Category: Music

Doing “The Time Warp” Since 1975

Rocky Horror Anniversary On September 26, 1975, The Rocky Horror Picture Show was released in the United States, following its August 14 release in the U.K. Despite doing well in Los Angeles, the film initially did not do well elsewhere, resulting in the cancellation of a planned Halloween night opening in New York City.

Executives at 20th Century Fox, however, noted that some films were doing well at midnight showings, so the following April, the movie began running at midnight in New York, soon spreading to other locations. The rest is history, as the studio has never ended the 1975 distribution, making the movie the longest-running release ever and Meat Loaf’s greatest big-screen appearance.

It was a long road, but the counterculture movie written by director Jim Sharman and actor Richard O’Brien (Riff Raff) stuck around long enough to become mainstream. Brad Majors, played by Barry Bostwick, spoke for the movie when he sang to Janet Weiss (Susan Sarandon), “The future is ours/ So let’s plan it.”

So, to celebrate the anniversary of the film’s release, get out your toast, spray guns, and toilet paper. Below is the original trailer for the film that became a cult phenomenon.

For more on The Rocky Horror Picture Show, check out this rare Tim Curry interview from the time of the movie’s release. Also, for the fortieth anniversary of the film, Fox News interviewed cast members Barry Bostwick, Patricia Quinn, and Nell Campbell.

What is your favorite song from The Rocky Horror Picture Show? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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  • Tim Curry on “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” in 1975
  • Meat Loaf: “For Crying Out Loud”
  • That’s When Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through
  • It’s Only Two O’clock and the Temperature’s Beginning to Soar
  • Low Budget Sci-Fi & Much More in “Robot & Frank” (Short Review)
  • Anniv. of Civil War’s Start: Elvis’s American Trilogy

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Shawn Colvin Covers Waits and Springsteen

    Colvin Tougher Than the Rest

    Singer-songwriter Shawn Colvin not only has written some great songs, but she is a wonderful interpreter of songs written by others. In addition to mixing covers with her originals on some albums, she also released an all-covers album in 1994 called Cover Girl. This month, she is releasing a new album of covers, Uncovered (2015). The album, her first since 2012’s All Fall Down, features songs written by a wide-range of artists, including Stevie Wonder, Graham Nash, Robert Earl Keen Jr., and Paul Simon. Colvin has already released videos for her covers of songs by Tom Waits and Bruce Springsteen.

    On the new album, Colvin covers Tom Waits on “Hold On,” which appeared on Waits’s Grammy-winning Mule Variations (1999). Check out Colvin’s coer.

    Colvin also tackles a song from Springsteen’s 1987 Tunnel of Love album, “Tougher Than the Rest.” Chimesfreedom previously wrote about the song as one of the highlights of Springsteen’s Tunnel of Love album, and Colvin takes a quieter acoustic approach to the song. Check it out.

    Colvin’s album Uncovered goes on sale on September 25, and she will begin a new tour with Don Henley starting October 3.

    What is your favorite Shawn Colvin cover? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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  • Tougher Than the Rest
  • “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs” (Short Review)
  • What Becomes of All the Little Boys?
  • Colvin & Earle: “Ruby Tuesday”
  • Shawn Colvin and Steve Earle Join Forces
  • Love, Sex, Death, and Springsteen’s “Sha La La”

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp Sing “Night Life”

    Nelson Mellencamp

    This week, John Mellencamp joined Willie Nelson for a bluesy rendition of Nelson’s classic song about living the “Night Life.” The two appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert together, commemorating this weekend’s upcoming thirtieth anniversary of Farm Aid, which is being held in Chicago this year.

    With some help from Nelson’s guitar Trigger along with Mickey Raphael on harmonica, Mellencamp and Nelson give a nice performance. Nelson wrote the song in the late 1950s when he was playing clubs at night in Texas, struggling to make a living. “Listen to the blues that they’re playin’ / Listen what the blues are sayin’.” The song holds up more than fifty years later. [2019 Update: Unfortunately, the video is not currently available on YouTube.]

    Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson Put Johnny Cash’s Poetry to Music
  • The Saga of Willie Nelson’s Guitar
  • The First Farm Aid
  • 80 Years of Willie: From Opry Singer to Outlaw to Wizard
  • Why Did Stephen Colbert Sing “Jump Up” With Elvis Costello on the Final “Late Show”?
  • When is Mickey Newbury’s “33rd of August”?

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Troubled Waters Plays “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard”

    Troubled Waters Simon

    With the departures of David Letterman and Craig Ferguson from late-night television, the odds of catching an intelligent discussion on a late-night talk show decreased significantly. That is one reason why it was refreshing to see Stephen Colbert finally take over for Letterman, and his first week did not disappoint, with highlights that included a thoughtful conversation about grief and loss with Vice President Joe Biden.

    Of course, we want to laugh and dance too. And the first week of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert did not disappoint in that category either.

    For example, at the beginning of one episode the announcer (Colbert) exclaimed that one of the guests would be Troubled Waters, a Paul Simon tribute band. For those who stayed awake for the end, the “tribute band” did not disappoint, turning out to be made up of Paul Simon. Troubled Waters then performed “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard” from Simon’s 1972 self-titled album.

    On the performance of “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard,” Simon also received a little help from Colbert, who proved he not only can be thoughtful, he can sing, dance, and whistle. Check it out.

    What do you think of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert so far? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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  • Why Did Stephen Colbert Sing “Jump Up” With Elvis Costello on the Final “Late Show”?
  • Emmylou Harris Covers Steve Earle’s “The Pilgrim”
  • John Fogerty Rocks One More Time for Letterman
  • Goodbye to Stephen Colbert and Craig Ferguson
  • Stephen Colbert Announces Final Date for “The Colbert Report”
  • Pop Culture Roundup (for Early February 2012)

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    Preview of Tom Hiddleston as Hank Williams

    Hiddleston Hank Williams
    Although some thought Tom Hiddleston, who plays Loki in the Marvel movies, was an unusual choice to play country music’s Hank Williams in a new biopic, you cannot argue that the actor strikes a similar look to the great country singer. Now, we get our first peak at the English actor as Williams in a clip from the upcoming movie I Saw the Light.

    In the short clip below, we get Hiddleston singing “Move It On Over” as Hank Williams in the studio, as well as some additional footage of his portrayal. From one short clip, it is difficult to tell whether the movie is able to immerse us into believing Hank Williams is on the screen. But the clip is enough to make me want to see the movie. Check it out.

    Among those who have been critical of the movie, including the choice of Hiddleston as the lead and of Marc Abraham as director, is Hank III. HitFlix liked Hiddleston, but not the movie, which is scheduled to open in limited release on November 27.

    What do you think of Hiddleston as Hank Williams? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Trailer for Hank Williams Biopic “I Saw the Light”
  • Stephen King’s “The Life of Chuck”: A Few Thoughts for Those Who Haven’t Seen the Film . . . and a Few for Those Who Have
  • Sam Williams: “Can’t Fool Your Own Blood” (Song of the Day)
  • Hank Williams Live Show from July 1952 (Audio)
  • D.L. Menard: “The Back Door”
  • The Irresistible Rhythm and Harmonies of The Cactus Blossoms

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