Wow… I can’t believe it’s been a month since I last posted. Feels like a week or so. But, what is time anyways? It’s nothing if not relative, right? One of the reasons I feel a lack of motivation to write is that so little actually changes these days. I’m still busy working on various things but don’t have release dates or anything fun like that to announce. Plus, I’ve been dealing with some not-so-brilliant depression for the past six months, or ten years, however long it’s been since Covid-19 came into our lives. It’s hard not to spend hours and hours doom-scrolling the news every day, which also doesn’t help matters. It would be very nice if there was ever some good news, but that seems to have gone extinct due to global warming. I feel like the constant stress and anger that consumes me most days has taken 10 years off my life. Luckily, they’ll be the ten years at the end, which I wasn’t totally looking forward to anyhow…
So, instead of spending the 200th consecutive day dwelling on everything that is going wrong in our country and world, I decided to do something a little more fun. As dedicated readers know, I am very fond of making lists. Seriously, check out these great examples:
Who loves Top 5 lists? aka... Asperger's brain dump...
Spinal Tap and my favorite live shows from Portland... aka... another weird Monday list...
Fucking Arizona and shit... aka it's hot as fuck and I'm sad as fuck... The old IHAFAISAF...
So, what lists are on the docket for today? Hmmm… Let me think. What do I want to spend the next couple hours thinking and writing about? How about we go with:
Favorite music videos
Favorite British TV shows
Sound good? OK. So, as Joe Swanson from Family Guy would say “LET’S DO THIS!!”
Top 5 Favorite Music Videos
1) You Can Call Me Al - Paul Simon
Just everything. That’s my answer as to why this is my top music video. It’s my favorite song from one of my all-time favorite albums (Graceland, if you didn’t know). It’s a throwback to a time when Chevy Chase was still funny and not universally hated. The premise is simple and perfectly executed. Even on my darkest days this song and video can bring a smile to my face. This song, along with Come On Eileen, are my go to “instantly bring me an immense amount of joy” songs.
2) Thriller - Michael Jackson
This is probably on every top music videos list known to man and for good reason. I can’t believe there was a time when they spent this much time and money on music videos. It’s amazing. There’s nothing I can say that hasn’t already been said about this but Michael was the first musician I ever wanted to be like. I’d spend hours trying to moonwalk across the living and even more time perfecting my hat throw. It was probably weird when, as a kid, my answer to everything was either “HE HE” or “SHAMONE.” Seriously, it works for everything and means whatever you want it to.
“Bradley, are you going to the park?” “Yep. SHAMONE.”
“Did you see that person slip and fall on a banana peel?” “HE HE.”
But, in all seriousness, the video is just a work of fucking art. It’s an incredible experience. The dancing, the costumes, the story, the execution; everything is perfect. If not for my irrational obsession with the You Can Call Me Al video, this would be #1, hands down. It’s by far the greatest achievement in music video history and is unlikely to ever be equaled. It’s like Brett Favre’s consecutive games record (297 consecutive games in the regular season, 321 if you count the playoffs, which I do). It’s borderline impossible to think anyone will come close to breaking that considering today’s health protocols. And it’s equally impossible to think anyone will top MJ’s Thriller video. But, since this is my list and I do have an irrational obsession with You Can Call Me Al, this, unfortunately, has to reside #2 on this list. Feels like an injustice, but that’s life.
Also, if you haven’t watched me as a zombie in my Thriller jacket doing moves from Thriller, then please watch this video for Let’s Go Out Tonight. Trust me it’ll be worth your time. If you look closely in the video, you’ll see I have a Bandaid on my hand. The day before we started shooting, I was practicing the moves from Thriller in my tiny apartment back in Portland, OR. I was really starting to get into it and smashed my hand into my printer and took a chunk of skin off. Two days later, I’m getting buried in the ground and crawling around in the dirt. Cleaning the dirt out of my still open wound was not a fun reward at the end of the day, but totally worth it. I remember it was like 4 in the morning when we started doing the scene with the dance moves. We had to film overnight as most of the video takes place at night. We started setting up around 6pm or so, so we were definitely starting to get a little loopy after 10 hours and staying up all night for the second or third night in a row. So, I feel like Kevin Pietila (the director) was having me run the dance moves over and over because he thought I was so terrible it was funny. He was probably right, but you’ll have to watch the video yourself to verify.
3) Everlong - Foo Fighters
I’ve long been a huge Nirvana fan so, needless to say, I was fucking pumped when I heard Dave Grohl had a new project. That second record, The Colour and the Shape, just fucking hit me so hard when it came out. I mean, Monkey Wrench, My Hero, Everlong, what an amazing album. But, then I saw the video for Everlong and my head exploded. Not literally because then I wouldn’t be writing this right now. But you probably knew that. So, I probably didn’t need to say that. Dumb, Bradley. Dumb.
But seriously, that video was so good I completely tuned out the song while I was watching it. And I fucking love that song. It’s my favorite Foo Fighters song and would probably make a top 100 list for me. But, I love to judge a video based on that. If I completely forget about the song, the video is seriously sucking me in. And I’m not a visual person so that doesn’t happen often. But, it’s what happens when I watch every video on this list.
This video also began my obsession with Michel Gondry. I love everything that man does. All the Bjork videos (one barely missed this list), the other music videos, Science of Sleep (oh my God, I fucking love this movie. No one seems to love this movie the way I do. If you do, please comment and let me know I’m not alone.), Be Kind Rewind, obviously Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (one of two movies that made me cry in the theater. Though I’m sure the pot brownies I was eating while watching also contributed to my being overly emotional…); just everything. All of that eventually led to one of the coolest gifts I ever received which was a hand drawn picture of me by Michel Gondry. See below, it’s fucking badass and I love how he even did the big hand thing in the drawing which is featured in the Everlong video, which is apparently a real life nightmare he has.
4) Closing Time - Semisonic
One of my favorite 90’s one hit wonders. This video has such a cool split screen story happening and I eat up every minute of it. I love seeing this story told this way. There’s a movie that did this for the entire movie and it was amazing. It’s called Conversations with Other Women. If you haven’t seen that you should but back to the video. This is another of those songs that make me feel good when I hear it and the video was just so much more creative than a lot of the stuff we saw in the mid-late 90’s. That amazing conceit of being a couple long, uninterrupted shots, where the characters move between the two side by sides. It’s incredible. The video has like 92 million views on YouTube and I’m pretty sure at least 90 million are just from me…
5) Don’t Come Around Here No More - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
I mean, come the fuck on. How the hell did someone connect one of my favorite Tom Petty songs with Alice in Wonderland? It’s goddamn brilliant. There’s no other way to describe it. When she turns into a cake at the end, Jesus Christ, so bizarre but I love it. This whole thing, again, I just totally forget there’s a song happening. I’m just locked in. I don’t have much more to say other than I can’t believe this happened and we get to bask in its glory. Thank you Tom Petty and thank you whoever came up with this concept. I still can’t fathom listening to that extremely sad song and getting here but I love that this exists.
Runners-up: Virtual Insanity - Jamiroquai and Bachelorette - Bjork
OK, on to the second list!!
Top 5 favorite British TV shows
1) Monty Python’s Flying Circus
I know, a little predictable probably but it is what it is. It is without a doubt my favorite British television show. It comes in at #2 (behind Seinfeld) on my overall favorite shows list. I vividly remember purchasing the box set and religiously watching every episode in like 2 or 3 days. I was 15 or 16 and I can honestly say this show changed my life. I’ve written before how BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN’S “BORN TO RUN” CHANGED MY LIFE. Monty Python has had the same mind expanding effect on me. It recontextualized not only what a sketch comedy show could be but also creation and art in general. The limitless imagination of the human mind is fantastic. Sure, a few of the sketches are borderline insane and don’t really make sense, but that doesn’t take anything away from the brilliance of the all the rest. Even the mighty Bruce Springsteen has a few duds in the back catalog. Looking at you “Man’s Job,” which Springsteen played during his MTV Plugged performance (which was supposed to be “Unplugged” but the Boss does whatever the hell he wants) but suspiciously left it off his YouTube official channel even though he posted the rest of the concert… Hmmm…
2) The Office
The world’s first glimpse into the genius of Ricky Gervais. Man, the early aughts were just fucking stacked with good television. The Office, Chappelle’s Show, Arrested Development (the good years), Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Wire, oh my! But The Office to me was something I had truly not seen before. That mockumentary style was usually reserved for Christopher Guest movies and the dialogue was so realistic and natural that people assumed it was unscripted like Curb but it was actually the opposite. It was so meticulously and precisely worded that it almost felt too real. Every time I go back through the series (which I usually do once a year at least) I’m astonished at how uncomfortable Gervais is capable of making me even though I’ve seen this series at least 25 times. It’s true of all his shows but I still feel that this is his best work. I’ve never been able to get into the American version because I can’t not compare the two constantly which ruins the American series for me. I know they are two separate shows with different goals but I can’t get past the fact that this is so much better than the American version. Although, I’m sure to Gervais and co-creator Stephen Merchant love the American one just as much since that’s where they made most of their money from…
3) Fawlty Towers
I struggled so hard placing this and The Office. Fawlty Towers could easily be #2 (Ha! Poop!) on this list. In the end, I went with the show I watched more over the years (The Office). But, this show is not far behind, if at all, in terms of quality. It’s also amazing that John Cleese has 2 of my top 3 spots (although my favorite Python was always Michael Palin). There’s not a dud of an episode, but that is kind of to be expected seeing as there are only 12 episodes to begin with. Sure, the Major character is a little troublesome but that’s kind of the point. It’s such a simple premise that they somehow turn into these bizarre and hilarious ways. There are more than a few scenes that still make me laugh out loud even though I know they’re coming and I’m waiting for them. I find this is a show not all Americans know about, so I guarantee you it is well worth your time if you haven’t had the chance to watch this before.
4) The I.T. Crowd
This is the show that I probably quote the most on this list. My mom randomly sent the box set to me as a gift a number of years back. I hadn’t even heard of the show before receiving it in the mail but it has become one of my favorite TV shows ever. I love this show and the actors in it so much that one of the most exciting things that (almost) happened to me was when a song of mine was optioned for a movie starring Chris O’Dowd (one of the main characters in this show). I was more excited at the idea of soundtracking a Chris O’Dowd scene than I was about the potential money. Unfortunately, they picked a different song so I’ve vowed to never watch the movie; which is a bummer because it actually looks like a good movie. But, as anyone who knows me knows once I vow against a movie I never waver. I’m probably one of the last people on Earth that hasn’t seen Titanic, and I never will. Ever. Take that to the bank. The blood bank (any Steven Seagal/Hard to Kill fans out there? No. Me neither but I love that line. And I hate watch Seagal movies every now and again. The guy is a disgusting lunatic, look it up, but those movies are fun to make fun of).
Oh yeah, I was supposed to be talking about The I.T. Crowd. This is the perfect late night comedy show. Whenever I get Netflix anxiety (you know, too many choices) this is the show I turn to. I can pop on any season and any episode and be 100% satisfied with my choice. The interplay between the 3 main characters is so good you’d think they’d been friends for years in real life. As much as I love Matthew Berry (“What We Do in the Shadows” anyone?), I still prefer the boss from the first season but oh well. When Matthew Berry is the backup option, you’re doing pretty fucking well. When I watch the episode called Tramps Like Us, I always have to make sure I’m not drinking anything because there are a few scenes that still make me do a spit take (true story) after dozens of viewings. I’ll probably be popping on an episode later tonight once I finish writing this…
5) Spaced
Derek, another Ricky Gervais creation is probably my 5th favorite show on most days but I’ve been leaning heavily on comedies these days. And while Derek certainly has plenty of laughs, it definitely is a little too emotional for me right now so Spaced gets the nod. Also, because this is another show that I never hear anyone talk about and I always get a pretty “spaced” look when I mention it to people (ha! Puns…). I want to remedy that. No, it isn’t MY LIFE’S GOAL LIKE IT IS WITH NEWSRADIO but I do campaign hard for this show. For those who don’t know, which, again, is probably a lot of you out there (though I hope I’m wrong about that, let me know in the comments), Spaced was created by the guys responsible for Shaun of the Dead. Those two are already a formidable comedy team but this also has a hilarious Jessica Stevenson, who I believe co-created the show with Simon Pegg. I could look that up but I hate our generations addiction to always googling everything. It takes all the fun out of spirited debates about who was or wasn’t in such and such movie or what year Oregon became a state or whether or not you can see the Northern Lights from Wisconsin or any other fun, random facts that people kind of know but not enough to be positive about. I miss those days.
But, anyways, if you liked Shaun of the Dead or that style of comedy, you’ll probably love this. It’s directed by Edgar Wright as well, so it looks and feels very similar and does a lot of those awesome camera trick gags that they do in Shaun of the Dead. I can’t recommend this enough.
Come back next week for a couple new lists!
