When Rick Rubin signed on as musical director for the soundtrack to the 1987 drama Less Than Zero, starring Robert Downey Jr., Andrew McCarthy, James Spader, Jami Gertz, and Flea, he wasn’t necessarily following the script of the film adaptation based on the 1985 the Bret Easton Ellis novel.
Instead, the Less Than Zero soundtrack was less about the storyline and more about the 1980s music fan, with a collection of original songs and covers, including Simon & Garfunkel’s “A Hazy Shade of Winter” performed by The Bangles, Slayer’s rendition of the Iron Butterfly’s 1968 classic “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida,” Poison’s cover of the Kiss classic “Rock and Roll All Nite,” and more by Aerosmith, Public Enemy, Joan Jett, and LL Cool J.
“The music [in the book] had a particular sensibility for its time and I don’t know what the equivalent of that is today,” said Rubin. “But it [didn’t bother me] because I don’t think the film had very much to do with the book either. I didn’t really care what the film was going to be like. I wanted to make a good album that was going to stand alone.”
Rubin added, “When I read the script, I saw that there was these dressed up, rich Beverly Hills kids going to a party in an art gallery And to me, that’s a foreign image. … But if you play Aerosmith at that party, hey, that’s a party he might be at. I wanted there to be a connection, where he could say, ‘Well, if they listen to that, maybe we are the same kind of people, even though we are dressed differently and he’s got money and I don’t.”
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“You and Me (Less than Zero)”
At the time, Rubin was also producing the debut (self-titled) 1987 album for Danzig, including the band’s hit “Mother,” and asked Glenn Danzig to co-write two tracks for the soundtrack. Along with Rubin, Danzig co-wrote “You and Me (Less than Zero),” which he performed with the Power and Fury Orchestra. Initially, Danzig wrote the song with a female vocalist in mind, but when they couldn’t find the right singer, he took the song on himself.
Though the track was not tied to a particulary scene in the film the lyrics fit into the script, and how Clay Easton, played by McCarthy, is trying to help his ex-girlfriend Blair Kennedy (Jamie Gertz) and her boyfriend and his former childhood friend, Julian (Robert Downey Jr.) kick their drug addictions.
You and me, we were thick
Through the best and worst of it
How I wish it was then
And you were still right here with me
But how can you bring back the dead
And try to tell them you’re sorry
How can you live with yourself
Knowing
Got to be your friend again
Forgive me, can’t you see me in your darkness
I’m feeling lonely and less than zero
“I tried to give the music a real accessible, aggressive teenage feeling because the movie was supposed to be aggressive and teenage,” said Rubin. “The idea was to make the characters more accessible through the music they were listening to.”
“Life Fades Away”
The second track Danzig wrote for the soundtrack was co-written and performed by his friend Roy Orbison, “Life Fades Away.” Using his “Crying” falsetto, Orbison delivers the sorrowful tale of the end of one’s days and everything they must leave behind on “Life Fades Away.” The song was recorded less than a year before Orbison’s own passing on December 6, 1988, at the age of 51.
The eerer lyrics fortell the acceptance of one’s passing.
My time has come, the clouds are calling
December wind has come my way
And now I feel the will falling
All at once it’s too late
Life fades away
The night is my wake
All thoughts slip away
And even though I must leave you
Remember I love you
I’ll always be in your memory
And I will always be with you when I’m gone
I’m tired of tomorrow
Lost for today
I long to be
At peace forever
My eternity
And even though I will miss you
I must leave you
“It wasn’t a Danzig song,” said Danzig in 2019. “I wrote him a Roy Orbison song because I’m writing for Roy Orbison. I got to go out to his pad in Malibu a couple of times, teach him the song and then I was in the studio with him, Rick, and [assistant producer] George Drakoulias. It was a really cool experience.”
“Life Fades Away” is featured on the Less Than Zero soundtrack and plays over the closing credits in the film. The song was later released on the 2017 reissue of Orbison’s 1992 posthumous album King of Hearts.
Photo: Greg Campbell/Getty Images for SiriusXM
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