A ratings disaster when it premiered on the ABC network on September 22, 1969 (and lasting a mere 16 weeks before cancellation), Music Scene now stands as a sublime time capsule of the "flower power" era. Although it was smartly conceived by the hipper-than-average producers of the controversial Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, the show was riskily scheduled opposite ratings juggernauts Gunsmoke and Laugh-In, and its fate was sealed. Now, with the passage of decades, these shows display a laudable effort to lure serious rock music into the pop-cultural mainstream--there were few if any opportunities for these acts to gain prime-time TV exposure, so it wasn't unusual to find Janis Joplin, Sly & the Family Stone, or Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young colliding on the guest list with bubble-gum pop stars like Bobby Sherman and MOR crooners like Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme.

Struggling to bridge the generation gap, host comedian David Steinberg--with a group of five regular cohosts including Lily Tomlin and occasional guest hosts--is a well-chosen mouthpiece for Hollywood's anti-Nixon liberalism, able to distinguish the important (Joe Cocker, Richie Havens) from the ridiculous (the nonexistent Archies and their #1 hit "Sugar Sugar" are duly dismissed). This Volume 1 DVD offers four complete shows, combining sociopolitical comedy with a potpourri of music (either live or lip-synched) selected each week from Billboard magazine's Top 100 pop, rock, country, and soul charts. An additional 21 bonus performances are packed onto side B, along with Music Scene promo spots featuring the Rolling Stones. All in all, this may be one of the best DVDs to showcase nostalgic TV in a meaningful and entertaining way, by rescuing a short-lived series from oblivion to remind us of the very best (and not-so-best) that American pop culture had to offer during the height of the Vietnam War. --Jeff Shannon

MUSIC SCENE, THE VOL. 1 (DVD MOVIE)

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The show interjected comedy routines between the musical numbers and, man, are they lame. Most of them. The bit that Tommy Smothers does before "Okie From Muskogee" is priceless. The chapters stops on the DVD are set so that if you skip ahead a chapter you hit the beginning of a musical number rather than the comedy bit. So you can easily skip past all the comedy (recommended).

Some favorite numbers, including some unexpected surprises: CSNY, "Down By the River," with a great hippie guitar freak-out; an interesting medley by the Everlys showing they were still cool in 1969; Isaac Hayes with "Walk on By" from "Hot Buttered Soul; Jerry Lee Lewis; Little Richard; Paul Anka doing *his* song, "My Way"; Ten Years After; a gospel version of The Archies' "Sugar, Sugar"!?; The Temptations; some awesome performances by Sly & the Family Stone; Janis Joplin. There are from 40-50 numbers total.

The DVD has a clean, colorful picture. The sound was decent considering that most of the music was vocal-oriented. I listen through TV speakers, so if the sound is superior I don't really know. But it did seem that the instrumentals were muted for some numbers, e.g. "Walk on By."

22 of 22 found the following review helpful:

The Cutting Edge of Wholesome EntertainmentApr 21, 2005
By R. Epstein "asanisimasa"
No doubt had I watched this series 35 years ago, I would have run out of the room when guests like Bobby Sherman or Steve Lawrence came on. And like many of the reviewers here, I would have questioned the intelligence of putting so many performers of different musical background all on one show. But I remember that Ed Sullivan's show had a similar mismatching of musical talent every week (not to mention puppet shows and ballet!). That was the sign of the times. The title of this show sums it all up: Music Scene. It is a terrific time capsule of the entire music scene of that era. It's all so innocent and unsophisticated to us now, but that's why most of the show is extremely enjoyable to watch. This show was right on the cusp of the next wave of television that was soon going to splinter into specialized programming. Previous to that, as we can see in this show, there was a lot of pressure to make sure that all the programming had something for everyone. I'm glad that it did splinter into programming that offered more intelligence and sophistication, but I'm also glad that there is this record of the America of decades past. One can appreciate how "radical" the sixties was on mainstream America when they see its musical extremes back-to-back. I think this series is a wonderful kaleidoscopic portrait of one of the most amazing times in our history, musically and culturally.

FEATURED PERFORMERS: James Brown, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Oliver, Three Dog Night, Tom Jones, The Rascals, The Dells, Roger Miller, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, Bobby Sherman, The Music Scene Singers, Sly and the Family Stone, Merle Haggard, Pat Williams, Steve Lawrence, The Temptations, Jerry Lee Lewis, Smith, Ten Years After, Richie Havens, Janis Joplin, Isaac Hayes, The Archies, and special gusts hosts Tommy Smothers and Michael Cole (reciting Rod McKuen - aagh!). BONUS TRACKS: Mary Hopkin, Lou Rawls, Marva Whitney, Joe Cocker, Captain Ely. Tommy Rose, Spirit, Della Reese, Gary Puckett, The Grass Roots, Lulu, Edie Gourmet, Little Richard, BB King, Paul Anka, Charley Pride, Buffy Saint Marie, The Everly Brothers, 4 very brief (non-musical) promos by The Rolling Stones, and more "Sugar Sugar" than you could ever hope for (actually, I really enjoyed the gospel rendition!).

20 of 20 found the following review helpful:

Classic and Priceless!Jun 24, 2005
By jazmaan
After reading the reviews here I wasn't expecting Volume 1 to be as great as it is! Sure there's lots of filler, but the gems are incredible! High points include:

Baby It's You - by one hit wonders "SMITH" featuring Gayle McCormick who sings the HECK out of the song. Maybe its because she knew that Janis Joplin would be following her on the same night?

World - James Brown sings about tolerance and understanding to a stage full of extras giving him the cold shoulder!

I Want To Take You Higher - Sly and the Family Stone tear this song up in a medley that includes "Don't Call Me Nigger Whitey!". Probably the first time that word ever got sung in prime time!

Down By The River - Crosby Stills Nash and Young rock out! Neil Young looks like a teenager! And he's sooooo good!

Walk On By - Isaac Hayes struts his ultra cool black stuff!

Maybe - Janis Joplin picks up the gauntlet thrown down by Gayle McCormick and does her one better!

I could go on and on. And don't forget this is a DOUBLE SIDED DVD, flip it over for an incredible rocking medley by The Everly Brothers (go figure?) which includes the Beatles "The End!". Other flip side highlights include James Brown's sexy protege Marva Whitney, B.B. King, Lulu, Joe Cocker, Little Richard and more!

By the way folks, these are mostly LIVE performances ( But I think the Temptations "I Can't Get Next To You" is lip-synched.)

8 of 8 found the following review helpful:

Worth it for the flashbacksApr 28, 2003
By Tom Tuerff
Of the two volumes in this series, this one, Volume 1, is probably the weakest. Not that it's bad, but it took the producers a few weeks to fine-tune this show (pretty much just in time for the show to be cancelled).

There are some flat-out funny moments here, and some aren't intentional. Notice, for example, that during the CSNY piece, Graham Nash, playing away on the piano, is virtually ignored by the cameras. If you didn't know who was who you'd think the drummer must be Nash; he gets more camera time.

David Steinberg's "antics" (I use the term lightly) range from pretty darn funny to just goofy.

Musically, the proof is here; Richie Havens, Isaac Hayes, and even Mama Cass is pretty good. And Jerry Lee Lewis takes the cake, as "The Killer" ofen does.

Be sure to buy volume 2 of this set as well. As the show sped towards oblivion the comedy got stranger, the guests got louder and if I didn't know better I'd bet you that last-show's guest-host Groucho Marx is still cracking jokes in that studio.

8 of 8 found the following review helpful:

here's whatcha getApr 20, 2008
By Don Schmittdiel "running_man"
Hard to believe anyone could find reason to gripe about all this, "in living color" no less. This wasn't a case of these performers not being ready for prime-time. It was a case of prime-time not being ready for them. The show was eclectic, eccentric, and electric. Get it, or forever be deprived. Oh, and be sure to check my "did this review help you" box. After all, who else gave you what you really wanted to know?

SIDE A

Chapters
September 22, 1969 (First Show)
1. Open
2. James Brown - World
3. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Down By the River
4. Buck Owens - Tall Dark Stranger
5. Oliver - Jean
6. Three Dog Night - Easy To Be Hard
7. Tom Jones - I'll Never Fall in Love Again
8. Music Scene Singers - Sugar Sugar
9. Program Close

October 6, 1969
1. Open
2. The Rascals - People Got to Be Free
3. The Dells - Oh What a Night
4. Roger Miller - King of the Road
5. Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - Here I Go Again
6. The Rascals - Carry Me Back
7. Roger Miller - Where Have All the Average People Gone
8. Bobby Sherman - Little Woman
9. The Music Scene Singers - Sugar Sugar
10. Program Close

October 20, 1969
1. Open
2. Sly & The Family Stone - Everyday People; Dance to the Music
3. Merle Haggard - Okie from Muskogee
4. Pat Williams - Music Scene Theme
5. Bobby Sherman - Little Woman
6. Steve Lawrence - The Drifter
7. Tommy Smothers - Comedy Routine
8. Sly & The Family Stone - Hot Fun in the Summertime; Don't Call Me
Nigger, Whitey
9. The Temptations - I Can't Get Next to You
10. Program Close

October 27, 1969
1. Open
2. Jerry Lee Lewis - Great Balls of Fire
3. Ten Years After - Bad Scene
4. Smith - Baby It's You
5. Richie Havens - Rocky Raccoon
6. Jerry Lee Lewis - She Even Woke Me Up to Say Goodbye
7. Janis Joplin - Kozmic Blues
8. Michael Cole - Rod McKuen Railroad Poetry
9. Isaac Hayes - Walk on By
10. The Archies - Sugar Sugar
11. Program Close

SIDE B

Bonus Tracks
1. Mary Hopkin - In My Life
2. Lou Rawls - I Can't Make It Alone; Just Squeeze Me
3. Marva Whitney - Things Got to Get Better
4. Joe Cocker - Delta Lady
5. Lily Tomlin - Comedy Routine
6. Three Dog Night - Eli's Coming
7. Tommy Roe - Dizzy
8. Spirit - 1984
9. Della Reese - Wedding Bell Blues
10. Lou Rawls - Your Good Thing (Is About to End)
11. Gary Puckett - This Girl is a Woman Now
12. The Grass Roots - Heaven Knows
13. Lulu - Oh Me Oh My (I'm A Fool For You, Baby)
14. Bobby Sherman - Sounds Along the Way
15. Eydie Gorme - Tonight I'll Say a Prayer
16. Little Richard - Lucille; Tutti Frutti
17. B.B. King - Just a Little Love
18. Paul Anka - My Way
19. Charley Pride - Louisiana Man
20. Buffy Saint Marie - He's a Keeper of the Fire
21. The Everly Brothers - Medly: Rock and Roll Music; The End;
Aquarius; If I Were a Carpenter; The Price of Love; Games People Play

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