Puddles Pity Party, Bowie version

July 6, 2017 6:18 PM

Puddles, the tallest and saddest clown of all (previously) is back with a cover of David Bowie's Space Oddity, which led to this fan-requested cover of Bowie's Life On Mars. Bonus: back in May on America's Got Talent, Puddles Pity Party wowed the judges and the crowd with his version of Sia's Chandelier.
posted by Room 641-A (32 comments total)

I'mma have to stop you all there and demand that you add The Ship Song to your Puddles playlist. I listened to this on repeat for about 4 days last week.
posted by soren_lorensen at 6:26 PM on July 6, 2017 [5 favorites]

Hey, man! Is that clown rock?
posted by thelonius at 6:39 PM on July 6, 2017 [7 favorites]

Puddles is a treasure.
posted by oddman at 6:58 PM on July 6, 2017 [9 favorites]

We're pretty sure this isn't Brad Roberts, right?

No but really, Puddles is lovely.

thanks!
posted by allthinky at 7:01 PM on July 6, 2017

AGT has one more week of auditions, and then PPP starts competing with the other contestants on July 18th. Based on the social media attention since May, it looks like his moment has finally come.
posted by intermod at 7:02 PM on July 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

This cover on My Heart Will Go On is A+ clowning.
posted by bonobothegreat at 7:06 PM on July 6, 2017 [4 favorites]

Eep! Puddles joins Paul F. Tompkins (and more!) in Space Oddity at PFT's Varietopia show at Largo in L.A.
posted by Room 641-A at 7:22 PM on July 6, 2017 [2 favorites]

Another guy in heavy makeup sings Life on Mars

Another guy in a clown outfit singing a Bowie song

My mama said to get things done you better not mess with Major Tom.

Honk Honk.
posted by Cookiebastard at 7:44 PM on July 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

Hey, man! Is that clown rock?
i almost died.
posted by j_curiouser at 7:57 PM on July 6, 2017 [2 favorites]

clown rock
Gap customers may recognize the real thing
posted by thelonius at 8:08 PM on July 6, 2017

Does this taste funny to you?

I like this clown. He sings good.
posted by Chuffy at 8:31 PM on July 6, 2017

Oh Puddles, how do I love thee, let me count the ways! From your solo work to your collaborations with Scott's PostModernJukebox to pretty well every. single. thing. you do, you are the clown we've been awaiting.

Thanks so much soren_lorensen for that link to Puddles' "Ship Song", soooooo good. The Johnette Napolitano influence is strong and oh-so-welcome with this one!

😢😭😢
posted by riverlife at 8:46 PM on July 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

I don't like clowns. I don't like this kind of heightened musical theater/operatic vocal style.

And yet I love Puddles. He's just that good.
posted by Lexica at 9:37 PM on July 6, 2017 [3 favorites]

My uncle, who loves nothing, was ENAMOURED with Puddles when that video of him singing Lorde's "Royals" was going around the internet. "That clown sings with such GRAVITAS." So when we came to our city a few years back, we went to see him. It was a good show. As we were leaving, there was a huge line of people lining up to take pictures with him. My uncle was amused and was like "Why would you wait in line to do that? People are so weird." So he grabbed another drink at the bar next to the line and we just hung out and watched the line. And as he was finishing his drink, the last couple of people in line were finishing up. And I said, "Okay, you realize we basically just waited in this line, now WE HAVE to take a picture." So we awkwardly posed with this delightful clown and someone took a shot on my phone, and I sent it to my uncle so he could have it. And then the next time I went to his house, I was getting a tour because he and his wife had just finished remodeling, and on the wall with all of the family pictures, like old photos of parents and grandparents and very Serious pictures, was a framed print of me and my uncle and Puddles. It's adorable and hilarious, especially because I can't really convey with mere words how much of a jaded curmudgeon my uncle is (as am I, I say this with love).

So that's my Puddles story.
posted by jeweled accumulation at 9:59 PM on July 6, 2017 [56 favorites]

I'm really impressed how comfortable he is in his space. I can't turn around in my kitchen without my ass knocking something off the fridge or my elbow knocking yetanotherplateorglass to the floor. He's so graceful, and his arms are probably as long as I am tall.

Pinball Prison Blues: a Folsom Prison Blues/Pinball Wizard Shmoosh Up - Johnny Cash - The Who - Puddles Pity Party

jeweled accumulation, any chance your uncle is in this Come Sail Away video?
posted by Room 641-A at 10:17 PM on July 6, 2017 [2 favorites]

Room 641-A, a missed opportunity! I definitely sent it around for the family to laugh at, but didn't send Puddles himself a copy. I really messed up. I love dorky snapshot slideshows in concerts. (Aretha Franklin remains my favorite artist working within that genre.)
posted by jeweled accumulation at 10:26 PM on July 6, 2017

If Bowie wanted to make me cry, he's gone too far this time. A genius with the hair, the makeup, the costume, but. We thought you were dead.

I first heard Puddles thanks to the previously, singing Royals. Does he do originals?
posted by adept256 at 10:44 PM on July 6, 2017

I just loved watching to see an audience that didn't know what they were getting. (I assume the judges knew something of what was coming). Big man can sing.
posted by drewbage1847 at 11:31 PM on July 6, 2017

Came here to say, that I TOTALLY requested Life on Mars. Actually, I requested that he do it in the style of Seu Jorge, from the movie The Life Aquatic (singing in Portuguese would be optional, but I do not put it beyond Puddles capabilities.)
posted by KillaSeal at 12:05 AM on July 7, 2017 [3 favorites]

“Pagliacci by way of Pee-Wee Herman and David Lynch.” – The Atlanta Journal Constitution

“
posted by jim in austin at 4:32 AM on July 7, 2017 [2 favorites]

I first heard Puddles thanks to the previously, singing Royals. Does he do originals?

In another life, perhaps...
posted by sammann at 5:22 AM on July 7, 2017 [1 favorite]

Oh, it's Mike Geier!

Mike is a well known Atlanta musician--my ex used to play with him in KingSized back in the day--and I nearly hired him for my wedding. He's a super nice dude.
posted by Kitteh at 6:23 AM on July 7, 2017 [6 favorites]

The Johnette Napolitano influence
Dammit. Now I want to hear Puddles sing Tomorrow Wendy.
posted by fings at 6:41 AM on July 7, 2017 [3 favorites]

I think Puddles is fascinating. I mean it's just a single shtick. But with complete commitment. And the man can sing and has a great sense of owning the camera. The camerawork on his set piece videos is great, unusually so for YouTube.

But what really makes it weird for me is his body. He's enormous, 6'8". And with the bald head he looks like some clumsy oaf. In a circus he'd be the strongman or the geek hammering nails into his head, not the sad clown with a voice like a baritone angel. The effect is jarring and terrific.
posted by Nelson at 6:47 AM on July 7, 2017 [5 favorites]

His take on Royals was brilliant and if that had been the only thing he had ever done, that would have been fine. There's something hermetic and brilliant about the shtick.

Yesterday I kind of fell down a YouTube rabbit hole of "Postmodern Jukebox" and listened to this version of Puddles and Haley Reinhardt singing Mad World. Haley R does a brilliant bit of work.
posted by From Bklyn at 8:12 AM on July 7, 2017 [3 favorites]

I remain outraged that he was upstaged on AGT by a little kid with a sob story. Luckily, he's got enough material to have something new for the elimination rounds.
posted by briank at 8:42 AM on July 7, 2017 [1 favorite]

I ❤ Puddles, unreservedly. I have seen him live 3 times and cannot recommend the experience enough. (I also have an awesome pic with him and he is just a DELIGHT!)
posted by Space Kitty at 11:01 AM on July 7, 2017 [1 favorite]

Puddles always makes the world so much better. Great post!
posted by homunculus at 11:10 AM on July 7, 2017

Puddles singing "Lonely Guy" in a marble lobby all alone at night was one of the first things I saw of Puddles and it's sad and lonely and sad.
posted by Zack_Replica at 11:23 AM on July 7, 2017

I just watched Puddles do Wish you were here, which is a difficult song for me for reasons, and now I'm sitting in my garage sobbing, but in kinda a good sob, like I've needed to cry about this for 30 years, but couldn't.

Puddles, apparently, is the clown I needed.
posted by SecretAgentSockpuppet at 8:14 AM on July 8, 2017 [3 favorites]

If you get a chance to see him live, don't miss it!

His live show us the best.
posted by oddman at 9:11 PM on July 12, 2017

Next round of America's Got Talent: All By Myself
posted by Room 641-A at 2:39 PM on July 22, 2017 [1 favorite]