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                                                                                                                                    Meagan Graham

                                                                                                                        Tone Essay

                                                                                                                        4/14/14

            Saturday Night Live has a classic sketch in which Eddie Murphy and Joe Piscopo play Stevie Wonder and Frank Sinatra. They perform a rendition of “Ebony and Ivory”, it’s a seemingly simple song mocking Frank Sinatra with further inspection the tone changes. The song goes from mockery to sarcasm to a historical mockery or satire. The song at a second glimpse has a deeper meaning than when first heard. It is also possible to see a cynical kind of hate for people who are fans of Sinatra in the song.

            In this rendition of the song the lyrics are very changed. “That was groovy thinkin'
Lincoln, when you set them freeeeeee...” a Joe Piscopo (Sinatra line). At this point in the song we’re only on the second line in and by now it can be told that the song is meant to be a parody.  But there is an obvious attack on Sinatra for his age and his way of thinking. There are many rumors about the kind of man that Sinatra was, one of them being that he was or may have been a little racist. The song continues on mocking him for his old ways.  Whether Sinatra was a racist or not, the song is obviously mocking him.

            Sarcasm in the song may not be vast but it is apparent. "Ebony, ivory
Living in perfect harmony." This is a quote from the original song, describing the writer’s piano and how it plays beautiful music despite the keys being black and white, that both the colors are needed to create music. The writer was expressing how they wanted the world to live, in perfect harmony.  What makes this sarcastic are the lines before, singing of how "You are blind as a bat, and I have sight! Side by side, you are my amigo, Negro, let's not fiiiiiiiight!" They are saying that there is no blindness to “Sinatra” or even the message is meant for the world. Regardless of the message in the song it was sarcasm.

            Line after line in the song makes Frank Sinatra look bad. Although he is not the actual Frank Sinatra just someone portraying him. But none the less there is a cynical intent on making fun of his fandom. The song parody clearly does not portray him in a good light. There’s an attempt at exposing him or somehow putting his dye hard fans into ridicule those who would refuse to some of his more obvious flaws. The tone shifts in this way towards the middle of the song when he starts to interact with Eddie Murphy (Stevie Wonder).

            For a short rendition of a song there are many tone changes. Although there aren’t any clear changes or shifts in the tone, there are many different tones with in the song. More than being surprisingly deep for a parody of a song it is surprisingly full of tone. Through Mockery of a character they created several different tones in the song. Proving comedy can be elaborate and sophisticated.

           

            Saturday Night Live has a classic sketch in which Eddie Murphy and Joe Piscopo play Stevie Wonder and Frank Sinatra. They perform a rendition of Ebony and Ivory, it’s a seemingly simple song mocking Frank Sinatra with further inspection the tone changes. The song goes from mockery to sarcasm to a historical mockery or satire. The song at a second glimpse has a deeper meaning than when first heard. It is also possible to see a cynical kind of hate for people who are fans of Sinatra in the song.

            In this rendition of the song the lyrics are very changed. “That was groovy thinkin'
Lincoln, when you set them freeeeeee...” a Joe Piscopo (Sinatra line). At this point in the song were only one the second line in and by now it can be told that the song is meant to be funny or a parody.  But there is an obvious attack on Sinatra for his age and his way of thinking. There are many rumors about the kind of man that Sinatra was, one of them being that he was or may have been a little racist. The song continues on mocking him for his old ways.  Weather Sinatra was a racist or not, the song is obviously mocking him.

            Sarcasm in the song may not be vast but it is apparent. "Ebony, ivory
Living in perfect harmony." This is a quote from the original song describing a piano with its keys playing beautiful notes despite their color difference, like how the song writer wanted the world to live.  What makes this sarcastic are the lines before, singing of how "You are blind as a bat, and I have sight! Side by side, you are my amigo, Negro, let's not fiiiiiiiight!" They are saying that there is no blindness to “Sinatra” or even the message is meant for the world. Regardless of the message in the song it was sarcasm.

            Line after line in the song makes Frank Sinatra look bad. Although he is not the actual frank Sinatra just someone portraying him. But none the less there is a cynical intent on making fun of his fandom. The song clearly does not portray him in a good light. There’s an attempt at exposing him or somehow putting his dye hard fans into ridicule those who would refuse to some of his more obvious flaws. The tone shifts in this way towards the middle of the song when he starts to interact with Eddie Murphy (Stevie Wonder).

            For a short rendition of a song there are many tone changes. Although there aren’t any clear changes or shifts in the tone, there are many different tones with in the song. More than being surprisingly deep for a parody of a song it is surprisingly full of tone. Threw Mockery of a character they created several different tones in the song.

           

Rock n’ Roll Band by Boston is similar to Pink Floyd’s Have a Cigar because both songs follow a story of fame, of becoming famous. The songs differ in their style choice and there devices Rock n’ Roll Band is in first person narrative whereas Have a Cigar is in second person narrative. 

Adrian Anchondo and Julian Smith have very different styles of lyricism although they share one common trait they love to parody famous singers songs. Julian however prefers to only keep the instrumental part of the songs and small parts of the character of the singer, where as Adrian takes on the persona of the singer and keeps the lyrics close to the original songs.
   



     Adrian: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHUvCbNcal4&feature=kp
     Julian: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RcMqRWpiZI

        Turtleneck and chain is probably the Lonely Islands most memorable album. Influence by early 90's and late 80's R&B they worked with several well renowned singers to create many well pieced and humorous songs. From singing about how to make a friend’s mother happy on mother’s day to popular cinema. Their constant use of imagery and allusions to popular culture make their songs appeal to a wide range of willing and sometimes unwilling listeners because of their spot on S.N.L. Their comical hits are well known by many witch makes their album a great chose for an even better laugh.

            Many of their songs touch upon awkward situations that they had experienced themselves such as meeting people or persons whose lives revolve around cinema and popular media. They turn these awkward encounters into humorous songs. They worked with singers such as Justin Timberlake, Michel Bolton, and Nicki Minaj. Their fame help boost the album into popularity their album may have never hit number one but that’s to be expected because of their album genre. The album covers a variety of subjects and life experiences adding comic relief to the everyday struggle that is life.

            Lyrists like The Lonely Island are needed to ease some of the hardships of life to add a touch of comic relief to the average of everyday life. If this album were to get even a song on the radio they would sky rocket into a higher state of mass media and may even add a new genre to the already diverse world of radio and improve the quality of people’s lives. Their songs may have little meaning and sometimes break the rules of lyricism but they make people laugh. That’s what makes this album so great the fact that the songs diverge from the norm and make people laugh.

      The Lonely Islands Song "Yolo" Featuring Adam Levine and Kendrick Lamar, they use a vast amount of sarcasm, a plethora of imagery, and a variety of allusions to modern popular culture, turning the phrase you only live once into a whimsical mockery of the way people use it by saying to be as safe as possible "You oughta look out".

            The Lonely Island take the over used term Y.O.L.O and terms into a mockery through the popular culture they relate to the audience comically by telling the audience to stay safe and take caution like in a famous American novel. They allude to famous author “word to George Orwell.” Using popular American culture to hint at the percussions that must be taken to stay safe from the world and the government much like one of George Orwell’s novels. This allows the audience to feel like they’re in on inside joke but it however includes most people.

            Imagery shows what is happening or what is being told to do. The Lonely Island depicts what should truly be done when using the term Y.O.L.O. You should “Board your windows up the sun is bad for your health and always wear a strait jacket so you’re safe from yourself.” The oddity of the phrase makes it humorous to the audience. It would be outrageous to lock yourself in a strait jacket and your own house just to stay alive. It’s something that no person would do however a generation of young people still cry Y.O.L.O when doing something dangerous. Making fun of those who would find what they’re saying odd.

            The use of sarcasm adds humor, and expresses personal beliefs. The Lonely Island, Kendrick Lamar, and Adam Levine all must have taken chances in life, they however say “take no chances”. The sarcastic tone is clearly there to make the song funny.Taking Y.O.L.O and turning it into a different phrase meaning  the opposite of  what it actually meant crating a sarcastic quality to the entire song. 

       The point is however that the song must come off comically to the people. All of the values in the song come together to create a parody of Y.O.L.O you only live once. A phrase that is used for excusing dangerous behavior now meaning to stay safe and away from harm. 

http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/lonelyisland/yolo.html