When I first heard this…I would have bet money…and lost that it was Elvis singing this song. I was shocked when I found out that it wasn’t him. This song was written by the songwriting team of Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter. They wrote hits for various artists, including Glen Campbell, the Four Tops, and Dusty Springfield.
The song peaked at #4 in the Billboard 100 and #1 in Canada in 1971.
The backing group was the great studio musicians called “The Wrecking Crew” who played with countless artists including The Beach Boys, Simon and Garfunkel, and even Cher.
From Songfacts
This was Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds’ third single and first Top 40 hit. Their two previous singles failed to reach the Top 40 and received very little radio play.
Rob Grill of The Grass Roots explained at a concert that this song was intended for his band, but they were about to release another single. So Potter and Lambert crafted “Two Divided by Love” for The Grass Roots, which sounds somewhat similar to this song. The Grass Roots perform “Don’t Pull Your Love (Out)” in concert, since it was supposed to be their song.
Don’t Pull Your Love
Don’t pull your love out on me, baby If you do, then I think that maybe I’ll just lay me down, cry for a hundred years Don’t pull your love out on me, honey Take my heart, my soul, my money But don’t leave me here drowning in my tears
You say you’re gonna leave, gonna take that big white bird, Gonna fly right out of here without a single word But you know you’ll break my heart when I watch you close that door Cause I know I won’t see you anymore
Don’t pull your love out on me, baby If you do, then I think that maybe I’ll just lay me down, cry for a hundred years Don’t pull your love out on me, honey Take my heart, my soul, my money But don’t leave me here drowning in my tears
Haven’t I been good to you, what about that brand new ring? Doesn’t that mean love to you, doesn’t that mean anything? If I threw away my pride and I got down on my knees, Would you make me beg you “pretty please”?
Don’t pull your love out on me, baby If you do, then I think that maybe I’ll just lay me down, cry for a hundred years Don’t pull your love out on me, honey Take my heart, my soul, my money But don’t leave me here drowning in my tears
There’s so much I want to do I’ve got love enough for two And I’ll never use it, girl, if I don’t have you
Johnny Otis wrote this song and had a hit with it in 1958. It peaked at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and #5 on the Billboard R&B chart. The song had a Bo Diddley type rhythm to it and it’s such a great groove.
Both versions are great…I think out of the two I favor Johnny’s version.
Eric Clapton included this song on his classic album 461 Ocean Boulevard. Willie and The Hand Jive peaked at #27 for Eric in the Billboard 100 in 1974.
The origin of the song came when one of Otis’ managers, Hal Ziegler, found out that rock’n’roll concert venues in England did not permit the teenagers to stand up and dance in the aisles, so they instead danced with their hands while remaining in their seats. At Otis’ concerts, performers would demonstrate Willie’s “hand jive” dance to the audience, so the audience could dance along.
Willie and the Hand Jive
I know a cat named Way-Out Willie Had a cool little chick named Rockin’ Billie Made a heart of stone Susie-Q, doin’ that crazy hand jive too Papa said “You will ruin my house. You and that hand jive have got to go” Willie said “Papa, don’t you put me down, Been doin’ that hand jive all over town.” Hand jive, hand jive, hand jive, doin’ that crazy hand jiveI don’t want you to get on the floor Gettin’ low, getting down with sister go Come on, get baby, little sister’ll die Said doin’ that hand jive one more time Hand jive, hand jive, hand jive, doin’ that crazy hand jive
Doctor getting low and he getting check Now they’re all digging that crazy beat Way-Out Willie gave ’em all a treat Been doin’ that hand jive with his feet Hand jive, hand jive, hand jive, doin’ that crazy hand jiveWilli and Billie got married last fall Had to live with his sisters and that ain’t all Daddy got famous it’s plain to see Been doin’ that hand jive on his knees Hand jive, hand jive, hand jive, doin’ that crazy hand jive
GOOD MORNING everyone. Play this song really LOUD and get on with your day!
The riff of this song is outstanding. It’s a riff that like Louie Louie and Wild Thing is learned by beginning guitar players.
This was released five months after lead singer Bon Scott died. ACDC asked Nobby Holder (lead singer of Slade) to join after Scott had died. Nobby has said that his loyalty was to Slade and turned them down. His voice really would have fit nicely.
The song is a tribute to Scott, and the lyrics, “Forget the hearse ’cause I never die” imply that he will live on forever through his music. With Brian Johnson on lead vocals, the Back In Black album proved that AC/DC could indeed carry on without Scott.
The song peaked at #37 in the Billboard 100 in 1981. The song was written by Brian Johnson, Angus Young, and Malcolm Young
From Songfacts
Brian Johnson made quite a statement with this song, quickly endearing himself to AC/DC fans and leaving little doubt that the band made the right pick to replace Bon Scott. Johnson had been in a group called Geordie, which Scott saw in 1973. After that show, Scott talked up the Geordie lead singer to his bandmates, and in 1980 when they were looking for a replacement, AC/DC’s producer Mutt Lange suggested him. At the time, Johnson was working as a windshield fitter and had recently reunited Geordie.
The band got the idea for the title before writing any of the song, although Malcolm Young had the main guitar riff for years and used to play it frequently as a warm-up tune. After Bon Scott’s death, Angus Young decided that their first album without him should be called Back In Black in tribute, and they wrote this song around that phrase.
The album had a black cover with the band’s logo on it, which was a tribute to Bon Scott. They didn’t want it to feel mournful, however, and needed a title track that captured the essence of their fallen friend. They were certainly not going to do a ballad, so it fell on Brian Johnson to write a lyric that would rock, but also celebrate Scott without being morbid or literal.
Johnson says he wrote “Whatever came into my head,” which at the time he thought was nonsense. To the contrary, lines about abusing his nine lives and beating the rap summed up Scott perfectly, and his new bandmates loved it.
Bon Scott had several lyrical ideas for the album, but those were abandoned by the band in favor of new lyrics by Brian, Malcolm and Angus. Former AC/DC manager Ian Jeffrey claims to still have a folder that contains lyrics of 15 songs written for Back In Black by Bon, but Angus insists that all of Bon’s notebooks were given to his family.
This song was recorded in The Bahamas and produced in New York by Mutt Lange. Back In Black was one of the first big albums Lange produced. He went on to work with Def Leppard, Celine Dion, and Shania Twain (who he married in 1993). In the late-’70s, he produced two albums for the band Clover, which featured Huey Lewis on harmonica and Alex Call on lead vocals. Call explains Lange’s production style:
“Mutt is a real studio rat. He is Mr. Endurance in the studio. When we were making the records with him, he’d start working at 10:30, 11 in the morning and go until 3 at night, night after night. He is one of the guys that really developed that whole multi-multi-multi track recording. We’d do 8 tracks of background vocals going, “Oooooh” and bounce those down to one track and then do another 8, he was doing a lot of that. A lot of the things you hear on Def Leppard and that kind of stuff, he was developing that when he worked with us. We were the last record he did that wasn’t enormous, and that’s not his fault, he did a really good job with us. Mutt is famous for working long hours. The story I heard about one of the Shania sessions, he had Rob Hajakos, who’s one of the famous fiddle session men down here (Nashville). Rob was playing violin parts for like seven or eight hours and finally he said, ‘Can I take a break,’ and Mutt says, ‘What do you mean take a break?’ Rob goes, ‘Have you ever held one of these for eight hours under your chin?’ Mutt really loves to record, he loves music and he’s a real perfectionist and an innovator. An unbelievable commercial hook writer.” (Check out our full interview with Alex Call.)
This was the title track to AC/DC’s most popular album. It has sold over 19 million copies in the US, the 6th highest ever. Worldwide, it has sold over 40 million.
The Beastie Boys sampled this on their 1985 single “Rock Hard,” a single released in 1985 on Def Jam Records. They sampled it without AC/DC’s permission, so AC/DC refused to allow the Beastie Boys to include the song on their 1999 compilation album Beastie Boys Anthology: The Sounds of Science. >>
A remastered version is included on the 1997 Bon Scott tribute album, Bonfire.
The Atlanta Falcons football team used this as their theme song for a while. The Falcons also went through an MC Hammer phase, when they used “2 Legit 2 Quit” and let the rapper roam their sidelines.
This plays in the opening scene of the 2008 film Iron Man, providing an agressive intro to the Marvel Comic Universe movies. Other films to use the song include:
Grudge Match (2013) The Muppets (2011) Megamind (2010) The Karate Kid (2010) Brüno (2009) School of Rock (2003)
It was also used on episodes of
The Sopranos (“Cold Stones” – 2006) and Family Guy (“Peter Problems” – 2014).
This was used as the backing track to a bootleg version of Eminem’s 1999 hit “My Name Is” The song fits surprisingly well under Eminem’s rap.
Missy Elliott did a remix of this song called “Get Your Freak On (AC/DC remix)” that is played in the beginning of the movie The Rundown, starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Sean William Scott.
The Appalachian State Mountaineers football team use this song before and during their games, where it is a crowd favorite. The team colors are gold and black. >>
This features in a commercial for the 2015 Chevy Colorado pickup truck, where a mundane guy in a generic sedan is soundtracked with “Rainy Days And Mondays,” which becomes “Back In Black” when a much more exciting fellow comes into the shot and drives off in his black Colorado.
Kurt Cobain was given his first guitar for his 14th birthday, and this was the first song that he learned to play.
Back In Black
Back in black I hit the sack I’ve been too long I’m glad to be back Yes, I’m let loose From the noose That’s kept me hanging about I’ve been looking at the sky ‘Cause it’s gettin’ me high Forget the hearse ’cause I never die I got nine lives Cat’s eyes Abusin’ every one of them and running wild
‘Cause I’m back Yes, I’m back Well, I’m back Yes, I’m back Well, I’m back, back Well, I’m back in black Yes, I’m back in black
Back in the back Of a Cadillac Number one with a bullet, I’m a power pack Yes, I’m in a bang With a gang They’ve got to catch me if they want me to hang ‘Cause I’m back on the track And I’m beatin’ the flack Nobody’s gonna get me on another rap So look at me now I’m just makin’ my play Don’t try to push your luck, just get out of my way
‘Cause I’m back Yes, I’m back Well, I’m back Yes, I’m back Well, I’m back, back Well, I’m back in black Yes, I’m back in black
Well, I’m back, yes I’m back Well, I’m back, yes I’m back Well, I’m back, back Well I’m back in black Yes I’m back in black
Ho yeah Oh yeah Yes I am Oh yeah, yeah oh yeah Back in now Well I’m back, I’m back Back, (I’m back) Back, (I’m back) Back, (I’m back) Back, (I’m back) Back Back in black Yes I’m back in black Out of the sight
There are many versions of this old blues song but the one I know the best is Them featuring a 19-year-old Van Morrison on lead vocal. This song was the A-side to Gloria when it was released. Gloria ended up being the hit but this one managed to peak at #10 in 1961 and #65 in the UK in 1991.
Morrison based Them’s version on John Lee Hooker’s 1949 arrangement, which he titled “Don’t Go Baby.” He heard the song on Hooker’s 1959 Highway of Blues album.
A pre-Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page, a session musician at the time, played guitar on Them’s version. There’s debate over whether or not he wrote the guitar part or simply played what Them’s Billy Harrison came up with. Whether or not Page is actually the one playing is, itself, debated.
Blues great Big Joe Williams is credited with writing this song, but it was developed from a folk song titled “Long John,” which was recorded in 1934 by John and Alan Lomax for the Library of Congress. That recording captures the song being sung by black prisoners working at Darrington State Prison Farm in Texas. It was a popular tune there because “Long John” was about an escaped prisoner on the run from authorities.
Baby, Please Don’t Go
Baby, please don’t go Baby, please don’t go Baby, please don’t go Down to New Orleans You know I love you so Baby, please don’t go
Baby, your mind done gone Well, your mind done gone Left the county farm You had the shackles on Baby, please don’t go
Before I be your dog Before I be your dog Before I be your dog To git you way down here I make you walk alone Baby, please don’t go Hey
Baby, please don’t go Baby, please don’t go Baby, please don’t go Down to New Orleans You know I love you so Baby, please don’t go
Before I be your dog Before I be your dog Before I be your dog Git you way down here Make you walk alone Baby, please don’t go
Know how I feel right now My baby leavin’, on that midnight train And I’m cryin’
Baby, please don’t go Oh, baby please don’t go Baby, please don’t go Down to New Orleans You know I love you so Baby, please don’t go Let’s go
Before I be your dog Before I be your dog Before I be your dog To git you way down here I make you walk alone Baby, please don’t go, yeah
Yes, this song has been played to death but yes I still love it. Musically the acoustic guitar, mandolin, Rod’s scratchy voice, and those great bass lines that Ronnie Wood plays makes it so memorable. The 16-year-old me spent hours learning those bass lines.
Ray Jackson from the band Lindisfarne plays mandolin on this recording. This was the first big hit of the rock era to feature a mandolin, which was mostly heard in folk music. Stewart first used the instrument on Mandolin Wind, which was one of the first songs he recorded for the album Every Picture Tells a Story. He liked the results, so he used it on this song as well.
The song peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, # in the UK, #1 in Canaday, and #3 in New Zealand.
Rod Stewart has said the song is a true story of what happened to him at the Beaulieu Jazz Festival as a 16 year old…
Rod Stewart: “At 16, I went to the Beaulieu Jazz Festival in the New Forest. I’d snuck in with some mates via an overflow sewage pipe. And there on a secluded patch of grass, I lost my not-remotely-prized virginity with an older (and larger) woman who’d come on to me very strongly in the beer tent. How much older, I can’t tell you – but old enough to be highly disappointed by the brevity of the experience.”
The Beaulieu Jazz Festival was held in 1961…at the bottom I have a video and at the 13-second mark you can see a 16-year-old Rod Stewart there as a fan… right before he met ‘Maggie”
From Songfacts
This song was inspired by the woman who deflowered Stewart when he was 16. In the January 2007 issue of Q magazine, Stewart said: “‘Maggie May’ was more or less a true story, about the first woman I had sex with, at the Beaulieu Jazz Festival.”
With his reputation on the line, Stewart was nervous. He said the encounter was over “in a few seconds.”
The name “Maggie May” does not occur in the song; Rod borrowed the title from “Maggie Mae,” a Liverpool folk song about a Lime Street prostitute which the Beatles included on their Let It Be album.
Stewart liked the play on words the title created, sometimes introducing the song by saying, “This is ‘Maggie May’ – sometimes she did, sometimes she didn’t.”
This song came together when Stewart began working with guitarist Martin Quittenton from the band Steamhammer. They convened at Stewart’s house in Muswell Hill, where Quittenton played some chords that caught Rod’s ear. As he sussed out a vocal melody, he started singing the words to the folk song “Maggie Mae,” which got him thinking about that day 10 years earlier when he had a quick-and-dirty tryst. They made a demo with Stewart singing fractures lines. From there, he got to work on the lyrics, filling a notebook with ideas and arriving at a story about a guy who falls for an older woman and is now both smitten and perplexed.
“Maggie May” remains the biggest mondolin-based hit ever recorded, although the theme music for The Godfather, released the following year, may be more recognized.
Every Picture Tells A Story was Stewart’s third solo album, and the one that made him a superstar. At the time, he was still lead singer of the Faces, and for this session, which took place at Morgan Sound Studios in Willesden, England, he brought in two of his mates from that group: Ronnie Wood (guitar/bass) and Ian McLagan (organ). The other musicians were drummer Mickey Waller (he forgot to bring his cymbals to the session, so those were overdubbed later), guitarist Martin Quittenton and mandolin player Ray Jackson.
The song came together quickly in the studio, helped along by Jackson’s mandolin contribution. Jackson had been hired to perform on the song “Mandolin Wind,” which is why he was available. Stewart asked him to play something they might use to end the song, which he improvised on the spot.
This became a huge hit in England and America, topping both the UK and US charts at the same time. Every Picture Tells A Story was also the #1 album on both sides of the Atlantic, making him the first artist to have the #1 song and album in both the US and UK simultaneously. Stewart’s success in the UK was expected, as he had a following there as a member of the Faces, but he was little known in America before “Maggie May” took off.
There is no real chorus in this song, but plenty of vocal and instrumental changes to keep it interesting. Running 5:46, it was considered an oddity with no hit potential and nearly left off the album. Stewart’s record company, Mercury, didn’t think it was a hit either, so used it as the B-side of the “Reason To Believe” single. Disc jockeys liked “Maggie” better, so they played it instead, forcing Mercury to put it out as a single. The first station to flip the single and play it as the A-side was WOKY in Milwaukee.
Ray Jackson, a British musician who played in the band Lindisfarne, played the mandolin on this song and on a few others for Stewart. In 2003, Jackson threatened legal action against Stewart, claiming he deserved a writing credit for his contribution. Jackson, who says he made just the standard £15 session fee for his work, stated: “I am convinced that my contribution to ‘Maggie May,’ which occurred in the early stages of my career when I was just becoming famous for my work with Lindisfarne, was essential to the success of the record.”
Stewart employed Jackson on subsequent recordings, but didn’t hear about his beef with the composer credit until the ’80s. Stewart’s retort (through a spokesman): “As is always the case in the studio, any musical contributions he may have made were fully paid for at the time as ‘work-for-hire.'”
Adding insult is Jackson’s credit on the album notes, which reads: “The mandolin was played by the mandolin player in Lindisfarne. The name slips my mind.”
Jackson never brought the case to court, but his threat did illuminate his contribution and help publicize his artistic endeavors.
The 32-second mandolin intro that appears on the album version was added later. Written and played by Martin Quittenton, it was listed as a separate song called “Henry” on UK versions of Every Picture Tells A Story. This was Stewart’s way of giving Quittenton a bonus: no matter the length, any song on an album earns royalties for the writer.
This section was excised from the single release, which still came in at 5:11, far longer than most hit singles.
When this became a hit, Stewart’s popularity surpassed that of his group, so Faces shows started being billed as “The Faces with Rod Stewart,” making him the focus.
Stewart moved to America a few years after this came out. He was doing very well there, but also wanted to avoid the huge taxes England levied on high-income entertainers. This was around the same time The Rolling Stones left England for tax reasons. Their album Exile on Main St. is a reference to their “tax exile” status.
To see Rod…go to the 13 second mark
Maggie May
Wake up, Maggie, I think I got something to say to you It’s late September and I really should be back at school I know I keep you amused, but I feel I’m being used Oh, Maggie, I couldn’t have tried any more
You led me away from home, just to save you from being alone You stole my heart, and that’s what really hurts
The morning sun, when it’s in your face really shows your age But that don’t worry me none in my eyes, you’re everything I laughed at all of your jokes, my love you didn’t need to coax Oh, Maggie, I couldn’t have tried any more
You led me away from home, just to save you from being alone You stole my soul, and that’s a pain I can do without
All I needed was a friend to lend a guiding hand But you turned into a lover, and, mother, what a lover you wore me out All you did was wreck my bed, and in the morning, kick me in the head Oh, Maggie, I couldn’t have tried any more
You led me away from home ’cause you didn’t wanna be alone You stole my heart, I couldn’t leave you if I tried
I suppose I could collect my books and get on back to school Or steal my daddy’s cue and make a living out of playing pool Or find myself a rock ‘n’ roll band that needs a helping hand Oh, Maggie, I wished I’d never seen your face
You made a first-class fool out of me But I’m as blind as a fool can be You stole my heart, but I love you anyway
Maggie, I wished I’d never seen your face I’ll get on back home one of these days Ooh, ooh, ooh
Billy Taylor originally composed this gospel jazz song as I Wish I Knew in 1952. He was spurred to write the tune when his daughter Kim came home from school singing a spiritual.
The song served as an anthem for the Civil Rights Movement in America in the 1960s. Nina’s version was recorded in 1967 on her Silk & Soul album and was widely played.
Silk and Soul peaked at #158 in the Billboard Album Charts.
It’s a beautiful moving song.
From Songfacts
Billy Taylor recorded the tune as an instrumental with a big-band lineup of 19 musicians on November 12, 1963. Taylor’s first recording of the song was done 10 days before President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Once the lyrics were added, it became an anthem for the 1960s civil rights movement.
The musician’s daughter Kim, who became a law professor in New York, told The Financial Times the story how her father’s instrumental acquired lyrics.
“Dad initially recorded it as an instrumental. But, as I recall, he had written the first verse of the lyrics pretty early on. He got stuck at one point and invited [lyricist] Dick Dallas to collaborate to help him finish the lyrics and that’s when we got the later verses. I’ve always felt that there was a difference between the first verse and the later ones. I think you hear my dad’s voice most clearly in the first verse.”
Nina Simone covered the song in her 1967 album Silk & Soul. The following year, a recording by Solomon Burke reached #68 in the US charts. Other artists that have recorded versions of the tune include John Denver (1969) John Legend & The Roots (2010) and Emeli Sandé (2012).
The tune is widely known in the UK as a piano instrumental version, used for Film…, BBC Television’s long-running late night program about the cinema presented by Barry Norman. The version used by the BBC was recorded in 1967 by Taylor with a trio for his Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to be Free album.
Coca-Cola used the song to soundtrack a feelgood 2004 TV advert featuring Basement Jaxx vocalist Sharlene Hector. The lyrics were changed to the more sentimental, “I wish I could share all the love that’s in my heart.”
I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free
I wish I knew how It would feel to be free I wish I could break All the chains holding me I wish I could say
All the things that I should say Say ’em loud say ’em clear For the whole round world to hear I wish I could share All the love that’s in my heart
Remove all the bars That keep us apart I wish you could know What it means to be me Then you’d see and agree That every man should be free
I wish I could give All I’m longin’ to give I wish I could live Like I’m longin’ to live I wish I could do All the things that I can do And though I’m way over due I’d be starting a new
Well I wish I could be Like a bird in the sky How sweet it would be If I found I could fly Oh I’d soar to the sun And look down at the sea
Than I’d sing ’cause I know, yea Then I’d sing ’cause I know, yea Then I’d sing ’cause I know
I’d know how it feels Oh I know how it feels to be free Yea yea! oh, I know how it feels
Yes I know Oh, I know How it feels How it feels To be free
This track sums up the 70s Stones very well. Great riff, great tone, and great Mick Jagger vocal. This song and album were produced by Jimmy Miller who also played percussion on this track.
This song was on the album Sticky Fingers. The album peaked at #1 in the Billboard Album Charts, #1 in the UK and #1 in Canada in 1971.
The Stones played a shorter version of this song a few times before it was released on the Sticky Fingers album. These performances took place on their 11-date UK farewell tour before they left England to avoid taxes. After these shows, they didn’t play it live again until 2002, at which point they could bring alone plenty of musicians to support it.
Mick Taylor: “‘Can’t You Hear Me Knocking’ is one of my favorites. (The jam at the end) just happened by accident; that was never planned. Towards the end of the song I just felt like carrying on playing. Everybody was putting their instruments down, but the tape was still rolling and it sounded good, so everybody quickly picked up their instruments again and carried on playing. It just happened, and it was a one-take thing. A lot of people seem to really like that part.”
From Songfacts
This is an unusually long Stones track, running 7:14. Mick Jagger’s work is done by 2:45, however, as the groove plays out for the next four-and-a-half minutes. The Stones were experimenting with different styles around this time, and “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking?” has a distinct Santana influence.
This featured Bobby Keys on sax, Rocky Dijon on percussion, and Billy Preston on the organ. Keys, along with trumpet player Jim Price, joined The Stones on their 1970 European tour after performing on Sticky Fingers. His lengthy sax solo on this track wasn’t planned out, but once he got going, he kept blowing while the tape ran and Keith Richards loved it.
Probably best not to read too much into the lyrics of this one, since even Mick Jagger isn’t exactly sure what he wrote. As Robert Greenfield recounts in his book Ain’t It Time We Said Goodbye, shortly before the album was released, someone realized that the lyrics for this song and a few others had not been filed, making them impossible to copyright. Members of the Stones camp were dispatched to write down the words by listening to the acetate pressings, and on this song, the best they could come up with for one of the lines near the end was “I’ve got flatted feet, now.” Jagger insisted he didn’t write that line, but couldn’t remember what the real line was, so it stuck.
Andy Warhol designed the Sticky Fingers album cover. Before he started working on it, Mick Jagger send Warhol a note warning that a complicated design could cause nasty production delays, but nonetheless giving him total creative control. The artist responded with a cover that contained an actual working zipper, which of course was a production nightmare.
The cover, however, was one of the most memorable ever made. It showed a man wearing very tight jeans behind that working zipper – many folks assumed this was Mick Jagger, but it was actually Joe Dallesandro, a actor and Warhol cohort. Dallesandro appeared on the cover of the April 15, 1971 issue of Rolling Stone magazine; the album was released on April 23.
Jimmy Miller mixed records for The Spencer Davis Group and produced Steve Winwood’s next group, Traffic.
This was used in the movies Casino (1995), Blow (2001), Without a Paddle (2004) and The Fighter (2010).
Mick Taylor was lead guitarist for The Stones at the time. This was one of his earliest songs with the band – he replaced Brian Jones, who died in 1969.
This appears in the video game Guitar Hero II.
With mentions of “cocaine eyes” and “speed-freak jive,” this song contains some pretty obvious drug references, which makes sense considering the company the band was keeping at the time – pretty much everyone in their circle was doing drugs.
Can’t You Hear Me Knocking
Yeah, you got satin shoes Yeah, you got plastic boots Y’all got cocaine eyes Yeah, you got speed freak jive now
Can’t you hear me knockin’ On your window Can’t you hear me knockin’ On your door Can’t you hear me knockin’ Down your dirty street All right now
Help me baby I ain’t no stranger Help me baby I ain’t no stranger
Can’t you hear me knockin’ Are you safe asleep Can’t you hear me knockin’ Down your gaslight street Can’t you hear me knockin’ Throw me down the keys
Hear me ringin’ Big bell toll Hear me singin’ Soft and low I’ve been beggin’ On my knees I’ve been kickin’ Help me please
Hear me howlin’ I wanna take you down Hear me growlin’ Yeah, I got flatted feet now now now Hear me prowlin’ All around your street Hear me knockin’ All around your town
Draggin’ The Line was originally released on James’ second solo album, Christian Of The World. Draggin’ The Line wasn’t considered to be released as the single, and was ultimately was the B-side of the Church Street Soul Revival single. After DJs began playing the song, James went back into the studio to remix the record and add the horn charts. The song became James’ biggest solo hit peaking at #4 in the Billboard 100 in 1971.
Christian Of The World peaked at #131 in the Billboard Album Charts. Tommy’s backing band the Shondells were not on this record – the group broke up in 1970 and Tommy James continued to record as a solo artist.
Tommy James: “It’s almost like the bass guitar was speaking. And it just seemed to say ‘draggin’ the line’ to me. It’s weird. But we had the track before we had the song, and it was like the bass was speaking.”
“The line of ‘hugging a tree’ in there became kind of a slang expression for people who are interested in the ecology. ‘Tree Hugger’ came from that song.”
From Songfacts
In our interview with Tommy James, he explained: “‘Draggin’ The Line’ I wrote up at my farm in 1970, and it was with Bob King. My farm was in upstate New York, I had a couple hundred acres. It was a song I probably couldn’t have written in the city. We just kind of toyed with it. We wrote it, and it was a very repetitious track, and a very sort of hypnotic track. We had the track before we had the song. We went into the studio and just laid down, I don’t know, eight or ten bars of track. We looped it and looped it and looped it, and created the hypnotic rhythm. Bob played bass, Russ Leslie from Neon played drums, and I played guitar. And so we just created loops of tape based on this little riff, and when we had three-plus minutes of it put together we stopped, and then we wrote the song around the track. Second time I had ever done that – first one was “Mony” actually. ‘Draggin’ the Line’ just meant working every day. Nothing really very mysterious about it.”
Regarding the lyrics, “My dog Sam eats purple flowers,” James says: “I did have a cat named Sam – not a dog named Sam. He was a white Persian cat. That was just finding words that fit together (laughing) on a very mellow night, if you get my drift.”
Like many famous songs, this was not considered a hit at first. Says James: “The interesting thing about ‘Draggin’ the Line’ is it was originally the B-side, it was the flip-side of a record called ‘Church Street Soul Revival’ that I had out in 1970. And we put the record out, and the B-side got as much airplay as the A-side, and then finally more airplay. And so we could tell that radio wanted to go with ‘Draggin’ The Line.’ So we went into the studio and threw horns on it, and remixed it with more emphasis on the groove, and re-released it then as an A-side in 1971, and it went #1.”
Draggin’ The Line
Makin’ a livin’ the old, hard way. Takin’ and givin’ by day by day. I dig snow and rain and the bright sunshine. Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line].
My dog, Sam, eats purple flowers. Ain’t got much, but what we got’s ours. We dig snow and rain and the bright sunshine. Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line]. Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line].
I feel fine. I’m talkin’ ’bout peace of mind. I’m gonna take my time. I’m gettin’ the good sign. Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line]. Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line].
Lovin’ the free and feelin’ spirit Of hugging a tree, when you get near it. Diggin’ the snow and rain and the bright sunshine. Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line]. Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line].
I feel fine. I’m talkin’ ’bout peace of mind. I’m gonna take my time. I’m gettin’ the good sign. Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line]. Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line].
Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line]. La la la la la la la-la-la. Draggin’ the line [draggin’ the line]. La la la la la la la.
Mac Davis and Billy Strange wrote this for the 1968 Elvis movie Live A Little, Love A Little.
A remix of this song drove it up the UK charts in 2002
This was a fairly obscure Elvis song until it was remixed and released as a single in 2002. The new version went to #1 in the UK, giving Elvis 18 #1 hits there, the most of any artist. Previously, he was tied with The Beatles at 17. Because of rereleases he now has 21 number ones in the UK. The original release went to #69 in the Billboard 100 in 1968. In 2002 the remix version peaked higher at #50 in the Billboard 100.
I usually don’t like remixes like this but I do like this one somewhat.
The distinctive drum part on this song was played by Hal Blaine, who along with Earl Palmer was the top session drummer on the West Coast at the time.
The remix was released shortly before the 25th anniversary of Elvis’ death. It was added as a bonus track to Hits, an album of 30 #1 hits released on the 25th anniversary of his death. The record company was hoping to attract a new generation of Elvis fans the same way The Beatles did when they released their album of #1 hits in 2000.
From Songfacts Davis wrote the original version for Aretha Franklin, but when Billy Strange, who was handling music for the film, approached Davis about contributing a song, he realized that “A Little Less Conversation” fit the scene perfectly, so he reworked it with strange and Elvis sang it for the film.
The remix gained popularity in England when it was used in a Nike World Cup commercial featuring British soccer player Eric Cantona. The remix was done by Dutch DJ Tom Holkenburg, a member of the group Junkie XL. For the remix, the name of the group was changed to JXL because Presley’s estate did not welcome the drug reference. This was the first time an Elvis song was allowed to be remixed.
The official title of the remix is “Elvis vs. JXL – A Little Less Conversation.” Presley’s vocals were left intact.
The original version was used in the 2001 remake of the movie Ocean’s Eleven, starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Julia Roberts.
Elvis’ daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, was born the year this was released.
The remix helped introduce Elvis to a younger generation. The memory of Elvis also got a boost when 8 of his songs were used in the Disney movie Lilo And Stitch around the same time.
Former Vermont governor Howard Dean used this as his campaign song when he ran for the Democratic nomination in 2003. His message was that he was a man of action, not words. Another candidate considered the song, but decided it had too much sexual innuendo.
This is used as the theme song to the television show Las Vegas.
Mitt Romney used this as his campaign song when he ran for president of the United States in 2008. According to Romney staffer Alex Burgos, this song “Underscores Governor Romney’s promise to bring change to a broken Washington. He believes there needs to be more action to address our nation’s challenges, with less talk and partisan bickering.”
A Little Less Conversation
A little less conversation, a little more action, please All this aggravation ain’t satisfactioning me A little more bite and a little less bark A little less fight and a little more spark Close your mouth and open up your heart and, baby, satisfy me Satisfy me, baby
Baby, close your eyes and listen to the music Drifting through a summer breeze It’s a groovy night and I can show you how to use it Come along with me and put your mind at ease A little less conversation, a little more action, please All this aggravation ain’t satisfactioning me A little more bite and a little less bark A little less fight and a little more spark
Close your mouth and open up your heart and, baby, satisfy me (Satisfy me) Satisfy me baby (satisfy me) Come on, baby, I’m tired of talking Grab your coat and let’s start walking Come on, come on (come on, come on) Come on, come on (come on, come on) Come on, come on (come on, come on)
Don’t procrastinate, don’t articulate Girl, it’s getting late, gettin’ upset waitin’ around A little less conversation, a little more action, please All this aggravation ain’t satisfactioning me A little more bite and a little less bark A little less fight and a little more spark Close your mouth and open up your heart and, baby, satisfy me (Satisfy me) Satisfy me baby (satisfy me)
Come on, baby, I’m tired of talking Grab your coat and let’s start walking Come on, come on (come on, come on) Come on, come on (come on, come on) Come on, come on (come on, come on)
Don’t procrastinate, don’t articulate Girl, it’s getting late, gettin’ upset waitin’ around A little less conversation, a little more action, please All this aggravation ain’t satisfactioning me A little more bite and a little less bark A little less fight and a little more spark Close your mouth and open up your heart and, baby, satisfy me (Satisfy me) Satisfy me (satisfy me)
“Family Affair,” was on the album There’s A Riot Goin’ On and the last Sly & The Family Stone song to hit #1.
The song’s rhythm was provided by a drum machine, making it one of the earliest hit recordings and the first #1 single to use such a device. The song peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, #1 in Canada, #15 in the UK, and #11 in New Zealand.
Sly did not use the Family Stone for this recording. His friend Billy Preston played the keyboard lines in the song with Sly also playing keyboard as well as guitar, bass, and programming the rhythm box. His sister Rose sang with him and Bobby Womack played rhythm guitar.
From Songfacts
According to Dave Marsh’s book 1001 Greatest Songs, Sly Stone’s manager told Rolling Stone that Family Affair was the story of Sly’s own life, which was being cut up by the factions that surrounded him in his stardom. Chief among those factions, David Kapralik hinted, was Sly’s own family. Sly denied this. He told Rolling Stone, “Song’s not about that. Song’s about a family affair, whether it’s a result of genetic processes or a situation in the environment.” There was a rumor at the time that Stone had written it in response to demands made on him by black nationalist groups, who didn’t approve of his integrationist sensibility.
According to the Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs, when There’s A Riot Goin’ On came out in 1971, a reporter mentioned the rumor that Sly Stone had played all the instruments himself, and he asked Sly just how much he played. “I’ve forgotten, man,” Stone said. “Whatever was left.”
Family Affair
It’s a family affair, it’s a family affair It’s a family affair, it’s a family affair
One child grows up to be Somebody that just loves to learn And another child grows up to be Somebody you’d just love to burn
Mom loves the both of them You see it’s in the blood Both kids are good to Mom “Blood’s thicker than mud”
It’s a family affair, it’s a family affair Newlywed a year ago But you’re still checking each other out Nobody wants to blow
Nobody wants to be left out You can’t leave, ’cause your heart is there But you can’t stay, ’cause you been somewhere else!
You can’t cry, ’cause you’ll look broke down But you’re cryin’ anyway ’cause you’re all broke down!
Another song that I first heard on the show Life On Mars.
This song peaked at #1 in the UK and #73 in the Billboard 100 in 1973.
When I first heard it…I thought it had the same riff as David Bowie’s Jean Genie. The songs were recorded at roughly the same time and both Bowie and the Sweet agreed it was a coincidence. Both songs are takeoffs on a Muddy Waters riff.
Guitarist Andy Scott after being played Jean Genie : “We sat there with horrified looks on our faces. The guy asked what was wrong, and we said ‘That’s the same f—ing guitar riff as Blockbuster” He said, ‘Well, it’s quite similar isn’t it?’ ‘It’s the f—ing same!’
“I got on the blower to Nicky Chinn and said, ‘We can’t release this.’ He said, ‘Don’t worry, they’re completely different kinds of records and I predict this will be a number one.’ I thought, ‘Good luck with that.’ But he was proved right. A few weeks later, we were at number one and Bowie was at number two.”
From Songfacts
In December 1973, David Bowie’s “The Jean Genie” peaked at #2 in the UK charts. The following month, this song went one better going all the way to #1. Both songs used the same Yardbirds riff from Bo Diddley’s “I’m A Man.”
This proved to be The Sweet’s only British #1, and it stayed at the top for five weeks. Their next three releases stalled at #2: “Hell Raiser,” “Ballroom Blitz” and “Teenage Rampage.”
This song featured an air-raid siren over a decade before one was used on Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s “Two Tribes.”
This was used in the 2000 film Gangster #1.
The team of Mike Chapman and Nicky Chinn wrote this song. Chinn said in 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh, “Every part of a song is important and how you get into it is especially important. You have to catch the public’s attention the second that the record comes on. Look at Blockbuster with its siren. You catch the attention immediately.”
Blockbuster!
Ahh ahhh, ahh ahhh You better beware, you better take care You better watch out if you’ve got long black hair He’ll come from behind, you’ll go out of your mind You better not go, you never know what you’ll find Ahh ahh, ahh ahhh
Can’t look into his eyes, you’ll be surprised If don’t know what going on behind his disguse Nobody knows where buster goes He’ll steal your woman out from under your nose
Does anyone know the way, did we hear someone say (We just haven’t got a clue what to do) Does anyone know the way, there’s got to be a way To blockbuster
The cops are out, they’re running about Don’t know if they’ll ever be able to blockbuster out He’s gotta be caught, he’s gotta be taught ‘Cause he is more evil then anyone here ever thought
Does anybody know the way, did we hear someone say (We just haven’t got a aho) Does anybody know the way, there’s got to be a way To blockbuster
Does anybody know the way, did we hear someone say (We just haven’t got a clue what to do) Does anybody know the way, there’s got to be a way To blockbuster
This song had a resurgence in the 90s because of the movie Pulp Fiction. Urge Overkill did a cover that was included in the movie and soundtrack.
Neil Diamond is protective of his songs, initially refused to let Tarantino use it as he hated the violent script. However, he was probably glad he relented as the success of the song put Diamond back on the radar after a period when he wasn’t having hits. Urge Overkill’s version reached #37 in the UK, and Diamond’s back catalog got a huge bump in sales.
Urge Overkill didn’t fare as well. After serving as the opening act for both Nirvana and Pearl Jam, they got a major label deal with Geffen Records and released the album Saturation. Their next album flopped, and they disbanded in 1997. They reformed in 2004 and have performed from time to time.
The song peaked at #10 in the Billboard 100 in 1967. For Urge Overkill it peaked at #59 in the Billboard 100, #37 in the UK, and #19 in New Zealand in 1994.
From Songfacts
Diamond wrote this one for the ladies, which made up most of his fan base. David Wild wrote in his book He Is…I Say: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Neil Diamond, “When Diamond first recorded the slow, seductively sensitive song in 1967, it solidified his growing connection with his female fan base, many of whom are apparently still following him all these years later, even if they are no longer properly addressed as ‘girl.’ Diamond has said that the song was written for all those teenaged girls who would show up at his earliest tour dates and vocally express their tremendous support.”
In 1994 a cover by alternative rock band Urge Overkill appeared prominently in Quentin Tarantino’s movie Pulp Fiction.
Tarantino recalled to Rolling Stone that he found the Urge Overkill version “on an EP in a little record store in Holland, so I picked it up and thought, ‘Wow, that’s a really cool track.’ And it just kept staying with me and staying with me. So then I worked the scene out with Uma [Thurman] and it ended up working fantastic, it became very iconic.”
Urge Overkill’s Eddie “King” Roeser recalled to Mojo magazine: “We did our version of ‘Girl You’ll Be A Woman Soon’ from memory. The lyrics, I don’t even know if they go that way. It speeds up, the fills are all over the place, it’s out of tune.”
In addition to Pulp Fiction, these movies have used the song:
War Dogs (2016) The Upside of Anger (2005) Sorority Boys (2002)
And these TV series:
Supernatural (“Our Little World” – 2015) Friends (“The One with the Stoned Guy” – 1995) Family Ties (“The Fugitive: Part 1” – 1983)
Girl You’ll Be A Woman Soon
Love you so much, can’t count all the ways I’d die for you girl, and all they can say is “He’s not your kind”
They never get tired of puttin’ me down And I never know when I come around What I’m gonna find Don’t let them make up your mind Don’t you know
Girl, you’ll be a woman soon Please come take my hand Girl, you’ll be a woman soon Soon you’ll need a man
I’ve been misunderstood for all of my life But what they’re sayin’, girl, just cuts like a knife “The boy’s no good”
Well, I finally found what I’ve been looking for But if they get the chance, they’ll end it for sure Sure they would Baby, I’ve done all I could It’s up to you
Girl, you’ll be a woman soon Please come take my hand Girl, you’ll be a woman soon Soon you’ll need a man
This song is a guilty pleasure of mine that takes me back to childhood. It is an earworm but I can’t help but like it. The song and video are pure seventies. So put on your Keep On Trucking shirt, eat some fondue and listen to Mouth and MacNeal.
The song does have a good pop melody running through it.
Mouth & MacNeal were Willem “Mouth” Duyn and Maggie MacNeal (real name Sjoukje Van’t Spijker), a pop duo formed in the Netherlands in 1971 by Hans van Hemert, a record producer who saw the value in adding two moderately successful solo artists to make one great team.
Mouth & MacNeal broke up soon after “How Do You Do?” to go back to their respective solo careers. Willem “Mouth” Duyn passed away from a heart attack in 2004 at age 67; Maggie MacNeal went on with her solo career.
The song peaked at #8 in the Billboard 100, #1 in New Zealand, and #2 in Canada in 1972.
From Songfacts
This is Mouth & MacNeal’s biggest claim to fame and their only hit in the US. To clear up some confusion, this song has nothing to do with Natasha Bedingfield’s 2007 “How Do You Do?” – give them both a listen, they’re completely different songs.
Mouth & MacNeal had a moderately successful career in Scandinavia and Europe, but never again charted in the US. Amongst their other notable hits were “I See a Star,” which hit #1 in Ireland, “Hey You Love,” which charted #5 in the Dutch Top 40, and “Hello-A.” They also made an appearance on the Eurovision Song Contest, once coming in third behind ABBA.
I want that hat and green vest…I mean who wouldn’t?
How Do You Do
Once I said I wanted you, I don’t remember why I often wonder if it’s true, that you could make me cry I only know it’s long ago, you said, I love you too But I got one solution left, we’re gonna start anew
How do you do? mmm mmm I thought why not, na-na, na-na Just me and you And then we can, na-na, na-na Just like before And you will say, na-na, na-na Please give me more And you will think, na-na, na-na Hey, that’s what I am living for
How do you do? hoe-hoe
Once I said I wanted you and I remember why I often wonder if it’s true, you still can make me cry And now it’s not so long ago, you said, I love you too ‘Cause I had one solution left and that’s to start anew
This is one of the first Elton John songs I remember hearing. It’s a great song that I wore out when I got his first greatest hits. The song was written by Bernie Taupin and Elton John.
The song peaked at #2 in the Billboard 100 in 1973. The song was off of the album Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only The Piano Player which peaked at #1.
When Elton wrote the music for this song, he chopped off the last verse because he thought the song was already too long. The deleted verse explained that “Daniel” was a Vietnam vet who returned home to the farm after the war, couldn’t find peace, and decided to leave America and go to Spain. With the last verse chopped off, it became a fairly vague story of two brothers who part ways, although Bernie Taupin says that losing the verse wasn’t a big deal.
Bernie Taupin: “We had that whole thing about the missing verse that everybody seems to believe explained the true meaning of the song. I think that’s just an urban legend. It didn’t really explain anything. Sure, it was cut out. But that used to happen all the time with our songs. I would often overwrite, and Elton felt it necessary to edit somewhat. But believe me, it didn’t say anything that the rest of the song didn’t say.”
From Songfacts
The lyrics were written by Bernie Taupin, Elton’s writing partner. He explained the inspiration on his web site: “I’d seen this article in Time magazine on the Tet Offensive. And there was a sidebar next to it with a story about how many of the soldiers that were coming back from ‘Nam were these simple sort of down home country guys who were generally embarrassed by both the adulation and, depending on what part of the country you came from, the animosity that they were greeted by. For the most part, they just wanted to get back to a normal life, but found it hard, what with all the looky loos and the monkeys of war that they carried on their backs.
I just took it from there and wrote it from a younger brother’s perspective; made him disabled and wanting to get away. I made it Spain, basically, because it rhymes with plane.”
This was written and recorded the same day at the the Chateau d’Herouville in France (the “Honky Chateau”), where Elton and his team retreated to make the album. Bernie Taupin wrote the lyrics one morning at the recording studio and brought them downstairs to Elton, who put music to it and recorded it with the band that day, doing just three takes.
Stowing away to France was Elton’s way of entering a creative environment free from distractions – there was no entourage and no phones. The Chateau could even keep the Black Knight at bay, as it was surrounded by a moat.
The result was part a very productive songwriting period for Taupin and John, who composed 12 songs over a four-day period, including “Daniel.”
Elton called this song “a calypso-type number with Everley Brothers-type harmonies.”
The record company didn’t want to release this as a single because they thought it was too long and somber to be a hit. Elton had other ideas, and insisted they release it as a single before the album came out. The record company did, but with very little promotion. It became a hit anyway.
According to Elton John: The Definitive Biography, here’s how the album got its title: While in Los Angeles, Elton was introduced to the legendary comedian Groucho Marx. They hit it off, but Groucho was always giving Elton a hard time about his name, insisting that he must have it backwards and really be John Elton. After Groucho refused to lay off the name thing at a party, Elton threw up his hands and said jokingly: “Don’t shoot me, I’m just the piano player.”
Bernie Taupin has told a different story, claiming that he found the phrase on a plaque at an American junk shop.
The engineer on the album, Ken Scott, played an ARP synthesizer on this track.
Bernie Taupin called this “the most misinterpreted song we’ve ever written,” saying he’s heard it called a gay anthem and a song about a family dispute.
Daniel
Daniel is traveling tonight on a plane I can see the red tail lights heading for Spain Oh and I can see Daniel waving goodbye God it looks like Daniel, must be the clouds in my eyes
They say Spain is pretty, though I’ve never been Well Daniel says it’s the best place that he’s ever seen Oh and he should know, he’s been there enough Lord I miss Daniel, oh I miss him so much
Oh oh, Daniel my brother you are older than me Do you still feel the pain of the scars that won’t heal? Your eyes have died, but you see more than I Daniel you’re a star in the face of the sky
Oh oh, Daniel my brother you are older than me Do you still feel the pain of the scars that won’t heal? Your eyes have died, but you see more than I Daniel you’re a star in the face of the sky
Daniel is traveling tonight on a plane I can see the red tail lights heading for Spain Oh and I can see Daniel waving goodbye God it looks like Daniel, must be the clouds in my eyes Oh God it looks like Daniel, must be the clouds in my eyes
Deep Purple would change before too long to their most famous era of the band in the early seventies. Soon singer Rod Evans and bassist Nick Simper would be gone in 1969 and singer Ian Gillian and bassist Roger Glover would be in…and the most famous version of Deep Purple would last from 1969-1973 with reunions in the 80s and 90s.
This was written by Joe South and first recorded by the country singer Billy Joe Royal in 1967. Joe South was a prominent session musician and songwriter; some of his other compositions include “Games People Play” and “Rose Garden.” South also wrote “Down in the Boondocks” for Royal, which was a #9 US hit in 1965.
For Deep Purple, the song peaked at #4 in the Billboard 100 in 1968.
The Deep Purple version was included on their first album and recorded with the band’s original lineup, which didn’t include lead singer Ian Gillan, who joined in 1969, replacing Rod Evans. The song is a fan favorite, but Gillan kept it off the setlists when he was in the band since he wasn’t the original singer.
The band is still touring today without Ritchie Blackmore who quit and Jon Lord who died in 2012.
From Songfacts
After Royal released his version, “Hush” was quickly recorded by many artists in a variety of styles. The song is about a guy who is so crazy in love that he’ll drop everything if he thinks she might be calling his name. Royal’s recording has a definite country feel, while Deep Purple used a heavy rock sound.
Other artists to record the song include Jimmy Frey, The Rubes, Killdozer, Dan Baird, Gotthard and Thin Lizzy. Kula Shaker had the biggest UK hit with their cover going to #2 in 1997.
Joe South adapted the song from an old African American spiritual, which included the line: “Hush I thought I heard Jesus calling my name.”
It was a cohort of producer Joe Meek, Rod Freeman, who taught Deep Purple this song. Keyboardist Jon Lord recalled to Mojo magazine January 2009: “Initially we thought it’s a bit too disco, or whatever the word was then. But Ritchie (Blackmore) said it would work if we toughened it up a bit.”
This song has been in the following films: Apollo 11 (1996), Isn’t She Great (2000), Beyond the Sea (2004), Children of Men (2006).
The UK Charlatans lifted the organ riff on their 1990 UK hit “The Only One I Know” from this song.
This was not a hit in Deep Purple’s native UK, though a re-recording made to celebrate their 20th anniversary reached a measly #62 in 1988.
In 1997 British band Kula Shaker’s cover of this song peaked at #2 in the UK, bettering Deep Purple’s chart position by 60 places. Kula Shaker’s version featured in the 1997 film I Know What You Did Last Summer.
Jon Lord (from Mojo magazine): “The whacka thing on the organ was something I started doing in (his previous band) The Artwoods. I played it almost like a set of conga drums. The rhythm of Hush is like a samba.” When Steve Morse joined Deep Purple on guitar in 1994, he pushed to bring the song back to their live shows, which they did. “We have a big improv section in there and it’s just a great feel from beginning to end for me,” Morse said in our 2014 interview. “And the lyrics are not even lyrics. It’s just ‘Na nana na na na nananana.’ It’s the most basic tune in the world, but to me Deep Purple got on the map as a hard rock band from doing that version of ‘Hush.’ So I love that. And we stretch that out pretty far live.”
In the US, this was released on Tetragrammaton Records, which was co-owned by Bill Cosby.
Hush
Na na na na na na Na na na na na na I got a certain little girl she’s on my mind No doubt about it she looks so fine She’s the best girl that I ever had Sometimes she’s gonna make me feel so bad
Na na na na na na Na na na na na na Hush, hush I thought I heard her calling my name now Hush, hush She broke my heart but I love her just the same now Hush, hush Thought I heard her calling my name now Hush, hush I need her loving and I’m not to blame now
(Love, love) they got it early in the morning (Love, love) they got it late in the evening (Love, love) well, I want that, need it (Love, love) oh, I gotta gotta have it
She’s got loving like quicksand Only took one touch of her hand To blow my mind and I’m in so deep That I can’t eat and I can’t sleep
Na na na na na na Na na na na na na Listen hush, hush Thought I heard her calling my name now Hush, hush She broke my heart but I love her just the same now Hush, hush Thought I heard her calling my name now Hush, hush I need her loving and I’m not to blame now
(Love, love) they got it early in the morning (Love, love) they got it late in the evening (Love, love) well, I want that, need it (Love, love) oh, I gotta gotta have it
Na na na na na na Na na na na na na Na na na na na na
PowerPop... An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture 