Hap Palmer “Movin’”

I bought this record because the cover said something to me (construction paper cutouts of coastal sunrise/set broken/reflected on the water). Also, the cover opens up—with some odd “movement” instruction inside (including what I mistakenly took as sexual innuendo). And because the price was right, no doubt, and it turned out to be another record from 1973 (my favorite year for records). But still, I didn’t expect much—I finally listened to it (dictated by the spectral planchette) and… the first song—whoa! That’s what I said, “Whoa.” It’s some kind of early fraggle-synth that hadn’t been invented yet! Who is this Hap Palmer? The internet says he’s an old dude with an acoustic guitar—digging deeper, he’s a composer who put out about 50 educational records, and this one is about “movement.” There’s a lot of musicians on it, including Jim Gordon, which the Big I tells me is not drummer Jim Gordon who played with everyone, but the other Jim Gordon who played everything. The world is unforgiving! The world is forgiving! Anyway, I was thinking—what else is about movement? Dance parties! Which gave me the idea to try to get a DJ gig where I’d only play this record (along with a few other tasty tidbits, of course). There are a lot of DJ gigs available, lately, because people need to listen to something while sampling the thousands of craft beers, and radio has crossed the line—over 50% really annoying ads. So, to give you an idea of the mood at my DJ nite, I’ll describe the mood you’ll be “movin’” to—song by song:

“Funky Penguin”—it’s the theme song for the marshmallow-heads, the mailman, the queen, the drunken cop, and our hero, Hairless Pal, and they’re all doin’ the Funky Penguin! “Midnight Moon”—(see, album cover) our heroes drive off at the end of movie after having stomped out evil, still alive, but very, very tired. “Tipsy”—they arrive at the saloon to see a show, but they end up condemning the exploitation of the dancers and eating their straw hats. “Far East Blues”—motorcycle trip around the world with nothing but a bedroll, cumulative wisdom, and a squeezed-out tube of Desitin. “Gentle Sea”—after a long journey our reformed antiheroes believe they are arriving at the sea, the end of the land… but it turns out to merely be the end of Side A. “Jamaican Holiday”—Veronica demands to know why they’re called “The Archies” and not The Veronicas? “Enter Sunlight”—How did everyone suddenly get to be middle-aged and no longer really enjoying their cocktails? “Haunted House”—it’s not really haunted, but the biker gang who lives there is faking a haunted house (surprise!) to keep away the renovators. “Movin’”—“It’s a beautiful night for a daydream, and it’s a beautiful day for a nightmare” is the name of the dance where your feet can’t leave the floor. “Twilight”—we finally know where we’re going… and… there’s a signpost up ahead! “Pause”—it’s a beautiful… uh. It’s a beautiful… uh. It’s a beautiful… oh, shit. It’s a beautiful dream for… uh. It’s a beautiful… uh… oh, shit…

10.20.23