Jordan Karlesson
Dave Chappelle once famously claimed comedians really want to be musicians. To put it a little harsher, most comics are failed wanna-be rock stars. In the case of Ricky Gervais, it’s the exact truth.
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But, self-deprecating as he can be (sometimes), Gervais has no qualms talking about his past life as the frontman of a new wave pop duo called Seona Dancing.
Gervais wrote lyrics for the band’s songs and handled vocals as well. His buddy Bill Macrae took care of writing the music and playing keyboards.
Unfortunately, Ricky Gervais’ group never landed a song on the music charts. That said, Seona Dancing’s single More to Lose actually became an anthem among teens in the Philippines, according to AllMusic.
It’s a somewhat odd detail. But not entirely, considering David Hasselhoff was one of the bestselling artists in Germany in the 1980s.
At any rate, Ricky Gervais took a trip down memory lane on The Graham Norton Show in April 2016.
Gervais also not-so-humbly bragged that he wrote a song for The Simpsons. Oh, and one with David Bowie too. No big deal.
Gervais went on to admit that he is a “frustrated, failed musician. It’s great, because I have a ‘get-out’ clause, which is sort of ironic. But it’s still so much fun playing with a rock band.”
All that said, while many comedians indeed are trying out their music chops too — everyone from Fred Armisen to Tim Heidecker — Ricky Gervais said he will do no such thing onstage.
“I’d never do that. Or get it out at a party,” the comedian insisted. “When someone gets that … death, forget it, we’re going home.”
Still don’t believe that Ricky Gervais had a music career in another life? Look no further than this photo from Entertainment Tonight’s website.
