It's Blue Oyster Cult's World (You'll Soon Just Be Living In It)

As music is essential to the existence of both Paloma and me, it’s fortuitous that, for the most part, our tastes are aligned. There are, not surprisingly, exceptions and most are remnants of our respective childhoods, rooted in fond memories intrinsic to each of us.

Paloma would shake her head at the poster of Asia’s first album cover which adorned my bedroom wall when we first met. She would shun my desire to put on some Journey – although, much later, I would learn that she had, in fact, seen them on their Escape tour.

And, she refused to acknowledge the unmitigated greatness of Blue Oyster Cult. Perhaps that is hyperbolic, but it is pleasing to know that we are poised on the precipice of a Blue Oyster Cult revival which will vindicate my long-standing defense of the band and reduce all naysayers to addle-pated apologists staring boggle-eyed and cowering before a tide of global adoration that will make the American Idol sycophants appear to be flaccid and inert in their support…well…just be prepared.

My introduction to Blue Oyster Cult came via a third-grade classmate, Schrader, who, to appropriate Kramer’s description of Newman on Seinfeld, was “portly, yet smart as a whip.” Schrader would blather on and on about the band while I would attempt to negotiate lunchtime swaps of tater tots for desserts.

As my own interest in music was a good five years away, I missed Blue Oyster Cult’s heyday and my only exposure at that point was a handful of older tracks heard on radio (mainly limited to (Don’t Fear) The Reaper), although, Shooting Shark and Dancin’ In The Ruins did get some airplay where I lived.

Of course, the foundation for the imminent Blue Oyster Cult revival was laid with Saturday Night Live and the mania surrounding Christopher Walken’s insistence on “more cowbell.” It has now reached critical mass as, much to my delighted ears, I am hearing Godzilla used in some commercial. Proudly I can say I have no idea product it is presumed I will provoked to purchase, but I am delighted at the prospect of the song blaring from televisions nationwide.

And Paloma, well, I can’t say she is totally on board with Blue Oyster Cult, but thanks to negotiating skills honed bartering for tater tots years ago, I managed to secure her blessing to play their compilation The Workshop Of The Telescopes last week as we drove about doing errands. I think she’s cracking

Blue Oyster Cult – Veteran Of The Psychic Wars
Ominous and spooky (but not too ominous and spooky), it was these qualities which, I suspect, drew the aforementioned Schrader to the band. My introduction to this song was through its appearance in the movie Heavy Metal, a movie that’s viewing – due to its combination of cartoons, rock music, and an R-rating – was required to me and my teen aged friends.

Blue Oyster Cult – Goin’ Through The Motions
I first heard Goin’ Through The Motions when Bonnie Tyler covered it on her Faster Than The Speed Of Night album. The mind boggles to imagine Blue Oyster Cult covering Total Eclipse Of The Heart.

Blue Oyster Cult – In Thee
As I mentioned in reference to Shooting Shark , Patti Smith was at one-time romantically involved with Blue Oyster Cult keyboardist Allen Lanier and wrote several of the band’s songs. In Thee, written by Lanier, was written about Smith.

Blue Oyster Cult – Godzilla

Blue Oyster Cult – Burnin’ For You
Sure, Blue Oyster Cult was lumped in with early heavy metal bands like Steppenwolf, Black Sabbath, and Led Zeppelin, but – due to my frame of reference when I discovered music – heavy metal was music whose practitioners wore spandex and either sang of non-stop parties or dragons. Well, I suppose Godzilla fulfills the latter requirement, but only Blue Oyster Cult had the vision to pay homage to the greatest dragon of them all.

As for Burnin’ For You, quick research reveals it to be one of the band’s two songs to be Top 40 hits in America – for now.

Blue Oyster Cult – Dancin’ In The Ruins
Growing up in Sticksville, MTV was unavailable to us during its infancy. By the time it did arrive (three years after the rest of the world), Blue Oyster Cult was becoming an afterthought. However, Dancin’ In The Ruins would get played in the wee hours and was the first video of the band I ever saw. Of course, the video – seemingly inspired by Mad Max – would lead the viewer to believe Skatebordin’ In The Ruins would have been a more appropriate (albeit more cumbersome) title.