Echo Valley 52 (S2E22): A Bubblegum Christmas

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 Our Season 2 Echo Valley Christmas Special celebrates family Christmases with The Cowsills, the Partridge Family, The Waltons, Kristy and Jimmy McNichol and The Archies! A dramatic reading from a holiday issue of a Partridge Family comic book! Debut of the Echo Valley Children's Christmas Choir! Plenty of great holiday bubblegum pop from The Jackson 5, the Brady Bunch, Ohio Express, 1910 Fruitgum Company, Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato, Selena Gomez, Popcorn Rebellion, Sultan of Ping, Wind with Tony Orlando, and Chipper!

Echo Valley Episode 51 (S2E21): Kurt Russell

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Kurt Russell Sings! Remember the American Juniors?! Meet some Hobbits! Discover Pop Workshop! Dramatic reading from a Hot Wheels comic book! Plenty of great bubblegum music from Nicole Westbrook,  Ohio Express, Josie and the Pussycats, The Cowsills, Rick Springfield, The Osmonds, The Biggles, and Ray Stevens!

Echo Valley Episode 50 (S2E20): Young Professor Bubblegum

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As a teenager, Professor Bubblegum interned at radio station WBBG-AM in Echo Valley. Imagine if we could hear his first hour on the air, November 2, 1968! Ever wondered what it was like for the future mayor (and Head Librarian) in those early days, as he discovered and began to fall in love with bubblegum pop? Well, wonder no more! You read that right! To celebrate the spectacularly groovy occasion of our 50th episode, we are excited to share this vintage recording of His Honor Rufus "Tommy" Gumm, his first day on the air! Our deepest gratitude goes to an anonymous fan who must have recorded this off the radio almost 50 years ago! Thank you, sir or madame! Happy 50th! (We apologize for the low sound quality which was characteristic of the medium at that time.)

Echo Valley Episode 49 (S2E19): Kaptain Kool and the Kongs

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 Welcome Kaptain Kool and the Kongs, hosts of The Krofft Supershow, to Echo Valley! Meet Tony Ronald! Enjoy a reading from an Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan comic book! Jeff Barry songs from the Harlem Globetrotters, The Illusion, Jay and the Americans and Andy Kim! Plenty more great bubblegum music from Tommy Roe, The Banana Splits, The Beau Brummelstones, Bobby Sherman, The Brotherhood, Arthur Conley and The Lemon Pipers!

Echo Valley Episode 48 (S2E18): The Jackson Five

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A little something for everyone! A tribute to The Jackson 5 with a little help from Sonny and Cher! We read love letters to you from Paul Revere and the Raiders thanks to 16 Magazine! Discover the British bubblegum super-group seldom heard in the US, Blue Mink! An update on Kid Bubblegum and his efforts to create some sort of bubblegum Woodstock in the middle of the sapadilla orchard by Indian Lake! Plenty of great bubblegum music from Jimmy Osmond, Banaroo, American Breed, Paul Revere and the Raiders, The Newbeats, Lulu, The Archies, The Bugaloos, Christopher, and Daddy Dewdrop!

Echo Valley Episode 47 (S2E17): Brady Bunch Secrets

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Jam-packed with so many surprises! Who sings the Brady Bunch Theme in Season 1? A dramatic reading from a Keith Partridge, Master Spy novel! A Jack Wild Double Bubble. The Muppet Show with Bernadette Peters ("15 seconds to curtain, Miss Peters!"). A tribute to The Peppermint Trolley Company! A salute to our new neighbor, Mystery Neon! Strange Gum with Julie London! Unpleasantness from a censored Brady Bunch episode! And music with very high LK/HGII's (Little-known-compared-to-how-great-it-is ratio) from The Shades, The Sugar Bears, The Young Turks, Andy Kim, Ohio Express, 1910 Fruitgum Company, Music Explosion, Hot Wheels, Tommy Roe, Keith, The Freerose Corporation and The Cordells!

Echo Valley Episode 46 (S2E16): Leif Garrett

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A tribute to Leif Garrett! The Harlem Globetrotters meet Snow White! The official dog of Echo Valley, the beagle! Plenty of great bubblegum music from Giorgio, The Partridge Family, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, The Beagles, The Royal Guardsmen, Tommy Roe, Tommy James, The Kids from C.A.P.E.R., Reunion, Johnny Whitaker, The Royal Host, Lt. Garcia's Magic Music Box, The Magid (sic) Triplets, Mark Gutkowski and The Hardy Boys!

Echo Valley Episode 45 (S2E15): Bubblegum at the Beach

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A day at the beach with some great bubblegum beach music! A dramatic reading from a Laurie Partridge comic book! A tribute to lady songwriter Carol Connors! Plenty of fun sandy bubblegum from folks like The Beach Boys, The Cowsills, The Ramones, The Hardy Boys, The First Class, The Hondells, The Archies, The Love Generation, The Partridge Family, Annette Funnicello, Typically Tropical, The Ohio Express and The 1910 Fruitgum Co.

Echo Valley Episode 44 (S2E14): Lidsville

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Butch Patrick sings! The LSD-inspired secret origins of Nancy Sinatra's Sugar Town! Dramatic reading from a Banana Splits comic book! Seldom heard Ron "Archie" Dante songs! Plenty of great bubblegum music from The Sweet, Tommy James, The Archies, The Ohio Express, Shirley Ellis, The Banana Splits, Ram Jam, New Dream, Michael Franti and Spearhead, The Jackson Five, The Jaggerz and The 1910 Fruitgum Company!

Echo Valley Episode 43 (S2E13): Happiness Train

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Mr. Rogers interviews Bill Bixby about The Incredible Hulk! Flip's Groovy Guide to the Groops tells us about the hot supergroup, Don and the Goodtimes! Out of nowhere, leaps a sad song marathon! More "strange gum"! Plenty of great bubblegum music from The Archies, Boyce and Hart, Gene Pitney, The Sugar Bears, Don and the Goodtimes, The Do-Re-Me Children's Chorus, The Hardy Boys, Rex Smith, East Main St. Explosion, Buddy Kaia and the Nomads, High Noon, The Sound of Six, Bobby Bloom, Tommy Roe, The Ohio Express, Sha-Na-Na, and Willie and the Red Rubber Band!

Echo Valley Episode 42 (S2E12): Are You Ready for the Summer?

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So much bubblegum fun! The first appearance of music from the movie Meatballs! A dramatic reading from the novelization of Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo with a Love Bug song which rhymes banana with manana! The roots of Iko Iko! Bobby Sherman denies his fans are wacky! And plenty of great bubblegum music by the likes of The Archies, Dora the Explorer, The Ohio Express, Shaun Cassidy, Bobby Sherman, The Cowsills, Lulu, Sugar Boy Crawford, The Camp North Star Kids Chorus, Terry Black, The Teens, Nineteen Eighty Four, Herbie Goes Bananas, The Love Bug, The New Edition, 1910 Fruitgum Company, Ms. Zee and The Wombles!

Echo Valley Episode 41 (S2E11): "Already Been Chewed" Gum

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We feature bubblegum songs which "borrow" from each other! Enjoy some ABC (Already Been Chewed) gum with originals like  The Walkers, The Beatles, Austin Roberts, Bo Diddly, and Paul Revere and the Raiders and the acts who (allegedly) borrowed from them like Billy Joel, Johnny Whitaker, Mystery Science Theater 3000, Sha Na Na and Paul Revere and the Raiders (accused of stealing from themselves). There's a tribute to My Three Sons' Don Grady. We learn another simple Family Affair recipe "for boys" from Buffy's Cookbook! Plenty of other bubblegum by the likes of Sandie Shaw, The Cuff Links, The Tonics, Josie and the Pussycats, and Mirror!

Echo Valley Episode 40 (S2E10): The Kids from C.A.P.E.R.

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We welcome those nice young people, the Kids from C.A.P.E.R, to Echo Valley! A Battle of the Bands between The Animals and The Partridge Family! A dramatic reading from a Kool-Aid Man comic book. First appearance of the Strange Gum segment. An exciting bit of a Charlie Chan and the Chan Clan episode! Plus lots of great bubblegum music from Tommy James, The Monkees, Stamford Bridge, Sounds of Modification, The Ohio Express, Sound Laboratory,  Fifth Estate, Mrs. Miller, The Cowsills, Staten Island Ferry, The Left Banke, and Candy!

Echo Valley Episode 39 (S2E9): Canadian Bubblegum

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The focus is on Canada and the great bubblegum to be found there from! We feature music of the Great White North from artists such as Andy Kim, The DeFranco Family, The Moffatts, Terry Jacks and Susan Jacks and the whole Poppy Family, The Crewcuts, William Shatner, Raffi, Anne Murray, Aleesia, Pilot, Edward Bear, and The Beach Boys (with their legendary, long lost version of Seasons in the Sun)!

Echo Valley Episode 38 (S2E8): Josie and the Pussycats

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We focus on the singing cats and take a listen to the solo work of Josie's "backup" pussycats: Cheryl Ladd and the great Patrice Holloway! A dramatic reading from a Brady Bunch novel! We learn about the "Annette sound" of Annette Funnicello! A Double Bubble helping of The Music Explosion. Plenty of great bubblegum music from the likes of The Archies, Giorgio, The Four Freshmen, The Brady Kids, Boyce and Hart, The Frosted Flakes, The Banana Splits, The Merry Macs, The Innocence, The Royal Guardsmen and The Foundations.

Echo Valley Episode 37 (S2E7): Long Distance Dedications

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This episode is full of dedications! There are dedications from me to you and from many residents of Echo Valley to other residents of Echo Valley! Plus we read the letter column from a 1970 Lois Lane comic book! Listen to this one with someone you love and enjoy great bubblegum music from The Bugaloos, The Beach Boys, David Cassidy, The Sweet Bippies, The Burris Young 'Uns, Vigrass, Ron Dante, Take That, the Clique, The Cattanooga Cats, The Wombles, Sammy Davis, Jr., The Paper Dolls, The Royal Guardsmen, The Archies, Hayley Mills, Lou Christie and The Ron Hicklin Singers!

Echo Valley Episode 36 (S2E6): Hot Wheels and Charo

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So much gummy fun in just 58 minutes! Tributes to The Hot Wheels , Charo (Cuchi-Cuchi!) and Robin Gibb! Herve Villechaize (Tattoo from Fantasy Island) sings! A dramatic reading from a Fantasy Island novel. Double bubble music from The Wombles! A Hall of Fame classic from The Cowsills. Plenty of bubblegum music from folks like The Sugar Bears, Tommy Roe, Gilbert O'Sullivan, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, Wind (with Tony Orlando), Nineteen Eighty-Four and The Gas Station!

Echo Valley Episode 35 (S2E5): Sha La La

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In sha la la episode sha la la tribute to shal la la sha la sha la! Sha la la 14 year-old identical twins sha la idols sha la la Andy sh la la David Williams! Sha la la TV show Room 222 sha la la Karen Valentine! Plenty of great sha la la bubblegum la music sha la la The Bugaloos, The Archies, The Ohio Express, The Williams Twins, Dan Janssen and Austin Roberts, The Zoot, ? and the Mysterions, The Shirelles, The Hardy Boys, The Walkers, Symon and Pi, Lancelot Link, Plastic Bertrand, and The Uniques!

Echo Valley Episode 34 (S2E4): Little Jimmy Osmond

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We explore the secret missing years of Jimmy Osmond, the youngest and most mysterious of the Osmonds. We read from a book written by Miss Susan Dey (Lori of The Partridge Family) that is for girls only!! A spotlight on Mungo Jerry, a group with hits spanning five decades. A look at the new fall season on ABC. And, as always, plenty of great bubblegum music from folks like The Hardy Boys, The Sands, The Partridge Family, The Brady Bunch, The Buckinghams, Third Rail, the Bubblegum, Candy Choir, Giorgio and The Fun and Games!

Echo Valley Episode 33 (S2E3): Dick Clark

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The late, great Dick Clark "co-hosts" the show this week. There's a tribute to the early 70's animated Rick Springfield! ABBA visits town for the first time. The Village People are here! Plenty of great bubblegum music from folks like The Archies, The Hardy Boys, The American Breed, Abraham and Strauss, The Grass Roots, The Guise, Hot Chocolate Music Company Ltd., Lawrence Welk, 1909 Chewing Gum Hit Company, Hungry Tiger, The Hot Wheels and The Raspberries!

Echo Valley Episode 32 (S2E2): Secret Origins of The Partridge Family

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The mystery of The Partridge Family and the most important 15 seconds in the history of pop music! A dramatic reading from a That Girl! novel; A Bubblegum Hall of Fame Classic from The Fun and Games; The Lemon Pipers in French; Plenty of great bubblegum music from The Cowsills, The Love Generation, The Partridge Family, Ola and the Janglers, The Pipkins, The Racket Squad, Shirley Ellis, The Left Banke, The Groovy Goolies, Hanson (finally), Marlo Thomas, The McCoys, Neil Diamond and The Music Explosion.

Echo Valley Episode 31 (S2E1): Davy Jones

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Season 2 of Echo Valley: The Original Bubblegum Music Podcast begins! This jam-packed episode includes a special tribute to the late, great Davy Jones, a dramatic reading from a Monkees comic book, Tommy Roe's appearance on Green Acres, a brief update on Kid Bubblegum's fate, and great bubblegum music that we've waited many long weeks to play, from the likes of The Banana Splits, Dolenz, Jones, Boyce and Hart ("The Monkees"?), Giorgio, Ice Cream, Eddie, Dennis and Mike, Marshmallow Way, The Ohio Express, The Hardy Boys, Tommy Roe, The Archies, Bobby Bloom, The Hollies, and Music Explosion.

Echo Valley Episode 30: Best of Season 1

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We've chosen  our favorite moments from the 29 episodes of Season 1 of Echo Valley! Plus the first annual Top Ten Bubblegum Countdown of the most played bubblegum songs from Season 1. Will your favorite be among them?

Echo Valley Episode 29: Archies' Dance Party

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Season 1 Finale! We broadcast live, direct from the Riverdale High School Dance, with The Archies! Their special guests: Andy Kim and Lt. Garcia's Magic Music Box. World premiere (likely) of the legendary Archies "Dance Lesson" songs! Our final episode of Season 1 is upbeat, exciting, fun, suspenseful(!) and a little bittersweet(!?). The Twitterverse (whatever that is) is already proclaiming this as "best...episode...ever". And plenty of great, danceable bubblegum from the likes of Georgio, John Travolta, Jonathan King, Rex Smith, Ohio Express, Paul Revere and the Raiders, The Monkees, The Beagles, The Magid Triplets (sic), Tiny Morrie, The Outsiders, and The Racket Squad! 

Echo Valley Episode 28

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The focus is on those gummily great sad songs! Run, Joey, Run, Seasons in the Sun, Billy Don't Be a Hero, The Legend of Billy Jack, it's all here. Plus a dramatic reading from the novelization of the movie based on the song Ode to Billy Joe! Plenty of great bubblegum music from Andy Kim, NFL great Rosy Grier, Terry Jacks, Coven, The Cast of Glee, French balladeer Joe Dassin, Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods, Paper Lace, The Critters, The Original Caste, David Geddes and Henry Gross!

Echo Valley Episode 27

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The games children play! We sample from the zillions of bubblegum songs about games. The 1910 Fruitgum Company reminisces about Simon Says. A dramatic reading from a whole book about Steve McQueen's love of motorcycles. A bunch of Yo-Yo songs. We welcome the new high school basketball coach, GD Spradlin! And, of course, great bubblegum music from The Brady Bunch, The Music Explosion, The Cordells, The Candy Rock Generation, East Main St. Explosion, The Hondelles, The Wombles, Wayne Fontana and the Mind Benders, The Protozoa, The Love-Ins, The Royal Guardsmen, The Osmonds and The Harlem Globetrotters.

Echo Valley Episode 26

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A dramatic reading from Buffy's Cookbook: Family Affair's Buffy and Jody's favorite recipes; we remember The Electric Company's Short Circus; another Bubble Entendre; a scarce Jeff Barry recording; the Hot Wheels direct from vinyl; and gobs of great bubblegum music from the likes of Johnny Whitaker, Charlie Chan and the Chan Clan, Josie and the Pussycats, The Hardy Boys, The Wombles, The Archies, The Left Banke, The Dave Clark Five, Inkase, Jonathan King, Derek, Jumbo, The Kids from Fame, The Ohio Express, Spinach, and The Banana Splits!

Echo Valley Episode 25

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An episode full of rare treats. The legendary Jetsons song "Eep Opp Ork Ah-Ah" makes its Echo Valley debut! A dramatic reading of the original network TV proposal for Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? Perhaps most excitingly, as a reward for his (SPOILER ALERT!) recent victory in the school election, I  let Kid Bubblegum help program this episode! His choices were... interesting. Plus, as much great bubblegum music as we can fit into 58 minutes, including Paul Revere and the Raiders, Boyce and Hart, Donny Osmond, The Ohio Express, The Scooby-Doo Cast, Lally Stott, Middle of the Road, Lush, Rick Springfield, Boss Blues, Jet Screamer, Mimi Tsai, The Fun and Games, The Harlem Globetrotters, J.C.W. Ratfinks, Mud, and The Panda Peeple!

Echo Valley Episode 24

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Join us for perhaps the most fun-filled jam-packed Echo Valley episode ever! We've got a tribute to the very special episode of the 1970's TV drama Family, where teen idol Leif Garrett explains to adorable Kristy McNichol that he "has his needs"!  A dramatic reading of a 1972 Bobby Sherman interview in which he argues that he is not a bubblegum artist!  First appearance of the Bubble Entendre segment featuring The Cattanooga Cats' "My Birthday Suit". A look at the superstar who never quite made it, Brett Smiley!The Echo Valley Time Machine finds Kyu Sakamoto singing "Sukiyaki"! We pay special attention to The American Breed! And, as usual, great bubblegum music from folks like Bobby Sherman, The Foundations, The 1910 Fruitgum Company, The Shoestring, Tommy Steele, The Ladds, Gary Glitter, The Love Society, The Royal Guardsmen, Linus and the Little People, Leif Garrett, The Lollipops and The Archies!

Echo Valley Episode 23

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In this episode, we announce the official results of the Riverdale High class elections! How did the Echo Valley Library intern, our own Kid Bubblegum, do?! Plus, don't miss a dramatic reading from a Starsky and Hutch novel, do the Donkey Kong, and enjoy plenty of great bubblegum music from folks like The Wombles, Bobby Sherman, The 1910 Fruitgum Company, The Archies, Tommy Roe, The Brady Bunch, Buckner and Garcia, Carol Douglas, Banaroo, The Cattanooga Cats, David Soul, The Bay City Rollers, The Sugar Bears, The Jackson Five and Spike Jones and the City Slickers!

Echo Valley Episode 22

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It's back-to-basics, as this episode features bubblegum standards, a mini-tribute to The (animated) Hardy Boys band, a dramatic reading of an interview with The Brady Bunch's Robert Reed from The Television Scene (1972), the guilty secret about Ohio Express' and The Rare Breed's versions of Beg, Borrow and Steal, and plenty of great music from the likes of Ohio Express, The Bugaloos, Take That, Sha-Na-Na, Captain Groovy and His Bubblegum Army, Shaun Cassidy, The Hardy Boys, Josie and the Pussycats, The Brady Bunch, Tommy Roe, The Archies, Haley Mills, 1910 Fruitgum Company, The Banana Splits, Terry Jacks and The Monkees!

Echo Valley Episode 21

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Dedicated to the great Jeff Barry, the greatest bubblegum pop songwriter of them all. In addition to a tribute to Barry, this jam-packed hour includes a dramatic reading from a Time Tunnel novel and great bubblegum music from Alvin Stardust, The Royal Guardsmen, Andy Kim, Suzi Quatro, The Partridge Family, The Five Americans, James Darren, Pickettywich, The Tee Set, The 1910 Fruitgum Company, The McCoys, Brian Hyland, The Banana Splits and Josie and the Pussycats!

Echo Valley Episode 20

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Defining Bubblegum! Because so many have asked, we finally present the official Echo Valley definition of bubblegum music. Bang-Shang-A-Lang! Also, a salute to 1970's Saturday morning TV theme songs including an analysis of the Land of the Lost theme (and shoutouts to Lidsville, Electra Woman and Dynagirl and Bigfoot and Wildboy); A dramatic reading from a Brady Bunch comic book; plenty of great bubblegum music from the likes of The 1910 Fruitgum Company, The Partridge Family, Austin Roberts, Brian Hyland, Josie and the Pussycats, The Banana Splits, Boyce and Hart, The Brady Bunch, Cyrkle, Daddy Dewdrop, The Groovy Goolies, Phil Harris, The Archies, The Bugaloos and The Ohio Express!