{{Short description, Television series ''Frank's Bandstand'' (1964–67) was the Halifax segment of the ''

Music Hop ''Music Hop'' is a Canadian music television series that aired on CBC Television from 1963 to 1967. Premise Pop and rock music was featured in this series for youth, essentially a Canadian version of '' American Bandstand''. Production The fi ...

'' series.

Frank Cameron Francis James Cameron (1 June 1932 – 2 January 2023) was a New Zealand cricketer who played 19 Tests for New Zealand as a fast bowler. Cameron took three five-wicket-hauls in an innings during his Test career for New Zealand, two of them d ...

(1938–2024) introduced music with regulars Patricia McKinnon, Karen Oxley, D.J. Jeffries and Davie Wells. Brian Ahern was music director and band leader and Manny Pitson was the producer. The music was pre-recorded then performed "live" to video tape from Halifax. Local rock bands had guest shots each week and did two tunes in the show. Bands included the Five Sounds (with Jack Harris), Spring Garden Road, and The Great Scotts. The Axemen and The Brunswick Playboys were also among the frequent guests on this variety show from Halifax. It was well presented and highly anticipated by viewers across the country. According to Cameron, the show was videotaped, then transferred to film (telecine) to be sent to other CBC stations across Canada. Cameron also has said that the show was taped on Saturdays to be ready for the following Friday. (The music was probably recorded days before the filming.) * Host - Frank Cameron * Original Broadcaster -

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...

The "Frank" in the title of this Friday-evening Canadian variety show was Frank Cameron, who hosted the proceedings from the CBC's Halifax facilities. Most of the talent showcased herein was native to

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

, though a few celebrities from the other provinces managed to sneak in from time to time. The series was broadcast nationally from October 2, 1964 to June 25, 1965. Most of the production personnel responsible for Frank's Bandstand were also gainfully employed on another tuneful CBC weekly, ''Music Hop'' and "Singalong Jubilee".

Broadcast times

Fri 5:30–6:00 p.m., 2 October 1964 – 25 June 1965

Content

Frank Cameron introduced music with regulars Patricia McKinnon, Karen Oxley, D.J. Jefferies and Davie Wells. Brian Ahern was music director/guitarist with the house band, which included Jack Lily on drums, Keith Jollimore on sax, Garth Proud on bass. The studio band was known as "The Offbeats". When Ahern left the show, the new house band was called "The New Five Sounds (Plus One)" Keith Jollimore took over musical director circa 1966, and Paul Baylis replaced Manny Pitson as producer/director. Also included in the studio band were Ritchie Oakley, Jimmy White, Bruce Cassidy and Joe Sealy. Also renowned world entertainer

Anne Murray Morna Anne Murray (born June 20, 1945) is a retired Canadian singer. Her albums, consisting primarily of pop, country, and adult contemporary music, have sold over 55 million copies worldwide during her over 40-year career. Murray was the fir ...

was a regular guest, in those days (1965–1966) she taught gym classes in Springhill, Nova Scotia, and would drive to Halifax to tape the shows. An LP album entitled "Do You 'Wanna' Dance - Best Of Frank's Bandstand" was released in 1965 by Arc Records (catalog number A-669).

Sources

* http://www.answers.com/topic/frank-s-bandstand-tv-series-1964-tv-series * https://web.archive.org/web/20100311080903/http://www.film.queensu.ca/cbc/Fra.html * Liner notes to Arc Records LP A-669 1960s Canadian music television series Black-and-white Canadian television shows CBC Television original programming 1964 Canadian television series debuts 1965 Canadian television series endings