Back after exam-related delays, we turn to Number 37 on our countdown, illustrated by an album cover that will throw the fear of god into many of our resident musos, but I couldn't find any decent bands with 37 in their names, so sorry about that. Here's the title track from the above album, along with a choice selection of the lyrics... which may well have me agreeing with the musos for once.
When you kiss her goodnight 37 times That ain't nothin' but love
It might also be a bit annoying, Ricky... especially if she just wants to get in the house and watch Celebrity Love Island. Have some consideration, sir.
Jim in Dubai was next to arrive, with two very strong contenders from my own record collection...
Well, Simon le Bon stayed round my house before And he was sick on the plants and he was sick on the floor And he wouldn't go home until he'd sung his song With a backing harmony from Paul Young
However, I think we're all in agreement over what this week's winning song should be... even if there's some debate over which version is best. Lynchie recommended the Dr. Hook original while Charity Chic and Alyson preferred the Marianne Faithful cover. Alyson was correct in spotting that the track in question has already featured on this blog as one of my old Mid-Life Crisis Songs.
Here's both versions so you can decide amongst yourselves...
The movie Bohemian Rhapsody has received mixed reviews from the critics - but then, so did the song it was based on. It is a film made by fans for fans, and as such it was a success for me. Yes, there are some creaky bits where you can sense the hand of messrs. May & Taylor bigging themselves up as script editors, and the Mike Myers cameo belongs in a different movie. A very bad am-dram movie. But put these aside, and this is a film Queen fans will cheer - not just for Remi Malik's star-making turn as Freddie, but for the note-perfect performances of the other band members too - Brian "nice but dull" May, Roger "cocky knob" Taylor and John "quietly witty" Deakin. I believed every one of them was the band member they played, and I was a bit of a Queen aficionado in my teenage years.
There'd been criticism of the film beforehand for glossing over the more sordid elements of Freddie's life, so I was surprised to find it pulled few punches. Yes, it could have been more graphic and sleazy, but I thought the filmmakers chose the right tone - hinting at such debauchery without needing to splash it all over. The final scene, at Live Aid, gave the film its musical climax, but it was the scene prior to that (Mercury visiting his parents and introducing them to his new "friend", while his dad quietly came to terms with everything that his son was) which broke me. It made me realise why I always connected with Freddie as a teenager - the outrageous glamour was just a cover for his loneliness, and we connected with that. Anybody who's ever cried while listening to Queen's finest moment will know that Freddie understood. That was the message I took away from the film, the tragedy of Freddie... he wasn't looking for fame and glamour and excess, all he really wanted was a family and a "friend". Don't we all?
I wouldn't recommend Bohemian Rhapsody to non-Queen fans. It won't convert you, it'll probably just annoy you even more. But for the fans... it was everything we needed.
Here's ten songs by ten fans... well, nine fans and one who's not quite sure.
The song Elton wrote after hearing Freddie had died. Typical late-stage Elton, so there could have been a much better tribute, but at least it's from the heart.
Interesting one this. Songwriter Reece Toper wrote it about his own ignorance and bigotry as a teenager, a Queen fan who "turned his back on Freddie Mercury" when he found out he was gay and had died of AIDS. I imagine quite a lot of serious Queen fans did the same. At least this guy wised up when he was older.
This'll be one that will irk the musos, I know the comments I got the last time I featured Train here... so their rip-off of We Didn't Start The Fire will probably go down like a lead balloon! Like that's gonna stop me...
Over the years, there have been many imitators wanting to grab a seat on Freddie's throne and Mika looked to be giving it a good try with this single... but he really didn't have the legs.
But on the day I die, I'll say at least I fucking tried.
That's the only eulogy I need.
1. Freddie Mercury - Mr. Bad Guy
Much is made in the film of Freddie's foolhardy attempt at a solo career, and his return to Queen, tail between his legs because the new musicians he was working with "did exactly what I told them" rather than pushing back against him, that friction being said to have created better art. Whether that's another example of May & Taylor having a little too much input into the script or not, it's fair to say that Mr. Bad Guy, his first solo album for CBS, wasn't a classic, although it did have its moments - notably the single I Was Born To Love You and this, the title track in which Freddie gives Morrissey a run for his money in the self-pity stakes...
I'm Mr Bad Guy
Yes I'm everybody's Mr Bad Guy
Can't you see I'm Mr Mercury
Oh spread your wings and fly away with me
I'm Mr Bad Guy
They're all afraid of me
I can ruin people's lives
Mr. Bad Guy they're all afraid of me
It's the only way to be
That's my destiny
Mr. Bad Guy
Oh, and just to Brian doesn't feel left out... here's a song about him:
Division One is a League (even I know that, and I know nothing about football).
People are human (well, some of them).
This is the Redknapp (formerly Nurding) I was referring to...
(You've no idea how long it took me to find a picture of her where she wasn't just in her underwear. About as long as it took me to find a picture of The Human League where Phil Oakey wasn't instantly recognisable.)
3. The desperate enemy of ladies hits ice. Not as short as you think!
Desperate Dan
Enemy = Foe
Lady = Girl (or Gel)
Ice = Berg
Not as short as you think?
Lynchie really didn't want to admit to knowing this one,,, but he couldn't resist nudging C towards the answer.
Don't blame me if listening to this song sends you into a diabetic coma. However, it reminds me of an extremely foolish, if not entirely regretted, dalliance when I was young and very, very stupid...
The bloke from Train looks like a Hollywood version of David Gedge. Doesn't sound quite as good...but there are far worse ways to spend 4 minutes of your life.
Probably my favourite song by The Lucksmiths. If you've never heard them before and you're wondering what they sound like, the fact that they also have a song called There Is A Boy That Never Goes Out might give you a clue to their influences...
There appear to be numerous comedy routines which lead exhaustively to the punchline, "I left me harp in Sam Clam's Disco". I advise you to ignore them all.
Being that they hail from the city by the bay, it's no wonder that Mark Eitzel and co. have written a few songs about it (they even named an album after it).
A city built by fire trucks!
Dirty old bastards drunk on love
And mean old queens who never forgive
The compromises they made to live
One of Stephin Merritt's most beautiful love songs, as performed by Shirley Simms on the majestic 69 Love Songs...
Come back from San Francisco and kiss me; I've quit smoking.
I miss doing the wild thing with you.
Will you stay? I don't think so, but all I do is worry, Pack bags, call cabs, and hurry home to me.
You're not from New York City, you're from Rotherham...
...is probably the lyric that made me fall in love with the Arctic Monkeys way back when.
Sad to hear that in the video edit, they replaced the line, ""The band were fucking wank
And I'm not having a nice time." with the far less interesting, "The band weren't very good..."
1. Chris Isaak - San Francisco Days
Probably my favourite Chris Isaak record, there's a real aching melancholy to his voice.
