RIP Robert Hazard
August 6, 2008 3:18 PM Subscribe
He's no longer riding the escalator of life. RIP Robert, it was a good ride.
ok
posted by found missing at 3:58 PM on August 6, 2008
posted by found missing at 3:58 PM on August 6, 2008
who wrote the pop anthem "Girls Just Want to Have Fun,"
At last, obitfilter for someone who did something with their life.
.
posted by cillit bang at 3:58 PM on August 6, 2008 [1 favorite]
At last, obitfilter for someone who did something with their life.
.
posted by cillit bang at 3:58 PM on August 6, 2008 [1 favorite]
Coulda fleshed this out better.
posted by CitrusFreak12 at 4:07 PM on August 6, 2008
posted by CitrusFreak12 at 4:07 PM on August 6, 2008
Finished shopping at the human mall.
posted by kuujjuarapik at 4:13 PM on August 6, 2008
posted by kuujjuarapik at 4:13 PM on August 6, 2008
Mr. Hazard sat in a bathtub and in 15 minutes wrote "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" ... Miley Cyrus' remake is included on her new album, Breakout.
Thank god he won't live to hear this.
posted by hifiparasol at 4:22 PM on August 6, 2008
Thank god he won't live to hear this.
posted by hifiparasol at 4:22 PM on August 6, 2008
"Girls Just Want to Have Fun" is a great damned song, and will live as long as "Old Man River".
posted by Faze at 4:24 PM on August 6, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by Faze at 4:24 PM on August 6, 2008 [1 favorite]
"Hey, girl! I'm a personal friend of Gloria Vanderbilt!" YT, annoying VH-1 intro
posted by Smart Dalek at 4:55 PM on August 6, 2008
posted by Smart Dalek at 4:55 PM on August 6, 2008
I'm glad the post mentioned the chart entry he performs instead of the more popular one he penned that made someone else more famous. Not that Girls is a bad song, it's just not what I immediately think of when I hear his name. He will be missed!
posted by inthe80s at 5:20 PM on August 6, 2008
posted by inthe80s at 5:20 PM on August 6, 2008
This obitfilter may not meet the general notability guideline or one of the following specific guidelines for inclusion on Metafilter. If you are familiar with the subject matter, please expand or rewrite the article to establish its notability. The best way to address this concern is to reference published, third-party sources about the subject. If notability cannot be established, the article is more likely to be considered for moderation, or allowed to remain open for merciless derision of both the poster and deceased.
posted by phrontist at 5:46 PM on August 6, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by phrontist at 5:46 PM on August 6, 2008 [2 favorites]
"Thank god he won't live to hear this."
His grand opus has already been violated.
As part of a new campaign launched, in part, to recover from the attendance drop in the wake of SARS,
mildly popular tourist destination (and government owned) Ontario Place bought the rights
and rewrote the song as kids just want to have fun (link to page with embedded audio on right hand side - you can also download the lyrics from this location!).
I'd like to this moment to enjoy a reminiscence about listening to my older sister and her teenage friends - in the back seat of the wood-paneled station wagon on the way to the cottage - with their fruit-scented lip gloss, acid washed jean jackets, and giant flammable hairlos which blocked my Dad's rear-view - singing "Girls just want to have Gum" in the snide, mocking, yet fully invested manner that only teenagers seem to truly achieve.
I'd like to ... but I can't.
That melody has been utterly co-opted in my mind by the Ontario Place adverts which have run continuously since the campaign was launched. And so every time someone mentions that song, or Cindi Lauper, the aneurysm grows a little (in fact, in terms of reducing my life expectancy, it is rivaled only by the Marineland Theme Song...and the years of smoking).
R.I.P. Mr. Hazard.
And I'll see you in Hell, Ontario Place marketers. (from Heaven)
posted by sloe at 6:03 PM on August 6, 2008
His grand opus has already been violated.
As part of a new campaign launched, in part, to recover from the attendance drop in the wake of SARS,
mildly popular tourist destination (and government owned) Ontario Place bought the rights
and rewrote the song as kids just want to have fun (link to page with embedded audio on right hand side - you can also download the lyrics from this location!).
I'd like to this moment to enjoy a reminiscence about listening to my older sister and her teenage friends - in the back seat of the wood-paneled station wagon on the way to the cottage - with their fruit-scented lip gloss, acid washed jean jackets, and giant flammable hairlos which blocked my Dad's rear-view - singing "Girls just want to have Gum" in the snide, mocking, yet fully invested manner that only teenagers seem to truly achieve.
I'd like to ... but I can't.
That melody has been utterly co-opted in my mind by the Ontario Place adverts which have run continuously since the campaign was launched. And so every time someone mentions that song, or Cindi Lauper, the aneurysm grows a little (in fact, in terms of reducing my life expectancy, it is rivaled only by the Marineland Theme Song...and the years of smoking).
R.I.P. Mr. Hazard.
And I'll see you in Hell, Ontario Place marketers. (from Heaven)
posted by sloe at 6:03 PM on August 6, 2008
I had no idea that "Girls" wasn't written by Cyndi Lauper -- it seems to be the basis for her entire identity, at least in the 80s. It's a great song, and I'm sure it must have paid this man well. Good work.
posted by Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese at 6:17 PM on August 6, 2008
posted by Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese at 6:17 PM on August 6, 2008
He wrote it in the bathtub, in 15 minutes. Fantastic. Those are some of the best songs! Tammy Wynette took exactly that long to write the lyrics to "Stand By Your Man", according to her account, and that's a killer of a song, too.
RIP Robert Hazard.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 7:13 PM on August 6, 2008
RIP Robert Hazard.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 7:13 PM on August 6, 2008
DERAIL: Okay, now that I have been a member for a bit longer, I want to apologize for my terrible Steve Gerber RIP post. I was new to metafilter, and I was so excited to be the FIRST to report his death, when I should have let somebody with much better links than mine do it. I promise never to post another RIP link.
Sorry for the interruption, Mr. Hazard.
posted by wittgenstein at 7:22 PM on August 6, 2008
Sorry for the interruption, Mr. Hazard.
posted by wittgenstein at 7:22 PM on August 6, 2008
I appreciated the mention of JC Dobbs. That was a really cool little room. But I never did see Hazard play. But he was a longstanding presence in the Philly rock scene.
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 8:43 PM on August 6, 2008
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 8:43 PM on August 6, 2008
How sad - Growing up in Jersey in the '80s, he was certainly a fixture, (and the ex-brother-in-law of one of my Dad's old friends) though I probably hadn't thought about him in years.
What's strange is I heard this news about 2 hours ago through my neighbor who works at Mass General and had no idea he was a musician until a nurse mentioned "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" - Condolences & Peace -
posted by jalexei at 9:06 PM on August 6, 2008
What's strange is I heard this news about 2 hours ago through my neighbor who works at Mass General and had no idea he was a musician until a nurse mentioned "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" - Condolences & Peace -
posted by jalexei at 9:06 PM on August 6, 2008
One of the earlier "synth-pop-rock" hits that I remember from the young days of MTV. I know that it happens to every generation, but it's still pretty damn tough to watch musicians of MY generation grow older and die.
RIP, Mr Hazard.
posted by davidmsc at 11:00 PM on August 6, 2008
RIP, Mr Hazard.
posted by davidmsc at 11:00 PM on August 6, 2008
Going to college in Philly in the 80s, WMMR played a lot of home-grown music. Groups like Tommy Conwell and the Young Rumblers, Glen Burtnick, the Hooters (who the people that were seniors when I was a freshman remembered playing at the college we went to) all were in heavy rotation, but they were guitar-rock.
And then one night, sitting around and avoiding studying for a quiz in my Psych class, this weird song - weird in the sense of 'that's not what I was expecting' - started playing. No guitars, synth. The drums were also pretty weird - I'd never heard electronic drums before. Then the singing started...
They got my Mazda at the E-Z Park It
At the rock & roll supermarket
Muzak music make me feel so funny
I went and spent all my money
And I boggled. And listened.
I have 'Escalator of Life' on my iPod all these many years later. Rest well, Mr. Hazard; you made my life a little more weird one night, and I thank you for it.
posted by mephron at 7:55 AM on August 7, 2008
And then one night, sitting around and avoiding studying for a quiz in my Psych class, this weird song - weird in the sense of 'that's not what I was expecting' - started playing. No guitars, synth. The drums were also pretty weird - I'd never heard electronic drums before. Then the singing started...
They got my Mazda at the E-Z Park It
At the rock & roll supermarket
Muzak music make me feel so funny
I went and spent all my money
And I boggled. And listened.
I have 'Escalator of Life' on my iPod all these many years later. Rest well, Mr. Hazard; you made my life a little more weird one night, and I thank you for it.
posted by mephron at 7:55 AM on August 7, 2008
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posted by fixedgear at 3:21 PM on August 6, 2008