Hello, I'm Stevie Nix and welcome to Song Sung New, the podcast where we take some songs and … well, we see if Melanie has anything to complain about.
Who’s Melanie and what does she have to do with this?
Melanie Safka, whose stage name was just Melanie, was an American folk singer, who in 1970 had a hit with this song.
[Song]
And I can say Melanie has no need to be concerned today. We aren’t going to be trotting out any second-rate covers. Well, maybe one.
Today’s theme is songs that have the word “song” or “tune” in the title. Examples that immediately spring to mind include Your Song, Redemption Song, Kathy’s Song and, of course, Song Sung Blue.
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Speaking of Song Sung Blue, did you know Neil Diamond borrowed from Mozart's Piano Concerto No 21 when he composed that song? Take a listen.
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You dirty rotten scoundrel, Neil.
I’ve sometimes thought songs with the word song in the title was simply the result of the composer being too lazy to come up with something else. I’m thinking of song’s such as Elton John’s This Song Has No Title, Howard Jones’s New Song, Barenaked Ladies’ Little Tiny Song or Culture Club’s The War Song.
[Song]
That would have to be the most inane protest song ever recorded.
Sometimes songwriters use the word “song” or “tune” to make sure people know who inspired the song, or how it came to be. I’m referring to songs such as Paul Simon’s Kathy’s Song, or Neil Young’s Borrowed Tune.
Take a listen and see if you can pick where Young “borrowed” quote unquote this song from.
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If you haven’t picked it yet, he provides a clue in the fourth verse
“I'm singin' this borrowed tune I took from the Rolling Stones,
Alone in this empty room too wasted to write my own.”
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And the song he stole it from was this one, Lady Jane.
[Song]
At least he didn’t try to hide the fact. Many others have.
Nick Cave isn’t afraid to write a song song, that is write a song with the word “song” in the title.
His sixth album, The Good Son, had four - The Hammer Song, The Witness Song and two we’re going to take a look at - The Ship Song and The Weeping Song.
Let’s start with The Ship Song, a song that in 2001, the Australasian Performing Rights Association listed as one of the best 30 Australian songs of all time. No.1 was The Easybeats’ Friday On My Mind. The Ship Song was No.26 and it was the only Cave composition on the list. Mmmm. Dunno about that.
Anyway, here it is.
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The Ship Song was the first single released off The Good Son and, interestingly, the B-side was called The Train Song.
There have been a lot of delicate covers of this song over the years, covers that remove all musical edifice and instead employ stark accompaniment, but the most fragile would have to be by Irish singer/actress Camille O’Sullivan. This version was included on her 2012 album of covers, Changeling.
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My favourite track off The Good Son was the second single, The Weeping Song. This song reads like a passage out of the Bible.
“Go son, go down to the water
And see the women weeping there
Then go up into the mountains
The men, they are weeping too.
Father, why are all the women weeping?
They are weeping for their men
Then why are all the men there weeping?
They are weeping back at them.”
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In 2011, Nick Cave was the subject of a tribute album called Dig Cave Dig. And my favourite cover was this one by a little-known Australian band called Your Animal.
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Arguably the most popular song ever recorded with the word “song” in the title was a track off Leon Russell’s self-titled 1970 debut album. The song in question was A Song For You, which is a heartfelt plea for forgiveness to an estranged lover.
"I know your image of me is what I hoped to be,” Russell sings.
“I treated you unkindly, but darling, can't you see there's no one more important to me?
Baby, can't you see through me?
'Cause we're alone now and I'm singing this song to you.”
[Song]
The most famous cover was the first one, by Donny Hathaway. Since then, we’ve also had versions from Aretha Franklin, The Carpenters, Cher, Willie Nelson, Ray Charles, Dusty Springfield and Whitney Houston.
And then there was this cover, by Australian jazz singer Vince Jones, recorded live on TV in 1994. It’s exquisite.
[Song]
Song 2 was the second song off Blur’s self-titled fifth album. And it was also the second single.
Originally written as a joke to make their record company think they were losing their minds, the band were dumbfounded when the label said they loved it. And not only did they love it, but they put it out as a single. And you’ll never guess where the song charted in the UK. Well, actually, you probably will. It made it to No.2.
The title Song 2 was originally meant to be its working title, representing its position in the album’s track listing, but the name stuck. Interestingly, the song goes for two minutes and two seconds and contains two verses and two choruses.
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I feel it’s only appropriate that I play you two covers.
First up is Spanish musician Caballero Reynaldo, who has released more than 40 albums since 1987, one of which was 2016’s compilation record, Beethoven Was Black. And that record contained this quirky cover of Song 2
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American artist Trevor James Tillery also recorded a version in 2016. His was more electronic, but no less unusual.
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Blur also recorded Good Song, Mellow Song, Swamp Song, Swan Song, Sweet Song and Woodpigeon Song. I think they hold the record for the most songs with the word “song” in the tile. So congratulations, Damon Albarn and Co.
[Applause]
Songs written specifically for someone or about someone are nothing new. They are as old as songs themselves. And many names have been referenced down the years. Frank’s song, by Tom Waits, Bob Dylan’s Song To Woody, Bowie’s Song For Bob Dylan, Elton John’s Song For Guy, Eminem’s Hailie’s Song, Paul Simon’s Kathy’s Song and Billy Joel’s Movin Out (Anthony’s Song) - and we’re going to take a look at the last two, beginning with Kathy’s Song.
The Kathy concerned here is an Englishwoman called Kathleen Chitty, who Simon fell head over heels for when he met her while touring England in the 60s. She also gets a mention in another of his great songs, America, and she’s the reason Simon is Homeward Bound in that song, too.
But it is in Kathy’s Song that she is truly immortalised.
“And from the shelter of my mind
Through the window of my eyes
I gaze beyond the rain-drenched streets
To England where my heart lies.
My mind's distracted and diffused
My thoughts are many miles away
They lie with you when you're asleep
And kiss you when you start your day."
[Song]
Simon recorded the first version on his debut album The Paul Simon Songbook in 1965 - a record that featured a picture of Simon and Chitty on the cover. Twelve months later, he cut it again, this time with Art Garfunkel, and that version was included on the Sounds Of Silence album.
Here’s a mashup of the two.
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As you just heard, the two versions are virtually identical.
Kathy’s Song has been covered many times, but two versions that have caught my attention over the years are by American bluegrass band Misty River and Czech singer Lenka Filipova.
Filipova’s version stands out because her voice is different to most, whereas Misty River’s version stands out for the lush bluegrass arrangement.
Here’s another mashup, beginning with Filipova. Her version came out in 2018 and Misty River’s came out 14 years earlier.
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Billy Joel is one of those artists who are famous for a time, disappear without a trace for decades, then reappear rehashing their greatest hits on tour, making bucketloads of money in the process.
Joel had two peak periods - 1973-1977 and 1980-1983 and Movin’ Out Anthony’s Song came in the first block.
On May 19, 1976, Joel released his fourth album, Turnstiles, which tanked, prompting his record company, Columbia, to consider dropping him from the label. But they gave him one more chance and 16 months later - September 29, 1977 to be exact - Joel released The Stranger, an album that was phenomenally successful.
It boasted four singles in the US and all of them were Top 40 hits - Just The Way You Are, Only The Good Die Young, She’s Always A Woman and Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song).
So, who is this Anthony? Well, he doesn’t exist. Joel later said he was, quote
“Every Irish, Polish, and Italian kid trying to make a living in the U.S” end quote.
The song is about blue collar people who work long hours to buy material objects such as a house in Hackensack New Jersey that show off their upward mobility. But Joel isn’t applauding them, he’s chastising them.
“Anthony works in the grocery store saving his pennies for someday,” the song begins.
“Mama Leone left a note on the door, she said, Sonny, move out to the country, workin’ too hard can give you a heart attack
You oughta know by now, who needs a house out in Hackensack?
Is that what you get with your money?
It seems such a waste of time, if that's what it's all about, if that's movin' up then I'm movin' out.”
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The song has been covered a few times, but none really stand out so instead I’m going to play you a song that samples it. This is You Oughta Know by The Diplomats and it came out in 2008.
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Speaking of samples, and Simon and Garfunkel, as we were just now, in 1966 they included The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy) on their third album Parsley, Sage Rosemary and Thyme. Twelve months later they put it out as the B-side to At The Zoo and then re-sissued it as an A-side in 1971.
The 59th Street Bridge Song was written to be a feel good song, or a feeling’ groovy song, to use its vernacular. It’s a song about stopping to smell the roses.
“Slow down, you move too fast
You got to make the morning last
Just kicking down the cobblestones
Looking for fun and feeling groovy.
I got no deeds to do, no promises to keep
I'm dappled and drowsy and ready to sleep
Let the morningtime drop all its petals on me
Life, I love you, all is groovy.”
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On September 6 1969 a new children’s television show called HR Pufnstuf made its debut and the theme song caught Simon’s attention. See if you can hear why.
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As soon as he heard it Simon was on the phone to his lawyer screaming plagiarism and he ended up getting a writing credit.
Anyway, I’m not sure if Australian DJ Wally has ever heard of HR Pufnstuf, but he’s certainly heard because in 1997 he released Feelin’ Groovy, which was an extended sample of Simon & Garfunkel’s version.
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In 1987, Tom Waits released his 10th album, Franks Wild Years, and for some reason Franks didn’t have an apostrophe. The title was also used for a song on 1983’s Swordfishtrombones, and on that song Frank’s did have an apostrophe between the K and The S.
Make of that what you will.
Anyway, on Franks Wild Years the album, track 7 on side 2 was a song called Train Song, written about a guy who’s 10,000 miles from home and paying for his sins.
“It was a train that took me away from here, but a train can't bring me home,” he sings.
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Canadian jazz singer Holly Cole has released two versions of this song. The first one was on her 1995 tribute album to Tom Waits called Temptation and the second version, recorded live, came out on a subsequent Best Of collection in 2000.
Here’s a bit of both.
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Led Zeppelin were what you used to call an album band - a bit like Pink Floyd - in that they were known more for their LPs than their singles. And that’s something that would be hard for kids to get their heads around these days.
But they did release a few singles and some of them were popular. Whole Lotta Love is an obvious example, but so is Immigrant Song, which was the lead-in track for their third album, Led Zeppelin 3, released in October 1970.
The song was written after the band had played in Iceland’s capital, Rake-ya-vek, which explains the Viking-themed lyrics. And Immigrant Song is the reason many heavy metal bands have since adopted Viking-like branding.
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Heart was a band that knew how to market itself. You could be forgiven for thinking there were only two members, sisters Nancy and Ann Wilson, given they featured on the cover of three of their first five albums and the other members of the band, all guys, didn’t feature on any.
They had a few hits back in the day, the biggest probably being Barracuda in 1977, which owed a debt of gratitude to Immigrant Song.
[Song]
Anyway, Heart has been an on-off again thing ever since they first began in 1969, and the latest reformation - which happened in 2019 - consisted of the Wilson sisters with a backing band.
During one of their hiatuses’, Ann Wilson put out a solo album called Hope & Glory. Released in 2007, it was an album of covers that didn’t improve on any original. The best track was arguably Immigrant Song. Can’t say I love it, but you might so here it is.
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The Sweet was an English band that in the mid-70s took glam and applied some rock ’n’ roll to it. But the term glam ’n’ roll or rock ’n glam never took off. I wonder why?
The Sweet’s biggest hit was 1975's Fox On The Run (play underneath) but two years earlier they recorded a song called Burnin’, which borrowed a bit from Immigrant Song. Take a listen
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Bob Marley wrote some great songs, some really great songs, but the track most people regard as his best, Redemption Song, is the most un-Bob Marley song he ever recorded. It’s just him and his guitar and no reggae.
It was released as a single off his 1980 album Uprising, the last album released while he was alive. And the B-side featured a full band version that many people have forgotten about.
Here’s a mashup of the two
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Rolling Stone regards the acoustic version as the 66th best song ever written.
Angélique Kidjo is an American singer with strong African links. Between her first and last names there are six others, each more exotic than the one before it. And none of them pronounceable by me.
Her influences are global, as is her popularity. Anyway, in 2011 she recorded a special for PBS called Spirit Rising and the highlight was this gorgeous version of Redemption song, complete with mini-choir.
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It’s only logical that The Logical Song gets a guernsey today. Released as the first single off Supertramp’s best-selling album, 1979’s Breakfast In America, it was written by Roger Hodgson as he reflected on his years at boarding school.
He later said, quote
"The Logical Song was born from my questions about what really matters in life. Throughout childhood we are taught all these ways to be and yet we are rarely told anything about our true self.
"We are taught how to function outwardly, but not guided to who we are inwardly. We go from the innocence and wonder of childhood to the confusion of adolescence that often ends in the cynicism and disillusionment of adulthood.
“In 'The Logical Song', the burning question that came down to its rawest place was 'please tell me who I am', and that's basically what the song is about. I think this eternal question continues to hit such a deep chord in people around the world and that’s why it stays so meaningful.” end quote
And here it is
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33Tours is a group of French friends who specialise in atmospheric electronic music. In 2015 they released an album of covers called Stereoscope and one of those covers was this one, The Logical Song. I’m going to play you the ending.
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In 1991, an Austrian dance group who called themselves Bingoboys - even though one of them was a woman - released a song called No Woman No Cry. You would be excused for thinking it was a Bob Marley cover, but it wasn’t. It was original, but totally forgettable as well.
Three years later they released a song called No Communication and it was a lot better. And one of the reasons for that was the Supertramp sample.
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That wasn’t the only time The Logical Song has been sampled, either. In 2013, American rapper Jon Freeman, who for some reason goes by the stage name Jon Connor, released his first album, Unconscious State, which was 22 tracks long.
Track 5 was called The Sarah Song, track 13 was called The Porn Song - that’s Porn with a R not a W - and track 9 was called When I Was Young. Now, as much as I know you’d rather me play The Porn Song, I’m going to keep it clean and play you When I Was Young. And the reason for that is because it contains a sample of The Logical Song.
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In July 1972 a young American singer called Lori Lieberman recorded an album that nobody bought, which included a song nobody heard. Nobody except, Roberta Flack that is.
Here’s the song in question.
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It’s easy to see why Flack was in the minority. Clearly Flack heard something others didn’t and she was right to follow her gut because a year later she recorded a new version of the song and included it on her fifth album, also called Killing Me Softly. Flack’s cover was a smash hit and further consigned the original to obscurity.
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Anyone under the age of 40 probably doesn’t think of Flack when they think of this song - they think of The Fugees (Fu-jeez), who recorded their version in 1996 and included it on their second and final album, The Score.
Their cover begins in the same fashion as Flack’s before detouring into their signature pop/hip-hop sound.
Then, earlier this year, March to be exact, British singer Louise Bobb, otherwise known as Gabrielle, released her seventh album, Do It Again, and track one was a facsimile of The Fugees’ version.
Here’s a mashup of the two, beginning with The Fugees.
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We began this episode with Melanie’s Look What They Done To My Song Ma and I don’t think any of the songwriters featured today would be upset with the covers their songs have inspired. In Melanie’s case, she had the good fortune of piquing Ray Charles’s interest and in 1972 he included a cover on one of his lesser-known albums A Message From The People.
Here’s a sample
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In 2018, American band A Band Of Heathens paid their respects to Charles by re-recording all of A Message From The People and calling it A Message From The People Revisited. But it’s not an album I encourage you to seek out.
You’d be better off directing your attention to Swedish singer Amanda Jenssen, who in 2009 released her second album, Happyland. One of the tracks she recorded during those sessions was a cover of Look What They Done To My Song Ma, although it didn’t make it on to the record. However it was included on the international releases and here’s what it sounded like.
[Song]
In 1973, Led Zeppelin recorded a song called The Song Remains The Same. But clearly they don’t - well, except for Gabrielle, that is.
Some songs stand on their own two legs from birth, others find their feet in other hands. Either way, songs continue to make the whole world sing (play under 0:43) - even despite Barry Manilow. Although, to be fair he didn’t write that song.
And there isn’t a subject that someone hasn’t written a song about. And that includes songs with songs in the title. We’ve had songs such as The Animal Song, The Anchor Song, The Airport Song, Anniversary Song, Apology Song, Anotherdrinkingsong, Ambiguity Song and Authority Song - and they’re just some of the ones starting with A.
In fact I think the only subject that hasn’t been referenced is songs themselves. Maybe someone needs to address that by writing a song called The Song Song.
Give it time … somebody will, I’m sure.
Now, given this podcast is only six episodes deep, I haven’t had any requests yet, but in 1975, BJ Thomas came out and said to nobody in particular, Hey Won’t You Play Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song.
So BJ, here it is.
And speaking of requests, feel free to send your suggestions via the website.
I’ll do my best to see if I can come up with enough covers.
In the meantime, I’ll see you next week. Can’t wait.
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