DECEMBER 7, 1941 was described as “a day which will live in infamy” by then President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, referring to the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor by Japan.
DECEMBER 7, 2004 can also be described as “a day which will live in infamy” for an entirely different reason. That was the day that William Shatner’s Transformed Man album was re-released. “William Shatner made an album? ” you might be saying to yourselves. Of course he did! Back in 1968 ( trying to capitalize on his Star Trek fame, no doubt ) Shatner descended upon the music industry like a Tribble eating grain on a Klingon outpost. (??????) He released a musical album featuring classic spoken word versions of popular songs.
With his first musical foray, the Transformed Man, Shatner takes us on a spiritual and emotional journey like no other: shock, dismay, disbelief , paranoia. All these words can be used to describe the Pandora’s box of emotions opened up while listening to this album. From Shakespearian soliloquies to searing renditions of rock and roll classics, Shatner delivers. Even though the Shakespeare stuff is merely okay, two tracks in particular epitomize the entire album. Shatner’s gritty rendition of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds’” is on par with any drug-induced hallucination from Woodstock that we can dredge up in these pages.
Much to the chagrin of my co workers and a few JKRC students, the Transformed Man is always on hand and readily available. However, no track gets more airplay than the Shatnerized version of “Mr. Tambourine Man.” The Bible describes the beginning of the end as “trumpets uttering their voices.” In this album, however, the end is signified by the sound of a …tambourine? The tambourine is also accompanied by incoherent rambling by Shatner, who comes off as a disoriented, paranoid drunk wandering through the back alleys of Calcutta. (??????)
From the opening tambourine sequence to the blood-curdling scream by Shatner at the end, “Tambourine Man” is a fun romp and has become a fan favorite and a staple in the I-WITNESS work day. Earlier in 2004, Shatner released his second album Has Been. Upon the release of Has Been, Shatner quipped, “It took me 36 years to release my second album. It just goes to show you that you can’t rush genius!” Perhaps he was right.
Hopefully , Shatner’s ‘Out of this world’ tour will be coming to a city near you.
