Have I the Right? Beats me?!

Have I the Right to Hold You?

What a great question.   This is the title of a 1964 song by The Honeycombs, an English group formerly known as The Sheratons.  The group was founded by Martin Murray, who played the rhythm guitar.  Murray was a hair stylist and he brought into the group his assistant, Honey Lantree, who played the drums.   Honey never had lessons and was pioneer in her field at the time.  There were very few female drummers.  It was her name (Honey) and profession (salon assistant) that led to the  inspiration for the group's name, as in, "HONEY COMBS" hair for a living.  Get it

Conspicuous in "Have I the Right?" is the prominence of the drums, whose effect was enhanced by members of the group stamping their feet on the wooden stairs to the studio. Meek recorded the effect with five microphones he had fixed to the banisters with bicycle clips. For the finishing touch someone beat a tambourine directly onto a microphone. The recording was also somewhat sped up.

 
Take a listen and let me know what you think.

Until next time, keep singing.

Kimmie

It'll Be Alright...

So says B J Thomas in 'Rock and Roll Lullaby'. This is one of his lesser known songs but is a really great one. The melody, the lyrics, and, of course, his voice. All make for perfect music.

 "Rock and Roll Lullaby" is a song written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil that was a 1972 hit single performed by B. J. Thomas. "Rock and Roll Lullaby" reached number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was Thomas's third number one on the Easy Listening chart, where it spent one week in March 1972. The song was a smash-hit in Brazil, because of its appearance as love theme in the soap opera Selva de Pedra.

The song is sung in a first-person narrative of an adolescent or adult raised by single teenage mother since birth during the early years of rock-and-roll. Despite the bleakness of their situation, whenever the child cries, the mother sings him to sleep with a 'sha-na-na-na-na-na-na, it'll be all right...sha-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na, just hold on tight'. In the second verse, the narrator calls attention that despite hardships, they'd 'dream of better mornings when Mama sang her song', and that while it didn't make sense to try to recall the words, the loving meaning beneath them was all that mattered. 



Take a listen:

Hey, Baby, they're playing our song!

Hi there, lovers of all music.

I've missed you.  I have had a lot of major life events that have prevented me from continuing my blog and my All You Need is Love Facebook page.  I won't bore you all with the details....we all have 'stuff' in our lives, right?   It seems that I had more than my fair share, but who's to say?

I'm hoping that better days are ahead and I'm able to get back to sharing one of my hobbies, listening and sharing great music, like this one.

Hey, Baby, They're playing our song, by the Buckinghams!

Everybody, Have You Heard??

Hey, lovers of great music.

This is one of my favorite songs - so much fun to sing and watch the video of Carly Simon and then-husband James Taylor perform.

This was recorded on Simon's 4th album, 'Hotcakes', released in 1974.  I LOVE the album name.  It just sounds so 'happy', kind of like the song.  The song was actually written in 1963, and was considered a 'novelty' song.  It was recorded in 1965 by Dusty Springfield and in also performed in 1965 by the queen of soul Aretha Franklin and Ray Charles.

In my humble opinion, it's pretty hard to beat Carly Simon and James Taylor's version.

I'm not going to write a lot here tonight, just going to let you enjoy this great tune.

So, here it is:  Mockingbird.  (I bet you can't listen without tapping your foot and singing at least part of the lyrics.)

            

Until next time, be kind to each other.

Kimmie

I said 'Lay Down, Sally!'

Yeah, I know.  I've been MIA for a while.  I launched an online business late December and I am really tickled how it took off.  BUT that hasn't stopped me from listening to some good tunes.  I have satellite radio (thank heaven!) and this song came up a couple days ago.  Of course, I HAD to sing along.  I mean, who wouldn't?)

This song was recorded by Eric 'Slowhand' Clapton. He is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist and separately as a member of the Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and influential guitarists of all time. Clapton ranked second in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time and fourth in Gibson's "Top 50 Guitarists of All Time". He was also named number five in Time magazine's list of "The 10 Best Electric Guitar Players" in 2009.

Clapton has been the recipient of 18 Grammy Awards, and the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. In 2004 he was awarded a CBE at Buckingham Palace for services to music. In 1998, Clapton, a recovering alcoholic and drug addict, founded the Crossroads Centre on Antigua, a medical facility for recovering substance abusers.

Not too shabby, huh?

Now, 'Lay Down Sally' was written by Clapton with George Terry and Marcella Detroit in 1977 and is a cross-over song, meaning country blues.  You are NEVER going to guess who sang backup on this song.  It was Yvonne Elliman!   Yvonne Elliman who recorded in 1970 'I Don't Know How to Love Him' from Jesus Christ Superstar AND in 1977, 'If I Can't Have You' of Saturday Night Fever fame.  THAT Yvonne Elliman.  Who knew??

It appeared on his November 1977 album Slowhand, and reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Now, let's listen to some classic Clapton with  'Lay Down Sally'.  I know you all know what to do now ...time to sing!

I'll keep listenin' to some really great tunes, and I hope you will, too.  If you want to hear something special, just post it on my Facebook page 'All You Need Is Love'.  If you like what you hear and see, please 'LIKE' my FB page. 


In the meantime, be kind to each other.

Peace and love.

Kimmie

Bittersweet Memories

Hey, hi, howdy, you all.

It dawned on me that I haven't posted for a while.  Holidays and all have gotten me off my routine.

I've had this song rolling around in my mind for a couple weeks now and I'm going to take that as a sign to share it with you all.   This one takes me back to being a very young, newlywed in the early 70's.  

Leon Russell, born Claude Russell Bridges, was involved with numerous brstselling records over a 60 year career.  (He took the name Leon from a friend who lent him a fake ID to get into clubs he was legally too young to perform in.) His collaborations rank as some of the most successful in music history and as a touring musician, he performed with hundreds of Hall of Fame artists. He recorded 33 albums and at least 430 songs. He wrote "Delta Lady", recorded by Joe Cocker, and organized and performed with Cocker's Mad Dogs and Englishmen tour in 1970. More than 100 artists have recorded his "A Song for You" (1970).

As a pianist, he played in his early years on albums by the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean. On his first album, Leon Russell, in 1970, musicians included Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr and George Harrison. One of his biggest early fans, Elton John, said Russell was a "mentor" and "inspiration". They recorded The Union in 2010, which was later nominated for a Grammy. Russell produced and played in recording sessions for Bob Dylan, Frank Sinatra, Ike & Tina Turner, the Rolling Stones, and others. He wrote and recorded the hits "Tight Rop and "Lady Blue". He performed at the Concert for Bangladesh in 1971 along with Dylan and Eric Clapton, and in 2011 was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. 

 As a pianist, he played in his early years on albums by the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean. On his first album, Leon Russell, in 1970, musicians included Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr and George Harrison. One of his biggest early fans, Elton John, said Russell was a "mentor" and "inspiration". 

So, here is REALLY one of my all-time favorite songs of that time in my life.  Where, oh, where did the years go?   Leon Russell's Lady Blue.   Bittersweet memories.

Peace and love, my friends.

Kimmie

Take care of all your memories for you cannot relive them....

Hello, my dear friends.

This is such a hectic time of year for so many.  Holiday parties, dinners, family time, work obligations, decorating the house, gift buying, and the list goes on.  In the midst  of all the things this wonderful season brings, I wanted to take a minute to share some iconic music with you that I hope will give you an opportunity to slow things down a little, breathe a little slower, and just listen quietly.

Today I will be showcasing one of my all time favorite songs by Bob Dylan.

Bob Dylan ( born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American songwriter, singer, and artist.  He has been influential in popular music and culture for more than five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s, when his songs chronicled social unrest. Early songs such as "Blowin' in the Wind" and "The Times They Are a-Changin' " became anthems for the American civil rights and anti-war movements. Leaving behind his initial base in the American Folk music revival, his six-minute single 'Like a Rolling Stone', recorded in 1965, enlarged the range of popular music.

Dylan was born in Minnesota and attended the University of Minnesota.  I don't know why but I alway picture these history-making musicians being born in some hippie commune with their mom and dad dancing around the fire on the beach somewhere.  He moved to New York in 1960 and began playing clubs in Greenwich Village.  He became well-known for his songwriting talents and many others had hits with Dylan's songs in the early 1960s including The Byrds, Sonny and Cher, the Hollies, Peter, Paul and Mary, The Turtles, and the Association.

Here's a little known fact:  In the late 1970s, Dylan became a born again Christian and released two albums of contemporary gospel music featuring the guitar accompaniment of Mark Knopler (of Dire Straits) and was produced by veteran R&B producer Jerry Wexler. Wexler said that Dylan had tried to evangelize him during the recording. He replied: "Bob, you're dealing with a 62-year-old Jewish atheist. Let's just make an album."

So, here's the original recording made on a 45 RPM record. You can hear a little of the 'crackling' at the beginning of the song that I think is pretty cool.  Enjoy.

                                                                            

            

Until next time, my friends, be kind to each other, and rejoice in the miracles
of this blessed season.  

Peace and much love,

Kimmie