SONGS LIST BELONGS IN BLENDER

New York Post ^ | September 15, 2005 | Michael Kane

[ConservativeStatement]

September 15, 2005 -- THE October issue of Blender magazine, on newsstands Tuesday, lists "The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born," which, for their readers, means the best songs since 1980.

No. 1 is "Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson. Catchy, important. A good choice.

[dr_who_2]

Agreed. But most of the music I had to grow up with sucked, too. Just not quite as much as the trash they play on the radio now. Familiarity quickly breeds contempt, but contempt eventually breeds a sense of utter resignation. I miss Milli Vanilli.

[dr_who_2]

I have no opinion about that. ...We'll just have to wait and conferrrr....

[spinestein]

He is usually labeled in the style of "American Finger Picking" and his idol, mentor, and recording and performing partner was the great Chet Atkins. He recently moved to Tennessee.

In addition to his own songs, he does many styles of covers including amazing versions of:
Blue Moon
Just An Old Fashioned Love Song
Amazing Grace
Mona Lisa
Classical Gas
Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Waltzing Matilda

and some more modern songs like:
Imagine (by John Lennon)
Day Tripper/Taste of Honey/Lady Madonna (Beatles Medley)
House of the Rising Sun (The Doors)
Michelle


I think his best work is done live and I spent the 40 bucks on his site to get "Live at Sheldon Concert Hall". I watch it over and over.

Sorry I sound like his own paid publicist, but as you can tell I like his stuff.

[freebilly]

The beginning of the end was somewhere around '78 or '79 when The Knack came out with My Sharona. I was working at The UConn bookstore for a few weeks at the end of the semester and that song played every 10 minutes on the AM station that played over the PA system.

I was amazed and dismayed at how far music had gone over the edge while I'd been grinding away over the books....

[dr_who_2]

Agreed. My Sharona was the pits.

[SALChamps03]

Tainted Love was done in one take, and on a very small budget, which makes it even more outstanding.

[dr_who_2]

If you say so.

[SALChamps03]

U2 has good music, but I will never buy any of their music after Bono went traipsing around Africa with Secretary of the Treasury Paul O'Neil begging for more American money to throw down that $h1thole.

[SamAdams76]

Actually Revolver and Rubber Soul showed that the Beatles were more than just a teeny-bobber band. Once they stopped touring in 1966, they really started writing songs. Hard to believe they did all they did in the span of about six years. An average band today might have two albums during that time span.

[SamAdams76]

Christmas music in general has some of the best songs ever written. I have thousands of Christmas songs in my collection and spend every November and December listening to them. I have about 60 versions of "O Holy Night" and I will not argue with you that it is one of the greatest songs ever written. My favorite version happens to be by Donna Summer (who put out an awesome "non-disco", very religious Christmas album).

The song is actually a good benchmark to determine whether you are a real singer or just a pretender.

[SamAdams76]

Many people are unaware that "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell was actually a cover version. A British singer named Gloria Jones had the original hit with it in 1964.

[KateatRFM]

I think the list was for songs since 1980 BTW...

Well, I didn't know everyone on Earth was born in 1980 ... what was I doing for the 32 years before that??????

[SamAdams76]

The Knack is a good example of the power the recording industry had back in those days to break an artist. There had to be a hundred bands more talented in the LA area alone. But Capitol Records was bound and determined to make them the next Beatles. If you look at the back of the album cover of their debut "Get The Knack", the black and white photo is very reminiscent of a typical shot of The Beatles in the early days, right down to "The Knack" stenciled on the drum kit.

The promoted the hell out of "My Sharona." I was getting Billboard magazine at the time and there were full page ads trumpeting this band before they even hit the charts. A lot of marketing hype and as a result, the first single went straight to number one and stayed there for a good part of the summer of 1979.

Subsequent Knack singles showed their limitations. On their next album, they released the single "Baby Talks Dirty" which totally rips off the riff from "My Sharona." They just weren't able to come up with anything new.

It is a good riff though. One of the most recognizable riffs in rock.

[Hardastarboard]

Any gay songs by ABBA.

As I recall the mathematical theory of sets and sub-sets from high school math, I believe sir, that that would be ANY song from ABBA, period, or in other words, ALL ABBA songs. There is no non-gay subset of ABBA songs. I await your mathematical proof that I am wrong.

[TrailofTears]

You missed the point.

[Pirogue Captain]

"Not all all, I know "The Bitch Is Back" very well as well as all Elton John's 1970s output. I'm talking about the ending part of "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" where it sounds like Elton's saying I'm a bitch, I'm a bitch, I'm a bitch tonight, tonight...I'm a bitch, I'm a bitch, I'm a bitch, I'm a bitch tonight, tonight, tonight...

Give it a listen and you'll see what I mean"



I guess I'll have to take your word for it for now. Not that I doubt you. I tried all evening to download the song, but it never would. lol I get it eventually.

[SALChamps03]

Many people are unaware that "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell was actually a cover version. A British singer named Gloria Jones had the original hit with it in 1964.

I was one of them. Thanks for the heads up.

[ConservativeStatement]

An ABBA-Led Zeppelin connection: Zepp's last studio release (1978-79) was released at ABBA's studio in Sweden. "In Through the Out Door" is the title. :-)

[ConservativeStatement]

Do you have any suggestions for "O Holy Night" in addition to the one by Aaron Neville that was previously recommended by a Freeper?

[SALChamps03]

Could Kurt Cobain have done that?

I have never understood the fascination with Cobain to begin with. Nirvana was around for just a few years. They were popular with the yuppie coffee drinker set in Seattle. A great American band they were not.