AJOBO (7/21/14)
Do you consider your pets family? I think these days it might be barbaric not to. Sure, hundreds of years ago, cats caught mice and dogs helped hunt, but I would wager that even then, there was a special bond between human and beast. After all, domesticated animals have been around for centuries. It could be argued that the Ancient Egyptians spoiled their cats so irreparably that it gave all future descendants an unearned sense of entitlement.
Consider songs inspired by animals. The Beatles’ “Martha My Dear” was Paul McCartney’s love letter to his affable sheepdog, while “Shorty Blackwell” by the Monkees was written from the perspective of Micky Dolenz’s cat, and “Ben” was Michael Jackson’s rat. Throughout music history, pets have been some of the biggest muses and confidantes of artists. Not to mention fans; as Igor Stravinsky said, “My music is best understood by children and animals.”
Last week, I had a friendly brush with feline fame. “Grumpy Cat” (real name: Tardar Sauce), perhaps the most famous cat in the world, and “Oskar the Blind Cat” appeared at Bleecker Street Records in Greenwich Village to promote “Cat Summer,” a new single and video in which they, along with Hamilton the Hipster Cat, Oskar’s companion Klaus, and Nala Cat, feature.
Yes, I’m talking about Internet cats on REBEAT. I’m not proud.
The event was incredibly interesting. Lines around the block, fans wearing Grumpy Cat t-shirts and waving stuffed animals, near hysteria during posed photographs between the two “celebrities” (while BSR’s resident mouse-chaser Keevah skulked about). It was hard to believe it was all for a couple of cats, no matter how unique or famous. Folks stopping on the street to ask what was up smiled politely in that “I’m going to back away now because you’re all out of your minds” kind of way. Truly, you’d expect this kind of scene for Jimmy Page, but not for someone’s pet.
It would all seem justifiably silly if there weren’t a point to all the madness. Yes, meeting Tardar Sauce and Oskar was cool, and I got a free t-shirt, but more than that, “Cat Summer” is actually an important movement about giving back and using Internet celebrity for good. In fact, Friskies will match every view of its music video through Labor Day (up to one million) with a meal for a cat in need. Sure, the song’s a little pandering and cliched, but hey, watching cute kitties crawl around for three minutes feeds a hungry cat! Win, win!
(And you know if YouTube had been a thing in the ’60s, Paul would have had a whole channel devoted to Martha chasing balls in the yard.)
This Week On REBEAT:
– I promised you an interview with the fabulous Circe Link last week, but it never ran, due to the untimely death of Mr. Archie Andrews (1941-2014). Not to worry! Carey Farrell’s interview with the first lady of “cowboy jazz” debuts tomorrow — you don’t want to miss it!
– Like the REBEAT mission states, mid-century music and culture is felt even today in its influence on modern artists and styles. One band, the Jigsaw Seen, has spent quality time on the road since the ’80s, learning from masters like Dave Davies, and is now readying its new album for release in the next few months. Jen Cunningham gives us the rundown on what to expect from these indie darlings and their new collection, Old Man Reverb.
– In celebration of Bobbie Gentry’s 70th birthday on Sunday, Sharon Lacey presents a guide to Ms. Gentry’s classic catalog and a special birthday countdown of hits, rarities and treasures.
All of these stories, plus RAVER and more, await you this week on REBEAT. As always, stay tuned.
-AJB
