Namesakes #192: Dawn

Welcome to a new day. But are any of these Dawns worth getting up for...?

DAWN #1

We start with this "East Coast" (I'm guessing New York, not Scarborough) act from the mid-60s, occasionally partnered with Billy, as seen above, although here she is on her own...

Dawn - Can't Get Him Off My Mind

DAWN #2

Philadelphia radio station WIBG (known affectionately as Wibbage) published its own promo magazines featuring charts and articles about the artists they were playing. Here's a quote from the July 15, 1967 issue...

"Dawn, Hailing from South Philadelphia, is a 16 year-old St. Maria Goretti sophomore who has had several releases that didn't happen but is climbing local and nationals charts with 'I'm Afraid They're All Talking About Me.' Dawn recently ran 5th in the Wibbage favourite artist contest, placing with names like The Monkees, The Supremes, The Beatles and The Four Seasons. Because of the great popularity of 'I'm Afraid They're All Talking About Me.' Laurie Records is planning an album soon."

I'm afraid they stopped talking about her soon after.

Dawn - I'm Afraid They're All Talking About Me

DAWN #3

New York singer Tony Orlando had been releasing records throughout the 60s with limited success, becoming a music exec in the latter part of the decade. It was a this point that he came across the song Candida, which had been rejected by other artists, by Tony thought could be a hit. Due to a conflict of interest, he couldn't record the track under his own name, so he created the alias Frankie Spinelli, drafted in a backing group (including Brill Building songwriter Cynthia Weil and Jay Siegel from The Tokens) and released the track incognito. Following the success of Candida, Dawn went on to record an entire album - including Number One hit Knock Three Times - with the true identities of the performers remaining hidden.

Demand increased for the band to go on tour, at which point Orlando drafter in two former Motown/Stax vocalists, Telma Hopkins and Joyce Vincent Wilson, and finally revealed his true identity to the world. After this, the band became known as Dawn featuring Tony Orlando, and eventually Tony Orlando & Dawn... I think we can all work out what was going on there. When they Tied A Yellow Ribbon Round The Old Oak Tree in 1973, they had the best-selling single in the UK charts for that year.  

Fortunately, my favourite track by these guys is their earlier Number One, from when they were just called Dawn...

Dawn - Knock Three Times

DAWN #4

Lovers' Rock, from 1981. It's possible they once swallowed a fly.

Dawn - I Don't Know Why

DAWNN #5

Funky thangs with an extra N from New York in 1984...

Dawnn - Funky Thang

THE DAWN #6

Starting in 1987, and still kicking around last year, "The Dawn is considered the longest-lived and most prolific rock band in the Philippines" according to somebody on discogs with editing privileges. 

The Dawn - Enveloped Ideas

DAWN #7

Late 80s soul, possibly from Detroit, produced by Doris Dozier who might be related to Lamont, or might just be a Namesake. Still, former Maths teachers might appreciate the sentiment...

Dawn - Teacher, Teacher

DAWN #8

Housey housey stuff from 1993. Better than most of its ilk, because I like the piano.

Other Housey Housey acts called Dawn were available... but I spared you.

Dawn - Freedom

DAWN #9

Swedish Death Metal band from the 90s. Fans still complain of migraines, 30 years later.

Other Death Metal bands called Dawn were available... but I spared you.

Dawn - The Knell And The World

DAWN #10

And if that was too loud for you, try some symphonic prog from Switzerland in 1996.

Dawn - Rain On The Moon

THE DAWN #11

Dawn With A Smile On Their Face. British "heavy-psych band" from the late 90s. Sounding a bit like early The Verve, only with louder guitars.

The Dawn - Five Days Wiser

THE DAWN #12

Danish pop-rock band from 1998, fortunately not covering the Black Lace song.

The Dawn - Superman

DAWN #13

Danish trance-producer "who began listening to electronic music at the age of 3." There ought to be a law. 

Dawn - Luna

DAWN #14

Dawn to be wild. Japanese punk band from 2015.

Dawn - Nothing

DAWN #15

Aussie "Stoner Doom" from 2016. "From the murky depths of the abyss, heavy riffs and slow mesmeric hymns are celebrated." If I were stoned, I'd rather listen to Creedence.

Dawn - Zombies

DAWN #16

K-pop Dawn dude, big with da Tiktok crowd. Tiktok will melt your brain, by the way, and prevent you from being able to engage with anything longer than 30 seconds. I would tell you this, but if you regularly use TikTok, you gave up reading this post a long time ago.

Dawn - Money

DAWN #17

And finally, an LA rapper from last year...

Dawn - A Flex

Would you have been better off staying in bed?

Snapshots Spillover: More Hospital Songs

When I'm putting Snapshot together, I try to get a mix of bands that haven't featured often before, which means that some of the usual suspects and old favourites end up on the operating room floor...

Manic Street Preachers - Roses In The Hospital

Goldfrapp - A&E

Art Brut - Maternity Ward 

Art Brut - Hospital!

Frightened Rabbit - State Hospital

Morrissey - The Operation

The Fall - Mr. Pharmacist

And then there are those less obvious contenders who I'm forced to leave out for no other reason than I doubt anybody would ever identify them.

Fuzztones - Ward 81

The Amatones - Plastic Surgeon

The Veils - Night Thoughts Of A Tired Surgeon

Engineers - Emergency Room

Jad Fair & Yo La Tengo - X-Ray Reveals Doctor Left Wristwatch Inside Patient

But there were loads of leftovers this week. I guess everybody just loves singing about hospitals...

UFO - Doctor Doctor

Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros - X-Ray Style

St. Vincent - Surgeon

Wire - Surgeon's Girl

Cold War Kids - Hospital Beds

Robyn Hitchcock - Surgery

Trashcan Sinatras - The Therapist

Silver Sun - Patients

Neil Ray - The Medic 

That's the b-side of a song called Big Fanny. I don't know why I'm telling you that.

Jimmy Hughes - The Loving Physician

John Manning - Free Clinic Song

But we'll close today with an old favourite. I'm a big fan of the Robert Palmer version, but here's the original by the wonderful Moon Martin...

Snapshots #451: Hospital Songs

Nobody wants to spend their Sunday morning in hospital, so let's get you through this procedure as quickly and painlessly as possible - stat!

15. Batman.

Well, he has been known to chew on them.

Ozzy Osborne - Patient No. 9

14. And the nonchemical reef will leave you perplexed.

"And the nonchemical reef" was an anagram for Florence (Welch) And The Machine (aka Isabella Summers).

Florence & The Machine - Hospital Beds

13. Film director with a singular vision meets a bloke known for his twitchy eyeballs.

An Auteur and a bloke from R.E.M.

Luke Haines & Peter Buck - Rock 'n' Roll Ambulance

12. Turned out nice again.

Sunny - Doctor's Orders

11. Continental cops.

Interpol - Specialist

10. Plonker finds murder in bloody place.

Rodney was a plonker with a crow* in 'ell. (*From a murder of crows.)

Rodney Crowell - Triage

9. You think that you're strong, Rocky Balboa? You're wrong.

Lyrics from a Robbie Williams song, with added Sly Stallone.

Sly & Robbie - Night Nurse

8. The French had a good winter.

"Bon hiver" means good winter in French.

Bon Iver - Blood Bank

7. Opaline or Spangle?

Two types of budgerigar.

Budgie - Crash Course in Brain Surgery

6. Superman's pal goes to work for Charlie.

Superman's Pal is Jimmy Olsen. Charlie employed Angels.

Angel Olsen - Sister

...or you could have...

Angel Olsen - Intern

5. He's not been the same since Dolby died.

"Dolby died" was an anagram.

Bo Diddley - Pills

Call for the Rock 'n' Roll nurse!

4. This klew cud realy youse these guyz.

Editors - Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors

3. Clive Powell doesn't have quite the same ring.

Clive Powell is the real name of...

Georgie Fame - St. James Infirmary

2. Orton.

    Houghton.

Beth Orton.

Beth Jean Houghton.

Ditto!

Beth Ditto - Open Heart Surgery

1. Hard rock Scott, found in banjo-violin combo.

Bon Scott + banjo-violin.

Bon Jovi - Bad Medicine

Hopefully you'll all make a full recovery and be discharged in time for next week's Snapshots.

Saturday Snapshots #451

We are detective!

We are select!

We are detective!

Come to connect!

Welcome, fellow detectives, to the quiz that asks you to select the correct identity of the people below... then work out the connection between their songs. Simples, as that annoying meerkat says.

15. Batman.

14. And the nonchemical reef will leave you perplexed.

13. Film director with a singular vision meets a bloke known for his twitchy eyeballs.

12. Turned out nice again.

11. Continental cops.

10. Plonker finds murder in bloody place.

9. You think that you're strong, Rocky Balboa? You're wrong.

8. The French had a good winter.

7. Opaline or Spangle?

6. Superman's pal goes to work for Charlie.

5. He's not been the same since Dolby died.

4. This klew cudrealy youse these guyz.

3. Clive Powell doesn't have quite the same ring.

2. Orton.

    Houghton.

1. Hard rock Scott, found in banjo-violin combo.

Answers tomorrow morning.

Guest Post Friday: A Top Ten Dairy Songs

It's been a hectic week here at Top Ten Towers - not much time for blogging.

Fortunately, George was ready to step in...

A few days ago, in the must-listen-to-every-song-all-the-way-through Namesakes series, Rol wrote that despite the title of his blog he does not actually write a Top Ten piece any more. (I'm glad to see George is finally calling that series by its proper name.) I emailed him to say that I had started several but never got to ten songs. Well, now I have. So here it is. A “Top Ten Dairy Songs”. A teacher of English would know: is it ironic that a top ten dairy list is compiled by a vegan? (Yes.)

The songs below are not in any order of preference.

1. Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band - Ice Cream for Crow

The title track of his last album, and a rollicking great, almost rockabilly, song.

Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band - Ice Cream for Crow

How insanely catchy is that riff? Maybe this is the best song in the list.

2. Hot Butter - Popcorn

Readers older than Rol might remember this hit from 1972.

Hot Butter - Popcorn

In parts it sounds a game of pong gone mad. I’ve done a Rol here in stretching/ignoring the rule that the song itself must pertain to the title, but I can’t see any objection coming from either Rol or regular reader Ernie.

I object on the basis that I do remember it and wish I didn't. Ernie?

3. Billy Bragg - The Milkman of Human Kindness

One of my favourite “sing-along-with-Billy-Bragg” songs.

Billy Bragg - The Milkman of Human Kindness

Am I the only one who started to lose interest in his music after the first two albums?

Hopefully.

4. Led Zeppelin - Custard Pie

It never occurred to me before writing this piece that this song might not actually be about the stuff you pour on your apple pie or rhubarb crumble.

Led Zeppelin - Custard Pie

Anyway, components of custard are dairy, so it’s in the list. That funky bit in the song is made by a clavinet. I think.

5. Larry Williams - Peaches and Cream

Not one of his better known songs, but a fine 2 minute blast of rock and roll. And given it’s a 1950s rock and roll song, I suppose the peaches and cream of the song are not actually a fruit and a dairy product.

Larry Williams - Peaches and Cream

6. Tarnation - Little Black Egg

Bending the rules again*, but  I’ve always lumped eggs in with dairy, probably from years of saying “vegetarian and no eggs no dairy”. Sung by one of my Top Ten favourite female singers. Mr CC has written (here) about our attempts to see Tarnation in Sheffield, he got the train from Glasgow, me  driving up from Birmingham. Indeed he is very lucky never to have seen them twice!

Tarnation - Little Black Egg

*I'd have been crucified if I'd tried that.

7. Quim Barreiros - Omelette

And from the absolutely fantastic Quim Barreiros, from the first album of his that I purchased, “A cabritinha” (I’m 99% confident he is not referencing little female goats)  and here you can see the great man in action, musically that is:

Quim Barreiros - Omelette

And I actually think this is a song about making an omelette. Of course, my knowledge is Portuguese entendres / sexual slang is almost zero. (I do know not to go to Mrs Woman in the veg shop and ask for tomatoes, though, only for tomato.*)

*The mind boggles.

8. The Handsome Family - The Sad Milkman

Another milkman song, by the Handsome Family:

The Handsome Family - The Sad Milkman

That's my favourite - and a great relief, since I was worrying George might include Ernie's Namesake.

9. The B52s - Quiche Lorraine

And as I am including eggs, here’s the obvious one:

The B52s - Quiche Lorraine

10. Wynonie Harris - Keep On Churning ('Til The Butter Comes)

Possibly my favourite of this list, and I am 100% confident that this song is using a sexual metaphor. 

Wynonie Harris - Keep On Churning ('Til The Butter Comes)

Somehow this song wasn’t banned. If anyone is thinking of doing a My Top Ten Sweetie songs, can I suggest Lollipop Mama by Wynonie Harries, a song that is of course about, according to wikipedia,  a type of sugar candy usually consisting of hard candy mounted on a stick and intended for sucking or licking".

So there you are, a Top Ten Dairy Songs list, that probably only has one song about a dairy product.

And if he posts this, thanks go to Rol. Enjoy the music.

Thank you, George, for bringing the tone of this blog down several notches. Always good to see.

The Questionability of CD80: Part #1

Brian was the next person to pick a random CD number for me to write about (from the 177 and counting compilation CDs I have created to introduce my son to the wonderfully diverse world of popular music) . Brian's was a random choice, as with everyone else's, but I've got to say there are some particularly dubious selections on this CD. A couple of moments where I was left scratching my head and asking myself, "Why the hell did I put that on here?"  Then again, as readers, you probably ask the same question every time I do one of these posts. Oh well, let's see how I can justify myself this time...

Track 1: The Cure - Inbetween Days

Fortunately, we start on safe ground with another Cure song. Interesting that I've only written about four of these CDs so far, and yet The Cure have kicked us off 50% of the time. I wouldn't read anything into that beyond the fact that statistics are utter bollocks. Still, in Bob Smith we do have the 80s miserabilist who it's still cool to like... so that's something, at least.

Of course, miserabilism will only take you so far... unless you're miserable with a smile on your face, or a jaunty tune in the background... and then I'll love you forever. 

Yesterday I got so old

I felt like I could die

Yesterday I got so old

It made me want to cry

I'm not sure how old Bob was when he wrote those lines, but he's a damned sight older now. Aren't we all?

Inbetween Days was the first Cure song to crack the Billboard Hot 100. It reached #99. While in the UK, it managed a paltry #15. What's wrong with the world?

Track 2: Men At Work - Who Can It Be Now?

The first of the head-scratchers, since this wasn't a UK hit (Down Under was the only time they troubled our charts) and I have no recollection of it at all from 1981. Then again, I was only 9, and I wasn't paying as much attention as I would later on. It was a Number One hit on Billboard though (which, in all fairness to Men At Work, doesn't seemed entirely equitable when Inbetween Days could only manage #98 four years later). It's not a bad song at all - I'm just not sure why I decided Sam needed to know it. Unless I was thinking it might come in handy if he ever went to visit his Uncle Adam who lives Down Under.

 

Track 3: Vicki Lawrence - The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia

Another one which may well be met with a fair amount of head-scratching, though I think I have a slightly better justification this time... it's a classic story song, and I love a story song. I want Sam to love story songs too. Even better, it's a story with a murky twist at the end... or, as iffypedia describes it, "a Southern Gothic murder ballad". 

Written by Bobby Russell, the man who gave Honey to Bobby Goldsboro and Little Green Apples to Roger Miller, though this is much darker than either of them. 

Don't trust your soul to no backwoods Southern lawyer,

'Cause the judge in the town's got blood stains on his hands.

It's rather odd then that such a dark tale would be sung by a comedy actress famous for her portrayal of the cantankerous senior citizen Thelma 'Mama' Harper on the Carol Burnett Show and later spin-offs. Burnett was 18 when she first appeared on the show, and 25 when she started playing a grumpy pensioner... although to be fair, that was a year after she'd killed her brother's adulterous wife and her lover in this tune. And she got away scott free, although her brother carried the can.

Apologies if I just spoiled the twist for you.

 

Track 4: 10cc - The Dean & I

There's still time to contribute your thoughts on Dreadlock Holiday for the final edition of Cancel Culture Club, if you haven't already done so. But in the meantime... here's a far more respectable tune from Stockport's finest.

I went through a brief 10cc phase in my 20s in which I bought a few of their albums and poured over the lyrics. Iffypedia describes The Dean & I as a parody of 50s "sock hop" romance songs such as High School Confidential by Jerry Lee Lewis. It's about how teenage romances that stay together may well end up with "hum drum days and hum drum ways". It's a mid-life crisis song, then! No wonder I dug it in my 20s. Sam is probably / hopefully still too young to appreciate the irony though. There's a further twist at the end when the narrator finds happiness through unexpected riches... what, did he kill the kid's mum and claim the life insurance? Or have I been listening to too much Vicki Lawrence?

Like a lot of 10cc songs this feels like a bunch of tune ideas glued together to make a whole, but they made it work. It still brings a smile to my face.

Today's post was brought to you with monochrome lettering because the colour letter function wasn't working on blogger.

Another Day #15: National Repeat Day

Today is, I'm presuming in the US, but maybe elsewhere too, "National Repeat Day". 

I'll let them explain...

Ever had an experience that was so amazing, it’s worth doing twice? Or said something so brilliant that it simply bears repeating? Well, that’s exactly what this day is all about.

What?!?

National Repeat Day invites people to lean into the oddly satisfying side of doing something again on purpose. It can be as simple as replaying a favourite song or as ambitious as recreating an entire “best day ever” itinerary.

Was this written by AI? What exactly is "oddly satisfying" about doing something you like again? Why do I need a special day to play my favourite song again? 

See? I can do it whenever I like.

April Stevens - Do It Again

The Rifles - The Rifles - Repeat Offender

Raffaella Carrà - Do It, Do It Again

The charm is in the second pass: noticing new details, improving the outcome, or just enjoying the comfort of something familiar.

Shut up now.

A good rule of thumb: repeat what feels joyful or meaningful, not what feels draining. 

Well, d'oh. If I'm repeating what feels draining, isn't that just like every other day of my life?

Edwyn Collins - Do It Again

Manic Street Preachers - Repeat 

The Kinks - Do It Again

Repetition can be playful, but it can also be powerful. Athletes repeat drills to get stronger. Musicians repeat scales to get smoother.

Excuse the language, but fucking hell. This is like someone reminding me to breathe in case I forget and turn blue.

Home cooks repeat a recipe until it becomes a signature dish. National Repeat Day simply turns that everyday truth into a theme worth highlighting.

Oh. My. God. Go away. I hate you.

The Deaf Aids - Do It Again

The Soundtrack Of Our Lives - Instant Repeater '99

The Beach Boys - Do It Again

LCD Sound System - On Repeat

Korova Milk Bar - Do It Again

The Offspring - Can't Repeat

Röyksopp & Robyn - Do It Again

Propellerheads featuring Miss Shirley Bassey - History Repeating

Namesakes #191: The Cardigans

Perhaps it's not the most sexy or exciting item of clothing in your wardrobe, but the humble cardigan deserves our love for making us feel warm and cosy in winter days.

Will any of the Cardigans below have the same effect?

THE CARDIGANS #1

From Chattanooga in the late 50s came the choo-choo Cardigans, four young sloppy-doo-woppy dudes who hit the charts twice with their single Your Graduation Means Goodbye. I chose the b-side, which was a lot more fun.

The Cardigans - Boll Weevil On The Mountain Top

THE CARDIGANS #2

More doo-wop, probably from around the same time, but with extra Dave, because we can all do with extra Dave. A youtube commenter reveals that the Cardigans were his mother and aunt, Marie and Terry Belanger. This track was recorded before the commenter was born - it must be lovely to hear his mum singing in her younger days.

Dave & The Cardigans - My Falling Star

CARDIGAN #3

A singular Cardigan, this one from Denmark in 1986. It has a video with 33,190 views on the tube of you, so it must have done something back in the day...

Cardigan - Without You

THE CARDIGANS #4

The Cardigans most of us are familiar with originated in Sweden in 1992, led by the very best Persson in rock: Nina. They took their name from a line in The Sundays' song Skin And Bones...

Oh, you see me in a cardigan

In a dress, dress, dress that I've been sick on

The Cardigans named their debut album Emmerdale - I'm presuming the show is big in Sweden? Their breakthru record came in 1996 when the infectious single below was featured in the soundtrack of Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet. 

The Cardigans - Lovefool

Not a great deal of choice in the Cardigans aisle... are any of them a good fit?