Screech "hello" to Tico, the rock and roll parrot
In bars and clubs across the world, cover bands regularly take listeners on a trip down memory lane by performing classic tracks from popular rock bands. Unfortunately, none of them, no matter how talented, have managed to turn their performances into art nearly as captivating as a tribute act comprised of guitarist Frank Maglio and his vocalist, a cool green parrot named Tico.
Over the course of a year, Maglio and Tico, performing as Tico & The Man, have documented their jam sessions through a YouTube channel filled with musical treasures. The duo are mostly interested in ‘60s and ‘70s staples, the bird relishing any opportunity to write strange new melodies to the music of his… youth? (We don’t know when Tico was young; Parrots live a very long time.) A few of his best performances see Tico singing along to “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” and “Psycho Killer” or approximating Robert Plant on “Over The Hills And Far Away” and “Stairway To Heaven.”
Naturally, Tico really lays it all out there for “Free Bird,” hearing in it a paean to the days of his youth when the future stretched out before him like a vast plain wriggling with delicious worms.