Fringe Benefits At Les Trans Musicales
MOJO's Kieron Tyler asks Brittany to hit him one more time.
11:30 AM GMT 17/12/2011
News
Top 10 Coolest Rock Star TV Cameos!
8:00 AM GMT 09/03/2010
YOU KNOW HOW IT IS. You're scoping a familiar youth-orientated TV drama/comedy show and suddenly there they are: your favourite band! You spill your tea, fumble with the record button, and preserve all but the vital first 20 seconds for posterity.
Did you see that?! Stevie Wonder was on the Cosby Show! Yet why, exactly, is there something more thrilling about real rock'n'roll intruding into a fictional context than its scheduled appearance on a talk show or, god forbid, a dedicated music programme? Beats me.
In this blog, we celebrate those weird moments of juxtaposition - where rock and non-reality meet. We're not talking about unlikely pop stars fetching up as bit-part actors (like Iggy Pop in '90s Nickelodeon gem The Adventures Of Pete & Pete or Elvis Costello in Channel 4's '80s scousefest Scully or Phil Collins in Miami Vice). No, we're talking the "Troubadour Sequences" from cult US dramedy Gilmore Girls, where alt.rock legends like Sonic Youth, Sparks, Yo La Tengo, Joe Pernice and Grant Lee Phillips regularly featured as street buskers.
No matter how incongruous the setting, several decades of dedicated telly-watching has taught us that a game-changing pop star could be hiding around any corner. And if you're palling around with Bill Cosby, your odds just sky-rocketed: ol' Cos's enviable showbiz connections meant Dizzy Gillespie, Sammy Davis Jr., B.B. King, Lena Horne and Art Blakey all made guest appearances on The Cosby Show in the 1980s, with Stevie Wonder even inviting the fictional Huxtable family to jam with him in the studio.
The makers of hokey '80s comedy/action series The Dukes Of Hazzard, meanwhile, relied upon the illicit speed traps of corrupt Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane to ensnare celebrity musical guests. Among those who sang at nearby tavern The Boar's Nest to avoid a night in the Hazzard County slammer were Tammy Wynette, Buck Owens and, in the clip below, The Big 'O' himself, Roy Orbison.
Set in the 1950s and centred around Rock'n'Roll-obsessed High School kids, long-running 1970s sitcom Happy Days seemed purpose-built for pop star cameos. Cue pint-sized sexpot Suzi Quatro, hoping to translate British glam rock success to home turf as distaff Fonz counterpart, Leather Tuscadero. Here she is, dropping a most anachronistic bass-solo in the middle of Johnny B. Goode...
Should any show boast a high quotient of teens in its cast and a venue-type location on the set, chances of a rock'n'roll cameo increase a thousandfold. This explains the bizarre occurrence of weird-rock wildniks The Flaming Lips turning up in Beverley Hills 90210 and playing She Don't Use Jelly for the rich kids at their plush hangout, The Peach Pit. "Well, they're not Michael Bolton," remarks a bemused Steve Sanders...
Excellent '90s teen dramedy My So-Called Life, meanwhile, saw Boston indie-rockers Buffalo Tom play the local pool hall while series leads Angela Chase (Clare Danes) and Jordan Catalano (Jared Leto) got angsty in the foreground, sound-tracking what TV Guide later voted as one of TV's Ten Most Romantic Moments.
21st Century teen melodrama The O.C. held such influence over its audience that by its second season, artists like Beastie Boys, Coldplay and U2 premiered new singles on the soundtrack. The show also boosted the careers of many then-obscure groups who graced the stage of their Bait Shop, including The Killers, Modest Mouse and Death Cab For Cutie. Death Cab were, famously, the favourite band of the show's lovelorn geek Seth Cohen, whose passionate fandom won the group a whole new audience.
The more surreal shows don't even bother to concoct reasons for their celebrity rock guest stars. BBC's The Young Ones coursed with an anarchic freedom which allowed such set-pieces as Madness playing their #1 hit House Of Fun at dingy pub The Kebab & Calculator, Dexy's performing in the boys' lavatory, and - shown here - Motörhead materialising from nowhere to blitz through Ace Of Spades...
The short-lived '70s comedy Fernwood 2 Night, meanwhile, saw comedians Martin Mull and Fred Willard play presenters of a backwoods chat show that was often wanting for celebrity guest-stars. A tourbus breakdown brings Tom Waits on the show, and the clip below finds the reluctant interviewee countering his smarmy hosts with surreal growl and bar-room wit.
And finally... talking of fake talk shows, here's the undisputed numero uno for connoisseurs of the cool rock star guest spot: The Larry Sanders Show. A wicked showbiz satire, Sanders would showcase Elvis Costello, Warren Zevon and Butthole Surfers, all gleefully in on the joke and delivering some fine musical performances to boot. Here's the Wu-Tang Clan shocking the network suits with their salty lingo, but not before a cringe-inducing encounter with Larry's legendary stooge, Hank "Where's Dirty Old Bitch?" Kingsley.
by Stevie Chick
Posted by Ross_Bennett at 8:00 AM GMT 09/03/2010
Previous Blog
-
-
MOJO PROMOTION: 10 Guitar Solos That Should Be In Guitar Hero
Bloc Party's Helicopter is in there, but no Led Zep. Oh, the injustice!
10:24 AM GMT 01/11/2011
-
R.E.M.ember Them This Way
MOJO's audio-visual tribute. Don't worry, Furry Happy Monsters is in there.
2:09 PM GMT 24/10/2011
-
MOJO PROMOTION: 5 Classic Songs About Gambling
In folk, blues and rock, you're never too far from a wager on a game of chance. It's a metaphor for
11:17 AM GMT 15/09/2011
-
Dorset Cream
Anna Wood avoids the glampers at the weekend's End Of The Road Festival
1:15 PM GMT 09/09/2011
-
How To Buy... Simon & Garfunkel
Your best comments and recommendations will appear in the magazine...
4:41 PM GMT 18/08/2011
end of body content back to top
Footer
Join us on:
© Copyright Bauer - all
rights reserved.
Reproduction of this
website, in whole or in
part, in any form or
medium without express
written permission from
Bauer is prohibited. All
use is subject to our
Terms of Use
|
|
Comments
Comment on this post
Great selection, I could only think of Boy George in the A Team ; ) Good blog Stevie
Posted by Dr-Filth at 10:04 AM GMT 09/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Although not as himself,Bob Dylan on Dharma and Greg was surreal. Aimee Mann on Buffy the Vampire was also very cool. I guess they're a bit different from the ones mentioned, but all the Sesame Street appearances by so many famous artists are surely up there with the some of the best music-tv moments.
Posted by Mike at 10:16 AM GMT 09/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Stevie on Sesame Street was much cooler
Posted by Par at 11:33 AM GMT 09/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Par - I'd argue for Stevie on Sesame Street as one of the all-time greatest musical TV appearances, but to qualify for this list, Sesame Street would have to be a "fictional" television programme, and that would mean I'd have to acknowledge that Sesame Street itself isn't real. and my inner child simply isn't ready to accept that!
Posted by stevie at 12:50 PM GMT 09/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
There is also an episode of Colombo in which Johnny Cash is playing tha role of a country music star who kills his wife.....
Posted by Anonymous at 2:13 PM GMT 09/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
There is also an episode of Colombo, Peter Falk, in which Johnny Cash played the role of a country singer who kills his wife.
Posted by Anonymous at 2:16 PM GMT 09/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Johnny cash played the role of a country singer who kills his wife in an episode of Colombo (Peter Falk).
Posted by stevelittlefingers at 2:18 PM GMT 09/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
One of the most unexpected cameos I can think of is garage legends The Standells on The Munsters 1960s TV show.
Posted by Filthy McNasty at 7:00 PM GMT 09/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Sly Stone on the Cosby show, Michael Hutchence on Casualty, Paul Mccartney on One Man And His Dog.
Posted by Peter Sissons at 2:56 AM GMT 10/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
SCTV circa 1981/82 had musical guest pop up in their various fictious shows, such as Roy Orbison playing on the teen dance show Rock Pile with Rockin' Mel (Eugene Levy)
Another one was Dave Edmunds in a retro '50's anti-communist movie "I Was a Teenage Communist" . Dave played From Small Things...
The funniest one was Carl Perkins and his band going fishing with Gil Fisher (John Candy) on The Fishing Musician
They drive all night and day to go fishing at Great Slave Lake in Nothern Canada, falling asleep at the wheel, etc. Hilarious!
Which reminds me of Carl's cameo as a vicious hitman fighting David Bowie in the movie Into the Night (1985) Very surreal! and funny!
Posted by greg at 3:58 AM GMT 10/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Chad and Jeremy as The Redcoats on The Dick Van Dyke Show in 1965.
Posted by Anonymous at 1:08 PM GMT 10/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Morrissey appeared as himself in the 1988 Brookside spin-off South.
Posted by Rico at 1:23 PM GMT 10/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Tom Jones on the Fresh Prince of Bell-Air. Wearing a blue suit, shakin his tush. Ace.
Posted by Gilbert Fudge at 1:24 PM GMT 10/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Can't forget the Beau Brummels.....err....Beau Brummelstones on the Flintstones...
Posted by wrecksracer at 8:38 PM GMT 10/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Dont forget the beatles in dr who:
a 1965 episode, just out on dvd!
Posted by dalek at 11:51 AM GMT 11/03/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Here's a bit about the Seeds TV appearance:
THE MOTHERS-IN-LAW: In a special episode of this somewhat-forgotten series about the trials of two pairs of middle-agers coping with their married offspring, the older set have a go at managing wild primitive rockers Sky Saxon and The Seeds! This amazing show was directed by Desi Arnaz, and also features Joe Besser of The Three Stooges (what a meeting of the minds!).
Also, let's not forget Jerry Lee Lewis (who strangely does not portray a Killer) on T.J. Hooker.
Posted by s.w.a.c. at 12:16 PM GMT 13/04/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Here's a bit about the Seeds TV appearance:
THE MOTHERS-IN-LAW: In a special episode of this somewhat-forgotten series about the trials of two pairs of middle-agers coping with their married offspring, the older set have a go at managing wild primitive rockers Sky Saxon and The Seeds! This amazing show was directed by Desi Arnaz, and also features Joe Besser of The Three Stooges (what a meeting of the minds!).
Also, let's not forget Jerry Lee Lewis (who strangely does not portray a Killer) on T.J. Hooker.
Posted by s.w.a.c. at 12:17 PM GMT 13/04/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
What's Happenin?, the very unusually archaic/fantastical but pleasant pseudo-Archie Andrews ABC comedy show of the 1970s, had the Doobie Brothers on at least one occasion. Miami Vice's musician appearances were well publicized at the time. Bob Dylan on the Pawnstars entry was odd. Fernwood Tonight and America 2-Night were brilliant, outre' shows that everyone should see, the whole run of the episodes, I mean.
Posted by Jim Thompson at 7:25 AM GMT 29/12/2010 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Es serio? No!~ Es no posible!
Posted by puertas de herreria catalogo at 9:45 PM GMT 20/01/2012 Report Abuse
Reply to this post
Comment on this post