"Baby, it's all right now..."

For a generation, All Right Now has been the signature song of the LSJUMB. Here's a little information about the history of the song that's had Stanford students jumping since the early 1970's.

• Timeline
• The Jump
• Bone Licks
• "All Whez Now"
• The Lyrics

More information in "All Right Now!" -- Stanford Magazine, Dec. 1993

• Summer-Fall 1970 -- British band Free scores a one-hit wonder as "All Right Now" hits the top of the British pop charts, reaching No. 4 in the United States by fall.
• Spring 1971 -- Dean Smith plays the song for a mini-arrangement SMUT. The drum major (Geordie Lawry), future drum major Bob Kurland, and manager Dave Ruiz agree that it might work.
• Sometime soon after that -- Lawry asks Dr. Barnes to chart "All Right Now."
• January 1, 1972 -- "All Right Now" debuts (?) as part of the Rose Bowl halftime show, part of a show so incredible that it elicits a resolution of commendation from the University of Michigan student council. (Wow.)
• 1974 -- an unknown trombone player realizes that there's plenty of room during the 8-bar chorus for the Bonz to play a countermelody. The original "Bone Lick" is "Mary Had A Little Lamb".
• 1974(?) -- Baritone player Jim Anderson introduces "The Jump" -- originally as part of choreography mimicking the Dollie routine
• 1990 -- Scott Stanford arranges some of the original Free guitar solo, bringing us the long-play "Victory Mix". This version is ONLY played after Stanford victories (or whenever we really feel like it).
• 1991 -- Displaying extremely questionable judgment, the Centennial Spectacular organizers commission a commercial arrangement of "All Right Now", including cheesy choral accompaniment but inexplicably excluding The Jump, which is then mangled by the Band, a huge chorus, and a prerecorded tape. See story below.

The Jump is one of the first things taught to incoming freshmen during Orientation. I learned it at a picnic held for incoming frosh several weeks before school even started.

"The Jump" apparently originated as a mimicking of the Dollie routine to "All Right Now", which included some rather suggestive pelvis-grinding moves. This developed into an entire choreography, which was later stripped to its bare essence, and even later was picked up by the rest of the student body.

The "Bone Lick" is the 8-bar countermelody played during the 2nd and subsequent repeats of the chorus. The Bone Lick originated with "Mary Had a Little Lamb" in 1974. Some past and present Bone Licks include:

Special-occasion licks include "Here Comes the Bride", "Auld Lang Syne", "Deck the Halls", "Hava Nagila", and the ever-popular Brazilian Soccer cheer ("Ole, ole ole ole, ole, ole"). (Wow, those Brazilians were psyched!) The Lumberjack Song from Monty Python also makes an appearance, especially when Oregon's in town.

First, take a college marching band that is used to generating and playing its own arrangements. And doing it reasonably well.

Then, add a huge spectacle worthy of a Super Bowl halftime show somehow intended to celebrate the centennial of the founding of a prestigious West Coast university. Coincidentially, this is the same university where the above-mentioned band happens to take place.

Add the bright idea of commissioning a "special" arrangement of the band's signature song for the finale of the show. Further, add a huge chorus.

Finally, add the incredible idea of prerecording both the chorus and the band and playing the tape so as to make them more audible once on the field.

THIS IS A RECIPE FOR DISASTER. DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME.

Needless to say, the chart sounded awful, the Band was out of sync with the tape within about 8 measures, and everybody sorta gave up and walked around.

Two trombone players walked over to Ted Koppel, the emcee of the show, and had the following conversation:

Tom: "Hi, I'm Tom."
Jim: "Hi, I'm Jim."
Tom and Jim look at one another.
Tom: "We're trombone players."
Ted, seeing the trombones in their hands: "No shit."

The music was burned and destroyed very quickly upon the band's return to the Shak.

(Free, 1970)

Whoa-oh-oh-oh-whoa

There she stood in the street
smilin' from her head to her feet;

I said, "Hey, what is this?
Now maybe, baby,
maybe she's in need of a kiss."

I said, "Hey, what's your name?
Maybe we can see things the same.

"Now don't you wait, or hesitate.
Let's move before they raise the parking rate."

All right now, baby, it's a-all right now.
All right now, baby, it's a-all right now.

(Let me tell you now)

I took her home to my place,
Watchin' every move on her face;

She said, "Look, what's your game?
Are you tryin' to put me to shame?"

I said "Slow, don't go so fast,
don't you think that love can last?"

She said, "Love, Lord above,
now you're tryin' to trick me in love."

All right now, baby, it's a-all right now.
All right now, baby, it's a-all right now.