ABC - Jackson 5

Artist: Jackson 5
Song: ABC
Year: 1970
Album: ABC

I used to listen to this song when I was very young. I also watched the cartoon and I was sucked into the Michael Jackon mania surrounding Thriller, but not to the degree of some people. I was a fan, but not a fanatic. It didn't bother me that the Jacksons would not record together. I didn't want to know if Rosie was based on Michael's real pet snake.

I just enjoyed the songs and watched the cartoon, when I could find it. The cartoon disappeared. The music was left off of playlists and largely forgotten because of other issues that we won't go into here. Then, like with everything else, there was a ressurgence. I started seeing the songs in movies and there seemed to be a genuine interest in the songs again.

As an adult, I'm sad to say that I had dismissed most of the music as being childish. It largely is, but it's got a catchy beat. I didn't start having respect for this song again, until I saw it used in Clerks 2. That cinched it for me. This was going back into the collection.

Sometimes, it takes a different context to truly appreciate a song. I'm glad Kevin Smith decided to use it in the rooftop dancing scene. It turned out to be the perfect choice. It's dancy and fun.

Lyrics:
A buh-buh buh buh-buh
A buh-buh buh buh-buh
You went to school to learn girl!
Things you never ever knew before
Like "I" before "E" except after "C"!
And why two plus two makes four!
Now, now, now,
I'm gonna teach you,
All about love girl,
sit yourself down,
take a seat!
All you gotta do is repeat after me!
A, B, C!
It's easy as
One, two, three, as simple as
Do, re, mi, A, B, C, one, two, three!
Baby you and me girl!
It's easy as
One, two, three, as simple as
Do, re, mi, A, B, C, one, two, three!
Baby you and me girl!
Come on girl and love me just a little bit!
I'm gonna teach you how to sing it out!
Come on, come on, come on!
Let me tell you what it's all about!
Reading, writing, arithmatic
are the branches of the learning tree!
But without the roots of love everyday girl!
Your education ain't complete!
Teacher's gonna show you!
How to get an "A"!
How to spell "me", "you", add the two!
Listen to me baby thats all you got to do!
A, B, C,
It's easy as
One, two, three!
as simple as
Do, re, mi, A, B, C, one, two, three!
Baby you and me girl!
A, B, C, it's easy,
it's like counting up to three!
Singing simple melodies!
That's how easy love can be!
That's how easy love can be!
That's how easy love can be!
One, two, three, you and me!
Sit down girl, I think I love ya!
No, get up girl, show me what you can do!
Shake it, shake it baby, come on now!
Shake it, shake it baby, oooh, oooh!
Shake it, shake it baby, yeah!
One, two, three, baby, oooh, oooh!
A, B, C, baby, ah, ah!
Do, re, mi, baby, wow!
Thats how easy love can be!
A, B, C, it's easy,
it's like counting up to three!
Singing simple melodies!
That's how easy love can be!
Teacher's gonna teach you
how to sing it out,
cmon cmon cmon let me show you
all about it now
A, B, C, it's easy,
it's like counting up to three!
Singing simple melodies!
That's how easy love can be!
Teacher's gonna teach you
how to sing it out,
cmon cmon cmon let me show you
all about it now
A, B, C, it's easy,
it's like counting up to three!
Singing simple melodies!
That's how easy love can be!
Teacher's gonna teach you
how to sing it out,
sing it out, sing it, sing it sing it
A, B, C, it's easy,
it's like counting up to three!
Singing simple melodies!
That's how easy love can be!

The Long And Winding Road - The Beatles

Artist: The Beatles
Song: The Long And Winding Road
Year: 1970
Album: Let It Be

Could this be the song that broke the Beatles up for good? Some sources say that the remixing of this song by Phil Spector was the straw that broke the camel's back. I think that might be a pretty accurate portrayal of what happened in 1970.

Tensions were at an all time high, when this album came out. The album was nothing like the Beatles had envisioned it. Regular producer George Martin called the album uncharacteristic of the Beatles. Phil Spector originally took this track and added on layers of orchestral overdubs to drown out the shoddy bass playing of John Lennon.

Simpler techniques could have been used on this track and were used in other parts of the album. One begins to wonder why the bass wasn't just overdubbed and left. Where did the chorus of women and full blaring horn section come from? This was to be the simplest sounding song on Let It Be and now it was the busiest.

The years have washed away some of the bitterness of this incident. In 2003, the Beatles released a sparse version of "The Long And Winding Road" on Let It Be... Naked to good reviews. Phil Spector has argued that Paul McCartney had no trouble picking up the Academy Award for the soundtrack and playing the song with horns during 25 years of touring. Maybe it's best to say that there are positives about both versions.

Lyrics:

The long and winding road that leads to your door,
Will never disappear,
I've seen that road before
It always leads me here,
Leads me to your door.

The wild and windy night the rain washed away,
Has left a pool of tears crying for the day.
Why leave me standing here, let me know the way
Many times I've been alone and many times I've cried
Anyway you'll never know the many ways I've tried, but
Still they lead me back to the long and winding road
You left me standing here a long, long time ago
Don't leave me waiting here, lead me to you door
Da, da, da, da

Have You Ever Seen The Rain? - Creedence Clearwater Revival

Artist: Creedence Clearwater Revival
Song: Have You Ever Seen the Rain?
Year: 1970
Album: Pendulum

Many have suggested that this song is about the Vietnam war or about the loss of innocence of the sixties. While those are all decent analogies for "Have You Ever Seen The Rain?", the song is really about the tensions that were beginning to mount among the members of CCR. This preceded Tom Fogerty leaving the band.

I would hear this song on my local classic rock station every time that it rained. They would pair this up with "Who'll Stop The Rain". I enjoyed both songs immensely, but I would groan whenever the station would play them in that situation.

I think the key phrase is "there's a calm before the storm". It signifies the uneasy feelings going on between band mates. The song almost comes right out and says that the band is in its decline. Not musically, but emotionally. CCR had a long history of fights and lawsuits after the band broke up. Most of the problems came from the record company.

Lyrics:

Someone told me long ago,
There's a calm before the storm,
I know, and it's been comin' for some time.

When it's over so they say,
It'll rain a sunny day,
I know, shinin' down like water.

I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain
I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain
Comin' down on a sunny day?

Yesterday and days before,
Sun is cold and rain is hot,
I know, been that way for all my time.

'Til forever on it goes,
Through the circle fast and slow,
I know, and it can't stop I wonder.

I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain
I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain
Comin' down on a sunny day?

Yeah!

I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain
I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain
Comin' down on a sunny day?

Yeah!

The Lumberjack Song - Monty Python

Artist: Monty Python
Song: The Lumberjack Song
Year: 1970
Album: Monty Python's Flying Circus

I'm always up for a good laugh and one of the best laughs that I can find is Monty Python. I guess it's the part of me that likes absurd thoughts. Still, there's something about a catchy, silly tune that I can't resist.

I suppose that it's all in the setup of the original sketch. I remember watching this sketch for the first time on the television show, Monty Python's Flying Circus. It featured a homicidal barber who wanted nothing more than to be a lumberjack. Of course, when the sketch turned to talk of lumberjacks, the whole thing turned 180 degrees.

This is as much a visual joke as it is an audible one. For one who has seen the sketch in numerous forms, I can see the disgusted looks on the lumberjack chorus. I can see the "best girl" by his side grow more disappointed with each line. It makes for a great all around treat.

There is something to pick out and enjoy for every age group. The silly sing song chorus can delight children, while the older crowd can snicker about the talk of a cross dressing lumberjack. I'm sure that they're out there and I wonder how they feel about this song. I feel hilarious whenever I hear this.

Lyrics:
I'm a lumberjack
And I'm ok
I sleep all night and I work all day
(He's a lumberjack
And he's ok
He sleeps all night and he works all day)

I cut down trees
I eat my lunch
I go to the lavatry'
On Wednesdays I go shopping
and have buttered scones for tea
(He cuts down trees
He eats his lunch
He goes to the lavatry'
On Wednesdays He goes shopping
and has buttered scones for tea
I cut down trees)

I'm a lumberjack
And I'm ok
I sleep all night and I work all day
I cut down trees
I skip and jump
I like to press wild flowers
I put on womens' clothing and hang around in bars
(He cuts down trees
He skips and jumps
He likes to press wild flowers
He puts on womens' clothing and hang around in bars?)

I'm a lumberjack
And I'm ok
I sleep all night and I work all day
I cut down trees
I wear high heels
Suspendies' and a bra
I wish I'd been a girly
Just like my dear pa-pa
(He cuts down trees
He wears high heels?)

(He's a lumberjack
And he's ok
He sleeps all night and he works all day
He sleeps all night and he works all day)