My Seventies Music

Category: Seventies Male Soloists

  • Burton Cummings – “Stand Tall”, “I’m Scared”, “Break It To Them Gently” and “Timeless Love”

    It was 1976 when former Guess Who lead singer and composer Burton Cummings released “Stand Tall”.

    This is another one of those Seventies songs that I knew, and always instantly recognise, but I didn’t really connect the name of Burton Cummings with The Guess Who.

    In fact I must confess that, while I knew the music, I probably wouldn’t have known the face at the time.

    This is the original recording of “Stand Tall” from 1976, the year after he left The Guess Who:

    And here’s a slightly more dynamic video of “Stand Tall” played by Burton Cummings on the piano in 1977:

    Slightly spastic expression at the end… 😉

    “I’m Scared” came out in 1977:

    Here’s a Burton Cummings song from 1978 he performed in 2006, “Break It To Them Gently”:

    I did actually find a (live) video of this track from 1978, but as he tells the story of the song and how he wrote it in this one I figured I’d share it with you.

    Finally, here’s another recent rendering of a Seventies song by Burton Cummings, “Timeless Love” from 1977, played with his touring band The Carpet Frogs (and Guess Who colleague Randy Bachman) at a concert in the summer of 2009:

    Timeless music.

    Paul

  • Jon English – “Turn The Page” and “Behind Blue Eyes”

    Jon English has been a leading light of the Australian music scene for decades, but I mainly remember him for his version of “Turn The Page” (by Bob Seger) in 1975.

    I also remember him playing Judas Iscariot in the Australian version of the musical “Jesus Christ Superstar” in the Seventies.

    Although Australian, English was actually originally, well, English, emigrating shortly before turning 12. In fact he had his 12th birthday just before the family reached Australia.

    Jon English has been playing music since his early teens, and apart from performing solo and in bands has also been involved in creating and producing larger productions himself.

    Most recently he performed on Australia Day at the January 2010 Celebrate Australia! event.

    This is Jon English singing “Turn The Page”:

    I also found this Jon English cover of The Who’s “Behind Blue Eyes”:

    Not sure when he recorded this, but some people seem to think his was the original version (The Who released their first version in 1971).

    Whatever. Like I said, I primarily associate Jon English with “Turn The Page” – and “Turn The Page” with Jon English…

    Paul

  • JJ Cale – “Cocaine”, “After Midnight”, “They Call Me The Breeze” and “Don’t Wait”

    Two songs from JJ Cale that stand out for me are “Cocaine” and “After Midnight”, both of which have been most famously covered by Eric Clapton.

    In fact I was just reading that it was Clapton’s 1970 cover of “After Midnight”, at a time when Cale was “languishing in obscurity” and not doing very well financially, that inspired the artist to capitalise on its success and record an album with his own version, practically kickstarting his career. Since then, many famous artists have covered his songs.

    When I come to think of it, “After Midnight” (though actually the Clapton version) is one of my favourite songs.

    I remember sitting listening to it – after midnight – in a car or van outside a gig in south Germany in the village of Sand am Main by a band I used to write stuff with in the early Eighties. It was a cassette (anybody remember those?) with Eric Clapton on one side and George Thorogood and the Destroyers on the other.

    Having said that, listening to this live version of “After Midnight” by the author himself, which is in a totally different style, I must say I like it a lot too, really funky:

    And here’s JJ Cale with his studio version of “Cocaine”:

    This live verison of “Cocaine” sounds very laid back:

    JJ Cale also wrote a track made famous by rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd, “They Call Me The Breeze”.

    I found this video of it together with “Don’t Wait” (love the harmonica – and banjo? – in that one) as sound track to a motorcycle ride along the country roads of the Channel Island Guernsey – one of my favourite places, I did this on a bicycle 22 years ago:

    Don’t wait to listen to more from JJ Cale!

    Paul

  • Gerry Rafferty – “Baker Street” and “Right Down The Line”

    Cover of "Baker Street" by Gerry Rafferty 1978
    In 1978 Gerry Rafferty wrote or at least released his hit song “Baker Street”, on his album “City To City” and as a single.

    Some time later, can’t remember if it was at the end of that year or on another visit to the UK a few years later when I was living in Germany, I cruised down Baker Street on a National Express bus entering London from the north.

    And about five and a half years ago, shortly after moving to South West Scotland with my family, on a visit to London we walked along Baker Street just before the shops shut looking for an artists supply shop to get something for my daughter.

    I remember that by that time my feet hurt and I did not enjoy the experience.

    In fact, on both occasions I was wondering what was so special about Baker Street to motivate Gerry Rafferty to write a song about it.

    I have in the back of my mind that it had something to do with Sherlock Holmes, but now I have just read that the song relates to the author’s days as a busker on the London Underground.

    Well, actually, watching the video below, turns out I was right about a Sherlock Holmes connection after all – can’t say I remember seeing the Sherlock Holmes Museum though, maybe it wasn’t there yet.

    This video of “Baker Street” is an HD stereo version that shows shots of the street, the museum and the Baker Street tube station:

    “Baker Street” is particularly famous for its saxophone solo, and apparently this had an influence on the use of the saxophone in other music at the time, and even on the sale of saxophones! (Reminds me of the “Saxophone Song” on Kate Bush’s “The Kick Inside” album.)

    Here’s another one from the same album, “Right Down The Line”:

    Gerry Rafferty earlier teamed up with Joe Egan to form Stealers Wheel, producing the well known track (well, to me at least…) “Stuck In The Middle With You”. I’ll save that for another time.

    Meanwhile I might watch the “Baker Street” video again and see if I can spot any more clues…

    Paul

    P.S. Meanwhile Gerry Rafferty died in the first half of 2011. R.I.P. Gerry…

  • R. Dean Taylor – “Indiana Wants Me”

    “Indiana Wants Me” was a hit for Canadian-born Motown artist and songwriter R. Dean Taylor in 1970, going to Number One in his native Canada, No. 2 in the UK and reaching No. 5 in the United States on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

    In addition to his own moderate success as an artist in his own right, Taylor wrote or co-wrote and co-produced hits for such classic Motown acts as Diana Ross and the Supremes, The Temptations, The Four Tops, Gladys Knight and the Pips or Marvin Gaye.

    I’ll be honest and tell you that until now his name meant nothing to me, but the chorus of that song is as familiar now as it was 40 years ago.

    In fact, every time I think of or hear the name of my niece’s baby daughter in Australia, those lines come back to me:

    “Indiana wants me, Lord I can’t go back there…”

    So here it is, “Indiana Wants Me”, the original single:

    Unlike the protagonist in the song, we can go to Indiana any time we like. 🙂

    Paul

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