Shedding One Happy Tear

Every once in a while, the planets align in a “what the heck!?” kind of a way and I get giddy excited like a little girl.

Four years in the making . . . “Cry Baby” is on Broadway.

Now, quite honestly I am not an enormous fan of the movie though I have it in my collection with every other Johnny Depp movie in existence (some call that DVD shelf my Johnny Depp shrine).

The movie has some funny moments and it does have a strange cast of characters including Amy Locane, Tracy Lords and Iggy Pop. It is outrageously overacted (on purpose as it mocks the Elvis movies and juvenile delinquency movies of the 50’s) and annoying at points but the premise is great and it is a cult classic.

James Dean-like and rough around the edges, Wade Walker (a.k.a. Cry Baby—nicknamed for his ability to shed a single tear on demand) is the bad boy who wants the good girl who wants to be a bad girl.

Tag lines from the movie included : : :

• Too young to be square... Too tough to be shocked... Too late to be saved
• Good girls want him bad. Bad girls want him worse.
• He's a doll. He's a dreamboat. He's a delinquent.

BUT : : :

What I am really excited about is that this story is being retold through the musical styling of none other than Adam Schlesinger (3rd from left in photo) of Fountains of Wayne fame (I have been a FOW fan since Stacy’s mom was still married and Stacy hadn’t been conceived). One of the best shows I saw last year was the FOW show—at the stage—with my son. These guys write great pop songs.

Adam Schlesinger was Oscar-nominated for Best Song for the title track to, "That Thing You Do," is credited for writing the music for the movie "Music and Lyrics", and he co-wrote the theme song for the movie, "Josie and the Pussycats." His credits also include contributions to "Something About Mary” and various television tidbits.

THEN GET THIS! : : :

David Javerbaum (The Daily Show/The Onion) paired up with Schlesinger to write lyrics.

The New York Times reported:

Mr. Javerbaum, 36, best known as the executive producer of “The Daily Show” on Comedy Central, wowed the producers with his some of his lyrics. They paired him with Mr. Schlesinger, and the two hit it off.

Though they share a contemporary style of humor very different from that found in classic Broadway musicals, their intention was not to turn the medium upside down. “Even though we try to come up with absurd lines or wacky premises, we’re also sticklers for playing by the rules of theatrical songwriting,” Mr. Schlesinger said. “We want the rhymes to be real rhymes, and we want the characters to move forward.”

The two wanted the show to acknowledge the clichés of 1950s teenagers while avoiding outright parody, and not to use the meta-humor of shows like “Spamalot,” in which the characters are aware that they are in a musical. “It’s more like having word choices be odd or just coming at things with a fresh take,” Mr. Javerbaum said. “What if, for example, you took a classic song about a woman who says she’s crazy for you, and the twist is she’s actually crazy?”

If you get nothing else out of this post, please promise me you will listen to Fountains of Wayne and not just "Stacy's Mom." A lot of people wrote them off when that song went to the top thinking they were one hit wonders with a silly little song. They are brilliant musicians and writers. They tell stories in song like few bands do. For a teaser, here are the hilarious yet poignant lyrics to "Mexican Wine"

He was killed by a cellular phone explosion
They scattered his ashes across the ocean
The water was used to make baby lotion
The wheels of promotion were set into motion

But the sun still shines in the summer time
I'll be yours if you'll be mine
I tried to change, but I changed my mind
Think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine

She lived alone in a small apartment
Across the street from the health department
She left her pills in the glove compartment
That was the afternoon her heart went

And the sun still shines in the summer time
I'll be yours if you'll be mine
I tried to change, but I changed my mind
Think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine
Think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine

I used to fly for United Airlines
Then I got fired for reading High Times
My license expired in almost no time
Now I'm retired and I think that's fine

Because the sun still shines in the summer time
I'll be yours if you'll be mine
I tried to change, but I changed my mind
Think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine
Think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine
Won't you have another glass of Mexican wine?