List the most wholesome bands of the 1970s, and The Osmonds are near the top of the list. These toothy, polyester-suited Mormon siblings notched up a run of early 70s hit singles that covered all the bases from cheesy teen pop to schmaltzy MOR balladry.
But amid the cheese is Crazy Horses. This exhilarating 1973 single saw The Osmonds serving up something tougher – a wild, ass-kicking anthem whose chugging riff and snarled vocals were more Black Sabbath than The Carpenters. Well, maybe not quite Black Sabbath, but you catch our drift.
Even better, Crazy Horses is one of those classic old songs that, when it’s slowed down from its original speed of 45rpm to 33pm, magically transforms into some great lost doom metal classic. This fact isn’t exactly new – but no one has thought to play the slowed-down version to an actual Osmond before.
Step forward Chris Poole of Rocka-Buy Records, a family-run vinyl record shop in Oakham, England. It started a month ago, when Chris posted a TikTok of himself playing the 33rpm version of Crazy Horses, which definitely does give off some 70s sludge metal vibes. But this absolute hero just gone even better by getting hold of Donny Osmond himself for a real-life reaction clip.
The short video of a Zoom conversation, posted on social media, starts with Chris explaining the premise to Donny, who seems slightly surprised to find that his band’s old hit is about to be transformed into a “satanic heavy metal version of The Osmonds”. But good sport that he is, he plays along – and when the slowed-down version actually starts, he breaks into a smile. “Yeah!” he enthuses, “it sounds like Metallica!”
Some mild headbanging follows, accompanied by some authentic ‘metal face’ from Donny. When the host suggests the vocals now sound like James Hetfield, Donny corrects him: “No, that’s Jay Osmond, buddy”, referring to his older brother.
In fairness, Crazy Horses really does sound properly gnarly at this speed - not least the original peppy chorus, transmogrified here into an unholy roar of pain from the very pits of hell.
Watch the video below and hats off to Chris and Rocka Buy records – you can find them here.
@chrispoolemusic ♬ original sound - Chris Poole - Music 🎵
