With Sam Raimi's Wizard of Oz prequel in cinemas this week, I thought I'd cobble together ten songs (mostly)
inspired by the land over the rainbow...
Special mention, of course, to
Toto...
10.
Squeeze - No Place Like Home
Domestic violence, Difford & Tilbrook style. Get whacked round the head by their ruby slippers.
9.
Emit Bloch - Dorothy
Probably not about
the Dorothy...or any of her friends.
Just be happy yourself
Don't worry 'bout nobody else
You've got problems of your own, she said
Quit your nosing around...
8.
Everclear - The Good Witch of the North
A lot soppier than the title lets on, and surprisingly upbeat for the Everclear lads. Most of their songs are about
Wicked Witches...
7.
The Flaming Lips - If I Only Had A Brain
Wayne Coyne's version is scary-genius.
6.
James - Scarecrow
It's hard to believe James were around back in 1985, in the days when everything was still in black and white.
5.
Mumford & Son - Little Lion Man
OK, so I couldn't find a song called The Cowardly Lion. I did think of throwing in the awesome
Coward of the County instead. But I'm saving that for later. Still, any excuse to play my favourite from Mumford and his boys. (That second album was a bit of a water-treader, but the first still holds up.)
4.
The Avett Brothers - Tin Man
They see pain but they don't feel it. You can slap them as much as you like.
3.
Scissor Sisters - Return To Oz
True munchkins...
He said, "Is this the return to Oz?"
The grass is dead, the gold is brown and the sky has claws
There's a wind-up man walking round and round
What once was Emerald City is now a crystal town
2.
Judy Garland - Somewhere Over The Rainbow
Timeless. As is
Eva Cassidy's version. And, as I discovered earlier this week, also the inspiration for the chorus of
Starman by David Bowie. The leap of between octaves on "Some... where" and "Star...man" is identical.
1. Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Supposedly the first film lyricist Bernie Taupin ever saw, The Wizard of Oz obviously had a profound impact.
The b-side, when this was released as a 7", was called 'Screw You'. Which leads us nicely up Eminem's own
Yellow Brick Road...
Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain...
