Hooked on a Feeling
Why does this video exist? Think of all the people involved in its creation who would have had to agree to the basic premise that David Hasselhoff should sing that song and that others would want to watch it. I can’t imagine what Blue Suede thinks of this video.
“Hooked on a Feeling” is a 1969 pop song written by Mark James originally performed by B. J. Thomas. Featuring the sound of the Electric Sitar, that version reached number five in 1969 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 1971, Jonathan King produced his own version, adding the ooga chacka jungle chants from Johnny Preston’s “Running Bear.” It was subsequently covered by Swedish pop group Blue Swede in 1974. This version reached number one. It was covered again in 1997 by David Hasselhoff. The music video of the Hasselhoff version became an internet phenomenon due to its surreal visuals and extremely poor production quality along with the pop culture icon status that Hasselhoff has. Excerpts from the Blue Swede version of the song were used as the audio that accompanied the “Dancing Baby” Internet phenomenon of 1996-1997.
In a 1971 interview with song writer Mark James, he claimed to have penned the lyrics after an especially intense LSD trip. The Hasselhoff music video has seemingly captured the original “feeling” of “Hooked on a Feeling” in more ways than one.
Hooked on a Feeling, both the original version by Blue Suede and the later version by B.J. Thomas (the early 70’s version of pop star turned Christian), was among my favorite songs. Seeing the video version of the song has probably colored my memory of this song forever. Please, please, please… someone erase the image of Hass as a shimmy-ing bear snowboarding over the mountains on a cloud…
TK! You heretic!
LSD! LSD! LSD!
Awesome find. Just awesome. This reminds me of a zany SNL Skit from the ‘golden years’ 10 to 15 years ago. Just add a laughtrack. In fact, those backgrounds I think are from a few Toonses and Lothar episodes.
Why would you post that without a serious warning? Why? I think I just lost the ability to sleep tonight knowing that “it” exists. Why would you post that? Why?
Frank, the point is that it exists in Europe! No one in the English-speaking world would allow this video to be recorded or released. That is our comfort and our hope!
TK, there is no comfort and hope precisely because we know it’s out there! If there was ever proof that we are in the end times…
OK, you win..
Cue up REM’s It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine) (and let’s hope the Hass doesn’t record that song.)