Odd bods & mismatched mates
At the time of putting quill to paper, I have not seen the film, Stan & Ollie. It has garnered rave reviews from the professional critics, who I tend to ignore studiously. I'll be the judge of whether it's to my taste or not. I've never regretted ignoring their advice. Well, okay, maybe where 'The Lone Ranger' was concerned with Johnny Depp's vainglorious performance.
Back to Laurel & Hardy. A skinny Brit from Lancashire, the land of Rag Pudding and Scouse (me neither) and a Yank from Dixie, the land of Pecan Pie and Grits (ditto). Their halcyon days were the 1920s – 1940s. But I remember, when we eventually rented a television watching their black and white films and, loving every daft thing about them, The titchy 9 inch screen set was rented from Rediffusion and it had a cash box at the back which you had to feed, like the electricity meter, with 2 bob bits – look, under fifty-year-olds, take my word for it. Most certainly, Stan & Ollie were the original 'Odd Couson ple' before Neil Simon laid the mantel on Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau and later Tony Randall and Jack Klugman.
Right, I feel we are a bit of a roll. Let's have some more inspired couplings and some; “Why the hell would they do that;” scenarios.
Eric Clapton left the 'Yardbirds' due to his dislike of their more poppy approach to tunes and joined the John Mayall Blues Band where he could indulge his love for grittier music, Fair enough, it worked. However 'Slowhand' missed out touring America a few months later and appearing on the telly along with (be still beating heart) Raquel Welch in her 'One Million Years B.C.' stone age bikini while warbling her own version of Martha and the Vandellas 'Dancing In The Streets.' Okay, okay, I made the bikini bit up – one for the dads there, but as you Latin scholars would have it, 'tempus fugit,' - better make it one for the granddads.
Strange bedfellows indeed, although no weirder than Jimi Hendrix as a support act to the 'Monkees' in the US and even more preposterous in 1967 opening for Englebert Humperdinck and the Walker Brothers in the UK Now, to shatter an urban myth. For many years, it was taken as gospel that Charles Man- auditioned to become a Monkee as opposed to a psychopathic nutbucket I suppose. This was, sadly never the case. Micky Dolenz when asked; “How many others auditioned.?”
He, by now fed up with this particular question replied; “Oh, hundreds, even Charles Manson.” Such japes.
Other weird couplings for the scrapbook – December 1962, the yodelling Frank Ifield supported by The Beatles (and they tanked with Frank's audience big time). 1967, chicken head biting (since denied, not another urban fable?) Alice Cooper opened for the beyond bland Herman's Hermits. 1970, The Who was the warm-up act for Jeremy & Clyde, a duo so middle of the road that should have been fitted with cat's eyes.
March 1972, a true brain in the fridge moment, ivories tinkling Billy Joel supports the Grateful Dead – poster boys for the 'stoned zone.' August 1974, Bruce (The Boss) Springsteen opened for the lilting Lynn (Rose Garden) Anderson who made Nana Mouskouri sound like Janis Joplin.
As it happens, it's just occurred to me I had a 'this can't be happening moment.' It was around 1986 and I was the compere for a gig with this disparate bunch. Billy (not yet a global rock star) Idol, Peter (Where Do You Go To My Lovely) Sarstedt and Aneka (Japanese
Boy) No Surname.
Billy was not the snarling barbarian his persona demanded, although he did spend an inordinate amount of time practising the sneer in the mirror. Peter was a true gent, who made us endless cups of tea during rehearsals – rock 'n' roll – huh? Aneka dressed as a Geisha when in fact she was a rather strait-laced
Gaelic speaking Scottish folk singer related to the Sandeman Port dynasty who really didn't want to be part of our gang. Strangely, her record bombed in Japan because they thought it sounded too Chinese. I reckon Aled Jones/Ozzy Osborne should team up – there's been a lot weirder.