Blog Archives
FlinterFile: Black Sabbath- Paranoid
This song was the most successful single Black Sabbath released. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: Jonathan King- Million Dollar Bash
Bob Dylan recorded the album The Basement Tapes in 1967. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: Simon & Garfunkel- Bridge Over Troubled Water
This song could be seen as the masterpiece of Simon & Garfunkel, though Paul Simon didn’t sing on it. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: The Who- The Seeker
In 1970, The Who had to find a way to carry on after their very successful rockopera Tommy. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: The Temptations- It’s Summer
The song It’s Summer was released twice. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: The Pipkins- Gimme Dat Ding
The song Gimme Dat Ding was written for a children’s show. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band- Mr. Bojangles
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band covered a song by Jerry Jeff Walker in 1970. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: Simon & Garfunkel- The Only Living Boy In New York
In 1970, Simon & Garfunkel would release their album Bridge Over Troubled Water. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: The Jackson 5- ABC
The Jackson 5 released their second number 1 hit in 1970. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: Santana- Oye Como Va
This song originally was not from Santana. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: Shocking Blue- Sally Was A Good Old Girl
Sally Was A Good Old Girl is a song which was first recorded by Hank Cochran in 1962. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: Edwin Starr- War
In 1970, Edwin Starr released a flaming protest against the Vietnam War. It would be one of the first political songs Motown released. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: Emerson, Lake & Palmer- Lucky Man
In 1970, Emerson, Lake & Palmer rounded up an old song. The song was started with Greg Lake, who visited a friend when he was 12 years old. Read the rest of this entry
FlinterFile: The Greatest Show On Earth- Real Cool World
In 1970, The Greatest Show On Earth scored their only hit. They recorded progressive rock for the Harvest label, which wanted them to play rock with horns (like Blood, Sweat & Tears). They recorded two albums, before vanishing into nothing… The song Real Cool World was their first hit, which was a small hit in Europe (7 in the Netherlands). Enjoy
The Greatest Show On Earth- Real Cool World
FlinterFile: Pacific Gas And Electric- Are You Ready?
In 1970, Pacific Gas & Electric recorded their only song that made the charts. John Hill wrote the song together with drummer and the later singer Charlie Allen, and made quite some references to gospel: the first line is a reference to Matthew 24:4, there’s a reference to a sort of gospel song and a classic riddle… all together it brought them to number 14 in the charts, a spot they would never make again. The band dissolved in 1973. Enjoy
Pacific Gas & Electric- Are You Ready?
FlinterFile: Van Morrison- Moondance
In 1970, Van Morrison released his new album. Normally, I would talk about the origins of the song, inspiration, etc. One problem: Van Morrison feels songs should speak for themselves, so the only thing we know, is that the song started as a part of a jazz instrumental he played everytime he played the saxophone. The song was a minor hit in the US, reaching number 92. Enjoy
Van Morrison- Moondance
Song of the day: Joni Mitchell- Big Yellow Taxi
In 1970, Joni Mitchell was on holiday in Hawaii. When looking out of the window in the morning, she saw mountains in the distance, and a parking place as far as the eye could see. In the song, a lot is about the environment, but in the end, it’s also about love, when her boyfriend goes away. In the UK, it was a number 11 hit, in the US number 24. Enjoy
Joni Mitchell- Big Yellow Taxi
Song of the day: Cat Stevens- Wild World
In 1970, Cat Stevens wrote a new song for his fourth studio album. The song is about Patti D’Arbanville, an actress with whom Cat Stevens had a relationship. This song is about the end of their relationship. The song did well: number 11 in the US. It also has been covered many times, including versions by Jimmy Cliff, Maxi Priest, Mr. Big and many others. Jonathan King even claimed the Pet Shop Boys used the melody in their song It’s A Sin! To demonstrate that, he recorded Wild World on the melody of It’s A Sin. Eventually this song flopped and the Pet Shop Boys won the case… Enjoy
Cat Stevens- Wild World
Song of the day: Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young- Teach Your Children
In 1970, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young finally released a song that Graham Nash had already written when he was a member of the Hollies. It was inspired by a photograph of a child with a toy hand granate. On the record, Jerry Garcia, a member of the Grateful Dead, plays a pedal steel guitar. In return, his band would be teached how to sing good harmonies. It would become a number 16 hit in the US. Enjoy
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young- Teach Your Children
Song of the day: Deep Purple- Child In Time
This song by Deep Purple is a long one: more than 10 minutes! The music of the song was based on the song Bombay Calling by the band It’s a Beautiful Day, which was fresh. Jon Lord played this music on a keyboard, and Ian Gillian liked it. With a few changes, it would fit the lyrics he thought of at that moment. The theme would be the Cold War and so the protest song against the Vietnam War was ready. It’s one of their biggest hits. Enjoy
Deep Purple- Child In Time
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Song of the day: Curtis Mayfield- Move On Up
Curtis Mayfield made his debute in 1970, with his debute album Curtis (original name!). On the album, a nine minute long song called Move On Up is featured. In the US, this song was not released on single, but an edit was made for the UK, where Curtis got to place 12. Later, in 1979, a disco group used this song along with other songs, to make a medley out of it. They had a number one hit. Enjoy
Curtis Mayfield- Move On Up
Song of the day: Christie- Yellow River
A song from 1970, which became a big hit in lots of countries. It charted at 1 in the UK and 23 in the US. Jeff Christie wrote it and gave it to the Tremeloes, who would record it in 1970. However, they had success with another song and decided to write their own songs. The producer therefore changed their vocals into those of Jeff Christie. The song was a huge hit in 1970. Many will ask where the Yellow River is located. The writer had the idea of a soldier returning from the Civil War in America, but at the time the Vietnam War was still going on, so many others interpreted it as a Vietnam soldier. Enjoy
Christie- Yellow River
Song of the day: Lynn Anderson- Rose Garden
Before Lynn Anderson recorded this song in 1970, and made a hit out of it (number 3 in the US and the UK), the song had been recorded by several other artists. The first one was the writer of the song, Joe South. After that, several males recorded it and also the Three Degrees tried to make a hit out of it. However, it could have been we never heard the song in Lynn’s version: her husband did not want her to record it, because it was a song for man: women couldn’t buy big diamond rings for their men! It was recorded when there was time left, and after hearing this song, the boss of the record label insisted on making it a single, which became the hit we now know. Enjoy
Lynn Anderson- Rose Garden
Song of the day: M.A.S.H.- Suicide Is Painless
It could be some time ago that you heard this tune, since it is not really played a lot on the radio these days. I hear the tune almost every week, since I’m seeing the adventures of Hawkeye, colonel Blake, Frank, major Houlihan and Trapper for the first time on a DVD. The single that was made for the movie was based on the MASH tune, and was written by Johnny Mandel, who did the music, and his 14 year old son Mike, who wrote the lyrics. For his son, this was not bad, since he would earn more than a million dollars with this song. Not bad for five minutes of writing ‘stupid’ lyrics. It would eventually be a number one hit in the UK… Enjoy
M*A*S*H*- Suicide Is Painless
Song of the day: Janis Joplin- Mercedes Benz
In the year 1970, Janis Joplin recorded one of her biggest hits: Mercedes Benz. The song is sung a capella and is written by Joplin with Michael McClure and Bob Neuwirth, both of them being poets. The song was one of the last songs she would record: she died three days later, on the fourth of October, 1970. The song is about Joplin asking the Lord to buy her a Mercedez Benz, a color TV and a night at the town. Bobby Womack claims she thought of the lyrics after having a ride with him in his Mercedes Benz…
Enjoy
Janis Joplin- Mercedes Benz
Song of the day: The Kinks- Lola
I really don’t know what to say about this song. Sometimes a song is such a good song, that everyone knows it and you actually can’t say anything, apart from the claim that it is a good record. What I can say, is that we are entering the seventies with this massive hit. Enjoy
The Kinks- Lola
The FlinterFiles 