Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Q is for Queer as Folk (Music!)



Warning: This content may not be suitable for all viewers.

Queer as Folk was a groundbreaking hit series on the Showtime Network that aired from 2000 to 2005. The show was the first of its kind here in the U.S., based on the British series of the same name. The show centered around the lives of a group of gay friends in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and tackled all sorts of issues that surround the gay community.

At first, most of the hype around the show focused on the racy, never before seen scenes of male on male nudity, but eventually the shock wore off and the show became taken more seriously for its superb acting and its mesmerizing storylines. The cast of the show was a talented group of actors, featuring Gale Harold as the show's central figure Brian Kinney, Hal Sparks as his best friend Michael Novotny, Randy Harrison as Justin, Brian's on again-off again love interest, and two time Emmy Award winning Sharon Gless as Debbie Novotny, Michael's proud and outspoken mother.

Since this Z-A Blogger's Challenge is all about music, I'm going to focus on some of the fabulous music that accompanied the adventures of Brian and Justin, Michael, Emmett, Ted and the rest of the folks at Club Babylon, Pittsburgh's resident fictional hotspot in the show. But before I get to some of that stuff, I'd like to start off with the theme song to the original British series, a fun, island-sounding tune with spoken overlays that set-up that series, as well as the American one. Check it out...




Then of course there's fast-moving theme to the American version of the show:



The next one is from the first season. Justin, who's falling quickly for promiscuous playboy Brian, tries to stir up his jealousies by performing in an amateur strip tease performance at Babylon. Though Justin was a big hit, his little trick ultimately failed. After all, it was only the first season.

High School Confidential



The next one came at a tender moment of the first season, after Brian's college sweetheart, Lindsay, gave birth to his son, along with her lover and Brian's newfound nemesis Melanie. The song is one of my all time favorites, a tender and inspirational tune sung by M People's Heather Small.

Proud



'Dive in the Pool,' by Barry Harris and featuring the vocals of Pepper Mashay, was a bona fide club hit even before it appeared on QAF's Season 1 Soundtrack. The video accompanying this song is a typical Club Babylon sequence that was shown throughout the series and is pretty much waht you might see in any big gay nightclub.

Dive in the Pool



Sexy Boy

Though this vid depicts scenes from the American version of Queer as Folk, the song is actually from the UK series. Sultry, sexy...sexy boy!



Straight to Number One

This is the Showtime series' answer to 'Sexy Boy.'

Ten, kiss me on the lips...
Nine, run your fingers through my hair...
Eight, touch me...slowly...slowly
Seven, hold it! Let's go straight to number one...




The last onse is one of my favorites from the entire series. The video was filmed as a promo for the third season. Beautiful and deep voiced singer Kristine W is joined by the cast for what looked like a really fun video to make. It's got a great hook and is danceable as all heck. Check it out...

Some Lovin'



Well, I hope you've enjoyed these clips from the great Showtime series 'Queer as Folk.' All of this listening and I'm ready to watch the whole series all over again. I miss it and the great music that came with it. If you'd like to purchase any of the songs presented here, I highly recommend the Season One Soundtrack for starters. You can get it below:
Queer As Folk (Music From the Original Soundtrack) - Various Artists


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