"Bagdad Cafe" A story of the "heart" shown by a "coffee machine that needs repair"

Ultimate theme song "Calling You"

The most memorable thing about "Bagdad Cafe" is, of course, its theme song, "Calling You." Honestly, it would be no exaggeration to say that it is precisely because of this masterpiece that it became a record that will remain with us forever.

Bob Telson, who was active on Broadway stages, is in charge of the work. He said that after talking with the director, they came to the conclusion that he wanted to avoid making conventional movie music. The director reportedly asked Bob to write a song similar to Gershwin's famous song `` Summertime .''

When the song was finally completed, Bob made an international phone call to the director. It's 1am in America where Bob is. In Germany, where the director is, it's 7am. So Bob sang "Calling You" to them.

"Bagdad Cafe" (C) 1987 / Pelemele Film GmbH - Pro-ject Filmproduktion im Filmverlag der Autoren GmbH & Co. Produktions-Kommanditgesellschaft München - Bayrischer Rundfunk/BR - hr Hessischer Rundfunk.

At the time, Bob had a European girlfriend whom he had vowed to marry, but their relationship broke up and he became extremely depressed. No matter how many times I called her, she never answered. The lyrics of the song say, ``There's a coffee machine that needs repair,'' and the broken coffee machine is probably Bob's heart at that moment. Sometimes great songs that are passed down through generations are created through sad or tragic experiences, and ``Calling You'' was born into the world through just such an experience.

It was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song that year, which is quite an achievement considering that ``Bagdad Cafe'' is an independent film with German capital as well! Jevetta Steele sings the title background, but it has since been sung by many popular singers including Celine Dion, George Michael, George Benson, Natalie Cole, Holly Cole, and has now become a standard number. It becomes.

"Bagdad Cafe" theme song "Calling You"

Telson was involved in a variety of activities as a musician, and formed a rock band during his high school and college days (the band included Bonnie Raitt, who was later acclaimed as a talented singer).

After The Graduate from Harvard University, he was a member of Philip Glass's group, known for his radical style, and also collaborated with Tito Puente, a leading figure in Latin music. In 1983, he released the musical ``The Gospel at Colonus'' (also starring Morgan Freeman) based on Sophocles' ``Oedipus Rex,'' and Newsweek magazine said, ``Since Gershwin's ``Poggy and Bess,'' white people It was also praised as ``the best music that approaches the essence of black music.''

``Summertime,'' which the director thought of as a prototype for ``Calling You'' before filming, was an insert song in ``Porgy and Bess.'' Considering this trend, hiring Telson was the right decision.

Telson has worked with the director several times since then. Movies such as `` Rosalie Goes Shopping '' (1989, starring Marianne Sagebrecht) and `` Salmon Berries '' (1991, released on DVD in Japan) starring popular singer K.D. Lang, especially the latter's somehow heartbreaking theme song. `` Barefoot '' is impressive (K.D. Lang was also said to have been a big fan of ``Bagdad Cafe''). Telson also worked with the director on the musical version of ``Bagdad Cafe'' (musical), which toured Europe from 2004 to 2006.

As for classical music, Bach's pieces such as ``The Well-Tempered Gravier'' are played in ``Bagdad Cafe.'' The combination of a random cafe in the desert and a cheap piano played by Bach (who, like Yasmin, is from Germany) creates exquisite humor.

The factors that made it a hit as seen by an advertising man