Flashback Friday Song of the Day - Neutron Dance - Pointer Sisters

There's no money falling from the sky
'Cause a man took my heart and robbed me blind
Someone stole my brand new Chevrolet
And the rent is due, I got no place to stay
Whoo oooh, whoo oooh

Here's a fun oldie from the Beverly Hills Cop Soundtrack way back in 1984.  The Pointer Sisters, to me, were always a much under-appreciated group even though they had a long string of 13 top twenty hits beginning in the 70's with such great tunes as Fire, He's So Shy, Automatic, Jump (For My Love) and all the way through to their last big one, Dare Me, in 1986. Sadly, June Pointer passed away without much fanfare back in 2006, and with her death, the three sisters faded into a happy yet distant memory.  Enjoy...

P-Town Song of the Day - Sailing - Rod Stewart

I couldn't think of a better song to post today...a classic from good old Rod Stewart that, for the first time in my life, fits my day.  Wish me luck!

 

A P-Town, Flashback Friday Song of the Day - Ain't No Mountain High Enough - Diana Ross

If you need me, call me

No matter where you are

No matter how far

Just call my name

I'll be there in a hurry

On that you can depend and never worry

Happy Friday morning from P-Town!  Here's a tune that filled up the dance floor at Tea the other day, and of course had me and many others singing at the tops of our lungs.  Diana's very first smash as a solo artist was a masterful reworking of a tune, with sultry, spoken verses leading up to that crescendo of a chorus. Goose bump inducing!  Enjoy!

 

NYC Pride Day Song of the Day - I Am What I Am - Gloria Gaynor

I am what I am

I am my own special creation

So come take a look

Give me the hook or the ovation

Happy Pride Day, New York City!  I've been so busy this past month I haven't had any time to talk about Pride Month, which has seen celebrations all over the country over the past four weeks.  Though I'm seeing that we've gone so mainstream during my lifetime, with gay marriage being legalized seemingly all over the place and acceptance becoming more and more widespread with each year, pride seems to take on a whole new meaning these days.  

This oldie but goodie speaks so perfectly of being who you are no matter what your uniqueness happens to be, and it's a pretty good song, too!  Though I'll be skipping the festivities in the city this year, I'm still with all of the marchers and spectators in spirit.  To them I say enjoy and be safe, and to everyone else within the realm of this blog, be proud of who you are and enjoy your day!

Flashback Friday Song of the Day - School's Out - Alice Cooper

Today is Friday, June 27th, a date I've had circled on my calendar since September.  You see, today is the last day of school, and after a year such as I had, it is definitely a reason to rejoice.  So even though I'm not crazy about this song (it's alright, but I'd never really listen to it in the car or anything, lol), it totally fits the day and so finally I can say HAPPY SUMMER!!!!!

 

Flashback Friday Song of the Day - Do Ya Think I'm Sexy - Rod Stewart

I don't think I have ever posted a Rod Stewart song on John's World, but that's about to change.  For you youngins' out there who don't know Rod Stewart, well, he's a British singer who is actually one of the best selling artists of all time, having sold over 100 million records worldwide.  Of course, with those kinds of numbers, he's had to have had plenty of hits, which he has.  Here's one of his most famous, a discoish anthem that was simply everywhere in 1978.  Check out Do Ya Think I'm Sexy...

Song of the Day - Time to Change - The Brady Bunch

xfinity

Today's Song of the Day is in tribute to Ann B. Davis, who sadly passed away yesterday after a tragic fall in the bathtub put her into a coma from which she couldn't recover.  She was 88 years old.  For any of us who lived during the Brady Bunch years of the early 70's and beyond, Ann's character Alice, the Brady's self-deprecating housekeeper, was one of those faces we all knew, making daily visits to our living rooms for so many years taking care of the kids, dating Sam the Butcher and providing plenty of comic relief for our pleasure.

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Towards the latter portion of the Bradys five-year run, the six kids, Greg, Marcia, Peter, Jan, Bobby and Cindy put on musical performances of songs that oldest brother Greg had written.  From what I remember, there were three songs that they did (the other two were Sunshine Day, Keep On Movin') and I loved them all, including Time to Change.  In the episode where this appeared, Peter's voice was changing (ah, adolescence!), and they used the cracks in his falsetto as a part of the tune. I thought it was fun then and it still is now.  Do you remember this????

 

fanphobia

New Wave Month Song of the Day #3 - Dreaming - Blondie

When I met you in the restaurant
You could tell I was no debutante
You asked me what's my pleasure, a movie or a measure
I'll have a cup of tea

And tell you all my dreaming, dreaming is free
Dreaming, dreaming is free

We end our Sunday and our weekend with my personal favorite Blondie song, and something which many of us will be doing very soon....Good night!




Blondie - Dreaming (TOTP 1979) by DemonPreyer

New Wave Month Song of the Day #1 - Heart of Glass - Blondie

Once I had a love

And it was a blast

Soon turned out

Had a heart of glass

Oh, it feels like a Blondie day today!  Blondie was another one of those new wave acts borne out of the 70's that hit the mainstream in a big way during the 80's.  The band was founded by lead singer Deborah Harry and guitarist Chris Stein and though they were considered underground at first, very much a part of the punk scene, their music incorporated many musical styles, such as rap, reggae, pop and of course the new wave sound.

In 1978, three years after the band's formation, Blondie released the album, Parallel Lines, their 3rd, which would eventually catapult them permanently into the mainstream.  Though the album didn't produce many hits, only the song One Way or Another and this one, Heart of Glass became one of their biggest hits ever, charting in several countries and selling well over 2 million copies worldwide.

The song was a departure in sound for the band, as the music accompanying the track was decidedly disco. The band took a lot of flak for this from fellow punk bands in New York, but it didn't matter.  Harry's high-pitched, yet smooth voice, mixed with that infectious track, resonated with music lovers everywhere and Blondie, superstar, was born.

The band would go on to achieve many successes in the coming years, with more hit records, critical acclaim, innovation, and an eventual induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006.  Great band, great sound!  Check out Heart of Glass and stay tuned for more Blondie...

Blondie. Heart Of Glass from renixarenixa on Vimeo.

New Wave Month Song of the Day - Cars - Gary Numan

Today's song is an early one for new wave (released in 1979), and may not even be considered part of the genre by some, but it does have all of the characteristics of a new wave song.  The tune was a huge one hit wonder for British artist Gary Numan and has been covered and featured dozens of times, and it's still a huge favorite among new wave fans.  Happy Hump Day!

Gary Numan Cars by skinandbones

Flashback Friday Song of the Day - I Wanna Be Sedated - The Ramones

Well, today is the last day of February and tomorrow begins New Wave Month here on John's World. New Wave music came as a direct result of the death of disco and punk in the late 70's, early 80's, and the new genre sort of melded the two, with danceable songs that had a punk edge to them.  Well, since punk pre-dated new wave, I thought that today would be a good day to post a punk song from one of the most well-known punk bands around.

npr

The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in 1974 and though they were never a huge commercial success, they epitomized what would come out of this country in the punk movement and their legacy endures today. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002 and won a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award the following year for their storied existence.  With songs such as Rock n Roll High School, Do You Wanna Dance, Blitzkrieg Bop and others, they've had punk rock fans dancin' in the aisles for 40 years now.  Here's one of their most popular tunes ever, a song that plenty of people can relate to in this crazy world of ours.  Check out I Wanna Be Sedated...

 

The Ramones - I Want To Be Sedated from Fallout Entertainment on Vimeo.

Song of the Day - Waterloo - ABBA

I've got a lot of songs that will forever remind me, at least somewhat, of my visit to Chile. Here's one that my pal Jorge karaoked to on my last night there. He did a pretty good job, too, though not as good as ABBA...

 

Waterloo ABBA 1974 from alan vaissel on Vimeo.

Song of the Day - Hard Luck Woman - KISS

In honor of KISS making it to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (and way deservedly so!), I share with you one of my all-time favorite KISS songs. This song was originally written for Rod Stewart (who I am sure would have done a great job with it!), but kept by KISS as a follow-up to their smash, Beth, which was also sung by the raspy-voiced drummer of the band Peter Criss.   The song was covered very nicely by country superstar Garth Brooks for the KISS tribute album KISS My A**.  Here's the awesome original version...

KISS - Hard Luck Woman (Peter Criss) by PaulineItaly

Hard Luck Woman

If never I met you

I'd never have seen you cry

If not for our first "Hello"

We'd never have to say goodbye

If never I held you

My feeling's would never show

It's time I start walkin'

But there's so much you'll never know

I keep telling you hard luck woman

You ain't a hard luck woman

Rags, the sailor's only daughter

A child of the water

Too proud to be a queen

Rags, I really love ya

I can't forget about ya

You'll be a hard luck woman

Baby, till you find your man

Before I go let me kiss you

And wipe the tears from your eyes

I don't want to hurt you, girl

You know I could never lie

I keep telling you hard luck woman

You ain't a hard luck woman

You'll be a hard luck woman

Baby, till you find your man

Rags, the sailor's only daughter

A child of the water

Too proud to be a queen

Rags, I really love ya

I can't forget about ya

You'll be a hard luck woman

Baby, till you find your man

You'll be a hard luck woman

Baby, till you find your man

Oh yeah, bye bye, so long, don't cry

I'm just packin' my bags, whoa, leavin' you

Bye bye, bye bye, bye bye, baby, don't cry

I gotta keep on movin', yeah movin'

Bye, bye my baby

Ooh, don't cry, lady, oh

KISS Headed to Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

When I saw Paul Stanley's name at the top of the trending list on Yahoo a little while ago, of course I had to check.  I hoped with the greatest of hope that nothing bad happened to him, but I also noticed that the band KISS was at number four on the same trending list, so thinking it was a good sign I clicked it.  Indeed, it was good news.

huffingtonpost

KISS are amongst next year's inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  Joining my sentimental favorite rockers in next year's Hall of Fame induction will be Nirvana, Hall & Oates, Peter Gabriel, Linda Ronstadt and Cat Stevens, an impressive group of worthy music makers.

As some of my readers may know, I was a huge KISS fan back in my early to mid teens and I've caught and enjoyed their shows many times over the years.  Believe me, there is nothing like a KISS concert!  Though I may not be into that type of music these days, every once in awhile I do enjoy myself a lil KISS.

The Hottest Band in the Land was not always recognized as a serious band compared to the likes of Led Zeppelin, Queen or many of the other rock and roll bands borne out of the 70's.  The makeup and stage gimmicks, I believe, took away from critics' reception of their music, but they've proved their staying power backed by their legions of fans known as the KISS Army, who enjoy the makeup and all that, but also the music.

Here's one of their biggest commercial hits, the disco-fied (and bemoaned by KISS fans at the time) I Was Made for Loving You:

 

Kiss - I Was Made For Loving You by kanekiller666