Sunday, November 15, 2020

Songs Of The Week, 2020: 11/7-11/13

 


 

Sugarlight- X
Bye Bye Baby- Mary Wells
Cha Dooky-Doo- Art Neville
Amoreena- Elton John
Something Following Me- Procol Harum
Love Alive- Heart
Marty Stuart Visits The Moon- Marty Stuart

zip

Sugarlight- X
I've listened to the first two X records more in the last year than I had in the 40 years since their release. Both essential. Both always do the trick. Felt like kicking things off with this one.

Bye Bye Baby- Mary Wells
The story goes something like this. Berry Gordy made Mary Wells do take after take after take until she said, "I can't take it anymore." Then Gordy said, "One more." And that's why she sounds like this only on this record, one of my Top 10 Motown records.

Cha Dooky-Doo- Art Neville
Heard this playing out of a car radio in my neighborhood and spent the next few hours saying, "Cha Dooky-Doo" over and over, and you might now, too.

Amoreena- Elton John
Believe it or not, I had not heard this song before seeing "Dog Day Afternoon" in 1975. My entry into Elton were the singles played on the radio: "Your Song," "Tiny Dancer," etc. First real album was "Don't Shoot Me..." I didn't even recognize "Amoreena" as Elton while it played over the movie's credits. Since then, I cannot hear it without thinking of that brilliant opening of Sidney Lumet's film. My favorite song from my favorite Elton album, which also made me think of the next one...

Something Following Me- Procol Harum
See above. Same vibe, I think, as "Amoreena." Thought about Dylan's "Ballad Of A Thin Man" during this one, but wasn't in the mood to include it here.

Love Alive- Heart
From their third, if you don't count their first which was Canadian only at the time, so it feels like their second. No matter. "Little Queen" finds the Wilson sisters doing their best Zeppelin 3. Heart were a really great band before MTV.

Marty Stuart Visits the Moon- Marty Stuart
Hardcore bluegrass at its finest.

10 comments:

JAYESSEMM said...

"Heart were a really great band before MTV" -- is that a time milestone or another way of saying "Video Killer The Radio Star?"

Digging the songs -- thanks Sal!

Sal Nunziato said...

Actually JAYESSEMM, it's both.
The band went from hippie, hard rockers with folk roots to big and high hair, synths and powerballads, perfect for the video crowd.

hpunch said...

Someone was blasting Art Neville out of their car? I need to move to your neighborhood.

Sal Nunziato said...

There's also a car that drives by at least twice a day, always blasting Johnny Cash. I wonder if it's the same guy.

A Walk In The Woods said...

Right on, Mr. Marty Stuart! Great stuff.

Anonymous said...

When I bought my house, the first thing I moved in was my stereo and I video'd it when I played my first music on the newly-hooked up CD player -- 'Mardi Gras Mambo', a Neville classic preceding 'Cha Dooky Doo' by three years. Both of those songs run thru my head at least once a month. As does the first line from X's 'Under The Big Black Sun' ("What I diiid on my vacatiooon/For the last ten years").
Can't go wrong with vintage Nevilles and classic line-up X.
C in California

pp said...

"When it rains, the rain falls down" has to qualify along with America's "The heat was hot" for greatest tautologically inane lyrics ;)

There's a list "greatest tautologies/redundancies in lyrics": https://rateyourmusic.com/board_message?message_id=6713286

Anonymous said...

My (least) favorite redundancy is in Toto's 'Africa', about Kilimanjaro rising up...like Olympus. More of a lame analogy, I s'pose, and vies with another line from that song for lamest: the dogs longing for some "solitary company", whatever that is.
Despite the ridiculous lyrics, I do like the song.
C in California

dogbreath said...

You had me at "Cha Dooky-Doo". Best SOTW zip since last week's. Love the Mary Wells. Thanks & cheers!

ken49 said...

The Mary Wells is ridiculously good. By chance I listened to Stevie Wonder's 1st Greatest Hits albums and was just blown away at the drums and bass sound on those early singles. The propulsion of the drums recorded live in the studio is amazingly good. It helps listening on a much better system than my car radio back in the 60's.