Talk:This Is Spinal Tap

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The following reference(s) may be useful when improving this article in the future: http://www.fairnessrocks.com/ http://www.completemusicupdate.com/article/spinal-tap-creators-hit-out-at-vivendis-distracting-and-obfuscatory-conduct/ http://mynewsla.com/hollywood/2017/04/05/harry-shearers-400m-spinal-tap-suit-goes-to-court-may-5/ https://www.law360.com/articles/908080/spinal-tap-actors-blast-studio-s-threat-in-royalty-row http://www.musicweek.com/media/read/spinal-tap-creators-respond-to-grossly-inappropriate-claim-their-lawsuit-should-be-thrown-out/068013

Skiffle

Were The Thamesmen a parody folk band, or a parody skiffle band? -- Karada 11:29, 7 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Well … since the segment shown is for “Gimme Some Money” , and the band have a Beatles / Animals / Merseyside look going on … I’d lean towards “skiffle”. ( The Folksmen we’re their folk music output. ) 99.196.176.254 (talk) 16:54, 20 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I think this is a reference to Jimmy page. There’s a video of page at 14 playing skiffle on some bbc show. Likewise the originals name. Page and jones were in the yardbirds, then new yardbirds before starting Led Zeppelin ~2025-32103-20 (talk) 21:55, 8 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Guitar solo cover of classical piece

Hi all... Does anyone know what the piece of classical music covered by Tufnel in the movie is? It's a relatively famous piece but I've never been able to find out what it is. The original is played with a violin or similar bowed instrument. And shouldn't such information appear in the main article? In either case, thanks.

Me again... Found it. It's Luigi Boccherini's Minuet from 'String Quintet in E Major' Op. 13 No. 5, G. 275.

Story of band offended by movie

For years I've heard a story that a certain band, upon seeing the movie for the first time, stormed out of the theater because they thought it was a direct parody of them. In most tellings, the band is Scorpions, but I've also heard it applied to Aerosmith, Judas Priest and Uriah Heep. The story is most likely an urban myth, but if there is documentation (or disproof) of the story I think it would be worth discussing in the article. Does anyone have information?

There was also a story that they showed the film pre-release to an audience of band members and music business people and it had a pretty hostile reception in several quarters from people who thought the piss was being taken. So much so that it affected the launch and promo of the film, which helped it to be not as much an instant commercial success as it later became as a cult in other formats. The manager is supposedly Simon Napier-Bell, a Sixties London wheeler/dealer manager and promoter, who allegedly did smash a television set with a cricket bat at least once. Also, I have heard it said (by an ex-employee) that the Patrick Macnee part, the record company boss, was a carbon copy of Decca boss Sir Edward Lewis, a man apparently in the habit of asking "who's Mick Jagger" at the time when the Stones were practically paying for Decca Records.

David Konow tells about the response of heavy metal artists in his book 'Bang Your Head'. Most of which was, "Oh, yeah. That happened to us, that too, yeah we got lost backstage too. How'd they make a movie about us??"

The Originals

Considering that this movie parodies existing pop culture, who's to say "The Originals" are not "The Originals"? Hearfourmewesique (talk) 23:31, 5 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

The "Originals" referred to in the film are described as being English, so I highly doubt it. GRAPPLE X 23:34, 5 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I agree with Grapple. This is original research, but having just watched the movie, it's clear the characters are referring to the local rock bands (which are fictional) in their region of England at the time. Feel free to add cited material showing that the "writers" (note most of the movie's dialogue was ad-libbed, not scripted) had intended to refer specifically to the American R&B singing group, and the link in the text can be restored. Valfontis (talk) 23:39, 5 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Spinal Tap started out calling themselves "The Originals" but found out there was already a band of that name, so they called themselves "The New Originals" instead. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 95.144.50.147 (talk) 19:47, 6 February 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I think this was a reference to the yardbirds ~2025-32103-20 (talk) 21:58, 8 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Numerous specific real-life figures and incidents spoofed

I'd like to see a list. I know of two off-hand. (1) The manager who keeps a cricket bat at hand given the band members' proclivity for violent altercations: based on the real-life tour manager of Mötley Crüe (incidentally also the inspiration for diacritical madness) who did the same, only he had a baseball bat - but a British band needs a cricket bat, obviously. (2) Jeanine, the beautiful blonde who turns up in her happy-dippy get up and wants the band's leader to take a new direction, one beat of the Tamborine at the time: this happened to Deep Purple, the real-life Jeanine being Candice Night. 2A01:CB0C:CD:D800:206E:945A:A84D:2DA (talk) 13:22, 31 May 2023 (UTC)[reply]

We would need reliable sourcing that says the intent of such characters were to spoof specific bands or personalities. To compare with that ecplicit souring is original research. Masem (t) 15:10, 31 May 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Motley Crue would be a bit late for that to have been parodied. But the Japan tour at end, sounds like deep purple to me ~2025-32103-20 (talk) 22:00, 8 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]