More 1984!

I'm old enough to remember a time when we just listened to music. That method had its downside, though. For several years I thought the best Beatles songs were sung by Paul McCartney, because he was the cute Beatle. I was woefully wrong.

Thus, when MTV came along in the eighties, it was manna from heaven. Who needed a radio? And we actually knew what the guys and girls singing the songs looked like! This was a concept, like personal computers, that we didn't even know we needed -- until we discovered we did. Maybe I like eighties music so much because of MTV or maybe the music was just that good. I'm going with "that good".

There are one-hit wonders whose song we like; there are fads that now seem cheesy and what-the-hell-was-I-thinking; and then there is Hall and Oates:

 
Before the nineteen eighties, Tina Turner, to me, was Ike and Tina Turner -- you know, "rollin', rollin', rollin' on the river" and a gaggle of gals in sequined, tasseled dresses doing the frug...or some other sixties dance.

Surprisingly, Tina popped up again just when MTV came along. "What's Love Got To Do With It" put Tina back in the spotlight. Luckily. Because I heard her follow-up single on the radio a few days ago, and damn! It's bad! Here's how it goes (in its entirety):

I'm your private dancer, a dancer for money
I'll do what you want me to do
I'm your private dancer, a dancer for money
And any old music will do

And that's it! As a songwriter, I think that's cheating. You can't just repeat the same four lines over and over!  Yet it worked for Tina, so there's that.


That doesn't take away from her seminal hit. Let's listen (and watch):

I like this one better. I think it must be from a movie, and I'm going to Google that and find out right now. In the meantime, watch John Waite:

Well, according to my research, the song was featured in the movie "Selena" and also in Miami Vice, which I never watched, so I guess I only imagined that it was included in a John Hughes flick. I'm going to go out on a limb and say it should have been.

Whatever happened to Deniece Williams? She had a hit single from one of those movies I never actually saw, Footloose. Which doesn't explain why I know the song so well, except for endless plays on MTV. I saw the non-existent fore-mentioned John Hughes movie featuring John Waite's song more times than I saw Footloose. That doesn't take away from the giddy poppishness that was "Let's Hear It For The Boy":

You know you remember this next track. You probably didn't get it -- it is in German (?) after all -- but that didn't stop you and everyone else from turning it into a hit. Number twenty-eight of the year is the incomprehensible hit by Nena -- I don't know whether that's the girl's name of the name of the band, but what does it matter, really?

Apparently in the eighties there was this band called "Journey" (which is a really cheesy name, when you think about it).  I'm guessing they hit it big right before MTV came into existence, because I had absolutely no knowledge of them. Of course I know about Journey now. But I'm not (too) ashamed to admit that I had no clue who they were in 1984. All I knew was there was this great track by a guy named Steve Perry. I figured he was just a single act; a one-hit wonder. Hell of a singer, though. If someone handed me a list of pop songs and said, pick the best ones, I would pick this. I love this song:

Contrary to what Jack Black's character utters in High Fidelity, this is not the worst song ever recorded. Let's cut Stevie some slack, okay? I like it. I'll admit, though, that line in the movie made me feel supremely uncool. However, I'm okay with uncool. Uncool is the new cool. Number twenty-five!

Remember that list of pop songs someone gave me? Well, here's another one I'd pluck from it. My oldies station cued up this song as I was pulling into the Target parking lot, and I refused to kill the motor until I sat and listened to it all the way through. Elton John is a treasure and this song proves why:

Okay, I know I never saw the movie, Streets of Fire. I had to Google it to even know what it was. Nope, never ever saw it. Rick Moranis? Seriously? He was great on SCTV, and I loved him in Parenthood, but...nah....no clue. Nevertheless, I know this song, which again proves the power of music videos. This is Dan Hartman...who resides somewhere near Deniece Williams, I'm guessing; and they're both living off the royalties of their singular hit songs. I still like this one, though:

Confession:  For years I hated, detested! Billy Joel. I think it was subliminal. I remember as a pre-teen listening to a radio show on KFYR on Sunday nights called Padre's Platters. It was hosted by a real-life priest. Seriously. Well, Padre (I don't remember his actual name) went on a tear one night about how sacrilegious Billy Joel's song, Only The Good Die Young, was. I guess because it blasphemed Catholic girls.  Good Catholic girl that I was, in my subconscious I determined that listening to Billy Joel was akin to committing a mortal sin. That, plus I never liked how he yelled so much in his songs. I've come around a bit since then. I actually like some of Billy's tracks now and I'm ready to confess that I do. This one I really liked, mostly because I really liked the Four Seasons and this is a tribute to them:

Purists will say that Chicago ceased being Chicago when Peter Cetera joined the group. Poppists will say, there was a Chicago before Peter Cetera joined the group? Sorry, but hop off that high horse, guys. There wouldn't even be a nineteen eighties movie industry if it wasn't for Peter Cetera. Peter Cetera will easily duel with Kenny Loggins for the most tracks featured in hit eighties movies. Maybe he's an acquired taste -- I never had that problem. I always liked Peter's voice. Trust me, if it was just Saturday In The Park, I never would have purchased the "Best of Chicago". What screams the eighties more than Peter Cetera and Chicago? I bet the other Chicago guys, much as they disdain Peter, are living pretty high off their royalties.

This might be a good spot to bid adieu to 1984.

All in all, it was an excellent year for music.

I truly miss good years in music.

I Like Elton John, But....

(I never, ever thought he was saying, "Tony Danza".)

 

 

I like Elton John's music a lot.  The trouble has always been that I never knew what the hell he was singing.

At first, I just assumed it was Bernie Taupin's lyrics that didn't make sense, so I looked those up.  They're not that bad ~ semi-cohesive, at least.  No, it's just the way Elton sings.

For example, Bennie and the Jets.  This is what I hear.  I will then look up the actual lyrics and compare.

What I hear:

 

Hey kids

Chainin' things together

As far as somethin' somethin'

We know will change the weather

Well, California called

So might as well stick around

You gotta hear electric music

Solid balls of sound

Say, turn 'em around

Have you seen 'em yet

Ooh, but they're so fazed out

B-b-b-Bennie and the Jets

 

Actual lyrics:

 

Hey kids! 

Shake it loose together,
The spotlight’s hitting something
That’s been known to change the weather;
We’ll kill the fatted calf tonight –
So stick around,
 

You’re gonna hear electric music,
Solid walls of sound.
Say, Candy and Ronnie 

Have you seen them yet?
Wow, but they’re so spaced out 

Bennie and the Jets 

 

See, the actual lyrics sorta make sense, but I don't sing those lyrics, when I'm singing along.  I sing mine.  

 

 

See, I'm right.

 

 

I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues (I'm thinking I did fairly well on this one; we'll see.  I highlighted the lines I'm pretty sure are wrong.)

 

What I hear:

 

Don't wish it away

Don't look at it like it's forever

Between you and me

I could honestly say

That things can only get better

 

And while I'm away

Dust our payments in site

And it won't be long

Before you and me run

To the place in our hearts

Where we hide

 

.... (more stuff)

Without me girl
Cry in the night if it helps
But more than ale
I simply love you
More than I love life itself

Actual lyrics:

Don’t wish it away
Don’t look at it like it’s forever
Between you and me
I could honestly say
That things can only get better

And while I’m away
Dust out the demons inside
And it won’t be long,
Before you and me run
To the place in our hearts
Where we hide

......

Wait on me girl
Cry in the night if it helps
But more than ever

I simply love you
More than I love life itself

 

 

Okay, Bernie's lyrics make way more sense than mine.

 

Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me

 

What I hear:

 

I can't lied no more of the darkness

All my pictures seem to fade to black and white

I'm growin' tired and time stands still before me

Frozen here on the ladder of my life

 

It's too late; to save myself from foalin'

I took a chance and changed the way of life

But you misread my meanin' when I met you

Close the door and let me lie there by the light

 

Don't let the sun go down on me

Although I search myself, there's always someone else I see 

I'm a light segment of my life you wanna free 

And losin' everything is like the sun goin' down on me

I can't find all the racks of mighty lime

See me once and see the way I feel

Don't discard me just because you think I mean ya harm

But these cuffs I have made you love to help you see

Actual lyrics:

 

I can’t light no more of your darkness
All my pictures seem to fade to black and white
I’m growing tired and time stands still before me
Frozen here on the ladder of my life.

Too late to save myself from falling
I took a chance and changed your way of life
But you misread my meaning when I met you
Closed the door and left me blinded by the light.

Don’t let the sun go down on me
Although I search myself it’s always someone else I see
I’d just allow a fragment of your life to wander free (oops, missed that one entirely)
But losing everything is like the sun going down on me.

I can’t find Oh, the right romantic line
But see me once and see the way I feel
Don’t discard me just because you think I mean you harm
But these cuts I have, Oh they need love to help them heal
(ooh, another bad interpretation, I see)

 

 

I'm feeling pretty good about that one.  I only had a few nonsensical lines

 

 

Listening to Elton John is a lot like reading for context.  As long as you catch the important words, you can just kind of fill in the blanks for the rest.

 

It struck me that the Elton John song for which I (almost) completely understood the lyrics was the first song I ever heard by him, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.  I'm not going to check, because I may end up disappointing myself.

I am a huge admirer of Elton John (truthfully, he could sing anyone's lyrics and I'd most likely love the song ~ it's the melody and the voice; much more than the lyrics).

Face it, we've all sung along to songs using nonsensical words.  And we're not alone.  Check the Kiss This Guy website and prove it to yourself. 

I actually enjoyed singing the wrong words of songs more; and when I learned what the real lyrics were, I was sort of disappointed.

Got this one down, though:

Levon

I will be the first to admit that I missed the whole "The Band" days.  I sincerely did.

I was semi-conscious of the song, "The Weight", which I always thought was called, "Take a Load Off Annie".

It should have been called that, but it wasn't, because the 1970's were more of an artistic era (in some regions), and song titles didn't necessarily reflect the actual hook of the song, which "take a load off Annie" did.  Kind of a mistake, in hindsight.

I do know (now) that The Band was somehow associated with Bob Dylan, and that's about all I know, frankly.  I could just make up stuff, but you would check my work and find out that I'm just bluffing my way through.

Oh, and I also know that they had a movie made about them, called The Last Waltz.  I saw something on PBS about that.

There are certain eras of music of which I know nothing.

In all honesty, the way I know Levon Helm is from his movies. 



I could quote you a bunch of lines from Coal Miner's Daughter, because I watched that movie about 2,954 times.

Levon Helm did a hell of a job, portraying Loretta's dad in that movie.

I also remember Levon from "The Right Stuff".



That's how I remember Levon Helm.

I also know that Elton John wrote a song called, "Levon":




"When I heard The Band’s Music from Big Pink, their music changed my life. And Levon was a big part of that band. Nigel Olson, my drummer, will tell you that every drummer that heard him was influenced by him. He was the greatest drummer and a wonderful singer and just a part of my life that was magical. They once flew down to see me in Philadelphia and I couldn’t believe it. They were one of the greatest bands of all time. They really changed the face of music when their records came out. I had no idea he was sick so I’m very dismayed and shocked that he died so quickly. But now my son [Zachary Jackson Levon Furnish-John] has his name.”

If you name your son after Levon, that carries a lot of weight (no pun intended).

Levon Helm seemed to me to be a good guy.

I trust the music historians to encapsulate his life, because I don't know a whole lot, other than his movie roles.

I think I do recognize, however, that he influenced a lot of artists.  And, to me, he was one of those iconic voices, and actors.

I may have missed the era, but I still (do) know this:

More Seventies! The Number Ones!

Here we are, back to revisit the seventies. I had so much fun with the last post, I decided to keep going! Now, don't get me wrong. I'll admit to a bit of cynicism regarding this decade, but in my last post, I found a bunch of keepers. HOWEVER, as I'm browsing the list of number one songs tonight, I'm beginning to revert back to my original opinion. Interestingly, there are not a lot of number one songs for each year, because, you see, the songs that did reach number one tended to hang on to that spot for several weeks, usually. For example, in 1970, there were only 21 number one songs.

So, to totally drive this topic into the ground, I thought I would choose one number one song from each year. (My standard proviso remains: This is dependent upon what I can find on YouTube.)


1970 - THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY - I THINK I LOVE YOU

Unfortunately, there's a bunch of (bad) acting before the song actually begins. But this was the best I could find. And gee, for a song that so many people hold dear, you'd think there'd be a better video available.

I never really got into the Partridge Family, I guess because I wasn't eleven at the time. I mean, c'mon, they're no Monkees. You know, if you're choosing a pre-fab band, the Monkees are way better. But who am I to stomp all over somebody's cheesy pre-teen memories?


1971 - THREE DOG NIGHT - JOY TO THE WORLD

Let me get this straight....Hoyt Axton threw a bunch of non sequiturs together, and made a "song" that someone actually recorded? Well, cool. Sign me up! I can do that. I mean, really, if you listen to the song, it makes absolutely no sense....I guess, unless you're stoned. And to this day, old Hoyt is sitting back, counting his money.

But I really, really do have to feel sorry for Three Dog Night. Can you imagine having to sing that song over and over and over and over for decades? Face it, the song gets tiresome real fast. I mean, I'm tired of it, and I haven't heard it in about 20 years.


1972 - AMERICA - A HORSE WITH NO NAME

"There were plants and birds and rocks and things". You know, those things. Not plants exactly. I guess, not birds. Or rocks. Hmm....what do you call those things?

"Cuz there ain't no one for to give you no pain". Ahhh. Truer words were never spoken.

America had better songs, but this is a nice folk-rocker, and props for sounding like Neil Young.

However, much like Hoyt Axton, people are going to become suspicious when you just string words together. I'm just saying.


1973 - JIM CROCE - BAD, BAD LEROY BROWN

Hey! Remember that show, "Midnight Special"? I do! You'd turn that on on Friday nights, after you got home from your drunken carousing. Ha Ha! That's not true!

Too bad that this is the song that most people remember Jim Croce for, because he had a whole bunch of really great songs. And, much like, "Joy To The World", this one gets tiresome pretty quickly. But search out Jim Croce videos on YouTube. You'll find some gems.


1974 - STEVE MILLER BAND - THE JOKER

One can never really forget the pompitous of love. If one knew what that meant. But this is one of those songs that never leaves you. I remember driving around, hearing this song on the radio. Cuz they played it every 5 minutes, I think. That's okay. I like it. And it really screams, "seventies"!


1975 - ELTON JOHN - PHILADELPHIA FREEDOM

You may or may not like this song. But I like it. Believe me, if you had been cleaning motel rooms, and pushing your maid's cart from one room to another in the hot sun, this was your only salvation. Thank God for the transistor radio. And you could boogie down as you were stripping sheets off the beds and cleaning toilets. Wow, those heady days of 1975. When I was making $1.25 an hour. Cleaning up after tourists. Ahh, the nostalgia. I can almost smell the Lysol now.


1976 - STARLAND VOCAL BAND - AFTERNOON DELIGHT

Well, I was pregnant when this song came out. And while I didn't have morning sickness, hearing this song could still make me puke.

Enough said. I'm feeling a little queasy just listening to it again.


1977 - ANDY GIBB - I JUST WANNA BE YOUR EVERYTHING

I picked this one because I really kinda like it. The Brothers Gibb also had a number one song that year, coincidentally ~ "How Deep Is Your Love". But I like this one. It's a nice pop song. RIP, Andy. Nice song.


1978 - WINGS - WITH A LITTLE LUCK

FYI ~ Perusing the number one songs from 1978, that year sucked! This is the best I could find. So, I'm nominating 1978 for "worst year ever". Sorry, Matt. I know you were born in 1978, but it's not your fault. But hey, doesn't Paul look young here? (I'm looking for something positive to say.)


1979 - THE EAGLES - HEARTACHE TONIGHT

Whew! I can end the seventies on a high note. I was worried! Thank you, Eagles, and thank you, Glenn Frey. Nice way to end this! And I didn't have to include even one Donna Summer song in this whole post! Lucky for me!

So, we bid a fond adieu to the seventies. Well, maybe not fond, per se. But we do bid ADIEU!

Look for more to come! The eighties are next!

More Good Songs That You Never Want To Hear Again

Wouldn't you know, I got in my car to do another errand today, and what do I hear but this:

Elton John

Sorry, I tried to find a video from 1973, but the only one I found had synch problems. I liked Elton's look in that original video, though. He had the big round eyeglasses; he had the Uncle Sam outfit, complete with matching boots and hat.

I actually prefer the younger, more flamboyant Elton, but alas, this video will have to do.

I like this song, truly, but lord have mercy; I just can't listen to it for the 3,000,000th time.

In actuality, Elton had LOTS of better songs than this. But you don't hear THOSE songs on the radio. No, you only hear THAT ONE.

I like this one a lot better:

Elton John Better

I love this song, but I have to say, what was with the hairstyles in 1973? They all had girl-hair. Take a look at the rhythm guitar player. He looks like David St. Hubbins from Spinal Tap, doesn't he? You be the judge:


I also like this song by Elton a lot:

Someone Saved My Life Tonight

Although it sounds to me like he's saying, "Someone saved my life tonight, SUGAR BEAR, SUGAR BEAR."

That really doesn't make any sense to me.


I have to say, though, that the following is one of my all-time favorite Elton John songs:

Elton John - A Really Good Song

Hey, hey, Johnny. We miss you.




Click on the images to purchase any of these fine Elton John albums.

I think I have now, officially, exhausted my musings on Elton John.

So be it.