You Should Have Heard Just What I Seen

Telly Savalas played a New York detective in the TV show Kojak which aired from 1975 to 1978 and he was known for saying, “Who Loves Ya, Baby?”, but way before that back in 1956, Bo Diddley wrote and recorded a song that is credited to his birth name Ellas McDaniel called ‘Who Do You Love’.  This song did not chart and Bo Diddley only had one Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 ( a song titled ‘Bo Diddley’ that was backed with ‘I’m a Man’) and only one album of his charted on the Billboard 200, but Bo achieved worldwide fame and respect as a member of the founding of rock and roll and his songs were covered by many diverse artists.  In 2017, Diddley was inducted into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame.

This song is an upbeat rocker, using a combination of hoodoo-type imagery and boasting, but the original did not use the signature Bo Diddley beat rhythm.  Bo said that the idea for this song came to him while he was in Kansas City, when he heard a group of children trying to out-brag one another in an African like chant, and he wanted to develop words that would suit it.  Bo Diddley recalled that he was inspired by the Muddy Waters 1954 hit ‘I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man’, and he wanted to outdo songwriter Willie Dixon’s lyrical swagger, by telling this chick how much of a badass he was, so she can go tell the cat she’s hanging with that this dude is way beyond cool.  This guy walks 47 miles of barbed wire, uses a cobra-snake for a necktie and lives in a house made out of rattlesnake hide.  He sings about a skull, a tombstone, a graveyard, and a scream in the night, which all convey a sense of foreboding.

The use of the homonym “who do” is an allusion to “hoodoo”, a traditional African American spirituality popular in Louisiana and Mississippi.  It is a witchcraft practice, a folk magic belief that events can be influenced by its use and it often makes use of natural and supernatural elements in order to create and effect change in the human experience.  Bo Diddley was born on December 30, 1928 and he appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on November 20, 1955, about a year before Elvis Presley did.  He died of congestive heart failure on June 2, 2008 at the age of 79.

I walk 47 miles of barbed wire
I use a cobra-snake for a necktie
I got a brand new house on the roadside
Made from rattlesnake hide
I got a brand new chimney made on top
Made out of a human skull
Now come on take a walk with me, Arlene
And tell me, who do you love?

Who do you love?
Who do you love?
Who do you love?
Who do you love?

Tombstone hand and a graveyard mine
Just 22 and I don’t mind dying

Who do you love?
Who do you love?
Who do you love?
Who do you love?

I rode around the town, use a rattlesnake whip
Take it easy Arlene, don’t give me no lip

Who do you love?
Who do you love?
Who do you love?
Who do you love?

Night was dark, but the sky was blue
Down the alley, the ice-wagon flew
Heard a bump, and somebody screamed
You should have heard just what I seen

Who do you love?
Who do you love?
Who do you love?
Who do you love?

Arlene took me by my hand
And she said oh bo, you know I understand

Who do you love?
Who do you love?
Who do you love?
Who do you love?

Written for Song Lyric Sunday where the theme is “Could/Might/Should/Would”.

Modal Verbs

English grammar can be complex and modal verbs are unlike other verbs.  They include can, must, may, might, will, would, should. They are used with other verbs to express ability, obligation, possibility, and so on.  Our prompt for this week is Could/Might/Should/Would.  I believe that it is possible for everyone who wants to play along this week in Song Lyric Sunday to find a song that fits this prompt.

This challenge is always a lot of fun for me, because I enjoy seeing all the different songs that everyone contributes.  Song Lyric Sunday is mostly about having fun and sharing your music with others and being able to listen to the music that others come up with.  Not everyone on WordPress is a writer, but I feel that SLS should be more than just posting a video, so do some research and let everyone know something about the song that you post.  This could be something as simple as what year the song was written, who wrote it, or did it make the charts?  Post a video, show the lyrics, but most important, make sure that you have fun.  Try to find a song that fits the prompt, then write your post and create a pingback, or you can just place your link in the comments section.

Here are the “rules”:
• Post the lyrics to the song of your choice, whether it fits the theme or not.  If it does not fit, then please explain why you chose this song.
• Please try to include the songwriter(s) – it’s a good idea to give credit where credit is due.
• Make sure you also credit the singer/band and if you desire you can provide a link to where you found the lyrics.
• Link to the YouTube video, or pull it into your post so others can listen to the song.
• Ping back to this post or place your link in the comments section below.
• Read at least one other person’s blog, so we can all share new and fantastic music and create amazing new blogging friends in the process.
• Feel free to suggest future prompts.
• Have fun and enjoy the music.

I am writing about the Bo Diddley song ‘Who Do You Love’ this week.  Next week I will be writing about the song ‘Don’t You Want Me’ by Human League.  The upcoming prompts will be:
November 17, 2019 – Did/Didn’t/Do/Don’t/Does/Doesn’t
November 24, 2019 – Bounty/Desert/Eat/Feast/Food/Hungry/Turkey
December 1, 2019 – Chin/Ears/Eyes/Face/Mouth/Nose
December 8, 2019 – Arms/Elbows/Knees/Legs

Backwards Forwards Square and Round

In 1966, the Yardbirds recorded their most well-known Psychedelic Rock song ‘Over Under Sideways Down’ which was inspired by the Bill Haley and His Comets’ song ‘Rock Around the Clock’.  Jeff Beck plays both the lead guitar and bass guitar on this tune which reached number 10 in the UK and number 13 in the US.  ‘Over Under Sideways Down’ was ranked number 23 in Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time.  It was the title song to the Epic released album Over Under Sideways Down that came out in the US, Germany, France and Italy and it contained all original material.  The Columbia album Yardbirds came out in the UK a month earlier and it acquired the nickname Roger the Engineer after a caricature was drawn of the record’s audio engineer Roger Cameron by rhythm guitarist Chris Dreja. The album is included in Robert Dimery’s 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.  In 2012, the album was ranked number 350 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.  Some recordings were made in stereo and others were in mono, which didn’t seem to be all that important in the sixties, at least before Revolver and Sgt. Pepper were released.

The Yardbirds came along about a year after the Beatles spearheaded the British Invasion on America.  They got their name after Keith Relf read Jack Kerouac’s novel On the Road as it referred to rail yard hobos.  Eric Clapton replaced the original lead guitarist Anthony Topham in the Yardbirds, but he left in March 1965, and recommended Jimmy Page as his replacement, but he declined and Jeff Beck took over.  They made the offer again more than a year later, Jimmy accepted although Beck was playing lead guitar, so Jimmy ended up playing bass (squeezing in lead guitar parts whenever he could get away with it).

This song was written by all five band members of the Yardbirds.  Jimmy Page was not on this recording, as he joined the band after the recording was in the can, but before the song was released.  Keith Relf sings lead vocals, and plays harmonica along with Jeff Beck playing lead guitar, and bass guitar.  Chris Dreja plays rhythm guitar, and does backing vocals with Jim McCarty playing drums, and backing vocals and Paul Samwell-Smith does backing vocals.  This song was all about having a good time with some decadence thrown in, as this was the ‘60s.  Cars and girls were easy to come by especially for rock stars, so they laughed, drank, smoked, and did whatever it took to have fun.  This song contains an Eastern sound with Beck incorporating a sitar flavor on the song’s signature instrumental riff.

Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!
Cars and girls are easy come by in this day and age,
Laughing, joking, drinking, smoking,
Till I’ve spent my wage.
When I was young people spoke of immorality,
All the things they said were wrong,
Are what I want to be.
(Hey)
Over under sideways down,
(Hey)
Backwards forwards square and round.
(Hey)
Over under sideways down,
(Hey)
Backwards forwards square and round.
When will it end, when will it end,
When will it end, when will it end.
Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!
I find comment ‘bout my looks irrelativity,
Think I’ll go and have some fun,
‘cause it’s all for free.
I’m not searching for a reason to enjoy myself,
Seems it’s better done,
Than argued with somebody else.
(Hey)
Over under sideways down,
(Hey)
Backwards forwards square and round.
(Hey)
Over under sideways down,
(Hey)
Backwards forwards square and round.
When will it end, when will it end,
When will it end, when will it end.
Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!
Over under sideways down…

Written for Song Lyric Sunday where the theme is Around/Down/Sideways/Up.

Directions

The Fred Factor has nothing to do with Fred Flintstone, it is a powerful, poignant parable of success.  It’s about going the extra mile and always doing more than is expected.  Communication should always take place up and down the chain of command, as well as sideways to get the information around the grapevine.  This week the prompt is Around/Down/Sideways/Up.  I am happy that I got all the glitches and bugs worked out of my blog, because now I can watch more football.  Remember that Daylight saving time ends at 2:00 AM, at least here in Florida, so we all get an hour of extra sleep, but you probably waste a lot of that time changing all of your clocks.

This challenge is always a lot of fun for me, because I enjoy seeing all the different songs that everyone contributes.  Song Lyric Sunday is mostly about having fun and sharing your music with others and being able to listen to the music that others come up with.  Not everyone on WordPress is a writer, but I feel that SLS should be more than just posting a video, so do some research and let everyone know something about the song that you post.  This could be something as simple as what year the song was written, who wrote it, or did it make the charts?  Post a video, show the lyrics, but most important, make sure that you have fun.  Try to find a song that fits the prompt, then write your post and create a pingback, or you can just place your link in the comments section.

Here are the “rules”:
• Post the lyrics to the song of your choice, whether it fits the theme or not. If it does not fit, then please explain why you chose this song.
• Please try to include the songwriter(s) – it’s a good idea to give credit where credit is due.
• Make sure you also credit the singer/band and if you desire you can provide a link to where you found the lyrics.
• Link to the YouTube video, or pull it into your post so others can listen to the song.
• Ping back to this post or place your link in the comments section below.
• Read at least one other person’s blog, so we can all share new and fantastic music and create amazing new blogging friends in the process.
• Feel free to suggest future prompts.
• Have fun and enjoy the music.

I planned on writing about the Grateful Dead song ‘Been All Around This World’ this week, but as I was researching it, I realized that I already wrote a post on this song, so I am switching to another one and I hope this does not upset the apple cart.  I will write about the song ‘Over Under Sideways Down’ by the Yardbirds this week. Next week I will be writing about the song ‘Who Do You Love’ by Bo Diddley.  The upcoming prompts will be:
November 10, 2019 – Could/Might/Should/Would
November 17, 2019 – Did/Didn’t/Do/Don’t/Does/Doesn’t
November 24, 2019 – Bounty/Desert/Eat/Feast/Food/Hungry/Turkey
December 1, 2019 – Chin/Ears/Eyes/Face/Mouth/Nose

You Got to Hidey-Hide

In 1988 John Fogerty was sued for plagiarizing his own songs when Creedence Clearwater Revival’s label claimed that his song ‘The Old Man Down the Road’ sounded too much like ‘Run Through the Jungle’.  This song was the first single off his mega-selling Centerfield album, in late 1984.  A six-person jury decided in Fogerty’s favor in November 1988 that he did not steal his own song.  ‘The Old Man Down the Road’ is a song about leaving home and running into a despicable Devil like character that speaks in riddles, his eyes are as black as coal and this old man is blocking the way with his suitcase covered in rattlesnake hide.  Some people think that Fogerty thought of the record company as being this demon.  The other day Fandango asked if there was anything new under the sun and in this swamp rock song, Fogerty invented something new that happened to sound a lot like himself.  When Fogerty finished writing this song he said, “Ha! Take that, old man!”  This song charted #10 in the US and the Centerfield album went to #1 in the US.

John Fogerty put out seven albums with CCR and they were all released in a four-year span from 1968 to 1972.  The group had nine top-ten singles and eight gold albums and they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993.  John has had a long solo career and as of 2019 he is still playing.  Tom Fogerty died and John has refused to play with drummer Doug Clifford and bassist Stu Cook ever since the legal troubles.  At the Hall of fame induction, he performed Creedence tunes with Bruce Springsteen and Robbie Robertson.  Tom Fogerty turned against his brother joining in the lawsuit against him and this is sometimes referred to as the saddest story in Rock and Roll.

He take the thunder from the mountain
He take a lightning from the sky
He bring a strong man to his begging knee
He make the young girl’s mama cry.
You got to hidey-hide
You got to jump and run
You got to hidey-hidey-hide
The old man is down the road…
He got the voices speakin’ riddles
He got the eye as black as coal
He got a suitcase covered with rattlesnake hide
And he stands right in the road.
You got to hidey-hide
You got to jump up run away
You got to hidey-hidey-hide
The old man is down the road.
He make the river call your lover
He make the barking of the hound
Put a shadow ‘cross the window
When the old man comes around.
You got to hidey-hide
You got to jump and run again
You got to hidey-hidey-hide
The old man is down the road
The old man is down the road.
You got to, you got to, you got to hidey-hidey-hide.

Written for Song Lyric Sunday where the theme is Lost/Found/Hide/Seek.

Presence and Absence

Last week I talked about experiencing a commenting glitch here on WordPress and I said that maybe the worm in the badge should have a name.  The commenting glitch has been resolved along with the issue that I was having with pingbacks not showing up, they should mow automatically track back to this page, but you should probably check to confirm that your pingback is there.  I held a poll which is closed now and Santana got 5 votes, Pickled Pete got three and Izzy, Sly and Sunrise each received one, giving the worm the name of Santana.

As always, this challenge is a lot of fun for me, because I enjoy seeing all the different songs that everyone contributes. Song Lyric Sunday is mostly about having fun and sharing your music with others and being able to listen to the music that others come up with.  Not everyone on WordPress is a writer, but I feel that SLS should be more than just posting a video, so try to do some research and let everyone know what year the song was written, who wrote it, and other tidbits like did it make the charts or not.  Post a video, show the lyrics, but most important, make sure that you have fun.  This week the prompt is Lost/Found/Hide/Seek.  Try to find a song that fits the prompt, then write your post and since I won’t need to approve your pingbacks any more, this will work out better for all of us, or you can just place your link in the comments section.

Here are the “rules”:
• Post the lyrics to the song of your choice, whether it fits the theme or not.  If it does not fit, then please explain why you chose this song.
• Please try to include the songwriter(s) – it’s a good idea to give credit where credit is due.
• Make sure you also credit the singer/band and if you desire you can provide a link to where you found the lyrics.
• Link to the YouTube video, or pull it into your post so others can listen to the song.
• Ping back to this post or place your link in the comments section below.
• Read at least one other person’s blog, so we can all share new and fantastic music and create amazing new blogging friends in the process.
• Feel free to suggest future prompts.
• Have fun and enjoy the music.

I am writing about the song ‘Old Man Down the Road’ by John Fogerty this week. Next week I will write about ‘Been All Around This World’ by the Grateful Dead.  The upcoming prompts will be:
November 3, 2019 – Around/Down/Sideways/Up
November 10, 2019 – Could/Might/Should/Would
November 17, 2019 – Did/Didn’t/Do/Don’t/Does/Doesn’t
November 24, 2019 – Bounty/Desert/Eat/Feast/Food/Hungry/Turkey

Name the Worm

Ok this is probably just plain stupid as the worm does not need a name, but I thought it would be fun, so everyone can have a vote. One entry is allowed per person and responses must be in no later than this Saturday, October 26th, at noon EDT Eastern Daylight Time. I received 14 suggestions and they are as follows: