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Too Late For Love Album Pyromania (1983) Women Album: Hysteria (1987) by Def Leppard 1977- Joe Elliott Vocals 1977- Pete Willis Guitar 1977-1981 Rick Savage Bass 1977- Rick Allen Drums 1979- Steve Clark Guitar 1977-1991 Phil Collen Guitar 1981- Vivian Campbell Guitar 1992- Tony Kennerig Drums 1977-1978 Formed in England, their name was originally spelled Deaf Leopard. They got the idea to alter the spelling from Led Zeppelin. Rick Allen lost his left arm in a car accident on New Year's Eve, 1984 when he was racing his Corvette on a road in Sheffield, England. He flew through the windshield and his arm was ripped off by the seat belt. He quickly expressed his desire to stay with the band, and learned to play with a specially designed, computer-assisted drum kit. Guitarist Steve Clark died of a drug and alcohol overdose in 1991. Joe Elliott started a Mott The Hoople cover band in 2009 called the Down 'n' Outz. In an interview, Elliott said that recording and performing in this band freed him from the expectations that came with any new Def Leppard material. It was also a way for him to introduce some of his favorite Mott/Ian Hunter songs to a new audience. Steve Clark was dubbed "The Riff-Master" because of his ability to make lots of catchy riffs for the band, many of which were not recorded to songs. Clark and Collen were known as "The Terror Twins," a reference to Aerosmith's Toxic Twins. Thomas Dolby played keyboards on the Pyromania album. He is credited as Booker T. Boffin. Allen was once criticized by Queen Elizabeth because of the Union Jack boxers he wore onstage. The Union Jack is the flag representing the United Kingdom. Their first concert was in a room in a spoon factory in Sheffield, England. Only six people went to it. Mutt Lange produced Def Leppard's second album, High 'n' Dry. As he had done with AC/DC and Foreigner, Lange infused their songs with pop appeal while building on their Rock foundation. His contributions were so significant that when he produced their next two albums, Lange was credited as a co-writer on every song. On October 23 1995, the band played three 45-minute shows on three different continents. One show was in Tangier, Morocco, another was in London, and the last one was in Vancouver, British Columbia. Before joining Def Leppard, Vivian Campbell played in Dio and Whitesnake. Phil Collen joined Def Leppard after the dismissal of founding member Pete Willis. Collen had previously been a member of a glam band named "Girl." While some individual members had serious problems with drugs and alcohol, the band was quite tame when they toured, avoiding the typical rock mayhem and excess. Said Elliott: "Since rock bands discovered accountants, they don't throw TVs out of windows at 500 quid a time." Their two biggest albums, Pyromania and Hysteria, were released around the same time as Michael Jackson's Thriller and Bad, and spent a lot of time at #2 on the album charts as a result. Many British bands move out of England when they become famous to avoid the heavy taxes, which is known as becoming a "Tax Exile." Def Leppard did this in 1984, moving to Ireland so they could keep more of their money. It wasn't until their 1987 Hysteria album that they broke out in their home country of England. Their biggest success was in America, where Pyromania sold almost 7 million copies, but just 60,000 in England. Early on, they took a lot of stick in the British press, which left a mark on the band. "We don't worry about England anymore," Elliott told Sounds in 1982. "We're just trying to put across the point that everybody's missed out and that is that we've been s--t on and people have said things about us that are a lot of bulls--t."

Apeman Album: Lola vs. Powerman And The Moneygoround, Part 1 (1970) You Really Got Me Album: The Kinks (1964) All Day And All Of The Night Album: The Kink Kronicles (1964) by The Kinks On "Apeman" Ray Davies had to re-dub the line "the air pollution is a-fogging up my eyes" for the radio, and for their November 1970 performance on Top Of The Pops, because it sounded too much like "the air pollution is 'a f---ing' up my eyes." The Kinks had the same situation with their previous single, "Lola" where Ray had to replace the line "Where you drink champagne and it tastes just Coca-Cola" with "Cherry cola" for airplay. John Gosling (aka "The Baptist") wore a gorilla outfit while sitting behind his keyboards during the Kinks' Top of the Pops performance of this song. The Kinks were able to perform this song in America because a year earlier, the musicians' union ban they incurred in 1965 had been lifted. They drew the ire of the union on their first American tour that year by clashing with technicians and cutting sets short. The ban kept The Kinks out of sight in the US until 1969. The song was covered by former Marillion singer Fish for his 1993 album Songs from the Mirror. This appeared in the 1986 Robin Williams movie Club Paradise. Ray Davies wrote the lyric to "You Really Got Me" after watching girls dancing in a club. It's not the most articulate lyric, but that's the point: The guy in the song is so infatuated, all he can do is mutter at the girl how she's really got him. In 2015, he told Rolling Stone: "I just remembered this one girl dancing. Sometimes you're so overwhelmed by the presence of another person and you can't put two words together." Davies expanded on the song's inspiration during a 2016 interview with Q magazine: "I was playing a gig at a club in Piccadilly and there was a young girl in the audience who I really liked. She had beautiful lips. Thin, but not skinny. A bit similar to Françoise Hardy. Not long hair, but down to about there (points to shoulders). Long enough to put your hands through... (drifts off, wistfully)... long enough to hold. I wrote 'You Really Got Me' for her, even though I never met her." Dave Davies got the dirty guitar sound by slashing the speaker cone on his amplifier with a razor blade. The vibration of the fabric produced an effect known as "fuzz," which became common as various electronic devices were invented to distort the sound. At the time, none of these devices existed, so Davies would mistreat his amp to get the desired sound, often kicking it. According to Dave, the amp slashing happened in his bedroom in North London when he was irate - he had gotten his girlfriend, Sue Sheehan, pregnant, and their parents wanted to keep them from getting married. Instead of doing self harm, he used the blade on the amp to channel his rage. The amp was a cheap unit called an Elpico that had been giving him problems - he decided to teach it a lesson! In the studio, the wounded Elpico was hooked into a another amp, which Dave recalls as a Vox AC30 and producer Shel Talmy remembers as a Vox AC10. The sound they got changed the course of rock history, becoming the first big hit to use distortion. Davies and Sheehan stayed apart, but she had the baby, a girl named Tracey who finally met her father until 1993. "You Really Got Me" is the first hit for The Kinks. Before releasing it, they put out two singles that flopped: a cover of "Long Tall Sally" and a Ray Davis composition called "You Still Want Me." If "You Really Got Me" didn't sell, there was a good chance their record label would have dropped them, but the song gave them the hit they were looking for. Soon they were making TV appearances, gracing magazine covers, and playing on bills with The Beatles as an opening act. They didn't have an album out when the song took off, so they rushed one out to capitalize on the demand. This first, self-titled album has just five originals, with the rest being R&B covers - standard practice at the time for British Invasion bands. The Kinks recorded a slower version with a blues feel on their first attempt, but hated the results. Ray Davies thought it came out clean and sterile, when he wanted it to capture the energy of their live shows. Dave Davies' girlfriend backed them up, saying it didn't make her want to "drop her knickers." The Kinks' record company had no interest in letting them re-record the song, but due to a technicality in their contract, they were able to withhold the song until they could do it again. At the second session, Dave Davies used his slashed amp and Talmy produced it to get the desired live sound. This is the version that was released. Talmy liked the original: He claimed it would also have been a hit if it was released. Ray Davies came up with famous riff on the piano at the family home. He played it for Dave, who transposed it to guitar. Their first version was 6-minutes long, but the final single release came in at just 2:20. The first line was originally "you, you really got me going." Ray Davies changed it to "girl, you really got me going" at the suggestion of one of their advisers. The idea was to appeal to the teenage girls in their audience. The final version of the song was recorded in July 1964, with Ray Davies on lead vocals, Dave Davies on guitar, and Pete Quaife on bass. The Kinks didn't have a drummer when they first recorded the song a month earlier, so producer Shel Talmy brought in a session musician named Bobby Graham to play. When they recorded it the second time in July, Mick Avory had joined the band as their drummer, but Talmy didn't trust him and made him play tambourine while Graham played drums. A session musician named Arthur Greenslade played piano, and Jon Lord, years before he became a member of Deep Purple, claimed he played keyboards. Lord recalled with a laugh to The Leicester Mercury in 2000: "All I did was plink, plink, plink. It wasn't hard." Released in the UK on August 4, 1964, "You Really Got Me" climbed to #1 on September 16, where it stayed for two weeks. In America, it was released in September and reached a peak of #7 in November. Ray Davies is the only songwriter credited on this track, even though his brother Dave came up with the signature guitar sound. This was one of many friction points for the brothers, who are near the top of any list of the most combative siblings in rock. When they recorded the song, Ray was 22 and Dave was 17. Ray Davies wrote this with the intention of making it big crowd-pleaser for their live shows. He was trying to write something similar to "Louie Louie," which was a big hit for The Kingsmen. Shel Talmy, who produced this track, came to England from California and brought many American recording techniques with him. To get the loud guitar sound on "You Really Got Me," he recorded the guitar on two channels, one with distortion, the other without. When combined in the mix, the result was a loud, gritty sound that popped when it came on the radio. "I was using some techniques I worked out on how to get a raunchier sound with distortion," Talmy said in a Songfacts interview. "It wasn't that difficult because I had done it before in America." Talmy added: "It helped that Dave was as good as he was, and that he was quite happy to listen." Talmy later produced the first album for The Who, My Generation. It was rumored that Jimmy Page, who was a session musician at the time, played guitar on this track, which the band stridently denied. According to producer Shel Talmy, Page didn't play on this song but did play rhythm guitar on some album tracks because Ray Davies didn't want to sing and play guitar at the same time. Ray Davies took pains to make sure we could understand the words. "I made a conscious effort to make my voice sound pure and I sang the words as clearly as the music would allow," he said. A 1978 cover of this song was the first single for Van Halen, who played lots of Kinks songs in their early years doing club shows. Eddie Van Halen spent the next several years developing new guitar riffs, and like Davies, was known to manipulate his equipment to get just the right sound. The powerful rhythm guitar riff was very influential on other British groups. The Rolling Stones recorded "Satisfaction," which was driven by the rhythm guitar, a year later. According to Ray Davies, there was a great deal of jealousy among their peers when The Kinks came up with this song. He said in a 1981 interview with Creem: "There were a lot of groups going around at the time – the Yardbirds, the Kinks, the Rolling Stones – and nobody had really cracked with a sort of R&B #1 record. The songs were always sort of like The Beatles. When we first wanted to do a record, we couldn't get a recording gig. We were turned down by Decca, Parlophone, EMI and even Brian Epstein came to see us play and turned us down. So I started writing songs like 'You Really Got Me,' and I think there was a sheer jealousy that we did it first. Because we weren't a great group – untidy – and we were considered maybe a bit of a joke. But for some reason, I'd just had dinner, shepherd's pie, at my sister's house, and I sat down at the piano and played da, da, da, da, da. The funny thing is it was influenced by Mose Allison more than anybody else. And I think there was a lot of bad feeling. I remember we went to clubs like the Marquee, and those bands wouldn't talk to us because we did it first." The Kinks' next single was "All Day And All Of The Night," which was basically a re-write of this song, but was also a hit. This has been used in these TV shows: The Simpsons ("The Canine Mutiny" - 1997) Mad Men ("The Other Woman" - 2012) Shameless ("Hurricane Monica" - 2012) Blue Bloods ("Model Behavior" - 2011) Daria ("Legends of the Mall" - 2000) WKRP in Cincinnati ("Frog Story" - 1981) And in these movies: Minions (2015) Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel (2009) Catch Me If You Can (2002) The New Guy (2002) Hilary and Jackie (1998) Private Parts (1997) A Bronx Tale (1993) She's Out of Control (1989) Night Shift (1982) Over the Edge (1979) It also appears in the video game Guitar Hero II (2006). Ray Davies recalled in an interview with NME how his brother Dave created the distortion effect on this song. Said Ray: "We stuck knitting needles in the speakers, or in Dave's case, he slit the speakers with a razor blade. In those days we played records on a radiogram so loudly that they all sounded fuzzy. We thought, 'That's a great sound,' without realizing the speakers were buggered. Everyone else was using really clean guitar sounds, so for 'You Really Got Me' we hooked a little speaker up to a clean amp and came up with thunderous, unaffected, pure power." In a Rolling Stone interview, Ray said that they "evolved" the sound by putting knitting needles in the speakers when recording this song. That statement prompted a rebuttal from his brother Dave, who wrote in to explain: "I alone created the guitar sound for the song with my Elpico amp that I bought. I slashed the speaker with a razor blade, which resulted in the 'You Really Got Me' tone. There were no knitting needles used in making my guitar sound." One of the many things the Davies brothers disagree on is the Van Halen cover. Ray loves it. He told NME it is his favorite Kinks cover. "It was a big hit for them and put them on a career of excess and sent them on the road. So I enjoyed that one." Dave Davies is not a fan. He told Rolling Stone: "Our song was working-class people trying to fight back. Their version sounds too easy." The Who played this at many of their early concerts. Their first single was "I Can't Explain," also produced by Shel Talmy with a sound clearly borrowed from "You Really Got Me," as Pete Townshend played a dirty guitar riff similar to what Dave Davies' did. The Kinks based All Day And All Of The Night on their first hit, "You Really Got Me." In their early years, The Kinks' record company pressured them to follow up hits very quickly, which created what lead singer Ray Davies described as an "assembly line" of songs. In this case, the tactic worked well, with the sound-a-like tune scoring them another hit. Kinks frontman Ray Davies wrote this lusty rocker where the guy can't stand to be away from his girl even for a minute. He called it, "A neurotic song - youthful, obsessive and sexually possessive." This was produced by group's manager, Shel Talmy, who helped The Kinks get a loud, dynamic sound. Talmy, an American who came to England when he smelled opportunity, also produced the first album for The Who. The Kinks recycled the basic riff in the song "Destroyer," the style of which bares a resemblance to that of many Talking Heads songs, from that group's 1981 album Give The People What They Want. "Destroyer"'s lyrics contain references to other Kinks songs, including "Lola." During a July 12, 2006 concert at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga, Ray Davies explained how the song was originally rejected by his record company because it was "too blue-collar, too working-class" and because the record execs thought the guitar sounded like a dog's bark. You might notice some similarities between this song and the 1968 Doors song "Hello, I Love You." According to Ray Davies, his publisher wanted to sue the Doors over it, but Ray refused to take legal action. There was a persistent rumor that Jimmy Page played guitar on some early Kinks songs, including this one. When Ray Davies was asked about this in a 1981 interview with Creem, he replied: "I remember Page coming to one of our sessions when we were recording 'All Day And All Of The Night.' We had to record that song at 10 o'clock in the morning because we had a gig that night. It was done in three hours. Page was doing a session in the other studio, and he came in to hear Dave's solo, and he laughed and he snickered. And now he says that he played it! So I think he's an asshole, and he can put all the curses he wants on me because I know I'm right and he's wrong."

Love Stinks Album: Love Stinks (1980) Must of Got Lost Single (1974) by J. Geils Band Love Stinks tells it like it is, with lead singer Peter Wolf explaining that he's been through every hue of love (blue, red, pink), and he's come to the conclusion that love does indeed stink. Like most J. Geils Band hits, this song was written by Peter Wolf and the band's keyboard player, Seth Justman, who was also their producer. This was the title track to the band's ninth album, which found them moving in a pop direction while remaining rooted in blues. Their next album, Freeze Frame, was a commercial breakthrough, making them stars on MTV and Top 40 radio. A movie called Love Stinks was released in 1999 starring French Stewart and Bridgette Wilson as a couple that just can't get along. A version of the song by Himalayaz with Ms. Toi plays under the closing credits. Adam Sandler sang this in the 1998 movie The Wedding Singer. It was also used in the film Opie Gets Laid (2005), and the "Foreign Exchange Student" episode of My Name Is Earl (2007). It's also in the 2007 "The Boys of Bummer" episode of The Simpsons as "Bart Stinks." Joan Jett recorded a cover for the 1996 movie Mr. Wrong. In 2009, this was used in commercials for the Swiffer Wet Jet. Peter Wolf released a bluegrass version on his 2016 solo album A Cure for Loneliness. He came up with the idea one night before a show. He and his band were planning to play some Bill Monroe songs, and he started messing around with "Love Stinks" bluegrass style. They played it as part of the show, and that live version made the album. "Must of Got Lost" is a rock song by The J. Geils Band. Released in 1974, the single reached in No. 12 the following year. Allmusic critic Joe Viglione described it as "one of the most memorable tunes by The J. Geils Band." A live version of the song, with an extended spoken-word introduction by Peter Wolf, appears on Blow Your Face Out, J. Geils Band's second live album. The live version receives considerable airplay on album-oriented rock format stations. The title is grammatically incorrect and can be said to be an example of a common eggcorn. Billboard described the melody as "one long hook" and the sound of the song as "funky." Cash Box called it "a rocker with solid instrumentation and a full arrangement [that] is augmented by the backing harmonies and some good lead guitar licks." Record World said that it was the band's "most commercial AM effort in some time" with "good pacing and balance between vocal and instrumental ends." Ultimate Classic Rock critic Michael Gallucci rated it to be the band's 2nd greatest song, saying that the live version on Blow Your Face Out is the best version, in which "the energy levels are pushed to a whole other level of greatness." Must of Got Lost is featured in the 2004 Disney movie Miracle and in the end-credits of the series finale of Eastbound & Down.

FM (No Static At All) Album: FM Soundtrack (1978) Dirty Work Album: Can't Buy A Thrill (1972) by Steely Dan Walter Becker and Donald Fagen wrote this song for the 1978 movie FM, which takes place at a radio station and was the precursor to the television series WKRP in Cincinnati. Becker and Fagen performed the song in the movie, which came at a time when FM Radio was relatively new and catching up to AM in popularity. As the song points out, FM has a lot less static than AM, but at the time, a big selling point of FM radio stations was their ability to take chances by playing lesser known bands and album cuts. Donald Fagen recalled writing this song in California to American Songwriter magazine. "There was a film called FM and we were asked to do the title song," he said. "And I said, 'Does it have to have any specific words?' And they said, 'No, it just has to be about FM radio.' We wrote that very quickly, I remember, in one or two days. And we also recorded it very quickly, too. Johnny Mandel came in and did the string chart. It was fun to meet Johnny Mandel." Steely Dan called their music "smart rock," and this song is a great example why. In just over three minutes, it conveys a feeling of helplessness as the guy feels dirty and used even though he's getting commitment-free sex, something to be celebrated in most "dumb rock." If you didn't peg this as a Steely Dan song when you first heard it, you're to be forgiven. The lead vocal is by David Palmer, whom group leaders Donald Fagen and Walter Becker brought in midway through making the album. He sang lead on just two Steely Dan songs: "Dirty Work" and "Brooklyn (Owes the Charmer Under Me)." On most of their later work, Fagen handles the lead vocals. "Dirty Work" wasn't released as a single, but endured as a favorite on soft rock radio. It was part of Steely Dan's first album, Can't Buy A Thrill, whose two singles were "Do It Again" and "Reelin' In The Years." Like many Steely Dan songs, there's a jazz influence in "Dirty Work," with some unusual instrumentation going on. The track is built around an organ and electric piano (likely a Wurlitzer) played by Donald Fagen. Snooky Young added flugelhorn and Jerome Richardson played tenor sax. Both are notable jazz musicians. Steely Dan wasn't the first to use the phrase "dirty work" in a song about cheating: Little Joe Blue did it in his 1966 blues track "Dirty Work Going On." The phrase was coined by the American sociologist Everett Hughes in a 1962 essay called "Good People and Dirty Work," which examined how the German populace (the "good people) was able to reconcile the atrocities of the Nazis (the "dirty work"). The phrase proved malleable, and while Steely Dan used it in reference to infidelity, it was later used to describe the kind of job that most people didn't want to think about, like working at a slaughterhouse or in a sewer. The song's vocalist, David Palmer, toured with the band until 1974; when he left they mothballed the song. When Steely Dan started touring again in 2000 after a long hiatus, they put "Dirty Work" back in their setlist with a new arrangement, sung by their female backup singers. "Dirty Work" is one of the most-covered Steely Dan songs. The short-lived all-female rock group Birtha were the first, releasing their version in 1973. It was later covered by José Feliciano, Melissa Manchester, The Pointer Sisters and many others. This song shows up in various TV shows and movies when some underhanded business is going on, most famously at the beginning of the 2013 movie American Hustle and in the 2001 Sopranos episode "Mr. Ruggerio's Neighborhood," where Tony Soprano sings along to it while he's driving. Other uses include the movies Mask (1985) and The Kid Stays in the Picture (2002), and these TV shows: Minx ("Relaying news of a wayward snake" - 2022) The Simpsons ("You Won't Believe What This Episode Is About - Act Three Will Shock You!" - 2022, "Dad Behavior" - 2016) Euphoria ("Trying to Get to Heaven Before They Close the Door" - 2022) The Morning Show ("No One's Gonna Harm You, Not While I'm Around" - 2019)

Last Train to Clarksville Album: The Monkees (1966) I'm Not Your Steppin Stone Album: More Of The Monkees (1966) The Monkees "Last Train To Clarksville" was written by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, a songwriting team who came up with many songs for the Monkees. They also wrote songs for Chubby Checker and Jay & the Americans. Boyce and Hart wrote this as a protest to the Vietnam War. They had to keep this quiet in order to get it recorded, but it is about a guy who gets drafted and goes to fight in the war. The train is taking him to an army base, and he knows he may die in Vietnam. At the end of the song he states, "I don't know if I'm ever coming home." The Air Force base he refers to is actually an Army base: Fort Campbell. The only Monkee to appear on this song was Micky Dolenz, who sang lead. The four members of the group were chosen from over 400 applicants to appear on a TV show based on The Beatles movie A Hard Day's Night. The show was about a fictional band, so the members were chosen more for their looks and acting ability than for their musical talent. Session musicians played on The Monkees' albums, usually some combination of Glen Campbell, Leon Russell, James Burton, David Gates, Carol Kaye, Jim Gordon and Hal Blaine. According to the liner notes on the 1994 reissue of the album, however, members of a group called the Candy Store Prophets did the instrumental backing on this track at a session that took place July 25, 1966 at RCA Victor Studios in Hollywood. The Candy Store Prophets were Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart's band, and included Boyce on acoustic guitar, Gerry McGee on electric guitar, Larry Taylor on bass and Billy Lewis on drums. Additional musicians on this track were Wayne Erwin and Louie Shelton on guitar, and Gene Estes on percussion. Often reported as having played guitar on this track is Jesse Ed Davis, a Native American whose accomplishment included backing George Harrison at the Concert for Bangla Desh and playing the solo on Jackson Browne's first hit, "Doctor My Eyes." This was The Monkees' first single. It was released shortly after their TV show started on NBC and got a lot of publicity as a result. The Monkees took a lot of heat when they became successful recording artists without playing on their songs. Their drummer Micky Dolenz explained in The Wrecking Crew film: "I think there was a lot of resentment in the recording industry that we’d come out of nowhere, left field, and sort of just shot right to the top without having to kind of go through the ropes. Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart also wrote "(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone", but intended it for Paul Revere And The Raiders. Monkees drummer Micky Dolenz sang lead, and was the only Monkee to perform on the song. In their early years, The Monkees songs were usually recorded by top session musicians. The Monkees had a popular TV show where their songs (including this one) aired, which helped them climb the charts. The Sex Pistols covered this song for their 1979 album The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle. Their version, which was also released as a single, features a snarling lead vocal from their ill-fated bass player Sid Vicious. British group The Farm had their first hit with a 1990 remake of this called "Stepping Stone." Monkees keyboardist/bass guitarist Peter Tork on the song's relevance: "The songs that we got [in the '60s] were really songs of some vigor and substance. '(I'm Not Your) Stepping Stone' is not peaches and cream. It comes down hard on the subject, poor girl. And the weight of the song is indicated by the fact that the Sex Pistols covered it. Anybody trying to write ''60s songs' now thinks that you have to write '59th St. Bridge.' [Sings] 'Feeling groovy!' Which is an okay song, but has not got a lot of guts. 'Stepping Stone' has guts."

"Face Dances, Pt. 2" is single written and composed by Pete Townshend, most famously known as the guitarist for the Who. The song appears on Townshend's 1982 solo album All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes. Pete Townshend said that the song, in addition to the other songs on All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes, was about his personal experiences of alienation from both his wife and band members from the Who that he experienced during the early 1980s. ["Face Dances, Pt. 2" is] the anthem of the soul in solitary confinement. It's a feeling like [a] feeling in jail. The face that I sing about is my own. I wrote the lyrics while I was looking in a mirror! Although it shares a title with it, "Face Dances Pt. 2" was not released on Townshend's band The Who's album Face Dances. In the liner notes for Face Dances, it is claimed that the song was written after the release of the Who album, but authors Steve Grantley and Alan Parker claim in their book, The Who By Numbers: The Story Of The Who Through Their Music, that the song was cut from the album. Billboard suggested that the "eccentric time shifts and circular melodic scheme" would reduce its appeal to pop music radio stations. I watch you sit and twitching With a match between your teeth You seem to have a knack of moving it It's in time to the beat Face dances tonight Fate chances moonlight Face dances tonight Fate chances moonlight I can't be distracted By the stuttering of the kids I just sit enraptured By your fluttering eye lids Face dances tonight Fate chances moonlight Face dances tonight Fate chances moonlight I can only stare You make me feel Like I don't care I can only stare You make me feel Like I don't care I can only stare You make me feel Like I don't care Your eyes explain a story That never had a start Your brow reveals the glory That's hidden in your heart Face dances tonight Fate chances moonlight Face dances tonight Fate chances moonlight Your skin is fine china White as winter snows Your lips are always shining Turning up your nose Face dances tonight Fate chances moonlight Face dances tonight Fate chances moonlight I can only stare You make me feel Like I don't care

Under Pressure Ashes To Ashes Album: Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) (1980) by David Bowie Under Pressure was a collaboration with David Bowie, this is credited to "Queen with David Bowie" because the B-side of the single is Queen's "Soul Brother." It was recorded at an impromptu session in Montreaux, Switzerland in the summer of 1981. According to Queen bass player John Deacon, Freddie Mercury did most of the songwriting on this, although everyone contributed. The lyrics deal with how pressure can destroy lives, but love can be the answer. The lyrics are characteristic of Mercury's songwriting. Deacon however did come up with the iconic two-note bass riff, although it came very close to vanishing: according to Roger Taylor in the Days of our Lives documentary, Deacon came up with the riff, then the band went for pizza before coming back to continue rehearsals. Upon returning, Deacon had completely forgotten his idea! Luckily, Taylor eventually remembered how the bassline went. Brian May recalled to Mojo magazine October 2008. "It was hard, because you had four very precocious boys and David, who was precocious enough for all of us. David took over the song lyrically. Looking back, it's a great song but it should have been mixed differently. Freddie and David had a fierce battle over that." May adds to this feeling of the sessions being fairly strained in a further interview for the Days of our Lives documentary, where he notes that "suddenly you've got this other person inputting, inputting, inputting... he (David) had a vision in his head, and it's quite a difficult process and someone has to back off... and eventually I did back off, which is unusual for me." In the US, this was on Queen's Greatest Hits album and released as a single at the same time. It was not released on a UK album until six months later, when it was included on Hot Space. This was only the second UK #1 hit for Queen. They hit #2 with "Crazy Little Thing Called Love," "We Are The Champions," "Somebody To Love," and "Killer Queen," but their only previous #1 in England was "Bohemian Rhapsody." In the early '80s, it was popular for two superstars to get together to release a hit single. Other notable combinations include Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder on "Ebony And Ivory," Diana Ross and Lionel Richie on "Endless Love," and Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton on "Islands in the Stream." "Under Pressure" marked the first time Queen collaborated with another artist. David Bowie performed this with Annie Lennox at the 1992 "Concert For Life" in Wembley Stadium, London. The show was a tribute to Freddie Mercury, with proceeds going to AIDS causes. Vanilla Ice sampled this on "Ice Ice Baby," which was a huge hit in 1990. Details are fudgy, but it appears that the sample was never cleared and a settlement was reached with Queen and Bowie long after Vanilla's song hit it big. This song has been used in a number of movies, including 2002's 40 Days And 40 Nights and 2004's The Girl Next Door. It is also included in the hugely successful Queen tribute show We Will Rock You. During the Taste Of Chaos tour, the singers from My Chemical Romance and The Used would come out and perform this song at the end of the show. Joss Stone covered this for the 2005 Queen tribute album Killer Queen. Reinhold Mack, who did production work on the Hot Space album, told an amusing story about the vocal recording for "Under Pressure," where one of the two singers would record their improvised vocals with the other being locked out so they couldn't hear what the other was doing. Said Mack: "Freddie is doing all his bits and pieces and I see out of the corner of my eye David sticking his head in and listening. Then Fred came down and David went up, and Fred was quite impressed how David was counterpointing to what he (Freddie) had done before. Fred said 'what do you make of this?' and I said 'Well, it's kinda easy if you stand in the doorway and listen!'" At which point Freddie apparently had some choice words for David! According to a 2017 Mojo interview with Brian May, Freddie and David "locked horns" in the studio. Asked to elaborate, the Queen guitarist replied: "In subtle ways, like who would arrive last at the studio. So it was sort of wonderful and terrible. But in my mind I remember the wonderful now, more than the terrible." The two singers first met a dozen years before they recorded the song. In 1969, Freddie Mercury fitted David Bowie for a pair of boots during his day job working on a boot stall in Kensington Market. Ashes To Ashes can be seen as a sequel to Bowie's 1969 hit, "Space Oddity." It revisits the fictional astronaut, Major Tom, who is now in space. He has regained communication with Ground Control and tells them he is happy, but they deem him nothing but a "junkie, strung out in heavens high, hitting an all-time low." Fans believe this to be Bowie's autobiographical piece about his fight against drug abuse and other personal demons. The closing refrain of this song, "My mama said to get things done, you'd better not mess with Major Tom," suggests that in order to make the best of the future, one should not dwell on the past. It has also been suggested that "Space Oddity" was a thinly veiled reference to a drug trip, and that "Ashes to Ashes" is hinting that in order to move on, Bowie must kick these drug habits. In his 2003 interview with Performing Songwriter magazine, Bowie explains that the song "Inchworm," which was sung by Danny Kaye in the 1952 movie Hans Christian Andersen, was a big influence on "Ashes To Ashes." Said Bowie: "I loved it as a kid and it's stayed with me forever. I keep going back to it. You wouldn't believe the amount of my songs that have sort of spun off that one song. Not that you'd really recognize it. Something like 'Ashes to Ashes' wouldn't have happened if it hadn't have been for 'Inchworm.' There's a child's nursery rhyme element in it, and there's something so sad and mournful and poignant about it. It kept bringing me back to the feelings of those pure thoughts of sadness that you have as a child, and how they're so identifiable even when you're an adult. There's a connection that can be made between being a somewhat lost five-year old and feeling a little abandoned and having the same feeling when you're in your twenties. And it was that song that did that for me." The music video for "Ashes to Ashes" features Bowie dressed as Pierrot in a variety of bizarre situations. Steve Strange of the New Wave band, Visage, cameos. Bowie has said the shot of himself and other characters marching towards the camera in front of a bulldozer symbolizes "oncoming violence." During this scene, the characters behind Bowie are not bowing, but simply trying to pull their gowns away from the bulldozer so they don't get stuck! This, and many other images in the video suggest that Bowie may be trying to bury the various personas he developed. The video, which Bowie directed with David Mallet, cost £250,000 to produce, making it the most expensive music video ever made at the time. It was released a year before MTV went on the air. In 1983, Peter Schilling released "Major Tom (I'm Coming Home)," which is based on the Major Tom character. It was a rare instance of someone making a sequel to a song by another artist. This was sampled on Samantha Mumba's "Body II Body." Bowie gave his seal of approval to Samantha's song, but a lot of his fans hated it. The British BBC TV series, Ashes to Ashes, was named after this song. The series served as the sequel to Life on Mars, which was also named after the Bowie song of the same name. Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) was ranked at #30 on Q Magazine's "100 Greatest British Albums Ever." This song had a huge impact on Marilyn Manson; it was the first video he saw on MTV. "He'd created a radio pop hit that was so unnatural, so different, full of unease and tension," Manson told Rolling Stone. "And yet it had some sexiness to it. It was like I was watching a movie." According to Madness, Bowie told them he tried to rip off their song "My Girl" in "Ashes To Ashes" but he couldn't find the right drummer to do it. "He should have just asked me," Madness drummer Danny Woodgate said during a Q&A at Pryzm in Kingston. "If you listen to both songs, they sound the same."

Jail Break Album: Jailbreak (1976) The Boys Are Back In Town Thin Lizzy Jailbreak finds the band singing about the hell and unrest they are about to cause this particular evening. Both songs became staples of Classic Rock radio. The song was used in the movie Detroit Rock City in a scene where one of the characters escapes from the boarding school his mother had taken him to and heads for the Kiss concert at Detroit. This was used in a 2017 commercial for Sonos home audio equipment where their sound system solves the problem of a silent home. Written by group leader Phil Lynott, "The Boys Are Back In Town" reflects Thin Lizzy's rough-and-tumble composure and working-class roots. The song was a way of connecting with their fans, who had similar sensibilities. Thin Lizzy would often stir up trouble and end up in fights - their roadies were chosen based in part on their pugilistic skills. The group also drank heavily and had a blast. The song became their calling card. This lifestyle took a tragic toll on Lynott, who died in 1986 at 36 after his body broke down from years of drug and alcohol abuse. This was a pivotal song for Thin Lizzy, which was on their last legs when it became a hit. In 1972, they had a huge hit in their native Ireland with their version of "Whiskey In The Jar," but weren't able to follow it up and couldn't make a dent in America. They were in debt and their label, Phonogram, was ready to drop them if they didn't get return from the Jailbreak album. "The Boys Are Back In Town," released as the first single, gave them the hit they needed and established them in America, a huge market for rock bands. With this footing, their next few albums were solid sellers, especially in the UK, and they expanded their range as a live act. Folks in Manchester, England, will tell you "The Boys Are Back In Town" is about the Quality Street Gang, a criminal enterprise not unlike the Mafia. Phil Lynott spent much of his youth in Manchester, where his mom ran a club called the Showbiz. The QSG would often hang out there, always "dressed to kill" (they were so named because of their fashion sense). A key member of the gang was Jimmy "The Weed" Donnelly, the subject of a song on Thin Lizzy's next album called "Johnny The Fox Meets Jimmy The Weed." The Dino's Bar And Grill mentioned in the song is probably a real place, but which one is up for debate. Deno's was a Manchester nightclub the Quality Street Gang would frequent; Dino's Lodge was a Hollywood cabaret with a Dean Martin theme (Martin was a business partner). It shows up in the opening credits of the TV series 77 Sunset Strip. Drink would flow at both establishments, but if you're looking for a place where blood would spill, it was definitely Deno's. This has been used in a number of TV commercials over the years, including spots for Wrangler, Chase credit cards, and Applebee's. Everclear covered this for the 1999 film Detroit Rock City. Their version was later used in the movie A Knight's Tale. >> "The Boys Are Back In Town" plays in four episodes of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. It also shows up in these TV series: The Simpsons ("Singin' in the Lane" - 2017) Supernatural ("Book of the Damned" - 2015) Hawaii Five-0 ("Kuka'awale" - 2015) Cougar Town ("All the Wrong Reasons" - 2010) And in these movies: The Expendables (2010) Things to Do Before You're 30 (2005) Trojan War (1997) Navy Seals (1990) Thin Lizzy were surprised when this became their breakthrough hit – because they hadn't wanted it on their Jailbreak album. Guitarist Scott Gorham recalled to Classic Rock: "We were playing in some club in the US when our manager came in and said, 'Well, looks like we've got a hit.' We were like, 'Which song?' Seriously, we didn't have any idea at all which song it was that had taken off for us." "To tell you the truth, we weren't initially going to put 'The Boys Are Back In Town' on the Jailbreak album at all," he continued. "Back then you picked 10 songs and went with those because of the time restrictions of vinyl." "We recorded 15 songs, and of the 10 we picked, that wasn't one of them," Gorham added. "But then the management heard it and said, 'No, there's something really good about this song.' Although back then, it didn't yet have the twin guitar parts on it." Guess who just got back today Them wild-eyed boys that had been away Haven't changed, had much to say But man, I still think them cats are crazy They were askin' if you were around How you was, where you could be found Told them you were livin' downtown Drivin' all the old men crazy The boys are back in town, the boys are back in town I said, the boys are back in town, the boys are back in town The boys are back in town, the boys are back in town The boys are back in town, the boys are back in town You know that chick that used to dance a lot Every night, she'd be on the floor, shakin' what she'd got Man, when I tell you she was cool, she was red hot I mean, she was steamin' And that time over at Johnny's place Well, this chick got up and she slapped Johnny's face Man, we just fell about the place If that chick don't want to know, forget her The boys are back in town, the boys are back in town I said, the boys are back in town, the boys are back in town The boys are back in town, the boys are back in town The boys are back in town, the boys are back in town Spread the word around Guess who's back in town? You spread the word around Friday night, they'll be dressed to kill Down at Dino's Bar 'n' Grill The drink will flow and blood will spill And if the boys want to fight, you better let 'em That jukebox in the corner blastin' out my favorite song The nights are getting warmer, it won't be long Won't be long 'til the summer comes Now that the boys are here again The boys are back in town, the boys are back in town The boys are back in town, the boys are back in town The boys are back in town, the boys are back in town The boys are back in town, the boys are back in town (The boys are back, the boys are back) The boys are back in town again Been hangin' down at Dino's The boys are back in town again

Kung Fu Fighting Album: Kung Fu Fighting And Other Great Love Songs (1974) by Carl Douglas Kung Fu and disco come together on this song, merging two of the biggest trends of the '70s. Disco was just finding its groove when the song was released in 1974, but Kung Fu had been kicking for a while, with Bruce Lee movies like Fist Of Fury (1972) and Enter The Dragon (1973), and a popular TV series called Kung Fu starring David Carradine that ran from 1972-1975. The combination proved irresistible: "Kung Fu Fighting" was a global hit, going to #1 in most countries where it was released, including America, where it spent two weeks at the top in December 1974. Carl Douglas was working as a session singer for Pye Records in London when he wrote this song. He got the idea one night in Soho when he walked by a pinball arcade and saw some kids using Kung Fu moves in a mock fight, moving in time to the music. He turned to his buddy and said, "Damn, looks like everybody's Kung Fu fighting." "At that moment, I heard it all in my head, melody line as well, so I had to rush home and write it down," he explained in the Billboard Book Of #1 Hits. Douglas was born in Jamaica - you'll hear a bit of reggae in this song as a nod to his heritage. He was the first Jamaican-born singer to have a #1 hit in the US. He also became the first British-based singer to land a #1 hit on the R&B chart when "Kung Fu Fighting" topped that tally. "Kung Fu Fighting" seems like a glaringly obvious hit, but it was banished to a B-side when Douglas recorded it with the Asian producer Biddu (last name: Appaiah) and sent it to Pye Records with a far more generic song called "I Want To Give You My Everything" as the A-side. "'Kung Fu Fighting' was not meant to be a hit," Biddu told the Metro newspaper August 6, 2004. "Carl Douglas recorded something for an A-side of a single and every session was three hours long. We spent two hours on the first song and then took a break and I said: 'Quick guys, we need to record the B-side in two takes.' Kung Fu Fighting was the B-side so I went over the top on the 'huhs' and the 'hahs' and the chopping sounds. It was a B-side: who was going to listen? I played the A-side to the guy at Pye Records, Robin Blanchflower, and he said: 'Can I listen to the rest of the reel?' When he heard it, he said: 'This should be the A-side.'" Biddu became the first Asian producer at the helm of a UK #1 hit. The song was first released in the UK, where Douglas was based. After a slow start, it began selling and rose to #1 in September 1974. Pye then teamed with the US label 20th Century to release it in America, where it hit the top spot three months later. Douglas donned a bandana and robe when he performed this song, doing the kicks and chops to demonstrate the dance that came to be known as the "Kung Fu." The dance was a little dangerous but very popular - anyone can do it. The follow-up single was "Dance The Kung Fu," which didn't have nearly as much punch, topping out at #48 in America and #35 in the UK. Carl Douglas never again charted in America and had just one more entry in the UK: "Run Back" in 1977, which went to #25. Of course this was used in the 2008 kids' movie Kung Fu Panda, performed by Cee-Lo Green and Jack Black. The original Carl Douglas version was used in the movies City of God (2002), Wayne's World 2 (1994), Beverly Hills Ninja (1997), Daddy Day Care (2003), and Bowfinger (1999). In 1998 "Kung Fu Fighting" returned to the UK chart, peaking at #8 in a rendition by the British dance act Bus Stop. Their version sampled Carl Douglas' original vocals. Bus Stop members included Mark Hall and Graham Turner, who later recorded as Flip & Fill. Daz Sampson, who later represented the UK in the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest, was also a member of the group. Everybody was kung-fu fighting Those kicks were fast as lightning In fact it was a little bit frightening But they fought with expert timing They were funky China men from funky Chinatown They were chopping them up and they were chopping them down It's an ancient Chinese art and everybody knew their part From a feint into a slip, and kicking from the hip Everybody was kung-fu fighting Those kicks were fast as lightning In fact it was a little bit frightening But they fought with expert timing There was funky Billy Chin and little Sammy Chung He said here comes the big boss, let's get it on We took a bow and made a stand, started swinging with the hand The sudden motion made me skip now we're into a brand knew trip Everybody was kung-fu fighting Those kicks were fast as lightning In fact it was a little bit frightening But they did it with expert timing Keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on Everybody was kung-fu fighting Those kicks were fast as lightning In fact it was a little bit frightening Make sure you have expert timing Kung-fu fighting, had to be fast as lightning Keep on, keep on, keep on

Fantasy album: Aldo Nova (1982) Monkey On Your Back album: Subject...Aldo Nova (1983) Aldo Nova On Fantasy “I’m okay with it now, but for the longest time I tried to play it down,” singer and guitarist Aldo Nova says about “Fantasy,” his soaring 1982 signature song. “Some people have said it started the pop-metal genre, and I guess that’s possible. Soon afterward, I saw a lot of bands come in with a similar sound, and that led to hair metal, which I didn’t want to be associated with.” He laughs. “But after a while I came around,” he says with a shrug. “It’s a great song and a big hit. What’s not to be proud of?” In the early 1980s, Aldo Caporuscio was a budding young guitarist and performer in Montreal. By day he worked at a music store, and at night he played the city’s downtown clubs. “I did all the Top 40 hits and a lot of new wave covers,” Nova recalls. “More and more, though, people told me they wanted to hear rock, so that’s what I started writing.” With Led Zeppelin as his North Star (“They had killer riffs, each one as good as a verse or chorus”), Nova came up with a turbo-charged power-chord pattern that felt like a good opener. From there he started building a song in layers. “I definitely borrowed from a couple of places,” he admits. “The melody in the verses was kind of based around Christopher Cross’s ‘Ride Like the Wind.’ I even phrased my vocals like he did. “And there’s a descending guitar line under the riff that’s very much like ‘Dazed and Confused.’ Once I had all those pieces together, I had ‘Fantasy’ ready to go.” Nova’s opportunity to get into a proper studio came about by a most unusual circumstance. One night, after performing a club date, he ran into a local musician with a label deal who was recording at Montreal’s Bobinason Studios. “He was looking for a songwriter,” Nova says. “I told him I wrote, and we started working together.” When the guy skipped out of the sessions that had been booked, Nova got his big break. “The people at the studio said I could use his time and do whatever I wanted.” Nova had never recorded a proper demo of “Fantasy,” but as the lucky recipient of a large chunk of free studio time, he operated as his own one-man band. “I played everything except the drums,” he says. “We tried a couple of drummers, but this guy Terry Martel nailed it.” For guitar tracks, Nova used his favorite Wine Red Les Paul Custom. “I cut the solo on the fly, but I had a plan for it,” he says. “I wanted it to sound like dueling guitars, like those southern rock bands used to do, so I double-tracked the solo with one on the left and the other on the right.” Nova was displeased with the third album and the record company's insistence on making a more commercial album.[1] After supporting the Twitch album, Nova's label refused to release him from his contract, and he stopped working with Portrait. In 1990, Aldo Nova wrote the main guitar riff used in the Jon Bon Jovi song, "Blaze of Glory". In 1991, to return the favour, Bon Jovi worked with Nova to release Blood on the Bricks on Bon Jovi's label Jambco Records. Nova produced some early Celine Dion albums. He co-wrote the hit song, "A New Day Has Come" for Dion, and has been featured playing guitar, synthesizer, and percussion on her records. He also wrote her songs "Your Light", "I Can't Fight the Feelin'", and "You and I" (which was used as Hillary Clinton's campaign song and as the Air Canada theme song). He co-wrote the Blue Öyster Cult song "Take Me Away" and was a member of the Guitar Orchestra of the State Of Imaginos on their album Imaginos.

Tears of the Dragon Album: Balls to Picasso (1994) Bruce Dickinson "Tears of the Dragon" is the first single from Bruce Dickinson's second solo album, Balls to Picasso, released on 28 May 1994. Allmusic called "Tears of the Dragon" a "magnificent" track, "by far the album's best song". Balls to Picasso is the second solo album by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, released in 1994. It is the first album in Dickinson's solo career that was released after he had officially left Iron Maiden (although he rejoined again in 1999). This record marked the beginning of Dickinson's collaborations with guitarist Roy Z, who would work on many of Dickinson's later albums including Accident of Birth, The Chemical Wedding and Tyranny of Souls. Stylistically it departs from Tattooed Millionaire but is still more traditional-sounding than the follow-up album Skunkworks released in 1996. Later, Dickinson said that he and Roy Z were talked into making the album less heavy than it should have been. Dickinson started working on his second solo album while still in Iron Maiden. For the very first recording sessions he recruited the British band Skin. Not satisfied with the style of the effort, Dickinson aborted the recording. His next attempt at a second solo album was a collaboration with producer Keith Olsen. "Over and Out", "Tibet", "Tears of the Dragon (First Bit, Long Bit, Last Bit)", "Cadillac Gas Mask", and "No Way Out...Continued" are all songs recorded with Olsen and set for inclusion on the second, aborted version of Balls to Picasso, also referred to by insiders as "The Peter Gabriel Album". Other songs from these sessions that have yet to surface on any Dickinson release include "Man of Sorrows" (re-recorded for Accident of Birth; an older demo version from 1990 appears on The Best of Bruce Dickinson), "Original Sin" and "Thank Heaven". Dickinson decided to scrap this project as well and teamed up with guitarist Roy Z and his band Tribe of Gypsies to write and record Balls to Picasso. The song "Change of Heart" was originally written and demoed by Roy Z and vocalist Rob Rock with their band Driver. Dickinson changed the lyrics for the version that was recorded for Balls to Picasso. Z and Rock finally recorded and released their version when Driver reunited for their 2008 debut album, Sons of Thunder. Songs from the previous recording sessions later resurfaced as b-sides on singles from Balls to Picasso and subsequently also as bonus tracks on the album's 2005 extended edition. Bruce Dickinson – vocals Tribe of Gypsies Roy Z – guitar Eddie Casillas – bass guitar David Ingraham – drums Doug Van Booven – percussion Dean Ortega – vocals Additional musicians Dickie Fliszar – drums on "Tears of the Dragon" Richard Baker – keyboards and programming "Tears Of The Dragon" For too long now, there were secrets in my mind For too long now, there were things I should have said In the darkness, I was stumbling for the door To find a reason, to find the time, the place, the hour Waiting for the winter sun and the cold light of day The misty ghosts of childhood fears The pressure is building and I can't stay away. I throw myself into the sea Release the wave Let it wash over me To face the fear I once believed The tears of the dragon for you and for me Where I was, I had wings that couldn't fly Where I was, I had tears I couldn't cry My emotions, frozen in an iced lake I couldn't feel them until the ice began to break I have no power over this, you know I'm afraid The walls I built are crumbling, the water is moving, I'm slipping away... I throw myself into the sea Release the wave, let it wash over me To face the fear I once believed The tears of the dragon for you and for me Slowly I awake, slowly I rise The walls I built are crumbling, The water is moving, I'm slipping away. I throw myself into the sea Release the wave, let it wash over me To face the fear I once believed The tears of the dragon for you and for me I throw myself into the sea Release the wave, let it wash over me To face the fear I once believed The tears of the dragon for you and for me

Dead Flowers Album: Sticky Fingers (1971) Miss You Album: Some Girls (1978) The Rolling Stones In Dead Flowers, Mick Jagger addresses a girl named Susie with more than a little disdain: She's welcome to send him dead flowers, but he'll put roses on her grave. The music and lyrics both have a distinct country vibe. Jagger explained in 1995: "I love country music, but I find it very hard to take it seriously. I also think a lot of country music is sung with the tongue in cheek, so I do it tongue-in-cheek. The harmonic thing is very different from the blues. It doesn't bend notes in the same way, so I suppose it's very English, really. Even though it's been very Americanized, it feels very close to me, to my roots, so to speak." Mick Jagger, 2003: "The 'country' songs we recorded later, like 'Dead Flowers' on Sticky Fingers or Far Away Eyes on Some Girls, are slightly different (than our earlier ones). The actual music is played completely straight, but it's me who's not going legit with the whole thing, because I think I'm a blues singer not a country singer - I think it's more suited to Keith's voice than mine." The line, "I'll be in my basement room with a needle and a spoon" is probably a reference to shooting up heroin. This song rolled during the final credits of The Big Lebowski. Allen Klein, Rolling Stones manager and owner of the song initially wanted $150,000 for the movie's use of it. He was then convinced to let them use it for free when he saw the scene in which The Dude says, "I hate the f---in' Eagles, man!" The lyrics to Miss You were seemingly inspired by Mick Jagger's deteriorating relationship with his wife, Bianca. Jagger has claimed otherwise, saying: "'Miss You' is an emotion, it's not really about a girl. To me, the feeling of longing is what the song is." Session musicians included Sugar Blue (James Whiting) on harmonica, Mel Collins on sax and Ian MacLagan on electric piano. Collins had played with King Crimson, MacLagan had been in the band Faces with Stones guitarist Ron Wood. Sugar Blue was from Harlem, but was playing in the Paris metro (their subway) when someone from The Stones record company heard him and brought him to the sessions. The bassline, horns and drums gave this a disco sound that alienated many of their fans, but also propelled it to the top of the charts. The Stones thought of it as more R&B than disco. Drummer Charlie Watts explained: "A lot of those songs like 'Miss You' were heavily influenced by going to the discos. You can hear it in a lot of those four on the floor rhythms and the Philadelphia-style drumming. Mick and I used to go to discos a lot... It was a great period. I remember being in Munich and coming back from a club with Mick singing one of the Village People songs - 'Y.M.C.A.', I think it was - and Keith went mad, but it sounded great on the dance floor." This was the first single released from Some Girls. Jagger took a lead role on the album, mainly because Keith Richards had been arrested for drug possession in Toronto the previous year, and it was unclear what his sentence would be. Facing a maximum of life in prison, Keith had other things to worry about besides making an album. After this was released, the Canadian judge sentenced Richards to continue his addiction treatment and play a benefit concert for the blind. Jagger and Billy Preston came up with the basic track while touring Europe in 1976. Stones bassist Bill Wyman said: "The idea for those bass lines came from Billy Preston. We'd cut a rough demo a year or so earlier after a recording session. I'd already gone home, and Billy picked up my old bass when they started running through that song. He started doing that bit because it seemed to be the style of his left hand. So when we finally came to do the tune, the boys said, Why don't you work around Billy's idea? So I listened to it once and heard that basic run and took it from there. It took some changing and polishing, but the basic idea was Billy's." The same day they recorded this track, The Stones came up with the idea for "Start Me Up." This is a rare Stones song with a dominant bassline. Many of their songs were driven by the rhythm guitar of Keith Richards. This was the last of eight #1 hits for The Rolling Stones in America. When this song hit the charts, some other rockers felt safe entering the disco waters. Most notably Rod Stewart, who went disco with "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" after hearing this song and seeing that The Stones were getting away with it. Stewart's song was a huge hit, but he faced more of a backlash from rock fans as he seemed to embrace the genre. Rather than shy away from his sexy smash, Stewart embraced it, making the song a staple of his setlists (somewhat ironically) throughout his career. Van Halen used the bassline on their 1981 song "Push Comes To Shove."

Ayn Is A Man

Confessions of a Psycho Cat Album: Big Beat from Badsville (1997) By The Cramps The Cramps were an American band formed in 1976 and active until 2009. Their lineup rotated frequently during their existence, with the husband-and-wife duo of singer Lux Interior and guitarist Poison Ivy the only ever-present members. The band are credited as progenitors of the psychobilly subgenre, uniting elements of punk rock with rockabilly. The addition of guitarist Bryan Gregory and drummer Pam Balam resulted in the first complete lineup in April 1976. They released their debut album Songs the Lord Taught Us in 1980. The band split after the death of lead singer Interior in 2009. Lux Interior (born Erick Lee Purkhiser) and Poison Ivy (born Kristy Marlana Wallace) met in Sacramento, California, in 1972. In light of their common artistic interests and shared devotion to record collecting, they decided to form the Cramps. Lux took his stage name from a car ad, and Ivy claimed to have received hers in a dream (she was first Poison Ivy Rorschach, taking her last name from that of the inventor of the Rorschach test). In 1973, they moved to Akron, Ohio, and then to New York in 1975, soon entering into CBGB's early punk scene with other emerging acts like Suicide, the Ramones, Patti Smith, Television, Blondie, Talking Heads, and Mink DeVille. The lineup in 1976 was Poison Ivy Rorschach, Lux Interior, Bryan Gregory (guitar), and his sister Pam "Balam" (drums). In June 1978, they gave a landmark free concert for patients at the California State Mental Hospital in Napa, recorded on a Sony Portapak video camera by the San Francisco collective Target Video and later released as Live at Napa State Mental Hospital. Once back to the east coast, they played the revamped 1940s swing club "The Meadowbrook" in New Jersey, which had a huge stage and dance floor. The Cramps relocated to Los Angeles in 1980 and hired guitarist Kid Congo Powers of the Gun Club. While recording their second LP, Psychedelic Jungle, the band and Miles Copeland began to dispute royalties and creative rights. The ensuing court case prevented them from releasing anything until 1983, when they recorded Smell of Female live at New York's Peppermint Lounge; Kid Congo Powers subsequently departed. Mike Metoff of the Pagans (cousin of Nick Knox) was the final second guitarist – albeit only live – of the Cramps' pre-bass era. He accompanied them on an extensive European tour in 1984 (that had been canceled twice because they could not find a suitable guitarist) which included four sold out nights at the Hammersmith Palais. The band appears in the 1982 film Urgh! A Music War. It was not until 1986 that the Cramps found a suitable permanent bass player: Candy del Mar (of Satan's Cheerleaders), who made her recorded debut on the raw live album RockinnReelininAucklandNewZealandxxx, which was followed by the studio album Stay Sick in 1990. It spent one week at No. 62 in the UK Albums Chart in February 1990. Candy del Mar and Knox left the band in 1991. The Cramps hit the Top 40 in the UK for the first and only time with "Bikini Girls with Machine Guns"; Ivy posed as such both on the cover of the single and in the promotional video for the song. The Cramps went on to record more albums and singles through the 1990s and 2000s, for various labels. When the band signed to The Medicine Label, a Warner Brothers imprint, in 1994 – the label made the announcement via a limited edition (500 copies) 12" live album of the Cramps' first two Max's Kansas City shows, given away to all ticket holders as they exited a secret CBGB show in early January of that year. In 1994, the Cramps made their national US television debut on Late Night with Conan O'Brien performing "Ultra Twist". In 1995 the Cramps appeared on the TV-series Beverly Hills, 90210 in the Halloween episode "Gypsies, Cramps and Fleas". They played two songs in the episode: "Mean Machine" and "Strange Love". Lux Interior started the song by saying "Hey boys and ghouls, are you ready to raise the dead?". In honor of the success of the Cramps, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has on display a shattered bass drum head that Lux's head went through during a live show. In 2002, the Cramps released their final album, Fiends of Dope Island, on their own label, Vengeance Records. That same year, Lux Interior did a voiceover for the lead singer character of the band The Bird Brains on the animated TV show SpongeBob SquarePants singing 'Underwater Sun.' The song was written and composed by Stephen Hillenburg and Peter Strauss. The Cramps played their final shows in Europe in the summer of 2006 and their last live show was on November 4, 2006, at the Marquee Theater in Tempe, Arizona. On February 4, 2009, Lux Interior died at the Glendale Memorial Hospital after suffering an aortic dissection which, contrary to initial reports about a pre-existing condition, was "sudden, shocking and unexpected". He was 49.

It's the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine) Album: Document (1987) by R.E.M. “Come then, and let us pass a leisure hour in storytelling, and our story shall be the education of our heroes.” ― Plato, The Republic Explaining this song to Q magazine in 1992, lead singer Michael Stipe said: "The words come from everywhere. I'm extremely aware of everything around me, whether I am in a sleeping state, awake, dream-state or just in day to day life. There's a part in 'It's The End Of The World As We Know It' that came from a dream where I was at Lester Bangs' birthday party and I was the only person there whose initials weren't L.B. So there was Lenny Bruce, Leonid Brezhnev, Leonard Bernstein... So that ended up in the song along with a lot of stuff I'd seen when I was flipping TV channels. It's a collection of streams of consciousness." This was heavily influenced by Bob Dylan, especially the way Dylan sang "Subterranean Homesick Blues." Stipe had once imitated Dylan in a low-budget film called Just Like a Movie, which was a play on the Dylan song "Just Like A Woman." Stipe claims to have a lot of dreams about the end of the world, destroyed buildings and the like. His stream-of-consciousness writing style in this is very similar to the way a dream moves. This started off as a song called "Bad Day," and had lyrics decrying the politics of the Reagan administration. R.E.M. finally released "Bad Day" on their 2003 hits compilation album, In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003. When R.E.M. played this live, the audience reacted with a party vibe that threw off the band. They thought the apocalyptic lyrics would create a more subdued response. Michael Stipe said that the lyrics were written to make people smile. The words he used tend to make your mouth smile when you speak them. In the last verse, the line, "The other night I tripped at Knox" refers to Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois, where the band had a night of fun. This appears in the movies Dream A Little Dream, Independence Day, Tommy Boy and Chicken Little. The government of the Soviet Union allowed this to appear on a 1990 Greenpeace album that was distributed there. Billy Joel had a huge hit two years later when he used the rapid-vocal, stream-of-consciousness lyric style on "We Didn't Start The Fire." This appeared in an episode of The Simpsons when Homer and Moe are fighting about Moe's new bar. Homer opens his own bar in his garage and then lies to REM about why they are playing there. Brett Anderson, lead singer of the all-girl band The Donnas, told Rolling Stone magazine that she is an "R.E.M. geek" and can recite all of the lyrics to the song. The song's title was used as the name of a two-part episode in season 2 of Grey's Anatomy. The opening lyrics, "That's great; it starts with an earthquake," could be a biblical reference, as earthquakes are sometimes seen a sign of the end times. It could also be REM's interpretation of the Book of Revelations. Here's Revelation 11:19 - "And the temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm." Although the official lyrics are "Don't get caught in foreign tower," many students at Boston University heard this line as, "Don't get caught in Warren Towers," which is an undesirable dorm where many freshmen at the university end up living. The Mayans' doomsday prophesy of the end of the world for December 21, 2012, may not have happened, but this song registered a hefty surge in sales and airplay in the days before the potentially apocalyptic event. Most notably in Calgary, Canada, where according to a tweet of theirs, the alternative CFEX (X92.9) station played this tune "156 times in a row by our count." Peter Buck tells a different story about the "jelly bean. Lester Bangs, boom" reference in the song. In the liner notes for Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage 1982-2011, he writes that he and Stipe went to a party at a journalist's house in 1980 when they first came to New York. "The guys from Joe King Carrasco and Lester Bangs were there. And all they had was birthday cake and jelly beans, and we were starving and ate that. A random story that popped into a song eight years later. At the time, I was really proud of that song." Stipe remembers writing the lyrics while the rest of the guys went out for dinner. "It was pretty much done by the time they got back, and Peter hated it. He capitulated finally and it made the record. Thank God we have always had each other to convince ourselves how wrong and right we can be. He got me back with 'Electrolite.'" The first major usage of the title phrase appears to be in the 1972 film Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, where a human says in preparation for battle with apes: "If we lose this battle, that's the end of the world as we know it." Interest in the song skyrocketed in March 2020 amid growing global concern over the coronavirus outbreak. In the tracking week ending March 12, on-demand US streams increased from the previous week by 48% to 746,000, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data.

Couldn't Get It Right Album: Gold Plated (1976) by Climax Blues Band This was the first big hit for the Climax Blues Band, who had been recording since 1968 and released eight previous albums. Derek Holt, who was the bass player and a vocalist in the band, spoke with Songfacts about "Couldn't Get It Right": "The song is about being on the road in America. 'Looking for a sign in the middle of the night' being about the old Holiday Inn signs, really, because the moment you saw the Holiday Inn sign, that meant you got a bed for the night. When we first started in America, we used to fly everywhere; sometimes we'd have three flights a day to get to any one place. The way the itinerary was sorted out, it was never very easy to get to anywhere, so consequently we used to arrive in the town, get into a car, just about make the sound check for the gig, do the gig, get back in the car, then look for a bed. Towards the latter sort of probably five years of the band's life, we started using tour buses, so you could sort of leave after the gig, get on the bus, get a bed, drive 1,000 miles or whatever, be at the next gig being quite refreshed. So that was a really nice way of traveling." This song is a great example of the dual vocal technique The Climax Blues Band was known for. Holt explains: "Colin Cooper used to sing the lead - the low vocal, and I used to sing an octave higher. And then, because four of us sang in the band, we used to harmonize. The fact that we had the dual singing the same line but with an octave split made the sound very unique, and it's still very unique today. Whenever people use it I think it's great. That was one of our trademarks, we just used to sing together in unison." Derek Holt told how this came together: "We did an album for RCA called Gold Plated, and the album was produced by an old legendary producer called Mike Vernon. We delivered the album to RCA. RCA heard the album, said, 'You know what, guys, there really isn't a hit single on it. So, could you go try and write a hit?' We went to our London studio, which belonged to George Martin, without Mike Vernon, the producer, and we had a couple of days in the studio and we came up with the song 'Couldn't Get It Right' from absolutely nowhere. Just a question of sitting in the studio, sitting around, thinking of a great rhythm and putting the old sort of dual vocals on it, the octave low and high vocals, couple of hooks. And we turned up, and it became a hit. So nothing more than a lucky moment in time. It really annoyed the producer, who thought we were holding out on him with an extra song that we never told him about." Fun Lovin' Criminals covered this on their 1999 album Mimosa. Stockholm Syndrome recorded it on their 2004 album Holy Happy Hour. Time was drifting This rocker got to roll So I hit the road and made my getaway Restless feeling, really got a hold I started searching for a better way But I kept on looking for a sign In the middle of the night But I couldn't see the light No, I couldn't see the light I kept on looking for a way To take me through the night I couldn't get it right I couldn't get it right LA fever made me feel alright But I must admit it got the best of me Getting down, so deep I could have drowned Now, I can't get back the way I used to be But I kept on looking for a sign In the middle of the night But I couldn't see the light No, I couldn't see the light I kept on looking for a way To take me through the night I couldn't get it right I couldn't get it right New York City took me with the tide And I nearly died from hospitality Left me stranded, took away my pride Just another no account fatality I kept on looking for a sign In the middle of the night But I couldn't see the light No, I couldn't see the light I kept on looking for a way To take me through the night I couldn't get it right I couldn't get it right I kept on looking for a sign In the middle of the night But I couldn't see the light No, I couldn't see the light I kept on looking for a way To take me through the night I couldn't get it right I couldn't get it right I kept on looking for a sign In the middle of the night But I couldn't see the light No, I couldn't see the light I kept on looking for a way To take me through the night I couldn't get it right I couldn't get it right

Gold Dust Woman Album: Rumours (1977) Gypsy Album: Mirage (1982) by Fleetwood Mac I was once a Romanian by marriage. She kept the Romanian house... so I guess I ain't a resident no more! Stevie Nicks wrote Gold Dust Woman and sang lead. While Nicks has never been clear on the meaning, you can make a good case that it is about cocaine, which the band was consuming in quantity during the Rumours sessions. The lyrics, "Take your silver spoon, dig your grave," can be seen as a reference to a spoon holding the drug. Nicks' relationship with Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham may also have influenced the song, as they had broken up and were going through some very difficult times, using songs as a medium for expressing their feelings to each other. In Mick Fleetwood's book My Life and Adventures in Fleetwood Mac, he explains that it took Nicks eight takes to get the vocal right, and they were recorded early in the morning. Fleetwood described Nicks as "hunched over in a chair, alternately choosing from her supply of tissues, a Vicks inhaler, a box of lozenges for her sore throat and a bottle of mineral water." Cris Morris, who was a recording assistant on the sessions, explained in Q magazine: "Recording 'Gold Dust Woman' was one of the great moments because Stevie was very passionate about getting that vocal right. It seemed like it was directed straight at Lindsey and she was letting it all out. She worked right through the night on it, and finally did it after loads of takes. The wailing, the animal sounds and the breaking glass were all added later. Five or six months into it, once John had got his parts down, Lindsey spent weeks in the studio adding guitar parts, and that's what really gave the album its texture." Lindsay Buckingham played a dobro on this track. The dobro is an acoustic guitar with a single resonator with its concave surface uppermost. The inventor of the resonator guitar, John Dopyera, together with his brothers Rudy, Emile, Robert, and Louis, developed the dobro in 1928. They named it as a contraction of Dopyera Brothers' coupled with the meaning of "goodness" in their native Slovak language. Gibson acquired exclusive use of the dobro trademark in 1993 and the guitar corporation currently produces several round sound hole models under the dobro name. One of these ornate guitars is featured on the cover of Dire Straits' Brothers In Arms. This was used in the 1996 movie The Crow: City of Angels and also in the 2018 episode of The Americans, "Dead Hand." Stevie Nicks performed this song with Foo Fighters from time to time, including at a show on September 21, 2015 at the Forum in Los Angeles with Haim singing backup. After Taylor Hawkins of Foo Fighters died on March 25, 2022, Nicks Tweeted a photo of them together and wrote: "He always came to my shows. He and his best friend Dave [Grohl] even let me be a Foo Fighter for a little while. We recorded a kick-ass version of 'Gold Dust Woman' (live) and at the end of the song I yelled out 'Best Gold Dust Woman ever' - and I meant it." Stevie Nicks wrote Gypsy and planned to include it on her 1980 solo album Bella Donna. She didn't have room for it on the album, so she held it over for Fleetwood Mac's Mirage album. By this time, her friend Robin Anderson was dying of leukemia and the song became a tribute to her. Shortly after Robin Anderson died, Stevie Nicks married her husband, Kim Anderson. In a 1990 interview with US magazine, Nicks explained: "Robin was one of the few women who ever got leukemia and then got pregnant. And they had to take the baby [named Matthew] at six-and-a-half months, and then she died two days later. Fleetwood Mac recorded this at Le Chateau Studios in France, which was known as the "Honky Chateau" - Elton John recorded there and named his 1972 album after the studio's nickname. Fleetwood Mac was an early adopter of music videos, making some even before MTV launched, since there were shows in Europe that would play them. Once MTV went on the air in 1981, they put more effort into their clips. The "Gypsy" video was directed by Russell Mulcahy, who directed the Buggles' "Video Killed The Radio Star." Mulcahy wasn't familiar with the tribulations of the band members' love lives, so he paired up Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks in some scenes. They had ceased to be a romantic couple six years earlier and had since become a contentious one. Still, they danced together in the video.

The Lumberjack Album: Jackyl (1992) by Jackyl Monty Python weren't the only act to record a song about a lumberjack. Kennesaw, Georgia band Jackyl's debut single also concerns a worker in the logging industry. Their southern rocker peaked at #24 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart in 1992. Yes, that's a real chainsaw solo on the track, courtesy of lead singer Jesse James Dupree. Before they were signed to Geffen Records, a chainsaw bit was part of their stage show, with Dupree cutting stuff up and wielding it as an instrument during jam sections. When Jackyl got their major-label deal, Dupree figured it was the end of the chainsaw, since they were now big-time. John Kalodner at Geffen (who signed the band) thought otherwise, insisting they keep the chainsaw in the show and use it on this track. In an interview with Jesse James Dupree, he said that this song was written and performed the same day in a burst of inspiration. Dupree was headed from Atlanta to South Carolina, where he was meeting the band for a show. Along the way, he wrote the song in his head. Said Dupree: "We got there, and there was a bass guitar right when I walked in the door. I picked up the bass guitar, figured out what key I was doing it in, and told the band that we were going to kick off a three-chord turnaround in A. And it's been 'The Lumberjack' ever since." The song has a blues groove and follows a typical lyrical format of the genre: I'm a ____ baby And I'm going to ____ The blanks can be filled with any number of metaphors, and in this case they are "lumberjack" and "cut you down to size." And like many blues songs of this vein, it's filled with sexual references. The video was directed by Greg Vernon, who also did Aerosmith's "Eat The Rich." The clip is a mix of live footage, hillbilly clichés, and classroom scenes. As he did in the Aerosmith "Dude (Looks Like A Lady)" video, John Kalodner is in the clip as an apparent woman who turns out to be a (bearded) man. Of course, the chainsaw has a feature role in the clip. Jackyl is in the Guinness Book of World Records for performing 100 concerts in 50 days. Writer: Jesse James Dupree I was born in the backwoods Of a two-bit nowhere town Fathered up some rock 'n' roll (baby) So you muthers could boogie down I ain't whistling dixie No I'm a rebel with a groove All around the world the ygo 'round and 'round When they dig on my new stainless steel sound I'm a lumberjack baby I'm gonna cut you down to size I'm a lumberjack baby And you're the one that gets my prize And when you hear my motor running You know I surely be coppin' a rise So I'm gonna crank it up and cut it down I'm a lumberjack baby I'm a lumberjack now baby I'm a lumberjack baby I'm a lumberjack baby But I ain't jacked my lumber baby Since my chain saw you

Free For All Dog Eat Dog Album: Free For All (1976) by Ted Nugent In an interview with Nugent, he explained the meaning in Free For All: "When you spend as much time on stage as I do, you're looking into the beady eyes that can cut me in two. Those lyrics just blurted out. The rhythm is like a Bo Diddley lick through a louder amp with more flail. Equal groove, but a little excessive flailage. I sang what I felt on stage looking into those wonderful music lovers' eyeballs. Just as spontaneous and raw as a song can be. Celebrating those people that share my music with me." "Free For All" (sometimes rendered "Free-For-All") is the title track to Ted Nugent's 1976 album. It was just his second album as a solo artist, but in the last few years of his band The Amboy Dukes, he was running the show. Nugent didn't sing lead on many songs around this time, but he did on this one. Five songs on the album have lead vocals by Meat Loaf, whose bat had yet to escape hell. Three others feature his guitarist, Derek St. Holmes. Only "Free For All" has a Ted Nugent lead. Nugent certainly couldn't sing like Meat Loaf and didn't want to try - his focus was on the guitar. But there were certain song that he felt only he could express vocally, and "Free For All" was one of them. He also wanted a set of songs that he could sing in concert so he could better command the stage, and he had an inking that "Free For All" would become a live favorite. The line, "Stakes are high, and so am I" isn't a drug reference - Nugent took a strong stance against drugs and alcohol. He's high on life and on the music. Another drug-free "high" song Nugent was part of is "High Enough," his hit with the group Damn Yankees. Nugent performed this song in 2006 with Scott Ian, Sebastian Bach, Jason Bonham, and Evan Seinfeld for the VH1 reality show Supergroup, which followed these guys as they formed a group called Damnocracy. Dog Eat Dog written by the Motor City Madman himself, this song from Ted Nugent's second solo album was inspired by the 1967 Detroit riots: Sabotage in the downtown streets Police cars overturned Can't do nothing to beat the heat And if you don't you'll get burned Nugent isn't taking a side, but looking at the riots from the perspective of a citizen who gets caught up in them. "It's necessary to keep authority in check to some extent, but not always," he told Sounds. "A lot of times riots are just stupidity in action. A lot of times I can't tell you whether they are righteous or stupid and there may be occasions of both." Ted Nugent didn't sing on many of his early tracks, and on this one, Derek St. Holmes did lead vocals. Nugent would often introduce the song, making it clear that he was the alpha dog in this outfit. In the last verse, Nugent sings: Kamikaze from the hundredth floor Swan dive to the street He couldn't handle this madness no more He craved that sweeter meat This represents people who can't cope in the dog-eat-dog world and turn to suicide. "What it implies is that ain't nobody eatin' this dog," he said. "I'm a part of that city world, I was for many years and I was able to deal with it and take nourishment." said Ted.

"Writing on the Wall" Lead Vocals Meat Loaf by Ted Nugent Album: Free-for-All (1976) Side 1 Track 3 The year my family moved to Flowtown... Free-for-All is the second studio album by Ted Nugent. It was released in September 1976 by Epic Records, and was his first album to go platinum. As the recording of Free-for-All commenced, rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist Derek St. Holmes left the band, citing growing personal and creative conflicts with Nugent. Two solid years of living together on the road had taken its toll on the relationship. Additionally, St. Holmes was unhappy with Tom Werman's production, saying that the producer was watering down the band's sound. A full year before Bat Out of Hell brought him international success, vocalist Meat Loaf was brought in by producer Werman to sing on the album. Meat Loaf was paid the sum of $1,000 for his contributions to the album, which included crafting his vocal arrangements and two days of recording sessions. He says that after he agreed to do the album he was sent a lyric sheet containing just the words with no arrangements. Having no idea what the songs were going to sound like, he then created the vocal arrangements for the songs during the two days of recording. St. Holmes also sang lead vocal on several of the album's songs, including the single "Dog Eat Dog". He officially returned to the group after Free-for-All's release, and performed on the subsequent tour. Band management asked him to return at the request of Epic Records. Ted Nugent – lead and rhythm guitar, percussion Meat Loaf – lead vocals Rob Grange – bass guitar, bass phase effects Cliff Davies – drums, percussion, producer Writing on the Wall Ted Nugent Written by: Ted Nugent Album: Free-For-All Released: 1976 Racin down the highway I'd rather have it my way Gotta have more... Rules on the roadside Floor it like a landmine Keep you on your toes You head out for the take What's the fuss your makin Can't you see the light? You gotta get down when you roll upon the town It'll makes you feel alright My life is a good life to lead Writing on the wall is a good story to read You think me a trusting tiger I know that youýre a liar Eatin from your hand Batten down the hotel Runnin round hell now Rock and roll band Runnin helter skelter Kockem down and belt you Show me who is the boss You better treat her sweet Or you be out in the street And that would be a loss My life is a good life to lead Writing on the wall is a good story to read Lining up the tour bus I'm sure they wonýt thank us Needle in your mouth But now that we know where to shoot the goods again Flyin down south Writin, writing on the wall Writin, writing on the wall Racin down the highway I'd rather have it my way Gotta have more Rules on the roadside Floor it like a landmine Keep you on your toes Writin, writing on the wall Writin, writing on the wall Writin, writing on the wall Writin, writing on the wall

Highly Suspicious Album: Evil Urges (2008) by My Morning Jacket Evil Urges is the fifth studio album by My Morning Jacket. It was released by ATO Records on June 10, 2008. The album was nominated for the 2008 Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album, ultimately losing to Radiohead's In Rainbows. Writing began in Colorado, while recording was done in Manhattan. According to producer Joe Chiccarelli, the demos he was sent, which were "very groove-oriented with hints of old-fashioned R&B", suggested a more urban record than previous albums, and as such he recommended the band record in an urban environment that had some "life and vitality". After looking into various options including Vancouver and San Francisco, the band eventually decided to record in New York. Singer and lead songwriter Jim James said that the band wanted to get away from "normal rock and roll sounds" and emulate more of the band's live sound. Many of the songs were previewed at the 2008 South by Southwest music festival. My Morning Jacket played "I'm Amazed" and "Evil Urges" on Saturday Night Live on May 10, 2008. At the Bonnaroo Music Festival in June 2008, the band played a near four hour set, playing all songs on the album except "Look at You" and "Remnants". The season six premiere of The CW's teen drama One Tree Hill was titled "Touch Me I'm Going to Scream" and featured the songs "Highly Suspicious" and "Look at You." On November 22, 2009, the American Dad! episode "My Morning Straitjacket" featured the band members playing themselves. The episode utilised four songs from Evil Urges: "Touch Me I'm Going to Scream Part 2", "I'm Amazed", "Highly Suspicious" and "Remnants." Frontman Jim James told Mojo magazine May 2008: "This song is very theatrical. We sung in cartoon voices. They're supposed to sound like angry police officers, highly suspicious of you, knocking down your door. The main character, the one I'm singing, is this paranoid drug addict that the police are coming to get." My Morning Jacket was forced to cancel their fall European tour in 2008 after lead singer Jim James fell off the stage in Iowa City, Iowa. James was injured but recovered without any permanent damage. Frontman Jim James and the rest of My Morning Jacket once appeared in the animated TV show American Dad! My Morning Jacket played themselves in a Season 5 episode called "My Morning Straightjacket" where main character Stan Smith (the Dad) becomes obsessed with the band after trying to ban his daughter Hayley from listening to them. My Morning Jacket frontman Jim James is a huge fan of the late Jim Henson, calling him "one of the greatest artists of all time." James and the rest of the band were working collaboration for The Muppets, but the project was dropped when their producer was let go due to a takeover by Disney. 1998- Jim James Vocals, guitars Tom Blankenship Bass Johnny Quaid Guitar1998–2004 J. Glenn Drums1998–2000 Chris "KC" Guetig Drums2000–2002 Danny Cash Keyboards2000–2004 Patrick Hallahan Drums2002- Bo Koster Keyboards2004- Carl Broemel Guitar2004- Wasting time home alone dotting your I's Peanut butter pudding surprise! Ain't nobody care what's going on in your mind But they got they eye on your prize I'm highly suspicious of you Now daddy's got you home alone- solving your crimes Peanut butter pudding surprise! Ain't no jokin, smokin, strokin, tapping your lines Peanut butter pudding surprise! I'm highly suspicious of you Wasting all your time on drama, could be solving real crime Waste away your mind too I'm highly suspicious of you I'm highly suspicious, highly suspicious of you

She Rides Album Danzig 1988 How The Gods Kill Album Danzig III: How the Gods Kill 1992 by Danzig Like ALL Danzig's other albums with the original lineup, this album was issued a Parental Advisory sticker, later complete with a "strong language" warning, despite the total absence of profanity. As the girl is set on fire with a flamethrower I wonder if you see the annoying box I had to put to edit out somebody else's tramp stamp on the bit I stole... The drudgery of a copyright Pirate! Remember!!! Elon Musk sells Flamethrowers!!! Danzig is the debut studio album by American heavy metal band Danzig, released in August 1988. The album was the first release on producer Rick Rubin's new label Def American Recordings. Def American's successor, American Recordings, reissued the album in the United States and United Kingdom in 1998. It remains the band's best-selling album having been certified gold in the U.S. in 1994, and has since been certified platinum. Danzig promoted the album with a successful world tour in 1988–1989. Danzig was recorded at Atlantic Recording Studios and Chung King Metal, and mixed at Smoke Tree and Village.[14] These sessions took place between September 1987 and April 1988. The song "Mother", retitled as "Mother '93" and with live audience overdubs, became a hit on radio and MTV in 1993–94 after a new video-single with live footage was created to mark its inclusion on Thrall-Demonsweatlive.[11][16] The song was also later included on various hard rock and heavy metal music compilations, and featured in the video game series Guitar Hero. It also appeared on the soundtrack to the 2013 film The Hangover Part III. John Christ has described "She Rides" as "Our first sex song...it's such a stripped-down song, just a couple of guitar tracks and almost no bass. "She Rides" probably has the best vocal performance on the album, though. There are also some really weird background noises and moaning sounds on it." Generally the song refers to mythology on Lilith. References to "she rides/from the daylight in chains" reflect traditional methods for binding demons. The song also appears to take inspiration from the poetry of Christopher Brennan, in particular part xiii of the "Lilith" sequence of The Forest of Night: "She is the night: all horror is of her..." While the album's liner notes expressly state "All songs written by Glenn Danzig", the song "The Hunter" was written by Booker T. & the M.G.'s and Carl Wells. Originally recorded by Albert King, the Danzig version of the song only features slightly modified lyrics. Original LP, CD, and cassette versions of the album cover had no identifying text whatsoever, only a white skull on a black background. The skull, also used on the Samhain albums Initium and November-Coming-Fire, was taken from the cover of the Marvel comic book The Saga of Crystar, Crystal Warrior (issue 8). It was drawn by artist Michael Golden, who is not credited. The skull on the album cover was drawn by Danzig. Later pressings of the compact disc added the Danzig band name logo in the lower right. While 1990–1998 pressings of the CD had the Parental Advisory label in the form of a sticker on the cellophane wrap, pressings since 1998 have the label printed on the artwork. Danzig is one of few albums labeled as "explicit" despite the virtual absence of profanity, save for one use of "whore". Glenn Danzig commented on this use of the advisory label: "That's because of its content. We're making people think. You're not allowed to make people think in the United States. You're not allowed to have them question the government or authority." Music videos were released for the songs "Twist of Cain", "Am I Demon", "Mother" and "She Rides". Upon its release the music video for "Mother" was banned by MTV for containing controversial imagery. All four music videos later appeared on the Danzig home video. Danzig III: How the Gods Kill is the third studio album by Danzig, and the highest to chart at the time of its release in 1992 on Def American Recordings. It was reissued in 1998 by Def American's successor, American Recordings. Bassist Eerie Von considers the album to be Danzig's best, with the band at its peak and able to record most of the basic tracks for each song within a couple of takes. Guitarist John Christ noted how a lot of time was spent perfecting the guitar sounds for the album. For the quieter moments on the songs "Anything", "Sistinas" and "How the Gods Kill", Christ used a Strat guitar previously played by Jeff Beck. The composition of "Sistinas" and the title track, according to AllMusic, "attempt to match their music with the darkness of Glenn Danzig's lyrics", a departure from the blues riffs played elsewhere. The title song "How the Gods Kill" concerns a search for knowledge and an understanding of oneself. According to John Christ, “That was a real tricky song to write and record. It has so many level jumps and changes in the sound of the guitar. I had to go from a very soft section to a very loud section to an in-between section. If you listen closely, you can hear a hissing noise in the vocals in the intro because we were using a real noisy vocal preamp. We tried everything to get rid of it, but Glenn's performance was so good that we decided to leave it - the mood was just right.” The tracks "How the Gods Kill" and "Dirty Black Summer" became popular and remain a permanent fixture in the band's set list. The album's cover is a 1976 painting called Meister und Margeritha (The Master and Margarita) by famous Swiss artist H. R. Giger, named after Mikhail Bulgakov's novel The Master and Margarita. For the album cover, Giger modified the original painting slightly, covering "the Master's" erect penis with a dagger bearing his interpretation of the Danzig skull symbol. Giger's version of the Danzig skull was later used on T-shirts and as the cover art for the "Dirty Black Summer" single. Glenn Danzig – vocals Eerie Von – bass John Christ – guitars Chuck Biscuits – drums

Jackie Blue Album: It'll Shine When It Shines (1975) If You Wanna Get To Heaven Album: Ozark Mountain Daredevils (1973) by the Ozark Mountain Daredevils Rich men in splendid surroundings plan the demise of their own cattle. All wars are Bankers Wars. This was the Southern Rock band's first major hit, and it was fairly typical of their sound. The song was written by band members Steve Cash and John Dillon and released on their first album. Ozark Mountain Daredevils were from Springfield, Missouri, and sported long hair and a hell-raising attitude, which is the theme of this song: "If you wanna get to heaven, you've got to raise a little hell." The biggest hit for the band was 1975's "Jackie Blue," which was not like their other releases. Radio stations usually played an edited version of "If You Wanna Get To Heaven" omitting the last verse. This verse pretty well sums up what the whole tune is about: Everyday in your indigo eyes I watch the sunset but I don't see it rise Moonlight and stars in your strawberry wine You'd take the world but you won't take the time This was written by band members Steve Cash and Larry Lee. It's inspired by someone they met in Los Angeles who was strung out on drugs. Smashing Pumpkins covered this song. Their version shows up on various rarities and compilation albums. Writers: LARRY M. LEE, STEVE CASH Ooh, Jackie Blue Lives her life from inside of her room Hides a smile when she's wearin' a frown Ooh, Jackie you're not so down You like your life in a free-form style You'll take an inch but you'd love a mile There never seems to be quite enough Floating around to fill your lovin' cup Ooh, Jackie Blue What's a game girl, if you never lose? Ask a winner and you'll probably find Ooh, Jackie they've lost at sometime Don't try to tell me that you're not aware Of what you're doing and that you don't care You say it's easy, just a natural thing Like playing music, but you never sing Ooh, Jackie Blue Making wishes that never come true Going places that you've never been Ooh, Jackie Blue, you're going again Ooh, Jackie Blue Lives a dream that can never come true Making love is like sifting through sand Ooh, Jackie, it slips through your hand Every day, in your indigo eyes I watch the sunset but I don't see it rise Moonlight and stars in your strawberry wine You'd take the world but you won't take the time Ooh-hoo-hoo, Jackie Blue Lives her life from inside of a room Makes you think that her life is a drag Ooh Jackie, what fun you have had Ooh, Jackie Ooh, Jackie Ooh, Jackie Ooh, Jackie Hey, hey, hey, hey If You Wanna Get To Heaven Writers: JOHN DILLON, STEVE CASH I never read it in a book I never saw it on a show But i heard it in the alley on the weird radio. If you want a drink of water You got to get it from the well. If you wanna get to heaven You got to raise a little hell. I never felt it in my feet Or felt it in my soul But i heard it in the alley Now its in my rock and roll. If you wanna know a secret You got to promise not to tell. If you wanna get to heaven You got to raise a little hell. I never thought it'd be so easy I never thought it'd be so fun. But I heard it in the alley Now I got it on the run. If you wanna see an angel You got to find it where it fell. If you wanna get the heaven You got to raise a little hell. If you wanna get to heaven If you wanna get to heaven If you wanna get to heaven If you wanna get to heaven