Index
» MICKEY MOUSE
GOODIES MUSIC REVIEW #43 – M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E.
Hi there pop pickers and welcome to another Goodies Music Review.
WHO?
It's been quite some time since we last heard from our intrepid music reviewers Emperor Caligula (aka Brett Allender) and Peaches Stiletto (aka Linda Kay) and that's because they've been away on holidays (giving us a holiday from them in the process too!) Their trip to the peaceful seaside village of Dunsquabblin wasn't exactly the most relaxing of vacations as it rained cats and dogs for 17 days, not to mention sheep (hence the "stormy wether" alert!) In fact Emperor Caligula got so annoyed with the constant thud of sheep landing on the roof that he made his own director's cut of "Silence of the Lambs" (with the help of a shotgun, carving knife and spit roast), but inadvertantly breached the local by-law stipulating that the sheep must not be disturbed (at least not as disturbed as him anyway!). He unsuccessfully argued that the sheep were in a very tranquil state afterwards (between two pieces of bread!) and so the local authorities banished him to nearby Upper Ramsbottom, which he apparently enjoyed very much!
Meanwhile Peaches found that the charming little bungalow wasn't exactly to her liking, as even with a little imagination and a little stepladder, the inaccessibility of the toilet on the side wall of the bathroom led to a number of little accidents, especially from the ubiquitous sheep who tried to use it as well. Peaches got so p-ed off with being peed on that she cranked up the electric guitar, blasted out a punk rock rendition of "Oh I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside" and smashed the bungalow to smithereens. This also provided a slight disturbance to the sheep (especially the ones trapped under the rubble) so she decided that she'd better get the flock out of there fast!
They might have both been banned from Dunsquabblin, but they've managed to find somewhere else rather unreal with lots of strange make-believe characters, so let's cross over to Disneyland and your Dumb-o DJs with their music review of "M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E." by The Goodies.
WHERE? WHEN?
" M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E." can be heard on the 70s album "The Goodies Greatest Hits" and as a single with Funky Farm on the flip side.
WHAT?
Lyrics: mainly sung by Bill, with help from Tim & Graeme
M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E., M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E.
Mickey Mouse, Mickey Mouse
Forever let us hold our banner high
Mickey Mouse, Mickey Mouse
Forever let us hold our banner high
Who's the leader of the club that's made for you and me?
M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E.
Hi there, ho there, hi de hi, You're welcome as can be
M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E.
Mickey Mouse, Mickey Mouse
Forever let us hold our banner high
Mickey Mouse, Mickey Mouse
Forever let us hold our banner high
M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E. (eek eek), M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E. (eek eek)
Is he a fieldmouse? (No!)
Is he a dormouse? (No!)
Is he a hippopota-mouse? (No!)
Is he anony-mouse? (No!)
Is he fa-mouse? (Yes!)
All together now, it's
M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E., M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E.
M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E., M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E.
Now come along, sing a song and join the jamboree
M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E.
We play fair, we work hard and we're in harmony
M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E.
Mickey Mouse (eek eek eek), Mickey Mouse (eek eek eek),
Mickey Mouse (eek eek eek),
(Mickey Mouse & M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E. in overlapping verses, with a M.I.K.C.Y.E. F.E.U.S.O. thrown in for good measure before returning to the correct spelling.)
WHY?
(Peaches Stiletto):
The Goodies were, in their own way, a modern day Three Musketeers. So it wasn't a big stretch for them to become the Three Mouseketeers for this jaunty updated version of the classic Mickey Mouse Club theme song. It's no secret that Bill Oddie harbors an open affinity for the animated rodent of Disney lore, having a rather extensive collection of mouse-abilia in his own home (as well as a collection of gnomes . . . hmmm, seems Bill has caught Witch Hazel's obsession for small, furry animals!) But when Uncle Walt created the silent then squeaky high-pitched frontman for his empire-to-be, there's no way he could have known it would come to this ultimate culmination of pop culture melding on wax in 1981. Maybe it was Bill's love of the media mogul mouse which led to this recording . . . or perhaps it just gave the guys another good opportunity to make silly noises ("eek eek eek" is right up their alley, after all!) The Mickey Mouse Club was a television staple in the 1950's then rehashed several times over the years, finally enjoying a renewed success in the 1990's. So this song was and is immediately recognizable by a wide variety of fans, old and young alike. Of course the Goodies had to throw in their own groanful puns and hip stylings for good measure. Why? Because they like you! So while this song probably wouldn't be singled out as the best song in the Goodies repertoire, it's a solid tribute to a classic theme song which still brings back good memories for many.
(Emperor Caligula):
Now just a Minnie … what exactly has Tiggered the Goodies' Goofy song choice this time, I Wonder(land). It's one thing for them to Thumper tribute song out for ferrets and gibbons, but to Simba song for a ruddy mouse has Smee wondering if these Mad Hatters have made a Baloo or if it's the work of the (Cruella) De Vil instead. Now admittedly he's not just any mouse (as so punnily described in the lyrics) and I've been watching his antics since I was Aladdin short pants so it just might (Peter) Pan out OK. The Goodies' rendition is very upbeat with catchy (Captain) Hooks from guiTarz-an' in-Genie-ous lyrics, with some ferret-like eeking for good measure, but Bill is no Old Yeller in this one and doesn't Tinker(bell) too much with Mickey's classic theme song. It's Snow White Christmas by any means, but it's not (Winnie the) Poo(h) standard either, despite the likely stream of unintelligible gibberish as the opinion of one Donald Duck Esq that would make Eddie Waring sound like Mary Poppins by comparison. So lend me your (Mouseket)eers, don't be a Scrooge (McDuck) and enjoy the (B)ambience of some Goodies meets Disney Fantasia that will Cinderella of a nice feeling through your childhood memory bank and leave you feeling Happy (though you can get locked up for that y'know!).
HOW!
Using the Black Pudding Rating System:
III Goody Goody Yum Yum (Peaches Stiletto)
III Goody Goody Yum Yum (Emperor Caligula)
THE BLACK PUDDING RATINGS SYSTEM
IIIII - Superstar.
IIII - Officially Amazing.
III - Goody Goody Yum Yum.
II - Fair-y Punkmother.
I - Tripe on t' Pikelets.
|
