List of break-in records
A break-in record is a novelty record which combines spoken word comedy with clips of popular music to create a humorous effect. The subject matter was often inspired by contemporary events or popular culture such as television shows and films. Such comedy recordings were popular in the United States for several decades beginning in 1956 with "The Flying Saucer" by Dickie Goodman and Bill Buchanan.[1]
Notable break-in records
| Year | Listed artist | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Buchanan and Goodman | "The Flying Saucer" | Dickie Goodman and Bill Buchanan produced a re-imagining of the Orson Welles 1938 radio story The War of the Worlds.[1] In August 1956, the song reached number 3 on Billboard's pop singles chart.[2] |
| 1956 | Buchanan and Goodman | "Buchanan and Goodman on Trial" | Satire about the legal troubles caused by their previous comedy record, "The Flying Saucer". |
| 1957 | Buchanan and Goodman | "The Banana Boat Story" | Portions of television and radio commercial jingles are linked by segments of "Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)" by the Tarriers. |
| 1957 | Buchanan and Goodman | "Flying Saucer the 2nd" | July 1957 saw this sequel hit number 18.[2] |
| 1957 | Buchanan and Goodman | "Santa and the Satellite" | The US government works to save Santa Claus from near-space threats. Buchanan had already quit the team, so Goodman worked with the New York deejay Paul Sherman of WINS (AM).[3] The cut rose to number 32 at Christmas 1957.[2][4] |
| 1958 | Buchanan and Goodman | "The Flying Saucer Goes West" | Buchanan is not on this recording. Goodman and Sherman poke fun at alien invaders tangling with figures from the Wild West.[3] |
| 1960 | Winkly & Nutley | "Report to the Nation, Parts 1 and 2" | The record was a parody of the 1960 US presidential election between "Mr. Dixon" (Richard Nixon) and "Mr. Finnedy" (John F. Kennedy). Winkly & Nutley were Jim Stag and Bob Mitchell, satirizing NBC news anchors Chet Huntley and David Brinkley.[5][6] |
| 1964 | Bill Buchanan and Howard Greenfield | "The Invasion" | Pressed by Novel Records in Chicago, this recording lampoons the British Invasion, especially the arrival in the US of the Beatles. Billboard magazine listed it as a "regional breakout" success in October 1964.[7] |
| 1969 | Vik Venus (alias: Your Main Moon Man) | "Moonflight" | Break-in record about the Apollo moon landing. Buddah Records BDA 118 peaked at #38 in Billboard Hot 100 August 9, 1969. |
| 1971 | Dickie Goodman & Ruthie | "Speaking of Ecology" | Goodman and his girlfriend Ruthie cover the issues of ecology.[1] |
| 1972 | The Delegates | "Convention '72" | The recording punctured political issues of the day, and roasted politicians familiar from news coverage of the Democratic National Convention in July 1972, and the opposing Republican National Convention in August . The writers and producers were Nick Cenci and Nick Koselaneos, helped by radio deejay Bob DeCarlo of KQV in Pennsylvania.[1] |
| 1973 | Dickie Goodman | "Watergate" | A parody of Richard Nixon and the Watergate scandal.[1] |
| 1973 | John & Ernest | "Super Fly Meets Shaft" | Dickie Goodman and Sal Passantino present a parody of the blaxploitation films Super Fly (1972) and Shaft (1971).[1] It topped out at number 31 on Billboard's pop singles chart in May 1973.[2] |
| 1974 | Dickie Goodman | "Mr. President" | More developments in the Watergate scandal.[1] |
| 1974 | Evil Boll-Weevil | "Grand Canyon" | The narrative by WQXI (AM) radio deejays Jeff McKee and Ed Brown parodies stuntman Evel Knievel who is heard talking about jumping over the Grand Canyon. An Ed Sullivan sound-alike is also heard; Sullivan's death in October likely diminished this disc's airplay.[1] |
| 1974 | Dickie Goodman | "Energy Crisis '74" | This record makes fun of the 1970s energy crisis, especially the 1973 oil crisis in the US.[1] It hit number 33 on the Hot 100.[2] |
| 1975 | Dickie Goodman | "Mr. Jaws" | Goodman "interviewed" characters from the film Jaws.[1] The track reached number 4 on the Hot 100 in September 1975.[2] |
| 1975 | Chris Hill | "Renta Santa" | Borrowing Goodman's technique, "Renta Santa" features snippets of hits and was a UK Top 10 hit.[8][9] |
| 1976 | Chris Hill | "Bionic Santa" | Similar in format to Goodman's records and "Renta Santa",[8][10] and another UK Top 10 hit.[9] |
| 1977 | Dickie Goodman | "Kong" | Goodman "interviewed" characters from the 1976 film King Kong.[1] |
| 1982 | Dickie Goodman | "Hey E.T." | The 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is lampooned. It was Goodman's final chart hit, edging into the Cashbox chart at number 97 in September 1982.[11] |
References
- Simpson, Kim (May 16, 2016). "Early '70s 'Break-In' Records on the Charts". Early '70s Radio. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
- Lonergan, David F. (2005). Hit Records, 1950–1975. Scarecrow Press. pp. 55, 61, 149, 190, 213. ISBN 9780810851290.
- Miller, Chuck (2004). "Luniverse". In Frank Hoffman (ed.). Encyclopedia of Recorded Sound. Routledge. pp. 1264–1265. ISBN 9781135949501.
- "Top 100 Sides". Billboard. December 30, 1957. p. 34.
- Osborne, Jerry (February 18, 2002). "Ask Mr. Music". Jerry Osborne. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
- "Novelty". Billboard. October 17, 1960. p. 31.
- "Breakout Singles". Billboard. October 3, 1964. p. 33.
- Hartman, Tom (1984). Guinness Book of Publishing. Middlesex: Guinness Publishing. p. 49. ISBN 978-0851124049. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
- "CHRIS HILL - full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
- Rigg, Tony; Gillon, Les; Mazierska, Ewa, eds. (2021). "Early influences: Break-in records, medleys and technical DJ mixes". The Evolution of Electronic Dance Music. London: Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9781501366376.
- "Cashbox Top 100 Singles". Cashbox. September 11, 1982. p. 4.
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