Quote of the Day: “Something always happens whenever we’re together/We get a happy feeling when we’re singing a song…” “Come On Get Happy” by The Partridge Family
For some reason over the last few days, I haven’t been able to get the lyrics to the Brady Bunch song “Time to Change” out of my head. I think it’s because I was flipping through an old journal recently and I came across an entry I wrote a coupla years ago about devastatingly blonde Eve Plumb and a memory I had about her Brady-busting role in the classic TV movie/cautionary tale Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway (not to mention her command return performance in the sequel Alexander: The Other Side of Dawn.) But I digress…
So I’m walking across campus the other day, singing “When it’s time to change you’ve got to re-arrange, who you are into what you’re gonna be! Sha-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na (sha-na-na-na-na)!” Then last night a buddy of mine compared himself to Marcia Brady to make one of his pop culture-saturated points about life and–coincidence? I think not–I knew that meant that WayBack Wednesday had to be a salute to the singing/dancing/superstar sextet who, if nothing else, taught us one of life’s biggest and best lessons–always be nice to the maid/nanny and never take her for granted. Otherwise you’ll get a mean, emotionally-empty, fun-hating lady named Kay to take her place and always sternly remind you, “But I’m not Alice. I’m Kay.” But again, I digress…
The Brady Bunch sang or put on a show as often as they could (remember that absurdly post-modern Snow White they performed in the backyard to raise money for retiring schoolteacher Mrs. Whitfield?) but it was with their wannabe pop group moments that they left their deepest impression on my suburban heart and mind. So I give you the Brady 6, getting down and funky as America’s (not-quite) Next Pop Star Family…
* “Dough Re Mi” from Season 3, in which Greg writes a song for the kids, but Peter’s voice starts to change right before they’re meant to go into the studio and launch Greg’s pop career–which wouldn’t have been a problem if they had Pro-Tools, right?–so Greg rewrites the number (such a nice big brother!) to incorporate Pete’s pubescent croaking into the mix…(They also sing a cute little ditty called “We Can Make the World a Little Brighter” in this episode). Don’t you just love Cindy’s white boots? And Greg’s so-mod-it-hurts suede jacket? I begged my mother for a suede fringed jacket after seeing Greg in his. She said no, because 5th graders didn’t suede fringed jackets to Ludlum Elementary School–what would the other mothers on the PTA think, for Christ’s sake? So I got back at her years later and bought one sophomore year at Brown, charging it to the credit card that I was only supposed to use for textbooks. I ended up slipping down in a Charlesfield Street puddle three days later and ruining my precious purchase. Suffice to say, after that, I started calling my mother “Mother Nature” because I was sure that my fall was her sorcery at work all the way from Long Island. (But, naturally, I digress…)
* “Ameteur Night,” from Season 4, in which the Brady 6 morph into The Silver Platters, in order to win a talent show and buy their wonderful understanding parents an anniversary present. I love Alice’s excited convo with Mrs. Brady: “The kids are on TV,” she shouts. “What kids,” says Mrs. Brady. “Yours!” shouts Alice. “His! Ours!”
Here’s the actual performance on the Talent Show. They lost. I think it was because 1) this song was NOT as good as the one they used to audition (see above!) and 2) those atrocious track-suit/twin sets they donned made them look like a lost Olympic team in search of an event. Such wasted potential…
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