This week's vid was inspired by Bob from one of my new favorite blogs, Bottom of the Glass. (Bob is cool, but I have to admit that I'm more musically aligned with his co-blogger, Billy, who had me at Flesh for Lulu.) If you like great writing and good music, check it out.
When Bob mentioned guitarist Adrian Belew in a recent post, I immediately thought of the video for his song, "Oh Daddy," which I remember seeing on MTV quite a few times back at the tail end of the '80s. I always thought the song was so cute, and very David Byrnesque.
That was Belew's only brush with stardom in a long, still-chugging career. I never really knew anything about the guy, but apparently he'd played with legends like Talking Heads (no surprise), Frank Zappa, and David Bowie for years, before joining King Crimson and embarking on a solo career. He earned the respect of his peers and critics, but always managed to fly well under the public's radar. (Sounds almost like an avant garde version of John Hiatt.)
When Bob mentioned guitarist Adrian Belew in a recent post, I immediately thought of the video for his song, "Oh Daddy," which I remember seeing on MTV quite a few times back at the tail end of the '80s. I always thought the song was so cute, and very David Byrnesque.
That was Belew's only brush with stardom in a long, still-chugging career. I never really knew anything about the guy, but apparently he'd played with legends like Talking Heads (no surprise), Frank Zappa, and David Bowie for years, before joining King Crimson and embarking on a solo career. He earned the respect of his peers and critics, but always managed to fly well under the public's radar. (Sounds almost like an avant garde version of John Hiatt.)
Comments
Loved your article on Glambert, by the way. As someone who has never seen an entire episode of AI (but was force-fed many YouTube clips of Glambert by numerous fans), your commentaries have been wonderful. But I'll always struggle with competitions that would ever choose Adam Lambert over Freddie Mercury, or Kris Allen over... Steve Earle?
What I mean is, I'd prefer the creative genius with a signature voice over the person who sings only what others write for them but sings it beautifully. Until American Idol can find a way to solve that dilemma, I don't feel like supporting it (although I've got no beef with those who do!).
(my word verification is ditypol)