Arthur –I race cars, play tennis, and fondle women, BUT! I have weekends off, and I am my own boss.
at 1:36
The Empire Strikes Back –Try not, Do or Do Not, There is no Try
Cool Hand Luke –Calling it your job don’t make it right boss.
Airplane –There’s no reason to become alarmed, and we hope you’ll enjoy the rest of your flight. By the way, is there anyone on board who knows how to fly a plane?
At 5:30
Anchorman –He had a voice that could make a wolverine purr and suits so fine they made Sinatra look like a hobo
At 0:036
Office Space – The thing is, Bob, it’s not that I’m lazy, it’s that I just don’t care
At 1:18
Caddyshack –Judge, give someone else a chance! You lucky devil! Come here, honey! And loosen up! You’re a lot of woman, you know? You wanna make 14 dollars the hard way?
The Breakfast Club – Does Barry Manilow know that you raid his wardrobe?
Full Metal Jacket –I am Gunnery Sgt. Hartman, your senior drill instructor. From now on you will speak only when spoken to, and the first and last words out of your filthy sewers will be ‘Sir.’ Do you maggots understand that?
0:00 – 0:013
Animal Crackers –One morning I shot an elephant in my pajamas. How he got in my pajamas, I don’t know
Most people today know this song as the theme to That 70s Show. They never used Big Star’s version for some reason. Todd Griffin covered it the first season and by the second season, Cheap Trick’s version was used. Big Star’s drummer Jody Stephens said, “I don’t know if the general population even knows that Big Star had anything to do with it.” …that is unfortunately true. The general population doesn’t know Big Star which is a crime.
The song was on their great debut album named #1 Record which was released in August of 1972. Billboard went as far as to say, “Every cut could be a single”…On the picture above it says “Distributed by Stax Records”…unfortunately it WASN’T… They did a tour and no one could find the album because many record stores didn’t have it. Stax was not equipped to distribute rock records.
By the second album, this was going to be resolved. Columbia was gonna distribute Stax, and then they would have got Big Star into big-box retail outlets. But what happened was Clive Davis, who’s huge in the music world, was the one who brokered that deal… and then he was fired. So the whole thing fell apart after that. America lost out on one of the best bands it ever produced. I would recommend to anyone the documentary on Big Star called…Big Star: Nothing Can Hurt Me
The song has a great riff and wonderful teenage seventies lyrics.
From Songfacts
Stephens played in a band called Golden Smog with Jeff Tweedy, and when Tweedy’s band Wilco came to Memphis, Jody sat in with the group. “We played ‘In The Street’ together – I sat in on drums and Glenn Kotche played the cowbell part and John Stirratt sang lead,” he recounts. “My wife was in the audience and she said when we started playing ‘In The Street,’ somebody sitting in back of her said, ‘Why are they playing That ’70s Show song?'”
In what he described as “ironic” in a 2000 Rolling Stone interview, Alex Chilton received $70 in royalty payments every time That ’70s Show was broadcast.
Cheap Trick’s cover features the lyrics “We’re all all right,” an allusion to their 1978 hit “Surrender” from the album Heaven Tonight. Perhaps a chirpy re-interpretation to suit a primetime network sitcom, the inclusion undermines the ambiguity of the original, which evokes adolescent boredom without either romanticizing or condemning it.
This ambiguity is perfectly encapsulated in the lyric, “wish we had a joint so bad” (also absent from the theme tune, although pot smoking was a recurring theme on the show), the double meaning of which can be read as meaning the protagonist’s craving to get high or for a place to go with his friends. There is certainly a theme of being disposed that runs throughout the deceptively simple lyrics, which is juxtaposed with the major key Power-Pop music.
Chilton has said that along with “When My Baby’s Beside Me,” “In The Street” is the best song he ever wrote
In The Street
Hanging out, down the street The same old thing we did last week Not a thing to do But talk to you
Steal your car, and bring it down Pick me up, we’ll drive around Wish we had A joint so bad
Pass the street light Out past midnight
Hanging out, down the street The same old thing we did last week Not a thing to do But talk to you
Every Friday I’m going to attempt to live up to the blog’s name and post a few powerpop songs…by known and unknown artists. So get ready for jangly guitars, harmonizing vocals, and more pop hooks than you can shake a stick at.
The Records were an English powerpop band formed in 1978. This song peaked at #59 in the Billboard 100 in 1979. The song was off their debut album Shades in Bed. The band included John Wicks – rhythm guitar, vocals, Huw Gower – lead guitar, vocals, Phil Brown – bass guitar, vocals, and Will Birch – drums, vocals.
Starry Nights would end up being their best-known song. Robert John “Mutt” Lange produced this album for the Records. The Records split up in 1982 but John Wicks went on to success working with other artists. The songs of Wicks and his lyricist partner, Will Birch, have been recorded by The Searchers, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Too Much Joy, Michael Monroe, and numerous other artists…a great powerpop song.
Better quality version below
Starry Eyes
While you were off in France, we were stranded in the British Isles Left to fall apart amongst your passports and your files We never asked for miracles, but they were our concern Did you really think we’d sit it out and wait for your return?
I don’t want to argue, I ain’t gonna budge Won’t you take this number down Before you call up the judge? I don’t want to argue, there’s nothing to say Get me out of your starry eyes and be on your way
While you were on the beach Were you dreaming all about your share? Planning to invest it all to cover wear and tear? We paid for all the phone calls, the money’s off the shelf Don’t you know that while you’re gone away I’ve got to help myself?
I don’t want to argue, I ain’t gonna budge Won’t you take this number down Before you call up the judge? I don’t want to argue, there’s nothing to say Get me out of your starry eyes and be on your way
While you were in the pool We were meeting with the boys upstairs Talking to the money men and carrying out affairs We had no time for cocktails or working up a tan The boys have all been spoken to The writ has hit the fan
So I don’t want to argue, I ain’t gonna budge Won’t you take this number down Before you call up the judge? ‘Cause I don’t want to argue, there’s nothing to say Get me out of your starry eyes and be on your way
No I don’t want to argue, there’s nothing to say Just get me out of your starry eyes and be on your way You get me out of your starry eyes and be on your way
I had this single as a kid. I had a cool cousin who had a lot of records in the sixties and she gave many to me when she found out I liked sixties bands.
The song was written by the band as a protest against their record company White Whale. Lead singer Howard Kaylan: It was never intended to be a straight-forward song. It was meant as an anti-love letter to White Whale (their record company), who were constantly on our backs to bring them another ‘Happy Together.’ So I gave them a very skewed version. Not only with the chords changed, but with all these bizarre words. It was my feeling that they would listen to how strange and stupid the song was and leave us alone. But they didn’t get the joke. They thought it sounded good. Truthfully, though, the production on ‘Elenore’ WAS so damn good. Lyrically or not, the sound of the thing was so positive that it worked. It certainly surprised me.”
The song peaked at #6 in the Billboard 100 in 1968. I have always liked the Turtles. They never took themselves seriously and they had a good time in the sixties and were quite successful.
From Songfacts
The line, “You’re my pride and joy etcetera” ends the main chorus of this song. This was a dig at their record label, White Whale, who had been hounding them for another “Happy Together,” which was The Turtles’ big hit in 1967. They quickly threw together this overly-clichéd song (“Gee I think you’re swell”) and it proceeded to be another smash despite their best effort at sabotage. In the liner notes of The Turtles’ Anthology Solid Zinc, Howard Kaylan of The Turtles explained: “Elenore was a parody of ‘Happy Together.’
Many of The Turtles’ hits were composed by other writers, but this one they wrote themselves. The whole band was given writer credit: Howard Kaylan, Mark Volman, Al Nichols, Jim Pons and John Barbata.
Elenore
You got a thing about you I just can’t live without you I really want you Elenore near me Your looks intoxicate me Even though your folks hate me There’s no one like you Elenore really
Elenore gee I think you’re swell And you really do me well You’re my pride and joy et cetera Elenore can I take the time To ask you to speak your mind Tell me that you love me better
I really think you’re groovy Let’s go out to a movie What do ya say now, Elenore can we? They’ll turn the lights way down low Maybe we won’t watch the show I think I love you, Elenore, love me
Elenore, gee I think you’re swell And you really do me well You’re my pride and joy, et cetera Elenore, can I take the time To ask you to speak your mind? Tell me that you love me better
One more time!
Elenore, gee I think you’re swell, ah-hah Elenore, gee I think you’re swell, ah-hah-hah
This was the first of the group’s singles to be credited to “The Rascals,” the original name of the group, rather than “The Young Rascals” which their producer had them take in order to avoid confusion from listeners with another group “The Harmonica Rascals.”
This song peaked at #3 in the Billboard 100 in 1968. Beautiful Morning was written by Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati. The Rascals don’t get talked about as much as some of their peers… which is a shame…they were a great singles band. The band had 18 songs in the Billboard 100, 3 number 1 hits and 6 top ten hits. The Rascals were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on May 6, 1997.
From Songfacts
Written by band members Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati, this is an upbeat, optimistic song similar in theme to their 1967 hit “Groovin’.” While the late ’60s were a tumultuous time in America and a lot of the music dealt with social and political issues of the time, The Rascals provided hopeful songs that were a welcome relief for many listeners.
Beautiful Morning
It’s a beautiful mornin’, ah I think I’ll go outside a while And just smile Just take in some clean fresh air, boy! Ain’t no sense in stayin’ inside If the weather’s fine, and you got the time It’s your chance to wake up and plan another brand new day Either way It’s a beautiful mornin’, ah Each bird keeps singin’ his own song So long! I’ve got to be on my way now Ain’t no fun just hangin’ around I’ve got to cover ground; you couldn’t keep me down It just ain’t no good if the sun shines When you’re still inside Shouldn’t hide, still inside, shouldn’t hide Ah, oh! (Shouldn’t hide) Ah, ah, oh
(Doo, doo-wa) (Doo, doo-wa)
There will be children with robins and flowers Sunshine caresses each new waking hour Seems to me that the people keep seeing More and more each day; gotta say, lead the way It’s okay, Wednesday, Thursday, it’s okay (Ah) Monday, Wednesday, Friday, weekday, ah, ah, oh
This song was a favorite of mine of John Lennon when I was younger. He took some flak about this one and Imagine when it came to being a Working Class Hero and having all of his possessions. His answer was
“What would you suggest I do? Give everything away and walk the streets? The Buddhist says, “Get rid of the possessions of the mind.” Walking away from all the money would not accomplish that. It’s like the Beatles. I couldn’t walk away from the Beatles. That’s one possession that’s still tagging along, right?”
When I was 18 this song was a powerful one to listen to…It still is…For me, the song was about the differences between the social classes. How some could be exploited and how people use ideologies to justify manipulating people. The song was on John’s debut album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band.
Boston’s WBCN banned the song for its use of the word “f_ _king”.In Australia, the album was released with the expletive removed from the song and the lyrics censored on the inner sleeve.
From Songfacts
This song caused a fair amount of controversy for John Lennon, as his detractors pointed out that he was raised in an upper-middle-class home by his aunt and had no right to call himself a working-class hero. In an interview with Rolling Stone just three days before his death, Lennon explained: “The thing about the ‘Working Class Hero’ song that nobody ever got right was that it was supposed to be sardonic – it had nothing to do with socialism, it had to do with ‘If you want to go through that trip, you’ll get up to where I am, and this is what you’ll be.’ Because I’ve been successful as an artist, and have been happy and unhappy, and I’ve been unknown in Liverpool or Hamburg and been happy and unhappy.”
The final take as it appears on the album is actually a composite of two different performances done at two different studios. If you listen carefully (it might require headphones) you can clearly hear the sound of the guitar and vocals change where the edit was made about halfway through the song.
The word f–king appears twice in the lyrics. On the printed lyrics that came with the album, the word was obscured.
Why did Lennon curse in the song? Yoko Ono explained in a 1998 interview with Uncut: “He told me, ‘That’s part of being working class. It won’t be working class if what you say is all very clean and very proper.”
The line, “If you want to be like the folks on the hill” is a reference to the Beatles song “The Fool On The Hill.”
Green Day recorded this for the benefit album Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur, and they also performed the song on the 2007 season finale of American Idol. In their version, the last two lines are from the original John Lennon song – John sings them.
Lennon told the January 1971 edition of Rolling Stone about this song: “I think its concept is revolutionary, and I hope it’s for workers and not for tarts and fags. I hope it’s what “Give Peace A Chance” was about, but I don’t know. On the other hand, it might just be ignored. I think it’s for the people like me who are working class – whatever, upper or lower – who are supposed to be processed into the middle classes, through the machinery, that’s all. It’s my experience, and I hope it’s just a warning to people. I’m saying it’s a revolutionary song; not the song itself but that it’s a song for the revolution.”
This song seemed to resist all Lennon’s efforts to record a satisfactory vocal. Tape op Andy Stephens recalled to Uncut magazine August 2010 that he watched the former Beatle obsess about it day after day, singing “an endless number of takes… well over 100.. Probably 120, 130.”
Stephens added that Lennon became more frustrated as each take passed. “If the mix in his headphones wasn’t exactly what he wanted, he would take them off and slam them into the wall,” he recalled. “he wouldn’t say, ‘Can I have a bit more guitar?’ He would literally rip the cans off his head and smash them into the wall, then walk out of the studio.”
Working Class Hero
As soon as you’re born they make you feel small By giving you no time instead of it all Till the pain is so big you feel nothing at all A working class hero is something to be A working class hero is something to be
They hurt you at home and they hit you at school They hate you if you’re clever and they despise a fool Till you’re so f_ _king crazy you can’t follow their rules A working class hero is something to be A working class hero is something to be
When they’ve tortured and scared you for twenty-odd years Then they expect you to pick a career When you can’t really function you’re so full of fear A working class hero is something to be A working class hero is something to be
Keep you doped with religion and sex and TV And you think you’re so clever and classless and free But you’re still f_ _king peasants as far as I can see A working class hero is something to be A working class hero is something to be
There’s room at the top they’re telling you still But first you must learn how to smile as you kill If you want to be like the folks on the hill
A working class hero is something to be A working class hero is something to be If you want to be a hero well just follow me If you want to be a hero well just follow me
This song is awash in sixties influence…which isn’t surprising by Oasis. It caught my attention in the 90s seeing that it had a mod mid-sixties influence. The song peaked at #8 in the Billboard 100 and #2 in the UK in 1996.
This song was supposedly about Noel Gallagher’s then-girlfriend Meg Mathews, who is compared with a schoolboy’s wall to which posters of footballers and Popstars are attached. He said: “It’s about my girlfriend. She was out of work, and that, a bit down on her luck, so it’s just saying, ‘Cheer up and f—in get on with it.'” Noel later married then divorced Meg Mathews.
Noel also said… “The meaning of that song was taken away from me by the media who jumped on it. And how do you tell your Mrs. it’s not about her once she’s read it is? It’s about an imaginary friend who’s going to come and save you from yourself.”
From Songfacts
The music is based on Wonderwall Music, an instrumental album George Harrison wrote for the movie Wonderwall in 1968. This was the first solo album released by any of The Beatles.
The concept of the “Wonderwall” is based on a ’60s film called Wonderwall – from Psychedelia to Surrealism, starring Jane Birkin. She lives next door to a man who becomes fascinated with her,so he slowly makes holes in his wall so he can watch her through it. This is the “Wonderwall.” Warning: this movie is supposedly terrible.
In 2002, the British army produced a recruitment video that used this under footage of soldiers conducting exercises. The producers of the video didn’t realize they needed permission to use the song, and when Oasis denied, they had to recall all the videos.
The album is the second-best-selling in British history. The best selling album in UK history is Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles.
This was the first single Oasis released in the US, and is their biggest hit in that country. >>
Initially, Noel wanted to sing this song, but he gave his brother Liam Gallagher the choice, and Noel ended up singing “Don’t Look Back In Anger.”
What sounds like a cello was played on a Mellotron tape-playback keyboard, although the video features shows someone playing the cello.
At live shows Noel plays his acoustic guitar on a Fender Telecaster. It’s one of the few songs where he uses a Fender guitar rather than a Gibson.
The opening track of (What’s the Story) Morning Glory is the track “Hello,” which starts off with the opening riff of “Wonderwall” playing extremely quietly; this stops once the guitar noise comes in.
The original title was “Wishing Stone.”
In an interview conducted in Australia around the time of the release of Be Here Now, when asked which 3 songs he would like to be remembered for, Noel immediately responded with “Live Forever” and “Wonderwall” and then proceeded to list several others, including “Champagne Supernova,” “Magic Pie” and “Cigarettes & Alcohol.”
At the very end of the song, the intro to “Supersonic” can be faintly heard being played on acoustic guitar.
Radiohead recorded a bootleg cover of the song in which Thom Yorke sings many incorrect lyrics and cuts out mid-chorus when a background voice says, “Is this abysmal or what? It’s always good to make fun of Oasis.”
This was prevented from reaching #1 in the UK by Robson & Jerome’s Double A-side, “I Believe”and “Up On The Roof.”
The song’s music promo won the Best Video at the 1996 Brit Awards.
Jay-Z opened his set at the Glastonbury Festival in 2008 by singing a few minutes of this song – quite poorly. The famous UK festival was known for rock acts, so having Jay-Z perform stirred things up. After Noel Gallagher made public remarks taking issue with a rapper’s invitation to the festival, Jay responded with the on-stage mockery of “Wonderwall.”
The It’s a Shame About Ray episode of the HBO series Girls closed with Lena Dunham’s character Hannah singing this song in her bathtub, followed by a segue into Oasis’ original version. The day after its original broadcast on February 2, 2013, the tune re-entered Billboard’s Rock Digital Songs at #50.
This was voted #1 on the state-funded Triple J youth network’s “Hottest 100” countdown of the best songs released between Jan. 1, 1993, and Dec. 31, 2012. The White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army” was runner-up. More than 940,000 votes were cast for the poll, which was held to celebrate two decades of Triple J’s Hottest 100 countdown. “Wonderwall” previously topped the annual “Hottest 100” in 1995, a time when Oasis were at the peak of their powers.
Noel on the song’s drum placement (The Art of Noise: Conversations with Great Songwriters by Daniel Rachel): “I write songs purely for feel. Like the drums coming in on ‘Wonderwall’: people were going, ‘Why have they come in there, it’s an eighth of a bar too early?’ ‘What’s an eighth of a bar?’ I struggle to understand people’s perceptions. It comes in there because to me that’s where it sounds right to. ‘That’s wrong.’ I’m like, ‘Wrong to who? How can it be wrong?'”
This topped a 2016 survey commissioned by the website Sunfly Karaoke ahead of Father’s Day to find the favorite karaoke songs of dads around the UK. The song narrowly beat Blur’s “Parklife,” which came second in the poll.
Ryan Adams covered the song for his 2004 Love is Hell album. His version was supposed to be an inside joke with his then girlfriend, with whom he would debate the merits of Oasis vs Blur, but Adams managed to put a much darker spin on the song. He told Uncut:
“It occurred to me that I was singing it from the perspective of someone in danger of committing suicide. That’s not what I was thinking about when I first did it, but it did have a different meaning. It’s someone saying, you’re my last hope.
But in the second verse, that hope it’s not happening, and I’m singing like that person would sing if that’s the last thing they’re ever going to sing. That’s how I feel in that moment. It’s not a perversion to tap into these those things. I can let my body sing this way and let my mind go there, and I can feel all those things because they’ve been real things in my life at some point.”
Wonderwall
Today is gonna be the day That they’re gonna throw it back to you By now you should’ve somehow Realized what you gotta do I don’t believe that anybody Feels the way I do, about you now
Back beat, the word was on the street That the fire in your heart is out I’m sure you’ve heard it all before But you never really had a doubt I don’t believe that anybody Feels the way I do about you now
And all the roads we have to walk are winding And all the lights that lead us there are blinding There are many things that I Would like to say to you but I don’t know how
Because maybe, you’re gonna be the one that saves me And after all, you’re my wonderwall
Today was gonna be the day But they’ll never throw it back to you By now you should’ve somehow Realized what you’re not to do I don’t believe that anybody Feels the way I do, about you now
And all the roads that lead you there are winding And all the lights that light the way are blinding There are many things that I Would like to say to you but I don’t know how
I said maybe, you’re gonna be the one that saves me And after all, you’re my wonderwall
I said maybe, you’re gonna be the one that saves me And after all, you’re my wonderwall
I said maybe, you’re gonna be the one that saves me You’re gonna be the one that saves me You’re gonna be the one that saves me
Jimmy Ruffin was the brother of then Temptation David Ruffin. This was written by Motown writers Jimmy Dean, Paul Riser, and William Witherspoon. They wrote it for The Detroit Spinners, but Ruffin convinced the Motown writers to let him try it, and they liked what they heard.
I think Motown has been the soundtrack to more breakups than anyone else. This song peaked at #7 in the Billboard 100 in 1966. The great Smokey Robinson produced this track. He worked on many Motown classics as an artist, writer, and producer. This would be Jimmy’s biggest hit of his career.
From Songfacts
Many Motown songs deal with heartbreak, but this one is especially bleak. The poor guy has recently joined the ranks of the brokenhearted, and he’s not sure what happens next. He knows he can’t take the pain much longer, but keeps coming up empty in his search.
Originally, this contained a spoken intro:
A world filled with love is a wonderful sight
Being in love is one’s heart’s delight
But that look of love isn’t on my face
That enchanted feeling has been replaced
It was cut out before the song was released, but the version with the intro did appear on a British compilation which also included Ruffin’s version of the song in Italian (“Se Decidi Cosi”).
Other Motown acts to record this song include Diana Ross and The Supremes, who did a cover of this for their album Let the Sunshine In, and The Contours, who did it at a faster tempo. Both of these versions contain the spoken intro.
In the UK, this charted at #10 when it was first released in 1966, but make #4 when it was re-released in 1974.
Dave Stewart (not the one from Eurythmics) released a keyboard-driven version of this song in 1980 with Colin Blunstone of The Zombies on vocals. This rendition, which had Amanda Parsons and Jakko on backing vocals, made #13 UK.
The British duo Robson & Jerome took this song to #1 in the UK when they released it as a single along with covers of “Saturday Night At The Movies” and “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”
Vonda Shepard recorded this for an episode of the TV series Ally McBeal.
The Isley Brothers recorded a version entitled “Smile” that is the same exact backing track with different lyrics and phrasing. It can be found on the Motown Sings Motown Treasures album.
Paul Young recorded this for the 1991 movie Fried Green Tomatoes. His version went to #1 on the US Adult Contemporary charts and made #22 on the Hot 100 (the only version besides Ruffin’s to make this chart).
On an episode of the TV series JAG, Col. MacKenzie plays the song on a jukebox in a bar, lamenting her breakup with Mick, the Australian naval officer. Mac, Bud (who was having romantic issues with Harriet) and Lt. Rabb (who just broke up with girl friend) are all sitting at the bar singing along with the song unaware of the others’ romantic issues.
The theme song from the 1992 Whitney Houston film The Bodyguard was Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You,” but according to her leading man Kevin Costner speaking at her funeral in February 2012, the first choice was this song, which ended up being used in Fried Green Tomatoes (the Paul Young version).
What Becomes of the Broken Hearted
A world filled with love is a wonderful sight Being in love is what’s heart’s delight But that look of love isn’t on my face That enchanted feeling has been replaced As I walk this land of broken dreams I have visions of many things But happiness is just an illusion Filled with sadness and confusion What becomes of the broken-hearted Who had love that’s now departed? I know I’ve got to find Some kind of peace of mind Maybe, The fruits of love grow all around But for me they come a tumblin’ down Everyday heartaches grow a little stronger I can’t stand this pain much longer I walk in shadows, searching for light Cold and alone, no comfort in sight Hoping and prayin’ for someone who care Always movin’ and goin’ nowhere What becomes of the broken-hearted Who had love that’s now departed? I know I’ve got to find Some kind of peace of mind Help me, please I’m searching though I don’t succeed But someone look There’s a growing need Oh, he is lost, there’s no place for beginning All that’s left is an unhappy ending Now what becomes of the broken-hearted Who had love that’s now departed? I know I’ve got to find Some kind of peace of mind I’ll be searching everywhere Just to find someone to care I’ll be looking everyday I know I’ve got to find a way Nothing’s gonna stop me now I’ll find a way somehow I’ll be searching everywhere
If you get really bored…I’ve attempted to make an index/menu for the blog above with “All Songs from A-Z”, “TV Shows and Commercials”, and “Books and Documentaries”… I will be adding more categories as I go along. If you try it and something doesn’t work just shoot me a comment…thanks
The Shocking Blue weekend is coming to a close with their biggest hit… Venus. I want to thank everyone for the positive feedback on this forgotten band over the weekend. I like some of their other songs more than this one but it is a good song.
This is one of the first songs I remember hearing. I like Shocking Blue because of their powerful lead singer Mariska Veres and the songwriting of Robbie van Leeuwen. This was their huge #1 hit Venus and it peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100 in 1970.
The group’s guitarist Robbie Van Leeuwen wrote this song. The group is from The Netherlands, which led to an interesting translation problem when Shocking Blue lead singer Mariska Veres sang the English lyrics.
Van Leeuwen wrote the first line down incorrectly what was supposed to be “A goddess on the mountain top” he wrote as “A goddness (I checked and she does say goddness) on the mountain top,” and that’s exactly how Veres sang it. the result was a #1 hit with a misspoken first line thanks to a typo.
“Venus” made Number 3 in Holland, but significantly topped the charts in several countries, including Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, and Germany. The record came to the attention of a newly formed American record label, Colossus. The label’s head, Jerry Ross, signed Shocking Blue to his label and was rewarded when “Venus” hit the top there in February of 1970. Needless to say the group was hugely successful at home and had some fifty hits in Holland while their records also sold well in France and Japan.
Shocking Blue’s follow-up to “Venus”, “Mighty Joe“, made Number 1 in Holland and charted almost everywhere as its predecessor had. “Never Marry a Railroad Man” also hit top of the Holland rock chart. They continued to chart with songs like “Hello Darkness”, “Shocking You”, “Long Lonesome Road”, “Blossom Lady”, and “Inkpot”, but neither of these songs reached higher than 43rd place in the American chart.
Shocking Blue successfully combined Beat and R&B with psychedelic elements of the time like Indian sitar and odd production techniques. Robbie didn’t mind if the band included a few covers, as it took the pressure off him to constantly come up with new material. “We wrote a lot of our own stuff and the radio DJs preferred us to do original songs, but we had so many albums to do the band had to fill in with a few covers. It was quite exhausting writing all the lyrics and song myself”.
For several months in 1970-1971 Leo van de Ketterij(guitar) played with the group.
Mariska, Robbie, Cor and Klaasje stayed together for three years while they toured the world, visiting such distant lands as Japan, Indonesia, Hong Kong, and South America. Traveling facilities were primitive compared to the sort of luxury top groups expect today, and Shocking Blue had to cover vast distances cramped together in an uncomfortable station wagon. “We never expected to be so busy”, recalls Robbie. “The whole touring business just became too tough for me.”
From Songfacts
The female vocal trio Bananarama recorded this in 1986. It was one of the first songs they started performing when they formed the band in 1979, but they wanted to record original songs first so they would be taken seriously.
Their version was produced by the team of Stock, Aitken and Waterman, who worked on hits by Rick Astley (“Never Gonna Give You Up”), Dead or Alive (“You Spin Me Round (Like A Record)”) and Kylie Minogue (“I Should Be So Lucky”).
The distinctive guitar riff was taken from The Who’s “Pinball Wizard.”
This was produced by Jerry Ross, who also produced another Dutch group, Tee Set, who performed “Ma Belle Amie”. Ross also produced an album of orchestral arrangements of his (primarily) Dutch stable of hits, under the name Jerry Ross Symposium.
In the US, both this and the Bananarama cover version reached #1, making it one of the few songs to do so. Strangely, in the UK both Shocking Blue and Bananarama reached #8 with “Venus” and both spent 13 weeks on the chart with the song.
On an episode of the MTV cartoon Beavis And Butthead, Butthead makes up his own lyrics to this but gets frustrated when he can’t think of anything that rhymes with “Venus.”
In Shocking Blue’s home country, this never made it to #1. After its success in the States, the song was re-released but climbed no further that #3 on the Dutch pop chart.
In 1959, Frankie Avalon had a US #1 hit with the same title. There were two other instances of different songs with identical titles reaching #1 on the Billboard charts. “My Love” was #1 for Petula Clark in 1966 and another “My Love” turned the trick for McCartney & Wings in 1973. Then “Best Of My Love” topped the charts for the Eagles in 1973 and a different song of the same title was #1 for The Emotions in 1977.
In the 1988 Full House episode “But Seriously Folks,” DJ and Kimmy, influenced by Bananarama, start a band and attempt to learn “Venus.”
Venus
A goddess on a mountain top Burning like a silver flame A summit of beauty and love And Venus was her name.
She’s got it, Yeah baby, she’s got it. I’m your Venus, I’m your fire at your desire.
Her weapons were her crystal eyes Making every man mad, Black as the dark night she was Got what no one else had.
She’s got it, Yeah baby, she’s got it I’m your Venus, I’m your fire at your desire.
This wraps up the Mash posts…This is my least favorite period of Mash but I’m not knocking it. It was still better than some other shows at the time. Not many shows can go on this long without some lag. The episodes were hit and miss. The show had to grow up and the characters had to change to continue this long. Mash was an ensemble-based show but now more than ever the focus was on Hawkeye than the rest of the cast.
The biggest change was the atmosphere compared to the beginning. The desperate feeling from being 3 miles from the frontline seems to have disappeared. The characters seem comfortable…maybe too comfortable being there. The dirt of the earlier episodes is washed clean now.
Characters from the from years 9-11.
Benjamin Franklin “Hawkeye” Pierce – Alan Alda – This is a period when a friend of mine called Alan Alda a Chatty Cathy doll. Pull the string and the puns would come out over and over. Hawkeye goes from a wisecracking skirt chaser to a sensitive person in these years. You see Hawkeye go through a mental breakdown in the last episode.
Captain B.J. Hunnicutt – Mike Farrell – BJ stays faithful to his wife and is known to be a practical joker. Like the other characters, we get to know BJ more in these seasons. Mash was really good at fleshing out the characters.
Major Charles Emerson Winchester III – David Ogden Stiers – By the end Charles was bearable. Winchester is often adversarial with Hawkeye and B.J. but joins forces with them if it is justified. He has a dry sense of humor and enjoys practical jokes as well as the occasional prank to get revenge on his bunkmates for something they did or for his own amusement.
Colonel Sherman T Potter – Henry Morgan – Sherman Potter became the father figure of the camp. He was their unquestionable leader. Henry Morgan did a great job with the role.
Major Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan – Loretta Swit – Of all the characters Margaret goes through the biggest change. She is now one of the gang and even defiant at authority at times. She is someone by now that you would love to know. She is still tough but far from the by the book person she was at one time.
Francis John Patrick Mulcahy – William Christopher – Mulcahy understands that many of his “flock” are non-religious or have other faiths, and does not overly preach at them. Rather than lecturing at people, he seeks to teach by example, or by helping someone see the error of their ways
Maxwell Klinger – Jamie Farr – Corporal Klinger who once tried to eat a jeep bolt by bolt just to get out of the army now seems happy to serve. When he took over Radar’s job he seemed quite content.
Stand out Episodes
Dreams – After long hours operating the episode gets into the subconscious of the 4077. Each cast member is shown dreaming.
Goodbye, Farewell and Amen – The last episode of Mash. The show was so strongly anticipated that commercial blocks were sold higher than for the Superbowl that year… from Wiki… It still stands as the most-watched finale of any television series, as well as the most-watched episode
Klinger: Rosie, I need a favor. Rosie: Five dollars. Klinger: I just wanna talk. Rosie: OK, three dollars.
BJ: Do you know how to make a cow say “ah”? Hawkeye: Not without getting emotionally involved.
PA System Announcer: Ladies and gentlemen, five minutes ago, at 10:01 this morning, the truce was signed in Panmunjon. The hostilities will end twelve hours from now at ten o’clock. THE WAR IS OVER!
Hawkeye: Look, I know how tough it is for you to say goodbye, so I’ll say it. Maybe you’re right. Maybe we will see each other again. But just in case we don’t, I want you to know how much you’ve meant to me. I’ll never be able to shake you. Whenever I see a pair of big feet or a cheesy mustache, I’ll think of you. B. J.: Whenever I smell month-old socks, I’ll think of you. Hawkeye: Or the next time somebody nails my shoe to the floor… B. J.: Or when somebody gives me a martini that tastes like lighter fluid. Hawkeye: I’ll miss you. B. J.: I’ll miss you, a lot. I can’t imagine what this place would’ve been like if I hadn’t found you here. [The two men hug, then Hawkeye boards the helicopter while B. J. mounts his motorcycle, where he shouts over the helicopter] I’ll see you back in the States—I promise! But just in case, I left you a note! Hawkeye: What?![B. J. rides off. Hawkeye gives the pilot the thumbs-up to take off. As the helicopter ascends, Hawkeye looks down and smiles as he sees a message spelled in stones: GOODBYE]
This was a cover by Shocking Blue of the Mel Tillis and Webb Pierce song. Mel Tillis claims he wrote the song by himself but gave Pierce credit in trade of some boots that Webb Pierce owned. Mel Tillis later said that “Them old boots cost me over eight hundred thousand dollars in royalties.”
Web Pierce took the song to #2 in the Billboard Country Charts and #24 in the Billboard 100 in 1959. Mel Tillis took the song to #1 in the Billboard Country Charts and #1 in the Candian Country Charts in 1972.
Shocking Blue did a good job of the cover. A Dutch group doing country…pretty interesting.
Shocking Blue covered the song in 1972 and it was on the Inkpot album. The album has three cover songs included because guitarist and main songwriter Robbie van Leeuwen had written 3 albums in two years.
The Mel Tillis version
I Ain’t Never
Well, I ain’t never, I ain’t never Seen nobody like you, No, no, no, never, ever, ever Seen nobody like you.
You call me up and say you’ll meet me at nine, I have to hurry, hurry but I’m fair on time. I walk right up and knock on your door, The landlord said he ain’t here no more.
But I never, oh darling, never See nobody like you, But I love you, yeah, I love you, I love you just the same.
Well, I ain’t never, I ain’t never Seen nobody like you, No, no, no, never, ever, ever Seen nobody like you.
You tell me sweet things that you don’t mean, You got me a-living in a horny dream. You make me do things I don’t wanna do, All friends are saying what’s a-wrong with you?
I ain’t never, oh darling, never Seen nobody like you, Oh, but I’ve loved you, yeah, I’ve loved you, I’ve loved you just the same.
The band was founded in 1967 and after recruiting vocalist Mariska Veres they soon became huge. With their single “Venus” they became the first Dutch band ever to reach the first spot on the American Billboard Hot 100. The band had a series of subsequent hits but decided to call it a day in 1974.
Their influence reached well beyond their generation: even bands like Nirvana and The Prodigy used Shocking Blue’s “Love Buzz”. Shocking Blue released this song on the group’s 1969 album, At Home.
Krist Novoselic of Nirvana was once quoted referring to Shocking Blue’s Klaasje van der Wal as “a bass god.”
The song was covered by Nirvana, released as their debut single in 1988.
Love Buzz
Would you believe me when I tell you You’re the king of my dreams? Please don’t deceive me when I hurt you; It just ain’t the way it seems.
Can’t you hear my love buzz? Can’t you hear my love buzz? Can’t you hear my love buzz?
I need you like a desert needs rain; I would rather like to die. Darling I hurt when I do not see you, So spread your wings and fly.
Can’t you hear my love buzz? Can’t you hear my love buzz? Can’t you hear my love buzz?
Would you believe me when I tell you You’re the king of my dreams? Please don’t deceive me when I hurt you; It just ain’t the way it seems.
Can’t you hear my love buzz? Can’t you hear my love buzz? Can’t you hear my love buzz?
I need you like a desert needs rain; I would rather like to die. Darling I hurt when I don’t see you, So spread your wings and fly.
Can’t you hear my love buzz? Can’t you hear my love buzz? Can’t you hear my love buzz?
There are some great episodes during the middle run of Mash. We see Henry’s replacement in Colonel Sherman T Potter. He led the 4077 but let everyone be themselves. Potter was unquestionably a better leader than Henry was but I still missed Henry. We also see Frank Burns leave and Margaret change.
We see Trapper leave and BJ Hunnicutt take his place as Hawkeye’s friend and fellow Frank Burns tormentor. BJ was faithful to his wife unlike Trapper and was a little more level headed.
Frank Burns leaving left a hole in the show. I will admit sometimes the writers would go too far with Frank but he united Hawkeye and BJ. After Frank goes crazy attacking different women (off-camera) in Tokyo (thinking they are Margaret) he gets transferred to his hometown and promoted much to Hawkeye and BJ’s dismay.
His replacement is Charles Winchester III and he is a good foil for the show but balances out because he is such a good surgeon. It’s easy to dislike Charles but he is not Frank.
We also say goodbye to Radar in the 8th season.
Characters from the from years 4-8.
Benjamin Franklin “Hawkeye” Pierce – Alan Alda – Hawkeye was funny as always but a bit more serious in these years. After the 4th season
Captain B.J. Hunnicutt – Mike Farrell – BJ was a good partner with Hawkeye but in other ways opposite of Trapper John. BJ was faithful to his wife Peg in Mill Valley. He was more level headed than Trapper or Hawkeye.
Major Charles Emerson Winchester III – David Ogden Stiers – The snobby surgeon who was called into duty because he was owed money by a higher ranking officer so he was sent to the 4077. Charles replaced Frank and had a few unlikeable qualities but unlike Frank, he was a great surgeon, was intelligent, and could be kind at times.
Colonel Sherman T Potter – Henry Morgan – Sherman Potter was real Army but still had his fun side. He was a much better leader than Henry and took control of the 4077 but let everyone be themselves.
Major Frank Burns – Larry Linville – I love how they wrote for Frank’s character. Many times writers will soften the “bad” guys up but Frank stayed his annoying whiny self until he left the show in the 6th season. Frank starts going insane when Margaret gets engaged to Donald Penobscot.
Major Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan – Loretta Swit – When Margaret got engaged to Donald Penobscot and left Frank… The character started to change. She became a little more fun-loving and went with the flow of the camp much more. She respected Colonel Potter much more so than Blake and she was a little more understanding now.
Corporal Walter “Radar”O’Reilly – Gary Burghoff – We learn more about Radar during these seasons. One episode has his home movies and we meet his mom (Burghoff in drag) and his relatives. He also grows close to Colonel Potter and gives the Colonel a horse (Sophie) in one episode.
Francis John Patrick Mulcahy – William Christopher – His character was pretty consistent during the run of the show. He is a caring man who could very well be mistaken as a priest.
Maxwell Klinger – Jamie Farr – Corporal Klinger still dresses in women’s clothing and tries different stunts trying to get out of the army. When Radar leaves he has to take over the corporal duties and he starts being more of a conventional part of the team…though he always pulls his weight throughout the show.
Stand out Episodes
Welcome to Korea – Hawkeye gets back from Tokyo and finds out that Trapper John left that morning to go home. He wanted to say goodbye and grabbed Radar and went to the airport to catch Trapper before he left. He missed him but met BJ Hunnicutt coming in. After a few drinks, they become fast friends and bond and BJ gets action right away on the way to camp.
The Nurses – Margaret confronts her nurses and we learn a lot about her in this episode. She becomes much more of well-rounded character from this episode on…more of a human than previously explored.
The Interview – Real life war correspondent Clete Roberts interviews the gang at the 4077. The episode is shot in black and white and the jokes are kept at a minimum in this episode.
Good-Bye Radar – Radar reluctantly prepares to depart the 4077th. We see Klinger trying to do Radar’s job when he is off on R&R and Radar comes back to a mess. His Uncle Ed dies so Colonel Potter tells him he can go home and take care of his mom. He wasn’t going to go at first because he felt a responsibility to the camp.
BJ: Frank, weren’t you a Boy Scout? Frank: Yes. I was. Later, I was Scoutmaster. Hawkeye: Until those little ingrates set fire to his pants. Frank: Not true. That was a drill.
Margaret: Did you ever once show me any friendship? Ever ask my help in a personal problem? Include me in one of your little bull sessions? Can you imagine how it feels to walk by this tent and… [gasps and breaks down] hear you laughing and know that I’m not welcome? Did you ever offer me a lousy cup of coffee? Nurse: We didn’t think you’d accept. Margaret: Well, you were wrong.
Potter: We all know when the Good Lord passed out paranoia, Frank Burns got on line twice. Hawkeye: Three times; and the third time, he denied ever being in line!
Charles: (trying to find a place to sleep in Potter’s tent) I demand a space for my cot. Hawkeye: (picks up a small box) Hello, room service, send up a larger room.
This is a song I’ve heard forever but never knew who sang it. J.J. Jackson wrote this song with Pierre Tubbs and released it in 1966. It peaked at #22 in the Billboard 100 and #4 on the R&B Singles Charts.
It’s a great R&B/Rock blast and J.J. gives a great performance with his vocals and the guitar riff is as catchy as you can get without being corny.
J. J. (not to be confused with the MTV VJay JJ Jackson) was a songwriter, arranger, and singer. He wrote his own music and worked with a number of artists, including The Shangri-Las, Jack McDuff, Jimmy Witherspoon, and Mary Wells, in the early to mid-’60s. He was a one-hit wonder on his own but it’s a great song.
But It’s Alright
You don’t know how I feel You’ll never know how I feel When I needed you to come around You always try to bring me down Oh, but I know, girl, believe me when I say that You are surely, surely gonna pay, girl But it’s all right all right girl You can hurt me but it’s all right Hey now, one day ah, you will see You’ll never find a guy like me Who’ll love you right both day and night You’ll never have to worry ’cause it’s all uptight Oh, but I’m tellin’ you girl and I know it’s true That I was made to love only you But it’s all right, all right girl You can hurt me, but it’s all right Go on, yeah
Oh, oh, yeah My my my baby, wow, yeah! But it’s all right all right girl Hey, say it’s all right all right girl Now there’s one thing I want to say, hey, yeah You’ll meet a guy who’ll make you pay He’ll treat you bad and make you sad And you will lose the love you had Oh, but I hate to say I told you so, but Baby, you gotta gotta reap what you sow But it’s all right all right girl You are payin’ now, but it’s all right So goodbye, now, goodbye, girl You’re payin’ now, say bye-bye You hurt me once, you hurt me twice Oh, but-a baby, that don’t cut no ice Hey, goodbye, baby
I’m sounding like one of those AM radio shows…It’s going to be a Shocking Blue weekend! I’ll post some more of their songs Saturday and Sunday. This song has an unusual chorus but it is very catchy.
Shocking Blue was a Dutch rock band formed in The Hague in 1967. They were known for the song Venus which reached #1 in the Billboard 100 in 1970. “Never Marry a Railroad Man” sold over a million records and became a top-ten hit in several countries around the world.
The song is not well known in America but is a great little song. The singer was Mariska Veres who sounded a bit like Grace Slick but with a maybe stronger voice. I found this group a few years ago while listening to Venus and explored their other releases. They did have more songs than Venus that were good.
Mariska was born in Hague, Holland.. Mariska, half-Hungarian and half-German, had often sung with her father, Lajos Veres, who played violin in a gypsy orchestra. She recorded the solo singles called “Topkapi”(1965) and “Dag en nacht” (1967) and had gained experience singing with different groups before she joined Shocking Blue. How did she meet Shocking Blue?
In 1968 Shocking Blue’s manager and music publisher attended a party celebrating the success of Golden Earring’s first number one song in Holland. A band known as the Bumble Bees, fronted by the strong and striking female singer, performed at the party, and the two men thought she would be a perfect addition to Shocking Blue. Robbie van Leeuwen, leader and founder of Shocking Blue, was immediately impressed by her vocal style, quite different from most local singers of the day. When Mariska was asked to join the Shocking Blue, she requested that they (the band members) would not start any relationships with her except professional one. She replaced de Wilde as a lead singer and, no doubt, became the eye- and ear-catching attraction of the band; her soul-tingled voice gave the music a distinct R&B sound. Mariska obviously was an attraction for many fans of SB. It’s easy to imagine how many men and boys had fallen in love with Mariska, with her mystic aura, enigmatic smile, and long black hair (which was, sadly to say, a wig). People, mostly men of course, saw her a sex-symbol, which she was, but she could never cope with it. It was a disappointment for many of her fans when in the late seventies she got rid of her sexy image starting to wear long dresses and relatively short haircut. In spite of her fantastic look Mariska was a pretty shy, a little naive person. She could not really deal with the snobbish Robbie (guitar player): once he shouted at her, she started to cry and phoned her mother, who in return called their manager. Sounds silly, but Mariska was surely not the wild woman everybody thought she was. Mariska also was “famous” for her lifestyle: she never smoked and she did not like alcohol. During those days of “sex, drugs, and rock and roll”, when SB toured the world, Mariska’s most favorite drink was tea.
After Shocking Blue disbanded Mariska started her solo career, which was not successful. She recorded a dozen of solo singles but the singles did not score well although most of them sounded (and still sound) great. Probably, she was not motivated enough, lacked a good manager, and luck was not on her side. In 1978 Mariska was featured in a single “Neon City” recorded by Mistral (Robbie’s group at that time). In 1979 Robbie was planning to reunite the group. They even recorded a single called “Louise” as a part of their come back project, but for some reasons this was cancelled and “Louise” was never released. Robbie van Leeuwen said in an interview that Mariska was the only reason the come back was off, but never said why. Probably, Mariska was just fed up with all the attention and was just overworked. Maybe because of this she does not like to recall the 70’s. In the late 80’s she performed with her group “Veres”. In the early 90’s she appeared on stage with The Clarks, and, in my opinion, their performances together were great. Mariska also sang with several jazz musicians, and even recorded CD with four jazz musicians in 1993 (Mariska Veres Shocking Jazz Quintet). In the fall of 1993 she founded a new band and, with Robbie’s permission, called it Shocking Blue. They recorded a single “Body And Soul” (1994), which was produced by Robbie.
Never Marry A Railroad Man
Have you been broken-hearted once or twice If it’s yes how did you feel at his first lies If it’s no you need this good advice
Never marry a Railroad man
He loves you every now and then His heart is at his new train. No, no, no Don’t fall in love with a Railroad man If you do forget him if you can You’re better off without him ah
Have you ever been restless in your bed And so lonely that your eyes became wet Let me tell you then one thing
Road”, “Blossom Lady”, and “Inkpot”, but neither of these songs reached higher than 43rd place in the American chart.
years while they toured the world, visiting such distant lands as Japan, Indonesia, Hong Kong, and South America. Traveling facilities were primitive compared to the sort of luxury top groups expect today, and Shocking Blue had to cover vast distances cramped together in an uncomfortable station wagon. “We never expected to be so busy”, recalls Robbie. “The whole touring business just became too tough for me.”
performed at the party, and the two men thought she would be a perfect addition to Shocking Blue. Robbie van Leeuwen, leader and founder of Shocking Blue, was immediately impressed by her vocal style, quite different from most local singers of the day. When Mariska was asked to join the Shocking Blue, she requested that they (the band members) would not start any relationships with her except professional one. She replaced de Wilde as a lead singer and, no doubt, became the eye- and ear-catching attraction of the band; her soul-tingled voice gave the music a distinct R&B sound.
She recorded a dozen of solo singles but the singles did not score well although most of them sounded (and still sound) great. Probably, she was not motivated enough, lacked a good manager, and luck was not on her side. In 1978 Mariska was featured in a single “Neon City” recorded by Mistral (Robbie’s group at that time). In 1979 Robbie was planning to reunite the group. They even recorded a single called “Louise” as a part of their come back project, but for some reasons this was cancelled and “Louise” was never released. Robbie van Leeuwen said in an interview that Mariska was the only reason the come back was off, but never said why. Probably, Mariska was just fed up with all the attention and was just overworked. Maybe because of this she does not like to recall the 70’s. In the late 80’s she performed with her group “Veres”. In the early 90’s she appeared on stage with The Clarks, and, in my opinion, their performances together were great. Mariska also sang with several jazz musicians, and even recorded CD with four jazz musicians in 1993 (Mariska Veres Shocking Jazz Quintet). In the fall of 1993 she founded a new band and, with Robbie’s permission, called it Shocking Blue. They recorded a single “Body And Soul” (1994), which was produced by Robbie.
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