Final post of the school year! I'm not sure whether I will be continuing to blog, but this post will be spectacular! I'm going to switch it up, this post will be about a band! Now, what band deserves to be the only band that I give a separate post for... Hard decision, I'd like to do The Scorpions, but Mr. Elkin would hate me. There's always KISS, my favourite glam metal/rock band, but I blogged about them all last year. I could go with The Beatles, the first band I actively listened to. So much pressure! Plot twist, I've decided to just post on the genre of early rock and roll instead.
Rock and roll was the product of a few main genres of the 1940's and 50's, these being gospel, blues, and jazz. The birth of rock and roll was strongly assisted by the latest inventions like the electric guitar, amplifier, microphone, and 45 rpm record, which served to promote smaller and more upbeat bands, rather than huge jazz bands of 20 or 30 pieces.
Now rock and roll is a very broad genre, and it's hard to tell what song is the first rock and roll song recorded, but the best definition I've found is from Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart, who stated in 1964:
"Rock and Roll? I know it when I hear it."
Very simple, very precise. Some say it's the beat, some say it's the instruments, nah, I'd prefer to go with his definition.
Ah, doo wop... Now I'm a huge fan of this brand of rock and roll because it's vocally dominated, and I just love a good harmony. Doo wop originated as choir in churches, but later evolved into a prominent form of rock and roll.
Ah, the Beatles. When rock and roll hit Britain, the first response was to replicate the songs with teen idols, not the Beatles, no, The Beatles came a little later. Rock and roll was dying down from the initial rush at this time, but the British took it and ran! Many rock and roll bands flourished in cities like Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, and London.
Wow, I just absolutely love this song! The sheer number of covers speaks for itself, being six or seven complete ones, and a few samplings here and there. Well this song was written by Who lead and rhythm guitarist, and played a 12-string on this song, Pete Townshed. It was released as a single in December of 1964 for the US, and January of 1965 in the UK, which I though weird because they're a British band, you'd think that it'd come out first in the originating country, apparently not. Pete stated that the thoughts process behind the song came from the Kink's, All Day and All of The Night, and he wrote it when he was eighteen, very cool. The lyrical work is pure genius! Very simple, yet very catchy and meaningful, this song's about the feeling that you get when you see the perfect girl and your heart jumps a little, when you get goosebumps from hearing her speak, the lustful first kiss that pulls out your stomach and tosses it on the ground a little. This song's about new romance and how it encompasses your life. See Mr.Elkin? Not a Scorpions song, oh, wait...
Well I wanted to blog about an Aerosmith song that I liked, so here's a relatively new one that is kind of the pair to Lay it Down, which I blogged about earlier. These songs are a "pair" because they were both songs that were released in Aerosmith's 2002 greatest hits album, O, Yeah! Ultimate Aerosmith Hits that were previously unheard of. Girls of Summer is a classic Aerosmith song, written by Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, but is a little different because of the help of professional songwriter, Marti Frederiksen, who assisted in writing the song. The song isn't that lyrically deep or great, but the vocal work done to the lyrics are wonderfully smooth and catchy. The song's simply about summer and babes, there's not much deeper you can go. I hope you enjoy this relatively recent Aerosmith song which musical work has me enchanted.
Alright! My latest favourite song, from the German heavy metal band, the Scorpions! Now when I did some research about this song, I was super disappointed! This song never reached any top tracks or subtle praises, but what it has reached, is the top of my list of track favourites, which in all honesty, is not much, but this is just a fantastic song! Now the first thing you need to know about this song is that it was released on Crazy World, in 1990, meaning that it's still fairly recent. Crazy World is considered the last of the classic Scorpions albums, why? Simply because it's the last album to feature Francis Buchholz, the bassist in the classic lineup. Now I find the whole so be quite attractive, but what really appeals to me is the vocal work. The guitar's great, classic Rudolph Schenker and Matthias Jabs lead and rhythm work, bass work is great, creates a lovely power feel in the main riff, and the drums are heavy and blunt, which I love to hear. The vocal work is just great though, the smooth vocal work on the chorus contrasts beautifully with the verse and bridge, not to mention the lyrics, which don't speak "stalker" to me, I see it as just plain lust and longing. I've never been one for songs about heaven and hell, but this one just speaks to me, I hope you enjoy.
I can't help but have an immense amount of affection for this song! For the nasty and unwelcome English weather that they're singing about, this song has an embellishing upbeat feel to it, it reminds me more of surf rock than British rock, especially the bridge("This is my street, and I'm never going to leave it..."). Well this fascinating and clever little piece was written by Ray Davies, The Kink's vocalist and main songwriter, and was released as a single in 1967. This song is a complete classic and carefree song that is pleasant on the ears, and seems to put me in a sort of nostalgic trance. Now my second-most favourite thing about this song is the little lyrical changes they put in the song to add a little meaning, while keeping the basic lyrical work in the chorus almost untouched, such as the switch from "Autumn almanac" to "poor rheumatic back" for a line, as well as "almanac" to "Armagnac", which is a French brandy, very clever. What I find to be the most passionate thing in this song, for me, at least, is the wonderful rhyming at the beginning of this song, very smooth. Now they speak of trying to get away and avoid the Autumn weather, but I've mostly lived in pleasant weather places, and find myself attracted to Autumn, what with the bountiful beauty and temperate temperature.
So I've been watching YouTube clips of old Beatles videos, and I saw a recent one that showed Paul McCartney watching the footage of The Beatles playing on the Ed Sullivan show for the first time. His expression was just great, full of reminiscence and nostalgia. Now if you haven't seen the footage, watch it. Their performance just sums up the early Beatles experience, the happy-go-lucky and affectionate songs, the girls, the fame. Just watch it, I promise you won't regret it. Well this song was released on With The Beatles, in 1963, but never got an abundance of popularity, until the song was released as a single in Canada, where it was a number one hit (thank you Canada, for recognizing a classic song). Paul also thought of this song as personal accomplishment, as this was the first song that he'd written the music after the lyrics, which he came up with while shaving. It's obvious what the song is about, and that's what's so wonderful about it, the song is so blatant in its meaning, it's about love! The thing that drives us all! Well I hope you enjoy this song as much as I, so take a listen, to a beautiful song.
Alright, little new wave-ish, but what can you do, this is a beautiful song. This was released as a single, but was on Synchronicity in 1983. I've been feeling a little down lately, running on empty, so to speak, and this is a tune I like to play during those down times. Now this song was their second most popular single, following, you guessed it, Every Breath You Take, even though I consider this to be a lyrically superior song. Now Sting is a superb bassist and vocalist, and is one of the few bassist frontmen, but this entire band is mind-blowing, Andy Summers is of my favourite guitarists, and Steward Copeland is a very proficient drummer, though the latter band members don't get to show off their trade that much during this song. This song is not given the symbolic credit that it deserves, every line is chalk-full of fantastic analogies and meaning that takes more than a few listens to get. Now what I think to be the most powerful lyric in this song is
"There's a little black spot on the Sun today,
It's the same old thing as yesterday."
Now this may seem simple enough, but when you look at the Sun, you're purposely damaging yourself, and I think this symbolizes the downward slope of self-destruction that many are faced with and live their lives doing. I hope you enjoy this song as much as I do, because it's something fantastic.
So the Scorpions are officially my favourite band, and this song is just exquisite. The way they contrast the intro, verse, and chorus is one thing that many bands unsuccessfully attempt to succeed in, but this song has exhibited that the Scorpions can do this style flawlessly. Believe in Love was released in 1988, on Savage Amusement, love that album title, and is a pretty standard Scorpions song, lyrics by Klaus Meine (vocalist), music by Rudolph Schenker (rhythm/lead guitarist). If you enjoy soft metal, then this song is the epitome of metal love songs, and Schenker does a fabulous job with the lead, I just love the sound. If you concern yourself with the meaning, it's pretty simple, love is worth pursuing, and maybe you can achieve that happiness that most spend their entire lives searching for, that's my take.
I consider this my favourite Beatles Ballad of all time. Why? Simply because of the placement of the minor chords, and the use of two languages to convey meaning, it's a simply satisfying song that suggests the spiritual sundering of their sizzling, sensational, sentimental passion due to a language barrier. You thought he only spoke English? Listen closer, the words you may be unable to make out are actually French; it was quite the revelation when I first learned of this. This song was originally written as just a party song by Paul McCartney, with just some French sounding mumblings, for an artsy party, but later, John suggested that he write words to it, and so the song was born. The line "Michelle, ma belle", was actually rhymed by Paul's French teacher,as well as the other main French line, "Sont les mots qui vont tres bien ensemble", which is a translation of "These are words that go together well". The song was released on the Beatles' sixth studio album, Rubber Soul, in 1965, and only hit the top charts in Austria and Norway, reaching three and one, respectively. In my opinion, this song is about a couple who can't verbally communicate due to the lack of a common language, and Paul is pining to tell her how he feels. What's your favourite Beatles Ballad?
Ambiguous title, right? The thumbnail doesn't even help! This could be one of the dozen popular songs of this title, the plays, the movies, the episodes from TV shows, just about anything! Can you guess? This is about the song by Queen, and it's one of those that never cease to draw goosebumps from within my skin. While listening to this song, note that this is from Queen's twelfth, and last studio album with Freddie Mercury Innuendo, in 1991, and still contains the anthem-like quality that they're most popularly known for, and have written since 1977, with the release of News of the World, which contained We Will Rock You, and We Are The Champions. This song is one of those that have an epic feel about it, and I'm talking about a real epic, an extended journey on the basis of overcoming some sort of oppression and following the righteous, honorable, and chivalrous life. When it comes to the subject of this song, Freddie was fighting AIDS at the time, and this was his way of living, show biz, putting on a mask and playing for audiences night after night. Freddie knew he couldn't win this one, and this was his acceptance song, his will. In a broader sense, I believe this song is about the never-ending, enduring, ever-present presence of rock and roll.
I just had to blog about this song, the classic hedonistic anthem, right? Now in case you've never been in a car with a classic anthem playing, it's epic! I actually have an entire playlist composed of these anthem songs, such as: You Give Love a Bad Name, Highway to Hell, I Wanna Rock, Rock And Roll All Nite, Pour Some Sugar on Me, Rock You Like a Hurricane, Paradise City, Nuthin' But a Good Time 867-5309/Jenny, etc, and I forgot, a few dozen Queen songs. Well anyways, this song was released by the British Heavy Metal band, Judas Priest, and was released on their 1980 album, British Steel. This was their first album that was certified gold in the US and sold 500,000 copies in the US alone. Take a listen, this song is the perfect example of eighties rebellion and rejection of the classic take on life. Now Judas Priest is know for their hedonistic and epicurean lifestyle, but this song is the pinnacle of that, blatantly bursting the boggled brains of the bodily bylaws in which we live by. What's your favourite anthem song? I'm always curious to know.
What a surprise! Another ballad. Have you heard this song? It's exquisitely empathetic, sincerely sagacious and chalk-full of fantastic rhythm, rhyme, and heartfelt affection. Not really, that's how they want you to imagine it, but they're really just singin' 'bout sex. Many people do not consider this to be "Aerosmith", but it is, just not in a classic sense. I can understand why people might be upset with it, it's not the classic stuff that Aerosmith is known for, but hey, just because this song isn't tragically traditional doesn't mean it's a domestic downfall, I think it's quite pleasing. Lay it Down was released on O, Yeah! Ultimate Aerosmith Hits, in July of 2002, and was one of two songs on the album to be radically raw, along with Girls of Summer. I've never been crazy about Aerosmith, don't get me wrong, I'm a fan, of course, but they've never been my favorite, but I'm lusciously lustful for this song, especially the first verse, just a vindication or vacation from voracious vain.
Wow, what a complete game changer, I had no idea that this song wasn't written by David Bowie, Mick Jagger or Eddie Van Halen, all of which did a cover of this song. This is Dancing in the Street, by Martha and the Vandellas. This song was released as a single of theirs in 1965, but was originally written by William "Mickey" Stevenson and Marvin Gaye, who's version I was unable to locate. This song was apparently thought of when Mickey was watching children cool off in Detroit (Rock City) in an open fire hydrant, and to him, they seemed to be dancing, Dancing in the Street. Though the song was meant to be nothing more than an innocent dance anthem, many protesters for the civil rights movement took it as being written for them, to invoke change in the nation. Many radio stations actually banned the playing of this song because many civil rights' demonstrators were playing it to form the crowds into a cohesive entity. Martha Reeves, the lead for Martha and the Vandellas was interviewed on the subject, and officially stated that it meant nothing of the sorts, but that didn't stop them. It's a tossup for which of these versions I like best, I love the vocal work in Bowie and Jagger's, but Eddie's guitar, what can I say.
Ah, take a listen, this song is so easygoing and heartwarming. I don't care how satanic or demonic you might think Rock and Roll is, this song is so simplistic and nostalgic, I can't even listen to it without the shadow of a grin sneaking up on me. You may scoff because this is their most mainstream song, but this is a fantastic song, and was awarded number four hundred ninety-nine in Rolling Stone's top five hundred rock songs of all time. The Boys Are Back in Town was released on the Irish band, Thin Lizzy's sixth album, Jailbreak in 1976. Jailbreak was their most popular album, and this was the that gave them their rise to fame, as well as the title song, Jailbreak. The song is most praised for its double lead guitar solo, which features Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson, and is simply marvelous. Most people believe this song is about The Boys returning from a military school, but to me, it seems broader. In my opinion, it's just about getting together with old friends, and hanging out reminiscing about the good times. I hope you enjoyed the song.
Alright, well this is my favourite Bad Company song. Whenever I hear this song, I always think of Homer Simpson, a character from the popular series The Simpsons doing his rendition of it ( http://download.lardlad.com/sounds/season12/snow14.mp3 ) and it brings back the nostalgic feeling of being a child again, what a great television program that used to be. Anyways, this song was recorded on their second album, Straight Shooter, and was released June of 1975. This song was declared number seventy-eighth best hard rock song ever by VH1, a short-lived music television program that was pretty much MTV, except based on older music, oh yeah, and they were actually about music. Now if you listen to the chorus, you might notice (if you like The Who) that the riff is almost exactly the same as The Who's Sparks, an instrumental that was released six years earlier. I found this to be quite intriguing, as instrumentals are quite beautiful, but they have no lyrics, meaning that the notes and chords are everything, and if someone copies a riff off an instrumental, it seems more like a slap in the face than sampling a riff from a song with lyrics, but hey, that's just my take.
Bowie's going of glam, his farewell, his acknowledgement of the end of an era. Rebel Rebel is a David Bowie song released in 1974 on Bowie's eighth studio album, Diamond Dogs. This is currently the most covered Bowie song, and was the last of his glam-rock songs, his trademark, his stamp. The first thing to notice when listening to this song is the intro riff; the most beautifully-haunting riff you'll ever find, always leaving a slight smirk at the corner of my mouth. If you consider the meaning of this song, a few things will come to mind. In my opinion, it's about the end of the glam age, the finality of the era where one could dress as the opposite gender and it would be perfectly acceptable in numerous situations; that's what it's all about, free love and not caring who knows.
Alright! Well next Monday in my elective, we will be listening to Stones! This is an amazing song, full of intricate symbolism and beautifully woven instrumental parts. Paint it black was released on The Rolling Stones' fourth album, in 1966, Aftermath, under the title of "Paint it, Black". The song originally had no comma, but Decca, the record label, added one, I prefer it without one. This song peaked at number one in both the UK, and the US on the Billboards top 100, and was the first top track to feature sitar, which in my opinion, really makes the song. Mick Jagger quoted saying that Paint it Black was about a funeral, but there are many people who think it's about internal struggles between the good and bad sides, some believe it's about going through puberty, and some declare it's about the war in Vietnam. When I first heard the song, however, I was pretty young, so I envisioned Jagger going around with a paintbrush making everything back, I had a fairly innocent childhood. Hope you enjoy the song!
Well, I was listening to Guns N' Roses, and this song came on, it's on of my favourites. However, this is the original, written by The Skyliners and released in their 1958 album under the name of their band. Jimmy Beaumont is now seventy-one years old, as of Saturday, and still plays with the band, even though he is the last remaining original member. This song is considered to be one of the greatest "heartbreak ballads" and is a wonderful example of before Beatles rock and roll, as they changed everything. The Guns N' Roses version was released on their fifth album, The Spaghetti Incident? in 1994 and is the last album to feature Slash or Duff McKagan, two original members, as well as drummer Matt Sorum and guitarist Gilby Clark, and has the most recent music video of theirs to date. The subject of the song is simple, it's about a man who's gal has left him, and she was his everything.
Alright! Well I teach a basketball and rock & roll class, and on Monday, we're listening to Def Leppard, and this is my favourite Def Leppard song, so I'm going to blog about it. First, off, the intro is not what people think, it's not a German phrase or anything. The producer, Mutt Lange, was a huge perfectionist, so they did dozens of takes of every song, and he grew tired of the classic rock count in(1,2,3,4), so he began to just spout gibberish, this was a take of said gibberish, which is NOT s phrase in German, it's just some German-esk pronunciation. This song was released as on Def Leppard's third album, Pyromania in 1983, which sold over ten million copies, certifying it as diamond. The name of the song came of a book of Christian hymns, which Joe Elliot observed, and proceeded to write a song about it. In my opinion, this song is about the long lasting rock and roll spirit, and how rock and roll will never die!
Waterloo Sunset, take a listen, it's so simple, velvety, and easy on the ears. As a young child, I always thought it was "Waterless Sunset", later on I realized that it was of course, Waterloo Sunset, named after Waterloo, England. Waterloo Sunset was released as a single in 1967, and has been very popular all around Europe, Australia and New Zealand. In composition, the song is pretty standard for a rock band from the sixties, guitar, bass, drums, vocals, maybe some keyboard/piano, but this song has a complex arrangement, which clearly means nothing to them because they completed the recording of this song in less than ten hours. They create a scene, and describe it with their music so perfectly that it seems as if you're actually there, a sunset in Waterloo. To the contrary of many, this song is not about Terence Stamp and Julie Christie, actors from Far From The Madding Crowd(1976), it's about observing Ray Davie's(vocalist/guitarist) sister and her boyfriend going off into another place, feeling lonely, and enjoying the simple things, a Waterloo Sunset...
