Music Video Fridays - Siouxsie & the Banshees

This week's edition was inspired by Dave2 who channeled his inner Goth and became Death yesterday.

For those of you who aren't comic-book geeks (and you should be), Death is a character created by Neil Gaiman back in the late 80's as part of a family of anthropomorphic beings called The Endless. He wrote about them in his series The Sandman. She was a pixie-ish waif of a girl, very Goth and Gaiman's clear inspiration for her was Siouxsie Sioux who fronted Siouxsie & the Banshees. Well, Gaimain along with artists Mike Dringenberg and Malcolm Jones III. Give credit where credit is due.

Anyway, Siouxsie & the Banshees were an early favorite band of mine. My first concert ever was a Siouxsie show in 1982 or 1983. There were so many cute Goth girlies there that I feared permanent damage to my innocent 16 year-old heart. I dug the Goth aesthetic. Still do, to a degree. While I myself was never Goth, I had a thing for Goth chickies. An itch that never got scratched, by the way. A boy can dream though. My current Goth fixation is with Pauley Perrette who plays Goth cutie Abby Sciutto on NCIS. Yum. She's not Goth in real life, but she may have been at one point. I don't know. Isn't she cute though?

Onward to the music. This first song up is an all-time favorite of mine. And one of those songs that brings me right back to the mid-80's. "Cities in Dust" was a pretty big hit for them back in 1986. The entire album ("Tinderbox") was great.

Cities in Dust
Water was running; children were running
You were running out of time
Under the mountain, a golden fountain
Were you praying at the Lares shrine?
But ohh oh your city lies in dust, my friend
ohh oh your city lies in dust, my friend

We found you hiding, we found you lying
Choking on the dirt and sand
Your former glories and all the stories
Dragged and washed with eager hands

But ohh oh your city lies in dust, my friend
ohh oh your city lies in dust, my friend
your city lies in dust

Water was running; children were running
We found you hiding, we found you lying
Water was running; children were running
We found you hiding, we found you lying
your city lies in dust
ohh oh your city lies in dust, my friend

Hot and burning in your nostrils
Pouring down your gaping mouth
Your molten bodies blanket of cinders
Caught in the throes .......

Ohh oh your city lies in dust, my friend
Ohh oh your city lies in dust, my friend
Ohh oh your city lies in dust, my friend
Ohh oh your city lies in dust, my friend

Your city lies in dust

The next song is a cover of an Iggy Pop tune called "The Passenger" which was on their album "Through the Looking Glass". An entire album of covers released in 1987. In a lot of ways, this is my favorite Siouxsie album along with "Tinderbox". Kraftwerk, Television, Roxy Music, The Doors, John Cale and The Doors were all covered as well. Great fun album.

The Passenger (by Iggy Pop)
I am the passenger
And I ride and I ride
I ride through the city's backside
I see the stars come out of the sky
Yeah, they're bright in a hollow sky
You know it looks so good tonight

I am the passenger
I stay under glass
I look through my window so bright
I see the stars come out tonight
I see the bright and hollow sky
Over the city's a rip in the sky
And everything looks good tonight
Singin la la la la la-la-la la
La la la la la-la-la la
La la la la la-la-la la la-la

Get into the car
Well be the passenger
Well ride through the city tonight
See the city's ripped insides
Well see the bright and hollow sky
Well see the stars that shine so bright
The sky was made for us tonight

Oh the passenger
How how he rides
Oh the passenger
He rides and he rides
He looks through his window
What does he see?
He sees the bright and hollow sky
He see the stars come out tonight
He sees the city's ripped backsides
He sees the winding ocean drive
And everything was made for you and me
All of it was made for you and me
cause it just belongs to you and me
So lets take a ride and see whats mine
Singing...

Oh, the passenger
He rides and he rides
He sees things from under glass
He looks through his windows eye
He sees the things he knows are his
He sees the bright and hollow sky
He sees the city asleep at night
He sees the stars are out tonight
And all of it is yours and mine
And all of it is yours and mine
Oh, lets ride and ride and ride and ride...
Singing...

The last video is an old one from 1980 and the album "Kaleidoscope". I just heard "Christine" the other day on one of the cooler XM stations. Man, I love this song and this band.

Christine
She tries not to shatter,kaleidoscope style
personality changes behind her red smile
every new problem brings a stranger inside
helplessly forcing one more new disguise

Christine-the strawberry girl
Christine-banana split lady
Christine-the strawberry girl
Christine-banana split lady

singing sweet savages lost in our world
This big eyed-girl sees her faces unfurl
Now she's in purple
Now she's the turtle

Disintegrating

Christine-the strawberry girl
Christine-banana split lady
Christine-the strawberry girl
Christine sees her faces unfurl

Now she's in purple
Now she's the turtle

Disintegrating

Christine,Christine

Christine-the strawberry girl
Christine-banana split lady
Christine-the strawberry girl
Christine sees her faces unfurl

Christine,Christine,Christine,Christine turn into faces

Disintegrating

Christine,Christine,Christine

Disintegrating.......

Previous Music Video Fridays
Sleater-Kinney
Keb' Mo'

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Note: Remember to play the Bug-Eyed Trivia Challenge every day. All the yummy Goths are doing it.