This is a killer stereo mix of the tune. Diff from the album or single. I'm surprised that stereo would be there on a tv soundtrack from 1971.
What area is that? I mean you are not going to just drop this bit of a major event, and leave out the big scoop are you?
Oh god yeah! I had the Razor & Tie pressings of the CDs for decades, and then last year got the Sony remasters of each of the first three albums. Sound Magazine takes on even better sound quality on the later reissue as I'd hoped. Interesting that the first two have decent artwork and notes (on Sony reissues), and yet Sound Mag has very skimpy inner art. The "Up To Date" album btw is rather incredible Power Pop as well. Stunning production on all of those albums.
The Cleveland area on the far west side. I think it was around the time of that game show of recasting the characters for a remake was on TV so it was probably connected to that. It was wild to see especially since it was on residential streets.
Maybe someone can explain this? This series is available on DVD only, yet Amazon streaming has Blu-ray---no, not upscaled DVDs. Take a look at this 1080P screenshot I made: The DVD:
Shirley Jones was gorgeous when she was younger. I'm sure there were more than a few middle aged guys who watched the show for her back in the day.
This is my personal favorite song of theirs. It's actually pretty groovy. Havin' a Ball. Your eyes do not deceive you; that's Johnny Cash himself introducing the family. The guess as to why is that he had a show on ABC around the same time and probably got roped into it because of that. The song itself apparently had no input whatsoever from the family, not even David or Shirley. It was actually an existing song by a group called the Love Generation. I think they might have released a version later that they did sing on.
I assume there are simply newer transfers done at a higher resolution. There are all sorts of shows that look better on some cable channels than dvd because higher resolution transfers were made. I know it's a show a lot of people hate, but I can rewatch Gilligan's Island episodes again and again and it's that what's available on disc doesn't look as good as what's on MeTV, which is 720p in my area. Prior to the recent release of Frasier on blu-ray, the show looked better online and on some cable channels than on dvd.
So companies like Amazon have access to the original film/video and make their own versions? By the way, if you want to see Gilligan's Island in HD/1080P, Amazon streaming has that.
No, I don't think Amazon is doing the transfers. Whoever owns the rights to the show (and has the filmed episodes in their vault) presumably does the transfers (or contracts that out to some business -- I'm sure Vidiot could provide info for how it's typically done) and sends Amazon digital files.
Back then, most households only had one TV set. There was no way in hell that my father was going to turn off All In The Family so that I could watch the Partridge Family which aired at the same time. That's what really killed the show. Ricky was just more fuel for the fire.
I watched it as a kid when it originally aired on ABC, so I don’t have any desire to watch it now, it just seems to dated to me.
This thread has brought back so many good memories of the shows I loved to watch growing up. A local channel has been showing repeats of I Dream of Jennie and Bewitched; never miss an episode.
I still really enjoy the music but yes, it really hasn’t aged well at all. I have all the seasons on disc and never play them. For some reason the Brady Bunch doesn’t look as dated.
Brady Bunch was more dorky in every way. Partridge Family had more attractive actors and better jokes. But it wasn't cool and hip in an adult way even for its time. Brady Bunch provoked more nostalgia for a "simpler time."
I only remember one episode called "Forgive Our Debits". It encapsulated everything people thought about computers in the early 1970s -- they steal people's jobs, they make mistakes, they make life more difficult for humans, and they have no reason to exist. The Partridge Family is unified in getting rid of a department store's computer ("People Yes! Computers No!") and so Keith (a sudden computer expert) simply trespasses into the store's computer room to commit fraud on the store's computer system. This allows them to blackmail the store's owner into getting rid of the computer. I guess this was legal back in 1973!
The Brady Bunch was more of a family drama. Some of the themes are basically timeless -- sibling rivalry, various childhood insecurities, childhood crushes, etc. It's no wonder it still resonates in a way the Partridge Family doesn't for many people.
I think you pretty much nailed it. Brady Bunch was really never “cool”, still isn’t, but maybe that makes it more what it is, even when watched today. Partridge Family just feels like a boring old show, very dated, but I certainly didn’t feel that way as a kid. Maybe it took itself a little too seriously, where the Brady’s were just fun in a dorky way…lol.
If you don’t like the PF music (I can’t imagine that the majority of new viewers would find the music remotely entertaining) I don’t know why you would watch it. Brady Bunch is exactly what you said, and is why one can still enjoy I Love Lucy.
They were incredibly well recorded, but Bell Records used such poor vinyl and mastering most would never know it. I finally tracked down first promo pressings for the first album through Notebook and wow, what a difference. Notebook is really well recorded, which I never knew until I got a sealed first press, which was only maybe 4 years ago. Over all Sound Magazine is probably the very best sounding, but I suspect because ultimately these are Wrecking Crew albums with David singing, they made sure they were well recorded. I don’t play CDs, but it’s nice to learn there is apparently a big enough market Sony saw fit to reissue them as if I’m counting correctly that would be the third time. I did buy the Razor & Tie issues back in the day, and the Arista comp (which sounded very good) but the vinyl is much better.
It is rather amazing what shows transcended their reputations at the time to develop a following that lasts over other more popular shows of their era. The Brady Bunch, Gilligan's Island and Star Trek to name a few, were never big ratings hits in their day but gained cult status that continue to the present.
“The Partridge Family” was a bigger hit (it ranked in the top 20) in its day than its lead in, “The Brady Bunch.” But the Bradys have stood the test of time.
