With Just A Hint Of Mayhem

Music reviews, gig reviews, fun trivia and extra added random stuff!

Play It Again Mayhem – “The Night” – Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons January 14, 2025

Filed under: Play It Again Mayhem — justwilliam1959 @ 10:03 pm
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Here comes the 33rd track in the Play It Again Mayhem series. This time it is the turn of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons with “The Night”. This is worth it just for the incredible bass lines, which I believe were played by Joe Long. It was originally released in 1972 on a Motown offshoot label, MoWest. It failed to chart initially. Later it became a popular track on the northern soul circuit in the UK, which led to a successful UK re-release in 1975. This time it reached number 7 on the UK singles Chart. The song was included on the groups only MoWest album, ‘Chameleon’. It has been covered by Lene Lovich (1979), by Soft Cell (2002) and Klaxons (2007). Pulp have played the song live. Edinburgh Gin used the song to soundtrack a TV advertising campaign in 2019 and 2020.

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Rolling Back The Years With Mayhem – 1962 August 15, 2024

Filed under: Rolling Back The Years — justwilliam1959 @ 11:25 pm
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This is the fourth in what I am sure will be a very long-running series, just like my long-running life, so far at least! I have decided to look at the most popular songs from every year that I have existed. There will be some artistic licence on my part as I will always seek to include at least a few of my favourites from each year. The format will be a top ten for each year and will cover the music and songs I grew up with, came of age with, and achieved my greatest success alongside music that comforted me in bad times. This fourth top ten goes back to my 3rd birthday year, 1962. I don’t remember actually hearing these songs back in 1962, but I have listened to them many times over the years. I have focused on the UK charts and this time the US bestseller does feature in my list. It is “Stranger On The Shore” by Acker Bilk. My Mum’s favourite singer Elvis Presley is in the top ten at number 7. The Tornados’ “Telstar” is at number one, this is one of my favourite tunes ever! Did you know that Matt Bellamy off of Muse was in the Tornados? So was possibly the greatest session drummer in history, Clem Cattini. So here is the fourth Rolling Back The Years With Mayhem Chart, for 1962. I reckon this is the best rolling back the year’s top ten so far! Please get on board the Time Machine now, it will be a rough journey so bring a sick bag! If you are too chicken to enter the Time Machine, click here for the playlist! The chart for 1963 will follow soon. The chart listing is below!

1 Telstar – The Tornados
2 Let’s Twist Again – Chubby Checker
3 Stranger On The Shore – Acker Bilk
4 Nut Rocker – B Bumble & The Stingers
5 Let’s Dance – Chris Montez
6 The Loco-Motion – Little Eva
7 Return To Sender – Elvis Presley
8 It Might As Well Rain Until September – Carole King
9 Sherry – The Four Seasons
10 The Wanderer – Dion

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“If I go there will be trouble and if I stay it will be double” June 5, 2016

Filed under: Observation,Rants — justwilliam1959 @ 8:26 am
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Obviously most of you are aware that there is a referendum looming for us folk in the UK. It is a vote on whether we as a country should stay a part of the European Union or whether we should leave and go it alone. Personally I fundamentally disagree with the need for a referendum; if an elected government can’t make big decisions then why are they there? Give the people a referendum on all big decisions from keeping Trident to MPs pay. That would be much fairer and a true reflection of what people want. But no; we are lumbered with making a massive decision on a subject that no one really knows the answer to Just listen to all the drivel spouted by both the Brexit (incidentally I despise that invented word) and Remain camps. If anyone truly understands this decision and all its implications then I have never heard of them. Do I understand it? Of course not, although in some sleepless moments I might think that I do. But I am enjoying the spectacle of the Tory party tearing itself apart over it. Anyway I thought I would put a helpful list together of the reasons to vote Remain and the reasons to vote Brexit on June 23rd. I hope that you like it and feel free to add to it and share your opinion. I have also added a referendum poll if you wish to cast a vote here. Oh and obviously there is some (in)appropriate music too. Feel free to suggest your own referendum stay or leave songs.

download

 

Reasons to vote Remain

Reasons to vote Brexit
1 Brexit is a shit word concoction which shows no imagination 1 We might do better in the Eurovision contest as an outsider
2 Boris Johnson will be upset 2 David Cameron will lose his job
3 Michael Gove will be upset 3 David Cameron will be upset
4 Nigel Farage will be angry and upset 4 Gideon will lose his job
5 It will annoy the Biffers of Britain First and their ilk immensely 5 Gideon will be upset
6 Donald Trump won’t like it 6 UKIP will have no reason to exist
7 To stop Boris Johnson succeeding in his reality TV interview for the Prime Minister’s job 7 Millions of UK ex pats will be returned to the UK from Europe. (Incidentally why aren’t they called immigrants?)
8 To cling on to a very thin chance to ditch the unelected House of Lords 8 To lose all the lovely foreign folk that clean for us, work in our essential services, pick our food and serve our food. You know those people that do the jobs no native of this country wants to do
9 To cling on to a slim chance of seeing the end of the monarchy in the UK 9 Daily Mail readers will be happy
10 Scotland will remain a part of the UK 10 Scotland will leave the UK
11 More austerity 11 More austerity
12 To maintain a Tory government 12 To maintain a Tory government
13 The England football team will still be shit 13 The England football team will still be shit
14 This whole bloody farce of a referendum will finally be over 14 This whole bloody farce of a referendum will finally be over

1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLQJVKP3YlM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBR2G-iI3-I

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COiIC3A0ROM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AX-MyKQlndo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WksYJLmo9Cg

 

“I’ll find some crowded avenue, though it will be empty without you” September 27, 2012

Filed under: News — justwilliam1959 @ 5:20 am
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I guess most of you have already heard of the sad passing of the great Andy Williams. I can remember watching his show when I was a kid; he introduced the Osmonds to the world and who from my generation can forget the Cookie Monster? I went through a period in my teens where I told myself I didn’t like Andy Williams’ music because it was classed as Easy Listening and my Mum and Dad liked it. As a teenager, certainly in those days, it was just really uncool to like the music your parents liked, although I did let Elvis through that cool versus uncool sieve.

But as I got older I began to realise just how talented a singer Mr Williams was. He could take a song that was completely identifiable with another artist and make it his own. Notably “Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You” the Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons classic. (I do still love Frankie’s version as well). He could take a song and sing it so well that any cover would pale into insignificance, I’m mostly talking of “Can’t Get Used To Losing You” here. Then of course there is his truly sublime version of the beautiful “Moon River“.

People will say that to leave this mortal coil at 84 is a good innings and maybe it is, compared to many, but Andy Williams will be sadly missed. So my feelings go out to his family, friends and his legions of fans across the world. RIP Andy Williams, you were a true icon.

 

“If a day could last forever you might like your ivory tower” December 22, 2011

Filed under: Christmas,Trivia — justwilliam1959 @ 12:05 am
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We’re easing down that Christmas road pretty fast now, it’s December 22nd and we’re at the letter V on my ABC of Motown Advent Calendar. I have a confession to make before I tell you what the song is. It doesn’t begin with V, it was so difficult to find a V song. So for today I have opted for an artist whose surname starts with a V. It is the one and only Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons with the Northern Soul classic, “The Night”

In 1970 the group signed to Motown subsidiary label Mowest and the single was originally released in 1971 in the UK with no success it was never issued in the US. When it was re-released in the UK in 1975 following a lot of interest in Northern Soul clubs it reached number 7 in the UK charts.

When the band left Motown in 1974 Frankie Valli wanted to buy the master tapes of everything they had recorded for the label. However when he heard the price he decided to buy just one song for $4,000. That song was “My Eyes Adored You” which Valli took to Private Stock records who wanted to release it as a Frankie Valli solo single. They did and it became a massive hit reaching number one on the US Billboard charts and number 5 in the UK.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HA9xblnYZs

I also found a couple of strange covers while looking for this song; firstly Pulp (sorry Jarvis it really isn’t very good mate) then Lene Lovich (a little weird) and finally Soft Cell (a faithful rendition). I prefer the original to all of these though. How about you?