When Good Musicians, Go Horribly Wrong

No one is perfect, everyone makes mistakes.  Some just make them in the public eye and they last forever.  Take musicians for example, once it's down on tape, it's there forever.  The bigger the band/musician is, the bigger the mistake will be.  Remember, this is just me babbling.  These so called "mistakes" by me are just my opinion, someone liked it.  In fact, in many instances it's very popular, but that doesn't make it good.

Billy Joel - Not Playing Piano:  Look Mr. Joel, you may not be the greatest piano player in the world, but you're going to be better than the doofus in the video.  You're the Piano Man, that's what people want to see...not you playing guitar.  You can hire people to play guitar for you, who are probably better players than you.  How do you get from here to this abomination?  If I was ever going to buy tickets to see you in concert, you better have that piano strapped to you or at least a keytar or even an accordion, something with keys.

The Beatles - Letting Ringo Sing:  When I first started listening to the Beatles at a young age, I would ask my dad who was singing each song.  I knew there were different voices, I just didn't know who they were.  So when I heard Ringo's voice, I asked if that was the "funny, short man, that can't play drums."  I don't really dislike any Beatles songs.  Even their bad songs are better than most bands, best, but whenever I hear Ringo, it just sounds like music for children.

The next two, you really have to ask, why for both?

Styx - Kilroy Was Here and ELO - Xanadu:  My punk credentials (which are suspect, at best) just got flushed down the toilet, but yes, I like both Styx and Electric Light Orchestra.  Just not these albums.  Styx goes from one of their better albums (still theatrical, but not bad), Paradise Theater to a concept album about "a future, where rock music is outlawed" and takes it's name from a graffiti saying.  I know they're not exactly the same, but I've always thought Kilroy was a ripoff of RUSH's 2112.  On Paradise Theater, you get rocking songs like Too Much Time On My Hands (because Tommy Shaw wrote it and sings it) and even a rocker by Dennis DeYoung (Mr. Opera, the guy that wanted to act out Kilroy live, every night) with Rockin' The Paradise.  Instead, you get Don't Let It End.  Mr. DeYoung, please let it end...that album and tour was the reason why Tommy Shaw left the band.

The Electric Light Orchestra, fall into this because, of the association with the movie.  They wrote the soundtrack for it.  I was going to explain the plot, but I'm not sure I really understand it myself.  So, one of the worst movies in history, it was nominated for most of the Razzies categories that year (their debut) and it pretty much killed the band.  The album was a success, but their success was on the quick decline.  Not hard to believe when you get, I'm Alive and All Over The World.  They probably thought they had a good thing going with doing the movie.  You figure, you have Olivia Newton - John, Swan from The Warriors (Michael Beck) and Fred Astaire, what could go wrong?  There's a quote from Michael Beck that goes, "The Warriors opened a lot of doors for me in film, which Xanadu quickly closed."

I make a ton of mistakes, but you probably won't hear about them, even if I know you.  Right now, my acting career is better than Michael Beck's.  I wasn't in Xanadu after all.