This weeks edition of songs with animals in the title takes us back more than 50 years ago to the age of glam. In 1975 The Sweet released their first self written Song and it was a kind of emancipation from Chinn/Chapman.
Chinn/Capman were the state of the art in writing and producing legendary pop songs in these days. They also produced Mud's greatest hit back in 1974.
The Osmonds described their sound as an evolution of heavy metal. Theymaywellseeitthatway, butformeitwasoneofthebettersongsfrom1972.
Last weekend a few of my pals watched the Stuttgart game for the Bundesliga and we were all disappointed by the result. Stuttgart were the far better team but they lost at home 0:1 at home against Freiburg. After we got over our frustration we went to a friends home to finish the afternoon, There was nothing more to do than talking and have good conversations until a friend started to play some music. Step by step each of us took over the controls and finally it was my decision DJing for half an hour. I didn't know much better than to go back to the early 70's to play some glam rock. We all enjoyed this evening and so it is a pleasure for me to kick you all back to music more than 50 years ago. Enjoy this little journey.
In the early 70s I have worked in my school holidays in a factory to have at disposal a little money. It was a heavy job, because I had to work with a colleague on a press to produce India rubber products which the society has made as automotive supplier for the automobile industry. We have stood every day at 6 o'clock in the morning to the pressing and have worked a high chord. After half an hour were completely sweaty and have lost a lot of body liquid. But I got a very good money and most of it I spent driving through Europe by trail. But I also spent a bit of this money on buying records. One of them I bought at this time was the first record by Joe Cocker. Since the first time I listened to his songs I got shiver on my skin. There was an a working man from Sheffield who sung after work in a band. His voice was very rough and you could her in it the pints and the whiskey he drunk. But it wasn't only his voice - he sung the soul out of himself. Sometimes you could hear him being happy about his love - but most of the times he sung about a love that wasted. I could feel the emotions that he shouted out in his songs. And everyone understood what distress he went through.
I remember the time very well when the boyfriend of my best mate's sister introduced me to the music of Joe Cocker. I were in this time as young boy into glam rock like T.Rex, Slade, The Sweet, Mud and all this stuff. Then I listened to this guy who grabbed out maybe the best songs of this decade to interpret in the way he was able to. Joe Cocker was the one who thought me listen to originals of real black music like Ray Charles and the other singers which got soul in their voices. This album might be his masterpiece (if we let go in front once the records outside which he has taken up in the time when it was a wreck in Jamaica). And with a little help from his friends meant that some of the best musicians at this time played on his first record: Jimmy Page, Albert Lee, Chris Stainton, Steve Winwood and on vocal Madeline Bell. I love this record because he had a superb choice of songs that fits to him and his way to sing them.
If you want you can get more of his career on Wiki. I don't agree in most of the songs he did the last 20 years. Some of them are superb, others don't need to be named. But for me he was an artist that lead me into another kind of musical genres. I wouldn't say that he was the one that guided me into soul but he was one of the few that grabbed MY soul while listening to his songs (the other one was Rod Steward - but this will be another story told throughout this series). Someone might name my choice as BOF-music but I stick to Mr. Cocker. He had more downs than ups in his career and I'm glad that he can earn the success to him is entitled. I get sentimental right now while I listen to his songs - so let's finish for today and maybe you can enjoy some of the song I present to you right now. It's one of the few record that accompanied me for long decades and I will never get tired to listening to. What I also love with Joe Cocker, he is which essential questions he throws in the round. For example the simple question: Do I still figure in your live If I still mean to you something in your life.
So let's raise our glasses to one of the best white singers throughout the last 40 years (knowing that he's got rid of this drug).
Stand the rest of the working week mates - Weekend is soon ahead.
Back in Europe after three weeks in Sri Lanka. Never had a jetlag like this before. Maybe I got too much years on by back to bear it like a 20 something. During my vacation I've got pretty much time to think about this and that and what's going on. I also had to let pass the opportunity in rest to reflect my present life in myself. Step by step I got the idea to post some of my minds the next months. Now it is 40 years ago I fell into music (someone will call it mania also). Throughout my whole life music was a part of it. The basic idea is to recapitulate every year with my (musical) education, historical events and other what was important. I try to present for every year a long-playing record which is important to me for this year. Maybe, however, even some songs. I have acquired these records not everyone this year, however, I try to return the mood of this time.
1974 was my last year in regular school, before I went to grammar school. It was also the first year I worked during summer break to earn some money to buy my a record player. After six weeks I've got enough money to get it and also my first long-playing records. I still remember how proud I was when I hold my first record in my hand. It was the triple record from YES - Yessongs. Not that I was in to this kind of music, but I thought that I got pretty much music for less money. And so thus synthie-sounds floated by my room daily. It was also the year I went to my first concert. Some older friends took me with to Munich to watch the Faces. Since then I was infected to the harder style of music. I was so much impressed of Rod Stewart and his physical presence on stage so that I knew that this would be the kind I want to have in future times.
Songs that were in the charts these year: Lot of Philly sound like MFSOP, Carl Douglas, ABBA because of ESC, and Mud that directed me into classic R'n'R
as well as Ace who told me the way of British Rhythm and Blues, Motown and all that stuff that was on their first record (by the way maybe one of the best record cover ever) Five-a-side.
During the next years I have discovered for myself the following records from this year and love qualified:
Van Morrison - It's too late to stop now
Gram Parsons - Grievous Angel
Lou Reed - Rock and Roll Animal
Loggins & Messina - On Stage
Stevie Wonder - Fulfillingness' First Finale
Minnie Riperton - Perfect Angel
Supertramp - Crime of The Century
Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
There was one record that was published this year that will be in my heart forever. It's from Joni Mitchell. Miles of Aisles is a 1974 double live album by Joni Mitchell backed by the L.A. Express, recorded on the Court and Spark tour. It reached #2 on the charts and became one of her biggest-selling records. Her backing band was filled with a lot of jazz and blues musicians like Robben Ford and John Guerin. I love this record for it's smooth sound, the clear voice of Joni Mitchel and also for her lyrics. The older I get the more I recognize her wisdom she had 40 years ago.
In this year Germany also won the world championship in football, although they were not the best team at all - but the most successful one. The best team in this tournament is still the team from Netherlands with their genius Johann Cruyff. Also the Polish team impressed me much. But the main reason to win this competition was that we had the probably best striker ever: Gerd Müller.
