Frey Puts His Music On Hold
Author: Jay Bobbin
Publication: The Oregonian
Date: October 24, 1993
Abstract: Glenn discusses acting and South of Sunset.
Since so much of his music has been showcased in films and on TV, it seems logical for Glenn Frey to move into acting.
The former member of the Eagles group, who has had solo success with such hits as "The Heat Is On'' (from "Beverly Hills Cop''), "Part of Me, Part of You'' (the theme for "Thelma & Louise'') and "You Belong to the City'' and "Smuggler's Blues'' (both featured prominently in "Miami Vice''), largely is putting his singing and composing on hold to star on "South of Sunset,'' a CBS adventure-comedy series that premieres at 9 p.m. Wednesday. He plays Cody McMahon, previously the security chief for a Hollywood studio who lost that job by getting the goods on a corrupt producer; now, Cody is a struggling private eye with an office on the outskirts of Beverly Hills, trying to make ends meet by accepting assignments from anyone who can foot the bill.
He's sometimes aided -- and sometimes foiled -- by Ziggy (stand-up comic Aries Spears), a fast-talking, street-smart thief bailed out of jail by Cody in the opening episode to help solve a case.
That premise has led some insiders to peg "South of Sunset'' as a variation on the hit 1982 movie "48 HRS.,'' in which Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy were brought together under similar circumstances.
Created by Stan Rogow and John Byrum ("Middle Ages,'' "Shannon's Deal''), the show also features Maria Pitillo as Cody's secretary Gina, who moonlights as an aspiring actress.
The laid-back Frey actually began a sojourn as an actor several years ago, with a meaty guest role in a "Miami Vice'' episode based on his aforementioned tune "Smuggler's Blues.''
"When I made my first couple of music videos, the directors made mention that the camera liked me and that if I wanted to pursue (acting), that might be something I could do. I just filed it in the back of my mind as a nice compliment, but when the opportunity came along to do 'Miami Vice,' I jumped at it. I thought it was going to be a good time.''
From there, Frey went on to co-star with Robert Duvall and Mark Harmon in the 1986 feature "Let's Get Harry,'' then appeared in a seven-part story arc on the series "Wiseguy'' that involved something he knows more than a bit about . . . the recording industry.
"The only thing that I've done for this show (musically) is that I wrote and recorded the main title theme,'' Frey said. "I'll be up to my eyes in the acting part. Other than that, my influence in terms of the music is just that Stan (Rogow) and I have been having serious discussions about trying to attract some people who ordinarily wouldn't score episodic television. I have a lot of good friends in the music business.''
Indeed, Frey added that "Joe Walsh (a former Eagles mate) said he would score an episode. I think that would be a very interesting guitar sound for the show. I mean, if I heard that Eddie Van Halen was going to be doing the scoring on a show, I'd want to tune in and hear what kind of stuff he might do.
"I don't think Don (Henley, another ex-Eagles member who has fared well on his own) would be interested in doing any scoring; he's making his next record, suing (media mogul) David Geffen and doing a lot of other things, so he'd probably be a little too busy.''
Co-stars Spears and Pitillo were cast for "South of Sunset'' first, and Rogow said that four more months passed before Frey's name even came up.
The producer recalled that at the time, "Kerry McCluggage was the head of Paramount Television (the studio turning out the series), and he said, 'You know, what about Glenn Frey?' Basically, Byrum and I sat down with Glenn and we just said, 'This is him. He's Cody McMahon.' To paraphrase, he said, 'I get it. This is about the tarnished elegance of LA.' We said, 'Yes, and so are you. It's a good match.' The way we go about doing shows is (that) the characters are not unlike who these people (playing them) are, or who they can represent in some ways. There's baggage that they bring to the party, so if we're doing (a show) real good, it looks as if we wrote it for them.''
Just before he started work on "South of Sunset'' in mid-summer, Frey finished a schedule of concert appearances. He said he doesn't mind giving up touring to do the series: "It's not glamorous, although I really enjoy performing live. I don't have a lot left to prove in the music business, but I have a tremendous amount to accomplish in this sort of work, so this is an opportunity for me to work as an actor and learn a lot more about it. I'll tell you, it's not a bad job.
"They pick you up in the morning and they drive you to the set, then basically for the rest of the day, everybody's working for you. You walk into an air-conditioned Winnebago, and all your clothes are laid out for you. If you're having a bad hair day, you go to makeup and they pat you down and primp you. Things could be a lot worse, so I think I'm a very lucky guy.''
Frey's melodic theme for "South of Sunset'' is centered on the refrain, "When everybody else has turned you down, you can call on me,'' and to him, music and film have shared a close link for a long time. "Fortunately for me, I became a songwriter before MTV was instituted,'' he said. "As a result, as far as I was concerned, being visual -- to start with a picture -- was the first and most important aspect of lyric-writing. You can look at the list of Eagles songs from 'Take It Easy' through 'Hotel California,' and in the first four lines, we put you someplace: 'On a dark desert highway . . . ' or, 'I'm runnin' down the road, tryin' to loosen my load . . . '. Openings of songs are very important, so I've always considered myself to be a visual songwriter. In film, when scenes are good and music is added, the scenes are better. When scenes are crummy and music is added, it never helps.''
