Backpacks? We don't need no stinkin' backpacks!

As the first generation for whom consumption of marijuana spread beyond avant-garde bohemians and jazz musicians, it has been interesting to watch the growing legalization of what we called pot and the kids call weed. Okay, not as dangerous as our parents warned us, but how beneficial is it?

Growing legalization has finally led to scientific studies of the various claims made about marijuana. Studies have confirmed that marijuana has some benefit in reducing chronic pain as well as helping people with sleep problems. But surprisingly, there’s still a lot we don’t know. As with many mind/mood-altering substances, it appears that everyone has different tolerance levels, so medical experts stress newbies should start slow and actually keep a journal of how much marijuana they’re taking and what the effects are.

Also, as the idea of smoking anything has decreased in popularity, gummies and other pot-infused edibles have now overtaken smoking/vaping as the most popular way to consume weed.

In these days of streaming, mp3 files, and super-expensive vinyl editions of classic albums, most music lovers of today are blissfully unaware of a super-cheap method Baby Boomers used to build their record collections back in the day – the “cut-out” album or 45!

These were older releases that the record labels were “cutting out” of their catalog, meaning the label would no longer press new copies of these recordings because sales had dwindled to extremely low levels. These records were then sold, in bulk to wholesalers, who in turn sold them to record stores or large discount chains (think of the forerunners of Wal-Mart, like Zayres and Arlens).

To prevent retailers from selling these heavily discounted items at full price, the label would disfigure the record in some way before selling them to the wholesalers. For albums, that meant clipping a corner of the LP’s cover, adding a slot to the cover, or even a small metal grommet. For 45s, it usually involved boring a hole right through the single’s label.

At a time when LPs typically were selling for $3 to $4 and singles at $0.79 to $1, cut-outs could come as cheaply as $0.69 for an album and $0.29 for a 45. If you were a savvy rock fan, you could build an impressive collection for literally pennies on the dollar. Nearly every recording act (with the singular exception of the Beatles) had at least some of their catalog hit the cut-out bin at one time or another. Early albums by the Who, the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, and Pink Floyd (pre-Dark Side of the Moon) could be found in abundance. Ditto for 45s that featured B-sides that never made it onto an act’s albums.

When computers arrived with software that allowed for easy ripping of CDs along with early music-sharing sites like Napster, the entire notion of paying retail for music became quite quaint, joining the rotary phone, trading stamps, and manual transmissions in oblivion. But among the small group of dedicated vinyl collectors, those cut-out editions are now often worth more than the legitimate full retail copies. Had we only known, we’d have saved a lot of ours.

Mouseketeer Roll Call: Sharon Baird

Those early Mouseketeers had one thing in common. With the exception of Bobby Burgess, they were all short. But none turned out to be shorter than Mouseketeer Sharon Baird, who topped off as an adult at just 4’10”.

Baird was already a seasoned show biz professional when she was given her ears in 1955, having appeared in a Martin & Lewis film (Artists & Models) as well as being a regular on the early Eddie Cantor Colgate Comedy Hour TV program. She became a part of the core cast of Mouseketeers who stayed with the show through all 4 seasons of filming new material.

An exceptionally talented dancer, Sharon was often paired with Burgess, far and away the best of the male dancers. The disparity in their heights (Burgess was around 5’10” and Baird just 4’8” during their Mouse Club years) added a bit of comedy to their routines. Baird’s ability at the jitterbug was also highlighted in the “Annette” serial which aired during the show’s 3^rd season.

When The Mickey Mouse Club stopped producing new episodes, Baird continued to make personal appearances on behalf of Disney for a few years. She completed high school but found professional opportunities as an under-sized entertainer limited. So, after graduating college in 1963, she worked for a number of years as a secretary, while simultaneously trying to get a singing career going as Two Cats and a Mouse, with her husband Dalton Lee Thomas and another male friend.

The marriage and singing career came to an end in 1969. Sharon was resigning herself to diving back into the secretarial pool when an entirely new career opened up for her. In the 1970s, Sid & Marty Krofft produced a number of Saturday morning kid shows for the networks: H.R. Pufnstuf, Lidsville, Land of the Lost and more. They had an urgent need for dancers and performers who were shorter than average (to fit into the puppet-like costumes most of the characters wore). It was a match made in show biz heaven. Sharon Baird became one of their star performers playing multiple roles in most of their productions.

Baird continued to find work as a voiceover artist and performer for many years thereafter, including a stint in Raquel Welch’s Las Vegas revue and as an assistant to the comedian Gallagher. She never remarried and has since moved from Southern California to Reno, Nevada, where she resides to this day.

It’s bad enough that, as we age, our metabolism slows down, forcing us to eat less if we want to maintain our weight. But experts also say that trying to lose weight can actually cause you to gain weight in the long run.

That’s because our bodies are built to maintain whatever our current weight is. Studies show that 80% of the people who lose weight regain it all within 5 years. Additionally, as we lose weight by dieting the body will slow down our metabolism further and also release more of the chemical that tells you you’re hungry.

So how do we lose weight and keep it off? Again, the experts say to stick with whole grains, lean protein, low-fat dairy, and plenty of fruits & veggies. Also, avoid processed foods and added sugars.

Good luck!

#1: Declutter – Are you renting a storage unit for stuff you haven’t looked at, let alone used, in years?  Throw the stuff out, donate it or sell it. Not only will you have less stuff to worry about, you’ll also save that monthly rental fee.

#2 Review Your Automatic Subscriptions – Are you paying for streaming TV services you seldom watch? Or maybe subscriptions to online news sites? Studies show most people grossly underestimate how much spending they have on automatic pilot. Popular apps like PocketGuard and Rocket Money can help you discover where and how much of your is going. Several credit card companies also offer such tools.

 #3 Regular Medical/Dental Check-ups – Catching problems earlier is almost always less expensive than waiting until they become very serious.

As kids, we all loved the Disney film, The Absent-Minded Professor (1961). What you may not remember was that Hasbro introduced a toy in 1962 called “Flubber” based on the miraculous compound invented by Fred MacMurray in that film.

It was made from synthetic rubber & mineral oil and had all of the qualities one would want from a toy. It bounced like crazy, could be molded into a wide variety of shapes, you could stretch it or break it into pieces, and it was inexpensive, usually within the reach of our allowances.

Just one problem. Hasbro forgot to actually test it with kids over a long period of time. Turns out, Flubber made kids sick. Its toxic substances caused sore throats, rashes, and other nasty reactions. It also picked up dirt and heaven-knows-what-else from the surfaces it was applied to.

Hasbro was forced to pull Flubber off toy shelves quickly and the fad was over as fast as it had begun. Fortunately for the company, those times were far less litigious and there weren’t a lot of lawsuits that could have put the company out of business.

They just had one final problem. What to do with tons of this toxic toy that came back to the factory? You couldn’t bury the stuff at sea. It was lighter than water and would float to the surface. You couldn’t burn it because that would cause huge clouds of toxic smoke.

So, the company buried it beneath a building on Delta Drive in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. More than 50 years later, residents claim that on hot summer days, the smell of Flubber still fills the air, and the stuff can still be seen oozing through the cracks in the pavement.

Parents of millennials will get a sense of déjà vu because Nickelodeon experienced somewhat similar problems when they tried to market Gak as a kid’s toy in the '90s.

Quite the collection of early rock stars in this picture. Front, left to right: Dion, early Philadelphia DJ Jay Blavat, Darlene Love, and Frankie Avalon. In the back: Chubby Checker. We give the photo a 78. It’s got a good beat and you can dance to it.

Mike Pinder, one of the founders of the Moody Blues and the last surviving member of the band’s original line-up, passed away on Wednesday, April 24^th at the age of 82.

As the group’s primary keyboardist, Pinder was responsible for adding the mellotron, an early synthesizer, that gave the band its distinctive orchestral sound, especially after Pinder tinkered with the instrument, doubling the number of string section tape loops.

Mike also was the one who called up his pal, Justin Hayward to join the group after their initial vocalist, Denny Laine, quit. The group then added bass player John Lodge and locked in the personnel that would carry them to international fame beginning with the new line-up’s first effort (and second Moodys LP), Days of Future Passed.

Among the many songs Pinder wrote for the group are “Dawn (Is a Feeling),” “Thinking Is the Best Way to Travel,” “Om,” “Have You Heard,” “Out and In” (co-written with Hayward), and "Melancholy Man.”

Pinder passed away at his home in northern California surrounded by family.

His work has been recorded by artists all over the musical map – from Perry Como to the Beatles, from roots rocker Gene Vincent to Neil Diamond, from Nat King Cole to Elvis Costello. Next to Lennon & McCartney, he may be the most successful composer of the latter half of the 20^th century. Along the way he penned 73 songs that hit the Top 40 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and earned 6 Grammys, 3 Oscars and 1 Emmy.

He is, of course, Burt Bacharach. Over 1,000 different artists have recorded his compositions. His collaboration with lyricist Hal David, produced a string of hits for 60s pop icons like Dionne Warwick, Gene Pitney and Dusty Springfield. Along the way he also composed the title tune for the schlock teenage sci-fi film that became a cult classic, The Blob, while also building a surprisingly successful career as a live performer, playing his hit compositions on piano while backed by a full orchestra.

While primarily seen as a “pop” composer, Bacharach’s ability to work with rock acts like Vincent, the Drifters, Elvis Costello and others make him an undeniable part of rock history.

Born in Kansas City, but raised in New York City, Bacharach used a fake ID, not to drink, but to sneak into New York’s jazz nightclubs where he soaked up the music Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and others. Trained by his mother to be a classical pianist, Bacharach much preferred the jazz and pop he heard on his nightly sojourns.

Following a stint in the army, Bacharach started the 1950s as arranger and pianist for singer Vic Damone. From there, he served in similar capacity for a variety of other singers until he finally wound up leading the back-up band for Marlene Dietrich in 1956. While touring the world with Dietrich, he also began working as a songwriter, teaming with Hal David in 1957. They sold their first song, “I Cry More,” to the motion picture, Don’t Knock the Rock. The song went nowhere. They finally broke through with a song they wrote for Marty Robbins, “The Story of My Life,” which hit #1 on the Billboard country chart. They next scored a top 10 hit with Perry Como and “Magic Moments” (in the days before rock came to dominate the charts).

As the 60s began, Bacharach’s success as a songwriter led to him taking a more active role in the studio. He was first listed as arranger & conductor on Jerry Butler’s 1962 recording of the Bacharach-David tune “Make It Easy on Yourself.” That same year, Bacharach thought one of the backup singers doing session work showed some potential. Her name was Dionne Warwick. He and David wrote a tune specifically crafted for her, “Don’t Make Me Over.” That recording launched a long and successful collaboration that lasted into the 1980s.

Among the many artists who have found success with Bacharach tunes are the Drifters, the Beatles (a cover of the Shirelles’ “Baby, It’s You”), Tom Jones, Frankie Avalon, Manfred Mann, B.J. Thomas, Bobby Vinton and dozens more.

Elvis Costello had a father who was a cabaret singer in the UK, so Elvis had developed a fondness for Bacharach-David compositions from childhood. He used to sneak one or two into his early sets (particularly “I Just Don’t Know What to Do with Myself”). Ultimately, he became one of Bachrach’s later collaborations, co-writing the album Painted from Memory.

In addition to writing specifically for the movies (two of his most acclaimed movie tunes being “The Look of Love” and “Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head”), his work has also been found lightening up such later films as Austin Powers and My Best Friend’s Wedding.

A composer whose versatility is unmatched, Bacharach passed away in February of 2023 at the age of 94. His music lives on.