Music – Page 217 – PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture

The Who albums ranked 6-1

Here are my choices for the top six Who albums. The one upshot of doing lists… is listening to all of these great albums again.

6. Live at Leeds – 1970 – There are live albums and then there is this… This album along with At Fillmore East rise above other live albums. Bands would release them when they were in between studio albums. On Live at Leeds, I have never heard a rock band so tight. This is the Who clicking on all cylinders.

Moon, Entwistle, Townshend, and Daltry are all in their prime on this.

Tracklist
Young Man Blues
Substitute
Summertime Blues
Shakin’ All Over
My Generation
Magic Bus

5. My Generation – 1965 – The title song is still an anthem of the sixties generation. This may be the hardest power pop album released, The Kids Are Alright, A Legal Matter, and Out In The Street.

They experimented in the studio and found new sounds and used feedback as an instrument. You start hearing the power chords on this album and the great hooks that Pete came up with on guitar…Roger still hasn’t grown into his later voice and the band is raw but electric.

The Ox is just a musical explosion. What a great debut album this was in 1965.

Tracklist

Out In The Street
I Don’t Mind
The Good’s Gone
La-La-La-Lies
Much Too Much
My Generation
The Kids Are Alright
Please, Please, Please
It’s Not True
I’m A Man
A Legal Matter
The Ox

4. Who Sell Out – 1967 – The Who’s take on Pirate radio of the sixties complete with commercials. The standout hit was I Can See For Miles but this album is a collection of good songs strung together with fake commercials.

I like to listen to this album in sequence. Pete was maturing into the Pete we would know soon. The Who didn’t repeat themselves and kept reaching and experimenting.

Strong tracks are Armenia City In The Sky, Tatto, Our Love Was, Relax. and Rael and of course the masterpiece I Can See For Miles.

Tracklist

Armenia City In The Sky
Heinz Baked Beans
Mary Anne With The Shaky Hands
Odorono
Tattoo
Our Love Was
I Can See For Miles
Can’t Reach You
Medac
Relax
Silas Stingy
Sunrise
Rael (1 And 2)

3. Tommy – 1969 – This Rock Opera left a huge dent in pop culture and left its imprint on rock history. I like the album but the production leaves a lot to be desired. This album made the Who rock gods. There are some great songs on this album like Pinball Wizard, We’re Not Going To Take It, I’m Free, and The Acid Queen.

I personally like Sally Simpson and Christmas. Pete Townshend and Kit Lambert worked together on this album and Kit helped Pete shape it into a concept album. I wished Kit would have let someone else engineer and mix it. I’m mostly a studio album guy but I think this album works better live than the record. Listening to the live version of this album around that time for me beats the album.

There is no denying that it is a landmark album in Rock.

Tracklist
Overture
It’s A Boy
1921 3:14
Amazing Journey
Sparks 3:45
Eyesight To The Blind (The Hawker)
Christmas
Cousin Kevin
The Acid Queen
Underture
Do You Think It’s Alright?
Fiddle About
Pinball Wizard
There’s A Doctor
Go To The Mirror!
Tommy Can You Hear Me?
Smash The Mirror
Sensation
Miracle Cure
Sally Simpson
I’m Free
Welcome
Tommy’s Holiday Camp
We’re Not Gonna Take

2. Quadrophenia – 1973 – This kick-started the Mod revival of the 70s. The concept album is about a teenager mod (Jimmy) coming of age in the 60s…It is also about the band itself and it’s four different personalities and also their fans. It is much more cohesive than Tommy and Pete’s use of synthesizers on this is incredible.

The high spot for me is hearing Entwistle and Moon play “The Real Me.”

Some of the many great songs are Love, Reign O’er Me, The Real Me, The Punk and The Godfather, Drowned, 5:15.

Tracklist
I Am The Sea
The Real Me
Quadrophenia
Cut My Hair
The Punk And The Godfather
I’m One
The Dirty Jobs
Helpless Dancer
Is It In My Head
I’ve Had Enough
5:15
Sea And Sand
Drowned
Bell Boy
Doctor Jimmy
The Rock
Love, Reign O’er Me

1. Who’s Next -1971 – There was really no suspense to this album being number one. This arguably could be the best rock album of the 70s. Instead of Kit Lambert The Who hired Glyn Johns to help produce and it showed. The sound quality difference between this and Tommy is day and night. This album has a sonic quality like no other.

The album came out of a failed attempt at a rock concept album by Pete called Lifehouse that apparently no one but Pete understood. Classic radio stations use this album as their foundation. An incredible album with no weak songs.

These songs live work so well. Won’t Get Fooled Again maybe has the best line in Rock… “Meet the new boss, Same as the Old boss”

Tracklist
Baba O’Riley
Bargain
Love Ain’t For Keeping
My Wife
Song Is Over
Getting In Tune
Going Mobile
Behind Blue Eyes
Won’t Get Fooled Again

For the top five I never shifted until the last minute and I moved Tommy from 4th to 3rd and The Who Sell Out from 3rd to 4th. The importance and culture impact of Tommy won out.

Hope you enjoyed it.

Nick Lowe – I Knew The Bride

Great pop song by Nick Lowe. This version was released in 1985 and peaked at #77 in the Billboard 100. Huey Lewis served as producer on this song. Dave Edmunds had covered it in 1977.

This is an interview with Nick in 1985 talking about his new album The Rose of England and getting help from Elvis Costello and Huey Lewis.

The British new wave singer-songwriter-producer got crucial help on the album from two old friends: Huey Lewis and Elvis Costello.

“Huey Lewis is the only person I ever knew as a normal person and then watched him become a megastar before my very eyes,” Lowe says.

“His first band, the Clover, played on Elvis’ first album, which I produced, and Huey played some bits on my first album. So this year I was telling Huey that Columbia didn’t like my new album, because they didn’t think it was commercial enough.

“Huey said, ‘No problem, let’s do “I Knew the Bride.” ‘But that’s a bit of a chestnut,’ I told him. ‘I wrote it nine years ago for Dave Edmunds.’ And he said, ‘Your fans may know that, but let’s face it, their numbers are not exactly legion. Let’s recut it with a more modern sound.’ So we cut it in three days with his band, the News, and all of a sudden Columbia decided the album was exactly what they were looking for.”

When Lowe started recording, longtime friend Costello came down to the studio as always. “Elvis got real excited that we were recording almost totally live,” Lowe recounts. “We just set up the microphones, and away we went. He phoned me up a few days later and said, ‘I’ve got this song you might like to try, Nick.’

“I sort of dreaded listening to it. Although Elvis is a great songwriter, his songs usually have tons of chords and vocal twists and very personal lyrics, none of which really fit my style. But he played me the song, ‘Indoor Fireworks,’ and it was pretty straightforward; I suppose it’s about the breakup of his marriage. I was very pleased to record it; my own marriage had also just ended, but there had been no fireworks; it was all quite amicable and boring.”

I Knew the Bride

I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll

Well, the bride was a picture in the gown that her mama wore
When she was married herself nearly twenty-seven years before
They had to change the style a little but it looked just fine
Stayed up all night, but they got it finished just in time

Now on the arm of her daddy, she’s walkin’ down the aisle
I see her catch my eye and give me a secret smile
Maybe it’s too old fashioned, but we once were close friends
Oh but the way that she looks today, she never could have then

Well, I can see her now in her tight blue jeans
Stuffin’ all her money in the record machine
Spinnin’ like a top, you should of seen her go
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll

Well, the proud daddy only want to give his little girl the best
So he put down a grand on a cozy little lover’s nest
You could have called the reception an unqualified success
At a flash hotel for a hundred and fifty guests

Well, take a look at the bridegroom smilin’ pleased as pie
Shakin’ hands all around with a glassy look in his eye
He got a real good job and his shirt and tie is nice
But I remember a time when she never would have looked at him twice

Well, I can see her now drinkin’ with the boys
Breakin’ their hearts like they were toys
She used to do the pony, she used to do the stroll
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll

Well, I can see her now with her walk man on
Struttin’ up and down to her favorite song
I still remember when she used to want to make a lot of noise
Hoppin’ and boppin’ with the street corner boys
She used to wanna party, she used to wanna go
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll
I knew the bride when she used to do the pony
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll
I knew the bride when she used to want to party
I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll

The Who albums ranked 13 -7

After the Beatles, The Who are my favorite band. I was lucky enough to see them twice but not lucky enough to see them as nature intended…with Keith Moon. I’m going to attempt to rank 13 of their albums. I will not go by chart success or how many sold.

I usually would not include live albums but Live At Leeds is no ordinary live album. I’m also including Odds and Sods, an album of outtakes and rarities because of so few studio albums and it was released while they were still going strong.

This is 13 through 7… next will be 6 through 1

13. Endless Wire – 2006 – This album was released in 2006. Obviously, I’m not as close to this album as The Who’s other albums..but I’ve listened to it more recently than the other albums. It’s a good album but the best way I can describe it is it’s not as defined as other albums and the mini-opera Wire and Glass can get tedious. There are some good songs such as Black Widow’s Eyes (the only song featuring Zac Starkey), A Man in a Purple Dress and the different but good God Speaks of Marty Robbins… I will say that time has affected Rogers voice more than Petes. Petes voice sounds really good on this album. Roger does fine but age has treated Pete’s voice well.

Tracklist

1 Fragments
2 A Man In A Purple Dress
3 Mike Post Theme
4 In The Ether
5 Black Widow’s Eyes
6 Two Thousand Years
7 God Speaks Of Marty Robbins
8 It’s Not Enough
9 You Stand By Me
Wire & Glass (A Mini-Opera)
10 Sound Round
11 Pick Up The Peace
12 Unholy Trinity
13 Trilby’s Piano
14 Endless Wire
15 Fragments Of Fragments
16 We Got A Hit
17 They Made My Dream Come True
18 Mirror Door
19 Tea & Theatre
20 We Got A Hit (Extended Version)
21 Endless Wire (Extended Version)

12. It’s Hard – 1982 – One thing I will say about this album. It has aged better than I thought it would. I was never a big fan of this album. I liked some songs like Eminence Front, Athena and some of the tracks like Cry if you Want. This was the last studio Who album until 2006 Endless Wire. The band was not happy at this time and the end was coming…at least until they reunited at the end of the 80s for a reunion tour.

Tracklist

Athena
It’s Your Turn
Cook’s County
It’s Hard
Dangerous
Eminence Front
I’ve Known No War
One Life’s Enough
One At A Time
Why Did I Fall For That
A Man Is A Man
Cry If You Want

11. Face Dances – 1981 – This album has been slammed by critics and fans alike. I bought the album when it was released. Face Dances was The first album without their engine, Keith Moon. Kenney Jones was a great drummer for the Small Faces and Faces but there is only one drummer for the Who and that was Keith. There are some good songs. “You Better You Bet” (what I call “Who Are You’s” weak sister) Don’t Let Go the Coat, Another Tricky Day, and The Quiet One.

The album is tame compared with other Who albums but the melodies are strong.

Tracklist
You Better You Bet
Don’t Let Go The Coat
Cache Cache
The Quiet One
Did You Steal My Money
How Can You Do It Alone
Daily Records
You
Another Tricky Day

10. Odds and Sods – 1974 – This album was released in 1974 of outtakes and rarities that The Who had in the Vaults. The highlights are Long Live Rock, Naked Eye, Pure and Easy, and Postcard by John Entwistle. This album full of outtakes were as good as other bands A-songs.

Tracklist

Postcard
Now I’m A Farmer
Put The Money Down
Little Billy
Too Much Of Anything
Glow Girl
Pure And Easy
Faith In Something Bigger
I’m The Face
Naked Eye
Long Live Rock

9. Who Are You – 1978 – Keith Moon was not well during this album. Still, I’ll take a 70 percent Keith Moon over a 100 percent anyone else for the Who. It contained the Who classic title track, Sister Disco, 905, and Music Must Change. Pete continued what he started with the Who By Numbers album by writing from the perspective of an aging rocker. This album sold faster than any other Who album. Within the month of its release, Keith Moon was gone for good.

Tracklist

New Song
Had Enough
905
Sister Disco
Music Must Change
Trick Of The Light
Guitar And Pen
Love Is Coming Down
Who Are You

8. Who by Numbers – 1975 – Pete wrote songs so personal that Roger didn’t feel right about singing some of the songs. Pete was wondering at this point if The Who were still relevant anymore. He felt old by rock standards and wondered if the band should just pack it in.

This album had to grow on me but now I do appreciate the personal songs that Pete wrote.

The best-known song is Squeeze Box but the album is full of good songs. Slip Kid, However Much I Booze, Dreaming from the Waist and Blue Red Grey. With Punk music starting to happen Pete wrote in “They Are All In Love”

Hey, goodbye all you punks
Stay young and stay high
Hand me my checkbook
And I’ll crawl out to die

If Pete had only known the future…they were only in their twenties at that time…that is just the beginning now.

Tracklist

Slip Kid
However Much I Booze
Squeeze Box
Dreaming From The Waist
Imagine A Man
Success Story
They Are All In Love
Blue Red And Grey
How Many Friends
In A Hand Or A Face

7. A Quick One – 1966 – The mini-opera starts here. A Quick One, While He’s Away is a classic song made of fragments weaved with each other to make a whole. Everyone writes at least one song for this album. John Entwistle with his signature tune Boris the Spider, Keith Moon turns out the crazy and strange “Cobwebs and Strange,” and a bit of power pop with I Need You. They also covered Heatwave with the familiar Who flair.

A forgotten great power pop song on this album is So Sad About Us. The overall sound of this album is incredible.

Tracklist

Run Run Run
Boris The Spider
I Need You
Whiskey Man
Heatwave
Cobwebs And Strange
Don’t Look Away
See My Way
So Sad About Us
A Quick One, While He’s Away

Maybe it’s no coincidence that the last three albums in the ranking are in order of release. Face Dances and It’s Hard both have a classic Who song in You Better You Bet and Eminence Front respectively. They both have some strong songs surrounding them…I just thought that Face Dances had more than It’s Hard.

Endless Wire is missing not only Keith but by 2006 also John. It’s hard to compete against your past when you are missing your entire rhythm section. It’s a different Who album and not as exciting…but anything written by Pete is worth listening to.

Next Up will be 6 Through Number 1

The Nashville Ramblers – The Trains

The Nashville Ramblers was a band from San Diego. The song “The Trains” was recorded in 1985 for a compilation album American Heart and Soul. they also recorded 2 other songs for the album… an original called “Nashville Rambling” and a cover of a Golliwog (pre-Creedence Clearwater Revival) song called “Fragile Child.”

Steven Van Zandt called the song “one of the examples most indescribably beautiful romantic nostalgia, disguised in a pop song.”

There is not much out there on this group. Youtube does have some performances. This song did not chart because it was hardly known about. The band wasn’t known until 20 years after this was recorded and their song was released on another compilation album. The song has a cult following.

I found this bit of info…It’s really interesting and a very good song. The song would have worked in 65 as well. It’s a shame that a wider audience never knew about them. I’ve been playing it to anyone that would listen.

https://www.midheaven.com/item/trains-fragile-child-by-nashville-ramblers-7

Recorded in 1985, “The Trains” by THE NASHVILLE RAMBLERS is one of the greatest pop songs of the entire era. Aided and abetted by ace producer MARK NEILL (Black Keys), the band expertly channeled their key influences—Beatles, Remains, Hollies, Everly Brothers, and others—and shaped them into something fresh, urgent and breathtakingly original. A heart-stopping melody, evocative lyrics, a driving beat, soaring harmonies, a dynamic, reverb-soaked production—to hear “The Trains” was to fall in love with it. And every time you heard it, you fell in love again. However, outside a small circle of fans, though, very few people ever heard it. In an era when do-it-yourself was how-it-was-done, the Ramblers waited for somebody else to do it for them. Nobody did—not really anyway. In 1986 “The Trains” and one other Ramblers song appeared on an obscure UK-only compilation, but few people noticed. The moment was lost—if it was ever there at all—and “The Trains” slipped quietly back underground to become a whispered secret passed through the years between a growing coterie of admirers. Many discovered the song for the first time in 2005 when it was included on Rhino’s Children of Nuggets box set—by then it was almost 20 years old. Fully remastered by Mark Neill directly from the original vaccum tube analog 3-track master tape, this shiny black 45rpm single and packaged in a deluxe hard cover picture sleeve, it’s paired with a terrific, previously unreleased version of the Golliwogs’ “Fragile Child” recorded at the same session. Edition of 1,000 copies.

If you know any more info please comment.

I just found this wiki page…just translate to English

https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nashville_Ramblers

The Trains

She acts unaware of her smile or the scent of her hair
When she leaves a room she takes everyone’s eyes out their heads
But I hurt too much to let her bring me down
But when she’s not around
I can hear the trains underground
When I’m alone
I can feel the sun going down
How can I explain all the reasons she frightens me so
When she has the power to burn me right down to my soul
But then every night I see her in my dreams
But the days in between
She tears me apart at the seams
Once I was strong
She’s taught me what loneliness means

No, nobody else could understand her like I do
So I gotta make her realize she loves me too
And I do
I really do

But then every night I see her in my dreams
But the days in between
She tears me apart at the seams
Once I was strong
She’s taught me what loneliness means
She acts unaware of her smile or the scent of her hair
When she leaves a room she takes everyone’s eyes out their heads
But I hurt too much to let her bring me down
But when she’s not around
I can hear the trains underground
Once I was strong
I can feel the sun going down
I can hear the trains underground
I can feel the sun going down
I can hear the trains underground

Ricky Nelson – Garden Party

Songs like Hello Mary Lou, Lonesome Town, and Traveling Man from the fifties and sixties still sound good today.

He was playing in a Rock and Roll revival show in 1971 at Madison Square Gardens with other artists such as Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, and Bobby Rydell. Ricky was releasing new music and he did not look the way he did in the 50s. He had long hair and dressed modern. He started off with some of his old songs the fans responded enthusiastically but then he played “Country Honk” a country version of the Rolling Stones “Honky Tonk Women.” That is when it went south.

He started to hear booing and eventually left the stage. There are mixed reports about the booing. Some say there was a disturbance in the crowd with policemen escorting people out and that is what the booing was aimed at… not Ricky. Either way, he got a great song out of it.

He wrote the song about what happened with some references to ex- Beatles, Yoko. Elvis and Chuck Berry.

These references are from Wikipedia

A garden party – October 15, 1971’s Rock ‘n Roll Revival concert at Madison Square Garden, New York City
My old friends – fellow performers at the concert Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley and Bobby Rydell
Yoko – Yoko Ono
Yoko’s walrus – John Lennon
Mr. Hughes – George Harrison
(Mr. Hughes) hid in Dylan’s shoes – Harrison’s planned (but later abandoned) album of Bob Dylan covers
I said hello to Mary Lou, she belongs to me – Nelson’s song “Hello Mary Lou”, which he played at the concert; also a reference to “She Belongs to Me”, a Bob Dylan song covered by Nelson
I sang a song about a Honky-Tonk – The Rolling Stones song “Country Honk”, the song that allegedly caused the booing
And it was time to leave – Nelson’s subsequent departure
Out stepped Johnny B. Goode – Chuck Berry’s song “Johnny B. Goode”
Playing guitar like a-ringing a bell – the line in “Johnny B. Goode”, “he could play guitar just like a-ringing a bell”
I’d rather drive a truck – Elvis Presley worked for a time as a truck driver, having famously been told after several failed auditions to “stick to truck driving because you’re never going to make it as a singer”

The song peaked at #6 in the Billboard 100 and #44 in the Country Charts.

Ricky Nelson had 44 songs in the top 100, 2 number 1’s and 14 top ten hits. This song was Ricky’s last top 40 hit.

“Garden Party”
I went to a garden party
To reminisce with my old friends
A chance to share old memories
And play our songs again
When I got to the garden party
They all knew my name
No one recognized me
I didn’t look the same

But it’s all right now
I learned my lesson well
You see, ya can’t please everyone
So ya got to please yourself

People came from miles around
Everyone was there
Yoko brought her walrus
There was magic in the air
‘N’ over in the corner
Much to my surprise
Mr Hughes hid in Dylan’s shoes
Wearing his disguise

But it’s all right now
I learned my lesson well
You see, ya can’t please everyone
So ya got to please yourself

Lott-in-dah-dah
lot-in-dah-dah-dah

Played them all the old songs
Thought that’s why they came
No one heard the music
We didn’t look the same
I said hello to “Mary Lou”
She belongs to me
When I sang a song about a honky-tonk
It was time to leave

But it’s all right now
I learned my lesson well
You see, ya can’t please everyone
So ya got to please yourself

Lot-dah-dah (lot-dah-dah-dah)
Lot-in-dah-dah-dah

Someone opened up a closet door
And out stepped Johnny B Goode
Playing guitar
Like a-ringin’ a bell
And lookin’ like he should
If you gotta play at garden parties
I wish you a lotta luck
But if memories were all I sang
I rather drive a truck

But it’s all right now
I learned my lesson well
You see, ya can’t please everyone
So ya got to please yourself

Lot-dah-dah (lot-dah-dah-dah)
Lot-in-dah-dah-dah

‘N’ it’s all right now
Learned my lesson well
You see, ya can’t please everyone
So you got to please yourself

A Quick Word on The WHO

The Who started off as the Detours and had a drummer named Doug Sandom. After an argument with Pete, Doug quit the band. Keith Moon then joined and the sound and the band took off. They found the member to complete one of the best bands to emerge from the sixties. They were the band of the Mods and wore British Flags, target shirts, and other Pop Art attire.

Controlled chaos is the best way I know how to describe the Who’s early singles. My favorite rhythm section in Rock and Roll… John Entwistle and Keith Moon were all over the place but they were all over the place together. What John and Keith gave musically cannot be underestimated. They were the engine that made The Who go…Pete Townshend coined the phrase “power pop” and they were the ultimate power pop band. Roger Daltrey was transformed from a good blues singer to a rock god. They released several classic albums… Who’s Next, Quadrophenia, Tommy, and Live at Leeds., The Who Sell Out…

The Who along with the Kinks were the forerunners of Punk. The Who’s early singles were raw and driving Can’t Explain, My Generation, Substitute, The Kids Are Alright, Pictures of Lily, I’m a Boy, and I Can See For Miles…

They moved from those early raw songs and released albums with songs such as Won’t Get Fooled Again, Baba O’Riley, Behind Blue Eyes, Love Reign O’er Me, Who Are You, Bargain. The Real Me, We’re Not Going to Take It, and 5:15

Pete took the rock concept album to an art form.

When they were at their performing peak they were untouchable. Check out the album or DVD of Live at the Isle of Wight Festival.

Their peer at that time had a great rhythm section, a great guitarist and a dynamic lead singer…Led Zeppelin. The Who were not as popular and they didn’t sell as many records as Led Zeppelin but The Who were fun… they more inviting.

They were the complete package. They had a good songwriter (Entwistle) in the band…and a great one (Pete). If you look at lists and influences… 10 ten rock drummers, top ten rock bassists etc..all of the Who come up in their respective category.

Led Zeppelin made the right choice in not replacing John Bonham. The Who decided to go on without Moon and were never the same again without Moon. Some of their songs were good afterward but they did not have the drive and spirit that Moon gave them and they were not complete without him.

I’ve never found a band other than the Beatles that moved me as much. Pete’s songs are high energy with a dash of spirituality.

I will revisit the Who again and coming up soon I’m going to attempt to rank the Who albums.

Fleetwood Mac – Monday Morning

One of my favorites of Fleetwood Mac and I was surprised to find out that is was the B side to “Say You Love Me” and did not chart. I love the bouncy guitar and catchy verse and chorus. This song was written by Lindsey Buckingham and intended for the follow up to the Buckingham Nicks album that never came. Instead, it was the song that kicked off the new Fleetwood Mac album in 1975.

From Songfacts.

This was written by Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham. He and his girlfriend at the time Stevie Nicks were recording as the duo Buckingham-Nicks and had released one album when they were asked to join Fleetwood Mac. This song was written for a second Buckingham-Nicks album, but when they joined Fleetwood Mac they brought this with them along with “Landslide” and “Rhiannon.” These songs helped make Fleetwood Mac a force in the pop music world and establish a strong radio presence for the band.

Monday Morning

Monday morning you sure look fine
Friday I got travelin’ on my mind
First you love me and then you fade away
I can’t go on believin’ this way
I got nothing but love for you
Tell me what you really want to do
First you love me, then you get on down the line
But I don’t mind, I don’t mind, yeah

I’ll be there if you want me to
No one else that could ever do
Got to get some peace in my mind

Monday morning you sure look fine
Friday I got travelin’ on my mind
First you love me and then you say it’s wrong
You know I can’t go on believing for long

But you know it’s true
You only want me when I get over you
First you love me, then you get on down the line
But I don’t mind, no, I don’t mind, yeah

I’ll be there if you want me to
No one else that could ever do
Got to get some peace in my mind

But you know it’s true
You know you only want me when I get over you
First you love me, then you get on down the line
But I don’t mind, no, I don’t mind, yeah

I’ll be there if you want me to
No one else that could ever do
Got to get some peace in my mind

Peter and Gordon – I Go to Pieces

This song was written by Del Shannon…Peter and Gordon (Peter Asher and Gordon Waller) took it to #9 in the Billboard 100 and #21 in Canada. This was a nice British Invasion song by the duo. Peter Asher is the brother of Jane Asher and became a very successful producer. See the bottom of the post for his producer credits.

You can also see a little “Austin Powers” in Peter Asher.

I Go To Pieces

When I see her comin’ down the street
I get so shaky and I feel so weak
I tell my eyes look the other way
But they don’t seem to hear a word I say
And I, go to pieces and I want to hide
Go to pieces and I almost die
Every time my baby passes by
I tell my arms they’ll hold someone new
Another love that will be true
But they don’t listen, they don’t seem to care
They reach for her but she’s not there
And I, go to pieces and I want to hide
Go to pieces and I almost die
Every time my baby passes by
I remember what she said when she said
“Goodbye baby. We’ll meet again soon maybe.”
“But until we do, all my best to you.”
I’m so lonely, I think about her only
I go to places we used to go
But I know she’ll never show
She hurt me so much inside
Now I hope she’s satisfied
And I, go to pieces and I want to hide
Go to pieces and I almost die
Every time my baby passes by
Go to pieces and I cry
Every time my baby passes by
Go to pieces and I cry

From Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Asher

Peter Asher Producer’s Credits

Year	Album	Artist
1968	James Taylor	James Taylor
1969	Barbara Keith	Barbara Keith
1970	Jo Mama	Jo Mama
1970	Sweet Baby James	James Taylor
1971	Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon	James Taylor
1971	Sister Kate	Kate Taylor
1971	Tony Joe White	Tony Joe White
1971	Bad Girl Songs	Tony Kosinec
1972	One Man Dog	James Taylor
1973	Don’t Cry Now	Linda Ronstadt
1974	Heart Like a Wheel	Linda Ronstadt
1975	Prisoner in Disguise	Linda Ronstadt
1975	Black Rose	J.D. Souther
1976	Hasten Down the Wind	Linda Ronstadt
1976	Love Songs	David Sanborn
1976	What’s Wrong with This Picture?	Andrew Gold
1977	JT	James Taylor
1977	Simple Dreams	Linda Ronstadt
1978	Living in the USA	Linda Ronstadt
1979	Flag	James Taylor
1979	The Glow	Bonnie Raitt
1980	Mad Love	Linda Ronstadt
1981	Dad Loves His Work	James Taylor
1982	Get Closer	Linda Ronstadt
1983	Reelin’ in the Years, Vol. 1	various artists
1983	What’s New	Linda Ronstadt
1984	Lush Life	Linda Ronstadt
1984	Moonlighting	(Original TV soundtrack)
1985	That’s Why I’m Here	James Taylor
1986	An American Tail	(Original soundtrack)
1986	For Sentimental Reasons	Linda Ronstadt
1987	Canciones De Mi Padre	Linda Ronstadt
1987	Cher	Cher
1987	In My Tribe	10,000 Maniacs
1987	Storytellers: Singers and Songwriters	various artists
1988	The Land Before Time	(Original soundtrack)
1989	Blind Man’s Zoo	10,000 Maniacs
1989	Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind	Linda Ronstadt
1989	Heart of Stone	Cher
1989	You Happy Puppet	10,000 Maniacs
1990	Mermaids	(Original soundtrack)
1991	Force Behind the Power	Diana Ross
1991	Live in Rio	James Taylor
1991	Love Hurts	Cher
1991	Lovescape	Neil Diamond
1991	Mambo Kings	(Original soundtrack)
1991	Swept	Julia Fordham
1991	Williams Brothers	The Williams Brothers
1992	American Standard	Mary’s Danish
1992	Back to Basics	Olivia Newton-John
1992	Christmas Album	Neil Diamond
1992	Olivia	Olivia Newton-John
1992	Time Takes Time	Ringo Starr
1993	Made in America	(Original soundtrack)
1993	Robin Zander	Robin Zander
1993	Up on the Roof: Songs from the Brill Building	Neil Diamond
1994	Christmas Album, Vol. 2	Neil Diamond
1994	Randy Newman’s Faust: Words and Music	various artists
1995	Don’t Ask	Tina Arena
1995	EP Collection	Peter and Gordon
1995	Faust	Randy Newman
1996	It Takes Two	various artists
1996	One Fine Day	(Original soundtrack)
1996	Show Me Heaven	Tina Arena
1997	Most Beautiful Soul Album on Earth	various artists
1997	Superstar Christmas	various artists
1997	Under These Rocks and Stones	Chantal Kreviazuk
1998	Armageddon	(Original soundtrack)
1998	As I Came of Age	Sarah Brightman
1998	December	Kenny Loggins
1998	Motown 40 Forever	various artists
1999	All Time Greatest Movie Songs	various artists
1999	Best Party Megamix in the World Ever	various artists
1999	Collection	Julia Fordham
1999	Runaway Bride	(Original soundtrack)
1999	When the Going Gets Tough	Boyzone
2000	Gift of Love	Diana Ross
2000	More Songs from Pooh Corner	Kenny Loggins
2000	Tigger Movie: Songs and Story	various artists
2001	Everything I Am	Anna Vissi
2001	Motown Anthology	Diana Ross
2001	Three Chord Opera	Neil Diamond
2001	Ultimate Peter and Gordon	Peter and Gordon
2002	Capitol Records 1942–2002	various artists
2002	Everybody’s Got a Story	Amanda Marshall
2002	Freedom: A History of Us	(Original soundtrack)
2002	Live 2002	Robin Williams
2002	Providence	(Original TV soundtrack)
2002	Sweet Is the Melody	Aselin Debison
2003	Best of the Definitive American Songbook, Vol. 2: I-Z	various artists
2003	Cafeteria: Hear	various artists
2003	Earth Rider – The Essential John Stewart 1964–1979	John Stewart
2003	Singers and Songwriters Christmas Songs	various artists
2004	California	Wilson Phillips
2004	Campfire Songs: The Popular, Obscure and Unknown Recordings	10,000 Maniacs
2004	De-Lovely	(Original soundtrack)
2004	Intermission	Amanda Marshall
2004	Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow	(Original soundtrack)
2004	Taking a Chance on Love	Jane Monheit
2005	Live at Earls Court	Morrissey
2005	Goodies, Vol. 1	various artists
2005	Souvenirs	Tina Arena
2006	You’re Only Lonely	Raul Malo
2007	Siren	Sasha and Shawna
2006	I Love You	Diana Ross
2010	Live at the Troubadour	Carole King and James Taylor
2011	Buddy Holly: Listen to Me; The Ultimate Buddy Party	Various Artists – Producer and Host
2013	Love Has Come for You	Steve Martin and Edie Brickell
2013	When Will You Come Home (EP)	The Webb Sisters

The Bangles – If She Knew What She Wants

When I heard this song and saw the video I knew I liked this band. I like the call and answer vocal arrangement and the jangly guitar. This song came out right after the massive hit Manic Monday but I always favored this one.

It peaked at #26 on the Billboard 100 in 1986 and #31 in the UK.

If She Knew What She Wants

If she knew what she wants
(He’d be giving it to her)
If she knew what she needs
(He could give her that too)
If she knew what she wants
(But he can’t see through her)
If she knew what she wants
He’d be giving it to her
Giving it to her

But she wants everything
(He can pretend to give her everything)
Or there’s nothing she wants
(She don’t want to sort it out)
He’s crazy for this girl
(But she don’t know what she’s looking for)
If she knew what she wants
He’d be giving it to her
Giving it to her

I’d say her values are corrupted
But she’s open to change
Then one day she’s satisfied
And the next I’ll find her crying
And it’s nothing she can explain

Some have a style
That they work hard to refine
So they walk a crooked line
But she won’t understand
Why anyone would have to try
To walk a line when they could fly

No sense thinking I could rehabilitate her
When she’s fine, fine, fine
She’s got so many ideas traveling around in her head
She doesn’t need nothing from mine

Counting Crows – Mr. Jones

If you were reading music magazines in 1993 you know this band was really overhyped. There is no way any band could have lived up to it. When I heard this song though I could tell the singer listened to Van Morrison because some of the phrasings are the same. In 1993 The song went to #5 on the Hot 100 Airplay, #1 in Canada and #28 in the UK.

From Songfacts about the song.

This was written by lead singer Adam Duritz and guitarist David Bryson (the other three band members also got composer credits). On an episode of VH1’s Storytellers, Adam explained: “It’s really a song about my friend Marty and I. We went out one night to watch his dad play, his dad was a Flamenco guitar player who lived in Spain (David Serva), and he was in San Francisco in the mission playing with his old Flamenco troupe. And after the gig we all went to this bar called the New Amsterdam in San Francisco on Columbus and we got completely drunk. And Marty and I sat at the bar staring at these two girls, wishing there was some way we could go talk to them, but we were too shy. We kept joking with each other that if we were big rock stars instead of such loser, low-budget musicians, this would be easy. I went home that night and I wrote a song about it. I joke about what it’s about, that story. But it’s really a song about all the dreams and all the things that make you want to go into doing whatever it is that seizes your heart, whether it’s being a rock star or being a doctor or whatever. Those things run from ‘all this stuff I have pent up inside of me’ to ‘I want to meet girls because I’m tired of not being able to.’ It is a lot of those things, it’s about all those dreams, but it’s also kind of cautionary because it’s about how misguided you may be about some of those things and how hollow they may be too. Like the character in the song keeps saying, ‘When everybody loves me I will never be lonely,’ and you’re supposed to know that that’s not the way it’s gonna be. I knew that even then. And this is a song about my dreams.”

Mr. Jones

Sha, la, la, la, la, la, la
Mmm
Uh huh

I was down at the New Amsterdam
Staring at this yellow-haired girl
Mr Jones strikes up a conversation
With a black-haired flamenco dancer
You know, she dances while his father plays guitar
She’s suddenly beautiful
We all want something beautiful
Man, I wish I was beautiful

So come dance the silence down through the morning
Sha la, la, la, la, la, la, la
Yeah
Uh huh
Yeah

Cut up, Maria!
Show me some of that Spanish dancin’
Pass me a bottle, Mr Jones
Believe in me
Help me believe in anything
‘Cause I want to be someone who believes
Yeah

Mr Jones and me
Tell each other fairy tales
And we stare at the beautiful women
She’s looking at you
Ah, no, no, she’s looking at me
Smilin’ in the bright lights
Coming through in stereo
When everybody loves you
You can never be lonely

Well, I’m gonna paint my picture
Paint myself in blue and red and black and gray
All of the beautiful colors are very, very meaningful
Yeah, well, you know gray is my favorite color
I felt so symbolic yesterday
If I knew Picasso
I would buy myself a gray guitar and play

Mr Jones and me
Look into the future
Yeah, we stare at the beautiful women
She’s looking at you
I don’t think so
She’s looking at me
Standing in the spotlight
I bought myself a gray guitar
When everybody loves me
I will never be lonely
I will never be lonely
Said I’m never gonna be
Lonely

I wanna be a lion
Yeah, everybody wants to pass as cats
We all wanna be big, big stars
Yeah, but we got different reasons for that
Believe in me
‘Cause I don’t believe in anything
And I wanna be someone to believe, to believe, to believe
Yeah!

Mr Jones and me
Stumbling through the Barrio
Yeah, we stare at the beautiful women
She’s perfect for you
Man, there’s got to be somebody for me
I wanna be Bob Dylan
Mr Jones wishes he was someone just a little more funky
When everybody love you
Oh! Son, that’s just about as funky as you can be

Mr Jones and me
Starin’ at the video
When I look at the television, I wanna see me
Staring right back at me
We all wanna be big stars
But we don’t know why, and we don’t know how
But when everybody loves me
I’m wanna be just about as happy as I can be
Mr Jones and me
We’re gonna be big stars

Thunderclap Newman – Something In The Air

A band discovered by Pete Townshend of The Who that featured John “Speedy” Keen, Jimmy McCulloch, and Andy “Thunderclap” Newman. The song peaked at #37 in the Billboard 100 and #1 in the UK Charts in 1969.

It was written and sung by John “Speedy” Keen. The song has been featured in many movies and commercials. 16-year-old Jimmy McCullock would later play in Wings and the reunited Small Faces.

Something In The Air

Call out the instigators
Because there’s something in the air
We’ve got to get together sooner or later
Because the revolution’s here, and you know it’s right
And you know that it’s right

We have got to get it together
We have got to get it together now

Lock up the streets and houses
Because there’s something in the air
We’ve got to get together sooner or later
Because the revolution’s here, and you know it’s right
And you know that it’s right

We have got to get it together
We have got to get it together now

Hand out the arms and ammo
We’re going to blast our way through here
We’ve got to get together sooner or later
Because the revolution’s here, and you know it’s right
And you know that it’s right

We have got to get it together
We have got to get it together now

Del Amitri – Roll to Me

In 1995 “Roll to Me” peaked at #10 in the Billboard 100, #5 in Canada and #22 on the UK charts. I liked the song the first time I heard it and it is incredibly catchy.

Ironically it was the bands biggest hit and they did not like the song.

From songfacts

Del Amitri toured the US when this became a hit, but they played the song reluctantly, often telling the audience that it was something they had to do. Del Amitri wasn’t able to get a foothold in the States, and this was their last hit there.

Roll to Me

Look around your world pretty baby
Is it everything you hoped it’d be
The wrong guy, the wrong situation
The right time to roll to me

Roll to me

Look into your heart pretty baby
Is it aching with some nameless need?
Is there something wrong
And you can’t put your finger on it?
Right, then roll to me

And I don’t think I have ever seen
A soul so in despair
So if you want to talk the night through
Guess who will be there?

So don’t try to deny it pretty baby
You’ve been down so long you can hardly see
When the engine’s stalled and it won’t stop raining
It’s the right time to roll to me
Roll to me
Roll to me

And I don’t think I have ever seen
A soul so in despair
So if you want to talk the night through
Guess who will be there?

So,
Look around your world pretty baby
Is it everything you hoped it’d be
The wrong guy, the wrong situation
The right time to roll to me
The right time to roll to me
The right time to roll to me…oooh

Creedence Clearwater Revival

This band was rock, country, blues, pop and a little of everything. Their music is played on practically every jukebox and by every self-respecting bar band. The songs are not intricate masterpieces like Bohemian Rhapsody or A Day In The Life but masterpieces all the same.

Bands go their whole career without writing one song that is NOT a love song…this band wrote about everything else but love. Many of their songs have become standards today. They had songs about rivers, swamps, backdoors, jungles, and riverboats.

The band…or should I say John Fogerty wrote one song after another and kept hitting the charts. At the time it must have felt like the well would never run dry. Their songs were simple but so effective. John has a distinctive sound with not only his guitar but his voice. His voice was an instrument itself that drove his songs.

They were together in the public eye from 1968 to 1972. Creedence was one of the biggest bands in the world during those years. Songs kept coming like Proud Mary, Bad Moon Rising, Who’ll Stop the Rain, Green River, Looking Out My Back Door, Have You Ever Seen the Rain, Lodi, Traveling Band and etc… They were a singles band and they were an album band. Albums such as Cosmo’s Factory, Green River, Willy and The Poor Boys are classic albums.

Many people thought they were from the south…maybe Louisiana but they were from El Cerrito, California. Hard to believe they were from the same area as the Grateful Dead and the San Francisco music scene of the late sixties. Creedence was not a jam band like many of their peers, they played songs to the letter. They were called rock, country rock and swamp rock.

The band had 9 top ten hits and 16 songs that charted.

They were originally signed to Fantasy Records by Saul Zaentz to a bad record deal that kept John enslaved to the company long after the band broke up. Saul held the rights to John’s songs. Saul had promised the band, to begin with, that he would renegotiate the contract when the band got more successful…he never did.

The band included guitar player, lead singer and writer John Fogerty, drummer Doug Clifford, bassist Stu Cook and Tom Fogerty (John’s brother) on rhythm guitar. Eventually, Tom, Stu, and Doug started to feel like John’s backup band and wanted more control. Tom quit and Creedence became a trio and took off on a tour and made an album.

The band broke up in 1972. It was a sad thing because who knows how many more songs Creedence could have created. Instead of music, the band bickered back and forth and still will file lawsuits from time to time against each other.

I’ve tried to read a few books about them but it’s hard to get through the name calling and the lawsuits that flew back and forth. They all were friends earlier but Stu, Tom, and Doug would usually take Saul Zaentz’s side against John. The brothers rarely talked to each other before Tom died in 1990.

Creedence at the Royal Albert Hall in 1970

Creedence Clearwater Revival Discography

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creedence_Clearwater_Revival_discography

Memories of KISS in the 70s

I must admit I never jumped on the KISS bandwagon when they got popular. I wasn’t blind though, I saw and heard them everywhere at school. I was interested in them because they were such a mystery. The more I was ignoring them the more I felt like I was missing out on something.

The lunch boxes and the KISS Army posters were everywhere. I remember my schoolmates talking to each other about the KISS comic book that had their blood mixed in with the ink. To a 10 year old that was pretty cool. After talking about them to friends I did end up buying “Destroyer.” I liked it ok but it was the image that intrigued me.

They were brilliant in what they did…not getting their photos taken without makeup and keeping their past hidden. They were like cartoon characters coming to life. They knew how to market themselves and kept people wanting more.

I did like some of the songs like Shock Me, Hard Luck Woman, New York Groove, and the anthem Rock and Roll All Night.

I also remember that TV movie KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park. I will admit I still watch it from time to time because it is so bad it’s good.

After the 70s I really didn’t follow them at all until…

In the 90s I finally got to see them with the original members and makeup. Since I never got to see them at their peak this was as close as it got. It was like finally solving the mystery I couldn’t solve when I was 10. I had fun and that was enough for me… for closure.

I have some friends who are still fans of them and who followed them through the 70s until now.

They do have their place in history whether if you like them or not and they were as part of the 1970’s as Star Wars and Inflation.

Sammy Johns – Chevy Van

Sammy Johns released Chevy Van back in 1975 and it peaked at #5 in the Billboard Top 100 and reached #7 in Canada. It is pure AM 70’s pop but it does take me back to that time.

The musicians that back Johns are the famous Wrecking Crew from Los Angeles. The song has been covered by many Country artists and most recently by Eric Church.

Vans were very popular in the 70s…Not family Mini Vans but rolling waterbed and shag carpet teenage machines. They were customized to have everything in them… Some movies were even centered around vans (Vansploitation)…

Chevy Van

I gave a girl a ride in my wagon
She rolled in and took control
She was tired and her mind was a-draggin’
I said get some sleep and dream of rock and roll

‘Cause like a picture she was layin’ there
Moonlight dancin’ off her hair
She woke up and took me by the hand
She’s gonna love me in my Chevy van
And that’s all right with me

Her young face was like that of an angel
Her long legs were tanned and brown
Better keep your eyes on the road, son
Better slow this vehicle down

‘Cause like a picture she was layin’ there
Moonlight dancin’ off her hair
She woke up and took me by the hand
She’s gonna love me in my Chevy van
And that’s all right with me

I put her out in a town that was so small
You could throw a rock from end to end
A dirt road Main Street, she walked off in bare feet
It’s a shame I won’t be passin’ through again

‘Cause like a picture she was layin’ there
Moonlight dancin’ off her hair
She woke up and took me by the hand
We made love in my Chevy van
And that’s all right with me