Continuing (after nearly a two-month break) along on this Quantum Leap-esque stroll through my own musical lifetime, here are some of my faves from 1975.
1. "Golden Years," David Bowie
Don't let me hear you say life's taking you nowhere, angel/Look at that sky, life's begun/Nights are warm and the days are young/There's my baby, lost that's all/Once I'm begging you save her little soul
This has been my favorite Bowie song for as long as I can remember. Those backing vocals are the bee's knees.
2. "Jungleland," Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band
The street's alive as secret debts are paid/Contacts made, they vanish unseen/Kids flash guitars just like switch-blades/Hustling for the record machine/The hungry and the hunted explode into rock'n'roll bands/That face off against each other out in the street/Down in Jungleland
Best. Bruce song. EVER. I'm glad I got to hear it live (more than once) before the great Clarence Clemons left us.
3. "Night Flight," Led Zeppelin
I received a message from my brother across the water/He sat laughin' as he wrote 'the end's in sight'/So I said goodbye to all my friends/And packed my hopes inside a matchbox /'Cause I know it's time to fly
This was my favorite Zep song for a long time, and I still kind of think of it that way even if I lean a bit heavier towards "Out on the Tiles" these days.
4. "Monday Morning," Fleetwood Mac
Monday morning you sure look fine/Friday I got travelin' on my mind/First you love me, then you fade away/I can't go on believin' this way/I got nothing but love for you/Now tell me what you really wanna do/First you love me, then you get on down the line/But I don't mind
Even though I've always tended to go more for the Stevie Nicks-penned stuff, this Lindsey Buckingham tune has long been my #1 Fleetwood Mac song.
5. "Jive Talkin'," Bee Gees
It's just your jive talkin'/You're telling me lies, yeah/Jive talkin', you wear a disguise/Jive talkin', so misunderstood, yeah/Jive talkin', you’re really no good.
This song is just so freakin' funktastic. Even Beavis and Butthead like it.
6. "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)," Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel
There ain't no more/You've taken everything/From my belief in Mother Earth/Can you ignore my faith in everything?/'Cos I know what faith is/And what it's worth
I remember first hearing of this song through Duran Duran, who released a live version of it as the B-side to "The Reflex." I also remember not liking it that much, but when I finally heard the original, I loved it. I guess that doesn't sound like something a lifelong Durannie would say, but it's true.
7. "Bohemian Rhapsody," Queen
Too late, my time has come/Sends shivers down my spine/Body's aching all the time/Goodbye everybody/I've got to go/Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth/Mama, oooh, I don't want to die/I sometimes wish I'd never been born at all
For a while after Wayne's World came out, I could NOT listen to this. I'm sure a lot of you were in the same boat. Thankfully, the massive overexposure this song suffered because of that opening scene (not to mention the terrible fate it suffered at the greasy hands of Constantine Maroulis on American Idol) didn't kill it for me completely. It really is a brilliant piece of music.
8. "Feel Like Makin' Love," Bad Company
Baby, if I think about you/I think about love/Darlin', if I live without you/I live without love/If I had the sun and moon/And they were shinin'/I would give you both night and day/Love satisfyin'
Paul Rodgers may not be a stud, but if he told me he felt like makin' love, I'd be like, "let's go." I mean, that voice.
9. "Some Kind of Wonderful," Grand Funk Railroad
I don't have to run around/I don't have to stay out all night/'Cause I got me a sweet, a sweet, lovin' woman/And she knows just how to treat me right/Well my baby, she's all right/Well my baby, she's clean out-of-sight/Don't you know that she's—she's some kind of wonderful
I guess you could claim that this tune doesn't belong here since it's actually a cover of a 1967 Soul Brothers Six song. But I'm not gonna let you screw up my list on a technicality. Besides, this is one of the few covers that trumps the original.
10. "After the Thrill Is Gone," Eagles
Same dances in the same old shoes/You get too careful with the steps you choose/You don't care about winning but you don't want to lose/After the thrill is gone
My favorite Eagles song is "New Kid in Town," but this is a close second. I guess I just like songs about how love is great at first, but always ends up sucking in the end.
Past installments:
1974
1973
1. "Golden Years," David Bowie
Don't let me hear you say life's taking you nowhere, angel/Look at that sky, life's begun/Nights are warm and the days are young/There's my baby, lost that's all/Once I'm begging you save her little soul
This has been my favorite Bowie song for as long as I can remember. Those backing vocals are the bee's knees.
2. "Jungleland," Bruce Springsteen and The E Street BandThe street's alive as secret debts are paid/Contacts made, they vanish unseen/Kids flash guitars just like switch-blades/Hustling for the record machine/The hungry and the hunted explode into rock'n'roll bands/That face off against each other out in the street/Down in Jungleland
Best. Bruce song. EVER. I'm glad I got to hear it live (more than once) before the great Clarence Clemons left us.
3. "Night Flight," Led Zeppelin
I received a message from my brother across the water/He sat laughin' as he wrote 'the end's in sight'/So I said goodbye to all my friends/And packed my hopes inside a matchbox /'Cause I know it's time to fly
This was my favorite Zep song for a long time, and I still kind of think of it that way even if I lean a bit heavier towards "Out on the Tiles" these days.
4. "Monday Morning," Fleetwood MacMonday morning you sure look fine/Friday I got travelin' on my mind/First you love me, then you fade away/I can't go on believin' this way/I got nothing but love for you/Now tell me what you really wanna do/First you love me, then you get on down the line/But I don't mind
Even though I've always tended to go more for the Stevie Nicks-penned stuff, this Lindsey Buckingham tune has long been my #1 Fleetwood Mac song.
5. "Jive Talkin'," Bee Gees
It's just your jive talkin'/You're telling me lies, yeah/Jive talkin', you wear a disguise/Jive talkin', so misunderstood, yeah/Jive talkin', you’re really no good.
This song is just so freakin' funktastic. Even Beavis and Butthead like it.
6. "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)," Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel
There ain't no more/You've taken everything/From my belief in Mother Earth/Can you ignore my faith in everything?/'Cos I know what faith is/And what it's worth
I remember first hearing of this song through Duran Duran, who released a live version of it as the B-side to "The Reflex." I also remember not liking it that much, but when I finally heard the original, I loved it. I guess that doesn't sound like something a lifelong Durannie would say, but it's true.
7. "Bohemian Rhapsody," QueenToo late, my time has come/Sends shivers down my spine/Body's aching all the time/Goodbye everybody/I've got to go/Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth/Mama, oooh, I don't want to die/I sometimes wish I'd never been born at all
For a while after Wayne's World came out, I could NOT listen to this. I'm sure a lot of you were in the same boat. Thankfully, the massive overexposure this song suffered because of that opening scene (not to mention the terrible fate it suffered at the greasy hands of Constantine Maroulis on American Idol) didn't kill it for me completely. It really is a brilliant piece of music.
8. "Feel Like Makin' Love," Bad Company
Baby, if I think about you/I think about love/Darlin', if I live without you/I live without love/If I had the sun and moon/And they were shinin'/I would give you both night and day/Love satisfyin'
Paul Rodgers may not be a stud, but if he told me he felt like makin' love, I'd be like, "let's go." I mean, that voice.
9. "Some Kind of Wonderful," Grand Funk RailroadI don't have to run around/I don't have to stay out all night/'Cause I got me a sweet, a sweet, lovin' woman/And she knows just how to treat me right/Well my baby, she's all right/Well my baby, she's clean out-of-sight/Don't you know that she's—she's some kind of wonderful
I guess you could claim that this tune doesn't belong here since it's actually a cover of a 1967 Soul Brothers Six song. But I'm not gonna let you screw up my list on a technicality. Besides, this is one of the few covers that trumps the original.
10. "After the Thrill Is Gone," Eagles
Same dances in the same old shoes/You get too careful with the steps you choose/You don't care about winning but you don't want to lose/After the thrill is gone
My favorite Eagles song is "New Kid in Town," but this is a close second. I guess I just like songs about how love is great at first, but always ends up sucking in the end.
Past installments:
1974
1973
Comments
Fun post!
P.S. I even like the Duran Duran version of that song, but don't go telling anyone.
P.P.S. 'Golden Years' is awesome.
I also love Out On The Tiles. If you love that song, check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scvgVXbWuGk