Play your music: Jazz to Jagger

Having posted Ellie Goulding crooning "Burn" in 'Let's fire up the Neurons', why not a virtual conservatoire?

Post your favourite artists, albums, history about the song (appreciated) and any leanings, learnings most welcome.

Fun references:

100 Greatest Artists | Rolling Stone
Music Musicians Bands Players Instruments Clubs Disco memories from The People History Site
A History of Modern Music: the timeline | Music | theguardian.com

Rules:

No rules! Just tap away those songs that make you bleary, roll your eyes, solitude in akimbo, swing your hips, sway your arms, absolutely anything.

Nice-to-have:

Lil history about the genre and the artist will be enthusiastically received.

 

Song: Karma Chameleon
Band: Culture Club
Audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kPi0JqvRRs


"Karma Chameleon"


Desert loving in your eyes all the way
If I listened to your lies would you say


I'm a man without conviction
I'm a man who doesn't know
How to sell a contradiction
You come and go
You come and go


[Chorus:]
Karma Karma Karma Karma Karma Chameleon
You come and go
You come and go
Loving would be easy if your colors were like my dream
Red, gold and green
Red, gold and green

When I heard the song the first time, I was smitten by the soothing voice of Boy George. Oh, what a song! What a whatever song!


Trivia from wiki:


In an interview, Culture Club frontman Boy George explained: "The song is about the terrible fear of alienation that people have, the fear of standing up for one thing. It's about trying to suck up to everybody. Basically, if you aren't true, if you don't act like you feel, then you get Karma-justice, that's nature's way of paying you back."[4]


Likely because of the lyric "I'm a man without conviction," and the chorus, which includes the word chameleon, "Karma Chameleon" has been used by several politicians in political ads. In 2006, Britain's Labour Party used "Karma Chameleon" as the theme song for a series of political advertisements against Conservative party leader David Cameron in the 2006 UK local Elections.

 

Song: Fever
Singer: Peggy Lee
Audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eIDtwcFXcI
Genre: Jazz
Year of release: 1956


Fever

Romeo loved Juliet
Juliet she felt the same
When he put his arms around her
He said, "Julie baby you're my flame"


Thou givest fever, when we kisseth
Fever with thy flaming youth
Fever I'm on fire
Fever yeah I burn forsooth


Captain Smith and Pocahontas
Had a very mad affair
When her daddy tried to kill him
She said, "Daddy oh don't you dare"


He gives me fever with his kisses
Fever when he holds me tight
Fever, I'm his missus
And daddy won't you treat him right?


You have to listen to this song to feel the snap and rapture, I was reading the Jazz divas of 40s when I was mesmerized by this song. I don't know what they say about Fitzgeralds and Vaughans but Peggy was pegged as the Jazzer for me since then!

 

Song: We are the world
Genre: Charity song
Artist: Various artists
Audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxyHrnlPNRA

Ah! Found a great link which rolls the artist credits as they make appearance.

When I heard this song, goodness you feel like thrashing away all ambitions and carry a knapsack to the Madagascar. Moving, soothing , caressing the soul! There is a post-millennium version of the same song but as they say old is cast as golden record!


"We're The World (USA For Africa)"


There comes a time when we heed a certain call
When the world must come together as one
There are people dying
And it's time to lend a hand to life
The greatest gift of all


We can't go on pretending day by day
That someone, somewhere will soon make a change
We all are a part of God's great big family
And the truth, you know,
Love is all we need


[Chorus:]
We are the world, we are the children
We are the ones who make a brighter day
So let's start giving
There's a choice we're making
We're saving our own lives
It's true we'll make a better day
Just you and me


Send them your heart so they'll know that someone cares
And their lives will be stronger and free
As God has shown us by turning stone to bread
So we all must lend a helping hand


[Chorus]


When you're down and out, there seems no hope at all
But if you just believe there's no way we can fall
Well...well...well
Let's realize that a change can only come
When we stand together as one


[Chorus]

 

Song: I need a hero
Artist: Bonnie Tyler
Year: 1984
Genre: Rock
Audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBwS66EBUcY


I remember while watching "Shrek" , I was pulling the shirt of my friend, what is this? what is this song? temme what is this? Yeh, yeh will find it soon, sure, fast and were searching. I was (am still) pretty bad with music, can't relate beats to lyrics or songs to genres and if I claim both then I don't know the artist. To me everything is a synthesizer with a raspy voice in disco, punk and rock.

I'm fond of this song for two reasons.

1. How can you not tap your feet while listening to it
2. Added to the same playlist - Irene Cara's "What a feeling" & Olivia Newton's "Physical", Kim Carnes "Betty Davis Eyes".

My music exposure is limited to the songs I listen in gym , soundtrack of movies or Hairy Bikers cooing , so that way I'm not familiar with lot of popular songs/artists.


Wiki:

"Holding Out for a Hero" is a song recorded by Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler for the soundtrack to the 1984 film Footloose, and later appeared on her album Secret Dreams and Forbidden Fire (1986). It was written by Jim Steinman and Dean Pitchford. Initially, the song only just reached the Top 100 in the UK Singles Chart, but made it to number 2 the following year, and re-entered the charts again at number 69 in 1991. The song reached No. 1 on the Irish Singles Chart on 28 September 1985


"Holding Out For A Hero"

Where have all the good men gone
And where are all the gods?
Where's the street-wise Hercules
To fight the rising odds?
Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed?
Late at night I toss and turn and dream of what I need


Somewhere after midnight
In my wildest fantasies
Somewhere just beyond my reach
There's someone reaching back for me
Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat
Isn’t there a superman to sweep me off my feet?

 

Holly Halloolee! Just us again, lets patch this in the same neural pathway :mrgreen: