1. Which obscure song is better than well-known songs by the same artist?
There are plenty... but for now I will go with Paul McCartney. Here is a guy that goes all the way back to the 1960s and most well known for being one of the four Beatles. However his career continued moving forward from the 1970s til today. Over those decades he has churned out many memorable and popular tracks on his own, as well as with his next group, Wings. That said, here are my Top 5+5 "obscure" hits by Paul McCartney.
1. I'll Give You A Ring (1982)
2. Ou Est le Soleil (1989)
3. Temporary Secretary (1980)
4. Seize the Day (2020)
5. Country Dreamer (Paul McCartney & Wings - 1973)
1. What kiddie song do you still like as a grownup?
As I get older, I like this well known kiddie song less and less for every year that I age... roll the drum please...
1. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU - Various Artists: It's probably the most sung and most popular song ever.
2. C is For Cookie - Cookie Monster / Sesame Street*
3. Yellow Submarine - The Beatles (Paul McCartney said it is a children's song)
4. The Hokey Pokey - Various artists first version by Ray Anthony
5. The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Time is Here) - The Chipmunks (David Seville)
6. Sing - The Carpenters
7. Jingle Bells - Various artists over the years.
8. The Bunny Hop - Ray Anthony / various artists for kids
9. Itsy Bitsy Spider - Various Artists / Carly Simon
10. Puff the Magic Dragon - Original by Peter, Paul & Mary
I was already too old when Sesame Street with all The Muppets premiered on TV... but I am familiar with the songs since my younger sister and brother watched it. Cookie Monster was and still is my favorite character on that series.
Click on the link below to get a short sample of all the songs on this list, or click on the graphic to listen to the entire list on Spotify.
2. When did a new* song most recently* get you excited?
There's plenty. I keep a blog of my Current Top 20 songs at this link. But for this week only, debuting at #15 on my chart is the kids punk rock band The Linda Lindas and "OH!". It's a shallow but fun song with all the right hooks in my book.
I participate on a message board system where other users publish their weekly charts of current songs. Fun stuff... I've been off and on through the years.
3. What song were you introduced to via television ad or as background in a movie or TV show?
Most influential song introduced to me when I first saw the movie? Of course it has to be STAR WARS, the opening theme by John Williams and the London Symphony Orchestra. From the time I first heard it back in 1977, I said to myself, this is a GREAT song along with a GREAT score that clearly delineates the difference between good and evil. I mean Darth Vader had his own theme going which carried through the entire series, as well as Princess Leia and the other characters we all learned about in one of the most enduring movie series ever.
Every time that theme starts I can always reflect to when I first saw the original Star Wars back in the day for many times at Honolulu's Cinerama Theater from 1977 to 1978. Movies back then only cost $3.50 to see. Great times!
My second most favorite movie song has got to be THEME FROM JAWS also by John Williams. Lately I thought about taking a big boombox to the beach and playing this song. That would be funny.
The best TV theme song of all time is HAWAII FIVE-0 by Mort Stevens. The Ventures took this song to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1969. When I was going to high school we played it for school band. It remains a very popular marching and pep song at ball games in Hawaii and elsewhere.
My second favorite TV theme song is THEME FROM MIAMI VICE by Jan Hammer. That record is the last instrumental song to top the Billboard Hot 100 at #1. This was way back in 1985.
Best TV ad song that I remember:
I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing - Coca Cola (1971) - The New Seekers made this a top 20 hit back in 1972.
4. Which song’s opening lyric do you especially love?
When I was a kid the one song that caught me was "Sweet Nothins'" by Brenda Lee and the sexy, spoken word opener.... "Aha Honey... All Right" and then the song starts,"My baby whispers in my ear... ooh Sweet Nothins'"... This song was so gutsy at that time for my childhood ears (released in late 1959).
It went to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in early 1960. I love the entire album this. song is on, Brenda Lee. Been loving Brenda Lee's music ever since.
Back when I was in college my room mate and I would always laugh at the beginning of this song: "Sucking wind.. slipping down the back road once again..." The title of the song is "Over the Hill" and it is on singer/guitarist John Stewart's most famous album Bombs Away Dream Babies, which features both Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac. This album came out in 1978. Nicks and Buckingham were busy after 1977's Rumours working on albums for their friends. These include Not Shy by Walter Egan and French Kiss by former Fleetwood Mac singer and guitarist, Bob Welch.
After all of this they re-grouped as Fleetwood Mac to record Tusk. Oh and they were also on tour in 1977, which included a concert at Honolulu's Blaisdell Center that I went to that December.
5. With which five songs would you begin a weekend-themed playlist?
I have hundreds if not thousands of playlists spread out over a number of devices (iPods, Mac computers, 4 Android phones (only one has active service), and Alcatel flip phone (not bad for a $20 MP3 player that can hold 32 gigs of music on a micro SD card... whop your jaws Apple!), various online services (YouTube Music, Spotify, Amazon Prime and 8Tracks.com), and about 100 cassettes that I still have in my home, most all mixed tapes made in the 1980s and 1990s.
So I have a playlist for any mood, any kind of music genre, and era that I want listen to all of the day and night, every week, month and year... oh boy.
That all said, I have no specific list for this weekend.
Here... sample or listen to my Spotify list of this week's Current Top 20 Hits according to Mel... These playlists are mostly rap and hip hop free zone. Enjoy.
The following questions are from the weekly Friday 5 website.
It's been a few weeks since I last answered one of these... So here goes. Oh... this is last week's one... OK. I'm good with that. Today is May 15.
1. What instrument in an orchestra would you least like to play professionally?
Probably several: Tuba, Baritone and just about anything else that requires me to read the bass clef notes. I played trumpet in high school, so I can read all of the treble clef notes. Trumpets always got most of the good parts to play in band.
2. How long would it take you to find a rubber band wherever you are now?
Discounting the time it took me to take the photo above, it would be just a few seconds. I keep stuff like that in a plastic drawer on my otherwise messy desk.
3. In your area, what’s the name of a local band you like?
I don't know any current bands locally, but in order my top 5 from decades ago....
The Sweet Marie
Kalapana
Rubber Soul (Beatles cover band)
Shnazz
Peter Moon Band
4. How good was your high school band?
Honokaa School Band - 1970
I went to a small school in Honokaa Hawaii. Long before the Honokaa Jazz Band came into prominence (winning a Grammy Award in 2011), I was part of Howard Oshiro's Honokaa Marching Band. This was mainly in the 8th grade. We had a good band then of about 50 members. Our 8th grade band was the high school band since the older kids (especially the guys) preferred to play football and other sports.
After our class moved up to the 9th and 10th grade, the band just kind of fell apart as younger kids did not play as we did back then. The older kids went to play sports. Sad. I liked band because it was a free way to get into the ball games, travel around the island, skip out of class on occasion because we had to play at some concert or something... It was fun... I played trumpet.
The band played everything from traditional marches, some classical (we butchered "The Great Gates of Kiev"), movie themes ("Exodus"), TV show themes ("Hawaii Five-O', "Peter Gunn," and "Hogans Heroes March") and a lot of Herb Alpert and the Tiijuana Brass and Chicago songs. Fun times from back in the day. 5. Of bands whose names are listed like Joan Jett and the Blackhearts or Neil Young and Crazy Horse, who’s got the best name?
Good question never occurred to think of that.... Hmmm... consulting my gigantic iTunes playlist.
Yikes! There are dozens of them... my categorized favorites:
Best Band of All Time
Paul McCartney and Wings - Love all their music.
Best Band of the 1950s
Bill Haley and The Comets - they kind of started it.
Dion and The Belmonts
Buddy Holly and The Crickets
Best Band of the 1960s - Plenty to choose from... hmmm...
Tommy James and The Shondells
Sam the Sham and The Pharoahs
The Mamas and the Papas
Best R and B Groups
Diana Ross and the Supremes
Gladys Knight and the Pips
Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes
Junior Walker and the Allstars
Best 70s Dance Band
KC and the Sunshine Band - I played nearly all of their music when I did stints as a disco DJ. "Shake Shake Shake Your Booty"
Runner-up - Kool and the Gang - "Celebration"
Best Band of the 1970s
Paul McCartney and Wings
Best Band of the 1980s
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers
Best Band of the 1990s
Siouxsie and the Banshees - weird first name spelling, they started in the 1980s but still made music in the 1990s.
Today's Music
Fitz and the Tantrums
Ivan and Alyosha
Mumford and Sons - sounds like a law firm name.
Best Goofy Name
Yolanda Be Cool and Dcup - "We No Speak Americano"
