Video: Did Madonna fake it at Live Earth?
posted at 1:01 pm on July 10, 2007 by Allahpundit
The debate rages, and will continue to rage given that the director seems to have been shooting for a 3:1 ratio of long shots to close-ups. We must have some guitarists, or at least “Guitar Hero” aficionados, among the readership. Can I get a ruling here?
There’s a photo at the Telegraph link, FYI, but the only thing it really tells us is that Madonna has granny hands. More enlightening is this piece at the Daily Mail, which is reveling in the Goracle’s disappointment to an enjoyably odd degree.
Update: Whoops, forgot to give you your official content warning for a brief moment of “empowerment” at the beginning.
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The shell of a person is irrelevant, who cares if she faked it.
americaslaststand on July 10, 2007 at 1:04 PM
C’mon, everyone knows girls can’t play guitar.[/chauvinism]
Enrique on July 10, 2007 at 1:04 PM
Whoah, hold on a minute there…girls fake it?
James on July 10, 2007 at 1:07 PM
Sounded real to me…she’s only playing two chords over and over again, which isn’t that hard. The other guy playing guitar behind her is the solo you are hearing, I’m pretty sure.
freakagriep on July 10, 2007 at 1:09 PM
Faking it would be an insult to the 2 BILLION people that were watching. And of course she has granny hands–she’s like 60, right?
ReubenJCogburn on July 10, 2007 at 1:10 PM
Yes, she was faking it. Typical.
About 28 seconds in she confirms what we all knew about those people and what they are. At least she’s on our side about them(?)
chrisro on July 10, 2007 at 1:11 PM
Oh, the “update” came up upon refresh.
They call that “empowerment” now?
chrisro on July 10, 2007 at 1:14 PM
“If you wanna save the planet let me see you jumpin’ up and down.”
…a theory which has as much scientific credibility as Al Gore’s 10-point plan.
I think they should have set up treadmills in the audience to generate the power for the lights and PA. Run, you little hamsters, run!
saint kansas on July 10, 2007 at 1:14 PM
If you want to save the planet jump up and down ???
How about this FTW and F-U Madonna.
Mojack420 on July 10, 2007 at 1:16 PM
Yawning IS infectious. Excuse me!
portlandbob on July 10, 2007 at 1:17 PM
if you want to save the planet…I demand the sum… OF ONE MILLION DOLLARS.
EnochCain on July 10, 2007 at 1:17 PM
She’s playing. Simple G to C bar chords. On her previous tour she played on Candy Perfume Girl.
You can hear her timing is off when she’s jumping right before she starts singing.
Metro on July 10, 2007 at 1:18 PM
So is Madonna.
EnochCain on July 10, 2007 at 1:18 PM
P.S. My semi-professional guitar opinion is that she’s actually playing. It’s just two barre chords… which says a lot about Madonna and our expectations of her talent. Like clapping when a baby makes a poopie.
saint kansas on July 10, 2007 at 1:20 PM
The only reason I would possible attend one of these multi-act shows would be purely economic. I would rather pay a single price for all these ass-orted “artists” than pay the ridiculous prices single act shows are charging these days.
And as far as Madge faking it….only Mr. Madonna knows for sure….and her hairdresser.
ej_pez on July 10, 2007 at 1:23 PM
P.P.S. If you think you need and can afford to have full-time dancers* on stage with you, you’re too big and need to go away. Fast.
*Happy Mondays excepted
saint kansas on July 10, 2007 at 1:24 PM
5:15 on a countdown, her transition was WAY off.
Guess is she’s kinda playing, but she’s shut down… either at the guitar, or the board…
4:04 transition looks the same as 5:15… but no impact on the music being played… at least I don’t hear it…
Romeo13 on July 10, 2007 at 1:24 PM
Good on her if she is playing, which appears to be the case. I had always assumed, though, that Madonna’s lack of any discernible singing ability, rather than an absence of guitar playing, was her real problem.
tad on July 10, 2007 at 1:25 PM
There was also a four-chord break, as in G, A, B and C. How much CO2 did she and her dancers produce by performing the song?
Bigfoot on July 10, 2007 at 1:28 PM
Talk about people being sheep! When are people going to wise up to these gluttonous pigs who waste and destroy so much and whose only defense is that they buy carbon offsets?
Blake on July 10, 2007 at 1:29 PM
Why is this being presented as news? Come on, guys…
MadisonConservative on July 10, 2007 at 1:29 PM
Did anyone hear the song and lyrics she wrote for Live Earth? It’s pretty bad.
Blake on July 10, 2007 at 1:30 PM
Well because not everything here has to be serious.
EnochCain on July 10, 2007 at 1:31 PM
“She’s playing. Simple G to C bar chords.”
Exactly. She’s just sawing away (ordinarily I’d say “banging away”, but that seems somehow wrong in this circumstance…) at those two chords over and over again while her primary guitarist does anything more difficult. Nice looking Les Paul Standard, though.
Ed Driscoll on July 10, 2007 at 1:32 PM
You see the guy with the white guitar in the background playing the same thing she is suppose to be playing, especially around the 4:15ff counting down. It’s a fairly simple song so he may be there just to keep her on track – doesn’t always work.
DrM2B on July 10, 2007 at 1:33 PM
Who’s Madonna?
Heh.
Bob's Kid on July 10, 2007 at 1:34 PM
Hard to tell if it’s faked or not.
One thing’s for sure, though – it’s terrible.
Corky on July 10, 2007 at 1:34 PM
ONE KAJILLION, MABILLION, FAZILLION, Brm….. DOLLARS!
Jarhead on July 10, 2007 at 1:35 PM
Her backup dancers really truly suck. She needs to start poaching from America’s Got Talent or that other show that has dancers.
And if she really wanted to be the rock princess she’s pretending to be her, she’d have played during Metallica’s set.
Mindcrime on July 10, 2007 at 1:35 PM
She’s gross. Please quit, Madonna.
foxforce91 on July 10, 2007 at 1:37 PM
You obviously haven’t seen the robots.
frreal on July 10, 2007 at 1:37 PM
Or the iPhone OCD.
;)
I don’t mind. I like AP’s whimsy!
Mindcrime on July 10, 2007 at 1:40 PM
I’m not familiar with her speaking voice . . . was she using her British accent?
Labamigo on July 10, 2007 at 1:40 PM
Sure she is playing. But her other guitarist is also playing Les Paul. At the end, I fully believe that is her pulling her lowest barred note to a G-sharp, most like because of movement.
So she is at leat part of it, but I’d say she was truly in the feed, myself.
Her actual bar-chord technique is correct–especially for distorted rock guitar.
-T
The Therapist on July 10, 2007 at 1:41 PM
Ah yes, the Madonna that has inspired thousands of lip-syncing skank waanabe’s the world over is whoring herself out again to promote what ever cause the person with the chequebook wants promoted.
You go girl!
The only difference between Madonna and a $50 hooker is the level of self-righteousness.
Madonna can feign righteous indignation way better.
G-man on July 10, 2007 at 1:41 PM
Can’t believe some are calling that a “guitar solo” — Zakk Wylde and the ghost of Dimebag Darrell must be having a good laugh over this one.
ScottMcC on July 10, 2007 at 1:41 PM
Madonna is a little long in the tooth for this. In fact, most of the performers were beyond their prime.
Blake on July 10, 2007 at 1:42 PM
I didn’t really hear a true solo. what there was of one was done on keyboard. Previous statements of her playing 2 chords are basically correct, with the exception of the bridge where she runs through 4 barre chords. Her guitar is basically turned down to a level so that if she’s off the audience can’t hear it. She’s playing a very clean guitar whereas all of the lead work is done with clean/distortion. Madge doesn’t have any pedals around to make the switch so we have to assume that the other guitarist is carrying the song while the old lady is just carrying her guitar.
mattshu on July 10, 2007 at 1:42 PM
This is about as newsworthy as another tired Paris Hilton interview. Who cares if the airhead was playing her version of air guiter?
pilamaye on July 10, 2007 at 1:44 PM
Madonna’s only “talent” is in hiring the right PR people, and having an army of, let’s say, “Cher Fans” that keep her career going.
bmac on July 10, 2007 at 1:46 PM
Yep, she was playing. It sounded as thought the soundman was riding the faders (or computer controlled) of the mix balance of her and the other guitarist (with the other guitarists playing the more intricate stuff.)
There is so much processing on both guitars it just ends up being mix-mosh wall of crap sound anyway, so about any beginner could have been playing the 2 bar chords Madonna strummed.
It was kind of interesting to see her pull off the “break” part where she was picking individual strings, but even then I couldn’t tell if that was the 2nd (or 3rd backstage or pre-recorded) guitarist. Even then, they could have muted her on the sound board. The quality of the clip makes it hard to tell.
nottakingsides on July 10, 2007 at 1:46 PM
Having now suffered through the whole song, I can conclude that she is indeed playing.
And may I add that her singular playing style adds immeasurably to the depth and texture of the song.
/sarcasm
It’s a nice metaphor for the whole event, really. You didn’t really need guitars at all for the song. But you do have a couple of perfectly competent professional players — experts, really — onstage to handle the parts. But they’re nobodies. You — you’re Madonna, and it’s not complete until you pick up a guitar and hack away too, even if you don’t really know what you’re doing. And hey, let’s throw in a crew of superfluous dancers to surround you and make sure all eyes are on you. Are you ready to change the way you suck? Apparently not.
And what a friggin’ nag about the jumping! Get off my case, woman! I almost pity Guy.
saint kansas on July 10, 2007 at 1:49 PM
Haha! I hope AP leaves this post up top for a while, just to torque off the folks who seem unfamiliar with the concept of choice.
baldilocks on July 10, 2007 at 1:49 PM
“Like clapping when a baby makes a poopie.”
Well said, Kansas. yuou cant coach stuff like that.
Mike D. on July 10, 2007 at 1:51 PM
As a guitarist, it looks like she’s playing. Les Paul’s are easy action guitars to play bar chords also. During the solo, she was just playing he low E string progression G,A, B,C – it appears, however, too much panning away by the camera and way too much play on the monkey boys in latent 70′s garb prancing around the stage. Wey Too Ghey.
Much of the play seemed to come from the main lead guitarist. But the cheap thrills at the end with the guy fiddling with the amplifier was weird. Hold any guitar close to an amp on full blast will cause a feedback, but you don’t have to tweak the knobs.
I wanna know was she lip syncing?
Kini on July 10, 2007 at 1:52 PM
Good Lord, Madonna, Michael Moore, Carl Levin, and John Conyers why are all these freaks coming form Michigan? What happened to my state?
deadbackpacker on July 10, 2007 at 1:54 PM
What really disturbs me in this vid is the dancers. Man they are scary.
nailinmyeye on July 10, 2007 at 1:59 PM
Did she actually say “I don’t want anyone’s feet to touch the ground for the whole song”? Was she planning some Kabala-based levitation trick? Was Tom Cruise going to use his witchcraft? Meh, if you insist on the veracity of the Goracle’s claims why not deny gravity?
trubble on July 10, 2007 at 2:00 PM
Ok, I seem to be late to this party, however, I will provide the definitive comments. She really is playing, BUT badly! She is doing what many bands do to cover for their inability to play the guitar well. She is playing two chords throughout the entire song, ‘G’ and ‘C’. Not only that, but she is playing them as what is known as “power chords”. this is achieved by only playing the two base strings (the bottom ‘E’ and ‘A’). So she is not even playing a full chord. To mask her lack of talent even more, her guitar is running through an effects machine that is both compressing and distorting the sound. When it finally came to the middle of the song, when anything even remotely occurred that could be described as a guitar solo, she dropped the “A” string of the power chord and simply plucked the bottom string repeatedly while moving along the chord progression. All this amounts to no talent of course, which is why I have to say that she is really playing because no one would fake such a demonstrably low skill level of guitar playing. Behold, I have spoken.
Weight of Glory on July 10, 2007 at 2:00 PM
woops I see Kini beat me to some of the more detailed aspects.
Weight of Glory on July 10, 2007 at 2:02 PM
To Camille Paglia’s eternal shame and embarrassment, Madonna has always been a moronic, boring fake.
As for “faking it” on stage, digital technique these days allows for all degrees of audio authenticity. But with acts so stupid as Madonna, who could care?
Halley on July 10, 2007 at 2:03 PM
Hasn’t that always been the claim against Madonna?
Esthier on July 10, 2007 at 2:04 PM
I was watching the Today Show back in about 2002 or 2003 and Madonna said that she was just learning to play the guitar. Not bad if she’s learned two or three chords in 4 or 5 years.
pistolero on July 10, 2007 at 2:06 PM
Wow, I do. More than even I suspected. Let’s make this a chicks with guitars who aren’t Madonna thread.
Here’s the lovely Charlotte Heatherly of Ash performing the appropriately titled Burn Baby Burn. And Lush (two guitar chicks!). And Shonen Knife!
saint kansas on July 10, 2007 at 2:06 PM
The screech at 2:14 was Howard Dean, not her.
mcker on July 10, 2007 at 2:06 PM
Jimi Hendrix just rolled over in his grave.
Only one person knew how to hump an amp.
Sammy316 on July 10, 2007 at 2:07 PM
Jimi Hendrix she aint.
Jumping up and down can affect the orbit of the earth. It was proved by someone at HuffPo by gluing a gerbil to a beach ball.
dingoatemebaby on July 10, 2007 at 2:10 PM
Allah promised more red meats posts and he has delivered.
KelliD on July 10, 2007 at 2:13 PM
meats=meat
KelliD on July 10, 2007 at 2:14 PM
More red meats!
Bad Penny on July 10, 2007 at 2:30 PM
I just could bare it. I had to stop 25% in, lest I heave.
TheSitRep on July 10, 2007 at 2:30 PM
If it wasn’t for little Latino girls and gay males she wouldn’t have an audience..she’s the next Cher!!!
LtE126 on July 10, 2007 at 2:31 PM
No faking there. She genuinely sucks.
That was her being awful live, on stage,
with an extra helping of over-the-hillness.
TheSitRep on July 10, 2007 at 2:34 PM
Heh. I love moonbat “science”–it’s even wackier than mad science. I’m surprised they could spare the gerbil, though.
ReubenJCogburn on July 10, 2007 at 2:35 PM
Considering all the Energy wasted during this bullsh*t event, all the miles of Gulfstream jet exhaust dumped into the atmosphere, anybody who actually cares if Madonna “faked it” or not is spending more time on it that the thing deserves.
In other words, WHO CARES? She’s just a stupid twit with a fake British accent she affects now that she lives in the UK with her no-talented director-husband.
georgej on July 10, 2007 at 2:36 PM
Nah, think of it like ‘strapping a board across your back so you don’t fall in.’
James on July 10, 2007 at 2:36 PM
or like throwin’ a hot dog down a hallway..nyuk,nyuk.
I like when she bellows…COMON’ MUTHA F—-r!!! Gotta love that.
LtE126 on July 10, 2007 at 2:45 PM
I can’t tell you how much I just don’t care about this.
sMack on July 10, 2007 at 2:48 PM
Anyone that needs those assinine, goofy dancers has no talent. If she’s playing or not,… does it matter? She can’t play, can’t sing, what can she do?!!! Oh right, she can tell us average folks how to live our lives, and how high to jump too, if you’re listening.
4shoes on July 10, 2007 at 2:52 PM
Oy! I thought Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels was great. As soon as he dumbs Madonna he’ll be back on top.
Blake on July 10, 2007 at 2:53 PM
She’s only playing two chords. How hard can that be?
pullingmyhairout on July 10, 2007 at 2:56 PM
After what? Forty some odd years in the music business? Wouldn’t you think she could play a few chords by now.
lowandslow on July 10, 2007 at 3:14 PM
Does this mean that Dick Clark will ban her from American Bandstand?
saved on July 10, 2007 at 3:21 PM
She seems like an unattractive, talentless, brainless c**t, but she’s made billions, and she’s playing in Wembley, so obviously the brainless ones are the nitwits jumping up and down who paid $100 for a ticket.
Jaibones on July 10, 2007 at 3:24 PM
Who cares?
JannyMae on July 10, 2007 at 3:27 PM
Dear Hot Air New Arrivals:
Please stop posting your ‘Why is this news?’ and ‘Who cares?’ thoughts in threads like this. After you’ve been here a while, you might understand that this is the Tao of Allahpundit. He posts stuff like this because he, and many of the rest of us, enjoy it. If you aren’t interested, try not clicking the link that opens the page. It’s really that simple.
With love,
Mindcrime on July 10, 2007 at 3:37 PM
P.S. Humpbot Uber Alles.
Mindcrime on July 10, 2007 at 3:38 PM
Well, Thanks for getting me to waste a few seconds of my life. Anyway, I’m not a music reader. But I have played guitar for a few years. The rythem of the guitar strumming has 3 notes on key followed by 4 notes in another and a single note pause. This single note pause is silent in full 4 bar measure.
Anyway, her strum hand continuously moves during all 4 bars. There has to be a pause on the 4th bar in order to stay in sync for real.
Egfrow on July 10, 2007 at 3:41 PM
just because you’re making a strumming motion doesn’t mean you’re actually picking the strings on every pass. You keep the rhythm going with your hand and selectively choose on which strums to play the notes. To stop your hand every time there is no note is not conducive to playing a rhythm like that. gotta keep the hand moving for the desired effect, unless you’re somewhat advanced, which Madge clearly isn’t. Plus, it’s not necessary and she’s trying to “sing” at the same time.
Think about Charlie Watts. He’s one of the few drummers who doesn’t hit the downbeat on his high hats. Same idea. Most drummers find this weird and you can hear it in the rhythm. It sounds choppy.
Metro on July 10, 2007 at 3:54 PM
She’s really playing. She’s not good.
Stankleberry on July 10, 2007 at 4:10 PM
I’ve been playing for over forty years. I’m with Kansas on this one. Give her credit for having the moxy (albeit very slight) for using barre chords rather than open string chords. Makes her look halfway authentic. But then she starts jumping around a lot and that’s when what little magic was left — dies.
Most of these kids could save the planet by staying home and picking up the trash in their neighborhoods. Madonna could save the planet by…
manwithblackhat on July 10, 2007 at 4:14 PM
What did that jumping bean Chavez start ????
SIJ6141 on July 10, 2007 at 4:19 PM
Madonna was still good when she came out with Holiday. Her first hit. It’s been down hill ever since. 24 years of downhill.
This is guitar. The last five minutes being the most incredible live guitar solo in history.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWnapx502uQ&mode=related&search=
jihadwatcher on July 10, 2007 at 4:23 PM
hahaha. I came “this close” to spitting soda all over my screen. That deserves a [/rimshot]
Mallard T. Drake on July 10, 2007 at 4:27 PM
I’m sorry I got to 2:00 left and had to stick a pencil in my ears. Like all the others have said, yes! she plays a whole 2 chords that I could teach my 3 year old in a few minutes.
Just like Mick Jagger, and every other front man/old lady wanna-be Guitarist, they strap on a guitar and think they can play. Personally I think they always look stupid when they do this. ( And yes, I’m sure Mick can play more than 2 chords, something had to rub off of Keith after 170 years of playing together.:)
Masscon on July 10, 2007 at 4:33 PM
She’s playing that guitar. Whether or not the sound guys have her signal up in the house is the question.
infidel4life on July 10, 2007 at 4:35 PM
soundingboard on July 10, 2007 at 4:41 PM
What happened to her British accent?
She’s been faking that too?!
SilverStar830 on July 10, 2007 at 4:46 PM
Ok, I thought I would try to really get into the jumping up and down to save the planet. Awesome, I said to myself, I did not know that jumping up and down on something sick with fever would save it! Must try!
But, alas, I had to stop cuz my boobs kept slapping my face and I now have 2 black eyes. Ouch!
(Sorry, blonde moment)
SouthernPride on July 10, 2007 at 4:49 PM
Don’t know about the guirar playiong being fake, but for a girl from NY, her silly Euro-accent cetainly is.
BTW holy creepy man-hands Batman!
Alden Pyle on July 10, 2007 at 4:50 PM
that would be guitar….
Alden Pyle on July 10, 2007 at 4:50 PM
As Ace basically puts it:
Read my comment and believe everything I say Mothaeffas…
I want to see all you Mothaeffas clicking over to my effing blog. I’m effing credible, mothaeffas!!
-And why are these people still allowed credence?
Zoolander comes to mind as well:
DANCE MONKEY, DANCE!!!
whatthecrap on July 10, 2007 at 5:19 PM
Allah – how come we get Madonna (zzzzzzzz……) threads but no Megan Fox threads??? I mean, hello!
Halley on July 10, 2007 at 5:42 PM
I am not sure where the gerbils come from. I know that 2 weeks of trying to staple their feet into the beach ball didn’t work…
dingoatemebaby on July 10, 2007 at 5:50 PM
Wow! She plays those two chords better than she sings! Idiot!
sabbott on July 10, 2007 at 6:22 PM
Hey, wasn’t she going to adopt Obama or something?
sabbott on July 10, 2007 at 6:23 PM
Skwisgaar Skwigelf this gal is not.
ZK on July 10, 2007 at 6:29 PM
That would be a fantastic name for a greatest hits/career retrospective CD…
Madonna: 24 Years of Downhill
saint kansas on July 10, 2007 at 6:36 PM
Madonna…fake…say it ain’t so! I never could have guessed this!
SouthernGent on July 10, 2007 at 6:41 PM
Life long Guitar Man here. She’s playing it. Two chords. The other dude was playing the solo. Seems pretty obvious to me. I must say. I never cared for Midge but hey. That was pretty awesome. Except for the last Hendrix mimic thing. She wasn’t nearly high enough to pull that off. Neither was the crowd for that matter.
ronsfi on July 10, 2007 at 6:44 PM
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