Theoretically Speaking S6:E7 – What Makes Bubblegum, Bubblegum?

Chewing gum is sugar and plasticizers mixed into a gum base.

You chew it until it loses its flavor, then you throw it away, and pop another one in your mouth.

The remarkable thing about Bubblegum from the late 1960s is that a lot of it was very, very good and truly influential.

The name “Bubblegum Pop” came from Jerry Kasenetz and Jeff Katz.

Bubblegum is a strictly commercial venture. There’s nothing wrong with making money, but it’s not always a recipe for good music.

Kasenetz and Katz weren’t musicians. They had met as students at the University of Arizona. After graduation, Kasenetz insisted they should go into business together and, since Katz wouldn’t move to California, Kasenetz moved to New York with the idea of going into the music business. Katz was skeptical because they knew nothing about the music business, but Kasenetz assured him they’d be great together.

And they were. After some middling results, they produced “Little Bit O’ Soul” by Music Explosion.

That success brought Kasnetz and Katz more business, notably with Neil Bogart at Buddah Records. Bogart had been the sales director at Cameo-Parkway Records before Buddah hired him as general manager.

Why? Well, you’ve got to put something on the B-side, and if you’re sure the A-side is a hit, there’s no point in putting a good song on the flip side. It’d be better to save the good song for another single. 

The target audience was, obviously, people who buy singles. These folks are also known as “teenagers.”

In 1967, Kasenetz and Katz, who had formed a company called Super K Productions, went to New Jersey to hear a band at the recommendation of Katz’s father. The band was called – well, they had gone through a lot of names, but the singer’s voice was appealing.

While earlier songs, like “Sugar Shack” by Jimmy Gilmer & The Fireballs, “I’m Henry The VIII, I Am” by Herman’s Hermits, and the novelty song “Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron” by The Royal Guardsmen, have the same catchy, syrupy, guilelessness, it was “Simon Says” that set the Bubblegum factory to work.

The Bubblegum format starts with a professionally written, hook laden song:

• It’s good if the title has something to do with candy or sweetness. If words are repeated, even better: “Sugar Sugar”, “Chewy Chewy,” “Goody Goody Gumdrops,” “Yummy Yummy Yummy.” 

• It will use Garage Rock instrumentation, e.g. guitars, bass, drums, and piano and/or Farfisa organ.

Their nasal chirp is immediately identifiable and today’s modern synthesizers often have a preset Farfisa sound.

• The song’s structure will be simple, the melody infectious, and the rhythm upbeat. Lighthearted lyrics will exude the innocence of teenage years, but also the hormonal drive towards romantic fantasies.
• Not only will people want to sing along when the song’s on the radio, it will be memorable enough to call to mind with just a few words. Let’s see if this works:

If that puts the song into your head, remember: it got there just by reading the lyrics. You didn’t even have to hear it. That’s the power of a Bubblegum hook.

This insane level of catchiness not only sold a lot of records, it’s influenced Pop Music ever since.

In the Periodic Table Of Genres at the top on this page, the font is too tiny for you to read, but the example artist for Bubblegum Pop is Britney Spears.

For the sake of this article, I’m limiting Bubblegum to the period between 1967 and 1972. This was its heyday and the period that continues to influence songwriting. Sure, there were catchy songs before and since, but this particular blend of hooks, innocence, and excitement lasted only those few years before tastes changed, and before Buddah Records expanded into other genres.

Bubblegum Pop groups were often constructed by record labels and producers, rather than forming organically as bands.

The label would market these manufactured groups as wholesome, family-friendly acts. The bands may not have played on their own records, but if they had good voices, clean-cut images, and coordinated outfits, they could be a hit.

The most famous manufactured band is, of course, The Monkees.

There’s some disagreement as to whether they’re a Bubblegum group.

On the other, their songs, though catchy, were more sophisticated and had deeper meanings than most Bubblegum. 

The second most famous manufactured band is probably The Archies.

Their song “Sugar Sugar” may be the biggest Bubblegum hit. They were so manufactured, they weren’t even a band. They were a Saturday morning cartoon.

“Sugar Sugar” was co-written by producer Jeff Barry and singer Andy Kim. Both would have long behind-the-scenes careers, though Kim would score a #1 with “Rock Me Gently” in 1974.

The singers on “Sugar Sugar” are the voice actors who portray the cartoon characters:

Kim also sings background harmonies. Among the people providing the handclaps is Ray Stevens, who had a #1 with “Everything Is Beautiful” and happened to be in the studio.

Sometimes though, an existing band was signed and given songs to record. This is the case with The Lemon Pipers.

The label had them record a song called “Green Tambourine” and the band agreed only because they were contracted to do so. It was their only #1 hit, and is considered the first #1 Bubblegum song. 

The Lemon Pipers left Buddah and broke up.

 It wasn’t a hit, but Super K had Pipers guitarist Bill Bartlett work up a cleaner version and released it with a new band called Ram Jam. It got to #18 in 1977.

Bubblegum’s popularity waned around 1970 as the teenagers got older and their younger siblings wanted their own music. Buddah changed with the tide as released songs that were catchy and upbeat, but not as sugary sweet.

That was the year Bogart left Buddah to start Casablanca Records. He signed Rock bands like KISS, Fanny, and T.Rex, but had bigger success when Disco came around. Casablanca is now primarily known as a Disco label.

While most of the manufactured bands of 1960s Bubblegum were sort of faceless, the Pop that was marketed to teenagers in the 70s was all about faces.

Their faces sold records and magazines but worked against them in the long run. They weren’t really taken seriously.

To be fair, Bubblegum wasn’t taken seriously by the critics of the time either, but it turned out that this music that was meant to be disposable continues to influence.

There are subgenres like Bubblegum Dance:

Or Bubblegum Punk:

Both J-Pop and K-Pop inherited a lot of Bubblegum DNA. So did Britney Spears and most of the singers to come out of The Mickey Mouse Club of the early 90s. Ditto for the boy bands of that time.

While old school Bubblegum Pop existed for only a few years, its timeless appeal reminds us of the power of Pop music to bring joy, laughter, and happiness to our lives.

Wherever there’s a catchy melody, a happy beat, a sense of innocence (authentic or manufactured), and youthful exuberance (authentic or manufactured), Bubblegum lives on. 

Suggested Listening – Full YouTube Playlist

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