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From: SpindleRecords
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  • According to music industry insiders, Sam Coslow, one of this song's composers, hated Jones' treatment of this song with a passion... but that didn't stop him from cashing the royalty checks.

  • First heard this on the radio in the kitchen around 1949....don't recall seeing this short before.

  • One of the funniest musicians ever. Timeless.

  • And I hope you guys realize....

    this looks stupid to us, just like all the pop music comin out is actually very retarded also, and will only become apparent to a new generation

  • @dtp5150 Yeah, and that ancient dude Shakespeare, he's way out of fashion.

  • The guy playing the violin at 1:04 looks like he takes it up the Hershey Highway....

    Dude is packin' fudge for sure!

  • The guy playing the violin looks like a retard

    

  • Happy 100th Birthday Spike!

  • its like shut up and get to the funny part

  • yockety yockety yock!

  • Happy Birthday #100, Spike Jones!

  • 1911 - 2011 ... Happy 100th birthday Spike !

  • Is that a young Doodles Weaver with Spike?

  • Listen to this while stoned...if you dare.

  • Priceless ,I've listened to the song before many times. I'm also 70 . we WW2 babies picked up a lot of the wartime music because that is all there was on the "RADIO" or "WIRELESS" depending on where you lived

  • @minhoffer listened to this on a crystal set with a spring mattress as an ariel...how times change......

  • I boop your nose! @ 2:03

  • Early 70's glam-rock band near the end!

  • A gut buster so rare, and so damn FUNNY...I have a compilation album of Spike's best...Sweet...

  • ♥ .

  • Excellant my friend brillant blast from the past

  • thanks so much for sharing with me. gary  funny stuff

  • @mystique270 Thanks so much for sharing this treasure with me!!☺It's had me laughing so hard I'm in tears. It's a favourite for sure!♥ 

  • @PlayIt4MeAgainSam

    My Darling Lia,

    This is just what I needed. Those were some VERY LARGE COCKTAILS FOR TWO.

    Thank you so much for sharing.

    Smooch

    G

  • Decades ahead of their time indeed! It shows that the concept of the pop video predates the invention of video recorders by many years and even the cross dressing at the end show that Spike Jones and His City Slickers were upstaging Freddie Mercury and Queen's well publicised 'I've Got To Break Free' video by decades!

  • What a great find! Thanks for sharing! Spike and his performers were decades ahead of their time.

  • Thanks soooo much!! This must have been one of the VERY first music videos.... and its WAAAAAY better than most of the more recent video vintages. Spike's completely dead-pan and perfectly-timed performance in this comedic masterpiece, is CLASSIC. (or, as the kids would say today, EPIC).

  • My music teacher (in 9th grade) played this for our class- no idea why, but I've never forgotten it. Thanx to Mr. Itallo Taranta & thanx for posting. Mad stupid fun :-D

  • Spike was well before his time; a master of comedic music. Brilliant.

  • Good Song!

  • The look on Spike Jones's face throughout this video is priceless.

  • I saw this short on TV many years ago. Brilliant.

  • What movie was this in? My dad says it's in a movie but he cant remember the name of it.

  • excellent post, thany-you

  • Sam Coslow wrote in his book that he was absolutely not amused about this "klamauk" version of his great composition! Anyway he earned a lot of Royalties.

    Great musicians played complicated but tasteless arrangements very well. Humoristic? No! Just funny "klamauk".

  • Well, folks . . . being an amateur drummer, it doesn't surprise me in the least that the Mastermind behind all this skilled Tomfoolery was a . . . DRUMMER!

    We're a breed apart! A part of WHAT---I won't say . . .

    Gary in Arizona

  • waa this reminds me of Sylvester the Cat singing under Elmer's window! :D

  • Ya Know Fellas...

  • Devin Townsend's childhood music

  • Spike Jones was so great! Used to listen to his albums all the time as a kid and got a love for humorous music.

  • @ElveeKaye im related to him he's my great grandpas cousins husband

  • 14 people drank cocktails on their own. Hic.

  • To the viewers: Please don't ask question aimed at the poster of this video, SpindleRecords, as Marc Bird, founder and poster, Passed away Jan 6, 2009. I am currently downloading the video's just in case something happens to this channel. His computer with almost everything on it crashed a week after I hooked it back up. Guess not using it for a year while I sold our house and looked for a new one wasn't good for it. I can't get on his page cuz IDK his password. Gonna put on mine.

  • Co-composer Sam Coslow reportedly hated Spike's treatment of his song with a passion... but that never stopped him from cashing the royalty checks.

  • This song was actually first written all the way back in 1934!!

  • One of the funniest things I've ever seen. AND it was a success, without sick, crude comments and filthy images! Hilarious!!

  • What the World needs now is a good dose of Spike Jones!!

  • The DVD set "Spike Jones - The Legend" is a treasure. Spike does some physical stuff that's astounding,. In great shape for a skinny guy. A delight to relive. Thanks to SJ-Jr. for keeping it all alive.

  • I'm 60, so I missed I missed the Spike Jones era..but did get to see the traveling show at local theaters. The look-a-like actor singer dresses just like Spike and even owns the original 'sound effect box' with the cow bell, the car horn, the door bell and the gun.

    I was like a kid, I had to touch it. The other musicians and singers were very talented and did all the Spike Jones classics.

  • Im so glad I found this here! I enjoy the older comedy more than anything I find now a days. Spike Jones was a genius!

  • definatley reminds me of my child hood, Spike Jones was a huge part of our lives.

  • Well, folks . . . I STILL say that the center "lady" in the dancing trio is Frank Zappa's mother!  "No way to delay that trouble coming every day."

    Like Frank said: "Humor is necessary in everyday life--until the Republicans take it away."

    Gary in Arizona

  • Have a little more wine, my dear? It's so bubbly as it trickles down your bra. Everyday is like New Years Eve...

  • No, I don't believe Mickey Katz was in the video either... MK performed with SJ for only 18 months in 1946-47.. MK had the standard "Clark Gable" 40'ties look, so another person in the 1945 video could easily look like him. I have seen the video now five times, and I am sure MK is NOT in it.... About the video ... 100% genius.

  • Is Mickey Katz (Joel Grey's father) really in this video? It seems unlikely. This video was made in 1945, and I believe that Mickey Katz only performed with Spike Jones during1946 and 1947. Does anyone know for sure whether or not Mickey Katz is in this video? Is he the fellow with the mustache at the bar with Spike Jones, or is that someone else?

  • My dad used to bring me upstairs at my grandmother's house and play 78's on an old, tall Victrola. I used to fall about the place watching my dad laugh till he cried. I found out the the old records break when you drop them. So glad you placed this up here. Incredibly funny comedy. My father is now 84. Thanks!

  • My dad used to bring me upstairs at my grandmother's house and play 78's on an old, tall Victrola. I used to fall about the place watching my dad laugh till he cried. I found out the the old records break when you drop them. So glad you placed this up here. Incredibly funny comedy. My father is now 84. Thanks!

  • thus a man never did comedy quite as good again

  • This is fantastic - !! Thank you !! I loved this as a child (i am nearly 72 )

    I am amazed to find it here -- and to make this even more magical -- I have NO IDEA how it happened to appear ! When I was zapped off without ceremony by some unknown fluke - youtube was set with Tom Lehrer ! ! Will wonders never cease !

  • @sleacc

    Same here (68). Thumbing through Mad Magazine and listening to the Jones 78's. Good times, good times.

  • @sleacc well guess what, im related to spike jones he's my grandpas cousins husband

  • @sleacc 25 people are 72?

  • @sleacc

    I'm 23 and have heard this courtesy of the good Dr Demento's show (no longer on airwaves)

  • First time I saw this on tv years ago I thought the bartender was James Cagney. Spike and him are like twins.

  • This is a sure way to cheer yourself up every time you need it. The bit with the corn... the whole thing is just genius!

  • Some old friends and I loved to do acid and listen to Spike,many years ago..the only side effect was havin sore stomach muscles from laughin so hard....

  • @sjkennedy100 And there was me thinking that I had invented this mad combination! You're dead right about the sore laughter muscles. I adore the other Spike too (Milligan) and can recommned a viewing of his famous Fresh Fruit Song on here.

  • I'm missing something.. why do people like this so much??

  • 11 people need to get off the bus

  • Hahaha SJ can still make me laugh so I almost wet myself.

  • I love how the cups get progressively bigger!

  • Spike was the one that did the "gargle" ?

  • How could 11 people not like this? What the hell is wrong with you people???

  • I believe the 'ng' guy is Mickey Katz, famous 'yinglish' parody singer and klezmer clarinetist.

  • Carl Grayson, the featured vocalist on this recording, eventually became WGN-TV's 1st host of THE 3 STOOGES (later replaced by Bob "Andy Starr" Bell) and also anchored nightly newscasts on the same Chicago channel.

  • you rule!!! thanks for posting this! my dad got me into Spike Jones as a kid. he served in WWII and this stuff was immensely popular for keeping spirits up back then. xox

  • 40's Beat Box! lovin it!

  • Good ole spike jones. One of the first WTF artists.

  • Amazing. There's no doubt that this is ORIGINAL to my mind. A rare treat of Spike Jones footage in my part of the world. It's obviously Spike himself in the white jacket. I even think that "Cocktails for Two" was his major breakthrough, wasn't it? Anyway, a gem, no less!

  • Heard this on a tv add once.Didn't know there was a video of it though, thanks.

  • Spike Jones was a genius!! His musicians were incredible!

  • @jckturchin Oh yes, they were incredible, and that's the reason for my channel of over 600 playlists. Lists for 400 artists, like Spike Jones, and for every year since 1900, so I added this to 1945 also! They're a century of music from around the world. I think this is my only video playlisted with a drag show ( 2:22 )! Hope you stop by, chuck

  • Oh gosh...this is the one I've had stuck in my head for so long. My parents had this on a record.

  • from 1:37 to 1:58... what is the name of that guh sound the guy makes? I do it to but i dont know what to call it?

  • @runerman16

    Do you mean the sound that starts with a 'ng' in the bottom of your throat, and is followed by a 'cluck' sound at the back of your mouth when you constrict the top part of your throat?

  • @tenderheart17 yeah... even George Carlin pointed it out but even he didnt assign a name to it... is there some kind of linguistic term for it or...?

  • @runerman16

    The only thing I can liken it to, is 'a cat trying to vomit'. Not a very elegant term though, is it!?

  • Spike Jones was a genius - nothing like it since.

  • n.

  • "My band is too corny for sophisticated people and too sophisticated for corny people." - Spike Jones

  • Este sensacional SPIKE JONES AND THE CITY SLICKERS ha sido el mago del sonido incorporando toda clase de extravagancias sonoras a diversas melodías famosas lo que le da un toque original y lo hace casi único en este tipo de musica, podríamos decir, extravagante pero muy original tal y como lo escuchamos en este famosísimo Coctel para dos. Saludos desde Colombia.

  • Spike Milligan invented the music video!!! He was a true genius.

  • You're my hero, I didn't realize there was any film of these songs (I love you, Internet!) When I was a kid I'd ask my dad to get his "hits" record from the local library, and I do mean "record"

  • Well, folks . . . what is the word that the chorus is singing in the opening verse? . . . is it "no longer SINKING?" . . . is this a reference to ship losses in the war? . . . all this tomfoolery required high musicianship and precision timing . . . interesting that author Thomas Pynchon was a fan . . . when I read "V" I found the description of the rhinoplasty absolutely chilling . . . Gary in Arizona . . . courtesy of Vic561.

  • @Vic561 the word is "slinking". The song was written to celebrate the end of prohibition. During prohibition, you couldn't get a drink except at an illegal bar called a speakeasy. To get in the speakeasy, you looked around to make sure there were no cops in sight, then knocked on the door and gave the secret password to get admitted.

  • Man, this video is so funny/

  • Well, folks . . . the "lady" in the center of the dancing trio . . . obviously . . . FRANK ZAPPA'S MOTHER!!! . . . Gary in Arizona . . . courtesy of Vic561. 

  • Cher Christophe, grâce à vos favoris j'ai découvert cette vidéo drôle! J'éclate de rire!

  • ORIGINAL music video! Does Weird Al Y. love this or WHAT!!

  • Anyone know why 'Goldberg and O'Reilly' (who they?) have pulled all the other vids of Spike Jones' live show and other vids, too? I think they were originally down as 'The Spike Jones Estate'?

  • this song in on the movie the brave little toaster

  • America's greatest exports: Spike Jones, Glen Miller, Morgan Freeman, Southern comfort (drink!), James Cagney, Humphrey Bogart. As a 55 year-old romantic, I clearly recall back in the 1960's playing Mum's old 78's of Spike Jones and loving every minute of it. This guy was 100% pure talent. The very best showman the US has produced and some 70 years later, he is still making us smile. Definately one of the global great talents.

  • I used to spend Sundays listening to Spike with my grandfather. All these guys were astounding musicians...

  • Was that Victor Borge at 1:05?

  • could this possibly be the first music video?

  • @femoman No, atually Disney's Fantasia is considered to be the first.

  • I was raised on this stuff, which is unusual for a 22-year-old.  I'm so glad this is on YouTube. Words cannot express. <3

  • would it possible to re-upload this video at a higher quality level? the v-disc and victor recordin just don't quite cut it. where on earth did you get this? you wouldn't happen to have the original soundie 16mm per chance?

    thanks so much for this great gem! been looking for a 'clean' version of this forever.

    gotta love the soundies!

  • I have this on a 78rpm disc...never thought I would see the "video".....wonderful !

  • Have you seen the spike jones track on the cadbury ad called fish?

  • @TheChubersola what's it called? I've been trying to find that track everywhere.

  • Spike Jones was incredible!

  • WTF? guys in drag at 2:33?!?

  • @SacValleyDweller Did you think Corporal Klinger was the first dude to dress in drag for M*A*S*H* in the 1970's?

  • Got to love Spike Jones, version.

  • Top Man!

    Imagine drinking with him!

  • billiant

  • Imagine a small Peugeot 106 "umpa umpa" car, but with this playing instead of techno..

    That's probably me!

  • This brings back old memories

  • I'm distantly related to Spike; cool man, great legacy!

  • I am told that the late great Frank Zappa was influenced by Spike Jones. Spike was a man ahead of his time, and I'm glad my parents (rest their souls) turned me on to Spike's music when I was growing up.

  • @dlhalper

    Not only was Frank Zappa inspired by Spike, but so also was another great performer in novelty/comedy music: "Weird Al" Yankovic.

  • Fallout 3!!!!!

  • Spike hired that guy only cuz he could gurgle on cue

  • thumbs up for the spike!

  • Spike Jones, an American classic, for sure!

  • Wow. These guys are great.  My dad one of Spike Jones' records, and now I finally see the crew!

  • Wow, I've heard Spike Jones on CD, but I've never seen him and his crew perform before. I love this stuff!

  • So THIS is Spike Jones! I'd heard the name and the tails, but never a recording.

  • So THIS is Spike Jones!!! I'd heard the name and the tales, but never a recording.

  • Nice song ...Reminds me of my buddies!

    Everet Johnny Ricky and ME!

    HAHAHAH

    Nice!

    Thanks for the Memories!

  • Brilliance. I love the fact that they do it totally deadpan - nobody is being 'wacky' or winking at the camera with the possible exception of the hillbilly fiddle player, and in his case it's more like he's just really pleased that his mammy and pappy are going to see him on the screen.

  • HolyCocktailNUTTIness! ... How true! This was one of my dear Dad's FAV laughfests... he was a non-Drinker (that is to say, two beers, total, each Year!)... and he and his brothers and entire family madly, cheerfully, at the indescribable pureGoofiness-es that Cocktails can breed in even the most civilized human beings around us. Anyhow... thanks, 'SpindleRecords.' MUCH FUN to SEE Jones and Co. acting-out so much Boozie-Madness -- In fun and Humor always... jonycuddlesgert!

  • Love it..but still find Gentry's Gin a true masterpiece!! Also very rare!

  • If you like Spike, check out "Cocktails For Two" by Bob Kerr and His Whoopie Band on this channel. . . crazy '60s Brit band with some members of the Bonzo Dog Band.

  • LOL, brilliant stuff!

  • Do you have the one where he's playing pop goes the weasel while doing tricks on the violin?

  • @FatherTime89 Look up "Wilbur Hall". He's the one who did the violin part. There's video of him in 1930 (alone), and in the 1950's on the Spike Jones show reprising the same bit.

  • @zerobeat18 Thank you.

  • another childhood favourite. Still has me in hysterics He was unique. a genious

  • Yeah, me to. The request session on Sunday morning radio in NZ, 1957/8...loved this crazy stuff. Such good musos and wacky creative. Still love it . Cheers, Tony

  • Every bartender needs to see this video. Thank You! It is stellar!!

  • A classic Spike Jones musical spoof.

  • The reason the noises don't match with the pictures is because this was normally all done on stage. Smashing things, firing guns and so on. And at the time everyone was really shocked cos it just wasn't done. There is a clip of a live preformance on here somewhere.

  • welch herrliche Chaoten. Einfach köstlich.

  • Fantastic..youll never see anything this clever again.

  • @agdarwin You said it. I would rather have my eyes glued to the classics on YouTube than on the television entertained by a lot of ersatz talent.

  • Nice!

  • I remember hearing these songs at my Uncle's house back in the late 40s and early 50s. He and my Aunt had a stack of 78s of these songs. Laffed my ass off then and I still do, it sure turns back the calender.

  • You can't make a song that is still funny 60 years later and suck, that's for sure.

  • No matter how many time one sees or hear this, it´s always funny. Spike was a Genius.

  • Does anyone know which movie this was featured in? I would love to get the dvd just for this song alone.

  • @1laughinggravy I think this is what they called a "soundie". It was made for a special type of video jukebox.

  • This is Fucking Awesome!!!!! Thank You for Posting it!!!!!!! I have got to Give this to My Dad He Would it Thanks Again.

    Xellos26

  • Jones does look like Jimmy Cagney. This video is a great contribution to mankind. Fucking nut!

  • That first beat after "secluded rendezvous" is such a great gag - and visually, it's hysterical.

    pJ

  • It's neat to see the "video" of the song I've heard a hundred times!

  • This MUST be the world's first true music video!!! Pure genius.

  • My grandfather loved this. Makes my mother and I smile. Thank you for posting.

  • Man, this is a classic...tears runnin down me face! Thanks for posting

  • Is that the guy form Hall & Oates in the middle at 2:22?

  • does spike lok a little like james top of the world ma

  • Thanks for posting this. My father (WW II vet) used to sing some of the City Slickers' material (he must have bought every record and gone to every concert of theirs he could manage), so I was excited when I found my first Spike Jones tape and was able to bring it home and make my dad's day. I didn't know there were very many visual recordings of them available.

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  • Red Ingle was brilliant too.....

  • I work at a sporting goods store.

    About six months ago, I switched the PA radio to "40's on 40" and this blasted throughout the store.

  • @CsBTransition Thank you.

  • I played this record so much when I was a kid (50 years ago) that my old man finally had enough and smashed it. This was the best SJ record that I had.

  • Cameo from Stephane Grappelli on violin?

  • I've never laughed so hard. It's a shame that the teens of today don't know this stuff. It is awesome, wonderful and amazing.

  • I'm fifteen and I fucking grew up with Spike Jones. But you are right.

  • Hey now, I'm a teen and I love this sort of stuff. Slowly, but surely I've been spreading this stuff around to my friends. The golden days will eventually return. ^^

  • @xxDarkAmuletSpadexx I agree. Stuff like this is timeless

  • @xxDarkAmuletSpadexx I couldn't agree more :) it's just great compared to mainstream music these days!

  • Amazing stuff. Hilarious! Spike Jones - what a legend!

  • Is the singer seen in the film Carl Grayson?

  • Yup-hic. Red Ingle on hiccups!