The Klieg Light Club: When great artists go from "true to form" to "true to formula"
Recently I posted about keeping it simple in 2010. Let's chalk this one up as a sequel to that post. This time it's about keeping it real in 2010.
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Have you seen the movie Precious?
Yes? [collective exhaling, wide-eyed looks and shaking of the heads]
No? Well then, you must see this movie. It is a harrowing story about the human will and the extreme, extremely extreme, challenges it can endure. The movie has been much talked about in the media and on blogs. In a flick filled with shocking moments, one of the most shocking is the performance of Mariah Carey.
Everyone knows who Mariah Carey is, right? Yes, of course we do. She is known as a self-indulgent, high-maintenance, look-at-me, glamour-puss. In Precious she played a run-of-the-mill social worker. For the role, Carey stripped off her Diva persona and played the ugly duckling. In her own words:
"I had to lose all vanity," Carey said. "I had to change my demeanor, my inside, layers of who I am, to become that woman."
Oh my, Mariah. Oh, my. Where to start...? Let's start with the "layers of who I am" part of that statement. How crazy is this shit? She really believes she has these "layers". Is this a bad case of the stardom flu or is she serious. My guess is that she thinks she is serious. My guess is that she thinks that people don't understand that she is a real person underneath it all. My guess is that she thinks that moonbeams and winged unicorns shoot from her ass every-time she farts.
The ironic thing here is that Mariah thinks that she is acting in this movie when, in actuality, it may be her most real performance yet. As I sat in the theatre watching this, I thought to myself, "damn, she seems normal...why doesn't she come off this way all the time"? Forget the no make-up haggard appearance, it was her likability that got me. Why does she chose (yes, choose) to come off so damn self-important and narcissistic in the press?
She is caught in the crossfire of the klieg lights. She was a earnest singer with pipes that dominated the charts. Now she is a indulgent Diva with performances that overwhelm the gossip rags. Just like so many artists, be they actors or musicians, Mariah lost her essence.
How many others has this happened to? Countless. Here is one that comes to mind:
Rod Stewart: Wow. Rod used to be a rocker. He had swagger. He had rough edges. He had the last laugh. Now he is a laughingstock. Has there ever been a career that has experienced such a downward spiral. Seriously. He started out with Long John Baldry, fronted the Jeff Beck Group (brilliantly), led the almighty Faces, absolutely nailed five out of his first six solo albums (Smiler being the lone dud), and then... what the fuck happened? He became a star, that's what happened. Klieg lights...everywhere.
After "A Night on the Town" he started to fall apart. All of his rough edges became polished and glossy and he fell into the glits and glam of the '70's slipstream. He went pop chart and disco with "Footloose & Fancy Free" and "Blondes Have More Fun". He became fodder for urban legends involving blow-jobs and stomach pumping. He limped into the '80's with infrequent blips on the charts with songs hearkening back to days of yore. He rekindled old flames with live albums of old hits. And now...now he sells albums of covers songs to baby boomers, who, like Rod, think that almost is good enough. Yuck.
The Good (the very good)
The Bad
The Ugly
I feel dirty after that last video. I need to go play "Gasoline Alley" front to back right now to restore my faith in the gravel-throated goodness that once was Rod Stewart.
Who else belongs in the Klieg Lights Club?
- Elton John (the earliest stuff was so damn earnest)
- Robbie Robertson (stop with the Indian albums and the movie producing and put out the classic you know you have in you..please!)
- Stephen Stills (so much talent + so much meandering = coulda, shoulda, woulda)
- Mick Jagger (solo stuff specifically)
- Aerosmith (Dude looks like a train-wreck...)
- Gregg Allman (he lost his way when he lost Duane...Allman and Woman? Check out that link...WTF is that album cover all about!?! Come on?! That never would have happened it Duane was still alive).
On the flip-side, there are those who have stayed true to the course. A sampling of the many that are in the Real Deal club:
- John Fogerty
- Tom Petty
- Levon Helm
- Bruce Springsteen
- Tom Waits
- Roger McGuinn
- Keith Richards (solo albums and guest-star appearances seal the deal)
- Neil Young (They King of Them All Y'All...in fact, he may deserve his own club)
What do you think about those lists. Agree? You have any additions to either one?
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