Hiram reinvents himself

Hiram casts off the shackles of covid to accept he’s an anachronysm and well out of touch and has rewritten his theme song to reflect this. So play the backing track and sing along…

I’m Hiram the Hippy and I’m O.K.
My time has long since passed but I still get out to play
In the land of make believe I can live out the dream.
To be that man who ever was the subject of esteem.

Here’s to the past
Long may it last
What can I say –
I’m just a virtual Hippy, so I’m OK

I’m Hiram the Hippy, how do you do?
It’s such an honour for me to catch up with you.
We’ve followed different paths for so many years
Now at last I’ve met you let’s share a couple of beers

Here’s to the past
Long may it last
What can I say –
I’m just a virtual Hippy, so I’m OK

And so I formed Smiling People, Smiling People
To play my compilation, recall the innovation
That so inspired a generation, generation
To semi-pro implementation,
Smiling People, local combo
available for any gig
Smiling People, ooh, ooh…
(who gives a fig)

A David Brent moment

Hiram – the movie – a lockdown story.

Hiram is a virtual musician who appeared during covid lockdown to work with a virtual band – The Smiling People – and build a set of his favourite songs in preparation for a return to normality when musicians could again get together and perform live. For now lockdown has ended and Hiram can return to the ether from whence he came.

As a memento to Hiram’s brief sojourn into existence how about a film about a real band doing a live gig about an imaginary Magic Theatre hosting Hiram’s virtual band in front of a live audience at the end of which the band play out with Silver Machine and a lot of smoke? The real band would then dissipate, as would the audience, but the film lives on? So…

Hiram plays out his virtual fantasy with a real five-piece band and chorus.

We open with the band at back of stage behind curtain. The scene is a park – trees on curtain, Hiram on a pedestal on one side of the stage facing cardboard cutouts of the band and 2 tables and chairs for chorus members when they’re not singing. There is a door marked “Magic Theatre” on the other side of the stage. The chorus members enter as if walking in the park and sit at the tables.

Hiram the Hippy plays. Hiram sings the first verse to the cutouts and the second verse to the chorus who represent his heroes of yesteryear. Hiram exits stage at end through door marked ”Magic Theatre” .

Chorus watches Hiram leaving through the door then sing Magic Theatre ending in smoke and wind. The Magic Theatre transforms the scene into a real band as fanfare plays over credits displayed on a monitor which could also be used to play selected video from the original artists. Pedestal has gone. Curtains open and band appears out of the smoke. Hiram is on the drums.

The set is performed with chorus members swapping lead roles – dressing and performing each song as the original artiste – e.g. Joe Cocker – where possible.

  1. With a  Little Help from My Friends
  2. Let’s Work Together
  3. She’d Rather be with Me
  4. Moon Song
  5. Smiling People
  6. Joker
  7. Take 5
  8. Crazy Little Thing Called Love
  9. Atlantis
  10. Space Oddity
  11. Silver Machine

Performance ends in smoke with curtain dropping on band.

“System error – please reboot” could display on the monitor and the Hiram riff could slowly fade to confirm Hiram had returned to his virtual world?

Click – A Night at the Disco – to listen to the virtual concert.