One of the silliest music videos ever crafted was created by a band that I understand*1 is categorized in the UK as a “Pub Band”, and not just any pub band, but the quintessential Pub Band: Slade. You may or may not enjoy the music, and you may or may not enjoy the video, but the whimsical, purposeless glee of the band and the others appearing in this video simply makes me smile and I hope it does for you too. And if you can’t smile at the goofy closeups of the lead singer, maybe, just maybe, as a member of this community you’ll notice a man acting just as silly who happens to very suspiciously resemble the Atheist Experience’s own Matt Dillahunty. Or at least, Dillahunty instantly came to my mind when I saw him.
For no other reason than pure, unadulterated silliness, I invite you to watch “Run Runaway”:
Unfortunately, I’m pretty sure that the guy in the video is 40 years too old to be the Atheist Experience’s beloved Dillahunty. On the other hand, I’m not sure if I could like this video any more than I already do. Wherever you are, o’ kilt-wearing-Slade-fan, raise a caber for me.
*1: and will be corrected on, I’m sure, if I have it wrong
Slade: The only allegedly “glam” rock band to have produced a track worthy of moshing to.
Sadly old enough to remember the original (although I never really got into Slade – while I was a teenager aspiring to pretentiousness, they were almost the antithesis of my taste) – Still, I could never think of Slade as Glam… This is Glam !
One of the (many) things I have appreciated about living in Japan was not having to listen to endless playing of “Merry Christmas Everybody” throughout December. That’s one tradition I hope that the Japanese never pick up.
To be honest, I’ve never quite worked out what glam is, as a musical genre. It seems more a label for a group’s stage-attire than for any particular musical style, yet it gets used as something of a pejorative. I mean, here’s Ballroom Blitz again, not drastically re-arranged, but it certainly ain’t glam. And here’s a Sweet b-side which is pure rock/metal; if one didn’t already “know” the band was a glam band, how would one tell?
Damn. I’ve not actually paid attention to Burning when it came on the player for years. How did I never not notice that drumming? Bloody brilliant!
I always think of Glam as more of an attitude than a musical genre – Just noticed you think the same. I think it was more about projecting a sexually ambiguous image, than any musical style – look at Roxy Music, T Rex, even Bowie and Queen – and why I think Slade were never Glam.
And the drumming on Burning is really spot on!
Although some of Sweet doesn’t stand the test of time (Not linking to it, but Wig Wam Bam is stunningly awfully racist tripe)