Thursday, May 30, 2013

1000 SONGS - DAY 276 SONG # 307

DAY 276: Songs from the Best Studio Albums of the Stones

I have been a big fan of the Rolling Stones in my childhood. During primary school, from "Let's spend the night together" (b-side: Ruby Tuesday) on - I really loved the song, although, 7 years old, I had no idea what it was about - I have bought almost all of their singles, later on starting with albums. In my opinion, their most creative and best time (maybe due to Nicky Hopkins and other non-mebers), at least with reseoct to studio work, was between "Beggars Banquet" and "Exile on Main Street", "Goat's Head Soup" being kind of disappointing. The next album I did like was "Some Girls" and after that I went New Wave and Alternative and did not care about the Stones any more. No need to introduce them, just a few comments on my choice. I could have chosen each and every track from Beggars Banquet, with the possible exception of "Sympathy for the Devil" (for being way too popular and known by everybody). Jig-Saw Puzzle is one of my favourite tunes from that one, but I chose "Factory Girl", because it is not a Rock'n Roller. On Let it Bleed it was easy, the haunting Gimme Shelter immediately gets me on my dancing feet. Sticky Fingers (I remember the vinyl I used to own, with the original zip you could open attached to the picture of the jeans on the cover; I was old enough then to understand its meaning) contains one of my all time fav Stones. tunes, Dead Flowers (featured in The Big Lebowski as rendered by the great Townes van Zandt). Finally, Exile on Main Street, maybe their best album ever. Hard to decide, but as I have always loved the tune,  I feature "Sweet Virgina" here. I once played this to a Blues purist, and she said to me: "see, this is where groups like the Stones have stolen their tunes from". "This is the Stones" I answered.

Factory Girl:



Gimme Shelter:



Dead Flowers:


Well when you're sitting there in your silk upholstered chair
Talkin' to some rich folk that you know
Well I hope you won't see me in my ragged company
Well, you know I could never be alone

Take me down little Susie, take me down
I know you think you're the queen of the underground
And you can send me dead flowers every morning
Send me dead flowers by the mail
Send me dead flowers to my wedding
And I won't forget to put roses on your grave

Well when you're sitting back in your rose pink Cadillac
Making bets on Kentucky Derby Day
Ah, I'll be in my basement room with a needle and a spoon
And another girl to take my pain away

Take me down little Susie, take me down
I know you think you're the queen of the underground
And you can send me dead flowers every morning
Send me dead flowers by the mail
Send me dead flowers to my wedding
And I won't forget to put roses on your grave

Take me down little Susie, take me down
I know you think you're the queen of the underground
And you can send me dead flowers every morning
Send me dead flowers by the U.S. Mail
Say it with dead flowers in my wedding
And I won't forget to put roses on your grave
No, I won't forget to put roses on your grave


Sweet Virginia:




Bonus Track: Townes van Zandt doing "Dead Flowers":


Sunday, May 12, 2013

1000 SONGS - DAY 275 SONG #306

DAY 275: A Song by the Man who Invented the Power Chord

Link Wray (1929-2005) is credited to have invented the 'Power Chord' as soon as 1958 and therefore looked at as a predecessor of Punk and Heavy Rock. Rolling Stone Magazine lists him among the 100 most influential guitarists of all time. His groundbreaking recording in that vein was the instrumental 'Rumble' from the year mentioned above, his use of the 'BIGSBY' on his early recordings is thought to be seminal. Here is a piece of music from his 1971 self-titled grass-roots-blues-album, without any use of the vibrato, a really fine tune from that time, called Black River Swamp:



Saturday, May 4, 2013

1000 SONGS - DAY 274 SONG # 305

A song written by Bryan Ferry and Andy MacKay

Love is the drug might be one of the most widely known Roxy Music songs, from Siren, the last of their brilliant albums, before their musical decline began down to Avalon. The song was co-writtten by Ferry and Andy MacKay, the guy who also was responsible for the experimental stuff you find on the b-sides of the early Roxy-singles. His 1974 solo-debut 'In Search of Eddie Riff' includes a version of Richard Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries'. During a break in his musical career, MacKay did a three years bachelor course in divinity at King's College, London. He also co-wrote some other Roxy Music hits. Love is the drug was covered by Grace Jones (to be found on Warm Leatherette, and Island Life). There is a 12" with remixes of this version, a rousing piece of a Disco-Dance-Floor prodcution from the eighties. Be that as it may, here is a 1920ies Jazz style version of the tune, done by The Byan Ferry Orchestra:


Friday, May 3, 2013

1000 SONGS - DAY 273 SONG # 304

Day 273 - The unbeatable french crooner

Pacal Danel is a person I do not know too much about; all I know, is that he has been the singer of the ultimate tear jerker (Schnulze), with, maybe, the exception of Christian Anders' recordings. It is a french song, it has been in my mind for forty years or so, and, to my knowledge, there is no recording of it in German. Tbe video (which seems to rather original, or so to say) shows, that they had some sense of irony back then, with all the painters painting the singer's 'blanc manteau'... Here is the song, there are the lyrics:




Il n'ira pas beaucoup plus loin
La nuit viendra bientôt
Il voit là-bas dans le lointain
Les neiges du Kilimandjaro

Elles te feront un blanc manteau
Où tu pourras dormir
Elles te feront un blanc manteau
Où tu pourras dormir, dormir, dormir

Dans son délire il lui revient
La fille qu'il aimait
Ils s'en allaient main dans la main
Il la revoit quand elle riait

Elles te feront un blanc manteau
Où tu pourras dormir
Elles te feront un blanc manteau
Où tu pourras dormir, dormir, dormir

Voilà sans doute à quoi il pense
Il va mourir bientôt
Elles n'ont jamais été si blanches
Les neiges du Kilimandjaro

Elles te feront un blanc manteau
Où tu pourras dormir
Elles te feront un blanc manteau
Où tu pourras dormir, dormir, dormir, bientôt