The Doodletown Pipers were one of the primary purveyors of sanitary choral pop singing and dancing for television during my childhood. They specialized in the familiar, already-sanitary hits of the day, dressed up in perky matching outfits provided by Mister Marty Of California. They were very flexible: professional, but in a loose, green kind of way. Their stock in trade was enthusiasm, not precision. And you can bet that if a tight deadline was looming, they’d get their parts learned and be ready to hit their marks when the cameras were set to roll.
They served a vital function to producers of light broadcast variety entertainment back then. There is no need in the world to burden them with critical assessment that takes their work out of the context it was created to inhabit. “Functional” sums them up well. In fact, if you were to say that the Doodletown Pipers put the “fun” back in “functional,” you might reasonably expect to emerge with only a mild rebuke.
But back then in the sixties when I was a kid, I seriously didn’t get it. To see these automatons on television performing the hits of other artists with such seemingly empty-headed giddiness, I just assumed they were doing the originals a great disservice. Now I know better: having one’s material performed before any national audience would make even Bob Dylan giddy, or at least his accountant. I also know now that a cheerfully choreographed and costumed lip-sync is a mode of promotion far more forgiving of the audience than, say, herding them like cattle into vast mud-filled stadiums, or crowding them into fire traps devoid of breathable air in order to overcharge them for the pleasure of sustaining measurable hearing damage.
But hey, I was young then. I could be forgiven for my underappreciation of such great renditions of “The Rhythm Of Life” and “Don’t Rain On My Parade,” or for missing the pleasure found in their medley of Roger Miller hits, or their proprietary reading of such songs as “Hard Days Night” or “A Lover’s Concerto.” Also hidden in their repertoire are some terrific nuggets of sunshine pop. For me, one song stands out high above all the rest, one where dreams of of world where “cares are behind me” and “nothing reminds me of you” give way to scenes of Neptune’s kingdom and indigo blue. “Under The Sea” (not the “Little Mermaid” version) is as satisfying an anthem to suicide as you’ll find in any genre.
The DTP are no strangers to the blogosphere either. Their version of “Spanish Flea,” replete with lyrics, is a popular kitsch standout. They’ve also infested YouTube, if only peripherally, supplying dayglow human wallpaper to a clip from the Carpenters summer replacement series from 1971, “Make Your Own Kind Of Music.” Happily, I was able to find one additional clip of them, from an ASCAP broadcast in support of the March Of Dimes. But if that’s not enough for you, there’s always their recorded works:
Download “Here Come The Doodletown Pipers”
Alternate Link
Great choice, as usual! Thanks!
Damn, I’m late to the party!
Was a big Puppets fan back in the day & am a long-time strange/kitsch-music fan so I’m delighted to find this site. I’ve linked to it from my blog. Thanks, I see I have some serious downloading ahead for me tonight!
Welcome Mister Fab, and happy downloading!
Excellent! I have two vinyl copies of Sing Along ‘67, it’s one of my favorites, but this is the first time I’ve seen these posted anywhere. The Doodletown Pipers are vastly underappreciated. Thanks for sharing!
And of course, in my rush to meet my self-imposed deadline, I entirely forgot to mention how two of these albums are produced by Stu Phillips himself, he of Hollyridge Strings and “Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls.”
“Spanish Flea” was written with lyrics by that arch-Spanish team of Julius and Cissy Wechter. (Having a Herb Alpert song book means realizing that about three percent of the “Tijuana Brass” material was written by people with Spanish-sounding names.)
“Wechter” (of Baja Marimba fame) sounds about as Spanish to me as “Alpert!”
Their appearance in “Frank Sinatra Jr. With Family And Friends” (1969) performing “Cool Cool Water” in and out of the Caesar’s Palace fountain was sensational. And was there ever a more appropriately-named group? I just wonder how much personnel turnover there was. I have a complete set of the albums–found them all together in a thrift store, in shrinkwrap in mint condition–someone’s fastidious grandmother had obviously died. Even the dreaded Melachrino Strings records look good still in shrinkwrap when they’ve got vintage Zody’s 99 cent price tags on them.
You know I love that video clip!
I have a 4th Doodletown Pipers lp, a promotional compilation, on the DTP label. It has the same front cover as “Here Come…” but the tracks are compiled from all three of their Epic releases.
thanks for this wonderful music
My dad was in the Doodletown Pipers. Now he’s a real estate agent. I should show him all these websites that mention the group. Thanks!
I had two friends in the group, and they stayed at this as long as the group lasted. The DTP did serve as a bridge for the parents of the Boomer’s, they took music that the older generation would say no to under regular conditions and made it available and listenable to them. There was a lot of talent in the group that was wasted in some ways, and yet they did serve a purpose as that bridge to modern music for our parents. I wish we could have seen them do more than back up the stars.
Cynthia and Michael:
What are the names of the persons you know who were in the Doodletown Pipers? I probably know them (I was in the group from 1970 until 1976). Several of us have gotten together recently and discussed a possible reunion.
Tom McKenzie
Orange County, California
Cynthia and Michael:
I was in the Doodletown Pipers for about 7 years. Several of us have gotten together recently and discussed a possible reunion of members. Tell your ex-Doodletown friends and let me know if they would like to participate.
Tom McKenzie
Orange County, California