Does anyone else subject the family to "Alice's Restaurant" as part of their Thanksgiving traditions?

[Terabith]

Title pretty much says it all.  Mostly we just do the song, tho we've done the movie a couple times.  

[Slache]

No. I used to work there though. I've never seen the movie. I should.

I often sing "Good Morning America, How Are You?" or whatever it's called by Arlo. My kids have it memorized.

[Ditto]

I have never heard of it.  What is it?

[Eos]

Yes.  From DH's vinyl collection.  Every. Year.

[Drama Llama]

Yep. Every year.

[Ethel Mertz]

I haven’t thought of Alice’s Restaurant in years! Thanks! We watch White Christmas 🎄 over Thanksgiving weekend. 

[EmilyGF]

LOL. What a fun memory.

My granddad used to play "Grandma got run over by a reindeer" every Thanksgiving after dessert, though.

[EKS]

Ooooh!  I never thought of doing this--what a great idea!

[whitestavern]

6 hours ago, Slache said:

No. I used to work there though. I've never seen the movie. I should.

I often sing "Good Morning America, How Are You?" or whatever it's called by Arlo. My kids have it memorized.

City of New Orleans

[EmilyGF]

6 hours ago, Slache said:

No. I used to work there though. I've never seen the movie. I should.

I often sing "Good Morning America, How Are You?" or whatever it's called by Arlo. My kids have it memorized.

That was our folk song to learn one month. We had a kick with that one, especially when we'd hear it piping over the loudspeaker while shopping.

Another fun folk song was the Charlie on the MBTA Song (Especially when a salesperson would disappear, and we'd start the chorus... "Did he ever come back? no he never came back...")

[Miss Tick]

3 hours ago, Ditto said:

I have never heard of it.  What is it?

A long folk song by Arlo Guthrie in which part of the song takes place in Thanksgiving, 1965. Here's the Wikipedia page. You may want to listen to it at least once since according to the Library if Congress it is, "culturally, historically, or artistically significant." But set yourself up in a comfortable chair, with a drink at hand, and a puzzle to work on.

[Garga]

I love that song! It’s awesome. We had to fill out some papers yesterday when we got our booster shot and I asked my husband, “Are you having fun filling out the forms?” and he said, “Yup, and playing with the pencils.”

The song is hilarious and we love listening to it.

[Garga]

But you have to have some time set aside to listen. It’s 18:34 minutes long. It’s really a short story set to music.

[Miss Tick]

50 minutes ago, Garga said:

But you have to have some time set aside to listen. It’s 18:34 minutes long. It’s really a short story set to music.

Although, sadly, the bit that is now stuck on endless loop on my head is only about ³ second long. Over and over... 😄

[Starr]

Thanks! It’s me and dh this year. We’ve started a new tradition with “Alice’s Restaurant.” Good laughs and a musical trip to the past. Of course now I’m getting the guitar live from dh lol

[Drama Llama]

1 hour ago, Garga said:

I love that song! It’s awesome. We had to fill out some papers yesterday when we got our booster shot and I asked my husband, “Are you having fun filling out the forms?” and he said, “Yup, and playing with the pencils.”

The song is hilarious and we love listening to it.

There are so many good lines.

For example, "Kid, have you rehabilitated yourself?" is a much better thing to say to your toddler than "Are you ready to come out of time out?" 

[Drama Llama]

 

[DawnM]

I have never heard of it.   Listening to the song on Youtube.   Interesting.

[Drama Llama]

23 minutes ago, DawnM said:

I have never heard of it.   Listening to the song on Youtube.   Interesting.

Well, what do you think?

[Terabith]

If you want to watch the movie:  

 

[marbel]

Well I would have said my kids were familiar with it, but I asked and I was wrong. So I am not sure we will listen to it together or I'll just send them the link. One of my kids hates any "story song" and always has, so it might be 18+ minutes of torture for us all. 

Dang, I thought we had done a good job with US culture studies, but I missed that one.

Not a big Arlo fan in general, though I do have a certain fondness for Coming into Los Angeles.  And no, I cannot relate to the song from personal experience. 😄

[Noreen Claire]

My father's family used to have the movie on every year on Thanksgiving. The only thing that would pre-empt the movie would be a Patriots game.

DH and I just listened/sang along to the song on the radio in the kitchen while cooking. It's on in the Boston radio market every Thanksgiving at noon.

[JustEm]

Well I just listened to it for the first time. I had never heard of it and I don't feel like I ever need to listen to it again. 

[JustEm]

3 minutes ago, Noreen Claire said:

My father's family used to have the movie on every year on Thanksgiving. The only thing that would pre-empt the movie would be a Patriots game.

DH and I just listened/sang along to the song on the radio in the kitchen while cooking. It's on in the Boston radio market every Thanksgiving at noon.

Apparently, a Philly station plays it many versions throughout the day every year. Today I learned that I apparently don't listen to the radio on Thanksgiving because I had never heard it before.

[Idalou]

12 hours ago, Slache said:

No. I used to work there though. I've never seen the movie. I should.

I often sing "Good Morning America, How Are You?" or whatever it's called by Arlo. My kids have it memorized.

Steve Goodman wrote that and played it  for Arlo, have you heard his version? I loved his songs, especially that one and Donald &Lydia.

Oh, except Prine wrote D &L. I never knew that

Edited November 25, 2021 by Idalou

[Lady Florida.]

No but our Thanksgiving tradition is to have the Macy's parade on in the background while working in the kitchen.

10 minutes ago, Idalou said:

Steve Goodman wrote that and played it  for Arlo, have you heard his version? I loved his songs, especially that one and Donald &Lydia.

Oh, except Prine wrote D &L. I never knew that

I used to love John Prine! It's so sad that Covid took him from us.

Steve Goodman and John Prine wrote the perfect country western song. 😄 (You Never Even Called Me By My Name)

 

[DawnM]

20 hours ago, Baseballandhockey said:

Well, what do you think?

Eh, not really my speed.  

[KidsHappen]

On 11/25/2021 at 7:57 AM, EmilyGF said:

That was our folk song to learn one month. We had a kick with that one, especially when we'd hear it piping over the loudspeaker while shopping.

Another fun folk song was the Charlie on the MBTA Song (Especially when a salesperson would disappear, and we'd start the chorus... "Did he ever come back? no he never came back...")

Where did you live as a child? I lived in Boston and we learned Charlie on MTA and I thought that it was a song local to Boston. That was about 50 years ago now so maybe it changed if they changed the name of the Mass Transit Authority?

[ktgrok]

ok, before I invest my morning into this, how does the movie relate to the song? Like, someone took the lyrics to the song and made them into a full movie, the movie came first and the song was part of the sound track, or?

Never mind - just read the Wiki on it. 

Edited November 26, 2021 by ktgrok

[Farrar]

We always listen to the song. Every year. That's something my dh brought to the relationship. The kids are just used to it. I've literally never seen the movie though.

[Terabith]

Fun fact:  the constable in the movie is the actual real life constable who arrested them in real life.