The T.A.M.I. Show - Still A Groundbreaking Music Event
Groundbreaking rock 'n roll concert explodes onto the scene in 1964 & again in 2010.
The T.A.M.I. Show: Broke New Ground for Youth-Oriented Music Movies & Events
What was the T.A.M.I. Show?
It's what The Rolling Stones, James Brown, Lesley Gore, Jan and Dean, and The Beach Boys have in common. Long before Woodstock and the Monterey Pop Festival, there was The T.A.M.I. Show.
T.A.M.I. stands for Teenage Music International and Teenage Awards Music International (both names were used on the promotional posters). Filmed at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium during 2 days in October, 1964, The T.A.M.I. Show, was the first rock and roll concert movie. It set the stage for the youth oriented events, movies, music videos, and TV programmes that were to follow for decades. It was filmed just 7 months after The Beatles first appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Produced by Bill Sargeant and directed by Steve Binder, The T.A.M.I. Show came to movie screens across North America in 1964. It spoke to youth featuring their music. It's a virtual time capsule of 1960s youth fashion including bikinis, mini-skirts, and bell bottoms. In March, 2010, The T.A.M.I. Show has again come to North American audiences but this time through their TV screens on PBS and, finally, the long awaited DVD release of The T.A.M.I. Show: Collector's Edition! by Shout! Factory. (Reuters)
"Top three of all rock movies."
Director Quentin Tarantino
"The greatest rock movie you've never seen."
"Little Steven" Van Zandt (Reuters)
"The T.A.M.I. Show, the most praised, most coveted and perhaps least viewed concert film in history...."
USA Today
Why is the T.A.M.I show making waves and of significance long after its debut?
I am a firm believer that one can learn a lot from landmark and cutting edge events of the past. We can pick up strategies from The T.A.M.I. Show for producing truly groundbreaking events. The T.A.M.I. Show:
- merged musical genres with iconic artists
- introduced a ground breaking approach to production
- broke down racial barriers
- transcends time and moves across generations
Merging of Musical Genres
It was the first time iconic artists from so many different genres shared the same stage.
The T.A.M.I. Show captured the musical magic of a generation. On one stage, it featured the Rock 'n Rock Roll of the British invasion (The Rolling Stones, Gerry & the Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas), R& B (James Brown & the Flames, The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles), Surf Rock (The Beach Boys, Jan & Dean), Pop (Lesley Gore), and Country & Western (Glenn Campbell was a guitarist in the house band). John Landis, who was one of the teenagers who attended the show, speaks about his experience. His classmate David Cassidy (who went on to star in The Partridge Family) also attended:
http://www.trailersfromhell.com/trailers/9
Here we have Surf Rock artists Jan and Dean singing the title song for The T.A.M.I. Show:
Representing a definite contrast in styles, this is one of many songs that The Rolling Stones performed during the show:
Ground Breaking Technology & Approach to Production
"It was all live, no postproduction, no second choices. It was all gut instinct."
"Asked why The T.A.M.I. Show still holds up after 46 years, Binder says it boils down to the artists' unbridled performances."
Steve Binder, Director, T.A.M.I. Show (Reuters)
Steve Binder speaks about how The T.A.M.I. Show was produced. It was a 4 camera shoot with stationary and hand held cameras. It used new technology called electronivision that increased the 525 lines on a typical TV screen at the time to 1100 - 1500 lines. He discusses the emergence of this technology and the production of The T.A.M.I. Show. This clip, he also discusses the genesis of American landmark TV shows Shinding and Hullabaloo.
You'll find this discussion on your counter from 05:25 to 15:10.
You can read more comments from Steve Binder here:
Breaking Down Racial Barriers
The T.A.M.I. Show broke down racial barriers on stage and in the audience.
I think this comment by someone who saw The T.A.M.I Show for the first time in 1964 at age 12 says it best.
"The young people, Black and White together, screaming for the entertainers, dancing and just going berserk. The 'go-go' dancers and simple stage set-up kept the focus on the performer on stage at that time. In an era of racism, prejudice, civil rights movement and segregation, The T.A.M.I. Show for a while helped us all to forget our trouble and fears and differences in skin color and just have fun."
Geraldine D. Smith "Wisdom 4 Life" (Review on Amazon)
"Most of the black acts were restricted from mainstream television. So it was great seeing white audiences reacting to Smokey, James and Marvin as equals to the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys and everybody else. It was an integrated United Nations on wheels with nobody discussing race afterward. It's just a great rock 'n' roll film."
Steve Binder, Director, T.A.M.I. Show
While the significance is probably lost on 21st century audiences, it is important to remember that this event took place just a few months after President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law on July 2. Segregation had been very much the order of the day and America was in transition.
"In the days we did The T.A.M.I. Show – especially in America in the south, theatre owners were literally taking scissors and cutting out scenes with black stars in them. The fact that this was the first time white audiences were really getting to see James Brown, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson and Diana Ross bridged the colour gap in America to a great degree."
Steve Binder, Director, T.A.M.I. Show (The Toronto Star)
It was truly a groundbreaking event to White and Black go-go dancers, so many White artists like The Beach Boys and Jan and Dean share the stage with Black R&B artists.
Beach Boys Drummer, Dennis Wilson (at the time only 19 years old), whipped the teen and pre-teen girls in the crowd into an absolute frenzy with his totally wild (for the times) drumming in Dance, Dance, Dance, the last number they performed on their 4 number set. If it hasn't been removed, you can see it on Youtube starting around the 07:00 mark.
Remember, this was recorded in 1964 long before wild hard rock drumming was common. Some rock 'n roll drummers who came after him took their cue from Dennis Wilson so his style was truly groundbreaking.
Shout Factory has released the 2nd number in their set, I Get Around, so you can get a tiny flavour of what is to come at the end of their set.
It was through The T.A.M.I. Show that James Brown EXPLODED onto the mainstream stage. His impact was HUGE and reviewers agree that he stole the show. This is the first time mainstream America saw him.....entering the stage on The T.A.M.I. Show:
Unfortunately the James Brown performance of Please, Please is no longer available online in its entirity at this time due to copyright claims from Dick Clark Productions. This compliation of performances of Please, Please, the same song he did on The T.A.M.I. Show clip that blew everybody includes portions of that performance. He acted even crazier on The T.A.M.I. Show. He totally freaked out. It seemed like he was having a nervous breakdown and had to be taken off the stage 3 times. His later performances are sanitized in comparison. Hopefully, Shout! Factory will release that full clip on Youtube as the DVD release date (March 23, 2010) draws closer. Around the 04:25 mark you'll get a taste of pure James Brown as he appeared on The T.A.M.I. Show:
Also, since we can no longer bring you James Brown's full performance of Please, Please from The T.A.M.I. Show, enjoy Marvin Gaye from The T.A.M.I. Show courtesy of Shout! Factory:
The Acts Transcend Time & Move Across Generations
The T.A.M.I. Show was first aired in its entirity on American TV on March 20, 2010. (Canadians were treated to it in 1984 when First Choice Pay-TV featured it during the show's 20th anniversary year.) Young fans have been introduced to the movie through the memories of their parents. For example, in this article by journalist Dave Keller, he recalls how his father raved about The T.A.M.I. Show. Many of the artists and acts that from The T.A.M.I. Show are still known to Generation Y audiences. A number of them were eventually inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Movies featuring the music of The Beach Boys still air regularly on North American television and movie screens. This includes recent movies like Pirate Radio, Rush Hour 3, and 50 First Dates and cult classic beach party movies like "Monkey's Uncle" with Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon and "The Girls on the Beach". The Rolling Stones, James Brown, Marvin Gaye, and The Supremes still get regular air play around the globe. The hits of many of the artists from The T.A.M.I. Show are regularly downloaded and re-played on Ipods all over the world. The DVD release date is March 23, 2010.
For More Information
- The T.A.M.I. Show (1964) Profile & Credits
- DVD Verdict Review with List of all Artists & Songs performed
- The T.A.M.I. Show Plot Synopsis, Review & Credits on All Music
- Concert film 'T.A.M.I. Show' captures rock in its 1964 glory
- T.A.M.I. Show Photo Gallery (New York Times)
- Pop Music History Revealed! Doing Splits! (New York Times)
- Film of 1964 show is the Dead Sea Scrolls of rock (The Toronto Star)
- Cult fave "T.A.M.I. Show" comes to DVD (NY Times, Reuters)








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