Song Lyric Sunday 11/08/2019 – A song that includes somebody famous in it

Thank you to Jim Adams, who hosts Song Lyric Sunday. He gives us the chance to share familiar, and not so familiar, songs by setting us a challenge each week to submit a song that either fits in with a word, an idea, or specific criteria.

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.

For this week we have to find a song that includes somebody famous.

I think I may be stretching the boundaries a little here. I’m not even sure that my inclusion can be called “somebody”! Is it a man? A woman? An entity? Human? Celestial? An alien?

It depends on your perception, your belief, where you live in the world, how you were brought up, what has happened to you since.

It is a song from The Beach Boys album Pet Sounds, released in July 1966.

Does it include somebody famous?

God Only Knows.

God Only Knows

The Beach Boys

I may not always love you
But long as there are stars above you
You never need to doubt it
I’ll make you so sure about it
God only knows what I’d be without you

If you should ever leave me
Though life would still go on, believe me
The world could show nothing to me
So what good would living do me
God only knows what I’d be without you

God only knows what I’d be without you
If you should ever leave me
Though life would still go on, believe me
The world could show nothing to me
So what good would living do me
God only knows what I’d be without you

God only knows what I’d be without you
God only knows what I’d be without you
God only knows what I’d be without you
God only knows what I’d be without you (God only knows)
God only knows what I’d be without you (what I’d be without you)
God only knows what I’d be without you (God only knows)
God only knows what I’d be without you (what I’d be without you)
God only knows what I’d be without you (God only knows)
God only knows what I’d be without you (what I’d be without you)
God only knows what I’d be without you (God only knows)
God only knows what I’d be without you (what I’d be without you)
God only knows what I’d be without you

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Brian Douglas Wilson / Tony Asher

God Only Knows lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc, Universal Music Publishing Group

This holds very fond memories for me as a special song for me and my first “true” love, Susan Margaret Wood. As I had left home at age 16, in 1964, to join the army, and left Susan behind, this became “our song” when it first came out!

Here is a version from 20 June 2008.

A version by David Bowie from 1984

and a version from Michael Bublé in 2016

 

 

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Song Lyric Sunday 07/07/2019 – Zodiac Animals

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 Zodiac animals. I’m choosing “Dog”, man’s best friend. I’m not choosing a song with dog in the title, or the lyrics, but a song by Three Dog Night.

Did I hear you say “Who?”

Well, I suppose it depends how old you are! I must admit that they were never amongst my favourite, go to bands, but the song I’ve chosen was amongst my collection.

Until I started to look into their history I had not realised that they are still active today, albeit with only 2 of the original line up.  They formed in 1967, the year of my first flight, a 13 hour trip in a turbo prop Brittania, on my way to my first overseas posting in Bahrain.  Ah, those were the days! The days of Radio Luxembourg, Radio Caroline, The Vietnam War, Ronald Reagan as Governor of California, the last man hanged in Australia, Muhammad Ali refused military service, Elvis married Priscilla, Guerrilla leader Che Guevara and his men were captured in Bolivia; they were executed the following day, The Abortion Act 1967 passed in the British Parliament and received royal assent two days later, The term “Black Hole” came into being.

We’ve come a long way since then. Or have we?

Anyway, here they are Three Dog Night. I hope you enjoy “Mama Told Me Not to Come.”

 

Mama Told Me Not to Come

Want some whiskey in your water
Or sugar with your tea
What are these crazy questions
That they’re asking of me
This is the craziest party
That there ever could be
Oh, don’t turn on the light
‘Cause I don’t want to see

Mama told me not to come
Mama told me not to come
That ain’t the way to have fun

Open up the window
Let some air into this room
I think I’m almost choking from
The smell of stale perfume
And that cigarette you’re smoking
‘Bout to scare me half to death
Open up the window sucka
Let me catch my breath

Mama told me not to come
Mama told me not to come
That ain’t the way to have fun, son
That ain’t the way to have fun, son

The radio is blasting,
Someone’s beating on the door
I’m looking at my girlfriend
She’s passed out on the floor
I seen so many things 
I ain’t never seen before
I don’t know what it is
But I don’t wanna see no more

Mama told me not to come
Mama told me not to come
She said, that ain’t the way to have fun, son

That ain’t the way to have fun,

Mama told me, Mama told me, Mama told me
Told me, told me, 

Mama told me not to come
Mama told me not to come

That ain’t the way to have fun, no
That ain’t the way to have fun, son

That ain’t the way to have fun, no
That ain’t the way to have fun, son

That ain’t the way to have fun, no
That ain’t the way to have fun, son

That ain’t the way to have fun, no
That ain’t the way to have fun, son

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Randy Newman

Mama Told Me Not to Come lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc

Song Lyric Sunday 23/06/2019 – Cards /Dice /Gamble /Lose /Win

Thank you to Jim Adams, who tirelessly hosts Song Lyric Sunday and gives us the chance to share lots of favourite, and some not so familiar, songs.

Seems that Jim is very uncertain this week, as he’s set us a theme of Who /What /When /Where /Why /How.

If you fancy answering one of these questions, and also sharing one of your favourite songs you can find out how to participate, and also listen to all the great entries, here.

Most people are familiar with Leonard Cohen and his hit songs like “Hallelujah,” “Suzanne,” and “Bird on a Wire”, but, for your delight this week I am offering you a song from his album New Skin for the Old Ceremony, “Who by Fire.”

Leonard Cohen tackled different religions in his music.  This song was Cohen’s own interpretation of the Hebrew prayer titled “Unetanneh Tokef”, part of the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur liturgy.

Who By Fire

Leonard Cohen

And who by fire, who by water
Who in the sunshine, who in the night time
Who by high ordeal, who by common trial
Who in your merry merry month of may
Who by very slow decay
And who shall I say is calling?

And who in her lonely slip, who by barbiturate
Who in these realms of love, who by something blunt
Who by avalanche, who by powder
Who for his greed, who for his hunger
And who shall I say is calling?

And who by brave assent, who by accident
Who in solitude, who in this mirror
Who by his lady’s command, who by his own hand
Who in mortal chains, who in power
And who shall I say is calling?

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Leonard Cohen

Who By Fire lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, BMG Rights Management

In case the video is unavailable for you I am attaching a couple of other versions. The first is the standard issue video when the song was released:

The second is a Live in Israel 2009 version which highlights the normal type of performance he used, with a 12 string guitar introduction, and marvellous orchestral accompaniment. Very appropriate, considering the songs roots.

I hope you enjoy this as much as I do!

 

 

The People of a Place — The Chatter Blog

For Paddy, and all those unsung heroes who are the salt of the earth, thanks to Colleen for introducing some of them to us.

We approached an Irish monument. I’m always excited to see the world as it used to be, or relics of it and use my imagination to create how I think it was. It was late in the day and only stragglers wandered about. As I stepped through the gates I could see an elderly man […]

via The People of a Place — The Chatter Blog

Privilege and Fractures

Carol at Wanderings of an Elusive Mind has done a great job of explaining the problems facing The United States of America…and it starts with the haves, afraid they will lose something, vs. the have nots, who are struggling with the long-held belief that upward mobility is possible. This applies equally to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Interesting to note that UNITED appears in both country titles, but fails to appear in everyday living!
Thanks to Margo at https://margosviews.wordpress.com for her initial re blog of this post.

Wanderings of an Elusive Mind

Privilege is defined as “a special right, advantage, or immunity granted or available only to a particular person or group”.

As a white-skinned man, you have always been granted the privilege to “sit at the counter”, drink from a water fountain, live in the better neighborhoods, be given credit for some degree of intelligence, admitted to the school of your choice, enter in the business of your choice, ride in the front of the bus, vote for the candidate of your choice. Women have had to fight hard for these privileges. People of color have had to fight harder for these privileges.

Even today, when equality is purportedly granted to all, some experience much more privilege than others.

As a wealthy white man, you have always had more privileges than those of a lower “class” or income group. As a wealthy man, you have always had the privilege of being…

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Song Lyric Sunday Theme for 07/04/2019 – Burn/Fire/Flame

Thank you to Jim Adams, who hosts Song Lyric Sunday, and gives us the chance to share lots of favourite, and some not so familiar, songs.

The theme for this week is Burn/Fire/Flame.

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.

One of the first things I like to check, when choosing what music to share with you lovely people, is what music I have on my MacBook that will fit the theme.

Sure enough, I came up with a couple of choices and decided to go for something completely different, a Gregorian Chant from an album that I’m sure everyone has at home!!!! The album is “Gregorian Chants – Greatest Hits”. Yes, it really does exist.

I chose to offer you “The Mystic Flame” by Simon Cooper, which is a modern version of a Gregorian Chant, first released in 1998 on his album “Hymns of the Ancient Fire.’

That was the easy bit. The next bit I failed completely. I have no idea what the lyrics are and, really, I don’t think it matters, it just goes to show that good music is good music whether there are words or not, although it does rather fail as far as SLS goes.

However, it is as it is. I hope you enjoy the music. I find it relaxing and very pleasant. Simon Cooper is quite prolific in his writing and even writes music for babies in the womb. The chant doesn’t start until about the 2.40 mark!

Just in case you cannot access this I’m adding another version below.

https://youtu.be/3KgQsGpDz0k

Because Fire and Flame Burns brightly, and to make your day even brighter, I’m adding the song Bright, by Echosmith which I came across on J-Dubs Grin and Bear it site on her entry for atozchallenge. Thanks to JilyWily. I love this!

 

 

 

 

Song Lyric Sunday Theme for 24/02/2019 – Melody Fair

Jim Adams continues to look after Song Lyric Sunday, giving us the chance to share lots of favourites, and some not so familiar songs.

The theme for this week is Harmony/Melody/Music and you can find all the great entries here.

Some will have not heard this one before. It is a song by the Bee Gees, written in 1968 and released in 1969 on their album Odessa. It  was never released as a single but appeared on many compilation albums and was a hit in Japan (which probably explains the video footage). The album was not a great success when released, and the group’s fortunes declined soon after, although later the album received positive critical reviews and came to be regarded as their most significant release in the 60’s.

Andy Gibb‘s 1974 group, was named Melody Fayre after this song, which is, of course, called Melody Fair.

LULU, who was married to Maurice Gibb from 1969, until their divorce in 1973, also recorded this song. Here she is singing it, to my mind, not quite as effectively!

Melody Fair

Bee Gees

Who is the girl with the crying face looking at millions of signs? 
She knows that life is a running race, 
Her face shouldn’t show any line. 

Melody Fair won’t you comb your hair? 
You can be beautiful too. 
Melody Fair, remember you’re only a woman. 
Melody Fair, remember you’re only a girl. 

Who is the girl at the window pane, 
Watching the rain falling down? 
Melody, life isn’t like the rain 
Its just like a merry go round. 

Melody Fair won’t you comb your hair? 
You can be beautiful too. 
Melody Fair, 
Remember you’re only a woman. 
Melody Fair, 
Remember you’re only a girl.

Who is the girl with the crying face, 
Looking at millions of signs? 
She knows that life is a running race. 
Her face shouldn’t show any lines. 

Melody Fair won’t you comb your hair? 
You can be beautiful too. 
Melody Fair, 
Remember you’re only a woman. 
Melody Fair, 
Remember you’re only a girl.

Songwriters: Barry Gibb / Maurice Gibb / Robin Gibb

Melody Fair lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc, Universal Music Publishing Group

Song Lyric Sunday Theme for 10/02/2019

Song Lyric Sunday continues to give us lots of familiar, favourite songs, and yet never fails to let me hear something new, to my ears at least!

Jim’s theme for this week is River/Stream/Brook, and for next week, Hill/Mountain, so I’m going to combine the two and offer you an all time great from Tina Turner. You can see all the great music here.

This song was Written by Phil Spector, Jeff Barry, and Ellie Greenwich, and was among the first recordings that Ike & Tina Turner did for Phil Spector’s Philles Records. Spector was well aware of Ike Turner‘s controlling attitude in the studio, and therefore he drafted an unusual contract: the River Deep – Mountain High  album and single would be credited to “Ike & Tina Turner”, but Ike was paid $20,000 to stay away from the studio, and only Tina Turner‘s vocals would be used on the record.

The song is, of course, the title track, River Deep Mountain High. I hope you enjoy it.

River Deep – Mountain High

Tina Turner

When I was a little girl, I had a rag doll
Only doll I’ve ever owned
Now I love you just the way I loved that rag doll
But only now my love has grown

And it gets stronger in every way
And it gets deeper, let me say
And it gets higher day by day

Do I love you, my oh my? Oh baby
River deep, mountain high
If I lost you would I cry
Oh, how I love you, baby, baby, baby, baby

When you were a young boy
Did you have a puppy?
That always followed you around
Well, I’m gonna be as faithful as that puppy
No, I’ll never let you down

‘Cause it grows stronger like a river flows
And it gets sweeter, baby and heaven knows
And it gets sweeter, baby, as it grows

Do I love you, my oh my? Oh baby
River deep, mountain high
If I lost you would I cry
Oh, how I love you, baby, baby, baby, baby

And it gets stronger in every way
And it gets deeper, let me say
And it gets higher day by day

Do I love you, my oh my? Oh baby
River deep, mountain high
If I lost you would I cry
Oh, how I love you, baby, baby, baby, baby

I love you, baby, just like Robin loves to sing
I love you, baby, like a flower loves the spring
And I love you, baby, like a school boy loves his pet

Songwriters: Jeff Barry / Ellie Greenwich / Phil Spector

River Deep – Mountain High lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG Rights Management

Song Lyric Sunday Theme for 27/01/2019

Jim, over at A new title for me, where you can find all this week’s great music, is continuing to do a fine job in standing in for Helen and keeping us all on our toes to find lyrics to fit in  with this week’s theme of “No”.

I’ve chosen a song by one of my favourite groups, Mumford & Sons.

Without further ado, here it is. It’s called Sigh No More. The words are on the video, but I’ve also included them at the bottom. There is also a link to a live recording at Glastonbury. WARNING This recording contains strong language! They really do enjoy performing!

Sigh No More

Mumford & Sons

Serve God love me and mend
This is not the end
Live unbruised we are friends
And I’m sorry
I’m sorry

Sigh no more, no more
One foot in sea one on shore
My heart was never pure
You know me
You know me

And man is a giddy thing
Oh man is a giddy thing
Oh man is a giddy thing
Oh man is a giddy thing

Love that will not betray you, dismay or enslave you,
It will set you free
Be more like the man you were made to be
There is a design,
An alignment to cry,
Of my heart to see,
The beauty of love as it was made to be

Love that will not betray you, dismay or enslave you,
It will set you free
Be more like the man you were made to be
There is a design,
An alignment to cry,
Of my heart to see,
The beauty of love as it was made to be

Love that will not betray you, dismay or enslave you,
It will set you free
Be more like the man you were made to be
There is a design,
An alignment to cry,
Of my heart to see,
The beauty of love as it was made to be

Songwriters: Benjamin Walter David Lovett / Edward James Milton Dwane / Marcus Oliver Johnstone Mumford / Winston Aubrey Aladar Marshall

Sigh No More lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

#WeRemember

There are still lessons to be learned, as hatred and bigotry are still widespread in all countries. It was reported today that 1 in 10 in the UK do not believe the Holocaust happened. Thank you to Kelly for the reminder.

Kelly With A Why

Today is International Holocaust Remembrance Day, and marks the 74^th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. I thought it was a fitting time to recount my visit to the Sydney Jewish Museum back in November.

The museum was established in 1992 by the generation of Holocaust Survivors who settled in Australia. This very special place continues to give a voice to the victims of the Holocaust, so their individual and collective stories can spark dialogues and inspire change. As well as preserving and documenting this important historical period, the museum also beautifully illustrates the richness of Jewish life in Australian society. The ground floor displays teach many aspects of Jewish faith and traditions. This Gentile found it fascinating.

The Holocaust exhibition stretches across three levels of the building, and details the persecution and murder of European Jewry from 1933-1945. The events of Hitler’s WWII are described in chronological order…

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