Wayback Wednesday: Shindig
On September 16th, 1964, Shindig debuted on ABC-TV! Hosted by Los Angeles DJ Jimmy O’Neill, who also created the show, along with his wife, Producer Jack Good, and executive Art Stolnitz, it was a short notice replacement for Hootenanny, a folk music based show, which fizzled after the British Invasion. Shindig began as a half-hour Wednesday evenings, and was expanded to an hour in January, 1965. Then they made it two half hour shows on Thursday and Saturday nights, until the program was cancelled in January 1966 (replaced, on Thursdays, by Batman!)
The Shindig house band featured such future stars as Leon Russell on piano, Delaney Bramlett on rhythm guitar, James Burton on lead guitar, and Larry Knechtel on bass. Glen Campbell wasn’t a regular, but frequently was a guest performer. Later, Billy Preston took over on keyboards, and was a featured vocalist. The Blossoms, featuring Darlene Love, were regular backup singers. The Righteous Brothers and Bobby Sherman were among regular performers. And the show attracted stars from The Animals and Beach Boys, to the Beatles (taped in England), Rolling Stones, Temptations, and tons more.
This week’s Wayback Wednesday features Jackie Wilson tearing it up live to conclude a 1964 Shindig show with “Baby Workout”…closing credits included!
https://youtu.be/s1eWAOQWuRQ
