Now we continue our quest of famous guitars and the artists cherish them… Here was Part 1 and Part 2.
Bruce Springsteen and Neil Young’s guitars
Bruce Springsteen’s Guitar
Bruce has stuck with this guitar from the first album until now. You see this guitar on his Born to Run album. When I saw him in 2000 he was playing it. Bruce bought this in 1972 in Phil Petillo’s Neptune New Jersey guitar shop for $185. Now the guitar is said to be worth between $1 million and $5 million…pretty good investment Bruce!
The guitar is a composite assembled from parts from at least two other Fender guitars. The bolt-on neck dates from a 1950s Fender Esquire guitar. The Esquire decal on the headstock indicates that the neck came from the single-pickup variant of Fender’s more-popular two-pickup Telecaster. The body is a 1950’s Telecaster
The guitar had been originally owned by a record company and was part of the payola scams of the 1960s. It was rigged with four pickups wired into extra jacks that would each plug into a separate channel on the recording console.
Petillo removed the extra pickups and returned the guitar to original Telecaster shape before he sold it Springsteen, but a huge side effect of the routing was that the Tele was now really light, giving it a sound a feel unlike any other.
Bruce had Peillo modify it over the years. He added his triangular Precision Frets, a six saddle titanium bridge, and custom hot-wound waterproofed pickups and electronics so they could better survive a sweat-soaked 4 hour show.
Bruce has now retired the Esquire from road duty, so these days Springsteen plays clones on stage, but still records with the original.
Neil Young’s “Old Black”
Neil Young is known mostly as a singer songwriter but he is a hell of a guitar player. He is one of my favorite rock guitarists. He doesn’t play lightning quick and that is a good thing…it’s playing with feel that many guitar players forget about.
Neil Young acquired Old Black in 1968 through a trade with Buffalo Springfield member Jim Messina, who traded Old Black for one of Young’s orange Gretsch guitars (Gretsch 6120 Chet Atkins).
The guitar made a humming sound so he dropped it off at a guitar shop in LA. When he came back, the shop had closed for good and lost one of the pickups. To replace the lost pickup, Neil added a Gretsh pickup that didn’t quite sound the way he wanted, but it stayed that way until Larry Cragg found an old Firebird pickup and installed it. Then Old Black was restored to its former glory and that Firebird pickup is still installed on the guitar today. It was roughly resprayed to jet black, and received a new Tune-o-matic bridge (not available when the guitar was produced) and a B-7 model Bigsby vibrato tailpiece.
The neck pickup has always been the original P-90 pickup, but it is covered by a metal P-90 cover. Neil is still playing Old Black to this day and he said he will until he dies.
Being a bass player and a love for the bizarre this song has stuck with me. Les Claypool is a terrific bass player and this 1995 song added great bass playing with the odd song and I was onboard. It’s not a song I would pop in at any time…the video for me makes this song…and I hardly ever say that…but I do like the song.
I saw the video before I ever heard the song on radio…it just kept my attention all the way through over and over again. It was a Devo kind of attention getter…video wise that is.
At the time there were rumors that this song was about the actress Winona Ryder. Les Claypool denied this in interviews, pointing out that his Wynona is spelled differently and insisting the song has nothing to do with her. Ryder’s then-boyfriend, Soul Asylum singer Dave Pirner, didn’t buy it. He took offense and renamed one of his songs “Les Claypool’s A Big F–king Asshole” in concert. The song must have hit a nerve!
The song was written by Les Claypool, Larry LaLonde, and Tim Alexander. Primus has never had a Hot 100 hit, but this is one of their most popular songs, peaking at #12 Billboard Alternative Charts and #23 on the Mainstream Rock chart.
Now the video! You just have to watch it. I will say whoever made those suits did a great job.
Les Claypool: “I was fly fishing with a friend of mine up in Lassen County (California), and the sun was going down and we were heading back to the car,” he said. “He was off in one direction, and I went off in another direction. I come around this corner and I step into the creek. And just as I spied this thing, it spied me. It was this big, furry mass coming my way. It flipped and popped its tail and scared the s–t out of me, and I scared the s–t out of it. It was this giant beaver. I mean, it was huge.”
“It just happened that I had this bass part with all these triplets in it and it kind of fit real well with those lyrics,” “So when we did Punchbowl, we put the two together and that became the ‘Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver’ that everybody came to know.”
From Songfacts
Nice beaver. Thank you. I just had it stuffed.
This exchange is from the 1988 movie The Naked Gun, where Leslie Nielsen is admiring Priscilla Presley’s taxidermied beaver.
So it kind of got in my head. This big brown beaver, big brown beaver. Okay. Well, how can I make a song out of that? And then it became, ‘Wynona’s got herself a big brown beaver.’ And from there it just built into this little mythological character that obviously had a little double entendre to it.”
The band had much more modest ambitions for the song when they conceived it, at first considering it one of the filler pieces the band sometimes puts between their proper songs for comic relief.
The video was quite a production. Shot at a time when record companies were willing to shell out big bucks for videos (which MTV still played), this one featured the band in foam rubber suits dressed like cartoon cowboys. The film was shot 25% slower than normal (18 frames-per-second instead of 24) to create a sped-up, jerky look to match the cartoon theme when it was played back. This meant that the band had to mime to the song at a slower speed, so the song was played 25% slower so they could match their movements.
The band had some trouble convincing MTV to play it – Claypool says he met with a woman at the network who asked him some questions about the song. MTV ended up nightparting it.
Claypool says this song was “the bane of my existence for a while” because it made those who weren’t au fait with Primus assume they were a joke band. He eventually realized that those who didn’t get it never will, and decided to pay them no mind.
Les Claypool’s sideband Duo de Twang recorded this song on their 2014 debut album Four Foot Shack. This version was similar to the original vision of the song, which was more stripped-down.
Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver
Wynona’s got herself a big brown beaver and she shows it off to all her friends. One day, you know, that beaver tried to leave her, so she caged him up with cyclone fence. Along came Lou with the old baboon and said “I recognize that smell,Smells like seven layers,That beaver eatin’ Taco Bell!”.
“Now Rex he was a Texan out of New Orleans and he travelled with the carnival shows. He ran bumper cars, sucked cheap cigars and he candied up his nose. He got wind of the big brown beaver So he thought he’d take himself a peek,but the beaver was quick and he grabbed him by the kiwis, and he ain’t pissed for a week.(And a half!)
Wynona took her big brown beaver and she stuck him up in the air, said “I sure do love this big brown beaver and I wish I did have a pair. Now the beaver once slept for seven days And it gave us all an awful fright, So I tickled his chin and I gave him a pinch and the bastard tried to bite me. Wynona loved her big brown beaverAnd she stroked him all the time. She pricked her finger one day and it occurred to her she might have a porcupine.
This was the second “new” song by the Beatles to be released in the 1990’s and it was on the Anthology 2 album. I liked the song but it didn’t resonate with me like Free As A Bird did. Real Love sounded more like a Lennon solo song with the Beatles backing him…but I love Lennon’s solo output so I did like it but it wasn’t as “Beatle-ly” to me than Free As a Bird.
The song was more fully realized than Free As a Bird and didn’t take as much input by the other three shaping it. This is the only Beatles song where the songwriting credit is John Lennon alone instead of Lennon-McCartney or all four Beatles.
Paul McCartney did his best John Lennon imitation to help the lead vocal because the recording of John’s voice was low and spotty in some places. The lead vocal is actually a John and Paul duet.
The song with Lennon’s early takes on “Real Love,” recorded with just guitar and vocals, had also appeared on the soundtrack of the Imagine: John Lennon documentary before the Beatles got to finish it.
The song peaked at #11 in the Billboard 100, #12 in Canada, and #4 in the UK in 1996.
From Songfacts
This was an unfinished song written by John Lennon that was completed by the remaining Beatles. It was the second “new” release for the Anthology 2 album (“Free As A Bird” was the first). Yoko Ono supplied Lennon’s demos and gave the remaining Beatles permission to use them.
Jeff Lynne from The Electric Light Orchestra put this together. He has produced albums for George Harrison and played with him in The Traveling Wilburys.
Lennon recorded his demo on a small tape recorder, which posed a challenge when Lynne tried to mix it with updated tracks. He was able to use a noise reduction system to improve the sound.
According to notes in the John Lennon album Acoustic, when Lennon wrote this song, the original title was “Girls and Boys.”
Real Love
All my little plans and schemes Lost like some forgotten dreams Seems that all I really was doing Was waiting for you
Just like little girls and boys Playing with their little toys Seems like all they really were doing Was waiting for love
Don’t need to be alone No need to be alone It’s real love, it’s real Yes, it’s real love, it’s real
From this moment on I know Exactly where my life will go Seems that all I really was doing Was waiting for love
Don’t need to be afraid No need to be afraid It’s real love, it’s real Yes, it’s real love, it’s real
Thought I’d been in love before But in my heart, I wanted more Seems like all I really was doing Was waiting for you
Don’t need to be alone Don’t need to be alone It’s real love, it’s real It’s real love, it’s real Yes, it’s real love, it’s real It’s real love, it’s real Yes, it’s real love, it’s real It’s real love, it’s real Yes, it’s real love, it’s real It’s real love, it’s real
Art Alexakis is the lead singer and songwriter of Everclear. This song is a scathing attack on his dad who left his family.
This song is about Art’s childhood when his parents split and it started a difficult life for Alexakis. After spending the first six years of his life living a in a comfortable suburb in Los Angeles area community of Redondo Beach, his parents divorced, leaving Alexakis to be raised by his mother. Left with far less income, his mother moved the family into projects near Culver City.
Alexakis, no longer had a father in his life, he struggled through childhood. At age 12, his brother, George, died of a heroin overdose. Then Alexakis’ 15-year-old girlfriend committed suicide. He also got into drugs, starting with marijuana and moving on to heroin, cocaine and alcohol before he got clean in 1989.
Everclear formed in 1991 in Portland Oregon. They released their first album World of Noise in 1993. Father of Mine was on the 1997 album So Much for the Afterglow.
The song peaked at #4 in the Billboard Alternative Charts, and #1 in the Canadian Alternative Charts in 1998.
Art Alexakis: “My feelings for my father haven’t necessarily changed, but my feelings about myself after writing that song have been much better. It was kind of a catharsis to put those feelings into words, it’s a way for me to get things out of my system. The song ‘Wonderful’ is very much like that too.”
Alexakis testified before congress on March 16, 2000 to endorse a child support bill.
From Songfacts
Art doesn’t speak with his father and can’t be sure if he’s heard this or not, but he knows that his stepsisters, who were raised by his dad, weren’t happy about this song.
As it states in the song, Alexakis really did get Christmas cards from his father containing $5.
This was remixed and included on Hope In Hockeytown, an album celebrating the Detroit Red Wings back-to-back Stanley Cup Victories.
Art talks about the song.
Father of Mine
Father of mine Tell me where have you been You know I just closed my eyes My whole world disappeared Father of mine Take me back to the day When I was still your golden boy Back before you went away
I remember the blue skies Walking the block I loved it when you held me high I loved to hear you talk You would take me to the movie You would take me to the beach You would take me to a place inside That is so hard to reach
Father of mine Tell me where did you go You had the world inside your hand But you did not seem to know Father of mine Tell me what do you see When you look back at your wasted life And you don’t see me
I was ten years old Doing all that I could It wasn’t easy for me To be a scared white boy In a black neighborhood Sometimes you would send me a birthday card With a five dollar bill I never understood you then And I guess I never will
Daddy gave me a name My dad he gave me a name Then he walked away Daddy gave me a name Then he walked away My dad gave me a name
Father of mine Tell me where have you been I just closed my eyes And the world disappeared Father of mine Tell me how do you sleep With the children you abandoned And the wife I saw you beat
I will never be safe I will never be sane I will always be weird inside I will always be lame Now I’m a grown man With a child of my own And I swear I’m not going to let her know All the pain I have known
Then he walked away Daddy gave me a name Then he walked away My dad gave me a name Then he walked away Daddy gave me a name Then he walked away My dad gave me a name Then he walked away
Webb Wilder is just different…different in a great way. He looks like he dropped out of a 50’s black and white detective show. The song peaked at #16 in the Mainstream Rock Songs in 1992.
His real name is John “Webb” McMurry and according to wiki “The Webb Wilder character was created in 1984 for a short comedy film created by friend called “Webb Wilder Private Eye.” The character was a backwoods private detective who fell out of the 1950s and happened to also be a musician. The short appeared on the television variety show “Night Flight.”[Whatever it is it works.
Webb Wilder’s quote when asked what kind of music he plays.
“I came to Nashville as kind of a hunch, an educated guess that it would be a good place for me. Rock ‘n’ roll and country have more in common than not. We don’t have the typical Nashville country sound, but we thought we could use that to our advantage. It’s sorta like we’re a roots band for rock ‘n’ roll fans and a rock band for roots fans” he also adds these phrases…“Swampadelic”, “Service-station attendant music”, “Uneasy listening”, “Psychobilly”
Psychobilly….Now that is a cool description.
By 1991 I was walking through a street fair in Nashville and there he was playing with his band. He had just put out an album called Doodad that got some local and national airplay. His music is a mixture of rock/country/rockabilly/punk and anything else he can throw in. The man has the gift of gab also.
I’ve seen him a couple of times in the 90s and he can bring the house down. He did get some MTV and VHI play nationally in 1991-92. His other known songs are my favorite “Meet Your New Landlord,” Poolside, and “Human Cannonball”. He has had some great backing bands. He also did a great cover of Steve Earle’s The Devil’s Right Hand….
I’m including my favorite song by him called Meet Your New Landlord and of course Tough it Out.
Tough It Out
When I was in the cradle Momma used to say “Now, baby Don’t ya cry cry cry” She turned on the radio And fed me rock and roll Lullaby-by-by Well it got under my skin And man it pulled me in ’cause it was strong strong strong I hit the ground runnin’ And let me tell ya somethin’ I was gone gone gone
Get offa my line ’cause I’m comin’ through I’m aimin’ high And I’m willin’ to shoot
I won’t bow, I won’t bend I won’t break, I’ll tough it out I won’t budge, I won’t deal I won’t change, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Keep rockin’ (tough it out) No stoppin’ ‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Straight ahead (tough it out) knock ’em dead No compromise, I’ll tough it out
Now I’ve got somethin’ For ever man woman And child child child We don’t leave the hall ’til they’re bouncin’ off the walls Goin’ wild wild wild It might happen any day Might be light years away I don’t mind mind mind We got our head down, ears back Headed for the barn Feelin’ fine fine fine
Get offa my line ’cause I’m comin’ through I’m aimin’ high And I’m willin’ to shoot
I won’t bow, I won’t bend I won’t break, I’ll tough it out I won’t budge, I won’t deal I won’t change, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Keep rockin’ (tough it out) No stoppin’ ‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Straight ahead (tough it out) knock ’em dead No compromise, I’ll tough it out(Tough it out) (tough it out)
You might catch me down But I won’t stay caught Now I might not sell But I can’t be bought
I won’t bow, I won’t bend I won’t break, I’ll tough it out I won’t budge, I won’t deal I won’t change, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Keep Rockin’ (tough it out) No stoppin’ ‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Straight ahead (tough it out) knock ’em dead No compromise, I’ll tough it out
I won’t bow, I won’t bend I won’t break, I’ll tough it out I won’t budge, I won’t deal I won’t change, I’ll tough it out Tough it out ‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out Tough it out No compromise, I’ll tough it out
I first heard this song on the Shake Your Money Maker album that I had just bought. I loved this song but it reminded of another song and I couldn’t put my finger on it. It then came to me…a song named Sway by the Rolling Stones off of Sticky Fingers.
I’m not saying the Black Crowes stole anything from it but they probably were influenced by the song. Rich Robinson the guitar player played the same 5 string G tuning that Keith Richards made famous…and he really does it well. Like the Georgia Satellites before them the Black Crowes sound was a throw back to the early seventies and it worked well.
The Black Crowes album Shake Your Money Maker was released in 1990. This album shocked me when I heard it. After longing for something with that 70’s tone…here it was with this new band. I always thought they sounded like The Stones/Faces musically with a Rod Stewart type lead singer.
Sister Luck was not released as a single but remains a favorite album track of mine.
Sister Luck
Worried sick my eyes are hurting To rest my head I’d take a life Outside the girls are dancing ‘Cause when you’re down it just don’t seem right
Feeling second fiddle to a dead man Up to my neck with your disregard Like a beat dog that’s walking on the broadway No one wants to hear you when you’re down
Sister luck is screaming out Somebody else’s name Sister luck is screaming out Somebody else’s name
A flip of a coin Might make a head turn No surprise, who sleeps Held my hand over a candle Flame burnin’ but I never weep
Sister luck is screaming out Somebody else’s name Sister luck is screaming out Somebody else’s name
Love the guitar riff, the vibe, and the artist. To my surprise this was not released as a single in the US, but in 1995 a live version was used as the B-side of Kravitz’ “Rock And Roll Is Dead” single.
I first learned of Lenny Kravitz in 1989 with Let Love Rule which is probably my favorite song by him. I do like this one because it’s aggressive and right in your face. The song was released in 1993.
The song is about Jesus Christ, whom Lenny referred to as “the ultimate rock star.” It’s about how God gives choice to man about where to turn.
Lenny Kravitz:“I thought the subject matter was really interesting, because it’s coming from the mouth of Jesus Christ, as I thought. So basically, ‘Are you gonna go my way?’ meaning ‘my way of love.’ I had no idea that that song would become what it became. No idea. There was nothing on the radio like that. And the recording is so raw, it’s ridiculous.”
The music video, directed by Mark Romanek, finds Kravitz and his band performing beneath a brilliant chandelier. The clip earned him the MTV Video Music Award for Best Male Artist.
From Songfacts
. The opening lines spell it out:
I was born long ago I am the chosen I’m the one I have come to save the day And I won’t leave until I’m done
Kravitz played this on Saturday Night Live in 1993.
In an interview posted on his website, Kravitz explained the origin of this song: “We were just jamming in the studio. You know, I was jamming with Craig Ross, who I wrote the song with. It was one of those songs that happened in 5 minutes. We were jamming. I thought there was something happening. I told Henry to turn the tape machines on, and we played it. And that was it. And then I went and wrote the lyrics on a brown paper bag, I remember at my loft on Broome Street at the time. Went in and sang it the next day. And that was it.”
This was a #2 hit on the Modern Rock chart. Because it was released as an airplay-only single in the US, it wasn’t eligible for the Hot 100. At the time, many record labels chose to only release promo singles to radio stations so listeners would have to buy the whole album to hear the song. While the strategy worked for album sales, it also kept artists off the chart until the rules changed in 1998.
Are You Gonna Go My Way was Kravitz’ first Top 20 album in the US, where it peaked at #12. It hit #1 in the UK, Switzerland, Canada, and Australia.
This earned Kravitz Grammy nominations for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Solo and Best Rock Song. He lost to Meat Loaf for “I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That)” and Dave Pirner for Soul Asylum’s “Runaway Train,” respectively.
Tom Jones recorded this for the 1995 comedy The Jerky Boys. It’s also been covered by Robbie Williams, Mel B, and Adam Lambert.
This was used in the 1994 movie I Love Trouble, starring Julia Roberts. It also showed up on The Simpsons (“How I Spent My Strummer Vacation” – 2002) and Sex and the City (“Ghost Town” – 2001).
A remixed version was used at the opening theme to the 2001 video game Gran Turismo 3.
Are You Gonna Go My Way
I was born long ago I am the chosen I’m the one I have come to save the day And I won’t leave until I’m done
So that’s why you’ve got to try You got to breath and have some fun Though I’m not paid I play this game And I won’t stop until I’m done
But what I really want to know is Are you gonna go my way? And I got to got to know
I don’t know why we always cry This we must leave and get undone We must engage and rearrange And turn this planet back to one
So tell me why we got to die And kill each other one by one We’ve got to love and rub-a-dub We’ve got to dance and be in love
But what I really want to know is Are you gonna go my way? And I got to got to know
Are you gonna go my way? ‘Cause baby I got to know Yeah
One of the best intros ever! We tried a little tenderness with Otis Redding this morning so now lets all insert some ear plugs and turn it up.
Brothers and guitarists Angus and Malcolm Young wrote this song. This led off The Razors Edge album, but in America it wasn’t sold as a single, which helped propel the album sales. The more radio-friendly Moneytalks was the US chart hit from the album, peaking at #23 in the Billboard 100.
Thunderstuck peaked at #13 in the UK and #20 in Canada in 1990. The Razors Edge peaked at #2 in the Billboard Album Charts, #4 in the UK, and #1 in Canada.
A side note to this song. In 2012 a couple of Iranian uranium-enrichment plants were hacked and their computers shut down but not before blasting Thunderstruck at maximum volume like you are probably doing right now or will be soon.
The album was recorded with producer Bruce Fairbairn at his Little Mountain Sound Studios in Vancouver, where he also produced Bon Jovi’s Slippery When Wet and the Aerosmith albums Permanent Vacation and Pump. It was the group’s first time working with Fairbairn.
Angus Young:“It started off from a little trick that I had on guitar. I played it to Mal and he said, ‘Oh I’ve got a good rhythm idea that will sit well in the back.’ We built the song up from that. We fiddled about with it for a few months before everything fell into place.
Lyrically, it was really just a case of finding a good title, something along the lines of ‘Powerage’ or ‘Highway To Hell.’ We came up with this thunder thing and it seemed to have a good ring to it. AC/DC = Power. That’s the basic idea.”
From Songfacts
According to The Story of AC/DC: Let There Be Rock, Angus Young created the distinctive opening guitar part by playing with all the strings taped up, except the B. It was a studio trick he learned from his older brother George Young, who produced some of AC/DC’s albums and was in a band called The Easybeats.
This song marked a return to form for AC/DC, whose previous three albums didn’t generate any blockbusters. It was the song that set the tone for the album, a truly thunderous track that electrified the crowd as the opening number on The Razors Edge tour. The apostrophe-free album title gels with the song: Australians call the dark clouds of an approaching storm “the razor’s edge.”
AC/DC shook Iran all night long when a computer virus infected nuclear establishments there in July 2012. One of the effects of the worm was that the machines were forced to play this track at full volume during the small hours.
David Mallet, who directed the video for “You Shook Me All Night Long,” returned to work with the band on this clip. Mallet wanted to create the “ultimate performance video,” showcasing AC/DC’s live energy. It was shot at Brixton Academy in London with some innovative camera work. Mallet had Angus do his duckwalk over plexiglass to get footage from underneath, and small cameras were placed on the guitar and on one of the drumsticks.
The Croatian cello duo 2Cellos released an instrumental version of the song in February 2014. The pair are best known for their cover of “Smooth Criminal,” which was performed on the Michael Jackson-themed episode of Glee.
The song was featured in the film Varsity Blues during one of the games when the team is hungover from the night before. AC/DC charged a massive $500,000 for its use, the biggest deal that music supervisor Thomas Golubic (Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead) has ever brokered. “I remember being absolutely horrified when I heard that number,” Golubic recalled to Variety. “And we spent a lot of time coming up with what we thought were great alternates, but there was going to be no budget on that, and they had money so they paid for it.”
In 2004, an Australian movie called Thunderstruck was released. It’s a comedy about five guys who go to an AC/DC show in 1991 and agree to bury the first one who dies next to Bon Scott.
In Australia, this was used in commercials for the Holden Commodore SS Ute. The commercials were about an Australian Built Ute making a storm in the outback. >
Thunderstruck
Thunder, thunder, thunder, thunder I was caught In the middle of a railroad track I looked round And I knew there was no turning back My mind raced And I thought what could I do And I knew There was no help, no help from you Sound of the drums Beating in my heart The thunder of guns Tore me apart You’ve been Thunderstruck
Rode down the highway Broke the limit, we hit the town Went through to Texas, yeah Texas, and we had some fun We met some girls Some dancers who gave a good time Broke all the rules Played all the fools Yeah yeah they, they, they blew our minds And I was shaking at the knees Could I come again please Yeah them ladies were too kind You’ve been Thunderstruck
I was shaking at the knees Could I come again please
Thunderstruck, Thunderstruck, Thunderstruck, Thunderstruck It’s alright, we’re doin’ fine It’s alright, we’re doin’ fine, fine, fine Thunderstruck, yeah, yeah, yeah Thunderstruck, Thunderstruck Thunderstruck, baby, baby Thunderstruck, you’ve been Thunderstruck Thunderstruck, Thunderstruck You’ve been Thunderstruck
Jim told me about a Canadian theme coming up and I wanted to make sure I didn’t miss this one. Sloan is a great power-pop band that my two Canadian friends Deke and Dave told me about. The band never made a big impact on America and that was our loss. They formed in 1986 and still have the same band members.
When I found this song…the song and video are great. The video is a takeoff…a very good takeoff on the movie Easy Rider…the part where they buy the drugs at the airport from the Phil Spector character.
The song peaked at #6 in Canada in 1996.
It was released as the lead single from the band’s third studio album, One Chord to Another.
The music video for “The Good In Everyone” was filmed at Toronto Pearson International Airport. Band members Andrew Scott playing Billy (Dennis Hopper), Chris Murphy playing Wyatt (Peter Fonda), Jay Ferguson playing Connection (Phil Spector) and Patrick Pentland playing the Bodyguard. The entire introductory scene before the music begins is longer than the song itself.
Sloan
First off, here’s what you do to me You get rough, attack my self-esteem It’s not much, but it’s the best I’ve got And I thought you saw the good in everyone
Ooh, the good in everyone You see the good in everyone You see the good in everyone
I close my eyes, I can’t give it up I close my mind, I can’t get enough I’m in no shape, I gotta turn it off Just let it play The Good In Everyone
Ooh, the good in everyone You see the good in everyone You see the good in everyone You see the good in everyone Ooh, the good in everyone
Joe Walsh’s career was slowing down when this came out. It was Walsh’s first album of entirely new music since Got Any Gum?
In 1990, Walsh reunited with former Barnstorm drummer Joe Vitale to co-produce Ordinary Average Guy. This album also features vocal and writing contributions by former Survivor lead vocalist Jimi Jamison as well as backing vocals by Ringo Starr.
This wasn’t Walsh’s best release by a long shot but the song was enjoyable. The song was written by Joe Walsh and Joe Vitale.
Walsh wrote this about his mid-life crisis. It deals with escaping the fame and fortune associated with the life of a rock star. This is a parody of Walsh’s previous release, “Life’s been Good to Me,” which is about rock star excess.
The song was off of Ordinary Average Guy and it peaked at #112 in the Billboard Album Charts in 1991. The song peaked at #3 in the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks.
Ordinary Average Guy
I’m just an ordinary average guy My friends all are boring And so am I We’re just ordinary average guys
We all lead ordinary average lives With average kids And average wives We all go bowling at the bowling lanes Drink a few beers Bowl a few frames We’re just ordinary average guys Ordinary average guys
And every Saturday we work in the yard Pick up the dog doo Hope that it’s hard (woof woof) Take out the garbage and clean out the garage My friend’s got a Chrysler I’ve got a Dodge We’re just ordinary average guys Ordinary average guys
Ordinary average guy(3x) Ordinary average average guys
Ordinary average guy(3x) Ordinary average average average guys
This is officially a country record but with pop leanings. Whatever it is…it still stands up and is really good. I heard this song when it came out and bought the album. The band touches different genres on this album. The song does remind me a little of Dwight Yoakam.
The Mavericks are a country band that combine Tex-Mex, neotraditional country music, Latin, and rockabilly influences. The Mavericks were founded in 1989 in Miami, Florida.
“What a Crying Shame” was also used as the title of their third studio album. It was released in 1994 with songs like “O What a Thrill,” “Here Goes My Heart,” “I Should Have Been True,” and “All That Heaven Will Allow” (a Springsteen cover).
The song peaked at #25 in the Country US Hot Country Songs and #6 in the Canadian Country Charts 1993.
What A Crying Shame
Wasn’t I good to you Didn’t I show it And if I ever hurt you I didn’t know it
If you think I don’t care Then you’re mistaken My love was always there But now my heart’s breakin’
(Oh) baby oh what a crying shame To let it all slip away And call it yesterday Oh baby my life would be so blue My heart would break in two Oh what a crying shame
‘Cause I believed in you From the beginning I thought our love was true But now it’s all ending
(Oh) baby oh what a crying shame To let it all slip away And call it yesterday Oh baby my life would be so blue My heart would break in two Oh what a crying shame
(Oh) baby oh what a crying shame To let it all slip away And call it yesterday Oh baby my life would be so blue My heart would break in two Oh what a crying shame Oh what a crying shame Oh what a crying shame Oh what a crying shame Oh what a crying shame
Tim Taylor (Tim Allen), Jill Taylor (Patricia Richardson), Al Borland (Richard Karn), Wilson W. Wilson (Earl Hindman), Randy Taylor (Jonathan Taylor Thomas), Mark Taylor (Taran Noah Smith), Brad Taylor (Zachery Ty Bryan), and Heidi Keppert (Debbe Dunning), and Lisa (Pamela Anderson)
This show is not deep nor did it change television like All In The Family or Seinfeld…but it was fun. A lot of fun with Tim, Jill, Al, Wilson, and the kids. Before I started working in IT I had different jobs. When this show was on I was a supervisor in a woodworking shop. Needless to say this was very popular with everyone there. The show ran from 1991 – 1999 with 204 episodes. To my surprise Home Improvement beat Seinfeld in ratings for a few years.
The shows followed a formula…someone, usually Tim, would do something stupid or say the wrong thing. An argument would ensue and then they would go to their neighbor Wilson and he would give them a quote or a story that would go over Tim’s head. The problem would more or less be solved after that.
The formula was an open secret and the writers would often poke fun at it and themselves.
Tim is what some people would call a modern Neanderthal but he had a heart and learned…but not always too well. More power, more power and Tim would blow something up. He was the host of “Tool Time” a fictional cable show about home improvement and tools. Tim would then get into trouble by adding power to the simplest thing (lawn mower which ran at 60 mph, dish washer with a motor that cranked, a vacuum cleaner that sucked up the drapes) and ended up electrocuting himself, gluing himself to a board, falling through a port a potty, and etc.
If Tool Time would have been a real show…I would have watched just to see what trouble Tim would get into next.
Jill was the typical “straight man” character to her goofy husband. She often gave advice to her boys about girls that exemplified how gentlemen should act. She had a sophistication that was totally opposite of her husband. The more she pushed theater and ballet the more Tim would push a Monster truck rally. She was my favorite 90s sitcom mom hands down. She grounded the show and to me was the most important member. She kept it real and believable.
Tim’s ever suffering Tool Time partner was Al Borland who actually had knowledge and knew what he was doing. A bonafide unhip square but a lovable one, who only wanted the best for everyone. He had a much softer side than Tim and talked about his feelings which horrified Tim. He always wore flannel and Tim always made jokes about that and Al’s very large mother. Al was extremely popular with the fictional viewers of Tool Time.
Wilson was a peculiar neighbor with very odd habits but was a wise one. The poor guy couldn’t go outside without solving the Taylor’s problems…even the kids came to him for advice. The show played on the gimmick of only showing Wilson from his nose up…or they covered his face entirely if he wasn’t in front of the fence.
There were two tool time girls… Heidi and Lisa
All in all I still enjoy watching the show. It still makes me laugh and the show highlighted the problems most couples have…it was Disney so you will not see them face too many serious topics …just everyday problems that we all have…minus some guy blowing things up.
Chrissie Hynde wrote this with Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg. “I’ll Stand by You” was released as the second single from the 1994 album Last of the Independents. It’s a beautiful song that has been covered a few times.
The song peaked at #16 in the Billboard 100, #12 Canada, and #10 in the UK.
For Hynde, working with outside songwriters was different, as she was used to writing on her own. It ended up a very positive experience that led to more collaborations.
Chrissie had said she was uncomfortable about having such a hit but felt better after Noel Gallagher say “he wished he’d written it.”
Chrissie Hynde: “When I did that song, I thought, Urgh this is s–t. But then I played it for a couple of girls who weren’t in the business and by the end of it they were both in tears. I said, OK, put it out.”
From Songfacts
“Tom and I never had a publisher, we both published ourselves. Jason Dauman was somebody who, for a commission, was willing to provide some of the service that a publisher would. He once said to me, ‘Who would you like to collaborate with?’ and it was sort of an annoyance to me. I didn’t take him all that seriously, but almost facetiously I said, ‘Prince, Bruce Springsteen and Chrissie Hynde.
I said those names because they were three of my favorite songwriters and he sort of took it seriously. He went off and I just thought, ‘Well I got rid of him, didn’t I.’ Then a little while later he called me up and he said, ‘Chrissie Hynde wants to write with you and Tom,’ and I thought, ‘Right.’ So anyway, I get a phone call and this woman said, ‘Billy, this is Chrissie Hynde,’ and I thought somebody was playing with me or something. I couldn’t imagine it, but then in a minute it was quite clear that Chrissie was on the other end of the telephone.
Chrissie is a very complicated person, a very no-nonsense person especially when she doesn’t know you. She was a little intimidating on the phone. The butterflies in my stomach were fluttering so much I could barely speak because I love The Pretenders. She said she’d like to get together and write some songs with Tom and me, and I went, ‘Woo Hoo!’ She came to Los Angeles and she was so determined. She said, ‘I want to write a hit.’ Over a period of about two weeks Tom and I wrote a handful of songs with her. The first one we wrote together was called ‘Love Colors Everything.’ Then we wrote ‘Night In My Veins’ which was also a hit single, and we wrote ‘977,’ ‘Hollywood Perfume’ and ‘I’ll Stand By You.'”
Ben E. King’s song “Stand By Me” was a big influence on this.
Steinberg: “‘I’ll Stand By You,’ like the other hits that Tom and I wrote, started out as a lyric that I had in a notebook. I had the title and the chorus lyric. Chrissie is a very, very strong songwriter in her own right. She’s very ruthless, she would get out her pen or her pencil and I remember I was fascinated the way she would write in the notebook because she wouldn’t write on the lines. I use a Mont Blanc fountain pen and I tend to write kind of neatly. She would just scribble across pages. Very few lines would fit on a page and they wouldn’t stay on the line. I remember she would just take a pen and she would cross out any lines I had written that she didn’t like, and usually the lines that she didn’t like would be ones that were too tender or too poetic. She would toughen up stuff I’d written. On ‘I’ll Stand By You’ she added lines and changed lines.”
This was written based on the piano. Tom Kelly played the piano on the record.
Steinberg: “I remember when we wrote it I felt two things: I felt one, we had written a hit song and I felt two, a little sheepish that we had written something a little soft, a little generic for The Pretenders. Whereas ‘Night In My Veins’ really felt like a great Pretenders rocker, ‘I’ll Stand By You’ felt a little generic. I know that Chrissie felt that way too to some extent. I don’t think she really entirely embraced it to begin with, but she certainly does now because when she plays it live, it’s one of the songs that gets the strongest response. It’s done really well for her and for us.” (Check out our Billy Steinberg interview.)
This song has returned to both the UK and US charts with different cover versions. In 2004 Girls Aloud achieved their second UK #1 with their version recorded for the annual BBC Children In Need charity telethon. Girl Aloud Sarah Harding explained in 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner & Spencer Leigh that the fivesome “were drawn to the lyrics straight away, we’ve all been in situations where we have needed someone or been there for someone.”
In 2007, Carrie Underwood achieved the highest chart entry by an Idol contestant for a song never performed on the show in competition when her version debuted in the Hot 100 at #6. Her record was later taken by David Archuleta, whose single “Crush” flew straight into the US singles chart at #2.
She added that this song was “really a cold-blooded attempt to write something to get on the radio.”
Other artists to cover this song include Rod Stewart (on his 2006 album Still the Same… Great Rock Classics of Our Time), and Shakira, who released it as a charity single for Hope for Haiti in 2010 to help with earthquake relief. In 2009, the Cast of Glee took the song back to the charts, reaching #73.
Hynde, a resident of England, didn’t know about the Rod Stewart or Carrie Underwood covers until we told her about them.
This was used in a 2013 commercial for Progressive Insurance where their spokesperson, Flo, sings the ballad. As with all songs written by Chrissie Hynde, PETA had to approve the use and royalties from it were sent to the organization.
I’ll Stand By You
Oh, why you look so sad? Tears are in your eyes Come on and come to me now Don’t be ashamed to cry Let me see you through
‘Cause I’ve seen the dark side too When the night falls on you You don’t know what to do Nothing you confess Could make me love you less
I’ll stand by you I’ll stand by you Won’t let nobody hurt you I’ll stand by you
So if you’re mad, get mad Don’t hold it all inside Come on and talk to me now Hey, what you got to hide? I get angry too
Well I’m a lot like you When you’re standing at the crossroads And don’t know which path to choose Let me come along ‘Cause even if you’re wrong
I’ll stand by you I’ll stand by you Won’t let nobody hurt you I’ll stand by you Take me in, into your darkest hour And I’ll never desert you I’ll stand by you
And when When the night falls on you, baby You’re feeling all alone You won’t be on your own
I’ll stand by you I’ll stand by you Won’t let nobody hurt you
I’ll stand by you Take me in, into your darkest hour And I’ll never desert you I’ll stand by you I’ll stand by you Won’t let nobody hurt you I’ll stand by you Won’t let nobody hurt you I’ll stand by you, won’t let nobody hurt you Take me in, into your darkest hour And I’ll never desert you I’ll stand by you
Go ego trip’n again tonight Tell the same lies they work all right
Back in 1991, I was going out a lot and I really related to this song. I had the cassette of Whenever We Wanted by Mellencamp and it contained a few hits. This one was a minor hit but the one that I wore out.
It peaked at #36 in the Billboard 100 but was a bigger hit in Canada where it peaked at #8 in 1991. It did make it to #1 on the Mainstream Rock charts.
This album contained Get A Leg Up, Now More Than Ever, Last Chance, and Love and Happiness.
Whenever We Wanted peaked at #17 in the Billboard Album Charts, #8 in Canada, #39 in the UK, and #40 in New Zealand.
Again Tonight
Run in circles again tonight Hump the moon again tonight Gonna wear my dancin’ shoes out tonight Gonna have myself a big time again tonight
[Chorus:] Again tonight Again tonight Again tonight
Girl’s got lightning Underneath her skirt Boys try to touch it For whatever it’s worth In the morning She’s just gonna be hurt She wonders is it worth it again tonight
[Chorus]
Gonna catch that cloud tonight Nine, cloud nine Gonna try and catch that cloud tonight Nine, cloud nine Again tonight
Can you hold me baby again, again tonight Can you sing Can you dance baby Can you sing Can you hold me again tonight Baby can you sing
Go ego trip’n again tonight Tell the same lies they work all right Gonna wear my dancin’ shoes out tonight Probably make a fool of myself again tonight
This song is by the Candian band Sloan who I’m liking more with every song I listen to. Sloan has been together since 1986 and has been successful in Canada but never broke through in America…which is America’s loss.
The song has a great keyboard hook to open the song… and the music is very melodic. There is even a Ringo Starr mention in the lyrics about Ringo’s song Photograph.
Although set to power pop music the lyrics are about remembering someone after a suicide.
The song was released in 1996 and it was on their One Chord to Another album. The song peaked at #39 in the Canada RPM Top Singles chart and #12 in the Canada Alternative 30 Charts.
The Lines You Amend
Said you’d found a way to end it peacefully I remember finding shoes near the lake under a tree And I’m sittin’ on the shore I thought I saw your charm float by It doesn’t matter now ‘Cause all you wanted to do was die
If only you’d stuck around I never would have made a sound But now you’re on the ocean floor And I’ve opened a brand new door Brand new door
Swimming out to sea Trying to find something else While I’m skipping stones And I’m listening to the shells And I won’t forget you If someone else comes along
I found the words you wrote But I would not dare to quote My friends, the lines you amend Like “What’s so bad about dying anyway”
Swimming out to sea Trying to find something else While I’m skipping stones And I’m listening to the shells And I won’t forget you If someone else comes along You’ll always come to mind Whenever I hear that song
The one about photographs Sung by Ringo Starr Especially in the chorus part You always said, “Now don’t you start”
Don’t you start, yeah yeah Don’t you start Don’t you start
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