Visiting the 14 Cities of “The Heart of Rock & Roll”

Cities Huey Lewis

Like many of us, Mike Feld is a fan of Huey Lewis and the News. But Feld did something creative with his love of the band by visiting each of the fourteen cities that Lewis name checks in “The Heart of Rock & Roll.” Feld also takes us along for the ride in a new video he made.

Feld explains that he started out on the journey to see what connected those cities in a way that Lewis would list them in his song. And so Feld set out to travel “10,484 miles on 11 planes. 636 miles on 4 trains. 962 miles in 5 rental cars.”

Check out Feld’s version of the song where he helps prove “the heart of rock & roll is indeed still alive and beating.”

“The Heart of Rock & Roll” appeared on the 1984 Huey Lewis and the News album Sports. The lyrics “the heart of rock and roll is still beating” developed from a comment Lewis made after the band had performed in Cleveland. On the tour bus, Lewis noted, “You know, the the heart of rock and roll really is in Cleveland.” From that comment, the song developed as a tribute to great rock and roll cities. But in the evolution, Cleveland ended up with a brief mention despite the fact that the city provided the original inspiration for the song.

On tour, though, the band often altered lyrics to highlight the name of the town where they were performing. The heart of rock and roll is wherever you make it.

Fianlly, if you wonder what Huey Lewis thinks of Feld’s version of “The Heart of Rock & Roll,” he answered that question with a tweet.


Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    • Martin Luther King Jr. on “The Merv Griffin Show”

    MLK on Merv Griffin

    Those who remember The Merv Griffin Show, which ran on TV in various forms from 1962 to 1986, remember that Merv Griffin often had interesting conversations with guests from a number of fields, not just entertainment. In 1967, Griffin sat down with Martin Luther King Jr. to discuss the Civil Rights Movement.

    In the segment, King joins Griffin and actor-activist Harry Belafonte in some discussion of King’s life, family, and the state of the world in 1967. We often hear King giving emotional speeches, but it is interesting to hear King laughing and talking in a relaxed conversation. Check it out.

    Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

    Leave your two cents in the comments. Image via YouTube.

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    The Lost Jerry Lewis Movie: “The Day the Clown Cried”

    Jerry Lewis Concentration Camp

    One of the most famous movies-that-you-cannot-watch is The Day the Clown Cried, a 1972 movie that Jerry Lewis co-wrote, directed, and starred in. The controversial film about an imprisoned circus clown at a World War II concentration camp has achieved legendary status both for being an obviously bad idea and for being shelved by Lewis. But a new BBC documentary The Story of The Day the Clown Cried provides some never-before-seen images from the lost movie about the fictional clown Helmut Doork along with some insight into why Lewis did not want anyone to see the movie.

    If you just think about how a movie about a clown at a concentration camp possibly could go wrong, you may not need to know much more about The Day the Clown Cried. But for everyone curious about how a film got made that ends with Lewis’s clown leading children into the gas chamber at Auschwitz, the BBC documentary, presented by Jewish comedian David Schneider, is revealing.

    To make the 28-minute documentary, Schneider used footage of Jerry Lewis discussing the film and also sought out other people connected to the making of the movie. Check out the complete The Story of The Day the Clown Cried below.

    In 2015, Lewis donated The Day the Clown Cried to the Library of Congress with an agreement that the movie will not be shown for at least ten years. So, if you are curious, you may get to see the movie in 2025 (although the movie itself was never completely finished due to financial and production problems).

    Until then, you will have to satisfy your urge to see a comedian in a Holocaust movie by watching Roberto Benigni in Life is Beautiful (1997).

    What was Jerry Lewis thinking? Leave your two cents in the comments. Photo via YouTube.

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    Trailer for “11.22.63” Stephen King Miniseries

    11.22.63

    Hulu is producing an eight-part miniseries based on Stephen King’s novel 11.22.63, a delightful time-travel novel that Chimesfreedom reviewed earlier. The new trailer for the miniseries features actor James Franco as the time-traveling Jake Epping.

    As discussed in our review of the book, 11.22.63 centers on Epping’s attempts to stop the John F. Kennedy assassination. Before acting decisively, though, he has to investigate whether or not Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in killing the president. I loved the book, and this trailer makes me excited for the miniseries too.

    The miniseries 11.22.63 is directed by Kevin Macdonald and also stars Chris Cooper, Cherry Jones, and Josh Duhamel. The miniseries hits Hulu on February 15, 2016, which is Presidents’ Day.

    What is your favorite Stephen King adaptation? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Isolated Vocals of Bowie and Mercury: “Under Pressure”

    Under Pressure We were sad to hear of the passing of David Bowie. Much will be written about his extraordinary contributions to music, pop culture, art, and other areas. He inspired many artists both on earth and in space. And the man could sing, including on one of my favorites, his collaboration with Queen on “Under Pressure.”

    “Under Pressure” appeared on Queen’s 1982 album Hot Space, as well as later collections. The song was created by Bowie and Queen jamming together, and of course it went on to become a classic. In 2014, Rolling Stone magazine readers named it the greatest duet of all time.

    In the audio below, the vocals are isolated. So you may hear Bowie’s and Freddie Mercury’s voices without the music, or even that memorable riff. Incredible.

    If the isolated vocals made you want to hear the full recording, below is the original release of “Under Pressure.” In the song, Bowie and Mercury remind us (in lyrics written by Bowie), “And love dares you to care for / The people on the edge of the night; / And love dares you to change our way of / Caring about ourselves.”

    Somewhere, I hope Freddie and David are singing to the angels. RIP.

    Leave your two cents in the comments.

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