Popular Music. What does it mean? Well, let's break it down. "Popular" means something well-liked by many people. "Music" is music. Put them together and you've got the phenomenon that all the kids today love! But are you adequately informed about this fad that will surely be gone any day now? Never fear! Josh is here to keep you informed and up to date with some important facts! So sit back, relax, and feel your brain fill up! With Knowledge!
– It is commonly believed that Elvis's first single to place on the US Country charts was “Baby Let's Play House!” Presley's first country-charting single was actually his recording of “One Minute Man,” later covered by Missy Elliott!
– Ringo Starr, Charles Manson, Bob Dylan, and Sean Connery all auditioned to be original members of the Rolling Stones! Only Starr and Manson made the cut, and Bob Dylan drowned his sorrows by writing “Like a Rolling Stone” as a wishful-thinking catharsis! Connery went on to become a founding member of Peter, Paul, and Mary!
– Eighties teen idol Debbie Gibson's career took a downturn after her 1992 marriage to Bobby Brown! She wasn't helped by horrible reviews for her performance in the movie “Reservoir Dogs!”
– The members of Motley Crue are remembered for their glam rock music and outrageous lifestyles! They even have a reunion tour on the road! However, most of the members now suffer from various kinds of diseases, many of them sexually transmitted!
– “Lean on Me,” the sole number one hit by Bill Withers, was not actually sung by Withers! After label heads rejected his vocals as “too touchy feely,” the song was rerecorded with an uncredited Michael Jackson, then of the Jackson Five, singing in the released version!
– “Irish” supergroup U2 are not actually Irish! They have taken on Irish mannerisms, accents and even paid actors to claim to be Irish relatives in a bid for rock stardom that was determined largely by focus group! Most of the individual members are alternately puppets or CGI, depending upon the needs of the media they're appearing in! Except for the Edge, who is a Golem created by a Jewish village in the 15th century to protect them, which he still does in his spare time!
– Speaking of Ireland, velvet voiced crooner Van Morrison, so beloved by many fans of his trippy psychedelic pop, is in reality a bloated curmudgeonly eccentric whose concerts are borderline unlistenable! He credits his success to a steady diet of bacon fat and pureed tater tots!
– Many people think that the White Stripes are brother and sister! The band themselves started this rumor, until an enterprising Detroit paper dug up the truth: They are a mother and son! Just like Weezer!
– The Foo Fighters are one of the most popular bands out there today, but their origins are born of tragedy! It's members are all reincarnations of Italian soldiers killed in World War II!
– Pop superstar Shakira is half-Latina and half talentless vapid eye-candy automaton!
– Motown founder Barry Gordy founded his famous Detroit label with moneys inherited from his father, King Olav V of Norway!
– Did you know that TV's Ozzy Osbourne was once a successful musician? Maybe so, but did you also know that before either of those successful careers he played the role of “Opie” on “The Andy Griffith Show,” growing up before America's eyes? You've come a long way, Opie!
That's all this time! Tune in soon for more heaping helpings of knowledge from my overloaded brain! Until then, stay smart!
