Sunday, March 20, 2005

More Cowbell!

On this Palm Sunday, I have been advised by a Jesuit that I need more...cowbell.

Jesuit John, commenting on a song that I posted, was referring to the well-loved "Saturday Night Live" satire of VH1's "Behind the Music" (a must-see), which featured Christopher Walken as Blue Oyster Cult's producer. The sketch has become such a cult item that it inspired one Web site to compile a database of songs using bovinian percussion.


Some of my favorite memories of the late 1980s are the times I saw the Turtles' Christmas show at the Bottom Line, when they did "She'd Rather Be With Me." At the appropriate point, Eddie would say, "Cowbell solo!" and the band would fall silent for a moment as Flo would execute three perfectly timed bangs.