“Reddy,” of course, is Australian-American singer Helen Reddy. Phenomenally successful worldwide during the 1970s, she will forever be known for the feminist anthem, “I Am Woman.” That song and seven others — including “Delta Dawn,” “Angie Baby,” and “Ain’t No Way To Treat A Lady” — peaked at number one on the Billboard Easy Listening (now Adult Contemporary) Chart. Her record sales dwindled in the 1980s, and she turned her attention to musical theater, in effect returning to her performing roots: Her parents were professional entertainers, and she got her start at the age of four performing with them on the Australian vaudeville circuit. She retired from performing in 2002, returned to Australia, and subsequently earned a degree in clinical hypnotherapy and neurolinguistic programming. In 2012, she briefly returned to performing but, sadly, was diagnosed with dementia shortly thereafter. She passed away from an undisclosed cause in September 2020.
“Ready” is a fun little Emerson, Lake, and Palmer song, “Are You Ready Eddy?” Eddy was their engineer/producer Eddy Offord. According to Keith Emerson, every time ELP was ready to record, one of them would yell “are you ready, Eddy?” A tongue-in-cheek poke at rock ‘n’ roll standards, the song is one of the few composed by the entire band.
Song Lyric Sunday is upon us, and the prompts this week are clear/dark/light, courtesy of Jim Adams. Now, some weeks I start my research looking for song titles or lyrics that fit the prompt. More often than not, I decide I want to write about (and listen to) a particular artist and look for the prompt words among that artist’s songs.
I’ve been listening to a lot of Emerson, Lake, & Palmer lately, so I focused my search this week on their bassist/vocalist, Greg Lake. You may know that, before he became the “L” in ELP, he was a founding member of the seminal prog rock band King Crimson in 1969. Before those successes, he honed his craft in a few bands you’ve never heard of.
Lake was the lead singer in a little-known U.K. band, The Shame, when they recorded a cover of Janis Ian‘s “(Too Old To) Go ‘Way Little Girl,” originally released in January 1967 on her eponymous debut album. The Shame’s version, released as a single in the U.K. later the same year, is entitled “Don’t Go ‘Way Little Girl.” (Note, however, that Lake’s website pictures the single released in the U.S. on the Poppy label with Ian’s title.) While The Shame made a few minor changes in the lyrics, one really stands out.
Where Ian’s lyric is “Now, there is no escaping, and you’d enjoy a raping just to find out the facts of life,” Lake sings “Now, there’s no denyin’ you’re gonna end up cryin’ to find out the facts of life.” I haven’t been able to find any information to explain the reason for the radically different lyric.
Interestingly, neither Ian nor Lake sings the written lyric “Your mother’s stares, and the Enquirer’s tales”. Lake sounds like he sings “Your mother’s wails and the daily news tales”. Ian sings it differently every time it occurs. The first time it’s “Your mother’s aware of the Enquirer’s tales;” the second, it’s the “Daily News tales”. The final occurrence it’s “When your mother’s gone you continue to run”.
In any case, the changes must have been acceptable to Ian; after Lake’s death she posted on Facebook that they had “intended to do a bunch of writing together.”
Here are videos (audio only) of both The Shame’s and Ian’s versions. Enjoy!
(Too Old To) Go ‘Way Little Girl
Janis Ian
Don’t go out in the street, little girl
and don’t go out into town
You don’t know who you’ll meet, little girl
There are bad men around
Your mother, she’s in love with you
She tells you, you shouldn’t go with guys
So go to bed at ten, let your mama tuck you in
and turn on your Mickey Mouse night-light
Then you make it with your mind
Don’t go out into town, little girl
Stay safe in the house, little girl
Your mother’s stares, and the Enquirer’s tales
keep you hiding, denying
Don’t go into the park, little girl
You know those men are all the same
Stay inside alone after dark, little girl
Boys want just one thing
Don’t talk about sex, you might get hexed
God’ll punish you for your dirty mind
Now, there is no escaping, and you’d enjoy a raping
just to find out the facts of life
Mama says – Maintain your pride
Don’t go out into town, little girl
Stay safe in the house, little girl
Your mother’s stares, and the Enquirer’s tales
keep you hiding, denying
Don’t go into your mind, little girl
The windows, they’re only made of glass
Don’t let me catch you trying to pry, little girl
Mirrors of illusion tumble fast
You’re too far gone for anyone
I’d like to help, but I can only sigh
You’d best maintain your mama’s pride
’cause you lost yours the time
you obeyed when she said “Don’t fraternize”
No place to hide
Don’t go out into town, little girl
Stay safe in the house, little girl
Your mother’s stares, and the Enquirer’s tales
keep you hiding, denying
Clearly, it’s not Sunday, but today I stumbled upon Helen Vahdati’s blog, “This Thing Called Life One Word at a Time”, where she hosts Song Lyric Sunday. I really love the idea of this challenge, so even though it’s now Wednesday, I’m adding my two cents to this week’s theme: Dream.
When most people think of prog rock supergroup Emerson, Lake & Palmer, they think of flamboyant, theatrical stage shows featuring ELP’s trademark musical blend of classical, jazz, and rock. Some are drawn to Keith Emerson’s virtuoso organ and synthesizer performances, often highlighted by his flying piano and physical abuse of his Hammond organ. Others are drawn to Palmer’s powerful extensive drum solos. Not me. When I think of ELP, I think of Greg Lake’s beautiful voice singing Peter Sinfield’s literate, esoteric lyrics. One of my favorite Lake/Sinfield songs is “Watching Over You”, a tender lullaby written for Lake’s daughter. The definitive studio version is on the 2017 Remastered version of their 1977 Works Volume 2 album, but as far as I’m concerned, nothing beats this live performance:
“Watching Over You”
Good night, good night….
Look at that moon shine so bright.
And tonight he smiles
Especially for you.
Sleep tight, sleep tight.
Know everything is alright.
And tonight I will be here
Watching over you.
For tonight I will be here watching over you.
Tonight I’ll be here watching over you.
Sweet dreams, sweet dreams.
It is never as real as it seems.
And in the morning when you wake up
I will be right here.
Sleep on, sleep on.
For no matter how dark or how long
It may seem that your night is
I will still be here.
I will still be here watching, watching over you.
So sleep, little darling, sleep on through.
So be still, be still
For you know that I always will
Tonight and forever
Be watching over you.
For tonight and forever, be watching over you.
So sleep, little darling, sleep on through.
J.E.M. Wildfire 