"Definitely better than a game of bingo."

August 10, 2019 10:21 PM

Jean Savage is a 95-year-old fan of Glass Tiger, a Canadian rock band known for their '80s hits "Someday" and "Don't Forget Me (When I'm Gone)". On Friday, the band performed "Someday" for Jean at an assisted living home in Mayerthorpe, Alberta. Somebody was there to record it in vertical mode! CBC News coverage, with the same video. (The song's 1986 video.)
posted by sylvanshine (30 comments total)

Definitely not my favorite song from that era, but amazing as a piece of pop -- listen to how catchy it still us, with a poor recording and almost no instrumentation. The excellent singing doesn't hurt, but really as a piece of writing, I am newly impressed.
posted by stevil at 10:51 PM on August 10, 2019 [3 favorites]

Old me is lying here misty-eyed, while my inner '80s kid is so fucking proud that I can still remember all the words and harmonies to "Someday." I knew all those afternoons in front of the TV watching Video Hits with Samantha Taylor would pay off, er, someday.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 10:52 PM on August 10, 2019 [9 favorites]

So, related question: Go For Soda, or Patio Lanterns? Discuss:
posted by aramaic at 11:02 PM on August 10, 2019 [4 favorites]

Adidas-blue?

I probably haven’t thought of Glass Tiger in almost 30 years, but this was a very nice reason to remember (am I a horrible person for being surprised they still tour?)
posted by The Gooch at 11:52 PM on August 10, 2019 [3 favorites]

So, related question: Go For Soda, or Patio Lanterns? Discuss:

Battle Scar!
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 11:54 PM on August 10, 2019 [2 favorites]

I freaking love Glass Tiger - the album is still on my "in the car" playlist. This is beautiful - so much more musical than anything on the album. I'm tearing up.

(I also love The Hooters, so... ya know.)

Gotta go watch it again.
posted by bendy at 2:27 AM on August 11, 2019 [2 favorites]

There are so many singers whose voices are edited, cleaned up, autotuned it's so cool to see this group which sang everything beautifully.

The verse about love where he held her hands was sweet.

*sniffle*
posted by bendy at 2:35 AM on August 11, 2019 [1 favorite]

i've now watched the video five times in a row. i electrocuted my shift key with my tears.
posted by bendy at 2:39 AM on August 11, 2019

I had never seen the original video. I don't know what Frew is hiding under his cap now but it can't be worse than it was in 1986.
posted by bendy at 2:46 AM on August 11, 2019

I was so proud to figure out "je pense que j't'adore" because I was in my second semester of French in high school and actually understood something in another language.
posted by bendy at 2:50 AM on August 11, 2019 [2 favorites]

I think I've just added Glass Tiger to the set-list for my funeral.
posted by bendy at 2:52 AM on August 11, 2019 [1 favorite]

Please inform ColdChef.
posted by bendy at 3:31 AM on August 11, 2019 [1 favorite]

The YouTube comments are full of people, probably my contemporaries, that are lamenting the loss of "real music", which apparently reached its peak in the 80s. To those people I can only say "WTF, people, did we not all agree back then not to become our parents?"
posted by Harald74 at 6:31 AM on August 11, 2019 [14 favorites]

So, related question: Go For Soda, or Patio Lanterns?

To be honest, a million vacations is what I’ve got in mind.

Cause you can only drive down Main Street so many times.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 7:00 AM on August 11, 2019 [3 favorites]

Go For Soda, or Patio Lanterns? Discuss:

Some of that 80s music was the stars in our skies, lighting up our life. But this discussion just leads people to wanting things their way, while I want it mine.

So let’s go back to my place, without any fuss - as long as you got some change for the bus.
posted by nubs at 7:24 AM on August 11, 2019 [1 favorite]

"real music", which apparently reached its peak in the 80s

I assure you that in the 80s we were too busy arguing about Steve Vai vs. Joe Satriani to worry much about Glass Tiger
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 7:33 AM on August 11, 2019 [4 favorites]

So many thoughts;
"Dammit not everyone else is a jerk!"
"Maybe Canadians* really are the nicest people!"
"What a sweet unselfish moment!"
"It sure is dusty in here"

*I know Alan Frew is a Scot by birth, but we claim him.

Go For Soda, or Patio Lanterns? Discuss:
Surely it's I am a Wild Party- "I have great expectations, I can represent this nation"

"real music", which apparently reached its peak in the 80s
Speaking of hearing, I can take too much loud music.
I mean I like to play it but I sure don't like the racket.
Noise but I can't hear anything
Just guitars screaming, screaming, screaming.
Some guy screaming in a lether jacket
Woah
I'm an adult now...
posted by Zedcaster at 8:05 AM on August 11, 2019 [6 favorites]

What a wonderful surprise! Major respect for Frew - he handled this beautifully, and seems to be a great guy.
posted by davidmsc at 9:41 AM on August 11, 2019 [1 favorite]

I was ~10 years old when this album came out. My friend got the cassette for his birthday. The plastic of the cassette was translucent red (NOT opaque black). It was the coolest thing I had ever seen and I was covetous for days.
posted by pseudotsuga at 9:51 AM on August 11, 2019 [3 favorites]

I assure you that in the 80s we were too busy arguing about Steve Vai vs. Joe Satriani to worry much about Glass Tiger

Or Depeche Mode vs. Judas Priest vs. Ramones....

You also know that 20-30 years from now people will be complaining how "modern music" isn't as good as Kate Perry or mumble rappers were Back In The Day...
posted by gtrwolf at 10:09 AM on August 11, 2019

Katy Perry, I meant to say.
posted by gtrwolf at 10:25 AM on August 11, 2019

This is high school. This is make-out music for me. Not that it's good for making out, but that it's the music that comes on when you're too busy making out to change the station.

Now I know who it's by! And for sure, it's burned into my DNA and I hear it all the time in grocery stores now. There's even a little synth figure in one of them that I'll "beep boop" at whoever is with me, just like I ape the claps in "Take the Money and Run."
posted by rhizome at 3:09 PM on August 11, 2019 [1 favorite]

A correction to my FPP: the two links have different videos of the concert! I think the CBC video is better for including Jean more often. The first, Facebook link has stronger audio.

(No, I haven't been rewatching this at all, or thinking about how exactly it makes me so happy. Basically, I love my grandparents! One of whom I never met; one of whom is now 95. Another of whom came over at the well-known Halifax port, and spoke five languages (Russian, two types of German, Dutch, Danish I think, ...) She died before I could have adult discussions of her history, which I swear I would be putting in a book now if she'd let me. Man I'd love to have a reason to learn Russian for example to talk to my grandma in another language!

And, because of seeing a person of advanced age treated with dignity and respect.
posted by sylvanshine at 6:36 PM on August 11, 2019

I love Glass Tiger. Their first album especially had so many great songs and just a different vibe from most stuff. Good to know that both the band and the music are still holding up.
posted by blue shadows at 9:27 PM on August 11, 2019 [2 favorites]

You also know that 20-30 years from now people will be complaining how "modern music" isn't as good as Kate Perry or mumble rappers were Back In The Day

Every Youtube rip of a godawful gabber or happy house song from the late nineties has this sort of complaints, as well as the usual crop of out of touch with contemporary music teenagers wanting real music like their parents listen to, so yes.
posted by MartinWisse at 11:05 PM on August 11, 2019

Alan Frew's a stroke survivor and he does lots of related charity stuff and seems like a real good dude.
posted by wellred at 5:34 AM on August 12, 2019 [1 favorite]

A couple of weeks ago, I was in a Food Maxx store in East San Jose. In-store music was a random collection of 80s pop tunes. "Don't Forget Me" came on and I started singing along to it under my breath. The chorus comes up, I open my mouth to start singing...

... and the REALLY BURLY Hispanic biker guy and his wife shopping next to me start BELTING out that chorus in full throat.

Chorus ends, we all three look at each other and chuckle, and move on. It was *glorious*.
posted by hanov3r at 8:56 AM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]

I think this is an underappreciated fact about this wonderful story: Jean was 62 when Glass Tiger's debut album came out. I only hope that I'll still be so open to the world (and specifically contemporary music) when I'm in my sixties.
posted by mhum at 10:35 AM on August 12, 2019 [1 favorite]

I saw this lovely video and an interview with Frew shortly after the Ms. Savage performance. After I saw the interview I tweeted this:

"@AlanFrew Nursing home vid is viral and for all the years I've loved GT, I didn't realize that was your real voice. interview.
If you'll still play for 10 ppl or 10K I'm having a porch party on Saturday in Portland, OR. I'm serious, DM me."

Ah crap, he's going to want money, isn't he? And I'm going to have to be on Twitter for a few days. Poor life choices.
posted by bendy at 12:04 AM on August 13, 2019

That was simply awesome. On a whim, I sent him a private message via Facebook to thank him for his kindness, and said that it brightened the day of many, many, many people. To my surprise, he replied and was very nice and appreciative. Well done.
posted by davidmsc at 10:04 PM on August 30, 2019 [2 favorites]