Sunday, February 19, 2006

Hard Rock Hotel...I really expected more


As I looked through photos on my computer for blogging fodder, I came across a photo I took while in Las Vegas last fall. I was staying at the Hard Rock Hotel. If anyone has ever stayed there before, one is well aware of the tremendous amount of musical history memorabilia that graces practically every surface of the hotel.

One spot that really doesn't have memorabilia is the elevator. It makes sense, it's a small space, plus with all the antics that go on in those elevators with the youthful clientel that frequent the hotel, it's just putting the memorabilia in danger. To give the elevator that rock and roll feeling, they are carpeted with leopard print carpet and quotes from songs of various rock acts.

As I hit all the elevators at one time or another, I felt a connection to one more than the rest. Which one you ask? Why, it's the one that has a Prince quote posted. Why that elevator - why the connection? I don't know...maybe because I'm from Minnesota? Maybe because I used to hang out at Prince's club Glam Slam when I was in my 20's and used to see him there, prancing about in high heel boots, lace jumpsuits and sucking on tootsie pops? Maybe because I memorized all the words to "Purple Rain"? Not sure. Whatever the reason, it caused me to take a photo of the quote in the elevator.

As I prepared to post this picture to this posting, I wondered - what song is the elevator quoting? I went through my mental library, humming the songs I thought I knew the words to. When my brain failed me, I turned to the internet, going to a website devoted solely to the lyrics of Prince songs. As I searched through all 360 songs, I finally came upon the song where the quote comes from. It was "Let's Go Crazy". Imagine my surprise, as I thought I knew the words to all the songs on that album - it was a pivotal release during my sophomore year in high school - if you were anyone - you knew the words to that album.

According to the website the song lyric is "Are we gonna let de-elevator bring us down" not "don't let the elevator bring you down" as illustrated. I don't know who to believe. One would think the Hard Rock Hotel would be accurate in quoting a pretty famous song. But maybe the website is wrong? Prince lyrics can be hard to translate some times, heck, my sister in law thought for years that "little red corvette" was "pay the rent colette". I don't give her too hard a time - she grew up in Canada. Needless to say, this disparity is rubbing me the wrong way. I'm not sure what I should do.

I know what most would say: "get a life Missy - and get over it"

1 comment:

Joe Stephen said...

I know someone who, for years, thought the song "Smoke on the Water" was really entitled "Slow Burning Walter".
And come on, the HRH rocks.
It is perfect at what it is...a midsized Vegas joint for cheap hookers and a cool pool.
j