapct of Elvis's early movies was lost on the kind of critics that drooled over Brando's movies back then.
The youth of the day flocked to see the Elvis movies over and over again. Whereas one viewing of "Streetcar Named Desire" was quite enough.
I only saw Elvis's "Loving You" 20 times in 1957.
We were like Dave Clark "Glad All Over" :-)
Thanks Glen--yeah, sad stuff: Sax player Denis Payton died of cancer in December. Also Mike Smith, after returning to performing, died from a a spinal injury in 2003.
About Dave Clark's drumming, I came across this tidbit: ""Bits and Pieces" was banned from being played at their live concerts, as fans would jump up and down in time to the song's stomping beat, and promoters feared this would damage the dance hall floors."
Thanks Maurice: I was trying to think of other British Invasion groups who made movies. I vaguely recall Freddy and the Dreamers, but I get stuck there (if they did make a film). Do you know of any?
Re: " January 29, 2007 @ 18:42PM -- GL Hauptfleisch -
Thanks Glen--yeah, sad stuff: Sax player Denis Payton died of cancer in December. Also Mike Smith, after returning to performing, died from a a spinal injury in 2003".
Mike Smith didn't die, although he currently needs continued medical care. Denis passed away in Dec 2006 after an illness battle with cancer.
Dave Clark did beat the heck outta the drums live but the records were drummer Bobby Graham. Listen to the Kinks You Really Got Me (which Clark tried to buy outright allegedly for the DC5) and All Day and ALL of the Night - same drummer (Bobby Graham) Clark only wrote checks - not songs. Because was written by Ron Ryan as was Any Way You Want It and several album tunes and early releases. Mike Smith was the driving force musically, and IMO the most underrated singer of his time. That said, the DC5 records were great and it is nice to see their efforts appreciated since Mr Clark has done little to promote them since his Hollywood Records effort did not do well. Nice article - thanks!
Check out my DC5Versions Yahoo Group for info on different Versions of DC5 songs.
Thanks Brian, and Chuck: Great info--I've seen Ryan's name pop up once or twice, but it looks like Clark (and Smith) got a huge share of the songwriting credit.
You're right about Smith's prime role and vocal abilities--I remember way back then assuming that he was actually DC, since he seemed to be the front man.
Yeah - Mike did get the lion's share of the credits - Dave didn't write anything. He was the boss/owner of the "DC5 company" and as such took co-writing credits on everything generated by his employees. So when you see only Dave Clark as composer, it is in all likihood Ron Ryan who wrote the tune as he and Dave had a major falling out and suddenly Ron's name did not show up on the two most successful tunes he wrote, the last being Any Way You Want It. However Mike and Lenny wrote some nice tunes - as did Denis. It is interesting Rick Huxley didn't - as Ron says he was a very talented guy. Ron also speaks well of Dave's abilities as a drummer.
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Dave Clark used to beat the living hell of his drums. Their sound was really the type of rave-ups that in some ways was a predecessor to whazt the Who did later. Great stuff! I heard one of them just died not too long ago ---
-Glen