Say It Ain't So: Bobby Badfingers Jumps the Shark with Tiny Tim Homage

Bobby Badfingers

During the current difficult times,  we have lost faith in many things. But we always thought that Bobby Badfingers -- the native San Franciscan who since the 1980s has turned quick finger-snapping into a world-famous musical novelty act -- would stay true to his art.

In 1987 Badfingers astonished the world by performing the Surfaris' "Wipe Out" on Late Night with David Letterman, busting out lightning-fast finger-snapping licks so catchy that the gig led to engagements worldwide. In 2000 he quit selling RVs to tour full-time. He was temporarily slowed down a year ago when San Francisco cops jailed him for a week, unfairly, according to a lawsuit he filed against the city. But he quickly bot back to business producing Web pilots for a finger-snapping focused children's television show.

Badfingers' latest gambit, however, has caused us to lose faith in the great one's artistic integrity. In what can only be described as a shameless publicity stunt, Badfingers just e-mailed us a new single, in which he reprises Tiny Tim's 1968 hit "Tiptoe Through The Tulips."

Groundbreaking novelty acts succeed because they generate in fans' consciousness an electrical charge. If juxtaposed with an unrelated visionary novelty act, the competing polarities cancel each other out. So it is that listening to a Tiny Tim-like falsetto sing the 1926 Burke/Dubin lyrics, accompanied by Badfingers' trademark finger snaps, is like tasting barbecue sauce on an ice cream sundae.

Badfingers, why hast thou forsaken us?