Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show was a favorite band back in the day. They did most of their best work when I was quite young, but when I was serving a three-year sentence in something called “high school,” which had the primary function of cutting into my hunting and fishing time, Dr. Hook was still getting a lot of radio play.
They had a neat sound, and the band was composed of some colorful characters. I liked a lot of their work, but I bothered myself to pick out six, so you can really get your weekend going.
So, without further ado:
I Got Stoned and I Missed It. It’s important to remember that this was the time when Cheech & Chong albums were flying off record store shelves. There was a lot of stoner humor, and Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show certainly cashed in on the genre. This song not only features some good music, but it elicits a grin in the listener. The little voice-over at the very end is the best part.
Ahh-ahh-ahh
You can't sing in that condition
Freakin’ at the Freaker’s Ball. Likewise a fun tune with some laughs, this song brings up a peppier version of Lou Reed’s “Walk on the Wild Side.” The Freaker’s Ball is populated by the kind of people one might expect to find at an event carrying that name, and honestly, they make it sound like a pretty good time.
Well there's gonna be a freaker's ball (ha ha)
Tonight at the Freaker's Hall
And you know you're invited one and all
Uh oh
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The Cover of the Rolling Stone. This is one most folks over the age of 50 will remember. But what a lot of folks under 50 don’t know is that back in the day, “Rolling Stone” was more about music and less about politics. I remember regularly buying a copy of that magazine when the cover appealed and reading some interesting interviews with music-industry figures, including Bob Dylan, Mick Jagger, and Stevie Nicks. It’s a shame that the mag has become a lefty mouthpiece now, but back then, being on the cover of “Rolling Stone” was a sign you’d arrived.
The Wonderful Soup Stone. Another fun one, this song lays some tunes around the old legend of the soup stone. Remember that old tale? A colorful character sells the idea of a soup stone, a legendary stone that will produce soup when immersed in boiling water. But, as the main character points out, the soup will gain savor if only the townspeople will add some carrots – and then some potatoes, some onions, and so on. It’s a fun old story and a fun old song.
See Related: Start Your Weekend Right With Five Great Fun Rock Tunes From the Early Seventies
Everybody Loves Me. With a great bass line and a buzzing harmonica, this song poses a head-scratcher in the lyric: “Everybody loves me, and I don’t know why.” The vocals are great, fast, punchy, and ascending at times almost to a wail.
If “Everybody Loves Me” doesn’t get your toe tapping, there’s something broken in your rhythm meter.
Sylvia’s Mother. Finally, this is a tune that is something of a tear-jerker. This lament has a young man calling the mother of a girl who has just dumped him, begging just to talk to her, to say goodbye. The part that really makes it sad and increases the urgency is the constant interruption of the operator, who keeps reminding the caller:
And the operator says forty cents more
For the next three minutes
It’s uncharacteristically sad for Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show – but that doesn’t make it any less a good tune.
Listening to this great band from the early to mid-70s really takes one back. They weren’t as big as some, they weren’t as prolific as some, but they produced some great tunes and made their mark on the era, and that’s nothing to sneeze at.Any Dr. Hook hits of your own to suggest? As always, the comments are all yours.
