| Jazz Fm played a clip yesterday of Joni Mitchell describing her first meeting with Charles Mingus. She described one of the songs as a Rasputin kind of song. What is a Rasputin song? I'd never imagined such a thing. I wondered if it was a metaphor or a reference. I assume now that it was a reference to a 1978 song by Boney M. The description says: "Boney M's song 'Rasputin' was a mini-history lesson about Grigori Rasputin, a holy man who got rather close to the family of Russia's Nicholas II, and who met a grisly end." "It was highly popular and 'Rasputin' topped the charts in Australia, Germany and Austria, and went to number two in the UK and Switzerland." "Although it was written and performed in English, with a few German and Russian words thrown in, it was a big success in the Soviet Union, and was even credited with reviving the fame of Rasputin in the country."
While it was an international hit when it first came out, the track gained new prominence in the late 2000s because of the video game Just Dance. The game featured an elaborate, often absurd dance routine set to the track.
And then the TIKTOK 2021 compilation version came along. It is on Youtube HERE. This is full of young people with silly costumes and/or lots of muscles showing them off while dancing.
I listened to Rasputin, and can't imagine a connection to Charles Mingus musically. So I read through the interview with Crowe as that was likely was the source of the quote. But alas, no mention of Rasputin in the transcript, vs the recording on JazzFM yesterday. So I guess the trail has "gone cold" unless one of you has the reference..
Some nostalgia today with a model railroad layout.
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