Boys, we got a man with a dog collar on Maybe we ought to throw old Spike a bone?
This song is not the best song that Petty ever recorded… but it’s fun and I like it. He has a little of a Booker T. and the MG’s vibe going on in the intro.
In the mid-eighties, we would cruise around in my Toyota Celica with a massive sound system and this is one of the songs we would play. The song was on Petty’s Southern Accents album. Tom Petty said it was about: “a really kind of ignorant redneck guy who is kind of shaken up when he sees a punk rocker.”
Southern Accents was his sixth studio album and it was released in 1985. He damaged his hand while making this album. He was frustrated with the song Rebels and listened to the song that the band and he were working on and realized…the demo he made was better. In a fit of frustration, Petty hit the wall a little too hard and severely damaged his bones and tendons. He said: “all of a sudden, I got Mickey Mouse’s hand. I get to the hospital, and it’s so bad that other doctors are being called in like, ‘hey, get a load of this’. I had to be given electro-shock therapy. The electrodes would force my hand to shut because the hand didn’t want to close because it hurt so bad.”
The album was not easy to make. When guitarist Mike Campbell came and played him his progression for a song…Petty scrapped it for something else. Later on, he would regret that decision because the progression turned out to be Boys of Summer which would become a massive hit for Don Henley.
Petty had wanted to make an album about the South because he was from Florida. That went out the window when he got to the studio but still did incorporate some into the songs. The album didn’t end up like Petty intended but he became really proud of the album because of all the hardships involved in making it.
The album peaked at #7 in the Billboard Album Charts, #16 in Canada (from what I found), #23 in the UK, and #25 in New Zealand in 1985.
Spike
Look out, another one, just like the other ones
Another bad-ass, another troublemaker
I’m scared, ain’t you boys scared?
I wonder if he’s gonna show us what bad is?
Boys, we got a man with a dog collar on
Maybe we ought to throw old Spike a bone?
Make me say
Here’s another misfit, another Jimmy Dean
Bet he’s got a motorbike, what do y’all think?
Bet if we be good we get a ride on it
If he ain’t too mad about the future
Maybe we ought to help him see
The future ain’t what it used to be
Listen
Hey Spike, what do you like?
Hey Spike, what do you like?
Oh, I say
Hey Spike, what do you like?
Hey Spike, you’re scaring my wife
Hey Spike, tell us about life
Could you tell me about life?
I might need need a dog collar too, boy
He might make me say say
I might say, might say
I grew up with this single…I’ll never forget the orange Roulette Label going round and round. It’s a mystical and magical song to me. I fell in love with the tremolo effect that is throughout the entire song.
The song peaked at #1 on the Billboard 100, #1 in Canada, and #1 in New Zealand, in 1968. I still am shocked that it either wasn’t released in the UK or it just failed to chart there. Joan Jett’s version peaked at only #60 in the UK. My friend at the UK Number Ones blog and I talked about it. Their song Mony Mony peaked at #1 in the UK earlier…maybe that was enough for them.
On this song…Tommy James is playing all the instruments except drums and they were played by Pete Lucia. James and Lucia wrote the song.
Bo Gentry was writing most of their hits until this point. He didn’t feel like he was getting paid enough from Roulette Records (which was partly run by the mob) so he quit. Tommy James was told that he better get someone to write songs for him or his career would sink since Bo Gentry refused. The record executives told him that he could not write a hit song and to find someone. Tommy James showed them all… he and his drummer wrote this massive hit song.
Around this time James got involved with politician Hubert Humphrey and they were trying to turn from a singles band to an album band. This song helped them. Below is a very long quote by Tommy James about that time. It does say a lot about the business in the late sixties.
Tommy James: “They were just two of my favorite words that came together. Actually, it was one morning as I was getting up out of bed, and it just came to me, those two words. And it sounded so poetic. I had no idea what it meant, or if it meant anything. They were just two of my favorite words. And Mike Vale and I – bass player – actually wrote another song called ‘Crimson and Clover.’ And it just wasn’t quite there. And I ended up writing ‘Crimson and Clover’ with my drummer, Pete Lucia, who has since passed away.”
Tommy James: ‘Crimson and Clover’ was so very important to us because it allowed us to make that move from AM Top 40 to album rock. I don’t think there’s any other song that we’ve ever worked on, any other record that we made, that would have done that for us quite that way. And it came out at such a perfect moment because we had been out with Hubert Humphrey on the presidential campaign for several months in 1968. And we met up with him right after the convention. The convention where all the kids got beat up. And we met up with him the following week in Wheeling, West Virginia, and of course we didn’t know where all the rallies were gonna be, like the convention. What have we gotten ourselves into? We had been asked to join him. And this really was the first time, I think, a rock act and a politician ever teamed up. But it was an incredible experience.
But when we left in August, all the big acts were singles acts. It was the Association, it was Gary Puckett, it was the Buckinghams, the Rascals, us, I’m leaving several people out. But the point was that it was almost all singles. In 90 days, when we got back, it was all albums. It was Led Zeppelin, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Joe Cocker, Neil Young. And there was this mass extinction of all of these other acts.
It was just incredible. Most people don’t realize that that was sort of the dividing line where so many of these acts never had hit records again. And we realized while we were out on the campaign that if our career was gonna continue, we had to make a move. We had to sell albums, which is something Roulette had never really done. The album, up to that point, had been whatever wasn’t the single. And then it was usually named the single, which I thought was a great idea. Morris (Levy) usually would name the album the same title as the single, so it would get kind of a head start. But the point was we knew we had to sell albums. Also that year the industry went from 4-track to 24-track in about the same period of time. So if we were gonna sell albums, we had to completely reinvent ourselves. And so it was a very dramatic moment. And the record we just happened to be working on at that moment, at the end of the campaign, was ‘Crimson and Clover.'”
Crimson and Clover
Ah, now I don’t hardly know her
But I think I could love her
Crimson and clover
Ah when she comes walking over
Now I’ve been waitin’ to show her
Crimson and clover over and over
Yeah, my, my such a sweet thing
I wanna do everything
What a beautiful feeling
Crimson and clover over and over
Crimson and clover over and over
Crimson and clover over and over
Crimson and clover over and over
Crimson and clover over and over
Everyone…I messed up last week. While making these, I go to Wiki’s Billboard Year-End Hot 100 Singles to go over some of the singles and then… I look at album cuts. Well, I didn’t check to see when American Pie was released…it was released in late 1971…but I would never have left that one off…ever. So forgive me…I won’t do this again…but I am leading off with it. It did its damage on the charts in 1972…so this one time I’m breaking my rule. It’s too important of a song.
American Pie… by Don Mclean. Where do I begin with this one? The song has so many references that it acts as a pop culture index itself. We do know the song was inspired by Buddy Holly’s death… What does it all mean? While being interviewed in 1991, McLean was asked for probably the 1000th time “What does the song ‘American Pie’ mean to you?,” to which he answered, “It means never having to work again for the rest of my life.” Now that is a great and honest answer by Mclean.
The holy trinity of power pop for me is…Badfinger, Big Star, and The Raspberries…those were the 70s pioneers. Badfinger was the most successful out of the three…hit wise anyway. You can hear later bands like Cheap Trick, The Posies, Teenage Fanclub, Matthew Sweet, and even KISS get something from each three.
This is my personal number 1 Power Pop song of all time. Baby Blue was written by Pete Ham.
He was playing in a Rock and Roll revival show in 1971 at Madison Square Gardens with other artists such as Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, and Bobby Rydell. Ricky Nelson was releasing new music and he did not look the way he did in the 50s. He had long hair and dressed modern. He started off with some of his old songs the fans responded enthusiastically but then he played “Country Honk” a country version of the Rolling Stones “Honky Tonk Women.” That is when it went south.
Arlo Guthrie seems like the most laid-back guy in the world. His father was the great singer-songwriter, Woody Guthrie. Arlo wrote some very good songs but he didn’t write this one. The City of New Orleans was written by Steve Goodman. Steve did a great job writing this song. Its structure and imagery are fantastic.
After seeing the screenplay, Mayfield jumped into this movie project and was given complete creative freedom. He wrote the songs to suit the scenes, but he made sure they could stand on their own, telling the stories even without the visuals. “Superfly” works very well outside of the film. It was written by Curtis Mayfield. I saw this on the big screen a few years ago.
In May of 1960, Stuart Sutcliffe was a brilliant young artist with a bright career ahead of him when he sold one of his paintings and his friend John Lennon talked him into buying a bass. He didn’t know how to play bass but was taught by John, Paul, and George because like George said…it was better to have a bass player that couldn’t play than no bass player at all.
Stuart Sutcliffe 1960
Stuart did learn to play bass and had a lot of stage time in Hamburg. He was never a great bass player but good enough to hold the position down. Stuart and John came up with the band name Beatles. Stuart wanted it to be Beatals but John stuck with Beatles. He quit art college to go on tour with The Silver Beatles to help back up a performer named Johnny Gentle in Scotland. After that they went to Hamburg and that changed their career. John also quit art college but he didn’t have the talent that Stuart did.
After a year or so he wasn’t at the other Beatles level and Paul never let him forget it. Paul was jealous of Stuart because of him being so close to Lennon. George also was a little jealous but not like Paul. John was basically hero-worshiped by Paul and George. In Hamburg, Paul said something about his girlfriend Astrid and tiny Stuart tackled Paul while they were on stage…they rolled around a bit and then it was finally over. Paul still talks about how he feels bad for the way he treated him.
He probably would have never got to their level musically because although he was good friends with John… his heart was in art not music. He was with them from May 1960 to August of 1961.
Many art experts say Stuart would have been a major artist had he lived… with or without the Beatle connection. He was indeed a sought-after artist when he quit the Beatles. He was the James Dean of the Beatles…He was the Artist…the Stylish one who attracted new friends in Germany that forever changed the Beatles. Some pictures of him make him look ahead of his time.
While playing in Hamburg Germany he met Astrid Kirchherr who would become the love of his life. Astrid would take some of the most famous early photographs of the Beatles.
Astrid’s soon-to-be ex-boyfriend Klaus Voormann would befriend the Beatles and later designed the Revolver cover and play bass for John, George, and Ringo at different times in their career. Jürgen Vollmer, a photographer in the circle of Astrid’s friends would end up cutting John and Paul’s hair into the famous haircut …after Astrid had already cut Stuart’s hair in that fashion first. Stuart was of course laughed at by the rest until they got theirs cut. Pete Best refused and did his own thing.
Stuart’s influence went beyond playing bass. Without Stuart, things may have turned out differently for The Beatles.
Stuart finally quit The Beatles to concentrate on art and to marry Astrid. He got a scholarship while living with Astrid in Germany, at the Hamburg College of Art in 1961. He produced a lot of paintings in the last year of his life. He started to lose weight, got terrible headaches, and had trouble walking. He kept going to college and kept painting in Astrid’s attic. They wanted to marry in May but on April 10, 1962, he had a ruptured aneurysm and passed away on the way to the hospital in Astrid’s arms.
If Stuart had lived he would have almost certainly stayed in the Beatles circle although not playing…he may have been remembered more as an artist than a one-time bassist of the Beatles that happened to be an artist.
For the Beatles part…he was a major influence in coming up with the name, helped bring on the haircuts, and gave them a more sophisticated style other than leather jackets and boots.
John Lennon would remember his friend in his song “In My Life.”
George Harrison: “He wasn’t really a very good musician. In fact, he wasn’t a musician at all until we talked him into buying a bass, we taught him to play 12-bars, like ‘Thirty Days’ by Chuck Berry. That was the first thing he ever learnt. He picked up a few things and he practiced a bit until he could get through a couple of other tunes as well. It was a bit ropey, but it didn’t matter at that time because he looked so cool. We never had many gigs in Liverpool before we went to Hamburg, anyway.” John Lennon: “I looked up to Stu. I depended on him to tell me the truth, Stu would tell me if something was good and I’d believe him. We were awful to him sometimes. I used to explain afterwards that we didn’t dislike him, really.”
More about Stuart and his Art…thank you for reading this.
This song I wrote in 10 minutes…it took me 10 years to think it up though…Waylon Jennings
This is country music that I really like. Waylon was part of the Outlaw country movement of the 1970s and he was a badass. This song is a tribute to Hank Willaims and also questions the extravagance of the modern country stars of the 70s with their “new shiny cars” and “rhinestone suits”.
The song peaked at #1 on the Billboard Country Charts and #21 on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks…it also made it in the Billboard 100 at #60 in 1975.
Waylon acted more like a rock star. He took that Outlaw title to heart. He used the Hells Angels as bodyguards and hung out and partied with them. Lynyrd Skynyrd was known as rough and fighters but when they shared a plane with Jennings and the Angels… they gave them plenty of room and stayed quiet like school boys.
In the seventies, Waylon took a pistol to a recording studio one time because he didn’t like studio musicians. He knew they were great musicians but they didn’t give any new ideas so he was joking around with the pistol about shooting someone’s fingers off if they didn’t play well. It wasn’t serious and everyone there knew it was a joke… but rumors got around that he was serious. Later on in 1975 at the Grammys… Waylon Jennings and John Lennon met backstage. They started talking to each other and really hit it off. Waylon was surprised because he told John that he was very funny but he thought he was some kind of madman because of John’s press. John then told him that people in England thought Waylon shot people.
Lennon wrote him a letter after that and there was even talk of Waylon recording a song by Lennon (Tight A$ on Mind Games). Not much came of it but the letter was found when Waylon passed away and sold at auction.
Waylon was hired to play bass for Buddy Holly on that last tour and he gave up his seat on the plane for J.P. Richardson (The Big Bopper) and ended up saving his own life. So he was in rock and roll before country.
Also…if you see the live clip…Waylon used that guitar for years. My guitar tech was Waylon’s guitar tech. The guitar was at the shop one day and Turner (the tech) told me to come over and play it. Of course, I did…I’ve never seen a guitar with leather…and I’ll never forget it. It was sometime in the late eighties or early nineties. He used that guitar from the 70’s to the mid-nineties.
Waylon Jennings: “I met John Lennon, and we were cutting up and everything at one of the Grammy things, and I said, man, you’re funny. I didn’t know you were funny,’ I said, ‘I thought you were some kind of mad guy or something like that.”
John Lennon: “Listen, people in England think you shoot folks.”
Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way
Lord it’s the same old tune, fiddle and guitar Where do we take it from here? Rhinestone suits and new shiny cars It’s been the same way for years We need a change
Somebody told me, when I came to Nashville Son you finally got it made Old Hank made it here, and we’re all sure that you will But I don’t think Hank done it this way No, I don’t think Hank done it this way
Ten years on the road, makin’ one night stands Speedin’ my young life away Tell me one more time just so’s I’ll understand Are your sure Hank done it this way? Did ol’ Hank really do it this way?
Lord I’ve seen the world, with a five piece band Looking at the back side of me Singing my songs, and one of his now and then But I don’t think Hank done ’em this way I don’t think Hank done it this way Take it home
I hardly ever do birthdays or anniversaries except the ones I repeat…but this one lined up perfectly. John Lennon would have been 83 today. He has been gone 43 years…more than the 40 years he spent alive.
I bought this in the late seventies at Port ‘O’ Call Records in Nashville. One of my favorites of John’s radio hits. It was released in 1973 and peaked at #18 in the Billboard 100, #26 in the UK, and #11 in Canada. It didn’t do great on the charts but has remained one of my favorites and continues to be played on classic rock radio stations.
When Lennon was starting Mind Games…he separated from Yoko Ono and started an 18-month stint known as his lost weekend. He spent the time getting drunk with Harry Nilsson, Keith Moon, and others along with a small reunion with Paul McCartney in Los Angeles. He was living with May Pang and they eventually moved back to New York where he reunited with Yoko and had Sean.
I also bought the Mind Games album and it was the fourth album I had by him. You didn’t have the raw emotion that the first two gave you but it was a good pop album. With songs like “I Know, I Know” it remains in my rotation along with Walls and Bridges his follow-up album.
John got the name from a book called Mind Games by y Robert Masters and Jean Houston. The book was about promoting mental health through a raised consciousness. Some of the content of the book found its way into this song.
The original title was ‘Make Love Not War’ but John saw that as such a worn-out cliche at this time… he couldn’t use it. He tried to make the same message in the song though.
Usually, I don’t mention much about the video…but this one is great if you like John Lennon.
John Lennon: How many times can you say the same thing over and over? When this came out in the early Seventies, everybody was starting to say the Sixties was a joke; it didn’t mean anything; those love-and-peaceniks were idiots. [Sarcastically] ‘We all have to face the reality of being nasty human beings who are born evil, and everything’s gonna be lousy and rotten so boo-hoo-hoo…’ ‘We had fun in the Sixties,’ they said, ‘but the others took it away from us and spoiled it all for us’…‘No, just keep doin’ it.’”
Mind Games
We’re playing those mind games together
Pushing the barriers planting seeds
Playing the mind guerrilla
Chanting the Mantra peace on earth
We all been playing those mind games forever
Some kinda druid dudes lifting the veil
Doing the mind guerrilla
Some call it magic the search for the grail
Love is the answer and you know that for sure
Love is a flower
You got to let it, you gotta let it grow
So keep on playing those mind games together
Faith in the future out of the now
You just can’t beat on those mind guerrillas
Absolute elsewhere in the stones of your mind
Yeah we’re playing those mind games forever
Projecting our images in space and in time
Yes is the answer and you know that for sure
Yes is surrender
You got to let it, you gotta let it go
So keep on playing those mind games together
Doing the ritual dance in the sun
Millions of mind guerrillas
Putting their soul power to the karmic wheel
Keep on playing those mind games forever
Raising the spirit of peace and love
It would take a lot of work not to like this song. It’s very meaningful and it’s catchy. They even shared a line from a new cartoon…Scooby Doo “And so on and so on and scooby dooby dooby.” The song was written by Sly Stone.
Sly & the Family Stone was a great band. This song was released in 1968 and it peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, #2 in Canada, and #36 in the UK Charts in 1969. Sly arranged this song perfectly with great dynamics for the chorus. A great piece of songwriting and arranging. It would have been a hit whenever it was released.
It was this song that broke them into a larger audience and Stone into stardom. Billboard later ranked it as the #5 song of 1969, and the single’s success helped power the album Stand! to sales of three million copies.
Sly and the Family Stone really made their presence known at Woodstock with a great set. Carlos Santana has remarked that they were the standout band. They recorded songs in many genres, including funk, psychedelic soul, rock, soul, pop, funk rock, and R&B.
Billy Preston played organ on this single and the song has been used in many movies, TV shows, and commercials.
Everyday People
Sometimes I’m right and I can be wrong
My own beliefs are in my song
The butcher, the banker, the drummer and then
Makes no difference what group I’m in
I am everyday people, yeah, yeah
There is a blue one
Who can’t accept the green one
For living with a fat one
Trying to be a skinny one
Different strokes
For different folks
And so on and so on
And scooby dooby dooby
Oh sha sha
We got to live together
I am no better and neither are you
We are the same, whatever we do
You love me, you hate me, you know me and then
You can’t figure out the bag I’m in
I am everyday people, yeah yeah
There is a long hair
That doesn’t like the short hair
For being such a rich one
That will not help the poor one
Different strokes
For different folks
And so on and so on
And scooby dooby dooby
Oh sha sha
We got to live together
There is a yellow one
That won’t accept the black one
That won’t accept the red one
That won’t accept the white one
Different strokes
For different folks
And so on and so on
And scooby dooby dooby
Oh sha sha
I am everyday people
I’ve been listening to a lot of Graham Parker since last May when I posted his debut album Howlin’ Wind. If I had to compare him with someone…it would be Elvis Costello and Joe Jackson but with a touch of Van Morrison and The Band sprinkled in here and there.
In an interview, Parker revealed that the inspiration for the song came from his own personal experience. He was deeply in love with his wife at the time and wanted to express his love for her through his music. The song was written in just 20 minutes. He said he wanted to emulate Smokey Robinson on this song.
The song was released in 1985 and is the only Parker song to get into the Billboard Top 40. The song was on the album Steady Nerves. Parker wanted William Whittman as producer but his record company Electra did not like that choice. They went into the studio just to do a few tracks as a test and they sent Electra this track…and they approved Whittman.
Whittman was no slouch… As a producer and engineer his credits include Cyndi Lauper, Joan Osborne, The Hooters, and The Outfield. He also played bass in the Cyndi Lauper Band, recording and touring internationally, and also serves as the Musical Director.
The song has a nice feel to it. It’s been covered by David Bowie and Elvis Costello just to name a few.
The song peaked at #39 on the Billboard 100 and #94 in Canada in 1985. Graham Parker didn’t use Rumour as his backing band on this one. His backing band on this album included Brinsley Schwarz, George Small, Kevin Jenkins, Mike Braun, and Huw Gower.
Wake Up (Next To You)
I can’t have no objection to the world outside
I don’t have no complaints against life’s one way ride
I know I’m sleeping with an angel and this devil’s in luck
Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up
I’ve been dreaming for too long
I guess something’s always wrong unless I
Wake up next to you
I wanna wake up next to you
The summer’s left a spell on us, magic and gold
The tarmac’s cracked and shimmering up on the road
I know I’m walking with an angel down a hot avenue
Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up
I’ve been dreaming for too long
I guess something’s always wrong unless I
Wake up next to you, I wanna wake up
Wake up next to you
You know what I’m gonna do
I’m gonna pick up the telephone right now
And I’m gonna call Information
And I’ll say to them
“Where is she right now?
‘Cause I want her and I need her”
And I wanna hear her say
“Hey, baby, wake up”
Wake up next to you, I’m wanna wake up
Wake up next to you
Where is she right now?
‘Cause I want her and I need her
And I wanna hear her say
Wake up, wake up, wake up
Gonna wake up, wake up, wake up
Gonna wake up, wake up, wake up
Gonna wake up, wake up, wake up
I wasn’t there but this song equals Woodstock to me. Every time I hear this song I think of a field full of hippies with bubbles. Alan “Blind Owl” Wilson wrote this song based on an old blues song called Bull Doze Blues. It peaked at #11 in the Billboard 100 and #5 in Canada in 1969.
Alan Wilson moved to Los Angeles and met Bob “The Bear” Hite and in 1965 started Canned Heat. The group took their name from “Canned Heat Blues,” an obscure 1928 track by bluesman Tommy Johnson that described the drug high achieved through drinking the household product Sterno.
In 1967, after appearing at the Monterey Pop Festival, Canned Heat signed with Liberty Records. They made a self-titled album that year and it peaked at #76 on the Billboard Charts. In 1968 they released “Boogie with Canned Heat” which made it to number 16. They followed that album with “Living the Blues”(#18) and in 1969 released the album Hallelujah(#37).
Their appearance at Woodstock raised their stock higher. They had two hit singles both sung by Alan Wilson, this song released in 1968, and On The Road Again released in 1969. Alan wasn’t the regular lead singer of Canned Heat but he did sing the two best-known singles by them. They were both written by him and based on old blues songs. His unusual voice came from him trying to mimic the voice of old blues singers. Bob Hite was the lead singer of the band.
Alan Wilson is a forgotten figure who was a gifted musician. He died in 1970 under strange circumstances outdoors in a sleeping bag near his band’s lead singer’s (Bob Hite) house. He was dead at the age of 27. Jimi Hendrix would die in a couple of weeks and Janis Joplin would follow a month later…all of them were age 27.
Going Up Country was heavily influenced by an old and obscure Blues song called “Bull Doze Blues” by Henry Thomas. The song caught on in the summer of 1969 and was very popular among Hippies who appreciated the nature theme.
Going Up Country
I’m goin’ up the country, baby don’t you want to go?
I’m goin’ up the country, baby don’t you want to go?
I’m goin’ to some place, I’ve never been before
I’m goin’ I’m goin’ where the water tastes like wine
I’m goin’ where the water tastes like wine
We can jump in the water, stay drunk all the time
I’m gonna leave this city, got to get away
I’m gonna leave this city, got to get away
All this fussin’ and fightin’ man, you know I sure can’t stay
So baby pack your leavin’ trunk
You know we’ve got to leave today
Just exactly where we’re goin’ I cannot say
But we might even leave the U.S.A.
It’s a brand new game, that I want to play
No use in your runnin’, or screamin’ and cryin’
‘Cause you got a home as long as I’ve got mine
When I first heard the song the first thing I thought of…love that guitar tone! Some people have falsely said it was about Lennon’s murder but it was already written by then.
Red Rider was a Canadian band that had a lot of success in Canada but this song is their best-known song in the United States. They were known as Red Rider and later Tom Cochrane and Red Rider. They lasted until 1990 and reformed in 2002 and are still together with three original members including Cochrane.
This song was released in 1981. It starts off very ominous until a great-sounding guitar comes in and plays the main riff. The demo of this song was recorded on the night John Lennon was murdered.
Cochrane said the record company stated it wasn’t commercial enough but Lennon’s death made him want to release it all the more because Lennon echoed the song’s meaning. “It just hit me like a ton of bricks and I thought, here’s a guy that always wore his heart on his sleeve. For better, for worse, these lyrics are going to stand. I didn’t think the song would see the light of day because it was just so different, so unique. I’m very proud of this song. It’s probably one of the more unique pieces of music I’ve ever written.”
Tom Cochrane said he wrote this song about the oppression of people. He was inspired by a book about Raoul Wallenberg who rescued Jewish people from the Holocaust during the Second World War.
The song peaked at #11 on the U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks in 1981.
Tom Cochrane: “Everybody was saying, ‘What are these lyrics? These are way too heavy for rock and roll. Why don’t you just get down to writing a pop song? Just write some pop lyrics and let’s get on with it.’ And I thought, ‘No, this is important to say.’ The song speaks out against racism, it speaks out against a number of things, and it topically is current today, I suppose, as it was back then in some ways. It’s about being vigilant, about our freedom.”
“Lunatic Fringe”
Lunatic fringe
I know you’re out there
You’re in hiding
And you hold your meetings
I can hear you coming
I know what you’re after
We’re wise to you this time (wise to you this time)
We won’t let you kill the laughterOh oh oh
Oh oh oh
Oh oh oh
Lunatic fringe
In the twilight’s last gleaming
But this is open season
But you won’t get too far
‘Cause you’ve got to blame someone
For your own confusion
We’re on guard this time (on guard this time)
Against your final solution
Oh no
Oh oh oh
Oh oh oh
Oh oh oh
We can hear you coming (we can hear you coming)
No, you’re not going to win this time (not gonna win)
We can hear the footsteps (we can hear the footsteps)
Hey, out along the walkway (out along the walkway)
Lunatic fringe
We all know you’re out there
Can you feel the resistance
Can you feel the thunder
After Mellencamp hit with the song Hurt So Good and Jack and Diane…the rest of the 80s he took advantage of the opportunity that he got. The radio constantly played him and to be truthful…I took him for granted. Next album…more hits…it just seemed natural. He is one of the very few artists I liked in the 80s that was constantly in the top 20. This song grew on me as time went by.
John Mellencamp was releasing quality songs in the eighties that were timeless. This song was on his album The Lonesome Jubilee which was released in 1987. When he wrote this he was tremendously popular but he had some downs in his personal life. His uncle and grandfather had recently died, and many of his friends were getting divorced. He made the statement “It’s horrible to think you’ve gotta be a miserable son of a bitch to write a good song, but I guess that’s kind of the way it works sometimes.”
The song peaked at #9 on the Billboard 100, #3 in Canada, #16 in New Zealand, and #86 in the UK….the heartland rockers didn’t translate as well in the UK at the time. That includes Petty, Mellencamp, and even Springsteen.
The video was shot outside of a house on a dirt road in Savannah, Georgia. Mellencamp wanted to show poverty in America to go along with the social commentary in the song, and also explore racism – the extras in the video are black. His next video – for “Hard Times For An Honest Man” – was also shot in Savannah.
Paper In Fire
She had a dream
And boy it was a good one
So she chased after her dream
With much desire
But when she get too close
To her expectations
Well the dream burned up
Like paper in fire
Paper in fire
Stinking up the ashtrays
Paper in fire
Smoking up the alleyways
Who’s to say the way
A man should spend his days
Do you let them smolder
Like paper in fire
He wanted love
With no involvement
So he chased the wind
That’s all his silly life required
And the days of vanity
Went on forever
And he saw his days burn up
Like paper in fire
Paper in fire
Stinking up the ashtrays
Paper in fire
Smoking up the alleyways
Who’s to say the way
A man should spend his days
Do you let them smolder
Like paper in fire
There’s a good life
Right across the green fields
And each generation
Stares at it from afar
But we keep no check
On our appetites
So the green fields turn to brown
Like paper in fire
Paper in fire
Stinking up the ashtrays
Paper in fire
Smoking up the alleyways
Who’s to say the way
A man should spend his days
Do you let them smolder
Like paper in fire
No I didn’t get rich you son of a bitch I’ll be back just wait and see Cause my whole world lies waiting behind door number three
Jimmy Buffett passed away recently. In the mid-eighties, I found his music and really liked what I heard. He wasn’t country and he wasn’t pop…he was on his own island so to speak. His concerts were like parties…a perfect place to take a date. I was lucky to see him twice.
Songs like A Pirate Looks At 40 is a fine song. Come Monday has its charm also. This one is a silly one and not one of his greats but I always liked it.
Does anyone remember Let’s Make a Deal? It was a game show in the 1970s where contestants would dress up to get the host Monty Hall’s (host) attention and try to win prizes.
This game show originally aired from 1963-1977. The premise of this is that the studio audience participated in the show. Other game shows at the time were comprised of contestants that were pre-selected and the audience was merely there to observe. Let’s Make a Deal was surprisingly different. Monty Hall, the host, began the show by wandering throughout the studio, choosing audience members at random to try their hand at a game of chance.
Monty Hall was a likable host and it is evident that he had fun with his job. He hosted around 5,000 episodes before handing his position off to Wayne Brady. People would dress in the most outlandish costumes so Monty would pick them. He would ask…do you want $200 or what’s behind door number 1, 2, or 3? Sometimes the prizes were cars and furniture and sometimes it would be a donkey or something else ridiculous. Box Carol Merrill is the lady who would reveal the “prizes” that you won.
A friend of mine, a guitar player, started to sing this song while we were learning some cover songs. I thought it was one of his, that happened a lot, but when I found it was Buffett I had to hear it. Of course, we never learned it but it sounds like a parody of a country song.
In the 1980s I worked on Murfreesboro Road in Nashville. I was with a work friend and we went to see one of his buddies who worked in a huge car lot. It was one of those huge semi-circle buildings with large windows. His buddy had this old wood desk and he was a huge Jimmy Buffett fan. He told us that Jimmy Buffett would come to that car lot in the 70s and sit at a certain desk drinking with the owner. He said when he left that job he was going to try keeping the desk…and I have to wonder if he ever got it? The building is gone now.
Love this song by Jimmy Buffett. It was released in 1974 on the A1A album. The album did include the song “A Pirate Looks at 40.” Door Number Three did manage to make it to #88 in the Country Charts.
Paul McCartney on Jimmy Buffett: It seems that so many wonderful people are leaving this world, and now Jimmy Buffett is one of them. I’ve known Jimmy for some time and found him to be one of the kindest and most generous people.
I remember once on holiday when I had forgotten to bring my guitar and was itching to play. He said he would get me one of his, but I said, ‘I’m left-handed’. So, Jimmy had his roadie restring one of his guitars which he loaned me for the duration of the holiday. He then followed this act of generosity by giving me my own beautiful left-handed guitar that had been made by one of his guitar-making pals. It’s a beautiful instrument, and every time I play it now it’ll remind me of what a great man Jimmy was.
He had a most amazing lust for life and a beautiful sense of humour. When we swapped tales about the past his were so exotic and lush and involved sailing trips and surfing and so many exciting stories that it was hard for me to keep up with him.
Right up to the last minute his eyes still twinkled with a humour that said, ‘I love this world and I’m going to enjoy every minute of it’.
So many of us will miss Jimmy and his tremendous personality. His love for us all, and for mankind as a whole.
Last, but not least, is his songwriting and vocal ability. If someone made an interesting remark he repeated it in his gorgeous Louisiana drawl and said, ‘That’s a good idea for a song’. Most times it didn’t take too long for that song to appear. I was very happy to have played on one of his latest songs called ‘My Gummy Just Kicked In’. We had a real fun session and he played me some of his new songs. One, in particular, I loved was the song, ‘Bubbles Up’. And I told him that not only was the song great but the vocal was probably the best I’ve heard him sing ever. He turned a diving phrase that is used to train people underwater into a metaphor for life when you’re confused and don’t know where you are just follow the bubbles – they’ll take you up to the surface and straighten you out right away.
So long, Jim. You are a very special man and friend and it was a great privilege to get to know you and love you. Bubbles up, my friend.
“Door Number Three”
Oh I took a wrong turn, it was the right turn
My turn to have me a ball
Boys at the shop told me just where to stop
If I wanted to play for it all
I didn’t know I’d find her on daytime TV
My whole world lies waiting behind door number three
I chose my apparel, wore a beer barrel
And they rolled me to the very first row
I held a big sign that said “Kiss me I’m a baker,
and Monty I sure need the dough!”
Then I grabbed that sucker by the throat
Until he called on me
Cause my whole world lies waiting behind door number three
And I don’t want what Jay’s got on his table
Or the box Carol Merrill points to on the floor
No, I’ll hold out just as long as I am able
Until I can unlock that lucky door
Well, she’s no big deal to most folks
But she’s everything to me
Cause my whole world lies waiting behind door number three
Oh Monty, Monty, Monty, I am walking down your hall
Got beat, I lost my seat but I’m not a man to crawl
No I didn’t get rich you son of a bitch
I’ll be back just wait and see
Cause my whole world lies waiting behind door number three
Yes my whole world lies waiting behind door number three
Sweet talkin’ people done ran me out of town And I drank enough whiskey to float a battleship around
This is one of my favorites from this band. The guitar riff is mean, jagged, ragged, and dangerous…it’s a really good rock song.
The bullets Ronnie Van Zant is referring to are bullets in the music charts…as in #1 with a bullet…not bullets from a gun. It had been a while since they charted and he wanted more.
Fans started throwing bullets and other objects on stage when they performed this song. They had to take it out of their setlist because they were afraid someone would get hurt. I’ve read about them in the past few years along with talking to my UK readers. They were very popular in the UK in the seventies with their live shows. They were one of the best live bands out there at the time. They were never glam or followed trends…they just played their genuine rock songs.
Ronnie’s voice is on point in this one. He was a great songwriter and used his voice well. He didn’t have range some singers had around BUT…he knew his limitations and got everything out of it with more feeling than many singers with a richer voice. He had attitude and plenty of it.
The song was off of the album Gimme Back My Bullets. It peaked at #20 on the Billboard 100, #73 in Canada, and #34 in the UK in 1976.
Lynyrd Skynyrd recorded this with two lead guitarists…Allen Collins and Gary Rossington. Ed King had left just before making this album when he was fed up with touring relentlessly without a break.
When this album didn’t sell as well as expected, another guitarist, Steve Gaines, was brought in. He gave a new life to the band and their popularity soared with a live album One More From The Road. Steve Gaines and Ed King could have played with any rock band at the time…they were that good.
Van Zant would get his bullets back with their next studio album Street Survivors but would not live long enough to enjoy it. His image on stage was not a carefree image…it was more of a “Don’t Fu*k with Me” vibe.
Gimme Back My Bullets
Life is so strange when its changin’, yes indeed Well I’ve seen the hard times and the pressure’s been on me But I keep on workin’ like the workin’ man do And I’ve got my act together, gonna walk all over you
[Chorus] Gimme back my bullets Put ’em back where they belong Ain’t foolin’ around ’cause I done had my fun Ain’t gonna see no more damage done Gimme back my bullets
Sweet talkin’ people done ran me out of town And I drank enough whiskey to float a battleship around But I’m leavin’ this game one step ahead of you And you will not hear me cry ’cause I do not sing the blues
[Chorus] Gimme back, gimme back my bullets Oh, put ’em back…where they belong
Been up and down since I turned seventeen Well I’ve been on top, and then it seems I lost my dream But I got it back, I’m feelin’ better everyday Tell all those pencil pushers, better get out of my way
[Chorus] Gimme back, gimme back my bullets Oh put ’em back where they belong Gimme back my bullets
This year may be the best ever for albums. You had Who’s Next (My number one), Led Zeppelin IV, Marvin Gaye’s What’s Goin On, and so much more.
We will start off with what I think is the greatest rock song ever played in a concert environment. I’ve seen The Who play Won’t Get Fooled Again twice and of all the concerts I’ve gone to… I’ve never heard anything this powerful live.
Roger Daltrey’s Scream is considered one of the best on any rock song. It was quite convincing…so convincing that the rest of the band, lunching nearby, thought Daltrey was brawling with the engineer.
Now let’s visit Led Zeppelin and they released IV or Zoso a few weeks after The Who released Who’s Next. Stairway To Heaven…this song is considered by some as the best song in rock history. The song was written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant.
Marvin Gaye released this great song and it came off the album of the same name. A powerful song from a powerful performer. The song was written by Al Cleveland, Renaldo Benson, and Marvin Gaye.
The Moody Blues released the album Every Good Boy Deserves Favour and this song was on it. It may be my favorite song by them. Story In Your Eyes.
Great melody in this song. I bought the album Every Good Boy Deserves Favour just because of this song and I ended up liking the album a lot. The song peaked at #23 on the Billboard 100 in 1971. The song was written by Justin Hayward.
This is almost a perfect song…by the one and only Janis Joplin. There are few artists who give everything they have all the time. Bruce Springsteen is one…Janis was one. On film it comes through…she gives everything she has and more. It was written by Kris Kristofferson and Fred Foster.
She would die on October 4, 1970. Her nickname was Pearl and that was the name of her last album. She left $2,500 for her wake…. 200 guests were invited with invitations that read…”Drinks are on Pearl”…
My son bought us tickets to see The Exorcist in Clarksville, Tennessee last Sunday. The original movie was playing there. I saw it in 2000 when it was re-released and I was ready to watch it again on the big screen.
Seeing this on the big screen changes everything. William Friedkin, the director, managed to keep the dread atmosphere all the way through the movie and never let up. Friedkin worked on this film for the re-release and the colors pop out at you. He just passed away on August 7, 2023. If you get a chance to see it and this doesn’t upset you…do it. The book was written by William Peter Blatty.
At one time I considered this a horror movie but I’ve changed my mind about that. How can I put it in the same category as slasher movies or some of the stupid horror movies? This is a classic movie with horror elements and should be treated as such. Is it scary? Oh yes, it is…in fact, it’s the only movie to really scare and spook me but I would not belittle it by putting it in with some of those movies. That is not a knock on those other horror movies that have their place…but this one is playing in a different league. What makes it so effective is it feels so real. This is not set in Salem or ancient times but in modern times. A normal 12-year-old girl gets possessed…something that feels tangible.
A few years ago I wrote on the cultural impact of this movie. This time I just want to talk about the characters of the movie. It’s unbelievable how many other movies have stolen bits and pieces of this or the whole thing. A lot of copycat movies came out like The Omen (which is really good), Beyond The Door (a low-budget one that I liked), and more.
The characters in The Exorcist are all vital and necessary. There are no wasted moments in the film. I first saw it when I was around 15-16 on a VHS copy and for days I would look around corners. In 2000 I was an adult but it still got to me then. What impresses me about the movie are the characters. Father Damien Karras (Jason Miller) and Father Lankester Merrin (Max Van Sydow) finally converge near the end of the movie.
The acting of Jason Miller who plays Father Karras is outstanding especially since this was his first role. Father Karras is a guilt-ridden man who is losing his faith. All of this plays a part in his transformation to help with the Exorcism. Miller was first a playwright and a good one and this started his acting career. Max Von Sydow was only 44 while playing an old Father Merrin and like Blair…if it wasn’t convincing the movie would not have worked.
Chris MacNeil (Ellen Burstyn) and Regan MacNeil play mother and daughter and are at the story’s center. Both do a great job and of course, Linda Blair was very convincing because if not…the movie would have died on the vine. Ellen Burstyn ties the movie together with her portrayal of Regan’s mom.
Another character who felt real was Father Dyer who was played by the real Father William O’Malley…he had the experience. Also, Lt William Kinderman (Lee J. Cobb) is super as the Police Detective. He is such a real sort of character that you have known some Kindermans in your life. You can see him softening people up to get information from them in a wise old man way.
It’s worth mentioning 90-year-old Vasiliki Maliaros who played Father Karras’ mother. It was her only acting role. William Friedkin saw her in a cafe and cast her.
No character is used too much or too little and its pacing is perfect. One of my favorite scenes of all time is in this movie. When Father Merrin pulls up in the taxi and walks in the fog with light coming from a street light and the house. You can take away a lot from the ending and it’s all subjective but for me, it’s good conquering evil…you may have a different thought.
The original trailer…it was ultimately banned by film executives over concerns it was too disturbing for audiences.
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