AWESOME!!

"The Zimmers" are storming the charts here in the UK. Well, storming, kinda slowly and considerately moving NORTH! Now No.26; combined age = 3,000 years! The Video+Group="The Zimmers" is being used to highlight the plight of age segregation, loneliness and isolation of the elderly in our "civilised" community.

There are so many fab parts to that video. My faves are the:

The Finger

The Gummy-one

Pushing over the Kit

The change of key - love it!!

Of course THAT road crossing!!!

. .and the general feel-good quotient.

For those of us who are fortunate to still HAVE aging parents - I do - just love 'em - love 'em to bitz. Yeah, sometimes it's hard. But not as hard as when I was a teenager - I was horrid!!

Peter, thanks for going to the trouble to post here. Good editing and sequencing. Hopefully it will have inspired some VegHeads to get going.

Again, simple story, told with much care and clarity. Wonder how or WHO they got around the copyright issues? Covers? . . .

Cheers mate . . . ah it just came up on BBC Morning News - again!!!

C'mon you Zimmers!!!

Grazie

Grazie, my guess on copyright is that they would have approached Pete Townshend and he said "go for it"

Amongst my favourites was the way it gave a new meaning to the line " People try to put us down" !! ... and of course "hope I die before I get old".

Glad this came up, thoroughly enjoyed the clip.

Now I have a mate who a LONG time ago said thirty was way too old to be alive. How different the world looks when you're a teenager.

Bob.

Never seen so many happy faces. That cheered me up no end.

Never seen so many happy faces. That cheered me up no end.

<belch> "EEl 'ave a Pint o' wot he's heving!!" <belch>

Bleedin' suvners!

What goes around comes around.

My understanding of copyright, is if you pay the fees, they can't prevent you from recording the song. It's different for movies and commercials, but I don't think they can stop you. Perhaps they could, but in practice, it doesn't happen often.

As my 14 yr old daughter would say:

Suh-WEET!!!!!

Beautiful..

Another one of those 1965 greats.

Busterkeaton, you're right about the performing rights issue, at least in Europe. Unless the performance is degrading or insulting to the work or its owner you have the right to perform and or record a publicised work like this. But the fees must be paid.

Tor

They should get some kind of reward for making such a great video. What a great time for them and those who see it. Thanks for the post.

YO!!

Am I the only one here who finds that video degrading??

If it was a bunch of black people singing Dixie, would you all find it as funny and encouraging and whatever??

Sorry guys - here's where the rubber meets the road. Pete Townsend made that song in 1965. Wonderful times. Sex - drugs and rock and roll. That song was written for people who would now be in their 60's (at MOST). There were NO 40 year olds listening to the WHO - so ....
THAT AIN'T MY GENERATION!

Most of those people were in their 80's and above. Most of them (I'm sure!) never heard of Pete Townsend, the Who or R&R. Those people are the survivors of Frank Sinatra - the Dorsey's and even earlier music.

Furthermore, I have MANY friends in their eighties that are FAR from decrepit as that sad group. Active, healthy, hearty - and with all their teeth. You want to SEE "my generation", then check out the guy who originally MADE the song!! Pete Townsend would have looked as out of place in that group as a twenty year old. Check out the Eagles, Steely Dan, Paul McCartney and (of course) Mik Jagger!!

You have all been duped with exploitive, condescending, bigoted BS.

Sorry gang - BTW - tell me the last group you saw where the Lead Singer didn't have any teeth? Does Stevie Wonder stumble around the stage, for bittersweet laughs. Was that music supposed to be GOOD??

For you young people out there. I was in that generation. We said, "Don't trust anyone over 30!!"... and believed it! Yeah getting older ain't sweet - but Cripes - you're certainly not that bad at 60... and if you take care of yourself, not at 70, 80 or older.

Sorry for being bitchy, but I've got TONS of friends in their sixites STILL working, playing hard, skiing, playing tennis, acting, singing and balling their brains out.

That video sucked.

v

Victor . Back up the bus!

The actual point of the video was to highlight the isolation/separation and downright alienation of the elderly FROM our community. The single has been taken to the hearts and minds of the people here on this side of the pond.

It HAS been played on prime time and people love 'em.

Here's a quote:

"Meet 99-year-old Winifred who is fed up in care homes, Joan who hasn't left her tower block for three years, and lead singer 90-year-old Alf whose beloved bingo hall is being shut down. These are angry old people!"

As it says - these are ANGRY people speaking-out - correction Singing-out!

and then this . . please read it:

"The band, being followed by documentary filmmaker Tim Samuels, exposes the disgraceful way we treat our old people in this country - and challenges a whole host of preconceptions about the elderly by taking them on a true rock'n'roll journey.

All profits go to Age Related Charities."

http://www.thezimmersonline.com/

I do understnad "where" you are coming from . . but . . it IS working here . .

Best regards - g

They all looked like they were having fun to me http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6549333.stmThis is about old people sticking it back to the society that has cast them aside[/link]

The song is about people of one generation being judged and caged by people of other generations - and so is the video. Whether or not your friends have their own teeth is beside the point.
Tor

Not everything in our National Health, Welfare-State is rosy. Especially IF you have been dumped on the pension scrap heap as a result of layoffs, pension collapses and state cutbacks.

This is some kinda "Shout Of the Angry" - more power to 'em! That's what I say.

Grazie

Sorry, Vic, I have to disagree... totally. I think you have misread the message.

Not only do mechanicals allow the recording of the song (but not the syncing) but this particular piece likely falls into parodical and/or political/social commentary.
Great piece!!

I can appreciate Vic's point. Maybe this doesn't travel too well over to the States.

I'd really like to hear his thoughts now, now he has some context?

Peace 'n Love

Grazie

OK guys - what you are seeing here is pure propaganda - demeaning and disrespectful of and to the very people it's (supposedly) trying to help.

Now remember - film is NOT an intellectual medium - it's emotional and it's visual. What we show is WAY more imporatant than what we say.

Now...
If I were doing this kind of effort, I'd have my talent looking GOOD and Worthwhile! I'd do exactly the same thing that you'd do in ANY commercial or protest song - I'd pick the best available. Harry Belafonte, Ella Fitzgerald, Tony Bennet, Mel Torme... now these guys can sing! When Quicy Jones did "We are the world", he didn't pick out sad little children or starving emigrees. The got the BEST of the Best!

Next, I'd pick out an angry song or an uplifitng song - and it would be reminiscent of the people themselves - not a ripoff mockery.

OK - the original version of this song was definitely defiant - but to whom? It was the youth singing out against the "old ways".

Now let's look at the words of the song. Remember this is the song the producer picked out:

People try to put us d-down (talkin bout my generation)
Just because we get around (talkin bout my generation)
VIDEO: PEOPLE WITH CANES AND WALKERS
Things they do look awful c-c-cold (talkin bout my generation)
I hope I die before I get old (talkin bout my generation)
VIDEO: OLD PEOPLE TRYING TO BREAK UP THEIR ACOUSTIC GUITARS - AND FAILING MISERABLY - TOO WEAK AND FRAIL - NOT THE DEFIANT ANGER OF PETE TOWNSEND SMASHING UP THE STAGE.
AND YOU HOPE YOU WHAT?? YOU ARE OLD! WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO GET AROUND TO DYING ALREADY.

This song is a mockery disguised as a "good thing". BS!
If you wanted to agitate the populace to real action, you'd pick a fighting song from the 40's and have defiant people performing it.

Still don't see it?
Suppose the talent was all 300 to 500 obese individuals. How would that play to you?
VISUAL: I HAVEN'T LEFT MY FLAT IN THREE YEARS.
Does that stir sympathy or disgust?
VISUAL: DON'T PUT ME DOWN BECAUSE I'M 400 POUNDS.
Resonance or abhorrance?

Sorry folks. This song was done by a producer to get money and attention. But it doesn't really achieve what it purports to do. Not one of you was moved to do one positive thing to help an older person.

The proof?
We are the world - we are the children...
that song raised millions of dollars and got immediate action - food and health care to people in need.

How much money has this video raised?
How much positive effect has it had on the country?
How many marches in support of old people have occurred?

This performance will get people saying "did you see that?" (because it's a Freak Show)
It's NOT uplifting.
It's NOT positive.
It's NOT honest at any point - right up to the old man smashing the drum set AFTER we've clearly established that the drummer on the song is about 25!

If you want to become great film makers you've got a responsibility to your message and your craft. This video is pure exploitation for a cheap laugh and a cheaper thrill.

If I showed it to any of my 80 year old friends, they'd laugh and think to themselves, "I'm glad it's not me".

Final test of veracity...
if Quincy Jones called you today and said "We're re-editing our video and we'd like to have some close-ups of you", how many would say, "I'll be there!"
Now - show of hands - right here on this site - how many of you would like to be in the Zimmers?

Victor Milt

Grazie, best not let Vic see The Calendar Girls!!!