Last night, after watching Walkabout, a 1971 film by Nicholas Roeg, Mr. Royale started humming Big Audio Dynamite‘s “E = MC2.” I didn’t initially get the connection until Mr. Royale reminded me that the lyrics of that song describe characters and plots of multiple Roeg films, including Walkabout, Performance, Don’t Look Now, The Man Who Fell To Earth, Insignificance, and Eureka. So now I’ve been wondering why Jones et al. wrote a song about that director. Is it because Mr. Roeg has stated that he likes musicians (examples: Mick Jagger, David Bowie, and Art Garfunkel) to be in his films as they are used to emoting in front of an audience? Or that the mosaic-like plots of his films are somewhat like creating a song? Maybe they are simply fans. I don’t know, but it is a question I’d like to ask Mr. Jones.
“E=MC2” has got me thinking about other songs that reference the movies, be it the plots, the directors, or the stars. I’ve thought of a few. But I’m interested in your “take.” Extra kudos if the song describes the film but doesn’t mention it outright.
