No. 931 – Zaar

Performer: Peter Gabriel

Songwriter: Peter Gabriel

Original Release: Passion: Music for The Last Temptation of Christ

Year: 1989

Definitive Version: None

You might recall that The Last Temptation of Christ caused something of a stir when it hit the theaters. I didn’t see it (and haven’t gotten around to it since), not because of any boycott, but just that I wasn’t going to a lot of movies in 1988-89 due to a general lack of funds. (I didn’t even come close to cracking $20K until I moved to Flint.)

But when Jin told me that Peter Gabriel was releasing an album of music that he did for the movie, that interested me. It was one of maybe a half-dozen tapes I bought during that time. Passion was summer of 1989 music, and as such, I have a very clear memory of grilling out with this song on.

My apartment in Mount Prospect, as I’ve noted, was among a colony of three-story chalet-style apartments of the type that were big in the 1970s. In fact, my dad’s first apartment after he and my mom split was in something similar. Doug and I were on the second floor, and we had a balcony that was big enough to hold two folding chairs and a little grill. We had a view of the complex’s tennis courts, where I don’t remember ever seeing anyone play in my year there.

I had this recipe I’d make sometimes when I’d have a night off. I made pork chops or chicken, and the sauce was a homemade concoction that wasn’t your typical BBQ sweet red sauce. It was more orange and tangy—straight from the good old Better Homes & Gardens cookbook, you know, the one that has the red checkerboard cover. The color was due to including butter and mustard.

It was always difficult to keep the sauce mixed, because the ingredients wanted to separate, but it was good. It reminded me of the sauce at Buffalo Joe’s, the first Buffalo-style chicken-wing place I ever heard of, which was near the Northwestern campus. I don’t make the recipe anymore, but when I hear this song, I can still taste it.