A musical tribute to Philip J. Klass

UFO debunker Philip J. Klass died on the ninth of this month--I just now found out about it. He was one of my heroes. His UFOs Explained is a marvelous book, something that even a science-challenged reader like myself can enjoy and benefit from. I love UFO artwork and "photos," but I don't believe in the things for a moment. Long live rational thinking. Klass was a Klass act. I'd like to think he made a difference, but I wonder if that was even possible. The sad truth is that belief in the supernatural and paranormal is at an all-time high.

Here's my very own UFO Abduction Fugue, which I composed in 1992. This might seem like an odd tribute to a man who debunked such subjects (UFO abduction, not fugues), but I wrote the piece as part of a suite poking fun at the whole idea of involuntary saucer passage, so I think it's a nice gesture. The skeptical community has lost one of its finest. R.I.P., Philip.

http://box.net/public/lee/files/256448.html UFO Abduction Fugue (Lee Hartsfeld, 1992), Performed by Lee Hartsfeld on a Casio keyboard.

Lee

Here he is, again: Bernie Wayne

You'll recall that Bernie Wayne was the man who gave us the words and music to the Miss America pageant's theme song, which was introduced on television in 1955 as part of a play about the Miss America pageant. I noted that the song isn't really as awful as it seems. I don't remember my argument in that regard, but it seemed good at the time, so I'll stick with it, whatever it was.

And it seems that Bernie Wayne is well-regarded by light music fans for his instrumental compositions, two of which we're about to hear: Vanessa and something called South of Saigon. The latter sounds pretty Exotica, but it isn't. For that reason, I've been puzzling over the title--which, I just now noticed, forms "SOS." Among other things, "SOS" stands for "Same Old S-it," which surely can't refer to this nice, if forgettable, piece. Hm. Secretary of State, maybe? Could there be some hidden message?

I know! "SOS" stands for "Stop Overanalyzing Stuff." (That must have been meant for me.) In which case, let's get down to business:

http://box.net/public/lee/files/497690.html Vanessa (Bernie Wayne), Hugo Winterhalter and His Orchestra, 1952.

http://box.net/public/lee/files/458357.html South of Saigon (Bernie Wayne), Florian Zabach and His Orchestra, 1956.

(Today's Miss America joke:

"Has anyone seen Miss America? Never mind--there she is!")

In other news, it occurred to me to look in my copy of The American 45 and 78 RPM Record Dating Guide, 1940-1959 for mention of the S&G label, and there it was. Turns out that Casey O'Hara's Go Down to the Beach (And Get Into the Ocean) was recorded in 1954, not 1952. 1952 had been my best guess. Now I won't have to lose any more sleep wondering.


Lee

The new "new me"

O.K., here's the new me. That last photo sucked.

Happy endings are always the best. Of course, I had a sepia-toned version of this which looked a lot better but which went over the kb allowed. Switching it to black and white and lightening it did the trick. Ignore the ectoplasm emanating from the left side of my head. It's just some spirit trying to materialize. Either that, or it's a paper-towel sheet atop the file cabinet behind me. (You decide. Muwa-ha-haa!)

I might submit this to the SFCPP (Society for the Collection of Paranormal Photos).

Lee

When You See Those Flying Saucers

"So nice of them to steam-clean the runway before departing."

One year before they recorded (When You See) Those Flying Saucers, Chester and Lester Buchanan enjoyed a top-ten hit with an equally gimmicky number called Atomic Power (1946). ("Atomic power, atomic power, Was given by the mighty hand of God." Brilliant, no?) Flying Saucers is pretty much a follow-up, even if the atom bomb only rates a brief mention near the end: "They're more than atom bombs or falling stars"--"they" being the flying saucers. Specifically, the saucers are a warning from God to end the Cold War. Or else.

While its lyrcis are nothing to phone home about, Flying Saucers is especially interesting as a pop-culture relic, not only because it was released in 1947 (the year that the whole flying-saucer nonsense started), but because it shows that the cosmic-warning motif existed from the get-go. And I had thought 1951's Day the Earth Stood Still was the source for that cliche--not so. Chester and Lester's record sure zaps that idea out of the sky.

And here's the whole silly side in question, which was penned by Cy (The Old Piano Roll Blues) Coben and Charlie (The Thing, Never Been Kissed) Grean. Grean gets mentioned a lot at this blog, doesn't he?

http://box.net/public/lee/files/497220.html (When You See) Those Flying Saucers (Cy Coben-Charlie Grean), Buchanan Brothers and the Georgia Catamounts, 1947 (from Victor 78).

Zorntap, my Outernet buddy from Venus, just e.t.-mailed me that Rhino released the above track on a fairly expensive boxed set. That's cool--for $80 or so, a much better-sounding file can be gotten! Where did I put my credit card....

The excellent flip side is just as fun, even if its subject, despite the title, is much more down to Earth.

http://box.net/public/lee/files/497245.html The Silver Meteor (Ervin T. Rouse), Buchanan Brothers and the Georgia Catamounts, 1947 (flip of above).














An expert who analyzed this painting of a UFO declared it to be a fake based on the mismatched perspective of the foreground and background and the obvious use of a front-lit model.

If you see those flying saucers, head for the nearest record label and record a song about it.


Lee