I NEED HELP SOMEONE HELP ME.
There is an insanely awesome super deluxe edition of Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s Welcome To The Pleasuredome coming out later this year via PledgeMusic. However, do to stupid bullshit lawyer shit, it can’t be purchased by anyone living in the US or Japan. As those are the only two billing addresses I have, I’m screwed.
Would any of my UK/Australia/wherever readers be so kind as to buy it in my stead and mail it to me? I’ll pay for everything, including shipping, of course. I’ll even send you some tunes if you so desire.
If so, leave a comment with your email address. I won’t approve it, I’ll just use it to contact you. Thanks!
Someone helped me out! Thanks for all the offers everyone!
And now for something completely different.
Super Fly TNT – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
The original Super Fly is widely regarded as a classic of the “Blaxploitation” era of films, and is typically mentioned in the same breath as other classics such as Shaft, Foxy Brown and Cleopatra Jones. But here’s the thing about Super Fly – it’s really not that good a movie.
I mean, yeah, it’s not a bad movie. It certainly oozes style, and Ron O’Neal is one of the coolest motherfuckers who ever graced the silver screen. But it’s a pretty boring flick. It meanders for far too long, the acting is at times incredibly weak, and it’s not even directed all that well. And it’s entirely lacking in Antonio Fargas, who was literally in every other blaxploitation movie from 1969 to 1978. The only reason why we still talk about Super Fly to this date is because of its soundtrack, which is still probably one of the top five greatest soundtracks of all-time (a list that, for me, includes Purple Rain, The Crow and Flashdance and I will not budge on that).
But while Super Fly isn’t a great movie by any stretch of the imagination, I’m going to assume that it’s better than the sequel Super Fly T.N.T., which came out just a year after the 1972 original.
I say “assume” because, while I’ve read a great deal about the flick and have watched the odd clip on YouTube, I’ve never actually seen the movie in its entirety. It’s barely been seen by anyone since it’s original theatrical release, in fact. It would occasionally resurface on VHS throughout the mid-80s (I know my dad’s video store had a copy) but that was about it. As far as I know it has never been aired on cable television and its never been released on Blu-ray, let alone DVD, or even freakin’ laserdisc. It belongs in the pantheon of great lost films still searching for a new home video release, alongside other classics such as Willard, Rad and Meatballs III, y’know – classics.
Equally rare is the film’s soundtrack, which was performed and composed by African band Osibisa. It was released on LP alongside the film in 1973 and that was it for that. Judging from its rarity it appears that it never even got a second pressing on vinyl, and to date has never had an official CD release. And it’s a damn shame, because while I can’t speak to the quality of the film from which it came, the soundtrack to Super Fly T.N.T. is some dope shit. An amazing combination of funk, African music, and even some rock elements, it holds up amazingly well. Â Check it out.
But whatever you do, don’t check out anything that’s even remotely involved with the second Super Fly sequel; The Return of Super Fly. Amazing VHS box art aside, that is not a quality flick.
