And so we reach the end of our trawl through the tracks on
my son’s supposedly favourite in-car CD… just as I was finally forced to
consign those precious discs to the annals of history. But wait… all is not
lost!
Keep reading to discover the saviour of our in-car
entertainment!
First though, the final four songs on CD108…
Track 20: Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - Shop Around
Smokey’s first big Motown hit, Shop Around betrays his doo
wop roots far more than the polished soul standards he’d soon be celebrated
for. The track was originally credited to "The Miracles featuring Bill
'Smokey' Robinson" – and thus a legend was born. It was also the first
Motown record to be released in the UK (on Decca) – it wasn’t a hit though;
Smokey would have to wait another seven years before he was allowed into the UK
charts.
According to Casey “Shaggy” Kasem via iffypedia, Motown boss
Berry Gordon rejected the first hundred songs Smokey wrote for him as “garbage”
before finally agreeing to take #101. I dunno, it strikes me that pop stars
worked a helluva lot harder back in the day.
Some may claim that Shop Around displays a rather sexist
attitude to finding a life partner – I’m not offering it up to the Cancel
Culture Club committee though, because – let’s face it, the advice comes from
Smokey’s mum. Better yet, here’s an answer record from Debbie Dean, the first
white artist signed to Motown, released not long after Smokey’s hit.
Debbie
Dean - Don't Let Him Shop Around
Track 21: Del Amitri - When You Were Young
Another case of the old “after 108 CDs, I’d run out of the
obvious tracks by X”. When You Were Young was the fourth single to be released
from the third Del Amitri album in 1993. It still made the Top 20 – amazing
considering that its two predecessors (Just Like A Man and the wonderfully dour Be MyDownfall) both only scraped into the Top 30.
This is also a case of a song I don’t expect Sam gets at all
– I doubt I appreciated its lyrics when I bought the album in my 21st
year on the planet. I do now…
The disappointment of success
Hangs from your shoulders like a hand-me-down dress
And down nostalgia's rocky road
You watch your former lovers growing old
So look into the mirror
Do you recognise someone?
Is it who you always hoped you would become
When you were young?
Justin Currie wasn’t even 30 when he wrote that (though he
did have some amazing sideburns). He’s always been a Grumpy Old Man.
Track 22: Jimmy Cliff - You Can Get It If You Really Want
The original, but not the version most people will be
familiar with, since it was Desmond Dekker who took this track (almost) to the
top of the UK singles chart in 1970. To be honest, I reckon most people (with
the possible exception of Ernie) would be hard pressed to spot the difference. They’re even the same length.
Great tune, whoever’s singing it.
Track 23: Smash Mouth - Walkin' On The Sun
Another of those big US ska-punk hits from the late 90s. Iffypedia tells me this was written in response to the Rodney King beating and subsequent riots. In that, I guess it channels the same themes of many of the classic 2-Tone hits from 20 years earlier.
Smash Mouth came from California, and this (their biggest hit?) comes from their debut LP, Fush Yu Mang (see what they did there?). If you were listening to the radio at all in 1997, you’ll easily recall it… and probably their follow-up single, All Star, as well. Anyway, I’m pleased to read that they’re still out there, smashing mouths, thirty years later.
