Celebrity Jukebox #85: Tim Curry

I'm not one of those people who cherishes The Rocky Horror Picture Show as a highpoint in movie/musical history. Neither am I one of those people who hates the very mention of its name. I thought it was a pretty good movie, watched it a couple of times, had a laugh or two (I particularly like the bit with Meat Loaf)... but never felt the need to dress up and sing the songs at a revival night.

I don't have the legs for it.

Still, as powerful as that performance may well be, it'd be a shame if it was all we remembered Tim Curry for. He was also the original Pennywise, from the 1990 adaptation of Stephen King's It... not a classic, but better than the recent two part movie series (one good film, one terrible film - and they shouldn't have been split up to past and present like that anyway, it diminished the story). He was the Darkness in Legend and Long John Silver in Muppet Treasure Island. Perhaps not the most illustrious of career paths when you look at his full résumé, but that wicked twinkle of his eye generally improved any movie he showed up in.

Tim also gets a name drop from top Aussie hip hop group The Hilltop Hoods... always worth a spin.

And the thought of him helps Anna B. Savage finish... erm... what she's doing... in the song below...

Anna B. Savage - Chelsea Hotel #3

I was actually quite surprised how many times Tim's name crops up in song...

I am Tim Curry from "It" 

My heart is made out of shit

Shelf Life - Good Son

Went to see a movie

Face wasn't Tim Curry

I think I'm going to pop

I don't think I can stop

Ty Segall & White Fence - Tommy's Place

Living in a haunted home

Would be fine if I lived with a friend

It'd be no worry

If I lived with Tim Curry

But I don't, so this nightmare won't end

Let's Make A Music - Haunted Home

You may argue that some of those are even less illustrious than the lesser movies Tim appeared in... but immortality is immortality.

I've saved the best for last though. Not many of Tim's obits will mention his brief turn as a pop star, releasing three albums in the late 70s / early 80s. Coincidentally, I featured one of his best tracks on last week's Snapshots. But here's his biggest hit (#91 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1979)...

Snapshots #462: Songs About Parts Of A House

From the Doors, all around the house... here's some songs you might hear if an estate agent is showing you round.

15. Cromwell flattened them.

English Civil War history lesson required.

The Levellers - This Garden

14. Sweet transvestite.

Frank N Furter himself...

Tim Curry - Paradise Garage

13. I'll give you half a dozen to sweeten the deal, fella.

Six to the Sugar, man.

Sixto Rodriguez - Halfway Up The Stairs

12. Found inside the Eiffel Tower.

Eiffel Tower.

Felt - Don't Die On My Doorstep

The tube of you directed me towards the Samaritans when I tried to find that song.

11. The rooster raced away from Duane and Floyd.

The cock ran from two Eddies.

Eddie Cochran - Sittin' In The Balcony

10. Disrupting the proton laws.

"Proton laws" was an anagram.

Snow Patrol - Crack the Shutters

9. Playing bass in That Irish Band makes him very happy.

Adam Clayton plays bass in That Irish Band. God knows how he manages to stay Merry, working with those other twonks.

Merry Clayton - The Doorbell Rings

8. Milk, sugar, cornflour.

The ingredients of a...

Blancmange - Living On The Ceiling

7. Is that the best that you can do, Faith and Ant?

"The best that you can do" is the subtitle of Arthur's Theme. Faith and Ant are Adams.

Arthur Adams - You've Got The Floor

6. Small erasers.

The Rubettes - Under One Roof

5. Card-carrying and paid up.

The Members - Rat Up A Drainpipe

4. She has a Clown... and keeps in with Mr. Brown (for his money).

Cathy's Clown meets Dennis "Money In My Pocket" Brown.

Cathy Dennis - Too Many Walls

3. Moving Number 10 from London to Manchester might cause this...

Northern Uproar - From A Window

2. Angelic boss is also loaded.

Charlie Rich - Behind Closed Doors

1. JFK commission unmasks German Numero Uno. 

The people investigating JFK's assassination were the Warren Commission. A German Number One might be "Ze von!" (in a really bad German accent, with apologies to Walter).

Indisputably today's best song...

Warren Zevon - Desperados Under The Eaves

Get back in the Snapshots house next Saturday.

Snapshots #211: A Top Ten Bacharach & David Covers

Earlier this week I was leafing through Sam's notebook (largely full of made up football scores) when I saw he'd scribbled a name on the inside front cover...

Not because he's been watching Blue Velvet, Easy Rider or the Sicilian scene from True Romance recently. No, because he's become quite a fan of a song I've featured here previously, Dennis Hopper by The Waterboys. 

I continue in my mission to teach Sam as many out-of-date pop culture references as I possibly can.

All of which has nothing to do with this week's Snapshots, which featured ten songs written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. No, I couldn't find a photo of either of those gentlemen holding a camera... 

10. Jerry's neighbour, associated with Walrus home.

On Seinfeld, Jerry's neighbour was Kramer...

John Lennon lived in (and was sadly killed outside) The Dakota Building.

Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas - Trains & Boats & Planes

9. Speaking clock gets spicy.

Remember when the only way to find out the exact time was to ring TIM, the speaking clock?

Tim Curry - Anyone Who Had A Heart

8. Roger Whittaker... or mother-painter?

Roger was famous for whistling. 

The painter Whistler is famous for this image of his mother...

Whistler - I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself

7. Steven or Johnny or Andy or Mike... but only one of them.

Together, those guys were the Smiths. So one of them would just be...

Smith - Baby, It's You

6. Could be a stranger, a battlefield or a wonderful colour.

Love Is A Stranger.

Love Is A Battlefield.

Love Is A Wonderful Colour.

All of which lead us to...

Love - My Little Red Book

5. Parchment secretaries.

Anagram!

Manic Street Preachers - Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

4. Upmarket joiners.

Posh joiners call themselves carpenters. (I say this as the son of a joiner.)

The Carpenters - Close To You

3. The apples are falling, but there's still time to gather in the crops while the sun is shining.

The falling apple denotes Isaac Newton. The rest is about making hay while the sun shines.

Isaac Hayes - The Look Of Love

Or you could have had...

Isaac Hayes - Walk On By

Isaac Hayes - I'll Never Fall In Love Again

2. Lima found inside people you don't know.

Lima is the letter L in the phonetic alphabet.

Put an L into Strangers (people you don't know) and you get...

The Stranglers - Walk On By

1. Royal bassist down.

The bassist in Queen was John Deacon.

If he was down, he would be blue.

Snapshots will be back-arach new Saturday!