Hi Rick,
I like your idea about creating a video featuring "Texas Lullaby." That's
been one of my favorites from the get-go. In fact, my first big Road Trip
was a coming-of-age sojourn through Texas, and we played a cassette of The
Captain and Me/Stampede the whole time.
At the time, I thought that Tommy J. had nailed it on the head. Not bad for
a California boy like him, capturing the essence of Blackland Prairie Texas
so well. I later lived in Texas for awhile and took a 4th-generation Texan
for a bride. Not bad for a Colorado boy like me.
Anyway, I have a few comments for you regarding the video:
First, I had to chafe a little when you suggested a Northern California
location that would pass for Texas. That's because, as any Texan knows,
there's no substitute for Texas!
Second, on the other hand, maybe it's a good idea NOT to shoot the video in
Texas. Those hot, sweaty days can be a little too realistic, especially
when you augment that heat with hot camera lighting. And I can guarantee
this: you wouldn't see Tommy sitting on the ground for long ("...pickin' my
guitar in the shade...") with all those Fire Ants around.
Third, all of the scenes that require family and friends to be gathered
around should feature...The Doobie Brothers themselves! And their families,
of course. They should deck themselves out in overalls, in the best Country
style. I suggest that you consider the Kaw Valley Hemp Pickers, that famous
group of clandestine Kansas pot farmers, as a possible dress-code model.
Fourth, it would be pretty funny if the farm depicted in the video WAS a pot
farm! A little bit of "in" Doobie humor could go a long way.
Well, that's it. I appreciate your burst of energy and creativity, and I
hope that some day I will be seeing your video on the tube.
Dave from Denver
-----Original Message-----
From: Rick Santangelo [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Sunday, October 31, 1999 10:33 AM
To: Doobie Bros. Fan Club
Subject: Re: Music Video
"David M. Dal Pos" wrote:
> If you could make a music video of any
> Doobie Brothers song, which one would
> it be and what would it look like?
> Include characters, scenes, details, etc.
David, it's always been a dream of mine to film a music video for the
song "Texas Lullaby".
So get out your Stampede CD, pop it in and crank up your imagination!
The scene opens with a crane shot from high above the trees.
The camera moves across the trees as the title below fades in, in the
lower left corner:
"Texas Lullaby"
The Doobie Brothers
>From the LP STAMPEDE
The camera spirals down past a beautiful old oak tree and we see Tommy
sitting on the ground at the base of the tree playing his guitar. His
eyes are closed as he sings the first line. (Title fades out)
Sittin' by myself in the summertime
when the heat is burnin' down
He opens his eyes as the camera comes to a rest on a close up of his
face. Dissolve to an incredibly gorgeous field with the wind rustling
the leaves as the camera sweeps across from above.
Watchin' the golden crops in the field just grow without a sound
A little boy (a young Tom Johnston) runs through the field with his dog.
He is smiling ear-to-ear and you know he is just loving life as he
plays. The camera is panning in a circle around him as he runs. The
dizzying effect gives you the feeling you had when you used to run as a
child without a care in the world...
I was a boy raised in the country
and it's still a part of me,
and you see, no matter where I go
it's a beautiful memory
We see the sun rise over the fields and Tommy is in the house, an old
wooden cabin, and he looks out the window and just takes in the beauty.
We see in his expression that he loves his modest home and the sweet
surroundings of his farm. The sunrise casts an orange/red glow as it
strikes his face.
Rise with the sun
at the break of day
lookin' out my window
it's the same as yesterday
Dissolve to an extreme low shot looking up at Tommy playing his guitar
with the tree towering overhead. The camera slowly floats around in a
small circle which keeps Tommy centered in the shot. The effect makes
the tree look like it is spinning while Tommy plays. (A tear comes to
the viewers eye as they are overcome with emotion from the power of the
music and the scope of the gorgeous cinematography! ;)
Sittin' under an old oak tree,
pickin' my guitar in the shade
that old tree spreadin' over my head
is the closest friend I made
Dissolve to a wide shot that shows the tree with Tommy sitting on the
ground, playing his guitar. You can see the farm in the background. The
whole scene makes you wish you were right there under that tree with
Tommy. You can hear the birds chirping and feel the sun and even taste
the sweet smell of the country as you watch.
(Damn! Some tears just hit my keyboard! I hate when that happens! ;)
Just me and some lonely wooden music
floatin' through the air
the grass is a rustlin' and the birds are singin'
and my heart don't have a care.
Now it gets interesting... We see Tommy toiling in the fields. He is
soaked in sweat and swinging an axe. It looks like he's trying to chop
out an old tree stump. You get the feeling that he's working hard with
no rest. It's one of those chores that takes everything out of you but
you just don't want to stop until it's finished.
Still another day
finds me in the fields
sweat is soakin' up my ragged clothes
but I'd rather work than steal.
Sunset. Now we see Tommy's family for the first time. They are on the
porch loking out at the fields. They can see their horses running free
as the wind across their land. His wife looks at him and they smile. The
kids are running and playing in front of the cabin. Life is good...
Watchin' the sun settle down
over open Texas land,
lookin' at the cattle and the horses runnin'
wild as they can.
Life was different in the old days,
you just get a days work done,
when you were finished working in the fields
there was chores at home to be done
there was work at home to be done
chores at home to be done, yeah
Even though Tommy sings these words, we see that things haven't changed
for this family. They all work hard all day and come home and work
again. Our camera has just caught them on one of those rare relaxing
nights where they get to actually enjoy their surroundings.
Dissolve to the younger Tommy (as a teen) listening to his Father play
guitar with his family.
So I was always hearing music,
always wanna play me some
as a full time friend
or a way to ease the end of a woman who swayed me some.
Close up of Tommy at night, just enjoying the music. He is swaying with
the sounds from his fathers guitar and we see the whole family is
brought closer together through their music.
Hearing those tunes always had a way of soothin' out my soul
when times got hard and work was slow
it was music that kept me whole.
Close up of the sun through the trees. The bright sun causes a flare on
the lens as the camera moves through the trees. You get the feeling it's
hot as hell out. We see a group of men working. The look on their faces
tells us they are hurting from their struggle and determination to get
their work done. But it's a good hurt...
Sun burnin' down
through the trees
gets so hot
brings a workin' man to his knees.
Dissolve to night. Tommy is surrounded by his friends as they all sing
around a fire. The fire casts a glow across their faces as they laugh
and sing to one another. Various close ups of hands clapping and people
singing helps the viewer to feel the power of the music.
Part of my heart
part of my soul
part of a melody,
hands are clappin'
and people swayin' in simple harmony.
Life was different in the old days,
you just get a days work done,
when you were finished working in the fields
there was chores at home to be done
there was work at home to be done
there was chores at home to be done, yeah, yeah
During the instrumental break, we see shots of Tommy and his family
working, dancing, singing... This is where you get a feeling of how
sweet life can be. The simple lifestyle where family means everything is
shown in this sequence of shots. It is daytime and the sun represents
happiness.
Dissolve back to the porch at dusk. The darkness represents comfort and
peacefullness. Tommy is surrounded by his friends. The camera pans
across the characters who are tired, but happy to be alive. Their faces
show they play as hard as they work.
Late in the evenin' on the front porch
when the sun is settin' in the west
me and the boys pass around the bottle
and sing what we like best.
Singing about our wives, sing about our children,
singin' out the Delta blues;
we're simple folks and we like it that way,
got nothin' left to lose, no.
Dissolve to the fields and the livestock. This is a beautiful sequence
of shots that shows life in the country.
Watchin' the sun settle down
over open Texas land,
lookin' at the cattle and the horses runnin'
wild as they can.
Life was different in the old days,
you just get a days work done,
when you were finished working in the fields
there was work at home to be done.
Now we see Tommy, his family and his friends all singing dancing and
playing music together. The cuts are fast and gives you the feeling of
the excitement their music brings them.
Part of my heart, part of my soul
part of a melody,
hands are clappin' and people swayin'
in simple harmony.
Life was different in the old days,
you just get a days work done,
when you were finished working in the fields
Now the pace slows back down and we see Tommy on the porch playing
guitar for his wife and children. His daughter is asleep in his wifes
arms and life is grand. His son is smiling as he plays his little guitar
along with his father, just like Tommy did with his father.
there was chores at home to be done
there was work at home to be done
singing a lullaby.
The camera slowly dollies into a close up of Tommy. The look on his face
tells the whole story here. He is tired, but happy and wouldn't want to
be anywhere else on earth. Dissolve to a medium wide shot of the porch
and the family as the title fades in, in the lower corner:
"Texas Lullaby"
The Doobie Brothers
>From the LP STAMPEDE
The video slowly fades to black.
At this point the viewer is on his knees from the emotion flowing
through him. He is lost and confused. The sheer power of this video has
overwhelmed him and he's not sure what he should do next. Suddenly, he
wipes the tears from his face, jumps up and runs to his car. It is clear
what he MUST do. He races to the nearest record store and buys EVERY
single Doobie Brothers album, CD, video and box set he can find. He
gives them to his friends and hopes it's not too late to save them from
their life of boring mainstream music. He gets back home and realises
what has just happened and he smiles. Life is GRAND! :)
Thanks to David for inspiring me to finish writing the script for this
video. I actually wrote most of this years ago and had always wanted to
film it. I could probably film the whole thing for less than $50,000
which is pretty inexpensive for a music video.
I've got a 35mm motion picture camera camera and an editing system.
Holly, Debbie, do you want to do catering? Miles, can you help me
produce this? Laurin, I know you can pull some strings! Let's get Tommy
and his family and find the location which I know is right here in
Northern California. I'm serious! We can shoot this!
OK, no one will ever go for it, but who says you CAN'T create a video
from an old song? How about this, the Doob's do another version of this
song for their new CD. Then we shoot the video to promote it. I'll even
waive my fee! ;) It can be a fan club production!
Rick
This script is copyright 1999, Rick Santangelo
(Bruce Cohen, please see my agent! ;)
