Jan 292009
I’m sure I’m not the only person who wonders what’s been going on in Macca’s noggin these last few years. The mystery deepens in this recent clip from The Colbert Report. Is this just the update of The Chris Farley Show sketch, taking into account the post-Gervais comedy landscape? Or is something else going on here? Who exactly is having the Last Laugh in this sketch?
An aside: I’m really tired of jokes about Ringo being “lucky” to be in the Beatles. Very unoriginal and hacky.
I thought this was pretty funny – much funnier than I would have expected from McCartney. Maybe it’s his old man’s gruff voice that’s setting in. He seemed to me like he’s finally become an old guy who doesn’t care to please the media anymore. We’ll see how long that lasts when next presented with an opportunity to claim that he was ahead of Lennon on some curve or another, but I felt like *I* had the last laugh.
I sense that early next week we’ll be discussing two or three people in rock luckier than Ringo.
Another Northwestern grad made good! Or bad, depending on your taste. Anyone here seen Hedwig and the Angry Inch? Yep – another, from the same few years.
Perhaps a better way to sum my feelings about this clip: When watching it, I got a definite latter-day Christopher Walken vibe from McCartney, especially when he was doing that screaming bit.
It’s so hard to comment on McCartney’s schtick here — the piece is obviously massively edited. I mean, it’s funny, but it ain’t dialog!
COP OUT, Hrrundi! Schtick is schtick, no? You think the Exile on Main Street puppeteer just winged it?
No, Ringo is the luckiest man in rock. To be worth $200 mill for being at the right place and the right time (and the right drummer)puts him at the top.
I think at a certain level he knows it too. That’s why he can be all “peace and love”. He’s got it made!
I think the clip is great. Edited just like his “Know Your District” segments. The Ebony and Ivory montage is awesome. Colbert bump indeed!
But Andyr, you said it: Ringo WAS “the right drummer.” All that right time, right place stuff would have meant little if he were, say, Rick Buckler:P
John, Paul, and George were in the right place at the right time too.
It’s not a cop-out to point out that McCartney probably wasn’t responsible for 70% of the “funny dialog” in that bit. This thread began by commenting on what McCartney had to say, and how funny he was. My point is that Macca wasn’t the funny one here — it was Colbert and his staff in the editing suite.
Was Oats even saying he was funny? To tell the truth, I don’t know what Oats was saying other than to ask what we thought. There’s a good chance that Colbert’s not “responsible” for 70% of his dialog too, right? It’s all about delivery, and I’m saying that this may be McCartney’s best acting job ever. I’ve always thought he was by far the worst comedic actor among the Beatles. This new, gruff Macca, though, may be onto something. He’s like the Dylan or Tom Waits of McCartneys. Of course, I’m talking to the guy who doesn’t like Dylan. Alexmagic, you know what I’m talkin’ about, right?
I’m having some technical difficulties that have prevented me from properly viewing the clip in question, but I think I hear you, Mod. I actually think McCartney’s been slowly rolling out this new persona for a while. I remember a Conan O’Brien interview from a few years back that involved him threatening Conan’s life.
I also think that history will eventually show – and by history, I mean someone here – that George won A Hard Day’s Night and Help! from a comedic performance standpoint.
Interesting Macca interview here:
http://www.laweekly.com/2009-01-15/music/paul-mccartney-the-kristine-mckenna-interview/
Wasn’t Ringo a highly regarded drummer and a bigger star than The Silver Beatles were (with Rory Storm)? And wasn’t he hand-picked and stolen from The Hurricanes because he was a great drummer and showman, had style, etc?
George had yet to write anything, most of their stuff was covers at that point. I’d say they were lucky to get him!
It looked to me like the two guys weren’t even in the same room…or country.