September Collective Collab Blog: Favorite Musical Film Cameos

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While we're used to seeing our favorite musicians on a stage, it always comes as a pleasant surprise to see them grace the big screen. Whether it's Dave Grohl disguised as a heavy metal-worshipping Satan or David Bowie playing himself in a fashion runway, musicians have a way of bringing a unique charm to a scene. For the September edition of the collab blog, we discuss some of our favorite musical cameos in film and their cult classic qualities.

Kurt B.'s Pick
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Artist: Elvis Costello
Film: Spice World (1997)

Spice Girls dressed like comic book characters and moved like superheroes, so fast they defied laws of time and space. For the 93 non-stop minutes of Spice World, the quintet outpaces the falsehood that, unlike the durable goods peddled by “real” musicians, a pop act’s influence expires as soon as their audience matures. Two and a half decades on, Spice World still delights, and Elvis Costello’s blink-and-you-miss-it cameo distills that endurance to its essence.

Since “Wannabe” barrelled forth in the summer of 1996, Scary, Sporty, Baby, Ginger and Posh had been seemingly everywhere all the time. Come Super Bowl Sunday XXXII, their big screen debut was muscling aside Titanic at US box offices, breaking records with opening weekend sales in excess of $10.5MM. As the story opens on-screen, our heroines are teetering on the brink of exhaustion, held aloft — and together — by the centrifugal force of escalating mania. Could this be the end for our heroines? 

Oh hell no. Instead of imploding under its own weight, Spice World slingshots the whole Spice enterprise to the next level. In this zone where art and “real life” overlap, cameos aplenty (Bob Geldof, Jennifer Saunders, Elton John) lampoon stardom and its inferred privileges, piercing the Fourth Wall to tatters. Fame is a serpent that eats its own tail. That’s show business!

It’s also unsustainable. As the film’s second act climaxes, the band breaks up on the eve of The Big Show. Everything comes to a halt... at least long enough for the Girls’ right hand, Deborah, to grab a drink. 

“Fame is such a fickle thing,” she says as she turns to the barman.  

“What can I get you?” he offers.

Gin and tonic, please. She hesitates. “Just a minute...” 

Recognition glimmers but an instant. Do I know you? Perhaps, in addition to drinks, this quiet server dispenses hints to simpler pleasures that await after the limelight fades. 

“Can you make it a double?” A nod of assent, and he’s gone.

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Parisa's Picks
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Band: Cannibal Corpse
Film: Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994)

This scene is a classic for a myriad of reasons - Jim Carrey’s goofy dance moves, the dozens of one-liners*, the impromptu vocal performance with Chris Barnes - but what really makes this scene so golden is that we got to see an underground subculture in a Blockbuster movie. Who would’ve ever thought the lyrics to “Hammer Smashed Face” would reach the homes of millions of Americans having a family night movie? It’s such a bizarre crossover, and while the ending of this movie hasn’t aged well, this scene is still a cult classic. 

*My two favorites:
"I gotta go, guys. I've got a date with your mothers!"
 “Excuse me, is Greg Here? … Thank you!”
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Band: Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach
Film: Austin Powers and the Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)

This is what London is like all the time, right? You just go out for a nice afternoon stroll, walk past Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach doing a little number, stop and have a dance with your loved one? I refuse to believe it’s any other way.

Band: Twisted Sister
Film: Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985)

Pee Wee’s Playhouse has never been a stranger to incredible musical cameos. The 1988 Christmas at Pee-Wee’s Playhouse special (still my favorite holiday special of all time) boasts appearances from Charro, K.D. Lang, Grace Jones, and Little Richard, just to name a few. That’s something I’ve always admired about Pee-Wee’s Playhouse. It’s not pandering to children by singing them their A-B-C’s or whatever mind-numbing kids’ song. There’s a greater level of respect for the younger audience by acknowledging that they can understand and appreciate real musical talent.

So it comes as no surprise that Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure would have some great cameos as well; my favorite being the brief, albeit iconic cameo from glam rock legends Twisted Sister doing a shoot for “Burn in Hell”. Not necessarily a “child friendly” song, but kids gotta learn about metal some time or another! The scene has everything you could want - Dee Snider’s luscious locks blowing in the wind, Godzilla, Santa Claus, a high speed chase. What more could you ask for? (Though I think the real kicker is when Pee-Wee casually passes by and says, “How it’s going?” The delivery of that line SENDS ME every time.)

Band: Alice Cooper
Film: Wayne’s World (1992)

Well I mean, this cameo has to be one of the most famous musical cameos ever, right? There’s not much to say that hasn’t been said about Alice Cooper’s backstage antics (I mean, has anyone not pronounced it “Mil-EE-wauk-AYE” since this movie came out?), but we don’t give nearly as much love to Cooper’s musical performance itself. “Feed My Frankenstein” is such a power anthem, and this scene is such a great glimpse into the spectacular theatrics that go into an Alice Cooper show. Jumping out of a giant glowing skeleton with a whip saying, “well I ain’t evil, I’m just good lookin’”...I mean c’mon, what a flex.
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Artist: The Vandals
Film: Dudes (1988)

Aside from being one of my favorite musical cameos in a film, this may also be one of my favorite opening sequences in a movie:

“I’m born to be a cowboy.” The silhouette of Dave Quackenbush’s mouth. The shot of a hanging cowboy doll. “A cowboy, uh huh!” Montage of mohawks. Pan out of The Vandals performing to a crowd of young NYC punks and Flea spearheading the mosh pit. 

Hell yeah.

Dudes never received the same attention as any of Penelope Spheeris’ other punk films (Decline of Western Civilization series, Suburbia, Wayne’s World, etc.) It’s a shame because this movie is such a gem, even just for the cameos alone. You got Lee Ving (Fear singer) as the gang leader,  and John Densmore of the Doors, Axxel G. Reese of the Gears, punk promoter "Mad" Marc Rude all as minor characters throughout the film. The major crime of this movie, however, is that it duped me into thinking that I had a crush on Jon Cryer. 
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Artist: Dave Grohl
Film: Tenacious D: The Pick of Destiny (2006)

Ah yes, Satan. He’s been an essential part of rock history, as discussed in The Melody Feed podcast we did about the devil’s role in rock ‘n roll.  I don’t think anyone has parodied these legend as well as Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny. This scene (aside from it being the most brilliant set up to their single “Tribute”) has all the classic tropes. You've got the weary travelers with their acoustic guitars battling the Devil to save their souls and reap supernatural guitar powers, a hodge-podge of classic rock tales from the likes of Robert Johnson, Led Zeppelin, etc.

What elevates this scene from being a mere bit in the movie, though, is how hard this song actually rips. That’s thanks in part to Dave Grohl’s cameo as Satan coming in with that catchy-as-hell riff (pardon my pun) and those ridiculous drum fills. A lot of people never realized that Dave Grohl played the role ‘cause the prosthetics are so intricate, but if you close your eyes and listen closely, you can totally hear the Foo Fighters/Queens of the Stoneage influence.

Post Edit: 

I just finished re-watching Pick of Destiny (perhaps for the hundredth time)…and somehow I failed to mention Meatloaf and Ronnie James Dio in the “Kickapoo” opening song?! This changes everything. Without a doubt my favorite cameos of all time and my favorite song from the movie. I highly recommend watching this behind the scenes of Jack Black & co. recording Dio’s part, which was done in a single take. It never ceases to be absolutely mind blowing to watch Dio do his thing, and even better when you see everyone in the studio geeking out in disbelief. 


Honorable mentions to non-performance based musical cameos:

• Billy Idol in The Wedding Singer (1998)
• Lemmy in Airheads (1994)
• Snoop Dogg in Half Baked (1998)​

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Alex's Picks

Band: Rise Against, as Black Flag 
Film: Lords of Dogtown (2005)
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Lords of Dogtown is a movie based on the true (albeit fictionalized) story of three surfer friends from Venice Beach that I think doesn't get as much love as it should nowadays. During a hot drought year in the 1970s that resulted in flat waves and water usage restrictions in LA County, Tony Alva, Stacy Peralta, and Jay Adams made their own waves by taking their skateboards into the emptied swimming pools of Southern California. In doing so, they turned plenty of heads and revolutionized the sport of skateboarding forever.

Their story is not without drama though. While they started out skating and winning competitions for their hometown surf shop’s team (with a manager played by Heath Ledger in a show-stealing supporting role), individual successes and desires eventually got in the way. They each left the team to get bigger deals, and tensions between the boys rose as they had to compete against each other more often. What better way to illustrate Jay Adams’ inner conflict towards his friends than patrons of a well-timed punk show busting through the venue's windows and consuming him into a fight, while Black Flag rips through “Nervous Breakdown?” Rise Against, who themselves had their heyday while this movie was made in the mid-2000s, were a perfect choice to play the Keith Morris-era of the band. They played a well-executed cover of the song that sounds straight out of LA’s emerging hardcore punk scene in the late 70s, and it made this scene in the movie that much better.
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Band: David Bowie 
Film: Zoolander (2001)
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I love this movie and I love this scene. David Bowie bursts into the film to call the silliest of supermodel walk-offs between Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, and he takes it SO seriously. Granted, none of the extras and supporting cast are supposed to be laughing either, but I don’t think anybody else in the room has a straighter face than Bowie. He means business the whole time and he appears fully invested in the contest. Of course, he had been married to a supermodel for a while by the time this movie was filmed, so something tells me he had judged a runway walk-off or two by the time he signed on to appear in Zoolander. I like to think this scene was business-as-usual for him..

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Randy's Pick

Artist: Ed Sheeran
Film: Yesterday (2019)
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If you haven’t heard by now, Yesterday is a film about a musician who, after an accident, becomes the only person in the world who has heard of The Beatles and knows their entire catalogue and thus takes credit for their songs. It’s an incredible premise with a notable cameo by Ed Sheeran who dares to challenge this musician in a song writing contest. He is so crushed after realizing his songwriting abilities are not up to par that I felt bad for him. It’s an interesting postmodern role that finds that delicate balance between self parody (his ringtone is “Shape of You”) and earnestness. He looked so devastated yet very aware that he was beaten in the film that I thought he was going to quit music. It’s one of the most effective performances by a musician on film.

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A. Iwasa's Pick

Band:  The Beatles
Film:  Yellow Submarine (1968)

This was a tough call, but this movie changed my life.  I was seven or so and just getting into rock when I first saw it, and though it’s mostly voice actors playing The Beatles, I didn’t know it then, they are in it and of course the music is theirs.  This film is largely responsible for me going on to become a full on Beatlemaniac, picking up the guitar and at root how I got into most of the bands I listen to more.

Honorable mentions:  The Beatles in Help!, The Circle Jerks in Repo Man, Weird Al in UHF and The Ramones in Rock ‘n’ Roll High School. 

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