I do drink the zombie from the coco shell, thank you very much.
Damn, I love me some Steely Dan.
Which reminds me of one of my all-time favorite books, which I'm not sure if I've ever mentioned here and am too lazy to check.
Paperback Writer is a humorous novel by Mark Shipper that was released in 1978 and reissued, like every single book even marginally connected to the Beatles, after John Lennon's death. It's currently out of print, but you can probably find a used copy somewhere.
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| Here's what my copy looks like. |
The reason Steely Dan reminds me of Paperback Writer is that, in the book...
*spoiler alert*
Linda McCartney threatens to quit Wings to go on tour with her favorite band.
Steely Dan.
Believe me, it's hilarious.
And thinking about the Beatles reminds me of a fun fact.
When I was a kid, I heard Elton John's version of "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" before I ever heard the original.
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| Let's face it, Elton was that decade's closest thing to the Beatles. |
The first time I listened to Sgt. Pepper, I was flabbergasted to hear it. It sounded funny to me.
I also heard the Carpenters' version of "Please Mr. Postman" before I heard either the Beatles' OR the original version by the Marvelettes.
I'm a child of the 70s, OK?
When do you think bands will start re-making grunge songs?
I can't imagine that Nirvana's "About a Girl" or "Jeremy" by Pearl Jam isn't ripe for a 21st-century makeover. Right?
What's the last remake that was a big hit? Honestly, I can't think.
Hm.
OK, this has been my stream-of-consciousness musing for the day.
Feedback welcome.
As you know, PW is my all-time most favorite book in the entire universe. Thank you for first sharing it with me all those years ago!
ReplyDeleteJFB
Of course, Johnny Cash's version of Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt" is golden. He did a pretty good version of Neil Young's "Pocahontas," too.
ReplyDeletePeter Gabriel did a great cover of Arcade Fire's "Body is a Cage" a few years back.
Ooh, and a guy named Sean Rowe did a cover of Regina Spektor's "Ode to Divorce" that I liked.
Now I'm going to have to start a list.
I heard Ugly Kid Joe's cover of Cat's Cradle before I ever heard the original; the Carpenters' Jambalaya, ditto; Judas Priest with Ruby Tuesday before I even knew it was a Strolling Bones, er, Rolling Stones number; Vaerlii Leontiev with Tombe la Neige, again without knowing it was a cover; and I'm not sure whether Meat Loaf covered Barry Manilow's Read 'Em And Weep or vice versa.
ReplyDeleteI heard Ugly Kid Joe's cover of Cat's Cradle before I ever heard the original; the Carpenters' Jambalaya, ditto; Judas Priest with Ruby Tuesday before I even knew it was a Strolling Bones, er, Rolling Stones number; Vaerlii Leontiev with Tombe la Neige, again without knowing it was a cover; and I'm not sure whether Meat Loaf covered Barry Manilow's Read 'Em And Weep or vice versa.
ReplyDeleteOne of the nice things about working in a library is I can track down the nearest location of almost any book...hey, there's a copy of Paperback Writer not far from me. And even if it weren't close by there's Interlibrary Loan.
ReplyDeleteThis also reminds me of Billy Crystal talking about the time his daughter asked him, "Was Paul McCartney really in another group before Wings?" The funny thing is, how many post-70's kids have even heard of Wings?
I'm honored. Not a lot of clever things to say today, however....
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