Last week’s Vespa Vednesday VIdeo was David Bowie’s “Absolute Beginners”, the title track from the Julien Temple film. This week’s video also features Bowie, but this time it’s a clip from the film itself:
Artist: David Bowie
Song: “That’s Motivation”
Album: Absolute Beginners film soundtrack (1986)
Scooter(s): Vespa GS
Scooter content: 20 seconds
Jump to the good parts: 3:56 to end
There’s not much to add to last week’s rant about “Absolute Beginners,” the musical. Great book, sort-of-embarassing film. As much as I love Bowie, his performance (or is it his character, Vendice Partners?) is a bit stilted and creepy. His Busby-Berkeley-inspired paean to advertising was probably meant to be the film’s centerpiece, but as far as overblown showtune production pieces go, Ray Davies’ Music-Hall romp “Quiet Life” steals the show and somehow seems to fit the story better. And Edward Tudor-Pole’s “song” isn’t on YouTube, but there’s a Vespa billboard in the background. If all this makes you want to see the film, I’m doing it wrong. OK, fine, it’s a guilty pleasure. But the book is a must!
But hey, back to the point, there’s a scooter in Bowie’s number. And it’s not really so bad as I remembered it. And another VVV is written and posted, on an actual Vednesday. That’s Motivation!
Though I haven’t seen the movie in years, I do remember that last time I watched it (a rare cable showing) I liked it more that I did when it first came out. Lower expectations, I’m sure.
This particular number is a standout for me… Maybe it’s the Silver Age Batman giant typewriter. I was just starting to get into jazz when this movie came out, so the combination of Gil Evans score and brass arrangements with Bowie really struck a nerve. There were a lot of interesting genre combinations on the soundtrack (Jerry Dammers’ “Riot City,” which I think I used for a sophomore video project). Also, “Have You Ever Had It Blue” remains my fave Style Council song by a long shot.
Still, at best a silly movie.