Stop!

June 7, 2024 12:27 PM

Muppet Songs: For What It's Worth (First aired in 1978, during the second season of The Muppet Show. The guest was Bob Hope.)
posted by box (13 comments total)

100% certain that this was my first encounter with this song (b. 1976).
posted by mykescipark at 12:36 PM on June 7 [10 favorites]

I have a distinct memory of watching this as a child when it first aired, and my father (usually a take-it-or-leave-it Muppet person) being extremely impressed with it.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 12:41 PM on June 7 [7 favorites]

mykescipark, EmpressCallipygos: same here to both your posts. born 1967.
posted by scolbath at 12:43 PM on June 7 [1 favorite]

Yup. To the post and the comments so far. I also think this was the first time that I felt the stirrings of social consciousness, even though I didn't have the vocabulary for that term at the time (b. 1971)
posted by KingEdRa at 12:54 PM on June 7 [2 favorites]

This literally has me in tears....not only because of the empathy I always feel for animals (whether real, animated, or of the puppet variety), but because this was one of my Little Brother's favorite songs. He recently passed away suddenly (He was 62, but I still call him "Little" because he was younger than me) and at his memorial I played a bunch of his preferred tunes. He loved British Invasion bands and also 60s rock in general.....I remember when we were youngsters and I'd occasionally refer to this song as "Stop! Hey!" and he'd correct me in his gruff little third grade voice "It's called 'For What It's Worth'." Thanks for posting this.
posted by Oriole Adams at 1:02 PM on June 7 [18 favorites]

For a long time I thought the song was about the Vietnam war....but it's about the sunset strip riots
posted by brujita at 1:09 PM on June 7 [12 favorites]

A masterful performance.
posted by fantabulous timewaster at 4:00 PM on June 7

Tin soldiers and Statler's coming
We're finally on our own
This summer I wonder why there are
So many songs about rainbows
So many songs about rainbows
posted by credulous at 4:13 PM on June 7 [6 favorites]

this deserves wider distribution
posted by wmo at 4:47 PM on June 7

Same here, I saw it a long long time ago and it's stayed with me ever since. About once a year I watch it again, just because. I'm not due yet but an extra viewing won't hurt.
posted by ashbury at 6:27 PM on June 7

dat flute, doe
posted by es_de_bah at 8:14 PM on June 7

The Muppet Show was golden. After it first went into syndication, KOMO.TV ran every episode in a strip at 7:30 PM Monday through Saturday. Parents put their young ones to bed with it. Until they couldn't because it ran it's run. Oh, the howls to no avail. Me, too on the inside. We, windowless monad to windowless monad, and their kids, were all living in a fool's Matrix.
posted by y2karl at 9:25 PM on June 7

Whenever you need to figure out what side you’re on with an issue, one of the first things to check is which side the police are on. Usually a good idea to join the other side.
posted by Flight Hardware, do not touch at 1:10 PM on June 8 [3 favorites]