I guess you can call this my "Ladies of Americana" post. Four fine albums that I struggled to pick a favourite from, all worthy of merit... so why not give them all a mention?
Courtney Marie Andrews - Old Flowers
I was undecided on Courtney Marie Andrews until this record. It convinced me.
I almost put this post to bed, and then I remembered the best of the bunch. Gretchen Peters recorded an album of songs written by Mickey (Just Dropped In To See What Condition My Condition Was In) Newbury. And every one's a belter...
45s. For most of us, our entry into record collecting. Long gone now, except as collector's items and special editions. But there was something very special about the 45. If you were going to go to the effort to put one song on the turntable, then you were damn well going to give that song your attention. That's something today's youth has lost, and I'd argue the songs they cherish might never mean as much to them because of that loss.
Alyson was the only one of you brave enough to mention former Golden Earring member Jaap Eggermont's Stars On 45 by name...
...although Charity Chic went one worse by reminding us of Rotherham's answer to Stars On 45... Jive Bunny! Let's hope that's the last time they ever get mentioned on this blog.
A slightly more worthy suggestion came from The Swede, in honour of Jez...
And then came Martin, who's obviously now using the same lyrics search engine I do, because he almost filled up the entire comment's box with this lot...
Gomez's "Bubble Gum Years" Whiskey bottle and a 45, my dear Fountains of Wayne: "Number 45 Sunblock"(I'm not sure if Martin actually listened to that one - but it's not a real song.) Neil Sedaka and "Our Last Song Together": Scratchy worn out 45's, an echo on the radio The Hollies, "Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress": A pair of 45s made me open my eyes Blondie's "Bermuda Triangle Blues" begins Flight 45, last seen alive on the runway
Elbow's "Jesus is a Rochdale Girl" has Jesus is a Rochdale girl, and 45 CDs Meatloaf and "Rock and Roll Hero": Stacks of scratched up 45's and taught myself how to sing Barry bleedin' Manilow (!) and "The Old Songs" includes if all those plans I made don't melt the lady's heart, I'll put on the old 45's (Oy! Less of the 'bleeding'!)
Saint Etienne's "Home": Life seems so good, they're like the 45's when I dream I'm dreaming of you" (Can't find that anywhere on youtube.)
Bill Haley (and many others) and "Peppermint Twist": Well, meet me baby down at 45th Street, where the Peppermint Twisters meet" (Couldn't find that anywhere either so I linked to the version by Joey Dee & The Starliters.)
Repeat offenders Saint Etienne with "Teenage Winter": They'll never buy a Gibb Brothers record again, their old 45s gathering dust (Possibly my favourite SE song, that.)
Aussie proggers The Church and "The Time Being" includes I use a .45 to give them some stick
I'm going to stop there, I think. I'm getting obsessed.
Van Morrison - "Wild Children" opens with
"We were the War Children
Born 1945
When all the soldiers came marching home
Love looks in their eye..."
and FINALLY!
Mary Chapin Carpenter - "John Doe No. 24" (a beautiful song) starts with
"I was standing on this sidewalk
In 1945 in Jacksonville, Illinois
When asked what my name was there came no reply..."
Now, you may have noticed I've missed out some of your suggestions there. That's because, two years ago, on the event of my 45th birthday, I actually compiled My Top Ten 45 Songs. And here they are...
Meanwhile, Rigid Digit - who's just about given up on trying to get me into Jim Kerr and his buddies - tried Marillion - White Feather, which contains the following lyric...
When I hit the streets back in '81 Found a heart in the gutter and a poet's crown I felt barbed wire kisses and icicle tears Where have I been for all these years?
Not in my collection either, but still more palatable than SM.
Much more my cup of tea (but sadly not yet in my collection) was Lynchie's suggestion: Candy & The Kisses - The 81. That would be a winner if I owned it.
Chris also came up with a suggestion I liked... but don't own... Roger Whittaker - New World In The Morning. Another lyrical 81... but that doesn't rule it out... as you'll see shortly.
I met a man who had a dream he'd had since he was twenty, I met that man when he was 81
If all those weren't in my collection... what was? I was struggling a bit this week. The only titular 81 I could find was this...
It's not bad. Actually, it's MAD. But it didn't really feel like a winner. So I went lyrics diving myself... and this is what I came up with. One of my favourite from MCC... great Tom Petty nod in the chorus.
All the way down 81
I've got some friends in Nashville
Atlanta it's been way too long
By morning I'll make Asheville
...all of which takes us to the last of the 80s: number 80. Any suggestions?
7. They failed Humpty Dumpty: the FBI were brought in to investigate their strong-arm tactics.
All the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Humpty together again.
Strong arm = Armstrong (Louis)
The Kingsmen were investigated by the FBI who suspected the lyrics to Louie Louie were either subversive or pornographic. They were actually just gibberish, as Todd Snider explains here.
