Quacky Duck and His Barnyard Friends
Encyclopedia
Quacky Duck and His Barnyard Friends was an American
country rock
band of the early 1970s.
It was founded by D'Andrea (Danny) Bennett and Daegal (Dae) Bennett, both sons of legendary singer Tony Bennett
; they comprised the rhythm section
. Other members included Curtis Fried, Gordon Javna, Jon Yaffee, and guitarist
/violin
ist David Mansfield
. The band had a modest local following in northern New Jersey
and was the opening act for Gram Parsons
at Max's Kansas City
in New York
. Their music was oriented towards lighthearted, catchy songs. The group's name evoked, as People magazine
commented, "a line of bathtub toys".
The band was signed by Warner Bros. Records
for $75,000 and released the album Media Push in 1974. The single "The Barnyard Song" received a smattering of airplay on WNEW-FM and the band had a national television appearance on The Mike Douglas Show
. Nevertheless they failed to gain a substantial audience and were dropped by Warner Bros.
The "Media Push" title song from the album
boasts what are surely the most politically-incorrect
lyrics ever released by a major label. The complete obscurity of the Quacky Duck project has relegated this milestone to the cultural shadows.
Mansfield went on to a very successful career with Bob Dylan
, The Alpha Band
, and as a session musician and composer. The failure of Quacky Duck helped convince Danny Bennett that his talents lay more in business than in being a musician; as a result he later became Tony Bennett's manager
and played a key role in resurrecting his father's commercial career in the 1980s and early 1990s. Dae Bennett went on to become a recording engineer. Gordon Javna became a writer and editor and oversees the popular Uncle John's Bathroom Reader
series of trivia books. Fried plays bass in the Austin, Texas rock band, Cole Fried Fish.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
country rock
Country rock
Country rock is sub-genre of popular music, formed from the fusion of rock with country. The term is generally used to refer to the wave of rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s, beginning with Bob Dylan and The Byrds; reaching its greatest...
band of the early 1970s.
It was founded by D'Andrea (Danny) Bennett and Daegal (Dae) Bennett, both sons of legendary singer Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett is an American singer of popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz....
; they comprised the rhythm section
Rhythm section
A rhythm section is a collection of musicians who make up a section of instruments which provides the accompaniment section of the music, giving the music its rhythmic texture and pulse, also serving as a rhythmic reference for the rest of the band...
. Other members included Curtis Fried, Gordon Javna, Jon Yaffee, and guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
/violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
ist David Mansfield
David Mansfield
David Mansfield is an American violinist, mandolin player, guitarist, pedal steel guitar player, and composer....
. The band had a modest local following in northern New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and was the opening act for Gram Parsons
Gram Parsons
Gram Parsons was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and pianist. Parsons is best known for his work within the country genre; he also mixed blues, folk, and rock to create what he called "Cosmic American Music"...
at Max's Kansas City
Max's Kansas City
Max's Kansas City was a nightclub and restaurant at 213 Park Avenue South, in New York City, which was a gathering spot for musicians, poets, artists and politicians in the 1960s and 1970s.-Origin of name:...
in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Their music was oriented towards lighthearted, catchy songs. The group's name evoked, as People magazine
People (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
commented, "a line of bathtub toys".
The band was signed by Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
for $75,000 and released the album Media Push in 1974. The single "The Barnyard Song" received a smattering of airplay on WNEW-FM and the band had a national television appearance on The Mike Douglas Show
The Mike Douglas Show
The Mike Douglas Show is an American daytime television talk show hosted by Mike Douglas that aired in syndication from 1961 to 1982, distributed by Westinghouse Broadcasting and for much of its run, originated from studios of two of the company's TV stations.The program featured light banter with...
. Nevertheless they failed to gain a substantial audience and were dropped by Warner Bros.
The "Media Push" title song from the album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
boasts what are surely the most politically-incorrect
Political correctness
Political correctness is a term which denotes language, ideas, policies, and behavior seen as seeking to minimize social and institutional offense in occupational, gender, racial, cultural, sexual orientation, certain other religions, beliefs or ideologies, disability, and age-related contexts,...
lyrics ever released by a major label. The complete obscurity of the Quacky Duck project has relegated this milestone to the cultural shadows.
Mansfield went on to a very successful career with Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
, The Alpha Band
The Alpha Band
The Alpha Band was a rock band formed in July 1976 from the remnants of Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue. Band members were T-Bone Burnett, Steven Soles, and David Mansfield, plus sidemen who differed from record to record and included: David Kemper ; gospel great Andrae Crouch; and former Beatle...
, and as a session musician and composer. The failure of Quacky Duck helped convince Danny Bennett that his talents lay more in business than in being a musician; as a result he later became Tony Bennett's manager
Talent manager
A talent manager, also known as an artist manager or band manager, is an individual or company who guides the professional career of artists in the entertainment industry...
and played a key role in resurrecting his father's commercial career in the 1980s and early 1990s. Dae Bennett went on to become a recording engineer. Gordon Javna became a writer and editor and oversees the popular Uncle John's Bathroom Reader
Uncle John's Bathroom Reader
Uncle John's Bathroom Readers are a series of books containing trivia and short essays on miscellaneous topics, ostensibly for reading in the bathroom. The books are credited to the Bathroom Readers' Institute, though Uncle John is a real person, and are published by Portable Press, an imprint of...
series of trivia books. Fried plays bass in the Austin, Texas rock band, Cole Fried Fish.
Members
- D'Andrea (Danny) Bennett
- Daegal (Dae) Bennett
- Curtis Fried
- Gordon Javna
- Jon Yaffee
- David MansfieldDavid MansfieldDavid Mansfield is an American violinist, mandolin player, guitarist, pedal steel guitar player, and composer....
- guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
/violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....