The Nairobi Trio was a sketch comedy skit that Ernie Kovacs performed many times for his TV shows. It combined several existing concepts and visuals in a novel and creative way.
People in gorilla suits had long been a comedy staple. The ploy of well-known, predictable music pieces gone awry had been practiced by artists as diverse as Stan Freberg, Spike Jones, and P. D. Q. Bach. The "slow burn" of one character being annoyed by another, resulting in eventual retaliation, was not new. But the combination of all of those ingredients, combined with impeccable timing, produced a unique and memorable result.
The skit was a live-action version of a child's animatronic wind-up music box, performed to the tune "Solfeggio" by Robert Maxwell. According to an interview with Edie Adams in John Barbour's 1982 documentary Ernie Kovacs: Television's Original Genius, Barry Shear, Kovacs's director at DuMont Television Network, brought the tune to Kovacs's attention in 1954.[2]
The theme song
Harpist and songwriter Robert Maxwell had recorded "Solfeggio" himself in 1953. The lyrics, sung by The Ray Charles Singers, were simply the notes of the musical scale as the melody progressed ("Mi-sol-la, re-fa-re-sol..."). When Ernie Kovacs heard the Maxwell record, he immediately came up with a mental image of what would become The Nairobi Trio:[3]
"Solfeggio" became the permanent theme song for the sketch. The Nairobi Trio became so popular that M-G-M Records reissued the Maxwell record of "Solfeggio" as "Song of the Nairobi Trio" in 1957. Composer Maxwell recorded a new, lyrics-free version of the melody, now known as "Song of the Nairobi Trio," in 1961, billing his ensemble as "The Fortune Tellers." In 1966, as "Robert Maxwell, His Harp and Orchestra," he recorded yet a third arrangement of the melody.
Of the three gorillas shown, all wearing hats, long coats, and white gloves, the middle gorilla, always played by Kovacs with a cigar, conducted the musicians with either a baton or a banana.[4] To the viewer's left stood a gorilla holding two oversized timpani mallets. The identity of this ape varied, but among Kovacs's celebrity friends both Jack Lemmon[3][5] and Frank Sinatra are known to have performed the character. Seated at a piano at screen right was a female simian, variously played by Barbara Loden, Jolene Brand, and Kovacs's wife, Edie Adams, who robotically thumped her hands up and down on the keys.[2][6]
Nearly all of the Nairobi Trio skits operated in the same fashion. As "Solfeggio" plays, the gorilla with the mallets repeatedly uses the center gorilla's (Kovacs's) head like a drum at the end of every phrase, punctuating the song's sharp "ba-da-BUM" bongoriff. Every time this happens it brings a slightly changed and escalating response from the victim, who eventually tries to anticipate the mallet assaults and outwit the perpetrator. Ultimately staring him down, Kovacs, in the gorilla suit, is eventually distracted by the third gorilla, which allows the drummer to give him three final blows. The victimized gorilla then stands up and smashes a prop vase over the percussionist's head.[4] The sketch was repeated many times over the course of Kovacs's career. The audio was always "Solfeggio" but the staging changed occasionally; one variation had the first and second gorillas handling building blocks in tempo, with the third gorilla pounding at a xylophone.
Edie Adams later said that the skits were simple enough for any one of Kovacs's friends and associates to step into the drummer's role without needing a rehearsal, and that the gorilla masks provided anonymity.[2]
The last time the routine was performed was on one of Kovacs's 1960s ABC specials shortly before his untimely death. On this occasion the combination of a bigger budget, the use of videotape, and the luxury of retakes helped him to perfect the timing of the sketch.[citation needed] But the Nairobi Trio wasn't always confined to silence with "Solfeggio" playing; they went into outer space[7] and also became safe crackers on a US Steel special, Private Eye, Private Eye, which aired on CBS on March 8, 1961.[8]
In popular culture
A popular New Zealandjazz group adopted the name, as did a radio-played Los Angeles jazz group.[9]
The music video for the Harry Nilsson song "Coconut" features a similar arrangement as the trio. The instrumentalcover bandHot Butter includes a Moog synthesizer version of "Solfeggio" in its 1972 albumPopcorn (Musicor MS-3242; 1972). On the album, the song is retitled "Song of the Narobi Trio" with Nairobi having the variant spelling of Narobi.[10]
Jim Knipfel entitled the second volume of his memoirs Quitting The Nairobi Trio, recounting his time in a mental institution.[11]
From the early 60s to the late 70s, commercials for Colt 45 Malt Liquor used music resembling "Solfeggio" as Billy Van patiently sat at a small table waiting for a server to bring him a can of Colt 45. One of these commercials won a Clio Award in 1975.
References
^Wilson, Earl (March 23, 1964). "Barbara Loden Shows Some Humility". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Retrieved November 12, 2010.
^ abcHorton, Andrew, ed. (2010). Ernie Kovacs & Early TV Comedy: Nothing in Moderation. University of Texas. pp. 46–49. ISBN9780292779624. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
^ ab"Ernie Kovacs: Television's Original Genius". Internet Movie Database. November 17, 1982. Retrieved August 26, 2013.
Greene, Doyle (2007). Politics and the American Television Comedy: A Critical Survey from I Love Lucy through South Park. McFarland. ISBN978-1-476-60829-7.
External links
Ernie Kovacs Dot Net: A Tribute To Television's Original Genius
1961 Ernie Kovacs performance of The Nairobi Trio at YouTube
Ernie Kovacs performance of Nairobi Trio for ABC Television at YouTube
Early Ernie Kovacs kinescope performance of Nairobi Trio at YouTube
Ernie Kovacs - The Nairobi Trio (sans one) in Space at YouTube
January 06, 2023
nairobi, trio, sketch, comedy, skit, that, ernie, kovacs, performed, many, times, shows, combined, several, existing, concepts, visuals, novel, creative, portrayed, byernie, kovacs, edie, adams, jack, lemmon, frank, sinatra, bobby, lauher, barbara, loden, peop. The Nairobi Trio was a sketch comedy skit that Ernie Kovacs performed many times for his TV shows It combined several existing concepts and visuals in a novel and creative way The Nairobi TrioPortrayed byErnie Kovacs Edie Adams Jack Lemmon Frank Sinatra Bobby Lauher Barbara Loden 1 People in gorilla suits had long been a comedy staple The ploy of well known predictable music pieces gone awry had been practiced by artists as diverse as Stan Freberg Spike Jones and P D Q Bach The slow burn of one character being annoyed by another resulting in eventual retaliation was not new But the combination of all of those ingredients combined with impeccable timing produced a unique and memorable result Contents 1 Origins 2 The theme song 3 Cast members and skit scenarios 4 In popular culture 5 References 6 Bibliography 7 External linksOrigins EditThe skit was a live action version of a child s animatronic wind up music box performed to the tune Solfeggio by Robert Maxwell According to an interview with Edie Adams in John Barbour s 1982 documentary Ernie Kovacs Television s Original Genius Barry Shear Kovacs s director at DuMont Television Network brought the tune to Kovacs s attention in 1954 2 The theme song EditHarpist and songwriter Robert Maxwell had recorded Solfeggio himself in 1953 The lyrics sung by The Ray Charles Singers were simply the notes of the musical scale as the melody progressed Mi sol la re fa re sol When Ernie Kovacs heard the Maxwell record he immediately came up with a mental image of what would become The Nairobi Trio 3 Solfeggio became the permanent theme song for the sketch The Nairobi Trio became so popular that M G M Records reissued the Maxwell record of Solfeggio as Song of the Nairobi Trio in 1957 Composer Maxwell recorded a new lyrics free version of the melody now known as Song of the Nairobi Trio in 1961 billing his ensemble as The Fortune Tellers In 1966 as Robert Maxwell His Harp and Orchestra he recorded yet a third arrangement of the melody Cast members and skit scenarios Edit The original Nairobi Trio masks wigs and hats are on display at the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago Of the three gorillas shown all wearing hats long coats and white gloves the middle gorilla always played by Kovacs with a cigar conducted the musicians with either a baton or a banana 4 To the viewer s left stood a gorilla holding two oversized timpani mallets The identity of this ape varied but among Kovacs s celebrity friends both Jack Lemmon 3 5 and Frank Sinatra are known to have performed the character Seated at a piano at screen right was a female simian variously played by Barbara Loden Jolene Brand and Kovacs s wife Edie Adams who robotically thumped her hands up and down on the keys 2 6 Nearly all of the Nairobi Trio skits operated in the same fashion As Solfeggio plays the gorilla with the mallets repeatedly uses the center gorilla s Kovacs s head like a drum at the end of every phrase punctuating the song s sharp ba da BUM bongo riff Every time this happens it brings a slightly changed and escalating response from the victim who eventually tries to anticipate the mallet assaults and outwit the perpetrator Ultimately staring him down Kovacs in the gorilla suit is eventually distracted by the third gorilla which allows the drummer to give him three final blows The victimized gorilla then stands up and smashes a prop vase over the percussionist s head 4 The sketch was repeated many times over the course of Kovacs s career The audio was always Solfeggio but the staging changed occasionally one variation had the first and second gorillas handling building blocks in tempo with the third gorilla pounding at a xylophone Edie Adams later said that the skits were simple enough for any one of Kovacs s friends and associates to step into the drummer s role without needing a rehearsal and that the gorilla masks provided anonymity 2 The last time the routine was performed was on one of Kovacs s 1960s ABC specials shortly before his untimely death On this occasion the combination of a bigger budget the use of videotape and the luxury of retakes helped him to perfect the timing of the sketch citation needed But the Nairobi Trio wasn t always confined to silence with Solfeggio playing they went into outer space 7 and also became safe crackers on a US Steel special Private Eye Private Eye which aired on CBS on March 8 1961 8 In popular culture EditA popular New Zealand jazz group adopted the name as did a radio played Los Angeles jazz group 9 The music video for the Harry Nilsson song Coconut features a similar arrangement as the trio The instrumental cover band Hot Butter includes a Moog synthesizer version of Solfeggio in its 1972 album Popcorn Musicor MS 3242 1972 On the album the song is retitled Song of the Narobi Trio with Nairobi having the variant spelling of Narobi 10 Jim Knipfel entitled the second volume of his memoirs Quitting The Nairobi Trio recounting his time in a mental institution 11 From the early 60s to the late 70s commercials for Colt 45 Malt Liquor used music resembling Solfeggio as Billy Van patiently sat at a small table waiting for a server to bring him a can of Colt 45 One of these commercials won a Clio Award in 1975 References Edit Wilson Earl March 23 1964 Barbara Loden Shows Some Humility Sarasota Herald Tribune Retrieved November 12 2010 a b c Horton Andrew ed 2010 Ernie Kovacs amp Early TV Comedy Nothing in Moderation University of Texas pp 46 49 ISBN 9780292779624 Retrieved June 23 2014 a b Ernie Kovacs Television s Original Genius Internet Movie Database November 17 1982 Retrieved August 26 2013 a b Greene 2007 pp 62 63 Minstrel Show Raises 150 000 The Day May 1 1961 Retrieved September 12 2010 Ernie Kovacs Nairobi Trio Timpani Mallets Auction Description Heritage Auction Galleries Retrieved July 15 2010 Ernie Kovacs The Nairobi Trio sans one in Space a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a Missing or empty url help Private Eye Private Eye Stars Kovacs Tonight Eugene Register Guard March 8 1961 Retrieved July 15 2010 The Nairobi Trio aka Donavan Muradian Quintet Worldcat entry for Popcorn Musicor Records 1972 OCLC 6543695 Quitting the Nairobi Trio Bibliography EditGreene Doyle 2007 Politics and the American Television Comedy A Critical Survey from I Love Lucy through South Park McFarland ISBN 978 1 476 60829 7 External links EditReference to the Nairobi Trio in Ernie Kovacs U S Comedian profile Ernie Kovacs Dot Net A Tribute To Television s Original Genius John Barbour s documentary Ernie Kovacs Television s Original Genius 1961 Ernie Kovacs performance of The Nairobi Trio at YouTube Ernie Kovacs performance of Nairobi Trio for ABC Television at YouTube Early Ernie Kovacs kinescope performance of Nairobi Trioat YouTube Ernie Kovacs The Nairobi Trio sans one in Space at YouTube Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Nairobi Trio amp oldid 1093882757, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
