Song of the day: The Bootleg Family Band – "Your Mama Don’t Dance"

Here’s Brian Cadd‘s group of troubadors, The Bootleg Family Band, with “Your Mama Don’t Dance” (1973):

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It was originally written and recorded by Loggins and Messina for their self-titled second album (1972):

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Here’s Loggins and Messina’s live version from the album On Stage (1974):

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This is a bit of background on the Australian version of the song in case you’re interested (you may not be):

One of the first things Brian Cadd did when he set up his Bootleg label was to form a band to back other artists signed to the label and Cadd himself. Your Mama Don’t Dance was issued as a Bootleg Family Band single in 1973, even though, with Cadd on vocals and featuring his distinctive piano styling, it was almost indistinguishable from a Brian Cadd single. The song was a hit in the US and the UK for its writers, Loggins and Messina, but it was the homegrown version by The Bootleg Family Band that shot up the charts in Australia, peaking at No. 5.
– The Best Singles Of All Time, Volume 2

I grew up with The Bootleg Family Band’s version only, never hearing any other. No prizes for guessing which version I prefer.

Incidentally, there’s also a version by 80’s hair metal band, Poison, that they recorded or MTV Unplugged. For me, it’s by far the worst version, mainly because of the lead vocals of Bret Michaels (and the background vocals, too). It’s just not very good singing. Soon after the song starts, Bret asks the audience “C’mon, help me out now…”. I think he asks for help because he can’t sing the song properly on his own. And some of the vocal asides uttered by Brett are cringe-inducing. Enter at your own risk:

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And there was a version performed in a recent episode of Australian Idol. The less said about that version, the better.

Nope, it’s The Bootleg Family Band version for me all the way. Love that performance.