MeTube Extra: I knew this was going to happen

No sooner do I announce my impending departure than I find a bunch of videos that I simply can't keep to myself.

First, here's one I've been hoping to find for a long time. Woody Allen, early in his career, did some work for Allen Funt's Candid Camera program. Here he dictates a love letter to an unsuspecting secretary.



One more Sesame Street bit I (L is for) love, love, love.



And then there's Steve Riks. He's a UK comedian got hundreds of clips on YouTube where he does impressions of various musicians. His McCartney and Freddy Mercury are pretty awesome, but here I'd like to just focus on his Lennon...



...and his Bowie.



Like I said, his Lennon and his Bowie.

Get Well Soon, Owen Wilson

I was really brought down to hear about Owen Wilson being hospitalized for what's reported to be a suicide attempt. I always thought that he was getting good money to be himself onscreen, and more power to him for that. Plus the fact that he cowrote The Royal Tenenbaums, which makes him The Man for me. But now scenes like the attempted suicide in that film (acted out by his brother), plus this one, will resonate in a whole different way.



But for today, let's focus on the good he's brought us, with his unforgettable walkoff in Zoolander (with a very special cameo for the judge)...



...and his singing in Starsky and Hutch.

Bowie's Major Major Tom

Originally, I was going to make this posting about a mashup of the already-half-forgotten DiCaprio film Blood Diamond and the kid's kult klassick Labyrinth.



But then I thought, hmmmm... I wonder if anyone's taken the time to discuss the state of David Bowie's trousers in this movie. Or, more to the point, what's inside them. To put it baldly, Bowie's costume designer saw Derek Smalls in This Is Spinal Tap and thought, "Great idea!"

Sure enough, YouTube being YouTube, there's a ten minute clip of a guy talking about it with a fake British accent, showing clips from the film to back him up, and dancing in front of his camera in emulation as bad-mid-eighties-Bowie plays. Like he says, "You're gonna become addicted, and you're not gonna know why."

Bowie and friend

David Bowie's had a great career, but it can be argued that he's at his greatest when he's collaborating with somebody. It could be a good guitarist, like Mick Ronson, or a good producer, like Brian Eno, or a good singer, like Bing Crosby.

Here are a couple of concerts where he teamed up with another singer, and the results are great.

"Queen Bitch" comes from Hunky Dory, where Bowie notes, "Some V.U. white light returned with thanks." Lou Reed returned the favor in 1997 at this show in Madison Square Garden.



And here's David, in full-on Ziggy regalia, duetting with Marianne Faithfull, who's disguised as a nun. Thank God for the '70s.

Rock Star Birthday 1

For some reason, this week has a very high number of musicians turning a year older. We're going to be looking at a few of them over the next several days.

Starting with David Bowie, who hits the big six-oh today. Here's a semi-recent clip of him performing "Sound and Vision" with the vigor of a man half his age. Which, ironically enough, is how old he was in 1977, when he wrote it.



But there's an even greater rock star born on January 8 - Elvis Presley. Here he is just weeks before his death in 1977, performing "Unchained Melody" in concert.



"You can see the speed and other pills have him," my friend John said about this clip, "but he is still The King."

David Bowie Sells Out *snort*

Of course I can't leave the every-nine-posts tradition to die, so here's a marvy water ad by David Bowie and friends.



But since we can't abandon the Christmas week theme either, here's his "Little Drummer Boy / Peace on Earth" duet with Bing Crosby. This came out in 1977, after Bing died; his last words were "Great game of golf, fellers." Not that you asked...

Put on your red shoes & dance the blues

Happy birthday to my sister Rachel, who's not only an awesome writer, she's the biggest David Bowie fan I personally know. To celebrate, here's a video of one of his biggest hits.



And here's a cover version by M. Ward that reinterprets both the audio and the visual in arresting ways. (Buy his CD The Transfiguration of Vincent; you'll not be sorry.)

Tony Orlando and Dawn and...

Have you ever gone to a concert that it's not cool to admit you went to? (I saw Alanis Morrissette live; in my defense, I went for the opening act, Liz Phair.)

Have you ever been spotted at that concert, much to your chagrin?

You still don't have it as bad as the person who attended this 1974 Tony Orlando & Dawn show. (Click on the arrow, not the picture, or you'll spoil the surprise.)