We just got 2-3 inches of snow last night…Summer Breeze is just what we need.
I’m probably the only one out there that always thought it was “Seals and Croft” not a plural Crofts. Other than me not paying attention all my life to that…this song IS the 70s. No song I can write about represents AM Gold better than this one.
Jim Seals and Dash Crofts were from Texas. They belonged to a later version of The Champs…The Champs had a hit “Tequila” in 1958. When the group dissolved in 1965, they worked with several other artists including Gene Vincent. In 1969 they released their first album as a duo. “Summer Breeze” was the first hit single, appearing on their fourth album in fall 1972.
“Summer Breeze” almost went nowhere. By the fall of 1972 the album Summer Breeze had been out for a couple of months, but the title single…the song the duo had worked so hard to perfect had barely charted, and their label informed them it would do no more promotion. While they were on tour in Boston, their manager convinced them that while they were there, they should show up to one of the city’s most popular radio stations and play “Summer Breeze” for a DJ.
The DJ ended up liking it. After listening to it, he looked up and delivered the news… Summer Breeze was going into rotation. The song quickly caught on in Boston and other markets like Philadelphia and Dallas, soon followed. When they got back to L.A., they heard Summer Breeze on the car radio.
Jim Seals is the brother of Dan Seals, who was “England Dan” in the duo England Dan and John Ford Coley. They had several hit songs in the ’70s.
The song peaked at #6 in the Billboard 100, #6 in Canada, and #14 in New Zealand in 1973.
I’ve always liked a 1974 cover by the Isley Brothers also, featuring much livelier guitar. It peaked at #16 in the UK. Some of the other artists to cover it include Johnny Mathis, The Main Ingredient, and Jason Mraz.
Jim Seals:“A very simple song about a man coming home from work and hearing the dog barking and things like that, and to a lot of people the song’s about looking for security. Our meaning goes further than that, for a prison can be the prison of self and a person can become insecure and paranoid if he doesn’t have a direction in his personal life.”
From Songfacts
“Blowing through the jasmine in my mind”? Long before it was a Disney princess, jasmine was a kind of flower that blooms in the summer. Also good for tea, Seals & Crofts use it to bring about feelings of contentment and harmony in this song, which is a feel-good classic about enjoying some simple pleasures in life with the ones you love. Jim Seals explained in 1972: “We operate on a different level, we try to create images, impressions and trains of thought in the minds of our listeners.”
Seals & Crofts were devoted to the Baha’i faith, and believed that by writing about life itself, many meanings would emerge for the listener.
Type O Negative released a very foreboding cover of “Summer Breeze” in 1993 that was used in the 1997 movie I Know What You Did Last Summer. Other movies to use the song include:
Rock Odyssey (1987) King of California (2007) Land of the Lost (2009) Vacation Friends (2021)
It also appears in these TV shows: Freaks and Geeks (“Dead Dogs and Gym Teachers” – 2000) How I Met Your Mother (“Matchmaker” – 2005) Girls (“The Return” – 2012) Family Guy (“Yacht Rocky” – 2019) The Blacklist (“The Protean (No. 36)” – 2021)
Summer Breeze
See the curtains hangin’ in the window, in the evenin’ on a Friday night A little light a-shinin’ through the window, lets me know everything is alright
Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the jasmine in my mind Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the jasmine in my mind
See the paper layin’ in the sidewalk, a little music from the house next door So I walked on up to the doorstep, through the screen and across the floor
Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the jasmine in my mind Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the jasmine in my mind
Sweet days of summer, the jasmine’s in bloom July is dressed up and playing her tune And I come home from a hard day’s work And you’re waiting there, not a care in the world See the smile a-waitin’ in the kitchen, food cookin’ and the plates for two Feel the arms that reach out to hold me, in the evening when the day is through
Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the jasmine in my mind Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the jasmine in my mind
The Jackson Five had some great pop songs in the seventies. Most of the early songs were full of energy and infectious. They called their music bubblegum soul. This was the first Jackson 5 single released by Motown Records (they released a single on a local label in Gary, Indiana, in 1968). It launched their career and went to #1 in the US, as did the next three releases: “ABC,” “The Love You Save” and “I’ll Be There.”
The song peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, #2 in Canada, #2 in the UK, and #12 in New Zealand 1969-1970.
Motown had set up offices in Los Angeles, which is where the Jackson 5 relocated and where this song was written and recorded. The top songwriting/production team at Motown, Holland-Dozier-Holland, had left the label to get better terms, so there was a huge void that many Motown writers were trying to fill.
Their first three songs were written and produced by a Motown collective known as “The Corporation”: Freddie Perren, Deke Richards, Fonce Mizell, and Berry Gordy Jr. Gordy was head of the label and assigned them that name, which kept the focus on the team instead of the individuals within it – if one member deigned to leave, he could replace him.
The Jackson 5 found a winning formula early. Michael Jackson sang the lead and his brothers added vocals in the song. It also opened the door for family groups with young lead singers, notably the Osmonds and the DeFranco Family.
It has gained popularity because of being included on the 2014 soundtrack Guardians Of The Galaxy, which was a #1 hit in America for two weeks.
From Songfacts
The Jackson 5 were a family group from Gary, Indiana, that were auditioned to exhaustion by their father, Joe, before signing with Motown Records in 1968. Joe made sure the youngest brother, Michael, was out front – his voice, dance moves and stage presence were the star of the show. When “I Want You Back” was released in October 1969, Michael was just 11 years old, but by that point he had so much training he could handle the promotional appearances and rigorous schedule. The entire group was media trained by Motown, and for a while they were ordered to tell a story about how Diana Ross discovered the group. For the most part, they came off as a regular family, with Michael citing basketball and catching lizards as hobbies. They described their sound as “bubblegum soul,” a term that explains their appeal to both black and white audiences.
This song tells a tried-and-true story about a guy who took his girl for granted and now desperately wants her back now that she’s left him. Making it work from the perspective of an 11-year-old boy took some doing, but the upbeat track takes the weight off, so it sounds more like a schoolyard crush. There are also lots of answer lines in the lyric (“Let you go, baby…”) that give the other members of the group a chance to chime in.
“I Want You Back” started as a song Freddie Perren, Fonce Mizell, and Deke Richards wrote for Gladys Knight & The Pips called “I Want To Be Free.” Perren and Mizell were childhood friends from New Jersey who moved to Los Angeles and teamed up with Deke Richards, a producer at Motown. When Berry Gordy heard the song, he decided it could be a good fit for the Jackson 5 if it got a rewrite. Michael Jackson reminded Gordy of Frankie Lymon, another teenage star, Gordy suggested they write it as if it were for Lymon. They reworked the song, changing the storyline so it’s about a young kid trying to get his girl back, and they fashioned a lively track to underline it.
When the song took off, Perren, Mizell, Richards and Gordy became the songwriting/production team that powered the Jackson 5. Stung by the loss of his marquee team of Holland-Dozier-Holland, Gordy branded this new team “The Corporation,” which is how the songwriting credit was listed. This kept the writers’ names off the record, ensuring they would remain anonymous. They became the first West Coast songwriting team to make a big impact at Motown.
The musicians who played on most of the ’60s Motown hits were members of their Detroit house band, the Funk Brothers. The Jackson 5 recorded in Los Angeles with a new group of session players. On “I Want You Back,” they included Louis Shelton and David Walker on guitars, Wilton Felder on bass, and Gene Pello on drums.
This song opens with an ear-catching piano glissando that was played by two of the song’s writers, Freddie Perren and Fonce Mizell.
Berry Gordy went out of his way to make this a hit, using all his resources at Motown to do so. With the ’60s coming to a close and Motown moving west, Gordy wanted to mint new stars at the label, and he knew he had a winner in the Jackson 5. One of his ploys was to claim the group was discovered by Diana Ross, and have her showcase the group for industry bigwigs. Ross was also in transition, having recently left The Supremes and launched her solo career. This bit about Ross finding the group proved a solid talking point and was propagated for decades. Nobody seemed to care that it was a ruse – there was a lot more to talk about concerning the Jackson 5 and their precocious lead singer.
Two popular songs sampled this in 2001: Jay Z used it on “Izzo (H.O.V.A.)” and it was also used on Lil’ Romeo’s “My Baby.” In 1992, it was sampled on the Kris Kross hit “Jump.”
The sci-fi soul singer-songwriter Janelle Monáe covered this as a bonus track on the deluxe edition of her The Electric Lady album. She explained to A.V.Club that she chose this particular tune as it resonated with her. “There are so many amazing Michael Jackson songs from different stages of his career,” she said, “and that happened to be one of my favorite stages. It makes people happy, and I love the tone, and musically, it has a lot of places to go for our orchestra. It has a lot of odd instrumentation.”
“The version I did does not sound like the Jackson 5 original recording,” Monáe continued. “I wanted to interpret it my way and record it differently, while continuing to pay homage to him, but I saw it in a different light. I’m really excited to let you guys hear it because you’ll get a chance to hear that song from my perspective. I had a dream about it and how I wanted it to be recorded.”
This song appears in the films Now and Then (1995), Drumline (2002), Daddy Day Care (2003) and Friends with Benefits (2011).
I Want You Back
When I had you to myself, I didn’t want you around Those pretty faces always make you stand out in a crowd But someone picked you from the bunch, one glance is all it took Now it’s much too late for me to take a second look
Oh baby, give me one more chance (To show you that I love you) Won’t you please let me back in your heart Oh darlin’, I was blind to let you go (Let you go, baby) But now since I’ve seen you it is on (I want you back) Oh I do now (I want you back) Ooh ooh baby (I want you back) Yeah yeah yeah yeah (I want you back) Na na na na
Trying to live without your love is one long sleepless night Let me show you, girl, that I know wrong from right Every street you walk on, I leave tear stains on the ground Following the girl I didn’t even want around
Let me tell ya now Oh baby, all I need is one more chance (To show you that I love you) Won’t you please let me back in your heart Oh darlin’, I was blind to let you go (Let you go, baby) But now since I’ve seen you it is on
All I want All I need All I want! All I need!
Oh, just one more chance To show you that I love you Baby baby baby baby baby baby! (I want you back) Forget what happened then (I want you back) And let me live again!
Oh baby, I was blind to let you go But now since I’ve seen you it is on (I want you back) Spare me of this cost (I want you back) Give me back what I lost!
Oh baby, I need one more chance, hah I’d show you that I love you Baby, oh! Baby, oh! Baby, oh! I want you back! I want you back!
Bread was one of the first bands I found out about. My sister loved them because every time she started to date someone or broke up with someone…out came the Bread albums. She is 8 years older than me so I was just 6 when she was 14 but I knew the dating cycle of a teenage girl rather well at that time.
My sister now…(she will kill me if she finds out I posted this)
Bread was a soft rock band that later on I probably would have never claimed that I liked…but I did…and still do. I called them a guilty pleasure (the guilt-o-meter peaks) for a while but hell…I like them. When I hear the opening guitar in this song, it’s the early seventies again.
The song peaked at #4 in the Billboard 100 and #6 in Canada in 1971. It also peaked at #1 in the Easy Listening chart in America and Canada. The song was on the album Mana that peaked at #21 in the Billboard Album charts and #16 in Canada.
David Gates was the writer who wrote most of the hits. Gates is a very good singer songwriter who knows how to write a good pop melody. In this song there is no chorus to speak of but it works well.
David Gates:“I wrote that one night at the dining room table, after my kids and my wife had gone to bed. It took me about an hour and a half, with an extra verse left over. If you look at it, there’s a few bizarre lines in there, like ‘you and I would simply fly away’ – that’s kind of an unusual thought. When I was done, I said, ‘That’s the best song I’ve ever written and probably will be the best song I’ll ever write.’ For me it’s really held up over time, more than any of the others.”
One odd fact about this song… Kojak actor Telly Savalas recorded a spoken-word version that went to #1 in the UK in 1975.
If
If a picture paints a thousand words, Then why can’t I paint you? The words will never show the you I’ve come to know. If a face could launch a thousand ships, Then where am I to go? There’s no one home but you, You’re all that’s left me too. And when my love for life is running dry, You come and pour yourself on me.
If a man could be two places at one time, I’d be with you. Tomorrow and today, beside you all the way. If the world should stop revolving spinning slowly down to die, I’d spend the end with you. And when the world was through, Then one by one the stars would all go out, Then you and I would simply fly away
There were times when I could not hear this song anymore because it’s been played so much but…now I enjoy hearing it again. It is a great song but a song that radio has played endlessly. When I think of this phrase, I think of Elvis. Elvis loved the saying…he wore a “TCB” necklace and called his backing group “The TCB Band.”
Canadian Randy Bachman wrote this song and the music was inspired by The Beatles Paperback Writer. He came up with the idea for the song in the late-’60s while he was still a member of The Guess Who. After hearing Paperback Writer and he used that music to create a song about going to work called “White Collar Worker,” which needed a new hook to complete.
For the lyric, Bachman was listening to C-Fox radio on the way to the club and heard the DJ say they were “Takin’ Care of Business,” which gave him the idea for the hook. Singing his lyrics to “White Collar Worker,” Bachman sang “Takin’ Care of Business” in the breakdown, and he had his song.
The song lay dormant until Bachman formed Bachman-Turner Overdrive and was playing a show when lead singer Fred Turner’s voice gave out. Forced to sing for a set, Bachman told the band to “Play these three chords over and over – C, B flat, and F – endlessly and when I get to the hook, help me out.”
Randy Bachman: “Ralph (Murphy) and I wrote a song in ’67 called ‘A Little Bit Of Rain.’ That riff is used in the middle of ‘Takin’ Care Of Business,’ just to break the monotony because ‘Takin’ Care Of Business’ was three chords over and over and over. It had no bridge. No hook. No song format, other than that it was ‘Louie Louie.’ Endless, mind-bashing of three chords. And the original version, as I explained at the Ryman, had twelve chords. That’s why nobody liked it. It had an incredible number of chords.”
From Songfacts
The band captured the feel of jamming in the club by having Bachman sing it, which Turner appreciated since it would give his voice a rest at their shows. Bachman had a sore throat and a head cold when he recorded his vocals.
The song propelled the phrase “Takin’ care of business” into the popular lexicon, forever to be used by athletes, performers and the common man to indicate they are on the job.
While the song title implies an industrious responsibility, a closer listen reveals that this song is more of a slacker anthem. The singer is presumably unemployed, and he “loves to work at nothing all day.”
Norman Durkee played the piano on this track. So who is this Norman fellow? John Presho, who knew Bachman and worked security at their concerts, gives this account: “Randy Bachman told me that when BTO was in the recording studio the record producer wasn’t happy with the raw version of that song. BTO took a time out, ordered a pizza and went back to work on the song. A while later there was a knock on the studio door and it was the pizza delivery man. After giving the band their pizza he commented that ‘Takin’ Care of Business’ was a great song but it needed some piano playing. The pizza man introduced himself as Norman and said that he was a piano player. BTO thanked and tipped him and sent him on his way. Hours later with no improvement in the song they decided to call Norman, but no one got his phone number or could remember the name of the pizza place. BTO called a half dozen pizza houses before they were able to track him down. The band paid Herman’s $75 to join the musicians union so he could play the piano in the recording studio.”
BTO being introduced by the great Keith Moon.
Takin’ Care Of Business
You get up every morning from your alarm clock’s warning Take the 8:15 into the city There’s a whistle up above and people pushin’, people shovin’ And the girls who try to look pretty And if your train’s on time, you can get to work by nine And start your slaving job to get your pay If you ever get annoyed, look at me I’m self-employed I love to work at nothing all day
And I’ll be taking care of business (every day) Taking care of business (every way) I’ve been taking care of business (it’s all mine) Taking care of business and working overtime, work out
If it were easy as fishin’ you could be a musician If you could make sounds loud or mellow Get a second-hand guitar, chances are you’ll go far If you get in with the right bunch of fellows People see you having fun just a-lying in the sun Tell them that you like it this way It’s the work that we avoid, and we’re all self-employed We love to work at nothing all day
And we be taking care of business (every day) Taking care of business (every way) We be been taking care of business (it’s all mine) Taking care of business and working overtime
Mercy Whoo All right
Take good care of my business When I’m away, every day Whoo
You get up every morning from your alarm clock’s warning Take the 8:15 into the city There’s a whistle up above and people pushin’, people shovin’ And the girls who try to look pretty And if your train’s on time, you can get to work by nine And start your slaving job to get your pay If you ever get annoyed, look at me I’m self-employed I love to work at nothing all day
And I be taking care of business (every day) Taking care of business (every way) I’ve been taking care of business (it’s all mine) Taking care of business and working overtime, take care
Takin’ care of business, whoo Takin’ care of business Takin’ care of business Takin’ care of business Takin’ care of business (every day) Takin’ care of business (every way) Takin’ care of business (it’s all mine) Takin’ care of business and working overtime, whoo
Takin’ care of business Takin’ care of business We be takin’ care of business We be takin’ care of business Takin’ care of business Takin’ care of business Takin’ care of business
I haven’t had a theme week in a while. This week will be 1970’s songs that you would have heard on AM Radio back then that were big pop hits…as you were cruising in your parent’s LTD or some other vehicle.
This is one of those AM Gold radio singles from the seventies. It’s made to be heard through an AM station while you are riding in your…insert your 1970s car of choice (mine would be an Opel GT).
The Ozark Mountain Daredevils were, in one word, eclectic. They have been called southern rock, country, country rock, and pop. This song is one of those great pop hits during the mid-seventies. It is part of my childhood DNA.
The band started out with the name “Family Tree” but they found out that another band was using that name, so they stopped using it. They soon had a “naming party” and came up with “Cosmic Corn Cob & His Amazing Ozark Mountain Daredevils” but decided to shorten the name…and none of the band wanted to be called Cosmic Corn Cob.
The song was written by bandmates Steve Cash and Larry Lee. The song was inspired by someone they had met in L. A. that was strung out on drugs. It was a guy who partied way too much…when they recorded the song, they changed Jackie to a girl.
This song was off of their It’ll Shine When It Shines album released in 1974. The song peaked at #3 in the Billboard 100, #2 in Canada, and #9 in New Zealand. It was the biggest hit of their career…they are known most for this song and If You Want To Get To Heaven. After their first two albums, they didn’t have a lot of big hits but retained a good following. They have released 8 studio albums and 6 charting singles…the latest album was released in 2018 called Off The Beaten Path.
Bassist Mike ‘Supe’ Granda: “[Ozarks drummer] Larry Lee brought the song to us. He said he wrote it about a guy we knew. Every night, this guy would go out to the nightclub with a wad of money and a pocket full of blow and he’d be out there chasing women. “So we played this song for about a year. After we recorded the song we went to LA to mix it, and A&M said: ‘You’ve recorded a number one song, but Jackie needs to be a girl.’ So Larry took Steve Cash, our lyricist, into the other room, and three or four hours later they came out and Jackie was a girl. Larry laid his vocals down, and it flipped all of us out. “We’d been hearing this song about a guy for a year-and-a-half, and all of a sudden it was about a girl. But it sounded great.”
Jackie Blue
Ooh, Jackie Blue Lives her life from inside of her room Hides a smile when she’s wearin’ a frown Ooh, Jackie you’re not so down
You like your life in a free-form style You’ll take an inch but you’d love a mile There never seems to be quite enough Floating around to fill your lovin’ cup
Ooh, Jackie Blue What’s a game girl, if you never lose? Ask a winner and you’ll probably find Ooh, Jackie they’ve lost at sometime
Don’t try to tell me that you’re not aware Of what you’re doing and that you don’t care You say it’s easy, just a natural thing Like playing music, but you never sing
Ooh, Jackie Blue Making wishes that never come true Going places that you’ve never been Ooh, Jackie Blue, you’re going again
Ooh, Jackie Blue Lives a dream that can never come true Making love is like sifting through sand Ooh, Jackie, it slips through your hand
Every day, in your indigo eyes I watch the sunset but I don’t see it rise Moonlight and stars in your strawberry wine You’d take the world but you won’t take the time
Ooh-hoo-hoo, Jackie Blue Lives her life from inside of a room Makes you think that her life is a drag Ooh Jackie, what fun you have had
This wasn’t released in the prime years of Badfinger. Pete Ham was gone by this point but this is one new Badfinger song that I heard on radio at the time. I liked it so much that I bought the album Airwaves.
I posted another Airwaves song not long with a song called Lost Inside Your Love that came off of the Airwaves album. This song was a minor hit and peaked at #69 in 1979. It’s a nice power pop song that Joey Molland wrote.
Following the “hold placed (by the record company) on the last Badfinger album, Head First, and the suicide of group co-founder Pete Ham in 1975, Badfinger disbanded, and the remaining members joined various other groups or dropped out of music for the next two years.
This was a comeback album for the band trying to make it back without their main songwriter Pete Ham.
Rick Springfield just covered the song with Joey Molland that was released on an album which Joey worked with different artists such as Todd Rundgren, Springfield, Rick Wakeman, Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull), Sonny Landreth, Vanilla Fudge and more for a Badfinger cover album called Badfinger No Matter What: Recovering the Hits.
Love Is Gonna Come At Last
There are times when it feels so hard just to carry on There are times when the days all seem to be so long Then this feeling inside of me sets me free from the past
And I know that when I’m ready, love is gonna come at last Yes, I know that when I’m ready, love is gonna come at last
Been alone in a crowded room, watched it all go on I’ve had so many sleepless nights when I dreamed alone Then a break in the clouds above feels like love shining down
And I know that when I’m ready, love is gonna come around Yes, I know that when I’m ready, love is gonna come around
I live for tomorrow, what it may bring I live through the sorrow Live in my dreams, in my dreams
This feeling inside of me sets me free from the past And someday I’ll find a way to make my dreams come true
‘Cause I know that when I’m ready, love is gonna come at last Yes, I know that when I’m ready, love is gonna come at last Yes, I know that when I’m ready, love is gonna come at last Yes, I know that when I’m ready, love is gonna come at last Yes, I know that when I’m ready, love is gonna come at last
Today I’m guest hosting on “Once Upon a Time in the 70s.” If you can please give them a visit and leave a comment…I would appreciate it! They have a great site and they will be guest hosting my site one day this week! Now back to our song…
This one has always been a favorite of mine. Many people I know thought it was a religious song because of Mother Mary but Mother Mary was Paul’s mother. It does have a gospel feel though.
It’s always had a calming effect on me. The song is part of my DNA and although it’s been played quite a bit on radio…I can still enjoy it.
Paul McCartney has said he wrote “Let It Be” and “The Long and Winding Road” on the same day. How is that for a day’s work?
One thing that makes the song unique is what solo are you going to hear from George? The single version of the song has a good solo, but the album version has the best. On January 4, 1970, Paul, George, and Ringo went into the studio to clean up tracks for the album release. George put down one of my favorite solos of all time. It’s the solo that has some growl to it and is highly melodic. Later on, in 2003 when Let It Be Naked was released…yet another version of the solo was on there but not as good as the distorted version.
On October 31st, 1956, Paul’s mother Mary Patricia McCartney had passed away from breast cancer. Paul had said she was the unsung leader of their family. John and Paul bonded later on when John’s mother was killed by getting hit by a car.
The song was on the Let It Be Album. The album had the largest initial sales in US record history up to that time: 3.7 million advance orders. That is going out on top. Let It Be peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, Canada, New Zealand and #2 in the UK. The album peaked at #1 in the Billboard Album Charts, Canada, and the UK in 1970.
At the time some critics didn’t like the album as much. I’ve always liked the raw feel of it. The album contained Let It Be, The Long and Winding Road, Get Back, and I’ve Got A Feeling…plus a song that could have been a single…The Two Of Us. It shows what high standards they were held to.
I bought the Let It Be at a yard sale when I was a kid. The single had a B side that I had never heard of at the time. The song is called You Know My Name (Look Up The Number). It’s so off the wall it has to be heard…not described. It is basically John and Paul making a comedy record…with Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones on sax.
Paul started to write this during the White Album sessions but instead of Mother Mary…it was Mother Malcome after their roadie Mal Evans. He also sings a ling about Brother Malcome in a video I have below. Mal Evans has said that during the White Album sessions Paul had a vision of him saying Let It Be. I have Mal’s quote below.
Mal Evans:“Paul was meditating one day, they were writing all the time, and I came to him in a vision. I was just standing there, saying, “Let it be, let it be,’ and that’s where the song came from. It was funny; I had driven him back from a session one night (at Twickenham Film Studios in London, January 1969) a few months later. It was three o-clock in the morning, it was raining, it was dark in London and we were sitting in the car, just before he went in, just laughing and talking. He said, ‘Mal, I’ve got a new song and it’s called “Let It Be,” and I sing about “Mother Malcolm,” but he was a bit shy. So, he turned to me and said, ‘Would you mind if I said, “Mother Mary,” because people might not understand?’ So, I said, ‘Sure.’ But, he was lovely.”
Paul McCartney:“One night during this tense time, I had a dream. I saw my mum, who’d been dead ten years or so. And it was so great to see her because that’s a wonderful thing about dreams: you actually are reunited with that person for a second; there they are and you appear to both be physically together again. It was so wonderful for me and she was very reassuring. In the dream she said, ‘It’ll be all right.’ I’m not sure if she used the words ‘Let it be’ but that was the gist of her advice. It was, ‘Don’t worry too much, it will turn out okay.’ It was such a sweet dream. I woke up thinking, ‘Oh, it was really great to visit with her again. I felt very blessed to have that dream. So that got me writing the song ‘Let It Be.’ I literally started off ‘Mother Mary,’ which was her name. ‘When I find myself in times of trouble,’ which I certainly found myself in. The song was based on that dream.”
“She was reassuring me, saying, ‘It’s going to be OK, just let it be.’ I felt so great. She gave me the positive words. I woke up and thought, ‘What was that? She said ‘Let It Be.’ That’s good.’ So I wrote the song ‘Let It Be’ out of positivity.”
From Songfacts
Since Let It Be was The Beatles’ last album, it made an appropriate statement about leaving problems behind and moving on in life. The album was supposed to convey an entirely different message. It was going to be called “Get Back,” and they were going to record it in front of an audience on live TV, with another TV special showing them practicing the songs in the studio. It was going to be The Beatles getting back to their roots and playing unadorned live music instead of struggling in the studio like they did for The White Album. When they started putting the album together, it became clear the project wouldn’t work, and George Harrison left the sessions. When he returned, they abandoned the live idea and decided to use the TV footage as their last movie. While the film was being edited, The Beatles recorded and released Abbey Road, then broke up. Eventually, Phil Spector was given the tapes and asked to produce the album, which was released months after The Beatles broke up. By then, it was clear “Let It Be” would be a better name than “Get Back.”
According to McCartney, this is a very positive song, owing to its inspiration. One night when he was paranoid and anxious, he had a dream where he saw his mother, who had been dead for ten years or so – she came to him in his time of trouble, speaking words of wisdom that brought him much peace when he needed it. It was this sweet dream that got him to begin writing the song.
Many have been moved by the song on a deeply personal level, including Corden, who broke down when they sang it together. “I remember my granddad, who was a musician, sitting me down and telling me, ‘I’m going to play you the best song you’ve ever heard,’ and he played me that,” he said. “If my granddad was here right now he’d get an absolute kick out of this.” McCartney replied, “He is.”
It was John Lennon who wanted Phil Spector to produce the album. Spector worked on Lennon’s “Instant Karma” and was known for his bombastic “Wall Of Sound” style. McCartney hated Spector’s production, and in 2003 he pushed to have the album remixed and released without Spector’s influence. The result was Let It Be… Naked, which eliminated most of Spector’s work and is much closer to what The Beatles intended for the album. “Maggie Mae” and “Dig It” were removed, and an entirely different guitar solo was used for this song.
The Beatles weren’t the first to release this song – Aretha Franklin was. The Queen of Soul recorded it in December 1969, and it was released on her album This Girl’s In Love With You in January 1970, two months before The Beatles released their version (she also covered The Beatles “Eleanor Rigby” on that album).
Aretha recorded it with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, who were a group of musicians that owned their own studio in Alabama, but would travel to New York to record with Aretha. David Hood, who was their bass player, told us that Paul McCartney sent demos of the song to Atlantic Records (Franklin’s label) and to the Muscle Shoals musicians. Said Hood, “I kick myself for not grabbing that demo. Because I think they probably dropped it in the garbage. Our version was different. We changed it a little bit from his demo, where their version is different from that demo and from Aretha’s version, as well. Just slightly, but little things.”
In April 1987, this was released as a charity single in aid of The Sun newspaper’s Zeebrugge ferry disaster fund. Featuring Paul McCartney, Mark Knopfler, Kate Bush, Boy George and many others, it was called “Ferry Aid” and spent three weeks at #1 in the UK.
Billy Preston added organ and electric piano to this track. Preston was such a significant contributor to the Let It Be album that John Lennon floated the idea of making him a full band member. Preston’s contributions were more than musical: He came in after George Harrison got frustrated with the sessions and quit the band. After his bandmates agreed to his terms (including abandoning a live performance they had planned), Harrison returned to the sessions after 12 days and arranged for Preston to join them. Having Preston there kept tensions at bay and greased the creative gears, allowing them to complete the album that was looking precarious when he arrived.
This was the first Beatles song released in The Soviet Union. The single made it there in 1972.
In 2001, McCartney helped organize the “Concert For New York,” to benefit victims of The World Trade Center disaster. He closed the show with this, inviting the other acts and some New York cops and firefighters on stage to sing with him.
This song was played at Linda McCartney’s funeral.
On July 18, 2008, Paul McCartney joined Billy Joel onstage at Shea Stadium in New York and played this as the final song of the final concert at Shea. As a member of The Beatles, McCartney played the first stadium rock concert when they performed at Shea on August 15, 1965.
Until 1994 and the recordings for “Free As A Bird,” the session for this song on January 4, 1970 was the last Beatles recording session. Lennon wasn’t present that day, as he was on holiday.
A cover by American R&B artist Jennifer Hudson featuring the Roots, who are the house band on NBC’s Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, debuted at #98 on the Hot 100 in February 2010. She recorded it for the Hope For Haiti Now charity telecast after the earthquake that devastated the country. It was the third time the song had entered the US singles chart as Joan Baez’s version peaked at #49 in 1971.
A month after Jennifer Hudson’s version reached the Hot 100, Kris Allen took the song to the chart for a fourth time when his cover debuted at #63. Allen’s cut charted after he performed the song on American Idol, with proceeds from its digital sales benefiting Haiti earthquake relief efforts through the Idol Gives Back Foundation.
John Legend and Alicia keys performed this song on the tribute special The Beatles: The Night That Changed America, which aired in 2014 exactly 50 years after the group made their famous appearance on Ed Sullivan Show. Legend introduced it as “a song that has comforted generations with its beauty and its message.”
Sesame Street used this with the title changed to “Letter B.” The lyrics were changed to list words that begin with B.
Paul sings “Brother Malcolm” in this rough version near the end
Let It Be
When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me Speaking words of wisdom, let it be And in my hour of darkness she is standing right in front of me Speaking words of wisdom, let it be
Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be Whisper words of wisdom, let it be
And when the broken hearted people living in the world agree There will be an answer, let it be For though they may be parted, there is still a chance that they will see There will be an answer, let it be
Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be There will be an answer, let it be
Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be Whisper words of wisdom, let it be
Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be Whisper words of wisdom, let it be, be
And when the night is cloudy there is still a light that shines on me Shinin’ until tomorrow, let it be I wake up to the sound of music, Mother Mary comes to me Speaking words of wisdom, let it be
And let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be Whisper words of wisdom, let it be
And let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be Whisper words of wisdom, let it be
I have a bootleg concert of The Who in 1976 in Houston. This song is very dynamic and powerful live. This was released in August 1976 in Canada and the US with “Dreaming From The Waist” as its B side. It was on the album The Who By Numbers and it peaked at #8 in the Billboard Album charts, #7 in the UK, #9 in Canada and #29 in New Zealand in 1976.
The Who played this song in 1976 but after they didn’t play it much at all until the 50h anniversary tour.
Pete Townshend wrote this song, which uses imagery as metaphor for life in the music business. Much of the album deals with his frustrations with the industry, of being obsolete as a 30-year-old rock star. Oh, how times have changed now.
Pete usually wrote a lot of songs for the band to pick from for an album. This time they recorded everything he wrote because he was going through writer’s block at the time.
It’s one of my favorite Who album covers. They usually took turns on who would think of the album cover. It was John Entwistle’s turn and he drew the album cover along with numbers.
John Entwistle on the cover
“The first piece of artwork released is The Who by Numbers cover, which I never got paid for, so now I’m going to get paid. We were taking it in turns to do the covers. It was Pete’s turn before me and we did the Quadrophenia cover, which cost about the same as a small house back then, about £16,000. My cover cost £32
Pete Townshend:“‘Slip Kid’ came across as a warning to young kids getting into music that it would hurt them – it was almost parental in its assumed wisdom.”
Pete Townshend on The Who By Numbers: I felt partly responsible because the Who recording schedule had, as usual, dragged on and on, sweeping all individuals and their needs aside. Glyn worked harder on The Who by Numbers than I’ve ever seen him. He had to, not because the tracks were weak or the music poor but because the group was so useless. We played cricket between takes or went to the pub. I personally had never done that before. I felt detached from my own songs, from the whole record. Recording the album seemed to take me nowhere. Roger [Daltrey] was angry with the world at the time. Keith [Moon] seemed as impetuous as ever, on the wagon one minute, off the next. John [Entwistle] was obviously gathering strength throughout the whole period; the great thing about it was he seemed to know we were going to need him more than ever before in the coming year
Slip Kid
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight …
I’ve got my clipboard, text books
Lead me to the station
Yeah, I’m off to the civil war
I’ve got my kit bag, my heavy boots
I’m runnin’ in the rain
Gonna run till my feet are raw
Slip kid, slip kid, second generation
And I’m a soldier at thirteen
Slip kid, slip kid, realization
There’s no easy way to be free
No easy way to be free
It’s a hard, hard world
I left my doctor’s prescription bungalow behind me
I left the door ajar
I left my vacuum flask
Full of hot tea and sugar
Left the keys right in my car
Slip kid, slip kid, second generation
Only half way up the tree
Slip kid, slip kid, I’m a relation
I’m a soldier at sixty-three
No easy way to be free
Slip kid, slip kid
Keep away old man, you won’t fool me You and your history won’t rule me You might have been a fighter, but admit you failed I’m not affected by your blackmail You won’t blackmail me
I’ve got my clipboard, text books Lead me to the station Yeah, I’m off to the civil war I’ve got my kit bag, my heavy boots I’m runnin’ in the rain Gonna run till my feet are raw
Slip kid, slip kid, slip out of trouble Slip over here and set me free Slip kid, slip kid, second generation You’re slidin’ down the hill like me No easy way to be free No easy way to be free No easy way to be free
For some reason this post vanished from the reader this morning…so I’m trying a repost.
This is one of my favorite Aerosmith songs. I do prefer them in their 70s period because their sound was so dirty. This was the first single released from Aerosmith’s second album, Get Your Wings. (2 Loud 2 Old Music Review of the album )
The producer of this album caught my attention. Jack Douglas would later produce Cheap Trick and John Lennon’s Double Fantasy. Douglas brought in a horn section on this track.
Joe Perry came up with this riff in the Summer of 1973. The band were living together in a house on Beacon Sreet in Boston. Steven Tyler wrote the lyrics that went together with the riff. One lyric change was “Got you with the cocaine, found with your gun” was altered for the single version to “You shady looking loser, you played with my gun.”
Around this time Clive Davis had been let go from the record company for allegedly using company funds to bankroll his son’s bar mitzvah. He was replaced with Bruce Lundvall and Aerosmith’s management convinced him to put more effort into promoting Aerosmith this time, which he did.
This single didn’t chart but has remained on classic radio. The album peaked at #74 in the Billboard Album charts in 1974. Their next album Toys In The Attic would break them through.
Same Old Song And Dance wasn’t a hit, but it helped sell the album, which stayed on the Billboard album charts for nearly a year as Aerosmith hit the road, establishing themselves as an outstanding live act and growing their fan base.
Joe Perry:The tracks were the stuff we’d been working on at our apartment on Beacon Street in the summer of ’73. I wrote the riff to “Same Old Song and Dance” one night in the front room and Steven just started to sing along. “Spaced” happened the same way in the studio, with a lot of input from Jack. “S.O.S.” meant “Same Old Shit” and came from the rehearsals at the Drummer’s Image… “Lord of the Thighs” and “Seasons of Wither” were Steven’s songs. Of all the ballads Aerosmith has done, “Wither” was the one I liked best
Producer Jack Douglas:“To the best of my memory, the preproduction work for Get Your Wings started in the back of a restaurant that was like a Mob hangout in the North End. I commuted there from the Copley Plaza Hotel and they started to play me the songs they had for their new album. My attitude was: ‘What can I do to make them sound like themselves?'”
Same Old Song And Dance
Get yourself cooler, lay yourself low Coincidental murder, with nothing to show When the judge’s constipation go to his head And his wife’s aggravation, you’re soon enough dead It’s the same old story, same old song and dance, my friend It’s the same old story, same old song and dance, my friend
Gotcha with the cocaine they found with your gun No smoothy face lawyer to getcha undone Say love ain’t the same on the south side of town You could look, but you ain’t gonna find it around It’s the same old story, same old song and dance, my friend It’s the same old story, same old story Same old song and dance
Fate comes a-knockin’, doors start lockin’ Your old time connection, change your direction Ain’t gonna change it, can’t rearrange it Can’t stand the pain when it’s all the same to you, my friend
When you’re low down and dirty, from walkin’ the street With your old hurdy-gurdy, no one to meet Say love ain’t the same, on the south side of town You could look, but you ain’t gonna find it around It’s the same old story, same old song and dance, my friend It’s the same old story, same old story Same old song and dance, yeah
In the 90s our band would play this live. It was close to this version but when that second verse kicked in… we really kicked in full blast. A drunken patron at a bar once told me during a break…that it sounded great… like Hank Williams with 5 lines of blow. That made me smile anyway.
Hank Williams wrote this song and originally recorded it in 1952. Williams’ original peaked at #1 in the Country charts and also went to #20 on the US pop charts. Other artists to record this include Jo Stafford, Fats Domino, Brenda Lee and The Carpenters.
John Fogerty released the Blue Ridge Rangers album in 1973. This was his debut solo album after Creedence Clearwater Revival broke up. Some songs were written by country legends like Jimmie Rodgers and Hank Williams; some are traditional numbers, adapted by Fogerty in the style of those artists.
This was a one man album. Fogerty played every instrument himself. It was a risky move releasing a country cover album in the early seventies. He wanted to distance himself from CCR. While it wasn’t a large hit, it wasn’t a disaster considering what it was. The album peaked at #47 in the Billboard Album Charts and #59 in Canada in 1973.
Jambalaya (On The Bayou)
Goodbye, Joe, me gotta go, me oh my oh. Me gotta go, pole the pirogue down the bayou. My Yvonne, sweetest one, me oh my oh. Son of a gun, gonna have big fun on the bayou.
[CHORUS:] Jambalaya and a crawfish pie and fillet gumbo ‘Cause tonight I’m gonna see my ma cher amio. Pick guitar, fill fruit jar and be gayo, Son of a gun, gonna have big fun on the bayou.
Thibodeaux, Fontaineaux, the place is buzzin’, Kinfolk come to see Yvonne by the dozen. Dress in style, go hog wild, and be gayo. Son of a gun, gonna have big fun on the bayou.
[CHORUS:] Oh, guitar!
[CHORUS]
Oh, Lord! Hang tight, ooh Lord! Ah, take it out. He’s comin’, ah!
I owned Nazareth’s Hair of the Dog on 8-track tape (a book about 8-tracks from Deke) that was given to me as a kid. I still remember that CLICK during the title song. I expect to hear it when I listen to it today. The only version I knew of Love Hurts was Nazareth for the longest time. Later I found out it has been covered by many people including The Everly Brothers.
I saw Nazareth in the early 80s. Dan McCafferty’s voice was rough, loud, and great. Instead of talking to the audience he screamed through a very hot mic…but they were awesome. The opened up for Billy Squire but I would have loved to seem them headline.
The album this song was on was Hair of the Dog. It would be Nazareth’s biggest album. The album peaked at #17 in the Billboard Album Charts and #20 in Canada in 1975.
Nazareth released Love Hurts as a single late in 1974. Surprisingly, it tanked, but in April 1975 it became a hit in South Africa, prompting their label, A&M, to release it in America. It took a while, but radio stations in Texas started playing the song, and others around the country gradually followed suit.
The song peaked at #1 in Canada and #8 in the Billboard 100 and #41 in the UK. Nazareth got their name from the first line of the Band’s “The Weight” – “I pulled into Nazareth…”
The Everly Brothers may have been the first to cover it, but they never released the song as a single. They planned to release this as a single, but industry politics got in the way. The group was managed by Wesley Rose, who was part owner of the publishing company Acuff-Rose. After a string of hits for Cadence Records, they left for Warner Bros. in 1960, and continued to make hits but Rose wanted them to release singles for which Acuff-Rose owned the publishing, and when the duo recorded covers of “Lucille” and “Temptation” (a song from 1933), he protested, leading to a split and a legal dispute. Rose had another one of his clients, Roy Orbison, record “Love Hurts” and released it as the B-side to his #1 hit “Running Scared” in 1961.
Don Everly:“Wesley covered us with Roy Orbison, which was outlandishly selfish,” Don Everly said in Walk Right Back: The Everly Brothers On Warner Bros. “The arrangement was ours, and it was written for us. We couldn’t release it as a single because we didn’t know if Acuff-Rose would license it or not because we were in a lawsuit with them. It got that bitter.”
Pete Aginew Nazareth bassist: “We all loved the song. We often covered songs that we liked that we used to listen to on tape. Every now and then, we’d just go back and try to do something with one of these things. If you could change it and make it yours, we’d do it in the studio and see if we could do something about it. When we did Love Hurts, I believe there were 42 different versions recorded of it. The one we used to listen to was Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris, off the “Grievous Angel” [1974] album. We used to have that in our van and we loved the song. […] We recorded “Love Hurts” as a b-side and that’s how we saw it. Of course, when I hear it now, it’s probably one of the best rock ballads of all time and definitely the vocal is in the top three.”
From Songfacts
Nazareth made this song a hit, but it was originally released by the Everly Brothers on their 1960 album A Date With The Everly Brothers. Like their heartbreak hit from 1957, “Bye Bye Love,” it was written by Boudleaux Bryant.
Young love is hot with passion, but it burns you when it’s hot. The guy in this song has just made this discovery, which is a revelation of sorts – all those singing the praises of love are fools who will soon be burned, as love is just a lie made to make you blue.
The original Everly Brothers version runs 2:23 and is delivered in their distinctive, pleasing harmonies. The Nazareth version is 3:03, with sandpaper vocals by lead singer Dan McCafferty screamed out as if he’s falling into the pit of despair.
The group is from Scotland and had three UK hits under their belts when Nazareth’s Stateside success was short lived: “Holiday” reached #87 in 1980, and “Love Leads To Madness” went to #105 in 1982, but none of their other songs charted there.
The album version runs 3:52, with a guitar solo by Manny Charlton that is not on the 3:03 single.
By the time Nazareth brought this song to life, the Everly Brothers had been split for three years. When they re-formed in 1983, they added the song to their setlists for the first time, starting with their reunion concert at Royal Albert Hall, which was released as a live album. In later years, it sometimes seemed like they were singing it to each other on stage, as their relationship had clearly soured.
The Everly Brothers recorded a new version on their 1965 album Rock’n Soul. Other artists to release it include Ray Peterson, Jimmy Webb, and Gram Parsons with Emmylou Harris. Jim Capaldi is the only other artist to chart with the song; he took it to #97 US in December 1975.
I love this song. Not many songs deal with a failed suicide, domestic abuse, and a brush with sadomasochism. I’m a huge Warren Zevon fan. His songs tend to be on the dark side…and anyone who has listened to Excitable Boy will testify to that.
When I heard Zevon’s version of this song for the first time I was sold. I first heard the Linda Ronstadt version and I loved it. I’m a Linda Ronstadt fan but something about Zevon’s version draws me in. It’s raw and crude and I love the way he sings it.
Zevon wrote and recorded the song and it appeared on his self-titled album in 1976. It became a hit when Linda Ronstadt covered it the next year. She cleaned up the song a little. Ronstadt’s cover was a cleaned-up version with the gender reversed. Still, her character fails at suicide, but the S&M (sadomasochism) references are gone.
Like other Zevon songs this is a pretty crude and risqué song. His character is such a disaster that he can’t even kill himself: he puts his head on the railroad tracks, but the train doesn’t run anymore.
I met a girl at the rainbow bar She asked me if I’d beat her She took me back to the hired house I don’t wanna talk about it, hut
It’s thought that the song was a friendly swipe at Jackson Browne, whose songs such as “Here Come Those Tears Again” and “Sleep’s Dark and Silent Gate” from The Pretender could be quite dark. The album was produced by Jackson Browne and had backing vocals by Lindsey Buckingham.
Another hit cover version of the song was recorded by Canadian country singer Terri Clark in 1996. It peaked at #1 in the Canadian Country Charts and #5 in the Billboard Country Charts.
Poor Poor Pitiful Me
I lay my head on the railroad tracks I’m waiting on the double E The railroad don’t run no more Poor poor pitiful me
Poor poor pitiful me and poor poor pitiful me These young girls won’t let me be Lord have mercy on me, woe is me
Well I met a girl in West Hollywood Well I ain’t naming names But she really worked me over good She was just like Jesse James
She really worked me over good She was a credit to her gender She put me through some changes Lord Sort of like a waring blender
Poor poor pitiful me, poor poor pitiful me These young girls won’t let me be Lord have mercy on me, woe is me
Poor poor pitiful me and poor poor pitiful me Oh these girls won’t let me be Lord have mercy on me, woe is me
I met a girl at the rainbow bar She asked me if I’d beat her She took me back to the hired house I don’t wanna talk about it, hut
Poor poor pitiful me Poor poor pitiful me Hut, never mind Poor poor pitiful me Yeah poor poor pitiful me
Bon Scott was reading a story in the paper about Mark Brandon Reid…otherwise known as Chopper Reid. Chopper was sent to jail for 16 years for murdering a gang leader. After a while, he got fed up with jail life, so a criminal friend of his named Jimmy Loughnan planned an escape. It didn’t go well because of Chopper’s fear of tight places…and he and Jimmy were caught.
Bon Scott and Angus and Malcolm Young wrote Jailbreak. The song peaked at #10 in Australia in 1976. The song appeared on the Australian version of Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap. The song would not be released to the rest of the world until the 1984 international release of the ‘74 Jailbreak EP.
Mark Evans plays bass on this track and album. Evans would play on one more album, Let There Be Rock, and then he would be replaced by Cliff Williams on the Powerage album. Williams remains with ACDC to this day.
They made two videos for this song, one of them playing on a bunch of rocks as various explosions go on around them and the other which features the band simply playing on a stage.
In the bottom video Bon Scott and Phil Rudd (shirts with arrows) were dressed in blue prisoner uniforms while Malcolm Young and Mark Evans wore guard uniforms.
Jailbreak
There was a friend of mine on murder And the judge’s gavel fell Jury found him guilty Gave him sixteen years in hell He said “I ain’t spending my life here I ain’t livin’ alone Ain’t breakin’ no rocks on the chain gang I’m breakin’ out and heading home” Gonna make a (jailbreak) And I’m looking towards the sky I’m gonna make a (jailbreak) Oh, how I wish that I could fly
All in the name of liberty All in the name of liberty Got to be free
(Jailbreak) Let me outta here (Jailbreak) Sixteen years (Jailbreak) Had more than I can take (Jailbreak)
Yeah
He said he’d seen his lady being fooled with By another man She was down and he was up Had a gun in his hand Bullets started flying everywhere People start to scream Big man lyin’ on the ground With a hole in his body where his life had been
But it was all in the name of liberty All in the name of liberty I got to be free
(Jailbreak) (Jailbreak) I got to break out Out of here
Heartbeats They were racing Freedom He was chasin’ Spotlights Sirens Rifles firing But he made it out
Some more comedians this week and next week we will be wrapping this up. Thank you for the suggestions…some will appear next week including my favorite talk show host.
Robin Williams
You know the difference between a tornado and divorce in the South? Nothing! Someone’s losing a trailer, number one
Reality is just a crutch for people who can’t cope with drugs
Cocaine is God’s way of telling you you’re making too much money
Marriage is a triumph of imagination over intelligence
A woman would never make a nuclear bomb. They would never make a weapon that kills, no, no. They’d make a weapon that makes you feel bad for a while
The only reason Mickey Mouse has four fingers is that he can’t pick up a check
Being a famous print journalist is like being the best-dressed woman on the radio
Death is nature’s way of saying, ‘Your table is ready
People say satire is dead. It’s not dead; it’s alive and living in the white house
Robert Klein
In the fifties I had dreams about touching a naked woman and she would turn to bronze or the dream about hot dogs chasing donuts through the Lincoln Tunnel.
And the only studies were – Rodney Dangerfield was my mentor and he was my Yale drama school for comedy.
Fear is the greatest salesman.
In the book of things people more often do wrong than right, investing must certainly top the list, followed closely by wallpapering and eating artichokes
Comedy is still alive, and there are still funny people. Jews are still overrepresented in comedy and psychiatry and underrepresented in the priesthood. That immigrant Jewish humor is still with us.
I learned more at The Second City than I did at Yale for all that high tuition.
Jerry Seinfeld
A two-year-old is kind of like having a blender, but you don’t have a top for it.”
There [are] just two things I’d need to find out everything I want to know about everyone: 1) Let me see them drive; 2) let me hear them talk about marriage … That’s going to tell me exactly your relationship to the world.
The IRS! They’re like the Mafia, they can take anything they want!
Men don’t care what’s on TV. They only care what else is on TV
If a book about failures doesn’t sell, is it a success
Your blessing in life is when you find the torture you’re comfortable with
What’s the deal with Ovaltine? It comes in a round container, you put it in a round glass, why don’t they call it Roundtine?
Dave Allen
If it’s sent by ship then it’s a cargo, if it’s sent by road then it’s a shipment.
We spend our lives on the run: we get up by the clock, eat and sleep by the clock, get up again, go to work – and then we retire. And what do they give us? A bloody clock.
My church accepts all denominations – fivers, tenners, twenties.
Am I the Irish comedian with half a finger? No, I’m the Irish comedian with nine and a half fingers.
I don’t go out of my way to be outrageous, I just go out of my way to look at things.
Brother Dave Gardner
The South may not always be right, but by God it’s never wrong!
Rock music sounds like an octopus making love to a bagpipe
Let them that don’t want none have memories of not gettin’ any
Love your enemies and drive them nuts
Peter Cook
I have learned from my mistakes, and I am sure I can repeat them exactly
I have learned from my mistakes, and I am sure I can repeat them exactly
As I looked out into the night sky, across all those infinite stars, it made me realize how insignificant they are.
You realize that suicide’s a criminal offense. In less enlightened times they’d have hung you for it.
Everything I’ve ever told you, including this, is a lie
Dudley Moore
I’m always looking for meaningful one-night stands
Not everyone who drinks is a poet. Some of us drink because we’re not poets
When I think of Canada I think of tonic water.
Masturbation is always very safe. You not only control the person you’re with, but you can leave when you want to
The best car safety device is a rear-view mirror with a cop in it
If I had to pick my favorite Stones song they covered…this one would be high up there. I like the intro and Keith’s sloppy guitar solo that was perfect for it.
The Stones covered this song in 1974 on the It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll album. Later in 1978 they would cover another Temptations song called Just My Imagination.
The Stones originally planned for Dobie Gray’s “Drift Away” as the only cover song on It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll, but they bumped it for this. Billy Preston plays the funky piano on this song, and it really makes it.
It’s Only Rock and Roll would be the last album that Mick Taylor worked on. Ron Wood would eventually replace him on guitar. Wood probably fit in with the Stones more than Taylor…but Taylor had a sound that was never replicated again. The albums he played on are considered to be the Stones best.
This was written by Motown writers Norman Whitfield and Eddie Holland. Holland, who was part of the Holland/Dozier/Holland writing team, wrote the lyrics. The Temptations version peaked at #13.
Other covers of this song include Phil Collins, TLC, and the one and only Rick Astley… whom the Internet’s never going to give up..
The song peaked at #17 in the Billboard 100 and #14 in Canada in 1974.
Paul McCartney:“There were two songs I turned Mick onto that the Stones have done. One was She Said Yeah and the other was Ain’t Too Proud To Beg. Mick would deny it – ‘Wot? Never saw him, never met him’ – but I distinctly remember having him up into a little music room and playing it to him. He loved it and he went and did it. We’ve messed around with the track a little bit, but it is sort of like my memory of the original.”
Ain’t Too Proud To Beg
I know you wanna leave me, But I refuse to let you go, If I have to beg, plead for your sympathy, I don’t mind ’cause you mean that much to me.
Ain’t too proud to beg and you know it, Please don’t leave me girl, Don’t you go, Ain’t too proud to plead, baby, baby, Please don’t leave me, girl, Don’t you go.
Now I’ve heard a cryin’ man Is half a man with no sense of pride, But if I have to cry to keep you, I don’t mind weepin’ if it’ll keep you by my side.
Ain’t too proud to beg and you know it, Please don’t leave me girl, Don’t you go, Ain’t too proud to plead, baby, baby, Please don’t leave me, girl, Don’t you go.
If I have to sleep on your doorstep all night and day Just to keep you from walking away, Let your friends laugh, even this I can stand, ’cause I wanna keep you any way I can.
Ain’t too proud to beg and you know it, Please don’t leave me girl, Don’t you go, Ain’t too proud to plead, baby, baby, Please don’t leave me, girl, Don’t you go.
Now I’ve got a love so deep in the pit of my heart, And each day it grows more and more, I’m not ashamed to call and plead to you, baby, If pleading keeps you from walking out that door.
Ain’t too proud to beg and you know it, Please don’t leave me girl, Don’t you go, Ain’t too proud to plead, baby, baby, Please don’t leave me, girl, Don’t you go.
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