Here's a famous organ player - Booker T. Yesterday, Ray Manzarek introduced our quiz. But neither of them played the kinds of organs you'll hear below...
15. Charles, could be another #4.
Charles Mansun would be in good company with the names listed in Clue 4.
The AI says, "Yes, individual muscles are considered organs because they are structures composed of different tissues working together to perform a specific function, like movement."
Even with 20 tunes in this week's Snapshots, I couldn't cover all the different sporting events in the Olympic Games... so here are a few silver medals...
Leonard Cohen is holding a camera in this picture. Oh yes he is. You just can't see it very well. And he's waiting for a miracle...
As we're all waiting for Snapshots #300 next week, this seemed appropriate. You may be interested to know that I have done TWO Top Ten lists of Waiting Songs (compiled while we were waiting for Sam's birth, ten years ago). And none of the songs on those lists feature here. Although Foreigner almost did.
Did my back in at the weekend. I went to the tip with a car-load of post Christmas junk, including a single mattress, and managed to unload them all with no trouble. Once back, trying to refit Sam's car seat in the pouring rain, I twisted in slightly the wrong way in the confined space and bingo.
I'm hoping it'll be better by the time this post runs, but in the meantime, here are some of the songs I listened to while stretching out on a cold hard floor...
There are loads of different versions of this old blues standard, and the lyrics change depending on who's singing it. I've been listening to Nina's 1961 album Forbidden Fruit lately, and this is one of my favourite tracks.
From his second album way back in 1974. What joy I felt when I heard this and recognised it from my childhood. I'm guessing Terry must have played it back in the day.
Shut up.
Finally, inspired by Charity Chic's recent Saturday Series, I've been listening to Townes Van Zandt's Roadsongs LP. Unlike CC's series, where we have to judge Townes' originals against covers, this is a live album on which Townes covers other people's songs... often improving on them. He does that here on my favourite version of The Stones' Dead Flowers, as immortalised in my favourite movie. The Dude abides.
I had half a mind to feature Alison Krauss at the top of this post, until George said:
I'm sure some one will suggest Alison Moyet but it sure as hell won't be me.
After that, my mind was made up. After all, I have a lot of time for Alison Moyet, writer of one of the smuttiest pop songs ever to find its way into the pop charts (Prince excepted). Let's just say I don't think she's singing about the flu jab in this song.
As for Allison Krauss... well, I did find this nice little tribute.
John Medd was still stinging a bit from my Adamski rejection last week...
This is a bit like cricket: I can play the game but I'm not very good at it. This'll probably get me another ticking off (it's quite lonely here on the naughty step). Nearly all the Alisons I know/have known have usually being called Ally. It's not an unusual derivation; the spelling can change - Ally, Alley, Alli - but ask any Alison and she'll no doubt concur. So, I'm going for Alley Oop. I wrote about it once, hereabouts.
No ticking off, John. But no place in the Top Ten either as I think that's a bit of a stretch... and I'd end up having to find a place for Gasoline Alley and Sneakin' Sally Through The Alley too. Among others.
I am relieved that the only derivations of Alison allowed are Alyson and Allie, and that Alice is not, so no one can suggest Living Next Door To Alice by Smokie.
Now, just before we get onto this week's scrapings from the hard drive, here's a word from our own Alyson which will allow me to set a rule for future editions.
I'm thinking that the obvious second one to the obvious first one must surely be Alison's Starting To Happen by the Lemonheads, and what a great song.
Couldn't have said it better myself.
1. Elvis Costello - Alison
And who better to introduce our obvious number one than "Alyson" herself...?
One of my favourite songs of all-time - Alison by Elvis Costello. It was played constantly during my last year at school, a year which is up there as being was one of the best of my life to date. Still get teary when I listen to it as a couple of the really good friends from those days are no longer with us, and of course I reminisce about all the romances that didn't last the distance. A bittersweet (for me) but beautiful song. I think I've mentioned this around here before but I use my middle name for blogging purposes for fear of people in the real world finding what I write (about them). As a second layer of security/anonymity I changed the middle 'i' to to a 'y' which I now regret as a bit pretentious, like Fiona becoming Ffyona. Oh well, too late to change now but I think we would all agree with Elvis Costello that the true spelling should be Alison.
There have been a number of decent covers of this song, including...
I've got your picture for next week sorted, said Charity Chic. I have an album by a band called 16 Horsepower.
And you know what? I thought I did too. But it appears to have disappeared from my music library. Anyway, thank you for the reminder.
The biggest problem about the Number 16 on our countdown was summed up by Lynchie that many suggestions might be "a bit dodgy - older men singing about mid-teen girls."
In more cynical / enlightened / post-Glitter & Saville times, we may now find these songs creepy... but part of me thinks they were never actually meant that way. Oh for a return to innocence...
For your information though, Charmain Carr was 23 when that was filmed. Which takes us back to a point I raised last week. (Go look it up yourself, it takes me long enough to write all this stuff down once without going back and reading it again.)
Looking back on being 16 is something that gets harder as the years go by. There are a few songs written from that perspective, and C was the first to offer this very popular suggestion, saying, So good, in so many ways, and no dodgy lyrics about young girls! First heard when I was still 14 and sixteen sounded old...
The Swede also nominated this one. Brian added: It was No. 15 on my Festive 50 for 2019, and indie couple Amelia and Rob deserve a moment on top of the heap.
A new band to me, but one that immediately went on the Check Out pile...
That has to be the strangest video I've seen in a long time, featuring some reasonably big name actors, in some kind of bizarre SNL sketch that doesn't fit the song at all.
Anyway... the winner. Which will probably be obvious by now. It was first suggested by Lynchie, then seconded by Swiss Adam, though I'm sure a few others would have given it consideration.
When it comes to Saturday Snapshots, you guys Don't Stop Till You Get Enough. And you didn't do Bad yesterday at all. It's good to know You Are Not Alone when you're playing this game, particularly this week as Alyson & Lynchie fought it out for top spot (I think Lynchie just clinched it), leaving Charity Chic, Walter, Chris and Rigid Digit to hoover up the leftovers. Thanks for playing, guys.
