The animated band
The Hardy Boys were a band featured in cartoon adaptation which aired between 1969 and 1971.
The band included; Joe Hardy, Frank Hardy, Chubby Morton, Pete Jones, and Wanda Kay Breckenridge.
The animated band had a real-life equivalent, who played and sang on the albums (songs from which were featured on the show.) The band also toured, and were featured in the opening titles of the cartoon.
The live-action band
Lineup[]
- Joe Hardy (played by Jeff Taylor) - Bass and vocals
- Frank Hardy (played by Reed Kailing) - Guitar and vocals
- Wanda Kay Breckinridge (played by Deven English) - Tamborine, organ, backup vocals
- Chubby Morton (played by Nibs Soltysiak) - Saxophone
- Pete Jones (played by Bob Crowder) - Drums
Within the Cartoon[]
In the Hardy Boys cartoon, Frank, Joe and their friends moonlight as a rock band in order to finance their sleuthing. During every episode, at about the halfway point, the band will play a gig. They will be shown performing a song from one of the real-life Hardy Boys albums, in its entirety.
Some episodes deal more directly with the band, such as one which revolves around the Hardy's recording an album, and a radio broadcaster working with the villains later plays one of their songs as a way to taunt them.
Real-World[]
Filmation created the Hardy Boys as an attempt to re-create the success of their previous cartoon adaptation The Archie Show. This cartoon featured Archie and friends in a band called the Archies. One of the songs from the cartoon, Sugar Sugar, became a number one hit in 1969.
Filmation executives put together the real-life Hardy Boys band in order to better promote the music from the show, which had been a problem with the Archies, preventing further chart success.
Jeff Taylor, Reed Kailing, Deven English, Bob Crowder and Nibs Soltysiak played the music on the albums, and took on the roles of each fictional band member. They were sent to tour county fairs in the Southern States in the summers of 1969 and 1970. One of their songs, Love and Let Love, became a moderate local hit in some of these states.
The tour was generally well received, and the albums sold moderately well, although the band failed to produce a Billboard hit.
The music was written by Ray Ellis.
Albums[]
- 1969 Here Come The Hardy Boys
- 1970 Wheels[1]
Trivia[]
- The song Hello Girl, which is featured on the show, was only released on the 8-Track version of Wheels.
- Whenever the Hardy's play one of their songs throughout the series, the same pieces of animation are re-used (athough, in different order).
Gallery[]
