Nightmares & Dreamscapes: You Know They Got a Hell of a Band (TV)
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The short story basis for this one-hour TV treat comes from Stephen King's anthology, Nightmares & Dreamscapes, where it was reprinted in 1993. The book boasted 23 Stephen King offerings (including a teleplay featuring Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, a poem, and a piece he wrote for The New Yorker on Little League baseball).
There were several stories in the collection I greatly enjoyed — especially The Ten O'Clock People, Dolan's Cadillac, and Clattery Teeth — but it's You Know They Got a Hell of a Band that's always stood out as the most vivid in my memory. Not because it's a suspenseful, or even scary, story (it isn't), but because I've always had a soft spot in my heart for classic rock. Mixed with King's quirky, fevered imagination and flourish of supernatural horror, the subject matter just couldn't be beat.
The TNT original mini-movie of the story (set to air on August 2) stars one of my favorite TV actors, Steven Weber (who was so great most recently in The Masters of Horror episode Jenifer, which he also wrote) as the roadside attraction loving, roadmap eschewing, rock-n-roll fan who finds out what a long, strange trip it can be.
Clark and Mary Willingham (Weber, and Kim Delaney) take a wrong turn and wind up in an idyllic little town called Rock & Roll Heaven. When Mary questions this, her intrigued husband just laughs it off and says there are a lot of strange city names — Truth and Consequences, Intercourse, and Hell, to name just a few. He wants to see the sights, and she just wants to get back on the road.
His perseverance wins out, and soon Clark and Mary are ensconced in a quaint 50s style diner enjoying the eats and tunes. The jukebox plays only the classics, and the restaurant employees are all picture-perfect look-alikes: The waitress is a dead ringer for Janis Joplin, right down to the trademark laugh and rose-colored glasses.
After Clark and Mary meet Ricky Nelson, Otis Redding, Ronnie Van Zant, Buddy Holly, and even The King… they find themselves in a jam. And not the musical kind.
Like the short story it is based upon, You Know They Got a Hell of a Band is as easy to figure out as a two-chord song. For those looking for mystery and suspense, this episode will feel played-out within the first few minutes. But if you don't mind taking a freeride, you could do worse on a Wednesday night in front of the boob-tube.
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Reviewed by Staci Layne Wilson
Song Lyrics: Rock And Roll Heaven (by The Righteous Brothers)
If you believe in forever
Then life is just a one-night stand
If there's a rock and roll heaven
well, you know they got a hell of a band, band, band
Jimmy gave us rainbows
And Janis took a piece of our hearts
And Otis brought us to the dock of the bay
Sing a song to light my fire
Remember Jim that way
They've all found another place, another place to play
If you believe in forever
Then life is just a one - night stand
If there's a rock and roll heaven
Well, you know they've got a hell of a band, band, band
Remember bad, bad Leroy Brown
Hey Jimmy touched us with that song
Time won't change a friend we came to know
And Bobby gave us Mack the Knife
well, look out, he's back in town
They'll all be there together
When they meet in one big show
If you believe in forever
Then life is just a one - night stand
If there's a rock and roll heaven
Well, you know they've got a hell of a band, band, band
There's a spot light waiting
No matter who you are
'Cause everybody's got a song to sing
Everyone's a star
(Everybody's got to be a star)
If you believe in forever
Then life is just a one - night stand
If there's a rock and roll heaven
Well you know they've got a hell of a band
If you believe in forever
Then life is just a one - night stand
If there's a rock and roll heaven
Well you know they've got a hell of a band
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