I hope you had the time of your life playing Saturday Snapshots yesterday. And that none of you ended up a Basket Case...
A Saturday night powercut means I'm setting this to post via my phone so can't add my usual commentary congratulating the winners. Just hoping this will still post on Sunday morning as planned. I'll try to add comments later on Sunday but thanks for playing as always.
10. Je t'aime a tiny city full of serial killers.
Je t'aime is French for 'I love you'.
A tiny city full of serial killers would be a mini Ripper-town.
To illustrate this feature, I always try to find a band with that week's number in their name. It's not always possible, and most weeks I end up choosing a band I've never heard of. This week, however, here's an artist I actually own a couple of records by, the delightful JJ72. Where are they now, eh?
1972 was the year of my birth and so I've already done a Top Ten 1972 Songs. Well done to new commenter MisterPrime (unless it's someone else using an alias) for correctly identifying the top song in that list.
A couple more 1972 suggestions did trickle in this week though...
I think it may have been Mr. C who suggested this...
...which you really need to click on because you'll never have heard anything like it before. Unless you have.
Rigid Digit returned with this week's token lyrical mention of Saturday Gigs by Mott The Hoople, which I'm happy to keep mentioning for the next three weeks as it's great. However, RD didn't stop then with his Hoople...
...which may well explain why he sings the way he does.
I paid fifteen million dollars, twelve hundred and seventy-two cents I paid one thousand, two hundred twenty-seven dollars and fifty-five cents To see my bulldog bite a rabbit And my hound dog's just sittin' on a barbed-wire fence
Some confusion there also as to how much Bob actually paid. Seems rather a lot, whatever it was.
(Personally though, I think that song's just a riff.)
Furry Boots City Boy, The Artist Formerly Known As Lynchie, offered this pleasant little number...
...further proof that American highways will continue to provide fodder for this series if all else fails.
Rigid Digit identified this week's runner-up, and I'd fully second his statement that, "there is so much more to this band than "Sit Down" - creators of consistently fine albums"...
Because it's been snowing this week. Round these part, anyway. And, as usual, people have been acting like it's the end of the world...
The only rule for this one was that I couldn't have any Christmas songs. For obvious reasons. Hence, no matter how good a song 'Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow' might be... it's not getting in.
Having grown up on a farm and seen the after-effects of a fox in a chicken house, I shouldn't have much sympathy for the animals. But I do. Besides, Stuart Murdoch could make me shed a tear for even the most hateful of creatures: that's just his gift. One day he'll write a song about Tom Hanks or Michael McIntyre and all will be forgiven...
9. Shirley Lee - The First Time You Saw Snow
I make no apologies for featuring two Shirley Lee records in the space of two Top Tens, even if most of you have never heard of him. Sadly this one has disappeared from its original online source, but I'm sure you can hear it somewhere if you search hard enough. It's worth the effort!
All through this short life we give of ourselves
Giving and giving and slowly diminishing
Leaving a mark that will gradually fade
Ash in the breeze, snowballs in negative
Not only is this a beautiful song, but Anne Murray was also once the world's best female celebrity golfer. Elvis's version is pretty good, but he was rubbish with a golf club.
1. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Fifteen Feet of Pure White Snow
Nick goes all Mike Oldfield on our snowy ass. Chilling... in every sense of the word.
I waved to my neighbour
My neighbour waved to me
But my neighbour
Is my enemy
I kept waving my arms
Till I could not see
Under fifteen feet of pure white snow
Those were my snowy songs... which one gets you all flakey?
Really, if you were expecting Wet Wet Wet, you really don't know me very well at all. Still, same title - much better song... and no grinning Tony Blairalike frontman. That's got to be a bonus.
Apparently this is a cover of an old Cheap Trick song, but as I've never heard the original and can't pretend to know anything about Cheap Trick, you're stuck with the rather nice LTJ version.
Another Elvis hit by the legendary songwriting duo of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, though the melody is based on an old Neapolitan ballad, Come Back To Sorrento. (Or so wikipedia claims.) Still, 5 million copies sold - that's some going.
Let's ROCK. Man, lead singer (at the time - Rainbow had about 6 at one point or another) Joe Lynn Turner had one serious haircut. I wonder if his dad ever told him how much he looked like a girl?
Who didn't learn more from a three minute record than we ever learned in school?
1. Justin Currie - No, Surrender
Adding a simple comma turns Bruce's defiant roar into a hopeless epic of resigned misanthropy. Justin hates on everyone and everything in this touching 8 minute rant... so much moaning, it takes TWO youtube videos to do it justice. It's like Nothing Ever Happened turned up to 11.
Should you stand and fight Should you die for what you think is right So your useless contribution will be remembered? If you're asking me I say no, surrender.
Those were the records I'm surrendering too... but which one gets you waving your white flag?
I almost missed seeing Frank Turner perform I Still Believe as the warm-up for the Olympics opening ceremony - fortunately a tweet from Miller sent me running to the iPlayer and I was saved. Hope it brought him to a few new ears.
