Pop songs in early years

[SesameMike]

In the first few years of Sesame Street, they used to have muppet skits with regular popular songs. These songs were not modified to teach something, e.g., "Hey Food" for "Hey Jude", but had the actual lyrics minus a modification or two.

Four of these skits were based on songs by the Beatles. They were: "Help!", "Yellow Submarine", "Octopus's Garden", and "The Word". Other songs included:

• "Up up and away" by the 5th Dimension. A boy-muppet sings this while in a hot-air balloon. A bird "pops" the balloon, and a girl-muppet flying an airplane rescues him.
• "Swinging on a Star" by Bing Crosby. This one had Susan placing body features on blank muppets as the song went, e.g., "Or would you rather be a pig." It ended with her bringing out a large 5-pointed star.
• "Windy" by The Association. A Farley-like muppet sings this alongside a rare monster with bat-like wings. These were the "wings to fly" mentioned in the song. At the end the monster flies in a few circles before wiping out.
• "Luno's Back in Town" by Fats Waller. My memory is spotty on this one, but I think it too had the Farley-like character singing with a monster somehow involved.
• "If I Knew You Were Coming I'd Have Baked A Cake" by Eileen Barton (from the 1950 pop charts) Cookie Monster visits Ernie and asks for a cookie. Ernie responds by mixing and baking a cake. As he takes it out of the oven , Ernie asks CM to make a wish. He says "I wish it were cookie". CM "ate" this cake by essentially pounding it with his fist. Ernie's final "How ya do, how ya do, how ya do" was responded with CM's "doin' fine, doin' fine, doin' fine."
  Note: This song also made a cameo in the "Birthday Cookie" skit. The baker was singing it to himself before Cookie Monster entered the bakery.
• "Consider Yourself" from the soundtrack of "Oliver". This was after Gordon (Robinson!) made four blank muppets into a nuclear family. The "drinks are on the house" line became, ahem, "soft drinks".
• "Sing" by The Carpenters. (I think this appeared on the show). I was told once that The Carpenters took it from Sesame Street, not vice-versa. Note that the Carpenters version has an extra verse.

 

[fuzzygobo]

cool tunes

There was also Bob singing "Good Morning Starshine" with a bunch of hippie Muppets. I thought it was really cool the way they sang it against a black background, and then at the end the lights fade up to give the illusion of dawn breaking. Bob points out to them, "Look! It's the sun!" And they all gaze in wide-eyed wonder.

Also from Season 1 the same bunch of hippie Muppets did a cover of "Spinning Wheel", which at the time was a big hit for Blood, Sweat and Tears.

Some of the above haven't been seen for decades, and I'd give my front teeth to see them one more time.

 

[DanDanStrawberry]

I seem to remember "I Just Wanna Brush My Teeth" to the tune of "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!"

 

[BlueAM]

Or would you rather be a mule?

[*]"Swinging on a Star" by Bing Crosby. This one had Susan placing body features on blank muppets as the song went, e.g., "Or would you rather be a pig." It ended with her bringing out a large 5-pointed star.
[/list]

Can you describe what these blank AMs looked like, please? I'm trying to help out the Count with his listings.

Thanks again, and have a good night!

BlueAM

 

[Xerus]

I also remember 4 anything Muppets singing a famous Dick Van Dyke song. "I Am A Fine Musician."

 

[Klonoa]

"Cereal Girl" always cracked me up.

--Klonoa

 

[MuppetDude]

A number of these songs can be found on Unpaved:

Consider Yourself--Episode #1
Loulou's Back In Town--Episode #43
I Am a Fine Musician/"A"-You're Adorable/Good Morning Starshine--#54

 

[SesameMike]

Beatles songs

Beatles songs from the earlier years:

"Help!" -- In an apartment setting, a boy/young man muppet on the telephone exclaims "Help, I need somebody" after he is turned down for a date. As if in response, a monster enters the room and chases him round the place as he sings the rest of the song.

"The Word" -- A boy muppet sings this song with hippie and/or monster muppets around him as backup. With each chorus, they pile a rectangular block bearing the word LOVE, per the song lyrics, on the wall.

"Yellow Submarine" -- the usual contingent of monsters sing this song inside a huge prop of a yellow submarine. On the last refrain, the submersible has turned into a party atmosphere, with a lead in sound of party horns and/or those birthday tube things you blow on to unroll laterally.

"Octopus's Garden" -- The setting is an undersea locale, with a bluescreen of a real aquarium chroma-keyed in the foreground. A muppet, possibly in scuba gear, sings the first verse. He gives the second verse to a fish muppet, and the third verse to a clam muppet. All three sing the final refrain. Someone reported a hanging octopus puppet making an appearance as well. Of the four Beatles "videos" mentioned here, this was the only one I remember seeing beyond the first couple of seasons.

 

[mikebennidict]

I seem to remember "I Just Wanna Brush My Teeth" to the tune of "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!"

well that was in the 80s.

 

[mikebennidict]

I also remember 4 anything Muppets singing a famous Dick Van Dyke song. "I Am A Fine Musician."

i saw that Dick Van Dyke episode years ago when i of our local channels in the Chicago area was showing it's reruns. of course i doubt it originated from that show.