Hank The Knife And The Jets – Stan The Gunman 1975
Janis Ian – Between The Lines 1975
Nilsson – Without You 1971
Harry Belafonte – Banana Boat Song (Day O) 1956
Mark Dinning – Teen Angel 1960
[unknown] – When My Little Girl is Smiling
Beach Boys – Heroes And Villains 1967
Dickie Goodman – Mr. Jaws 1975
Franki Valli & Four Seasons – Who Loves You? 1975
Wombles – Wombling White Tie And Tails 1975
[unknown] – Dear Prudence
Mud – Tiger Feet 1974
Duane Eddy – Rebel Rouser 1958
Trini Lopez - If I Had A Hammer (live) 1963
[unknown]
Bob Luman - Let’s Think About Living 1965
George Harrison – You 1975
Beatles – Dear Prudence 1968
Bay City Rollers – Saturday Night 1975
Procol Harum – Eight Days A Week 1975
Hank The Knife were a Dutch Band. Guitar King, as far as I know, their only other hit.
Janis Ian is very popular in the Netherlands. I once saw her in Rotterdam filling a big concert hall.
Funny how tastes can differ when you cross a border.
Without you is quite untypical of Nilsson. His other songs, although sometimes excellent, do not come close to this one.
When I did a Programmer’s course once the question came up what "tally" means. No one had a clue, except one old guy. And he knew because he knew this song: "Come, Mister tally man, tally me banana".
Teen Angel belongs to the sub-genre of love-just-died songs. It is so sad. You can cry along. Just like Tell Laura. The best about these songs is Bob Luman’s response: "In every other song that I've heard lately
Some fellow gets shot - And his baby and his best friend both die with him - As likely as not."
Next is a wonderful version of "When My Little Girl is Smiling". Shazam thinks it is by the Drifters. But it is not.
Heroes and Villains is surely one of the top 5 songs the Beach Boys made.
The Four Seasons suddenly reappeared in 1975 and had their biggest hit with Who loves you. Franki Valli’s voice was not as dominating as in their famous 60s songs. But I love this song. And the follow up single would be even better.
Mr. Jaws is one of my favorite novelty songs. "Wouldn’t you give a hand to a friend?" See, how many songs you recognize. The Wombles were silly but fun.
Normally I do not care much for Beatles covers. They rarely come close to the original and by and large should be avoided. Procol Harum did a nice job. But the best exception is Dear Prudence. There is the great version by Siouxsie, of course. But this one is even better, and I have no idea who is responsible. Will have to wait for a better Shazam... Talking of Shazam, it offers me Jon Mark for a very strong instrumental cembalo piece. Pathetic.
I did mention that 1975 was the best year in Pop music? Just listen to George Harrison’s You. For me, he reached his peak with this one (and This Guitar).
Do I have to apologize for including the Bay City Rollers? S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y. I love songs with titles spelt. Should do a useful list one day with the best ones. T-R-O-U-B-L-E or D-I-V-O-R-C-E.
Lesly Gore – You Don’t Own Me 1963
Bob Dylan – Like A Rolling Stone
Queen – I’m in Love with My Car
Queen – You’re My Best Friend
Queen – 39
Queen – Sweet Lady
Queen – Seaside Rendezvous
Queen – The Prophet’s Song
Queen – Love of My Life
Queen – Good Company
Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody
Queen – God Save The Queen
Love Affair – Everlasting Love 1968
Four Seasons – Rag Doll 1964
The Honeycombs – Have I The Right? 1964
Harpo – Motorcycle Mama 1975
Alvin Stardust – My Coo Ca Choo 1973
Dave Dee, Dozy, Mick & Tich – Touch Me, Touch Me 1967
Here I have almost the entire Night At the Opera album. It is a classic. But I must say in the context of my cassettes I am not happy with it. The Prophet’s song I thought at the time to be just as good if not better than Rhapsody. Now I think it really is overblown. Some I do not like at all like Car and Seet Lady. Others like Seaside that work well on the album feel silly here. The only one I really do like next to Bohemian Rhapsody is Love of my Life.
Anyway, what else do I have? You don’t own me. Lesly Gore. I used to recognize the singers immediately. Now, Gore, Helen Shapiro, Cilla Black somehow all merge into the great 60s female singer.
Bob Dylan, on the other hand, I still recognize I am pleased to report. One of his strongest songs.
Everlasting Love is another song that I could happily sing along to but I had forgotten that it is by the Love Affair.
With Rag Doll, Franki Valli was in top form. A song that you would be certain could not be improved, but I said it before, check the Del Shannon version.
If you had asked me in 1975 for my favorite song of all time, I would have replied Have I the Right by the Honeycombs. I can see why I liked it but maybe it is not quite as good as I thought.
Harpo is a special case. He would probably be regarded as a one-hit wonder anywhere in the world except in Sweden and Germany. And he continued to have hits in Germany when he was forgotten even in his home country. Why is that the case? I really would like to know. I understand that local artists are popular in their home country. They get more airplay and people know them from concerts. But why do Germans like Harpo so much? My Coo Ca Choo was a hit in the U.K. and in Germany (in fact one of the few songs that I paid any attention to in my lost year 1973) but why was it a monster hit in Australia?
And finally a touch of Dave Dee.
What is the best song? Rolling Stone or Bohemian Rhapsody. I am inclined to say My Coo Cha Choo. Funny how I think that stood the test of time better than Queen. But still...
Best song: Bohemian Rhapsody
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Sailor – One Drink Too Many 1976
Walter Murphy – A Fifth of Beethoven 1976
Hot Chocolate – Man To Man 1976
T. Rex – Hot Love 1971
Joan Baez – Farewell, Angelina 1965
Sweet – Wig Wam Bam 1972
Tommy James and the Shondells – Crimson And Clover 1968
Turtles – Happy Together 1967
Beach Boys – Shut Down 1963
Jan & Dean – Dead Man’s Curve 1964
Animals – House Of The Rising Sun 1964
Tommy Roe – Sweet Pea 1966
Hot Chocolate – Love Is Life 1970
Frank Zander – Rosita (Heinz Schwalbe Der Pauschal Tourist) 1976
Esther & Abi Ofarim – Cinderella Rockefella 1968
John Denver – Wrangle Mountain Song 1976
Bob Dylan - Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again 1966
Peter Shelley – Gee Baby 1974
Sonny & Cher – Little Man 1967
A glass of Champagne was their big hit and they managed to follow this up with a couple of good songs. This is one of them.
One of the big questions: should pop/rock music mess with classical music? In 9 out of 10 cases the result is deplorable. A Fifth of Beethoven is brilliant (whereas Roll over Beethoven, to give a famous example, is not).
Hot Chocolate is one of my Top five favorite bands. There are many songs about lost love but this one, I think, is unique. A man trying to persuade his rival to give up his love "for the children’s sake." Or maybe it is not unique. A sort of Joeline for men, come to think of it.
Hot Love, the birth of Glam, it is said. And in very effective contrast to it our friend Joan Baez says farewell to Angelina.
It is impossible for me to talk about Happy Together without mentioning one of the most bizarre rhymes ever: So happy together and how is the weather? Amazing. Good as the Beach Boys were, Jean & Dean at their best could be just as good. And Dead Man’s Curve is their best.
The Animals’ version of House is much better than my brother’s. I admit. But it is a song that can survive almost every interpretation. I have a CD in my collection with 20 versions of the song. None of them bad. Not even the one by Santa Esmeralda.
There is a clip of an interview with Tommy Roe before the song. That is what makes this one special. He just tells us that he wrote the song while in the army. Nothing extraordinary. But nice.
An older song of HC. Very good, too. I will have something to say about Frank Zander at another time. This one he did at the height of his career, although it was the flip side of the single, Oh Susi, that became the hit.
Cinderella Rockefella was not only the biggest hit of Esther & Abi Ofarim. It used to be played on the radio at least once a week for many years. And I love every bit of it. Talking of rhymes. I love your touch. - Thank you so much. But the best is the way he sings You're the lady that I love which sounds like yodelling. Yudeladidadala!
Who has ever heard of Wrangle Mountain Song? I had forgotten it but it is good enough to hold a position next to Stuck inside.
Peter Shelley, of course, was the mastermind behind Alvin Stardust. And then he decided, that after all, he did want to have chart success as a singer himself. This was the result. Not bad at all. (And he would sing about his dog, later.)
Sonny & Cher were better than Esther & Abi but in this case, they lost the competition.
Best song: Cinderella Rockefella
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Schobert & Black Die Fernsehshow 1974
Schobert & Black Beutelgesang 1974
Schobert & Black – Waterkantskandal 1974
Insterburg & Co. – Ich liebte ein Mädchen 1970
Schobert & Black – Das Schürbeln 1974
André Heller – Marilyn Monroe 1972
Schobert & Black – Nostos algos oder: Die Zukunft liegt im Meer 1975
Lothar Föllmer – So Gegen 22.00 Uhr 1973
[unknown] – Invaders
Neil Diamond – I am... I said 1971
Rod Stewart – Tonight's the Night (Gonna Be Alright) 1976
[unknown] – Farewell to Tarwathie
Connie Francis – Lipsticks on your Collar 1959
[unknown] – Folk
Edgar Froese – Macula Transfer 1976
John Barry – Theme from "The Persuaders" 1971
[unknown]
[Peer Gynt Suite]
Schobert & Black – Das Holzwollschnitzelwerk 1972
Mike Krüger – Mein Gott, Walther 1975
Frank Zander – Disco Polka 1975
Ulrich Roski – Des Pudels Kern 1975
Archies – Sugar, Sugar 1969
Nearly all the songs I taped between 1974 and 1978 are English/American. This one, for a change, contains quite a number of German songs. They are by what we called "Liedermacher". Which means song maker. Quite stupid, but a bad label seems to be better than none. A Liedermacher could best be defined as a singer of German songs that were no "Schlager". And the songs would be funny. At least the ones I liked. And the best were Schobert & Black. They were advocates of "höherer Blödsinn", something like excellent nonsense. I saw them once in the legendary "Onkel Pö" in Hamburg. And they were magnificent. One of the questions they asked and it has been haunting me ever since: "Warum nennt man zwei Bibeln nicht Zwiebeln?"
The six songs here are among their very best.
"Vor kurzem rief ein uralter Freund bei uns an, inzwischen beim Fernsehen ein fast wichtiger Mann. Die Geschichte des Beutelgesangs – Matthias 4, Beutel 9,1 Kilo.... We are told the story of Wilhelm Beutel, that is the young Beutel. A joke that took me years to understand: Wilhelm "Boy" Tell. It is hilarious. The ultimate peak of excellence. "Ich lass' mich nicht mehr länger ausbeuteln, Vater!" And they managed to come very near to it in the other songs. "Die Nacht auf der Stepcouch war wieder mal hart, ich rasiere mich, denn wer trug damals schon Bart?" Das Schürbeln is about my favorite sport: 43-man Squamish.
Only Ulrich Roski could sometimes approach the humour of Schobert & Black. Des Pudels Kern is his master piece. "Nach schmackhaften Pilzen steht mir der Sinn." I know all the lyrics here more less by heart. They followed me thru my life. Like "Ich muss gestehen, obwohl das eher gegen mich spricht, Kinder und Kleintiere liegen mir nicht."
The ultimate Nonsense song to many people might be "Ich liebte ein Mädchen" by Interburg & Co. Ich liebte ein Mädchen in der Sowjetunion, die sagte immer nyet, mein Sohn.
Mein Gott, Walther was a big hit in Germany. It is funny but not as funny as the other songs here. And surely there is a lesson to be learned. The really great stuff is not appreciated by many people. A cliché, I know, but so sadly true.
Two songs that are not meant to be funny are the ones by Föllmer and Heller (I am not sure in the case of Heller). But both songs are really beautiful. "Man fragt mich. ob das sein muss, hier zu sitzen jede Nacht..." - "Der Atem Gottes trocknet dir den Nagellack".
Edgar Froese is not a Liedermacher. Macula Transfer has nothing in common with Beutelgesang. It is, I guess, Krautrock. Brilliant in a totally different way.
What is left? My favorite theme song from a TV series. The Persuaders, or "Die 2" as they were known in Germany. And The Invaders. (Not the original) Some classical music and some unknown (Folk) songs. Rod with a song that I am not sure I really like. Neil and Connie. And finally the Archies with a song I definitely do not like. That was played every six months in the Mel Sondock Hitparade. Because there was an Oldie section where people could vote for their favorite song from artists with a given letter. Starting with A for Animals or Archies. They would always be number 1. With B, I think, it was always Beach Boys with Barbara Ann.
Best song: Beutelgesang
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Mark & Clark Band – Drinking Man’s Concerto 1977
Anita Garbo – Miracles 1977
Ronnettes – Be My Baby 1963
Sex Pistols – God Save The Queen 1977
Clash – I'm So Bored with the USA 1977
Love – Alone Again Or 1968
Mark & Clark Band – Worn Down Piano 1977
Sandy Nelson [?]
10cc - Wall Street Shuffle
Ramones – Sheena Is A Punk Rocker 1977
Stranglers – Go Buddy Go 1977
Showwaddywaddy – Rock’n’Roll Lady 1974
David Bowie – Be My Wife 1977
Kinks – You Really Got Me
Animals - San Francisco Nights 1967
Ultravox – Young Savage 1977
Electric Light Orchestra – Nobody’s Child 1974
Love – 7 & 7 Is 1966
Donavan – Catch The Wind 1965
The Mark & Clark Band is something special. There are many good bands that never made it but why the Mark & Clark Band is totally obscure is a mystery to me. They do not even have a Wikipedia entry! Except in Dutch. And the Netherlands was the only country where they had a hit with Worn Down Piano. This is at least the quality of, say, anything by Billy Joel or Chris deBurgh. Well, see what you think.
The same is true for Anita. I talked about her before. A singer who should have been a superstar. And she was not even allowed to make an LP.
Be my Baby is a top classic. I prefer John Lennon’s version. But the Ronnettes are just wonderful.
The Sex Pistols are also something special. They had a huge impact. And listening to their music you must admit it is very good. But, I for one, just do not really care. Yeah, they are important, and thank God, they existed. But do not make me listen to them. More or less the same is true for Clash. I love their Reggae stuff but the rest is at best okay.
A pop song with a trumpet. Alone Again Or. Or what? 7 & 7 Is. Is what? Love is very popular with BEA. And well deservedly so.
Next one sounds like Sandy Nelson. But Shazam has no clue.
For many years 10cc could do no wrong. Wall Street is from their best album. I would rank them much higher as Pink Floyd.
The Ramones, on the other hand, are easily the most overrated band of all time. I think the only reason they became successful is that they were Americans and did what people at the time thought sounded like punk. With a bit of surf. It would be funny if not so many other better bands did not make it.
Go Buddy Go. This was the B-side of Peaches. Would have been a solid Double-A in the tradition of the Beatles. Both songs easily belonging to the Top 10 songs of the year.
Rock’n’Roll Lady the other self-penned hit by Showwaddywaddy. I love it. In marked contrast Be my wife by Bowie. In my world, both songs could happily live together. You really got me was the best the Kinks ever did. And that means it was really good. And compared to God save the Queen it stood the test of time.
I was not born there but I hope I die there. This made me want to go to San Francisco. Much more so than the opportunity to wear some flowers in my hair.
Ultravox were great. Before they started to become successful. Something that never ceases to amaze me. Why do people start liking a band when they turn out bad music? Vienna better than System of Romance? Well.
And finally a nice one by ELO and Catch the Wind by Donovan. Where is my guitar?
Best song: Alone Again Or
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Grace Kelly & Bing Crosby – True Love 1956
George Harrison – True Love 1976
Smokie - Living Next Door To Alice 1976
Electric Light Orchestra – Livin Thing 1976
Queen – Somebody To Love 1976
Simon & Garfunkel – Sound Of Silence 1964
Melanie Safka – Look What They’ve Done To My Song Ma 1970
Byrds - Turn, Turn, Turn 1965
Emil Steinberger – Das Kreuzworträtsel
Dubliners – Lord Of The Dance 1975
[unknown]
[unknown]
[unknown]
[unknown]
[unknown]
Osibisa – Coffee Song 1976
Trashmen – Surfin Bird 1963
Eric Clapton – I Shot The Sheriff 1974
Sandy Nelson – And Then There Were Drums 1962
Roy Orbison – Only The Lonely 1961
There are songs that work in a special context. Grace and Bing singing True Love. In your mind’s eye, you see them together in the film. That is what makes the song nice (or maybe even only acceptable). And then take George Harrison’s version of it. Now, it would not work without us knowing the original and yet it has a quality that outshines the original (if it is the original, I do not know). A brilliant cover. (As Ringo’s of Only you and John’s Be my Baby.)
Living Next Door To Alice was a monster hit in Germany. A nice enough song but far more popular than it deserves. Livin Thing from the New World Record another song out of their impossible-to-fail era. Day at the Races marked the beginning of the decline of Queen. But Somebody to love (lahahahave) I really liked. Simon and Garfunkel and Byrds are here with their defining songs. Very good, of course, but not made for me.
Ils ont change' ma chanson, ma. How I love her voice. And a bit of comedy: "Und ein Ypsillon wie ein Ypsillon".
The other side of the cassette contains a number of quite wonderful folk songs, all of them Shazam is not able to identify. Not even the one by the Dubliners. Strange. And sad. Frank Sinatra’a Coffee song is very good, but Osibisa’s is extraordinarily good. One of the songs that makes you glad you live.
Bird bird bird, b-bird's the word... Surfin Bird. I shot the sheriff, a great song, that survives the interpretation of Eric. Let there be drums. And one of the best songs that Roy did, perhaps the best. And yet, for me...
Best song: Coffee Song
Link _________________ When the stewardess is near do not show any fear.
Who – Substitute 1966
Donovan – Atlantis 1969
Beach Boys - Dance, Dance, Dance 1965
Rolling Stones – Dandelion 1967
Beatles – The Ballad Of John And Yoko 1969
Typically Tropical – Barbados 1975
Wings - Live And Let Die 1973
Wings – Yesterday 1976
Suzi Quatro - Make Me Smile 1976
Harpo – Rock ’n' Roll Clown 1976
Teresa Brewer – The Hoola Hoop Songs 1958
Screaming Lord Sutch – Jack The Ripper 1963
Eydie Gormé – Blame it on the Bossa Nova 1963
Traffic - Hole In My Shoe 1967
Chicago – 25 Or & 6 To 4 1971
Jet Harris & Tony Meehan – Diamonds 1963
Cliff Richard & The Shadows – In The Country 1966
Marmalade – Reflections Of My Life 1969
Chubby Checker – The Fly 1962
The Who and the Rolling Stones do not appear that often. But here they are with two fine songs. The Beatles (and Beach Boys) I obviously liked better.
And although I was a Lennon man at the time I liked Wings and especially Live and let die and this version of Yesterday.
Atlantis is still very popular on our Oldie Radio stations. A great song. And the thing I like most is the word "antediluvian". For most of my life, I had no idea what it meant until finally, I looked it up. It lost a bit of its magic. But it is a beautiful word. Much better than the German "vorsintflutlich". I saw Donovan last year (or two years ago?) and it was a sad affair, especially his trying and failing to perform this song.
The last good Song Suzie recorded was, of course, a Cockney Rebel original. She did very well.
Barbados I liked so much that I eventually travelled to this place, listening to this song on my then new iPod. I did not fly with Coconut Airways. But it felt like it.
I talked about Harpo before. This, I believe, was a small hit, and only in Germany. Not a bad song.
Teresa Brewer and Eydie Gormé I had forgotten (if I had ever known them). The songs are great. Especially Blame it on the Bossa Nova. In fact, the German version of the song (by Manuella) was, I like to believe, the first song I can remember. A bit unlikely, but that is what I believe. What I know for sure, is that for years I thought that a Bossanova was a kind of super Casanova. The girl, it seemed to me, was seduced by a Bossanova. Which proofs that I could not even understand German lyrics.
Another novelty song to send shivers down your spine: Jack the Ripper. Next, we have some philosophical songs full of mystery. What is it about the hole in my Shoe? And 25 or 6 to 4? Enough to making reflections on your life. I love the songs. They do have a higher quality than Cliff’s and Chubby’s songs. This leaves Diamonds an excellent instrumental of the kind that could have been a hit in the 60s. Three weeks at the top in the UK. With Jimmy Page on guitar.
Best song: Barbados
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Surfaris – Point Panic 1963
Pete Seeger – We Shall Overcome 1963
Joan Baez – Just A Closer Walk With Thee 1969
Tom Paxton – Peace Will Come 1972
Melanie – Peace Will Come (According To Plan) 1970
Charlie Gracie – Butterfly 1957
Cliff Richard & the Shadows – Move It 1958
Bobby Darin – Dream Lover 1962
B. Bumble & the Stingers – Nut Rocker 1962
Ned Miller – From A Jack To A King 1963
Hot Chocolate – Don’t Stop It Now 1976
Leonard Cohen – Suzanne 1967
Heinz Rühmann - Das kann doch einen Seemann nicht erschüttern 1939
The Corries – The Boys Of Bluehill/Derry Hornpipe 1974
Frank Zander – Disco Polka 1974
Ulrich Roski - Man Darf Das Alles Nicht so Verbissen Seh'n 1976
Eric Carmen – All By Myself 1975
Leo Sayer – One Man Band 1974
Leo Sayer – Train 1974
A very nearly instrumental starts of this selection of gems from the past. Not quite as good as Wipe out, but very good.
We all like peace. And surely, we shall overcome. It is not easy to take all this seriously, but I try. Nice songs. I love same-title-different-tunes songs. Melanie wins. But it is a close race.
Charlie Gracie did not mean anything to me. But the song is beautiful. Same quality, I would say, as the much more popular From a Jack to a King.
Move it, the best known and perhaps the best song of the early Cliff Richard. Nut Cracker and Dream Lover two other classics. And odd man out, Hot Chocolate. They did not stop in 1976 but had still a couple of strong years before them.
Leonard Cohen is the artist I love to hate. What a bad combination of pretention and incompetence. What incredibly stupid and offensive lyrics. Jesus was a sailor when he walked upon the water. Yeah, and you touched her perfect body with your mind. I am the first to admit, that my dislike is to a large extent self-taught. And anyone who inspires a parody like that of the Hee Bee Gee Bees has not lived in vain. (And I do like his poem about Kanye West. I am Picasso.)
Heinz Rühmann is the best actor Germany has produced and while I can not honestly say that he was a marvelous singer, he did sing one of the best German songs ever, this one: Das kann doch einen Seeman nicht erschüttern. "Es weht der Wind mit Stärke 10, das Schiff schwankt hin und her."
For once Shazam did its job and recognized a folk song. Bravo. And a very good one. Diso Polka is, I am afraid, meant quite seriously by Frank Zander. It is "the original english version". I could be wrong, though.
With "Man Darf Das Alles Nicht so Verbissen Seh'n" Ulrich Roski was in top form. This one song is all you need to get thru life. As always, expect some very clever rhymes like this one:
Hast deiner Lehrerin nicht nur ins Decolleté geguckt
Sondern danach sogar noch angewidert ausgespuckt
Every once in a while you feel like listening to pure Schmalz. This is one of the finest examples. All by myself.
Finally, we have one of my heroes, Leo Sayer, with the two songs that started my hero worship.
Best song: One Man Band
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Mud – Lonely This Christmas 1974
Gilbert O’Sullivan – I’m Not Dreaming Of A White Christmas 1972
Chicory Tip - Son of My Father 1972
Chuck Berry – My Ding-a-Ling
Osmonds – Crazy Horses 1972
Rolling Stones – Under My Thumb 1966
Lieutenant Pigeon - Mouldy Old Dough 1972
Ringo Starr – Back Off Boogaloo 1972
Royal Scots Dragoon Guards - Amazing Grace 1972
Pilot – Just A Smile 1975
Slade – Merry Xmas Everybody 1973
Nilson – Without You 1971
Peanuts – Oh, du schöne Weihnachtszeit
Electric Light Orchestra – Can’t Get It Out Of My Head 1974
Jethro Tull – Locomotive Breath 1971
Pilot – January 1975
Sweet - Teenage Rampage 1974
Wings – Jet 1973
Styx – Lady 1973
Sparks – This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both Of Us 1974
This is the first cassette I ever taped. Christmas 1972 my parents gave me a cassette recorder. And I was allowed to use their radio recorder and I taped the UK Top 20 with Tommy Vance. "It’s the sound of the Osmonds and Crazy Horses". I think the next time I taped was 1974. Either I was not really interested in music at the time or my parents did not let me have the recorder. Or a combination of both. Anyway, I always thought of 1973 as my lost year.
Also, because even cassettes were too expensive I used to use old cassettes and overplay them. This is unfortunate, especially in this case. Apart from the historic value () the sound quality of the untampered 1972 songs is much better. This is a C30 by the way so obviously, the songs are only rudiments on side one.
Christmas is nearing, and we have here four of my favorite Christmas songs. Slade made the best one there is. And except for Oranges the only thing I look forward to every winter. Lonely this Chrismas comes close. I like the Gilbert O’Sullivan song but I remember that even at the time, I did not like the lyrics. I could not understand much. But it seemed clear to me that the dreaming of a White Christmas by Bing was a metaphor for a peaceful Christmas. So it seemed very stupid to make fun of it and not to dream of a white Christmas. The Peanuts singing Weihnachten, du Fest der Feste in German of course, in the legendary Christmas episode. A true highlight of TV history.
Son of my Father was originally a German song, one of the few cases where they made an English hit of a German song, I believe. Crazy Horses, is, to put it mildly, untypical of the Osmonds and easily the best thing they ever did. With Back of Boogaloo, we have Ringo in Top form. When it finally appeared on the Roses album (I recently bought it) it was watered down, nearly unrecognizable. What a shame.
Talking of shame I am not ashamed to admit that I am a huge Pilot fan. One of the most underrated bands, I think. Just a smile should have been a huge hit. It was not. At least they had January (and Magic) The other songs I talked about before.
Can’t Get It Out Of My Head is one of my top 5 favorite songs. The song that made me a fan. (And it took Confusion and Xanadu and All over the world to unmade me). I also lost a bet because of it. My friend would not believe me that they are singing Can’t Get It Out On My Head. That is what I heard then (and still do - sometimes) Well, I had to pay him two Marks. Sigh.
Locomotive Breath was played at every party at the time. A great song. But to my sick mind, liked by the wrong sort of people. Teenage Rampage was the first Sweet song that I allowed myself to like. Wings very good. But Styx? This was a surprise when I now listened to it. (Cassette was broken. I repaired it and listened to it for the first time in at least 15 years.)
And finally, we have the most famous song of my all-time favorite group.
Best Song: Can’t Get It Out Of My Head
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I like this blog: I used to tape music as well, a bit later than you but anyway: I still know that my first song I taped was Lust For Life but the first pop song I ever liked was Magic from Pilot when I was on snow classes in Austria when I was 11 (I know I was late in liking pop music because my parents were more into Dutch and German schlager music) because my friends from school said that was the thing to see on top pop, a Dutch hits program. And since then my love for pop and rock music started to grow: Sweet, Rubettes, Mud and Status Quo as a starting point.
There's so many songs you mention which give me an aha-erlebnis (ex Mud although I thought they had sold out with Lonely This Christmas after their fantastic hits Tiger Feet, Dynamite and even f..ing Lala Lucy. And things I only remember because you mentioned it like Harpo, Osibisa, Mark & Clark Band, Sailor, Jan & Dean (I once bought a cheap cassette with surf music and they ruled that cassette I suppose because the rights on the Beach Boys were too expensive), Hank The Knife And The Jets with indeed that fantastic Stan The Gunman which was also a hit in Holland and Belgium., etc etc.
I'm still fond of certain Styx songs as well although my favorites remains Come Sail Away, Blue Collar Man and especially Sing For The Day, I knew by heart.
Anyway, the quality of those cassettes deteriorated very quickly so I threw them away a long time ago and in a way I regret it.
But your blog makes me relive that period.
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) the sound quality of the untampered 1972 songs is much better. This is a C30 by the way so obviously, the songs are only rudiments on side one.
