I have been much preoccupied of late but I was awoken from my reverie by the arrival of the wonderful film below - another made by George and Monica of Giant Squid Eye. As ever, I'm flattered and quite bowled over by the opportunity to collaborate with such wonderful artists. I'm sure I'm using up all my good Karma but in the meantime I remain astounded and grateful.Speaking of collaborations, attentive US readers of the credits for the song ('Kix' from The Real Tuesday Weld album 'The London Book of the Dead'*) might notice that it is attributed to myself and a certain deceased star of the Great American Songwriting Tradition. It may not be obvious why to some - but personally it feels as if I have realised a once-thought impossible dream.
Yes, that's right - I have co-written a song with Cole Porter.
I do hope he wouldn't mind..
The year is already tripping on - faster and faster it goes - but there is a lot to tell and I hope to be here more often from this time onward.
*The album, along with 'The Clerkenwell Kid Live at the End of the World', will be released by Six Degrees throughout the rest of the world and in the UK by the new boutique label 'Antique Beat" in Summer.
27 comments:
if one decides to collaborate...best to do so with a corpse. dead folk are far less control-freaky.
happy valentines day,
nell
xo
ps
you have become rather animated over the last year or so. never a bad thing.
dearest mr.coates,
london book of the dead is quite genius. thank you for sharing it with the world.
it's a wonderful li(f)e is amazing, what a perfect song for life.
have a lovely valentine's day.
-ariety
hope you had a happy one nell.
I suppose i have become more animated - but i am qute capable of not moving at all for days I can assure you...
thanks ariety - i appreciate that.
dear Mr.Coates,
yes, I completely agree with the previous comment. thank you for sharing this masterpiece. Best wishes!
Sincerely yours,
Michael.
I just want to say... you are a genius!!! Never heard anything like that... FUNTASTIC!
I love this style of animation...
That's why I like the video for 'The Show Must Go On' so very much.
Continue producing greats and making me feel in love, please.
x
This video is the oddest mixture between a 1930ies style cartoon and a 1980ies video arcade game I've ever seen. (Not that I've ever seen a mixture of that kind.) Impressing.
And please DO stick to the topic of Death as you suggested! There can never be enough songs and stories about it.
Regards,
Nina
P.S. Could you please tell me who that clarinette player in both animated video clips (Show must go on and Kix) is? I'm quite sure it is a hommage to some jazz legend, but I just don't recognize him.
Thank you,
Nina
Hey Nina
Well it's the amazing Jacques Van Rhijn really playing the clarinet and I think there is a bit of him and a bit of a Woody Allen character too. But I'll ask George.
I'd like to think there was a bit of Jacques in there, although I hadn't seen pictures of him when I did the design. And yes, I was going for a cross between Woody Allen and Alfalfa from "The Little Rascas." I was also thinking a little about Mezz Mezzrow, an interesting clarinet player from 1920s Chicago and author of the strange and beautiful book, "Really the Blues."
Oops. That's Alfalfa from "The Little RASCALS" straight outta Rascal Village, am I right Gina?
Absolutely, George... we favor rascals of all breeds round this Village...
beautiful cartoon by the way... exceptionally gorgeous visuals for an exceptionally gorgeous song.
Gina
Thank you for your answers! :-)
BTW, of course I knew that Jacques Van Rhijn had been playing the clarinette part, but since he doesn't resemble the cartoon character, I began to wonder.
All the best to everyone
... and beware of the Ides of March!
Nina
I'm so glad to see you blogging again! I found your blog back around New Year, read it, and absolutely fell in love with your writing style. I'm still relatively new to your work - a friend sent me your 'Brazil' video in response to a podcast I made. All he said was, "This reminds me of your brand of cheesy cool." I adored it and was so excited to see someone else who is just as enamored with the same kind of vintage kitsch as I am. Naturally, I've been addicted to the sound of The Real Tuesday Weld ever since. (By the way, was Don Brosnan in any bands back in Tucson? I used to live there and he looks really familiar...)
Please keep up the brilliant work and thanks for coming back to the blog! And in return for all the hours of blissful entertainment, I definitely owe you a pint the next time I'm in London.
Oh, and I meant to add, I don't think you have anything to doubt - Cole Porter would definitely approve. Yet again, nothing short of kitsch chic. :)
Thanks heather - I appreciate that very much
Don lived in Tucson. He told me that he didn't play in any bands there but he has very distinctive hair - you may remember that..?
Hmm, how strange... there was one band in particular I was thinking of where I might have seen him. But it's been years since I lived there, so the memory has gone a bit fuzzy. Who knows, maybe I just saw him on a street corner somewhere. Do you know roundabout when he lived there?
One more question if you'll indulge me - is there any chance of 'Dreams That Money Can Buy' being released on DVD in the states with your soundtrack? I'm going to pick up the BFI DVD the next time I'm there, but that won't help much for when I'm on this side of the Atlantic. (Damn whoever came up with that whole region idea...) :)
Don has a myspace site:
www.myspace.com/don_brosnan
You can order the dvd direct from the real tuesday weld shop:
http://www.tuesdayweld.com/shop.html
It comes with the soundtrack album as a gift..
Thanks for the links! I didn't think I could order the DVD, since I'm all the way in the US - should I add to the shipping cost to cover the difference? It just doesn't seem like one pound would cover it...
Thanks for answering all my questions! I have about a million more, but I'll try to contain my curiosity. :)
no problem heather.
you can e-mail:
trtwmail@mac.com with any queries and Nix will sort you out
Hey, sorry to bother you again, but I wrote to Nix and still haven't heard back about the shipping costs for the DVD. Any ideas what I should do next?
By the way, I just got "I, Lucifer," and I'm having oodles of fun reading it whilst listening to your album. I can't wait for more updates on the film's progress! (Although, quite frankly, I also can't wait for another blog entry! I'm sincerely hoping you didn't get lost somewhere in Clerkenwell...)
Nix has been away - will follow up
tck
I was always saddened by the little part where he frowns after being thrown out onto the floor ... so I wanted to see him sky high and happy again. So ...
Here's my latest drawing.
http://TinyURL.com/cloud-crooner
Your music has lifted my artist's block for the time being.
Hi, Mr. Coates!
Cygnus is my lover, and I just wanted to thank you so much for what you've done for my darling through your lovely music and writings. You've really inspired us both, to be honest. Certain songs of yours have even helped us overcome some difficulties together. To put that another way, you've helped our relationship grow and flourish.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you. You're a wonderful man, in every sense of the word. Your music and ideas are absolutely beautiful on so many levels.
Hey Cygnus
This is really beautiful man - you must show George - he will love it. Fab.
And Requiem - that's what I'm here for - but very nice to hear anyway!
best wishes to you both..
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