I watched The T.A.M.I. Show the other night -- was it last night? -- and was blown away. How did I ever miss this "movie"? It turns out there's a good explanation, but you will see that later.
But I was curious. So, as I tell the granddaughters, if something doesn't make sense, google it or follow the money. In this case, I googled it: ranking all-time concerts tami monterey pop woodstock.
This is what popped up: from Flavorwire, the 45 greatest concert movies of all time. Wow. I immediately scrolled to the bottom (or the top of the list):
#1: Woodstock. That doesn't surprise me, but after seeing The T.A.M.I. Show I would place the latter #1 and Woodstock, #2.
#2: The Waltz, Martin Scorcese's documentary, but it's too choreographed. In my book, drops down a few notches.
#3: Stop Making Sense, good choice, can't disagree.
#4: The T.A.M.I. Show
After that, it's a long, long "fall" to #5. I find it amazing how few really great "rock documentaries" there have been.
Monterey Pop: #10.
Biggest surprise: Freddie Mercury's Barcelona not on the list.
So, back to the question, how did I ever miss The T.A.M.I. Show? From the linked article:
Lost to rights disputes for decades, long beloved but seldom seen except
in snippets, this near-perfect concert finally made its official,
authorized DVD debut a few years back, and good gravy does it hold up.
And this is why it is #1 in my book:
But it’s more than just a good concert film; it captures a moment of
cultural and musical explosion. It’s a document of post-Elvis aural
integration (nay, miscegenation) — all styles are welcome, from Motown
to Mersey, R&B to funk, surf to blues, pop to garage, whatever moves
the teen audience, whatever makes them scream, it’s all rock and roll.
Within the context of what was happening in the country at the moment
(the concert was mere months after the disappearances of James Chaney,
Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner in Mississippi, as well as LBJ’s
signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964), some of the film still has a
subversive kick to it.
Those white girls in their little bikini bottoms
shaking it behind the Motown groups must have been a racist’s nightmare
come to life, to say nothing of Chuck Berry singing “Sweet Little
Sixteen” leeringly as a pert, foxy blonde preens behind him (the moment
is even more incendiary in the afterglow of his 1962 conviction for
violation of the Mann Act).
And bottom line -- even Flavorwire suggested it should have been #1.
In October 1964, Motown was on the rise, the
Beatles had taken over the world, and all bets were off — and, without
even intending to, The T.A.M.I. Show may be our greatest
document of that specific, ebullient moment in American music and
American life. And it’s got the best James Brown footage ever, period.
The best reason, possibly, it didn't have the Beatles, nor did it have Elvis Presley. The acts superseded Elvis Presley by this time; and, the Beatles, at this time, were singing bubblegum teenage fun songs and would not have fit into this show. At all.
Later, from a reader:
Over at Amazon:
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College FootballI'm not watching it, but I see there is some college football on today.
Confirms my feelings that the Big 10 and the PAC-12 really, really fumbled this one. Those football players they were worried about? They are all down at the local sports bar watching what could have been. And exposing themselves to a lot more risks than had they stayed on campus to play football.
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Kentucky Derby
On now. On mute. Love the masks on the horses. Just kidding. But any number of men wearing masks below their noses. What a joke. Non-stop commercials -- that's why it is on mute. How long has this been going on this afternoon? Three hours so far, for a three-minute spectacle?
But at least, unlike the Big 10 and the PAC-12, they're "playing."
I had forgotten this many horses raced in the Kentucky Derby: fifteen horse are running; three of the original eighteen scratched.
