A couple of months back, our erudite music editor Judy Berman put together a list of her most memorable fictional characters from songs. The feature inspired plenty of talk, both among commenters and at Flavorpill HQ, and we’ve been meaning to do a follow-up ever since. Now, with all our end-of-year list making and beginning-of-year predicting over and done with, we’ve finally got around to revisiting the idea — so, after the jump, we’ve pulled together 10 more of our favorite fictional characters from songs. As ever, suggestions are welcome!
Stagger Lee
You could almost do a whole feature on the various depictions of Stagger Lee over the years. He first appeared in the folk song “Stagolee,” which was inspired by the actions of one Lee Shelton, a St. Louis pimp who shot a man named William Lyons in 1895 (apparently the murder was inspired by Lyons’ refusal to return Shelton’s hat). Since then, though, the character has taken on a life of its own, featuring in songs by artists as diverse as The Grateful Dead, The Clash, and, um, Snatch and the Poontangs. For us, though, the immortal Stagger Lee will always be the gloriously foul-mouthed villain from Nick Cave’s Murder Ballads. Fun fact: Cave’s mother habitually absents herself from the room when he plays this live.
Comments (9)
How about Eleanor Rigby and Big, Bad Leroy Brown?
harold of the rocks – Primus
“harold he’s a friendly guy, he rambles on and on. he’ll talk the balls of a rhinosaurus…”
I don’t know if this two-for-one was mentioned in a previous piece, but how about Randy Newman’s ‘Suzanne’ & her nameless obsessor? They’re a double helix of crazed song character & the woman who perhaps only exists in the narrator’s disturbed mind. Newman has had many humorous or lowlife people in his lyrics, but it’s an absolutely chilling tune to hear. Was it a ‘the other side of the coin’ musical reaction to Leonard Cohen’s earlier free spirit of the same name? Hmm.
What about Dooley Jones? Or Eli from Three Dog Night? or the partly true “Suzanne” from Fire and Rain? Or the many faces painted by Peter Gabriel? Hmmm, Gloria? U2?
Dr. Octagon, paramedic fetus of the east with priests.
Halfsharkalligatorhalfman.
Ahh. That brings me back to simpler times filled with dutchmasters and high school girls (yes, I too was in high school then, you sick sicko’s). Good times.
What about Yoshimi?
Still no Hour Hero Yes??
Charlotte the Harlot!
Thought Veronica was about Costello’s grandmother.
Post a new comment