Eliot Sumner is the child of Gordon Sumner, better known as Sting. Dead Arms & Dead Legs was the first single off of Sumner’s 2nd album, Information. According to Sumner, the song was inspired by walking around Stonehenge and thinking about what it all meant. I have been to Stonehenge and I can verify that, if you can actually get away from all the tourists, walking around the centuries-old monument will make you question your place in the universe. It will also remind you to buy a new calendar.
Of course, if you know your British sci-fi, it might also make you think of the fate of Prof. Quatermass.
In 1977’s Bing Crosby’s Merrie Olde Christmas, Bing and his family travel to the UK to visit Bing’s long-lost relative, Sir Perceval Crosby. It’s while staying at the Crosby estate that Bing celebrates Christmas and discovers that Sir Percy lives next door to David Bowie!
You might not expect Bing Crosby and David Bowie to have much in common as far as musical tastes are concerned but that’s where you’re wrong. After discussing their parenting techniques and their favorite songs, Crosby and Bowie share a duet that has become a classic.
From Bing Crosby’s Merrie Olde Christmas (which aired on ITV 33 years ago today), here are David Bowie and Bing Crosby performing Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth.
Since Ringo Starr provided yesterday’s video, it seems appropriate to give today’s video to Paul McCartney.
As a group, The Beatles never released an “official” Christmas song, though the members of their fan club received a recording of Christmas Time Is Here Again in 1967. After the band broke up, all four of the members recorded Christmas songs on their own. Paul McCartney’s Wonderful Christmastime is probably the most remembered. I don’t know if I would say it was the most popular but anyone who has ever had to rush out to do some last minute Christmas shopping has heard it playing in countless stores on December 24th. Whenever I’ve been in a store while Wonderful Christmastime was playing, I’ve always felt as if the song was taunting me but it is definitely a part of the season.
McCartney recorded this song at his farm. He was just getting into what was then known as “electropop,” which is why he used a Sequential Circuits Prophet-5 synthesizer in the song. More than anything, that weird bouncing noise probably explains why this song is so well-known. Whenever I hear this song, I imagine that this is what Christmas sounds like on Mars.
The video was shot at at the Fountain Inn in Ashurst, West Sussex. Though the members of Wings had nothing to do with recording the song, they all appeared in the video because they were all hanging out with McCartney on the night that it was filmed.
Reportedly, Paul McCartney receives $400,000 a year in royalties from Wonderful Christmastime.
Though it may not be a Christmas song, the latest single from Ringo Starr feels appropriate for the season. Ringo sings for peace and hope in this song and he’s brought along an impressive supporting cast to help him make his case. Among those featured in the song and the video: Paul McCartney & Joe Walsh, Corinne Bailey Rae, Eric Burton, Sheryl Crow, FINNEAS, Dave Grohl, Ben Harper, Lenny Kravitz, Jenny Lewis, Steve Lukather, Chris Stapleton, and Yola.
I searched but I could not find a credited director for this video.
Through the Shattered Lens