SEATTLE — Editor’s note: The following story was published Sept. 18, 1992.
Seattle music isn’t the star of “Singles,’’ but it makes a great backdrop.
Whether or not followers of the scene appreciate the musings of lovelorn twentysomethings, they still have some stars and inside jokes to enjoy.
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The references to Seattle music begin early, with a long shot of Mother Love Bone graffiti during the opening credits. Actually, all that’s visible is Mother Love, but fans of the band that evolved into Pearl Jam still cheered the sight at the movie’s Seattle premiere Tuesday night.
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It isn’t long before the movie’s action moves to an unidentifiable nightclub, where Pearl Jam is heard playing but not seen. The scene is a tease for a couple of other nightclub shots, where Alice in Chains and Soundgarden perform their contributions to the soundtrack (”Would’’ and “Birth Ritual,’’ respectively).
Alice in Chains lead singer Layne Staley gets more screen time than Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell, but both get the chance to flash their famous chests and yowl their famous yowls.
Cornell apparently auditioned for the role of Cliff Poncier, the lead singer of a struggling Seattle rock band called Citizen Dick, but Cornell chose his own band over an acting career. The role instead went to Matt Dillon, who manages to play Poncier with a pleasing mix of vacuousness and sensitivity.
Poncier cuts a striking figure in his long hair and flannels, but he is just one character in a movie that features several interesting people. One could argue that “Singles’’ is as much about traffic (a central character’s obsession) as it is about music. Traffic gets a lot of screen time.
But if it’s the music that people really want, they may leave the theater wishing the movie had more of it.
The nightclub scenes are short, and so is time with Poncier’s band. But each moment is packed with details such as T-shirts featuring the likes of Mudhoney and Green River (an ’80s hard-rock band that included Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam).
Look closely at one of the posters in the background, and you’ll see it’s for a New Year’s Eve 1990 show at McChord Air Force Base. Blue Oyster Cult was the headliner at this imaginary and imaginative show. Citizen Dick was the opening act. And copies of Citizen Dick’s CD, “Smarter Than You,’’ are seen lying around as well.
Citizen Dick includes members of Pearl Jam, who use their own names but change some details of about themselves. Pearl Jam lead singer Eddie Vedder, for example, plays a drummer.
There are plenty of other celebrities to scope.
When the video-dating scene comes around, look close for a guy in a roomful of Sub Pop gear - it’s Bruce Pavitt, co-founder of the famous label.
And when Bridget Fonda’s character whispers sweet nothings to the wrong guy, the lucky fellow is Tad Doyle of Seattle thrash band TAD.
Soundgarden’s lead singer has a non-singing moment on screen. Cornell stands by as Poncier demonstrates a new stereo he installed in his girlfriend’s car, with smashing results.
Vedder, Ament and Gossard have several lines in the film, the funniest coming in a scene where Citizen Dick is reviewed in the Rocket and Poncier gets slammed.
The band also has a tough show in Portland, but the ever-positive Poncier reminds his mates that Citizen Dick is “loved in Belgium and Italy.’’
Poncier expands on that during an interview scene, saying his band is “expanding,’’ and not just about a “Seattle sound.’’ Those comments got some snickers from the crowd.
The movie doesn’t offer a complete picture of Seattle music, and neither does its soundtrack. But that doesn’t mean the 13 “Singles’’ songs are unsatisfying.
“Singles,’’ the CD, unites Mudhoney, Mother Love Bone, Soundgarden and the Screaming Trees, four bands that used to turn up on Sub Pop compilations but have gotten too big for such things.
That alone - not to mention the work of former Replacement Paul Westerberg - is cause for celebration.
The soundtrack also introduces the late Andrew Wood and his Mother Love Bone dramatics to fans that know only Pearl Jam. One can’t help but mourn the influential singer who died of a heroin overdose in 1990.
Nancy Wilson, the Heart guitarist who also happens to be wife of “Singles’’ writer/director Cameron Crowe, is heard on the soundtrack as well, harmonizing with her sister Ann for the Lovemongers’ version of Led Zeppelin’s “Battle of Evermore.’’
And from Jimi Hendrix, whose grave is visited on the screen by Poncier, there is the tender “May This Be Love.’’
Seattle pop bands such as the Posies are excluded from “Singles,’’ but out-of-towner Westerberg is true to their vibe, offering two upbeat songs with na na na na nas and ah ah ahs instead of screams.
The only other non-Northwest group on the CD is Smashing Pumpkins, though R.E.M. and others are heard in the movie. The Pumpkins seem very Seattle in “Drown,’’ which ends in a deluge of distortion that sounds like a cross between a buzz saw and whale song.
The soundtrack stands on its own. And it’s a good thing, since it was released months before its cinematic counterpart. “Singles’’ already has gone gold, selling more than 500,000 copies. It’s at 18 on charts this week and should be boosted even higher by whatever enthusiasm the movie generates.