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William Shatner - Common People

Name: William Shatner - Common People
Description: William Shatner's spoken-word cover of Pulp's 'Common People', from his album Has Been.

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6 HN users recommended this music video5 months2013–2023 score 5

Years with an HN recommendation, 2007–2026

HN commenters repeatedly recommend it as a surprisingly good cover that brings out the contempt in the lyrics.

William Shatner's spoken-word cover of Pulp's 'Common People', from his album Has Been.

“I really like William Shatner's cover. It brings out the contempt in the lyrics. And it rocks.” (HN, 2013)

6 recommendations · 1 citations · Music

Music performance & songs Music Arts, Comedy, Music & Film

7 Hacker News comments

From the HN archive; up to 20 kept per video, favoring different commenters. Recommendations first.

@shimfish Sep 2013 Recommends

on HN thread The CEO of Panera Bread attempts to live off food stamps for a week

Incidentally, I really like William Shatner's cover. It brings out the contempt in the lyrics. And it rocks. [this video]

Shatner's cover of Common People brings out the lyrics' contempt

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@BuildTheRobots Jun 2015 Recommends

on HN thread Chromium will no longer download/install the Hotword Shared Module

somewhat even more off topic, but: Thanks to William Shatner for lots of things; least of all demonstrating how to deliver a line of dialogue without it sounding like you're reading off the back of a cereal packet and left your glasses at home. His cover of Common People (Pulp) is an immense example of this. [this video] Yes Doctor Who, I'm staring you out whilst shaking a fist at you....

Shatner's spoken delivery of Common People is a standout

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@simias Oct 2021 Recommends

on HN thread Going from $110k to $24k for more skin in the game

Glad you liked it, I also enjoy the cover of this song by William Shatner that's surprisingly good IMO: [this video]

Surprisingly good Shatner cover of Common People

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@svnt Oct 2022 Recommends

on HN thread From Burned Out Tech CEO to Amazon Warehouse Associate

“You will never understand how it feels to live your life with no meaning or control, and with nowhere left to go. You’re amazed that they exist, and they burn so bright that you can only wonder why?” —- Pulp, Common People The Shatner cover is something special: [this video]

Shatner cover of Common People is special

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@ThePhysicist Oct 2022 Recommends

on HN thread My Trip to Space Filled Me with Overwhelming Sadness

I like him, he seems to be a thoughtful person. I once listened to his album (which has a great cover of the song "Common People", that jokes about how rich people see the world [1]), in which he reflects on the death of his previous wife, who drowned in their pool, I found that quite touching as well 1: [this video]

Great Common People cover from Shatner's touching album

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@ur-whale Nov 2023 Recommends

on HN thread From Aristocratic to Ordinary: Shifting Modes of Elite Distinction (2020)

> Not to mention the Jarvis Cocker fascination If you like the Pulp (original AFAICT) version, you have to listen to this cover by Cap'n Kirk: [link] [this video]

Shatner cover for fans of the Pulp original

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Citations, criticism and jokes

@Tomminn Sep 2020 Cites it

on HN thread Why aren’t you more serious?

He later did an entire album called "Has Been" in this style, so I suspect so. Here's a taste: [this video] I know this because Ben Folds had a hand in it, and I'm a long-time Ben Folds fan.

Example of Shatner's spoken-word style, related to Has Been album

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