In 1971, that included “One Toke Over the Line.” There was a wholesomeness about the Welk show, which featured a cast of highly talented artists and musicians who normally tried to stay current with the times, performing covers of songs that were popular. And if your folks were like my folks, they made you watch the show along with them.

If you grew up in the 1960s like me, your folks likely watched the Lawrence Welk Show. That got the attention of the people in charge of the Lawrence Welk Show. The song was released as a single and became a hit. When it came time to finish the “Tarkio” album, a suit at their record label – Kama Sutra Records – recommended that “One Toke Over the Line” go on the album. The next day, they turned the line into a song, which they wrote only to give themselves and their friends a laugh. “Jesus Michael, I’m one toke over the line,” Shipley said to Brewer.īrewer thought that was hysterical, and right on the spot started singing, “One toke over the line, sweet Jesus, one toke over the line” before they went on stage that evening. But Shipley decided to do three hits, and by the time he got to the stage, he was wasted. According to Shipley, before a gig in Kansas City, someone had given him a block of hashish and recommended he do two hits. “One Toke Over the Line” is a song about drugs. In Volume I of The Vinyl Dialogues, I had interviewed Michael Brewer and Tom Shipley about the making of their 1970 album “Tarkio.” The album would include what would become Brewer and Shipley’s biggest hit single, “One Toke Over the Line.” But to get there, I’ve got to first go through the rock-folk duo of Brewer and Shipley and the squeaky cleanness of the Lawrence Welk Show. This is a story about Cher almost being knocked on her keister in 1983. Cher nearly got knocked down by members of the Screen Actors Guild during a television broadcast in 1983.

Lawrence welk cast of singers