For me it was “Helter Skelter” because of the Tate’s murders. That song truly terrified me just because of the ties to Charles Manson. It was 40 years before I could hear that song and really listen to the lyrics. Now I appreciate it as a Beatles song and not to Sharon Tate’s murder. That was a very scary time during the Manson family murders.
Great interview Adam! This is Bill Kelly, the singer on the hit Timothy. Those were wonderful memories to share with my friend Rupert. If you’d ever like to hear my perspective on those days let me know.
Wow!! Incredible!! I remember my thoughts from back then when I first heard "Timothy"... " Those guys are super cool for singing that song!" "What a bunch of great guys!" I was 15 years old. Thank you for singing it and thanks to Rupert for writing it! (Didn't know he had written it until this vid!). Thanks Adam!!!
Please interview him. I grew up in the Anthracite Region of Northeast PA close to the town of Sheppton PA where 3 men were trapped for several days 300 feet underground. 2 were rescued alive but one Lou Bova was Never Found. This happened in 1963 and made National news. Equipment from Howard Hughes was used to drill a shaft to rescue the men. When only 2 of the 3 were rescued the rumor mill started about them eating him to survive. The song by a local Anthracite Coal Region band just filed the rumor mill. There was always the alternative theory of miners eating a mine mule to survive. Miners treated the mules with respect since they were partners underground hauling the heavy coal out. Miners often named the mules so this theory wasn’t so far fetched. Excellent song, it will be in my head tonight and I’ll be downloading it to my iPhone play list. Thank you to Rupert and to the Buoys for such an awesome catchy tune. Bill Kelly, do you still play live in Central / Northeast PA? I’d love to catch you live. Dave in Reading but from Frackville, PA. Listened to the song on local AM radio WMBT Shenandoah and WPPA WPAM in Pottsville PA during the 60-70’s.
The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald...the haunting tone at times ethereal, when mixed with Lightfoot's equally haunting narrative of this true story, rife with fear and apprehension, sweeps over and draws in the listener. I was at a concert of his in 1983-84, and we heard him in a symphony hall, and when he played this, you could literally hear a PIN drop!! Mesmerizing!!
I went to a Gordon Lightfoot concert at that time also. When he got on stage he told the audience to keep quiet. He said even if you want to hum, Don't. So everyone was quiet. He's talented but his appeal to the audience is dubious.
@@s.jackman7684 She's so wrong about him, he never chased fame however he DID have struggles with substance & his health, he's a humble soul nobody has ever talked bad about him in the music business, he made MANY famous besides himself. He probably has sensory issues (like an Autistic) he got the Hall of Fame award last year & truly deserved it. He has millions of adoring fans of all ages not just Boomers. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-_u0VL8QxYa8.html
I was very young in the 70's (born '71) and my youngest aunt and I loved 'They're Coming To Take Me Away' 🎶 Several people in the family thought it was "creepy".
I would without fail listen to Casey Kasem and then Dr Demento, it was the highlight of every week entertainment wise where most everyone first heard this song hoho haha hee hee to the funny farm where life is happy...I miss Dr Demento so much r. i. p. good public radio
I was born in 67 and I remember listening to the Doctor Demento show and he would play that song every so often. Good stuff, good stuff. The woke people would find something offensive about it today. They would not see the humor.
@@ddz1375 Woke people simply do not have a sense of humor. They're the biggest collection of easily offended, sociopathic and angry people ever known on earth. It's a shame for them, because decades ago, the music was what it was all about. The music was the soundtrack of our lives.
@@eucliduschaumeau8813 indeed music was the language we spoke and what spoke for us. So much poetry has been lost so many songs are banned by these tone death and humorless persons. All expression seems to be banned as well. I miss Echo & the Bunnymen, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Velvet Underground, Black Flag, Grace Jones and so many other talented artists. Ot seems the cut off date for good lyrics was 2004.
I've been listening to Timothy, a lot, since watching this episode. The other day, Escape was playing, in the wild, and I found myself singing, "If you like piña coladas... and eating friends in a cave..." It garnered odd looks on the sidewalk. Grateful for CA's mask mandate.🤣
Is that where they are going on their date after they drink Pina coladas, get caught in the rain, and make love on the dunes of the cape? Go to the cave and eat their friends!😱
I used to sing Timothy as a very young girl of 7years old.I had no idea what it was about then and I just now learned!How interesting!Thanks to Rupert and the Professor!
I remember when this song came out. I heard my friends talking about “Timothy” and was shocked when I found out what this song was about. It definitely creeped me out. But then the movie “Alive” came out about Uruguay's rugby team crashing in the Andes Mountains. Your perspective changes when it’s life or death. Timothy prepared me for real life stories.
When I was living in L.A. as a teenager, I remember hearing "Timothy" on 1110 KRLA-AM a couple times in the Spring of 1971. The #1 Rock station at the time, 93 KHJ-AM Boss Radio had banned the song and to my knowledge, never played it.
@@oldschoolrr6077 Now that you mentioned it I remember it was played a handful of times then our radio stations in Texas quit playing Timothy as well. I can’t even remember when I last heard Timothy on the radio.
What’s ironic, is that the actual plane crash was roughly about the same time. 1972, I think. The rugby team was racked with guilt, but eventually were forgiven by the Pope himself.
A couple of things - first off, Rupert Holmes is an absolute delight. Great sense of humor about himself, humble and always engaging. I always thought “Escape” was a cheesy song, but no one can argue with its success. Finding out about his early arranging career was eye-opening. Second - never heard of “Timothy” or The Buoys before today! I’ll have to go give it a listen. Now, for another creepy song to feature - I would love to hear an interview with someone from Bloodrock about their dark and scary “D.O.A.” A friend of my older sister brought that 45 to our house (slumber party I think) in one of those cylindrical carriers with the little handle on top. Plenty of pop records but then BAM. They put on D.O.A. and I had nightmares for a year.
I first heard it on FM100 in Memphis. I think, I was 12 or 13. I had seen some bad car accidents in our family travels. Every time I heard it, I would have flashbacks of those. Maybe, subconsciously, I pushed that song out of catalog of preferred listening. Lol
I had the FEELING it would be about "Timothy"! It came out when I was around nine, and my schoolmates talked about it incessantly! Some people were convinced in was about cannibalism, others said no way. Years ago, I read it was about a duck....what? Who in their right minds would bring a duck to a mine? LOL This man is so interesting....makes the Pina Colada song really fascinating again (I got so sick of it when it was a hit, haha) and then I found out he did the Edwind Drood B'way show, and I was amazed and remembered the lyrics to that late 70's song and how well constructed it was. Thank you so much for this!
You’ve outdone yourself Adam! Timothy is my favorite quirky song of all time. I had no idea Rupert Holmes was so multi-talented and diverse. How is it even possible that the composer of the Pina Colada song wrote Timothy? I remember spending hours calling the radio station in 1971 requesting Timothy. When I finally got through the DJ would try to talk me into requesting a different song- like Santa trying to talk Ralphie into a football instead a Red Ryder BB gun in a Christmas Story. “You’ll eat your eye out!”
I've always loved Rupert, but never knew he was such an accomplished composer and wrote so many songs. I'll definitely be digging deeper into his works.
Knowing what I Don't Like Mondays by Boomtown Rats was about and remembering the incident from the newspaper always kind of disturbing. I guess Into The Night by Bennie Mardones would be thought of being disturbing and probably wouldn't get airplay today.
Yeah always loved Into the Night and tried to ignore the real subject lol. But then Winger's song "Seventeen" has always creeped me out too. Kip Winger is as confusing as he is talented. At least the Into the Night guy didn't actually act on it, I don't think. But the guy in the Winger song did!
@@stevegallo8483 yes forgot about that one. The thing about Into the Night is that the guy sounds genuinely conflicted and tormented. The other guys don't seem to care.
I remember that song. It was well played on AM pop radio in its time. I had know idea later that the pina colada song was done by the same guy. What a full career. Sex Pistols got banned from the BBC, this guy invented the idea years before. True pioneer!
I was a kid when "Timothy" came out. It played a lot on the radio in Wilkes-Barre, PA where I grew up. It was different but it told a story. Nobody freaked out over it. And I used to love the "Galloping Gourmet." He was funny as hell.
The song "Into the Night" by Benny Mardones always seemed creepy to me. He was 33 when he wrote about a 16 year old girl, singing "I'd take you into the night and show you a love like you've never seen." Whenever it came on the radio, I couldn't change the station fast enough.
Holy crap, I JUST heard that song, tonight, on my way home. I’ve heard it a gazillion times, over the years, but tonight it was like I was actually HEARING the lyrics for the first time. I thought, “Oh my god, what the hell is this creepster shit?! This would never fly, if it came out today!” How on earth it never struck me as creepy, before now, I have NO clue! But then I stumble across this video, totally at random… I don’t even watch the video, but just start scrolling the comments… and here you are, talking about just the thing I was thinking, an hour ago!! Weird, man… weird.
I love this guy! Ya know it took me getting older before I realized just how talented he is. I had no idea when I would listen to “Escape” that he wasn’t just a one hit wonder. No idea. He’s a true gem. Enjoyed the video! ❤️💜💚
I knew you had mentioned this story was coming from Rupert. Glad to finally here what he had to say. Heard this song in my 20's. It was never played on any oldies station when I was growing up. I always loved the song, even with the lyrics. Great job, Adam!
@@ProfessorofRock You welcome! Also i'm glad Rupert finally set the record straight on the name The Buoys. Casey always would call the group, The Boys on the AT40's when they charted in 1971.
I was introduced to this song by a Chicago oldies station. The DJ, John "Records" Landecker, declared, "Nothing like a good old rousing song about cannabalism!"
I remember hearing Timothy on the radio many times as a kid and figuring out what it was about, but refusing to believe my interpretation was correct, for obvious reasons. Eventually I remember a DJ (I'm pretty sure it was Casey Kasem) confirming my suspicions. Of course, being a typical teenager, it made me love the song even more.
I started drinking Pina Coladas because of the Rupert Holmes song. When I was in 4th grade, I liked the song Timothy, but it wasn't until I was an adult that I realized what the lyrics were actually about and was very surprised that Rupert Holmes, the same guy who wrote Escape also wrote that song! Music is always full of surprises lol
Fascinating story and I have to say that I’d never heard of that song “Timothy” but now I have to check it out. That said, when I think of creepy rock songs (other than “Hotel California” & “People Are Strange”), I immediately think of “D.O.A.” by Bloodrock. Truthfully before I listened to this episode, I assumed that the Bloodrock song would be discussed.
"D.O.A." is a beautifully crafted song, everything in it is built around the notorious musical interval called the "tritone" aka "diabolus in musica". It's repeated on the organ, sounding like a European siren, and the intervals between the roots of the chords in the chord progression are tritones as well.
@@JamesJones-zt2yx spot on! Between this one and “Brain Damage” by Pink Floyd, I’m sure there were plenty of chilling nights listening to music during our youth
@@HOTTIUSMAXIMUS I did. Thank you for posting about it. I can imagine the song was a shocker. I just look at the Billboard top 100 for 1970 and there are songs like Close to You by the Carpenters and Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head. DOA could be the grandfather of the Horror Punk scene.
I wish Rupert was my uncle because I would hangout with him as much as he would let me. He can tell the most entertaining stories, the finest song about cannibalism ever written, lol. I hope there is more love these interviews with him.
I once won a bar trivia contest where the question was, "What is the name of the bar where the couple meet in The Pina Colada Song?" O'Malley's. There's a line in the song that goes, "At a bar called O'Malley's."
Yay! I knew from the title it was the Buoys. In their later years I followed them a bit when they’d come up from Pa to Rochester NY. Great bunch of guys to hang out with. Question though, how did D.O.A. From Bloodrock escape the censors? That was an even creepier 70’s song in my opinion. Timothy almost went over people’s heads with its rockin style. D.O.A. Was creepy from the first note
I caught this song the other day on one of the Sirius channels, and my almost 70 year-old brain immediately recalled it from 1971. What made it a great one-hit wonder was that it was a great melody. 3-chord rock at its finest. It received big-time airplay in Detroit on CKLW. Thanks.
Man, he is really great to listen to and thank you for being patient and not interrupting him. One of the reasons I became a recent sub. Great job...and still, wow...Rupert Holmes.
The scream in Love Rollercoaster (I was young and there was an urban legend)! Black Sabbath, No Quarter, Am I Evil?, Lightening Crashes and several songs by Toad the Wet Sprocket are those that come to mind at the moment.
I was a teenager when Timothy was released. I can’t speak for everyone, but the thing that grabs me first in any song I listen to is the music. Then around my 2nd or 3rd time listening, I start listening to the words. I remember it was a mystery among my friends who Timothy was. Lol. I think we thought at first it must have been a mule they ate, because who would eat another person. I don’t remember exactly when I found out it was another boy. But regardless of the subject matter, the song was awesome! I never knew that the same person wrote Pina Coladas, another favorite, but this man is really a musical genius and I hope he really knows how much entertainment he provided people with, with these two songs! Thank you!
Rupert Holmes is just the coolest and a superb songwriter. For anyone who digs Holmes' music, I highly recommend getting his box set "Cast of Characters - The Rupert Holmes Songbook," which includes Holmes remaking "Timothy," "Echo Valley 2-6809," and other tunes he passed on to other artists.
In my home town they played Timothy incessantly on the top 40 station. In fact, the KMEL top 40 list in the Wenatchee World put Timothy at number 1 for 9 weeks in a row. It was shocking, I didn't know anybody that liked the song. Years later I learned the truth from a guy that worked in the industry. The station manager was an alcoholic who regularly passed out on his desk. The inmates were running the asylum, and they got up to some pranks. They decided they wanted to knock Hey Jude out of the longest running number one song of all time spot, and they picked Timothy to do it. Since the chart wasn't based on sales, they could do whatever they wanted, and they did.
Partners In Crime is such an excellent album. I've never seen an interview with Rupert before so this was great to find. He's still as sharp and as clever as the songs he wrote.
I was born in 1967 and I listen to the radio as I grew up. I became a musician when I was younger as well growing up around a piano. I have never heard this song before in my life.
Loved Rupert! A kid in 79, just discovering music and top 40 radio, the Pina colada song was so darn catchy! Him was my favorite song for a while. Thanks for this, it is very nice to go back.
Wow, great story.I was a fan of Timothy, didn't know or really care who wrote it. Now that I'm old, the stories are great, kind of like putting a puzzle together.
The 70's song Emmeline from a English band. About a girl who didn't make it in show biz and um, "ended things". The guys scream at the end was chilling !
I literally just found you. This was just amazing. I love this and had no idea about Timothy. I was like two when it hit. But most every other song I knew. It's so cool how he stood up to be noticed.
My wife and I were blessed to know Jerry Hludzik, the bassist of the Bouys, and his wife Annie towards the end of his life and he was still very proud of Timothy!
Today, February 10, 2022, I'm 53 going on 54yrs and I just found out what the song Timothy was really about🙃 Get interview all news to me, remember the songs but I was very young when they came out... I love these kind of stories and getting the facts from the actual person it is about❤ Thank you for interviewing him🤗
This would be a great idea for a movie called Timothy where you flash back to the kids being trapped and the two surviving kids get old and are racked with guilt
I like Rupert’s other song Him also. It tells the story of a cheating woman and she needs to make a choice because no one gets to get it for free!! Rupert is a great story teller in his songs and his interviews.
After stumbling across your review of the disturbing D.O.A. by Bloodrock, I just had to search to see if you handled Timothy. You did not fail to satisfy!
I remember hearing "Timothy" around 1973 in Portland, Oregon. It was good story-telling, even if it is a bit grotesque. What I didn't know was that Rupert Holmes was the writer of the song. I know "The Pina Colada Song" of course.
Hey I remember a song called "DOA" by Bloodrock, around 71ish? A song about a plane crash. Our school had a jukebox in the cafeteria and everybody always played that, weird song to eat lunch by. That was creepy to me.
Awesome interview! Rupert Holmes seems to be one of the most down to earth and genuine people. I'm sure he's been interviewed about "Escape" hundreds of times and yet he gave very thoughtful and interesting answers. Not a speck of pretense in that guy!
However, radio stations played "Dancing In the Moonlight" by King's Harvest apparently unaware that its inspiration was a vicious gang attack that at least one source says involved a gang rape.
Amazing! Wow, I am sold on this vid alone!! Such incredible info from the man himself! Thank you! Thank you SO very much for this extra joy to go with his music!! I am now a subscriber, and true believer in your channel!
I was too young for Timothy, & tbh I didn't love Pina Colada the song, but didn't dislike it either when it came out - I was leaning into punk by the late 70s. But I remember wanting Rupert's glasses in the film clip, LOL. Great interview, I now totally admire Rupert's nascent punk sensibility, trying to write a song that will banned, and in a way more subtle, effective manner than any punk executed. Onya Rupert!!
For all who said “doa” by bloodrock. Thank you. The music from that song has been stuck in my brain for decades and I didn’t know who it was. Thank you thank you
Rupert Holmes produced a wonderful album for Barbara Streisand...She recorded a really good song that he wrote for her..Its called "Widescreen"..Its a favorite for me..another great story song with fantastic orchestration..She sings it majestically..
DOA by Bloodrock still creeps me out to this day. I heard it for the first time when I was 7 in 1974 ,my older siblings would play it To scare me😂Timothy by the Bouys gives me the creeps as well
They tried to push the idea that Timothy was a actually mule. It kind of made us less interested in the song. That song was later replaced by another shocker, DOA. It was about death in a terrible auto accident. It was terrible but we couldn't get enough.
That CCR cut was pretty end of the world and somewhat scary too. The thing I like about the Pina Colada song is that they weren't into the Current things
Not able to reply to the poll but here's my answer anyway: The song that most creeped me out when I first heard it as a kid in the early 1980s is Hamburger Lady by Throbbing Gristle. About 3 years after that Hell Awaits by Slayer, Procreation Of The Wicked by Celtic Frost, and Welcome To Hell by Venom (1983 At War With Satan version) all blew my mind and scared me when I first heard them all on the same day in spring of 1985.
This was a hell of a song. I remember listening to it over & over as a teen. What a trip of a song. This & Indian Reservation, Paul Revere & the Raiders.
The song DOA by the group Bloodrock in 1970 was also banned from many stations. Another song by them, Lucky In The Morning, is a great, quintessential rock song and one of my favorites of all time. Its lead guitar is awesome with great drums, and represents that rock era at its very best. Dead Babies (1971) by Alice Cooper is another banned but great song.
Thanks for reckonizing this song. I was 20 and convinced the editor of our university paper. It was Penn State University. The school paper was very STRAIGHT LACED! The editor was a student who already had her eyes on a Pulitzer, such twerp bi##ch. (FYI, she graduated, had a few children, and never achieved newspaper stardom!) I had a minor aquintence with Alice Cooper Group. "Eighteen" was the hit at the time. I got Alice Coopers group to agree to an interview. They were playing in Allentown PA. and the "Bouys" were supposed to be the opening act. However, during the drive from Wilkes Barre PA, the van broke down. Allentown is South of Wikes Barre. It is in some coal mining mountains. We heard them in a club the next night. I wrote both articles as "Timouthy" was OUTRAGEOUSLY good. I wrote two articles, neither got published, as they were both too weirdly controversial. Both bands were wild in different ways. PSU school paper never let me write on the paper, nor did they accept the articles. The one band disappeared the other band,well, "Alice Cooper," went on to fame and fortune. I was lucky to see both over two nights - such is life!
So interesting. ‘Timothy’ was an important song of my youth. But I wish he left the words as “Humphrey Bogart.” I think ‘pina colada’ telegraphed the twist from the opening verse.
My younger brother was in a radio broadcasting class in high school (late 70's) and as a punishment for a now Harvard-educated lawyer who was late to class, the Rupert Holmes song 'Him' had to be performed as a dramatic reading on one of their shows (on Skagit Valley College's KSVR Mighty 90 FM). Wish I had a tape- it was hilarious!
IM BACK! I just had to share that tonight we started season 3 of Channel Zero (this is our second time watching this show because we have caught up with everything else we want to see) and the first episode (Insidious Onset) of season 3 titled Butchers Block, was playing "Timothy "!! ......cool.
Dear Professor of Rock, you have a great channel! Thanks for all the info about songs/bands we know of and those we don't. Here's on example, for your consideration for the future: Root Boy Slim & the Sex Change Band w/the Rootettes. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Root_Boy_Slim Foster MacKenzie III attended & got kicked out of Washignton area private schools (like Sidwell Friends) so his parents sent to him St. James, a boarding school in Hagerstown. He later attended & graduated from Yale, where future Pres. GW Bush was a frat brother in DKE, and later banned MacKenzie for life from the frat house after graduation. After getting a degree form Yale, he began deriving a Good Humor truck in Washington. One day during the Nixon administration, he took a bunch of acid and climbed the White House fence, for Then he formed a band with his old frat brother Bob Greenlee, who was Yale's quarterback when Root Boy went there. Discovered by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen. First albums was produced by Warner Bros by Gary Katz, as a favor to Becker and Fagen (Katz was trying to lure then away from ABC at the time).
If a creepiest song of the 80's is ever chosen, I would say Silent Running by Mike & The Mechanics. It's terrifying and seems to be playing out in these crazy times.
they did not write any song to "get banned" it was likely and afterwards cover story after doing such a stupid dark song. you cannot plan or predict to write a song "to get banned" plus get air play then successfully get banned. it would be impossible
This is SO fascinating! I NEVER knew? I remember this song(Timothy) WELL! It DID have a cool groove to it. That's really all I ever paid attention to in that particular song! As far as "Escape" THAT too was always a favorite!!!
Bloodrock D.O.A. first thought. The "rumour" going in my middle school was that Timothy was written about the Uruguayan Rugby team October 1972 plane crash.
Where all my pals were loving pop and rock I was living stuff like this. It's the epitome of 70's cheesy, but it can't be topped anymore! Long live our musical cheese makers!!!!
