Guilty Music Pleasures

As a rocker, it’s hard for me to admit that there are some pop/dance songs that I really like. I’m talking songs that I jam to the same way that I’d bang my head to Metallica. Not unlike that of Ashlee Simpson or Perry Como, here are some of my current guilty pleasures. Now I’m going to have to crank up the Iron Maiden just to feel like a dude again.

Katy Perry – Teenage Dream
I know it’s all auto-tuned and over-produced, but I can’t help myself. When this song is on I just kind of jam to it. And look, according to you tube, this video has been seen over 56 million times. What the hell?



Lady GaGa – Poker Face
Since the first time I heard it, I liked this song. I can’t help it. When this song plays, my ass shakes. Even though she’s quite odd, I do think that Lady Gaga has talent. Over 69 million views on this one.



Diddy – Dirty Money Comin’ Home
You can blame the New York Knicks for this one. They constantly play this song over a video montage of Carmello Anthony’s first game as a New York Knick. Now I’m hooked on it. Only 29 million views on this video, but it is newer.



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New Video - Kerli "Tea Party"

Strange, yet compelling, Kerli’s video for Tea Party is a visual tribute to the new Alice In Wonderland film by Tim Burton. The song is available on the soundtrack Almost Alice, music inspired by the film. Tea Party is pop/dance music with a beat that makes you want to shake your ass. You could file this under “guilty pleasures.” With a catchy chorus that gets stuck in your head, Tea Party is a song that you’ll be singing after two or three listens, whether you like it or not. When you add in the fact that Kerli is mondo attractive and dressed in some provocative clothing, it’s a simple solution that you should watch this video.



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Milli Vanilli - 20 Years Later

It’s been 20 years since Milli Vanilli won a Grammy for best new artist behind their multiplatinum smash Girl You Know It’s True. Later that same year, the truth came out that Fab and Rob never sang on the album and had been scamming fans by lip synching their stage performances. Where does the time go?

As a teenager in 1989, I couldn’t get away from Milli Vanilli, and though I am a rocker at heart, Milli Vanilli was one of my first guilty pleasures (much like Jessica Simpson and Perry Como are these days). I just couldn’t help myself; I liked Milli Vanilli a lot! I went out and bought all four of their mega-hit singles as they were released on cassette single (anyone remember those?), and I would listen to their songs ad nauseam.

While not my style of Kiss, Motley Crue, Poison, or Warrant that was endlessly consuming back then, Milli Vanilli was bubble gum pop that I just couldn’t help myself from listening to. It was cheesy, overplayed, radio glitz, but I loved it all the same. I knew the words to all the songs (and sadly – still do). Girl You Know It’s True went multi platinum by 1990 and everybody was on the Milli Vanilli bandwagon. MTV constantly played their videos, the radio always had one of their songs on, and in the summer of 1989, when they released their monster power ballad I’m Gonna Miss You, this band just exploded into the upper stratosphere of artistic greatness.

I’m Gonna Miss You holds very special meaning to me, which is why anytime I see anything Milli Vanilli related, I stop and pay attention. In the summer of 1989, I was dating a beautiful girl named April that I was crazy about. We were totally different types, she was super smart and pretty, I was a metal head with a mullet (yes, I had one of those) that smoked too much. Yet, for some reason, she dated me. It wasn’t hard and heavy, but I enjoyed every second that we were together and when we were apart, I craved being with her. I hadn’t felt that way about many girls up to that point in my life, and with April it was a wonderful feeling. She was the most amazing girl – funny, bright, and very positive. I thought that we had a wonderful relationship going. Even though we never called it an “official” relationship (which for some reason was very important back then – to use the word girlfriend or boyfriend was BIG), I never felt that way with anyone else.

At the end of the summer, I decided that it was time to make our relationship “official.” I was going to ask April to go steady with me. I knew that there wouldn’t be any reason for her to say no. And with school about a week away from starting, I wanted to be able to begin my junior year with status. Having a girlfriend was huge for that.

However, when I talked to April about it, she said that she wasn’t ready to be in a committed relationship and ended ours. We went from dating and getting serious, to “I think we should just be friends.” Friends? What the hell was that? Needless to say, I wasn’t thrilled and we didn’t talk much after that conversation (if at all). My summer ended on a sour note and I started my junior year very depressed. Around this time, Milli Vanilli’s Girl I’m Gonna Miss You was a number one hit everywhere, and it was so appropriate, that I played the song over and over and over and over again. I think for the entire month of September that song got played at least a dozen times a day. I was sad. I missed April and couldn’t understand why she didn’t want to be in a committed relationship. Did she not want to be in a relationship at all, or did she not want to be in a relationship with me? Millli Vanilli was my closest companion during that dark month of September.

April went on to date a friend of mine later that fall and when they started going “steady,” I was pissed. She told me that she wasn’t ready for a committed relationship and then started dating my friend. I just couldn’t comprehend that. My friend and I had more than one scuffle over the whole situation. Oh the drama of teenage love!



Over a year later, when it was revealed that Milli Vanilli was a fraud and that Rob and Fab had nothing to do with the album other than look good on the cover and at the shows, I had to laugh. I did a senior paper on the news, and it made me smile. The one song that had comforted me during a difficult relationship had turned out to be a fraud. How very fitting.

We all know what happened with Rob and Fab after that. Their time in the limelight was over and they went into hiding for a while. Rob died of an overdose (some claim suicide) in 1998 and Fab continued to try and be recognized as a real musician. Some of his songs can be heard on his website. http://www.fabmorvan.com/. There is a movie in the works.

But what about the singers that really sang the Milli Vanilli songs? Whatever became of them? Charles Shaw, John Davis, Brad Howell, and twin sisters Jodie and Linda Rocco, were the original voices of Milli Vanilli. In 1990, Shaw leaked to the press that Rob and Fab were fakes. By November of that year, mastermind of the Milli Vanilli concept, Frank Farian admitted the truth and the rest is history.

Charles Shaw went on to record music under his own name. In 2006 he released an album called Charles Shaw’s Iris that featured a lot of references to Milli Vanilli. Visit his myspace page here: http://www.myspace.com/originalvoiceofmillivanilli

John Davis is still writing, recording music, and touring. Currently, he is working on recording a new album. Visit his website at http://www.johndavis-millivanilli.com/.

Jodie and Linda Rocco currently host a radio talk show on Vegas Talk Radio. They are reportedly working on a biography about the Real Milli Vanilli. You can visit their website at http://realmillivanilli.com/home.cfm

Brad Howell has all but vanished from the face of the Earth. He has gone into obscurity since 1990.

Milli Vanilli’s debut album, Girl You Know It’s True, is no longer in print. Arista, the record label that released the album, has not stated whether they will issue a 20th anniversary edition, but the chances are highly unlikely. Personally, I think the 20th anniversary should be released and it should come with a bonus karaoke disc.

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What's Your Guilty Pleasure?

Everybody has them. There is one CD or group that gets listened to constantly when no one is around. There is that beloved song or album that is never discussed even though there is such a passion for what’s being heard. Everyone has their guilty pleasure.

I have several guilty music pleasures that I indulge in from time to time. Neil Diamond is one. Even though I’m a “rocker” and love bands like Kiss, Iron Maiden, and AC/DC, I find myself turning to Neil every now and again to enjoy the sweet smooth sounds of his easy listening delights.

Perry Como is another one of my guilty pleasures. Accentuate the Positive and Zip-A-Dee-Do-Da are songs that I can listen to endlessly when I get in the mood. There’s just something about Perry’s crooner voice and that sound of the 40s that I love so much.

My current guilty pleasure that I’ve been revisiting a lot lately is Ashlee Simpson’s I Am Me. Even though a lot of people consider it “chick music,” I’ve been taken in by her hard rock edge and find myself singing along loudly to songs like Boyfriend, Beautifully Broken, and Dancing Alone. I know it sounds very un-masculine, but I can’t help myself. When Ashlee comes on the IPod, I crank it up and sing away, as loud as I can.

I’m a fan of her sister too. Jessica Simpson is another of my guilty pleasures and I even own all 4 seasons of The Newlyweds on DVD. Laugh all you want, it was a great show and The Simpson sisters make music that I like to listen to.

I always drift back to my hard rock roots after getting these guilty pleasures out of my system, but there’s no denying that they are there. I Am Me is high on my list of great albums, and I’ve played it a lot. It’s got a rocking sound and it’s just pure enjoyment.

So what’s your guilty pleasure? What do you find yourself listening to that’s very “un” rock and roll? Drop a comment and let the Guru know. It can’t be any worse than watching (and thoroughly enjoying) all 4 seasons of The Newlyweds.

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