Neil wrote “Long May You Run” in tribute to Mort, his old 1948 Buck Roadmaster hearse.
Neil Young and his band The Squires posing with his hearse Mort (a 1948 Buick Roadmaster hearse Neil had nicknamed Mortimer Hearseburg) in Winnipeg, Manitoba in April 1965
“It had rollers for the coffin in the back, so we just rolled our our amps in and out. It was like they built it for us” The hearse broke down in Blind River in 1965 where Neil refused to abandon the hearse for two days until he finally gave up.
He soon bought another hearse, Mort Two, which Stephen Stills spotted him driving in Los Angeles in 1966 when Buffalo Springfield was formed.
Neil would later pay tribute to the original Mort in his song Long May You Run, the title track of The Stills-Young Band album. The album was released in 1976 and peaked at #26 in the Billboard Album Charts, #26 in Canada, and #12 in the UK.
Neil and Stephen Stills toured on this album and Mr. Young decided to leave tour abruptly. He did leave Stills a note: “Dear Stephen, funny how some things that start spontaneously end that way. Eat a peach. Neil.”
The song charted in 1993 from MTV’s Unplugged…it peaked at #34 in the Mainstream Rock Song charts and #28 in Canada.
From Songfacts
Neil was in Canada driving to Sudbury when ‘Mort’ broke down in Blind River, June 1965. (Which is contradictory to the lyrics; “well it was back in Blind River, in 1962, when I last saw you alive”).
In 1976, Stephen Stills and Neil Young formed The Stills-Young Band and released an album called Long May You Run, which turned out to be somewhat ironic when the collaboration quickly stalled.
Stills and Young wrote separately for the album, which Stephen contributing four songs, and Young adding five, including the title track.
Stills is a longtime collaborator of Neil’s, having worked with him first in Buffalo Springfield and then in Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. However, they had a falling out only nine days into the Long May You Run tour. Young decided to abandon the project, leaving Stills with a mere telegram to explain his departure. It read: “Dear Stephen, funny how some things that start spontaneously end that way. Eat a peach. Neil.”
In addition to Young’s compilation album Decade this also appears on his 1993 album Unplugged.
The last ever Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien on Friday January 22, 2010 finished in style when O’Brien’s final musical guest, Neil Young, performed this song in what appeared to be a poke at NBC. O’Brien had been asked to move his slot to 12:05 a.m., and the TV host refused to move his show to such a late hour, and instead negotiated a $45 million exit deal.
Neil Young performed this song at the Closing Ceremonies of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games to a rousing ovation of Canadian audience members.
Long May You Run
We’ve been through some things together With trunks of memories still to come We found things to do in stormy weather Long may you run.
Long may you run. Long may you run. Although these changes have come With your chrome heart shining in the sun Long may you run.
Well, it was back in Blind River in 1962 When I last saw you alive But we missed that shift on the long decline Long may you run.
Long may you run. Long may you run. Although these changes have come With your chrome heart shining in the sun Long may you run.
Maybe The Beach Boys have got you now With those waves singing “Caroline” Rollin’ down that empty ocean road Gettin’ to the surf on time.
Long may you run. Long may you run. Although these changes have come With your chrome heart shining in the sun Long may you run.
The Spanish artist Pablo Picasso died at the age of 91 on April 8, 1973. News of his passing reached Paul McCartney when he was in Jamaica.
Paul and Linda were in Jamaica on vacation. They were staying at the same hotel as Dustin Hoffman, who was there filming the movie Papillon with Steve McQueen. The trio had dinner together one evening. Hoffman asked Paul, “How do you write songs?” Paul told him they just come out. Hoffman went on to ask if Paul could write about anything and Paul said yes.
While having dinner there with Paul McCartney, Dustin Hoffman told the story of the death of Pablo Picasso and his famous last words, “Drink to me, drink to my health. You know I can’t drink anymore.” Picasso then went to bed and died in his sleep.
Paul had a guitar with him and immediately played an impromptu chord progression while singing the quote. Thus, “Picasso’s Last Words” was born, later recorded and added to the album Band On The Run in 1973. Hoffman later said said of Paul writing the song in front of him, the experience was “right under childbirth in terms of great events of my life.”
When Paul started to sing it Dustin got excited and said: After a moment he started singing it. Hoffman jumped up, shouting, “Look, he’s doing it! Go*damn it! Holy sh–!”
Paul agreed to do “Picasso’s Last Words” at Ginger Baker’s studio. Baker and some additional people from the studio filled some cans with gravel and shook them for percussion.
From Songfacts
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) was one of the most inventive and prolific talents in 20th-century art. In his life he created over 20,000 artistic works, including his famous painting, Guernica, a commentary on the bombing of civilians in the Spanish Civil War. Picasso died in Mougins, France, while he and his wife Jacqueline were entertaining friends for dinner. His final words were “Drink to me, drink to my health, you know I can’t drink any more.” Sadly, Picasso’s passing left a legacy of bitterness and confusion as the artist died without leaving a will and his family ended up fighting amongst themselves for control of his billion dollar estate.
Picasso’s Last Words (Drink to Me)
A grand old painter died last night His paintings on the wall Before he went, he bade us well And said goodnight to us all
Drink to me, drink to my health You know I can’t drink any more Drink to me, drink to my health You know I can’t drink any more
Three o’clock in the morning I’m getting ready for bed It came without a warning But I’ll be waiting for you baby I’ll be waiting for you there
So drink to me drink to my health You know I can’t drink any more Drink to me drink to my health You know I can’t drink any more
Drink to me, drink to my health You know I can’t drink any more Drink to me, drink to my health You know I can’t drink any more
I’ll be waiting for your baby, yeah yeh
Drink to me, drink to my health You know I can’t drink any more Drink to me, drink to my health You know I can’t drink any moreDrink to me, drink to my health You know I, hey ho, ho hey ho Ho hey ho, ho hey ho Ho hey ho, ho hey ho Ho hey ho, ho hey ho Ho hey ho, ho hey ho
I first heard this song at Tower Records in 1986 while shopping for a Van Morrison album.
The song was on their twenty second studio album Think Visual released in 1986. The album peaked #81 in the Billboard Album Charts in 1986.
In America, the song “How Are You” was released and the B side was Working at the Factory. In the U.S., AOR disc jockeys flipped the single over and played Working At The Factory as though it was the second single. The song ended up peaking at #16 in the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart. The song got a lot of airplay in Nashville at the time.
The Kinks never was as popular as some of their peers as The Beatles, Stones, and The Who. One of the reasons is because during the sixties the Kinks were banned from touring the US for 4 years due to their on stage antics. Promoters complained to the American Federation of Musicians. The union had the power to withhold work permits for British musicians if they misbehaved on stage or refused to perform without good reason. That’s exactly what happened.
The Kinks have sold over 50 million records worldwide and have been cited as a big influence on a number of bands and a key reference point for many Britpop bands. The Kinks were awarded an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Service to British Music, and singer Ray Davies received a CBE in 2004, and was knighted in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to the arts.
Working At The Factory
All my life, I’ve been a workin’ man When I was at school they said that’s all you’ll ever understand No profession, I didn’t figure in their plans So they sent me down the factory to be a workin’ man
All I lived for, all I lived for All I lived for was to get out of the factory Now I’m here seemingly free, but working at the factory
Then music came along and gave new life to me And gave me hope back in 1963 The music came and set me free From working at the factory
All I lived for, all I lived for Was to get out of the factory All I lived for, all I lived for Was to get out of the factory
Never wanted to be like everybody else But now there are so many like me sitting on the shelf They sold us a dream but in reality It was just another factory I made the music, thought that it was mine It made me free, but that was in another time But then the corporations and the big combines Turned musicians into factory workers on assembly lines
All we live for, all we live for All we live for is to get out of the factory We made the music to set ourselves free From working at the factory
All my life I’ve put in a working day Now it’s sign the contract, get production on the way
Take the money, make the music pay Working at the factory All I lived for was to get out of the factory
Never wanted to be like everybody else But now there are so many like me sitting on the shelf They sold us a dream that in reality Was just another factory
Thing Called Love was written by John Hiatt for his 1987 album Bring the Family. Bonnie covered this song for her 1989 Nick of Time album.
Nick of Time was Bonnie Raitt’s breakthrough album. After years of endless touring and making albums it all paid off with this album. Nick of Time peaked at #1 in the Billboard Album Charts and 3× Platinum in Canada.
The song peaked at #11 in the Billboard 100 in 1989. This is the song that really got me into the newer version Bonnie Raitt. I did like her earlier hit Runaway and I’d heard of her music and read about her. She paid her dues and I was happy to see her hit big. She is an extremely gifted slide guitar player and singer.
Bonnie Raitt on the video:
“VH1 was new, and there was an outlet for me to get that kind of exposure. I said that if Dennis Quaid, who was a good buddy of mine, would star in the video as my boyfriend, then I could act more flirty than if I tried to act like that in front of the camera. Because I’m not an actress, and I wasn’t used to videos. The way the song sounds so sexy, I said, that would make me more comfortable and relaxed.
“He said yes, and all my fears went away. Basically I was blushing the whole way, throwin’ it back at him, and he was suckin’ on a toothpick…. The combination of all those things made [the album] Nick of Time an amazing breakthrough.”
Thing Called Love
Don’t have to humble yourself to me, I ain’t your judge or your king Baby, you know I ain’t no queen of Sheba We may not even have our dignity, This could be just a powerful thing Baby we can choose you know we ain’t no amoeba
Are you ready for the thing called love Don’t come from me and you, It comes from up above I ain’t no porcupine, Take off your kid gloves Are you ready for the thing called love I ain’t some icon carved out of soap Sent here to clean up your reputation Baby, you know you ain’t no prince charming We can live in fear or act out of hope For some kind of peaceful situation Baby, how come the cry of love is so alarming
Ugly ducklings don’t turn into swans And glide off down the lake Whether your sunglasses are off or on You only see the world you make
Are you ready for the thing called love Don’t come from me and you, It comes from up above I ain’t no porcupine, Take off your kid gloves
Are you ready for it Are you ready for the thing called love Don’t come from me and you, It comes from up above I ain’t no porcupine, Take off your kid gloves
Are you ready for it Are you ready for love, baby Oooh yeah babe Are you ready for love
This song is for Song Lyric Sunday for Jim Adams’s blog. This week’s prompt Begin/End/Finish/Start…This song is about the beginning and the end of love affairs.
I watched the Graduate in the mid-eighties and I sat there transfixed watching this classic film. How the music kept the movie going and this song hit me for some reason. I spent weeks (pre internet) tracking down the soundtrack of the film. I went to different record stores but with no luck but finally found it at the Great Escape, a second hand record store.
It was one of the first movies that I recognized how much music can make a movie. It was a great film regardless but without the music the movie would not have been the same.
April Come She Will was composed by Paul Simon. Running just 1:51, it is the shortest track on the album Sounds of Silence released in 1966. It was also on the Graduate soundtrack.
The song was the B side to the Scarborough Fair single.
From Songfacts
This song is also featured in the soundtrack to the film The Graduate. Meant to evoke the capriciousness of a young girl while relating it to how the seasons change, the lyrics were inspired by a nursery rhyme recited by an English girl with whom Simon had an affair. It stands to reason, then, that this would go along with the plot of The Graduate.
Listen for an echo of this song in “For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her,” from S&G’s subsequent album Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme.
This song isn’t the only one with a classical lyric inspiration on that album; “Richard Cory” is also based on the poem of the same name by American poet Edwin Arlington Robinson.
April Come She Will
April, come she will When streams are ripe and swelled with rain May, she will stay Resting in my arms again June she’ll change her tune In restless walks she’ll prowl the night
July, she will fly And give no warning to her flight August, die she must The autumn winds blow chilly and cold September, I remember A love once new has now grown old
If you want to hear an optimistic song look no further than this one. This is another Beatles song that was not released as a single. Harrison wrote it and sang lead, played acoustic guitar and used his newly acquired Moog synthesizer on this track. It was one of the first pop songs to feature a Moog.
George wrote “Here Comes The Sun” after he decided to not show up for a scheduled Apple business meeting in early Spring. He wrote this in Eric Clapton’s garden using one of Clapton’s acoustic guitars enjoying a spring day.
Here Comes the Sun was on the Beatles last studio album Abbey Road. The album contained two of George’s best known songs. Something and Here Comes the Sun. This is one of my favorite George songs.
George Harrison: “‘Here Comes The Sun’ was written at the time when Apple was getting like school, where we had to go and be businessmen: ‘Sign this’ and ‘sign that.’ Anyway, it seems as if winter in England goes on forever; by the time spring comes you really deserve it. So one day I decided I was going to sag off Apple and I went over to Eric Clapton’s house. The relief of not having to go and see all those dopey accountants was wonderful, and I walked around the garden with one of Eric’s acoustic guitars and wrote ‘Here Comes The Sun.'”
When The Beatles’ music was finally made available for download on iTunes in 2010, “Here Comes The Sun” was the top-selling song the first week.
From Songfacts
“It was just sunny and it was all just the release of that tension that had been building up on me,” Harrison said in a 1969 BBC Radio interview. “It was just a really nice sunny day, and I picked up the guitar, which was the first time I’d played the guitar for a couple of weeks because I’d been so busy. And the first thing that came out was that song. It just came. And I finished it later when I was on holiday in Sardinia.”
In the documentary The Material World, Eric Clapton talked about writing this song with Harrison: “It was one of those beautiful spring mornings. I think it was April, we were just walking around the garden with our guitars. I don’t do that, you know? This is what George brought to the situation. He was just a magical guy… we sat down at the bottom of the garden, looking out, and the sun was shining; it was a beautiful morning, and he began to sing the opening lines and I just watched this thing come to life.”
The music begins on the left channel and gradually moves to the right as Harrison’s vocal begins.
The instrumental break is similar to “Badge,” which Harrison helped Clapton write for his band Cream.
John Lennon did not play on this. Around this time, he was making a habit of not playing on Harrison’s compositions as the two were not on the best of terms. The two eventually settled their differences as George contributed quite a bit to Lennon’s album Imagine two years later.
The Beatles had stopped touring by the time they recorded this song, so they never played it live. The first time Harrison played it live was at the 1971 Concert for Bangla Desh, which he organized to bring aid to that country. He played it at a handful of appearances in the ’70s and ’80s, but didn’t perform it on a tour until 1991, when he joined Eric Clapton for 12 shows in Japan. This version can be heard on the album Live in Japan.
At the Concert for Bangla Desh, Harrison brought Badfinger lead singer Pete Ham to the front of the stage to sing it with him. Badfinger was signed to The Beatles’ Apple Records and had a hit months earlier with “No Matter What.” Harrison had them play on his first post-Beatles solo album, All Things Must Pass, in 1970, and used them as backing musicians at the concert. The Badfinger story, though, had a tragic ending. As Apple Records disintegrated, the group left the label and ended up in legal wranglings that left them angry and broke. Ham committed suicide in 1975.
In 1976, a cover by Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel was a #10 hit in the UK.
Richie Havens covered this in 1971. The Beatles’ version never charted, but his hit #16 in the US. Havens told DISCoveries magazine in 1994: “Fortunately, I can sing things that changed my mind and gave me articulation, like the songs of The Beatles. What they did was, they presented the language we speak in a very straightforward way. The images were totally clear. The influence of clarity – that was the whole influence of the British Invasion.”
Other popular covers were recorded by Nina Simone and Peter Tosh.
On November 20, 1976, Harrison performed this with Paul Simon on Saturday Night Live. On a previous show, producer Lorne Michaels offered The Beatles $3,000 (union minimum), to show up and perform. He said they could split it up any way they wanted, giving Ringo less if they felt like it. Lennon and McCartney were watching together in New York at the time and almost went. On the show when Harrison performed this, there is a skit where he is arguing with Michaels over the money. Michaels tries to explain that the $3000 was for the whole group, and he would have to accept less.
When Harrison died in 2001, many artists performed this at their concerts as a tribute. It was played at the induction ceremonies of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of the all-star jam.
George Harrison played a guitar solo that was placed at 1:02 into the song, but didn’t make the final cut. Here’s the clip where George Martin and Dhani Harrison listen to it.
Harrison released a follow-up song called “Here Comes The Moon” on his self-titled 1979 album. That song is a tribute to the moon, the “sun’s little brother” that acts like a mirror in the sky, reflecting our light.
In 2006, this was voted by the members of the GeorgeHarrison.com forum as their favorite song of his.
Take That’s Gary Barlow covered this for a 2012 advert for Marks and Spencer. It was the first song he’d recorded as a solo artist since his sophomore album, Twelve Months, Eleven Days in 1999. He said: “It’s a real a privilege to cover such an iconic track. You can’t better perfection but I hope we’ve given it a modern twist that will capture the mood of the nation and provide the perfect anthem for summer 2012.” The song’s exposure on the commercial resulted in the original Beatles recording charting in the UK singles top 75 for the first time.
Paul McCartney was also feeling the pain from Beatles’ business dealings around this time and wrote his own, far more pessimistic, song about it: “You Never Give Me Your Money,” which was also included on Abbey Road.
Tom Petty, who was Harrison’s good friend and played with him in the Traveling Wilburys, said of this song in Rolling Stone: “No piece of music can make you feel better than this. It’s such an optimistic song, with that little bit of ache in it that makes the happiness mean even more.”
At the 2016 Republican National Convention, Ivanka Trump, speaking before her father Donald took the stage, emerged with this song playing. The Harrison estate was not happy and voiced their displeasure on Twitter: “The unauthorized use of #HereComestheSun at the #RNCinCLE is offensive & against the wishes of the George Harrison estate. If it had been Beware Of Darkness, then we MAY have approved it!”
Naya Rivera and Demi Lovato sang this on the 2013 Glee episode “Tina in the Sky with Diamonds.”
Nina Simone’s version was used on the TV series Scandal in the 2015 episode “You Can’t Take Command.”
During the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, many found solace in this song. Some hospitals would play the song when a patient was discharged.
Harrison and Simon on SNL
Here Comes The Sun
Here comes the sun (doo doo doo) Here comes the sun, and I say It’s all right
Little darling, it’s been a long cold lonely winter Little darling, it feels like years since it’s been here
Here comes the sun (doo doo doo) Here comes the sun, and I say It’s all right
Little darling, the smiles returning to the faces Little darling, it seems like years since it’s been here
Here comes the sun Here comes the sun, and I say It’s all right
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes Sun, sun, sun, here it comes Sun, sun, sun, here it comes Sun, sun, sun, here it comes Sun, sun, sun, here it comes
Little darling, I feel that ice is slowly melting Little darling, it seems like years since it’s been clear Here comes the sun Here comes the sun, and I say It’s all right
Here comes the sun (doo doo doo) Here comes the sun It’s all right It’s all right
Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run was released a year before this and it was said to influence this album. The album was Jailbreak and was the bands sixth album. It was their breakthrough album.
The album peaked at #18 in the Billboard Album Charts, #5 in Canada, and #10 in the UK in 1976. The album had three well known Thin Lizzy songs…The Boys Are Back In Town, Cowboy Song, and the title track.
The title track didn’t chart in America but it did peak at #31 in the UK in 1976.
Thin Lizzy was founded in Dublin in 1969 when Lynott and drummer Brian Downey left their group Orphanage to form a new band with musicians formally from the last incarnation of Van Morrison’s Them.
Thin Lizzy’s sound was made of Phil Lynotts songwriting and voice…along with the dual-guitar interplay of Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson.
Jailbreak
Tonight there’s gonna be a jailbreak Somewhere in this town See me and the boys we don’t like it So were getting up and going down
Hiding low looking right to left If you see us coming I think it’s best To move away do you hear what I say From under my breath
Tonight there’s gonna be a jailbreak Somewhere in the town Tonight there’s gonna be a jailbreak So don’t you be around
Don’t you be around
Tonight there’s gonna be trouble Some of us won’t survive See the boys and me mean business Bustin’ out dead or alive
I can hear the hound dogs on my trail All hell breaks loose, alarm and sirens wail Like the game if you lose Go to jail
Tonight there’s gonna be a jailbreak Somewhere in the town Tonight there’s gonna be a jailbreak So don’t you be around
Tonight there’s gonna trouble I’m gonna find myself in Tonight there’s gonna be a jailbreak So woman stay with a friend
You know it’s safer
Breakout!
Tonight there’s gonna be a breakout Into the city zones Don’t you dare to try and stop us No one could for long
Searchlight on my trail Tonight’s the night all systems fail Hey you good lookin’ female Come here!
Tonight there’s gonna be a jailbreak Somewhere in the town Tonight there’s gonna be a jailbreak So don’t you be around
Tonight there’s gonna be trouble I’m gonna find myself in Tonight there’s gonna be trouble So woman stay with a friend
Webb Wilder is just different…different in a great way. He looks like he dropped out of a 50’s black and white detective show. The song peaked at #16 in the Mainstream Rock Songs in 1992.
His real name is John “Webb” McMurry and according to wiki “The Webb Wilder character was created in 1984 for a short comedy film created by friend called “Webb Wilder Private Eye.” The character was a backwoods private detective who fell out of the 1950s and happened to also be a musician. The short appeared on the television variety show “Night Flight.”[Whatever it is it works.
Webb Wilder’s quote when asked what kind of music he plays.
“I came to Nashville as kind of a hunch, an educated guess that it would be a good place for me. Rock ‘n’ roll and country have more in common than not. We don’t have the typical Nashville country sound, but we thought we could use that to our advantage. It’s sorta like we’re a roots band for rock ‘n’ roll fans and a rock band for roots fans” he also adds these phrases…“Swampadelic”, “Service-station attendant music”, “Uneasy listening”, “Psychobilly”
Psychobilly….Now that is a cool description.
By 1991 I was walking through a street fair in Nashville and there he was playing with his band. He had just put out an album called Doodad that got some local and national airplay. His music is a mixture of rock/country/rockabilly/punk and anything else he can throw in. The man has the gift of gab also.
I’ve seen him a couple of times in the 90s and he can bring the house down. He did get some MTV and VHI play nationally in 1991-92. His other known songs are my favorite “Meet Your New Landlord,” Poolside, and “Human Cannonball”. He has had some great backing bands. He also did a great cover of Steve Earle’s The Devil’s Right Hand….
I’m including my favorite song by him called Meet Your New Landlord and of course Tough it Out.
Tough It Out
When I was in the cradle Momma used to say “Now, baby Don’t ya cry cry cry” She turned on the radio And fed me rock and roll Lullaby-by-by Well it got under my skin And man it pulled me in ’cause it was strong strong strong I hit the ground runnin’ And let me tell ya somethin’ I was gone gone gone
Get offa my line ’cause I’m comin’ through I’m aimin’ high And I’m willin’ to shoot
I won’t bow, I won’t bend I won’t break, I’ll tough it out I won’t budge, I won’t deal I won’t change, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Keep rockin’ (tough it out) No stoppin’ ‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Straight ahead (tough it out) knock ’em dead No compromise, I’ll tough it out
Now I’ve got somethin’ For ever man woman And child child child We don’t leave the hall ’til they’re bouncin’ off the walls Goin’ wild wild wild It might happen any day Might be light years away I don’t mind mind mind We got our head down, ears back Headed for the barn Feelin’ fine fine fine
Get offa my line ’cause I’m comin’ through I’m aimin’ high And I’m willin’ to shoot
I won’t bow, I won’t bend I won’t break, I’ll tough it out I won’t budge, I won’t deal I won’t change, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Keep rockin’ (tough it out) No stoppin’ ‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Straight ahead (tough it out) knock ’em dead No compromise, I’ll tough it out(Tough it out) (tough it out)
You might catch me down But I won’t stay caught Now I might not sell But I can’t be bought
I won’t bow, I won’t bend I won’t break, I’ll tough it out I won’t budge, I won’t deal I won’t change, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Keep Rockin’ (tough it out) No stoppin’ ‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out (Tough it out) Straight ahead (tough it out) knock ’em dead No compromise, I’ll tough it out
I won’t bow, I won’t bend I won’t break, I’ll tough it out I won’t budge, I won’t deal I won’t change, I’ll tough it out Tough it out ‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out Tough it out No compromise, I’ll tough it out
I first heard this song on the Shake Your Money Maker album that I had just bought. I loved this song but it reminded of another song and I couldn’t put my finger on it. It then came to me…a song named Sway by the Rolling Stones off of Sticky Fingers.
I’m not saying the Black Crowes stole anything from it but they probably were influenced by the song. Rich Robinson the guitar player played the same 5 string G tuning that Keith Richards made famous…and he really does it well. Like the Georgia Satellites before them the Black Crowes sound was a throw back to the early seventies and it worked well.
The Black Crowes album Shake Your Money Maker was released in 1990. This album shocked me when I heard it. After longing for something with that 70’s tone…here it was with this new band. I always thought they sounded like The Stones/Faces musically with a Rod Stewart type lead singer.
Sister Luck was not released as a single but remains a favorite album track of mine.
Sister Luck
Worried sick my eyes are hurting To rest my head I’d take a life Outside the girls are dancing ‘Cause when you’re down it just don’t seem right
Feeling second fiddle to a dead man Up to my neck with your disregard Like a beat dog that’s walking on the broadway No one wants to hear you when you’re down
Sister luck is screaming out Somebody else’s name Sister luck is screaming out Somebody else’s name
A flip of a coin Might make a head turn No surprise, who sleeps Held my hand over a candle Flame burnin’ but I never weep
Sister luck is screaming out Somebody else’s name Sister luck is screaming out Somebody else’s name
Livin’ with my back against the wall nowhere but forward to fall
The song reminds me of something Ronnie Lane of the Faces would write…in the vein of Oh La La. A loose song that could be played on a back porch somewhere in the south. This was an album cut that I first found on their greatest hits. It’s slowly became my favorite song by this Georgia band.
I remember being a senior in high school and watching one of my buddies band play in a talent show right before us. They played “Keep Your Hands To Yourself” and it sounded great. That song was made for a rock band…any rock band and I asked him if they wrote it. He said no they had an advance copy of the song or bootleg. I’ve liked this band ever since. They were a no frills raw rock band in the middle of the sometimes over produced 80s…a band I followed until they broke up.
The song was released on the album In the Land of Salvation and Sin but wasn’t released as a single and it probably should have been. Their popularity was down at this point and the album didn’t do well. They broke up in 1990 and reformed in 1993 but without lead singer Dan Baird.
Another Chance
Livin’ with my back against the wall nowhere but forward to fall well I close my eyes, somebody will catch my breath oh my lord let’s get on board the rides gonna scare me to death
I don’t wanna leave before my time is done don’t wanna stick around when my race is run I don’t wanna go before they call my dance don’t wanna die asking for another chance
come help me Poor Richard and won’t you help me raise the glass here’s to me and here’s to you may our dreams all come to pass cruel trick of time, is played in the wink of an eye well heaven’s above you don’t need no shove the years go sailing bye, oh
I don’t wanna leave before my time is done don’t wanna stick around when my race is run I don’t wanna go before they call my dance don’t wanna die asking for another chance
another game of chance a lifetime come and gone I guess it’s up to me if I don’t want to sing another man’s song I wanna say what Grandma said, lying on her dying bed I ain’t been cheated, no mistreated, and I don’t have to say that yet, oh
I don’t wanna leave before my time is done don’t wanna stick around when my race is run I don’t wanna go before they call my dance don’t wanna die asking for another chance another chance no not another chance no no another chance
This was ELO’s third single. The song was on the album On the Third Day in the US…it was released in 1973.
Showdown was written by Jeff Lynne. Early working titles of the song were Bev’s Trousers and All Over The World. Some of these songs have been released on various ELO collections, some using these original working titles and some not. They don’t vary much from the released version, having just various parts of the song mixed in or out as Jeff experimented with different mixes
The song peaked at #53 in the Billboard 100, #12 in the UK, and #47 in Canada in 1973.
The record was a favorite of John Lennon at the time, who dubbed the band “Son of Beatles” in a US radio interview (below is his full quote).
John Lennon on on the New York City radio station WNEW:“‘Showdown’ I thought was a great record and I was expecting it to be #1 but I don’t think UA [United Artists] got their fingers out and pushed it. And it’s a nice group – I call them ‘Son of Beatles’ – although they’re doing things we never did, obviously. But I remember a statement they made when they first formed was to carry on from where the Beatles left off with ‘Walrus,’ and they certainly did. This is a beautiful combination of ‘I Heard It Through The Grapevine’ by Marvin Gaye and ‘Lightnin’ Strikes’ by Lou Christie, and it’s a beautiful job with a little ‘I Am The Walrus’ underneath.”
Jeff Lynne:“On the early songs like ‘Showdown,’ we were still trying to find our way musically, but I can still listen to these tracks and smile and think how important they seemed at the time, even though at some of our shows we outnumbered the audience!”
From Songfacts
The liner notes for the ELO 2 remastered CD state: “‘Showdown’ was initially recorded under the working title ‘Bev’s Trousers No. 7.’ The song later proved to be a favorite of John Lennon’s and a popular departure into R&B (with cellos) for the band. During these sessions, Marc Bolan was also in the studio, recording material. The UK superstar and chart phenomenon was a friend of Jeff’s from his Idle Race days and accepted an invitation to play guitar on three ELO tracks. Marc also lent Jeff his 1953 Gibson Firebird for Showdown’s guitar solo. ‘Showdown’ was Jeff Lynne’s first self-composed worldwide hit single and ELO’s final release for EMI on 14 September 1973. The original promotional film, featuring an ELO performance on the banks of the River Thames, survives in EMI’s archive.”
Artists to cover this song include Odia Coates, Asia, and The Cadets.
Showdown
She cried to the Southern wind About a love that was sure to end Every dream in her heart was gone Heading for a showdown
Bad dreamer, what’s your name? Looks like we’re riding on the same train Looks as though there’ll be more pain There’s gonna be a showdown.
And it’s raining, all over the world it’s raining, all over the world Tonight, the longest night
She came to me like a friend She blew in on the Southern wind Now my heart is turned to stone again There’s gonna be a showdown
Save me, oh save me It’s unreal, the suffering There’s gonna be a showdown
And it’s raining, all over the world Raining, all over the world Tonight, the longest night
Raining, raining raining, raining
Raining, all over the world Raining, all over the world The longest night
And it’s raining, all over the world Raining, all over the world Tonight, the longest night
You gotta save me, girl Well, I’m ready for saving I’m a fool for you Ya know I’m ready, yeah come on and save me
Can’t you feel what you’re doing to me, now? I’m on the run again Gotta save me
Good Morning! I hope your Sunday is going well. This is such a groove song…a great way to start your day.
This song I like the Band’s cover version the best and that is saying a lot because Marvin Gaye did the original version. The song was written by Lamont Dozier and brothers Brian and Eddie Holland. The Holland–Dozier–Holland team wrote a number of hits through the sixties and seventies and continued on without Dozier for years.
The Band covered this on their Rock of Ages live album released in 1972. I first heard this on the Last Waltz and it stuck with me. I usually like studio cuts over live but this one sounds really good.
The song peaked at #34 in the Billboard 100 but was much more popular in Canada where it peaked at #11 in 1972. It also is included as a bonus track on the Cahoots album…a studio version.
Don’t Do It
Baby don’t you do it, don’t do it Don’t you break my heart Pleeeeease don’t do it, don’t you break my heart
A sacrifice would make you happy if nothing for myself Now you wanna leave me for the love of someone else My pride is all gone whether I’m right or wrong I need you baby to keep on keepin’ on
You know I’m trying to my best Oh I’m trying to do my best Don’t do it, don’t you break my heart Pleeeeease don’t do it, don’t you break my heart
My biggest mistake was loving you too much and letting you know Now you got me where you want me and you won’t let me go If my heart was made of glass well then you’d surely see How much heartache and misery, girl, you’ve been causing me
While I’ve been trying to do my best Well I’ve tried to do my best Don’t do it, don’t you break my heart
Pleeeeease don’t do it, don’t you break my heart
Go down to the river and there I be I’m gonna jump in girl, but you don’t care bout me Open up your eyes Can’t ya see I love ya? Open up you heart, girl Can’t ya see I need ya?
Oh baby don’t do it, do it, do it Don’t you break my heart Pleeeeease don’t do it don’t you break my heart
My biggest mistake was loving you too much and letting you know Now you got me where you want me and you won’t let me go If my heart was made of glass well then you’d surely see How much heartache and misery, girl, you’ve been causing me
While I’ve been trying to do my best You know I’ve tried to do my best Don’t do it, don’t you break my heart Pleeeeease don’t do it, don’t you break my heart
This song will chill you out on this Sunday. No Expectations was on the 1968 album Beggars Banquet. The song is a favorite of mine on the album. This one and Prodigal Son is a throwback to some of their older blues influences. The feeling and the emotion of this song is fantastic.
Brian Jones was on the album and made one of his last contributions with slide on this song. The following year Brian would die in a swimming pool at his home.
This is one of the great Stones album tracks.
Mick Jagger: “That’s Brian playing steel guitar. We were sitting around in a circle on the floor, singing and playing, recording with open mikes. That was the last time I remember Brian really being totally involved in something that was really worth doing. He was there with everyone else. It’s funny how you remember – but that was the last moment I remember him doing that, because he had just lost interest in everything.”
From Songfacts
When Rolling Stones founder Brian Jones died in 1969, this song took on new meaning, as lyrics like “Our love is like our music, it’s here and then it’s gone” made it a fitting elegy. Jones’ slide guitar on the song was one of his last meaningful contributions to the group; after years of drug addiction and squabbles with the band, he was fired from the group in June 1969 and died less than a month later.
The Stones performed this on Rock and Roll Circus, a British TV special The Stones taped in 1968, but never aired. Brian Jones played this with a passion he was clearly losing as drugs took over his life. Rock and Roll Circus was released on video in 1995.
Nicky Hopkins, who also played with The Who and The Beatles, played piano on this.
Lenny Kravitz opened several shows for The Rolling Stones in 1994, and was invited onstage to jam with them at a Cleveland show. Kravitz helped out Mick Jagger in 2001, co-writing, performing on, and producing his song “God Gave Me Everything.”
This song was featured in the 1978 ant-war film Coming Home, with Jane Fonda and John Voight
No Expectations
Take me to the station And put me on a train I’ve got no expectations To pass through here again
Once I was a rich man and Now I am so poor But never in my sweet short life Have I felt like this before
You heart is like a diamond You throw your pearls at swine And as I watch you leaving me You pack my peace of mind
Our love was like the water That splashes on a stone Our love is like our music It’s here, and then it’s gone
So take me to the airport And put me on a plane I’ve got no expectations To pass through here again
This song is for Song Lyric Sunday for Jim Adams’s blog. This week’s prompt…Days of the Week…Everyone have a good Sunday!
When I was 7 in 1974 I borrowed the Monkees debut album from my cousin. I listened to the album over and over. This song has been described by some critics of having a “proto-heavy metal guitar riff.” It does have a heavy riff and it is different than the other Monkees songs.
Being seven years old and listening to pop bands from my sister’s collection I thought this song was “hard rock” because it had a guitar with some distortion. The Monkees influenced a generation of young musicians. They made being in a band look fun and in the sixties many kids watched them and wanted to play music because of the Monkees. They don’t get the credit they deserve and are snubbed by Jann Wenner and the Rock and Roll Hall of fame.
At first they didn’t play their instruments but by the third album they all played plus Michael Nesmith wrote songs for many of their albums. Peter Tork and Nesmith were musicians to begin with and good ones…Micky Dolenz and Davy Jones soon learned their parts and contributed. Dolenz and Tork also wrote.
What is not mentioned is a lot of bands didn’t play their instruments on their first albums like the Mama’s and Papas and the Byrds. Many bands had studio musicians to help them out.
Ok…I’ll get off of my soapbox now. This song was written by David Gates (who wrote and sang in Bread). Saturday’s Child was not released as a single but it was a good album track released in 1966. The Monkees debut album The Monkees peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, UK, and Canada.
Saturday’s Child
Monday had a sad child Always feeling low down, Tuesday had a dream child She’s always on the go So I’m in love with Saturday’s child
Every time you take her out at night (She drives me wild) You want to kiss and hold her way up tight (Gonna spend my time) You can tell the future’s looking bright (Making sure that Saturday’s child is mine)
If you love a Wednesday You live your life apart now And if you love a Thursday She’s gonna break your heart, So I’m in love with Saturday’s Child
Every time you hold her close you’ll see (She drives me wild) You can feel the thrill that’s gonna be (Gonna spend my time) Now the future has a guarantee (Making sure that Saturday’s child is mine)
Seven days of the week made to choose from But only one is right for me I know that Saturday’s got what it takes, babe. I can tell by the way she looks at me.
Friday likes the good life She’ll take you for a ride now And Sunday makes a good wife She wants to be your bride So I’m in love with Saturday’s child
How young are you? How old am I? Let’s count the rings around my eyes
I Will Dare was released in 1984 as an independent single and then included on their Let It Be album. I loved this song in the 80s and after hearing it in the past weeks…it was like the first time I listened to it. Peter Buck from REM is playing the intro on this song. Paul Westerberg wrote the song and plays mandolin.
Let It Be was the third full album by the band’s original lineup: lead singer and songwriter Paul Westerberg, guitarist Bob Stinson, bassist Tommy Stinson, and drummer Chris Mars.
This song should have cracked the top 40 but it didn’t…mostly because they were on a small Minneapolis record label named Twin/Tone.
The song has been included in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.
Paul Westerberg:”I Will Dare” [From Let It Be] might have been an answer to ”I Will Follow” [by U2]. Part of it has to do with the band. We’ll dare to flop, we’ll dare to do anything. ”I Will Dare” was a good slogan for a Replacements single. Every song title, if it doesn’t apply to the band in some way, we cannot use it. On the other hand, it was a kind of love song. ”Ditch the creep and I’ll meet you later. I don’t care, I will dare.”
I Will Dare
How young are you? How old am I? Let’s count the rings around my eyes
How smart are you? How dumb am I? Don’t count any of my advice
Oh, meet me anyplace or anywhere or anytime Now I don’t care, meet me tonight If you will dare, I might dare
Call me on Thursday, if you will Or call me on Wednesday, better still Ain’t lost yet, so I gotta be a winner Fingernails and a cigarette’s a lousy dinner Young, are you? Wo oo
C’mon meet me anyplace or anywhere or anytime Now, I don’t care, meet me tonight If you will dare, I will dare Meet me anyplace or anywhere or anytime Now, I don’t care, meet me tonight If you will dare, I will dare
How young are you? How old am I? Let’s count the rings around my eyes
How smart are you? How smart are you? How dumb am I? Dumb am I
Meet me anyplace or anywhere or anytime Now I don’t care, meet me tonight If you would dare, I would dare Meet me anyplace or anywhere or anytime Now I don’t care, meet me tonight If you will dare, I will dare
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