I'd like to share with you a selection of some of my favourite tunes. This is in no way complete, it's a really eclectic mix and is in no particular order. However, everybody who knows me well enough can be assured that Africa is still and always will be my own personal anthem. So with that said, how about I start with that?
The first thing I love about Africa by Toto is the total irony of the whole song. It's a song about Africa in its most magnificent state sung by a bunch of white American boys in the 80s who confessed that they'd never been to Africa and it was a country that held no particular significance for them. They used instruments to create authentic African percussive sounds but none of the instruments came from Africa. But it works. The song has great rhythm, mainly due to the legendary drumming of the late Jeff Porcaro. The lead singer in this song wasn't the normal lead singer, instead the keyboardist stood in on vocals but he also works. The harmonies are catchy & actually quite difficult to sing. I love the cheesiness of the moment they try to squeeze the word Serengeti into a space where the syllables simply DO NOT fit. I get a big cheesy grin on my face when this song comes on and it even got used on a photo dvd for the Fotias that Jane made as my own personal theme music!
Running a close second to this is my beloved U2 but it's not a song commonly played on the radio. It's the ethereal The Ground Beneath Her Feet which is on the tail end of All That You Can't Leave Behind and on the soundtrack to a flopped movie Million Dollar Hotel. I think it's a great feat for a song to beat out such amazing tracks like With Or Without You or Where The Streets Have No Name or of course, my other beloved u2 track, All I Want Is You. I get tingles from this song every time I hear it - I could listen to it on a loop and still get that leap of the heart every time. I don't know whether it's Salman Rushdie's poetic lyricism or the fact that Bono's vocals are right on the mark, the perfect balance of gentle calm and soaring power. Or that The Edge and Daniel Lanois's entrances are perfection. I just love the combined simplicity and power of this song.
Stevie Wonder is one of those artists that always rises that urge to dance in me....and some of you have seen me dance...it's not pretty. lol. There are plenty of tracks that I could list here that could easily make the Number 1 Stevie spot (Another Star, I Wish, Superstition, Master Blaster) but I think that Higher Ground edges them all out. It's so damn funky and really brings out the great songwriting skills that the Wonderman had. I love the guitar & keys riff which is a bit of a Stevie trademark. And the mark of a good song is when a band like Red Hot Chili Peppers can do a cover that isn't shamed. I actually like their cover almost as much. Check out this song live at Musikladen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZEGx2dcpMY (even funnier is the comments left on this video regarding RHCP vs Stevie. Some people have way too much spare time.
I couldn't get away with a list like this without mentioning a Led Zeppelin track and through careful personal deliberation (arguments between voices in my head...he he he), I think Kashmir has just edged out The Immigrant Song and Black Dog (the latter lost simply because of the one damn spot where they try to squeeze too many notes into a bar) . Why does Zeppelin get a mention? Five words: Jimmy Page is a God! Robert Plant's vocals are quite subdued for a change but I think it suits that slow bubbling riff that pulsates through the song. This song is 8 and a half minutes long but I'm never bored for a second in this song. There's no attempt to overdo anything which is what I think makes the song. However, Kashmir has one failing point - that Jimmy Page could endorse or even worse, participate in Puff Daddy's ripoff for the Godzilla soundtrack. Why change an already killer song? One of Lori's friends apparently said they thought that Come With Me was the better version. What???? Sacrilege!
Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On. Well, what can I say? What a sexy song! You can be the most cynical person on earth (ie me) and still get a little hot under the collar over this song. Although nowadays, when I hear this song, I think of Jack Black's gyrating rendition in High Fidelity which can be a bit turnoff, albeit hilarious! lol. Marvin Gaye's vocals are ON THE MARK in this song - what a voice! And although it's not a musically complex song (unlike Can I Get A Witness which was, I'm sure, used later in the Sesame street theme...sing it with me.....Sunny day...sweeping the clouds away.....), I think it's one of those timeless songs you save for that special moment (see, I can be a romantic at times. Just don't expect it all the time!)
In a similar vein, the reverend himself Al Green, one of the true saviours of soul, has many songs I could say could make my list. After all, how can you not want to smile at Let's Stay Together. And Take Me To The River is a classic. But my fave is not a big hit. It's Give It Everything. I heard this song many years ago on the soundtrack to The Truth About Cats And Dogs and fell in love with it like I did with most Al Green tracks. It's a really cute little groove with some great horn interludes and backing vocals. Again, a sweet little romantic song about someone deserving their heart's desire and not being halfhearted about love. It's just adorable, in grand Al Green style.
And now for a real cringe-worthy sentimental addition. Does anyone remember Health Hustle?! Anyone over the age of 25 would have done it and some primary schools still do it, I'm sure. It was this primary school program that had its heyday in the 80s that was like an aerobics work out for school kids. Well, my primary school did it and one of the songs I always remember from that was Run To Paradise by The Choirboys. Yeah, I know, its cheesy and embarrassing to admit and I'm sure that the Choirboys had at least one mullet amongst them but there's just that moment when I hear this happy little song that reminds me of one of the only good memories of school for me. And it makes me wanna sing at the top of my lungs. And you know what....these guys are still going!
One song, although probably not even close to the greatest James Brown son, stands out for me as my novelty favourite and that's Get Up Offa That Thing (although War - What Is It Good For is a crack up!). It's funny that this was a song used in Sister Act II by Whoopi to generate enthusiasm cos that's exactly what it does to me. Again, a really funky tune with some great horn interjections and one hell of a bass line! It really does make you wanna get up offa that thing and release that pressure. And you know what? A band like this is one of the few that I would have a remote chance of being involved in. (bless soul bands!). Although I doubt it would involve the Godfather of Soul. lol.
I couldn't get through a list like this without mentioning Madness as they are an all-time sentimental favourite from childhood. And the very song I've chosen is one I remember because of the Young Ones that we watched as kids. The episode was 'Sick' (the disgusting one where Neil sneezes buckets of snot into a garbage bag that is nailed to his head - ugh!). Madness made an appearance in a street riot, performing this song - Our House. (Sorry to disappoint all of you who thought it was gonna be Baggy Trousers). I love Baggy Trousers, House of Fun and Wings Of A Dove but Our House had such a big sound (complete with car noises) because of the huge horn section, strings and that pulsating piano. It's typical Madness hysteria, has amusing, almost childlike lyrics and the speed at which Suggs sings the lyrics in the bridge is fantastic. This song reminds me of the movie The Castle - has the same sentiment behind it. It's true kookiness that, although I love them, beats out The Stranglers.
Paint It Black by The Rolling Stones is an indication of the competition between the Stones and The Beatles at the time. Just when John Lennon was introducing sitars to the Beatles' instrumentation, Jagger jumped on the bandwagon and produced this. And is it great or what? One of the more atmospheric songs of the 60s, it was a rarity when a pop song used a tonality like this (almost sounds like it follows an Indian Raga scale) but because of the pulsing rhythmic drive and great doubling of voice and guitars/sitar, it was a hit and remains that way. For those who prefer lighter pop, Vanessa Carlton does a pretty ordinary version of it with little of the atmosphere that makes the original great.
STAY TUNED FOR MORE IN A LATER POST.....
Additions to the list from Van Morrison, Antonio Carlos Jobim, The Beatles, Otis Redding, Tori Amos, Sarah McLachlan, Michael Jackson and Sting.
No comments:
Post a Comment