I really like the mood of this one. It reminds me of Fever but it is different. A very finger-snapping song. It was written by Buddy Blue (Bernard Seigal). I could picture this being played in a blues club in the 50s or 60s…such a groove to it…and it swings…slowly. After listening to it a couple of times I was hooked on it. I feel like I found a gem that no one knows about.
Originally a member of bands like The Beat Farmers and The Jacks, Buddy Blue was a figure in the roots rock and Americana genres. When I was on my break I was listening to different music but this is one of the guys I was listening to.
It was released in 2000 on the album Diposmania. He also did a different version of the song in his 2003 album Sordid Lives. I like the original version a little more because it’s more minimalist and his solo in the middle is fantastic.
He was the frontman and guitarist for The Beat Farmers. Buddy Blue’s musical roots began to paint its first strokes on the canvas of American rock ‘n’ roll. The band’s fusion of rock, punk, and country elements was a sonic cocktail that left audiences thirsty for more. With Blue’s vocals leading the band, The Beat Farmer’s energy became their trademark.
This song has a nice blues/jazz feel that I love. The sound sounds modern but also goes back to the 1950s.
Upsettin’ Me
The way you move when you walk in your black satin high heel shoes
Your perfume and your deep green eyes turn me into a fool
Well look on your faces everywhere I go
The heat of your body is all that I want to know
I’m never going to give you up baby you’re upsetting me
Nobody else can love you the way that your daddy do
Can’t you feel better at all I’m raising my flag just for you
Well I don’t have no money or fancy things
But Buddy is going to give you everything that you need
I’m never going to give you up you’re upsetting me
How you’re upsetting me
With your skin so sweet and your lips such a ruby red
You bending my soul baby yet and deep inside of my head
Well I tell you one thing honey ain’t no Lie
Another man touch you and he’s going to die
I’m never going to give you up babe you’re upsetting me
Yeah you’re upsetting me
Yeah you’re upsetting me
The guy was only with us for a few short years but boy he made a huge mark. I had a Buddy Holly marathon while painting and this song stood out. Without Buddy, rock music would have been drastically different. Buddy was a self-contained artist who wrote, arranged, and recorded his own songs. His chord changes and melodies were different from fellow rockers Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, and Chuck Berry. I have always thought that Buddy was the father of power pop.
The song was credited to Joe B. Mauldin, Niki Sullivan, and Norman Petty but some think Holly wrote the majority of it. It was also covered by Blondie on their Parallel Lines Album. Holly released the song in 1957. It’s on the self-titled Buddy Holly album released on Coral Records. This album contained the classics Peggie Sue, Everyday, Rave On, and Worlds of Love.
William Ruhlmann, who is an American rock critic, said this about the ownership of the song. The song is credited to Joe B. Mauldin, Holly’s bass player; Norman Petty, his producer; and Nikki Sullivan, his sometime rhythm guitarist (who was not heard on the recording). There have long been questions about the songwriting credits assigned to the original songs Holly recorded, and Jerry Allison, his drummer, has gone on record stating that “I’m Gonna Love You Too” actually was written primarily by Holly, with Allison composing the bridge. Certainly the song sounds characteristic of the man who wrote “That’ll Be the Day.” It is another up-tempo number with an infectious tune and boastful lyrics that only thinly veil heartbreak.
Buddy Holly was among the first group of inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked Holly #13 among “The 100 Greatest Artists of All Time”.
What really hurts about Holly’s career is that he was just getting started. He had matured and was experimenting more than his rocking peers. Fortunately for all of us, he left behind a significant musical catalog that still influences new and old artists today.
It’s a-gonna happen, a-some day You’re gonna see things a-my way Yes, you’re gonna say you’ll a-love me ‘Cause I’m a-gonna love you too
A-you’re gonna tell me a-sweet things You’re gonna make a-my heart sing Yes, a-you’re gonna hear those a-bells ring ‘Cause I’m a-gonna love you too
After all, another fella took you But I still can’t overlook you I’m a-gonna do my best to hook ya After all is said and done
A-you’re gonna say you’ve a-missed me A-you’re gonna say you’ll a-kiss me Yes, you’re gonna say you’ll a-love me ‘Cause I’m a-gonna love you too I’m a-gonna love you too I’m a-gonna love you too
I’ve been reading about the Beatle’s early days when they were leather-bound hoodlums on the streets of Hamburg and Liverpool. Liverpool had a lot of bands and they tended to do the same songs. The Beatles broke out of that by picking B sides rather than playing a top 40 hit every time. They had excellent taste. They played this one in Hamburg at the Star Club. If you haven’t heard the low-quality album Beatles Live At the Star Club…it’s worth listening to. It’s The Beatles in rock/punk mode.
Eddie Fontaine, singer and actor, released this song in 1958. It has it all…twangy 1950s guitar and a cool lyric to boot. Eddie Fontaine never became a major name in rock and roll but his song left an impression on a generation of young rockers.
Eddie was from Massachusetts and RCA signed him in 1954 as a vocalist. He first gained attention as a singer with his single Cool It, Baby in 1956, which had moderate success. It was featured in the film The Girl Can’t Help It. However, Nothin’ Shakin in 1958 brought him more recognition, especially within the rockabilly crowd.
Eddie was an actor as well. He has 27 actor credits in IMDB. He appeared in TV shows like 77 Sunset Strip, The Wild Wild West, Ironside, Kojak, Planet of the Apes, Baretta, and many more.
This song peaked at #64 on the Billboard 100 in 1958. Below is a more refined Beatles version they did on the BBC radio and the original by Eddie himself.
Nothin’ Shakin’
I’m finding out what love is all about And every day at three when school lets out I see my baby I get weak in the knees There’s nothin’ shakin’ but the leaves on the trees Why must she be such a doggone tease? There’s nothin’ shakin’ but the leaves on the trees
We meet the gang and go to Rockin’ Joe’s The cats are stompin’ on their heels and toes I grab my baby, tried to give her a squeeze Nothin’ shakin’ but the leaves on the trees My daddy told me there’d be times like these There’s nothin’ shakin’ but the leaves on the trees
She’s got a way that makes me act like a fool Oh, she spends my money then she plays me cruel I’m beggin’ her for kisses on bended knees Gimme some lovin’ baby, please, please, please
But I keep trying hard to make her mine Someday the wind will blow, the sun will shine Until that time she puts my heart at ease There’s nothin’ shakin’ but the leaves on the trees She locked my heart and threw away the keys There’s nothin’ shakin’ but the leaves on the trees Ha ha ha!
Nothin’ shakin’ but the leaves on the trees She’s got a way that makes me act like a fool Oh, spends my money then she plays me cruel I’m beggin’ for her kisses on bended knees Why don’t ya gimme some lovin’ baby, please, please, please
But I keep trying hard to make her mine Someday the wind will blow, the sun will shine Until that time she puts my heart at ease There’s nothin’ shakin’ but the leaves on the trees Why must she be such a doggone tease? There’s nothin’ shakin’ but the leaves on the trees Nothin’ shakin’ but the leaves on the trees Nothin’ shakin’, oh shakin’
I’ve seen the man live 8 times and this song…I saw him play one time. Whenever you see Bob Dylan you usually get a variety of songs. He is not an oldies show…he will throw in some but he doesn’t do a Vegas Greatest Hits show.
I don’t post many Dylan songs…not because I’m not a huge fan…like I said I’ve seen the man 8 times. If I get a chance, I’ll see him 8 more times. When you post a Dylan song you almost feel the urge to do an interpretation of the song…I have no interest in doing that. It would lead me down too many roads. Some people are good at that though…I’m not.
Dylan was growing frustrated with the recording in New York so producer Bob Johnston mentioned Nashville. Dylan’s manager at the time, Albert Grossman, told Johnston if he ever mentioned Nashville again that he would fire him. Didn’t work…Dylan ended up recording Blonde On Blonde in Nashville. He would also go to record more here as well.
This song was one of my many favorites of this album. Dylan is still going in 2024, but this was his peak for me. In the mid-60s, Dylan was on fire, cranking out songs that blurred the lines between folk, rock, blues, and poetry. Dylan later described the sound of Blonde on Blonde as “that thin, wild mercury sound”—a phrase as cryptic as Bob can be. What does that mean exactly? No one knows for sure, but the music does have a thin sound… almost surreal quality to it.
In Al Kooper’s book, he talked about some of the stories that Johnston shared making the album. Kooper said that Bob Johnston shared one of the wilder stories from those sessions, one that captures the vibe of those late-night Nashville nights. He recounted an incident involving a blind keyboard player nicknamed Pig (Hargus “Pig” Robbins), who played on the album.
Pig was hanging out with some drunk friends one night when he suddenly declared, “I wanna drive. You so-and-so’s move over and let me navigate this Cadillac!” And because this was Nashville in the 60s, and because his buddies were drunker than Pig, they actually pulled over and let him behind the wheel.
Now, picture this… A blind man is driving a car down the highway, while a bunch of rowdy passengers coach him from the front seat: “A little to the left … good … now a little to the right … speed up a bit…” And for a few glorious moments, they were pulling it off until the red-and-blue lights of the Tennessee Highway Patrol appeared in the rearview. They panicked and had Pig pull over, but what happened next? Johnston said people were laughing too hard by then to care how it ended.
Bob released 5 singles from this double album. He had two top 10 hits, two top 40 hits out of it. This was the end of an era for Bob. After this album, he had a motorcycle accident and he changed his songwriting style. He followed this album with John Wesley Harding and Nashville Skyline which was nothing like his earlier music.
The musicians on this album included Robbie Roberston, Al Kooper, Rick Danko, Kenny Buttrey, Charlie McCoy, and Charlie McCoy. After this, his songs became a little less wordy and chaotic and became more structured.
I checked on “Pig” for information about the blind session man. It looks like Pig drove a lot when given a chance. Walter Haynes was a Nashville studio session man and he told this story. “Pig and I have worked together many times in the studio, he has played on many sessions that I produced. He has a most remarkable ear and you only have to run a song once and he’s ready to do it. As you know, Pig is blind and one day I was walking behind Columbia Records and I saw pig driving a car down the alley, of course someone was sitting beside him telling him which way to turn the wheel, what a guy!”
Al Kooper: The credits are vague on the Blonde on Blonde album. Maybe I can fill in a few holes for the reader. Joe South is playing bass on “Visions of Johanna.” He has a very special style of playing bass, sort of hillbilly funk. His unique guitar style is most discernible in the mix on “Memphis Blues Again.” He and I have some nice organ-guitar trade-offs in that on
Stuck Inside Mobile With These Memphis Blues Again
Oh, the ragman draws circles Up and down the block I’d ask him what the matter was But I know that he don’t talk And the ladies treat me kindly And they furnish me with tape But deep inside my heart I know I can’t escape Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again
Well, Shakespeare, he’s in the alley With his pointed shoes and his bells Speaking to some French girl Who says she knows me well And I would send a message To find out if she’s talked But the post office has been stolen And the mailbox is locked Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again
Mona tried to tell me To stay away from the train line She said that all the railroad men Just drink up your blood like wine An’ I said, “Oh, I didn’t know that But then again, there’s only one I’ve met An’ he just smoked my eyelids An’ punched my cigarette” Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again
Grandpa died last week And now he’s buried in the rocks But everybody still talks about how Badly they were shocked But me, I expected it to happen I knew he’d lost control When I speed built a fire on Main Street And shot it full of holes Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again
Now the senator came down here Showing ev’ryone his gun Handing out free tickets To the wedding of his son An’ me, I nearly got busted An’ wouldn’t it be my luck To get caught without a ticket And be discovered beneath a truck Oh, Mama, is this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again
Now the tea preacher looked so baffled When I asked him why he dressed With twenty pounds of headlines Stapled to his chest But he cursed me when I proved it to him Then I whispered and said, “Not even you can hide You see, you’re just like me I hope you’re satisfied” Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again
Now the rainman gave me two cures Then he said, “Jump right in” The one was Texas medicine The other was just railroad gin An’ like a fool I mixed them An’ it strangled up my mind An’ now people just get uglier An’ I have no sense of time Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again
And when Ruthie says come see her In her honky-tonk lagoon Where I can watch her waltz for free ‘neath her Panamanian moon An’ I say, “Aw come on now You know you knew about my debutante” An’ she says, “Your debutante just knows what you need But I know what you want” Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again
Now the bricks lay on Grand Street Where the neon madmen climb They all fall there so perfectly It all seems so well timed An’ here I sit so patiently Waiting to find out what price You have to pay to get out of Going through all these things twice Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again
I’m going to post a couple of posts today…this one and one that is leading up to Halloween!
On October 26, 1997, I saw The Rolling Stones at Vanderbilt. That is where I met Steve Forbert and that is the only time I got to see Sheryl Crow. It was in the afternoon and her voice soared through the Fall afternoon air. She performed great and I became even more of a fan that day.
At the time you had female artists like Gwen Stefani, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, and then here comes Sheryl with her electric guitar with a rock edge…one of the best opening acts I ever saw. In the late 80s, she struggled to break through as artists like Madonna and Paula Abdul ruled the airwaves. Her first album Tuesday Night Music Club wasn’t released until she was 31 in 1993. That was because female singer/songwriters finally started to gain popularity in the 90s.
The song was written by Sheryl Crow and her producer Bill Bottrell. This song is off of her debut album Tuesday Night Music Club. The song peaked at #36 on the Billboard 100, #3 in Canada, and #33 in the UK in 1994.
Now she is really into pro-environmental concerns. On her tours, she demands only biodegradable cups and dinnerware be used by the caterer, as well as food that is “organic and purchased from local suppliers as much as possible” and water that “must be sourced from a local spring water vendor.” She also asks for separate plastic, glass, and paper recycling bins and wants her buses and trucks to be fueled with biodiesel only.
A fun sidenote to Sheryl. The first guitar she ever had was a 1964 Gibson Country and Western acoustic and she calls it The Moneymaker because most of the hits she wrote…was on that guitar.
Sheryl Crow:You’ve got a bunch of really young women out there who don’t really understand the importance of what they’re doing. They allow themselves to be exploited and they actually play that game and use sex to sell themselves. It undermines our credibility as artists.
Sheryl Crow talking about her parents: My earliest, most vivid memories are of them coming home with their friends and playing records – Stan Getz, Stan Kenton, Ella Fitzgerald – and me and my sisters sleeping out on the stairs so we could hear them.
Can’t Cry Anymore
Tell me you don’t care
Or tell me you’re just scared
But give me something I can hold on to
Just say what’s on your mind
Or am I just wasting time?
If you don’t want somebody loving you
You’ve got one foot in and one foot out the door
And baby I can’t take it anymore
Just give it to me
Give it to me
Give it to me
All your love
You’ve got demons in your past
You think real love doesn’t last
So you pull me close and then push me away
Can’t you look me in the eye?
Could you scream or laugh or cry?
But baby if you’re leaving say goodbye
But if you can’t find the right words anymore
Well then take me up the stairs and close the door
Give it to me
Just give it to me
Give it to me
All your love
Oh baby I’m begging you please
You’ve got me down on my knees tonight
I know what we have is real
Please remember how it feels to us
You’ve got one foot in and one foot out the door
And baby I can’t take it anymore
Give it to me
Just give it to me
Give it to me
All your love
Give it to me
Give it to me
Give it to me
All your love
We all know the great album Brothers in Arms from Dire Straits, but sometimes those brothers are “at arms” rather than in them. In this series from myself and Randy, have discussed “Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em” Siblings. This week Randy talks about the Burnette brothers. They were at it while most of the other brother’s acts were still in diapers. The original post is here.
“Tear It Up” by Johnny Burnette and The Rock ‘n Roll Trio (1956) written by Paul Burlison, Dorsey Burnette, and Johnny Burnette. Covered 40 times including Rod Stewart in 1981.
Dorsey William Burnett Jr. (December 28, 1932 – August 19, 1979) and his younger brother John Joseph Burnette (March 25, 1934 – August 14, 1964) along with Paul Burlison (February 4, 1929 – September 27, 2003) were the original Rockabilly band. One thing The Rock ‘n Roll Trio loved almost as much as music, was fighting.
Dorsey and Johnny grew up in the housing projects of Memphis where being tough was a distinct advantage. They both took to boxing and became Golden Glove Champions. In 1949 while working on oil barges on the Mississippi they met another Golden Glove champ, Paul Burlison, also from Tennessee. After work the three began playing in bars at night and in 1952 they formed a band.
After several wins at Amateur contests they landed a record deal with Coral Records. Unfortunately their national TV debut on the Ted Mack Amateur Hour aired on ABC the same night as Elvis’s September 9, 1956 Live appearance on CBS that had 82% of the viewing audience. Misadvised I would say, they performed “Hound Dog” that Elvis had released in July. They appeared on a few other shows but they struggled to gain wide spread fame, but they never gave up.
“Rock Billy Boogie” (1956) by Johnny Burnette and The Rock ‘n Roll Trio, written by Dorsey Burnette, Johnny Burnette, George Hawkins and Henry Jerome.
First cover of “Rock Billy Boogie” was by Robert Gordon in 1979.
The two brothers never entirely gave up ‘boxing’ either. Life on the road was tough and the tensions would lead to some nasty fistfights between Dorsey and Johnny. Sometimes the fights started on stage and would spread into the audience. Apparently one night the three of them took on everyone in the place, and won. This led to several bans from bars and tours. One night in August of 1956 in Niagara Falls, NY the brothers had a brutal fight. The next day Dorsey left the band and it was just days before their big break to appear in the Alan Freed movie Rock! Rock! Rock!
Johnny quickly recruited Bill Black’s (Elvis’s bass player) younger brother Johnny Black and the appearance went ahead. The record company credited their next release with Johnny Burnette at the front and even when Dorsey returned a year later that’s how they were billed. They would then pursue solo careers and continue to write some great rock and roll songs. Johnny would die in a boating accident in 1964. His original recording of “You’re Sixteen” appears on the American Graffiti Movie Soundtrack. Covered over 90 times and of course by Ringo Starr that hit #1 on the Hot 100 in 1973.
“You’re Sixteen” (1960) by Johnny Burnette reached #8 on the Hot 100, written by Richard Sherman and Robert B. Sherman. The Sherman brothers would go on to write all those amazing songs for Disney Movies such as “Chim Chim Cheree”, “I Wan’na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)”, “Super-Cali-Fragil-Istic-Expi-Ali-Docious”, “It’s a Small World” and dozens more.
The Big E was at his best in the fifties before the Army and films changed him. This is the song that I first heard by him and it made me a fan when I was around 5 or so. The song brought up images to kids and was easy to understand in a kid’s sort of way…and it rocked.
I think it’s one of the best rock singles ever released. Do you want a double A-side? Try Hound Dog backed with Don’t Be Cruel. It doesn’t get much better than that.
Those early Elvis songs were magical. Hound Dog, That’s Alright, I Forgot To Remember To Forget, Mystery Train, Heartbreak Hotel, Don’t Be Cruel, and the list goes on. Many artists have played rock and roll but it’s hard as hell to beat these primal songs. I think one of the reasons is they were mostly recorded live in a studio. They don’t have 100 overdubs…just simplicity at its best and it hits its target.
Hound Dog was first recorded by Willie Mae Big Mama Thornton and was a number 1 rhythm & blues hit in 1953. Her voice is incredible in this song. She nailed it and so did Elvis. Elvis’s version is a little faster than Thornton’s version…but that made room for her dynamic voice.
Elvis Presley’s version didn’t do too bad. It peaked at #1 on the Hot 100, #1 on the Billboard R&B Charts, and #2 in the UK in 1956 (I could not find Canada). The song was written by teenagers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. They would go on to write many more chart hits for everyone…including Elvis with Jailhouse Rock.
Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller: “We’d actually written ‘Hound Dog’ 90 percent on the way over in the car. I was beating out a rhythm we called the ‘buck dance’ on the roof of the car. We got to Johnny Otis’s house and Mike went right to the piano… didn’t even bother to sit down. He had a cigarette in his mouth that was burning his left eye, and he started to play the song. We took the song back to Big Mama and she snatched the paper out of my hand and said, ‘Is this my big hit?’ And I said, ‘I hope so.’
Next thing I know, she starts crooning ‘Hound Dog’ like Frank Sinatra would sing ‘In The Wee Small Hours of the Morning.’ And I’m looking at her, and I’m a little intimidated by the razor scars on her face, and she’s about 280-320 pounds, and I said, ‘It don’t go that way.’ And she looked at me like looks could kill and said – and this was when I found out I was white – ‘White boy, don’t you be tellin’ me how to sing the blues.’ We finally got through it.
Johnny brought Mike back in the room and asked him to sit down at the piano, which was not easy because Johnny had this female piano player who was built like Arnold Schwarzenegger. They finally exchanged seats and did the song the way it was supposed to sound. And that was one of those where we said, ‘That’s a hit.’ And I thought immediately: We both said it, it’s gonna put a hex on it!”
Hound Dog
You ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog Cryin’ all the time You ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog Cryin’ all the time Well, you ain’t never caught a rabbit And you ain’t no friend of mine
Well, they said you was high-classed Well, that was just a lie Yeah, they said you was high-classed Well, that was just a lie Yeah, you ain’t never caught a rabbit And you ain’t no friend of mine
You ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog Cryin’ all the time You ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog Cryin’ all the time Well, you ain’t never caught a rabbit And you ain’t no friend of mine
Well, they said you was high-classed Well, that was just a lie Yeah, they said you was high-classed Well, that was just a lie Well, you ain’t never caught a rabbit And you ain’t no friend of mine
Well, they said you was high-classed Well, that was just a lie Ya know they said you was high-classed Well, that was just a lie Well, you ain’t never caught a rabbit And you ain’t no friend of mine
You ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog Cryin’ all the time You ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog Cryin’ all the time Well, you ain’t never caught a rabbit You ain’t no friend of mine
The more I listen to this band’s non-hits…the more I like them. They have some great album tracks that didn’t make it as hits. This song was released as a single and it did make the top 40 but it’s not as well known as Born To Be Wild and Magic Carpet Ride. It was written by John Kay and Gabriel Mekler.
The song was on the Monster album which was released in 1969. The album was produced by Gabriel Mekler, who had produced their first four albums and really helped create their sound. The reason I mentioned him is because their early songs have a raw sound but are polished at the same time. That’s not always an easy thing to do.
John Kay’s voice still sounds great after all of these years. I’m happy I got to shake his hand at a chance meeting. I also saw him in the 80s fronting the 80s version of Steppenwolf. Not many singers take control of a stage like he does.
The song peaked at #31 on the Billboard 100 and #12 in Canada. The album peaked at #17 on the Billboard Album Charts and #11 in Canada in 1969.
By 1969, the U.S. was deep in the Vietnam War, and protests against the war were everywhere. The country was also experiencing unrest due to issues like civil rights, government corruption, and the assassinations of political figures, like Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy. Because of that, Steppenwolf started to get a little more political in their songs.
This era was probably their most successful period, their following albums didn’t have as much commercial success but they are remembered and do get played.
Move Over
Things look bad from over here
Too much confusion and no solution
Everyone here knows your fear
You’re out of touch and you try too much
Yesterday’s glory won’t help us today
You wanna retire?
Get out of the way
The country needs a father
Not an uncle or big brother
Someone to keep the peace at home
If we can’t get together
Look out for stormy weather
Don’t make me pay for your mistakes
I have to pay my own
Yesterday’s glory won’t help us today
You wanna retire?
Get out of the way
I ain’t got much time
The young ones close behind
I can’t wait in line
If we can not wake you
Then we’ll have to shake you
Though some say you’ll only understand a gun
Got to prove them wrong
Or you will lose the battle
Don’t you know we’ll start a war
Which will be won by none
Yesterday’s glory won’t help us today
You wanna retire?
Get out of the way
I ain’t got much time
The young ones close behind
I can’t wait in line
Big Star was the best band never heard. This song is an absolutely perfect song about adolescence. I played it to my then 14-year-old son and it made him a Big Star fan now 10 years later. This song is the most covered song by Big Star with 49 different covers. It’s almost a perfect acoustic song. The song is about an adolescent guy and his girlfriend who are rock fans being what 13-14-year-olds are…confused and lost.
There is not a bad song on the first album. The song was originally featured on the 1972 album #1 Record. It was released as a single by Big Star with “Watch The Sunrise” as the B-Side, on Ardent Records, but was mislabeled as “Don’t Lie To Me”. Chris Bell and Alex Chilton were the two main songwriters.
Bell and Chilton wanted to emulate the Lennon/McCartney formula as much as they could, so they shared credit on many of the songs on #1 Record even though there was, in fact, little writing collaboration between the two. “Thirteen,” was entirely Chilton’s creation.
This was ranked #396 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 greatest songs. Artists who have covered this include Evan Dando, Garbage, Elliot Smith, Wilco, and Kathryn Williams.
Alex Chilton: “I don’t know where it came from but I made up this wild bit of guitar in 15 minutes. You don’t hear many 20-year-olds doing that.”
Thirteen
Won’t you let me walk you home from school
Won’t you let me meet you at the pool
Maybe Friday I can
Get tickets for the dance
And I’ll take you
Won’t you tell your dad, get off my back
Tell him what we said ’bout ‘Paint It Black’
Rock ‘n Roll is here to stay
Come inside where it’s okay
And I’ll shake you
Won’t you tell me what you’re thinking of
Would you be an outlaw for my love
If it’s so, well, let me know
If it’s no, well, I can go
I won’t make you
I love early seventies soul…this is a cool gem of a song and very overlooked. I remember this one when I was around 5-6 being played on A.M. Radio. He released this on Stax Records in 1972. Stax was starting to go down around this time.
In the early 1970s, under the leadership of Al Bell, Stax expanded too rapidly and faced financial difficulties due to over-expansion and mismanagement. Despite producing some hits during this period, including Isaac Hayes’ successful albums, Stax declared bankruptcy in 1975.
The song was written by Posie Knight and Jerry Weaver. It peaked at #27 on the Billboard 100, #8 on the Billboard R&B charts, and #23 in the UK in 1972. It’s been covered 15 times and one cover was by Mick Jagger on his 1993 solo album Wandering Spirit. Paul Young also covered it on his debut album No Palez in 1983.
He didn’t chart any more top 40 songs on the top 100 and he would be known as a one-hit wonder which is a shame. He kept releasing music until 1981 and did get a song in the top 40 of the R&B Charts with I Betcha Didn’t Know That in 1975.
In the mid-1970s, Knight founded his own record label, Juana Records. Through Juana Records, he produced and promoted music for other artists, including the successful disco group Anita Ward, who had a hit with Ring My Bell in 1979.
I’ve Been Lonely For So Long
I’ve been lonely for so long Don’t seem like happiness will come along I’ve been lonely for so long Don’t seem like happiness will come along
These ain’t rain clouds over my head Everybody’s throwing rocks in my bed Just can’t seem to get ahead in life Ooh, nothin’ I do ever turn out for the right
Won’t somebody help me please
‘Cause I’ve been lonely for so long Don’t seem like happiness will come along I’ve been lonely for so long Don’t seem like happiness will come along
I lay awake every night Tryin’ to figure out how to make things right There’s got to be a better way I know To shake this monkey off ’cause he’s makin’ me so
Won’t somebody help me please
‘Cause I’ve been ooh, lonely for so long Don’t seem like happiness will come along I’ve been lonely so long Don’t seem like happiness will come along
Yes, I know what it feels like to be lonely To have your friends turn their backs on you To never know the real meaning Of peace of mind, oh
Just can’t seem to get ahead in life Ooh, nothin’ I do ever turn out for the right
Won’t somebody help me please
‘Cause I’ve been lonely for so long Don’t seem like happiness will come along I’ve been lonely for so long Don’t seem like happiness will come along
I’ve been down so long I’ve been down so long I’ve been down so long I’ve been down so long
I get lonely, I get lonely I get lonely, I get lonely I get lonely, lonely
Tattoo You was released in 1981 and they did a massive tour that didn’t come near Nashville. Back then no big band like The Who or Stones would come here. Vanderbilt was the only place big enough and they went through a period where they didn’t allow concerts. In 1972 they did come to Nashville to the Municipal Auditorium and Stevie Wonder opened up for them. I still tell my sister…you could have seen Stevie Wonder and The Stones but you picked the Osmonds and David Cassidy! It doesn’t phase her.
In 1982 they released this single off of their live album Still Life. It was a good album and entry to point to a lot of people…the problem was the live album I knew was Get Your Ya Ya’s Out…which ranks among the best live albums ever. I did like the album though and bought two singles from it before I got the album. I think it has the definitive version of Time Is On My Side and this song…Going To A Go-Go. It was a feel-good live album and the joke was going around on how incredibly old they were…hmmm if only we knew!
This was the last tour you could actually see JUST The Stones and not a stage full of other musicians. They always carried a keyboard player which is cool but after this, they carried backup singers and a huge entourage of players on stage. I never liked that…I would rather hear Keith’s thin backup vocals than professional singers.
I remember watching Friday Night Videos and seeing a clip of Keith Richards clubbing a guy over the head with his guitar. The guy deserved it…remember this was 1981, a year after their good friend John Lennon was murdered. Intruders on stage were not welcomed. Here is a small clip of it.
Going to a Go-Go peaked at #25 on the Billboard 100, #4 in Canada, #24 in New Zealand, and #26 in the UK in 1982. Jagger and Richards didn’t write this one. It was written by Smokey Robinson, Pete Moore, Bobby Rogers, and Marvin Tarplin. Smokey Robinson and The Miracles released in the song in 1965 and it peaked at #11 on the Billboard 100.
The two singles from the album were Time Is On My Side and Going to a Go Go. Time Is On My Side hit the top 10.
Going To A Go Go
Going to a go go, everybody
Going to a go go, c’mon now
Going to a go go, everybody
Going to a go go, c’mon now
Well there’s a brand new place I found
People coming from miles around
They come from everywhere
If you drop in there
You see everyone in town
Going to a go go, everybody
Going to a go go, c’mon now
Don’t you wanna go
And that’s alright tell me
Going to a go go, everybody
Going to a go go
It doesn’t matter if you’re black
It doesn’t matter if you’re white
Take a dollar fifty
A six pack of beer
And we goin’ dance all night
Going to a go go, everybody
Going to a go go, c’mon now
Don’t you wanna go
And that’s alright, tell me
I bought the Against the Wind album and then a cassette tape from the Great Escape from one of the two locations in Nashville in the 80s. A great second-hand record store which I hope is still open. That is how I could afford to keep my car well stocked.
This song was written by Seger and stuck with me like the rest of the album. Seger liked to split up recording in a studio (Criteria) and recording in Muscle Shoals with some help from them. This one was recorded in Criteria in Miami using some of the Silver Bullet Band and Bill Payne from Little Feat on keyboards.
I’ve been reading critics talking about the album when it was released. They seemed upset that Seger was releasing an album with simple songs. Not every song can be Night Moves. I’ve met some Seger fans who basically stopped liking his music when this album came out. I saw the same thing with some Springsteen fans when Born in the USA was a hit.
I don’t understand that because this is one of my go-to Seger albums although I do like his earlier ones as well. This album was not written with a teenage viewpoint in mind…it was written for 30-40-year-olds viewpoints. Seger was 34 when this one was released. I bought this album when I was around 16 in 1983 but still could relate…and still can... “wish I didn’t know now what I didn’t know then.”
The album Against The Wind was huge. It is his only number 1 album to date. Fire Lake is the song that made me aware of the album and after that I was hooked. The album peaked at #1 in the Billboard Album Charts, #1 in Canada, and #26 in the UK in 1980. The reason I say “to date” is because of how the charts are now…it’s not out of the realm of possibility he could get another number 1 from Seger although highly unlikely.
The song peaked at #14 on the Billboard 100 and #8 in Canada in 1980.
You’ll Accomp’ny Me
A gypsy wind is blowing warm tonight The sky is starlit and the time is right And still you’re telling me you have to go Before you leave there’s something you should know Yeah something you should know babe
I’ve seen you smiling in the summer sun I’ve seen your long hair flying when you run I’ve made my mind up that it’s meant to be Someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me Someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me Out where the rivers meet the sounding sea You’re high above me now You’re wild and free ah, but Someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me Someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me
Some people say that love’s a losing game You start with fire But you lose the flame The ashes smolder But the warmth’s soon gone You end up cold and lonely on your own I’ll take my chances babe I’ll risk it all I’ll win your love Or I’ll take the fall I’ve made my mind up girl It’s meant to be Someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me Someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me It’s written down somewhere It’s got to be You’re high above me Flying wild and free Oh but someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me Someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me Someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me Out where the rivers meet the sounding sea I feel it in my soul It’s meant to be Oh someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me Someday lady you’ll accomp’ny me You’ll accomp’ny me, uh, uh, uh You’ll accomp’ny me, I know you will accomp’ny me (You’ll accomp’ny me) someday lady, someday lady (You’ll accomp’ny me) you gonna accom’ny now You gonna walk with me and talk with me, and (you’ll accomp’ny me) (You’ll accomp’ny me) uh, uh, uh (You’ll accomp’ny me) you gonna accomp’ny me uh, uh, uh You gonna accomp’ny me (you gonna accomp’ny me) someday uh, uh, uh
I hope all of you are doing well. While on break getting things done I have written up a few posts because I like to stay ahead. For the first time, I probably wrote up more movies than music. I was emailing CB and he mentioned this album to me by T-Bone Burnett which I’ve known more as a producer. He produced artists like Elvis Costello, John Mellencamp, Gregg Allman, Alison Krauss and Robert Plant, Elton John, Leon Russell, Los Lobos, Roy Orbison, The Counting Crows, and many more.
When I started to listen to the album it surprised me. I was expecting more of a straight blues feel but I got everything. Rock, country, blues, soul, rockabilly, and most of all…Americana. I’ve listened to the entire album around 5-6 times this week. CB doesn’t steer me wrong…an outstanding album. The song that really stood out at first was I’m Coming Home…that one hooked me. He wrote all the songs on the album and co-wrote two of them.
TruthDecay was his second album and it was released in 1980. He did release an album in 1972 under the name J. Henry Burnett called The B-52 Band & the FabulousSkylarks. He has released 15 albums in total and one this year called The Other Side. None of them were commercial blockbusters but his work received critical acclaim though…and it’s just flat-out great.
He was born in St Louis but was raised in Fort, Worth Texas. He began his career in the 1960s. His first big break came in the mid-1970s when he joined Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue, a traveling concert tour that introduced him to a wider audience and connected him with other rising musicians.
Recently, Burnett has been involved in developing a new form of high-fidelity analog music recording technology, which he calls“Ionic Originals.” He wants to develop an alternative to digital formats for preserving and sharing music.
Give this album a listen. I’ll pick out a couple of songs that I like but here is the entire album on YouTube. Spotify doesn’t have this one. In order from the top there Boomerang, Pretty Girls, and my favorite I’m Coming Home.
I’m Coming Home
I been lost and all alone
Like a statue made of stone
But now I’m coming home
I fell for a painted face
Thought I’d fallen out of grace
But now I’m coming home
I’m coming home
Hold me to your breast
Let me stay and rest
In your tenderness
I’m coming home
Back where I belong
Still you’re love is strong
Roll away the stone
I’m coming home
I said my prayers, made my plan
Set out for the promised land
And now I’m coming home
I saw how you pay the price
For some distant paradise
And now I’m coming home
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It’s great to be back with everyone today. I know I know…we just finished up with the Kinks a few weeks ago but I wrote this one for the Kinksathon but decided to use another post. This was like uncovering a gem. This is not a Ray Davies song but his brother Dave wrote and put some heartfelt vocals into this. His voice and the sound of his voice sound great…I love the slapback echo they added.
Dave wrote this song about a friend he had named George Harris. Him and George were going to form a band and they were really tight but George got hooked on drugs bad. This was all before the Kinks formed. Dave Davies said: “We were dear friends, actually, George and I were going to start a band, but he got too heavily into drugs and it kind of pulled us apart. The drug thing was like a three-way affair. He died of a methamphetamine overdose. They found him departed … he was young. I always felt it was going to be me and him. I didn’t think at that age that it was going to be me and Ray. So I really kind of wrote it to him; ‘Strangers on this road we are on, we are not two we are one.’ It was like, what might of been if he hadn’t died so tragically.”
The singer of this song mentions a friend who seems to have separated from him. What emerges is not just a portrait of his lost pal but also of the person who’s searching for him. A Hank Williams line “I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive” influenced Dave in this song as well…with is line if I live too long I’m afraid I’ll die.
The song came off the album Lola vs. Powerman And The Moneygoround, Part 1 which had the massive hit Lola. Maybe that is the reason this song got overlooked. Many Kinks fans love this song but the radio doesn’t hardly play it. The album peaked at #35 on the Billboard 100 and #33 in Canada in 1970. Unfortunately, there was never a part 2.
The song was used in the 2007 film The Darjelling Limited.
Dave Davies: “I was going through a lot of change, personally – spiritual stuff and getting into different philosophy, I was 15 at the time when we first started. And we had success, we were touring, and it doesn’t really give you a chance to grow up.”
Ray Davies on the part 1 album: Lola Versus Powerman… was good versus evil, obviously, and in Volume Two, I sketched out how you become your worst nightmare, how the good man goes so far he becomes the evil person he always fought against. But we had to do another tour, we had the RCA deal, and we had other recording projects that we had to work towards, and it got lost, unfortunately.
Here is Dave in 2017 doing it acoustically.
Strangers
Where are you going, I don’t mind
I’ve killed my world and I’ve killed my time
So where do I go? What will I see?
I see many people coming after me
So where are you going to, I don’t mind
If I live too long I’m afraid I’ll die
So I will follow you wherever you go
If your offered hand is still open to me
Strangers on this road we are on
We are not two, we are one
So you’ve been where I’ve just come
From the land that brings losers on
So we will share this road we walk
And mind our mouths and beware our talk
‘Til peace we find, tell you what I’ll do
All the things I own I will share with you
And, if I feel tomorrow like I feel today
We’ll take what we want and give the rest away
Strangers on this road we are on
We are not two, we are one
Holy man and holy priest
This love of life makes me weak at my knees
And when we get there, make your play
‘Cause soon I fear you’re gonna carry us away
And a promised lie you made us believe
For many men there is so much grief
And my mind is proud but it aches with rage
And, if I live too long I’m afraid I’ll die
Strangers on this road we are on
We are not two, we are one
Strangers on this road we are on
We are not two, we are one
I had some time today so I thought I would publish a couple of posts. It will be nice to post today until I come back in a couple of weeks.
Drift Away is one of the most perfect singles I remember. Much like Baker Street…a single where everything is right. This is one of the first songs I remember hearing and liking. That guitar intro and tone hooked me into this song. Gray said in an interview that the song’s hook of “Gimme the beat boys and free my soul” has been misheard and incorrectly sung as “Gimme the Beach Boys,” “Gimme the wheat boys” (proposed for a cereal commercial), “Gimme the peat moss,” and “Gimme the meatballs.”
The song was recorded at Quad Studio in Nashville. Drift Away was written by producer/songwriter Mentor Williams. Mentor is the brother of Paul Williams. Mentor initially intended the song for John Henry Kurtz, an actor and country artist who recorded the song in 1972. However, Dobie Gray’s version, recorded the following year, became the definitive rendition.
Drift Away has been covered by various artists over the years, including a version by Uncle Kracker in 2003, which featured Dobie Gray himself. That version was also a hit, peaking at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and introducing the song to a new generation.
The Rolling Stones recorded a version of Drift Away for their “It’s Only Rock and Roll” album in November of 1973 but it didn’t make the album and has never been released except on bootlegs. It is a great version…made for Jagger’s voice but nothing tops the original.
Drift Away peaked at #5 on the Billboard 100 and #7 in Canada in 1973. You would think this would have been the start of something huge but it was his only top 10 hit on Billboard. He did have a hit in 1965 with The In Crowd which peaked at #8 in Canada and #13 on the Billboard 100.
Reggie Young, a session guitar player, played the famous intro to this song. His song Reggie Young Jr. said: “Dobie Gray asked my father to join him in playing ‘Drift Away’ live. This was the first time since 1973 that they had played the song together. In the ’80s my father was showing another guitar player how to play the intro to ‘Drift Away,’ but the other guy said he thought that my father was playing it wrong. In fact he was playing in the wrong key. Also, when this was re-recorded in 1997 for Gray’s CD Diamond Cuts, he declined, as he didn’t think he could do it any better than he did on the original.”
Mentor Williams: “I think one of the hardest things for me to learn about songwriting was to really expose my feelings and weaknesses and to write personal, emotional things. As soon as I started doing that, I realized other people were relating to my songs. You can study how to write and spend a lot of time writing, but without this emotional content in a song, it’s just not there. ‘Drift Away’ was a big breakthrough for me. It was a song where it suddenly was okay for me to write about being hurt and let people know that I had been hurt and I wasn’t afraid to expose my feelings.”
Drift Away
Day after day I’m more confused
So I look for the light in the pouring rain
You know that’s a game that I hate to lose
I’m feelin’ the strain, ain’t it a shame
Oh, give me the beat boys, and free my soul
I want to get lost in your rock and roll and drift away
Beginning to think that I’m wastin’ time
I don’t understand the things I do
The world outside looks so unkind
I’m countin’ on you to carry me through
And when my mind is free
You know a melody can move me
And when I’m feelin’ blue
The guitar’s comin’ through to soothe me
Thanks for the joy that you’ve given me
I want you to know I believe in your song
Rhythm and rhyme and harmony
You help me along makin’ me stro
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