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[lively instrumental music]
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- Good evening.
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00:00:36,503 --> 00:00:38,061
I'm Helen Mirren,
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00:00:38,372 --> 00:00:42,001
And you're watching
�Documentary Now!" season 50.
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00:00:42,276 --> 00:00:44,073
Some rock bands endure
for decades;
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00:00:44,378 --> 00:00:47,108
others are gone in an instant.
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00:00:47,414 --> 00:00:49,939
But every so oiten that instant
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00:00:50,250 --> 00:00:53,117
creates music
that lasts forever.
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Please enjoy tonight's film
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00:00:55,389 --> 00:00:57,084
Gentle & Soft:
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00:00:57,391 --> 00:01:00,292
the Story of the Blue Jean
Committee.
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00:01:03,764 --> 00:01:05,288
- Hey!
We're the Blue Jean Committee!
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00:01:05,599 --> 00:01:08,295
[lively rock music]
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00:01:12,606 --> 00:01:16,269
I Gonna dance around the city I
15
00:01:16,577 --> 00:01:19,273
I Sing a song just like
a southern melody J'
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00:01:19,580 --> 00:01:21,138
I Mama, you're a dancerI
17
00:01:21,448 --> 00:01:23,382
- I You're a dancer I
18
00:01:23,650 --> 00:01:24,639
- A band like
Blue Jean Committee,
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00:01:24,952 --> 00:01:26,613
that only comes once
in a lifetime.
20
00:01:26,920 --> 00:01:28,114
- Those were amazing shows,
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00:01:28,422 --> 00:01:30,117
and the people that are there
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00:01:30,424 --> 00:01:32,255
really marked the times
in their life
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00:01:32,559 --> 00:01:35,323
by the time they spent watching
Blue Jean Committee.
24
00:01:35,629 --> 00:01:37,654
- For the two years
that record was popular,
25
00:01:37,965 --> 00:01:39,455
it was like Fleetwood Mac
"Rumours."
26
00:01:39,766 --> 00:01:41,290
Every song was a single,
27
00:01:41,602 --> 00:01:43,001
and every single was great.
28
00:01:43,303 --> 00:01:45,271
- l was completely blown away
by that record.
29
00:01:45,572 --> 00:01:47,233
We'd all tried to capture
that thing,
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00:01:47,507 --> 00:01:48,906
but they really got it.
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00:01:49,176 --> 00:01:51,303
That was the quintessential
California record.
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00:01:51,612 --> 00:01:53,011
- �Catalina Breeze,"
33
00:01:53,313 --> 00:01:54,644
the fantastic album
of the '705
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00:01:54,948 --> 00:01:57,439
in that moment, they were
on top of the world.
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00:01:57,751 --> 00:01:58,911
- I Baby, you're a dancerI
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00:01:59,186 --> 00:02:00,016
IOh, babyI
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00:02:00,320 --> 00:02:01,617
- I Dancer I
38
00:02:01,922 --> 00:02:04,755
- I Freeway, ride me along I
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00:02:07,260 --> 00:02:10,787
I Freeway, ride me along I
40
00:02:12,766 --> 00:02:14,666
- The sonic quality
of the music
41
00:02:14,968 --> 00:02:17,459
is real tranquil and placid
and relaxing,
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00:02:17,771 --> 00:02:21,707
and it is really in con?ict
with their actual relationship,
43
00:02:22,009 --> 00:02:26,503
which was extremely bombastic
and--and aggressive.
44
00:02:26,813 --> 00:02:28,337
- As sisters, you know,
we love each other,
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00:02:28,649 --> 00:02:29,809
and, like, when we listen
to that music,
46
00:02:30,117 --> 00:02:31,709
like, we feel the love.
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Like, there was love
there at one point.
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00:02:34,121 --> 00:02:35,452
You know, you can't make music
like that
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00:02:35,722 --> 00:02:37,314
and not, you know, love
each other.
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00:02:37,624 --> 00:02:41,287
[vocalizing]
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00:02:41,561 --> 00:02:43,495
- I Gentle I
- I Gentle I
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00:02:43,797 --> 00:02:45,355
- IAnd soft I
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00:02:51,571 --> 00:02:53,562
[whirring]
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00:03:02,983 --> 00:03:04,473
- Morning.
- Morning.
55
00:03:10,257 --> 00:03:12,191
- In all of the pictures
and everything
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00:03:12,492 --> 00:03:15,393
In the magazines I used to read
and to be in 'em,
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00:03:15,696 --> 00:03:17,323
that's really something.
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00:03:17,597 --> 00:03:18,529
You go, �Well, you know,
there's someone I admire.
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00:03:18,832 --> 00:03:20,356
There's someone I admire,
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00:03:20,667 --> 00:03:22,100
and what's-~what's my mug
doing in there?"
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00:03:22,402 --> 00:03:23,767
So that was, uh, really nice,
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00:03:24,071 --> 00:03:26,164
and it's very, uh, very
thankful for every moment
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00:03:26,440 --> 00:03:27,202
that someone said
something nice.
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It meant a lot to me.
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00:03:29,009 --> 00:03:29,737
You don't mind
the camera's here, right?
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00:03:30,043 --> 00:03:31,271
- Yep.
- [laughs]
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00:03:31,578 --> 00:03:34,604
So, uh, it was--
it was a good feeling.
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00:03:34,915 --> 00:03:36,712
My name is Gene,
I live in, uh, Chicago,
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and apparently you guys are
interested in talking to me
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about the Blue Jean Committee.
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00:03:41,555 --> 00:03:44,524
Yeah, it's a glamorous job.
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You know, you do it
for the love of it.
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Yeah, I'm not mad at Clark.
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00:03:48,562 --> 00:03:50,257
You know, I mean, to be honest,
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00:03:50,564 --> 00:03:52,361
I mean, I haven't thought about
him in quite a few decades.
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00:03:52,632 --> 00:03:53,758
Perfect.
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00:03:54,067 --> 00:03:55,227
I've got a lot
of good memories,
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00:03:55,535 --> 00:03:57,730
but, uh, as far as, you know,
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00:03:58,038 --> 00:03:59,801
thinking about what Clark
is like,
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00:04:00,107 --> 00:04:01,472
it's been a long time since
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00:04:01,775 --> 00:04:03,367
I've, uh, really thought
about him.
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00:04:03,643 --> 00:04:05,235
I hadn't seen him
in a long time.
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00:04:14,421 --> 00:04:16,946
- Oh, we got this house
in, uh, '98.
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It's my money.
I bought all this.
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I bought all these guys out.
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00:04:23,997 --> 00:04:25,294
I'm trying to buy that guy out,
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00:04:25,599 --> 00:04:27,760
'cause, see--see how his
telephone pole
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00:04:28,068 --> 00:04:29,763
is obstructing my view
of the ocean?
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00:04:30,070 --> 00:04:31,662
If you're sitting here,
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00:04:31,972 --> 00:04:33,906
I can't see the ocean from here,
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00:04:34,174 --> 00:04:37,439
so I got to knock all that out.
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00:04:37,744 --> 00:04:39,075
Fame is--it's nice.
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00:04:39,346 --> 00:04:41,473
I mean, fame is a good thing,
you know?
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00:04:41,782 --> 00:04:42,578
I live here.
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00:04:42,849 --> 00:04:44,817
Got my nice house.
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lt's--it's all been worth it.
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When I look at what I've got,
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I say, �Thank god I thought up
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this Blue Jean Committee
thing."
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00:04:54,661 --> 00:04:55,855
- They had such a sound.
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00:04:56,163 --> 00:04:57,687
I remember the ?rst time
I heard it.
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l was driving down PCH,
top down,
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00:05:01,635 --> 00:05:03,933
heard this thing; it was like
nothing I'd ever heard before,
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and yet everything
about California
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all at the same time.
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They somehow captured everything
we'd all been alter.
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And I was blown away.
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I said, �Where the heck did
this music come from?"
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[laid-back jazzy music]
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00:05:23,290 --> 00:05:25,224
- Well, I'm Chicago
born and bred.
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People always said I was a bit
of a handful,
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which was probably a nice way
of saying
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l was a little dickhead.
114
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My pop was the foreman at
the old Vienna Beef factory
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over on North Damen.
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- My parents both worked at
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Schwenke's Sausage
and Rendering.
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That's where they met.
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Schwenke's is the best.
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Mom did, uh, quality control.
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She took it real serious,
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00:05:50,717 --> 00:05:52,651
and my dad worked on the line.
123
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He was a packer.
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I used to, uh, play
with the hairnets;
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00:05:55,856 --> 00:05:57,016
to bring 'em back home.
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00:05:57,324 --> 00:06:00,384
But mostly I liked
playing music.
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00:06:00,694 --> 00:06:03,754
My earliest memories were, uh,
loving all the doo-wop groups.
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00:06:04,064 --> 00:06:05,588
This is going back a long ways,
you know.
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00:06:05,899 --> 00:06:07,560
Doo-wop is, uh...
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00:06:07,868 --> 00:06:09,335
it's--it's not just oldies;
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it's ancient-ies.
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So, uh, me and Clark,
we met at sausage school,
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the hallways and stuff.
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00:06:18,044 --> 00:06:19,568
I saw him here and there,
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00:06:19,880 --> 00:06:22,576
and, uh, think he was, uh,
kind of a trouble-maker.
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00:06:22,883 --> 00:06:24,407
- l was on the wrestling team.
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00:06:24,718 --> 00:06:26,845
Pee-wee state
champ, 102 lb. division
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00:06:27,120 --> 00:06:28,382
three years running.
139
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Thank you.
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00:06:30,624 --> 00:06:31,591
- In school I'd play little
assemblies and stuff,
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and I'd play for everybody,
142
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And I'd play, uh,
�Glad All Over"
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00:06:34,928 --> 00:06:36,418
by the Dave Clark Five.
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00:06:36,730 --> 00:06:37,788
- You know, and I loved being on
the wrestling team.
145
00:06:38,098 --> 00:06:39,531
The wrestling team
was a great thing,
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00:06:39,799 --> 00:06:41,767
but wha--what the problem was,
I started noticing
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that the guys with the guitars
were getting more chicks
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than the guys in the team,
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00:06:46,706 --> 00:06:47,764
which, you know, I didn't like.
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00:06:48,074 --> 00:06:49,769
- So one day Clark finally
comes up to me,
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00:06:50,076 --> 00:06:51,475
first time he'd said anything
to me,
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00:06:51,778 --> 00:06:53,302
and he says, "Hey, you're in
my group now."
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00:06:53,613 --> 00:06:54,739
- I don't think there
was one moment
154
00:06:55,048 --> 00:06:56,879
when Gene and I decided
to become a band,
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00:06:57,150 --> 00:06:57,946
to be honest with you.
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00:06:58,251 --> 00:06:59,809
It happened very organically.
157
00:07:00,120 --> 00:07:01,417
- I said, �Okay, we're in
a group now.
158
00:07:01,721 --> 00:07:02,745
Uh, can I go down the hall?"
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00:07:03,056 --> 00:07:04,318
He says, "No.
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00:07:04,624 --> 00:07:06,455
We're in a group now,
starting now."
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00:07:06,760 --> 00:07:07,454
I said, "Okay."
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00:07:07,761 --> 00:07:10,093
[laughs softly]
163
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So we dropped out of sausage
school to play music.
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[groovy rock music]
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- Uh, Mom and Dad didn't like
the music thing.
166
00:07:19,139 --> 00:07:20,970
You know, now their little
Eugene Skrowaczeski
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00:07:21,274 --> 00:07:22,798
is Gene Allen,
168
00:07:23,109 --> 00:07:24,633
and he's singing all these
ootsie-tootsie songs
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to a bunch of dopers
on the north side.
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Me and my gals pals thought
it was pretty cool, though.
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I think Derene Berezowski
blew him,
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00:07:33,954 --> 00:07:38,152
or at least a tug job
of some kind took place there.
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00:07:40,694 --> 00:07:41,752
- First time I heard
Gene & Clark,
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00:07:42,028 --> 00:07:43,086
l was just coming out
of Philadelphia
175
00:07:43,363 --> 00:07:44,921
and was living in New York
and traveling--
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00:07:45,198 --> 00:07:47,428
just starting to tour
all over the world.
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00:07:47,701 --> 00:07:48,861
I wouldn't call it
a brand-new sound,
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00:07:49,169 --> 00:07:51,103
but it was so much of its-
of its time.
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00:07:51,371 --> 00:07:52,770
And I was going, �Okay, man,
these guys,
180
00:07:53,039 --> 00:07:54,768
I think maybe they have
a future."
181
00:07:55,041 --> 00:07:57,509
[laid-back jazzy music]
182
00:07:57,811 --> 00:08:00,541
- Me and Clark, wejust went out
and we played, uh,
183
00:08:00,847 --> 00:08:03,975
you know, open mics and diners
and pizza places
184
00:08:04,284 --> 00:08:06,013
and wherever would have us.
185
00:08:06,319 --> 00:08:08,514
- And so we--so we, "We got to--
got to find a recording studio.
186
00:08:08,822 --> 00:08:10,119
We got to�you know, where
we gonna do this thing?"
187
00:08:10,390 --> 00:08:11,948
In Chicago there wasn't
a lot of places,
188
00:08:12,225 --> 00:08:14,716
so, uh, I booked us some
studio time in this little place
189
00:08:15,028 --> 00:08:17,462
over on the north side,
Capstone Studios.
190
00:08:19,032 --> 00:08:20,659
- The original Capstone Studios
191
00:08:20,967 --> 00:08:24,459
was open in 1967 at the comer
of Clybourn and Halsted.
192
00:08:24,738 --> 00:08:26,467
- No, it was Halsted and North.
193
00:08:26,740 --> 00:08:29,641
- No, it was right there where
Clybourn does that littlejog.
194
00:08:29,909 --> 00:08:31,638
It's a FedEx Kinkos now.
195
00:08:31,911 --> 00:08:34,744
- FedEx Kinkos is one block up
on Halsted and Clybourn.
196
00:08:35,048 --> 00:08:37,642
We were one block down
on Halsted and North,
197
00:08:37,917 --> 00:08:39,475
where the Boston Market
is now.
198
00:08:39,753 --> 00:08:41,186
- There's not a Boston Market
at the corner
199
00:08:41,488 --> 00:08:42,216
of Clybourn and North.
200
00:08:42,522 --> 00:08:43,489
- Not now, no,
201
00:08:43,757 --> 00:08:44,815
but there was one,
202
00:08:45,091 --> 00:08:45,887
and now it's a--
what do you call it--
203
00:08:46,192 --> 00:08:47,159
a Panera Bread corporation.
204
00:08:47,427 --> 00:08:48,917
- The Panera Bread
is at the corner
205
00:08:49,229 --> 00:08:50,526
of Clybourn and Halsted,
206
00:08:50,830 --> 00:08:54,163
and that is a fact,
case closed, next subject.
207
00:08:54,434 --> 00:08:55,731
- There's a pretty funny story
208
00:08:56,036 --> 00:08:57,003
about where the name
comes from,
209
00:08:57,270 --> 00:08:58,532
you know, the--
the Blue Jean Committee.
210
00:08:58,838 --> 00:09:00,100
- We saw, uh, �Easy Rider,"
211
00:09:00,407 --> 00:09:02,602
and we thought, �Well, that's
kind of--of a good look.
212
00:09:02,909 --> 00:09:04,035
"We should wear some blue jeans,
213
00:09:04,344 --> 00:09:05,606
"look like some, you know,
regular guys,
214
00:09:05,912 --> 00:09:07,777
but still with some style."
215
00:09:08,081 --> 00:09:10,174
So we went to Marshall Field's
and we got, uh...
216
00:09:10,450 --> 00:09:13,715
- What they now refer to as
a Canadian tuxedo, right?
217
00:09:14,020 --> 00:09:15,681
- A bunch of dungarees
and jeans,
218
00:09:15,955 --> 00:09:17,684
and, uh, looked pretty good.
219
00:09:17,957 --> 00:09:19,515
- So we stroll into our ?rst
session at Capstone,
220
00:09:19,793 --> 00:09:20,885
all excited.
221
00:09:21,194 --> 00:09:22,627
- So these guys walk in,
222
00:09:22,929 --> 00:09:24,863
I says, �Who sent you?
The Blue Jean Committee?"
223
00:09:25,131 --> 00:09:28,100
- ljust go ka-bap.
224
00:09:28,401 --> 00:09:30,699
- Just punched them,
225
00:09:30,970 --> 00:09:32,198
you know, right in the mouth.
226
00:09:32,472 --> 00:09:33,632
- Put me in the hospital.
227
00:09:33,940 --> 00:09:35,202
- Completely ?attened
his nose,
228
00:09:35,475 --> 00:09:36,203
gave him a concussion.
229
00:09:36,476 --> 00:09:37,568
- Yeah, nerve damage.
230
00:09:37,877 --> 00:09:40,277
I'm still numb from here
to here.
231
00:09:40,580 --> 00:09:42,104
- The funny thing is,
a couple days later,
232
00:09:42,415 --> 00:09:44,576
Clark comes into the same exact
room and says,
233
00:09:44,884 --> 00:09:46,044
�You know what we should call
ourselves?
234
00:09:46,319 --> 00:09:47,809
The Blue Jean Committee."
235
00:09:48,121 --> 00:09:49,554
- He had a point.
What can I say?
236
00:09:49,823 --> 00:09:51,051
When you're right, you're right,
you know?
237
00:09:53,293 --> 00:09:54,885
Gene had this vision
238
00:09:55,161 --> 00:09:56,822
for this album that
really transported people
239
00:09:57,130 --> 00:09:58,222
to Chicago.
240
00:09:58,498 --> 00:10:00,625
- I wanted people to�
to really feel Chicago
241
00:10:00,934 --> 00:10:02,663
and smell Chicago and--and, uh,
242
00:10:02,969 --> 00:10:04,231
we just wanted to be
a good Chicago blues band.
243
00:10:04,504 --> 00:10:05,732
Let's put it that way.
244
00:10:06,005 --> 00:10:08,735
[bluesy music]
245
00:10:11,344 --> 00:10:14,074
[clunky, out-of-tune
blues music]
246
00:10:21,521 --> 00:10:22,954
I Chicago I
247
00:10:23,256 --> 00:10:24,587
- I Oh, whoa, whoa I
248
00:10:24,858 --> 00:10:25,916
- I Chicago I
249
00:10:26,192 --> 00:10:27,591
- I Oh, whoa, whoa I
250
00:10:27,861 --> 00:10:30,625
- I Chicago I
251
00:10:30,930 --> 00:10:32,022
I Chicago I
252
00:10:32,332 --> 00:10:33,765
- I Oh, whoa, whoa I
253
00:10:34,033 --> 00:10:36,763
- I Can I get a couple
of beers I
254
00:10:38,872 --> 00:10:39,839
I Hey, miss I
255
00:10:40,140 --> 00:10:41,607
[guitar tuning]
256
00:10:41,875 --> 00:10:43,103
You should tune that up
a little bit.
257
00:10:43,376 --> 00:10:45,139
I One, two, three, four I
258
00:10:45,445 --> 00:10:48,005
- So we cranked out two records,
lickity split:
259
00:10:48,314 --> 00:10:51,613
Our debut ��St. Stanislaus'
Matinee"...
260
00:10:51,885 --> 00:10:53,318
- I Hey, miss I
261
00:10:53,620 --> 00:10:55,611
I Can I get a beer I
262
00:10:55,889 --> 00:10:58,824
IAnd then a oouple of beers I
263
00:10:59,125 --> 00:11:00,649
I Hey, miss I
264
00:11:00,960 --> 00:11:02,154
Then in February of '72, uh,
265
00:11:02,462 --> 00:11:05,226
put out "221 Pulaski Parkway."
266
00:11:05,532 --> 00:11:08,660
We had ��Wind Off the Lake"
and �Goodbye, Dan Ryan," uh...
267
00:11:08,968 --> 00:11:10,162
"Lip Service."
268
00:11:10,470 --> 00:11:11,960
That's--that's about mustaches.
Uh...
269
00:11:12,238 --> 00:11:16,072
I Lip service I
270
00:11:16,376 --> 00:11:17,308
I Watch out I
271
00:11:17,577 --> 00:11:21,638
I For that lip service I
272
00:11:21,915 --> 00:11:23,815
I Uptown, downtown I
273
00:11:24,083 --> 00:11:26,176
I Everybody's steamin' I
274
00:11:26,486 --> 00:11:28,647
I In the outskirts
and in the in-skirts I
275
00:11:28,922 --> 00:11:29,889
I Everybody's steamin' I
276
00:11:33,092 --> 00:11:35,026
-And it tanked,
big-time.
277
00:11:35,328 --> 00:11:36,659
- It tanked, you know,
and we had, uh,
278
00:11:36,930 --> 00:11:37,897
financed it ourselves.
279
00:11:38,198 --> 00:11:39,825
That's the hard part.
280
00:11:40,099 --> 00:11:41,327
- We were out of cash,
281
00:11:41,601 --> 00:11:43,728
up to our eyeballs
in remaindered LPs.
282
00:11:44,037 --> 00:11:46,335
- I think it hit Clark
pretty hard.
283
00:11:46,606 --> 00:11:48,005
- Oh, things got bad.
284
00:11:48,274 --> 00:11:49,832
Clark, he holed himself up
285
00:11:50,109 --> 00:11:50,837
in this little apartment
286
00:11:51,110 --> 00:11:52,077
over at Wabash
and Cullerton.
287
00:11:52,378 --> 00:11:53,174
Tried to drink himself
to death.
288
00:11:53,446 --> 00:11:54,413
- Wabash and Cermak.
289
00:11:54,714 --> 00:11:56,011
- Cullerton.
290
00:11:56,282 --> 00:11:57,010
We're not going through
this again.
291
00:11:57,283 --> 00:11:58,682
- I went to a dark place, man.
292
00:11:58,952 --> 00:11:59,850
Drinking and druggin'.
293
00:12:00,119 --> 00:12:01,848
l was paying for sex.
294
00:12:02,121 --> 00:12:03,713
I'm walking out of Bennie's
295
00:12:04,023 --> 00:12:05,012
with a 12'er of Old Style,
296
00:12:05,291 --> 00:12:07,919
when I saw the most beautiful
sight.
297
00:12:08,228 --> 00:12:09,855
I saw two seagulls
cruising along.
298
00:12:10,129 --> 00:12:11,892
[tranquil acoustic guitar]
299
00:12:12,198 --> 00:12:15,361
They got me thinking about
the ocean and the sand
300
00:12:15,635 --> 00:12:18,297
and beach balls and, you know,
stuff like that,
301
00:12:18,605 --> 00:12:21,130
and, you know, for the first
time in a while I felt good.
302
00:12:21,441 --> 00:12:23,705
Wasn'ttill lsobered up
that I realized
303
00:12:23,977 --> 00:12:27,777
that the birds were pigeons,
but...
304
00:12:28,081 --> 00:12:29,207
you know, who gives a shit?
305
00:12:29,482 --> 00:12:30,813
I mean, it's a better story
with seagulls.
306
00:12:31,117 --> 00:12:32,106
- Then Clark called me
and said that
307
00:12:32,418 --> 00:12:33,783
We're gonna have a meeting.
308
00:12:34,087 --> 00:12:35,884
He says, ��You know what?
309
00:12:36,155 --> 00:12:37,315
[bleep] Chicago."
310
00:12:37,624 --> 00:12:38,886
I said,
311
00:12:39,158 --> 00:12:40,090
"Nobody says
'[bleep] Chicago.�
312
00:12:40,393 --> 00:12:43,385
And he says, uh, "California.
313
00:12:43,663 --> 00:12:46,325
We're gonna be
a California band."
314
00:12:46,633 --> 00:12:50,330
[dramatic organ music]
315
00:12:50,637 --> 00:12:53,128
[laid-back rock music]
316
00:12:53,439 --> 00:12:54,997
- California was the vibe.
317
00:12:55,308 --> 00:12:57,071
You know, feeling the breeze
and the air
318
00:12:57,343 --> 00:12:58,469
and the sun on yourskin.
319
00:12:58,778 --> 00:13:00,803
You know, that kind of shit,
you know?
320
00:13:01,114 --> 00:13:02,979
Write music about that.
321
00:13:03,283 --> 00:13:04,181
It's not that hard.
322
00:13:06,686 --> 00:13:08,119
- Uh, you know,
people often mention
323
00:13:08,421 --> 00:13:10,116
how the beach boys didn't surf,
324
00:13:10,423 --> 00:13:12,823
and they sang all these songs
about sur?ng, you know?
325
00:13:13,126 --> 00:13:14,923
l--l mean, I think it's
an interesting analogy
326
00:13:15,194 --> 00:13:19,187
to the Blue Jean Committee who
wrote about living in California
327
00:13:19,499 --> 00:13:22,366
while residing in Chicago.
328
00:13:22,669 --> 00:13:24,159
- "California," I said,
329
00:13:24,470 --> 00:13:25,960
"You know, we're not even
from there.
330
00:13:26,272 --> 00:13:26,966
"I don't know what to--
you know, what are we
331
00:13:27,273 --> 00:13:28,467
"gonna write about?
332
00:13:28,775 --> 00:13:30,868
�Hills and�and grapes?
333
00:13:31,177 --> 00:13:32,109
Wine?
I don't know."
334
00:13:32,378 --> 00:13:36,007
l--l just--l knew beer
and blues.
335
00:13:36,316 --> 00:13:37,977
- The fact of the matter is no
one gave a shit about Chicago.
336
00:13:38,284 --> 00:13:39,478
I mean, we're not making
any money.
337
00:13:39,786 --> 00:13:41,219
Everything was about California
at the time.
338
00:13:41,521 --> 00:13:43,546
I mean, that's just where
the money was.
339
00:13:43,856 --> 00:13:46,484
- So then, uh, Clark says he'll
write the songs if he has to.
340
00:13:51,030 --> 00:13:52,122
I mean, we had nothing.
341
00:13:52,398 --> 00:13:55,458
We had no songs and no album.
342
00:13:55,735 --> 00:13:57,896
So we're, uh, you know,
stuck on an island, in a way.
343
00:13:58,204 --> 00:13:59,330
We're just stuck out there
in Chicago
344
00:13:59,639 --> 00:14:02,005
with, uh, some kind of
half-baked plan,
345
00:14:02,308 --> 00:14:03,832
and then, uh, what changed
everything
346
00:14:04,143 --> 00:14:07,044
was meeting, uh,Alvin lzoff.
347
00:14:07,347 --> 00:14:10,339
[lively percussion]
348
00:14:10,650 --> 00:14:12,379
That name means a lot,
349
00:14:12,685 --> 00:14:14,346
and when you're hungry
in the music business,
350
00:14:14,654 --> 00:14:16,178
that's who you want to talk to.
351
00:14:16,489 --> 00:14:19,014
- He was the biggest manager
in the world at the time.
352
00:14:19,325 --> 00:14:20,849
If anybody can make this happen
for us,
353
00:14:21,160 --> 00:14:22,354
it was gonna be him.
354
00:14:22,662 --> 00:14:24,391
He was California music.
355
00:14:24,697 --> 00:14:28,030
- Yeah, lzoff, I'd call him
a world-class asshole for sure.
356
00:14:28,334 --> 00:14:29,926
- Clark had gotten a tip
from a pal of ours
357
00:14:30,236 --> 00:14:31,100
who worked at, uh, O�Hare.
358
00:14:31,404 --> 00:14:32,871
He was a skycap.
359
00:14:33,172 --> 00:14:34,605
Alvin lzoff had been coming
into Chicago.
360
00:14:34,907 --> 00:14:36,340
He was trying to sign
Peter Cetera.
361
00:14:36,609 --> 00:14:38,941
Clark got an idea that we should
camp out at terminal 3,
362
00:14:39,245 --> 00:14:40,007
just wait.
363
00:14:40,279 --> 00:14:42,008
And, uh...
364
00:14:42,281 --> 00:14:43,873
we just waited.
365
00:14:44,183 --> 00:14:45,377
- I leave baggage claim
at O'Hare Airport.
366
00:14:45,685 --> 00:14:46,549
l hop in the back of my limo.
367
00:14:46,853 --> 00:14:48,377
Suddenly the door llings open,
368
00:14:48,688 --> 00:14:52,089
and this lunatic hops in,
waving a cassette tape.
369
00:14:52,392 --> 00:14:53,518
- He was scared shitless.
He's a little guy.
370
00:14:53,793 --> 00:14:54,555
Little guy.
371
00:14:54,861 --> 00:14:55,919
He said, �Who are you?"
372
00:14:56,229 --> 00:14:57,560
And I go, "I'm your next star.
373
00:14:57,864 --> 00:15:00,355
Shut up.
Listen to the tape."
374
00:15:00,633 --> 00:15:03,193
I had my forearm on his neck
like that.
375
00:15:03,469 --> 00:15:04,595
- Gets in my face and says,
376
00:15:04,904 --> 00:15:07,134
"Teach me how to be
a California pansy."
377
00:15:07,440 --> 00:15:08,930
- Then we hit him
with our vocal warm-up,
378
00:15:09,242 --> 00:15:10,231
which was on the tape.
379
00:15:10,543 --> 00:15:12,374
- One, two, three, four.
380
00:15:12,645 --> 00:15:13,907
- I Kielbasa I
381
00:15:14,213 --> 00:15:15,475
- I Kielbasa I
382
00:15:15,782 --> 00:15:16,908
- I Kielbasa I
383
00:15:17,216 --> 00:15:18,240
- I Kielbasa I
384
00:15:18,551 --> 00:15:19,483
- I Kielbasa I
385
00:15:19,786 --> 00:15:21,048
- I Kielbasa I
386
00:15:21,320 --> 00:15:24,050
- I Kielbasa I
387
00:15:24,323 --> 00:15:25,255
[tape clicks]
388
00:15:25,558 --> 00:15:27,048
- Boy, could they sing.
389
00:15:27,326 --> 00:15:28,452
-And you could see in his eyes
390
00:15:28,761 --> 00:15:31,059
the guy saw money,
you know what I mean?
391
00:15:31,330 --> 00:15:33,560
- My big thing was reinventing
a band's image.
392
00:15:33,833 --> 00:15:35,630
The band Shreveport,
remember them?
393
00:15:35,935 --> 00:15:38,096
I totally changed their look.
394
00:15:38,404 --> 00:15:39,598
The whole California thing,
however,
395
00:15:39,906 --> 00:15:40,930
was a major issue.
396
00:15:41,240 --> 00:15:42,400
- You got to remember,
397
00:15:42,675 --> 00:15:44,267
we'd never even been there.
398
00:15:44,577 --> 00:15:46,477
- I gave up after about
six hours.
399
00:15:46,779 --> 00:15:49,247
I said, "[bleep] it, let's just
fix the wardrobe."
400
00:15:49,515 --> 00:15:50,982
[upbeat rock music]
401
00:15:51,284 --> 00:15:52,273
[camera shutter clicks]
402
00:16:02,762 --> 00:16:05,595
[somber music]
403
00:16:11,671 --> 00:16:14,196
- Word on the street
was that me and Gene
404
00:16:14,507 --> 00:16:15,974
had gone vegetarian.
405
00:16:16,275 --> 00:16:17,503
- Which was not true.
406
00:16:17,810 --> 00:16:20,005
- And in Chicago that's
a death sentence, you known
407
00:16:20,313 --> 00:16:21,211
- You can get away with
insulting
408
00:16:21,514 --> 00:16:22,503
a lot of things
in this city,
409
00:16:22,815 --> 00:16:24,214
because we're a liberal
town.
410
00:16:24,517 --> 00:16:26,985
- Yeah, but don't insult
the sausage.
411
00:16:27,286 --> 00:16:28,548
- Then my cousins caught wind
of it,
412
00:16:28,855 --> 00:16:31,449
and they went bonkers
and firebombed my apartment,
413
00:16:31,724 --> 00:16:34,386
almost killed me and the girl
I was banging at the time.
414
00:16:34,694 --> 00:16:36,161
I mean, it was nuts.
415
00:16:36,462 --> 00:16:38,123
- Yeah, that was a scary time.
416
00:16:38,397 --> 00:16:39,523
It's the ?rst time in my life
417
00:16:39,832 --> 00:16:42,323
I ever wanted to get out
of Chicago.
418
00:16:42,635 --> 00:16:44,728
And, uh, that was the key
to everything.
419
00:16:45,037 --> 00:16:46,470
-And so we had to hole up
in the studio.
420
00:16:46,739 --> 00:16:48,172
It was the only place
we were safe,
421
00:16:48,474 --> 00:16:49,668
which was a weird blessing
in disguise
422
00:16:49,976 --> 00:16:51,739
because that let Gene,
423
00:16:52,044 --> 00:16:53,341
his little dweeb mind of his
424
00:16:53,646 --> 00:16:55,409
was able to come up
with something,
425
00:16:55,715 --> 00:16:57,683
and that--that became
the "Catalina" record.
426
00:16:57,984 --> 00:17:00,248
- Every song on that record
is incredible.
427
00:17:00,553 --> 00:17:02,180
- Yeah.
- Every single one.
428
00:17:02,488 --> 00:17:03,512
- I mean, like, now it's, like,
429
00:17:03,823 --> 00:17:04,755
everyone talks about, like,
430
00:17:05,057 --> 00:17:06,581
�What are the singles
on your record?"
431
00:17:06,893 --> 00:17:08,656
I mean, every song on that
record could have been a single.
432
00:17:08,928 --> 00:17:09,656
- Was a single.
433
00:17:09,929 --> 00:17:11,226
- It's like...
434
00:17:11,531 --> 00:17:12,759
I don't even know how
they chose.
435
00:17:13,065 --> 00:17:16,364
- Monday night we roll tape.
436
00:17:16,669 --> 00:17:19,103
[guitars noodling]
437
00:17:24,677 --> 00:17:26,110
- You know, Alvin's trying
to mess with our clothes
438
00:17:26,412 --> 00:17:27,538
and our look and everything.
439
00:17:27,847 --> 00:17:29,212
l--l thought,
"What about the sound?"
440
00:17:29,515 --> 00:17:31,244
I love music,
and I want to break down
441
00:17:31,551 --> 00:17:33,382
what that sound is.
442
00:17:33,686 --> 00:17:36,211
I found it, the harmonies and
the vibe of the whole thing,
443
00:17:36,522 --> 00:17:38,422
and, uh, somehow the lyrics
were there too.
444
00:17:38,724 --> 00:17:41,056
I Wiseman say if you want
to know a man I
445
00:17:41,360 --> 00:17:43,624
I Walk a mile in his shoes I
446
00:17:44,096 --> 00:17:46,724
- You know, what's crazy
is it was so fast.
447
00:17:47,033 --> 00:17:48,295
You know, it was--
it was one night, you know?
448
00:17:48,601 --> 00:17:50,432
And we were exhausted.
449
00:17:50,736 --> 00:17:51,760
And Genejust wouldn't stop.
450
00:17:52,071 --> 00:17:55,097
- They recorded six
number one hits
451
00:17:55,408 --> 00:17:57,205
in 72 hours.
452
00:17:57,476 --> 00:17:58,807
- Not just the hits,
but, like, the whole record.
453
00:17:59,111 --> 00:18:00,203
- I Weather gets rough I
454
00:18:00,479 --> 00:18:01,776
- IYeah I
455
00:18:02,081 --> 00:18:03,241
- I Strap 'em on,
lace 'em up I
456
00:18:03,549 --> 00:18:06,211
I Put on my walking shoes I
457
00:18:06,485 --> 00:18:07,577
- The songs just started coming.
458
00:18:07,887 --> 00:18:10,321
It was like Gene had ?ipped
a switch.
459
00:18:10,623 --> 00:18:11,555
- "Walking Shoes,"
460
00:18:11,824 --> 00:18:12,620
"She's Going to Hollywood."
461
00:18:12,925 --> 00:18:13,823
- "Montecito Memories."
462
00:18:14,126 --> 00:18:15,093
You got "Hibiscus."
463
00:18:15,394 --> 00:18:16,088
- They had "Funny Feeling."
464
00:18:16,395 --> 00:18:17,259
- "Satin Sym phony. "
465
00:18:17,563 --> 00:18:18,257
- "Gentle & Soft."
466
00:18:18,564 --> 00:18:19,326
- "Gentle"--
I mean...
467
00:18:19,632 --> 00:18:21,065
-All career-making songs.
468
00:18:21,400 --> 00:18:23,630
- And I needed something
that distinguished me
469
00:18:23,936 --> 00:18:25,403
from everybody else,
470
00:18:25,671 --> 00:18:27,298
notjust in BJC, but everybody
else in the game.
471
00:18:27,607 --> 00:18:29,268
- So we were laying down
vocal harmonies.
472
00:18:29,575 --> 00:18:30,769
You know, a standard issue way
473
00:18:31,077 --> 00:18:32,635
is the singer sings
a fifth, he sings a seventh,
474
00:18:32,945 --> 00:18:34,469
but that--it sounds like
everybody else.
475
00:18:34,780 --> 00:18:35,678
Nothing unique in that.
476
00:18:35,982 --> 00:18:37,347
- No, and then Clark
found his own thing.
477
00:18:37,650 --> 00:18:38,446
It was magical.
478
00:18:38,751 --> 00:18:40,309
It was like a signature sound.
479
00:18:40,620 --> 00:18:42,178
- I don't know, ljust--
I just kind of bare down
480
00:18:42,488 --> 00:18:44,183
and I get up there.
481
00:18:44,490 --> 00:18:45,787
I can sing pretty high,
you know?
482
00:18:46,092 --> 00:18:48,788
[Clark singing high-pitched
falsetto]
483
00:18:54,000 --> 00:18:55,592
- Seemed as if it was being sung
484
00:18:55,868 --> 00:18:56,630
by a woman--
or maybe not even a woman,
485
00:18:56,936 --> 00:19:02,431
like a really young,
very wai?sh small girl.
486
00:19:02,708 --> 00:19:04,175
- Didn't want to
let Clark hear that.
487
00:19:04,477 --> 00:19:05,307
- No, you don't let him
hear that.
488
00:19:05,611 --> 00:19:07,340
You'd have a boot up
your ass real fast.
489
00:19:07,647 --> 00:19:10,616
- Falsetto is a very phallic
form of singing,
490
00:19:10,883 --> 00:19:12,373
just very--
it's a very manly--
491
00:19:12,685 --> 00:19:14,482
It's very, "Yeah!"
492
00:19:14,787 --> 00:19:15,481
Got a lot of con?dence,
493
00:19:15,788 --> 00:19:17,221
got a lot of strength.
494
00:19:20,359 --> 00:19:21,656
- �Catalina Breeze."
495
00:19:21,961 --> 00:19:23,622
That's one for the ages.
496
00:19:23,896 --> 00:19:24,692
It's just the perfect album
497
00:19:24,997 --> 00:19:26,658
for that time.
498
00:19:26,966 --> 00:19:29,230
lt summed up all our lives.
499
00:19:31,637 --> 00:19:33,161
- One, two, three, four.
500
00:19:33,472 --> 00:19:36,168
[laid-back guitar strumming]
501
00:19:41,847 --> 00:19:45,305
I TV says you got them
high-class blues I
502
00:19:50,022 --> 00:19:52,752
I Seems the caravan
to Aruba I
503
00:19:53,059 --> 00:19:55,254
I Is not the road
that you would choose I
504
00:19:57,897 --> 00:20:00,559
I A barstool intellectual I
505
00:20:00,866 --> 00:20:06,202
I With a master's degree
in small talk I
506
00:20:06,505 --> 00:20:08,496
I And going to the movies I
507
00:20:12,511 --> 00:20:13,705
I Catalina breeze I
508
00:20:14,013 --> 00:20:16,345
- I Catalina I
509
00:20:16,615 --> 00:20:17,513
- I Catalina breeze I
510
00:20:17,783 --> 00:20:20,343
- I Catalina I
511
00:20:24,557 --> 00:20:25,717
IHaI
512
00:20:26,025 --> 00:20:28,721
i?
513
00:20:29,028 --> 00:20:32,896
[audience]
BJC! BJCI BJC!
514
00:20:33,199 --> 00:20:36,032
[cheers and applause]
515
00:20:38,070 --> 00:20:39,230
- �Catalina Breeze,"
516
00:20:39,538 --> 00:20:40,527
that's a song for the ages.
517
00:20:40,806 --> 00:20:41,602
- I Catalina breeze I
518
00:20:41,907 --> 00:20:44,398
- I Catalina I
519
00:20:44,710 --> 00:20:45,642
- I Catalina breeze I
520
00:20:45,945 --> 00:20:50,814
- I Catalina I
521
00:20:52,718 --> 00:20:54,413
- I suppose in retrospect,
522
00:20:54,720 --> 00:20:57,484
it's predictable that this was
going to self-combust
523
00:20:57,790 --> 00:20:59,655
when you have one guy
in the band doing everything
524
00:20:59,959 --> 00:21:02,257
and the other guy
just singing high.
525
00:21:02,561 --> 00:21:04,722
- I Catalina breeze I
526
00:21:04,997 --> 00:21:07,465
-IOhI
527
00:21:07,767 --> 00:21:08,631
- I Catalina breeze I
528
00:21:08,934 --> 00:21:11,801
-IOhI
529
00:21:12,104 --> 00:21:13,765
- Okay!
530
00:21:14,073 --> 00:21:15,267
-IOohI
531
00:21:15,574 --> 00:21:17,269
I Ooh, ooh I
532
00:21:17,576 --> 00:21:19,339
I Ooh, ooh I
533
00:21:19,645 --> 00:21:21,670
I Ooh, ooh I
534
00:21:21,981 --> 00:21:26,941
I Oh, oh, oh, oh I
535
00:21:29,155 --> 00:21:30,019
All right.
536
00:21:30,069 --> 00:21:34,619
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