Tag: Super Bowl

Purple Rain: Prince at 2007 Super Bowl

Prince Halftime

Today, the world received the shocking news that Prince had passed away at the age of 57. Like so many others, I can think back to many times where his music was the soundtrack to my past memories going back around four decades.

One of Prince’s memorable performances was at the Super Bowl XLI Halftime Show in February 2007. It was one of the most spectacular Super Bowl half-time shows of all time. Rolling Stone and Sports Illustrated rank it the second-best of all time (only behind the emotional post-9/11 U2 show), while Billboard ranks Prince’s show at number one.

At the 2007 halftime show, Prince’s setlist included “We Will Rock You,” “Let’s Go Crazy,” “Baby I’m a Star,” “Proud Mary,” “All Along the Watchtower,” “Best of You,” and “Purple Rain.” Below is his performance of “Purple Rain” during a downpour of rain.

Reportedly, before Prince went on the stage, organizers called him to ask if it was going to be a problem that it was raining. Prince responded, “Can you make it rain harder?” The video of the performance is not available for embedding but you may check it out with this YouTube link.  As we mourn his loss, this performance is a great way to remember how his music moved us. RIP.

Additionally, an NFL video features clips and a discussion of his amazing performance. (Within 24 hours of Prince’s death, the NFL changed the policy on the video so it is no longer available for embedding, but you may watch it here.)

Goodnight, our Prince.

What is your favorite Prince memory? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Super Bowl Songs: Bon Iver & “Wisconsin”
  • Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band: “Purple Rain”
  • Doug Flutie and the Hail Mary Pass
  • Football Song: “At My Weakest Moment”
  • Justice Byron White on the Football Field
  • Super Bowl Songs: I Am a Patriot

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    “Don’t Leave” In that Chevy Super Bowl Commercial

    You may be wondering about the haunting song in this Super Bowl commercial from Chevrolet with the lyrics, “Don’t you ever leave /that is what you said to me. . . .” The television ad is part of Chevrolet’s Purple Roads project supporting the American Cancer Society.

    The song is “Don’t Leave,” and the voice is from singer-songwriter Ane Brun. Brun, who was born in Norway, currently lives in Sweden and has released several albums. “Don’t Leave” first appeared on her 2008 album Changing Of The Seasons. More recently, the song appears on her latest collection, Songs 2003-2013. Below is the official video for the song. Check it out.

    What do you think of the Chevrolet commercial and the song “Don’t Leave”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Purple Rain: Prince at 2007 Super Bowl
  • Jeff Bridges Will Make You Sleepy
  • Song of the Day: Will Hoge’s “A Different Man”
  • Edgar Allan Poe Put to Music: “The Raven” (Alan Parsons Project)
  • Will Clint Eastwood Tell Democrats to Get Off His Lawn at Tonight’s Republican Convention?
  • Super Bowl Songs: I Am a Patriot

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Edgar Allan Poe Put to Music: “The Raven” (Alan Parsons Project)

    Baltimore Ravens Fleece In coming up for a song in honor of the Baltimore Ravens, my first thought was Gram Parson’s “The Streets of Baltimore.” But Chimesfreedom has already covered that song, so I had to think back to another Parsons and a song I had not heard for many years, “The Raven” by The Alan Parsons Project.

    “The Raven” first appeared on Tales of Mystery and Imagination: Edgar Allan Poe, the 1976 debut album by The Alan Parsons Project, perhaps best known for their 1982 progressive rock song “Eye in the Sky.” Tales is a compilation of songs inspired by the writer Edgar Allan Poe. The album title was inspired by a 1908 collection of Poe’s stories, Tales of Mystery & Imagination. I was first introduced to the album when I was in college when Dave — one of my roommates who introduced me to a lot of new music at the time — noted my interest in literature and led me to this literary inspired album.

    The song “The Raven” comes from Edgar Allan Poe’s most famous poem “The Raven.” In the 1845 poem, the raven taunts a broken-hearted lover by repeating the line “never-more.” Scholars debate whether or not there was a real “Lenore” in Poe’s life, whether she represented his ailing wife, or whether she represented a lost love.

    The above video also features the lyrics. The unusual vocal sound for the song was made with the use of a digital vocoder.

    The Baltimore Ravens also have several Poe connections. The football team’s name, like The Alan Parsons Project Song, also was inspired by the poem “The Raven.” A fan poll through the Baltimore Sun selected the new name for the former Cleveland Browns because Edgar Allan Poe is one of the favorite sons of Baltimore (although this Salon article argues that the city and the football team have neglected Poe’s legacy and his home). The team’s raven mascot’s name is “Poe” too, and there used to be similar mascots named “Edgar” and “Allan” too before they were retired in 2008.

    If you like Baltimore’s clever choice of mascot, consider that when Edgar Allan Poe began writing “The Raven,” he considered making the bird an owl.  That could have meant today that the Baltimore Owls could have been playing football.

    If the Baltimore Ravens win the Super Bowl, Ray Lewis and the other players will join Poe as Baltimore’s favorite sons. But if the Ravens lose, well, “Quoth the [Baltimore] raven, `Nevermore.'” Well, at least until next season.

    {Watch for an upcoming post on my favorite song from Tales of Mystery and Imagination: Edgar Allan Poe.}

    What is your favorite Baltimore or Ravens song? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” in Music
  • Super Bowl Songs: I Am a Patriot
  • Super Bowl Songs: Bon Iver & “Wisconsin”
  • Super Bowl Songs: Pete Seeger & “Pittsburgh Town”
  • Purple Rain: Prince at 2007 Super Bowl
  • “Don’t Leave” In that Chevy Super Bowl Commercial

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Buy from Amazon

    Will Clint Eastwood Tell Democrats to Get Off His Lawn at Tonight’s Republican Convention?

    Rumors have been swirling this week that Clint Eastwood is going to be a surprise “mystery speaker” at the 2012 Republican National Convention tonight. According to a revised schedule released on Monday, an unnamed speaker is going to be on the stage to address the convention after American Idol alum Taylor Hicks performs tonight. Commentators began speculating that the speaker might be Eastwood almost immediately, although other celebrity names have been floated like Tim Tebow. About an hour ago, though, Paul Gilbert, a close friend of Mitt and Ann Romney, relayed that the mystery speaker at the Republican National Convention is indeed Eastwood.

    These days, when you mention Eastwood, I can’t help thinking of Bill Hader’s take on the actor’s “It’s Halftime in America” Super Bowl commercial for Chrysler.

    August 31, 2012 Update: Clint Eastwood did show up to address the convention and brought along an empty chair. Most say he stole the show, but it depends on who you listen to whether or not that is a good thing. Judge for yourself by watching his address to the convention below if you missed it.

    Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Super Bowl Commercial: The Darth Vader Kid
  • Dracula’s Lament
  • What Tarantino’s “Star Trek” Might Look Like
  • New Honest Trailer for “The Princess Bride”
  • The Missing Marine From the Iwo Jima Flag Photo
  • Purple Rain: Prince at 2007 Super Bowl

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Buy from Amazon

    Super Bowl Songs: I Am a Patriot

    It is time once again for Chimesfreedom to take a look at songs related to each Super Bowl team. With this year’s battle between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants, we first consider the Patriots, using a song incorporating the New England mascot instead of going with Barry Manilow’s “Weekend in New England.”

    Back in the 1980s before there was the Internet where you can find a large amount of music and concert footage of your favorite artist, I was desperate for anything related to Bruce Springsteen for the long years between albums. In one of those periods, I discovered the music of Little Steven and “I Am a Patriot.”

    Little Steven, of course, is “Miami Steve” and Silvio Dante and Steven Van Zandt, a guitarist and singer in Springsteen’s E Street Band. While Springsteen’s songs gradually included more political allusions, Little Steven wore his social issues on his sleeve. “I Am a Patriot,” though, he reclaims the word “patriot” from the politicians and asserts its meaning as an advocate for freedom.

    And I ain’t no communist, and I ain’t no capitalist;
    And I ain’t no socialist;
    and I sure ain’t no imperialist;
    And I ain’t no Democrat;
    And I ain’t no Republican either;
    And I only know one party,
    And its name is freedom;
    I am a patriot.

    Little Steven recorded several very good albums on his own during the 1980s, including Men Without Women (1982), Voice of America (1984), Freedom No Compromise (1987) and Revolution (1989). He added one last album in the 1990s with Born Again Savage (1999), which was not as successful as his previous albums. “I Am a Patriot” is off of Voice of America, and the song has been covered by Jackson Browne and Eddie Vedder, among others. Browne also has performed the song with Little Steven.

    As for this weekend, at the end of the day on Sunday, New Englanders are hoping they can proudly assert the refrain of the song. Meanwhile, check out the Super Bowl song for the New York Giants.

    Are you a fan of Little Steven? What other songs are appropriate for the New England Patriots? Leave your two cents in the comments.

    Some Related Chimesfreedom Posts:

  • Nelson Mandela, Sun City, and Changing Times
  • Super Bowl Songs: Bon Iver & “Wisconsin”
  • Little Steven and Bruce Springsteen: “It’s Been a Long Time”
  • Little Steven is Releasing “Soulfire”
  • Purple Rain: Prince at 2007 Super Bowl
  • Springsteen and Vedder Sing “Bobby Jean”