Primitive Pop- Middletown, OH
September 1 @ 7:00 pm-9:00 pm
Primitive Pop
(Transistor Radios to Walkmans)
7:00 p.m. Monday, September 1, 2025
Woodside Cemetery and Arboretum, Middletown, OH
**Stage directly in front of Chapel (Click here for Site map) **
In the late 1930s through the 1970s, the Boston Pops under Arthur Fielder began playing and recording light classics and novelty numbers which fostered a universal popularity for symphonic gatherings called “Pops” concerts (Erich Kunzel soon followed and took this format to its zenith locally with the Cincinnati Pops.). The short, peppy standards, sometimes zany sounding pieces all had something in common — the fine composers / arrangers that wrote them. The lead “pops” writers of this era were Leroy Anderson, Richard Hayman and Henry Mancini.
The KSO taps into a treasure trove of these 3-4 minute selections that have entertained American audiences in parks and on stages for nearly 80 years. Anderson’s “Waltzing Cat,” “Typewritter,” “Syncopated Clock” and “Bugler’s Holiday” allow the orchestra to musically animate everyday items with wit and charm. (Who knew the typewriter was a musical instrument?) Hayman’s “Pops Hoe-Down” and arrangements of “Little Brown Jug” and “When the Saints go Marching In” succeed in getting everyone’s toes tapping. Mancini’s film scores have allowed snippets like “Moon River,” Theme to “The Pink Panther” and others to become beloved standards. In addition Mancini also teamed-up with tenor Lucianno Pavarotti to arrange Neopolitan songs for his recordings. Pedro Barboso, will sing “Chitarra Romana” and “Rondine al Nido” Pack up the family for a old-fashioned “pops” concert on the lawn.
(see playlist below)
Bring blankets or lawn chairs. Picnics welcome.
Free parking along the roadways within the cemetery.
There is no admission charge for this concert. However, we encourage and appreciate contributions. Your generosity keeps the music playing.
This concert is presented by
On the Program
On The Program
| Song |
As performed by |
| Theme from A Summer Place | Percy Faith |
| Joy to the World | Three Dog Night |
| Owner of a Lonely Heart | Yes |
| Afternoon Delight | Starland Vocal Band |
| 60s Dance Craze Medley (Locomotion, Mashed Potato, Watusi, The Freddie, Twist) | Little Eva – Chubby Checker |
| Wake Me up Before You Go-Go | Wham! |
| Lady Marmalade | Patti LaBelle |
| The Girl from Ipanema | Astrid Gilberto/Stan Getz |
| We Will Rock You / We Are the Champions | Queen |
| The Boy from New York City | The Manhattan Transfer |
| Aquarius | Fifth Dimension |
| Intermission | |
| Bandstand Boogie | Barry Manilow |
| Venus | Shocking Blue |
| Give It to Me Baby | Rick James |
| Think | Aretha Franklin |
| I’ve Been Searching So Long | Chicago |
| You Made Me So Very Happy | Blood, Sweat & Tears |
| Sweet Dreams | The Eurhythmics |
| We’ve Only Just Begun | Carpenters |
| Jungle Boogie | Kool & the Gang |
| Love Shack
Hit the Road Jack |
B-52’s
Ray Charles |
For Digital Program and concert notes click here
For more information, call (859) 431-6216.