I saw two documentaries on Tuesday about musical groups where the drama centers around deaths of their members.
The first film, The Gits, were a punk band from Seattle whose lead singer, Mia Zapata (distantly related to that other Zapata), was raped and murdered just as the band was about to make the big time. I enjoyed the band enough to order their CD, "Frenching The Bully".
The second film was Young at Heart, the story of a chorus of seniors in New England who sing contemporary pop songs. During the course of the film, two of their members passed away. The first death happened as they were about to perform at a prison. When they sang Dylan's "Forever Young" there wasn't a dry eye in my head. And at the end, when they dedicated a song to their lost members, it was Coldplay's "Fix You".
The thing with them is that every song takes on a new meaning, sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking. Young @ Heart aren't a great band, it's just great that they're there.
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