Little Girl Lost: Janis

Born in Port Arthur, Texas in 1943, Janis Joplin would have turned 70 years old today.

Not the prom queen, the brain or the most popular girl by any stretch of the imagination, Janis did have something none of the other kids had...she had soul, and the voice to share it.

Her teens were hard years, she didn't fit in and increasingly turned to music to soothe her inner turmoil. Moving to California, the San Francisco music scene was much more welcoming.

As a kid, when I first heard Janis sing "Piece of My Heart", her voice and style was something both amazing and unnerving at the same time. If you listened close enough, you knew it wasn't screams coming out, it was pure raw emotion. Janis threw every bit of what she felt into her singing. But even with all her success and talent, her demons eventually won the battle on October 4, 1970.

A couple of my favorites from the Little Girl Blue.

"Summertime" ...the classic song from Porgy and Bess, with an incredible interpretation
"Ball and Chain"...showing every bit of her soul.
"Move Over" ...live and on fire

She didn't look like anyone else, she didn't act like anyone else and she didn't sing like anyone else.

Forever she is known simply as Janis.

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Lightning Crashes: Feel It Comin' Back Again

In the Christmas movie It's a Wonderful Life, there's a famous line:
 "Every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings."

What if every time there's a crash of lightning, a birth or death takes place?

In 1994, a rock band out of Pennsylvania released a song which basically ponders the circle of life, within the concept of lightning crashing. The band's name was Live and the song was called "Lightning Crashes."

"Lightning crashes a new mother cries

Her placenta falls to the floor

The angel opens her eyes

The confusion sets in

Before the doctor can even close the door

Lightning crashes an old mother dies

Her intentions fall to the floor

The angel closes her eyes

The confusion that was hers

Belongs now to the baby down the hall"

A baby is born as an old woman dies...an angel of life balances out the angel of death.

"Oh now feel it, comin' back again

Like a rollin', thunder chasing the wind

Forces pullin' from

The center of the earth again

I can feel it."

The new life force pulling against the force of death

"Lightning crashes a new mother cries

This moment she's been waiting for

The angel opens her eyes

Pale blue colored iris

Presents the circle

And puts the glory out to hide, hide"

Pale blue colored iris...the circle of life is complete.

Stunning imagery, a vocal which builds like thunderheads ready to explode and a perspective of life rarely seen in a rock song. Absolutely wonderful.

"Lightning Crashes" as written by Edward Joel Kowalczyk, Chad David Taylor, Patrick Dahlheimer, Chad Alan Gracey

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Hungry For Some Good Music? It's Just Like Me to Give You a Good Thing

Sometimes a band is ahead of its time, where even though they have commercial success, you can't really appreciate just how inventive they actually were. Add in the fact that they dressed in Revolutionary War costumes, and the tendency was to dismiss them for not being serious musicians.

That's why it's my job to make you listen to the music.

Paul Revere and the Raiders were an Oregon based band popular in the mid-late 60's and into the 70's. Led by Paul Revere Dick, they had a string of great songs, many of which dealt with topics not usually written about in song at the time. "Kicks," was written by the famous songwriting team of Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, and was a cautionary tale about trying to find the magic of life through drugs. "Just Like Me" would later be covered by Joan Jett and Pat Benatar. "Hungry, about wanting all the good things in life, would be covered by Sammy Hagar. They sang about the plight of the American Indian in "Indian Reservation." In 1967, there was an strike of the major airlines, the Raiders had a hit song about it.

Back in the 60's Dick Clark had an afternoon TV show called Where the Action Is, and Paul Revere and the Raiders were regulars on it. Later they also were part of another couple of video heavy shows called Happening '68 and It's Happening. While the group changed members over the years, the front man for their heyday was Mark Lindsey, a pony-tailed hearthrob back in the day, who along with many of the members of the group, was well respected in his field.

Paul Revere turns 75 today and is still going strong...band and all.

Listen to some great stuff.

"Hungry"  ...I can almost taste it now
"Just Like Me" ...change the arrangement and this could be a hit in any decade
"Kicks" ...complete with the dancing girls
"Midnite Ride" ...a very tongue-in-cheek story of Paul Revere
"Good Thing" ...one of the sexiest starts to a record, ever.
"The Great Airplane Strike" ...just fun

Happy Birthday Paul...still getting a kick out of your music after all these years.

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Greetings, Forty Years Later

"Yeah, from small things, mama, big things one day come"

Indeed they do.

On this day in 1973, the first studio album from a Jersey boy was released to not much initial commercial success. Today is the 40th anniversary of the release of Greetings From Asbury Park, NJ  from Bruce Springsteen.

In its first year of release, 25,000 copies were sold. Slowly however, the word started to spread from critics and fans about this kid who wrote with passion, and played live like a whirling dervish. The Springsteen saga was beginning and still has not stopped.

Greetings offered a few songs which would become Springsteen standards, including "Blinded by the Light." which was a huge hit for Manfred Mann, along with "For You," "Growin Up," and the always wonderful "Spirit in the Night."

Those were the fan favorites. The more hard core you were, the more you got into the obscure tracks including "It's Hard to be a Saint in the City," "Lost in the Flood," and "Does this Bus Stop at 82nd Street."

The promise of what was shown on this first album was realized in the next few years with the release of The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle, Born to Run, Darkness on the Edge of Town and The River. All before the blockbuster Born in the USA. Never afraid to change his sound, Bruce later released the somber Nebraska, paid homage to the thousands lost on 9/11 with The Rising, and had a blast recording The Seeger Sessions, a tribute to Pete Seeger.

A couple of tastes from Greetings.

One magical 1975 live version of  "Spirit in the Night"

And from the same show "Lost in the Flood"

The sun started shining in Jersey, forty years ago today.

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The Snow Turned Into Rain...

Well, well, it has been a busy week hasn't it? It's a new year, still filled with all the same crap, but wide open in the possibility department.

Because he is busy getting his novel ready for publication (aren't we all), Lance has asked his lovely wife Deana to handle the duties this week for the 100 Word Song Challenge. Apparently, Deana with three kids, a job, a household and her own writing, is still able to take up the slack left by her husband's absence. Imagine that.

Deana has chosen a song that I can never listen to without tears filling my eyes. The song is by the late Dan Fogelberg, and there are several of his songs which have that effect on me. He was one great songwriter. A perfect choice to end off the holiday season, this weeks challenge is "Same Old Lang Syne."

A bittersweet song, remembering an old love, the what ifs and the road traveled. Beautiful phrasing, haunting melody and the feeling we have all gone through these emotions. You can't tell a story in a song much better than this.

For those unfamiliar with the challenge, we take the song as a prompt and write a poem, story, conversation, anything, but it must be in 100 words exactly.

Same Old Lang Syne

"BFF’s. Always. 

For almost thirty years, they had spent the last night of the year together. 

Jules knew this New Year’s Eve would be different, had anticipated what it would be like, 

and was sure it wouldn’t be a big deal. 

She was wrong.

She was his best man. He was her everything. 

She was happy for his new life; it was hers she mourned. 

Sooner or later she would become…insignificant. David’s wife was already glowing, 

three more months and a child would further redefine their friendship.

Shivering, she walked alone as the snowflakes met the tears on her face."