I watched another of the music videos I made, this one circa '95, an eclectic mix of performers. It started on a high note, Bonnie Raitt doing the blues lament Love Me Like a Man, featuring dazzling guitar work that would put many men to shame. She may have used every blues lick ever invented. There was only one cut I had to fast-forward through, something by Sound Garden on SNL. There were several tracks by the Pretenders, all excellent, including their biggest hit, The Night in My Veins. The mis-named Cowboy Junkies did an unusually up tempo piece for them, Common Disaster. All of the other stuff I know by them is quiet. Bjork did her adorable big band-type song Ssssh! on The Tonight Show. During this period, Fox ran a show against SNL called Saturday Night Special that spotlighted rising music acts. Bush (not George) rocked out on Machinehead ("There's no sex in violence") and Tracy Bonham, whom I have not heard from since, did Mother Mother, a song about a struggling artist trying to keep the truth from her mom during a phone conversation, which I certainly relate to ("Everything's fine!"). Garbage did I'm Only Happy When It Rains, a terrific look into a warped mind ("Pour your misery down on me"). And Alice in Chains ended the run of SNS tunes with Again, which features a five-word alliteration ("help her heal her heart") that would attract any writer. The Sex Pistols, promoting their Filthy Lucre tour, sans original bassist Sid Vicious, showed up on Letterman and brought the house down with Pretty Vacant ("And we don't care!"). Radiohead did a beautiful rendition of High and Dry on Leno ("Don't leave me high, don't leave me dry..."). The front man had a Protect Choice decal on the body of his guitar, which is forgivable only if it had something to do with the song. The guitarist of the leftist Rage Against the Machine also had to make a view known with a sticker: Arm the Homeless. I always found their politics ridiculous - and their performances riveting, including this one, Bulls on Parade. The biggest surprise on the tape was Celine Dion, who stepped out of character on Letterman, doing an unbelievable cover of Ike and Tina Turner's Mountain High, River Deep. I'm blown away every time I see it.
Here's my choice for the highlight. A different version of Bonham's moment in sun. It may be the least artistic number on the tape, but it's charming and amusing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0c7_u_eBam8
I spent some time on this sweltering day in Coney Island with my great niece/godchild Danielle, who will enter high school in the fall. She's on a one-week time-out from her parents and brother in Jersey. We had lunch at Nathan's and then took in the aquarium. Dani snapped away with her cell phone. For 15 minutes I wondered why it was so dark inside, then I realized I still had my sunglasses on - duh! The biggest kick was witnessing the reaction of the toddlers to the huge walruses and sharks. It was a relief to be in air-conditioned rooms. I doubt I would have sold many books today, and the heat wave is forecast to continue through the weekend. It will be a tough stretch.
Visit Vic’s sites:
Vic’s Third Novel (Print or Kindle): http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic’s Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic’s Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic’s 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic’s 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic’s Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3f
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