Here’s the title track from Elton John’s 1983 album Too Low For Zero, a comeback record for him following a string of poorly received releases that spanned nearly a decade.
This album also marked a reunion with lyricist Bernie Taupin, who had been sidelined for other collaborators during that dry spell. There’s no question that Taupin is a crucial ingredient in Elton John’s best work.
Rounding out my week on actors who moonlight as musicians is a band that has put more effort into this than all the rest combined. The Bacon Brothers, fronted by Kevin Bacon and his brother Michael, have been recording and touring since 1997 and have released 10 albums during that span.
Reading through the Bacon Brothers appearance schedule over the last 25 years, you have to wonder if Kevin doesn’t see this as his day job and consider his acting a little work he does on the side.
Captain Marvel Brie Larson isn’t the only Avenger with an album to her credit. Scarlett Johansson, Black Widow herself, has nurtured a music career on the side for more than a dozen years now.
Johansson’s 2008 debut album, Anywhere I Lay My Head, was a decidedly indie affair, featuring 10 covers of Tom Waits songs plus one original track. The murky production and deadpan, smoky vocals turned off many critics, but the release garnered something of a cult following.
Ten years before she won a Best Actress Oscar for Room and 14 years before she joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe as one the most powerful Avengers, Captain Marvel, Brie Larson was a 16-year-old wannabe pop singer in the Avril Lavigne mold.
Larson’s one and only album, Finally Out of P.E., is a collection of generic pop songs about the trials of a 21st century high school student. It isn’t any good, but it’s charming in hindsight, given the trajectory Larson’s career took over the following decade.
My next movie star musician is Mr. Kevin Costner, who has fronted a band called Modern West since 2008. The country rock outfit has released five albums, the most recent in 2020.
While the band’s first three albums steer clear of their lead singer’s movie career, the next two are companion pieces to his TV work: 2012’s Famous for Killing Each Other [Music from and Inspired by Hatfields & McCoys] and last year’s Tales From Yellowstone.
Meet Me In Montauk 