Do not adjust the settings on your phone. The colors you see in this photograph are the result of a little bit of post-processing courtesy of my imagination, life experience, and photo editing software. The factory shade of Medium Blue Metallic adorning this ’73 LeSabre is vivid in person, almost like the color of the sky, and it seems to lighten the visual mass of this 4,300-pound car. One of the most rewarding experiences of both carrying my camera everywhere I go and writing for this site is when those two occurrences intersect as they did on this day, leaving me with no question as to what I needed to do. So, here I am, just over two weeks after I had spotted this Buick at a vintage, midcentury modern car wash and service station in the neighborhood just south of mine.
I’ve referenced this same car wash before in an essay that had originally run just two days into 2018. I wouldn’t consider it a foregone conclusion that a car wash would specifically attract especially desirable or interesting rides, as I would picture most owners of such vehicles as wanting to hand-wash them to avoid any chance of damage by machinery. That isn’t to say anything bad about this particular establishment, with which I have had no prior experience. I’ll just say that it seemed fortuitous and completely unexpected to find this big, beautiful, blue Buick parked there as I rode by on the city bus.
I’m also a fan of movies from all decades, especially the 1970s. Last year, I had found an inexpensive, used DVD copy of the 1976 ensemble film Car Wash from a local thrift store, which facilitated my first viewing of the entire film from start to finish. I had seen parts of it whenever it had run on, say, VH1 during their “Movies We Love” series, or on some other cable channel. I had just never before watched the whole movie in one unbroken sitting.
Without giving away any of the plot, I’ll just say that I absolutely loved it and may watch it again soon. I was expecting gag-a-moment slapstick dialogue, casual presentation of unflattering stereotypes, and a bunch of cool cars. I won’t try to tell you that it was Fellini, but some of the subplots (and there are many) showed flashes of significant depth and insight into the human condition that I just wasn’t expecting from this kind of movie. By the end of its hour-and-a-half running time, I realized that I had come to care for many of the characters portrayed in this film in better-than-average performances.
It also seems inescapable to talk about the film without also referencing the brilliant, ebullient title track from the band Rose Royce, which was an international, multi-format smash, topping the Billboard Hot 100 main chart and R&B chart, as well as Canada’s Top Singles survey. It also landed in the top twenty of ten other countries around the world. It’s a great one, but it’s not even my favorite song of their canon of hits. That honor would probably go to the wistful, plaintive ballad “Wishing On A Star”, throughout which then-lead vocalist Gwen Dickey’s angelic vocals float above subdued, soulful orchestration.
The combination of my fandom of the movie, the band Rose Royce, and the sparkling apparent condition of this ’73 LeSabre – which I consider to be the best-looking full-sized domestic sedan that year – was enough to make me hit the bell and exit the bus near this car wash in Uptown. The ’73 LeSabre could be had in three body styles that included a pillared sedan, a hardtop sedan, and a hardtop coupe, and in two levels of trim, base and Custom, the latter of which is what we see here.
The most expensive LeSabre, the Custom hardtop sedan at $4,217 to start, was also the most popular of the six possible configurations, accounting for about 55,900 units out of about 197,300, total. The next most popular iteration was the pillared Custom sedan, at 42,900 examples. The three Custom LeSabres easily outsold their base-model counterparts (the base hardtop sedan was the least popular model, at 13,400 units), so it stands to reason that most large Buick shoppers that year wanted a little extra sizzle for not a whole lot more money.
There were four engines available for your ’73 LeSabre, including two 350 cubic inch V8s with 150 or 175 horsepower, or two 455s with 225 or 250 horses. I’ve already mentioned the Custom hardtop sedan’s starting weight of over two tons, but its other dimensions are just as impressive: a 224.2″ stretch from bumper to bumper on a 124″ wheelbase, 79.6″ inches of width, and a height of 53.8″, which was curiously 0.6″ lower than that of the pillared sedan. Interior space was predictably cavernous, as was its lousy fuel economy which, according to one source, could be expected to be in the low- to mid-teens under normal use. I could see one of these getting ten miles per gallon on a regular day.
The $5,000 figure on one of the lottery signs in the window of the food shop had me wondering what one could have expected to pay for a new LeSabre Custom hardtop sedan in 1973. It’s base price of $4,217 (before options) translates to about $30,400 in 2025, which is over 25% more than what a new 2025 Buick Envista starts for, though it’s also true that the Envista’s price would include many features and amenities not included or maybe even thought of when this LeSabre was new.
It was a clear, sunny Sunday when I had crossed paths with this blue beauty. I had just missed my southbound train from my neighborhood and had opted to take the bus instead, which led directly to being able to see this car from my window in the minutes when I was looking out instead of fiddling around on my smartphone. This entire scene, much like in the movie Car Wash, seemed like a casual, comforting, working-class picture of taking pleasure in car culture, and also in simply existing. It was like being transported to my Flint childhood where, for many, owning a big, beautiful car was as good a reason as any to park it right in front of one’s house or business. Following this past Memorial Day weekend in the United States, summer is unofficially here so, “Hey… Get your car washed today!”
Uptown, Chicago, Illinois.
Sunday, May 11, 2025.
The 1973 Buick LeSabre brochure pages were sourced from www.oldcarbrochures.org. The cover art for the 7″ single for Rose Royce’s “Car Wash” was sourced from www.discogs.com.
The soundtrack of Car Wash, as the Rose Royce single sleeve indicates, was produced and mostly written by Norm Whitfield, one of the most prolific and talented Motown writer/producers.
His best-known hits are probably “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone,” and “I Can’t Get Next to You,” written with Barrett Strong, but in his NY Times obituary, Whitfield’s daughter said he published more than 450 songs during his lifetime. His “psychedelic soul” albums with The Temptations have some real standouts. (The Tempations Greatest Hits II is a good sampler.)
What a fortunate find! And well worth getting off the bus for. I agree that the LeSabre was the most attractive U.S. sedan in 1973, (not that the competition was all that fierce). The convertible was Centurion-only that year, though I’d still consider it a LeSabre since the difference was so slight.
This one’s in amazing condition and looks great with no vinyl top (which surely put it in the minority). I find it hard to keep Buick’s current SUVs straight. I know the Enclave is the biggest one, which would make it more of a direct comparative to the LeSabre, wouldn’t it?
I’ve never seen Car Wash but I’ll have to seek it out now. Is there a lot of good cars in it?
Jon, it’s funny that you mention current Buick SUVs, because I just returned from a quick Michigan road trip and thought I had some mnemonic devices to aid in identifying them! The Enclave is the biggie. The Envista is the true looker. Actually, that’s all I got.
There are some great, not particularly special (but special to us Curbsiders!) cars throughout the movie that I loved. There was one powder blue ’75 or so Plymouth Fury coupe that had me wishing hard that it had a good fate after this movie.
See, it’s hard! I’ll bet even Buick salemen struggle to keep all dozen or whatever SUVs straight.
I once test drove a creampuff 76 Fury coupe, it was tan though, so not the movie car, I’m sorry. It had some charm but not ultimately enough to take it home.
I agree the Envista is a great looking car for the price; I just wish they didn’t get Hyundai/Kia-itis by sticking the brake lights in the lower bumper. Even though there’s a CHMSL, I still see it as a safety hazard. Maybe that’s a Korean thing….
Great catch Joe!
Aaron, I feel like a Norman Whitfield compilation (because I still collect physical media) would be well worth seeking out, now that you mention it. Yes – that should go onto my wishlist.
For the record, I also like the Ricci Benson era of Rose Royce after Gwen Sickeybhad left the group. They out out some great post-disco, urban contemporary stuff in the early ’80s. “Best Love” remains another favorite.
There’s a 2021 compilation from Ace Records’ Kent Soul label called Psychedelic Soul Produced by Norman Whitfield, which includes 18 highlights, with Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, The Undisputed Truth, Rose Royce, and Gladys Knight and The Pips, among others. It doesn’t include anything from the Car Wash soundtrack, presumably for licensing reasons.
My Aunt lived a block away with her second husband and her four children, my first cousins. We were all the same ages, that is, each of my siblings, and I, had a match. They always had nice cars. It was with excitement that she bought a brand new LeSabre hartop. Avocado green with white vinyl roof and white vinyl interior. For two years, we went everywhere in that big beautiful Buick. She was proud of it, and we were so impressed with that big, wide beautiful car. You are correct, it was a really good looking car. The ugly new bumpers were handled with care and instead of looking like a massive anchor, it nicely cut a nice chrome arc across the front. The next year, Buick put a huge boat anchor on it and it lost that cool front end.
Gas mileage was attrocious. Like anything else that size in 1973. Loaded, it was pushing 5000 pounds. A cool floating road yacht. Buick sold a boatload of these yachts!
After a year, she drove off in it, with a secret boyfriend to Madison Wisconsin, over the state line, abandoning everyone for the rest of her life.
Thank you for sharing this – I could completely picture the color scheme you’re describing. I share your opinion that the ’74 restyle up front was retrograde. If this front bumper met the standard, why did they mess with it? The aesthetics of the rear were wrecked for ’74, to my taste. It’s not that Buick did a horrible job with the assignment, but the ’73 rear was artful in a way that a 5 mph bumper was going to ruin it no matter what.
The frontal impact standards were the same in ’73 and ’74 but the testing method changed. Instead of a flat barrier, a ‘pendulum’ test was used which could affect multiple impact points on a larger area of the nose. The ’73 couldn’t meet the the standard using the new method in the area of the parking lamps, lower cooling system bits and possibly steering linkage. The rear standard increased from 2.5 mph to 5. In ’75 or ’76 sheet metal protection was added to the standard so some bumpers needed even further bolstering.
Ahhhh, I see. Thank you for this.
Good lord what an unhappy ending (except for your aunt perhaps). Abandoned 4 kids?
Excellent find and movie, and song analogies, Joseph. Great pics as well!
I was not a big fan of the 1971 era B-Bodies. I found them a bit too large, and bulbous, for my automotive tastes. In the case of the Buick LeSabre, I wasn’t excited by its bodyside sheet metal sweepspear, or the body-coloured sheetmetal that came down a significant way, into the nose of the car. I felt at the time, it was a tribute to the 1950’s Buicks, with their abundance of nose sheetmetal. On their face-fronts, between their headlights.
I preferred more full-faced grilles on cars. Quick Photoshop below, where I also included the 1982 Chevrolet Celebrity, for comparison. I felt the extra body-coloured sheetmetal, lent a dated appearance.
The song ‘Car Wash’, will get associated with disco music. But I’ve always considered it more of a funk, and R&B mix. A great song!
I agree that the BPMs on the song are definitely slower than what’s typically considered disco. Definitely more of a funk / R&B song, as you mentioned.
I find nothing wrong with the ’73 LeSabre grille as it appeared, but I do like your reimagining of it. I may be in the minority on the Celebrity, but I liked the original, lower grille opening slightly better.
Interesting renderings! I think the original Buick front end works. Losing the body color section makes the front very grilly. The original makes this very large car look a little less ponderous without a big grille.
Conversely, I never liked the early Celebrity grille. The early Cavalier had the same problem. Those smaller cars benefited from larger grilles that filled up the front.
As a kid, whenever I looked at the nose of a 1971-era LeSabre, I saw it as a ’70’s evolution of this. Including the lower half toothy vertical grille, and body-coloured upper half, which wasn’t a coincidence. There was a homage to the ’50’s interpretation. To have some appeal, to that market. Wasn’t a big fan of the retro look.
Great piece, Joseph, and always nice to see you here on a Tuesday Morning!
The ‘73 Buick was what I always expected my great uncle to purchase that year, as he was due for a new car. Instead, he did what he always did when my Dad bought a new car: upstaged him by purchasing something above what my Dad just bought. That year, my Dad, a Chevy loyalist for the most part up to that point, bought his first Ford, the gold ‘73 LTD that became my first car. What does Uncle Harold do? He goes out and purchases a Mercury Marquis in the same gold with brown vinyl top color combination!
Had my Dad bought a ‘73 Chevy to replace our ‘68 Impala, no doubt my uncle would have traded his late sixties Buick Wildcat in on one of these.
As to “Car Wash”, I’ve never seen the movie, but will have to seek it out. I do however fondly remember its title track by Rose Royce. What a great danceable piece of music! We heard that one a lot at the roller rink back in the day, and it is still quite a popular tune at stadia and other sports arenas to this day.
Thanks, Rick! The sibling situation you described between your dad and your uncle Harold seems like a flex familiar to many of us with siblings, FWIW. I also wouldn’t be surprised to learn that “Car Wash” is one of those songs selected by some national library for preservation due to its cultural significance, or something like that.
I asked Google this question after seeing your reply:
“Is Rose Royce’s Car Wash in the Library of Congress?”
To which Google’s AI replied:
“Yes, Rose Royce’s “Car Wash” is in the Library of Congress. Specifically, the Library of Congress has a copy of the song “Car Wash” by Rose Royce. “Car Wash” was the theme song for the 1976 film “Car Wash” and was Rose Royce’s most successful single. The Library of Congress holds a diverse collection of materials, including music, and it’s likely that this song is part of their holdings.”
Now whether or not Google’s AI is correct is a matter for some debate, as I could find nothing on loc.gov to support this answer.
But it was fun to research.
As to my Great Uncle, it was more of a car guy rivalry, as Uncle Harold was my Dad’s father’s brother. He sort of stood in for me as a grandfather figure, as both of my grandfathers had passed away before I was born and I never knew them.
That Buick is an incredible survivor. They could keep running forever with most basic care, however they nearly all rapidly got scrapped due to their poor mpg, rust, and their propensity to cosmetically age rapidly. My Grandfather’s similar 75 Catalina looked decrepit within 6-7 years but it still ran great. It did have some rust, only from inland Florida rains and constant humidity.
When I lived in Detroit, I was surprised to see how production line automatic car wash structures up North differed from what I’m used to in South Florida, where the washing area buildings are mostly open likely due to the heat and lack of freezing temps, and all the hand drying takes place outside with large fans to cool the workers versus being done inside because it may be 20F degrees outside.
Living in Detroit proper, I was surprised that carwashes still abound, along with bullet proof glass enclosed Coney Island Restaurants (Combination diner type food with Middle Eastern or Greek sometimes thrown in) and the “Party Stores” (booze and lotto) all three are common, and often the last buildings standing for blocks. Good luck finding a standard chain type grocery store, Lowes, medical offices, or a mall with anchor stores open for business unless you go to the suburbs.
I lived in the Mexican Town neighborhood, in ‘2017, near downtown of Detroit for a year with my inlaws. One of Detroit”s better areas, along with Greek Town, the Museum Districts, and downtown but my neighborhood was basically a tiny oasis surrounded by urban decay beyond comprehension. Ran screaming back to FL, but I’ll always love the D. I hope the city can revitalize without gentrification so the people who never left aren’t excluded.
Detroit is a very cool city – I love visiting the downtown area when I have a chance to visit. 2017 is about a year after I had first visited for the first time in years and years, and it does absolutely look like the seeds of revitalization have been sown in certain areas. I’d love to see some (more) of that in the city where I’m from, about 45 minutes north of there. I agree with what you expressed about gentrification.
Before you had mentioned the difference between northern and southern car washes, I suppose I hadn’t really thought about it. But you’re right, and for the reasons you described. Huh.
Thanks for another great Tuesday read. Hard to believe that it’s been almost 50 years since that movie, though I’m pretty sure I never saw it. But I heard the song, oh, a few million times at least. But only today did I learn that Rose Royce was the band, and not the (stage) name of the singer. As always, your writing is educational as well as enjoyable.
Thank you – it always feels great to have something ready in the hopper! I’m not opposed to posting on other days. It’s just that Tuesdays just feel normal to me after having done that for so long.
As far as the name “Rose Royce” is concerned, it seems to me that many probably thought that Ms. Dickey’s first name was “Rose”!
I always thought “Rose Royce” was just a play on “Rolls Royce”, unrelated to anyone in the band that may be named Rose or Royce.
I was first introduced to several of their songs by my 7th grade bus driver that kept the radio tuned to an R&B station; my favorite is probably “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore”, which wasn’t a huge hit but drew numerous cover versions, one from Madonna. I still like the original the best though.
“LDLHA” only made it to the upper third of the Billboard Hot 100 / main chart, but it was top-5 R&B, their highest charting hit in the UK (No. 2), and a solid hit in other countries. I was actually familiar with Madonna’s cover first, as I had owned the “Like A Virgin” album on cassette. However, when I heard the original, it was a *revelation*. That probably solidified my fandom, and from there, it became all about discovering more of their output.
And I agree about the band name. I’m not sure if I had ever assumed there was a lady named “Rose” fronting the band, and I was hip to the play on words.
From today’s perspective, it is hardly understandable that for a car of this category the catalogue does not list any leather seat option.
Back then leather was generally available only on high-trim luxury models. You bought a LeSabre because it was relatively cheap. Then why would you spend a lot more for leather? Non one would have wanted leather in a LeSabre.
These cars were roughly the equivalent of an Opel Kapitan; you wouldn’t have expected leather available in that either.
Hmm. I understand your point. But it is a Buick, after all.
Joseph: very good spotting. The car is in incredible condition for Chicago! It has been well protected by the owner.
The Illinois plates, whose number you have obscured, seem to have few digits and/or letters. If it is just one or two digits that is a unique car owned by someone with lots of leverage of some sort. If it is some sort of prestige plate that would also be justified on this car. I’d like to imagine the car with plate # 73.
As weekend hobby cars I owned two ’70s Buicks – at different times. I enjoyed them and that led to joining the BCA, learning about Buicks and later buying other Buicks. My first was a ’72 LeSabre convertible (350) followed a decade later by a ’76 Electra 225 4 door hardtop. These were not cars I sought out – rather just used cars in nice shape, were close to me in town and easy to buy. When I learned more about ’70s Buicks the ’73 LeSabre or Centurion 4 door hardtop became my favorite – and especially ones without the vinyl roof covering. You found a great one. I would like to own it or a similar one. Make mine with crank windows, vinyl seats and an AM radio with a button for WLS.
Thanks, and it struck me immediately that this car certainly must not be a daily driver. And I’m glad you referenced crank windows. Maybe part of it is because I’m long limbed, and power windows are convenient, but I think I’d happily deal with crank windows without worrying about the power actuators breaking.
I caught “Car Wash” in the theater back in the day. The title track received so much air play that I eventually got tired of hearing it. On the other hand, “Wishing on a Star,” never gets old. Such a beautiful heartfelt song, it captured the feelings of teens and young adults in it’s description of unrequited love. It’s poignancy can bring a tear to my old eyes today, remembering certain times in my youth.
The thing about “Wishing On A Star” and it’s enduring popularity is that it wasn’t even a huge hit when originally released, which mystifies me – it’s one of their best songs. I love that you saw the movie in a theater in first-run. If a place like the historic Music Box Theater here in Chicago screened it as part of a throwback series, I’d be tempted to watch it there for the complete movie cinema experience.
Loved, and still do, “Wishing On a Star”. Never liked , still don’t “Car Wash”.Liked being “17”, though.
Thanks for the Car Wash memories. I had a copy on VHS back in the day and the title track still gets played on the radio.
I’ll have to seek out a DVD.
Excellent. I found my DVD copy at a thrift store, but many online resale sites have used copies for low prices.
It’s appropriate this big Buick was found in Chicago, given how much Chrysler cribbed the styling almost entirely for the 1974 C-body (i.e., Dodge Monaco ‘Bluesmobile’).
Speaking of the Chrysler C-bodies, I’ve seen just one of those in the wild here in Chicago, but it wasn’t a Dodge but a Chrysler Newport. https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1977-chrysler-newport-brownie-points/
I wonder how many of those Monacos remain in good condition these days.
I have no doubt the number is way, way more than one would have expected, due entirely to the enormous popularity of one movie.
Great find. My uncle had a 1973 LeSabre, in 1970s brown. By this time, I was pretty aware of cars and knew all the model years. It turns out that my uncle’s car was a lemon. It rattled and squeaked like crazy and for some reason, the distributor cap would always crack.
The car was such a quality disaster that he never bought another GM product. Next, he bought a 1977 Chrysler Newport, which was also a quality disaster. He finally bought a Toyota, his last car. It gave many years of good service.
What a stroke of unfortunate car-luck. Maybe your uncle’s brown LeSabre was a Monday or Friday build.
I am coming around on these big Buicks, and I have to agree that this at least contends for the title of best looking big sedan that year. The Cadillac and the Lincoln are its only competition.
My first thought, as one who lived through the era of frame less glass on 10+ year old cars – I hope he has some towels to hold over the leaky areas as he goes through the wash.
I have somehow gone 50 years without seeing that movie. I need to do something about that. I do remember seeing the trailer in a movie theater, at least.
You know, JP, I guess I hadn’t thought about frameless door glass (and no b-pillar) like on this LeSabre and going through automatic car washes. I wonder if all cars of things general body style were hand washed by their owners once they got to a certain stage of age or wear.
When winters used to be frigid, and engine block heaters were commonly used in cold climates, it was not unusual to see the electrical cord hanging below the bumper into summer. Like with this Buick. Often with white salt crusted, on its surface, or prongs. Some careful owners, would tie their heater cord to the grille with shoelaces, for quick access.
Block heater cords generally, didn’t get a tonne of love from car owners, back then.
One cool thing about this site is how others often point out details like the engine block heater plug that wouldn’t otherwise have noticed. So thanks!
If I remember right, a barebones LeSabre Custom was around the same price as a loaded-up Caprice. And for certain buyers, the Buick (and Oldsmobile) names still carried some cachet. Those buyers also may have believed that the Buick and Olds had better engines than Chevys did.
The Sloanian ladder! Yes, I’m sure many in a certain age bracket still believed in it. I was born and raised in the birthplace city of GM, so it’s still sort of baked into my mindset.
Your memory is tricking you again. A LeSabre Custom 4-door sedan started at $3998. A Caprice Classic 4-door sedan started at $4064. A “fully loaded” Caprice would have been around $6k.
It’s been a day…so I’ve probably started to comment on this post 3 times today until now hopefully getting around to completing. What an excellent post!
I totally admire the car that started all of this. That 1973 LeSabre reminds me so very much of my long departed first car, a 1971 LeSabre 4 door hardtop Custom. Exterior-wise, the cars were mostly identical except for the leading edge of the front clip. I actually prefer the grill and front of the hood treatment I had on my ’71, but aside from that this ’73 is still an extraordinarily attractive car. As has been said here, Buicks of this vintage are arguably the most attractive mass market American cars. Aside from a same-year Riviera (in a class unto itself), I’d say that the LeSabre wins the beauty contest.
And then of course there’s the Car Wash connection and further detail in the comments. Excellent. And as for not claiming that Car Wash was Fellini, I’ll just say – while risking François Truffaut rising from the dead and coming to smack me down and take away my right to watch subtitled films forever – Car Wash and its soundtrack beats Fellini most days. Fewer clowns and dwarfs, mo better in my book.
And finally, just an hour ago the Curbside Effect manifested and I saw a 1973 Buick in a used classic car lot near me. It was that odd ochre-green-tan color that seemed popular in the early 70s, but otherwise (and unfortunately with a vinyl roof) very similar to what you have profiled here.
Any Tuesday that has Joe Dennis post is a good Tuesday, so beyond all else, thanks for that!
Thanks so much, Jeff. I’ll lead with saying that it’s often tricky on the first day back to work after a holiday weekend and with all the things that need immediate attention to be able to do other things. I’ve been that person who had to save a draft of a CC comment to my clipboard because I was either unable to finish my thought or close the loop, or something else had come up.
I love Fellini and foreign cinema, in general. With that said, I have to be in the right mood to experience certain kinds of films, music, etc. “Car Wash” was the perfect intersection of mood and being able to watch the movie.
The styling of these big Buicks from 1971 through ’73 was just so cohesive and beautiful, regardless of their size. This ’73 LeSabre is like the original Lexus LS400 in my eyes in that regard.
The music, or the Buick? I LOVE the Buick, but today the music wins.
Joseph, I love it when people younger than me really get into the music of my teen years. I grew up with music, and so did my children; anything from the Big Band era onward, as well as a wide variety of classics and electric and acoustic folk. But we age. Just the other day my son (36 on Friday) was bemoaning the fact that the classic hits radio station he prefers has now updated their playlist from ‘seventies and eighties hits to nineties and noughties, the stuff of his childhood. To him, that wasn’t classic. Reckoned it made him feel old.
He felt old?
Tomorrow I have to go and visit a certain health professional. I’ll try to time my arrival to minimize exposure in the waiting room. Not to germs; to the ‘music’. It is so bland, so insipid, so characterless, so devoid of any vocal or instrumental interest that if you weren’t depressed when you went in, you sure would be by the time the therapist was ready to see you. What we used to call elevator music. Muzak. Even worse. I wondered if it was AI-generated. But no, it’s actually a radio station; I heard the station ID break.
It’s one thing to be passively inoffensive. I get that. It’s another to be actively boring. I haven’t listened to the radio for at least ten years now, but play recordings of the stuff I know and love. That’s why. I don’t think all modern music is bad, just the stuff that seems to get airplay. Not like….
Is that the song you wish to play when you enter the office? Cool, as I had a song that was always played when I entered a nightclub in the Philippines for 13 years and 39 trips.
Not music to work to I’ll admit (try concentrating to that!), nor what I’d put on in a waiting room, but music to unwind with after the world has screwed me up.
Peter, I am not familiar with this band or song, but I love a musical reference! Awesome. I hope your doctor’s visit goes well today.
I always notice that the music in my dentist’s office always seems to be stuck in 1988 – and it was been there for years. No complaints here with that!
I just returned from a Michigan road trip this past weekend (it was Memorial Day weekend here in the U.S.), and whenever the radio’s “scan” feature would kand on something current or semi-current, I would listen for maybe a minute before I would decide that I could not relate. Not that I dissed it. I just couldn’t relate.
I remember seeing the movie Car Wash in the theater back in the fall of 76. I had a great time and enjoyed the movie immensly! It was a 1st date with a certain someone, and although we had a great time we never got to the 2nd date LOL! The music was jamming, and there were plenty of sub plots that made the movie engaging. As for the 73 B-body Buicks, I agree they were the best of the B and C bodies from GM that year. IMHO Buick did the 5 mph bumpers more tastefully than Chevy, Pontiac, Olds or Cadillac, and I think the rear 2.5 mph bumpers worked well too. My cousin had a 73 Centurion 2 dr hardtop that was one sharp ride, and it moved out well with the 455-4bbl. I also agree that the 74 Buicks were a big letdown from the 73s, but they redeemed themselves somewhat with the 75 and 76.
I love it when a movie or song / album takes me right back (in a good way), and that’s what it sounds like you’re describing! The Centurion always seemed like some kind of mythical creature that would surface in the streets from time to time. Not a LeSabre, but somehow fancier.
IIRC the car wash movie was filmed in a car wash on Wilshire Blvd. just East of down town and was one of the few all hand car washes left then, now most of the older large car washes have ripped out the machines and gone back to hand wash by minimum wage slaves .
Yes, it was a great movie, I never did get to see it in a theater, I see the local “Look Dine-In Theater” chain is showing old movies on Sundays, it’d be a blast to see this one again .
Those Buicks were lovely make no mistake but even when new they had terrible fuel economy .
-Nate
Oh, I’m sure the fuel economy was abysmal. One of these would have been an awful hand-me-down car for a teenager around the time of the second oil embargo.
I remember the mechanical pieces of a car wash had left a deep gouge on the rear quarter panel of what has been out newish ’84 Ford Tempo. I don’t think I had ever taken my ’88 Mustang or ’94 Probe through one of those, probably with that memory as the main reason.
The brown/beige, one in background of the print ad is the same color combo as our neighbor’s “Olds Delta”.
A page from the same edition of the brochure above with notes presumably for a prospect looking for cost comparison between similarly equipped LeSabre and Centurion 4-door hardtops.
If I was a new car shopper back then, I certainly would have appreciated this, as I would have wanted to know the difference(s).
I’ve said it before here, but, being nothing if not a bore, I’ll say it again: the ’71 GM’s were really good-lookers. They had ’30’s glam. Yes, I know (from CC) that they handled like a bucket of slop, were big enough to house 11 people whilst barely seating five, rusted even by the end of the production line, sucked Saudi Arabia dry in one tank and had boring interiors that collapsed into sprinkles at the first bump, but that’s not to the point. They looked wonderful. (Well, they did until the Broug’s and Hams began to plaster them, after which such process they eventually came to resemble those gaudy Marys carried through Italian towns at Easter, but that is to digress). And like many here, I fully agree that this Buick is a real peak of their time.
I’d get off a bus for this one in particular. (Actually, I’d never got ON the bus in the first place, not unless the alternative was, say, being tied up with piano wire and left to rot, but then, that just may be the local buses here). Very nice photos indeed. Where on earth has this thing been? It was surely essentially valuleless for years, and even now, not exactly gold stocks. Clearly feel through a crack in the firmament, this one.
I saw Carwash years ago – a retro theatre, perchance? – and it did make me giggle. And best of all, films like it and the blaxploitation genre of the time ultimately birthed 1988’s I’M Gonna Git You Sucka, one of the silliest movies I’ve ever seen. I saw it new, and yes, circumstances (including youth) can really influence perception, but that night, I nearly fell off the old-school cinema’s balcony from laughing. It’s probably not that funny, I’m sure, but thankyou for provoking the memory again.