Nothing Wrong With Feeling Good

Nothing Wrong With Feeling Good….

It has been a rough few weeks. The news coming from different outlets seems to be the kind in which you just feel blah and can get your spirits down instantly. There is nothing wrong with making yourself feel good or happy.


If you Google, “how to feel happy” you are inundated with pages on pages of articles, blogs, images, lists, and other items to help you get to your happy place. One of the lists that I thought was interesting was from Life Hack http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/10-simple-ways-make-you-feel-good-instantly.html 

I particularly enjoyed the items that talked about singing and dancing (this is a blog about music after all). I thought what I could do to help you get to your happy place is to list some of my favorite songs that I like to belt out or dance to when I am in a rotten mood.


Now these songs don't necessarily talk about happy situations, but for me it is the beat or the tune that gets me going.



So here you are folks, songs to make you feel good.  What songs are on your list?

Feeling Good: Nina Simone

Good Vibrations: Beach Boys

Hey Baby: Bruce Channel

Dancing Queen: ABBA

Fidelity: Regina Spektor

Grace Kelly: MIKA

I Want You Back: Jackson 5

Jump In The Line: Harry Belafonte

I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles): The Proclaimers

1234-Feist

Soul Finger: The Bar-Kays

Glory Days: Bruce Springsteen

Louie Louie:The Kingsmen

Buona Sera: Louis Prima

I Feel Good: James Brown

Forget the Brexit, Let's Talk Brinvasion

We have all been reading recently about the vote of Great Britain to leave the E.U. (European Union) commonly known as the "Brexit". What I would like to do in this post is to take our minds off the Brexit and remember the Brinvasion, (ok I totally made that up) the time in music where British music, pop-culture, fashion and counterculture all came to the U.S.

I will highlight some of my favorite groups of the British Invasion era and although we won't get into the great debate over who is better between The Beatles and The Rolling Stones I will mention a few of my favorites from them. I will post soon about which of those bands are better (spoiler alert: it is not The Beatles).

If you are not offended and still reading, let's talk about the British Invasion before jumping into the music. If you’d told a randomly selected group of American music fans in the spring of 1962 that a British act would soon achieve total dominance of the American pop scene, change the face of music and fashion and inspire a generation of future pop stars to take up an instrument and join a band, they would probably have scratched their heads and struggled to imagine such a thing. Up to that point, the single, solitary Briton ever to have reached the top of the American charts in the rock and roll era was a man by the name of Mr. Acker Bilk. His instrumental single, “Stranger On the Shore” provided the first, false hint of the British Invasion to come when it went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on May 26, 1962.

Fast forward two years to February 7 the day the Beatles arrived in New York for their inaugural U.S. visit, and two days later played on The Ed Sullivan Show to hysterical response and record viewership, causing a cultural shift and triggering a musical movement that would come to be known as the British Invasion.

In the 1964–65 period, British acts were at No. 1 for an astounding 56 weeks combined. In 1963 a mere three singles by British artists cracked the American Top 40. In 1964, 65 did, and in 1965, a further 68 did. Beyond all the statistics, the English musicians who came to America between 1964 and 1966 found themselves in the grip of a craze that made them irresistibly chic and sexy no matter what their background—London or Liverpool, middle class or working class, art school or tradesman’s apprentice, skiffle or trad jazz, America lapped it all up. The cultural exchange proved beneficial to both sides: the Brits, still very much in the throes of postwar privation, saw their nascent “swinging” youth culture further developed, their country abruptly transformed from black-and-white to color; the Americans, still very much in mourning for John F. Kennedy, were administered a needed dose of fun, and, thus re-invigorated, resumed the youthquake that had lapsed into dormancy when Elvis joined the army.

There are many books on the Brinvasion I encourage you to read including  "British Pop Invasion: How British music conquered the sixties" and "British Invasion: The Crosscurrents of Musical Influence".

Now to some of my favorite groups.....then we will chat Beatles vs. Stones

The Animals
The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their signature song and transatlantic No. 1 hit single, "The House of the Rising Sun", as well as by hits such as "We Gotta Get out of This Place", "It's My Life", "I'm Crying" and "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood". The band balanced tough, rock-edged pop singles against rhythm and blues-oriented album material.

We Gotta Get Out of This Place

Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood

Dave Clark Five
The Dave Clark Five (also known as "The DC5") single "Glad All Over" knocked the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" off the top of the UK Singles Chart in January 1964; it peaked at number 6 in the United States in April 1964."Over And Over" was a number 1 single in the United States for the group in December 1965. They were the second group of the British Invasion on The Ed Sullivan Show, appearing in March for two weeks after the Beatles appeared three straight weeks in February 1964. For some time the Dave Clark Five was more popular in the US than in their native UK, but had a renaissance in the UK between 1967 and 1970.

Bits and Pieces

Over and Over

Herman's Hermits

The Hermits' first hit was a cover of Earl-Jean's "I'm into Something Good" (written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King), which reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart and No. 13 in the US in late 1964. They never topped the British charts again, but had two US Billboard Hot 100 No.1s with "Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter"  and "I'm Henry the Eighth, I Am".  Herman's Hermits had four Top 3 hits in the US in 1965, with the aforementioned No. 1 hits and "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat" (US No. 2).  "Silhouettes" (US No. 5), Sam Cooke's "Wonderful World" (US No. 4), "Just a Little Bit Better" (US No. 7), and "A Must to Avoid" (US No. 8) in 1965; "Listen People" (US No. 3), "Leaning on a Lamp Post" from Me and My Girl (US No. 9), and the Ray Davies song "Dandy" (US No. 5) in 1966; and "There's a Kind of Hush" (US No. 4) in 1967. 

There's A Kind of Hush

Into Something Good

I Am Henry the VIII

The Zombies

Long before the Walking Dead took zombies to a pop culture phenomenon, the group The Zombies scored British and American hits in 1964 with "She's Not There". In the US two further singles, "Tell Her No" in 1965 and "Time of the Season" in 1969, were also successful. Their 1968 album Odessey and Oracle is ranked number 100 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Time of the Season

She's Not There

The Beatles vs. The Rolling Stones

So there are many arguments to be made on which is the best band between these two. I think it all comes down to individual tastes. I prefer the Stones, but that's not to say I do not like some songs from the Beatles. 

Please check out the book below for a great read on this great rivalry.

Favorite Beatles Songs of mine:

Do You Want to Know a Secret

Love Me Do

All My Loving

From Me to You

Eight Days a Week

We Can Work it Out

All You Need is Love

Favorite Stones Songs of mine:

Start Me Up

Paint it Black

Sympathy for the Devil

Beast of Burden

Get Off of My Cloud

You Can't Always Get What You Want

Honky Tonk Women

Miss You

OK readers, there you have a little history on the British Invasion. Did I miss one of your favorites? If so, who? Do you dare chime in on the Beatles/Stones debate? 

Until next time!

A Sequel of Sorts or The Blog Part 2 

Well, after a (brief?) almost five year break, I have decided to pick up the blog about music that I liked to write.

Not sure if I will get any more readers or comments, but I figured I had fun when I did it, so why not bring it back? Picking it back up where I left off makes me think of this outing as a sequel of what I started. Sequels are not rare anymore thanks to the slew of them we see each summer thanks to our local movie theaters.  Did you know this year there are 36 movie sequels coming to your local Cineplex? I will admit I will most likely see a majority of them :).

A blog "sequel" and movie sequels got me thinking about sequels to songs, I mean, after all this is a blog about music! So what I have attempted to do in this return is to list a few of my favorite song sequels with their originals some you may know, but my hope is some are new to you.

As always, I welcome your comments and for you to let me know what song sequels from this list or your own list you enjoy.


It is good to be back, see you next time!


Ain’t That A Shame? and Walking to New Orleans –Fats Domino 

I am a fan of Fats Domino and if you have not listened to his greatest hits you are missing out on some great music from the early days of Rock and Roll. He released five gold (million-copy-selling) records before 1955 and had 35 hit records in the U.S. Top 40. His musical style is based on traditional rhythm and blues, accompanied by saxophones, bass, piano, electric guitar and drums.

"Ain’t That A Shame" is a heartache song about a breakup that was the other partner's fault. Domino wrote it with Dave Bartholomew, who worked on most of Domino's hits. This was the first song to crossover from the R&B charts to the mostly white pop charts of the day.

Like several other songs previously heard exclusively in black bars or nightclubs, this was covered by the crooning Pat Boone. Concerned about how educated, upper-class whites would respond to the title, he originally wanted it changed to "Isn't That a Shame," but the producers realized the original title would sell better and kept it.

"Walking to New Orleans" was the sequel in which the main character of “Shame” picks up the pieces, leaves, and goes back to his hometown. Written by Booby Charles who said Fats was a hero of his, the song took on the sequel vibe when Fats himself added a quote to the lyrics from his other song written 5 years earlier.

Spoiler alert: Most of the songs here are from the golden oldies era of music. Some tell a story that needed an ending, while some like "The Twist", was a cash cow for the music industry.

 The Twist and Let’s Twist Again- Chubby Checker

The twist is a dance that was inspired by rock and roll music. From 1959 to the early sixties it became the first worldwide dance craze, enjoying immense popularity among all people and drawing fire from critics who felt it was too provocative. It inspired dances such as the Jerk, the Pony, the Watusi, the Mashed Potato, the Monkey, and the Funky Chicken, but none were as popular. The dance became passé among teenagers as it became acceptable among adults and the song was re-released, becoming a number one hit again in 1962, because of its sequel.

"Let's Twist Again" is one of the biggest hit singles of 1961, it reached #2 in the UK and #8 on the U.S. Billboard pop chart. The song received the 1962 Grammy Award for Best Rock & Roll Recording. Checker also recorded the song in German as "Der Twist Beginnt" and in Italian as "Balliamo il Twist".

 Johnny B. Goode and Bye Bye Johnny- Chuck Berry

Thanks to Marty McFly going back to the future you know the story of a poor boy who could play the guitar just like ringing a bell, "Johnny B. Goode". However you may not know of "Bye Bye Johnny" in which Johnny’s mom says goodbye to him as he starts his career with his name in lights. It tells the story of Johnny post "B. Goode" and how his momma deals with it.


Devil Went Down To and Came Back To Georgia-Charlie Daniels and Friends 

Now to a different Johnny. Hopefully you know the story of the epic “fiddle” battle between the devil and Johnny. Did you know the devil dared to come back to Georgia for a rematch? A sequel to the original song, titled "The Devil Comes Back to Georgia", was recorded by Daniels and fiddle player Mark O'Connor in 1993, featuring guest performances by Travis Tritt (as the devil), Marty Stuart (as Johnny) and Johnny Cash as the narrator. In the sequel, the now-adult Johnny is married and has a child. Hoping to take advantage of Johnny's sinful pride, the Devil challenges him to a rematch.

The Devil snatches the Golden Fiddle from Johnny, and demands that he practice with his old fiddle to play against him. The ending does not state the victor outright, though the music video suggests Johnny won, as does the line "Johnny's still the best that's ever been". Do you think we will see a round three between these two?

It’s My Party and Judy’s Turn To Cry- Leslie Gore 

Oh the teenage drama! Oh the cash cow, needed to make record labels a success!

When "It's My Party" entered the Billboard Hot 100 on May 11, 1963, Gore's label, Mercury Records rushed to record a sequel. The sequel, "Judy's Turn to Cry," was recorded on May 14, 1963. In "It's My Party," the singer was in tears because her boyfriend Johnny left with her best friend Judy at her birthday party.

In "Judy's Turn to Cry," the singer kisses another boy at another party in order to make Johnny jealous and Johnny hits the other boy and returns to her, (as one does?)

In the chorus, which also opens the song, the triumphant singer gloats that "Well now it's Judy's turn to cry, Judy's turn to cry, Judy's turn to cry; 'cause Johnny's come back to me." Until then the singer's "tears just fell like rain drops" because "Judy's smile was so mean."

With its emphasis on crying, in this case Judy rather than the singer, the song fit in with the theme of the album I'll Cry If I Want To, in which most of the songs involved someone crying. It is like a soap opera for your ears, people!

I love a song that tells a good story, so I will round out these twelve (13) songs with a story set in the West Texas town of El Paso.

That’s right for the final song we get a trilogy!

El Paso, Feleena, and El Paso City- Marty Robbins 

"El Paso" is about a cowboy who shot another cowboy in defense of his girlfriend. He tried to flee but her love brought him back to the town where tragically, he was gunned down.

"Feelena" tells the story of the girl and what she saw on those fateful days of the song "El Paso."  "El Paso City" is really cool; because it is one part ghost story and one part past life supernatural experience. The main protagonist is a passenger on an airplane flying over El Paso and he is looking out the window he is compelled to recall the song he heard long ago ("El Paso"). He fails to recall the man who sang "El Paso," but immediately senses a connection to the story. He wonders to himself, "Could it be that I could be the cowboy in this mystery," suggesting a past life. The arrangement of "El Paso City" includes riffs and themes from "El Paso" and "Feleena."


There are your sequel songs folks. There are many more out there I would love to share with you, maybe I will make a “part two” to this list.


** Honorable Mentions:
Snoopy vs. The Red Baron and The Red Baron Returns
Big Bad John and The Cajun Queen
Peggy Sue and Peggy Sue Got Married