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Tuesday, 3 December 2013

Boneyless in the USA


Okay, so this isn't so much a blog post, but more of a public service announcement.

It has come to my attention (thanks to my Aussie mate Nikki who is currently living in the US) that there has been a great travesty in the music world.

I'm here to make it right.

If you were growing up in Australia in the late 70's and early 80's, Sunday nights could only mean one thing. Countdown. Countdown's host Molly Meldrum fronted up week after week trying to get it right, with the ever patient Gavin Wood as the voice behind the scenes. With your tape recorder tuned into ABC radio, and your television locked onto ABC television, children and young teens would sit with two fingers paused over the play/record and pause buttons, ready to record the national top 10.

The Ramones, Blondie, Queen, David Bowie, Elton John, Kiss: they all came to Australia. Each of them wiping themselves out while hosting the show in a completely incoherent manner. There were many episodes where the host didn't quite make it to the end. People fell off the stage, tripped over stray electrical cords on the ground, and wore skin tight satin pants while lip syncing (I'm looking at you Iggy Pop).

It was on Countdown that I first heard Boney M.

Here they all being all sorts of politically incorrect in Russia.



Rasputin, Daddy Cool, Brown Girl in the Ring, Ma Baker, Rivers of Babylon, and I haven't even started with the Christmas Hits.

And this is where the travesty comes in.

America.

Yes, you, America. It has come to my attention that you do not know who Boney M is? While Boney M were saturating the airwaves of Britain, South Africa, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and perhaps Mars - America was Boneyless.

How can this be? How does one have Christmas without Boney M?

This has to stop today.

Christmas just isn't Christmas without Boney M.

Mary's boy child. How do you have Christmas without Mary's boy child?



So after you've downloaded the Christmas album, can I also suggest Rasputin and Daddy Cool, turn it up loud, and make a complete fool of yourself. I did. Swim dancing, I got caught up in some swim dancing.



I wasn't going to put it online but then ..."Mum, you can't put that on YouTube"

Did you have Boney M where you grew up?

27 comments:

  1. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 01:55

    You are absolutely bonkers! LOVED this post. In the pre-liberalisation era, Boney M made it into Indian shores too. Along with ABBA.

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  2. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 02:06

    Nope no Boney M for me - NYC born and raised. Of course, I also don't celebrate Christmas. (Now if you want to talk about Chanukah songs ... LOL!)

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  3. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 02:10

    Bare Naked Ladies do some fab Chanukah songs. Even if you don't celebrate Christmas, in my part of the world there is NO escaping Boney M. :-)

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  4. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 02:10

    YAY! I'm adding India to the list. I have the most shocking head cold today, I'm blaming my madness on one too many sudafed. :-)

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  5. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 02:23

    Now Bare Naked Ladies I know well. (Didn't know they did any Chanukah songs though - will have to look in to it.) I will admit that the clips of Boney M you played here are quite nice though.

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  6. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 03:29

    Loved this post - Countdown was the greatest show - no downloading from iTunes, you had to press record AND play TOGETHER and everyone had to be quiet. Will do some swim dancing to Boney M's Rasputin next time I am in Red Square. S x PS Elton John will be here this weekend :-)

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  7. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 04:50

    There is further investigation with other music forms to be done for sure, especially if there is more dancing videos to come. A star is born… ;)

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  8. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 06:47

    Lol. You are ace. Bet the kids were hiding under the bed. Yes - part of my musical history. Yoy brought back memories re Countdown and recording the top 10.

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  9. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 06:52

    Growing up in Canada, we had Boney M and I loved them. I still do and listen to the Christmas album every year. Didn't realize they weren't as popular in the US. you rock Kristy!

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  10. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 07:23

    Hey there! As a Brit I am very familiar with the Christmas Classic from Boney M but alas have searched the US iTunes as I now live in Michigan and no sign of that tune... But they do have rivers of Babylon! ;)

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  11. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 10:00

    Just watched Mary's Boy Child - shivers down my spine! I grew up in NZ in the 70-80's and for us it was RTR - Ready to Roll - at 6pm on a Saturday. It was one of the greatest sources of conflict in our house - Dad wanted the 6pm news on channel 1 and 4 kids vying for RTR on channel 2! p.s Love the swim dance :)

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  12. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 11:18

    Are your kids still talking to you? This is so funny!

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  13. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 11:51

    Boney M!!!!!!!!! Absolutely. The crazy thing is that I grew up thinking they were an American group...


    SSG xxx

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  14. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 14:55

    Me too!

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  15. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 14:57

    My children are in all sorts of pain over this one. Comments range from "Oh no you didn't" to "You know you're going to wake tomorrow to an empty blog and all the nice people who come every day won't be there". But then, second little traveller "It's embarrassing, but it's you".

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  16. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 14:58

    Yep, Exactly the same at our house!

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  17. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 14:58

    Like I said, a travesty!

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  18. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 14:58

    Go Canada!

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  19. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 14:59

    My kids are dying. Dying. Well, they were last night, they seem to have moved on today :-)

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  20. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 15:00

    WOW, We get Bryan Adams and you get Elton John ;-)

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  21. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 16:02

    Can't believe you didn't add the backstroke into your swim dance Kirsty!

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  22. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 18:05

    There was Boney M in a small part of Washington DC...because I was a teenage girl in the 80s, dancing in our basement to it. I think it was only one song on the radio, and not as popular as from Australia whence we just left. So I took it upon myself to make my American friends listen to the record. My civil duty as unofficial Boney M rep is done ;-)

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  23. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 18:29

    OMG yes! The backstroke belongs in there, right next to the hold your nose and go under with a shimmy. Next time ;-)

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  24. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle3 December 2013 at 18:30

    Washington DC owes you. Nice work!

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  25. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle4 December 2013 at 08:33

    While my American upbringing was clearly lacking (no Boney M), your PSA post has rectified the situation. Definitely danceable. But girl, Boney M has nothing on Thirsty Kirsty, lol!!!

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  26. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle4 December 2013 at 12:26

    You forgot "Born to be Alive" - my favourite Boney M song ever :-)

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  27. 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle5 December 2013 at 16:59

    Oh thank you for these videos! I think your children will look back on your dancing and smile and feel blessed to have such a cool mother! :)

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