The Cars - Shoo Be Doo/ Gimme Some Slack (Live On Fridays) 

Nobody gives enough credit to David Robinson, the drummer. He was awesome too

I knew these guys personally, worked for and with them for years. My then company, Audio Professionals of Boston, did the technical installation and support for their studio, SynchroSound, was in attendance through "shake It Up" and all of their solo albums. We kept it all running, if it stopped we made it start again and quickly. Somehow, after the smoke (and I do mean smoke, usually Hawaiian. Ric had the best weed in the known universe) cleared, I emerged having been awarded a platinum for "Shake It Up". It's hanging on the wall in front of me now, a reminder of remarkable times.

Keep these 5 legends immortal. Benjamin Orr. 22+ years gone. Way way to young. A legend. Ric unexpectedly. Still all of our youth tied into these 5. Now we're all senior citizens. Life far to short for my liking ......

Greg Hawkes still my all time favorite keyboardist of the '80s.... his sounds and textures pretty much defined the Genre of Synth Pop as its known....and... hes one of the nicest most down to earth people youd ever meet...

Elliot Easton didn’t do soaring Clapton-esque solos , The Cars weren’t about that. What he did do was create mini masterpieces the fit into a 3 minute song. Brilliant stuff..

Man, I’m gonna 55 next week and here I am digging this gem, what an incredible band this was! RIP RIC AND BEN ❤

The Cars were so ahead of their time...amazing talent

Can someone please invent a time machine so we can all go back in time to go see these guys?

What a great performance. As a drummer, I say David Robinson is criminally underrated. For me, ”Panorama” was a bold experimental album and is one of my top favorites. The Cars liked to play on the Fridays show and put in some top notch performances.

The bass and drums are just crazy 😜 good!!

Rick looked So Happy in their performance, Giving a Smile as they exit the stage as a band! I Loved the Cars.....

Ben looks super fantastic in this video. Just wish I could see more of him.

This song shows the talent of Dave Robinson tremendous drummer

Man, they killed it! Ric was on fire on this one. I think that's the most I've ever seen him move on stage.

They were all fantastic musicians.

Ric singing,Ben singing,Its all THE CARS to me.....Love it!

David Robinson is a great drummer 👍

I've watched this many times now. A live performance of "Shoo Be Doo" is a treasure indeed! And I've always loved the lyrics to "Gimme Some Slack". I wish "Candy-O" could have fit into the segment as well. This performance shows off some things that get overlooked: Ben was a _great_ bassist! Because he sang so well, and was so good-looking, people forget he could also play the hell out of that instrument! Look how busy he is on "Shoo Be Doo"! David was a total _powerhouse_ drummer. You'd expect him to have bulging biceps. "Gimme Some Slack" looks like a real _workout!_ Can you imagine playing that song on drums, and then going on to play five or ten more songs for a full concert? I'd be exhausted! (Not that I can drum worth a damn anyway.) Ric was pretty clever with his rhythm guitar parts. He mostly plays simple power chords, but "Slack" varies it up a little bit, although they're all two-note figures. And I admire a songwriter who can stay on one chord (for the chorus) and keep it interesting. As an amateur songwriter, I can't. I feel boring if I don't change chords. Of course, Greg and Elliot are always majestic with their instruments, but I just felt like pointing out some other things. I think people think of the Cars as an automated, sequencer-oriented band. Which they partially became with _Heartbeat City,_ using drum machines and synth bass. But for MOST of their career, they were just a tight band that could just PLAY with near-mechanical precision! And that was perfectly appropriate for the music they made, and the era in which they made it! They were both popular and artistic. What more can you want from a band?

And this folks is how you play live music! Fabulous job!!

First time seeing this performance - it exudes a Kinetic Coolness. These guys had quite the repertoire - a retro vibe married to a new wave sensibility. Blessed to be from Boston...

David Robinson killing that hi-hat! RIP Ric and Ben, damn I miss you guys! Thanks for leaving all that great music!

This band was consistently good from beginning to end.

Can't imagine growing up, so to speak, without The Cars..... Can't imagine life without The Cars! These guys were AWESOME! Always will be!

I wasn't a big Cars fan but I knew they were really good and had a bunch of great material. I am old and wise now and clearly see The Cars as one the best and most influential band of the 1980s . . . and beyond. This is an incredible performance. Thank you for posting it.

RIP Rick and Ben...we all miss you and the Cars!!!

That's the most animated Ric Ocasek has ever been.

Just unbelievably good. Gracious.

Fuking awesome! all playing the heck out of their instruments!

Cool, animated performance. Tight and concise performance here. I love it when Shoo Be Doo goes into Candy O on their second album...such a great transition.

I've seen the Cars a few times and Ric has never shown more energy than this performance. What a gem to catch Shoo Be Doo as well.

I love how this showcases Ben Orr. Man he could play that Bass!

WOW!!! They were all firing on all cylinders for this performance, which really showcases Ben's superior bass playing and David's great drumming. Elliot is having a ball and just excellent as usual, and I've NEVER seen film of Ric so animated, ever.

When you SAW pics of this band, you knew what they’d sound like, and vice-versa. Perfect melding of a sound…and a vision. Just great.

Watched this the night it aired on tv many many years ago. So happy to find it here.

I LOVE this whole thing. Hot music, and Ben ....holy shit! What a gorgeous man. I love him with darker hair.

It’s interesting the cross pollination that went on at that time. Panorama was very DEVOesk. Course they all knew each other, having the same manager and all. RIP Ric and Ben. Wishing Elliot, David and Greg well. Thank you, gentlemen, for your awesome music.

Saw them in 1980 at Madison Square Garden when I was still in high school. It was right before Christmas. They sounded amazing. Rare combination of great studio albums and being able to play their songs live.

These guys are not afraid of changing things up pushing the band beyond the envelope that contains them. They are the greatest!

Quite a collection of weird dudes. Nobody can accuse The Cars of trying to imitate anybody else. They are original.

Saw the cars in boston in the late 70 's at the music hall in boston....candy o was their newest album....loved them then but never imagined how timeless they would be....ide give anything to be at that concert one more time

gosh do you think Eliott is having fun! he's all over the place, love it!

They were the complete package. They were pros in playing their instruments, good singers, original songwriting, cool as ice and as a bonus the handsome Ben Orr.

Ric doesn't get enough props for the wonderful songs he created, but Ben was simply a rock god and looked like cool.

To those who dont think Ric moved around much---when I saw em on the Panorama tour he came twisting and turning onto the stage like a whirling dervish. It was really cool--the guys got moves! I think the guitar just had him tied down on most tunes--plus he was singing and had to stay close to the mic. Man I wish I could re-live that concert! I saw em in Chicago and also Detroit on that tour.

This was my first introduction to see this band play live, WOW-I thought they were absolutely amazing and I went out the very next day & bought "Panarama" and I've been a diehard fan ever since! I had heard the song "Let's Go" at the skate rink the previous year, and liked it. However this performance made me a true fan-for-life! Rest in peace Ben Orr, glad they finally made it into the RRHOF. Which was definitely WAY over due! I still love'em, still listen to them all of the time. NEVER get sick of their killer tunes!

I love watching Ben play bass in gimme some slack. Everything about him makes me shiver.

this feels like it was dropped in from an alternate universe

GREAT musicianship

The 80s definitely had the coolest driver license pictures of any decade. The fashion was so freaking hip.

Benjamin is here so sweet. They all were so great, each one was incredible.

New Wave at its best...! No doubt... The Cars... Tremendous live performance....!

holy crap that rocked!

Thank you for sharing this. I’m on a Cars moment. Listening to there older stuff( greatness) is all I can say. They are so tight! Wish they were still with us. Really would have loved to seem them live.

I've never heard this one before, that was pretty cool, I like the pace and the base/drummer were killing it especially

This is a great video. Awesome songs and seeing Ric and Elliot jamming out together is priceless 🤘🤘

I forgot how much I liked this song(gimme some slack). Simply awesome!

First life show I’ve seen of them. Oh, how I adore Benjamin Orr and the lyrical suave Ocasek

Thes two songs, in my opinion, epitomize the Cars just Classic Cars!! They are all so great! And look at Ben in the back in leather and those awesome white shoes. All he has to do is stand there and play and that’s enough for me!

This is one of their most underrated JAMZ!!!! They were Rocking the F*ck OUT!!!!!!

Sick playing by all, but Greg Hawkes really shines here

I wish I'd been a twenty something in this era. Man, these bands were freakin fantastic...Benjamin looks so hot here and love how Ric moves too! Bring back music like this! Awesome! 😄😄

I just can't take my eyes off Ric! Go man, go!

I'm probably one of the biggest Cars fans there is, so much so that I sorta held myself back from exploring other groups. because I believed the Cars could do no wrong. I can still remember like it was yesterday. when I was driving along in my car and "My Best Friends Girl" came on the radio. and I instantly knew this was the group for me. before the song finished I had already turned my car around, and headed for the music store. and bought the first album of course on cassette tape. because I had a AWESOME stereo in my car, and the only way to listen to the Cars was cranked up really loud on a killer stereo. and I went to my best friends house and we listened to the whole tape. and I guess I made him a huge fan of the Cars also. but I will still remember that moment when I heard "My Best Friends Girl". I knew for sure I would be a life long huge Cars fan. and every year when they would release a new album. I would be right at the music store and would snatch it up and every time. I was never disappointed, there are some that might say I'm obsessed with the Cars. and I probably am I considered them to be probably one of the best groups ever. I have every album they ever released, including the solo works by Ric Ocasek and Benjamin Orr. and even the Anthology. I know every song and all the lyrics down to the letter. if I were to have to pick just one song as my favorite song. it would be very difficult because they had so many great songs. but my ultimate favorite song would be "Dangerous Type". but like I said there were so many great songs I can't leave out "Best Friends Girl", "Let the Good Time's Roll", " Double Life", "Let's Go", "Your All I Got Tonight", "Candy O", "Shake it Up", "Round and Round", "You Might Think", "Drive", and "Magic", and the list goes on and on. the Cars will always rule in my book. there is one thing I have to mention, and that is I have only known of two musicians who had this incredible effect on women. and that would be Marc Bolan with T Rex, and Benjamin Orr with the Cars. a person could say they had it going on. it was definitely sad and a shame when Benjamin Orr and Ric Ocasek left us they are definitely missed.

Elliot & Greg look like brothers ! Look @ Elliot rocking out ! David too ! Pretty, pretty, PRE-TTY GOOD

i cannot think of one ' bad ' cars songs, they were that good

Just amazing. Thank you!

These guys were so Good!!!!! and So Young!

These five fit together perfectly for those 10 years.

Love this. I remember "Fridays" and certainly The Cars (and Van Halen.....& The Stones).

the cars were such a special band in rock paving the way for keyboard rock (new wave) RIP(benjamin orr)

I'm remember hearing this in 1980 o r 1981 on a number of local rock and roll stations and it had a very catchy backbeat but didn't play that long. This is a real under - rated gem.

Watched this when it aired live. Was so confused and amazed that they played Shoo Be Doo. (Loved it of course!)

That Shoo Be Doo was 🔥

cars will remain awsome. all of them were nice looking. Ben- THOSE EYES!- Ric-thoses legs go on forever. aw the music, every song they do is wonderful! Thanks for the video. love it!!!! :-)

Great energy on this set!

Animated, artistic and cool. Very happening music! Energetic. Enough to get anyone who can't swing, to feel like swinging like a monkee in a tree.

It's true musicianship at its best when some nerdy looking Boston guys get together and change music history. All the cars band members were talented musicians.

Brilliant! 💪💪

Touch and go was the only hit off of Panorama but if you ask me Gimmie Some Slack should have been the hit too. It’s a favorite of mine for the all out fast pace it has and this live performance shows it.

Wow..."Gimme Some Slack" looks like a lot of work to play! Damn they were TIGHT!

Back when comedy was good and music was even better.

What I'm getting the most out of this viewing is The Cars fashion sense, and how they always played very cool, unique instruments. Not the ones you regularly see. Odd instruments and shapes. In this performance, they're all dressed in black and white, and they're coordinated. Easton has a shirt with stripes that go across, Orr has a shirt with stripes that go down. It's a band that didn't go out there dressed like The Beatles. They're kind of more like The Who, when they were mods, and just as fashionable. They all dress differently, but you put it all together, and it says BAND. That's cool. (I do wish Ocasek had let Orr and Easton start writing more Cars material. Not saying he didn't allow them, but by Heartbeat City / Door to Door, maybe it was time for him to step back a bit. He'd shown he was a hit maker.)

"I wanna float like Euripides, All visions intact. I'm alright with Fellini fiends. A trippin' over the track"

Wow, what a TERRIFIC performance of this song by the entire band!! Miss them so...

LUVED THAT SHOW

Haven't heard this song for decades!!! Thanks for posting!!

I really like they are wearing the black and white theme of the Panorama album covers. I know it's just a visual, not musical, aspect, but The Cars were also fashion icons.

Nobody puts Benjamin Orr in the corner....

Love this band, and this show was awesome

The CARS marched to their own Drums. Hard to ignore...who would want to?

These guys are hammering!! Love this band.....1977 to 2022

Rick was a songwriting machine.

Easton's solo at the end of this song is a prime example of his talent as a true musician. It is simple, concise, and perfect for the song as all his solos are also. From what I understand, he was a rhythm and blues guitarist before The Cars picked him up, which makes sense listening to his solos. Only a blues musician could think of such riffs.

This is the first time I have heard these 2 songs. These are the most upbeat songs I have heard or seen them perform. I think The Cars musicianship really stands out on these 2 songs. Ben Orr was great on bass. Ric was tremendous on lead guitar. Greg and Elliot are the 2 whose skills I think you usually notice the most. But on this song I think it apparent that David Robinson takes a backseat to nobody as a drummer. Put thiese song on my save file. R.I.P. Ric and Ben.

Straight from Wiki for younger gens that may need the names of these AMAZING ICONS from my illustrious childhood, teens, now into my adult years. Still love these guys ❤️ American rock band formed in Boston in 1976. Emerging from the new wave scene in the late 1970s, it consisted of Elliot Easton (lead guitar), Greg Hawkes (keyboards), Ric Ocasek (rhythm guitar), Benjamin Orr (bass guitar), and David Robinson (drums). Ocasek and Orr shared lead vocals, and Ocasek was the band's principal songwriter.

Excellentissime Musiciens et son hors pair.

RIck has said many times that writing just comes to him when the mood hit and he could get several done with no thought of who would sing what. He and Ben would go over the songs and say hey you sing this one and I will try this one. The band would get together and put it all together. There was no problems with any of that.

nice bass line......thats some speedy pickin'

Saw em twice on this tour. Chicago and Detroit. Had my station wagon loaded to the hilt w all my stuff---was on my way back to college at Northwood Institute in Midland Michigan. When I pulled into the parking lot at the outdoor arena in Chicago the Cars pulled in at the same time as me--in the lane right next to me. Pretty fucking cool. The windows were tinted but I could still tell that a couple of em waved to me as I drove side by side w them for about 90 feet. Always was a HUGE fan---always bought the records the day they came out. Damn I wish I could time travel and see that show again----even though it rained like hell and I was not under the canopy. I remember people having a blast sliding down the wet grassy hill into a foot of water at the bottom. We were all completely soaked but enjoying the hell out of the Cars. As I had arrived at the show early I got to hear Greg Hawkes screwing around on his synths---or maybe it was the roadie---who knows---but they were cranked and sounded awesome. I need the joy back in my life that I felt in those times. Music was SO much better.

“Panorama” got killed by critics and sold significantly less than their first two albums. I love it and probably prefer it to “Candy-O” and “Shake It Up.”