Rick Ocasek died a few weeks back, and I've been remiss at acknowledging his passing here. There was a time in high school when I was super-into the Cars. They dominated the radio with Heartbeat City, but being the obsessive that I am, I backtracked and listened to The Cars and Candy-O incessantly, and was particularly fixated by "Moving In Stereo" (hats off to Columbia Music Club for enabling my obsessions!). That said, I'm not sharing a Cars song today. That's too easy. Nor am I going with "Emotions in Motion," which is probably Ocasek's best-known solo song. No, I'm digging deep and sharing a track most Cars fans are probably completely unaware of, but Ocasek's distinctive sound instantly makes it his own. Yes, I'm talking about his cover of "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah" from the album Mad About the Mouse. The Cars had a lot of bizarre videos, but I doubt any of them have prepared you for this. You're welcome.
I just got a nostalgic urge to listen to The Cars, who've been off my radar for quite some time. Everyone knows their wacky videos from the Heartbeat City album, but their earlier video offerings were not quite so polished. Take, for example, "Since You're Gone," off their 1981 Shake It Up album. Endearingly awkward if probably the best way to describe it. And man, if Rick Ocasek isn't the goofiest looking rock star in history, he's at least in the top 10.
