1/9/2024 0 Comments Hocus focus song![]() Also the final bars of the tune are used as the exit music on the second series of the BBC TV sitcom Saxondale. TNT used the song as an introduction to Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals between the Atlanta Hawks and Detroit Pistons as well as Game 4 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals between the Phoenix Suns and Seattle SuperSonics during the 1997 NBA Playoffs. When performing live, the group would play the tune even faster. Focus recorded a special, faster radio version, which became a hit. It takes the form of a rondo, consisting of alternation between a powerful rock chord riff and varied solo "verses" (in the original all performed by Thijs van Leer) which include yodeling, organ playing, accordion, scat singing, flute riffs, and whistling. It was also released as a single with "Janis" as a B-side for the UK and "Hocus Pocus II" for the United States. 57 on 6 June 2010 after being featured heavily on The Chris Moyles Show and in a Nike TV advert shown during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. 9 in the US during the spring of 1973, re-entering the UK charts at No. ![]() It was written by guitarist Jan Akkerman and flautist-keyboardist Thijs van Leer. I’ve decided to expand “The Jukebox Series” to include many of the “juke-worthy” records that are no longer currently in the mix, but at one time inhabited a coveted slot." Hocus Pocus" is a 1971 song from Focus II (aka Moving Waves), the second album by Dutch rock group Focus. Over the years, records have come and gone out of the ranks of the juke, but they were all at one time juke-worthy. I’ve had my jukebox (or as I like to call it “the prehistoric iPod”) for a little over twelve years and in that time I’d like to think that I’ve perfected the mix of 45s within. “The Jukebox Series” focused on the 80 records that currently inhabit my 1963 Seeburg LPC1 jukebox. In the UK, the single “Sylvia” from Focus 3 climbed to #4 on the charts making it their biggest hit in that territory. This unlikely hit was covered by Iron Maiden, Helloween, guitarist Gary Hoey and Marillion, and has been performed in concert by the likes of Foo Fighters and They Might Be Giants.ĭuring the 1970s, Focus released several albums including Hamburger Concerto, Moving Waves, Focus 3 and Live At The Rainbow that became staples of progressive FM radio playlists however the band never really reached the upper echelons of the charts in this country again. However, in America the record was backed with a second sped up edit of “Hocus Pocus” created from the album master. In England, the single was backed with another track called “Janis” from their second album Focus II (known in America under the title Moving Waves). The album version of the song was close to seven minutes long so it was edited and sped up for its single release which climbed to the #9 position on the US charts in 1973. It made for an interesting spin and certainly one of the most original singles to ever grace the pop charts. “Hocus Pocus” is a track that predicted the loud-soft dynamic of grunge, alternating between the ultra-loud crunchy guitar riff of the chorus and the verses that included all of the quirky elements listed above. The group formed in 1969 but didn’t break big in America until 1972 with the release of today’s jukebox classic “Hocus Pocus” as a single. But if you were tuned in to the radio back in 1972/1973 and you heard this track pouring forth from the speakers on your stereo, you couldn’t help but take notice.įocus were a Dutch progressive rock band featuring the guitar frenzy of Jan Akkerman, the flute and keyboard dynamics of Thijs van Leer, the bottomed out bass of Cyril Havermans and the percussive attack of Pierre van der Linden. Ok, so it was an unlikely hit that emanated from an unlikely place by an unlikely group. Yodeling…no hit record is worth its weight in gold and platinum without some.Falsetto scat singing…no lyrics! Lyrics just get in the way when you’ve got plenty of yodeling (see below).Whistling…you’ve got to have maniacal whistling.Without one, you’re nowhere, and today’s jukebox classic’s got riffage to burn. Welcome back my friends, to the series that never ends… Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #85 – Focus: “Hocus Pocus” b/w “Hocus Pocus II”– Sire SAA-704
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