1272 – The Kinks - Celluloid Heroes (1972)

 

Escrita por Ray Davies, foi gravada em maio de 1972 e lançada em 25 de agosto de 1972 no disco Everybody's in show-biz e depois lançada em compacto em 24 de novembro de 1972, que tinha Hot potatoes como Lado B.

A canção cita o nome de vários artistas do cinema do século 20 e até cita a rua de Los Angeles chamada Hollywood Boulevard e sua Walk of Fame. Fala sobre Greta Garbo, Rudolph Valentino, Bela Lugosi, Bette Davis, Marilyn Monroe, George Sanders e Mickey Rooney.

Foi regravada por Joan Jett, Seteve Vai e Jon Bon Jovi com Ritchie Sambora, entre outros artistas.

A letra:

Everybody's a dreamer
And everybody's a star
And everybody's in movies
It doesn't matter who you are
There are stars in every city
In every house and on every street
And if you walk down Hollywood Boulevard
Their names are written in concrete

Don't thread on Greta Garbo
As you walk down the boulevard
She looks so weak and fragile
That's why she tried to be so hard
But they turned her into a princess
And they sat her on a throne
But she turned her back on stardom
Because she wanted to be alone

Well You can see all the stars as you walk down Hollywood Boulevard
Some that you recognise, some that you've hardly even heard of
People who worked and suffered and struggled for fame
Some who succeeded and some who suffered in vain

Rudolph Valentino
Looks very much alive
And he looks up ladies' dresses
As they sadly pass him by
Avoid stepping on Bela Lugosi
Because he's liable to turn and bite
But stand close by Bette Davis
Because hers was such a lonely life

Well You can see all the stars as you walk down Hollywood Boulevard
Some that you recognise, some that you've hardly even heard of
People who worked and suffered and struggled for fame
Some who succeeded and some who suffered in vain

Everybody's a dreamer
And everybody's a star
And everybody's in show-biz
It doesn't matter who you are
But those who are successful
Be always on your guard
Success walks hand in hand with failure
Along Hollywood Boulevard

I wish my life was a non-stop Hollywood movie show
A fantasy world of celluloid villains and heroes
'Cause celluloid heroes never feel any pain
And celluloid heroes never really die

You can see all the stars as you walk along Hollywood Boulevard
Some that you recognise, some that you've hardly even heard of
People who worked and suffered and struggled for fame
Some who succeeded and some who suffered in vain

La la la la la la la la la la la la la
La la la la la la la la la la la la la

La la la la la la la la la la la la la
La la la la la la la la la la la la la
Oh, celluloid heroes never feel any pain
Oh, celluloid heroes never really die

I wish my life was a non-stop Hollywood movie show
A fantasy world of celluloid villains and heroes
Because celluloid heroes never feel any pain
And celluloid heroes never really die

A versão dos Kinks:

A versão de Joan Jett:

 

A versão de Jon Bon Jovi e Ritchie Sambora: