Playlist: Remembering Bill Hicks in Song
George Pringle, "Fellini for Prime Minister"
I'm just going to let the words speak for themselves here. Ms. Pringle?
Well I woke up and he was gonemy coat was there and the news was on
They said quality control has been imported
and Bill Hicks came back from the dead just for the day
to say that it was going to be okay and rock stars were rock stars again.
We can smoke and drink indoors and make jokes about cancer but only catch colds
Today, just for the day
Tool, "Ænema"
Hicks was close friends with Tool, considering their art similar and differing only in approach. Hicks actually opened for Tool in their Lollapalooza appearances, and playfully got thousands of concertgoers to look for a contact lens he claimed to have lost on the ground.
Ænima was dedicated to his honor, and the title track's lyrics are clearly based on many of Hicks's more famous rants. The final track, "Third Eye," also contains samples from his comedy recordings.
Annie Lennox, "Into the West"
Hicks spent his last weeks with his family. The master comic stopped speaking on Valentine's Day, 1994, and was dead less than two weeks later. He took the opportunity to reread The Lord of the Rings, sharing it with his parents. He penned his last words as well.
"I left in love, in laughter, and in truth and wherever truth, love and laughter abide, I am there in spirit." I thought those words echoed nicely in Lennox's song of journey's ends from Return of the King. Rest in peace, Bill.
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