"Top 40 Television" -- June of 1970. Anyone remember this?

[RadioJunkieMike]

In June of 1970 a syndicated show premiered on a handful of local stations around the country called "Top 40 Television". It was 3 or 4 hours of video versions of hit songs of the day -- some were actually promo films produced by record companies (a rarity back then) and many were cheaply produced by the syndicator. I remember a clip for "Turn Back the Hands of Time" that featured a guy danincing around in a Mickey Mouse mask, superimposed on a clock. In NYC it ran from 11pm to 3am Sat nite/Sun morning. And it lasted about 6 weeks before disappearing into oblivion.

Yes, this was a decade before MTV. I have Googled and searched but haven't found anything about it. I know I didn't imagine it -- anyone else remember it?

 

[Corky Marlowe]

The "Turn Back The Hands Of Time" video (Tyrone Davis, right?) sounds similar to some of the cheesy setups used on "Your Hit Parade" back in the day. I can see why this wasn't a hit.

 

[LKellerIII]

Actually, music "videos" (they may have been shot on film) weren't all that rare by the mid 1960s. You'd see them fairly often on local market teen dance party shows. For some reason, I remember seeing the video of Dizzy by Tommy Roe in 1969 on Robert W. Morgan's Groovy! show on KHJ-TV in Los Angeles. It was cheaply done with chintzy spinning kaleidoscope special effects ("Dizzy," get it?). Just as in the MTV era, they were a way for the record labels to get publicity for their new rock and pop hits on TV when the stars couldn't appear on the dance party shows in person to actually "sing" (i.e.: lip sync) their songs.

You'd also see music videos as filler on those network "summer replacement" shows like the replacement shows for Jackie Gleason and the Smothers Brothers.

 

[bk77]

Just as in the MTV era, they were a way for the record labels to get publicity for their new rock and pop hits on TV when the stars couldn't appear on the dance party shows in person to actually "sing" (i.e.: lip sync) their songs.

The practice was even used in COUNTRY music back then too, long before one had heard of The Nashville Network. Actually a good many of those old country videos from the 70's were shot at the now-defunct Opryland U.S.A. Theme Park in Nashville. Maybe Hee Haw showed some of those videos ( I don't remember ) but I know Pop! Goes the Country did. I still can remember watching the great Dottie West singing "I Was Raised on Country Sunshine" standing in front of the "Rock n'Roller Coaster".

 

[CrankyYankee]

While I don't recall "Top 40 Television", I do remeber finding a box full of 'filmed-songs-I didn't-know-by-groups-I'd-heard-of' while rummaging through the film library in the mid 70's at AFN-TV in West Berlin Germany. These were to be used as fillers I suppose, but I don't think any were ever used for that purpose while I was there. Each song/film was in it's own 5" box, labeled with the song title, group/singers name and length of the tune. They were called
"Records on Film", but I don't know if that was their official name or one given to them by AFRTS.

 

[searadiofreak]

I think many younger folks believe MTV invented music videos. Far from the truth. The genre developed over the decades preceding MTV, and in fact, there were many video-driven shows in Australia and the U.K. well before MTV. MTV actually came into the format late, but obviously became the premiere network for this form.

An early "real" music videotape, (not using traditional film), was Elton John/Kiki Dee's "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" in 1976. Often used as an example of the art that was to follow, albeit very basic and unlike the effects-driven videos of the early to mid 80's.

 

[Tim from Springfield IL]

In June of 1970 a syndicated show premiered on a handful of local stations around the country called "Top 40 Television". It was 3 or 4 hours of video versions of hit songs of the day -- some were actually promo films produced by record companies (a rarity back then) and many were cheaply produced by the syndicator. I remember a clip for "Turn Back the Hands of Time" that featured a guy danincing around in a Mickey Mouse mask, superimposed on a clock. In NYC it ran from 11pm to 3am Sat nite/Sun morning. And it lasted about 6 weeks before disappearing into oblivion.

Yes, this was a decade before MTV. I have Googled and searched but haven't found anything about it. I know I didn't imagine it -- anyone else remember it?

And interestingly, one month later--July 4, 1970--on radio was the national debut of Casey Kasem's "American Top 40."

 

[anotherguyTN]

This is very vague, but I thought I remembered as a kid seeing the equivalent of videos of the Beatles in the late 60's, possibly on the Ed Sullivan Show.

One of the earliest forms of songs on film would have been Soundies in the 40's They were shown on machines called Panorams that were the equivalent of a video jukebox. I had never heard of them until there was a PBS special on them a few years back. I got interested in them because of being a fan of Spike Jones and discovering he had several songs that were released on Soundies. There are several of them on You Tube.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soundies
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=soundies&aq=f
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=search_playlists&search_query=spike+jones+soundies&uni=1

 

[radiorob2.0]

It was around 1970 that Atlanta had a program that featured pop music with videos. I'm too lazy to check the google but I believe local radio DJ Skinny Bobby Harper hosted the program. At some point, it wound up on then WTCG and might have been syndicated.

 

[LKellerIII]

This is very vague, but I thought I remembered as a kid seeing the equivalent of videos of the Beatles in the late 60's, possibly on the Ed Sullivan Show.

One of the earliest forms of songs on film would have been Soundies in the 40's They were shown on machines called Panorams that were the equivalent of a video jukebox. I had never heard of them until there was a PBS special on them a few years back. I got interested in them because of being a fan of Spike Jones and discovering he had several songs that were released on Soundies. There are several of them on You Tube.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soundies
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=soundies&aq=f
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=search_playlists&search_query=spike+jones+soundies&uni=1

I'm almost sure Ed Sullivan never ran filmed material. You had to be on his set in front of his audience, actually singing live- no lip-syncing.

What you may be thinking of are the Beatles films (Hard Day's Night, Help) When you think about it, the individual scenes were set up very much like videos - you know, you'd hear the song while the Fab Four ran around London (or wherever) doing various hi-jinks. The Monkees TV show would certainly be another example.

 

[wbhist]

It was around 1970 that Atlanta had a program that featured pop music with videos. I'm too lazy to check the google but I believe local radio DJ Skinny Bobby Harper hosted the program. At some point, it wound up on then WTCG and might have been syndicated.

I know what you mean. The name of this show escapes me at this point, but it did air in the New York market on WPIX Channel 11.

 

[radiorob2.0]

Found it.....

http://www.thenowexplosion.com/

The Internet knows everything!

 

[wbhist]

Ah, The Now Explosion. I guess there's our answer then.

 

[Toledo Eleven]

Wow! I just watched the video clips from that show and although I never saw the show back then, it sure brought back memories of the songs. It was like I was listening to "The Big 8" (CKLW-AM 800 from Windsor, Ontario) because many of those songs were played on that station back then. Thanks for providing the link.

 

[oldschooler1]

This is very vague, but I thought I remembered as a kid seeing the equivalent of videos of the Beatles in the late 60's, possibly on the Ed Sullivan Show.

One of the earliest forms of songs on film would have been Soundies in the 40's They were shown on machines called Panorams that were the equivalent of a video jukebox. I had never heard of them until there was a PBS special on them a few years back. I got interested in them because of being a fan of Spike Jones and discovering he had several songs that were released on Soundies. There are several of them on You Tube.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soundies
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=soundies&aq=f
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=search_playlists&search_query=spike+jones+soundies&uni=1

I'm almost sure Ed Sullivan never ran filmed material. You had to be on his set in front of his audience, actually singing live- no lip-syncing.

What you may be thinking of are the Beatles films (Hard Day's Night, Help) When you think about it, the individual scenes were set up very much like videos - you know, you'd hear the song while the Fab Four ran around London (or wherever) doing various hi-jinks. The Monkees TV show would certainly be another example.

I bet he is remembering when Sullivan showed the "hello, goodbye" film. I remember that. It sticks out in my memory because he distinctly introduced it as the boys not being able to be there live, but here is film of them...

 

[CrankyYankee]

oldschooler said: "I bet he is remembering when Sullivan showed the "hello, goodbye" film."
And The Beatles also performed several times on 'Shindig' via film.

 

[Ultimajock]

I'm almost sure Ed Sullivan never ran filmed material. You had to be on his set in front of his audience, actually singing live- no lip-syncing.

What you may be thinking of are the Beatles films (Hard Day's Night, Help) When you think about it, the individual scenes were set up very much like videos - you know, you'd hear the song while the Fab Four ran around London (or wherever) doing various hi-jinks. The Monkees TV show would certainly be another example.

...actually, as early as (I believe) April 1964, Sullivan ran film of The Beatles performing "You Can't Do That" on the TV theatre set of A Hard Day's Night; there was even an ad taken out in Billboard and Cash Box by Capitol Records advertising the film's appearance (the ad is reproduced in the booklet of the Capitol Albums Volume One boxed set). There were also videotapes and/or films of several later singles -- "Ticket To Ride," "We Can Work It Out," "Day Tripper," "Paperback Writer," and "Rain" most notably -- that The Beatles specifically made to send to TV shows in the Americas, Asia and Australia/New Zealand, including The Ed Sullivan Show and (I believe) American Bandstand, prior to the 1967 clips...