Gamma phase
"I'm Lonely" - Screamin' Jay Hawkins
I was watching this movie, "Perdita Durango" a/k/a "Dance With The Devil," starring Rosie Perez getting her freak on in as many different ways than there are lethal strikes in Shaolin kung-fu. And while I'm watching the movie, thinking that I need to get hopped up on coke and start practicing santeria because the movie made it look so damn NOW, up pops supporting actor Screamin' Jay goddamn Hawkins.
Now, I say "goddamn" because I'm 100% convinced that's his true middle name, because he embodies everything that rock and roll was, should be, could be, and used to be about. Unfortunately, as is the fate that befalls most artists who refuse to be defined by convention, he cranked out that fucking "I Put A Spell On You," and now every Halloween you can think about Screamin' Jay Hawkins for a day, then go back to your jobs and wives and what have you.
Yet, here's this movie, about coke and sex and the devil and fear and violence and not giving a fuck about life or death or the consequences of love and murder, and ol' man Hawkins is just overseeing the proceedings, like a foreboding maniacal Alfred Pennyworth. He's hard to recognize at first, because most vintage photos of Jay have him all bug-eyed, caped, bone protruding from his nose, and his pet skull on a stick by his side. But here, he's mellow, reserved, and it's hard to find in his performance a sign of that vigor that he displayed onstage, belting out tunes like "Constipation Blues, or "Feast of the Mau Mau."
That is ... until the end of the film. Won't spoil it, in the chance you wanna check it out. But there's a scene, with Rosie walking through the crowded streets of Las Vegas, lost and wounded, alone and vulnerable. And as she pushes her way through the throng of people, this song kicks in. It's hard, it's almighty, and it wasn't available through any means by which I usually get my music. I ordered an import best-of CD set for $32+ to get this version of that one song ... this song was worth $32 to me.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Science Gone Mad: Audio eXchange
3 comments:
And stick around for the fadeout, as Hawkins shows how ahead of the curve he is when he channels Cartman in that episode of "South Park" where he convinces Butters that it's the end of the world, and to prove it, Cartman starts acting like he's turning into a mutated zombie.
I had never heard of this guy before, though after checking out his Wikipedia page two things stand out:
1) He wanted to be an opera singer in the vein of Paul Robeson. Robeson wasn't an opera singer per se, but he was more classic in his stylings. He was also a communist and became one of the first vilified celebrities in American history.
2) This is the best wiki-bituary line I've read in a while: "He left behind many children by many women; about 55 were known (or suspected) upon his death, and upon investigation, that number "soon became perhaps 75 offspring", according to this website." That website happens to be NPR, so I'm assuming it is legit.
I'm not much into blues, but I dug this song.
Several years ago, there was a website - WWW.JAYSKIDS.COM, I believe it was called - which was the online equivalent of stapling notices on lightpoles to find lost puppies, or in this case illegitimate children.
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