The worst era in music history, according to Christopher Walken: “It was so stupid”
Even though he’s been an actor for over 70 years and a movie star for almost 50, nobody really knows anything about Christopher Walken, which you imagine is just the way he likes it.
While there’s enough information out there to paint the picture of a man who’s every bit as his screen persona would suggest, what with the whole lion-taming thing and the fact that he was given his stage name by a miscellaneous chanteuse, only his inner circle understand the man behind the myth.
What we do know is that Walken doesn’t have a mobile phone, he doesn’t know how to use a computer, and he’ll make any movie that gets offered his way because he loves to work. What are his favourite movies? Fuck knows, because he’s always been too diplomatic to place one film above another.
Who is his favourite band? Again, fuck knows, but it’s probably not Blue Öyster Cult, since they accidentally conspired to ruin his life. What about his favourite musical genre? It’s a mystery, since when he was asked that very question, his illuminating response was, “All kinds of music.”
One thing that cannot be denied, though, is that the Academy Award winner loves musicals. He loved starring in them on the stage, he loved making them for the big screen, he loves attending them as a punter, and if that wasn’t already clear enough, he’ll always find a way to dance in his movies, or certain iconic music videos in which he stole the show with some slick moves.
Trying to piece together the mystery wrapped in the enigma that is Christopher Walken, which isn’t even his real first name, to illustrate the point, leads to a lot of dead ends and unanswered questions. However, what is a matter of record is the one period in music history that he absolutely could not stand.
“I remember back in the day, it was ridiculous, that good singers were putting out disco albums,” he ranted to Salon. “It was so stupid. If you went to the clubs, you heard them all the time.” He might be a twinkle-toed legend, but when a youthful and exuberant Walken was hitting the town in the 1970s, the last thing he wanted to hear was disco.
Obviously, that was a fool’s errand, because you couldn’t go anywhere when the glitterball craze was in full swing without having your ears bombarded, or massaged, if you’re partial to a bit of disco, by everyone and everything from the Bee Gees and Gloria Gaynor to KC and the Sunshine Band and Abba.
He didn’t specify who those “good singers” were, but everyone was at it when the phenomenon was at its peak. The Beach Boys, Cher, Kiss, the Rolling Stones, Frankie Avalon, and Ethel Merman are just some of the artists who made unexpected disco-inspired detours, and clearly, Walken was not a fan.
