I was looking for some New Year’s special clips that don’t feature “Dick Clark” or “Rockin’” anywhere in the title. I didn’t find much yet in the way of North American clips, but I did find this song from a 1963 New Year’s special in the Soviet Union (which at that time was not yet the “former Soviet Union”). It’s by the Akkord Quartet, a singing group about which I can’t find much information; this site says that they used to sing with one of the most popular Soviet big band leaders (and since jazz was officially frowned upon, there weren’t many), Oleg Lundstrem.

Anyway, what we have here is a show that the Russian Betty Draper was probably watching on January 1, 1963. And I have to say, the camerawork is more creative than in the U.S. variety-show specials of the era.