Posted on 11/29/2024 12:16:02 PM PST by nickcarraway
Blue Oyster Cult's Buck Dharma reflected again on the immortal Saturday Night Live "More Cowbell" sketch that lampooned their hit song "(Don't Fear) The Reaper," saying the results were ultimately positive — even if it forced the band to take preventative measures in concert.
The sketch, which aired on April 8, 2000, starred Will Ferrell as fictional band member Gene Frenkle and Christopher Walken as producer Bruce Dickinson. Ferrell, dressed in a ridiculously tight and low-cut shirt, plays the cowbell so aggressively while recording "Reaper" that he distracts and infuriates his bandmates. Walken, however, is obsessed with capturing more of the "dynamite sound," famously declaring, "I've got a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell!"
"More Cowbell" has become one of the most popular sketches in SNL history, and it's changed the lives of those involved, for better or worse. But as Dharma told Vulture, the good has outweighed the bad.
Why Blue Oyster Cult Had to Ban Cowbells at Their Shows
"It’s funny to think about," Dharma said. "I feel bonded to Will and Christopher in a way, because we’re all at the mercy of the cowbell sketch in different ways. I feel a little bit of kinship and sympathy with them. Will’s character, Gene Frenkle, was made up. We dedicate the song to him sometimes. But I would tell Christopher: It’s all bearable, I suppose. Blue Oyster Cult got through it and we persevered. When we play 'Reaper,' people still mimic playing the cowbell, and we had to ban people from bringing actual cowbells to the concerts. But, again, it’s a tiny cross to bear."
The "More Cowbell" sketch was so popular that it even forced Blue Oyster Cult to retroactively add cowbell to live performances of their hit song. "For 20-odd years, we didn’t use a live cowbell for our shows and never considered it," Dharma explained. "We had to play the cowbell because there was just no getting away from it. I’m grateful that as significant as the sketch is — because after 25 years, it still is — it didn’t kill the song, its original intent, or its original mood. It’s still used as a cue in horror movies when you want that mysterious and metaphysically uneasy vibe. So I’m glad the sketch didn’t kill the song and didn’t make it one big joke."
As for whether Walken's prescription for more of the signature instrument was correct, Dharma said: "I think the cowbell was just as loud as it should be."
Ping
Hmmm. This thread needs more of something. Hmm. Wonder what it needs....
First concert I ever saw was Blue Oyster Cult, the opening act for Uriah Heep in Orlando, FL. Probably around 1975 or 1976.
Never saw that. It was WONDERFUL. Myriad thanks. Great song, too.
“I’m Burning for You” was “our song” for me and my first girlfriend.
First concert I ever saw was Blue Oyster Cult as well! I think ‘76 or ‘77. Two backup bands opened for them; a band called Lake (I think), and Cheap Trick.
Whose arm is that in the background behind Will Ferrell on the right side?
By the way, that was when laser light shows started appearing. I thought it was pretty cool, but very primitive when compared to what Trans Siberian Orchestra is doing now!
One of the greats. Guess what! I’ve got a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell!
I don’t remember cowbells seeing them at the Allen theater back in 75.
Those early laser lights caused eye damage. I was at the concert in Charleston, W.va during that tour and got tagged once. Always one of my favorite bands.
Maybe Parnell?
Can’t be he was standing in front of him and he wasn’t wearing a watch. Note thinking of it, I’m thinking it’s a camera man’s reflection in the plexiglass windows of that faux control booth.
Is he morphing into of the planet of the apes?
I think that is one of the greatest openings for a movie...that song, as it pans through all the areas of the dead people killed by the virus.
It just...fits. I hate seeing that twerp’s face in that series, though. He is a libtard through and through.
Yet little jerks managed to bring them into the shows, especially the outdoor venues.
Irritated every one no end.
Eric Bloom, of the band, went to my school in Connecticut. He graduated long before I entered in sixth grade.
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