John Safran's Music Jamboree

Released: 2002-07-01

Runtime: 30 minutes

Episode Overview

1. Opening Titles: Def Leppard 2. Footloose Mixed dancing was banned at my religious Jewish school, ala the movie Footloose starring Kevin Bacon. So ten years after graduation I stormed back onto the school grounds Bacon-style and cut Footloose, in some mad act of seeking vindication and closure that I'm sure a psychiatrist could explain better than me. 3. Music Mole: ARIA Awards John talks with the Music Mole about record companies planning to boycott the 2001 ARIA awards, due to the head of the ARIAs that year being Dennis Handler, who at the time was head of Sony Australia. 4. Pulled album covers John presents the issue of album covers that have been pulled due to a major faux pas, controversial images, or pressure from specific groups such as McDonald's. 5. Slipknot John attempts to get 9 guys into a very elitist nightclub by dressing them up as the band Slipknot. 6. World of Instruments Frenzal Rhomb playing "Punch in the Face" with the instruments of Pakistan

Series Overview

John Safran's Music Jamboree was a light-hearted Australian music documentary television series, hosted by John Safran for SBS television. The program was produced by Selin Yaman and directed by Craig Melville, Clayton Jacobson and a number of other directors under the production company Ghost of Your Ex-Boyfriend Productions in association with SBS Independent. It screened in 2002, and consisted of sketches and outlandish public stunts, typical of Safran's work. The series won two Australian Film Institute Awards; "Best Comedy Series" and "Most Innovative Program Concept". SBS followed the series up with the similarly styled John Safran vs. God in 2004. An infamous stunt of the series was sneaking nine friends into an exclusive Melbourne nightclub by dressing them up as the masked American metal band, Slipknot. The producers arranged entry for the impostors by pretending to be an American management company over the phone. Other stunts included disguising himself as well known entertainers such as Ozzy Osbourne and Prince to harass the public, sketch versions of music videos such as Eminem, the creation of Jew Town, a Jewish boy band to compete with Christian pop, and returning to Yeshivah College to pay homage to Kevin Bacon in Footloose. He also details his time in the hip-hop group Raspberry Cordial, and the related incident in which he met the Beastie Boys and the band's former DJ attempted to steal his girlfriend at the time.