I just read Maphet's blog with the link to the "disturbing" clip of what appears to be a Spock music video. Yes, it's not a well-known fact, but Leonard Nimoy actually built a side career as a crooner after the pop success of the Star Trek franchise. Or maybe he didn't so much as build a career as he put out several mystifying albums, each topping the previous for sheer awfulness. I found out about this musical treasure trove via The Most Annoying Music Show on NPR. And it just makes you wonder: how many wooden, amusical sci-fi actors have put out great music like this that just goes COMPLETELY IGNORED by TRL?
As it turns out, there's at least one other: none other than Nimoy's co-star William Shatner! Yes, Capt. James T. Kirk can sing. Well no, he can't. But that didn't stop him from making "The Transformed Man", which is described in my liner notes as, "...a bewildering collision of Dylan, Shakespeare and the Beatles narrated over a strangely disconnected free-for-all..."
Anyway, based on the recommendation from the Most Annoying Music Show, I bought a CD called "Spaced Out: The Very Best of Nimoy & Shatner", which is every bit as senseless and dreadful as it sounds. Among the notable covers are, "If I Had a Hammer", "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "I Walk the Line". Shatner also contributes a terrifying rendition of "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", which by itself is enough to necessitate heavy consumption of LSD (to borrow from the old Beatles urban legend). Shatner is not so much a singer as he is an interpreter, which affords him the freedom to do away with all melody and most rhythm. He's a true artiste that way.
Another standout is Nimoy's "Highly Illogical", a Vulcan's humorous take on the crazy antics of earthlings:
take the case of your automobiles/
greatest invention since man discovered wheels/
double-barrelled carburetors rush you into place/
but you never can find a PARKING PLACE -- highly illogical!
The liner notes are hilarious, and it's not clear whether the superlatives are sincere or tongue-in-cheek. A few gems:
-Once Star Trek was cancelled, Nimoy "could pursue his unique blend of cabaret-style showmanship and sincere soul-searching unfettered".
-Shatner apparently released a double LP live album ("a stimulating memento of his dramatic narratives").
-"Discover Bill's staggering interpretations of 'Mr. Tambourine Man' and 'Lucy...' and you'll get a pretty good handle on his evocative style."
The real question here is how these albums came to be. Did the Universal Music execs actually have a meeting when they said, "we've got to get a record of Spock singing 'Ruby Don't Take Your Love to Town'. That would sell like hot cakes."? Was it simply hubris on the part of Shatner and Nimoy that enabled them to project the success of Star Trek onto a possible music career? Or is it all some kind of industry in-joke on those most devoted trekkies who'll buy anything Trekish? That, to me, is the only explanation for having Spock sing a song like "I'd Love Making Love to You".
Anyway, it's a pleasure to listen to this CD and to marvel in it's badness. Apalling in its amusicality, it's a true artistic nadir, a towering monument of poor judgement and aesthetic awfulness.
Posted by aokie at September 22, 2003 08:18 PMI've gotten the impression that Shatner has spent the rest of his post-Star Trek career reacting against beeing a pop icon. I wonder if this was all part of a larger ploy that Nimoy was complicit in to keep Trekkies from taking them so serioiusly.
Or, well, consider the times.... Maybe he was serious.
Posted by: maphet at September 23, 2003 08:49 AMWell, it's certainly not obvious that the humour is intentional. Like I said, the liner notes generally gush and sound overall pretty sincere. If it's not a joke, it's a pretty serious case of hubris.
Posted by: Abe at September 23, 2003 09:02 AM