by Richard Skelly » Tue Apr 03, 2018 3:15 am
God Shuffled His Feet not only enriched the Crash Test Dummies but also likely earned some coin for the National Gallery in London. That’s because the prestigious institution holds (i.e. owns) Bacchus and Ariadne. And an image of the 16th Century masterpiece was doctored up to display the faces of the Winnipeg quintet.
The Venetian artist Titian lucked into the commission for the painting when the even more famous Raphael expired unexpectedly. Fortunately no one had to croak for the Dummies to go on a run in the early ‘90s. I remember driving across the American southwest in 1991 when their first single of note, Superman’s Song, made some noise. A little over two years later, the CTDs were bona fide hitmakers with Mmm Mmm Mmmm Mmm. It reached #4 on Billboard, #2 in the UK, #1 in Australia but peaked at only #14 in Canada.
Not since Lorne Greene’s Ringo had there been a song sung by a Canadian in such a low register as achieved by top Dummy Brad Roberts. One could argue that Roberts’ performance was more remarkable since he sang the melody whereas Greene used spoken word. Years later, Brad would use falsetto on some newer Dummies material.
Brad Roberts relocated to New York. Co-vocalist Ellen Reid, who plays piano and accordion, is the only member to have worked with Brad on all Dummies albums. Brad’s bass guitarist brother Dan and drummer Mitch Dorge have participated in most reunions. Benjamin Darvill, a master of harmonica and mandolin has achieved notoriety in England under his stage name Son Of Dave.