Mor-Than-Words

Never Tear Us Apart – INXS Another one hit of brothers influences, fantastic rock band. This song of theirs is so powerful, the lyrics really sum up how a strong relationship can’t be undone. Michael Hutchence was an awesome front man, you see him strutting around on stage. Great voice, good looks and attitude, front man tick list complete. I’ve been to Oz a couple of times, obviously INXS were huge out there, it just so happened we knew one of their accountants. The whole love story between Michael and Kylie was so weird, talk about opposites attract. Then add to that how he stole Paula Yates away from Bob Geldof , talk about rock and roll lifestyle and go against this songs meaning, he tore apart a few hearts and relationships. I remember being in my friends rented flat in Bournemouth, sitting waiting for Football Focus to start on TV when Michael's death was the main headline on the lunchtime news. We went clubbing that night and the DJ threw in few of his tunes which was u

Runaround Sue – Dion I was reminded of this song the other day, I was speaking to some younger American co-writers whilst on a week long songwriting course. The tutor set us up in bands using Greek gods names, ours happened to be called Dionysos and I mentioned this track as my only reference to the name Dion . They’d never heard of him or this hit, I suppose it’s not very PC anymore, but I thought it would be well known as rock n roll standard. This is another song that was on all my compilation albums, it was played at every party and was a great sing along. The great opening line " Here's my story, it's sad but true", sets this up to be a real teenage heart breaker, I think it's great that Sue was the one having the fun. Dion's other big song ' The Wander ’ was another favourite, listing off his many girlfriends, as a teenage boy I used to be very envious. Status Quo covered that one and I love their rocker version.  I thought it was funny how in '

The House That Built Me – Miranda Lambert So after mentioning Miranda Lambert in a previous post thought I’d put up another of my favourite songs of hers. This one is a very simple idea, going back to your childhood home. The emotion and clever lyrics get me every time. The backing and the vocals are beautiful and I love this song to bits.  I lived in one house for the first 34 years of my life, so I have a big attachment to those memories. Most of the places I grew up in have changed beyond recognition expect in my mind, I can still walk through those old houses any time I need to. So much history tied up in those walls. So when I listening to this I enjoy both Miranda’s journey and my own. The part about that’s where I learnt to play guitar is particularly important to me, I spent hours finding my way around Buddy Holly songs in my old bedroom on my first Stratocaster. Favourite lyric : Up those stairs in that little back bedroom / Is where I did my homework and I learned to play

Somewhere Over the Rainbow – The Wizard of Oz I was just on a quick walk and got stuck in a heavy shower, then the sun broke out, I was stood under a perfect arch rainbow. So had to post this song today. What an iconic tune and movie, this is as near perfect to a song as your going to get. A perfect constructed melody, it's so soothing and relaxing, it's a lullaby as mentioned in the song, it fits so well with the words and just by hearing it you really feel you could be way up high. The lyrics are genius, conjure up that dream world, Judy Garland 's vocal is so sweet and almost believable even though she's singing about floating about above all those colours. There are only three parts to the lyric, the rainbow reference only repeated again the third section, so simple but so wonderful. It would be interesting to know if the movie script described the colourless place Dorothy's character started out in, the fact the movie swaps from sepia to full colour is so cleve

Gimme All Your Lovin' –  ZZ Top Ok so now were not PC, this opens with a the sound of the cool ZZ Hot Rod, then the drums crash in. The guitars start and don't give up throughout. Great shouty vocals, silly lyrics, it's a total love song. The video is every teenage boys dream, hot cars and girls. Wonder why I feel for this one. ZZ Top are awesome, totally weird looking crazy folk with huge beards and attitudes. They know how to Rock and they don't disappoint with their huge anthems. None of their songs would probably even get released in today's world, "She's got legs and she knows how to use them." Legs and songs like Sharp Dressed Man are of there time, and I'm just glad they were around when I needed music like that. Like a boomerang I need a repeat. I fell into ZZ Top as they had done a cover of Elvis ' Viva Las Vegas , we happened to go there on holiday back in the early 90's and I wanted a song to overdub when we cruised the famous

Julie – Levellers This song broke my heart. I had a chart version on a random indie compilation, it grabbed my attention straight away. Other songs on there by the likes of Suede and Oasis were monster rockers and in their midst was this gentle lullaby. The social messages in it and the sober tone were how I was feeling as a recent recruit to the real world. I had not long started my first proper job with all the stress and complications that brings, back in the days of my Walkman on the train I had this album pretty much on auto reverse for ages. I had to search out the Levellers to find out more, I was both puzzled and delighted when the rest of their stuff turned out to be nothing like this track. They were basically a punk band for the 90s but not with rocking guitars and heart attack drums but with a more alternative array of instruments. Fiddles and didgeridoos and all sorts, they were on a mission for a fairer society and were akin to all the student movements. I just liked t

Mouldy Old Dough – Lieutenant Pigeon  Not much to say about this one, except once heard never forgotten. A very random piano lead instrumental, with only the songs title as a very roughly voiced lyric. I found this song amongst my dads 45 singles collection and thought it was brilliant. The strange sound of the honky tonk piano, makes you think your down the pub, it's a great chanting song as everyone in the crowd is waiting for the opportunity to shout out 'Mouldy Old Dough'. I used to go to music weekends at holiday camps in my twenties,  I remember Pigeon being one of the featured acts one time, by then they were a very tight covers band, they did a whole set of 1960/70s songs. This of course was their encore, great fun and good memories. I just think this song is a great example of how a good tune and catchy melody can become a pop hit, no need for fancy vocals and intricate arrangements. Music can be lots of things, this song for me is just a fun memory. Favourite ly

Whiskey In The Jar – Thin Lizzy Love this song, great mixture of my Irish roots and my love of rock music. Thin Lizzy are totally underrated, another band that could have become music gods if their lead singer Phil Lynott hadn't died tragically young. Their sound was of it's time but they were a very tight band and really rocked. This song as a great example taking a traditional Irish dittie and rocking it out. The guitar intro alone is genius, it takes you off on a journey before you even know what the song is going to be about. The lyrics tell a story of a guy falling in love and trying to steal his way to his girlfriends affections. She does the dirty on him, message here is don't get drunk if you're in a vulnerable position. But really the story in this case is a bit secondary, let's just ride along with the catchy tune and great beat. Phil's voice is very emotive and strong, one of those singers that could make a nursery rhythm sound punchy. He was the ba

Suds In The Bucket – Sara Evans Through my country music connections I was on a zoom call with Sara Evans last week. She was sat at home being interviewed by us fans asking random questions. She sang two songs backed by only her son on an acoustic guitar and backing vocals by her daughter and a friend. She was amazing, she sang a great song of her's ' A Little Bit Stronger ', a real heart felt powerful message song. She was so friendly and natural and it was obvious she greatly appreciated her fans, completes the circle of music when it benefits all involved, both the listener and the artists. But I know her best for this fun song, a story of a teenage girl out hanging the washing in the yard who disappears when her boyfriend turns up. The clever imagery of her urgent departure and the half finished job is very clever. The backing is fun and catchy as hell, so all in all a great tune. I love a bit of steel guitar and some of the dirty twanging is right on point for me. Onl

The Way It Is – Bruce Hornsby This song has popped up a couple of times lately. I always thought of it as a great tune, catches my ear whenever I hear it. I have it on a Piano Songwriter based CD, I hadn't realised until recently how much it's regraded as a piano players standard, personally it just reminds me of the 80s and TV shows like Miami Vice . The extended piano solos are quite unusual, one for their length and also for their placement in the song. The lyrics are quite political, stating that's the way things are and that's the way they'll stay. As with many other songs, the melody has always been first recollection of the song. It's only later when you start dissecting the meaning and the lyrical theme you understand this is an important song and shouldn't be viewed as just another nice ballad. Songs that stand up for the undervalued and repressed should be celebrated and held up as great ways to getting simple messages out to the masses, usually as

Live And Let Die – Paul McCartney & Wings After the Beatles , Paul McCartney went on to form the band Wings with his wife Linda, I had obviously heard of the band, they had some huge hits, Band on the Run and Jet being the ones I was most familiar with. They also did this James Bond theme, this is epic even as Bond theme's go, really punchy and you get the real sense of excitement and drama that's going to unfold in the film. The list of artists that have done the films themes over the years is like a who's who of popular music. So why not get an ex Beatle to trump them all. But I've only recently learnt that Paul McCartney help to launch Wings by going on an open top bus tour of Europe doing free gigs at places like universities. He and the band would rock up and just perform off the top deck, that must have been some spectacle especially when you see the paint job on the side of the bus. They lived and traveled on the bus throughout, I thought it was only

  Achy Breaky Heart – Billy Ray Cyrus This one's my brothers fault. He heard this first on Capital radio '92, we happened to be going on holiday to America and this song appeared on one of the in-flight radio stations on the plane. We saw the name of the song in the listings but had to wait for it to come round on the tape, no streaming in them days. I remember hearing it and thinking straight away what an earworm it was, it's like a total nursery rhythm of a lyric. It became the soundtrack to that holiday and I have had a love hate relationship with it ever since. My brother bought the album ' Some Gave All ' this is from, all the other songs on there are 'real' country songs with very powerful messages. So it always annoyed me that Billy Ray Cyrus was only ever known by this one song, other albums of his have some amazing songs on there, I especially love ' Trail of Tears ', ' Where My Gonna Live ' and ' Busy Man '. Billy Ray has

Wheels of Steel – Saxon This is a mad rock song, proper old school head down banger. I had this on lots of Rock compilation albums. It’s another one of those songs that brings back memories of great pub bands, fun nights out and holidays with my mates. There was a period of time I was very into my rock music, the guitar riffs and long solos. Kicking base lines and heavy drums, lots of screaming vocals and no real point to the lyrics. Wheels of Steel was an expression used as a way of describing cool motorbikes and riding them to fast. Think Easy Rider and the like. This whole lyric is a homage to every bikers dream, but it's just an excuse to rock out. Turn it up and blow your speakers. This sort of music gets a bad wrap now and it has become quite ridiculed, but like all musical movements it started with real bands crashing out worthwhile songs, but then went onto to become a parody of its self. Artists took it to ridiculous lengths, Bat Out Of Hell anyone? But who cares, it'

The Lion Sleeps Tonight – Tight Fit Don’t tell anyone but I love this version of this song. It emerged in the 80s as a novelty song for Tight Fit . They were basically a session band that used to cover lots of 60s chart hits for those strange non original artists albums that were cheaper than the real thing due to not having to pay royalties. They then did a cover of this ear worm. The made up band and the video featured a couple of young ladies dressed up in cave girl outfits which certainly caught the attention of us teenager boys. The Wimoweh chant on this is ridiculously catchy, the strange subject matter and silly words make this a great pop hit. The backing is very obvious but effective, can't beat a bit of tom tom drums. There were quite a few of these strange one hit wonders throughout the 80s but this one still makes me smile. Three million views of a Top of the Pops performance says it all. The original version was created in 1939 in Zulu, there were loads of covers fro

Ain't No Sunshine – Bill Withers I knew the name Bill Withers , he's the punchline to a funny joke. 'How do you make a duck into a soul singer?' 'Put him in the microwave until his bill withers.' But seriously, Bill has written some of the most iconic songs ever, Lovely Day and Lean On Me being huge hits and their up there with the best known songs around. I recently watched a Sky Arts TV interview with him about songwriting , I found him refreshing and very honest. He gave the host quite a hard time for asking silly questions. 'Do you find the words or the melody come first?' he asked. 'I don't want to know the answer to that,' Bill replied, 'That would kill the magic.' He didn't have his first hit until he was in his early 30s, which would probably be unheard of in today's music. But that meant he could put all his life experiences into his songs rather than silly pop song lyrics. It sounds like he had a hard time being b

I Feel Good – James Brown In my last post I had a reference to James Brown , as I said I’m not a huge fan, but he’s another artist that I think changed the musical landscape. His funk, just blew the doors of soul music, the horns and the cat calls added so much life and anger to a once gentle art form. I’ve captured his influence across my own musical journey through films like The Commitments and The Blues Brothers to Good Morning Vietnam . Anywhere where there needed a burst of passion and noise, they just added Mr Brown. Songs like this one and Papas Got A Brand New Bag , seem to pop onto my playlists almost by accident but they always take me somewhere special when they appear. You get the impression this guy was totally in charge, no one was going to put him down or control what he sang or how he sang it. Straight from his heart to your ears. The give and response between the singer and the band is amazing in this song, real power in that vocal. The horns just rip, I bet his li