The song is a classic with the famous “I guess I didn’t know” sampled by Eric B & Rakim’s Know the Ledge and the “Get busy, child!” created with the help of DJ Pierre’s track, Summertime (Is Get Busy Time). The song first appeared on Vegas, which is why the video itself opens with footage of Nevada’s best known city. (Sorry, Carson City!)
There were two versions of this video. One version was directed by Lance Bangs and Eli Bonerz. The second version, which was released to capitalize on Busy Child‘s use on the soundtrack of 1998’s Lost In Space, was directed by Clark Eddy. To be absolutely honest, I’m not sure which version this is. I suspect that it’s the first one, if just because of the lack of clips from Lost In Space.
If you haven’t danced to this song, you haven’t danced.
Welcome to the month of June! Can you believe that we’re nearly halfway through 2018?
Now, I have to say that the month of May was not an easy one for me. I spent the entire month having problems with my sinuses, my allergies, and my asthma. I spent two weeks sick in bed and, even as I sit here typing this, I’ve been dealing with a sinus headache. With the temperature projected to get up to 105 this weekend, I doubt I’ll be getting better any time soon.
So, as a result of all that crap, there was a lot that I wanted to do in May that I didn’t get a chance to do. And I know that I have to put my health first and that it’s not the end of the world but still, I feel terrible about it. I’m very thankful to all the contributors here at the Shattered Lens who picked up the slack while I spent last month ill.
So, this month, I’m going to get caught up. I have a big To-Do list with about 250 items on it and I will get them all done before we officially start the second half of the year! That is the promise that I am making to our readers today. I love telling you about the movies and the books and the television shows that I’ve watched. If I can help other people to discover a good movie then I feel like I’ve accomplished something.
What does all that have to do with today’s music video of the day? Lindsey Stirling is one of my favorite performers and, whenever I listen to her, I’m reminded of just how exciting, wonderful, and worthwhile life can be. That’s why I’m picking Lindsey’s video for Crystallize for today’s music video of the day. It may be hot and miserable outside. The news may not always be happy. But goddammit, life is worth the trouble and let’s never forget it!
As Kedr Livanskiy videos tend to do for me, this one brings back a lot of memories. The only thing better than being young and feeling like you can do anything is surviving to talk about it later.
My best friend Evelyn and I absolutely love Kedr Livanskiy, though we always seem to disagree about what the videos are about. She thinks this video is just about having a good time in Russia. I think it’s about vampires. Of course, I assume that almost every video that I see is about vampires. Still, there are moments where this video has an undeniable Jean Rollin feel to it.
Anyway, regardless of whether you think it’s about vampires or not, enjoy!
Christopher Lee recorded this version of My Way for Revelation, a 2006 album of covers. This video features Lee at his home in London’s Tufnell Park.
My Way was originally written by Paul Anka, who based the song on a French song called Comme d’habitude. The song, of course, was made famous by Frank Sinatra but it’s also been recorded by everyone from Elvis to Sid Viscous to Jay-Z. As for Lee’s version — well, whatever he may have lacked in vocal range was made up for by the fact that he was Christopher Lee! As for the music video, how could any Hammer horror fan resist the chance to see the inside of Christopher Lee’s home?
There is a strain of melancholy running through Lee’s version but then again, I don’t know if it’s possible to record a non-melancholy version of My Way. On the one hand, it’s a song of triumph. On the other hand, it’s a song that acknowledges that we’re all mortal, even those of us who refuse to compromise and who maintain our independence.
I’m not really a country music fan but it does seem to be the best genre to go to if you’re looking for a good Memorial Day song. Add to that, I may not be a country music fan but I do like Trace Adkins because he’s like the perfect Texan, even if he is from Louisiana.
To quote from the video’s description on YouTube: “Arlington” is sung from the viewpoint of a soldier, killed in battle and buried at Arlington National Cemetery. It was inspired by United States Marine Corps Corporal Patrick Nixon, who died in battle in 2003.
Someone needs to make a TV show where Trace Adkins and Sam Elliott ride across America on motorcycles and solve crimes.
Today is Christopher Lee’s birthday so it only seems appropriate that today’s music video of the day should be for a song that appeared on Lee’s first full-length album of original music, Charlemagne: By the Sword and the Cross. This was a “concept album” about the life of the first Holy Roman Emperor, Charlemagne.
To be absolutely honest, this really isn’t my type of music but Christopher Lee was one of the greatest actors ever and if anyone earned the right to a vanity project or two, it was him.
Today’s music video of the day is the deeply unsettling video for Meg Myers’s Numb.
For the first minute or so, this video reminds me of Office Space. It then goes on to make me think about last year’s controversial Mother! And then, at the end, I can’t help but think about the 2011 Brit Marling film, Sound Of My Voice.
That’s not necessarily the happiest message in the world, unless you happen to be one of the rich kids. But it’s definitely true. I was recently talking to a friend of mine about how almost all of the writers and artists that we admire were able to spend years developing their craft because they didn’t have to worry about actually paying any bills. It’s a lot easier to write the great American novel when you’re not having to deal with a day job or anything like that. For that matter, it’s a lot easier to break into films when your mother is Meryl Streep or your father is Tom Hanks.
(Sorry, but it’s not as if the Gummer sisters are exactly popping with screen charisma.)
(And don’t even get me started on Chet Haze…)
I mean, let’s just be honest here. North West has a better chance of making the best seller list than most of us do.
Of course, it’s not just in the arts where it helps to be a rich kid. Would Andrew Cuomo even be a dog catcher in New York if his name was Andrew Jones? Would George W. Bush have ever been President if his name was George Davis? Would the banal thoughts of Chelsea Clinton rate thousands of retweets if her name was Chelsea Smith … well, you get the idea.
Anyway, beyond the message, I like the dreamy sound of this song and the look of the video.
Through the Shattered Lens 