Stuff I'm Listening To #71 - A Week of Soundtracks - Labyrinth

Artist: David Bowie

Favourites: As the World Goes Down, Underground, Magic Dance

Why?: 
David Bowie and the Muppets. This, like TRON, was far from the box office smash that the studio probably hoped for when it was first released. But like all good cult classics, it got some seriously mixed reviews back in the day. Fast forward a couple of years and suddenly the reviews do an about face later when the true value of this movie began to be realised because it was too ahead of it's time. I always loved Jim Henson's work The man was a visionary and much ahead of his time. This film and his work in the Dark Crystal is simply amazing when you realise the stunning visuals and story telling are done with practical special effects with no computer graphics. Labyrinth features a computer generated owl, but that's it. What a labour of love these movies must have been for Henson and how terrible it must have been to see your hard work get panned by critics. Henson never made another feature film after this. I guess it's the price you pay for being a visionary. 

My favourite tune from this movie is probably one of those few moments of stereotypical femininity that you'll ever get from me. I had a music box with a little ballerina dancer growing up just like most girls. 'As the World Goes Down' was a beautiful ballad and the ballroom masquerade scene fit it perfectly. As a girl in the 80s, who didn't want that gorgeous dress? David Bowie chasing you down at a masquerade ball? Yes please! The costumes and masks in that scene have always left a lasting impression on me I still feel myself blush during that scene in the movie whenever I watch it. I've never been to a masquerade ball. And after seeing this movie, I really really wanted to go to one. FYI, I still haven't gone to one.


While doing some research for this article, I discovered that the only song released for the movie was 'Underground' which was a bit surprising. I thought 'As the World Goes Down' would have been a lovely single but it was nixed before release, though a video was made for it and featured up top. 

'Underground' was a great tune, though it could have easily passed as a Bowie single on it's own. It made for a catchy intro and credit song for the movie.

Finally, the song 'Magic Dance' oft quoted by people my age randomly. Don't believe me? Sit with a bunch of Gen X-ers and say "You remind me of the Babe" and see what happens. It was a fun musical romp which wasn't necessary to move the plot whatsoever, but that was the nature of musical movies isn't it? A fun musical dance routine to break up the flow of the movie in the best way possible. That scene really shows off the fabulous marriage of design concepts of the Labyrinth Goblin's by Brian Froud and what the Henson company was capable of creating. There's a book called 'the Goblins of the Labyrith' by Terry Jones of Monty Python fame filled with all the concept art by Brian Froud. I highly recommend it for the artwork and Terry's humour if you can grab a copy.

If you haven't seen the movie, I'm giving you some serious side-eye now. It's a wonderful fantasy movie. Seriously. Jump onto whatever streaming service you use. Watch it. It's a fabulous piece of art. David Bowie, totally hamming it up with all the Muppets around him and all seriously dramatic when he needs to be means this movie is a lot of fun. 

Underground 

Magic Dance

Stuff I'm Listening To - A Week of Covers - Day 4 - Ziggy Stardust

Artist: Bauhaus

Original Artist: David Bowie
 
Favourite Lyrics: 
Now Ziggy really sang, screwed up eyes and screwed down hairdo 
Like some cat from Japan, he could lick 'em by smiling 
He could leave 'em to hang 
'Came on so loaded man, well hung and snow white tan.

Why?: Unfortunately for me, I did not hear the David Bowie version first. And as some people have noted, a song is usually dependent on which version you may have heard first. For me, it was Bauhaus. And by default it is the preferred version for me. 

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love David Bowie's original version. Bauhaus wins by a hair because I heard it first and because of some nice memories associated with it.

During my years as a freelance goth (because there were no mods around), I would spend many, many hours at a local goth club that's moved from legend to myth. Yup. I was a regular at Sanctuary, the Vampire Sex Bar when it moved to it's final location at Queen Street in Toronto (at Claremont). Bauhaus was in heavy rotation along with so many other goth and industrial dance hits. A large number of the cover songs I like were from the playlists of those evenings. (Bigod 20's version of Like a Prayer, NIne Inch Nails' version of Get Down, Make Love, 1000 Homo DJs with Supernaught. Siouxsie and the Banshees with Dear Prudence... it's a long list and many of these covers would be the first time I heard those songs (Bigod 20 one of the exceptions on the list only trumped Madge's because it was louder and angrier). I have some wonderful memories of Skank (the nickname all regulars affectionately bestowed upon this hole in the wall). 

The most important memory I have of Skank was the fact that despite feeling like an outsider most of the time, they welcomed me with open arms. The staff (bouncers and bartenders and owner) always smiled and were decent people. They were always nice to me, even the few times I got totally hammered. Nobody ever acted nasty towards me, even though I didn't quite fit in. Nobody ever commented about how I looked unless it was in a positive way. Nobody ever stole my packs of smokes either! Apparently I smoked the worst, undesirable cigarettes at the time, so while everyone else's smokes got taken from the table that day, my full pack was left behind! (Benson and Hedges Ultra Light Menthols because my dad smoked them and he wouldn't notice a pack going missing every now and then). Despite the stories you may have heard, Skank was a surprisingly safe place for me to hang out at, despite the cruddy neighbourhood it was in. The day it closed, even though I was not in attendance, was a sad day. It closed down and reopened as a Starbucks. I'm told, it's now a dental office. I wonder if they do fang porcelain crowns?

Below, David Bowie in concert. BONUS: Fellow gothlings. I found an interview with Lance, the owner of Sanctuary. If this blog post gets back to Lance, I want to say: Thanks for the memories! Sanctuary was my second home!