Youtube Orchestra "Somebody That I Used To Know"

I remember this interview with actor Mark Hamill, who talked about the two roads he could have taken.

One way to was do everything in his power to distance himself from "Star Wars."  He could stay away from any and all Sci-Fi roles.  He could avoid the Comic-Cons of the world.  He could walk around like his co-star Harrison Ford, with a shirt like this --->>>

The other way was something he had seen Janet Leigh do.

Leigh, an accomplished actress who appeared in dozens of films (including notable ones like "The Manchurian Candidate" and "Touch Of Evil") is mostly remembered for three harrowing minutes in a shower in the movie "Psycho."

He noted that she could have just stopped giving interviews on the subject of "Psycho" and the shower scene, but instead she embraced it.  She became an expert on it.  She did not fight against her own public image.

Similarly, Hamill embraced the fact that he is seen by most as Luke Skywalker, and will do "Star Wars things" (like show up at Comic-Con or spoof himself on shows like "The Simpsons").

I thought of this when I saw this mega-mix of "Somebody That I Used To Know."

If a million Youtubers are going to cover your song, why not embrace it?

Gotye grafts together portions of dozens of homemade covers to create something as fun and as viral as any of the overly sincere or gimmicky cover versions out there.

If you're going to be known for one song, don't be afraid to embrace it.


Hear the song on Youtube.

Nerf Herder "Van Halen"

Here's another Weekend Post:

After last weekend's Weekend Posts about Pop Power Alterna-rockers, I had this one pop into my head, and for a second, I wondered whatever became of this band.

Then I remembered that beyond having a couple of fun alternative hits, they actually have a secure spot in the Pop Culture Pantheon (with some nice music licensing paychecks that must come at regular intervals). This is the band that does the theme song to Buffy The Vampire Slayer, which is still in syndication and gets National airplay every day.


See the video on Youtube.


Hear The Buffy Theme on Youtube.

How the band Nerf Herder got its name!

See it on Youtube.

Weekend posts are a chance to revisit songs that have happy memories, not of anything in particular, other than just hearing the tunes.

Many of these songs were tracks that I played during my 90s stint as an Alternative/Modern Rock radio show. They're tunes that I hardly hear these days, but are wonderful to revisit.

Click on the "Weekend Posts" label below, to see other posts like this.

Jon Bon Jovi "R2-D2, We Wish You A Merry Christmas"

Somewhere out there, there is a TV commercial of me modeling some blue jeans.

It's the kind of slightly embarrassing, slightly degrading thing you end up doing early in your career, because you're just trying to get in the game.

In my case, I had just been hired as a producer at a small NBC affiliate, in the creative services division which produced commercials and promos. On my first day on the job I was to shadow the other producer, to get a feel for what we did.

That day they were shooting a commercial for a local department store. They'd hired a few folks to model various sweaters and boots, but when it came time to shoot the young mens jeans, well, they were short on young men.

"Can you put a pair of these on, PJ, and go stand in that field?"

Wanting to seem like a team player, I said Yes (while thinking GOD NO!), and somewhere on videotape in the bowels of an NBC affiliate, is my butt, hawking blue jeans.

I guess this would be the audio version of that.

Young Jon, itching to get his recording career started, scored an opportunity to sing on a record called "Christmas In The Stars: A Star Wars Christmas." And he leapt at the chance.

To his credit, in the "60 Minutes" piece, he only seems slightly sheepish, not embarrassed and degraded. Then again if my butt were on YouTube, I'd probably have to find a way to live with it, too.





Bonus!!! From the same album: "What Do You Get A Wookie For Christmas"