The Faculty Lounge

It's Only Old Time Rock 'n' Roll Music

Is Rock 'n' Roll the most self-referential of all music genres? There are dozens of songs invoking or praising Rock 'n' Roll, but few if any in other  genres. There are plenty of blues songs with "Blues" in the title, but the reference is almost always to having the blues, not to the music itself. Anyhow, here are a few Rock songs about Rock music.

Stayin' Alive

"Stayin' Alive" was written by the Gibb brothers for the 1978 movie Saturday Night Fever, for which it was kinda perfect even for those of us (including me) who never liked disco (looking at you, Alex). It wasn't nominated for an Oscar that year -- maybe the Academy also disdained disco -- but it won four Grammys in 1979. In 2004 was listed by Rolling Stone as number 189 of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In a 2021 update, it was ranked 99, which is pretty strange for a song that was released 43 years earlier. I have no idea what happened to the 90 songs it jumped, not to mention all the new music recorded in the 17 year interim. Unsurprisingly, most of the covers are by female vocalists, and they are not all disco.

Anyhow, I figured it wouldn't hurt include one disco number after all these years. The iconic Travolta clip is at the bottom of the post.

Happy Fourth

I've been posting these and other versions since 2018.

Here is an a cappella version by the Acoustix:

There is a vocal with more distinct lyrics at the bottom of the post (h/t Alex Lubet).

I've been posting these and other versions since 2018.

Here is an a cappella version by the Acoustix:

There is a vocal with more distinct lyrics at the bottom of the post (h/t Alex Lubet).

Blueberry Hill

"Blueberry Hill" is best known today for Antoine "Fats" Domino's 1956 R&B hit, but it had been a hit for others over fifteen years earlier. Written in 1940 by Vincent Rose, Larry Stock, and Al Lewis, its first release was a fox trot rendition by Sammy Kaye's big band. The first hit version was by the Glen Miller Orchestra, also in 1940, on the RCA subsidiary Bluebird Records. (Note: Bluebird may be best remembered today for its early blues releases by Blind Willie McTell, Tampa Red, Memphis Minnie, Washboard Sam, and others. I didn't know until researching "Blueberry Hill" that big bands also recorded for Bluebird.) Louis Armstrong also had a hit with "Blueberry Hill" in 1949, with the Gordon Jenkins Orchestra, which was sort of a transitional version that influenced Domino. (Another note: Gordon Jenkins seemed to make a habit of recording with diverse artists, including the Weavers' English translation of "Tzena Tzena" in 1950.) There have been numerous covers, virtually all of the Fats Domino version, including an unexpected one by an infamous amateur at the bottom of the post.

This short clip is the earliest one I could find. I will include a longer one later in the post.

Playing Favorites

Rock Legends Keith Richards and Paul McCartney (among others) have occasionally listed their favorite songs and artists. Here are some of them:

Keith:

Paul:

Keith:

Paul:

Keith:

Both:

Keith:

Paul (for James Jamerson on bass):

Paul:

Keith:

Keith:

McCartney's omission of the Rolling Stones wasn't a snub. His list was limited to "underappreciated" artists, so the Stones obviously didn't qualify.

 

Love and Marriage

Songs idealizing marriage -- if sometimes only fleetingly or implicitly -- used to be pretty common in popular music, even in '60s rock. I am insufficiently up-to-date to know whether that's still the case, but here are some old examples, with a bonus or two at the bottom of the post. (Happy anniversary, Linda, a few days early.)

"Wedding bells are going to chime":

How Sweet It Is (to Be Loved by You)

"How Sweet It Is (to Be Loved by You)" was written by Motown's Holland-Dozier-Holland in 1964 and recorded at the Hitsville studio by Marvin Gaye in early 1965. The release was on Tamla Records, a Motown subsidiary, for reasons I have not discovered. Backed by the Funk Brothers, it was a huge hit for Gaye. James Taylor later had a hit with "How Sweet It Is" in 1975. The title was taken from Jackie Gleason's tag line, "how sweet it is," and I am pretty sure it is the only Motown or R&B title ever inspired by an Irish comedian (see clip at the bottom of the post).

Congratulations, Natan and Ismene. (And happy anniversary, Sarah and Willard.)

Kitty Wells

After so many decades of enjoying the music of women like Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, and Tammy Wynette, it is almost hard to realize that there were virtually no female country music stars until Kitty Wells released "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" in 1952. Born Ellen Muriel Deason, Wells paved the way for Patsy Cline, whose first hit was "Walkin' after Midnight" in 1957.

Wells wasn't the first woman with a country hit. Patsy Montana released "I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart" in 1934 as lead vocalist with the Prairie Ramblers. But Wells as the first woman to achieve sustained stardom, and the first female country vocalist to release a solo LP, in 1956, with Kitty Wells' Country Hit Parade. 

"It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels," an answer song to Hank Thompson's "The Wild Side of Life," was considered boldly risque at the time, with its suggestion that a woman might get even with a cheating man. She went even more risque (for the '50s) with "I Don't Claim to Be an Angel," in which they lyrics asked her sweetheart to "forget about my past." Many, perhaps most, of her later songs were typecast in the jilted lover, heartbreak, three-chords-and-the-truth genre, more than occasionally toward the illicit side.

Let the Good Times Roll

"Let the Good Times Roll" has been the title of several songs, perhaps best known today as the lead track on BB King's 1999 album of the same name. That version, originally recorded by Louis Jordan in 1946, was written by Sam Theard and Fleecie Moore (Jordan's wife). Shirley Goodman and Leonard Lee had a 1956 hit with a completely different "Let the Good Times Roll," often covered in concert by the Grateful Dead. Sam Cooke's 1964 "Good Times" is sometimes titled "Let the Good Times Roll," as it is in the clip below. Don't miss Memphis Slim's "Let the Good Times Roll Creole" at the bottom of the post. (I don't know anything about the Cars' song.)

(Happy birthdays, Sarah and Shoshana. Laissez les bons temps rouler.)

Southern Gothic

"Delta Dawn," written by Larry Collins and Alex Harvey, is best known for then 13-year old Tanya Tucker's 1972 hit, but it was actually recorded a year earlier by Bette Midler on her first album The Divine Miss M. Midler grew up about as far from the Mississippi Delta as possible in the U.S., in a Jewish family in Honolulu; her professional debut was in Fiddler on the Roof. The Australian Helen Reddy, who grew up even farther from Mississippi, also had a hit with "Delta Dawn" in 1973. Bobbie Gentry wrote and released "Ode to Billie Joe" in 1967. A smash hit, it reached number one on Billboard's Hot 100; remarkably, it also charted on the Adult Contemporary, Country, and R&B lists. Gentry has never revealed what was thrown off the Tallahatchie Bridge. Tony Joe White's "Polk Salad Annie" (or sometimes "Poke Salad") charted at number 8 in 1969. It was a regular feature of Elvis Presley's live sets. White also wrote "Rainy Night in Georgia," which he didn't release as a single. It was a major hit for Brook Benton.

Paint It Black

In 1966, "Paint It Black" was the Rolling Stones' first song featuring the sitar, and only the second by a rock group with sitar (after the Beatles' "Norwegian Wood," which was not released as a single). It charted at number one in both the U.S. and UK. With lyrics and melody by Keith Richards and Mick Jagger, it also marked the increasing marginalization of Brian Jones as the Stones' leader (although it was Jones who devised and played the sitar part). "Paint It Black" It was the opening track on the U.S. version of the Aftermath album, the Stones' first with all original songs. Oddly, it was not on the UK Aftermath.

 

Celtic Classics

"The Bonnie Banks O' Loch Lomond" is a traditional Scottish song, with various adaptations dating to the eighteenth century. The "low road" refers to death, of either a lover or the executed soldiers in Bonnie Prince Charlie's 1746 rebellion against the British Crown. "Oh, Danny Boy" is an Irish lament, likely for a son gone off to war, with lyrics written by English lawyer Frederic Weatherly in 1910, and set to the traditional balled "Londonderry Air." Both the Scots and the Irish have many rousing melodies, but two of the most famous are these sorrowful tunes. There are almost limitless versions -- solo, chorale, instrumental, and even rock. Here are some examples (don't miss the two non-traditional arrangements at the bottom of the post):

Born in Chicago

Paul Butterfield's iconic "Born in Chicago," the first cut on his first album, was written by Nick Gravenites (who was in fact born in 1938; but that didn't rhyme with "gun"). Along with Butterfield, Gravenites began hanging out in South Side blues clubs in the late 1950s, listening to Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Buddy Guy, and others. Unlike Butterfield, Gravenites did not become nationally well known, although he did have a moment with Mike Bloomfield in the Electric Flag. He also produced for Janis Joplin and other West Coast acts. He outlived Butterfield by 37 years, passing away in September 2024.

Here is Gravenites performing with some other Chicago blues musicians, including Harvey Mandel, Barry Goldberg, Sam Lay, and Corky Siegel:

This Magic Moment

"This Magic Moment" is probably the second best known composition by Doc Pomus and his writing partner Mort Shuman. The first, of course, is "Save the Last Dance for Me," which was a Saturday post here in 2021. Doc Pomus -- birth name Jerome Felder -- was the Brooklyn born son of Jewish immigrants, who changed his name to sound (he thought) more like a blues singer. A polio victim at age seven (in 1932, decades before the Salk vaccine, when polio was great), he walked with crutches most of his life, and eventually used a wheelchair. He was the brother of the prominent New York City lawyer Raoul Felder. "Magic Moment," like "Save the Last Dance," was written for Ben E. King and the Drifters, who released it in 1960, reaching 16 on the Hot 100; the original audio is at the bottom of the post. It was covered by Jay and the Americans in 1969, charting at number 6; interestingly, it was originally the B-side for the totally forgettable "Since I Don't Have You." Jay Black also changed his name, from David Blatt, evidently to sound more, well, American.

Sam & Dave

Sam Moore and Dave Prater were originally from Miami, where they had performed individually with gospel groups such as the Sensational Hummingbirds and the Melionaires. They signed together with Roulette Records in 1961, then made the switch to Atlantic/Stax, and moved to Memphis, in 1964. They had a long series of hits, many produced or written by Isaac Hayes, Steve Cropper, or Booker T. Jones.

Moore and Prater, rather famously, did not get along well (an understatement), which did not affect their even more famously energetic live performances, for which they were known as "Double Dynamite" and the "Sultans of Sweat." Their first break-up was in 1970. They intermittently reunited until 1981, when they parted for good.

Beginning in 1982, Prater performed with Sam Daniels as "The New Sam & Dave Review. As far as I know, there wasn't any litigation over the name, which is surprising. Prater passed away in 1988.

Moore has attempted a solo career with some success, often guest performing with other acts, though has been said to resent being constantly asked to perform Sam & Dave numbers. What did he expect?

Brothers of the Heart

The Brothers of the Heart are Bradley Walker, Jimmy Fortune, Ben Isaacs, and Mike Rogers. Fortune is probably best known, having been one of the Statler Brothers for many years, but the other members are also highly accomplished. The Isaacs Family -- Ben, along with his mother and sisters -- plays regularly at the Grand Ole Opry. Mike Rogers also plays with Ricky Skaggs's band, Kentucky Thunder. Brothers of the Heart is no doubt the only group featuring both someone who sings from a wheelchair due to muscular dystrophy (Walker) and the grandson of Holocaust survivors (Isaacs).

Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain [UPDATED]

"Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" was written in 1946 by the great Fred Rose. It was released by Roy Acuff in 1947, and later covered by Hank Williams, Charlie Pride, Elvis Presley, and pretty much everyone in country music. People today are probably most familiar with Willie Nelson's version. Fred Rose was Roy Acuff's partner in Acuff-Rose Music, which was the first Nashville-based music publisher. In addition to Acuff, some of its writers included Hank Williams, Roy Orbison, Phil and Don Everly, Marty Robbins, and Doug Kershaw. (The Acuff-Rose catalog is now owned by Sony). Be sure to check out the duets at the bottom of the post, including Roy Acuff on the ukulele.

Good Lovin'

The Young Rascals (later, just The Rascals) had a number one hit with "Good Lovin'" in 1966, but they were actually the fifth group to record the song, which was written a year earlier by Rudy Clark and Arthur Resnick. The earlier recordings were by Limme Snell (as Lemme B. Good), the Olympics, the Tremeloes (in the UK), and the Who (not released as a single). According to Wikipedia, Felix Cavalieri heard the Olympics' cut on the radio and recorded it with virtually the same arrangement, which almost everyone has used ever since.

A few different arrangements, including Snell's original, are at the bottom of the post.

Goin' Up the Country

Canned Heat had a hit with "Goin' Up the Country" in 1968, which later became known as a "hippie rural anthem." The vocal was by Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson, rather than the group's usual vocalist Bob "The Bear" Hite.  In fact, the song was an adaptation of Henry Thomas's "Bull Doze Blues," released in 1928. Thomas played a unique, home-made wind instrument call the quills, fashioned from hollow reeds, which the Canned Heat cover imitated on flute, played on the recording by non-band member Jim Horn. Hite pretended to play the flute on a lip-synced video. Other covers have played the quills parts on fiddle, mandolin, trumpet, blues harp, or not at all.

The Motown Sound in Performance at the White House

"The Motown Sound in Performance at the White House" was recorded on Feb. 24, 2011, and broadcast on PBS on March 1. Yes, it's pretty much impossible to imagine a similar concert today (or anything good coming out of the White House).

Here are some clips: