THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.
214-Gladys Knight & the Pips-The Way We Were/Try To Remember.
1975-Number 4 single.
Best Bit-At 1.38.A ‘Brucie’ bonus today,two songs for the price of one.
‘The Way We Were’ was originally recorded by Barbra Streisand for the 1973 film of the same name which starred Streisand and Robert Redford,the song went on to become the biggest selling single of 1974.The lyrics were written by the husband and wife songwriting team of Alan and Marilyn Bergman(see also best songs 229) with music by Marvin Hamlisch.
‘Try To Remember’ is a song written by Tom Jones(not the Welsh one you are thinking of) and Harvey Schmidt.It was written for the 1960 Musical ‘The Fantasticks.’
Gladys Knight(see also best songs 667) recorded both of these songs as a medley for her 1974 Album ‘I Feel A Song,’The song was recorded live at the ‘Pine Knob Music Theatre’ in Clarkston,Michigan,U.S.
‘Memories like the corners of my mind,misty water colour memories of the way we were.’
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THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.
215-Billy Joel-Piano Man.
1973-Has never charted in the UK.
Best Bit-At 0.07.The piano’s great,but what about the ‘Dylanesque’ harmonica…man.
William Martin Joel(see also best songs 810) was born May 9,1949 in The Bronx,New York,U.S.,he has sold over 150 million records worldwide making him one of the best selling artists of all time.In America he is the sixth best selling recording artist and the third best selling solo artist ever in that country.
Piano Man has become Joel’s signature tune and is the title track of his second studio Album from 1973.
The song was inspired by Joel’s experiences playing at ‘The Executive Room,’ a piano bar in Los Angeles.He worked there for six months in 1972 after his first solo Album,’Cold Spring Harbor’ failed to live up to expectations.The characters in the song are based on real people Joel encountered while working at that bar.
‘Yes they’re sharing a drink they call loneliness,but it’s better than drinkin’ alone.’
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THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.
216-Leslie Hutchinson-These Foolish Things(Remind Me Of You.)
1936-Has never charted.There was no UK chart until 1952.
Best Bit-At 0.42.The way the lyrics are written are known as a ‘List Song.'(See also best songs 930-810-800-792-767-710-655-587 and 332.)
A list song is based wholly or in part on a list.Unlike songs with a narrative and a cast of characters list songs develop by working through a series of information,sometimes humorous or comical.
‘These Foolish Things(Remind Me Of You’) with lyrics by Eric Maschwitz(1901-1967) and music by Jack Strachey(1894-1972) was not an instant hit despite featuring in ‘Spread It Abroad’ a London revue of 1936.It aroused no interest until the famous West Indian pianist and singer Leslie Hutchinson(1900-1969) took a liking to it and recorded the song.Further recordings took place in 1936,most notably from Billie Holiday and Benny Goodman.
‘The sigh of midnight trains in empty stations,silk stockings thrown aside,dance invitations.’
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THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.
217-Fatback Band-Yum Yum(Gimme Some.)
1975-Number 40 single.
Best Bit-At 0.01.The lyrics tell us that the singer likes ice cream and chips but most of all he likes the girls.Let me assure you I have chosen this song for it’s exceptional Funky music and not for it’s lyrical content.
The Fatback Band(see also best songs 798) were formed in New York City in 1970 by Bill Curtis,in 1977 they changed their name to simply ‘Fatback.’
Between 1972-2003 they released 24 studio Albums,’Yum Yum’ is the title track of their fifth release in 1975.In their native America they never managed to break in to the Billboard singles chart,but in the UK they achieved six top 40 singles with the most successful being ‘I Found Lovin” reaching Number 7 in 1987.
The Fatback Band are also famous for releasing the first ever commercially available to buy ‘Rap,Hip-Hop’ single in October 1979 a full week before the Sugarhill Gangs ‘Rappers Delight.’The song was called ‘King Tim 111(Personality Jock’) featuring the ‘Old School Rapping’ of Tim Washington.
‘I like ice cream I like chips,but most of all I like the girls for good sleeps.’
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THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.
218-The Beatles-In My Life.
1965-Never released as a single in the UK.
Best Bit-At 2.10.John Lennon showing off his vocal versatility as he goes all falsetto on us.
This was a technique he also used on ‘Revolution'(You know it’s gonna be alright) and in ‘Imagine'(living life in peace,you-oh-oh-oh you may say I’m a dreamer.)
As with nearly all Beatles songs the writing credits were shared as Lennon/McCartney,(see also best songs 599-319 and 238)but this one was mainly John.
‘In My Life’ was released on The Beatles 1965 Album Rubber Soul,the songs producer George Martin contributed the piano solo,which was sped up to sound like a harpsichord.
Lennon(see also best songs 927-599-473 and 456) had originally written the lyrics based on a bus route he used to take in Liverpool,naming sites seen along the way,including Penny Lane and Strawberry Field.Those original lyrics are now on display at The British Library.Lennon later thought the original lyrics were ‘ridiculous,’ he reworked the words in to a more personal account of his past memories and present situation.
‘There are places I remember all my life though some have changed.’
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THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.
219-The Stooges-No Fun.
1969-Has never been released as a single in the UK.
Best Bit-At 3.16.The Three Stooges were fun,but these four Stooges were ‘No Fun.’
The Stooges were an American Rock band formed in 1967 in Ann Arbor,Michigan by singer Iggy Pop,guitarist Ron Asheton,drummer Scott Asheton and bassist Dave Alexander.Even though they initially achieved very little commercial success with their first two Albums they are regarded as one of the most influential bands of all time and a precursor to Punk Rock.
Their self titled debut Album released in 1969 was produced by John Cale OBE who was a founding member of the Velvet Underground(see also best songs 401.)
‘No Fun’ was covered by the Sex Pistols in 1977 as the ‘B’ side of their single Pretty Vacant,bringing the song to the attention of a whole new generation.
Iggy Pop(see also best songs 701) the bands flamboyant lead singer and frontman is the only surviving member of the original lineup.His on stage act included smearing himself in peanut butter,or sometimes raw meat and occasionally revealing his genitalia,he is also generally regarded as the person who invented ‘stage diving.’
‘No fun to be alone,now hang on,don’t you let me go.’
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THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.
220-Celine Dion-My Heart Will Go On.
1998-Number 1 single.
Best Bit-At 3.24.’But now you know there was a man named Jack Dawson and that he saved me…in every way that a person can be saved.’
‘My Heart Will Go On’ was written for the 1997 American romance and disaster film ‘Titanic,’ it is a fictionalised account of the sinking of the ‘RMS Titanic’ in 1912.
The music for this song and also the films score was written by James Horner who by 1997 had already scored for dozens of other films and television programmes including his breakthrough success with ‘The Lady In Red’ in 1979.He died in 2015 when the aircraft he was piloting crashed in Los Padres National Forrest,California.
The lyrics were written by Will Jennings(see also best songs 588) who has worked with and written for many of the worlds top artists.Other notable songs he has written include ‘Up Where We Belong’ and ‘Didn’t We Nearly Have It All.’
‘My Heart Will Go On’ has become Celine Dion’s signature tune.With worldwide sales of over 20 million copies it is the best selling single by a female artist in history and the seventh best overall.
‘Every night in my dreams I see you,I feel you,that is how I know you go on.’
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THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

COMING NEXT THE BEST 220.

Even at the age of ten smart Kevin was a smart boy then
He always beat me at Subbuteo
‘Cause he flicked to kick and I didn’t know.
His mother bought him a synthesiser
Got the Human League into advise her
Now he’s making lots of noise
Playing along with the art school boys.

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.
221-George Benson-Breezin.’
1976-Has never charted in the UK.
Best Bit-At 0.31.’Because I’m bad,I’m bad come on you know and the whole world has to answer right now.Just to tell you once again who’s bad.’
Breezin’ was the title track of George ‘Bad’ Benson’s 1976 triple platinum selling Album,it marked a change in style to a more commercial Jazz Funk style,by 1979 he would move into Soul and Funk working with Quincy Jones and Rod Temperton.
The song was written by the late Bobby Womack who had provided The Rolling Stones with their first UK Number 1 in 1964 with ‘It’s All Over Now.’
George Benson was not the first artist to record Breezin’ that honour went to Hungarian Jazz guitarist Gabor Szabo in 1970.In 1977 Szabo complained to the audience about Benson’s success with Breezin’ during a show at the Catamaran Hotel in San Diego. Szabo indicated that he had recorded the song before Benson and accused Benson of having plagiarised his arrangement.He expressed disdain for Benson’s success with his arrangement that he himself had created.
Incidentally both the Szabo and Benson versions were both produced by Tommy LiPuma who passed away in 2017 at the age of 80.
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THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.
222-The Smiths-There Is A Light That Never Goes Out.
1986.The song was not released as a single until 1992 when it reached Number 25.
Best Bit-At 1.03. Morrissey and The Smiths are the ultimate ‘Marmite’ band.I always feel sorry for those who cannot appreciate the raw emotion in the lyrics and the laying bare of the soul.The words of Morrissey make him unique in Popular Music.
The music was written by Johnny Marr,it was inspired by The Rolling Stones version of the Marvin Gaye song ‘Hitch Hike.’In turn Morrissey had always been a big fan of James Dean and inspiration for the lyrics came from Dean’s role in the 1955 film ‘Rebel Without A Cause.’
In the song Morrissey(see also best songs 940 and 673) is the passenger being driven by the person he loves.As the pair drive Morrissey begs the driver not to take him home since he isn’t welcome at home anymore and being there makes him feel depressed.He begs the driver to take him somewhere exiting. Morrissey is so in love with the driver at that moment that he says that even if a double-decker bus was to crash into them and kill them instantly,it would be a privilege to die by their side.
‘And if a ten ton truck kills the both of us to die by your side well the pleasure the privilege is mine.’
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