What I An - Edie Brickell abd the New Bohemians (1988) 9/11/23)

September 28 through October 1, The Chippewa Valley Theatre Guild presents "Bright Star," the Tony-nominated Broadway musical. For tickets, call CVTG at 715-832-PLAY.

The show was written by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell.

Everybody knows who Steve is, of course, but Edie? Not so much...unless you remember her Great Song of 1988: "What I am," which she sang with The New Bohemians.

It was the group's initial single from their debut album: "Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars," and the inspiration for the song was just as quirky as the end result.

In college, Edie took a course on world religions that drove her nuts. Apparently, everybody was trying to adopt a dogma and then questioning others in the class about theirs. Then they started making things up. At this point, Edie decided to drop the class before she lost--in her words: "My sense of who I am."

C

ashbox called it "One of the catchiest, anti-philosophical, tongue-in-cheek ditties since Peggy Lee's 'Is That All There Is?.'" (In case you've never heard Peggy's 1969 hit, I've included a link below."

"What I Am" was a 4 chart hit: #4 on Billboard's Alternative Music Chart, #7 on the Hot 100, #9 on the Mainstream Rock Chart, and #30 on The Adult Contemporary Chart.

"What I Am" was a Great Song of 1988, but unfortunately it made the New Bohemians

a one hit wonder. But the good news is: Edie is obviously still around, and still a "Bright Star." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDl3bdE3YQA

"Is That All There Is?" (Peggy Lee/1969) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sWTnsemkIs

Tomorrow: Elevator music.