Not A Good Rock Birthday…

You can search just about every day on the calendar and find a plethora of musicians and actors who share a birthday. On occasion I’ll run a column blogging about a few when some noteworthy ones share the day. And when looking over the lists last night, I discovered something.

July 15th is cursed.

If you’re going to light a candle for these birthdays, they are probably in church rather than a cake. Johnny Thunders was born in 1952 and left us back in 1991; his last recordings possibly were the sessions he did right in my town along with The Chesterfield Kings.

Ian Curtis, the poster boy for depression, was born four years later and left Joy Division behind in 1908. Even Artimus Pyle, born in 1958 and still alive, went down in flames with Lynyrd Skynrd and survived only to be tossed out of the band afterwards.

So maybe before anyone else born on July 15th sings “hope I die before I get old” they might want to think twice.

Birthday Party

Why do certain dates feature a gaggle of celebrity birthdays?

Maybe it’s just that a lot of people are born in early July, which…hmmm…would be nine months after the kids finally go back to school. Coincidence? Frightening to track your own conception back nine months and try to find a reason. I’m a week off from being an obvious St. Patrick’s Day conception myself.

Songwriter and producer Lee Hazlewood would have been 82 today. Singer Marc Almond, drummer Mitch Mitchell and even Root Boy Slim (of the Sex Change Band – that one’s for you, Billy Campbell) would be sharing a cake. Bon Scott died at 33, so it’s hard to picture him fronting AC/DC at 65, but that’s’ what he would have been doing today. Jack White, who is helping to coordinate the Michigan Music Festival I wrote about, is still a spry 36.

Some great actors were born today – Brian Dennehy, Tom Hanks, Jimmy Smits, the underrated and magnificent Chris Cooper. Fred Savage, who survived child stardom to become a solid director and producer, is still only 35. Pam Adlon – so wonderful as Louie CK’s wife in Lucky Louie and a producer and recurring character on his current show Louie (they really have to work on their show names) turns a MILF-y 45.

Of course, not all celebrants are nice people. Some might have even offed their spouses and gotten away with it, like this guy and that chick.

Odds are it’s someone’s birthday among the Prescription readers. So if you don’t have any plans, at least now you know some parties you can crash. (It’s going to be a little quiet at the Scott and Mitchell houses, but the rest should be rocking…)

Happy Birthday, Mel Brooks!

I was flipping channels and caught the end of the Get Smart movie starring Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway, and while it was mildly entertaining, I couldn’t help think how it paled in comparison to the brilliantly written series.

Of course, I can watch that whenever I want – a majestic box set.

And it made me miss Mel Brooks. Yes, I know he’s alive, and a spry 85 at that (pickles are nutritious, you know). But Woody Allen keeps spitting out films at a rapid pace, occasionally hitting the high marks again. But he’s long since given up zany comedy. Most of today’s comedy films are so broad and cliché that they quickly fade from memory. But the world of today is a crazy, insane place. We need crazy, insane comedy.

We need Mel Brooks now more than ever. I know he has lost so many of his reliable company; Harvey Korman, Marty Feldman, Dom DeLuise, Rudy DeLuca, Madeline Kahn, Ron Carey and Kenneth Mars have all left this mortal coil.

But as Mel himself would say, “we have much to do and less time to do it in.”

Happy Birthday, Mel! Now get busy…

Happy Birthday, Brian Wilson

What can I say that hasn’t already been said?

I can add what a friend of mine said, because he succinctly captured the essence of wonder in a couple of short sentences.

For his son’s 20th birthday, Gary Frenay bought him tickets to see Brian Wilson on Brian’s 69th birthday, a concert in Ottawa, Canada. The band opened the show by having the audience sing “Happy Birthday” to Brian. Per Gary, “what followed was nearly three hours of music by an incredibly talented band, who lovingly supported their aging, but still – at times – quite youthful-sounding, leader. As in all of Brian’s shows over the last 9 years, the show is split into two parts. The first is a greatest hits set, with many rarities and album tracks throw in for the ever-faithful. Then after a break, the second set is his latest album in its entirety. In recent years, these have included Pet Sounds, Smile and That Lucky Old Sun. 

This tour, the album is Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin. While that isn’t my favorite of his recent releases, it really shone as a concert piece, especially with the addition of the string section throughout. Also, Brian was noticeably in better voice for the Gershwin set. Not sure if that’s a matter of warming up, or of the material being in a better range for him. Really sounded strong in the second set.”

You must understand that Gary is a huge fan of Brian Wilson and Paul McCartney; his own songs have honed that perfect intersection of their two majestic bands – arguably the best Britain and America had to offer in the 60s. But as we all watch our musical heroes and icons age, we must stop and realize just how incredible it is to see what we’re seeing forty years after the magic. Especially when at some point we all hoped we’d die before we got old.

 

So in the midst of wonderment – let alone the priceless experience of sharing something like that with your child – Gary stopped to smell the roses.

 

“Not sure if I’ll get the chance again to see him perform, but really, how amazing is it that he’s still out there, doing dates all over the world, at his age, and with his well-publicized troubled past?”

 

How true. Savor the moments, rock fans. Get off your ass and don’t take anything for granted. Get thee to a club or theatre and live the music.

 

“Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone…”

 

Bob Dylan At 70

Thank God that Pete Townshend was wrong.

Had Bob joined the 27 Club, we’d have missed out four more decades of music and film, on challenging religious and political and social commentary, on a true poet’s worldview brought to us through the enhanced artistic platforms he has decided to embrace.

He could isolate himself and spike the ball on a career, but instead he travels the globe and shares his gift an average of two hundred times a year. Performing without ego and fanfare to an ever-growing fan base who hopefully understand that they are seeing one of the brightest lights in the history of popular culture shine in their presence.

Video: The First Rapper

Even mystifying us as a DJ of unparalleled subtleties, whose depth of knowledge is amazing considering he’s spent the vast majority of his life creating his own art. If he can find the time, why can’t we?

So Happy Birthday, Mr. Dylan. I’ll never finish exploring your work, and that’s not a sad thing – it’s a great testament to its amazing scope.

Where does one even start?

Bob’s website

A Salute to - and from - Bob Dylan.