Continuing along on this Quantum Leap-esque stroll through my own musical lifetime, here are some of my faves from 1974. (Check out the introduction to this Sonic Sunday project, as well as some great songs from 1973, in the first installment.)
1. "September Gurls," Big Star
September gurls do so much/I was your butch and you were touched/I loved you, well never mind/I've been crying all the time/December boys got it bad/December boys got it bad
Yep, even at one I was cool enough to like Big Star. OK, obviously I'm lying. I didn't find out about them until I was in my 20s. But I was cool enough to like them immediately upon discovery.
2. "Can't Get Enough," Bad Company
Well, I take whatever I want/And baby, I want you/You give me something I need/Now tell me I got something for you/Come on, come on, come on and do it/Come on and do what you do
Paul Rodgers is and always will be my favorite rock vocalist ever. I love every song on Bad Company's debut album, so I sort of anguished over which song to include on this list. I started out with "Ready for Love," then considered "Rock Steady" and "Movin' On" before just settling on the most obvious choice.
3. "She's Gone," Hall & Oates
Up in the morning look in the mirror/I'm worn as her toothbrush hanging in the stand/My face ain't looking any younger/Now I can see love's taken her toll on me
For some reason, every time I hear this song, I think of the time Hall & Oates were on The Arsenio Hall Show and he said that the first time he heard it, he thought Daryl and John were black. Little did he know that they were, like, the whitest guys ever. But they did have a lot of soul before they went totally soft.
4. "Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe," Barry White
How can I explain all the things I feel?/You've given me so much/Girl, you're so unreal/Still, I keep loving you/More and more each time/Girl, what am I gonna do/Because you blow my mind
Now here's your soul.
5. "Saturday Night," Bay City Rollers
Gonna keep on dancin' to the rock and roll/On Saturday night, Saturday night/Dancin' to the rhythm in our heart and soul/On Saturday Night, Saturday night/I-I-I-I-I just can't wait/I-I-I-I got a date
Annnnnd we're back to the white boy pop. My sister was a total Bay City Rollers fanatic. She once made a great cassette tape of me (circa 1977) singing some of their tunes (oddly, this isn't one of them) and it is hilarious. I need to find a way to turn that into an mp3 so I can share it with the world.
6. "Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo," Rick Derringer
Couldn't stop movin' when it first took hold/It was a warm spring night at the old town hall/There was a band called The Jokers, they were layin' it down/Don'tcha know I'm never gonna lose that funky sound
In putting this list together, I discovered that this song (written by Rick) was actually done originally by Johnny Winter while Rick was in his band. I've still never heard that version though. Has anyone?
7. "Tell Me Something Good," Rufus
You ain't got no kind of feeling inside/I got something that will sure 'nuff set your stuff on fire/You refuse to put anything before your pride/I got something that will knock all your pride aside
Luckily, Matthew Morrison's ridunkulous Glee version hasn't tainted this song for me for good. Why does that guy continuously insist on trying to be funky and/or rap?
8. "I Honestly Love You," Olivia Newton-John
You don't have to answer/I see it in your eyes/Maybe it was better left unsaid/This is pure and simple/And you should realize/That it's coming from my heart and not my head
As I've explained before, ONJ was my idol so don't be surprised if she shows up at least a few more times. I think this is a frequently misunderstood song by people who don't pay attention to lyrics. It is NOT romantic. Basically, it's about a girl telling a guy she loves him who most likely doesn't love her back. And maybe she's a little desperate. And making an ass of herself. But she sounds so sweet! Who wouldn't love her back??
9. "Waterloo," ABBA
My my/At Waterloo, Napoleon did surrender/Oh yeah/And I have met my destiny in quite a similar way/The history book on the shelf/Is always repeating itself
"Dancing Queen" gets all the love but this is the best ABBA song ever. Disco with French history references? Yes, please!
10. "Kung Fu Fighting," Carl Douglas
There were funky Chinamen from funky Chinatown/They were chopping them up /They were chopping them down /It's an ancient Chinese art/And everybody knew their part/From a faint into a slip/And a kickin' from the hip
This was always a favorite of my family's for some weird reason. I can still remember fake Kung Fu-ing with my brother J-Fred in the living room. Good times.
1. "September Gurls," Big Star
September gurls do so much/I was your butch and you were touched/I loved you, well never mind/I've been crying all the time/December boys got it bad/December boys got it bad
Yep, even at one I was cool enough to like Big Star. OK, obviously I'm lying. I didn't find out about them until I was in my 20s. But I was cool enough to like them immediately upon discovery.
2. "Can't Get Enough," Bad CompanyWell, I take whatever I want/And baby, I want you/You give me something I need/Now tell me I got something for you/Come on, come on, come on and do it/Come on and do what you do
Paul Rodgers is and always will be my favorite rock vocalist ever. I love every song on Bad Company's debut album, so I sort of anguished over which song to include on this list. I started out with "Ready for Love," then considered "Rock Steady" and "Movin' On" before just settling on the most obvious choice.
3. "She's Gone," Hall & Oates
Up in the morning look in the mirror/I'm worn as her toothbrush hanging in the stand/My face ain't looking any younger/Now I can see love's taken her toll on me
For some reason, every time I hear this song, I think of the time Hall & Oates were on The Arsenio Hall Show and he said that the first time he heard it, he thought Daryl and John were black. Little did he know that they were, like, the whitest guys ever. But they did have a lot of soul before they went totally soft.
4. "Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe," Barry WhiteHow can I explain all the things I feel?/You've given me so much/Girl, you're so unreal/Still, I keep loving you/More and more each time/Girl, what am I gonna do/Because you blow my mind
Now here's your soul.
5. "Saturday Night," Bay City Rollers
Gonna keep on dancin' to the rock and roll/On Saturday night, Saturday night/Dancin' to the rhythm in our heart and soul/On Saturday Night, Saturday night/I-I-I-I-I just can't wait/I-I-I-I got a date
Annnnnd we're back to the white boy pop. My sister was a total Bay City Rollers fanatic. She once made a great cassette tape of me (circa 1977) singing some of their tunes (oddly, this isn't one of them) and it is hilarious. I need to find a way to turn that into an mp3 so I can share it with the world.
6. "Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo," Rick Derringer
Couldn't stop movin' when it first took hold/It was a warm spring night at the old town hall/There was a band called The Jokers, they were layin' it down/Don'tcha know I'm never gonna lose that funky sound
In putting this list together, I discovered that this song (written by Rick) was actually done originally by Johnny Winter while Rick was in his band. I've still never heard that version though. Has anyone?
7. "Tell Me Something Good," RufusYou ain't got no kind of feeling inside/I got something that will sure 'nuff set your stuff on fire/You refuse to put anything before your pride/I got something that will knock all your pride aside
Luckily, Matthew Morrison's ridunkulous Glee version hasn't tainted this song for me for good. Why does that guy continuously insist on trying to be funky and/or rap?
8. "I Honestly Love You," Olivia Newton-John
You don't have to answer/I see it in your eyes/Maybe it was better left unsaid/This is pure and simple/And you should realize/That it's coming from my heart and not my head
As I've explained before, ONJ was my idol so don't be surprised if she shows up at least a few more times. I think this is a frequently misunderstood song by people who don't pay attention to lyrics. It is NOT romantic. Basically, it's about a girl telling a guy she loves him who most likely doesn't love her back. And maybe she's a little desperate. And making an ass of herself. But she sounds so sweet! Who wouldn't love her back??
9. "Waterloo," ABBAMy my/At Waterloo, Napoleon did surrender/Oh yeah/And I have met my destiny in quite a similar way/The history book on the shelf/Is always repeating itself
"Dancing Queen" gets all the love but this is the best ABBA song ever. Disco with French history references? Yes, please!
10. "Kung Fu Fighting," Carl Douglas
There were funky Chinamen from funky Chinatown/They were chopping them up /They were chopping them down /It's an ancient Chinese art/And everybody knew their part/From a faint into a slip/And a kickin' from the hip
This was always a favorite of my family's for some weird reason. I can still remember fake Kung Fu-ing with my brother J-Fred in the living room. Good times.
Comments
So weird about you and "Saturday Night". My dad had an old reel to reel tape recorder back then and recorded my brother, who was a toddler then, singing that song. But he would always mess up the letters because he couldn't spell. So it was all "S-R-G-X-J-M-L...NIGHT!"
I didn't know Johnny Winter recorded "R&R Hoochie Koo" first. After reading your post, I found a couple of live versions by him on You Tube.
What kids didn't fake Kung Fu back in the day? My grown ass still does it occasionally.
Big Star is a band you have to give props to for remaining so important to so many people, yet most dumb-dumbs never heard of them.
Also, there is no such thing as a bad ABBA song.
I did. I'm sorry. ; )