Sunday, 11 August 2013

Jon Pertwee Asks The First Question: Who Is The Doctor?



     In 1972, Jon Pertwee did something & that something has made him one of my favorite Doctors (I think I have...around 12): He released a song called "Who Is The Doctor?".
     Written & arranged by Rupert Hine, the song featured Pertwee reciting spoken word lyrics over a slightly more psychedelic version of the Doctor Who theme song performed by Hine.

Lyrics:

I cross the void beyond the mind
The empty space that circles time
I see where others stumble blind
To seek a truth they never find
Eternal wisdom is my guide
I am the Doctor.

Through cosmic waste the TARDIS flies
To taste the secret sauce of life
A presence science can't deny
Exists within outside behind
The latitude of the human mind
I am the Doctor.

My voyage dissects the course of time
Who knows you say
But are you right
Who such indeed to find the light
That glows so darkly in the night
Toward that point I guide my flight

As fingers move to end mankind
Metallic teeth begin to grind
With sword of truth I turn to fight
The satanic powers of the night
Is your faith before your mind
No man, Am I the Doctor?


     What was with all the sci-fi guys from the 70s releasing spoken word music? And more importantly, why did this trend end? How come we don't have tracks from Colin Baker or Sylvester McCoy performing a synthesizer-tormented variation on this idea? Isn't Arthur Darvill a musician & didn't he, Karen Gillan & Matt Smith joke about starting a band? Where has the absolute unyielding joy of cornball cheesiness that made early Doctor Who & sci-fi so great disappeared to these days?
     I understand that this show & this genre are known for tackling weighty & lofty subjects in their own manner but while there is an absolute need to remind folks of the serious matters in life, there is an even greater need to remind them that its okay to be the opposite of serious, to revel in the absurdities that we love most in life.
     And there's always a need for Jon Pertwee to recite sci-fi poetry over a TV show theme song. It's the little things that separate the good from the great.

You can download the MP3 here.

1 comment:

  1. One of my favourite things ever. Added a download link by the way.

    ReplyDelete