Song Lyric Sunday — “First Time”

The theme chosen by Helen Vahdati for this week’s Song Lyric Sunday is “first.” My choice is by a singer/songwriter who I’ve been following since he first showed up on my PBS screen in the spring of 2008 with Irish troupe Celtic Thunder. During his eight years with Celtic Thunder, Keith Harkin shone as one of the principal singers. He was the first (and I think only) member to have one of his own compositions featured when “Lauren and I” debuted in the original show. Several more of his songs were added to the CT repertoire during his time with them. Keith was one of the first artists David Foster signed to Verve Records, which released Keith’s eponymous debut album in 2012. Irreconcilable differences in production styles resulted in Keith’s parting ways with Verve after that first album. His second album, “On Mercy Street,” was truly a solo effort: Keith wore all the hats, bringing a finished product with him when he signed with Elan Records.

One of my favorite songs from the second album is “First Time,” a sweet song Keith wrote about his now-wife, Kelsey.

“First Time”

We smoke cigarettes
We drink in the park
We always go out after it gets dark
We drink until three
She’s smiling at me with her red wine lips
And her sweet french kiss

Yeah I’m so happy I, I could almost cry
I don’t want this feeling to change, oh no

Maybe this could be the first time
Maybe this could be the first time
Maybe this could be the first time
I, I, I, I, I felt love

We wake up at ten
Feelin’ old and abused
She’s makin’ breakfast while I watch the news
She’s makin’ bacon and eggs
Coffee for the head
And it tastes so good
When you’re warm in her bed

Yeah I’m so happy I, I could almost die
She makes the best eggs in the world, oh yeah

Maybe this could be the first time
Maybe this could be the first time
Maybe this could be the first time
I, I, I, I, I felt love

Love love love
Love love love
Love love love
I felt love

Maybe this could be the first time
I, I, I, I
Maybe this could be the first time
Maybe this could be the first time
Maybe this could be the first time
I, I, I, I, I felt love
I felt love
I felt love
And it feels good.

Song Lyric Sunday — “Take What You Want”

Can you believe it? I almost forgot it’s Song Lyric Sunday! This week’s theme is the flip side of last weeks’s give/giving theme: take/taking. I’ve got a perfect song for it, too. The Cars’ “Take What You Want” video from their 1979 Musikladen performance has my favorite rock ‘n’ roll visual: Benjamin Orr’s “rock god” kick. ❤ This performance also has one of Elliot Easton’s best lead guitar solos. And, Ric Ocasek’s always cryptic lyrics include another one of my favorites: “I live on emotion / And comic relief.” I could wax rhapsodic about this song but could never match my friend sweetpurplejune (also a fan of the kick). All I can say is, I hope you enjoy it at least half as much as I do!

“Take What You Want”

Take what you want
And leave what you don’t
Take what you want
And leave what you don’t

I’m painting a face
The color is dripping
Magnesium moments
In black fairy tales

I live on emotion
And comic relief
I put this one on you
Run, run, run like a thief

Am I all alone?
Am I all alone?
Salamander sunrise
Comes at 4:44

Lingerie madness
Don’t you kick down the door
Sweet Sarah’s so wild
Don’t you know why I’m losing your head

Down the dark alley
Where rumours are spread
The room is so dark
I’m catching on fire

I’m in love with your face
It’s so confused by desire
Am I all alone? Am I all alone?
I’m winding it up

It’s running back down
I’m winding it up

t’s running back down
So take what you want

And leave what you don’t
Take it
Take it
Take it

Songwriters: Ric Ocasek

Take What You Want lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Song Lyric Sunday — “Whole Lotta Love”

Song Lyric Sunday is here again, and Helen Vahdati’s chosen theme is “give/giving.” My chosen genre is hard rock with Led Zeppelin’s 1969 song, “Whole Lotta Love.” Looking for the lyrics, I realized that lyrics sites show differing songwriting credits. One site apparently relied on an incorrect ASCAP listing that showed “Sharon” Plant instead of Robert. Although most sites correctly credit the five original band members (John Bonham, John Paul Jones, Pete Moore, Jimmy Page, and Robert Plant), many omit the sixth writer, non-band-member Willie Dixon.

Willie Dixon was an American musican and songwriter who wrote “You Need Love” for bluesman Muddy Waters, who released it in 1962. The lyrics included:”Baby, you know you need coolin’ / Woman, way down inside.” In 1966 the English band Small Faces released their eponymous debut album containing a song called “You Need Loving.” Despite being a thinly-veiled copy of Willie Dixon’s song, the the album credited band members Ronnie Lane and Steve Marriott as the sole writers.

Are you with me so far? In 1969, Led Zeppelin released “Whole Lotta Love,”which peaked in the U.S. at number 4 on the Billboard charts. With lyrics remarkably like Dixon’s (and, of course, the Small Faces’) and with Plant’s vocals remarkably like the Small Faces’ Steve Marriott’s, the five Zeps were the only listed writers.

Dixon did not sue the Small Faces for their duplicate of “You Need Love,” and the Small Faces did not sue Led Zeppelin (a wise move IMHO). Dixon, however, did sue Zeppelin, reaching a settlement in 1985 that included giving him writing credit on all subsequent releases.

For your listening pleasure, I’m giving (see what I did?) you videos of all three songs, together with the lyrics for “Whole Lotta Love.” Links to lyrics for the other two are up in the second paragraph. But, really, don’t you think it’d be more fun to compare their vids with the Zep lyrics?

“Whole Lotta Love“
You need coolin’, baby, I’m not foolin’,
I’m gonna send you back to schoolin’,
Way down inside, honey, you need it,
I’m gonna give you my love,
I’m gonna give you my love.

Wanna whole lotta love [4x]

You’ve been learnin’, baby, I’ve been yearnin’,
All them good times, baby, baby, I’ve been learnin’,
Way, way down inside, honey, you need it,
I’m gonna give you my love
I’m gonna give you my love.

Wanna whole lotta love [4x]

You’ve been coolin’, baby, I’ve been droolin’,
All the good times baby I’ve been misusin’,
Way, way down inside, I’m gonna give you my love,
I’m gonna give you every inch of my love,
Gonna give you my love.

Wanna whole lotta love [4x]

Yeah! All right! Let’s go!

Way down inside… woman… you need… love.

Shake for me, girl.
I wanna be your backdoor man.
Keep it coolin’, baby. [4x]

Song Lyric Sunday — Lost in Loveland

Helen’s Song Lyric Sunday theme this week — lost— gives me the opportunity to introduce you to one of my favorite singer-songwriters, Charlie Farren.

Counting bands such as Aerosmith and Boston among his contemporaries, Charlie is one of the talented musicians whose skills matured in the incubator of Boston’s fabled 70s music scene. He’s a local boy from Malden, MA, who had had a couple of regionally successful bands of his own when Aerosmith’s Joe Perry recruited him in 1980 to be lead singer in his side gig, The Joe Perry Project. Together they wrote four songs for the Project’s second album, “I’ve Got the Rock ‘N’ Rolls Again,” which also included two pre-Project Farren songs. In 1986 Charlie teamed up with drummer John Muzzy, and Project bassist David Hull (who changed his name to Heit) to form FARRENHEIT, releasing their eponymous album in 1987. Written by Farren and Heit, “Lost in Loveland” is one of the album’s three singles that, together with MTV exposure, signaled the debut of an exciting new rock act.

Two years later, after nearly 20 years as a full-time musician, Charlie impressively took a detour. With the birth of his first daughter, he chose to put music on the back burner while raising his family. For the next 20-some-odd years, his career path was in information technology. He continued to write, record, and publish CDs in his home studio, playing occasional gigs in the Boston/New England area. He returned to music full-time upon retiring from HP several years ago. Charlie’s music these days tends more toward jazzy bluesy solos than arena rock, so I’ve also included a snippet from 2014 more reflective of Charlie’s current style.

(I was unable to find lyrics on the internet, so I’ve transcribed them as best as I could from the video published on Charlie Farren’s channel. It’s not quite the same as in the 1987 recording, but if Charlie published it, I guess he approves.)

Lost in Loveland

I’ve been runnin’
Round in circles
Just waitin’ at the station
Oh yeah
All around me
Lovers laughin
I think they reached their destination
C’mon now

I don’t want to go there
If you’re not there with me (I don’t want to go there, no)
I don’t want to be there
If you’re not waitin for me (I don’t want to be there, baby)
I don’t want to stay there
If you’re not there, baby

Baby I’m stranded
Empty-handed
Just get our love in motion, honey
Oh no
Not til I find you
Til I’ve got you by the hand
And you come with me to loveland

I don’t want to go there
If you’re not there with me (I don’t want to go there, no)
I don’t want to be there
If you’re not waitin for me
I don’t want to stay there
If you’re not there, baby,
Well baby
I wonder, I wonder

(Lost in loveland)
Oh baby I’m lost in loveland
Lost in loveland
I’m lookin
Oh baby I’m lost in loveland
I been lookin for your love, baby
I lookin for you
I can’t seem to find you, no
Where are you, baby

Until I find you
Until we’re together
I’ll keep on lookin
Til I find you

I don’t want to go there
If you’re not there with me (I don’t want to go there, no)
I don’t want to be there
If you’re not waitin for me
I don’t want to stay there
If you’re not there, baby

I’m lost in loveland, honey
I’m lookin
Oh baby, I’m lost in loveland
I been lookin for you
Lost in loveland

Song Lyric Sunday — “The Music is the Magic”

Last week I actually guessed the theme for today’s Song Lyric Sunday would be “hidden.” I never saw Helen Vahdati’s confirmation of my guess, so I was as surprised as anyone else that the theme is hide/hiding/hidden. Had I known that a week ago, I probably would have chosen quickly, written, and scheduled to publish automatically today. I’m glad I didn’t because I found jazz singer, songwriter, actress, civil rights activist Abbey Lincoln.

Born in 1930, one of the youngest of 12 siblings, she taught herself to play piano by listening to records her handyman father borrowed from neighbors. Those Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Sarah Vaughn albums were her early influences. Holiday’s influence, especially, is easily heard in “The Music is the Magic.” Considered by many to be “the musical successor to Billie Holiday,” she eschewed jazz conventions like scat and improvisation. Like Holiday, she emphasized song lyrics, imbuing the words with emotion. She wrote her first of 80 songs when she was 40, primarily because she was dissatisfied with singing romantic standards. She wanted to sing songs reflecting her values, beliefs, and experiences. Her stage persona evolved from Marilyn Monroe-esque to a woman more like herself: confident, self-assured, and proud of her cultural heritage.

Abbey Lincoln wrote “The Music is the Magic,” released in 1992.

When everything is finished in a world, the people go to look for what the artists leave. It’s the only thing that we have really in this world — is an ability to express ourselves and say, “I was here.”

— Abbey Lincoln

“The Music is the Magic”

The music is the magic of a secret world,
Secret world, a secret world.
It’s a world that is always within.

The music is the magic and the hiding place
The hiding place, the hiding place
The music is the magic and the hiding place
It’s a place where the spirit is home.

The music is the magic of a sacred world,
Sacred world, a sacred world.
The music is the magic of a sacred world,
It’s a world that is always within.

The music is the magic through a raging storm
A raging storm, raging storm
The music is the magic through the raging storm
The storm that is over again.

The music is the magic of a sacred world,
Sacred world, a sacred world.
The music is the magic of a sacred world,
It’s a world that is always within.