This Is Spinal Tap [Blu-ray] starring
Rob Reiner, Michael McKean,
Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer
Theyre Like Poets. Theyre Like Shelley And Byron.
Director Marty DiBergi (Rob Reiner) solemnly alerts us to the glory that
was Spinal Tap in his introduction to this rockumentary about the
legendary British heavy-metal group, featuring lead guitarist Nigel Tufnel
(Christopher Guest), lead singer David St. Hubbins (Michael McKean),
bassist Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer), and a succession of drummers
whose careers were cut short by spontaneously combusting on their stool,
drowning in somebody elses vomit, or otherwise perishing in untimely
fashion. Under DiBergis studious interrogation, the band and their familiars
retrace the bands evolution from head-bopping Mersey Beat poseurs to
head-banging metal poseurs, each change in musical direction or tonsorial
chic having little effect on the surviving trios sublime idiocy. For, as St.
Hubbins (hes the deep one, relatively speaking) sagely observes, Its such
a fine line between stupid and clever. Happily for us, director Reiner, who
developed the underlying story line with Guest and former Credibility Gap
pranksters McKean and Shearer, stays squarely on the right side of the
line, even as his writer-actors remain hilariously trapped on the other side.
In lieu of a formal shooting script, the quartet created an extensive and
detailed band history ripe with the sort of dead-pan detail that hard-core
rock historians and screwball aficionados will savor on countless replays;
with the three Tap members also musicians themselves, the band
developed its stage act under the unsuspecting noses of L.A. club
denizens, who accepted them as just as loud, flashy, sexist, and obvious
as any other mullet-tressed, leather-garbed brigade of guitar slingers, circa
1984. The resulting footage thus manages to lob its punch lines and build
its characters (including some thinly veiled character assassinations of
various industry folks) with a loose, tossed-away verve rooted in the
improvisational approach. This Is Spinal Tap remains the funniest, and
most truthful, look at rock culture ever filmed and a personal best for all
involved. --Sam Sutherland
Ive been a fan of Spinal Tap since they went under the name of The (New)
Originals. After the tragic gardening death of their first drummer, John
Stumpy Pepys, Tap tapped Eric Stumpy Joe Childs to fill the fills and thus
began their journey of reputation as Englands loudest band. I remember
when they opened for Deep Purple in 1972, Ritchie Blackmore, watching
backstage, was so intimidated by them that he locked himself in a
bathroom for the rest of the night and his band had to soldier on playing a
two hour show without him. Spinal Tap were kicked off the bill after one
gig.
While I thought Brainhammer and Nerve Damage provided Spinal Tap
adequate practice to become a full-fledged heavy metal outfit, they really
came into their own with the release of Blood To Let. I remember my
buddy bringing his new Master Of Reality LP over to my house one day
and I laughed at Sabbaths feeble attempt at heaviness. I took his silly
record off the turntable, broke it in half, plunked Blood To Let down in its
place and watched as his head exploded all over my moms new sofa after
hearing the first two chords of the title track. It was a glorious time to be a
Tapper.
Unfortunately, tragedy again struck the band two years later when Stumpy
Joe died by choking on his own vomit. Worst of all was the release of the
lightweight Intravenus de Milo. THIS was their follow-up to the heaviest
record of all time (at the time)?! Their pretentious nonsense kicked up a
few more notches with the release of The Gospel According To Spinal
Tap, which is still cited as one of the worst mistakes a rock band has ever
made. I was officially over this band by 1975.
Years later, in 82, I saw Judas Priest on tour and Spinal Tap happened to
be opening for them. The band that once blew Deep Purple off the stage
was now greeted with boos and jeers from a hostile crowd growing more
impatient by the second for their Metal Gods to come out and show them
how its really done. Then, something amazing happened. Spinal Tap
started playing a song. Only this time, it wasnt weak. It was actually pretty
good. No, it was GREAT! The song they played was the first single off their
new LP Smell The Glove entitled Hell Hole. This song was so awesome
that the crowds cheers drowned the amps out before the second chorus.
Spinal Tap played for another 45 minutes or so, but I couldnt even tell what
the other songs were because of all the crowd noise. It was Beatlemania
all over again. The next day, the Hell Hole single had pushed 427 units.
Wow.
But it still wasnt enough for Spinal Tap. Little did we the audience know,
filmmaker Marty DiBergi had filmed the whole performance as part of his
documentary on the band. Two years later, This Is Spinal Tap was
released and the bands new album shot to 58 on the Billboard Chart.
Spinal Tap were finally back. Theyd earned their spot as the 58th most
popular heavy metal band that week.
Watching this film taught me the secret of being sort of successful. When I
got home from my first screening, I immediately wrote the number eleven
on my amp and I could HEAR myself actually playing LOUDER!! Nobody
else could, but thats because theyre stupid. Its such a fine line between
clever and stupid, as a wise sage once said.
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