Stan Lee at Tokyo Comic Con 2016. |
On Monday, the world lost one of its brightest storytelling minds.
Stan Lee, creator of many of Marvel’s most iconic superheroes, passed away at
the age of 95.
With a career spanning more than seven decades, almost
everyone has been inspired by Lee’s characters, including musicians. There are
many songs referencing the likes of Spider-Man, the X-Men, Iron Man and the
Hulk.
In honor of Stan Lee’s life, Vinyl Bay 777, Long Island’s
music outlet, is taking a look at some of the songs that took inspiration from
his characters. Here are five that show the reach of Lee’s work. (Note: Black
Sabbath’s “Iron Man” is not about the character, so it is not on this list.)
1.
Ramones,
“Spider-Man”: Quintessential New York punk band the Ramones covered the theme
to the 1967 ‘Spider-Man’ cartoon for their final album, ‘iAdios Amigos!,’ in
1995. Surely fans of the original program, the song is done with the same kind
of raw, “short, fast and loud” style as their originals. Ramones would find
themselves associated with the web-slingging superhero again in 2017’s ‘Spider-Man:
Homecoming.’ (video)
2.
Joe
Satriani, “Surfing With The Alien”: The title track to Joe Satriani’s “Surfing
With The Alien,” was written about Stan Lee / Jack Kirby hero the Silver
Surfer. The song ended up giving him his big break, cementing him as one of the
best guitarists of all time. Satriani also controversially put a picture of the
character on the front cover of the album. (video)
3.
Paul
McCartney & Wings, “Magneto And Titanium Man”: Paying homage to a
couple of Lee’s villains, Paul MCartney and Wings included “Magneto and
Titanium Man” as a B-Side to their “Venus and Mars”/ “Rock Show” single. McCartney
is a big fan of Marvel Comics and was inspired to write the song after purchasing
comic books during recording sessions in Jamaica in the 1970s. (video)
4.
The Traits, “Nobody Loves The Hulk”: This 1969
garage-rock track tells the story of how the Hulk came to be and how no one
loves him because of how he looks. The song makes you sympathize with the
character, after all, its not his fault he giant, green and menacing. (video)
5.
The Black Lips, “Spidey’s Curse”: Written in
2011 about a 1984 PSA, The Black Lips’ “Spidey’s Curse” is about Spider-Man
alter-ego Peter Parker being inappropriately touched as a teen. The story is
told pretty faithfully in the song, with the narrator commenting that he never
knew the story of Spider-Man was so dark. Then, the song breaks the fourth wall
to let the listener know that they are talking about a PSA that the narrator
was shown by his teacher and that the song becomes about how that comic made
him feel. (video)
Stan Lee has created some of the most beloved characters in
both comic book and animation history. So many musicians have been inspired by
his work and have written songs about his characters (like the ones above).
With such a prolific library of stories and characters that have been inspiring
artists and fans for decades, Stan Lee’s legacy will continue to live on.
Excelsior!
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Find more music from these Marvel-inspired artists at Vinyl
Bay 777. As Long Island’s top new independent record shop, we have thousands of
titles to choose from in a variety of genres. Browse our wide selection of new
and used vinyl records, CDs, cassettes, music DVDs and memorabilia in store at
our Plainview location or online at vinylbay777.com. With more titles being
added to our selection all the time, you never know what you might find at
Vinyl Bay 777.
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