SNL without music?? (1 Viewer)

[Lloyd White]

There's a performance of Snoop Dogg that I missed taping. They had a band, and they (snoop and the dogg pound) performed a remix and some album cuts off his first album (not just singles). I'd pay good money for a copy of that on DVD. Unfortunately they only have a performance later in his career on that dvd box set.

 

[Keith Paynter]

I remember that Royal sketch in syndication, and was surprised that it remained. It also featured Paul Schaeffer, and had something to do with trying to learn some musical number. Whenever there was something wrong, Belushi (as the Queen(?)) kept saying "It's floggin' 4 beats!!", and that was the buzzword in the sketch. However, Schaeffer slipped and said "fockin'", and there were some audible gasps - a very close call.

 

[Matt Birchall]

. . .Both of which aired well-before the explosion of TV on DVD. We may eventually get season sets, or we may not, but the ratings of those shows (one of which aired years before DVD was even available) won't play a factor. The recent special, both by it's ratings, and by it's eventual DVD sales, would play a bigger role in determining whether season sets ever get released, I would wager.

Speaking of the First 5 Years DVD--anyone have a link to where that was announced?

EDIT: Nevermind--found one:

Saturday Night Live - Saturday Night Special Planned For DVD Soon

 

[Andrew Radke]

I hear you. I'm only 27 and I love the classic stuff. I didn't start watching SNL until '89, but I watch the reruns every chance I get. Here in Canada, I catch the classic SNL episodes every Saturday at 3:30 in the morning. I love them and would gladly own every season on DVD.

I thoroughly enjoyed the 'First 5 Years' special. It was definitely informative as well as entertaining. I keep thinking how cool it would be to have all of those great episodes lined up on my DVD shelf. I seriously doubt it will ever happen. It would be a cold day in hell with they can get clearance for ALL the music in the show. It's unfortunate.

Now the question was posed as to whether we'd buy season sets sans music. I don't think I would. I sit and watch the old reruns every weekend and to me, the musical performance portion of the show is just as essential as the comedic portion. Not to mention we'd be losing a giant piece of nostalgia without the music.

Let's not forget that many perforances on the show got strung up in controversy, (i.e. Sinead O'Connor, Ashlee Simpson). Then there's Nirvana's perforance of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" which was the sole inspiration for Weird Al Yankovic's "Smells Like Nirvana". Bottom line, the show wouldn't be complete without the music. As hard as it would be for me to pass it up if it were to become available in that form, I honestly don't think I'd get it.

 

[WillG]

well, I suppose what I am basing this off of is that the classic shows are typically not shown anymore. I know NBC shows them, but they don't seem to be in a time slot where many people are watching. I remember Comedy Central used to show episodes from the 80's going back to the Murphy/Piscipo years (even sometimes episodes from the forgotten Doumanian season) I believe Nickelodeon/MTV/VH1 would show "Best of" shows from '75-'80 years ago as well.

But in recent years, I does not seem Comedy Central and and now E! does not show any SNL from before the mid to late 90's. I figured that the older material was dropped because the ratings were probably low.

 

[Jon Martin]

I think it is because NBC is now showing them. Comedy Central used to show the hour long versions of the 70's shows ten years ago or so. Now, NBC shows them in the 1-2:30 am slot after the new SNLs. I think this weekend, they are showing the very first episode.

As for the music rights issue, I think that they MIGHT be able to clear up the rights because, as stated, the NBC shows them uncut and in the early 80's, several full episodes were released to tape with full music segments. Not to mention the recent SNL music DVD and the 5 years special which is headed to DVD which has A LOT of music.

BUT, like also mentioned, there are certain episodes that Lorne doesn't want shown and hasn't allowed to be rebroadcast since their original showing so that could have a lot to do with it as well.

 

[Jeff Ulmer]

I think I'd rather have the musical performances over the rest of the show. SNL introduced me to Devo (Satisfaction and another track from the first album), Gary Numan (if I'm not mistaken), the B-52s (Rock Lobster) and more.

 

[Jeff#]

Except that a number of SNL tapes were put out on VHS going back to the early 1980s -- years before the 20th and 25th anniversary specials. They weren't entire seasons, but definitely worth the price! The Emmy-winning April 1978 show with Steve Martin and the first appearance by The Blues Brothers came out on VHS in 1983 (which I bought several years later for only $4 unopened), as did a number of other SNL shows from the first 5 seasons missing only the musical numbers of course, but with all sketches and Weekend Update segments intact. Ironically, the Steve Martin show with the Blues Brothers had the musical numbers by Danny & John, plus Steve doing "King Tut", and it was complete at 64 minutes without commercials.

 

[AnthonyC]

I'd love to see best-ofs for each season, but not even considering the musical performances and music that is included in certain sketches, complete season sets are out of the question. As already stated, Lorne Michaels disowned several of those episodes and wouldn't allow them to be reaired, let alone on a DVD set.

 

[MarcoBiscotti]

with the exception of some of the 70's acts, Id actually prefer them to be released sans musical performance. I always changed the channel about that time anyways.

 

[Mikel_Cooperman]

I'd like Box sets of the first 5 years but nothing after that.

 

[Jon Martin]

The tapes that Warner Home Video released in the very early 80's did have all the music segments. I have a few of them. The Rodney Dangerfield episode had I think it was the J. Geils Band on it (singing "Love Stinks"). And a couple others.

The later tapes released by Starmaker had sketches from certain episodes but no musical segments.

 

[John McM]

I think they should consider doing a "The Best Of SNL: 1975-1976" and progress forward. Each set being maybe 3 or 4 discs and containing the best skits of each season, in chronlogical order complete with a user-friendly booklet listing the cast members, and airdates. I think these would sell through the roof, since a complete season set is most likely never gonna happen. I think doing "Best Of" box sets per season (even do 1980-1981 and 1994-1995) would definately sell more than "The best of Will Ferrill, pt. 38".

 

[TimTV]

I like the idea of Best Ofs for seasons rather than certain actors.

I also would like to see something along the lines of "The Complete Weekend Update of 1975-1976" and so on. I'm guessing this would only take a disc of space, and if a Best of box is released for each season anyways, it would be a perfect thing to include.

Everyone knows that WU is the highlight of the show.
Also, I think Complete Collections of characters would sell well to.

Imagine owning every Coneheads skit, or every Wayne's World sketch.

 

[Jeff#]

Entire 90 minutes episodes from ALL eras of SNL from 1975 to the present are best, because what's a crap sketch to one person will be a gem to another.

 

[Jeff#]

Not the Warner Bros. tapes I have with Buck Henry (2 episodes) and Robert Klein
(2 episodes).

Good news to you other SNL fans. NBC is showing the very first SNL tonight with George Carlin from 1975 this morning. (Carlin would return to host again in a far superior show 10 years later, in which he did the SNL News segment). The guests on the first show also included Andy Kaufman , and musical guests Janis Ian (two songs) and Billy Preston.

Next Sunday's classic SNL rerun is the second show with Rob Reiner, who was then married to Penny Marshall who has a cameo. There was no All in the Family sketch though.

Although releases of complete 90 minute shows of SNL in season sets will never happen, it may not be necessary. For several years now, as soon as the current SNL ends at 1 AM, and from 1 to 2:30 NBC airs the old SNLs under the "NBC Up All Night" banner used for other late-night series during the week. What they usually do is run several episodes from the same era / season, which can be anytime from the 1970s, 80s, or 90s. These are all complete shows right down to the bumpers with pictures of the guest host at the beginning of most segments coming out of commercial. The only thing likely to be missing is a few seconds of the uninterrupted end theme, but only when NBC is running late (not too often).

If you have a DVD recorder as I do, just buy some DVD-R discs. Memorex sells them for about $7 for a box of 5. What I do is record the shows I plan to save, and starting this weekend I'm finally doing it on disc....just like I once did on VHS from Up NBC's Up All Night years ago. To get them all in order by season, I record two (in LP speed) off-air back to back filling 3 hours on each disc). If I'm up late I'll do part of one or both shows in SP as well because there is extra room on each disc.

I separate each disc by season as much as possible, but I won't mix seasons since NBC can go back and forth sometimes. I'll just start a new disc for a new season.

 

[John McM]

well, entire sketches are convienient. But realistically, they will never clear all the music rights. A 4-disc "best of" set per season, given 3 hrs to a disc, would be a pretty liberal helping of skits, minus the music performances and Weekend Updates (tho some of each would also be awesome).

 

[Jon Martin]

I watched the Carlin show this weekend and it was quite funny how different it was to what would become the format a few years later.

Two musical guests, each doing two songs. Carlin did a few stand up numbers. Andy Kaufman. Another female stand up (who was not very good). The Muppets. An Albert Brooks film. Another short film. Only a few sketches and Weekend Update was VERY short.

Funniest of all, the ad for a new razor, with three blades. Thirty years later, took a while to see if that was a skit or a real ad.

 

[WillG]

Definately funny how a fake commercial turned out to become a real product years later. Even the commercial itself was, I guess you could say, backwords accurate with the graphics of how the blades grip and cut the whiskers.

This was the first time I saw that first show and it was quite a different show back then. Very few sketches and a few of them were only like a minute long. A few of the bits I admit, I found to be a bit bland (although for some reason, and I have no idea why, I was chuckling at "Bee Hospital"

What was up with that female comic who did some kind of performance piece as a schoolteacher? That was weird.

 

[John McM]

our NBC affiliate stopped doing late night SNL repeats :frowning: