Last year, I featured a different spooky song each day in October for a feature I called 31 Songs For Halloween. I don’t think I’ll be able to pull off anything that ambitious this season, but I would like to bring back some of the profiles for those who might not have seen them the first time around.
The Insiders were one of those Chicago area bands like Off Broadway, Bohemia, The Elvis Brothers, and Shoes, that never achieved the lasting success they deserved. Things certainly looked promising back in 1987 when The Insiders released their debut, Ghost On The Beach, on Epic. The title track, written by John Siegle and Gary Yerkins, was not only a perfect blast of power pop with muscular guitar playing and an indelible melody, it also offered the sure-fire elements of a summer romance and a hint of the supernatural.
The sexy video went into heavy rotation on MTV, and helped The Insiders land a beer commercial. The well-honed lyrics describe a one night stand on the beach beside a romantic campfire as the waves crash in. “Making love almost the moment we met./A soggy Romeo, a soakin’ wet Juliet.” Later, it’s almost as if the encounter never took place. “The sand is smooth like no woman ever walked there./The wind silent like no man ever spoke.” All of which leads the guy to an eerie conclusion. “As I stand under the moon/And I’ll see you, washed up, some ghost inside a bottle/Out on the beach.” Guess that means he didn’t get her number.
No comments:
Post a Comment