…and brother, could I use a little boost these days.
It’s not the greatest rendition of the song, but everyone involved looks to be having fun:
You know, I’ve never been much of a Poison fan beyond their three or four biggest hits, and I’ve never had an opinion about Bret Michaels one way or the other, but for some reason, I find that I was really rooting for him during his recent health crisis, and I’m very pleased he pulled through. Possibly because Bret himself seems to be so damn grateful to be alive. His grin and his good cheer are infectious.
Having a highly public near-death experience certainly seems to have given his career a shot in the arm… he’s turning up everywhere, from American Idol to a duet with Mylie Cyrus on Good Morning, America to a Jimmy Buffett concert. A hair-metal vocalist and Mr. Margaritaville? Or Hannah Montana? Who would’ve ever predicted that?! He’s even scheduled to do a double-bill with my main man, Rick Springfield, on July 31st in Pala, California. Again, that’s not a pairing I ever would’ve imagined, but who knows, maybe it’s one of those “so crazy it just might work” things. Certainly the ladies in attendance will enjoy the male eye candy, or so The Girlfriend informs me. (She likes Bret’s eyes and Rick’s… well, pretty much everything.)
What was it Fitzgerald said about Americans not getting second acts? Wonder what he would’ve made of this one?
I don’t know who the dude in the hat was, but they seemed to be having a good time. Great song, anyway–it would be hard to screw that one up.
Robert, I know you’re not too conscious of pop culture and celebrity gossip, but every once in a while you still manage to surprise me with the gaps in your knowledge. (Not criticizing — I have lots of gaps on subjects a hell of a lot more important!)
The dude in the hat is Bret Michaels, the lead singer of a late-80s glam-metal band called Poison (probably best known for the songs “Talk Dirty to Me” and “Every Rose Has Its Thorn”). In recent years, he’s been just another has-been rocker scraping by on a series of cheesy and/or sleazy reality TV shows, but a few months ago, he nearly died from some kind of hemorrhage in his brain. He’s since become a media darling; I would have expected you’d seen his face on supermarket tabloids or something. He’s been on all the covers.
In interviews and other appearances since his brush with death, he comes across as very sympathetic, grateful, and grounded, a genuine nice guy, and very much the opposite of his earlier image. I think that’s a big factor in why he’s getting so much attention.
Isn’t it nice to be surprised at our advanced age?
I do remember Poison, or the name anyway. I was a bit oblivious in high school, too. Since I gave up TV (one of the top five things I ever did), the magazine covers at the supermarket just blur together. I have no idea who these people are. I gather that some of them are vampires.
Indeed. And some of them are werewolves, too…