One toke over the line

In honor of (not memory of, mine you) Woodstock's 40th anniversary, my husband and I went to see Hippiefest, a collection of rockers from the 60's. In addition to hearing a lot of Viagra jokes (Chuck Negron formerly of Three Dog Night is 67 years old with an eight-year-old child; I suppose there is a bit of truth in that humor.), we learned a few things.

For example, Mitch Ryder of the Detroit Wheels' song, "Sock it to me, baby!" was once banned from the radio for explicit lyrics. And George Harrison of the Beatles once told Joey Molland of Badfinger (Well, actually, I'm not sure who in the group he told), but he said, "Are you excited by your hit song ('No Matter What')? Good. Now get ready to play it everyday for the rest of your life!"

We also learned that Flo and Eddie from the band, The Turtles, are not in the least bit funny - even after several drinks! Somehow 12-year-old humor and 65-year-old men don't mix. Sorry guys.

But, the best trivia of all, a mon avis, came from two still cool dudes named Brewer and Shipley. Not only was their hit song banned by the FCC, it put them on Nixon's enemies' list. According to the duo, the song, "One toke over the line," was performed by not only the Grateful Dead but also Lawrence Welk's Gail and Dale. Although, I've read there is some dispute over whether Jerry Garcia played that tune, amazingly, with the Lawrence Welk story the proof is in the pudding.