The Lovin' Spoonful - Daydream (1966)

The Lovin' Spoonful - Daydream (1966)
The Lovin' Spoonful started off as a folk group from the Greenwich section of lower Manhattan. Lead singer John Sebastian was very much the groups main force, writing most of their songs, producing many and even being responsible for distibution and production for a few of their albums. Their output was 'in witht he times', they were described as 'simply the most' and 'the most far out grooves this side of the Atlantic'. Throughout the mid to late 60's they notched up an impressive string of hits including 'Summer In The City', 'Did You Ever Have To Make Up Your Mind', 'Daydream', 'Do You Believe In Magic'.
For quite some time they were only rivaled by The Mamas & The Papas, Peter Paul & Mary and Buffallo Springfield.

Daydream
Written by the groups lead singer John Sebastian in late 1965 in an attempt to rewrite The Supremes 'Baby Love', he gained them a Top 100 #2 record in the summer of 1966. His relaxed poise and impressive use of innuendo alluded the censorship board that this was infact a tale all about the smoking of marijuana! ("Dreamin' bout my bundle of joy")

The infectious tune coupled with carefree, summertime, teenage and fun loving lyrics is what no doubt propelled the song straight up the charts all over the world. In Australia the song was covered and a small hit for the reworking of Johnny O'Keefe's Dee Jays as 'The Rajahs', In England it was covered by everybody from Marianne Faithful to Englebert Humperdink and all over Europe the song was a hit for so many in a plethora of languages. All in all, the song remains a classic.

The Lyrics
What a day for a day dream,
What a day for a day dreamin' boy.
And I'm lost in a day dream,
Dreamin' 'bout my bundle of joy.
And even if time ain't really on my side,
It's one of those days for taking a walk outside.
I'm blowing the day to take a walk in the sun,
And fall on my face in somebody's new mowed lawn.


I've been havin' a sweet dream,
I've been dreamin' since I woke up today,
It's starring me in my sweet dream,
'Cause she's the one that makes me feel this way,
And even if time is passin' me by a lot,
I couldn't care less about the dues you say I got.
Tomorrow I'll pay the dues for dropping my load.
A pie in the face for being a sleepy bull toad.


And you can be sure that if you're feelin right
A day dream will last a long time into the night.
Tomorrow at breakfast you may prick up your ears,
Or you may be dreamin' for a thousand years.

Gin Wigmore - These Roses (2008)

Gin Wigmore - These Roses (2008)

About Gin
Virginia 'Gin' Wigmore hails from Auckland, New Zealand and possesses one of the most unique and best voices this decade has seen. In a world where dance clubs and the music they play rule the airwaves, it's hard if you have something special to give to get a foot in the door. Born in 1986, she released her first recordings in 2007 on a NZ indie label by the name of Albatross. Her voice was immediatly praised and she was compared to greats such as Carol Channing and Susan Estritch. Her coursely gravel tones have gained her many a top charting hit, starting with 'Brother' where she sang on the 'Smashproof' track, and solo hits such as 'Under My Skin', 'These Roses', 'Oh My', 'I Do' and 'Too Late For Lovers'.

'These Roses'
'These roses' is a self penned gem which describes the hardship she is experiencing when concerning trust and love in a relationship. She's been hurt before and is no stranger to the kind of love she describes, and although she's in love she is hesitant and cannot ignore past happenings. Later in the song she starts to accept that this love may be real and begins to let him in, yet she still feels like something may go wrong. ("is it too late to lose faith in everything working out right?") If he does hurt her she will be completely done ("will we say forget or forgive for i cannot do that to love") Overall this emotional tale of a woman scared to love leaves the listener awashed with sadness and her brilliant delivery and phrasing gives this a sence of realism and fragility.



The Lyrics
I'll sing you a sweet song if you say to
I'll write you the saddest of all words, rhymes and phrases
I will be your everything and I'll try give you anything back but I

Cannot give you my love
No I cannot give you my love

When I got fight in these roses
I still can't be scared
I got stones in my pockets
I still can't be shared
I got you in my heart
To make this all harder
I will stay addicted to you
I will stay addicted to you

Take me down to the garden
Let me lay with you
Hold my hand
Don't let go
If you feel like kissing me
Do
Now there's butterflies in me baby
And I just don't know what to do
You could stand up straight
You could be the best of my dates
But I still would not see you for I

Cannot give you my love
No I cannot give you my love

When I got fight in these roses
I still can't be scared
I got stones in my pockets
I still can't be shared
I got you in my heart
To make this all harder
I will stay addicted to you
I will stay addicted

I'm a stones throw from heartache
Hear me tumbling, bumbling down
Is it too late
To lose faith
In everything working out right
We can say forget
Or forgive
But I cannot do that to love

When I got fight in these roses
I still can't be scared
I got stones in my pockets
I still can't be shared
I got you in my heart
To make this all harder
I will stay addicted to you
I will stay addicted

The Video

Bob Dylan - Hurricane (1975)

Hurricane - BOB DYLAN (1975)
Enough said!

Sugar Shack - Jimmy Gilmer & The Fireballs (1963)

"There's a crazy little shack, beyond the tracks!..."

For my first post highlighting 'bad lyrics', I chose the 1963 monster hit 'Sugar Shack' by rock'n'rollin' pop and instrumental stars Jimmy Gilmer & The Fireballs.
Firstly I'd like to admit that I LOVE this song. The song itself is fantastic! Dumped straight into the novelty genre, the song fit right in when it was released in mid-1963 America. Songs like 'Who Put The Bomp', 'Purple People Eater', Witch Doctor', 'Rockin' Pnumonea and The Boogie Woogie Flu' and 'My Boyfriend Got A Beatle Haircut' were all hits previous to Sugar Shack. Novelty was in, the kids were having fun, the adults were having a laugh, and prior to JFK's assassination things were pretty dandy!

Obviously being classed a novelty it should void the accusation of having bad lyrics. Novelty songs NEED bad lyrics. A Huge hit in 1966 called 'I Love Onions' and the following year called 'May The Bird Of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose' confirms this.
But for now we'll forget about WHY the lyrics are bad and instead concentrate on that they are, just... bad.

For starters the song is about his 'crush' on a girl who works at the 'Sugar Shack', made of wood, at the end of the 'track'.
It's straight up rhyming at the end of each line, and every line annoys you more and more when analysing it with lyrics in mind.

Written by Keith McCormack and Faye Voss in 1961, it's infectous tune and repititious beat no doubt contributed to the reason it shot straigh to number one in the US, UK, Australia and New Zealand, not to mention gaining gold record status all over Europe. It has been covered by more than 50 acts, recorded in several languages and to this day remains the biggest selling single of all time in Iran!

Great song, stupid lyrics - make your own mind up!

The Lyrics

There's a crazy little shack beyond the tracks
And ev'rybody calls it the sugar shack
Well, it's just a coffeehouse and it's made out of wood
Expresso coffee tastes mighty good
That's not the reason why I've got to get back
To that sugar shack, whoa baby
To that sugar shack.

There's this cute little girlie, she's a'workin' there
A black leotard and her feet are bare
I'm gonna drink a lotta coffee, spend a little cash
Make that girl love me when I put on some trash
You can understand why I've got to get back
To that sugar shack, whoa baby
To that sugar shack, yeah honey
To that sugar shack, whoa yes
To that sugar shack.

Now that sugar shack queen is a'married to me, yeah yeah
We just sit around and dream of those old memories
Ah, but one of these days I'm gonna lay down tracks
In the direction of that sugar shack
Just me and her yes we're gonna go back
To that sugar shack,
Whoa uh oh
To that sugar shack, yeah honey
To our sugar shack

[Fade]

Yeh, yeh, yeh, our sugar shack

O.V. Wright - Eight Men, Four Women (1967)

Mr. Overton Vertis "O.V." Wright

You can't go wrong with O.V. You just can't. Simple but effective lyrics set to a culminating paramount of intrumental backing, so prevailing that if for some inane reason the lyrics were missing, it would be a masterpeice in it's own right.
Wright was active between the years of 1961 and 1980 and in those 19 years he released 10 albums and a plethora of singles on several labels, most prodominantly the Back Beat label of Leno, Tennessee.
His first single was released in 1963 on Goldwax (a soul label responsible for Irma Thomas) and subsequently all other releases were pressed on Back Beat, the label with whom he had his biggest hits. Prior to this he recorded and sang with several street corner and doo wop groups including The Safaris, who enjoyed a top 10 hit in 1960 with 'Image Of A Girl'.

Eight Men, Four Women

By the time 1967 rolled around O.V. Wright had already made a name for himself for releasing well produced and fabulous sounding rhythm and blues records, notched up 6 top 10 singles on the R&B charts in the US, released 3 LP's and toured the U.K. with Archie Bell & The Drells.
Although reletively unknown in the 'white' world, having no hits on the pop charts, he was almost a superstar in his own race and followers.
In April of '67 he released arguably his best album. 'Eight Men And Four Women' was his first LP of that year and the prodominant single was 'Eight Men, Four Women' (R&B #4).
Writen by Deadric Malone in 1966, the song was intended for Wilson Pickett, who regrettably declined the song because he was busy elsewhere working on his next recordings.
The song tells of a melancholy dream, in which the dreamer finds himself in a world where love is a crime, and subsequently ends up in a court room, guilty of loving his girl. It goes on to give a heartfelt account of how the love he holds for her is naturally unstoppable and that the 'mean jury must (indeed) be blind'.


The Lyrics

(Eight men, four women
Lord, that's the jury of love)

I dreamed that love was a crime
I was alone, so lonely and blue
You know why?
Because eight men and four women
Lord, they found me guilty of loving you (loving you)

As they were taking me away
You were taking
I saw you when you were taking the witness stand
You know what?
I heard the lawyer when he asked you, my love
"Do you really love that man?"

It was eight men and four women (guilty)
How could they be so blind (guilty)
How could they?
I know they sat there
And called true love a crime
This is what killed me

But a tear rolled down my cheek
I felt so sorry for you
You know why?
Because in my heart I knew
Oh yes, baby I knew
That they would find you guilty too

Judge, your honor and to the jury
I intend to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt
That we are innocent
And true love is not a crime

(Lord, that's the jury of love)
Lord, that's the jury of love

A mean judge, a mean jury, oh, that's the jury of love
(Lord, that's the jury of love)

(Lord, that's the jury of love)
Oh that's just the way it goes baby
They found me guilty of love

Sam Cooke - A Change Is Gonna Come (1963)

Here's a win / win situation if I ever saw one! An unsurpassably amazing negro singer with the smoothest, velvet soul voice one could ever hope to imagine. If you havn't heard of Sam Cooke then all I have to say is; 1) Where the fuck have you been?, 2) You seriously have been missing out and I pity your foolish behaviour and 3) GO AND GET HIS ALBUMS! His output, from the soul gospel quintet The Soul Stirrers (where he began in the late 1940's) til' his untimely murder in 1964 and all the posthumous releases and hits he had well up into the mid 1970's... is ALL worth a listen.

ANYWAY - A year before he was shot dead by the manager of the hotel Cooke was staying at (an arguable case of self defence) - he recorded a self-penned masterpeice that has brough generations to their knees.

A CHANGE IS GONNA COME was finally released in 1964 as a single on the RCA label and became an immediate posthumous top 20 smash, likewise with the LP the single was released ona few months later, 'Ain't That Good News'.

The lyric tells of a melancholy story of a man who, born near the river, has been; like the river; running ever since. He has never felt accepted on the once segregated and disgustingly racist world, and although he is confident a change is gonna come, he is also afraid to die, scared of what lies above the sky.
Poetic, moving, emotional and beautiful sung, this is one for the record player...I mean iPod.

"A Change Is Gonna Come"

I was born by the river in a little tent
And just like that river I've been running ever since
It's been a long time coming
But I know a change is gonna come, oh yes it will

It's been too hard living, but I'm afraid to die
Cos I don't know what's out there beyond the sky
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change is gonna come, oh yes it will

I go to the movie
And I go down town
somebody keep telling me don't hang around
Its been along time coming
But I know a change is gonna come, oh yes it will

Then I go to my brother
And I say brother help me please
But he winds up knockin' me
Back down on my knees

There were times when I thought I couldn't last for long
But now I think I'm able to carry on
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gone come, oh yes it will

So You Think You Can Write Lyrics?

Over the next coming weeks I will be posting what I (Cameron Fahey) consider to be immaculate examples of well writen songs, poorly writen songs and songs which have double meanings, no meaning, unusual and plain fucked up meanings. There is no discrimination as such towards the songs, in that they may fall in any genre, topic, tempo or sex. Although I will be direct quoting and copying many song lyrics, I am in no way affiliated with infringement of copyright, and is for educational purposes only.