Tag: Manfred Mann

Manfred Mann – Do Wah Diddy Diddy

I’ve been blogging since 2017 and someone asked me about this song not long ago. I told them yea…I posted that one. Well, no I didn’t post this one so now is the time. I first heard this over a friend’s house in the 80s…his dad had this song among his singles collection of the early to mid-sixties.

This song was from one of the biggest years in popular music. It was released in 1964 by Manfred Mann. It was written by Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, who were looking to recreate the gibberish gold they struck on The Crystal’s hit “Da Doo Ron Ron.” In the UK they had already had success with 5-4-3-2-1 and Hubble Bubble (Toil and Trouble) but had yet to break through in America. This song did the trick…and well! The original name of the song was Do Wah Diddy…but the band added the extra Diddy to the end.

This was not the original version. That version was The Exciters but it tanked. Actually, it’s a pretty good version…I’ll post it at the bottom as well. Manfred Mann’s version fits well into the British Invasion and this made them known really quick. It peaked at #1 on the Billboard 100, #1 in Canada, #1 in New Zealand, and #1 in the UK. They followed this one up with another hit called Sha La La.

Paul Jones was the lead singer at the time of Manfred Mann. He heard this song by the Exciters and knew it had potential. Most of the group was not very happy with recording this song but finally did it. The band found that touring the US a thoroughly miserable experience, and decided that they weren’t going back again. So, while they would continue to have big hits in Britain for the rest of the decade, they only had a few minor successes in the States.

They would have more success in the 70s with a revamped band named Manfred Mann’s Earth Band.

The original version.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KzRY2ando4

Doo Wah Diddy Diddy

There she was just a-walkin’ down the street, singin’ “Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do”
Snappin’ her fingers and shufflin’ her feet, singin’ “Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do”
She looked good (looked good), she looked fine (looked fine)
She looked good, she looked fine and I nearly lost my mind

Before I knew it she was walkin’ next to me, singin’ “Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do”
Holdin’ my hand just as natural as can be, singin’ “Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do”
We walked on (walked on) to my door (my door)
We walked on to my door, then we kissed a little more

Whoa-oh, I knew we was falling in love
Yes I did, and so I told her all the things I’d been dreamin’ of

Now we’re together nearly every single day, singin’ “Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do”
A-we’re so happy and that’s how we’re gonna stay, singin’ “Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do”
Well, I’m hers (I’m hers), she’s mine (she’s mine)
I’m hers, she’s mine, wedding bells are gonna chime

Whoa-oh, I knew we was falling in love
Yes I did, and so I told her all the things I’d been dreamin’ of

Now we’re together nearly every single day, singin’ “Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do”
A-we’re so happy and that’s how we’re gonna stay, singin’ “Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do”
Well, I’m hers (I’m hers), she’s mine (she’s mine)
I’m hers, she’s mine, wedding bells are gonna chime

Whoa-oh-oh-oh, oh yeah
Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do, we’ll sing it
Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do, oh yeah, oh, oh yeah
Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do

Manfred Mann – Quinn The Eskimo (Mighty Quinn)

Some songs are just fun…and this is one of them. Yes, I like the Manfred Mann version a bunch and I also like Bob Dylan’s released version. It’s a live version with The Band at the Isle of Wight. Bob’s voice fits this song so well…he is over the top, sloppy, and loud but it works. It’s an irresistible melody and hook that Bob wrote in this song. Bob’s version is the only version I knew for a long time.

Bob Dylan wrote this song and I first heard it through his Greatest Hits II album, and then the Basement Tapes of him and The Band. Some time later I heard the Manfred Mann version of it. Something different though…Manfred Mann was the first to release it. This usually didn’t happen but Mike D’abo from Manfred Mann explains it:  “We met in a publisher’s house as Bob Dylan was making some new material available to other artists, we heard about 10 songs and I thought ‘This Wheel’s On Fire’ would be the one to do, but Manfred liked The Mighty Quinn, which was called ‘Quinn The Eskimo’ then. It was sung in a rambling monotone but Manfred had recognized its potential. He sold me on the idea of doing this song, but I had to make up some of the words as I couldn’t make out everything he was saying. It was like learning a song phonetically in a foreign language. I have never had the first idea what the song is about except that it seems to be ‘Hey, gang, gather round, something exciting is going to happen ’cause the big man’s coming.’ As to who the big man is and why he is an Eskimo, I don’t know.” 

The Basement Tapes version is much more mellow. This is probably the demo that Manfred Mann received.

It is thought that Bob Dylan came up with the song after seeing the 1959 movie The Savage Innocents. In that movie, Anthony Quinn plays an Eskimo named Inuk…that would explain Quinn and why he mentions an Eskimo in a pop song.  That film also was the screen debut of Peter O’Toole.

Bob released the song in 1970 on his Self Portrait album… a live version recorded at the Isle of Wight Festival on August 31, 1969, with The Band backing him. His voice is great on this…it fits the song. The “heeyyyyyyyys” and the “whooooaaaas”s are perfect for it. 

Manfred Mann released this in 1968 and it was a huge hit for them. The song peaked at #1 in the UK, #3 in Canada, #1 in New Zealand, and #10 on the Billboard 100 in 1968.

A little trivia for Beatle fans…Klaus Voormann who drew the Revolver cover, was on this song, he played the flute part on the Manfred Mann version. I also believe he played bass but I can’t verify…that is what instrument he played.

Having turned down offers from bands like the Hollies and the Moody Blues, Voormann agreed to become a part of Manfred Mann. He got to know the Beatles when they arrived in Germany. When Stuart Sutcliffe quit playing bass…McCartney took over and a little while later Stuart volunteered…if he had spoken up sooner…you never know what could have happened.

Ron Cornelius who played on the Self Portrait album: “There’s everybody and his brother flying into Nashville to play on that thing. If you look at the credits, it’s amazing how many people were delighted to come and play on it. Out of everybody I’ve worked with, I don’t know of anyone who’s been any nicer than Bob Dylan.”

The Mighty Quinn

Come all without, come all within
You’ll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
Come all without, come all within
You’ll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn

Everybody’s building ships and boats
Some are building monuments
Others jotting down notes
Everybody’s in despair
Every girl and boy
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here
Everybody’s gonna jump for joy

Come all without, come all within
You’ll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn

I like to go just like the rest, I like my sugar sweet
But jumping queues and making haste
Just ain’t my cup of meat
Everyone’s beneath the trees feeding pigeons on a limb
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here
All the pigeons gonna run to him

Come all without, come all within
You’ll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
Come all without, come all within
You’ll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn

Let me do what I wanna do, I can’t decide ’em all
Just tell me where to put ’em and I’ll tell you who to call
Nobody can get no sleep, there’s someone on everyone’s toes
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here, everybody’s gonna wanna doze

Come all without, come all within
You’ll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
Come all without, come all within
You’ll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn

Come all without, come all within
You’ll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
Come all without, come all within
You’ll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn

Manfred Mann’s Earth Band – Blinded By The Light ….Under The Covers Tuesday

This was left over from last week so I thought today would be a good day to put it to use.

I first heard this on AM radio in the 70s as a kid. I didn’t know it was a cover at the time but later I bought Springsteen’s debut album and found it. I know I’m in the minority on this one…I like Bruce’s version more. I do like Manfred Manns’s version though…they made it an epic production and song…and if it wasn’t for their version…the song would not be as well known today so they did a great job on it. I like the way Bruce did the vocals and the extra verses are some lyrical gymnastics.

When putting their own spin on “Blinded by the Light,” Manfred Mann’s Earth Band changed a few of Springsteen’s original lyrics. The most recognizable part of the song, Blinded by the light / Revved up like a Deuce / Another runner in the night, was initially, Cut loose like a Deuce / Another runner in the night. 

Bruce’s version is more stripped down as a more common song. The lyrics flow everywhere. The keyword Bruce wrote was “Deuce” and it came out as Douche in the Manfred Mann version. Bruce once said ” “Deuce was like a Little Deuce Coupe, as in a 2-seater Hot Rod. Douche is a feminine hygienic procedure. But what can I say, the public spoke.”

When the band was recording “Blinded by the Light,” they did everything they could do to make it a hit. As they played in the studio, they got stuck trying to transition between the chorus and the verses. Near the end, the drummer Chris Slade said to put the piano tune “Chopsticks” over it. Mann was skeptical of the idea and turned it down multiple times. But when Slade kept insisting, they tried it out. It worked surprisingly well.

The song peaked at #1 on the Billboard 100, #1 in Canada, #8 in New Zealand, and #6 in the UK in 1976-77.

Manfred Mann: “When we finally finished the album track I thought it had a great vibe, but the next question was how to get that into a single. The real problem was how to get from the chorus to the verse smoothly. The way we did it on the album wouldn’t work. I just couldn’t figure out a way to do it. And then – and this is why you need to be in a band – our drummer Chris Slade said: ‘Play Chopsticks over it’. We already had that elsewhere in the song, and I told him it wouldn’t work. But he kept insisting, and I kept saying no, until I suddenly realised that he wasn’t hearing Chopsticks itself, just the chords, which fitted perfectly. So we recorded those as backing vocals and added that to the original. This was in the days when you had to try and lock two tape machines in tandem, so that took another two days.”

Blinded By The Light

Blinded by the light
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night

Madman drummers bummers, Indians in the summer
with a teenage diplomat
In the dumps with the mumps as the adolescent pumps
His way into his hat
With a boulder on my shoulder, feelin’ kinda older
I tripped the merry-go-round
With this very unpleasin’ sneezin’ and wheezin’
The calliope crashed to the ground

The calliope crashed to the ground

But she was blinded by the light
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night

Some silicone sister with a manager mister
Told me I got what it takes
She said, “I’ll turn you on, sonny, to something strong
Play the song with the funky break”
And go-kart Mozart was checkin’ out the weather chart
To see if it was safe outside
And little Early-Pearly came by in his curly-wurly
And asked me if I needed a ride

Asked me if I needed a ride

But she was blinded by the light
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night
Blinded by the light

She got down but she never got tired
She’s gonna make it through the night
She’s gonna make it through the night

But mama, that’s where the fun is
But mama, that’s where the fun is
Mama always told me not to look into the eyes of the sun
But mama, that’s where the fun is

Some brimstone baritone anticyclone rolling stone
Preacher from the east
Says, “Dethrone the dictaphone, hit it in it’s funny bone
That’s where they expect it least”
And some new-mown chaperone was standin’ in the corner
Watchin’ the young girls dance
And some fresh-sown moonstone was messin’ with his frozen zone
Remindin’ him of romance

The calliope crashed to the ground

But she was blinded by the light
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night

Blinded by the light (madman drummers bummers, Indians in the summer)
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night (with a teenage diplomat)
Blinded by the light (in the dumps with the mumps as the adolescent pumps)
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night (his way into his hat)
Blinded by the light (with a boulder on my shoulder, feelin’ kinda older)
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night (I tripped the merry-go-round)
Blinded by the light (with this very unpleasin’ sneezin’ and wheezin’)
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night (the calliope crashed to the ground)
Blinded by the light (now Scott with a slingshot finally found a tender spot)
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night (and throws his lover in the sand)
Blinded by the light (and some bloodshot forget-me-not said daddy’s within earshot)
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night (save the buckshot, turn up the band)
Blinded by the light (some silicone sister with a manager mister)
Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night (told me I got what it takes)
Blinded by the light (she said, “I’ll turn you on, sonny, to something strong”)

She got down, but she never got tired
She’s gonna make it through the night

…