Parkour Before There Was Parkour (or Why I Still Love Rick Astley)

A friend on Facebook posted this status update last night:

hey music lovers! I heard a song while out today at a noisy restaurant. I only heard part of it but I want to know who sings it! It’s was really up beat – male vocals, and some of the lyrics were ‘never gonna run away….never gonna let you down …..’ I thought it would be super easy to find and but all my searching hasn’t turned up anything… .any ideas?

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OF COURSE I had to reply with a link to this oldie but goody even though I knew it wasn’t the song she’d heard.
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*sigh*

I had the biggest crush on Rick Astley in high school. In fact, I may have had his poster on my left closet door. (Kirk Cameron had the right.) The fact he was vertically challenged didn’t stop me from dreaming of running my fingers through his amazing red hair.
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After sharing Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up,” I of course had to make my teenagers watch it with me, which brought back some pretty great high school memories. And reminded me why I still love him.

I may have even jumped up and busted a few moves against my daughters’ wishes.

But the best part of watching “Never Gonna Give You Up” was the commentary running through my head. It was like a mashup of Mystery Science Theater 3000 and Pop Up Video and it went something like what you see below. (You’re welcome.)

Make sure you watch the video while reading. It’s a heck of a lot more fun that way. You can pop it open in a new window or tab by clicking here.
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0:06	What is with the hands? Oh wait, that’s part of his signature move.
0:12	Oh. My. Gosh. Denim on denim. Isn’t that totally in style again?
0:13	Those jeans may be high waisted but man, he’s still totally hot. I believe my daughters would call him a “ginger.”
0:15	Who the heck is this blonde chick and what’s the point of her dancing in front of that brick wall? Oh wait, this is an 80s video.
0:24	Yep. Signature move. I’m pretty sure it was Taylor Swift’s inspiration for “Shake It Off.”
0:29	He still has an amazingly sexy deep voice.
0:46	I’m totally digging that old-school mic.
0:55	That’s right, random bartender. It’s impossible not to dance.
1:13	Maybe that’s the only move he knows? It’s okay. I like it.
1:35	Was that one of the earliest appearances of the running man?
1:57	Wait, where did this blonde kid come from? He better be wearing denim.
1:59	He is totally wearing denim.
2:03	Wait, can you show me that move one more time?
2:07	Is that the bartender? Why the heck is he jumping into a chain-link fence while wearing skin-tight denim shorts? Oh wait, this is an 80s video.
2:14	That’s like the fourth shadow dancing scene. Oh wait, this is an 80s video.
2:21	Did you see that super slick move where he showed me his heart? Yeah, that.
2:26	He totally stuck that landing! I’d give him a 10.0!
2:41	What exactly am I watching here? And why am I laughing so hard?
2:46	DUDE! They were doing parkour before there was parkour! And in freakishly tight denim shorts!
2:52	Oh my. The dance combo isn’t over yet.
2:54	She’s totally checking out his butt!
2:58	It’s like Rick knows how ridiculous that dance set is…
3:30	No, Rick! Don’t go! I love you, Rick!

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I may have gone on to watch another half dozen music videos, all from the 80s. The only one I wish I could erase from my memory is Olivia Newton John’s “Let’s Get Physical.” No wonder my mom wouldn’t let me watch that video when it was first released. I may have heard, “MOM! What the heck are you WATCHING?!” from Lauren at about 0:08.

Lauren, I was wondering the exact same thing.

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