No anniversary TOTP performance today I’m afraid: instead here’s another classic Pan’s People routine from The Jack Jones Show;
Pan’s People dancing to Life Is What You Make It, Part 2 by the Buddy Miles Band, on the Jack Jones Show. 20th January 1974.
Many thanks to the anonymous donor who sent me this clip for the original blog. A fabulous routine: great outfits, great choreography and great performances.
Pan’s People dance to Janis Joplins’ Buried Alive in the Blues from their residency on The Two Ronnies TV show (1973-4).
Purple crushed velvet loon pants, tiny midriff-baring metallic turquoise waistcoats, with watch-chain accessories that add a slight biker feel to the otherwise urban groover ensemble. Weren’t the early seventies fabulous?
The Jack Jones Show 10 February 1974: Pan’s People dance to Dana’s (I’ve Got) Beginner’s Luck.
I’ve no anniversary performances available for today: so instead here’s an old, non-TOTP Pan’s People routine.
From the old blog: Friday, 17 October 2014
I’ve been sent another rare, exclusive Pan’s People performance by one of my generous, anonymous donors. It’s another appearance on The Jack Jones Show, from 10 February 1974, this time featuring future Irish independent politician Dana, who’s singing “(I’ve Got) Beginner’s Luck”.
The song was written by George & Ira Gershwin for Fred Astaire to sing (to Ginger Rogers, inevitably) in the 1937 film Shall We Dance. Which means the whole production has a strongly thirties period feel: very art deco set design and costumes, minimal geometric shapes in sharp contrasting colours. Everyone’s hair has been set in tight Shirley Temple curls. And the choreography takes literal interpretation to new heights, with a series of blackout vignette gags on the beginner’s luck theme. But wait: this literalism is utterly in keeping with the period setting: so all you sneering get-down, your-so-vain haters can just go and boil your heads. It’s kitschy. It’s intentional. Shut up.
Bags of charm here as every keeps up authentic period toothy chorine smiles. My favourite moment has to be Cherry displaying her mime skills in the fishing section, about 1’40”: catching the proverbial old boot, you can see the tug on her line go through her whole body like a Peter Glaze double-take. You don’t get to be Head Girl at Bush Davies for nothing.
Thanks are due to the generous anonymous donor for this spiffing clip.
comment:
mojo2007 said…
thank you anon, this is charming. shows their versatility and willingness to back a singer effectively. of course it is all deliberately dated but it works
20 October 2014 09:41
Top of the Pops 26 February 1970: Pan’s People dance to Mary Hopkin’s Temma Harbour.
The sixties have been over for a whole eight weeks, but you’d never guess from Mary Hopkins song of tropical idyll, nor from Pan’s People’s performance with flowery-printed fabrics.
Thanks to Andeebee for the Youtube post.
Top of the Pops, 25 February 1971: Pan’s People dance to Everything’s Tuesday by Chairman of the Board.
From the old blog, Friday, 29 April 2011
Here’s another clip I found on YouTube a while ago: Pan’s People dancing to Chairman of the Board’s Everything’s Tuesday. Thanks to katy miss queenie, who sent me a copy of this routime recently.
I’m no expert on the fashion scene in 1971, so I’ve no idea if there’s a correct term for these trousers they’re wearing. Or the whole suit, even.
comments:
Some Guy said…
Sounds like the singers saying` I wanna spank her`, or is that my gutter mind playing tricks with me.
29 April 2011 14:49jez said…
You said it mate.
29 April 2011 21:07PattiforPM said…
Strange song, odd outfits, whole thing’s quirky and maybe this is a subcommittee and not the Chairman after all. Maybe your lyrics would be better Ryan
29 April 2011 22:58
My appeal for a definitive period name for these outfits, just so 1971 darling, has had no response, so I’ll have to have a go myself: I’d call them French Flared Culotte Suits.
Archival Fashionistas, please give me a better name as you rush to heap derision upon me.
Pan’s People dancing to James Burton’s guitar instrumental version of Chuck Berry’s Johnny B. Goode. From The Two Ronnies.
Another two Ronnies’ routine clearly showing the benefits of choreography without the mad weekly rush that TOTP demands. Great pastel-coloured satin hot-pants outfits. Note the reverse-“P” logos on their backs, matching the PP-themed mandala on the dance floor.
Thanks to panspeople.com for the YouTube post.
Nationwide, BBC 1 3 August 1972: Pan’s People dance to Harry Nilsson’s Coconut.
Nationwide was a weekday teatime magazine / chat show broadcast regularly from 1969 to 1983. Growing to become pretty much a national institution, it’s freewheeling diverse style, coupled with a voracious appetite for material to fill its five-night-a-week slot, meant you could expect to see just about anything. Like for instance, Pan’s People larking around in a sand quarry with cream cakes and coconuts, wearing what I think I referred to in my now-lost old blog post as “colour-blind Uncle Sam carnival outfits”. All apparently to illustrate a feature on healthy eating. Such fun.
Thanks to Andeebee for the YouTube clip.
Marie-Luise Steinbauer hosts the 1970 German qualifying programme for the Eurovision Song Contest (“Deutsche Vorentscheidung”) “Ein Lied für Amsterdam” (A song for Amsterdam) and introduces two Pans People sequences. 2/2.
Thanks to Andeebee for the information and the YouTube post.
From the old blog, Saturday, 17 December 2011:
Legs has sent me a second Pan’s People performance from German TV’s Eurovision 1970 waiting-for-the-results show. The music here is The Clapping Song: Legs is sure (and I agree) that this version is by Alan Price & Georgie Fame, which makes sense, since Flick and PP worked on their BBC show in 1969. This might even be a repeat of a routine from that show that hasn’t otherwise survived.
It still seems to me that Flick had no information about sets, camera angles and lighting while devising these routines: which explains the slightly stagey, all-in-a-row nature of the choreography. I don’t mean any criticism here: she’s done a creditable job in difficult circumstances. Thanks again to Legs.
Comments:
Peter Gray said…
Good colourful fun..
17 December 2011 17:49
PattiforPM said…
Another great find. I find myself mainly watching Flick and Louise in this one. Thanks Legs and YMG
17 December 2011 22:57
Suefan said…
I’ll second that. Another great find indeed and in their M&S smalls all six would have caught my roving eye!
18 December 2011 11:44
Top of the Pops 12 February 1970: Pan’s People dance to “I Want You Back” by the Jackson 5.
A superb performance from the 1970 line-up of Pan’s People: exuberant choreography to match the jubilant Jackson 5 hit.
From the old blog, Friday, 5 August 2011:
… this really is a vintage Flick-&-Andi-era Pans People Performance.
comments:
carl said…
This is another one I haven’t seen before. I love those 1970 shows. I wish the BBC would recolourise those jan/feb shows that exist then we can see Pans in their all colour glory.
5 August 2011 16:21
PattiforPM said…
Yup Classic Go-Go style and nice outfits to boot. Great to see at least a few of these early Pans performances.
9 August 2011 13:43
Suefan said…
Any Andi is well worth having so thanks YMG.
10 August 2011 23:34
Top of the Pops, 5 February 1970: Pan’s People dance to Judy Collins’ Both Sides Now.
A fairly muted performance here, to a middle-tempo folk-pop classic. Pan’s People uncharacteristically covered up in big patterned frocks with bags of smocking. When I posted this routine on the original blog I described the dresses as “Laura Ashley”, but on looking again, the style might be right for LA, but the fabric patterns don’t look traditional enough. If we only had a colour version of this recording to look at, that would settle it.
Thanks to panspeople.com for the youtube post.
Lots of forum regulars have help this site out, with contributions of rare video, cash, and their erudite knowledge.
So many thanks to my generous benefactors:
...amongst others.
And a particular thank you must go to Ryan, who has single-handedly kept the forum alive, building a community of enthusiasts and supporting this site.
Video for the Top 20 Pan's People Routines Forum Choice was broken: now it's fixed.
My old One for the Dads blog was shut down by the Kopyright Kops. So here's a new one. Still showing performances from Legs & Co., Pan's People and Ruby Flipper, amongst others. But no more downloads. Sorry.
A TOTP rarity.
