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Rambo John J

Eats things that would make a Billy Goat Puke
First 100
Jan 17, 2015
71,542
71,465
Dave's Song of the Day

Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In) – The First Edition

Monday song of the day: Today’s song was a psychedelic rock song that was the first hit for a band fronted by a singer who went on to be a country music icon.



Today most people think of Kenny Rogers as a 1970s and 1980s singer of cheesy country novelty songs like The Gambler and Coward of the County or sappy country ballads like Lady. He started his music career in the late 1950s singing jazz, then joined the folk music group the New Christy Minstrels in the early 1960s. In the late 1960s he was the lead singer and bass player for the rock group The First Edition.

The First Edition’s second single was a psychedelic song called Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In). The song was written by singer/songwriter Mickey Newbury and was a description of an LSD trip, as well as a warning against using the drug. The song was first recorded by Jerry Lee Lewis in May 1967. The Lewis version was more of a country arrangement. Although recorded in May, his version was not released until November 1967. A group called Terry Hill and The Southern Soul released a version a month before Lewis.

The version recorded by The First Edition was a psychedelic pop/rock arrangement, complete with some sections created by playing instrumental tracks backward. It was released as a single in January 1968, and became a hit following an appearance by the First Edition on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. Spurred on by the TV exposure, the record peaked at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100.

In July 1968, the song’s writer, Mickey Newbury, released his own version. While different from the cover by The First Edition, the arrangement had more in common with the rock of the hit record than the country version sung by Jerry Lee Lewis.

The First Edition went on to have several more hits, although the band’s musical style changed after this first hit. Gone was the psychedelic pop of Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In), replaced by a more country-rock style of later songs like Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town. Kenny Rogers gradually took more control of the band, so much so that in 1969 the name was changed to Kenny Rogers and The First Edition. In 1976, he left the band to start his long and successful solo career.

The song gained a new audience in 1998, when it was used in a dream sequence in the movie The Big Lebowski.

The First Edition, January 1968



Jerry Lee Lewis, May 1967



Mickey Newbury, July 1968



The Big Lebowski, 1998



Tomorrow: Teddy bears and Barbie dolls can’t boogie down
so cool
 

psychicdeath

Member
Jan 21, 2015
955
1,521
Dave's Song of the Day

I Get a Kick Out of You – Ethel Merman

Wednesday song of the day: Today’s song originated in a Broadway show, but had to have its lyrics changed for a movie adaptation of the musical due to Hollywood’s morality code.



In 1931, Cole Porter wrote a song for the play Star Dust, but ended up not using it in that production. Instead, he shelved it for possible later use. The song, I Get a Kick Out of You, listed things that didn’t thrill the singer, while the love object of the song did excite her. One of the things listed was flying, and a line referenced Charles Lindberg. In 1932, the Lindbergs’ baby was kidnapped and murdered, so Porter deleted this line from the song when he did decide to include it in the 1934 musical Anything Goes.

The play was produced on Broadway and Ethel Merman was cast as Reno Sweeney, the character who sings I Get a Kick Out of You in a nightclub scene. The play opened in November 1934, and the next month a recording of Ethel Merman singing the song backed by Johnny Green and his Orchestra was released. It proved popular, but included the lines:

Some get a kick from cocaine
I’m sure that if
I took even one sniff
That would bore me terrifically, too
Yet, I get a kick out of you

The reference to cocaine was fine for the Broadway stage, but in 1934 Hollywood established the Production Code Administration to enforce the Hays Code, which set censorship guidelines for films. Under the Code, references to drug use were forbidden, so the first line of that verse was changed to “Some like the perfume in Spain” for the 1936 film adaptation of the play. Once again, Ethel Merman performed I Get a Kick Out of You, this time with the altered line.

The song has been covered almost 300 times by numerous artists, including Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Dolly Parton, among many others. Some used the original lyrics and some the censored version, Sinatra recorded it a few times, some referencing cocaine and some replacing it with perfume.

In the 1974 film Blazing Saddles, Cleavon Little as the character Bart performs part of the song using the “cocaine” version of the lyrics when a railroad construction boss asks for a work song.

Ethel Merman 1934



Ethel Merman 1936, from the film version of Anything Goes



Blazing Saddles,
1974



Tomorrow: You can find it all in the street.

 

Grateful Dude

TMMAC Addict
May 30, 2016
8,925
14,261
Dave's Song of the Day

I Get a Kick Out of You – Ethel Merman

Wednesday song of the day: Today’s song originated in a Broadway show, but had to have its lyrics changed for a movie adaptation of the musical due to Hollywood’s morality code.



In 1931, Cole Porter wrote a song for the play Star Dust, but ended up not using it in that production. Instead, he shelved it for possible later use. The song, I Get a Kick Out of You, listed things that didn’t thrill the singer, while the love object of the song did excite her. One of the things listed was flying, and a line referenced Charles Lindberg. In 1932, the Lindbergs’ baby was kidnapped and murdered, so Porter deleted this line from the song when he did decide to include it in the 1934 musical Anything Goes.

The play was produced on Broadway and Ethel Merman was cast as Reno Sweeney, the character who sings I Get a Kick Out of You in a nightclub scene. The play opened in November 1934, and the next month a recording of Ethel Merman singing the song backed by Johnny Green and his Orchestra was released. It proved popular, but included the lines:

Some get a kick from cocaine
I’m sure that if
I took even one sniff
That would bore me terrifically, too
Yet, I get a kick out of you

The reference to cocaine was fine for the Broadway stage, but in 1934 Hollywood established the Production Code Administration to enforce the Hays Code, which set censorship guidelines for films. Under the Code, references to drug use were forbidden, so the first line of that verse was changed to “Some like the perfume in Spain” for the 1936 film adaptation of the play. Once again, Ethel Merman performed I Get a Kick Out of You, this time with the altered line.

The song has been covered almost 300 times by numerous artists, including Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Dolly Parton, among many others. Some used the original lyrics and some the censored version, Sinatra recorded it a few times, some referencing cocaine and some replacing it with perfume.

In the 1974 film Blazing Saddles, Cleavon Little as the character Bart performs part of the song using the “cocaine” version of the lyrics when a railroad construction boss asks for a work song.

Ethel Merman 1934



Ethel Merman 1936, from the film version of Anything Goes



Blazing Saddles,
1974



Tomorrow: You can find it all in the street.
I've been on a 40s kick for the past couple of months, and while this is from a bit earlier, it fits right in with the playlist I've been putting together. Keep it up man, I enjoy your daily songs!

I have this version in my playlist:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYxgqZVlBU0
 

Daglord

Posting Machine
Jan 26, 2015
1,375
1,944
On 30 January 1969, the Beatles enacted the final public performance of their career with an unannounced concert held from the rooftop of their Apple Corps headquarters at 3 Savile Row, within central London's office and fashion district. Joined by keyboardist Billy Preston on electric piano, the band played a 42-minute set before the Metropolitan Police asked them to reduce the volume.

Although the concert was conceived just days before, the Beatles were planning a return to live performances throughout the early sessions for their album Let It Be (1970). They performed nine takes of five songs as crowds of onlookers, many of whom were on their lunch break, congregated in the streets and on the roofs of local buildings.

As police ascended to the roof, the Beatles realised that the concert would eventually be shut down, but continued to play for several more minutes. Paul McCartney improvised the lyrics of his song "Get Back" to reflect the situation: "You've been playing on the roofs again, and you know your Momma doesn't like it; she's going to have you arrested!" The concert came to an end with the conclusion of "Get Back", with Lennon saying, "I'd like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves and I hope we've passed the audition.

 

psychicdeath

Member
Jan 21, 2015
955
1,521
Dave's Song of the Day

Across 110th Street – Bobby Womack

Thursday song of the day: Today’s song has endured, while the movie for which it served as a theme song is mostly forgotten.



In the early 1970s, blaxsploitation films were all the rage. In 1971, Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song and Shaft popularized the genre, which consisted of action films featuring black protagonists. These heroes or antiheroes could be on either side of the law. One of the films produced to cash in on the trend was Across 110th Street.

The 1972 film starred Yaphet Kotto and Anthony Quinn as cops trying to track down thieves who robbed a Mafia business before the mob itself finds them. Across 110th Street did adequately but not great at the box office, and is not widely remembered today. Within the genre, it doesn’t carry the same nostalgia as Shaft, Superfly, Foxy Brown, or The Mack.

The theme song, on the other hand, is a minor classic of 70s R&B. Written by Bobby Womack and J.J. Johnson, the song encapsulates the economic, drug, and crime problems of Harlem in the early 1970s. Womack performed the song for the film, backed by a group known as Peace. It was released as a single in February 1973 and peaked at #19 on the Billboard R&B chart and #56 on the larger Hot 100 chart. While this did not rank it as a leading commercial success of its time, it is very fondly remembered in retrospect, particularly after being heavily featured in Quentin Tarrantino’s 1997 film Jackie Brown.



Tomorrow: Dancing in the dark to the radio of love
 
Last edited:
M

member 603

Guest
One of my all time favorite albums and bands..... This is a DEEP cut. The band is Nicklebag.... Not those Canadian puffs that silentsinger @Otis Driftwood is in love with, but a group that featured phenomenal vocalist Bernard Fowler (who is a backing vocalist for the Rolling Stones, Mick Jagger, and other great artists), and guitar wizard Stevie Salas who played with Funkadelic on tour, and on numerous albums as a session player. The album featured a ton of other great players like bassists Doug Wimbish of Living Colour fame, T.M. Stevens, and drummers like old Pearl Jam drummer Dave Abbruzzese. Their album "12 Hits and a Bump" came out in 95-96 I believe, and had some awesome tracks like Love Song, Grow, Sweet Thang.... It also had this awesome cover of a Stevie Wonder song....


View: https://youtu.be/8hZbTIoqF-Y


And this song, is probably my most favorite song on the album, it's a GREAT song to jam with...


View: https://youtu.be/GLxEDrek9hg


Love this album, the sound and vibe is just amazing, so I had to psychicdeath @psychicdeath a post in here LOL (LOVE your posts in here PD... Are you familiar with this album?)
 

psychicdeath

Member
Jan 21, 2015
955
1,521
One of my all time favorite albums and bands..... This is a DEEP cut. The band is Nicklebag.... Not those Canadian puffs that silentsinger @Otis Driftwood is in love with, but a group that featured phenomenal vocalist Bernard Fowler (who is a backing vocalist for the Rolling Stones, Mick Jagger, and other great artists), and guitar wizard Stevie Salas who played with Funkadelic on tour, and on numerous albums as a session player. The album featured a ton of other great players like bassists Doug Wimbish of Living Colour fame, T.M. Stevens, and drummers like old Pearl Jam drummer Dave Abbruzzese. Their album "12 Hits and a Bump" came out in 95-96 I believe, and had some awesome tracks like Love Song, Grow, Sweet Thang.... It also had this awesome cover of a Stevie Wonder song....


View: https://youtu.be/8hZbTIoqF-Y


And this song, is probably my most favorite song on the album, it's a GREAT song to jam with...


View: https://youtu.be/GLxEDrek9hg


Love this album, the sound and vibe is just amazing, so I had to psychicdeath @psychicdeath a post in here LOL (LOVE your posts in here PD... Are you familiar with this album?)
I'm familiar with the band only in passing. I've heard of them, but can't say that I've listened to them. I've definitely heard things that Salas and Fowler have guested on, though.
 

psychicdeath

Member
Jan 21, 2015
955
1,521
Dave's Song of the Day

Lights Out – Peter Wolf

Friday song of the day: Today’s song is the biggest solo hit for the frontman of a band that was moderately successful in the 1970s, and very successful in the early 1980s.



While the J. Geils band was named after its lead guitar player, the main focus was on its singer Peter Wolf. The band was formed in the 1960s, and had several top 40 hits in the 1970s. They reached a commercial peak with 1981’s Freeze-Frame album. The singles Centerfold and Freeze-Frame made #1 and #4 respectively on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and the associated videos were huge MTV hits. This propelled the album itself to #1 on the album chart, and it sold over a million copies in the United States to earn Platinum certification.

While they had just reached their commercial peak, tensions within the band on its musical direction surfaced. These caused Peter Wolf to either leave the band or be fired in 1983, depending on who you believe. Wolf insists he was fired. In a June 2016 interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, he explained, “I felt that MTV was becoming the message and the medium and I also felt that we had made a certain contribution, but there was an aspect of our roots that we needed to re-establish and not become just a fun, novelty band. I did not leave the band, but the majority of the band wanted to move in another direction and the direction I wanted to pursue was not the one they wanted to go. They wanted to continue in a pop-techno way. It wasn’t my thing.”

As a result, he took several of the songs he had written that were intended for the J. Geils Band and instead recorded them as his debut solo album, Lights Out. The 1984 album had three singles make the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The biggest of these was the title track, a song about dancing in the dark (or possibly a euphemism for sex). The Lights Out single placed at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Three years later he had another hit when Come as You Are peaked at #15 on the Hot 100 chart. That was his last Top 40 hit, although he has continued to perform and record. The most recent of his eight solo albums was released in 2016.

As for The J. Geils Band, they released one album without Peter Wolf in 1984, then disbanded in 1985. Beginning in 1999, the band has had a few reunions which have included Peter Wolf, with the latest reunion tour ending in 2015. The band’s namesake, guitarist John Warren Geils, Jr. passed away in 2017 at the age of 71.



Tomorrow: While another day goes down the drain
 

silentsinger

Momofuku
Jun 23, 2015
21,038
14,484
Brand new Incubus. tomcruisejumpingupanddownonoprah'ssofa.gif

@Rhino thoughts on headstockless bass/guitar? I know they don't go out of tune but they look like a circumcision gone wrong to me.

 

silentsinger

Momofuku
Jun 23, 2015
21,038
14,484
@Rhino

Cheers for the funny rating :D but it was an actual legit question. I haven't worked on one before. I know technology evolves. I just don't like the look of them, I don't know if there's any difference in playing other than them not going out of tune.
 
M

member 603

Guest
@Rhino

Cheers for the funny rating :D but it was an actual legit question. I haven't worked on one before. I know technology evolves. I just don't like the look of them, I don't know if there's any difference in playing other than them not going out of tune.
I've never been a fan of them... Steinberger was famous for them in the 80's.... I think they were trying to create a new wave/neo-futuristic looking guitar and bass. They were ugly AF, and they didn't sound that great to me
 

silentsinger

Momofuku
Jun 23, 2015
21,038
14,484
I've never been a fan of them... Steinberger was famous for them in the 80's.... I think they were trying to create a new wave/neo-futuristic looking guitar and bass. They were ugly AF, and they didn't sound that great to me
First bass I've seen in that Incubus vid but I'm seeing more and more guitars. I might go and have a play around with one and then buy a cheap one so I can undo it before selling it on. Unchartered territory.
 
M

member 603

Guest
First bass I've seen in that Incubus vid but I'm seeing more and more guitars. I might go and have a play around with one and then buy a cheap one so I can undo it before selling it on. Unchartered territory.
That's awesome..... Just.... Don't play guitar like you speak.... It'll just confuse everyone, and no one will like it :tearsofjoy: