Thinking of Peter Tork who passed away Thursday at 77. This song would play over the closing credits of their TV show. Peter Tork (Peter Halsten Thorkelson) co-wrote the song with Joey Richards. “For Pete’s Sake” kicked off side two of the Monkees’ third album, 1967’s Headquarters. The song was not released as a single but the album Headquarters (the Monkees played their instruments on this one) and eventually peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100 until Sgt Pepper took over the spot.
The song has a garage band sound and lyrically it’s very 1967…and that is a good thing.
For Pete’s Sake
Love is understanding, Don’t you know that this is true. Love is understanding, It’s in everything we do.
In this generation, In this lovin’ time, In this generation, We will make the world shine.
We were born to love one another This is something we all need. We were born to love one another We must be what we’re goin’ to be And what we have to be is free.
In this generation, In this lovin’ time, In this generation, We will make the world shine.
We were born to love one another This is something we all need. We were born to love one another We must be what we’re goin’ to be And what we have to be is free.
Love is undertanding, we gotta be free Love is undertanding, we gotta be free [Repeat and adlib]
I posted about The Beau Brummels last week with the song Laugh Laugh. The biggest surprise to me about this song is who produced it. Sylvester Stewart…later of Sly and the Family Stone.
The song was written by guitarist Ron Elliott and Bob Durand. They had 5 songs in the top 100. Just a Little peaked at #8 in the Billboard 100 in 1965.
I mentioned in the last post about them but The Beau Brummels appeared in the Flintstones (as the animated version of themselves, the Beau Brummelstones). This time I found it…
Just A Little
Ah ah ah ah
I can’t stay, yes I know You know I hate to go But goodbye, love was sweet Our worlds can never meet
[Chorus:] So I’ll cry just a little ’cause I love you so And I’ll die just a little ’cause I have to go Away
Can’t you see how I feel When I say love’s unreal But goodbye, it’s been sweet Even though incomplete
[Chorus]
[Instrumental break]
Every night I still hear All your sighs very clear Now love’s gone, gone away As I once heard you say
[Chorus 2:] Now I’ve cried just a little ’cause I loved you so And I’ve died just a little ’cause I had to go Away
This song was on the Magical Mystery Tour album released in 1967. The song was not released as a single. The song was one of my favorites off of the album.
The sometimes myth about John and Paul was that John wrote great lyrics and Paul wrote the great melodies. In this one, Paul wrote great lyrics and melody.
This was not a hit for The Beatles, but a 1968 cover version by Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’66 went to #6 in the Billboard 100. In America, this was the highest-charting Beatles cover until 1975, when Elton John took “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” to #1.
Paul played this for John Lennon while they were writing “With A Little Help From My Friends.” John made him write down the words so he wouldn’t forget. John later said in 1980: “Paul again, proving that he can write lyrics if he’s a good boy.”
The video from the Magical Mystery Tour is one of the best bits in the movie.
From Songfacts
Paul McCartney wrote this song. It’s about a man who is considered a fool by others, but whose foolish demeanor is actually an indication of wisdom.
An event which prompted this song happened when Paul was walking his dog, Martha, on Primrose Hill one morning. As he watched the sun rise, he noticed that Martha was missing. Paul turned around to look for his dog, and there a man stood, who appeared on the hill without making a sound. The gentleman was dressed respectably, in a belted raincoat. Paul knew this man had not been there seconds earlier as he had looked in that direction for Martha. Paul and the stranger exchanged a greeting, and this man then spoke of what a beautiful view it was from the top of this hill that overlooked London. Within a few seconds, Paul looked around again, and the man was gone. He had vanished as he had appeared. A friend of McCartney’s, Alistair Taylor, was present with Paul during this strange incident, and wrote of this event in his book, Yesterday.
Both Paul and Alistair could not imagine what happened to this man. He had seemed to vanish in thin air. The nearest trees for cover were too far to reach by walking or running in a few seconds, and the crest of the hill was too far as well to reach in that short time. What made the experience even more mysterious, was that just before this man first appeared, Paul and Alistair were speaking to each other of the beauty they observed of the view towards London and the existence of God. Once back home, they spent the morning discussing what had happened, trying to make some sense of it. They both agreed that this was something others were infer occurred as a result of an “acid trip,” but they both swore they had not taken or used any drugs. When Paul filmed the sequence for this song in the film, it shows him on a hilltop overlooking the town of Nice.
This is a very curious song musically as well as lyrically, as it shifts between major and minor keys. Dan Wilson, a songwriter whose credits include Adele’s “Someone Like You” and Chris Stapleton’s “When The Stars Come Out,” explained in a Songfacts interview: “I think that song is musically just incredible. And mysterious. The way it goes from minor to major to minor just kills me every time.
Why it isn’t a funny kind of silly song in my heart is just a mystery to me, also. The lyrics are like a nursery rhyme. It’s so simple and there’s nothing to it, yet I find it deeply sad and affecting and almost tragic, like it’s some kind of tragedy of human nature being explained or channeled in a super-simple song that toggles from minor to major and back again.”
This began as a solo composition with Paul McCartney at the piano. Flutes were added last.
This was used in the Beatles movie Magical Mystery Tour.
The Eurythmics (Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart) reunited to perform this song on the CBS special The Beatles: The Night That Changed America, which aired on February 9, 2014 – exactly 50 years after The Beatles first appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show.
The Fool on the Hill
Day after day Alone on a hill The man with the foolish grin Is keeping perfectly still But nobody wants to know him They can see that he’s just a fool And he never gives an answer
But the fool on the hill Sees the sun going down And the eyes in his head See the world spinning round
Well on the way Head in a cloud The man of a thousand voices Talking perfectly loud
But nobody ever hears him Or the sounds he appears to make And he never seems to notice
But the fool on the hill Sees the sun going down And the eyes in his head See the world spinning round
And nobody seems to like him They can tell what he wants to do And he never shows his feelings
But the fool on the hill Sees the sun going down And the eyes in his head See the world spinning round
He never listens to them He knows that they’re the fools They don’t like him
The fool on the hill Sees the sun going down And the eyes in his head See the world spinning round
Some TV Themes can be annoying but many can be very catchy. I’m listing my top 10 on two posts. There are so many that narrowing it to ten was almost impossible. I’ve stuck with older ones for the post. I left out cartoons…
5. The Courtship of Eddie’s Father -Harry Nilsson sang this one staring the one and only Bill Bixby.
4. It’s Garry Shandling’s Show – The most brilliant theme…straight to the point.
3. Munsters – Cool sixties guitar driven theme.
2. Welcome Back Kotter – John Sebastian’s song Welcome Back peaked at #1 in 1976.
Some TV Themes can be annoying but many can be very catchy. I’m listing my top 10 on two posts. There are so many that narrowing it to ten was almost impossible. I’ve stuck with older ones for the post. I left out cartoons…
10. WKRP – One of my favorite shows of the late 70s…not only did I like the theme song but the closing song.
And the closing
9. Barney Miller – Every bass player learns this one.
8. Rockford Files – The theme song made me want to watch the show.
7. Gilligans Island – I know every word and may have heard this theme more than Stairway to Heaven…and that is saying alot.
6. Hawaii Five-O – One of the ultimate themes… love the tidal wave.
I remember this song in the 80s as a throwback to a familiar riff in many 60’s songs. The song peaked at only #49 in the Billboard 100 in 1980. The Romantics’ two Top 40 hits were “Talking In Your Sleep” (#3) and “One In A Million” (#37). Both came in 1983, from their fourth album In Heat.
The Romantics formed in East Detroit in early 1977. The original line-up consisted of singer/guitarist Wally Palmar, singer/drummer Jimmy Marinos, guitarist Mike Skill, and bassist Rich Cole. The band has said their name came from an article on Bryan Ferry in Creem magazine. They were all big fans of Ferry’s band, Roxy Music, and the word “romantic” was used throughout the article.
The group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1977. The band’s first show was on Valentine’s Day at My Fair Lady Club, in Detroit, opening for the New MC5 in 1977.
From Songfacts
The Romantics, so named because they formed on Valentine’s Day 1977 in Detroit, have had only two US Top 40 hits – and this, now their best-known song, wasn’t one of them. It attracted little attention and was only a minor hit when first released in 1980 on their debut album, but found new life later in the decade when it became a popular choice for an advertising jingle, particularly for Budweiser beer. Since then the song has also become a fixture at sporting events, bars and nightclubs, and parties and celebrations of all kinds, and has taken its place as one of the most popular rock anthems of all time.
In another ironic twist, the licensing of this song for advertising, the very thing that sparked the song’s comeback, was apparently handled illegally. It was secured from the band’s management without the band’s knowledge or approval, which sparked a lawsuit lasting several years. Despite now having faded into obscurity, the band stayed together during this time, albeit with several lineup changes, and remain active as of 2012. >>
This song’s resurgence had a lot to do with MTV. The band made a simple performance video for the song that MTV put in rotation when they launched in 1981. It fit the criteria the network was looking for: American band, rock, catchy song, acceptable production quality. Since few American artists made videos at the time, MTV made do with lots of European imports when they started.
The Romantics, who were often compared to The Knack when this song was released, were a four-piece that split lead vocals between their guitarist Wally Palmar and drummer Jimmy Marinos, and it was Marinos who sang lead on this one.
Marinos and Palmar wrote this song with their other guitarist, Mike Skill.
The Texas singer Michael Morales took this song back to the charts in 1989 when his version hit #28 in the US. The song was also covered by 5 Seconds of Summer, who released it in 2014 on their EP She Looks So Perfect. They performed the song at the American Music Awards that year.
What I Like About You
Hey, uh huh huh Hey, uh huh huh
What I like about you, you hold me tight Tell me I’m the only one, wanna’ come over tonight, yea
Keep on whispering in my ear Tell me all the things that I wanna’ to hear, ’cause that’s true (that’s what I like) That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like)
What I like about you, you really know how to dance When you go up, down, jump around, think about true romance, yea
Keep on whispering in my ear Tell me all the things that I wanna’ to hear, ’cause that’s true (that’s what I like about you) That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like about you) That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like about you) That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like) Wahh!
What I like about you, you keep me warm at night Never wanna’ let you go, know you make me feel alright, yea
Keep on whispering in my ear Tell me all the things that I wanna’ to hear, ’cause that’s true (that’s what I like) That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like)
That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like about you) That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like about you) That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like) That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like) That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like) That’s what I like about you (that’s what I like about you)
I hear this song and I’m transported to the sixties. As well known as this song is now it only made it to #40 in the Billboard 100 in 1971. It was written and sung by guitarist Alvin Lee. It’s been in many movies and tv shows. When I think of Ten Years After I think of Woodstock and them playing “I’m Going Home” and Alvin Lee playing his guitar like it’s on fire.
The group was formed in 1966. They took their name because it was 10 years after what they considered the birth of rock and roll. The band didn’t play this song live while Albert Lee was a member, as he felt trying to re-create it on stage would be “too restricting.”
From Songfacts
This song was written by guitarist Alvin Lee, who was the centerpiece of the group. “I’d love to change the world, but I don’t know what to do and I’ll leave it up to you. I’m just saying the world does need changing,” he said of the song in Vintage Rock. “I’d love to do it, but I haven’t got the talent. I don’t think I’m a world changer.”
The song is a good look at what were considered the big problems in the world in 1971: overpopulation, economic inequality, pollution, war. Alvin Lee often said in later interviews that the song remained just as relevant despite the passage of time.
The first line in this song throws out a few slurs:
Every where is freaks and hairies, dykes and fairies
“Freaks” and “hairies” are terms that detractors used to describe the band – after all, they did play Woodstock. The dykes and fairies are likely a reflection on how others might see the world, and it also creates a memorable rhyme. Later in the song, Alvin Lee pulls out a rhyme of convenience in the lyrics:
Life is funny
Skies are sunny
Bees make honey
Who needs money?
Formed in Nottingham, England, Ten Years After made a huge impact when they played the Woodstock festival in 1969 – their performance of “I’m Going Home” made the film. They released two albums in 1969, two more in 1970, and one in 1971 – A Space In Time, which contains “I’d Love To Change The World.” Their albums sold well, typically charting in the Top 25 in America, which was their stronghold. Hit singles were not a concern; Alvin Lee had almost a disdain for them because he didn’t want his songs edited down and then talked over by a DJ. “I’d Love To Change The World” was by far their biggest hit and most enduring song. Their other charting songs in America were “Love Like A Man” (#98, 1970), “Baby Won’t You Let Me Rock ‘N Roll You” (#61, 1972) and “Choo Choo Mama” (#89, 1973). The group stopped performing in 1975 but regrouped every now and then. Alvin Lee died in 2013, but the band had been playing without him for about 10 years by that point.
This was used in the trailer for Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11. Matt Stone and Trey Parker then used it in the trailer for Team America World Police to lampoon the “Fahrenheit” preview.
I’d Love To Change The World
Everywhere is freaks and hairies Dykes and fairies, tell me where is sanity Tax the rich, feed the poor Till there are no rich no more?
I’d love to change the world But I don’t know what to do So I’ll leave it up to you
Population keeps on breeding Nation bleeding, still more feeding economy Life is funny, skies are sunny Bees make honey, who needs money, Monopoly
I’d love to change the world But I don’t know what to do So I’ll leave it up to you
World pollution, there’s no solution Institution, electrocution Just black and white, rich or poor Them and us, stop the war
I’d love to change the world But I don’t know what to do So I’ll leave it up to you
Don Newcomb passed away yesterday February 19, 2019. I don’t remember him playing because I’m too young. Being a Dodger fan all of my life I have read about his playing days and him talking to and mentoring the younger players with today’s Dodgers.
He was born on June 14, 1926, and played in the Negro Leagues finally making it to the Major Leagues in 1949 with the Brooklyn Dodgers winning Rookie of the Year. He won a World Series (the only one Brooklyn won) in 1955. He won the Cy Young Award in 1956. He battled alcoholism in the 50s and 60s. He mentored everyone from Maury Wills, Steve Garvey, Orel Hershiser, Mike Piazza, to current players Kenley Jansen, Clayton Kershaw and manager Dave Roberts.
At 92 he would still come to the ballpark and talk to the Dodgers and opposing players.
Tina Turner wrote this song named after a place near where she was born. Tina’s voice is one of a kind and she is electric. Ike and Tina only had one top ten hit and that was Proud Mary. What surprises me is they had 6 top 40 songs and 20 songs in the Billboard 100. Nutbush City Limits peaked at #22 in the Billboard 100 in 1973.
Anna Mae Bullock was born November 26, 1939 in a hospital in Brownsville, a short drive from Nutbush, Tennessee where she grew up. She would eventually marry songwriter and musician Ike Wister Turner, taking the name Tina Turner. In November 1973 the duo released “Nutbush City Limits.” Far from being a city, Nutbush is a hamlet on Highway 19, Tennessee.
From Songfacts
In this song, Turner recalls her memories of Nutbush, painting a picture of a friendly little town with a strong community. She once said that she didn’t turn any heads in Nutbush, as many women there had the goods.
Marc Bolan of the ’70s British glam rock band T-Rex played guitar on this track. Bolan was a fan of Ike’s guitar playing and in his teenage years he had had a crush on Tina Turner.
Tina Turner didn’t write many songs, but she is the sole composer on this one, which was her biggest hit as a songwriter. As her career progressed, Turner did less songwriting, putting her energies into vocal arrangements and performance. As a solo artist, she surrounded herself with top talent and developed a reputation for her strong work ethic, always getting it right in the studio. She certainly could have written more songs had she chosen to.
Turner re-recorded the song as a house number in 1991 for her compilation album Simply The Best. A single release peaked at #23 in the UK. Two years later she re-worked it again for the What’s Love Got to Do with It? soundtrack album.
Bob Seger released a live version on his 1976 album Live Bullet. Released as a single, it went to #69 in the US.
Nutbush City Limits
A church house, gin house A school house, outhouse On highway number nineteen The people keep the city clean They call it Nutbush, oh Nutbush They call it Nutbush city limits Nutbush city
Twenty-five was the speed limit Motorcycle not allowed in it You go t’the store on Friday You go to church on Sundays They call it Nutbush, oh Nutbush Said they call it Nutbush city limits Nutbush city
You go to the fields on week days And have a picnic on Labor Day You go to town on Saturday But go to church every Sunday They call it Nutbush, Nutbush They call it Nutbush city limits Nutbush city
No whiskey for sale You get drunk, no bail Salt pork and molasses Is all you get in jail They call it Nutbush, oh, Nutbush They call it Nutbush city limits Nutbush city
A lil old town on the Tennessee Quiet little old community, one-horse town You got to watch what they’re puttin’ down Old Nutbush. They call it Nutbush They call it Nutbush Oh, Nutbush. They call it Nutbush
This song was written by Smokey Robinson. The Temptations took the song to #29 in the Billboard 100 in 1966. Rare Earth took a 3-minute version of the song edited down from 21 minutes to #4 in the Billboard 100 in 1970.
The song was on their album Get Ready that peaked at #12 in 1970. When they started to record this album they ran out of material so they recorded a 21-minute version of this song to fill up space. The album wasn’t going anywhere until the edited version of the single was released and then it took off.
From Songfacts
Rare Earth recorded an unusual version of this song that stretched over 21 minutes and took up the entire second side of their first Motown album, which was issued in the fall of 1969. This version was based on Rare Earth’s live version of the song, where every member of the band would get a solo. In 1970,
Motown released a 3-minute edit as a single, which peaked at #4 in the Billboard 100 in 1970. The song also did well on R&B stations, even though some DJs refused to play it when they found out the group wasn’t black – they were one of the first white groups signed to Motown.
This was written by Smokey Robinson, who was the main songwriter for The Temptations. In the Motown stable, The Temptations were considered the premier group, and there was a lot of competition among the songwriters to have their compositions recorded by the band. When this song underperformed on the charts, Motown chief Berry Gordy gave the next Temptations single, “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg,” to Norman Whitfield, and he became their primary writer.
Get Ready
Never met a girl could make me feel the way that you do You’re alright Whenever I’m asked what makes a my dreams real I tell ’em you do You’re outta’ sight
Well twiddley dee, twiddley dum Look out baby ’cause here I come
I’m bringing you a love that’s true Get ready, get ready Start makin’ love to you Get ready, get ready Get ready, ’cause here I come Get ready, ’cause here I come
You wanna’ play hide and seek with love, let me remind you You’re alright Lovin’ you’re gonna’ miss, and the time it takes to find you You’re outta’ sight Well fee fi, fo fo fum Look out baby, ’cause here I come
I’m bringing you a love that’s true Get ready, get ready Start makin’ love to you Get ready, get ready Get ready, ’cause here I come Get ready, ’cause here I come
Baby all my freedoms should you want me to I think i’ll understand You’re alright Hope I get to you before they do, ’cause that’s how I planned it You’re outta’ sight
Well twiddley dee, twiddley dum Look out baby ’cause here I come
I’m bringing you a love that’s true Get ready, get ready Start makin’ love to you Get ready, get ready Get ready, ’cause here I come
This song still sounds fresh today. Got To Get You Into My Life was on Revolver released in 1966. It was not released as a single at the time. Any other band would have released it as a single.
In 1976 it was released as a single and peaked at #7 in the Billboard 100…not bad for a song that was 10 years old. It was released off of the horribly packaged compilation album Rock and Roll Music. Capital Records seemed to forget The Beatles represented the 60s, not the 50s that the album cover represented. They probably wanted to capitalize on the 50s revival that was going on at the time… Bad Choice.
I owned this album and Hey Jude Again for my first exposure to the Beatles.
There is a 5 piece horn section on this recording that sounds great. Paul McCartney has said the song was about pot…
“’Got To Get You Into My Life’ was one I wrote when I had first been introduced to pot. I’d been a rather straight working-class lad but when we started to get into pot it seemed to me to be quite uplifting. It didn’t seem to have too many side effects like alcohol or some of the other stuff, like pills, which I pretty much kept off. I kind of liked marijuana. I didn’t have a hard time with it and to me it was mind-expanding, literally mind-expanding.”
“So ‘Got To Get You Into My Life’ is really a song about that, it’s not to a person, it’s actually about pot. It’s saying, ‘I’m going to do this. This is not a bad idea.’ So it’s actually an ode to pot, like someone else might write an ode to chocolate or a good claret. It wouldn’t be the first time in history someone’s done it, but in my case it was the first flush of pot.”
From Songfacts
This beatific love song is actually about marijuana. Paul McCartney cleared this up in his 1998 book Many Years From Now when he explained that it was not about a particular person, but his desire to smoke pot. “I’d been a rather straight working-class lad but when we started to get into pot it seemed to me to be quite uplifting,” he said.
There are no obvious drug references in the song, so it appears to be about a guy who is blissfully in love:
Ooh, then I suddenly see you
Ooh, did I tell you I need you
Every single day of my life
A British rock group called Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers released this song as a single around the same time it appeared on the The Beatles Revolver album. Bennett & The Rebel Rousers were an opening act for The Beatles on their European tour in early 1966; since there were no plans to release “Got To Get You Into My Life” as a single, Paul McCartney encouraged them to record it and produced the session.
Revolver appeared on August 5, 1966 and the Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers version of this song showed up on the UK chart for the first time on August 17, rising to #6 on September 21. It ended up being the biggest hit for the group, which made #9 in 1964 with “One Way Love.”
Session musicians played trumpets and sax. It was the first time horns were used in a Beatles song.
Earth, Wind & Fire recorded a funky new version for the 1978 movie Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Beatles producer George Martin was in charge of the music, and the soundtrack was a success, but the movie, which starred Peter Frampton, The Bee Gees and Aerosmith, was a huge flop. Earth, Wind & Fire’s version of this hit #9 in the US.
The first group to chart with this song was Blood, Sweat & Tears, whose horn-heavy version made #62 in the summer of 1975. The Beatles version wasn’t issued as a single until 1976, when Capitol Records issued it in America backed with “Helter Skelter.”
This version went to #7 in July that year, becoming the first Beatles song to chart in the US since 1970. Later in 1976, Capitol issued “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da,” which made #49.
John Lennon thought this was some of McCartney’s best work.
In the ’60s, Joe Pesci was an aspiring singer known as Joe Ritchie. He recorded a version of this that can be found on Rhino’s “Golden Throat” Series. His version merits the “Stick to Acting” award. >>
This song rarely licensed for movies or TV. The only time the Beatles rendition was used in a film is the 2015 movie Minions, where it plays under the end credits. In 2009, a version by Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs appeared in the Eddie Murphy movie Imagine That, and in 2013 Kurt Hummel and Chris Colfer sang it on the “Love, Love, Love” episode of the TV series Glee.
Got To Get You Into My Life
I was alone, I took a ride I didn’t know what I would find there Another road where maybe I Could see another kind of mind there Ooh, then I suddenly see you Ooh, did I tell you I need you Every single day of my life
You didn’t run, you didn’t hide And had you gone, you knew in time We’d meet again for I had told you Ooh, you were meant to be near me Ooh, and I want you to hear me Say we’ll be together every day Got to get you into my life
What can I do, what can I be When I’m with you I want to stay there If I’m true I’ll never leave And if I do I know the way there Ooh, then I suddenly see you Ooh, did I tell you I need you Every single day of my life Got to get you into my life
I was alone, I took a ride I didn’t know what I would find there Another road where maybe I Could see another kind of mind there Ooh, then I suddenly see you Ooh, did I tell you I need you Every single day
I have always liked this song. It was forever before I knew the name. Lido Shuffle peaked at #11 in the Billboard 100, #5 Canada, #13 in the UK in 1977.
Boz Scaggs met Steve Miller in 1959 and they played in various bands together. He then traveled to London, Sweden, and San Francisco and hooked back up with Miller again and played in the Steve Miller Band for their first two albums. He signed with Columbia Records in 1972. This song was on his platinum album Silk Degrees released in 1976 which peaked at #2 in the Billboard album charts.
Boz Scaggs wrote this song with David Paich, who was also his co-writer on “Lowdown.” Scaggs said: “‘Lido’ was a song that I’d been banging around. And I kind of stole… well, I didn’t steal anything. I just took the idea of the shuffle. There was a song that Fats Domino did called ‘The Fat Man’ that had a kind of driving shuffle beat that I used to play on the piano, and I just started kind of singing along with it. Then I showed it to Paich and he helped me fill it out. It ended up being ‘Lido Shuffle.'”
From Songfacts
The song is about a drifter looking for a big score. Scaggs and Paich were both very good at crafting songs with intriguing storylines using words and phrases that don’t often show up in a lyric: “A tombstone bar,” “makin’ like a beeline…”
The name Lido is very unusual as well. From the perspective of songcraft, it’s very versatile, allowing the singer to get clear vocal sounds and follow with the “whoa-oh-oh-oh” hook. Kenny Loggins did something similar on his song “Footloose,” writing the character “Milo” into it (“Woah… Milo, come on, come on let’s go”).
The last single from Silk Degrees, this wasn’t released until about a year after the album was issued. The first single, “It’s Over,” peaked in May 1976; “Lido Shuffle” didn’t reach its chart peak until May 1977. The Silk Degrees album was a slow burner, gradually gaining momentum and selling over 5 million copies.
The song’s co-writer David Paich played keyboards on this track. Scaggs played guitar, bass was handled by David Hungate, and Jeff Porcaro played drums. Paich, Hungate and Porcaro would soon form the band Toto.
Lido Shuffle
Lido missed the boat that day he left the shack But that was all he missed And he ain’t comin’ back
At a tombstone bar, in a juke joint car he made a stop Just long enough to grab a handle off the top
Next stop Chi town, Lido put the money down, let ’em roll He said one more job ought to get it One last shot ‘fore we quit it One for the road
Lido Whoah oh oh oh He’s for the money, he’s for the show Lido’s waitin’ for the go, Lido Whoah oh oh oh oh oh He said one more job ought to get it One last shot ‘fore we quit it One more for the road
Lido will be runnin’, havin’ great big funnin’ till he got the note Sayin’ toe the line or blow it and that was all she wrote
He’ll be makin’ like a bee line, headin’ for the border line, goin’ for broke Sayin’ one more hit ought to do it This joint ain’t nothin’ to it One more for the road
Lido Whoah oh oh oh He’s for the money, he’s for the show Lido’s waitin’ for the go, Lido Whoah oh oh oh oh oh One more job ought to get it One last shot then we quit it One more for the road
Lido Woah oh oh oh He’s for the money, he’s for the show Lido’s waitin’ for the go, Lido Woah oh oh oh oh oh One more job ought to get it
I watched a few episodes this weekend. The show has a local connection for me because of Frank Sutton.
The show ran from 1964 to 1969 and was a spinoff from The Andy Griffith Show. The character of Gomer Pyle was portrayed by Jim Nabors and he left The Andy Griffith Show in the 4th season in an episode entitled Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
Gomer was a naive country boy from Mayberry North Carolina who joined the Marines and Andy went with him for the induction and helped the clueless Gomer get accepted. Frank Sutton played quick tempered Sgt Carter who would be tormented by Gomer Pyle for five seasons. I would watch the show as a kid and I thought Sgt Carter was mean to Gomer…as an adult I could understand if Carter would have choked him.
The show was a major hit. It never placed lower than 10 in the Neilson ratings. In 1969 Jim Nabors wanted out because he wanted to do a variety show. No one could understand why he wanted out of a hit show but he wanted to be in a program where he could sing, dance, and do different bits.
CBS offered Nabors a variety show so he was happy. They also offered Frank Sutton his own show Sergeant Carter–USMC. It would employ a black recruit who, unlike Gomer, would always be one step ahead of the Sergeant. It could have been a big hit but he turned it down because he felt like he did everything he could do with the character.
Sutton ended up co-starring with Nabors on his variety show and Sutton worked well in the comedy bits but was not a dancer or singer. CBS told Nabors he had to fire Sutton but Nabors refused and the show was canceled.
The local connection with Sutton is he was born in Clarksville Tennessee, a few miles from where I live. Sutton appeared in movies and shows from the 50s thru the 70s. The Twilight Zone, Have Gun Will Travel, Gunsmoke, Route 66 and many more.
He took acting in East Nashville High School and graduated in 1941.
After high school, Sutton returned to Clarksville to become a radio announcer. He enlisted in the U.S. Army during World War II and served in the South Pacific, taking part in 14 assault landings. Sutton was a sergeant who served from 1943–1946 in the 293rd Joint Assault Signal Company. He was awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart; he had been medically rejected by the Marine Corps.
Frank, a heavy smoker, would only live to be 50. He would die of a heart attack in 1974 just a few months shy of his 51st birthday. In 2017 a statue of Frank Sutton was unveiled in Clarksville Tn. Here is a link to the story of the unveiling. Statue of Frank Sutton in Clarksville.
This is an interview with Frank Sutton that was never published around the time of the variety show.
A beautiful song by Joe Cocker. It was written by Billy Preston and Bruce Fisher. Billy’s inspiration was his mom. The song was on Preston’s on his 1974 album The Kids and Me and was the B-side of his hit single “Nothing From Nothing.” Producer Jim Price created a slow arrangement for Cocker’s cover. The song was on Cocker’s album was on I Can Stand a Little Rain.
This was originally released as the B-side of “Put Out the Light,” which was the first single from the album. After a few weeks, A&M Records flipped the songs, and “You Are So Beautiful” became the A-side.
You Are So Beautiful peaked at #5 in the Billboard 100 in 1975. The song is beautiful and the slowed down tempo fits Joe Cocker’s voice perfectly. It is one of those songs that is instantly recognizable.
From Songfacts
This Billy Preston/Bruce Fisher song was first recorded by Preston
Fisher was Preston’s songwriting partner and he co-wrote both of Preston’s American chart-toppers, “Will It Go Round In Circles” and “Nothing From Nothing.”
This is one of the more romantic songs out there, but Billy Preston wrote it as a tribute to his mother, a fact that embarrassed Sam Moore, half of the soul duo Sam & Dave, who often performed the tune to attract girls. After bragging to Preston about his exploits with the song, Preston finally set him straight. “You never understood after that how stupid I felt,” Moore told BBC Radio 4 in 2010. Moore still recorded it for his 2006 solo album, Overnight Sensational, with Preston on keyboards and Eric Clapton and Zucchero on guitar.
Legend surrounding “You are So Beautiful” claims that Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys helped Preston complete it. Wilson received no songwriting credits but he sang this song for many years at Beach Boys concerts.
This was used in the 1993 movie Carlito’s Way and in the 1981 film Modern Romance.
Cocker sang this at Billy Preston’s funeral in 2006.
This is one of the most-recognized songs in America, but it didn’t crack the chart in Joe Cocker’s native UK.
You Are So Beautiful
You are so beautiful To me You are so beautiful To me Can’t you see
You’re everything I hope for You’re everything I need You are so beautiful to me You are so beautiful to me
You are so beautiful To me Can’t you see You’re everything I hope for You’re every, everything I need You are so beautiful to me
Musically this is a sing-along song but the lyrics are full of social satire and anger. The Kinks record company Pye did not release this song in the UK at the time because they wanted harder songs like “You Really Got Me.” It was released in other countries and peaked at #13 in the Billboard 100 in 1965.
I first heard this song on a Kinks complication album along with “Dedicated Follower of Fashion” and The Kinks earlier songs. A Well Respected Man marked a turning point in Davies’s writing from rock/punk to more satirical, character-driven songs.
From Songfacts
Kinks frontman Ray Davies wrote this song after the group’s 1965 tour of the United States. The tour did not go well, with infighting, fatigue and a conflict with the musician’s union that kept them from performing in the country for another four years.Davies recovered from the tour with a vacation at the English resort town of Torquay, Devon. There, a wealthy hotel guest recognized him and asked Ray to play a round of golf. Far from being flattered by the invitation, he took great offense. “I’m not gonna play f–king golf with you,” he told him. “I’m not gonna be your caddy so you can say you played with a pop singer.”
Dense with lyrics describing the pretentious gentleman born to good fortune, Ray Davies says this was the first “word-oriented” song he wrote.
A Well Respected Man
Cause he gets up in the morning, And he goes to work at nine, And he comes back home at five-thirty, Gets the same train every time. ‘Cause his world is built ’round punctuality, It never fails.
And he’s oh, so good, And he’s oh, so fine, And he’s oh, so healthy, In his body and his mind. He’s a well respected man about town, Doing the best things so conservatively.
And his mother goes to meetings, While his father pulls the maid, And she stirs the tea with councilors, While discussing foreign trade, And she passes looks, as well as bills At every suave young man
‘Cause he’s oh, so good, And he’s oh, so fine, And he’s oh, so healthy, In his body and his mind. He’s a well respected man about town, Doing the best things so conservatively.
And he likes his own backyard, And he likes his fags the best, ‘Cause he’s better than the rest, And his own sweat smells the best, And he hopes to grab his father’s loot, When Pater passes on.
‘Cause he’s oh, so good, And he’s oh, so fine, And he’s oh, so healthy, In his body and his mind. He’s a well respected man about town, Doing the best things so conservatively.
And he plays at stocks and shares, And he goes to the Regatta, And he adores the girl next door, ‘Cause he’s dying to get at her, But his mother knows the best about The matrimonial stakes.
‘Cause he’s oh, so good, And he’s oh, so fine, And he’s oh, so healthy, In his body and his mind. He’s a well respected man about town, Doing the best things so conservatively.
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