Revisiting Mother Superior
November 8, 2010 8:15 PM Subscribe
In what may be an attempt to make amends for causing Susan Boyle to 'flee America' (although that apparently wasn't the real cause), Lou Reed has directed her new music video, a cover of his own song Perfect Day.
The original, of course, would find fame later in life as the soundtrack to the overdose scene in Trainspotting.
The original, of course, would find fame later in life as the soundtrack to the overdose scene in Trainspotting.
Remember in the movie version of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, where they went to the Debbie Reynolds show of her singing Sgt Peppers covers, and got dragged out crying with laughter because how fucking square and hilarious it was?
That's me right now, after making it about halfway through the video.
posted by Threeway Handshake at 8:24 PM on November 8, 2010 [10 favorites]
That's me right now, after making it about halfway through the video.
posted by Threeway Handshake at 8:24 PM on November 8, 2010 [10 favorites]
So wait is Susan Boyle a vampire now or?
Oh god. LOOK OUT LAURIE ANDERSON HE LIVES IN YOUR HOUSE
posted by The Whelk at 8:26 PM on November 8, 2010 [4 favorites]
Oh god. LOOK OUT LAURIE ANDERSON HE LIVES IN YOUR HOUSE
posted by The Whelk at 8:26 PM on November 8, 2010 [4 favorites]
It would've been better had she been videotaped remaking the Trainspotting scene, as for me, the song is so tied into Rents pushing off at Swanney's that any ham-fisted attempt to re-render the song would invariably suck the life out of the movie as well.
Bravo zulu to our new, ersatz remake culture.
posted by jsavimbi at 8:33 PM on November 8, 2010
Bravo zulu to our new, ersatz remake culture.
posted by jsavimbi at 8:33 PM on November 8, 2010
"To put it bluntly, it’s weird that this exists."
The soaring flyovers of natural wonder make me think Lou has been watching Ken Burns films.
Why is a Scottish woman competing in a talent show for Americans anyhow?
posted by Rarebit Fiend at 8:36 PM on November 8, 2010
The soaring flyovers of natural wonder make me think Lou has been watching Ken Burns films.
Why is a Scottish woman competing in a talent show for Americans anyhow?
posted by Rarebit Fiend at 8:36 PM on November 8, 2010
And what has Laurie Anderson done for Paul Potts lately? Anything?
Really, I want to see Paul Potts singing with a lightbulb in his mouth. Is that so wrong?
posted by maudlin at 8:41 PM on November 8, 2010
Really, I want to see Paul Potts singing with a lightbulb in his mouth. Is that so wrong?
posted by maudlin at 8:41 PM on November 8, 2010
A far better stupid version of Perfect Day.
posted by philip-random at 8:43 PM on November 8, 2010 [9 favorites]
posted by philip-random at 8:43 PM on November 8, 2010 [9 favorites]
From Youtube comments:
"Susan Boyle's a true artist, because she infuses whatever she sings with her own sensibilities and emotional urgency. She is singing her life, not Lou Reed's. That's why the argument about what Reed had in mind when he wrote it is so ridiculous. Susan doesn't CARE what he had in mind. Nor did she care what Claude Boubli had in mind when he wrote I Dreamed a Dream or Jagger and Richards when they wrote Wild Horses. That's why most people think of them as Susan Boyle songs now."
posted by Threeway Handshake at 8:44 PM on November 8, 2010 [2 favorites]
"Susan Boyle's a true artist, because she infuses whatever she sings with her own sensibilities and emotional urgency. She is singing her life, not Lou Reed's. That's why the argument about what Reed had in mind when he wrote it is so ridiculous. Susan doesn't CARE what he had in mind. Nor did she care what Claude Boubli had in mind when he wrote I Dreamed a Dream or Jagger and Richards when they wrote Wild Horses. That's why most people think of them as Susan Boyle songs now."
posted by Threeway Handshake at 8:44 PM on November 8, 2010 [2 favorites]
No, THIS is the best video of Boyle's version, with Lou going all Shrek, then Ice-9, then Grape Ape. Really, play the whole thing. Better yet, open several copies and play them in a cascade of sound and colour.
posted by maudlin at 8:47 PM on November 8, 2010
posted by maudlin at 8:47 PM on November 8, 2010
I was impressed by Susan Boyle's original surprising audition on Britain's Got Talent/X-Factor/whatever, though I always felt uncomfortable by the biases required to make that a pleasant surprise (i.e. hurf durf look at the fat weird Scottish woman oopsie she can sing quite nicely what a fine turn of events ha ha).
But this. This. THIS.
This is Susan Boyle's revenge.
posted by jnrussell at 8:49 PM on November 8, 2010 [3 favorites]
But this. This. THIS.
This is Susan Boyle's revenge.
posted by jnrussell at 8:49 PM on November 8, 2010 [3 favorites]
What with Moe Tucker being a Tea Partier and now this, I'm starting to get a creeping feeling that maybe the Velvet Underground isn't really that cool. Were they never cool? What's going on? If you need me I'll be in the corner, shaking and crying.
posted by oinopaponton at 8:51 PM on November 8, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by oinopaponton at 8:51 PM on November 8, 2010 [2 favorites]
This is almost as fundamentally weird as Tori Amos' Strange Little Girls.
Seriously, why did no one tell me about this? I just learned about it the other day, and the fact that something like this not only exists but was commercially sucessful compeletly blows my fucking mind.
posted by daniel striped tiger at 8:53 PM on November 8, 2010
Seriously, why did no one tell me about this? I just learned about it the other day, and the fact that something like this not only exists but was commercially sucessful compeletly blows my fucking mind.
posted by daniel striped tiger at 8:53 PM on November 8, 2010
Damn that was good.
posted by humannaire at 8:54 PM on November 8, 2010
posted by humannaire at 8:54 PM on November 8, 2010
Fucking just awful. I'm having trouble forming proper words so I'll just join the shaking-and-crying party over in the corner.
That AV Club comment section is pretty great, though:
I'd like to hear Clay Aiken's "Venus in Furs."
Yeah, or Adam Lambert's take on "Waiting for the Man".
Kelly Clarkson's "Sister Ray".
Justin Bieber's "Metal Machine Music, Part 1"
William Hung's "Walk On The Wild Side"
When's the Lou Reed "Glee" episode coming out?
posted by naju at 8:56 PM on November 8, 2010 [5 favorites]
That AV Club comment section is pretty great, though:
I'd like to hear Clay Aiken's "Venus in Furs."
Yeah, or Adam Lambert's take on "Waiting for the Man".
Kelly Clarkson's "Sister Ray".
Justin Bieber's "Metal Machine Music, Part 1"
William Hung's "Walk On The Wild Side"
When's the Lou Reed "Glee" episode coming out?
posted by naju at 8:56 PM on November 8, 2010 [5 favorites]
Look, the Velvets were a shite band. The only reason they were great -- and they were unspeakably great -- was that Lou had paid his dues as a songwriter in the Brill building and knew how to construct a pop gem which could then be massacred by the band. Pop gem + heroin is always a winner. It's the secret sauce of rock and roll.
Basically, Lou and Sue need to shoot up together and record an album.
posted by unSane at 8:56 PM on November 8, 2010 [6 favorites]
Basically, Lou and Sue need to shoot up together and record an album.
posted by unSane at 8:56 PM on November 8, 2010 [6 favorites]
So which one of us is going to start the "Glee should do a Lou Reed episode" Facebook group petition?
posted by Threeway Handshake at 8:59 PM on November 8, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by Threeway Handshake at 8:59 PM on November 8, 2010 [2 favorites]
The cool thing about the original Susan Boyle video is the raw quality to it, where an unsuspecting person comes out and belts a heartfelt (slightly cheesy) song.
This makes her sound like canned Christmas music or something. Ruins the song and the singer, honestly.
posted by codacorolla at 9:00 PM on November 8, 2010
This makes her sound like canned Christmas music or something. Ruins the song and the singer, honestly.
posted by codacorolla at 9:00 PM on November 8, 2010
Justin Bieber's "Metal Machine Music, Part 1"
I hear this one's actually going to happen. Kid's been mad about it since he was two years old.
posted by philip-random at 9:01 PM on November 8, 2010
I hear this one's actually going to happen. Kid's been mad about it since he was two years old.
posted by philip-random at 9:01 PM on November 8, 2010
I got like 30 seconds in, wondered if Susan Boyle had ever actually drunk sangria or visited a park, and had to shut it off.
posted by Sara C. at 9:04 PM on November 8, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by Sara C. at 9:04 PM on November 8, 2010 [2 favorites]
Justin Bieber's "Metal Machine Music, Part 1"
The amazing thing is that if you speed it up, it sounds like Merzbow.
posted by griphus at 9:05 PM on November 8, 2010 [5 favorites]
The amazing thing is that if you speed it up, it sounds like Merzbow.
posted by griphus at 9:05 PM on November 8, 2010 [5 favorites]
Huh. I've never been a fan of Lou Reed as a person, but this (and my real wrong assumption that Moe Tucker was a smart person) is making me rethink things. It's pretty obvious to me that: 1) it was the publisher of the song, not him, that didn't give permission, and 2) knowing how these goddamn shows work, they probably only gave the publisher 5 hours in which to approve this before the show taped, and they were offering shit money, so no, this wasn't a priority in the greater scheme of things to respond to.
So, that being said, he has nothing to apologize for, and it's awesome he directed this.
posted by queensissy at 9:06 PM on November 8, 2010
So, that being said, he has nothing to apologize for, and it's awesome he directed this.
posted by queensissy at 9:06 PM on November 8, 2010
Susan Boyle represents everything that is Wrong about the music industry today. FACT. No offence, but FACT. Not her fault, really, but still.
Leave it to Lou Reed to point that out, that a) she's a product of the music industry machine like any other, b) that she and the music industry still doesn't fucking get the song, and c) that Lou Reed can point these things out without Susan Boyle or the music industry realizing it -- fucking genius. And if you can't see that, you're just as much a product of the music industry as Susan Boyle is.
Apology, my eye. Poking a stick in it, more likely.
Well done, Lou. Well done.
posted by Capt. Renault at 9:11 PM on November 8, 2010 [10 favorites]
Leave it to Lou Reed to point that out, that a) she's a product of the music industry machine like any other, b) that she and the music industry still doesn't fucking get the song, and c) that Lou Reed can point these things out without Susan Boyle or the music industry realizing it -- fucking genius. And if you can't see that, you're just as much a product of the music industry as Susan Boyle is.
Apology, my eye. Poking a stick in it, more likely.
Well done, Lou. Well done.
posted by Capt. Renault at 9:11 PM on November 8, 2010 [10 favorites]
Susan Boyle's singing voice is ludicrously unsuited for conveying anything but mawkish and bombastic simulacra of actual human emotions. It doesn't matter what she sings because her vocal settings are always set to "Phantom Of The Opera." It could be "How Much Is That Doggie In The Window?" or "Raining Blood" or "Stardust" or "Perfect Day" and the end result is always going to be full of sound and and fury signifying nothing.
posted by The Card Cheat at 9:14 PM on November 8, 2010 [12 favorites]
posted by The Card Cheat at 9:14 PM on November 8, 2010 [12 favorites]
It doesn't matter what she sings because her vocal settings are always set to "Phantom Of The Opera."
Perfect.
posted by davebush at 9:34 PM on November 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
Perfect.
posted by davebush at 9:34 PM on November 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
I have to confess: I don't know all too much about Reed, I'm not as well-rounded as so many here are. I like the heck out of what I do know, though, and it seems to me that Lou Reed is upwards of 14,874 times cooler than the jammin'est thirty-four MetaFilter people glued and nailed together; he gave it his all, a rock and roll life lived fully and shared with us. He's got plenty of cool to spare, and if he wants to give a nice gift to some gal who never was cool, ever, and is now having her moment in the sun, well, Mr. Reed can afford it, and I think it's a real nice gesture. Yeah, the vid sucks it, for sure, but it's what she wanted, almost certainly. It's a gift. Cool.
posted by dancestoblue at 9:43 PM on November 8, 2010 [6 favorites]
posted by dancestoblue at 9:43 PM on November 8, 2010 [6 favorites]
The amazing thing is that if you speed it up, it sounds like
posted by Sparx at 9:45 PM on November 8, 2010
I could see listeners hearing this placid version on the radio, have no idea who originally wrote it or what the original meaning is about, and instead unironically enjoy it as an uplifting tune.
This makes me smile.
posted by spinifex23 at 10:01 PM on November 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
This makes me smile.
posted by spinifex23 at 10:01 PM on November 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
It's like Barry Manilow doing that Ian Hunter song Ships. There's no good reason why everyone shouldn't know Perfect Day. If Susan Boyle helps in that effort, I love her.
posted by grounded at 10:10 PM on November 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by grounded at 10:10 PM on November 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
The amazing thing is that if you speed it up, it sounds like MerzbowJustin Beiber.
Only one way to find out.
posted by iamck at 10:18 PM on November 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
Only one way to find out.
posted by iamck at 10:18 PM on November 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
uncanny.
posted by philip-random at 10:19 PM on November 8, 2010
posted by philip-random at 10:19 PM on November 8, 2010
Apology, my eye. Poking a stick in it, more likely.
Well done, Lou. Well done.
Maybe, but it was still nauseating to watch.
posted by nzero at 10:28 PM on November 8, 2010
Well done, Lou. Well done.
Maybe, but it was still nauseating to watch.
posted by nzero at 10:28 PM on November 8, 2010
Wow, iamck. That was very Baroque Hoedown. Thanks!
posted by queensissy at 10:30 PM on November 8, 2010
posted by queensissy at 10:30 PM on November 8, 2010
I really enjoyed watching Susan Boyle singing "I Dreamed a Dream" from Les Miserables when she showed the assholes she could sing. But now, she just gets on my nerves.
posted by wv kay in ga at 10:36 PM on November 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by wv kay in ga at 10:36 PM on November 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
I really love all of these things...Susan Boyle, Lou Reed, A Perfect Day. But man, together they are just horrible. Like, the complete opposite of synergy.
posted by iamkimiam at 11:01 PM on November 8, 2010 [3 favorites]
posted by iamkimiam at 11:01 PM on November 8, 2010 [3 favorites]
So you know how they say almost any of Bach's pieces can be performed on any combination of instruments and the pieces still sound great? Lou Reed is certainly no Bach in this regard, but the Susan Boyle version works for me . . . and it strikes me as just improbably interesting as hearing Bach on synthesizers or electric guitars. It's a damn good song, and it's even good in the cheesy new-agey musical version.
But the "reap just what you sow" part sealed it -- all this loveliness and then an undercurrent of malaise suddenly overtakes the whole thing. Yeah, we still get the pretty new-age images, but something isn't quite adding up, and, at least for me, there's this fascinating incongruity between the soft new-ageiness and the severity of the lyrics and melody. The ending sequence is, for me at least, breathtakingly uncomfortable and lovely, just like some of Lou Reed's best songs.
I dunno, weird as it is, it worked for me.
posted by treepour at 11:08 PM on November 8, 2010 [2 favorites]
But the "reap just what you sow" part sealed it -- all this loveliness and then an undercurrent of malaise suddenly overtakes the whole thing. Yeah, we still get the pretty new-age images, but something isn't quite adding up, and, at least for me, there's this fascinating incongruity between the soft new-ageiness and the severity of the lyrics and melody. The ending sequence is, for me at least, breathtakingly uncomfortable and lovely, just like some of Lou Reed's best songs.
I dunno, weird as it is, it worked for me.
posted by treepour at 11:08 PM on November 8, 2010 [2 favorites]
It does a good job for the Scottish Tourist Board.
The highlands really are that beautiful!
posted by DanCall at 1:04 AM on November 9, 2010
The highlands really are that beautiful!
posted by DanCall at 1:04 AM on November 9, 2010
I got like 30 seconds in, wondered if Susan Boyle had ever actually drunk sangria or visited a park
It's a Perfect Day,
Drunk Irn Bru and Buckfast in the bus shelter..
posted by PeterMcDermott at 1:08 AM on November 9, 2010 [6 favorites]
It's a Perfect Day,
Drunk Irn Bru and Buckfast in the bus shelter..
posted by PeterMcDermott at 1:08 AM on November 9, 2010 [6 favorites]
Susan was due to perform a chosen song from her new album ‘The Gift’
Now that's a Velvets track I really would like to hear her cover.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 1:16 AM on November 9, 2010 [3 favorites]
Now that's a Velvets track I really would like to hear her cover.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 1:16 AM on November 9, 2010 [3 favorites]
For those who hate the idea of "Perfect Day" performed by Susan Boyle:
"Perfect Day" with Lou Reed and Luciano Pavarotti
"Perfect Day" with Lou Reed and Dr John
"Perfect Day" with Bono, Elton John, Boyzone and other artists, for some BBC charity promo (also linked upthread by philip-random )
"Perfect Day" with Norwegian Idol winner Kurt Nilsen
"Perfect Day" with Duran Duran
Perfect Day, by Lou Reed, used in an ad for NFL (2000)
"Perfect Day", by Lou Reed, used in an AT&T/Winter Olympics 2010 ad, featuring snowboarder Gretchen Bleiler
Where's the outrage against Lou Reed and/or his music publisher, who has sold this song (performed by Lou Reed) for advertising several times, and has accepted cover versions for years, including talent shows on TV? And where was the outrage when Amii Stewart made a disco version of The Door's "Light My Fire"?
posted by iviken at 1:22 AM on November 9, 2010 [6 favorites]
"Perfect Day" with Lou Reed and Luciano Pavarotti
"Perfect Day" with Lou Reed and Dr John
"Perfect Day" with Bono, Elton John, Boyzone and other artists, for some BBC charity promo (also linked upthread by philip-random )
"Perfect Day" with Norwegian Idol winner Kurt Nilsen
"Perfect Day" with Duran Duran
Perfect Day, by Lou Reed, used in an ad for NFL (2000)
"Perfect Day", by Lou Reed, used in an AT&T/Winter Olympics 2010 ad, featuring snowboarder Gretchen Bleiler
Where's the outrage against Lou Reed and/or his music publisher, who has sold this song (performed by Lou Reed) for advertising several times, and has accepted cover versions for years, including talent shows on TV? And where was the outrage when Amii Stewart made a disco version of The Door's "Light My Fire"?
posted by iviken at 1:22 AM on November 9, 2010 [6 favorites]
It doesn't matter what she sings because her vocal settings are always set to "Phantom Of The Opera." It could be "How Much Is That Doggie In The Window?" or "Raining Blood" or "Stardust" or "Perfect Day"
Susan Boyle doing "Raining Blood?" Now that - that would be epic, in the most Shatnerian sense of the word.
posted by googly at 2:04 AM on November 9, 2010
Susan Boyle doing "Raining Blood?" Now that - that would be epic, in the most Shatnerian sense of the word.
posted by googly at 2:04 AM on November 9, 2010
Where's the outrage...?
Indeed. They're songs. The idea that allowing someone else to sing or play them in another style, or take something gritty and render it as schmaltz, or to sell a product, somehow destroys the integrity of the original work, is sad and ridiculous. It's just the fan saying to the songwriter 'B-but, I thought you understood me. I thought we had something here.' To the songwriter, of course, it's one song from a career, a few thoughts put down on paper that captured their feelings a particular time; they've moved on and fifty thousand other things have happened to change them. To hold someone up against a few song lyrics they wrote decades ago and cry sell-out is just setting yourself up for disappointment. Just listen to the original. Or this professional Elaine Paige impersonator. Whichever you enjoy. Whichever makes you feel something.
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 2:10 AM on November 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
Indeed. They're songs. The idea that allowing someone else to sing or play them in another style, or take something gritty and render it as schmaltz, or to sell a product, somehow destroys the integrity of the original work, is sad and ridiculous. It's just the fan saying to the songwriter 'B-but, I thought you understood me. I thought we had something here.' To the songwriter, of course, it's one song from a career, a few thoughts put down on paper that captured their feelings a particular time; they've moved on and fifty thousand other things have happened to change them. To hold someone up against a few song lyrics they wrote decades ago and cry sell-out is just setting yourself up for disappointment. Just listen to the original. Or this professional Elaine Paige impersonator. Whichever you enjoy. Whichever makes you feel something.
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 2:10 AM on November 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
Songs I would like Susan Boyle to consider covering next:
The Birthday Party: Sonny's Burning
Anti-Nowhere League: So What?
MC5: Kick Out the Jams
posted by unSane at 3:05 AM on November 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
The Birthday Party: Sonny's Burning
Anti-Nowhere League: So What?
MC5: Kick Out the Jams
posted by unSane at 3:05 AM on November 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
When's the Lou Reed "Glee" episode coming out?
Simpsons did it.
Announcer: Come to Duff Gardens, where roaming gangs aren't a problem anymore. Now featuring the clean-shaven sound of "Hooray for Everything"!
Hooray for Everything: Hey, kids. Take a walk on the wild side!
Hooray for Everything: And all the races sing... Shoo-be-doo, shooby-dooby-doo, shoo-be-do, shooby-dooby-doo, yeah!
posted by condour75 at 3:53 AM on November 9, 2010
Simpsons did it.
Announcer: Come to Duff Gardens, where roaming gangs aren't a problem anymore. Now featuring the clean-shaven sound of "Hooray for Everything"!
Hooray for Everything: Hey, kids. Take a walk on the wild side!
Hooray for Everything: And all the races sing... Shoo-be-doo, shooby-dooby-doo, shoo-be-do, shooby-dooby-doo, yeah!
posted by condour75 at 3:53 AM on November 9, 2010
Susan Boyle makes records my mother buys. As such, she's a lot better than yet-another-overproduced Celine Dion album, Neil Manilow and Julio Humperdink's Greatest Duet Covers, and Yanni, Live at The Bowels of Hell.
And you know what? Lou Reed's in my mom's age demographic. He might actually be a fan.
posted by Slap*Happy at 4:14 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
And you know what? Lou Reed's in my mom's age demographic. He might actually be a fan.
posted by Slap*Happy at 4:14 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
Cultural reference wise, note that Perfect Day was used in this very widely watched (in the UK anyway) BBC advert in which various pop stars sing different bits. I suspect Susan Boyle (and many of her UK fans) first heard it there, rather than by watching Trainspotting or listening to old Velvet Underground LPs. That might help you understand why she wanted to cover it.
posted by memebake at 4:45 AM on November 9, 2010
posted by memebake at 4:45 AM on November 9, 2010
Ah, philip-random already posted it. But there's some background for you.
posted by memebake at 4:56 AM on November 9, 2010
posted by memebake at 4:56 AM on November 9, 2010
Songs I would like Susan Boyle to consider covering next:
Anti-Nowhere League: So What?
Well, the Susan Boyle version would almost have to be better than the Metallica version
But if she's going to cover a song with the title of "So What", my vote goes to Ministry.
posted by namewithoutwords at 5:15 AM on November 9, 2010
Anti-Nowhere League: So What?
Well, the Susan Boyle version would almost have to be better than the Metallica version
But if she's going to cover a song with the title of "So What", my vote goes to Ministry.
posted by namewithoutwords at 5:15 AM on November 9, 2010
Emmylou Harris and Dr. John absolutely kill it in that BBC version. No way Huey effin Fun Lovin Criminal should have been let near "I thought I was someone else, someone good", the pivotal line of the whole thing, though.
posted by kersplunk at 5:47 AM on November 9, 2010
posted by kersplunk at 5:47 AM on November 9, 2010
Geez. The first thing I thought of when I watched this was: is it Christmas singles season already in the UK?
This has '90's Christmas single' written all over it: ethereal-ly sounding synth and choir, long coat and scarf on the star, sweeping soft focus shots, the whole bit.
posted by LN at 6:07 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
This has '90's Christmas single' written all over it: ethereal-ly sounding synth and choir, long coat and scarf on the star, sweeping soft focus shots, the whole bit.
posted by LN at 6:07 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
I avoid music videos as a general rule because I'm quite capable of forming my own imagery and associations, thank-you, but this was visually decent, if cliché.
It certainly proves that the song has legs, and holds up through different treatments. This version wasn't too tacky...Lou Reed, filtered by Enya... coulda been worse. If it played in my dentist's office I wouldn't fly out of the chair.
I'm not quite getting the hate as anything other than ritual irony. A late 60's songwriter/musician/photographer/director directs video of his song for 50 yr old singer. Ooh wait that's Lou Reed... and Susan Boyle...ooooooh [head explodes]
Don't ever get old, kids. Live fast, die young, leave a beautiful corpse.
This is another gift option for my Mom this Christmas, and I can smirk to myself when Perfect Day is playing. I was getting tired of buying André Bocelli or Michael Bublé anyways.
(seconding LN above)
posted by Artful Codger at 6:14 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
It certainly proves that the song has legs, and holds up through different treatments. This version wasn't too tacky...Lou Reed, filtered by Enya... coulda been worse. If it played in my dentist's office I wouldn't fly out of the chair.
I'm not quite getting the hate as anything other than ritual irony. A late 60's songwriter/musician/photographer/director directs video of his song for 50 yr old singer. Ooh wait that's Lou Reed... and Susan Boyle...ooooooh [head explodes]
Don't ever get old, kids. Live fast, die young, leave a beautiful corpse.
This is another gift option for my Mom this Christmas, and I can smirk to myself when Perfect Day is playing. I was getting tired of buying André Bocelli or Michael Bublé anyways.
(seconding LN above)
posted by Artful Codger at 6:14 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
Mostly I can't stand her because her entire performance is directed inward. She has been her own adoring audience for so long that she doesn't know how to connect with a real one. Every over-enunciated syllable sort of falls right out at her own feet, and her eyes are fixed at a point exactly six inches from her face. Take a look at someone like Judy Garland (or really any of the greats) and you see that this was her real talent -- the ability to invite a thousand strangers into her heart all at once, making each of them feel the meaning of the song through the membrane of her own soul, her nerves and tears and laughter. It almost didn't matter what she sang.
Imagine Judy Garland singing "A Perfect Day". I get chills just thinking about it. Watching the SuBo video I understand how the idea of it is interesting but I never get sense of who she is, or what she wants, other than that the singing itself is very important to her. For her. And maybe her alone.
posted by hermitosis at 6:53 AM on November 9, 2010 [4 favorites]
Imagine Judy Garland singing "A Perfect Day". I get chills just thinking about it. Watching the SuBo video I understand how the idea of it is interesting but I never get sense of who she is, or what she wants, other than that the singing itself is very important to her. For her. And maybe her alone.
posted by hermitosis at 6:53 AM on November 9, 2010 [4 favorites]
I'm not quite getting the hate as anything other than ritual irony.
What HE said. C'mon, it wasn't like it was even a great song to begin with, kids...
posted by OneMonkeysUncle at 8:04 AM on November 9, 2010
What HE said. C'mon, it wasn't like it was even a great song to begin with, kids...
posted by OneMonkeysUncle at 8:04 AM on November 9, 2010
C'mon, it wasn't like it was even a great song to begin with, kids...
greater than most. Kind of like Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah last year (or was it the year before?). Welcome to the 21st Century, where all that is great and truly deserving of your attention, will eventually rise to such absurd prominence that it becomes a parody of itself.
Here's hoping it happens to Jandek someday.
posted by philip-random at 8:40 AM on November 9, 2010
greater than most. Kind of like Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah last year (or was it the year before?). Welcome to the 21st Century, where all that is great and truly deserving of your attention, will eventually rise to such absurd prominence that it becomes a parody of itself.
Here's hoping it happens to Jandek someday.
posted by philip-random at 8:40 AM on November 9, 2010
Imagine Judy Garland singing "A Perfect Day"
God damn it, hermitosis. Here was something I was blissfully unaware of wanting, and now I do, and well, fuck.
posted by everichon at 9:29 AM on November 9, 2010 [5 favorites]
God damn it, hermitosis. Here was something I was blissfully unaware of wanting, and now I do, and well, fuck.
posted by everichon at 9:29 AM on November 9, 2010 [5 favorites]
Wow. Hadn't heard Boyle before, and I guess I'm surprised that such a thin and small voice came out of her. I thought she was going to sound like Aretha Franklin or something, not a slight princess.
And at our house, we append "Heroin" to nearly every line. "Oh, what a perfect day, I'm glad I spent it with you, heroin." Boyle's version could have used that.
posted by klangklangston at 9:37 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
And at our house, we append "Heroin" to nearly every line. "Oh, what a perfect day, I'm glad I spent it with you, heroin." Boyle's version could have used that.
posted by klangklangston at 9:37 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
God help me, when I saw the opening images for the song, the first thing I thought was 'Ms. Boyle would do anything for love, but she won't do that."
posted by Joey Michaels at 9:56 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Joey Michaels at 9:56 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
2009: [Lou] Reed was performing at the Whitney Museum the other night and insisted the bar be closed because "he didn't want to hear the clinking of glasses," said our source. "He kept telling the crowd to shut the [bleep] up" before "he walked off stage yelling that the bar was open."
2010: Lou Reed gives his blessing for 'Heroin,' rearranged for cello and voice.
(...)
Lang sent Reed his demo and the former leader of the Velvet Underground called back. He responded, Lang said in a choked, gravelly voice, imitating Reed, "I've been waiting my whole life for somebody to treat me like that."
As on the audio clip below, "Heroin" will be sung at Disney Hall by Theo Bleckmann, a German-born vocalist, called the male Bjork, who has performed with New York's leading avant-garde composers, including Laurie Anderson and, for 15 years, Meredith Monk.
Rock on!
posted by iviken at 10:08 AM on November 9, 2010
2010: Lou Reed gives his blessing for 'Heroin,' rearranged for cello and voice.
(...)
Lang sent Reed his demo and the former leader of the Velvet Underground called back. He responded, Lang said in a choked, gravelly voice, imitating Reed, "I've been waiting my whole life for somebody to treat me like that."
As on the audio clip below, "Heroin" will be sung at Disney Hall by Theo Bleckmann, a German-born vocalist, called the male Bjork, who has performed with New York's leading avant-garde composers, including Laurie Anderson and, for 15 years, Meredith Monk.
Rock on!
posted by iviken at 10:08 AM on November 9, 2010
(It's not unusual for people like Lou Reed to perform at venues like the Whitney Museum or to collaborate with classical and avant-garde musicians. What's weird about this is the schmaltzy middle-brow aspect, not "omg rock stars working in a non-rock idiom". Also, Lou Reed is married to Laurie Anderson.)
posted by Sara C. at 10:14 AM on November 9, 2010
posted by Sara C. at 10:14 AM on November 9, 2010
This has '90's Christmas single' written all over it
Prepare to have your brain raped by the worst Christmas Single ever. I like to imagine that his facial expressions communicate 'fuck YES I am doing this for more coke money. I LOVE COCAINE.'
posted by FatherDagon at 10:15 AM on November 9, 2010 [5 favorites]
Prepare to have your brain raped by the worst Christmas Single ever. I like to imagine that his facial expressions communicate 'fuck YES I am doing this for more coke money. I LOVE COCAINE.'
posted by FatherDagon at 10:15 AM on November 9, 2010 [5 favorites]
While I was writing that post about Lou Reed, Laurie Anderson, the Whitney Museum, cellos, etc, Aaron Neville's cover of Bob Dylan's With God on Our Side came on my iTunes. To which I had almost the same reaction that I did to the Susan Boyle Perfect Day. Like, did Aaron Neville read the lyrics to the song before he decided to do this? The whole song? Not just the words "With God On Our Side"? So, yeah.
Though I'll say that, with Neville, I'm willing to entertain the possibility that he did, and it was chosen with intent, and the arrangement and fusion with his sort of schmaltzy middle brow vocal style was done on purpose, to either make some kind of point or to slip a subversive message into the Nice White Lady Dinner Parties it was destined to be the soundtrack for.
posted by Sara C. at 10:23 AM on November 9, 2010
Though I'll say that, with Neville, I'm willing to entertain the possibility that he did, and it was chosen with intent, and the arrangement and fusion with his sort of schmaltzy middle brow vocal style was done on purpose, to either make some kind of point or to slip a subversive message into the Nice White Lady Dinner Parties it was destined to be the soundtrack for.
posted by Sara C. at 10:23 AM on November 9, 2010
Man, now I really want to hear a Susan Boyle version of "Candy Says."
posted by octobersurprise at 11:14 AM on November 9, 2010
posted by octobersurprise at 11:14 AM on November 9, 2010
Aaaaaaand sheeeee never lost her heaaaaaaad even when sheeee was giving heeaaaaaad
posted by klangklangston at 11:19 AM on November 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by klangklangston at 11:19 AM on November 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
I like to imagine that his facial expressions communicate 'fuck YES I am doing this for more coke money. I LOVE COCAINE.'
and little did poor greedy Billy Asshole realize that something like YouTube would eventually come along and NOBODY WOULD EVER BE ALLOWED TO FORGET THIS.
posted by philip-random at 11:29 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
and little did poor greedy Billy Asshole realize that something like YouTube would eventually come along and NOBODY WOULD EVER BE ALLOWED TO FORGET THIS.
posted by philip-random at 11:29 AM on November 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
The most surreal thing about the Billy Idol one is that all the comments are praising him because he so awesomely pulls off a great cover.
posted by Threeway Handshake at 11:57 AM on November 9, 2010
posted by Threeway Handshake at 11:57 AM on November 9, 2010
There's also the piss-poor vocal production and the fact that when he claps his hand there's no sound.
posted by unSane at 12:08 PM on November 9, 2010
posted by unSane at 12:08 PM on November 9, 2010
those are all Mr. Idol himself threeway
posted by The Whelk at 12:10 PM on November 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by The Whelk at 12:10 PM on November 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
Mostly I can't stand her because her entire performance is directed inward. She has been her own adoring audience for so long that she doesn't know how to connect with a real one. Every over-enunciated syllable sort of falls right out at her own feet, and her eyes are fixed at a point exactly six inches from her face. Take a look at someone like Judy Garland (or really any of the greats) and you see that this was her real talent -- the ability to invite a thousand strangers into her heart all at once, making each of them feel the meaning of the song through the membrane of her own soul, her nerves and tears and laughter. It almost didn't matter what she sang.
Imagine Judy Garland singing "A Perfect Day". I get chills just thinking about it. Watching the SuBo video I understand how the idea of it is interesting but I never get sense of who she is, or what she wants, other than that the singing itself is very important to her. For her. And maybe her alone.
I think the reason this works (for me) is precisely because of the character of Susan Boyle. I have no idea how close the character is to the truth, but from what I know about the character, she's been a shy recluse all her life until now. This shy recluse with an amazing voice who has always longed to sing to the world, but never felt worthy, because she doesn't have all the requisite "Judy Garland qualities." She's not pretty in a Hollywood sense, she probably can't act, she has no idea how to really communicate with an audience because she's never had one. But then the world discovers . . . her voice. It's an archetypal Cinderella story, and everything she does hinges on our buying into this story. And while the narrative is too perfect to be completely true, I do think there are elements of truth to it that make the Judy Garland comparison very unfair.
So in light of the Susan Boyle narrative, I find myself projecting the following onto her performance: she's singing about a perfect day she never had but always longed for and, moreover, when she sings "You're going to reap just what you sow," she's directing that toward not only the external but also, chillingly and heartbreakingly, toward the internal forces that have kept her locked inside her own psyche for all this time. In light of this story, I find her version of the song very powerful, and the video just enhances it -- she's alone, it's foggy/dark wherever is she is but there's sunlight elsewhere, there's a choir that we never see (i.e., we're listening to a choir that exists only in her head). And at the end of the video, she's still alone, and the last shot isn't even of her -- it's of the sun, setting behind the clouds.
posted by treepour at 8:24 PM on November 12, 2010
Imagine Judy Garland singing "A Perfect Day". I get chills just thinking about it. Watching the SuBo video I understand how the idea of it is interesting but I never get sense of who she is, or what she wants, other than that the singing itself is very important to her. For her. And maybe her alone.
I think the reason this works (for me) is precisely because of the character of Susan Boyle. I have no idea how close the character is to the truth, but from what I know about the character, she's been a shy recluse all her life until now. This shy recluse with an amazing voice who has always longed to sing to the world, but never felt worthy, because she doesn't have all the requisite "Judy Garland qualities." She's not pretty in a Hollywood sense, she probably can't act, she has no idea how to really communicate with an audience because she's never had one. But then the world discovers . . . her voice. It's an archetypal Cinderella story, and everything she does hinges on our buying into this story. And while the narrative is too perfect to be completely true, I do think there are elements of truth to it that make the Judy Garland comparison very unfair.
So in light of the Susan Boyle narrative, I find myself projecting the following onto her performance: she's singing about a perfect day she never had but always longed for and, moreover, when she sings "You're going to reap just what you sow," she's directing that toward not only the external but also, chillingly and heartbreakingly, toward the internal forces that have kept her locked inside her own psyche for all this time. In light of this story, I find her version of the song very powerful, and the video just enhances it -- she's alone, it's foggy/dark wherever is she is but there's sunlight elsewhere, there's a choir that we never see (i.e., we're listening to a choir that exists only in her head). And at the end of the video, she's still alone, and the last shot isn't even of her -- it's of the sun, setting behind the clouds.
posted by treepour at 8:24 PM on November 12, 2010
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posted by philip-random at 8:18 PM on November 8, 2010 [4 favorites]