Artist: Bill Wyman
LP: 7" single
Here's something I found while going singles shopping last weekend at Jive Time Records in Fremont. (I wasn't going to stop there unless there was parking right in front—and there was! There is never parking in front of Jive Time.) I had pretty low expectations as I put this single by Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman (si si, Bill suis un rock star) on the listening station turntable. Bill reportedly recorded the song as a demo for Ian Dury, but Ian and others thought Bill should release it himself. Performed in what Wyman calls a "Cockney French" accent, "(Si Si) Je Suis un Rock Star" is actually pretty terrific and went to #14 on the UK singles charts in 1981. My copy is the US release, but I can't find any evidence that the song ever made its way onto the singles charts on this side of the pond. What I did find, however, is some startling evidence that Bill Wyman and Lily Tomlin may have been the exact same person at several points in time throughout the mid-to-late 1970s.
[ Bill Wyman or Lily Tomlin—who can be sure? ]
You can read more about the life and career of Bill Wyman, who celebrates his 78th birthday next week, on Wikipedia here. There's even a page here dedicated entirely to "Je Suis un Rock Star." Si Si!
[ Bill Wyman—then and now ]
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