If you're in Britain, you'll have heard the Tony Christie/Peter Kay song '(Is This The Way To) Amarillo' - if you haven't, you've SO missed out - but on the news I just saw a version of the video made by the Royal Dragoon Guards whilst on base in Iraq. I've got to tell you, if you get the chance, PLEASE see this: we'll be telling our grandchildren!
[because having grandchildren qualifies you to talk interesting rubbish]
There's a small clip here, but it just doesn't touch the whole glory of the piece - do your best to see the whole thing, please.
The reason for my particular joy at this work of ART is not just that it's well done, or timely, or anything like that, but more that to me this is an absolutely perfect example of British humour: what it is, why it is, and how many levels it works on!
Now, everyone knows you can't dissect comedy, but I don't care ...
THE RECIPE:
(i) the Tony Christie song
- it reached #18 in the charts in 1971 (therefore almost completely unknown)
- the singer's from Sheffield (ditto)
- the lyrics are simply awesome [rhyming 'amarillo' with 'weeping like a willow' etc.] (slightly surreal)
(ii) the Peter Kay re-release
- made for Comic Relief (therefore 'cool, I suppose')
- cameos from many 'so-crap-they're-great!' stars (therefore 'cool? Maybe - I'm trying to work it out ...')
- #1 for 7 weeks (therefore 'not cool at all - 14 year olds buy it!')
- Peter Flipping Kay!! (on a whole different level of coolness)
(iii) the squaddies' video
- a perfectly orchestrated tribute (intidicative of sheer professionalism)
- in the tense political environment of the recent Iraq war, whereby we're constantly scared to bits that our soldiers are going to do something terrible or un-PC or culturally flipping stupid (indicative of sheer unprofessionalism)
- Iraqi soldiers miming a song about going to Texas (so I'll let you work that one out yourselves)
- emailed around so successfully that the MoD's system crashed (so flipping dangerous it's just not funny!)
So, to summarise: a spoof of a spoof of a song too cheesy to require spoofing, irresponsibly but professionally set against an uncertain (and very serious) political backdrop, and sabotaging the technological capabilites of the Ministry of Defence.
Ladies and Gentlemen, this is comedy.
[But does it make you LAUGH?]
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