This band is a blast to listen to. They have the punk edge but with power pop choruses. Along with bands, like The Jam, Small Faces, Slade, and a host of others…America just didn’t hear unless you were in the know. These guys blended punk and pop about as well as anyone. I had a friend with their import records in the eighties. That was the only way I could hear them. Orgasm Addict was a hell of a debut single for the band. It was banned by the BBC soon after the release. Yet another song about teenage masturbation.
The song was written by Pete Shelley and Howard Devoto during Devoto’s time with the band, though he left before it was recorded. Known for its risqué and lyrics, the track asked for controversy and limited radio play at the time of release but has since become a punk rock staple. This song was released in 1977 and was not an album track. It peaked at #56 on the UK Charts.
They chose the name Buzzcocks after reading the headline, “It’s the Buzz, Cock!”, in a review of the TV series Rock Follies in Time Out magazine. The “buzz” is the excitement of playing on stage; “cock” is northern English slang meaning friend. They were formed in 1976 by Pete Shelley and Howard Devoto after seeing the Sex Pistols. They were able to blend punk’s spirit and sound with pop.
Nirvana invited them to open select dates on the grunge outfit’s last European tour, in early 1994. Steve Diggle told about a memory he has of Kurt Cobain: “Doing two grams of coke is one of my famous stories with him.” They also opened up for Pearl Jam in 2003.
They released 3 albums and broke up in 1981 after a dispute with their record company. They reunited in 1989 and released 6 more albums. Pete Shelley continued to play with the band until his death from a heart attack in 2018. The band still continues to tour.
Orgasm Addict
Well, you tried it just for once Found it all right for kicks But now you found out That it’s a habit that sticks
And you’re an orgasm addict You’re an orgasm addict
Sneaking in the back door With dirty magazines Now your mother wants to know What all those stains on your jeans
And you’re an orgasm addict You’re an orgasm addict
Ah-huh, ah-huh, ah Ah-huh, ah-huh, ah
You get in a heat You get in a sulk But you still keep a beating Your meat to pulp
‘Cause you’re an orgasm addict You’re an orgasm addict
You’re a kid Casanova You’re a no Joseph It’s a labour of love Fuckin’ yourself to death
Orgasm addict You’re an orgasm addict
Ah-huh, ah-huh, ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah Ah-ah-ahh!
You’re makin’ out with school kids Winos and heads of state You even made it with the lady Who puts the little plastic bobins on the Christmas cakes Butcher’s assistants and bellhops you’ve had them all here and there Children of God and their joy-strings International women with no body hair
Ooh, so where they’re askin’ in an alley And your voice ain’t steady If sex mechanic’s rough, you’re more than ready
You’re an orgasm addict You’re an orgasm addict
Johnny want fuckie always and all ways He’s got the energy, he will amaze
He’s an orgasm addict He’s an orgasm addict
He’s always at it You’re always at it ‘Cause you’re an orgasm addict We’re all orgasm addicts
If you go when the snowflakes storm When the rivers freeze and summer ends Please see if she’s wearing a coat so warm To keep her from the howlin’ winds
This is one of the most beautiful songs that Bob Dylan ever wrote. I learned this song on guitar and harmonica when I was in my twenties. When we were playing out the equipment would break down like the guitar player’s amp or my amp…I would grab an acoustic and a harmonica with my harmonica rack and play this one. It always went over well. The song hits me deeply for some reason…you can tell this song was genuine.
I read Robert Shelton’s book about Bob Dylan, and the song appears to be about Echo Helstrom (If I would have had a daughter…I wanted to name her Echo), a girl he knew in Hibbing, Minnesota before he made it. As with every Dylan song, there is another rumor that it’s about a folk singer and actress named Bonnie Beecher. I tend to believe the Shelton book on this one and go with Echo but who knows which one it is? He knew both in Minnesota so it could have been either one. Some say Suzy Rotolo was it but he didn’t meet her until he was in New York.
It was originally released on his 1963 album The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan and later re-recorded as a duet with Johnny Cash for Dylan’s 1969 album Nashville Skyline. Unlike some Dylan songs…this one is not a musical novel. It’s a little over 3 minutes and gets right to the point in the most elegant way. Bob did take the melody of Scarborough Fair for this one.
The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan peaked at #22 on the Billboard Album Charts and #1 in the UK in 1963. It was his second album and here is where he started to get real traction with people and build an audience, especially in the UK. The folk purists would get two more albums until the electric instruments of 1965’s Bringing It All Back Home would shatter their Dylan folk singer dream.
Johnny Cash: “I had a portable record player that I’d take along on the road, and I’d put on The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan backstage, then go out and do my show, then listen again as soon as I came off. After a while at that, I wrote Bob a letter telling him how much of a fan I was. He wrote back almost immediately, saying he’d been following my music since ‘I Walk the Line,’ and so we began a correspondence”.
This live clip is from Hard To Handle when Dylan used Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers as his backing band. I learned it from this live version.
Girl From The North Country
If you’re travelin’ in the north country fair Where the winds hit heavy on the borderline Remember me to one who lives there She once was a true love of mine
If you go when the snowflakes storm When the rivers freeze and summer ends Please see if she’s wearing a coat so warm To keep her from the howlin’ winds
Please see for me if her hair hangs long If it rolls and flows all down her breast Please see for me if her hair hangs long That’s the way I remember her best
I’m a-wonderin’ if she remembers me at all Many times I’ve often prayed In the darkness of my night In the brightness of my day
So if you’re travelin’ in the north country fair Where the winds hit heavy on the borderline Remember me to one who lives there She once was a true love of mine
I love tradition so here we are again! Happy New Year 2025.
For the past few years, this has been my first post in the New Year. If you have followed me for a while you should know this one. Again for 2025 my first post!
Next to Auld Lang Syne, this is my favorite New Year’s Song. A favorite of mine from one of my favorite bands. Everyone… I wish you a Happy New Year in 2024.
You didn’t have to read my blog but you did and I really appreciate it…I want to thank all of you for reading and commenting in 2023.
This song sounds like it should have been a hit but it was never pushed as a single at the time. It was the B side to Butcher’s Tale (Western Front 1914) which is an experimental song and was a big surprise to the band that it was picked as the first single. Both are from the great album Odessey and Oracle in 1968. Several songs on this album could have been in the charts but Time of the Season was the only one that made it and it was a year after the album was released.
Bruce Eder of AllMusic gave the album five stars out of five, calling it “one of the flukiest (and best) albums of the 1960s, and one of the most enduring long-players to come out of the entire British psychedelic boom”.
On recording Odessey and Oracle…Rod Argent:
“We had the chance of going in and putting things down in the way we wanted people to hear them and we had a new studio, we walked in just after The Beatles had walked out [after recording Sgt. Pepper]. We were the next band in. They’d left some of their instruments behind … I used John Lennon’s Mellotron, that’s why it’s all over Odessey and Oracle. We used some of their technological advances … we were using seven tracks, and that meant we could overdub for the first time. And it meant that when I played the piano part I could then overdub a Mellotron part, and it meant we could have a fuller sound on some of the songs and it means that at the moment the tour we’re doing with Odessey and Oracle it means we’re actually reproducing every note on the original record by having extra player with us as well.”
This Will Be A Year
The warmth of your love Is like the warmth of the sun And this will be our year Took a long time to come
Don’t let go of my hand Now darkness has gone And this will be our year Took a long time to come
And I won’t forget The way you held me up when I was down And I won’t forget the way you said, “Darling I love you” You gave me faith to go on
Now we’re there and we’ve only just begun This will be our year Took a long time to come
The warmth of your smile Smile for me, little one And this will be our year Took a long time to come
You don’t have to worry All your worried days are gone This will be our year Took a long time to come
And I won’t forget The way you held me up when I was down And I won’t forget the way you said, “Darling I love you” You gave me faith to go on
Now we’re there and we’ve only just begun And this will be our year Took a long time to come
Yeah we only just begun Yeah this will be our year Took a long time to come
This song is such a pleasure to listen to. The great voice and the sparse accompaniment are great. This was released back in 1950. It was written by Frank Loesser in 1947 and was originally intended as a standalone song, not tied to Christmas or New Year’s traditions. I have heard this song a few times around this time of year. It was released back in 1949 and peaked at
They have since been known as “The Original Kings of Harmony.” They were a successful R&B vocal group that pioneered the evolution of doo-wop music. Their first major hit, “It’s Too Soon to Know,” in 1948, is considered one of the first R&B chart-topping singles and is often regarded as a doo-wop song. The term doo-wop didn’t appear until 1961 when the Marcels covered Blue Moon. Their biggest hit was Crying In The Chapel released in 1953. To see more of the history of doo-wop…check out my friend Randy’s post on doo-wop.
The listbelow has grown so much since I started to do this a few years ago. If I forgot you…please forgive me. But Happy New Year 2025. I add new readers to this list every single year and like I said…I hope I got you all.
I want to thank everyone who has read my blog this year and the last few years. I ran this post last year and I’ve added more names. It’s so much fun communicating with all of you. I’ve been told my blog is a place people come to comment like sitting around a campfire. That is the way I hope it is. I’m not a real writer so I just write as if I’m talking to you in a room. I hope many of you find other bloggers at my place with things in common.
In 2017 I would not have believed I would communicate with people in different states across America and the world…such as New Zealand, The UK, Hong Kong, Germany, Columbia, Australia, India, France, Sweden, Spain, and more! I’m also learning more about new music, old new music, cool old and new movies, and most of all…people. I comment way too much at times but it’s a lot of fun learning.
I’ve commented with you all, emailed many of you, talked to some over the phone, and met one of you. Thank you all once again.
Carl Benson Jr... a great sports guy who has worked in it all of his life. Thank you Carl! You have taught me a lot.
Sheila “Spiral Sister” Murrey… thank you for all of your comments and the subjects we have got into…plus a very cool name.
satyam rastogi…thanks for the comments when you stop by!
I’ve even listened to Heavy Metal and Canadian bands from Canadians Deke and Dave and became friends with both.
A fellow Big Star and mid-60s pop/rock fan and one of the best commenters I have…I’ve learned a lot from him… Obbverse
Off-the-radar songs and movies, and everything cool… from Cincinnati Babyhead (CB) Thanks for opening up more music for me.
I’ve read great stories and poems for really the first time from Lisa, Obbverse, and Bruce. I still don’t know much about poems but I’m learning. Thanks to all of you…I consider all of you friends.
Lisa is the biggest George Harrison fan I know…and that is a great thing.
Fellow power pop fan Music City Mike and fellow Nashvillian.
Learned about new music from Grahamand Christian. If you want the best of new music…these are the 2 are the places to go. They don’t overlap much at all which is great…you get a good variety.
Christian … we have VERY similar taste and it was great to talk to him the other day on the phone.
Liam...another great blogger I met through our TV Draft who leaves insightful comments.
I’ve had a good time commenting about music and movies with princecranoir….thanks for the conversations. Also one of the best movie reviewers I’ve read.
How radio really works and more about family from Keith… it’s always great talking to you and texting.
Ra Na-Gedwho I have appreciated coming to the blog…who had one of the best comments of the year with: Elvis may be king, but Otis had the Voice of God.
Again if I missed anyone I’m sorry…I just ran through this off the top of my head.
Thanks to everyone and have a Happy New Year to you and your family from Powerpop.blog (and it’s curator…Max). We survived 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024… let’s make this one even better!
This song is a great way to start a year! Anytime you can hear Otis…you are on the right path! Have a Happy New Year! Get ready for 2025. Their voices sound amazing. They complimented each other very well. I just wished they would have had time to do more.
Stax’s house band, Booker T & the MGs, provides the backing. Note Booker T’s subtle but effective organ lending the song a spiritual element, while Donald “Duck” Dunn’s bass and Steve Cropper’s tasteful guitar licks ground the track’s rhythm
Stax was hoping to replicate the success of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. Stax paired two of their greatest stars for the 1967 album King & Queen, which produced the hit “Tramp.” The album featured their takes on classics such as “Knock on Wood,” “When Something Is Wrong with My Baby,” “Bring It on Home to Me,” and “It Takes Two”
This song was on the King and Queen album released in 1967. This is the only album they got to make because Otis died in a plane crash on December 10, 1967. Carla Thomas would go on to a successful career with 2 top 20 hits plus many top 20 R&B hits.
I’m adding the song Tramp off of the album. This song peaked at #26 on the Billboard 100, #2 on the R&B Charts, and #1 on the UK R&B Charts in 1967.
New Year’s Resolution
I hope it’s not too late
Just to say that I’m sorry, honey
All I want to do
Is just finish what we started, baby
Let’s turn over a new leave
And baby let’s make promises
That we can keep
And call it a New Year’s resolution, hmmm
Oh, I’m a woman
And woman makes mistakes too
But will you, will you forget the changes
That I put you through
let’s try it again
Just you and me
And, baby, let’s see how happy honey, yeah
That we can be
And call it a New Year’s resolution, yeah, yeah, yeah
Many times we had our ups and downs
And times you needed me I couldn’t be found
I’m sorry
And I’m sorry too
I’ll never, never do it again, no, no, no
So baby before we fall out
Let’s fall on in, yeah, yeah
Oh, and we’re gonna try harder
Not to hurt each other again, oh
Love me baby, huh
Week after week
And baby let’s make promises
That we can keep
And call it a New Year’s resolution, yeah, oh
I know we can do it Carla
I’m gonna keep my promises
I’m gonna hold on that we can do it, baby
Oh, it’s not too late
You’re gonna love me
Nobody else
Oh Otis let’s finish what we started
Talk no mean
I found out about The Georgia Satellites in the spring of 1985. A friend of mine who played guitar in high school with a band got a bootleg of Keep Your Hands To Yourself a year before it was officially released. His band was playing it in the gym (a spring show) before we went on. I thought they wrote it until I asked him. It’s a great-sounding song live.
Battleship Chains was the followup song in 1986 that MTV played a lot of during that time. The Georgia Satellites were like a fish out of water during the mid 80s. There were bands like the Replacements who played rock but they were not in the mainstream like the Satellites were when this album was released. Two years later Guns and Roses came out and then The Black Crowes. By that time though lead singer Dan Baird was leaving the Satellites.
This song was sung by their lead guitarist Rich Richards. The song was written by musician Terry Anderson. Later on, Dan Baird covered one of Anderson’s songs called I Love You Period on his solo album Love Songs for the Hearing Impaired. The song peaked at #26 on the Billboard 100 in 1992.
The Georgia Satellites came out of nowhere with a number 2 hit in 1986 called Keep Your Hands To Yourself. In the era of synth-driven songs, it was great to hear this guitar band out of Georgia that played raw roots rock and roll without the big production.
This song was sung by lead guitarist Rick Richards. It peaked at #86 in the Billboard 100 and #44 in the UK in 1987. Battleship Chains was also covered by a band called the Hindu Love Gods, which contained REM and Warren Zevon members.
This song was on their self titled album released in 1986. On the strength of Keep Your Hands To YOurself and Battleship Chains, the album peaked at #5 on the Billboard Album Charts, #42 in New Zealand, and #52 in the UK.
Battleship Chains You got me tied down with battleship chains fifty foot long and a two ton anchor tied down with battleship chains fifty foot long with a two ton anchor
I can’t move my arms to hold nobody hold nobody but you I can’t move my legs s to chase nobody to kick nobody but you
You got me tied down with battleship chains fifty foot long and a two ton anchor tied down with battleship chains fifty foot long and a two ton anchor
I can’t move eyes to see nobody see nobody but you I can’t move my tongue to taste nobody to lick nobody but you
You got me tied down with battleship chains fifty foot long and a two ton anchor tied down with battleship chains fifty foot long and a two ton anchor
I can’t move my lips to kiss nobody kiss nobody but you I can’t move my heart to love nobody to love nobody but you
You got me tied down with battleship chains fifty foot long and a two ton anchor tied down with battleship chains fifty foot long and a two ton anchor You got me tied, tied, whoo hoo, tied tied don’t you know you got me tied tied, whoo hoo baby don’t you know you got me tied tied, whoo hoo
Sorry for the duplication but Bailey talked a little about the movie in a post I had a few weeks ago. I saw this movie tonight…and it was…
I want to get this down while it’s still in my brain. I saw A Complete Unknown tonight. I am very critical of music bios. I saw Queen but all I could do was pick out stuff that wasn’t right and I’m not a huge Queen history fan. So when I say I’m critical I really am. 99 percent of the time I would rather see a well-made documentary. I could watch a documentary on grass growing… but most music bios I’ve seen just make up things or get things completely out of order. This one not so…
Ok on this movie…FANTASTIC. I could just say that for a one-word review. I know Dylan’s early history pretty well up until the 1980s. When the characters showed up, I knew who they were like Bobby Neuwirth who was played by Will Harrison. I will say something out loud here that I don’t usually talk about. I’m not the biggest Pete Seeger or Joan Baez fan but this movie made me appreciate them more and I sure as hell appreciate Dylan more. I have nothing against them personally, I just never got into their music as much but both helped Dylan a lot…that I always gave them credit for.
Now the actors and actresses, Timothée Chalamet was outstanding and did all of the singing live as they filmed. You have to respect that and it came out great. I knew nothing about this guy before this movie…he really impressed me. Monica Barbaro played Joan Baez and she did all of the singing like Timothee did…she did an incredible job. Edward Norton played Pete Seeger and he had his look and sound down. Elle Fanning played Sylvie Russo, Bob’s girlfriend who was photographed with Bob on the album Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. Only one thing was wrong with that….her real name was Susan “Suze” Rotolo. Bob had asked if they would change her name.
Writer-Director James Mangold said that Dylan had a reason for the change. “Bob talked to Jim a lot about the script, and the one thing he wanted was Suze’s name to be changed in the script because he felt like she wasn’t a public figure, she always wanted to remain a private person. I really held that in my heart, the gravity of Bob’s choice, because they had stayed close until she passed away in 2011.”
Johnny Cash was played by Boyd Holbrook and was right on the mark with him. He came up in pivotable scenes. The movie basically covers 1961 with Bob coming to see Woody Guthrie to Bob playing electric at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965. They also at least got some small appearances from important people. Albert Grossman, Bob’s manager and he would later on manage Janis Joplin and The Band. John Hammond is shown briefly and Dave Van Ronk a folk musician.
I was worried they would not get the feel of that time. That came off well and the movie would be enjoyed by non-Bob Dylan fans as well as fans. The small details they got right..they found the same kind of microphone for the Newport festivals. When I see them do things like that…I know they have most of the movie correct. No it’s not 100 percent correct but damn close. Because of time restraints, they don’t go into the British Invasion and how that affected him but it does show him playing a Kinks song which I thought was cool.
Quotes
Bob Dylan: I don’t think they want to hear what I want to play.
Johnny Cash: Who’s they?
Bob Dylan: You know, the people who decide what folk music is or isn’t.
Johnny Cash: Fuck them, I wanna hear you. Go track some mud on somebody’s carpet. Make some noise, B.D.
How you find new music can sometimes be surprising. I was looking for a guy with the nickname of Prince Stash, his name is Stanislaus Klossowski de Rola. He hung out with a lot of sixties rock stars and I found out he played in Vince Taylor’s band. I started to listen to Vince Taylor and his rockabilly is really good. I knew I heard his name before and it was when I covered the Clash’s version of this song.
Vince was born in England but his family emigrated to the United States in the early 1950s, settling in New Jersey, where Taylor was exposed to the new rock and roll scene. While living here he became exposed to the greats like Presley, Little Richard, and Gene Vincent. In the late 1950s, Taylor returned to the UK, where he adopted the stage name Vince Taylor inspired by American culture. It was probably the smart thing to do at the time. The UK treated the 50s rock stars much better than America did.
Brand New Cadillac was released in 1959. It was the B side to a song called Pledging My Love. Taylor wrote the song but Tony Sheridan is credited with the cool guitar riff running through the song. The song’s riff reminds me of the original Batman riff…or really the other way around.
In the mid-sixties, he and his band The Playboys co-headlined a tour with the Rolling Stones with “Prince Stash” Stanislaus Klossowski de Rola playing percussion. Jimmy Page and others were also at one time part of the Playboys. I’ve been reading about his live performances and watching some concert footage…and he was a hell of a performer. I can see why he built a following for his live performances.
Bowie has said that Vince Taylor was a huge influence on Ziggy Stardust. He said in the early seventies his name was coming up again as in Golden Earring’s song “Just Like Vince Taylor.”
Taylor had some problems with drugs in the sixties and his career started to go downhill as he became unstable. In the 1970s, he briefly attempted comebacks in Europe, but he could not recapture his earlier success. He lived a nomadic life, working odd jobs, including as a mechanic in Switzerland.
He passed away in 1991 from cancer.
David Bowie: “I met him in Gioconda one day and the guy was right out of his tree. I mean, this guy was bonkers, absolutely the genuine article. I can’t remember if he said he was an alien or the Son of God but he might have been a bit of both. And then one time we were on Tottenham Court Road… He dragged out this world map and we were crouching on all fours outside Tottenham Court Road Tube Station and he was showing me where all the aliens had their bases throughout: under the Arctic and in this mountain… And business people stepping over our map. I think: what the hell am I doing in the middle of Russia with this bonkers American looking at the map of the world and I thought there’s something in this, I’m gonna remember this. This is just too good.”
Clips of Taylor live
Brand New Cadillac
Well my baby drove off in a brand new Cadillac Ooh, my baby drove off in a brand new Cadillac Well she looked at me, daddy, I ain’t never comin’ back
I said baby-baby-baby won’t you listen to me Come on sugar, come on hear my plea Well she looked at my Ford, we’ll never agree Cadillac car! Oh yeah!
Well the Caddy’s rollin’ and going ’bout ninety-five Well the Caddy’s rollin’ and going ’bout ninety-five Well me and my Ford, we’re right by here side
I said baby-baby-baby won’t you listen to me Come on baby, come on hear my plea Turn that big car around, come on back to me Hangin’ on Scotty, here we go!
Well my baby took off in a brand new Cadillac Ooh, my baby took off in a brand new Cadillac Well she looked at me, daddy, I ain’t never comin’ back
I ain’t never comin’ back I ain’t never comin’ back I ain’t never comin’ back
I’ve been listening to this era a lot recently and you will see something about it in a couple of weeks. This album was made by Graham Parker & The Rumour. His first album Howling Wind remains my favorite so far but this one (Squeezing Out Sparks) is catching up…the more I hear it the more I like it.
When he met the manager of Brinsley Schwarz. With ex-members of Brinsley Schwarz and ex-member Nick Lowe producing them…they made his debut album Howlin’ Wind in 1976. His band had a name at this point…The Rumour. The Rumour would be Graham’s backing band for years. They also recorded their own albums separately and did three in all. They broke up in 1980 and then reformed and started to back Parker up again in 2011 and remain his backup band to this day.
When I hear Parker, I can hear some Springsteen, Van Morrison, and Elvis Costello in his music. This song is straightforward, no-frills, traditional rock ‘n’ roll delivered at full steam ahead. You have The Rumour pumping this music out while Graham spits out the lyrics.
The song is on his fourth album Squeezing Out Sparks which was released in 1979. The album did well as it peaked at #40 on the Billboard Album Charts, #79 in Canada, and #18 in the UK. The album was helped out by the single Local Girls that got a lot of play on MTV but failed to chart.
Graham Parker: “In Squeezing Out Sparks I was kind of attempting a concept album about the suburbs of England, or at least trying to capture a vague approximation of suburban life. This idea succeeds in “Saturday Nite Is Dead” and “Local Girls” particularly well. I guess I drifted off the mark there for the rest of the record because the concept turned out to be a little confining for a whole album. I’m too restless to stick with such a narrow program”
Saturday Nite Is Dead
Everybody just looks ugly now information don’t compute I draw a blank every time I think The football crowd is going to give me a boot
And Saturday night is dead Saturday night is dead It don’t matter what they say You’ve got to use your own head some day Saturday night is dead Saturday night is dead Yeah it’s dead
The ultraviolet light hurts me so It used to be my friend I used to know a good place to go But now it’s nothing like it was then
And Saturday night is dead Saturday night is dead It don’t matter what they say I’m going to the funeral Sunday Saturday night is dead Saturday night is dead Yeah it’s dead
It must have been murder it ain’t no accident Oh no it means nothing to me The clock goes tick tick tick in my head Saturday is dead Saturday is dead See upcoming rock shows Get tickets for your favorite artists
I look inside to find a place to hide But there ain’t no place I know It’s just as well that I’m stupefied It makes it easy It makes it easy to deliver the fatal blow
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas/Holiday. Now, we are back to our regularly scheduled programming.
I don’t feature enough ballads and this is one of the best The song is the ultimate date song. I’ve heard this in countless movies and I still listen all the way through. I would have loved hearing this coming out of an AM speaker in the 1950s and 60s. I sometimes use the word beautiful but only when I mean it and with this song I do.
This is the only top-20 hit they had in America. My dad had their greatest hits so I know more than just this one. I do get in moods where I like good doo-wop. It peaked at #11 on the Billboard 100 and #3 on the Billboard R&B Chart in 1959.
They formed in 1953 and went through a series of names like The Swallows, El Flamingos, The Five Flamingos to simply The Flamingos. They were successful in the 1950s and on the pop and R&B charts.
As music changed in the 1960s, the Flamingos struggled to maintain their commercial success, though they continued to record and perform. Members of the group went through several changes, with different lineups carrying on the Flamingos’ name over the decades.
The Flamingos were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2000, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001, and the Doo-Wop Hall of Fame in 2004
I Only Have Eyes For You
My love must be a kind of blind love I can’t see anyone but you (Sha bop sha bop) (Sha bop sha bop) (Sha bop sha bop) (Sha bop sha bop) (Sha bop sha bop)
Are the stars out tonight (sha bop sha bop) I don’t know if it’s cloudy or bright (sha bop sha bop) I only have eyes for you dear (Sha bop sha bop)
The moon may be high (Sha bop sha bop) But I can’t see (sha bop sha bop) a thing in the sky I only have eyes for you
I don’t know if we’re in a garden Or on a crowded avenue (Sha bop sha bop)
You are here (Sha bop sha bop) And so am I (Sha bop sha bop)
Maybe millions of people (sha bop sha bop) go by But they all disappear from view And I only have eyes for you
I first heard London Calling with my friend who had an import copy of it in the early 1980s. He and his older brother had some great music that wasn’t mainstream at the time. Bands like Big Star, Grateful Dead, Replacements, and The Clash. I learned to appreciate the so-called “nonpopular” bands at that time. It’s a trait I’ve kept ever since. Search music out and you will find good music.
They started off as a punk band but The Clash, unlike some other Punk bands, could play and sing well…, especially Mick Jones. He was probably the best pure musician in the band. The Clash wanted to break out of Punk’s limitations.
When they released London Calling, they moved beyond pure punk rock and began exploring a variety of styles, including rock, reggae, ska, and more. This song has very accessible music but the words are biting. You can get many things out of it but I pretty much get the hypocrisy directed to us all. They were directing much of it at the rock scene of the time. It’s also about the difficulties of not selling out. It’s not easy to do when navigating the trials of adulthood.
The album was produced by Guy Stevens, an unpredictable producer known for his eccentric methods. He encouraged spontaneity while creating an unorthodox atmosphere in the studio. He would throw chairs or ladders to “inspire” the band while recording. After thinking about this…he sounds perfect for The Clash. He would die of an overdose in 1981 of a medication that was helping him to reduce his alcohol intake. The Clash wrote a song in tribute to him called “Midnight to Stevens“. Stevens also produced Free and they wrote a song about him called Guy Steven Blues.
The lyric “Love and hate tattooed across the knuckles of his hands” got me thinking about a film called The Night of the Hunter. I did some research and yes Joe Strummer was a huge fan of the movie when he was a teenager and that line is said to be a reference to Robert Mitchum’s sinister character Reverend Harry Powell who has that on his knuckles.
London Calling peaked at #9 in the UK, #3 in Canada, #12 in New Zealand, and #27 on the Billboard Album Charts in 1979-1980.
Death or Glory
Hey
Now every cheap hood strikes a bargain with the world Ends up making payments on a sofa or a girl Love and hate tattooed across the knuckles of his hands Hands that slap his kids around ’cause they don’t understand how
Death or glory Becomes just another story Death or glory Becomes just another story
And every gimmick hungry yob digging gold from rock and roll Grabs the mic to tell us he’ll die before he’s sold But I believe in this, and it’s been tested by research He who fucks nuns will later join the church
Death or glory Becomes just another story Death or glory Becomes just another story
Fear in the gun-sights, they say lie low You say ok, don’t wanna play the show Now all you’re thinking, was it death or glory now? Playing the blues for pennies sure looks better now
Death or glory Just another story Death or glory Just another story
And every dingy basement, on every dingy street Every dragging hand clap over every dragging beat It’s just the beat of time, the beat that must go on If you’ve been trying for years, we already heard your song
Death or glory Becomes just another story Death or glory Just another story
Gonna march a long way Fight a long time Got to travel over mountains Got to travel overseas
This song is not only my favorite Christmas Carol… I think it’s up there with the best songs ever written. I hope everyone has a great Christmas/Holiday. This will close out my Christmas Marathon. I wish you all the very best.
There are over 26,000 different versions of “Silent Night” on Spotify, meaning you could listen to a different rendition of the carol every night for 72 years.
Halfway through December 1818, the church organ in St. Nicholas in Oberndorf, 11 miles north of Salzburg in what is now Austria, broke (a popular version of the story claims that mice had eaten out the bellows).
The curate, 26-year-old Josef Mohr, realized it couldn’t be repaired in time to provide music on Christmas Eve. He told his troubles to his friend, a headmaster and amateur composer named Franz Gruber, while giving him as a present a poem he had written two years earlier. Gruber was so taken by the rhythm of the poem that he set it to music, and on Christmas Eve there was music after all. Mohr played his guitar while the pair sang the song. It was the first public performance of “Stille Nacht” or as we know it “Silent Night.”
It is believed that Silent Night has been translated into over 300 languages around the world, and it is one of the most popular carols of all time.
From Songfacts
Bing Crosby’s version became his best-seller of the 1930s.
Music licensing company PPL announced in December 2010 that this carol tops the list of Britain’s “most recorded Christmas song of all time.” Said Mike Dalby, Lead Reporting Analyst at PPL: “Silent Night is a beautiful carol which encapsulates the feeling of Christmas entirely. Everyone from punk band The Dickies right through to Sinead O’Connor has recorded it, which exemplifies just how much it resonates with all different types of artists.”
According to PPL, Sinead O’Connor’s 1991 recording was the most popular version of the carol in Britain.
When the organ builder finally did show up to repair the St. Nicholas organ, he was given a copy of the “Silent Night” composition and brought it home. From there, traveling folk singers got a hold of it and began incorporating the carol into their repertoire. It didn’t make its way to America until 1839.
As the song gained traction throughout Europe, Franz Gruber composed several different orchestral arrangements. He donated all profits from the carol to local charities for children and the elderly, and eventually died penniless.
According to Steve Sullivan’s Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings, Crosby, a devout Catholic, refused to record the religious song, arguing it would be “like cashing in on the church or the Bible.” Crosby met with Father Richard Ranaghan, a priest trying to raise money for overseas missions, and decided to donate the royalties to the cause. But Ranaghan died in a car accident later that year, so the money went to several charities throughout the US and abroad.
This song lends itself to interpretation because the first four bars are all on the same chord. Jim Brickman explains: “There’s room to treat it dynamically in a different way: in the tempo, in the sounds and silences, in the time signature.”
Silent night, holy night. All is calm, all is bright. ‘Round yon virgin mother and child. Holy infant so tender and mild. Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace.
Silent night, holy night. All is calm, all is bright. ‘Round yon virgin mother and child. Holy infant so tender and mild. Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace.
This Christmas song doesn’t get played a bunch here. I’ve always liked it since it was released. It was written by Billy Squier and was the B side to the single “My Kinda Lover.” I post it every year and most people don’t remember it but I was 14 when it was released and it stuck with me.
In 1981 MTV made its debut and Billy Squier’s career was going strong with the 1981 release of the Don’t Say No album. MTV at the beginning had a more family atmosphere. The crowd in this sing-a-long included technicians, secretaries, executives, the production assistants.
MTV helped countless careers. It made some careers larger than they would have been and some had careers because of MTV. It changed everything for a while.
Billy had a great career going on until the Rock Me Tonite video with the pink tank top…then it all fell apart in 1984. Google Billy Squier + Pink Tanktop.
The video was filmed at the Teletronics MTV studio.
VJ Nina Blackwood:“It was taped at our original Teletronics Studio on West 33rd Street and featured our original studio crew, who we all loved and were very close to, along with all the people from the MTV offices,” “Everybody traipsed down to the studio from 44th Street & 6th Ave for the taping. Billy Squier’s career was on fire at this time, and since he lived in NYC, he was a frequent guest at the studio, so it was appropriate that he was chosen for the video.”
“Pretty much what you see on camera is an accurate representation of the celebratory and fun feeling that was happening,” Blackwood said. “It was like one big happy family, which sums up the entire vibe of the early days of MTV. One of a kind experience. When I watch all of these early MTV Christmas videos, the overwhelming sensation I come away with is that of joyous love.”
Christmas Is The Time To Say I Love You
Christmas is the time to say “I love you” Share the joys of laughter and good cheer Christmas is the time to say “I love you” And a feeling that will last all through the year
On the corner carolers are singing There’s a touch of magic in the air From grownup to minor no one could be finer Times are hard but no one seems to care Christmas Eve and all the world is watching Santa guides his reindeer through the dark From rooftop to chimney, from Harlem to Bimini They will find a way into your heart
Christmas is the time to say “I love you” Share the joys of laughter and good cheer Christmas is the time to say “I love you” And a feeling that will last all through the year
Just outside the window snow is falling But here beside the fire we share the glow Of moonlight and brandy, sweet talk and candy Sentiments that everyone should know Memories of the year that lays behind us Wishes for the year that’s yet to come And it stands to reason that good friends in season Make you feel that life has just begun
Christmas is the time to say “I love you” Share the joys of laughter and good cheer Christmas is the time to say “I love you” And a feeling that will last all through the year
So when spirits grow lighter And hopes are shinin’ brighter Then you know that Christmas time is here
It’s that time of year…and this is one-holiday song that is on my list and not worn out. I first heard this in 1994 when I bought the Beatles Anthology album. I never knew of this song before. This song was never officially released until it appeared as the B-side to “Free As A Bird” in 1994. I’ve posted it every year since I’ve blogged and will continue to do so…it’s repetitive but I like it…it drives home the point.
My friend Dave posted this song in 2021 and he has more info than I do so check it out.
The song is credited to Lennon-McCartney-Harrison-Starkey. The original version was distributed to The Beatles fan club in 1967. It’s the only song written specifically for the Beatles Fan Club members. Along with the Beatles…actor Victor Spinetti and roadie Mal Evans were on the recording.
Between December 1963 and December 1969, they sent out 7 flexi discs that had spoken and musical messages to their official fan clubs in the UK and the US at Christmas time.
The Beatles recorded this in 1967 and wasn’t released until 1994 paired with “Free As A Bird”. It is a fun Christmas song that will stick in your head. The Beatles did not release a Christmas song commercially… only to their fan club when they were active.
I like the end where each Beatle tells you Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Many performers of this era like The Beach Boys and The Four Seasons released Christmas songs, but The Beatles never had an official Christmas release.
Christmas time is here again
Christmas time is here again Christmas time is here again Christmas time is here again Christmas time is here again
Ain’t been round since you know when Christmas time is here again O-U-T spells “out”
Christmas time is here again Christmas time is here again Christmas time is here again Christmas time is here again
Ain’t been round since you know when Christmas time is here again O-U-T spells “out”
Christmas time is here again Christmas time is here again Christmas time is here again Christmas time is here again
Ain’t been round since you know when Christmas time…[music continues and fades to background]
[spoken]
This is Paul McCartney here, I’d just like to wish you everything you wish yourself for Christmas.
This is John Lennon saying on behalf of the Beatles, have a very Happy Christmas and a good New Year.
George Harrison speaking. I’d like to take this opportunity to wish you a very Merry Christmas, listeners everywhere.
This is Ringo Starr and I’d just like to say Merry Christmas and a really Happy New Year to all listeners
[a John Lennon pastiche at this point, very hard to understand]
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