Thank you for the music: Favourite Popular Songs
Won't Get Fooled Again
(Pete Townshend/1971) The Who
A stunning, powerful protest song written by The Who's Pete Townshend about how the more things change the more they stay the same. It sounds like no other song ever written - except perhaps Townshend's other classic, "Who Are You", written a few years later - with its dynamic pulsating rhythm, scorching vocals by Roger Daltry, simple but clever organ solo by guest artist Al Kooper and Peter Moon's frantic drumming which burst in and out of John Entwhistle's incredibly complex bass lines. If there was ever a song to get me hyper, it was this one. It was first released as the final track on the album, Who's Next, released in August 1971, and then as a single. The album was the remains of an abortive rock opera, 'Lifehouse'. Who's Next set a hard rock standard that even its creators struggled to emulate. The song was originally eight minutes long but was cut to 3 1/2 minutes for its single release.
When You Walk In The Room
(Jackie De Shannon/1964) The Searchers; Jackie de Shannon; Paul Carrick; Agnetha Faltskog: A plaintiff cry from the heart of a guy/girl who is besotted by someone yet that person doesn't even know he/she exists. I first heard this song in 1965 when I had feelings for someone who didn't know how I felt about them. At that time Jackie de Shannon's lyrics expressed exactly what was going on inside my head. It was The Searchers' version of this song that introduced me to a musical instrument I came to adore, the Rickenbacker electric 12-string guitar. The introduction and fills throughout the song are played by Mike Pender on his cherry red 360/12 Rose Morris Model 1993 (that's the model number, not the year of manufacture) which is the electric 12-string played on all The Searchers' recordings. That guitar, one of Mike's dearest possessions, was stolen in the 1990s and was never recovered.
At last count this song has been recorded by no less than 58 artists. Besides the version by The Searchers, I like Jackie DeShannon's original recording, Paul Carrick's (lead singer of of Mike And The Mechanics) 1987 hit and a particularly likeable rendition by former ABBA lead singer, Agnetha Faltskog, which appeared on her 2004 album, My Colouring Book.
Second Cup Of Coffee
(Gordon Lightfoot/1972) Gordon Lightfoot: This song indirectly tells a story of broken marriage with a typically clever refrain about reaching for the phone. It's the kind of song that sounds so immediate and familiar that you're certain you must have heard it before, the only question being where. But still it's as original as everything else Lightfoot did, fresh and unique behind a familiar-sounding facade. I just don't know how he does it. The song was featured on Gordon's 1972 album, Don Quixote, which showcases this talented Canadian songwriter/singer at a time when he was about to reach his zenith. Besides Gord's excellent voice and lyrics, the song's main appeal to me is the simple guitar accompaniment with Gordon on 12-sting acoustic (capo on 2nd fret), Terry Clements on lead acoustic high string guitar, Red Shea on 6 string acoustic and Rick Haynes on electric bass holding it all together with not a drum kit in sight! So simple yet so effective. What a combination and what I'd do to have a jam session with those guys!
Daniel
(Elton John - Bernie Taupin/1973) Elton John: I couldn't really put together a list of my favourite songs without having something from Britain's most successful and talented songwriting duo, lyricist Bernie Taupin and composer/performer, Elton John. "Daniel", about a guy who has just come back from the Vietnam War, was written when they were at their most creative (the 1970s) and it looks at a social issue rather than being just a pop-oriented love song like "Crocodile Rock". The arrangement of Elton's version on his 1973 album "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only the Piano Player" which was released as a single and made No 2, is simple and to all intents and purposes fine. But the 1991 release, Two Rooms, A Tribute to Elton John and Bernie Taupin, which features a collection of their compositions sung by other artists, has a fabulous version of "Daniel" performed by the female vocal trio, Wilson Phillips. It was the last thing they recorded together before breaking up (they reunited again in 2004) and their tight three part vocals give the song an all-together different feel to the original and for me is the better version of the song. Sorry about that, Reggie.
Like A Rolling Stone
(Bob Dylan/1965) Bob Dylan: This is probably the quintessential Bob Dylan song, and in 1976, New Musical Express rightly called it "the top rock single of all time". Some have called it the ultimate rock song which defines the genre, others describe it as the benchmark by which all others that followed are judged. I agree. The simple, relentless and repetitive refrain of "How does it feel" is brilliantly complimented by some of Dylan's most caustic and biting lyrics. It is a defiant, angry and plugged-in Dylan in all his glory, all the while sneering at the fall from grace of the main female character.
Like all of Dylan's work in the '60s, "Like A Rolling Stone" is more impressive when you connect the almost amateur-sounding melodic rock to his indisputable mastery of poetry and words. "Napoleon in rags", "Once upon a time, you dressed so fine, threw the bums a dime, in your prime", such marvellous imagery that is still remarkably unrivalled. I continue to find it very interesting that Dylan would have the organ part played by somebody who'd never before played organ. The song opened the Dylan album, Highway 61 Revisited, released in August 1965, which is regarded as one of the all-time classic, landmark rock albums of all time.
When I Fall In Love
(Victor Young - Edward Heyman/1952) Nat King Cole: Just about everybody who is anybody in the world of popular music has recorded this evergreen. The first one I recall hearing, and the one which introduced the song to millions around the world, is by Nat King Cole. Interestingly enough, it was never released by him as a single, having been recorded on 18th December 1956 for and placed as the opening number of Cole's 1957 album, Love Is The Thing (Capitol). I have versions in my record collection by a host of artists, including Doris Day (1952), Marilyn Monroe (1955) and The Carpenters but a favourite of mine is by The Lettermen (1962) with its scrumptious three part harmonies. It was written by American composer Victor Young and lyricist Edward Heyman. I know it's a well worn, over-used phrase, but they really don't write songs like that any more. Oh to have been able to write a classic like this!