The Amazing Pink Things

BOTH of The Amazing Pink Things' CD are still available!
For more info go to:
www.danacountryman.com/Pink/AmazingPinkThingsCDs.html

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The Amazing Pink Things were a 2-man, 2-woman comedy cabaret act that started performing in Seattle in 1985. By the time we called it quits in 1991, we'd had 2 different baritones (originally Bob Kaiser, replaced by Bob Overman), 7 altos (in this order: Shawn Tordahl, Jayne Muirhead, Mimi MacLeod, Sandi Miller, Harrye Hayward, Maureen McKenna, Brenda Sonnier, Tricia Meier), one tenor (me, Dana Countryman), and one soprano (Tami Martin.)

I was the leader, musical director and chief songwriter. My (non-romantic) business partner was Tami Martin, who handled the lighting cues, choreography and continued the wild costumes that Bob Kaiser had originally designed.

We toured mainly on the West Coast, appearing in clubs, theatres and cabarets, including long runs in San Francisco (CA), Los Angeles (CA), Portland (OR), Ashland (OR), Anchorage (AK), as well as in our home base of Seattle (WA). We had a manager in New York City, who basically did nothing for us, except bring us to New York City, where we also performed.

We sang live to a pre-recorded tape, that I recorded 99% of all the parts for (keyboards, guitars, bass, drums, misc.), and we lugged our "band" -- our faithful OTARI 2-track tape recorder through airports all over the country.

Highlights of our glorious career were:

A 9-month run at Seattle's THE CABARET IN PIONEER SQUARE, where we regularly had lines around the block for our shows.
Quitting our day jobs, and heading off to California, where we performed for a year.
Appearing twice on THE LATE SHOW (with Arsenio Hall) at Fox/Paramount in Hollywood.
Palling around with TV stars Judd Hirsch and Clevon Little.
Eating pizza with Fred Willard in between tapings of A&E's THE GOODTIME CAFE in San Francisco.
Spotting celebrities in our audiences --- people like Freda Payne, Eric Roberts, Margaret Whiting, Dave Frishberg, Weird Al Yankoviwc and Doctor Demento... and again, Clevon Little, who seemed to show up at our shows all over the place, including L.A., San Francisco and NYC...
Opening for country songstress Crystal Gayle at an outdoor concert at he Mondavi Winery in Napa, California.
Getting recognized in public places, while out of costume, even!
Appearing on radio's DINNER AT SARDI'S - hosted by Arlene Francis. Spotting Bert Parks in the audience. Standing at the bar with Jerzy Kozinski.
Meeting our audiences after our shows, and making great friends all over the country.
Appearing on many, many radio shows in many cities, where we usually sang our a capella version of the "Hallejujah Chorus" -- THE HAL AND LULU CHORUS!
Getting out of our contract with the previously-mentioned NYC manager.
Having the best audiences in the country, in believe it or not, Anchorage, Alaska!
And for me, the real highlight was meeting Tricia, who was our final (and eleventh!) member of the group, who eventually agreed to marry me! (Silly girl!) Many years later, she's still hanging in there with me!

-Dana Countryman
Former Head Pink (Happymoogman)

Reviews:

"Deliciously funny songs in breathtaking harmony! Laughter just shy of a bellyache is what you can expect, and they will have you pink with laughter!" - Bob Harrington, NEW YORK POST "The Amazing Pink Things are funny, clever, bright, slick, and vocally blended. A refreshing first-rate act, rife with original material that can best be described as accessable musical satire." - Herb Michaelson, VARIETY "Outlandish lyrics sung by smiling people in perfect harmony. Has that edge of surprise...a little nuts and really funny." - Mick LaSalle, SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE "The Amazing Pink Things have got it all: fresh ideas, pleasing looks, fine voices, tight harmonies, polished arrangements, inventive staging, great timing and last, but definitely not least, superbly developed comic talent." - Wayne Lee, THE SEATTLE TIMES "Refreshingly funny! A highly insightful and sophisticated look at the world. A show crammed with tasty material that shows off four talented singing actors." - Renee Kaplan, NEW YORK NEWSDAY "The world is definitely in need of the wacko musical lunacy of The Amazing Pink Things. Hilariously choreographed send-ups, and a brilliantly sung (Handel would've loved it) a capella 'Hal and Lulu Chorus'." - Don Heckman, LOS ANGELES TIMES "Bristling with wit and wicked parody! Tight harmonies zeroeing in on familiar targets with freshly crafted new darts!" - Don Nelsen, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS "Magnificently outrageous costumes and brilliant musical spoofs. A most enjoyable evening of musical fun." - Philip Elwood, SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER "Wonderfully deranged, professional entertainment by a group that is quite pink, quite weird, and a whole lot of fun. The Amazing Pink Things are four dynamic singers whose slick, tounge-and-groove harmonies wrap around every imaginable musical form." - Elizabeth Pulliam, ANCHORAGE DAILY NEWS "They are clever, infectious, ever so amusing, and talented. The Amazing Pink Things use all pop culture as their playground." - Starla Smith, THEATER WEEK (New York) "Their songs are hilarious, side-splitting, gloriously crafted, and pure genius. The Amazing Pink Things are on their way to what I believe will be very big things. They're just too amazing not to make it." - Wayne Lee, THE SEATTLE TIMES "I can't remember when I've laughed so hard." - Don Carter, SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER "One of the most polished and gratifying acts this writer has witnessed. Amusing, original material coupled with terrific talent. Simply amazing, no matter what color they prefer. You can't afford to miss The Amazing Pink Things." - L. Pierce Carson, NAPA REGISTER (San Fransicso) "The Amazing Pink Things perform absolutely amazing feats of musical satire. A fresh new voice on the club scene and one of the best new cabaret acts being presented in the Big Apple." - Martin Shaeffer, NEW YORK NATIVE "The Amazing Pink Things' material ranges from funny through very funny, to very, very funny. The Things aren't just musical potshots artists, they are musical virtuosos." - Joe Adcock, SEATTLE POST INTELLEGENCER "The Amazing Pink Things' show is a rare evening of sheer inspiration." - Don Heckman, LOS ANGELES TIMES "Its a musical evening with a twist. Or a twisted musical evening, depending upon your point of view. Get up, get dressed, and Think Pink." - Mary Brennan, SEATTLE SOURCE "Silly to perfection and joyously goofy, like a perfect greeting card." - Joe Adcock, SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER "The harmony quartet created when The Manhattan Transfer had a mind meld with The Firesign Theater." - Bart Becker, SEATTLE WEEKLY "An inventive new vocal group catapaults to the top of Seattles' nightlife...the best musical entertainment currently available in town. Beware, The Amazing Pink Things have arrived." - Kelly Cresap, SEATTLE GAY NEWS The Amazing Pink Things brought the house down. Brilliant, funny, and unforgettable." - Stephen Drewes, GOLDEN GATE MAGAZINE (San Francisco) "Impressive though they are visually, The Amazing Pink Things would be nothing if they weren't musically impressive. And they are very amusing musically." - Joe Adcock, SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER "Demented...outrageous...their material sparkles with wit." - Robert Comanec, COMING UP MAGAZINE (New York) "Satirical lyrics and harmonies entwined as snugly as snakes on a doctors' caduceus. Funny even before they open their four mouths." - Tim Appello, SEATTLE TIMES "Four ferociously talented performers who'll have you howling with laughter at their hilarious songs." - Robert Harris, BELLEVUE JOURNAL-AMERICAN "Wonderful four part harmony with a zap of zany comedy." - Eric Pfeiffer, KEY MAGAZINE (San Francisco) "A funny, finely tuned act. Refreshing and witty." - Joan Anderman, SEATTLE WEEKLY "A unique blend of comedy and tight four part harmony. One of the hottest groups in the Pacific Northwest." - Penny LeGate, KING-TV (Seattle) "The Amazing Pink Things exult with wit, competence, elan and even grace. And they do it with admirable restraint, deceptive polish and innocent good humor." - Nancy Jordan, THE ANCHORAGE TIMES "While its all calculated to draw laughs by celebrating tackiness, the amazing part of the show is that behind the tackiness, there's plenty of professional, polished talent." - Don Carter, SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER Slickly staged and hilarious. Their four part harmony is tight, smooth, and quite lovely. Their musical talent is undeniable." - John Carr, BAY AREA REPORTER (San Francisco) "Drill team harmonic precision, vibrant stage personalities, a quick wit, and a delicious sense of musical cliche's from the 1950's through the 1980's." - Robert Taylor, OAKLAND TRIBUNE (San Francisco) "Voices blended smoothly in deft harmony and wild abandoned comedy. The Amazing Pink Things have amassed a treasure trove of sharply funny novelty numbers which are sharply focused works of wit." - Bob Harrington, BACKSTAGE (New York) "They're winners, everyone!' - Bert Parks. emcee for Miss America Pageant for 35 years.

- Happymoogman

Facts:

Former Head Pink Dana Countryman has two CDs out with Jean Jacques Perrey on Oglio Records. (Happymoogman)

Web pages about this Artist:

The Amazing Pink Things Info Page (Happymoogman)

Contact us if you know of an album that contains this artist

Artist Images:

The Amazing Pink Things (Happymoogman)