Jim Adams’ Song Lyric Sunday gives us the chance to share familiar, and sometimes not so familiar, songs. This week the title or lyrics of the song should contain one of the words Hop, Jump, Leap, Pounce, or Spring.
If you fancy sharing one of your favourite songs you can find out how to participate, and also listen to all the great entries, here.
The song I’ve chosen this week is Jump, by the Pointers Sisters, which famously featured in the 2003 film Love Actually where Hugh Grant, playing the British Prime Minister, dances around 10 Downing Street. This film is compulsory viewing every Christmas in our house.
Girls Aloud made a really good version of the song and managed to steal a little thunder from the Love Actually film by pretending to break into 10 Downing Street and film the video there.
A great A Capella version of Jump (For My Love) was performed by Perpetuum Jazzile
and, of course, Jump was originally recorded by American hard rock band Van Halen. It was released in December 1983 as the lead single from their album 1984. Very much a departure from the band’s normal hard rock style, it is Van Halen’s most successful single and is often referred to as a Synth Rocker.
I can’t imagine that there is anyone who has never seen Hugh Grant dancing to this song but, just in case, here it is:
I get up and nothin’ gets me down You got it tough, I’ve seen the toughest around And I know, baby, just how you feel You got to roll with the punches and get to what’s real
Ah, can’t you see me standin’ here I got my back against the record machine I ain’t the worst that you’ve seen Ah, can’t you see what I mean?
Ah, might as well jump (jump) Might as well jump Go ahead and jump (jump) Go ahead and jump Ow, oh, hey, you Who said that? Baby, how you been? You say you don’t know You won’t know until you begin
So can’t ya see me standing here I got my back against the record machine I ain’t the worst that you’ve seen Ah, can’t you see what I mean?
Ah, might as well jump (jump) Go ahead and jump Might as well jump (jump) Go ahead and jump Jump
Might as well jump (jump) Go ahead and jump Get it in, jump (jump) Go ahead and jump
Jim Adams’ Song Lyric Sunday gives us the chance to share familiar, and sometimes not so familiar, songs. This week the title or lyrics of the song must contain the word Long, Short, Small, or Tall.
If you fancy sharing one of your favourite songs you can find out how to participate, and also listen to all the great entries, here.
The song I’ve chosen this week contains the word LONG, although you’d be hard pushed to find it. In fact, the word appears twice. It is always referred to as “The Cups Song” and I’m offering you the Official Video version of Pitch Perfect’s “When I’m Gone”.
The singer is Anna Kendrick and, although she is probably best known for her role in this 2012 film Pitch Perfect she was singing long before this. Aside from starring in a few movie musicals over the past few years, Kendrick has even performed on a real life Broadway stage.
Here she is. I hope you enjoy it.
The Cups Song became very popular, especially as a project for amateur groups. If you search you will find many interesting recordings and they all have one thing in common. Everyone taking part is thoroughly enjoying themselves. Albania recorded a world record attempt in 2017 that is pretty spectacular to watch.
One of the best, to my mind, is a recording sung in Irish. I think the language is a real joy to listen to, it is lyrical even if you are being sworn at! The danger with adding this video is that I shall spend a good part of today finding other Irish lyrical songs. I hope you join me!
I got my ticket for the long way ’round Two bottle o’ whiskey for the way And I sure would like some sweet company And I’m leavin’ tomorrow, what do you say?
When I’m gone When I’m gone You’re gonna miss me when I’m gone You’re gonna miss me by my hair You’re gonna miss me everywhere, oh You’re gonna miss me when I’m gone
I got my ticket for the long way ’round The one with the prettiest of views It’s got mountains, it’s got rivers It’s got sights to give you shivers But it sure would be prettier with you
When I’m gone When I’m gone You’re gonna miss me when I’m gone You’re gonna miss me by my walk You’re gonna miss me by my talk, oh You’re gonna miss me when I’m gone
Jim Adams’ Song Lyric Sunday gives us the chance to share familiar, and sometimes not so familiar, songs. Jim has given us Circle /Polygon /Square /Triangle this week to be included in the title or lyrics.
If you fancy sharing one of your favourite songs you can find out how to participate, and also listen to all the great entries, here.
This week I didn’t have to go round in endless circles to find a song and I shall not even begin to tell you the joke about the missing parrot. Instead, I’ll just get on with telling you that I have chosen what I consider to be a captivating song from a film that first aired in 1968, starring Steve McQueen and German actress Astrid Heeren. The title song was performed by Noel Harrison who took the song to #8 in the UK Singles Chart. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1968.
A version by Sting was used in the 1999 remake of the film which, this time, starred Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo. The trailer can be viewed here.
Round like a circle in a spiral, like a wheel within a wheel Never ending or beginning on an ever spinning reel Like a snowball down a mountain, or a carnival balloon Like a carousel that’s turning running rings around the moon Like a clock whose hands are sweeping past the minutes of its face And the world is like an apple whirling silently in space Like the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind! Like a tunnel that you follow to a tunnel of its own Down a hollow to a cavern where the sun has never shone Like a door that keeps revolving in a half forgotten dream Or the ripples from a pebble someone tosses in a stream Like a clock whose hands are sweeping past the minutes of its face And the world is like an apple whirling silently in space Like the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind! Keys that jingle in your pocket, words that jangle in your head Why did summer go so quickly, was it something that you said? Lovers walking along a shore and leave their footprints in the sand Is the sound of distant drumming just the fingers of your hand? Pictures hanging in a hallway and the fragment of a song Half remembered names and faces, but to whom do they belong? When you knew that it was over you were suddenly aware That the autumn leaves were turning to the color of her hair! Like a circle in a spiral, like a wheel within a wheel Never ending or beginning on an ever spinning reel As the images unwind, like the circles that you find In the windmills of your mind!
Jim Adam’s Song Lyric Sunday gives us the chance to share familiar, and sometimes not so familiar, songs. Jim has given us Begin/ End/ Finish/ Start this week to be included in the title or lyrics.
If you fancy sharing one of your favourite songs you can find out how to participate, and also listen to all the great entries, here.
This week I’m pushing my luck a bit. I really do not expect many readers to listen to the whole of this song. To help out I am including an extract of a film that the song featured in.
I love this song. I love the film that it features in, but I know that it is not to everyone’s taste and some will find it rather strange.
It is a song by Jim Morrison of The Doors, written, initially, as a farewell to a girlfriend. It ended as a much longer song, at 12 minutes, and was released on 6th January 1967, just before my 19th birthday.
The lyrics contain the words “My only friend, the End” and when interviewed by Lizze James, he commented : “Sometimes the pain is too much to examine, or even tolerate … That doesn’t make it evil, though – or necessarily dangerous. But people fear death even more than pain. It’s strange that they fear death. Life hurts a lot more than death. At the point of death, the pain is over. Yeah – I guess it is a friend.”
Jim Morrison’s death came two years to the day after the death of Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones and approximately nine months after the deaths of Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin — all of whom died at the age of 27 as did so many musicians, artists, and actors.
The song is The End and it featured in the Francis Coppola epic film Apocalypse Now.
Apocalypse Now Intro (1979)
This full length version of the song accompanies a video tribute made by QueenOfTheHighway who says “This is a tribute to the amazing James Douglas Morrison, who died far too young. His life was incredibly tragic, and he was so misunderstood and under appreciated. He was so much more than just a talented musician. He was a true genius and a poet with a beautiful soul. I love him because he knew what it was like to battle unbearable demons, and yet still retained his childlike wonder and love for life. I do not own any footage used-all belong to The Doors.”
This is the end, beautiful friend This is the end, my only friend The end of our elaborate plans The end of ev’rything that stands The end
No safety or surprise The end I’ll never look into your eyes again
Can you picture what will be So limitless and free Desperately in need of some strangers hand In a desperate land
Lost in a Roman wilderness of pain And all the children are insane All the children are insane Waiting for the summer rain There’s danger on the edge of town Ride the king’s highway Weird scenes inside the goldmine Ride the highway West baby
Ride the snake Ride the snake To the lake To the lake
The ancient lake baby The snake is long Seven miles Ride the snake
He’s old And his skin is cold The west is the best The west is the best Get here and we’ll do the rest
The blue bus is calling us The blue bus is calling us Driver, where you taking us?
The killer awoke before dawn He put his boots on He took a face from the ancient gallery And he walked on down the hall
He went into the room where his sister lived And then he paid a visit to his brother And then he walked on down the hall And he came to a door And he looked inside Father? Yes son I want to kill you Mother, I want to…
Come on, baby, take a chance with us Come on, baby, take a chance with us Come on, baby, take a chance with us And meet me at the back of the blue bus
This is the end, beautiful friend This is the end, my only friend The end
It hurts to set you free But you’ll never follow me-aca
After reading all the terrible reviews of the Cats (2019) film, Daisy, my British Shorthair princess, would like it to be known that, although she auditioned for one of the leading roles, she was rejected for being too beautiful!
She thinks she’ll have to ponder a little and, of course, the best way to do that is to snooze.
Thank you to Jim Adams, who hosts Song Lyric Sunday and gives us the chance to share lots of familiar, and some not so familiar, songs.
If you fancy sharing one of your favourites you can find out how to participate, and also listen to all the great entries, here.
I am totally cheating this week in that this is an instrumental video, it is NOT A SONG, and there are NO LYRICS. However, it is the end music to the film “Mutiny on the Bounty” from 1984, so it sort of fits the bill.
It really is great music, in the very recognisable form of Vangelis, although, in this video, sequenced with sonar and tyros 3 and performed by Albertvvl.
Thank you to Jim Adams, who hosts Song Lyric Sunday and gives us the chance to share lots of familiar, and some not so familiar, songs.
If you fancy sharing one of your favourite songs you can find out how to participate, and also listen to all the great entries, here.
The theme for this week posed a bit of a problem for me as I could quite happily live without television in my life!
I was 14 when we first had a television. Black and white of course, and only one channel. At 16, I joined the army and went to college for 3 years. No television. At 19 I deployed to the Middle East. No television. At 21 I went to Germany. Very little television. My daughter grew up with Sesame Street in German. So it goes on. I watched TV intermittently. Today, if the television is on, the chances are that I am reading blogs rather than watching it.
However, I think it is impossible to be untouched by television. I have seen a fair selection along the way, and one thing I MUST see, when it is on, is Later……with Jools Holland. He is a consummate musician and performer in his own right and , over the years, has introduced a gargantuan list of artists of every genre imaginable, and then some! You can see the list here.
So I thought here we have a huge number of songs I can use for my SLS choice this week.
WRONG!
Instead, I suddenly thought of one show that I found to be both funny, thought provoking, and, at times, downright sad!
M*A*S*H(an acronym for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) was an American war comedy-drama television series that aired on CBS from 1972 to 1983. It was developed by Larry Gelbart, adapted from the 1970 feature film M*A*S*H, which, in turn, was based on Richard Hooker’s 1968 novel MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors. The series, which was produced with 20th Century Fox Television for CBS, follows a team of doctors and support staff stationed at the “4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital” in Uijeongbu, South Korea, during the Korean War (1950–53). The show’s title sequence features an instrumental-only version of “Suicide Is Painless,” the original film’s theme song. The show was created after an attempt to film the original book’s sequel, M*A*S*H Goes to Maine, failed. The television series is the best-known of the M*A*S*H works, and one of the highest-rated shows in U.S. television history. (wikipedia)
This was, of course, being shown at the time of the Vietnam War, and was highly controversial. What started out as a comedy, with drama overtones soon became a drama with added comedy!
It’s a long time ago now, but I seem to remember that the “squaddie” humour really came across well, and could evoke real feelings of sadness, even the odd tear or two.
Suicide Is Painless is a song written by Johnny Mandel (music) and Michael Altman (lyrics). It was thetheme songfor both themovieandTV seriesM*A*S*H.
Director Robert Altman had two stipulations about the song for Mandel: it had to be called “Suicide Is Painless” and it had to be the “stupidest song ever written”. Altman attempted to write the lyrics himself, but upon finding it too difficult for his 45-year-old brain to write “stupid enough,” he gave the task to his 14-year-old-son Michael, who wrote the lyrics in five minutes. Ironically, the son’s income from royalties for the song far exceeded his father’s income for the film.
So here it is. The Tongue-in-cheek theme song for the very sad tongue in cheek comedy about the Korean war. The film was released in 1970, at the height of the Vietnam war, and the TV series debuted in 1972, appealing to the growing anti war crowd, lasted 11 years, and was arguably one of the most successful series ever.
The TV series used instrumental versions of the song only.
Thank you to Jim Adams, who hosts Song Lyric Sunday and gives us the chance to share lots of familiar, and some not so familiar, songs.
If you fancy sharing one of your favourite songs you can find out how to participate, and also listen to all the great entries, here.
The theme for this week is “A song featured prominently in a movie.” Now, it depends on your definition of prominently doesn’t it! Music is pretty important to the movie industry, and a film can become a huge success, or failure, purely because of the choice of music.
The movie that I’ve chosen has 53 different songs, so it cannot really be argued that any of them feature prominently.
Watchmen is a 2009 American superhero film directed by Zack Snyder, based on the 1986–87 DC Comics limited series of the same name. Both a soundtrack and excerpts from Tyler Bates‘ film score were released as albums on March 3, 2009. The soundtrack features three songs written by Bob Dylan—”Desolation Row“, “All Along the Watchtower” and “The Times They Are a-Changin’“—with only the latter performed by Dylan on the soundtrack. It includes some songs mentioned in the comic, such as Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Sound of Silence” and Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah“. Dylan’s “The Times They Are a-Changin'” and “All Along the Watchtower” are also quoted in the graphic novel.
I think my choice of video gives you not only a classic song but also a good idea of what to expect of the film. I hope you enjoy it.
The Times They Are A-Changin’ (Witmark Demo – 1963)
Come gather ’round, people Wherever you roam And admit that the waters Around you have grown And accept it that soon You’ll be drenched to the bone If your time to you is worth savin’ And you better start swimmin’ Or you’ll sink like a stone For the times they are a-changin’
Come writers and critics Who prophesize with your pen And keep your eyes wide The chance won’t come again And don’t speak too soon For the wheel’s still in spin And there’s no tellin’ who That it’s namin’ For the loser now Will be later to win For the times they are a-changin’
Come senators, congressmen Please heed the call Don’t stand in the doorway Don’t block up the hall For he that gets hurt Will be he who has stalled The battle outside ragin’ Will soon shake your windows And rattle your walls For the times they are a-changin’
Come mothers and fathers Throughout the land And don’t criticize What you can’t understand Your sons and your daughters Are beyond your command Your old road is rapidly agin’ Please get out of the new one If you can’t lend your hand For the times they are a-changin’
The line it is drawn The curse it is cast The slow one now Will later be fast As the present now Will later be past The order is rapidly fadin’ And the first one now Will later be last For the times they are a-changin’
Lots of information gleaned, and copied, from Wikipedia, to whom I regularly donate. It is a free service but can only remain so if supported by its users!
Helen’s theme for SLS this week is take/taking. Fancy joining in with this great way of listening to some old favourites, and, often, some new music? If so, you can see all of the entries here and read all about the way to get involved.
This week I’ve chosen a song from Phil Collins, written for the movie of the same name, “Against All Odds”. The song is better known as “Take a look at me now”.
Originally titled “How Can You Just Sit There?”, the song was initially from the sessions for Collins’ debut solo album Face Value (1981). Collins wrote the song, while Arif Mardin produced it. The piano performance is by New York musician Rob Mounsey. Piano, keyboard bass, and a string section, arranged and conducted by Mardin, were recorded at RCA Studios, New York, while Collins recorded vocals and drums in Los Angeles.
The video has a hunky male form for those who are interested in that sort of thing. Yes, I’m thinking of you Sandra!
"If only half of the history that has happened in Nottingham had happened in some other place, that place would be famous; but because it did happen here no one knows".
