(Video below.) The group had been formed a couple of years earlier by five high school buddies in Santa Ana, and had risen to popularity on the Southern California beach music scene. Welk, in what was surely one of the strangest pairings of all time. It was in 1963 when the Chantays - a California surf music group that had crafted a megahit with “Pipeline” - showed up one night with Mr. But how many of us remember when a popular rock and roll group made its appearance on the Lawrence Welk Show? And even though Sullivan is remembered for insisting that Presley tone down his act a little, he became well known for showcasing a lot of stars, including the Beatles.
Producers of the shows recognized the burgeoning popularity of the new music and quickly realized the boost in ratings that could come their way, so it soon became a regular thing.Įven if you’re not old enough to actually remember some of those appearances, chances are good that you’ve seen video excerpts of Elvis Presley singing to a hound dog on Steve Allen’s variety show, or later appearing on Ed Sullivan.
Most of us are familiar with what was a pretty common occurrence during the early days of rock and roll - guest appearances by rising musical stars on TV shows.