Good art is not afraid of retelling, aka imitation! What is West Side Story but a retelling of Romeo and Juliette? The Birdcage which I love is a remake of the French movie, La Cage Aux Folle. But the ensemble makes it their own and the result is fabulous. Nathan Lane and Robin Williams are terrific.
Not to take anything away from Tina, but let’s not forget the great backing band she had. And the great songs she made her own, like “Proud Mary,” by John Fogerty, who incidentally had never been to the American South when he wrote it (perhaps a good example of someone inspired by something other than personal experience). And of course the Ikettes. I never get tired of this 1971 clip of Tina from the German Beat-Club TV show:
For Pride Month, or anytime, it’s time well spent looking at Little Richard, a singer who influenced both Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney. Dylan includes this song, “Tutti Frutti,” in his new book, and when I hear McCartney screaming at the end of “Hey Jude,” it makes me think he’s letting out his inner Little Richard. Here’s the original in 1956:
Maybe it’s cyclical, like sunspots, but right now there’s a flurry of great new music docs on PBS. Don’t miss Fanny: The Right to Rock.
Sometimes music docs suffer if the rights-holders of the recorded music don’t allow it to be used, and that might have been the case here with Fanny. But fortunately the filmmaker had the live Beat-Club sessions (those Germans again) to fall back on, and by the way they’re terrific performances, probably as good as anything out there for Fanny, who often appeared on shows like Sonny and Cher, which were entirely lip-synced:
Here’s Fanny in all their glory doing Stephen Still’s “Special Care”:
I love all these bits of wisdom you lay out here. It's wonderful--and important--to consciously take inspiration or advice or a model from other creators working in other arts.
Good art is not afraid of retelling, aka imitation! What is West Side Story but a retelling of Romeo and Juliette? The Birdcage which I love is a remake of the French movie, La Cage Aux Folle. But the ensemble makes it their own and the result is fabulous. Nathan Lane and Robin Williams are terrific.
So true, Afarin!
Not to take anything away from Tina, but let’s not forget the great backing band she had. And the great songs she made her own, like “Proud Mary,” by John Fogerty, who incidentally had never been to the American South when he wrote it (perhaps a good example of someone inspired by something other than personal experience). And of course the Ikettes. I never get tired of this 1971 clip of Tina from the German Beat-Club TV show:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzQnPz6TpGc
For Pride Month, or anytime, it’s time well spent looking at Little Richard, a singer who influenced both Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney. Dylan includes this song, “Tutti Frutti,” in his new book, and when I hear McCartney screaming at the end of “Hey Jude,” it makes me think he’s letting out his inner Little Richard. Here’s the original in 1956:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj059o9OwqY
See also the new documentary on the PBS American Masters series, Little Richard: King and Queen of Rock ’n’ Roll.
Frank, these are all wonderful. I started watching the doc on Little Richard and can't wait to finish!
Maybe it’s cyclical, like sunspots, but right now there’s a flurry of great new music docs on PBS. Don’t miss Fanny: The Right to Rock.
Sometimes music docs suffer if the rights-holders of the recorded music don’t allow it to be used, and that might have been the case here with Fanny. But fortunately the filmmaker had the live Beat-Club sessions (those Germans again) to fall back on, and by the way they’re terrific performances, probably as good as anything out there for Fanny, who often appeared on shows like Sonny and Cher, which were entirely lip-synced:
Here’s Fanny in all their glory doing Stephen Still’s “Special Care”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6O3lN2NoJg
Can't wait to check it out!
I love all these bits of wisdom you lay out here. It's wonderful--and important--to consciously take inspiration or advice or a model from other creators working in other arts.
Thanks, Henriette!!