Howdy Doody

I have many, but this is perhaps my most favorite cartoon ever
drawn by my buddy Lloyd Goldfine!!...

Daisy House - Superman (the video!)

If you follow this blog (you do, don't you? Please tell me you do...) you've probably seen the posts where we've announced Daisy House (a Long Beach, California folk-rock band consisting of Tatiana and Doug Hammond) covered a couple of Out Of Bodies tunes - firstly, Dan's "Willow" and then more recently, "Superman".

Well, we're quite happy to announce that they've just released their third album, "Western Man", which features BOTH of those songs - and they've even made this video for "Superman" for you all to enjoy! Discernible ears will pick up that both "Willow" and "Superman" are slightly different mixes than the versions we've previewed on outofbodies.com!...

Superman

Like a song from long ago
like a love letter
Like a swan the summer goes
like a superman…..

Life's a song that can't go wrong
Do you remember when
you'd go, wherever you'd want to go my friend…Superman?

The life you know is on the go
like no other
Like a lovely summer ghost
like a superman…..

Life's a song that don't last long
there's no time to pretend
so go, wherever you want to go, my friend Superman

Like a robin on the wing
with no master plan
just Go…wherever you want to go again….Superman, superman.

Life’s a song that don't last long la la la laaa
life’s a song that don't last long
life’s a song that don't last long
life’s a song that don't last long 

The Out Of Bodies - Stripped... Naked

Well, since people have been begging for some "NEW" Out Of Bodies content on this website I have decided to oblige the masses by going back into the OOB vaults, once again, and dig real deep... What I've come up with this time is something I've found from as way back as 28 years ago! Hence the quotation marks around the word "NEW"! - - It's hardly new, but it's new to YOU folks!

Also mixed in there were a few audio snippets found randomly, which were recorded - more or less - around those same years... and then it hit me... Where have I heard something like this before? Aha! I know, there's a Beatles CD I have called "Let It Be... Naked" which is a 2003 remixed and remastered version of their 1970 "Let It Be". When this CD came out it included a bonus disc called "Fly On The Wall" - which contained candid spoken dialogue among the group and additional song excerpts. So THIS is, if you can just stretch your imagination for a few moments, the Out Of Bodies version of that similar concept... The Out Of Bodies raw... no overdubs, no rehearsing, not even a single lyric sheet... just one big improvised mess!! (Wait a minute, did I just say mess out loud?)

When Dan heard it he wrote me "That was fun, so many gems that we done, it's unbelievable, that "I Call Your Name" Bones-style was really good! I'm adding this to my youtube channel, give us more, give us more, Ha Ha!!!"

And so I DO plan on making more of these... there's always plenty of these little Out Of Bodies surprises lying around the bottom of the barrel! Stay tuned - - and enjoy!!

The mystery of the strange man with the light weight trunk

And now it's time for yet another Out Of Bodies mystery (courtesy of my pal, Dan Banic... who is FULL of unsolved mysteries!!)...

I don't know where to begin here except to say I have no idea what this song of Dan's is about. Something about a Chinese man carrying a light weight trunk handing out candy to little children... wha-WHAAAAT???

Dan also made this little video, which similarly creeps the bejeezuz outta me. I'm not sure why, but it might have something to do with that awful attempt at a Chinese accent Dan does when the character in the song is handing out candies... "Here's some candy for you too - everybody get candy! Ooooh, I didn't leave you out! Here's candy for YOUUUUUU TOOOOOO!!!!"

Then there's the subtle mix-ups which I can only assume were non-intentional - where the song references a Chinese monk, but then mentions Japan? And that part that goes "I'm so sorry-NARA!" (Sayonara) - that's Japanese for "goodbye" isn't it? And what's in that light weight trunk? What frightens me even more is that I'm even spending a minute pondering this!

Oh, I'm so Confucious!!....

Anyway..... enjoy.... I think.......

Norman's back... again...

Oh good... I was wondering a while back what happened to the A&E Bates Motel series... it went into some sort of hiatus, I lost track of it, it came back, I didn't notice - and then by the time I did it was gone again... I even fell behind with the story ...which if you've watched the series you'd know that's a very easy thing to do, with it's whole sub-plot involving some seedy underground pot farm operation - which seems neither integral to the story nor interesting...

But they've just released a quick teaser for their upcoming season 4, which promises to begin this March 7th at 9/8c - so with a fresh season come new beginnings... or new endings......

The show's also been renewed for a 5th season - which is one of those good/bad scenarios... Good because, well, it's more Norman Bates... but bad because it could also be an indication that we won't be seeing any events which cross-over into the Psycho movie until the end of season 5 - so what's to hold our interest throughout the two final seasons leading up to it? Certainly not Norman's half brother, Dylan, who in spite of his good intentions to help out Norman and to re-connect somehow with his estranged mom - is as interesting on-screen as watching paint dry. 

Add to that other characters which barely hold my interest; Emma with the oxygen tank, Bradley who's father gets toasted (literally) by the drug trade he's involved in - and who herself eventually gets killed by Norman in his mother's persona for convincing Norman to run away with her, Sheriff Romero - good cop/bad cop - who sometimes holds a striking resemblance to Anthony Perkins, Caleb (father of Dylan, Norman's brother - who is also the incestuous brother of Norman's mother Norma)... in short, Bates Motel is a show which is much easier to hate than it is to love...

...and yet I watch...

David Bowie, and may God's love be with you

 

What a bummer it was to wake up on a chilly monday morning, dragging myself out of bed to get ready for work (that alone can cause me to crawl right back under the sheets) - - only to find out that David Bowie - a major contributor to the soundtrack of my life and a gigantic influence on The Out Of Bodies - had passed away only a few hours ago. It wasn't publicly released until now that he had been battling cancer for about a year and a half - and according to his long-time friend and record producer Tony Visconti, Bowie wanted to leave his fans with a parting gift in the form of what critics are saying is his most extreme album ever, titled "★" (Blackstar) which was released on January 8th, just days ago on his 69th birthday. 

Visconti wrote on his Facebook page "He always did what he wanted to do. And he wanted to do it his way and he wanted to do it the best way. His death was no different from his life - a work of Art. He made Blackstar for us, his parting gift. I knew for a year this was the way it would be. I wasn't, however, prepared for it. He was an extraordinary man, full of love and life. He will always be with us. For now, it is appropriate to cry."

In spite of some downright creepy visuals (which Bowie is known for creating in his videos) and obvious lyrical references to his own mortality, Bowie's last album is also somewhat dreamlike - driven by, as one critic noted "long, jazzy jams mixed with the kind of driving beat pioneered by Seventies German bands Can and Kraftwerk." About it's origins Visconti elaborated "We were listening to a lot of Kendrick Lamar. We wound up with nothing like that, but we loved the fact Kendrick was so open-minded and he didn't do a straight-up hip-hop record. He threw everything on there, and that's exactly what we wanted to do. The goal, in many, many ways, was to avoid rock & roll."

Tonight I'm going to pick up my copy on compact disc rather than just downloading it - I'm imagining Bowie would appreciate the fact that there are still those out there who, in spite of all that technology offers, prefer to hold something visual in their hands. Bowie was, after all, just as much a visual artist as he was with his music. I guess I can also safely assume I will be listening to Blackstar during many car rides - perhaps even getting a little spooked. I'm looking forward to it.

Enjoy the videos... and thank you, David, for everything...

New Video added! B1 Bomber!

This new year has (so far) brought outofbodies.com not one, but TWO new video additions for you to enjoy!... last week's Origin Of Ka Ka Cat, and today - a week later, B1-Bomber - an early Out Of Bodies song of Dan's! When Dan first saw it he was quick to note the in-joke that starts off the video - a brief, limited-animation segment pointing out Dan's mispronunciation of Russia's "Moscow"... Dan accidentally fumbles the intro and says "This is B1-Bomber heading for Bosco!" (Yep... the delicious chocolate syrup) and Bosco the Bear's eyes dart nervously about the room as if to say "Did he just say what I thought he said?" It's quick - and not too many people will get it - but I just had to throw it in there...

Dan responded, "Oh man , I'm on the floor laughing, the video, lyrics, footage and the added sound efx' makes this just the best, Ha Ha !!! Great job Donald. One more thing, in the very beginning I meant to say the words "Moscow" but got nervous on the mike and blurted out B first so it came out Bosco ...but I tried to change it quickly to Moscow, Ha Ha!, true. You brought back memories of when I did my first early 4-track songs, I kept getting nervous on the mike worrying about the record button and me forgetting my lines when singing! After a while I said to myself, "what the hell you got to be nervous about? You're recording in your room on a cheap machine and there's nobody here!!" That's when I started to relax and didn't give a crap, Ha Ha!!!"

The clip's Facebook debut was prefaced with the tongue-in-cheek disclaimer "Play loud!! Just make sure the kids, your boss, and anyone else offended by the f-word aren't within earshot - as this song contains a bit of that... it's a catchy tune though, you will find yourself humming it at inappropriate times!" Also included was a shout-out to The Royd's "I should add I got the idea for the lyric treatment from the Royd's - a much classier video!"

 

Still unexplained after all these years is WHO is it supposed to be who's saying "I think we F@#&ed up"? The guy DROPPING the bomb or the unfortunate RECEIVERS of the bomb below? And at the end it changes from "we" to "I" think I F@#&ed up... who's the "I"? Well, like most of Dan's songs - it's the lyrical ambiguity that only adds, not detracts, from the song's charm. Add that to the many unanswered questions... "who's Jacob Shotwell?"... "was Wendy in Wendy Will Die a real person?"... "who's telling who to back away in Just Back Away, and why?"... "The Son Will Come sounds like a dialogue between father and son - was it actual advice?"... We may never know.

Anyway, folks - enjoy the video!!

The Origin of Ka Ka Cat

Another treat culled from the Out Of Bodies archives - one of Dan Banic's earliest films - The Origin of Ka Ka Cat, featuring another surprise from even deeper in the archives, a rare Out Of Bodies "lost" track, "Green Tangerine" - a tune I haven't heard in years! Enjoy - and Happy New Year!!!

My favorite part of the song... "Mongrels.... ask no questions!" I hope Dan tells me what the heck that means!!

Jeff Lynne - When I Was A Boy

One of my favorite songs from Jeff Lynne's new album, "When I Was A Boy"...reminds me a little of The Beatles "Free As A Bird", in both sound and visuals.... enjoy!!

A peek behind the curtain

Here's a little something Dan threw up on YouTube a while back that I had forgotten all about, until he just posted it to his Facebook page a couple of days ago. It features a somewhat sloppy (but infectiously fun) jam session between Mark, Dan and myself where we do mostly Beatles and Rutles tunes. This is also the very first introduction of Mark to our impromptu recording sessions - so we pretty much held him hostage and forced him to do this against his will!! Hah hah!! Enjoy...

The Arcade Chicken and the Dragon Peepshow

Does anyone remember this place? I have the strangest recollection of going to this video arcade when it still had two of the oddest attractions I have ever seen - EVER.... One "game" was actually a live chicken in a box, who for a quarter would either pick your fortune or give you redeemable tickets (I can't remember exactly what it did) - and even more bizarre than THAT was in the back of this place... you'd drop a quarter in the wall and (sort of like a peepshow booth) a plastic window would rise up, exposing a glass one behind it, where you would peer down, literally into the basement, and see an actual life-size mechanical dragon!! As I recall it would move it's head and it's tail, (and perhaps it's wings?) and you'd hear the blaring soundtrack of some old Godzilla movie - that infamous Godzilla screech!! I remember getting up close to the glass, hoping to see more of the dragon - but the only extra surprises that revealed themselves were some boxes and a wash bucket with a mop in it - which no doubt were NOT intended as part of the illusion! I remember going back some years later and both the live chicken (probably due to PETA) and the dragon peep show were GONE... today I'm not even sure if the rest of this crowded little arcade is even still there anymore, but without the chicken and dragon it wouldn't be the same anyway.......

- - - 

 

UPDATE (March 22, 2025)

 

(Click THIS LINK if the video above is giving you trouble)

Well, whaddya know... 

Some rare video footage of the chicken arcade game and a discussion on Facebook popped up, out of the blue... and after years of tossing and turning in my bed - pondering questions about that damn chicken - I finally got some answers!!...

Okay - - so apparently this chicken in a box was all part of a coin operated Tic Tac Toe game - - YOU against the FOWL. You'd drop your quarter in and (for the sake of conversation, let's say you were X and the Chicken was O) - you'd press a button near the square you wanted and in it an X would light up. The choice you made would suddenly prompt the chicken to make IT'S choice - and it would do so by pecking at a switchboard.

 

Unbeknownst to the player the bird's choices are anything but random - and as I'm not exactly sure how it was done - I've surmised that BIRD SEED was at play! The switchboard, which is actually nothing more than a type of  bird seed dispenser, is just out of the player's view behind a door which reads "Thinking Booth" (as IF there was any "thinking" involved at all - uhh, no offense to the chicken!)

You make your move - chicken blocks it - you make your next move - chicken blocks it again... and we all know how this ends.

Some people falsely claimed this was ANOTHER infamous live chicken attraction where for a quarter you'd watch a chicken "dance" - a cruel, long-banned county fair attraction in which a chicken stood on a metal plate - presumably either being zapped by electricity or heated up like a Chicken McNugget. 

Of course, on the internet, EVERYONE'S a comedian - and some even went so far as to claim this arcade got their Tic Tac Toe chickens from the Chinese Restaurant across the street. That was, until their chicken inventory got too low - then they'd end up as Plate #12, Chicken with Broccoli.

But WHAT about that dragon in the basement?

 

Well... this mystery may NEVER be answered. No one except ONE guy (ONE GUY!!) seemed to remember the dragon in the pit. And he just recalled seeing it - that's it - no further details. At least I had confirmation that it existed and this wasn't just some fever dream......

 

 

- - -

Daisy House covers the Out Of Bodies (again!)

Once again, finding inspiration whilst surfing through our music page, Daisy House did yet another cover version! Back in June, you might've heard, they did a great version of Dan's "Willow" - and THIS time around they've undertaken an even MORE impressive feat by taking "Superman" (which only lasts about 34 seconds) and created a trippy, beautifully harmonic blanket of sound lasting 2 minutes and 22 seconds! A nice surprise to us was some great harmonies they added - very reminiscent of the Mama's and Papa's!

For the full effect of illustrating just how Daisy House can take a tiny germ of a tune and grow it into something brilliant, just listen to our snippet first...

Superman (demo)

and then listen to the Daisy House cover...

Superman (Daisy House cover)

Dan was eager to tell me the news, "Doug Daisy did it again, they covered "Like A Superman",
It's awesome. He filled in the other melody that was missing and added a Mama & Papas feel - plus he used the backwards parts as the key to the song more than once which was your idea in the first place when you did that backwards demo for me... so technically all 3 of us wrote this song, take a listen, it's a hit , Ha Ha!!!"

Just 10 or 12 more songs and they can put out an entire "Daisy House sings The Out Of Bodies!" album - like Harry Nilsson did with a mostly yet-to-be discovered Randy Newman! Wouldn't THAT be somethin'!!

ADDED Aug 16, 2015: For those of you who've asked on Facebook who Daisy House is, it's a LOT easier to just direct you all back here to the OOB Blog, where you can read an interview with Doug Hammond of Daisy House right here...

bigtakeover.com: Interview with Doug Hammond of Daisy House

Witness the strength of sheer nonsense...

Daisy House covers The Out Of Bodies' Willow!

This is a first!! Someone actually did a cover of an Out Of Bodies song!! That's never been done before!! Listen to Daisy House and their cover of "Willow"!! I think they did a wonderful job... embellishing upon, completing, and generally adding new life into this Out Of Bodies track!! ...





You can also download "Willow (Daisy House Cover)" here  - do a right click/save link as, and it's yours.

Daisy House is a Folk-Rock duo from Long Beach, CA featuring Tatiana Hammond on vocals/guitar and Doug Hammond on guitar, bass, vocals and keys. Cover girl by Alle Dicu.

Their eponymous debut album is up now on Bandcamp at: daisyhouse.bandcamp.com/

Doug and Tattiana Hammond of Daisy House

Everyplace is free
free enough to live
I just saw the lightning on the willow
Roses are so green
green enough to give
All I want's my blanket and a pillow
Morning is the eve
painted up for free
have you heard the singing of the willow?
Haunted is the wind
weeping thru the trees
Wind is for the singing of my Willow
Willow…willow….willow…..willow
la la la lalala la la
everybody lives inside a Willow
Children up the street
sleep through all the years
Dreamers should be up to push the pillow
...or to kiss the girl
laughing is so free
Little kisses for the baby Willow
fly across the sea
skip across the lakes
Tinderboat desire all a'billow
Multi-colored sand
mountains over deep
they just want their baby colored willow
Willow….willow….willow….willow….
la la la lalala la la
everybody lives inside a Willow

...and just in case you were curious, here's Dan's original 4-track take...
Willow - The Out Of Bodies

Menace in ape costume spotted in Flushing Meadow Park

Revelers who attended the World's Fair Anniversary Celebration in Flushing Meadows Corona Park this past Saturday reported being harassed by an unidentified man running around the park dressed in a gorilla costume...

...no confirmation yet to verify a later report stating that others have seen this same ape-costumed menace hanging upside down from the center of the Unisphere, with a note attached to his ass reading "I tol you I didn' whan no stinkin' bananas, you simio maloliente!!!

Remembering Paul Winchell, my video tribute

A little tribute video I put together - remembering Paul Winchell... ventriloquist, inventor, actor... wasn't easy finding usable video and photos of poor "Winch" as so much of his legacy was intentionally destroyed by MetroMedia Inc during a spiteful dispute over syndication rights. Winch ended up winning a few million bucks in damages - but I'm sure he would've rather have had the shows instead... I read that over 300 half hour shows were destroyed, and although reports vary, I've read that only about a dozen water-damaged tapes of Winchell-Mahoney Time exist. So tragic....

The idea to make a video tribute started after I heard one of Gilbert Gottfried's Amazing Colossal Podcasts where Steve Buscemi was the guest. Frank Santopadre (Gilbert's co-host) asked Buscemi if he had ever played with puppets - and he confessed, yes... "I had a Jerry Mahoney doll" - and that led into a hilarious walk down memory lane with all three of them talking about the "Winchell-Mahoney Time" show. Gilbert (who's got a mind like a time capsule) began to sing the theme song - and it was fairly close to the record - word from word. Now, this was a record I had also purchased on eBay some years back - so I then thought it would be a great idea taking clips of that interview, the songs on the record and any pictures I could find on the internet and make something that perhaps would be seen by many others. If the influence Paul Winchell had on Gilbert, Frank and Steve was any indication that there are probably many more out there - then my work would not have been done in vain.

So here's my little tribute to Paul Winchell I titled "Remembering Paul Winchell"... I hope you enjoy it!!

.......and yes....... I had a Jerry Mahoney doll too.......

Musician Mugshots!

Just for the hell of it - - musician mugshots!! The only one I couldn't bring myself to include was Micheal Jackson's.... creeps the bejeezuz outta me...

Even without sneaking a peek at the names, can you name 'em all?...

Okay, I said I wasn't going to - - but here it is... don't say I haven't warned you...

Yeeeeee-YIKES!!!

outofbodies.com releases Dan Banic - Gun Hill Road album!

Before we get into the good stuff here...

I just want to preface this blog entry (and perhaps the entire outofbodies.com website) with this little reminder... as you know it's always been our collective intention to present you with free music downloads - because basically that's what this little website is all about - sharing creative content with people with like minds, without the trappings of logins, fees, and assorted restrictions... however I do want to remind folks that outside of the music we provide here for free that we still need and appreciate your support - particularly via donations to help keep this site going, and also to inform those who enjoy our sound that Dan offers a lot more where that came from on his own music pages - so make sure to drop in there as well and purchase some tunes! Also help spread the word, whether it's on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, Google+, Pinterest, Foursquare - basically everywhere!

The Good Stuff...

One of the very first "Out Of Bodies" compilations that I've helped package for Dan was simply titled "The Out Of Bodies - Volume One" - but in reality us other guys had nothing to do with it and it should've been credited to JUST Dan. Well, that was over 20 odd years ago and TODAY I'm going to CORRECT that by re-creating the "album cover" so to speak to reflect a brilliant solo Dan album!!...

I've titled it "Gun Hill Road" (for it's obvious wink and a nod to The Beatles - Abbey Road) and because that was where Dan would pass every day as he headed home, up to his bedroom in the Bronx where he created ALL of this sound on his own, on his beat-up Fostex 4-track cassette recorder... guitars, keyboards, percussion, multi-layered vocals - this was Dan at his prolific best...

However this was also a bit before our website was created, so we didn't have this forum in which to share Dan's sound with the masses - and certainly not spontaneously. The best we could do at the time was to make up cassettes. Today you'd be lucky if you even saw a cassette player. So basically this reintroduction all came about recently as I discovered one of the original cassettes while wading through the OOB archives. After popping it into my player and hearing it once again I thought it certainly deserved it's long over-do internet debut - and so here you have it...

Click on the song titles below and enjoy some great Dan! Share this, link to us, download it for yourself and as Mike Myers would say as Linda Richman on SNL "discuss amongst yourselves!"... We'd be happy to hear your feedback!

1. Blue Sky

2. I Can See You Miles Away

3. Blue Eyed Girl

4. I Was Made To Live So

5. Heart Of Soul

6. I Love My Girl

7. The Robe

8. Beautiful Sunday

9. I Can Live My Life Upon A Stream

10. She's Gone

Please show your support!
It's what helps keep this site going...

Donate today to outofbodies.com
(this link will take you to our music page, where you'll find a lot more
music to enjoy and our little PayPal donation button on the right side)

Also...
make sure you check out more Dan Ban songs and purchase some downloads!

Thanks!!

Dan's Visitor and Donald does Dylan

I missed Throw Back Thursday, so how's about I Almost Forgot About This Friday?

Found this whilst wading through the archives - a live jam recording taped at our friend Scott's apartment on New Year's Eve 1991/1992. Joe, Mark and myself come close to figuring out what that circle drawing in Dan's room was all about - and Dan opens up (just a LITTLE bit) about that time an alien communicated with him while he slept...

...oh yes, and per Dan's request I do my lousy impersonation of Bob Dylan...

Thanks a LOT, SCOTT!!
New Year's Eve at Hooter's House - 1991/1992

Here's just a short little clip to whet yer appetite... eventually I'll be posting more of this jam in our new SIDES pages, Out Of The Archives - stay tuned!!

Click here to listen to Dan's Visitor and Donald does Dylan

Even MORE songs!! An early Easter basket!!

As if all the new site additions announced last week weren't enough - - here are a few MORE new songs that will soon find their permanent spots on outofbodies.com...

ENJOY!!! - - and have a great Easter, everybody!!

Note: Click on the links below the pictures to hear the songs...

Twenty Little Pinheads

Such a LOT of fuss over such a stupid little song! Heh heh... this is actually one of those rare occasions where four OOBs appear on the same recording... started out with Dan, Joe and myself - and then later Lloyd and I added a chorus. It seemed fitting to blow it all up at the end...

The Giant

A terrific "lost" gem I discovered while wading through the archives... this is Dan at his poetic best... telling the tale of a feared giant who becomes missed after he packs his bags and leaves...

Piccadilly Circus

I saved the best for last... this song had me laughing so hard and you'll see why... no matter how many times Joe and I sang the name of the song correctly - Dan kept singing pull-a-dicky circus (or something like that) and I DON'T think he was trying to do it on purpose! Heh heh... anyway, this is one of those wonderful boom box recordings that never got finished to 4-track - and so I souped it up a bit in post and I think it worked out great! It will have you smiling!

Stick around, folks! There's more to come, I'm sure!!