I have on my list of videos to search for a small handful of true treasures on my wish list. This is one of those, near the top. In fact, I've wanted to see it again ever since it aired on CBS television over 50 years ago, back on April, 1967. As readers of these pages know, I'm a huge fan of Michael Flanders and Donald Swann. They're a couple of British songwriters who had a hugely successful revue, At the Drop of a Hat, that played in London for a long time and then had a long run on Broadway. It was a collection of very funny, occasionally touching, odd, whimsical songs with lyrics by Flanders and music by Swann, tied together by wonderfully witty and erudite narration that was written and performed by Flanders, who also sang lead on most of the songs. At the heart of all this were deeply offbeat songs on all manner of subject, most famously some about animals and plants, and a long monologue that had something to do with a hat. Then, in the mid-60s, they did another show -- At the Drop of Another Hat. And it had similar success in London and on Broadway. With one added twist: a one-hour version of the show was recorded live for CBS. And this is that performance. O huzzah! There were two reasons I've looked so hard and hoped so much to find this broadcast. The first is because my recollection is that it was so wonderful. (And watching it again, that recollection holds true.) The other is because Flanders did not like television and did not want to appear on it much, and so there is very little video of the two of them performing, just their various albums. The few videos of them on TV tend to be snippets that came from this broadcast. So, having the whole thing, not snippets, is a total joy. I've posted the very few videos of them I can find, but it's very few. So, I've also been more limited to songs from their albums. In large part probably because there is almost no video material of them, Flanders & Swann aren't especially known, particularly in the U.S. But their two shows and the albums that came from them (and other albums) have kept their names alive. And a few of their songs, notably "Madeira, M'Dear" have been recorded by others. Happily, they perform that here. Michael Flanders is wonderful -- smart, funny, lowkey, whimsical, elegant, eloquent, witty and down-to-earth, a pretty good combination. He effortlessly wheels around stage in his wheelchair, the result of polio, so much so that it just seems natural. Swann is an accomplished pianist, with a classical background, and is generally low-key here, expect for having a wonderful laugh that echoes throughout the evening, an impressive feat given that he likely heard these jokes many hundreds of time. But he has a persona that, as quiet, owlish and professorial as he appears, seems like there is a crazy man buried underneath wanting to break out. What stands out in this production is not only how erudite Flanders & Swann were, but also how much they respected their audience to understand (or at least accept) their references. And what stands out, too, is that this was a time when television would put on such a smart, funny, different kind of TV broadcast as this. Oddly, they begin the evening with two songs with new lyrics written to existing (and familiar) tunes. Lest this give the wrong impression initially, this is very uncommon from them. Though they did write a few such songs over the years, the vast bulk of their work was completely original. Worth noting is that among his many credentials, Donald Swann also wrote a sort of song-cycle of music to the poems of J.R.R. Tolkien in The Lord of the Rings. In fact, he even sings one of those songs in this production, and what stands out is that he has to explain to the audience what The Lord of the Rings is. Also, Michael Flanders appeared in one movie. It was released in 1971 as The Raging Moon, but is also known as Long Ago, Tomorrow, The film was reasonably well-regarded (it has a 6.9 rating on iMDB), and starred Malcolm McDowell and Nanette Newman (the female lead in the wonderful The Wrong Box, written by Larry Gelbart and Burt Shevelove), along with Georgia Brown, who created the role of 'Nancy' in Oliver! on both the West End and Broadway. And it was directed by Brian Forbes, whose strong credits include The Stepford Wives, The Madwoman of Chaillot, King Rat, Seance on a Wet Afternoon, and the aforementioned The Wrong Box. I didn't see the movie at the time of its initial run, and haven't been able to track it down since. I haven't seen it scheduled on Turner Classic Movies (though it's in their database), and there isn't a DVD or streaming version available yet on either Netflix or Amazon Prime. But I live in hope. Hey, I lived in hope that this TV broadcast of At The Drop of Another Hat would show up one day. And finally, at long last, it did...! Know that this is only a smattering of Flanders & Swann. This broadcast alone is only about a half, probably even less of At the Drop of Another Hat. There's also their earlier show. And several albums. But though it's not a "best of evening," best of all it finally gives a view of who they are and what they did. Ignore the title below -- this isn't "the only" video of Flanders & Swann. But it's close to that. And most videos of them come from this. What it most definitively is is the longest, most complete video of them. And for that, it is an absolute treasure.
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AuthorRobert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting. Feedspot Badge of Honor
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