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GOODIES MUSIC REVIEW #18  -  THE INBETWEENIES

(from C&G #52  April 2000)

Hi there pop pickers and welcome to this month's music review.

WHO?

Your previous DJ Sir Johnathon Unappealing was bopping along OK on the hit parade until he had the ruddy nerve to slag off at the 'Funky Gibbon' and so we had no choice but to "send the boys around". It's unclear whether they've carted him off to the dungeon at Camelot to christen the torture chamber, threatened to lock him away in a cell with Rolf Harris or just belted him over the head repeatedly with a box of 'Low Suds Mold', but he deserved whatever he got for such high treason. A certain anonymous Queen even issued a royal command of "Off with his didgeridoo!" for good measure.

Anyway now that he's out of the road, we can cross to your decadent DJ Oliver Reed Of The Paper, Thanks Dear (AKA Brett Allender) and his review of "THE INBETWEENIES" by The Goodies.

WHERE? WHEN?

On the 1997 CD "Yum Yum – The Very Best Of The Goodies, in the "Goodies Almost Live" episode, as a single (with 'Father Christmas Do Not Touch Me" on the flip side), and on their 70's albums 'The Goodies Greatest', 'Best Of The Goodies', and 'The Goodies Greatest Hits'.

WHAT?

Lyrics: sung by Bill, with contributions by Tim and Graeme

In – be – twee – nies!  Wooow!

When I was young, every song that we sung , went "Boom sha la la la la"

Now they're the same, so lets sing 'em again, why shouldn't I be a star?

But nobody wants us today (Ohhh!), just because we're middle age

[CHORUS:]

Too old (Too old) to be a teenager, Too young (Too young) to be a mother's pet

Are we (Are you?) just the inbetweenies, that everyone tries to forget?

When I was seventeen, so they say, it's obscene, to shake it about like we do (Ooo ooo)

But don't think 'coz we're old, that we can't rock 'n' roll, 'coz we're gonna sock it to you (Oh yeah!)

We can compete with the best, just as long as you give us a rest

[REPEAT CHORUS x2]

It's so hard to be thirty, you're so easily hurt, when teenagers shout "Push off Mum!"  No!

But you'll never stop a … inbetweeniebopper, 'coz we know that our time will come

You're all getting older each day, and soon we'll be hearing you say:

[REPEAT CHORUS x4]

When the Goodies were young, every song that they sung went "Boom sha la la la la" and it seems that songwriters haven't become any more original in the ensuing years since. However the Goodies find that their wish to sing their songs all over again is being thwarted because they've now reached that dreaded "inbetweenie" zone called middle age and nobody wants them any more. They're too old to be teenagers and shake it about like they used to (only drawing cries of "Push off Mum" from some youngsters unimpressed with Tim's drag act!) yet too young to be mother's pets, even though they can still compete with the best providing that they get a bit of time to catch their breath along the way.

WHY?

It must have been a tough life for the Goodies, being "inbetweenie boppers" in the 70's. The teenagers of the day were hooked on groups like Bay City Rollers and the Osmonds (surely contravening some U.N. law regarding child abuse?!) while the oldies were sitting there with their hearing aids turned down listening to the likes of Max Bygraves and Des O'Connor (just as surely a great endorsement for euthanasia – of Maxy and Des, that is!). However it didn't seem to worry Tim, Bill and Graeme, as they knew that their time would come and just maybe it has now after a further 25 years. In Melbourne next week there will be a crowd of "young'uns" (plus a few over-30 "inbetweenies" like yours truly) who definitely wouldn't be rejecting an impromptu rendition of 'The Inbetweenies' (or any other Goodies song for that matter) by our special guests as part of an "inbetweenie" rock and roll revival, that's for sure!

HOW!

Using the patented Black Pudding Ratings System:

MUSIC:                                 IIII Officially Amazing

SINGING/LYRICS:              IIII Officially Amazing

HUMOUR:                            II Fair-y Punkmother

ALL TOGETHER NOW:      III 1/2 Amazingly Goody

THE BLACK PUDDING RATINGS SYSTEM

IIIII - Superstar.

IIII  - Officially amazing.

III   - Goody goody yum yum.

II    - Fair-y punkmother.

I     - Tripe on t' pikelets.