For most of the 20th Century, America has been known by the rest of the world as a country with a lot of money and power — but also some of the most uneducated idiots in the modern world.

just-a-billBut for a brief, wonderful, shining moment in our history between 1973 and 1986, those of us who were sitting in front of the television on Saturday mornings knew our multiplication tables through 12 X 12, knew the difference between a noun and a verb, knew the important events and battles of the American Revolution, and could recite the entire Preamble to the United States Constitution (with only a little quiet humming to ourselves to get started).

3If you are of a “certain age”, then you already know that what I’m referring to is “Schoolhouse Rock“, the series of short animated songs that the ABC network ran between cartoons on Saturday morning and you’re thrilled and grateful that I took the time to post a few Schoolhouse Rock classics here on my blog for you to enjoy on Saturday morning and sing along with.

If you don’t remember the Schoolhouse Rock videos it’s probably because you’re not the right age to have seen them during the late 70s and early 80s and while you may have heard of them, or recognize a bit of the music here and there, you may still be wondering what the big deal is. However, if you grew up outside the United States (or were raised by wolves in the wilderness) and you’re wondering how all of the information listed above could be possessed by hundreds of thousands of 7 and 8 year olds hopped up on sugary breakfast cereal in 1978, then you are in for a treat.

doroughBefore I present these videos, I’d like to explain the title of this post. Bob Dorough is the musician who wrote and performed many of the Schoolhouse Rock tunes, and certainly some of the most memorable. I am ridiculously fortunate that Bob Dorough is not only still around, but lives in my area and performs around here regularly.

I’ve had the opportunity on a number of occasions to see him perform both his classic jazz songs (you may know “Devil May Care”, recorded by Diana Krall), and many of the songs he wrote for Schoolhouse Rock. I’ve also been lucky enough to meet Bob at a few of his shows and he’s just as hip and awesome as you’d expect the guy who played with greats like Charlie Parker and Miles Davis and then went on to write “Conjunction Junction” would be. Bob is still hip and still performing live at 85, and if you ever find out that he’s playing in your town, please go see him and tell him I said hello!

So here’s a trip down memory lane for some of us, and an introduction to Schoolhouse Rock for those of you who may have missed it the first time around.

We’ll begin with math and brush up on our 3 and 7 “times tables” (these are my two favorites, and both feature great vocal performances by Bob Dorough):

Now that your math skills are up to date, we can move on to History and courtesy of Schoolhouse Rock get our facts straight on American expansion and Manifest Destiny, and memorize the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution. These songs were written and performed by another Schoolhouse Rock regular, Lynn Ahrens):

Did you get the extra credit on the History test for knowing the Preamble? I’ll never forget my eighth grade class getting the giggles during a test when we saw the extra credit question, and then all started singing!

Moving on to Science, we’ll painlessly learn a few facts about the human body and the force of electricity:

I hope you’re having as much fun as I am learning all this stuff. And of course, you know I saved the best for last. If you’re not familiar at all with Schoolhouse Rock, I’d like to present you with the two most famous and enduring songs, “I’m Just a Bill” (written by Dave Frishberg) and “Conjunction Junction” (written by Bob Dorough), both performed by vocalist Jack Sheldon.

There are many, many more great Schoolhouse Rock songs, and if your favorite is not here, or if you’re new to Schoolhouse Rock and would like to see more, most of them are available on YouTube.  Or you can just be a mega-geek like me and get the DVD, the CD Box Set, and the songbook!

Schoolhouse Rock has been so enduring over the years that it’s spawned a live musical which has toured the country and a “Junior” version of which is being performed in schools everywhere, a spiffy tribute album featuring artists like Blind Melon and Moby, and even a parody on the Simpsons about “An Amendment To Be” that is side-splittingly funny and features original Schoolhouse Rock vocalist Jack Sheldon.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to see if I can track down some more episodes of “Hong Kong Phooey” to make my Saturday morning nostalgia-fest complete!

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