Song Of The Day 4/3/2013: Charlie & Chan - "My Boyfriend's Learning Karate"
Today's song was semi-stolen from, say it together, Rod Strychnine, who posted Thee Headcoatees' cover of this tune a few weeks ago. This is the original. From Kenny Young and Arthur Resnick, the writing team who brought you "Under The Boardwalk," comes this classic moment of fun, frothy and frolicsome racial stereotyping! Well -- okay, it's not as galling as Charlie Chan (the fictional detective), and was clearly more motivated by the martial arts movement that had gotten started in America in the late '50s and early '60s. At heart it's not offensive, it's basically "My Boyfriend's Back" with a vengeance. Still, an artifact with this kind of oversimplified cultural reference point would be unthinkable a mere ten years later...
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