Songs You May Have Missed #22

24 Feb 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

clock

The E-Types: “Put The Clock Back On The Wall” (1966)

The original, Beatles-led British Invasion was unkind to American bands trying to get a record deal or even book a gig. So to avoid extinction, they adapted in various ways. The New Colony Six (from Chicago) and Paul Revere & The Raiders (Idaho) dressed like this:

At the River's EdgePaul Revere & The Raiders - Greatest Hits

Bands like the San Antonio-based Sir Douglas Quintet or Chicago’s Buckinghams took a slightly more dignified approach, adopting band names they hoped would fool club owners into thinking they were booking an act from across the pond. And some, like the Beau Brummels and the E-Types, (both from California) focused on sounding like the Hollies, the Zombies, or Peter and Gordon.

“Put the Clock Back On the Wall” was penned by the hit writing team of Gary Bonner and Alan Gordon, who wrote “Happy Together” and “She’d Rather Be With Me” for the Turtles. It’s actually probably the band’s least-British Invasion-sounding song, leaning closer to a garage rock sound. This band sounded pretty consistently good even when they were covering the Beatles. Even so, none of the E-Types’ singles charted–no doubt due in part to competition from the Brits they idolized.

Songs You May Have Missed #21

23 Feb 2012 4 Comments

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

frank

Frank Turner: “Long Live The Queen” (2009)

 

A song about celebrating life, even in the midst of death. A good reminder.

I was sipping on a whisky when I got the call
Yeah my friend Lex was lying in the hospital
She’d been pretty sick for about half the year
But it seemed like this time the end was drawing near

So I dropped my plans and jumped the next London train
I found her laid up and in a lot of pain
Her eyes met mine and then I understood
That her weather forecast wasn’t looking too good

So I sat and spun her stories for a little while
Tried to raise her mood and tried to raise a smile
But she silenced all my ramblings with a shake of her head
Drew me close and listen this is what she said  now

You’ll live to dance another day
Just now you’ll have to dance for the two of us
So stop looking so damn depressed – sing with all your heart
The queen is dead

Yeah, she told me she was sick of all the hospital food
Of doctors, distant relatives draining her blood
She said I know I’m dying but I’m not finished just yet
I’m dying for a drink and for a cigarette

So we hatched ourselves a plan to book a cheap hotel
The centre of the city and to raise some hell
Lay waste to all the clubs and then when everyone else is long asleep
Then we’ll know we’re good and  done

You’ll live to dance another day
Just now you’ll have to dance for the two of us
So stop looking so damn depressed – sing with all your  heart
That the queen is dead

South London’s not the same anymore
The queen is dead, and the last of the greats has finally gone to bed

Well I was working on some words when Sarah called me up
She said that Lex had gone asleep and wasn’t waking up
And even though I knew that  there was nothing to be done
I felt bad for not being there and now, well, she was gone

So I tried to think what Lex would want me to do
At times like this when I was feeling blue
So I gathered up some friends to spread the sad sad news
And we headed to the city for a drink or two
And we sang

We live to dance another day
It’s just now we have to dance for one more of us
So stop looking so damn depressed and sing with all our  hearts
Long live the queen

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/03/11/songs-you-may-have-missed-359/

Who Is Paul McCartney?

23 Feb 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in General Posts, On a Lighter Note

Following the telecast of the Grammys, apparently countless viewers tweeted about the presence of a certain older English gentleman who performed. Their question: “Who is Paul McCartney?” This short video is intended to help address that question.

The History Channel and Twitter present a biography of music legend, Sir Paul McCartney.

Warning! Language may not be appropriate for all in the room.

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/8fefc46f1b/who-is-paul-mccartney?playlist=featured_videos

Songs You May Have Missed #20

23 Feb 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: , ,

dent may

Dent May And His Magnificent Ukulele: “At The Academic Conference” (2009)

 

This song won the Grammy for Best Catchy Sad-Sack Ballad With Ukulele. Or should have.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2012/07/18/recommended-albums-22/

Rockers Singing Standards: The Overdone, The Overdue, and The Overlooked

22 Feb 2012 2 Comments

by Ed Cyphers in Articles, Best of the Blog Tags: , ,

The Great American Songbook Collection (4CD/DVD)

The Overdone: Rod Stewart’s Great American Songbook was the album series that wouldn’t go away. It spawned five volumes (with Roman numerals, no less–like the Super Bowls), a four-disc box set and even had its own best-of. As Rod points at you in the above photo he’s thinking: I’m glad YOU don’t realize how much better Bobby Darin could do this.

Rod, write some songs now. Or…retire?

Kisses on the Bottom

The Overdue: Paul McCartney’s first-ever standards album is Kisses On The Bottom. It’s badly titled but tastefully arranged and given a pleasant, relaxed vocal treatment by one of the all-time great songwriters, who ironically seems to bring some of his best performances to others’ material. (Entered into evidence: his “It’s So Easy”, by all accounts a fiery highlight of a 2011 Buddy Holly tribute album:

Paul even includes two new originals which fit in quite well among the all-time standards. A nice trick, that.

On the downside, these arrangements are quite spare at times, and the vocals “in close”. The 69-year-old McCartney, despite having amazingly well-preserved vocal range, is not always ready for his closeup. Just a little breathy or rough around the edges here and there. It’s a small distraction, especially when I consider how much I love Jimmy Durante doing the same kind of material. My only real complaint for Sir Paul is that he didn’t do this sooner. His reason? Had to wait for Rod to finish. (No, really!)

Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night 

The Overlooked: Harry Nilsson’s A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night came, in 1973, at a point in his career when he should have been consolidating the mainstream success he’d found with the hit Nilsson Schmilsson album. Instead he insisted on singing an album of standards with Sinatra’s arranger Gordon Jenkins. Not the best career move perhaps. But in hindsight we’re probably just as lucky to have this collection of timeless songs, impeccably arranged and sung by one of the great voices of his era, as we’d have been to have another Nilsson Schmilsson. This one’s a comparatively little-known gem today, but worth seeking out. Of all the rock musicians who moonlighted singing the standards, no one could touch the voice of Nilsson.

Songs You May Have Missed #19

22 Feb 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

halen

Van Halen: “Blood and Fire” (2012)

“Told you I was coming back. Say you missed me. Say it like you mean it.”

There’s only one David Lee Roth. And I did miss him. Rock n Roll, if there is still such a thing, will always need someone with its elemental cock-sure swagger to step out and remind us what its pure strain looked like. And so few are left who can still deliver that. (Wouldn’t you love to go see a Thin Lizzy show today?)

Van Halen’s new album, A Different Kind of Truth, has somewhat confounded critics who were ready to pan it and fans who were prepared to hate it. It’s not one of their absolute best, but it’s much better than we probably had any right to expect.

If you like Van Halen, you like “Blood and Fire”. If you don’t, you don’t.

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