Song: Seven Day Fool Artist: Jully Black (Originally published Mar.15, 2012)

Etta James passed away recently, which brought a lot of attention to her music, of course, as it has for Whitney Houston and as it does for every other artist who passes away.  Etta was probably best known for the song “At Last”, which I don’t just like, I love.

What I didn’t know was that she was also the first to release today’s ILikeSongs pick, “Seven Day Fool”, in 1961.  It was written by Billy Davis, and is essentially from a female perspective, proclaiming her love in the form of everything she does for him because she loves him.  Now that might have a bit of a sexist lean, but I think the way it’s sung both by Etta James and Jully Black, a Canadian artist, gives it a no-nonsense and still passionate, declarative feel.  In other words, these ladies are committed to their men, but they ain’t no pushovers!

It’s a real belter, especially when she hollers “And I’ll be!”  The 2007 version that Jully Black recorded pays homage in every way to the original, both in her delivery of it, and in the instrumentation and production.  That’s what I love about it.  In fact, when I first heard it (remember, I didn’t know there was an Etta James version), I thought it was a contemporary song made to “sound” like the 60’s.  That has been happening a lot lately…my Christmas blog entry “Everything Old is New Again” refers to this phenomenon in the way new artists have been writing and recording in old, but updated styles.  I love it!

This is a classic form of songwriting, using the days of the week as a reference to the idea that every day the singer is slaving away for the one she loves:

And on a Monday, 

I’m gonna love ya

And on a Tuesday, 

I’m gonna hug ya

And on a Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, 

Gonna love ya

I work for you baby, work my hand to the bone

Care for you, baby, when you get home

Do for you, baby, for the love that I seek

Slave for you, baby, every day of the week

(And on a Monday)

Scrub your dirty floor

(On a Tuesday) 

I do a whole lot more

(On a Wednesday) 

I wash your dirty clothes

To have a little lovin’ ‘fore the weekend goes

CHORUS:

And I’ll be, your seven-day fool

And I’ll be, your seven-day fool

And I’ll be, your seven-day fool

Only because I really love you

(And on a Thursday) I’ll treat you oh so kind

(And on a Friday) I’ll take you out to dine

(And on a Saturday) I’ll work double time

If you’ll only say you’re be mine

(repeat CHORUS)

(On a Monday) ya I’m gonna love ya

(Tuesday) oh I’m gonna hug ya

(Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday)

Yeah give me all of that love

(And on a Monday) I scrub your dirty floor

(On a Tuesday) I do a whole lot more

(On a Wednesday) I wash your dirty clothes

To have a little lovin’ ‘fore the weekend goes

(repeat CHORUS) 

I really love you

I really love you

I’m just a seven day fool

I really love you

Oh on a Monday, I’m gonna love ya

And on a Tuesday I’m gonna hug ya

On a (Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday) gonna love ya

A seven day fool

Not only that, but it’s a mover…you can’t stop bopping to it!  Have a listen to it in the video below.  Definitely a contemporary remake of an old classic that I Like :-).

~ IJ

Song: Baker Street Artist: Gerry Rafferty (Originally published Dec.5, 2011)

I remember when Baker Street came out in 1978 because this song compelled me to buy the whole album, which was great. The most unusual thing about this song is that the chorus is entirely instrumental with that distinguishable sax solo. Apparently this song lead to a resurgence in the purchase of saxophones, called the “Baker Street Phenomenon”. Any song that drives people to want to learn an instrument is okay in my books!

The whole album is terrific, and I seriously don’t think he had as successful an album since that one.  One of Gerry’s more famous previous songs was “Stuck In The Middle” from his stint in the band Stealer’s Wheel, but for me Baker Street was far superior.  He wrote it after Stealer’s Wheel broke up and he was involved in a prolonged legal battle to get out of his contract with the band.  He travelled quite a bit between Glasgow and London during the contract dispute and ended up staying at a friend’s in London on Baker Street, where the idea for the song was born.

The Baker Street sax solo was supposedly first meant to be sung, then a guitar bit was considered.   It was the session player Raphael Ravenscroft who suggested he try it on a soprano sax, and the rest is history.  When I think of it now, I can’t imagine it being anything other than sax.

“Winding your way down Baker Street”…lyrically, the song is in the second person but I imagine the song as being autobiographical, describing a guy who has had some struggles with alcohol and depression, with life being lived out on the low end.  “Just one more year and then you’ll be happy, but you’re crying, you’re crying now.”

Musically the song is in the key of “D”, but one of my favourite parts is the pre-chorus where it shifts to a Dm7 and Am.  Shifting from a major to a minor 7th can create a powerful emotional impact:

Here is the first pre-chorus:

Dm7                              Am    

  You used to think that it was so easy

Dm7                            Am         

  You used to say that it was so easy

     C             G              D    * 

But you’re tryin, you’re tryin’ now

Dm7                            Am              

  Another year and then you’d be happy

Dm7                                  Am           

  Just one more year and then you’d be happy

     C               G             A     Dm7/G         

But you’re cryin’, you’re cryin’ now 

Gerry Rafferty died last January (2011), apparently of multi-organ failure after years of alcohol abuse.  It brought on a surge of new interest in his songs, but in the years leading up to his death he appeared to spiral deeper and deeper into his dark place.  It’s too bad that it often takes an artist or songwriter’s death to bring the attention that they so desire in life.  Rafferty had that attention during the late 70’s and although he released a number of albums since, none of them achieved the success that City to City did.

Listen to Baker Street in the video below.

~ IJ

Song: Karma Police Artist: Radiohead (Originally published Dec.1, 2011)

I swear I’ve sung this song dozens of times with guitar classes and students, and every time I do, it leaves me both confused and mesmerized. I absolutely love the chord progressions in this song, and the twists and turns musically. But what was it about?

I know enough about karma because I’m an avid reader of Buddhist philosophy. In the refrain, the line that repeats is “This is what you get.” which makes perfect sense to me, karmically-speaking (I know, I know, karmically is not a word!). But lines like “her Hitler hairdo is making me feel ill” and “he talks in maths, he buzzes like a fridge” went right over my head until I did a little research on the meaning of the song.

However, before I explain it, why not have a listen?  You can find the video below.

My interpretation of it is a son trying to enact revenge on his father, but you know, but when I watched the video of the song, well, these video directors and producers just like to play with images flying around in their own heads sometimes, so the video doesn’t necessarily explain anything. Here are the lyrics, including chords as I teach them, you lucky dogs!

INTRO: | Am D7/F# | Em G | Am F | Em G | Am D |
       | G G/F# C C/B | Am | Bm D |

Am    D7/F# Em
  Kar_ma Police,
   G        Am
Arrest this man,
   F        Em
He talks in maths,
   G             Am
He buzzes like a fridge
     D    | G G/F#  C  C/B | Am | Bm D |
He’s like a detuned ra-di—-o

Am    D7/F# Em
  Kar_ma  Police,
   G        Am
Arrest this girl,
    F      Em
Her hitler hairdo,
   G              Am
Is making me feel ill,
    D       G       G/F# C C/B Am Bm D
And we have crashed her  par—ty

REFRAIN:
| C         D         | G   F# |
    This is what you’ll get,
| C         D         | G   F# |
    This is what you’ll get,
| C         D         | G
    This is what you’ll get,
         Bm      | C | Bm D |
When you mess with us…

Am    D7/F# Em
  Kar_ma  Police,
     G           Am
I’ve given all I can,
     F    Em
It’s not enough,
     G           Am
I’ve given all I can,
    D           G  G/F# C     C/B Am Bm D
But we’re still on the  pay—roll

[REPEAT REFRAIN]

| Bm          D    | G 
    And for a minute there,
  D    | G      D     | E   |
I lost myself I lost myself, 
| Bm          D    | G 
    And for a minute there,
  D    | G      D     | E   |
I lost myself I lost myself,

| Bm D | G D | G D | E |

Bm           D      G
   And for a minute there,
  D      G      D      E
I lost myself I lost myself,
Bm           D           G
  Just for a minute there,
  D      G      D      E
I lost myself I lost myself

||: Bm D | G D | G D | E :|| 

So, are you any closer to figuring out what it’s about?  Okay, I’ll let you off the hook :-).  Here’s an explanation from Wikipedia:

“Radiohead members used to tell one another that they would call ‘the karma police’ on them if they did something wrong. The joke was incorporated as into the lyrics and title of the song. Yorke explained that the song was about stress and ‘having people looking at you in that certain [malicious] way, I can’t handle it anymore’. Thom Yorke explained the idea of the lyrics to The Independent in 2006, saying, ‘It’s for someone who has to work for a large company. This is a song against bosses. Fuck the middle management!’ Yorke and Jonny Greenwood emphasized in interviews that the song had a humorous bent; Yorke said, ‘[It’s] not entirely serious, I hope people will realize that.’ The song includes the line ‘He buzzes like a fridge/He’s like a detuned radio’, a reference to the distracting, metaphorical background noise Yorke calls ‘fridge buzz’. Yorke has said that the idea of fridge buzz is one of the primary themes of OK Computer [the CD containing Karma Police];’Karma Police’ also shares themes of insanity and dissatisfaction with capitalism.”

Now you know 🙂 

~ IJ