Such wonderful, elegant performers, and Swann's keyboard skills were so often overlooked. With the sad death of their great friend, Ian Wallace, a whole era in British revue entertainment has ended.
My sister and I grew up listening to these guys and could never find anyone else who had even heard of them! Thank you so much for posting...the Armadillo song still makes me cry after all this time :)
Wonderful. I grew up with "At the Drop of a Hat". Part of a great tradition of satirical songwriters - Gilbert & Sullivan, Tom Lehrer and many more. Nice to see music and lyrics used so deftly and combined so joyfully.
You are absolutely right when you say that...I've allways thought that because it was already dated and a throwback to the 20s when F&S performed this brilliant act in the 50s and 60s that it was ignoring faddish fashion trends and going full steam into bygone era with no apologies, thereby sticking two fingers up to future critics and cementing themselves into the hearts of people like us...and somehow I think they didnt give a hoot about such tiffles as fashion trends..one fashion trend that did help them, by chance, was the penchant for singing '20s style music hall numbers' in the late 60s..even The Beatles had a few very good stabs at this style with songs like 'when I'm 64'...but F&S reign supreme
This was my first exposure to Flanders & Swann when I was in fifth grade, and actually watched this on CBS before going to do my own performing in our middle school concert...
Great to finally see them live , so to speak. I have the original LP of At the drop of a Hat which belonged to my parents and have often listened to it and finally found it on iTunes so can now listen without the scratches and jumps.
John Pollock Complete recordings (save odd ones like this TV one) are available on CD - www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B002ZCJBCY/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_2?pf_rd_p=569136327&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000026GPR&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_r=1Z9GQ4EXGGCBDANKXD63
I've known and loved Flanders & Swann for pretty much all my (40) years, thanks to my father being an obsessive fan who taught me all the 'Hat' songs from an early age. It's surely not healthy to know all the words to Madeira M'dear from the age of ten is it? I discovered Armadillo much later and it always felt like 'my song'. The line: "Never tell a man the truth about the one that he adores" just kills me every time...
@@adlamis Maybe my father played it as sort of cautionary tale ? Certainly i grew up often singing The Hippopotamus Song with him when we were out together.
I absolutely love these guys. Quite brilliant in all respects and now sadly missed. I'd love to have seen them live. I wonder what they'd be singing about if they'd been born in the 60's or 70's......?
thank you for finding this! such a great team! I had the LP and played it on a turntable in the 60s! never saw them live! this is so lovely they were only ever sound for me!
One of my disappointments in life was that I never saw F & S live in concert. Although I know most of the words I never tire of listening to them. Thanks for uploading this clip, if you have any others please upload them for the 1000's of F & S fans out there.
I remember the night this was broadcast, I was with my parents just returning from a visit to my maternal grandparents, and so upset (I was about ten years old) that we had missed most of the show, though I did hear the "First and Second Laws" song.
If full concerts were professionally recorded, they should be released. If adequate home recordings exist, they should be remastered now we have the technology to broadcast quality into a compilation DVD. Flanders might not have liked being recorded, but he deserves the infamy, along with Swann, for their pains. They were geniuses, as this clip and the responses prove.
(Kiss-kiss) Adenauer ratified at Bonn, One old man goes on and on! The "Another Hat" version of "All Gall" is a bit more edgy, as is the response to the "Horoscope" song.
It's funny that the English are still upset that De Gaulle kept them out, when in fact today they don't really want to be part of the EU and certainly not the Eurozone.
Jerry Kitich Thing is, it's not the same EU nowadays as when De Gaulle was around (nor when the UK actually joined 10 years later). They'd probably have had second thoughts had they been able to see into the future, with hordes of so-called economic refugees arriving weekly from eastern Europe, and (far worse) countless sheaves of pointless restrictive regulations issuing forth from Brussels. Regulations that nearly every other country seems to defy or ignore.
Bless Flanders and Swann ... political satire at it's best. We STILL need people like this!
Oh god I recall the times and the atmosphere so well...and they capture it so well...bless them both, wherever they are...
Introduced to Flanders & Swann when I was a child by my dad - absolutely brilliant! Always loved them
Flanders & Swan are two of my favourite artists. I have several of their paintings at home.
Hilarious!
Such wonderful, elegant performers, and Swann's keyboard skills were so often overlooked. With the sad death of their great friend, Ian Wallace, a whole era in British revue entertainment has ended.
I remember seeing them on TV; I grew up with their songs, and have the CD reissues. F&S should never be forgotten!
My sister and I grew up listening to these guys and could never find anyone else who had even heard of them! Thank you so much for posting...the Armadillo song still makes me cry after all this time :)
In spite of the "grey" (i.e., "not-quite-black") humour, the song is really very touching.
I too grew up with these two, and even attended - as a teenager - a concert (in NZ) with my father. Try 'The Slow Train' - poignancy much!
Saw them in concert in New York when I was a small child. Brilliant.
Still funny after all those years. Clever and no obsceneties.
If this sort of thing were on the television these days, I might just watch it.
There are not enough superlatives in the OED to describe the talents of these gentlemen!
Wonderful. I grew up with "At the Drop of a Hat". Part of a great tradition of satirical songwriters - Gilbert & Sullivan, Tom Lehrer and many more. Nice to see music and lyrics used so deftly and combined so joyfully.
Can something be simultaneously very dated and absolutely timeless? It would appear so! :))
You are absolutely right when you say that...I've allways thought that because it was already dated and a throwback to the 20s when F&S performed this brilliant act in the 50s and 60s that it was ignoring faddish fashion trends and going full steam into bygone era with no apologies, thereby sticking two fingers up to future critics and cementing themselves into the hearts of people like us...and somehow I think they didnt give a hoot about such tiffles as fashion trends..one fashion trend that did help them, by chance, was the penchant for singing '20s style music hall numbers' in the late 60s..even The Beatles had a few very good stabs at this style with songs like 'when I'm 64'...but F&S reign supreme
This is a wonderful history lesson as well as an entertaining song!
This was my first exposure to Flanders & Swann when I was in fifth grade, and actually watched this on CBS before going to do my own performing in our middle school concert...
I was reminded about Flanders and Swann by John Hinchliffe! Thank you soo much John! What a delight to see them - I only heard the Hippo song before.
Most underated duo of 20th century
Loved them since I first heard them on LP record! I was 19 or so....c1960
Great to finally see them live , so to speak. I have the original LP of At the drop of a Hat which belonged to my parents and have often listened to it and finally found it on iTunes so can now listen without the scratches and jumps.
John Pollock Complete recordings (save odd ones like this TV one) are available on CD - www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B002ZCJBCY/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_2?pf_rd_p=569136327&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000026GPR&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_r=1Z9GQ4EXGGCBDANKXD63
Timothy Cox Thanks Timothy..much appreciated.
Thank you, childhood memories are front and center right now!
I've known and loved Flanders & Swann for pretty much all my (40) years, thanks to my father being an obsessive fan who taught me all the 'Hat' songs from an early age. It's surely not healthy to know all the words to Madeira M'dear from the age of ten is it?
I discovered Armadillo much later and it always felt like 'my song'. The line: "Never tell a man the truth about the one that he adores" just kills me every time...
The sort of thing one might teach to a daughter, rather than to a son.
Gwen I'm guessing you never took up stamp collecting. :)
@@adlamis Maybe my father played it as sort of cautionary tale ? Certainly i grew up often singing The Hippopotamus Song with him when we were out together.
I absolutely love these guys. Quite brilliant in all respects and now sadly missed. I'd love to have seen them live. I wonder what they'd be singing about if they'd been born in the 60's or 70's......?
thank you for finding this! such a great team! I had the LP and played it on a turntable in the 60s!
never saw them live! this is so lovely they were only ever sound for me!
One of my disappointments in life was that I never saw F & S live in concert. Although I know most of the words I never tire of listening to them. Thanks for uploading this clip, if you have any others please upload them for the 1000's of F & S fans out there.
As ross said, this is absolutely timeless! Forerunners of the Monty Pythons....
Lovely - witty and sharp, a joy
I adore these two nutters, god rest..... they were waaayy ahead of there time
"My Horoscope", the monologue on Hoyle & Copper-knickers - don't think I'd ever heard these. Tnx for the upload.
Brilliant! We heard a fantastic F&S revue at the 2010 Edinburgh Festival, and it was sold out.
Thanks SO much for posting this - I grew up with the sounds of these guys and it's so neat to see them
I laugh so hard at their songs! I have the three CD box set.
Many thanks for posting this - I've got all their recordings on CD but had never seen any of these performed.
What a treat! Thanks for introducing me to them.
Wonderful. Thanks so much
Absolutely SUPERB! Thanks for the upload!
It's amazing what you can learn from Flanders & Swann isn't it?
Michael Henry Flanders 1 March 1922 - 14 April 1975
Donald Ibrahim Swann 30 September 1923 - 23 March 1994
all of it is bloody wonderfull
It's how I discovered F & S!! I agree, A & M are affectionately pastiching these guys rather than taking the piss.
Many thanks for posting!
thank you for finding this! such a great team! I had the LP and played it on a turntable in the 60s!
I remember the night this was broadcast, I was with my parents just returning from a visit to my maternal grandparents, and so upset (I was about ten years old) that we had missed most of the show, though I did hear the "First and Second Laws" song.
The Armadillo song is one of the funniest but most poignant and sad song they did
Brilliant! Thank you soooo much.
I agree, and share the same past memories. I now have a Punk band, but STILL love 'The Bestiary'!
Thank you for uploading this gem.
"either that.. or the ship's sunk..." - I almost died laughing!! That joke was never in the audio CDs =)
If full concerts were professionally recorded, they should be released. If adequate home recordings exist, they should be remastered now we have the technology to broadcast quality into a compilation DVD. Flanders might not have liked being recorded, but he deserves the infamy, along with Swann, for their pains. They were geniuses, as this clip and the responses prove.
Thank you so much for posting this! You just made my evening. :)
Wonderful Flanders & Swan - hilarious.
Thanks for uploading
Gentle, intelligent humour - so not for today's world, I'm afraid.
Who's here because of Brabbins and Fife?
I have always LOVED F & S.
Argentina has an eccentric parralel in a musical team called Les Luthiers... somewhat in the same category.
Wonderful - not heard the variations and the Armidillo song
At the height of preposterous in one of his monologues, Flanders asserted the truth of his statement, "As surely as I'm riding this bicycle!"
They are worthy--indeed, overdue--for rediscovery and revival.
Wonderful. :-)
Good video.
I found them after searching for Brabbins & Fyffe by Armstrong and Miller.
super. I have the songs but not the commentary by Flannels. they recorded many of their shows themselves.
The Armadillo is my wedding song.
Hilarious!!
Loved the de Gaulle song
VERY FAINT AUDIO can you upload it again please
This old man thinks he's Saint Joan...sheer brilliance....
Thanks for posting, what happens about 7.42 ? There is a skip, and later at 7.57 the sound fades, can you fix and repost ? And any more ?
i'm sure there was a video of the at the drop of a hat concert...
And the audience laughs at anything
No sound!
This is one of two versions of all gall
0:10-2;22
They were just impersonating Brabbins & Fyffe, weren't they?
So many "Climate Experts" really need to understand the words to this song.
"Italy" doesn't really scan, but still, I suppose you can see why they changed that word.
(Kiss-kiss) Adenauer ratified at Bonn,
One old man goes on and on!
The "Another Hat" version of "All Gall" is a bit more edgy, as is the response to the "Horoscope" song.
It's funny that the English are still upset that De Gaulle kept them out, when in fact today they don't really want to be part of the EU and certainly not the Eurozone.
Jerry Kitich Thing is, it's not the same EU nowadays as when De Gaulle was around (nor when the UK actually joined 10 years later). They'd probably have had second thoughts had they been able to see into the future, with hordes of so-called economic refugees arriving weekly from eastern Europe, and (far worse) countless sheaves of pointless restrictive regulations issuing forth from Brussels. Regulations that nearly every other country seems to defy or ignore.
Don't think so, Micheal Flanders died in !974-5.
'positive' it IS, 'modern' it WOULD have been had I posted this in 1977!
@kalsore Try Fascinating Aida.... female group but amazing. Failing that... Tom Lehrer or Dean Friedman
And they can't sing a f'n note
relevant now with BREXIT
Superlative political satire! They don't make 'em like that any more.....
Rubbish. Armstrong and Miller's parody is very affectionate and has probably sent a lot of people to look for the originals
How sad that today's mediocre performers (Armstrong and someone) can't find something else to 'parody')
(Flanders never used a rug)
What in heavens are they laughing at??ffs
UTTER NONSENSE..pure crap.. imagine people paid in to listen to those clowns.. NOT FUNNY AT ALL.. SHOCKING..dreadfully bad.