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Churak

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Churak

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Saturday, 06/09/2007 8:27:51 AM

Saturday, June 09, 2007 8:27:51 AM

Post# of 27494
Rockin' about their generation (see youtube link at bottom of article)

Jun 09, 2007 04:30 AM
Mitch Potter
EUROPEAN BUREAU

LONDON–They are on their way to a chart-topping seniors moment that almost no-one saw coming, least of all The Zimmers – a group of 40 rocking pensioners with a combined age of 3,000.

But such is the strength of Zimmermania that more than 2.66 million viewers worldwide have tapped the London band's debut single since its launch on the Internet two weeks ago, lifting it into the British pop charts at No.26.

And all on the strength of a raucous rendition that turns the generational tables on "My Generation."

The Who's iconic youth anthem retains its snarling, angry bite in the hands of the Zimmers – but now the one doing the snarling is 90-year-old lead singer Alfie Carretta, backed by a cast of raging grannies and granddads who wish the world to know that being old is no cause for neglect. The Zimmers YouTube.com performance comes to an instrument-trashing finale with a middle-finger salute from 100-year-old drummer Buster Martin.

"Old people in this country are just brushed to one side, like rubbish, past our sell-by date," Carretta told the Daily Mail on Sunday, as the group readied for liftoff to Los Angeles, where they appeared this week on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

"People seem to think that if you're old then you're silly and doddery and pointless. Walk down the street and people don't seem to notice us – we've become invisible."

It is precisely the message BBC documentary maker Tim Samuels received while doing research last year into the marginalized conditions of British seniors, 3.5 million of whom live alone, often in total isolation.

Samuels came away with more than a documentary. He also built a band, recruiting 40 spry and willing seniors from the homes he visited and putting them together with a team of music business professionals inside London's famed Abbey Road studios.

"I wanted to give them a voice – and what better way than to get them in the pop charts?" said Samuels. "This would say: `They're old, but they're not past it.'" Thus was born The Zimmers, borrowing the name from the British term for a tubular metal walking aid.

Half of the profits from Zimmers sales are destined for the U.K. charity Age Concern, the country's largest seniors support group. But already, interest in the Zimmers is transcending borders, with requests for appearances from more than 50 countries.

Neil Reed of X-Phonics Records, a small London independent label, is backing the group.

"This is the most fun any of us have ever had," Reed told the Star from Los Angeles. "The music business can be such a nasty beast and normally it is so focused on the supposed angst, passion and drive of youth.

"But here we have a group of people who had basically given up on life and suddenly they've become a part of a huge thing. And they actually say, `Thank-you' which is not something I've heard very often in my career."

What will the Zimmers do for an encore? The British press has had great fun with suggestions ranging from "Stairlift to Heaven" to "When I'm 164." Reed said the group is still tossing around the possibilities but is expected to begin full-album recording sessions in two weeks.

"Iggy Pop's `Lust for Life,' Simple Minds' `Alive and Kicking' and `Don't You (Forget About Me)' are possibilities for the album," said Reed.

As for concert dates, it remains to be seen how many Zimmers will be able to mobilize for the rigours of the road. But judging by the adrenal effects of the performance on lead singer Carretta it might yet happen. Backstage at the Leno show Tuesday night, the 90-year-old frontman told fellow guest George Clooney "I feel 70 again."

Asked how he intended to celebrate his band's arrival on the charts, Carretta spoke of popping champagne. "I don't know about going on a bender though," he added. "I can't walk that far."



Members of band The Zimmers perform their cover of ' My Generation ' on The Graham Norton Show ,' shown on England's

The Zimmers, by the numbers
90 - Age of London-born lead singer Alf Carretta, who snarls "Hope I die before I get old" in the geriatric rock group's jaw-dropping cover of The Who's "My Generation." As a nonagenarian, Carretta is old enough to have fathered Elvis.

26 - Rank of the Zimmers' fast-rising debut single on this week's British pop charts, eclipsing new releases by Enrique Iglesias and Simply Red, among others.

2.66 - Viewings, in millions, of the Zimmers' debut video on YouTube.com.

100 - Age of Zimmers drummer Buster Martin, who is believed to be the U.K.'s oldest employee as he continues to work three days a week with a London plumbing company.

50 - Percentage of Zimmers proceeds going to the U.K. charity Age Concern, which organizes lunch clubs, outings, learning, advocacy, and counselling services for more than 250,000 older people.

0 - Number of the 40 band members who walk with the aid of a "zimmer," the tubular metal frame more commonly known to Canadians as a "walker."
Old people in this country are just brushed to one side, like rubbish, past our sell-by date Alfie Carretta , Zimmers lead singer The Zimmers, who boast a 90-year-old singer, a 100-year-old drummer and a hit on the pop charts, want the world to know they're not going to f-f-f-f-fade away


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