Carol Burnett special DVD
Route 66 season 1 on DVD
Man From UNCLE on DVD
TimeLife.com Lancelot Link Secret Chimp on DVD Tennesee Tuxedo on DVD Fractured Fairy Tales on DVD
TV Shows on DVD
Commercials on DVD
TV Show ReviewsTV on DVD Reviews
Christmas Specials
TV DVDs & TV Books
Kid Shows on DVDcartoons on DVD

 

Lancelot Link and the Evolution Revolution
PART TWO - by Billy Ingram

THE ALBUM

You can forgive yourself if at times you think you're listening to a New Wave album from a decade later. This LP lovingly trips over the pop conceits of the sixties, breaking songs down to a simple, happy energy in the same way groups like The Knack and The Go-Gos would in the early-eighties.

1 - Sha-La Love You
The album started out with the single that nearly cracked the Top 40; the 45's picture sleeve is seen right.

2 - Teaser

3 - Wild Dreams (Jelly Beans)
With lyrics like: "Jet planes, freight planes, my heart's beating fast; It's pounding out the rhythm of a hydrogen blast. Blind bats, alley cats, why can't you see; Just what the thought of loving you is doing to me."

4 - Kissing Doll
There was a lot of free association going on with the lyrics to these songs, I suspect.

5 - Magic Feeling
It almost sounds like the theme from Beverly Hills 90210 at the start. This song was no better or worse than anything else on the charts in 1970.

6 - Live

7 - Rollin' in the Clover
I Wanna Be Sedated meets Crimson and Clover. It was pretty clever to write a song for kids about rolling around on the ground since that's about all we had to do as kids in 1970.

8 - Yummy Love

9 - Superstatic, Instamatic, Electric Vibrations
With lyrics - "It's your super-static, instamatic, e-lect-ric vibrations going on inside of me."

10 - Daydream
The ballad of the LP has a sparse arrangement with blended harmonies from vocalist Steve Hammond - singing with himself.

11- Blind Date

12- The Evolution Revolution
The hardest rocking tune has some nice guitar work and the organ is pre-synthesizer era.

 

THE PRODUCER SPEAKS!

Bob Emenegger was the producer of the Lancelot Link and the The Evolution Revolution LP and he also scored the incidental music for the series. He tells us:

My music career began at UCLA where I directed and composed songs for student musicals. I was lucky enough to work with Barbara McNair and especially with the very talented Carol Burnett! We all did a number of USO shows for the troops and I acted as music director, playing the bass, which I faked it a lot when I didn't know the music.

Later I wrote songs with Bert Convy after the original Cheers broke up (Black Denim Trousers). We got great reviews but few sales.

Then I worked for Carson Roberts Ad agency as Broadcast Creative Director, writing commercials and also scoring many of them (Mattel, Max Factor, Gallo Wine). Later I moved to Grey Ad Inc. as V/P Creative Director, doing campaigns and much of the music.

One day I met with Allan Sandler who owned a large TV production studio. I had done the score to a feature film he produced called Frazier, the Sensuous Lion. Not at big hit.

He was producing Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp for television with Carol Burnett Show writers Burns and Marmer. Allan asked me to score Lance Link - which was a blast!

For the songs, I brought in Steve Hoffman who I had used on several Honda TV spots. He was a gem of a find. His talent was perfect for Lance Link, both singing and writing. Steve was an unknown vocalist, from a group that TV producer Clancy Grass used. He was/is an untrained musician who played guitar left handed.

Steve composed most of the songs on the album, I did several as well (Rollin' In the Clover was one I co-wrote with Steve). I produced the LP exactly as if I was doing a TV commercial or background music for a film.

It was not written to be bubble gum music - I penned the songs to fit the show. As I recall, Steve did all the vocals and overdubbing and we recorded in a studio that ABC/Dunhill set up. The band was made up of studio players - about 7 musicians, 2 brass with a percussionist on chimes also. It's possible the score may have called for more instruments at times.

The videos were shot later to match the completed songs. They even played the tunes for the chimps - who were all over the place until they heard the music and began to play in sync to the beat.

After Lance Link, I did the score to Another Nice Mess for Tommy Smothers and Bob Einstein (Super Dave Osborne) and again used Steve Hoffman to sing the featured songs.

I didn't do any other kid shows except for some sequences for the Electric Company/Sesame Street.

I did collaborate further with Allan Sander and co-owned a film studio (Pico Bronson) where we co-produced 10 original Sci-Fi features for television, along with a handful of specials including UFO's Past, Present and Future which was nominated for a Golden Globe award. I wrote the script and the music (didn't have enough money to hire a composer).

I retired to Fayetteville, Arkansas after my wife hounded me to get out of LA after the riots, earthquakes, traffic, graffiti, etc. Here I got involved with the Access Station board. I'm a supporter of the Symphony and wrote a piece for the North Arkansas Symphony which was performed during their regular season. A fine orchestra, the conductor is from New York.

Last I heard (years ago) vocalist Steve Hoffman was doing music in Vegas.

- Bob Emenegger

 

THE GRASS ROOTS /
EVOLUTION REVOLUTION
CONNECTION

The Grass Roots were responsible for a number of the biggest hits of the late-sixties / early-seventies, tunes like Midnight Confessions, Sooner Or Later and Temptation Eyes. We asked Glenn, the Webmaster of the Grass Roots Fan Page what these groups had in common.

The Evolution Revolution connection with The Grass Roots is very close.

The Lancelot Link album was released on Dunhill/ABC, the same label the Grass Roots were on. And Steve Barri, the Grass Roots' producer, was A&R Director of that label and had direct say over everything that was released.

It was Barri who gave the song "Sha-La Love You" to the Lancelot Link crew when they were looking for a potential hit single. That song was originally a demo for the Grass Roots written by Harvey 'Michael' Price and Dan Walsh, who wrote "Temptation Eyes" and many other hits for the Roots. The Grass Roots turned the song down, and Barri ended up producing the final version for Lancelot Link, with Steve Hoffman doing the vocals.

And most of the studio musicians on the track were the same ones that played on the Grass Roots sessions - so it was practically a Grass Roots record except for the vocals. Pretty much the rest of the album was co-written by Steve Hoffman, with one more Price/Walsh song appearing on it.


Hit makers on ABC/DUNHILL at the time: Three Dog Night, The James Gang, Steppenwolf, Jim Croce, Rufus, The Four Tops, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Dusty Springfield, Steely Dan, Jimmy Buffett and many more.

Lancelot Link Secret Chimp
Lance Link Secret Chimp and the Evolution Revolution
I Created Lancelot Link Secret Chimp

1970s TV Shows

classic tv1970s TV Shows

Classic TV!

 


ORDER
'I CREATED
LANCELOT LINK'
ON VIDEO NOW!

Lancelot Link Secret Chimp

Lance Link Secret Chimp
and the Evolution Revolution

I Created Lancelot Link Secret Chimp

 

NEW!
The Series on DVD Now!
Lancelot Link Secret Chimp on DVD

Lancelot Link Secret Chimp DVDs

Father Knows Best on DVD

Soupy Sales Show on DVD

TV on DVD catalog

 

Fat Albert on DVD

Fury on DVD

andy grifith show on dvd

Bobby Darin Show on DVD!

 


Lost Kid Shows / Movie Stars on TV / Saturday Morning Shows / Video Vault / Classic Christmas Specials / Fabulous Fifties / Unseen Scenes / Game Shows / Requested Forgotten TV Shows / The Super Sixties / The New * * Shows / 1980's Wrestling / TV Blog

TVparty is Classic TV on the internet!
Classic TV on the Internet!

Television's Embarrassing Moments / Action Shows of the Sixties / TVparty Mysteries and Scandals / Variety Shows of the 1970s / The Eighties / The Laugh Track / 1970's Hit Shows / Response to TVparty / Search the Site / Add Your Comments
Hit Shows of the Seventies: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy / Gene Roddenberry in the 1970s / Most Memorable Commercials / Fall Previews of the 70s / Lance Link, Secret Chimp / Star Wars Holiday Special / Alias Smith and Jones / 1977 Year in Review / Top Ten 1970-76 / The Rockford Files / All in the Family / Battlestar Galactica / Wonder Woman / Network Jingles / Class of '74 / Happy Days / Good Times / Mr. Bill / Maude / Doris Day Show / Pamelyn Ferdin Interview / The Bicentennial Minute / Jingles & Catch Phrases of the 1970s / TV commercials for Women
Classic TV Commercials / 1950's TV / 1960's TV / 1970's TV / Lucy Shows / Classic Cars / John Wayne / Gene Roddenberry / Star Wars / KISS / Lancelot Link / Saturday Morning Cartoons / Wonder Woman / Classic Comic Books / Andy Griffith / Cher / TV Shows on DVD / Outtakes & Bloopers / 1967 TV Shows / Romper Room / ABC Movie of the Week / The Goldbergs / Daws Butler Commercials / Saturday Morning Commercials / Captain Kangaroo / Chicago Local Kiddie Shows / Boston Local TV / Philly Local TV / NYC Local Kid Shows / Amos 'n' Andy / Electric Company / Bette Davis / Judy Garland / Christmas Specials / Redd Foxx / Good Times / Sitcom Houses / What's Happening! / Winky Dink & You / Sonny & Cher / Smothers Brothers / Commercial Icons of the 1960s / Soupy Sales / The Carpenters / Route 66 / Bozo / The Carpenters Christmas Specials / Local Kid Shows / Death of TV's Superman / Wonderama / Sesame Street / Bob Hope Specials / Little Rascals / TV Terrorists / Irwin Allen / The Untouchables / Carol Burnett Show / Batman TV Show / Green Hornet / Today Show History / Our Gang / Doris Day Show / 1970's Commercials For Women / Bill Cosby in the 1970s / The Golddiggers / Lola Falana / The Carpenters / David Bowie on TV / Hudson Brothers / The Flip Wilson Show / Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour / The Bobby Darin Show / The Richard Pryor Show / George Burns / Celebrity Commercials / Rudolph / Movie Posters & More! 

Diver Dan TV show on DVD Price is Right DVD Game Match Game on DVD Route 66 season 2 on DVD All in the Family DVD Lancelot Link Secret Chimp on DVD Tennessee Tuxedo on DVD
Looking for classic TV on DVD?/See below:
TimeLife.com Back to the menu
Contact Us / Survey
Other Cool TV Sites

TVparty! Television Blog