This is a song I remember riding in my sister’s Vega. Not my favorite by Paul but a cool song all the same. A lot of references in this song to famous and non famous people.
Sister Suzie was his his wife, Linda, who had recorded the song “Seaside Woman” with Wings under the moniker “Suzie & The Red Stripes”. Martin Luther was of course Martin Luther King. Phil and Don were the Everly Brothers, who were a big influence on the Beatles. Paul would later write their 1984 reunion single, “On The Wings Of A Nightingale”.
Brother Michael was Paul’s brother Peter Michael McGear. Auntie Gin was Paul’s father’s sister was named Gin.When Paul first wrote “I’ve Just Seen A Face”, he called it “Auntie Gin’s Theme”, and George Martin recorded an instrumental under that title.
Uncle Ian—Ian Harris, Paul’s cousin, and Auntie Gin’s son. Apparently Paul’s children called him “Uncle Ian”, although he was technically their cousin.
Brother John was thought to be no other than John Lennon.
Uncle Ernie seems to be a reference to either Keith Moon who played the character Ernie in The Who’s rock opera, Tommy movie or Ringo Starr who sang as Uncle Ernie in the London Symphony Orchestra’s verison of Tommy.
Paul McCartney:“When we went to Jamaica on holiday, a lot of the local guys used to call Linda ‘Susie’ for some reason. And we kind of liked that. Then ‘brother John’ – I would be thinking either of John Lennon, or Linda’s brother, John. But the weirdest thing is, my wife now, Nancy, has a sister Susie and a brother John.”
Along with Silly Love Songs,” this was one of two singles released from the Wings At The Speed Of Sound album. The song peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, Canada, #2 in the UK, and #13 in New Zealand.
Let ‘Em In
Someone’s knockin’ at the door Somebody’s ringin’ the bell Someone’s knockin’ at the door Somebody’s ringin’ the bell Do me a favor Open the door and let ’em in
Someone’s knockin’ at the door Somebody’s ringin’ the bell Someone’s knockin’ at the door Somebody’s ringin’ the bell Do me a favor Open the door and let ’em in, yeah, let ’em in
Sister Suzie, brother John Martin Luther, Phil and Don Brother Michael, auntie Gin Open the door and let ’em in, yeah
Sister Suzie, brother John Martin Luther, Phil and Don Uncle Ernie, auntie Gin Open the door and let ’em in, yeah
Someone’s knockin’ at the door Somebody’s ringin’ the bell Someone’s knockin’ at the door Somebody’s ringin’ the bell Do me a favor Open the door and let ’em in, ooh yeah, let ’em in
Sister Suzie, brother John Martin Luther, Phil and Don Uncle Earnie, uncle Lin Open the door and let ’em in, yeah
Someone’s knockin’ at the door Somebody’s ringin’ the bell Someone’s knockin’ at the door Somebody’s ringin’ the bell Do me a favor Open the door and let ’em in, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
I had a friend who raved about Robbie’s new album in the 80s. He said he liked it better than the Bands music…I would never…ever go that far but… I did like it. Listening to this song, it took me a few listens to like it. In fact the first time I heard it I thought…this is repetitive…but after that I could not get enough of it. The back up vocal is great.
It reminds me of a narration for a movie and then Robbie goes into the chorus and the song clicks then.
Robertson enlisted fellow Canadian Daniel Lanois as co-producer of the album. The self titled album Robbie Robertson was a decent comeback for Robbie.
Robertson also brought in The BoDeans to provide group vocals for some of the tracks on the album
The song peaked at #24 in the Billboard Mainstream Rock charts, #91 in Canada, and #15 in the UK in 1988.
The Robbie Robertson album won the 1989 Juno Award for Album of the Year. Lanois and Robertson jointly won the Producer of the Year Juno award at the same ceremony.
From Songfacts
A single from Robbie Robertson’s eponymous debut album, the song finds the former Band’s guitarist singing of the levee life in the Deep South.
RLanois told Exclaim! magazine that the song started with the “Somewhere Down the Crazy River,” title. It was a line that Robertson came up with when he was telling the producer about hanging out with former Band colleague Levon Helm in his old Arkansas neighborhood. “He was telling me about the hot nights and fishing with dynamite,” he recalled. “I was curious about his stories because I wanted them to be on that record… It’s kind of like a guy with a deep voice telling you about steaming nights in Arkansas.”
Robbie Robertson wrote the song with Martin Page (“These Dreams,” “We Built This City”). He recalled the time spent with Robertson in an interview with us. “With Robbie, you were really dealing with a song craftsman who would take as long as it took to piece a great piece of music together with great, great atmosphere,” he said. Obviously, his time with Bob Dylan had influenced him.”
“My period with Robbie Robertson was very, very long,” Page added. “I’d bring in ideas and he’d mull over it and we’d experiment and experiment and experiment. But he would encourage me in the way I would sing these demos for him and I would guide him with the demo, then leave him alone.”
Somewhere Down The Crazy River
Yeah, I can see it now The distant red neon shivered in the heat I was feeling like a stranger in a strange land You know, where people play games with the night God, it was too hot to sleep
I followed the sound of a jukebox coming from up the levee All of a sudden, I could hear somebody whistling from right behind me I turned around, and she said “Why do you always end up down at Nick’s Cafe?” I said, “Uh, I don’t know, the wind just kinda pushed me this way” She said, “Hang the rich”
Catch the blue train Places never been before Look for me Somewhere down the crazy river (Somewhere down the crazy river) Ooh, catch the blue train All the way to Kokomo You can find me Somewhere down the crazy river (Somewhere down the crazy river)
Take a picture of this The fields are empty, abandoned ’59 Chevy Laying in the back seat listening to Little Willie John Yeah, that’s when time stood still You know, I think I’m gonna go down to Madam X And let her read my mind She said, “That voodoo stuff don’t do nothing for me”
I’m a man with a clear destination I’m a man with a broad imagination You fog the mind, you stir the soul I can’t find no control
Catch the blue train Places never been before Look for me Somewhere down the crazy river (Somewhere down the crazy river) Ooh, catch the blue train All the way to Kokomo You can find me Somewhere down the crazy river (Somewhere down the crazy river)
Wait, did you hear that? Oh, this is sure stirring up some ghosts for me She said, “There’s one thing you gotta learn Is not to be afraid of it” I said, “No, I like it, I like it, it’s good” She said, “You like it now But you’ll learn to love it later”
I been spellbound Falling in trances I been spellbound Falling in trances You give me the shivers Chills and fever You give me the shivers You give me the shivers I been spellbound I been spellbound I been spellbound (Somewhere down the crazy river) Somewhere down the crazy river
This one is on Jimi’s last and third studio album released while he was alive. So many albums have some out with Hendrix after he died. You get the feeling the man was constantly plugged into an amp in a studio while the record button was pushed.
This song to me, features some of his best singing…the mood of the song is a little different than his previous work. More mature and loose. I hear a little Curtis Mayfield influence in his singing.
The song was featured on his 1968 album Electric Ladyland. Written and produced by Jimi Hendrix, the song acts as the title track of the album. The album was on Rolling Stone‘s 2020 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, on which it was ranked 53rd… And I’m surprised it was that high since everything old plummeted in their new rankings.
Jimi Hendrix played the guitar, bass and lead vocal tracks, and Mitch Mitchell played the drums and tambourine.
The album peaked at #1 in the Billboard Album Charts, #1 in Canada, and #6 in the UK.
Have You Ever Been To Electric Ladyland
Have you ever been, have you ever been To Electric Ladyland? The magic carpet waits for you, so don’t you be late Oh, (I want to show you) the different emotions (I want to run to) the sounds and motions Electric woman waits for you and me So it’s time we take a ride We can cast all of your hang-ups over the seaside While we fly right over the love-filled sea Look up ahead, I see the loveland, soon you’ll understand
[Bridge] Make love, make love Make love, make love
[Outro] (I want to show you) The angels will spread their wings, spread their wings (I want to show you) Good and evil lay side by side While electric love penetrates the sky (I want to show you) Lord, Lord Lord I want to show you (I want to show you) Hmm, hmm, hmm (I want to show you) Show you (I want to show you) Yeah, yeah, yeah
Bob Welch was a guitarist and vocalist in Fleetwood Mac from 1971-1974. He wrote this song and it was released in 1973. The song was on the album Mystery To Me album.
The song did not chart which surprises me. It was released as the B-side to Fleetwood Mac’s cover version of For Your Love…Hypnotized proved to be the more popular song out of the two. It won an ASCAP award for 35 years on consecutive worldwide radio airplay.
This was right before the Stevie Nicks-Lindsey Buckingham era Fleetwood Mac. After leaving Fleetwood Mac, Welch went on to have a couple big radio hits as a solo artist, “Sentimental Lady” and “Ebony Eyes.”
The album Mystery To Me peaked at #67 in the Billboard Album Charts and #82 in Canada.
Bob Welch: “What I remember about the Mystery to Me sessions is almost everything, so let me be selective. It was a cold winter, and we used the Rolling Stones’ mobile unit to record. I had to re-write all of my songs, because, for instance, ‘Hypnotized’ was intended to be sung by Dave Walker, who was ‘let go’ (there really is no nice way to say it) because, although he was a great singer, we (belatedly) realized that he just stylistically didn’t fit FM.”
“Those two guys in Pascagoula, Mississippi, Charles Hickson and Calvin Parker had just reported on a major UFO encounter, and it was all over the TV for a while. Part of that went into ‘Hypnotized.’ Mick copied my Maestro Rhythm Machine part for ‘Hypno’ almost exactly … Mick’s sense of tempo, in this day before drum machines, was almost perfect … ‘Hypnotized’ was primarily inspired by [Carlos] Castaneda’s books, the Hickson Pascagoula UFO sighting, some stories told to me by friends, and some personal experiences.”
Hypnotized
It’s the same kind of story That seems to come down from long ago Two friends having coffee together When something flies by their window It might be out on that lawn Which is wide, at least half of a playing field Because there’s no explaining what your imagination Can make you see and feel
Seems like a dream They got me hypnotized
Now it’s not a meaningless question To ask if they’ve been and gone I remember a talk about North Carolina And a strange, strange pond You see the sides were like glass In the thick of a forest without a road And if any man’s hand ever made that land Then I think it would’ve showed
That’s why it seems like a dream Got me hypnotized And I know that’s right
Seems like a dream They got me hypnotized
They say there’s a place down in Mexico Where a man can fly over mountains and hills And he don’t need an airplane or some kind of engine And he never will Now you know it’s a meaningless question To ask if those stories are right ‘Cause what matters most is the feeling You get when you’re hypnotized
Seems like a dream They got me hypnotized Seems like a dream They got me hypnotized Seems like a dream They got me hypnotized Got me hypnotized
I’ve always liked when Pete would take the lead vocals in songs. This song is on the album Tommy…In the movie Tommy, Tina Turner plays the part and sings it like only Tina can.
In the story the Acid Queen tries to cure Tommy the deaf, dumb, and blind kid but fails. The Acid Queen fails to heal Tommy, just as the way of excess and indulgence never brings lasting spiritual transformation. Pete wanted it known it was a dead end.
Pete followed the teachings of Meher Baba…an Indian guru that Townshend had been studying under since 1968. Meher Baba believe that acid and the like were unproductive for spirituality, he felt they were immensely detrimental and destructive.
Tina Turner also released a cover of this song as the third single from her The Acid Queen album.
The Tommy album peaked at #4 in the Billboard Album Charts, #6 in Canada, and #2 in the UK in 1969.
From Songfacts
“The Acid Queen” is an important song in the Who’s rock opera Tommy. In that album, the title character is “deaf, dumb, and blind,” with “dumb” being an archaic (and, in modern times, offensive) way of saying “mute.” Tommy eventually becomes a master at the game of pinball, as summarized in the album’s signature song “Pinball Wizard.”
In their quest to cure their son, Tommy’s parents take him to see a character called the Acid Queen. She’s an outsider figure who offers to liberate Tommy’s mind with drugs and sex.
The word “acid” is almost universal slang for the psychedelic drug LSD, which was the biggest shaping force of the ’60s counterculture. In the ’60s, rightfully or wrongfully (probably wrongfully), acid wasn’t looked at as a recreational drug so much as a way to elevate consciousness and “free” one’s mind.
The Acid Queen, as with the Tommy story as a whole, seem almost ridiculous until you understand what Who guitarist and songwriter Pete Townshend was doing with them.
The character Tommy is meant to represent the average human being who is spiritually and psychologically deaf, blind, and mute in the sense that we are clouded by petty ambitions and lusts and are unable to see the full depth and breadth of reality.
The Acid Queen, meanwhile, represents one method for escaping those limitations – the way of drugs and excess, or “sex, drugs, and rock and roll” as a popular slogan of the era went.
This isn’t the only Who song Baba influenced. His name is even right there in the title of “Baba O’Riley.”
Townshend sings lead vocals on this one. That arrangement wasn’t entirely unheard of for The Who, but Roger Daltrey was the official lead singer of the band and is the voice of most of their songs.
The Acid Queen
If your child ain’t all he should be now This girl will put him right I’ll show him what he could be now Just give me one night
I’m the gypsy, the acid queen Pay me before I start I’m the gypsy and I’m guaranteed To mend his aching heart
Give us a room, close the door Leave us for a while You won’t be a boy no more Young, but not a child
I’m the gypsy, the acid queen Pay me before I start I’m the gypsy, I’m guaranteed
To tear your soul apart
Gather your wits and hold them fast Your mind must learn to roam Just as the gypsy queen must do You’re gonna hit the road
My work’s been done, now look at him He’s never been more alive His head it shakes, his fingers clutch Watch his body writhe
I’m the gypsy, the acid queen Pay me before I start I’m the gypsy, I’m guaranteed
To break your little heart
If your child ain’t all he should be now This girl will put him right I’ll show him what he could be now Just give me one more night
I’m the gypsy, the acid queen Pay me before I start I’m the gypsy, I’m guaranteed
I like going back to the pioneers who started all of this. Those old raw recordings have been inspected, dissected, and copied to this day. All rock bands will do a Chuck Berry riff somewhere and most likely will cover at least one of his many songs.
I first was introduced to Chuck Berry by the Beatles faithful version. This song is a staple of early rock and roll. Everyone from George Harrison to Keith Richards were influenced by Chuck Berry. His songs were mini stories set against a fast guitar with a driving beat.
This song is about the rock ‘n’ roll craze that was taking over America. Beethoven and Tchaikovsky were classical composers who were being bumped aside by rock. At the time, many critics dismissed rock music as a passing fad…and the fad is still going on.
Berry started writing this song to rib his younger sister, Lucy, who played classical music on the family piano. Chuck was telling her to stop playing so he could play rock and roll.
The song peaked at #29 in the US Charts and #2 in the R&B Charts in 1956.
From Songfacts
Berry was careful to write lyrics that told a coherent story, which in this case follows a young many as he pursues his favorite music. Berry also took care to deliver his lyrics clearly so a wider audience could understand them. This helped him avoid the fate of many Little Richard songs: more popular, but sanitized covers by Pat Boone.
The line, “Early in the mornin’ I’m a givin’ you a warnin'” is a tribute to Louis Jordan’s 1947 track “Early In The Mornin’.”
Jordan, a jump-blues innovator, certainly earned the tribute: his 1946 song “Ain’t That Just Like A Woman” has a guitar intro (played by Carl Hogan) that Berry lifted for “Roll Over Beethoven.”
The Beatles released a version of this song in 1963, which they played at most of their early live shows. The following year, The Beach Boys released “Fun, Fun, Fun,” which copied the intro to “Roll Over Beethoven” nearly note for note.
This was used in the 1992 movie Beethoven, which is about a Saint Bernard.
The Electric Light Orchestra covered this in 1973, mixing in some of Beethoven’s music. It was their biggest hit at the time, going to #6 in the UK and #42 in the US.
ELO was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 7, 2017, less than a month after Berry’s death. They opened the ceremony with a performance of this song in tribute to Berry.
For a February 4, 1977 primetime special celebrating 25 years of American Bandstand, Berry performed this song joined by Seals & Crofts, Gregg Allman, Junior Walker, Johnny Rivers, the Pointer Sisters, Charlie Daniels and Doc Severinsen. This was one of the first “all-star jams” that would later become commonplace. This performance served as a showcase for the musicians, who were introduced as they performed by Paul Williams.
Iron Maiden spoofed this on their song “Roll Over Vic Vella,” which was used as the B-side to the single for “From Now to Eternity” It’s one of the few singles that featured a photograph of the band performing as cover art.
Leon Russell often covered this song. He performed it on the musical variety show Shindig! in 1964.
The Beatles version…the bands I’ve played in used more powerful amps in a small club than the Beatles had at that time for stadiums. They made it necessary to boost the power with larger amps…to this day I don’t see how they heard each other…they probably didn’t.
Roll Over Beethoven
Well, I’ma write a letter I’m gon’ mail it to my local DJ Yeah that’s the jumpin little record I want my jockey to play Roll over Beethoven, I gotta hear it again today
You know, my temperature’s risin’ The jukebox blowin’ a fuse My heart’s beatin’ rhythm And my soul keeps a-singin’ the blues Roll over Beethoven, tell Tchaikovsky the news
I got the rockin’ pneumonia I need a shot of rhythm and blues I caught the rollin’ arthritis Sittin’ down at a rhythm review Roll over Beethoven, they rockin’ in two by two
Well, if you feel and like it Go get your lover, then reel and rock it Roll it over and move on up just a Trifle further, then reel and rock it Wind another Roll over Beethoven, dig these rhythm and blues
Well in the mornin’ I’m givin’ you my mornin’ Don’t you step on my blue suede shoes Hey diddle diddle, I’ma play my fiddle Ain’t got nothin’ to lose Roll over Beethoven, tell Tchaikovsky the news
You know she wiggles like a glow worm Dance like a spinnin’ top She got a crazy partner Ya oughta see ’em reel and rock Long as she got a dime the music will never stop
Roll over Beethoven Roll over Beethoven Roll over Beethoven Roll over Beethoven Roll over Beethoven, dig these rhythm and blues
This song is for Song Lyric Sunday for Jim Adams’s blog. This week’s prompt…Smart/Stupid. Hope everyone had a good safe Halloween.
Not a feel good song by the Rolling Stones. The song was on their album Afterman released in 1966. This was the B side to the great song Paint It Black. The Stones are known for a good amount of misogyny in their songs…this one and Under My Thumb are no exceptions.
Aftermath peaked at #2 in the Billboard Album Charts and #1 in the UK in 1966.
Stupid Girl was recorded at Los Angeles’ RCA Studios on 6–9 March 1966.
Mick Jagger: “It’s much nastier than Under My Thumb. Obviously, I was having a bit of trouble. I wasn’t in a good relationship. Or I was in too many bad relationships. I had so many girlfriends at that point. None of them seemed to care they weren’t pleasing me very much. I was obviously in with the wrong group”
Keith Richards: “Songs like “Under My Thumb” and “Stupid Girl” were all a spin-off from our environment – hotels, and too many dumb chicks. Not all dumb, not by any means, but that’s how one got.”
Stupid Girls
I’m not talking about the kind of clothes she wears Look at that stupid girl I’m not talking about the way she combs her hair Look at that stupid girl
The way she powders her nose Her vanity shows and it shows She’s the worst thing in this world Well, look at that stupid girl
I’m not talking about the way she digs for gold Look at that stupid girl Well, I’m talking about the way she grabs and holds Look at that stupid girl
The way she talks about someone else That she don’t even know herself She’s the sickest thing in this world Well, look at that stupid girl
Well, I’m sick and tired And I really have my doubts I’ve tried and tried But it never really works out
Like a lady in waiting to a virgin queen Look at that stupid girl She bitches ’bout things that she’s never seen Look at that stupid girl
It doesn’t matter if she dyes her hair Or the color of the shoes she wears She’s the worst thing in this world Well, look at that stupid girl
Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up Shut up, shut up, shut up
Like a lady in waiting to a virgin queen Look at that stupid girl She bitches ’bout things that she’s never seen Look at that stupid girl
She purrs like a pussycat Then she turns ’round and hisses back She’s the sickest thing in this world Look at that stupid girl
Ya’ know, their turnin’ on in the classroom ain’t the point. It’s when you’re missin’ out teacher teach ya’ how to roll a joint.
I’ve pulled the album out and I’ll type the liner notes on this song… Mighty Like A Rose:
“Remember Brown Eyed Girl? (It’s not here) Well it’s father, Mighty Like a Rose is one elegant slice of raunch and it’s here in spades. It’s a simmering summer song about a nympha and her sugar cubes. “
This song was not a B side… it was never released when the band was together. I first heard it when I bought an old import album called Them Featuring Van Morrison – Backtrackin’ that was released in 1974. I found it in a cutout bin in the mid 80s.
It has the sound of Brown Eyed Girl. Van Morrison has said that this was just a demo…not a finished song but it sounds really good. It does predate Brown Eyed Girl…after he left Them he recorded for Bert Burns and released Brown Eyed Girl.
Them was a very good sixties band. Some of their songs were Stones like…in many cases a little tougher and raunchier…and I mean that in a good way. Mighty Like A Rose is one of my favorite Them songs.
I doubt the song would have passed the censors back then…it probably would have been blacklisted immediately.
Mighty Like A Rose
You have drowned a thousand sorrows all in one, and mixed with mugs, (?) and millionaires you have done. Ya’ been and gone and done it for a quid, and just what you don’t know, up there you got hid.
Lord, you’re only fourteen summers and God knows, yeah, child, you’re gettin’ mighty like a rose.
You got pulled (?) for tryin’ to straighten up this town, and looked bashful bribin’ old, bent Barrister Brown.
Ya’ know, their turnin’ on in the classroom ain’t the point. It’s when you’re missin’ out teacher teach ya’ how to roll a joint.
Lord, hey, while you’re down there lookin’ up my nose, yeah, child you’re gettin’ mighty like a rose.
Next time they try to fire me, ya’ make the scene. You’re gettin’ sugar cubes for breakfast. Ya’ know what I mean.
And the, the hazard old, (?) the wind blows through you’ ears. Ya’ haven’t got enough of those what ya’ haven’t got for years.
Yeah, but never mind steppin’ on my toes. Yeah, child, you’re gettin’ mighty like a rose.
Yeah, hey, hey, you’re mighty like a rose. Uh-huh, aww, aww, aww, aww, aww, aww, mmm-mm, mmm-mm, mmm-mm, mmm-mm…
This song made me look for a sitar to buy for a time…unfortunately I never could find one in Nashville at the time. You just don’t see them hanging up in pawn shops.
This was the first pop song to use a sitar…George Harrison played it. Harrison was new to the sitar and attempted many takes until it was right. He bought a cheap sitar and and taught himself to play. Later on Harrison studied the instrument with the Indian musician Ravi Shankar, who helped Harrison explore Eastern music and religion.
The song was on the Rubber Soul album released in 1965. The album peaked at #1 in the Billboard Album Charts, Canada, and the UK. The song was not released as a single in America.
John Lennon:“I was trying to write about an affair without letting my wife know I was having one. I was sort of writing from my experiences – girl’s flats, things like that. I was very careful and paranoid because I didn’t want my wife, Cyn, to know that there really was something going on outside of the household. I’d always had some kind of affairs going on, so I was trying to be sophisticated in writing about an affair, but in such a smoke-screen way that you couldn’t tell. But I can’t remember any specific woman it had to do with.”
John Lennon:“I think it was at the studio. George had just got the sitar and I said ‘Could you play this piece?’ We went through many different sort of versions of the song, it was never right and I was getting very angry about it, it wasn’t coming out like I said. They said, ‘Well just do it how you want to do it’ and I said, ‘Well I just want to do it like this.’ They let me go and I did the guitar very loudly into the mike and sang it at the same time and then George had the sitar and I asked him could he play the piece that I’d written, you know, dee diddley dee diddley dee, that bit, and he was not sure whether he could play it yet because he hadn’t done much on the sitar but he was willing to have a go, as is his wont, and he learned the bit and dubbed it on after. I think we did it in sections.”
From Songfacts
There are not many lyrics in this song, but they tell the story of a man who gets invited to a girl’s house. When she won’t let him into her bed, he sleeps in the tub. When she leaves the next morning, he sets the place on fire. It was one of the first songs Lennon wrote that told a complete story.
Norwegian Wood is a fake wood that was used to make cheap furniture. John Lennon claimed he had no idea where the title came from, but Paul McCartney said he came up with it, inspired by the Norwegian Wood in the Asher household, where he was staying. McCartney was dating Jane Asher, and was good friends with her brother, Peter Asher from the duo Peter & Gordon.
The Beatles recorded this on October 12, 1965, the first day of the Rubber Soul sessions. The first take of the song, which is included on the Anthology 2 CD and includes George’s sitar much more prominently, was originally going to be put on Rubber Soul until a remake was made a week or two later. The notes in the Anthology 2 album verify this.
Ringo played the finger cymbals on this track.
Bob Dylan wrote a parody of sorts to this song called “Fourth Time Around,” which appears on his 1966 album Blonde On Blonde. His song uses a similar melody; it also tells a story about a strange encounter with a girl.
It was Paul McCartney who came up with the album title Rubber Soul. Lennon told Rolling Stone that he supposed it was a pun meaning English Soul. He added: “There is no great mysterious meaning behind all of this, it was just four boys working out what to call a new album.”
Some of the many artists to cover this song include José Feliciano, Herbie Hancock and Buddy Rich. The mellow rap group P.M. Dawn also did a version on their 1993 The Bliss Album, and Cornershop covered it on their 1997 album When I Was Born for the 7th Time – the one with their #1 UK hit “Brimful Of Asha.”
Norwegian Wood
I once had a girl Or should I say she once had me She showed me her room Isn’t it good Norwegian wood?
She asked me to stay And she told me to sit anywhere So I looked around And I noticed there wasn’t a chair
I sat on a rug biding my time Drinking her wine We talked until two and then she said “It’s time for bed”
She told me she worked In the morning and started to laugh I told her I didn’t And crawled off to sleep in the bath
And when I awoke I was alone This bird had flown So I lit a fire Isn’t it good Norwegian wood?
This band keeps popping back up in my playlist. Lately in power pop I’ve been listening to Sloan and The Clarks. They complement each other well.
This is a local band out of Pittsburgh that formed in the mid 80s at Indiana University of Pennsylvania where most of them were enrolled. They started out as a cover band and soon began playing original songs.
The song was on Let It Go, the fifth studio album by The Clarks, released on June 20, 2000. The album outsold many major national releases in the Pittsburgh area and generated huge local radio hits.
The band still has all of the original members and are going strong.
Better Off Without You
You are sultry, dirty, soft and hard You are close to me and you’re so far And I’m thinking of the time we spent together Now I’ll bury this in my backyard Sometimes I sit and wonder But I’ll never dial your number ’cause
I’m having fun looking out for number one And I’m doing all the things I like to do I’m having fun ’cause I knew it all along I’d be better off without you
You are guilty, pretty, high and low You’re a place to stay and a time to go And I’m searching through the things you left behind here Now it’s time for me to let it go Sometimes I sit and wonder But I’ll never dial that number ’cause
I’m having fun looking out for number one And I’m doing all the things I like to do I’m having fun ’cause I knew it all along I’d be better off without you
Late at night you pick up the telephone Call me up and cry ’cause you’re all alone I don’t care Apologize for taking my cigarettes Now it’s time to feel all the side effects Missing the life you had
I love the sound of those earlier ZZ Top recordings.
I Thank You was a hit for Sam and Dave in 1968 and it peaked at #4 in the Billboard 100…It was also a hit for ZZ Top
Sam and Dave released this song on January 8, 1968. Stax would soon go through various business problems and their sound fell out of favor. “I Thank You” was the last big hit for Sam & Dave…none of their subsequent releases made the US Top 40.
This song was written and produced by the Stax Record Isaac Hayes and David Porter, who were Sam & Dave’s main songwriters.
ZZ Top decided to do the song when they found themselves recording at Ardent Studios in Memphis. Billy Gibbons had heard the song on his car radio and mentioned it. Turns out, the very same clavinet Isaac Hayes played on the original recording was in the studio, so they decided to give it a go.
ZZ Top covered this song on their 1979 album Deguello. Released as a single, it peaked to #34 in the Billboard 100 in 1980.
I Thank You
You didn’t have to love me like you did But you did, but you did. And I thank you. You didn’t have to love me like you did But you did, but you did. And I thank you. But you took your love to someone else I wouldn’t know what it meant to be loved to death
You made me feel like I’ve never felt Kisses so good I had to holler for help You didn’t have to squeeze it but you did But you did but you did And I thank you. You didn’t have to hold it but you did But you did but you did And I thank you.
Every day was something new, You put on your bag and your fine to-do You got me trying new things too Just so I can keep up with you.
You didn’t have to shake it but you did But you did but you did And I thank you. You didn’t have to make it like you did but you did but you did And I thank you.
All my life I’ve been shortchanged Without your love baby it’s a crying shame But now I know what the fellas talking about Hear me say that they been turned out I want to thank you I want to thank you I want to thank you Yes, I want to thank you
I love CCR…what a band they were…they didn’t have the resources the Beatles, Stones, and The Who as in a big record company, managers, and producers but they kept up with their British counterparts.
John Fogerty wrote this song. The song has been dissected a lot and some say it was a protest of the Vietnam War like “Fortunate Son”. Fogerty has said that when he was at Woodstock, He watched the festival goers dance in the rain, muddy, naked, cold, huddling together, and it just kept raining.
So when he got back home after that weekend, he sat down and wrote “Who’ll Stop the Rain,” making it not a Vietnam protest at all, but a recounting of his Woodstock experience.
Another great single by CCR…the B side to this song was Travelin’ Band.
The song was on what was perhaps their best album Cosmo’s Factory. The album peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, The UK, and Canada.
Who’ll Stop The Rain peaked at #4 in the Billboard 100, #4 in Canada, and #8 in the UK in 1970.
John Fogerty:When interviewed by Rolling Stone magazine, John Fogerty was asked, “Does ‘Who’ll Stop The Rain’ contain lyrically specific meanings besides the symbolic dimension?” His response: “Certainly, I was talking about Washington when I wrote the song, but I remember bringing the master version of the song home and playing it. My son Josh was four years old at the time, and after he heard it, he said, ‘Daddy stop the rain.’ And my wife and I looked at each other and said, ‘Well, not quite.'”
From Songfacts
This was used in the 1978 motion picture of the same name starring Nick Nolte as a Vietnam veteran. The movie was going to be called Dog Soldiers, but when the producers got the rights to use this song, they changed the title to Who’ll Stop The Rain.
This was released as the B-side to “Travelin’ Band.” It’s one of the many CCR singles to stall at #2. Creedence Clearwater Revival never had a #1 hit in the US.
The line, “I went down Virginia, seekin’ shelter from the storm” gave Bob Dylan the idea for the title of his 1975 song “Shelter From The Storm.”
This is one of many rain-themed CCR songs, including “Have You Ever Seen the Rain?”
Bruce Springsteen opened with this song during his summer stadium tour of 2003 whenever it was raining
During the lockdown John and his family has played a lot of Creedence’s songs for fans… This is one.
Who’ll Stop The Rain
Long as I remember The rain been coming down. Clouds of mystery pouring Confusion on the ground. Good men through the ages, Trying to find the sun; And I wonder, Still I wonder, Who’ll stop the rain.
I went down Virginia, Seeking shelter from the storm. Caught up in the fable, I watched the tower grow. Five year plans and new deals, Wrapped in golden chains. And I wonder, Still I wonder Who’ll stop the rain.
Heard the singers playing, How we cheered for more. The crowd had rushed together, Trying to keep warm. Still the rain kept pouring, Falling on my ears. And I wonder, Still I wonder Who’ll stop the rain.
Bruce Hornsby is an excellent musician. I remember him breaking out in the mid eighties. He also played keyboards for the Grateful Dead off and on in the early nineties after the Dead’s keyboardist Brent Mydland. died.
It’s a strange song to become a #1 because it doesn’t have a big catchy chorus…instead it has a jazz feel that carries the song. When I heard it a couple of times I loved it.
Bruce Hornsby said this song deals with the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. The line in the lyrics that mentions “The law passed in ’64” is the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The law was supposed to prohibit discrimination in public places, the government and employment.
The song peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, in Canada, #15 in the UK, and #23 in New Zealand in 1986. The song came off the album of the same name and it peaked at #3 in the Billboard Album Charts. the album produced 3 songs in the top twenty.
Bruce Hornsby on growing up in Virginia: “My mother came from the New England area, and she was a little more enlightened about racial subjects than a lot of people in the South. So I had a different attitude to a lot of my friends whose parents were more conservative.”
When I was brought up, the vibe I got of Martin Luther King in my town was that he was a real evil man – just the vibe in the air, that he was terrible. And if you grow up in that environment you can’t help but be affected by it a little bit. Luckily, I came from a family that guarded us against that conservatism, but sure, I grew up in the thick of all that bad feeling.”
From Songfacts
The lyrics in this song deal with the need to resist complacency and never resign yourself to racial injustice as the status quo.
With a consistent tempo and a jazz-inflected sound, it appealed to a more adult audience and added a welcome diversity to Top 40 playlists that were dominated by uptempo, synth-driven songs. It was a song grown-ups loved and their kids could tolerate, reaching the top of both the Hot 100 and Adult Contemporary charts.
Hornsby had been working as a staff songwriter for years with no luck getting a record deal. With his attempts to appeal to popular taste falling short, he decided to make a demo of songs in his own style – ECM jazz – and included this track. He sent the demo to a new label called Windham Hill, which specialized in vocal groups. They offered him a deal, but so did some major labels that also got a hold of it. Hornsby signed with RCA because they offered him creative freedom. They were rewarded when this song and the album became huge hits.
The conservative radio host Sean Hannity used an instrumental portion of this song as his show’s theme for many years. Hornsby, a liberal democrat, had vastly different political views, but there was nothing he could do about Hannity using the song as long as royalties were paid.
The Way It is
Standing in line, marking time Waiting for the welfare dime ‘Cause they can’t buy a job The man in the silk suit hurries by As he catches the poor old ladies’ eyes Just for fun he says, “get a job”
That’s just the way it is Some things will never change That’s just the way it is Ah, but don’t you believe them
Said, hey little boy you can’t go where the others go ‘Cause you don’t look like they do Said, hey old man how can you stand To think that way Did you really think about it Before you made the rules?
He said, “son That’s just the way it is Some things will never change That’s just the way it is Ah, but don’t you believe them”
Oh yeah
(That’s just the way it is)
(That’s just the way it is) well, they passed a law in ’64 To give those who ain’t got a little more But it only goes so far Because the law don’t change another’s mind When all it sees at the hiring time Is the line on the color bar, no, no
That’s just the way it is And some things will never change That’s just the way it is That’s just the way it is, it is, it is, it is
I heard this song in Jr High and couldn’t help but like it. It has a very good melody and is a really good pop song.
The song was written by Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson and was on the album Famous Last Words in 1982. The album peaked at #5 in the Billboard album charts, #1 in Canada, and #6 in the UK in 1982.
The song peaked at #11 in the Billboard 100, #4 in Canada, and #26 in the UK
At the end of the song they repeat a nursery rhyme called “It’s Raining, It’s Pouring”.
Roger Hodgson: I wrote It’s Raining Again on a day when I was feeling sad because I’d lost a friend. I was in England looking outside the window and it was pouring rain and literally, the song came to me. I started playing these chords on this pump organ and I just started singing It’s Raining Again.
The first version of it was much slower and more melancholy and then when I recorded it with Supertramp I decided to increase the tempo and it was more upbeat.So it’s another of my songs witha sad lyric set to up upbeat melody.
The five members of Supertramp all appear in the video. At the beginning, John Helliwell is a street musician playing an alto saxophone. Before the first chorus, Dougie Thomson appears as the bus driver (this was the last filmed video where Thomson would appear with his then trademark moustache and beard). Hodgson plays the guitar-playing bus passenger. Lastly, Rick Davies and Bob Siebenberg play the two pickup truck rednecks.
It’s Raining Again
It’s raining again Oh no, my love’s at an end. Oh no, it’s raining again and you know it’s hard to pretend. Oh no, it’s raining again Too bad I’m losing a friend. Oh no, it’s raining again Oh will my heart ever mend. Oh no, it’s raining again You’re old enough some people say To read the signs and walk away It’s only time that heals the pain And makes the sun come out again It’s raining again Oh no, my love’s at an end. Oh no, it’s raining again Too bad I’m losing a friend.
C’mon you little fighter No need to get uptighter C’mon you little fighter And get back up again Oh get back up again Fill your heart again…
Off all the Blondie songs I’ve covered I never touched this one…I thought I would correct that today. It’s probably their biggest hit…it peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, Canada, the UK, and New Zealand.
The song did cause some problems for the band. The rock crowd thought they sold out and the disco crowd thought they were punks. For a while they were outcasts from both crowds.
Blondie members Debbie Harry and Chris Stein wrote the first version of this song in early 1974, shortly after they first met. They didn’t have a proper title for the song, and would refer to it as “The Disco Song.”
Evidently finding words to rhyme to “glass” that fit in a song were… a pain in the ass. American radio at that time frowned on that rhyme. To ensure airplay stations were sent an edited version with the offending line replaced with “soon turned out I had a heart of glass.”
John Lennon was a fan of the song. He wrote Ringo Starr a postcard advising him to write more songs like “Heart of Glass.” Debbie Harry found out about that and said “It was totally wonderful knowing that.”
Debbie Harry : “Lyrically, it was about a stalker who was pursuing me, and Chris saved me from him.”
Debbie Harry: “When we did Heart Of Glass it wasn’t too cool in our social set to play disco. But we did it because we wanted to be uncool. It was based around a Roland Rhythm Machine and the backing took over 10 hours to get down.”
Keyboardist Jimmy Destri:“These new wave kids think they know everything about rock and roll, but they won’t accept anything else. They should listen to the album and realize that we haven’t changed our direction that radically. We haven’t become the Bee Gees.”
An early version of this song called “Once I Had a Love (aka The Disco Song)” was included in the 2001 reissue of the Parallel Lines album…I have it below in one of the videos.
From Songfacts
It wasn’t until they recorded this song in 1978 that Stein came up with the title “Heart Of Glass.” He didn’t know that it was also the title of a 1976 German movie directed by Werner Herzog.
According to Rolling Stone magazine’s Top 500 Songs, Harry and Stein wrote the song in their dingy New York apartment and keyboardist Jimmy Destri provided the synthesizer hook. The result brought punk and disco together on the dance floor. Said Destri, “Chris always wanted to do disco. We used to do ‘Heart Of Glass’ to upset people.”
Chris Stein added, “We didn’t expect the original to be that big. We only did it as a novelty item to put more diversity into the album.”
Blondie re-recorded this in 1978 in a reggae style, but their producer Mike Chapman suggested reggae didn’t sell in America. As Harry and Stein had a fascination with the disco sound that was then sweeping the country, so they adopted a sound that was an amalgamation of their New Wave background and Eurodisco.
In the last chorus, following “Once I had a love and it was a gas,” Debbie Harry takes a different tack, singing “Soon turned out to be a pain in the ass.” This is a key line in the song, since the singer has now realized that this relationship is more trouble than it’s worth, and that her heart of glass might be more durable than she thought.
The video for this song showed the band performing it in an empty discotheque, and was very popular, thanks to the many close-ups of Debbie Harry. Blondie was one of the few American bands that made videos in the years before MTV. They did so because they were very popular in Australia and Europe, and by producing videos, they could be featured on shows in those continents when they couldn’t travel there.
The sound of the CR-78 drum machine was merged with that of drummer Clem Burke’s real drums, which was no easy task in the analog age. Burke took his inspiration from the groove of one of his favorite songs: The Bee Gees’ “Stayin Alive.”
The song’s lyric turns the traditional heartbreak theme on its head. Debbie Harry explained in Q magazine: “I was tired of hearing girl singers write or sing about being beaten by love. So I said, Well listen, there are also a lot of girls who just walk away.”
The success of “Heart of Glass” launched Parallel Lines and Blondie into mainstream success, but it caused a lot of friction with some of their original fan base, which felt Blondie had sold out.
In a 1979 Los Angeles Times piece, Richard Cromelin observed, “‘Death To Disco’ T-shirts weren’t an uncommon sight among the new wave audience that formed Blondie’s first base of support. But, as it turns out, it’s disco that’s given life to Blondie.”
Blondie guitarist Chris Stein responded, “We probably have alienated some of that original audience, but I really don’t have sympathy for anybody that says we’ve sold out.”
Miley Cyrus performed a cover of the song at the 2020 iHeartRadio Music Festival on September 19, 2020. Her version impressed fans and colleagues alike and an audio recording of the live performance was released to streaming services 10 days later.
Blondie’s official Twitter account re-tweeted a video of Cyrus’ iHeartRadio performance and wrote, “We think Miley Cyrus nailed it. Check it out.”
Cyrus’ version returned the song to the UK Top 40.
Heart Of Glass
Once I had a love and it was a gas
Soon turned out had a heart of glass
Seemed like the real thing, only to find
Mucho mistrust, love’s gone behind
Once I had a love and it was divine
Soon found out I was losing my mind
It seemed like the real thing but I was so blind
Mucho mistrust, love’s gone behind
In between
What I find is pleasing and I’m feeling fine
Love is so confusing there’s no peace of mind
If I fear I’m losing you it’s just no good
You teasing like you do
Once I had a love and it was a gas
Soon turned out had a heart of glass
Seemed like the real thing, only to find
Mucho mistrust, love’s gone behind
Lost inside
Adorable illusion and I cannot hide
I’m the one you’re using, please don’t push me aside
We coulda made it cruising, yeah
Yeah, riding high on love’s true bluish light
In between
What I find is pleasing and I’m feeling fine
Love is so confusing there’s no peace of mind
If I fear I’m losing you it’s just no good
You teasing like you do
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