Fenton Robinson: "I Hear Some Blues Downstairs" (1977)

Yes, Fenton Robinson grew up on a cotton and corn plantation in Mississippi,and yes, he made his first guitar out of a cigar box and wire at 11. Guess a lot of blusemen did the same thing. How do you tune wires?

By the time I was turned on to his music, he had passed away. Credit goes to Mike Areford, a radio show host friend from Arrow 100.7 ('96-'05) in Jacksonville, who had a great blues show. He played "I Heard Some Blues Downstairs" fairly frequently. It was one of his favorites (and mine).

Fenton eventually wound up in Chicago via Memphis and made a recording of what many believe to be his best song "Somebody Loan Me a Dime" (1966). It was about to be distributed as a single but a snowstorm hit and the tune never got to where it belonged. Boz Skaggs would cover it on his debut album but not credit Fenton which led to a messy lawsuit.

Hard luck continued when Fenton was charged and convicted of involuntary vehicular manslaughter in 1974 and did prison time, hurting his career. This occured just after his Alligator Records release which had finally gotten some acclaim for "Somebody Loan Me a Dime".

In 1977 He released "I Hear Some Blues Downstairs". This title track reminds me of the late Son Seals. His voice is never overpowered by his hard picking on his hollow body guitar :

Now, I gonna get my hat and my coat
Because I begin to feel to groove
Baby, pass me my guitar
Then I'm going down
And play myself some blues

I hear some blues downstairs
Hey I hear some blues downstairs
And I see my old friends out in that alley
And they're singing all in the alley
I hear some blues downstairs

He continued to tour and do festivals, but died at 62 of complications from brain cancer.
He left some great music behind...

Favorite Holiday Song Winner! The Waitresses:Christmas Wrapping" (1981)

Congratulations Moira Littlethorn for coming up with our Favorite Holiday Song selection. We had some great entries (thanks Lou and Barbara etc.)

According to Hardcafe.co.uk, The Waitresses started life in Akron, Ohio possibly as a joke by Chris Butler who had previously (or possibly concurrently) been in the band Tin Huey. When most of the band moved to New York, they were joined by ex Television drummer Billy Ficca and signed to New York label ZE (probably most famous for it's nurturing of Kid Creole and the Coconuts) in 1981. Probably the most unusual aspect of the songs on the first LP, "Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful?" was that despite being written by Butler, were all seen from the womans perspective. The band was fronted by Patty Donohue, who also called herself Patty Darling. Several sources state that the songs were about Patty Darling as a fictional character, but there were many similarities to Donohue as well.

The Waitresses first album got a little traction on the New Wave scene in the U.S. especially in the NYC area, where they got a lot of airplay. The biggest song was "I Know What Boys Like" which was recorded by Butler where he played all of the instruments and invited friend Patty Donohue to do the vocals. A band was hastily put together after a label showed interest. It charted in Australia and got airplay in England as well. The song would be covered in 1987 by The Bouncing Souls from New Brunswick, New Jersey with a male lead to poke fun at homophobia. It would be covered in a Glee CD as well.

"Christmas Wrapping" was not on any of their releases, but came out on a Ze compilation record called "A Christmas Record." The song would become a fcult favorite and is in a lot of X-mas top ten lists on the net. Many people have told me that this is one of their all-time favorites.

According to Jeff Blocker at Cult of Jef: "In August of 1981, the band was tour­ing bars, col­leges, and clubs, try­ing to make a dent in the charts with “I Know What Boys Like,” when  ZE Records, asked them to record a Christ­mas song for a com­pi­la­tion enti­tled "A Christ­mas Record".  Band founder Chris But­ler hated Christ­mas at the time, but man­aged to weave together dif­fer­ent pieces of songs he had pre­vi­ously com­posed, and fin­ished the lyrics on the taxi ride to the stu­dio.  The band recorded the “Christ­mas Wrap­ping” in two days and went back on the road.

But­ler had for­got­ten about the song until his girl­friend called him and said the Wait­resses’ song was finally receiv­ing air­play.  How­ever, it wasn’t “I Know What Boys Like,” it was “Christ­mas Wrap­ping.”  The band ended up play­ing the song through June to pro­mote their album.

The song describes a young woman who meets a young man in a ski shop.  They exchange tele­phone num­bers and attempt to get together through­out the year, but some­thing always seems to hap­pen.  Patty Don­ahue sing-speaks the song with impec­ca­ble  tim­ing, which leads to a fun, happy end­ing."

"Bah, humbug!" No, that's too strong 
'Cause it is my favorite holiday 
But all this year's been a busy blur 
Don't think I have the energy

To add to my already mad rush 
Just 'cause it's 'tis the season. 
The perfect gift for me would be 
Completions and connections left from

Last year, ski shop, 
Encounter, most interesting. 
Had his number but never the time 
Most of '81 passed along those lines.

The Donnas would cover the song as would many others. 

 

As for The Waitresses, the band would bust up during the recording of their second albul "bruiseology". Chris Butler would go on to produce records and bass player Tracy Wormworth would play with the B52's, Sting and Rosie O'Donnell's house band.

 

Patty Donohue became a talent rep. A heavy smoker, she sadly died of lung cancer at age fourty.

 

Interestingly, none of there albums were ever released in CD format.

 

 

BoDeans: Good Things (1991)

I was driving around last week listening to some old compilation CD's I had made in the 90's. I came upon several songs I had not heard in a decade and this one, "Good Things" by the Bodeans, had me listening to it over and over. The Bodeans always had great vocals and this song is no exception. The Bodeans had their day in the sun, but in my opinion, they deserved more fame than they received.

Fellow blogger Dr. Bristol put it this way:

"I remember seeing them play a local club just after the crest of an early hit, and I thought we must have just missed a fire drill. Surely a band who even got plaudits from Rolling Stone and MTV could draw a decent crowd, but this one was so tiny that my friends and I barely outnumbered the band. No matter – they played a great set. Great bands always do.

I’m not pretending they’re the second coming, but they are a good band that is well worth delving into if you’re looking for music that is atmospheric, straightforward, rocking, laid back, lyrical and guttural."

The band was formed by Kurt Neuman and Sam Llanas who met in high school in Waukesha, Wisconsin. The band would operate from Milwaukee and were perhaps the best example of a roots-rock band. Says Neuman on the band's website:
"I've always thought of the BoDeans as a truly American band," says the founder, primary writer and current frontman of the veteran Milwaukee-based group. "We were blue-collar kids straight out of the heartland-how could we be anything else? ‘Roots rock' was a label I fought when I was younger, but I came to realize that if by ‘roots' you meant blues, rock, country and soul all slammed together into one sound, then I'd say yes-that is the sound..."

Their first album, Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams (1986) was produced by T-Bone Burnett and good enough to earn the distinction of being voted "Best New American Band" in Rolling Stone's readers poll that year.  The song "Only Love", made #16 on the US Mainstream Rock charts.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_Mainstream_Rock_Tracks They toured extensively with U2 on The Joshua Tree Tour, increasing their fanbase. That year, they also contributed to Robbie Robertson's debut solo album alongside U2 and Peter Gabriel.They would record two more albums before  recording with David Z. (producer and sideman of Prince) at Paisley Park Studios, and released their 4th studio album Black and White that year. The album's electronic-influenced sound was a sharp departure from most of their previous efforts, with more emphasis on synthesizers, drum machines, and processed guitar tones. The album also explored darker and grander lyrical themes. Though not a single, the album's first track "Good Things" achieved some success and became one of their best-known songs. The rebellious and political "Black, White, and Blood Red" was the only single released from the album, though it did not perform well in comparison to their previous songs that made the charts.

Says Neuman looking back: "we set out to build a loyal fan base by giving them everything we had as performers every night. And in time, our fans came to know that they could count on us for a great time, a great show. Well worth their hard-earned dollars. I think many of the younger acts found they could make great-sounding computer records, but they didn’t know how to really perform. Or they didn’t understand the importance of a great performance."

The band would also attract fans when their song "Closer to Free" became the theme song to the TV series "Party of Five."

In 2011, Sam Llanas left the band and is currently touring on his own. Kurt is still leading the BoDeans, and the band released it's 11th album in June of 2012 called American Made.

"Good Things" has an infectious bass and great drums accompanied by the well melded voices of Neuman and Llanas.

Sunlight fall down on the fields
Sunlight fall down over me
Work all day, be all that I can be yeah-heh
Say I can say words only simple
Say I can say words only clear
But, oh, I can feel your heart is beating near. Yeah-heh
Haunted love is all that I feel, when you're passing by
Haunted love is all that I see, it's there in your eyes
And I say
No, no, no, don't pass me over No, no, no, don't pass me by
See I can see good things for you and I

I offer you two versions. The first is a live recording and you will see how well their fans know their lyrics. The second is a stripped down version recorded at a radio station. Check out the drummer using brushes on a cardboard box!

For the Children and Those Who Loved Them- Eric Clapton "Tears in Heaven" (1992)

Not a great time to post a Monahan's Song of the Week with so much sadness from the Sandy Hook Elementary School. We considered running a song as a distraction, but it doesn't feel right. Thank you Nancy Pashinsky Menzies, a dear friend of ours, for reminding us that Eric Clapton's "Tears in Heaven" is appropriate.
Bad things have to happen before there is change. That is a sadness as well...
For the 26...

fde

Most Underrated Beatles Songs Ever? Your Call.

Hard to think of any Beatles song as not having gotten some attention. M.C. Antil posts on his blog Reflections at the Speed of Life on just that topic and lists his Ten Most Underrated Beatles Songs of All Time. Regardless of how you feel about his picks (or ours), it is a good topic.

Our Staff Picks: Top Ten Underrated Beatles Songs:
10.Run for Your Life-Rubber Soul
9. There's a Place-With the Beatles
8. No Reply-Beatles for Sale
7. Hold Me Tight-With the Beatles
6. Julia-White Album
5. Sun King-Abbey Road
4. Mr. Moonlight-Beatles for Sale
3. I've Just Seen a Face-HELP!
2.You Know My Name (look Up the Number)- "B" Side of Let it Be.
1. Anna (Go to Him)- Please Please Me

Marmalade: "I See the Rain" (1967)

The only reason I know about this song at all was because Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs covered it in their excellent album "Under the Covers" in 2006. ( Their sequel, recorded in 2009 is worth owning as well.) Hearing it on the radio recently by the original band, "Marmalade" (also known as "The Marmalade") made me think this could have been an iconic example of '60's music, and it is hard to believe this song never charted anywhere. 

Says Dave Gersham in an article on Reselct.com: "...by all appearances, “I See the Rain” was one of two high-water marks for the group. (In fact, according to the writeup on AllMusic.com, Jimi Hendrix declared " I See the Rain" the best British single of 1967, and considering that year was smack dab in the middle of the Beatles’career, not to mention numerous other huge British groups, that’s saying an awful lot.) Truly a lost classic, and while Sweet and Hoffs do an excellent version of the song, they do it even greater justice by simply featuring it as the leadoff song on the album and bringing it to the light of day for today’s listeners."

The band was formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 1961 and were known as "The Gaylords" and "Dean Ford and the Gaylords" before changing to "The Marmalade" in 1966. They were extremely popular in Scotland and were the first Scottish band to have a top charting song in the U.K. (a cover of the Beatles "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da").

In the U.S. they will be best known for "Reflections of My Life" (1969) which sounds completely different than "I See the Rain". If you listened to "Wild Thing" and "Love is All Around" by the Troggs, you would never believe it was by the same band either. Coincidently, they had the same manager. "Reflections of My Life" would rise to #10 on the Hot 100 Chart in the U.S.

In 1970 the band had a U.S. Adult Contemporary Chart hit reaching #9 called "Rainbow", a song I heard for the first time one minute ago. All of their productive originals were written by William Campbell/Thomas McAleese.

From then on,they began to have personnel changes and they never really were the same band although they are still touring today.

The Sweet/Hoffs cover of "I See the Rain" is so good I have included their performance on Conan O'Brian in this post.

Monahan's Song of the Week Christmas Nominee- Nota: "All I Want for Christmas is You (2010)

Yup, the contest is still on for Best Holiday Song and our staff is having a listening party on Friday to pick the winner. So far we have 20 candidates. In the meantime, and since it has not been nominated, we submit this one for your approval.

A capella, (in the U.S. acapella) is singing without instrumental accompaniment. If you close your eyes during this video, you would certainly believe there is a band behind Nota. They define it themselves as "only human voices, no drums, no guitars, no keys, no horns, no exceptions."

Nota was the first band to win the $100,000 grand prize and recording contractd in "The Sing Off", a show that ran three seasons featuring only acapella groups and was very popular but expensive to run. Many of the groups had as many as 25 members (usually college acapella ensembles) and they had to be put up, fed and videoed.

Nota has been on a journey since The Sing Off.  Since then, they have astounded audiences across the country and in their homeland of Puerto Rico with performances that you have to see to believe.

Nota is a group of six male vocalists from San Juan, Puerto Rico. The group met in 1994 and started singing together occasionally. Johnny Figueroa, Nota's bass singer, first heard of The Sing-Off during the summer of 2009. He called five other people he had sung with on and off with for 15 years, seeking the five best singers for the competition. There was initially some doubt that members Rodriguez and Rios would be able to participate as both had family members sick with the H1N1 virus. David Pinto was unsure if he could participate in the competition, due to financial issues. Daddy Yankee, whom Pinto was working with, paid the airline bill in order for Pinto to participate in the competition. All five entered the competition.

They released an album in November 2010, and a Christmas album (only $1.99 on Amazon!) in December of the same year.

No need to tell you about the song "All I want for Christmas is You", as it is a modern day holiday classic and featured in the brilliant movie "Love Actually".

So grab an egg nog, click below and close your eyes...

Santa Want's Your Favorite Holiday Song

 

Well here we are in December and it's time we selected the best song of the season. Our elves just put a new needle on the turntable and we are ready for your original picks. Rock, country,jazz or blues, it all works for us here at Monahanssong Headquarters. The winner will get props on this blog AND receive a CD of hand selected gems from our staff archives. The winning tune should be in video format so recon YouTube before nominating so we can share with everyone. Simply comment on this post to make a suggestion or send it HERE!

 

As always, let us look beyond the obvious songs like this one. You have all been good this year so enjoy this Bobby Helms classic from 1957, "Jingle Bell Rock". Over 70 artists have released a version of this song, but this version is the best.

 

 



Foster the People "Pumped Up Kicks" (2010)

Robert's got a quick hand.
He'll look around the room, he won't tell you his plan.
He's got a rolled cigarette, hanging out his mouth, he's a cowboy kid.
Yeah, he found a six shooter gun.
In his dad's closet hidden with a box of fun things, and I don't even know what.
But he's coming for you, yeah he's coming for you.

If you are under 35, you probably caught this as it was a very popular song. It charted very well, but I think a lot of older people missed it. It is yet another example an upbeat tune masking dark lyrics. The Ravonettes "Here Comes Mary"(2005)  (and soon to be featured here) comes to mind and is a nice match as that song is about a girl being bullied whereas this one is about getting inside the head of someone who is bullied and out for revenge. Gil Scott-Heron's "The Bottle" (1974) is another example of a danceable song with ominous lyrics.

Foster the People is really Mark Foster, who hails from Cleveland, Ohio, but later moved to LA. Mark started it all as a solo project while working writing commercial jingles. Later, Foster brought in Bassist Cubbie Fink and Mark Pontis to play drums. Other than a EP,  "Torches" is their only album release to date. The band does not seem to be touring.

As for "Pumped Up Kicks," It had been said that it is a song you can sit and analyse or get up and dance to.

A explanation of the songs meaning came from Mark Foster during an interview with Spinner UK:
"Pumped Up Kicks" is about a kid that basically is losing his mind and is plotting revenge. He's an outcast I feel the youth in our culture are becoming more and more isolated. It's kind of an epidemic. Instead of writing about the victims of some tragedy, I wanted to get into the killer's mind, like Truman Capote did in In Cold Blood. I love to write about characters. That's my style. I really like to get inside the heads of  other people and try to walk in their shoes."

Foster points out that there is no violence in the song other than the pictures painted in the kid's mind.

"Pumped Up Kicks" was a viral release in 2010 that grew in popularity and was being played on radio long before the album was released. It was this song that got Foster a recording contract.

Winner: Biggest Turkey Song 2012- Paper Lace: "The Night Chicago Died" (1974)

Well the nominations are all in, and we have our Thanksgiving Day worst song ever winner! Hats off to alert reader Gary DiStefano for bringing this song to light. A bubble gum confection you want to scrape off of the sole of your shoe. Imagine if you will, two guys who together wrote three of the most unlistenable songs ever. "Bonnie and Clyde"(1968), "Billy Don't Be a Hero"(1974) and our winner "The Night Chicago Died". A troika of tripe!

Mitch Murray (who appears to have written some good things as well) and Peter Callander are bestowed that honor. They got Paper Lace, the pride of Nottingham, England (They are the best band to ever hail from that town) to record "Billy Don't Be a Hero" and it was a big hit in England. Before they could release it in the U.S., Bo Donaldson & the Heywoods covered it and made it a hit for themselves. The Paper Lace version only hit #96. Bo and the boys were not nominated this year but will surely winn worst song somewhere down the line.

Murray and Callander were not going to get beaten again so they rushed the Paper lace version of "The Night Chicago Died" to U.S. release, peaking at #1 in August 1974. No wonder I was following the blues by then! The other four top five songs were "Feel Like Makin' Love" by Roberta Flack, "(You're) Having My Baby" (already a worst song winner on this blog), "Tell Me Something Good" by Rufus, and "Please Come to Boston" by Dave Loggins...wow. CNN pointed out that 1974 may have been the worst year for songs in history.

Paper Lace came to America but other than playing at a few radio stations, they were unable to perform the song live in the U.S. at the height of its popularity because of contractual issues.

Oh, and the name of their lead guitarist was Carlo Santanna...most unfortunate.

This song made quite a few worst songs of the '70s lists and CNN named it to their worst songs list as well. It is cited in TV writer Ken Levine's blog also.
Lyrics? Here you go:

And the sound of the battle rang
Through the streets of the old east side
'Til the last of the hoodlum gang
Had surrendered up or died

There was shouting in the street
And the sound of running feet
And I asked someone who said
"'Bout a hundred cops are dead!"

I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night Chicago died
Brother what a night it really was
Brother what a fight it really was
Glory be!

The band would try to sign with another label to make more money but it all collapsed in lawsuits. Some of the members press on as Paper Lace today. Glory be!

So enjoy this song and try to get it out of your head as you dig into your stuffing today!