Let's suspend belief for a second now and imagine a world in which Will Ferrell, Christopher Walken, and SNL support cast in stitches and the dreaded cowbell does not exist. Chances are that in such a scenario, many folks would lead lives unaware of Blue Öyster Cult and the impact that they've had on numerous generations of musicians since their inception in 1967.
That's kind of hard, especially since the "more cowbell" skit is one of the true golden nuggets of the show's run, so much so that Ferrell's fictitious member Gene Frenkle has garnered admiration and condolences from the band's less informed fans. And Walken is the epitome of cool as the also amalgam-fiction of The Bruce Dickinson producing their signature 1976 tune "(Don't Fear) The Reaper."
Such are the breaks in popular culture.
But Blue Öyster Cult has had its hands in so much more than just that; heavy-hitters like Metallica and the Smashing Pumpkins cite them as influences while the entire genre of "stoner rock" owes a debt to them and their contemporaries Hawkwind and Black Sabbath for the brilliant fusion of hard rock with psychedelic elements edging on metal.
Most people will roll their eyes when they hear about legends performing in their local city-run park, but we posit the following: If the City of Weston digs the Cult so much that it's sponsoring them for a FREE concert while the weather is still nice, who's the fool for missing out?
You, sir and/or madam; you'd be the fool.
More Cowbell from Don Lumiere on Vimeo.
Blue Öyster Cult with the Outlaws at 7 p.m. Saturday, March 24, at the Weston Regional Park, 20200 Saddle Road, Weston. Call 954-385-2000, or visit westonfl.org.
