Sunday, September 09, 2007

New Season Premiere

It's opening kickoff weekend for the Lawrence Welk Show on public television, after getting back home from the game around 3:00 AM (damn post-game traffic jams...) I got to watch this week's episode that I taped on my VCR.

This one is the season's premiere show from September of 1976, here's the lowdown.

Here's Tanya Falan with her rendition of the Captain & Tennile's "Love Will Keep Us Together"....it ain't the Seventies until you heard this classic hit!

There were plenty of great tunes, familiar with Welk fans of all ages....the band opened the show with Glen Miller's "In The Mood" followed by Tom Netherton with "That's America To Me"....quite appropriate since the show was taped and aired during the USA's 200th birthday.

Also, Bobby & Cissy danced to one of their favorite tunes, "Lets Face The Music And Dance." We also have Arthur Duncan saluting Bill "Bojangles" Robinson dancing to "Doing The New Lowdown."

And that friends is Jimmy Roberts with Gail, Sandi & Mary Lou dressed to the nines.

Were just getting started here folks, here's Guy Hovis & Ralna English singing one of the most painful songs ever recorded, "Feelings."

Mind you, Guy & Ralna did a superb and wunnerful job with that song in particular.......

Here's Ken Delo singing his standard favorite, "The Hawaiian Wedding Song".

And the hula dancers in the distance? That's Tanya to the left and Mary Lou Metzger to the right.

We also had the Showboat medley featuring Larry Hooper's solo of "Ol' Man River" coupled with Ava Barber singing "Take Me Home, Country Roads" and a nice "Waltz Of The Flowers" danced by the Maestro and Cissy King.

The Semonski Sisters were featured in the show, Henry Cuesta did a clarinet solo of a Joe Rizzo arrangement of "Cuesta's Fiesta" and a nice polka by Myron Floren with lots of dancing....band members such as Barney Liddell and Johnny Zell got the chance to dance with the audience!

How about this for a grand finale? Norma Zimmer leading the musical family in the singing of "America The Beautiful."

A great way to start the season, it's a very fine episode indeed.

Mary Lou interviewed Arthur Duncan after the show, he talked about his career and working with famous stars such as Dick Van Dyke and Peter Falk (of Columbo fame).

Next week is another new one, I gotta get my VCR ready for that one!


Share/Save/Bookmark

No comments: