Song Lyric Sunday

Song Lyric Sunday — In Dreams

Fandango17 Comments

Helen Vahdati’s Song Lyric Sunday theme this week is “sleep,” something I probably should be doing right about now. But when I thought about the sleep theme, what came to mind was the Roy Orbison song, “In Dreams.”

Roy Orbison was an incredible singer whose voice could span a range of three octaves, a range that was beyond that of most rock ‘n roll singers at the time. “In Dreams,” composed and sung by Orbison, is an operatic ballad of lost love. The song was released as a single on Monument Records in February 1963, and was the title track on the album In Dreams, released in July of the same year. The single peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 charts at number 7 in 1963.

Typical of many Orbison songs, “In Dreams” is a heartbreaker. He’s asleep at night and that’s the only time he can be with the one he loves, and when he wakes up, she’s gone. Orbison claimed in interviews that the lyrics for this song came to him in a dream. He wrote the music once he woke up.

Here are the song’s lyrics.

A candy-colored clown they call the sandman
Tiptoes to my room every night
Just to sprinkle stardust and to whisper
“Go to sleep. Everything is all right.”

I close my eyes, Then I drift away
Into the magic night. I softly say
A silent prayer like dreamers do.
Then I fall asleep to dream My dreams of you.

In dreams I walk with you. In dreams I talk to you.
In dreams you’re mine. All of the time we’re together
In dreams, In dreams.

But just before the dawn, I awake and find you gone.
I can’t help it, I can’t help it, if I cry.
I remember that you said goodbye.

It’s too bad that all these things,
Can only happen in my dreams
Only in dreams In beautiful dreams.

Song Lyric Sunday — No Lyrics

Fandango14 Comments

My choice of song for Helen Vahdati’s Song Lyric Sunday prompt is, well, unusual. It may also set me up for a bit of ridicule from some of my fellow bloggers. Why? Well, first of all, the song I chose for Helen’s theme, which is “glass,” has no lyrics. WHAT? Second, the song is from Yanni. Yes, Yanni, the New Age music artist.

I was really into New Age music, sometimes referred to as “jazz fusion” or “smooth jazz,” from the mid 80s to maybe the early 2000s. And I will freely admit that Yanni was one of my favorite New Age artists.

Anyway, the song I selected is “Looking Glass.” It’s from Yanni’s second studio album, Keys to Imagination, which was released in 1986. Yanni’s music, which is predominantly instrumental, is a blend of jazz, classical, soft rock, and world music.

Since there are no lyrics to include in this post, I figure I’ll just go ahead and post the song “Looking Glass.” If you listen, close your eyes and let yourself be transported. You might even be surprised by how much you enjoy it.

Song Lyric Sunday — Fun Fun Fun

Fandango18 Comments

Helen Vahdati chose the theme “car/cars” for this week’s Song Lyric Sunday prompt. No fewer than six songs popped into my head when I read Helen’s theme, but in the end I decided to go with The Beach Boys and their song, “Fun Fun Fun.”

“Fun Fun Fun” was written by The Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson and Mike Love and was released in 1964 as a single, later appearing on the band’s album Shut Down Volume 2.

The song, which managed to reach number 5 on the Billboard charts, is a classic American song about girls and cars. A rebellious daughter borrows her father’s Ford Thunderbird, claiming she’s going to the library to study. Instead, she uses it to show up other drivers. Her dad eventually finds out and takes his T-Bird back, but she retaliates by running off with someone who fell in love with her after watching her drive.

There were many rumors about the identity of the girl in the song, but Mike Love said, “As far as I know, there was no particular girl that was the inspiration for that song. It was more generic. Because, what kid, when they get their driver’s license, doesn’t want to borrow the family car and go cruisin’ through the hamburger stand, or they say they need to go to the library, but who knows?”

Here are the lyrics to “Fun Fun Fun.”

Well she got her daddy’s car
And she’s cruisin’ through the hamburger stand now
Seems she forgot all about the library
Like she told her old man now
And with the radio blasting
Goes cruising just as fast as she can now

And she’ll have fun fun fun
‘Til her daddy takes the T-Bird away
(Fun fun fun ’til her daddy takes the T-Bird away)

Well the girls can’t stand her
‘Cause she walks, looks, and drives like an ace now
(You walk like an ace now you walk like an ace)
She makes the Indy 500 look like a Roman chariot race now
(You look like an ace now you look like an ace)
A lotta guys try to catch her
But she leads them on a wild goose chase now
(You drive like an ace now you drive like an ace)

And she’ll have fun fun fun
‘Til her daddy takes the T-Bird away
(Fun fun fun ’til her daddy takes the T-Bird away)

Well you knew all along
That your dad was gettin’ wise to you now
(You shouldn’t have lied now you shouldn’t have lied)
And since he took your set of keys
You’ve been thinking that your fun is all through now
(You shouldn’t have lied now you shouldn’t have lied)

But you can come along with me
‘Cause we gotta a lot of things to do now
(You shouldn’t have lied now you shouldn’t have lied)

And we’ll have fun fun fun now that daddy took the T-Bird away
(Fun fun fun now that daddy took the T-Bird away)
And we’ll have fun fun fun now that daddy took the T-Bird away
(Fun fun fun now that daddy took the T-Bird away)
(fun fun now that daddy took the T-Bird away)
(fun fun now that daddy took the T-Bird away)
(fun fun now that daddy took the T-Bird away)
(fun fun now that daddy took the T-Bird away)
(fun fun now that daddy took the T-Bird away)
(fun fun now that daddy took the T-Bird away)

Song Lyric Sunday — Other Plans

Fandango12 Comments

For this week’s Song Lyric Sunday, Helen Vahdati chose the theme “plan.” This was a tough one and I had to search my memory banks, but I finally came up with a song from Stevie Wonder’s 1972 album, Talking Book. The name of the song is “Maybe Your Baby.”

Talking Book was the fifteenth studio album by Stevie Wonder. The two biggest songs from that album were “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” and “Superstition.” “Maybe Your Baby” was not one of his more well known tracks from the album.

The song is the sad tale of a guy whose girl “done made some other plans” and is stepping out on him with his best friend. He feels betrayed, lost, down, and lonely. His dreams are turning to ashes and he doesn’t know how to cope.

Here are the song’s lyrics.

I’m feelin’ down and some kind of lonely,
Cause’ my baby done left me here,
Heart’s blazing like a five alarm fire
And I don’t even give a care

I feel like the world is turnin’ on me,
My dreams turnin’ to ashes right in front of my face,
And I’m gettin’ kind of worried,
And I feel so out of place,

Maybe your baby done made some other plans,
Maybe your baby done made some other plans

[Background] . . I feel like cryin’, yeh, yeh
Maybe baby, baby, baby, baby, baby

In the mornin’ when I’ve got heartache,
I can’t call up the doctor for help,
Cause’ the only person that could ever do me any good,
Is steppin’ out with my best friend

I feel like I’m slippin’ deeper,
Slippin’ deeper into myself,
And I can’t take it,
This stuff is scarin’ me to death

Maybe your baby done made some other plans,
Kinda makin’ me worried,
Maybe your baby done made some other plans

Little Sally Walker, sittin’ in a saucer,
Checkin’ out the guys that are passing by

[Background]…by, by, by, by…

Maybe your baby done made some other plans

Maybe your baby done made some other plans,
Not includin’ future plans,
Maybe your baby done made some other plans,
Maybe my baby done made some other plans,
Maybe my baby done made another plan
with another man.
Your baby, your baby, stupid baby, your baby,
That you put so trust so much trust in your baby,
Maybe your baby done made some other plans

Song Lyric Sunday —Blue Öyster Cult

Fandango15 Comments

The obvious choice for me when I saw that Helen Vahdati had chosen “fear” as the theme for this week’s Song Lyric Sunday was “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” by Blue Öyster Cult.

The song was written and sung by Blue Öyster Cult‘s lead guitarist, Donald “Buck Dharma” Roeser, and it appeared on the band’s 1976 album, Agents of Fortune. “(Don’t Frear) The Reaper” was Blue Öyster Cult’s highest charting single, reaching number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 in late 1976.

As to the meaning of the song, Roeser said, “I was thinking about my own mortality. I wrote the guitar riff, the first two lines of lyric sprung into my head, then the rest of it came as I formed a story about a love affair that transcends death. I was thinking about my wife, and that maybe we’d get together after I was gone.”

There was some controversy around the song because some thought it promoted suicide. Lyrics such as “Romeo and Juliet are together in eternity” led many listeners to interpret the song to be about a murder-suicide pact, but Roeser insists it was about eternal love and not suicide.

The song coupled the group’s mysticism with a beautiful melody, lush harmonies, and what some have called “one of the coolest guitar riffs of the ‘70s.”

Here are the song’s lyrics.

All our times have come
Here but now they’re gone
Seasons don’t fear the reaper
Nor do the wind, the sun or the rain, we can be like they are

Come on baby, don’t fear the reaper
Baby take my hand, don’t fear the reaper
We’ll be able to fly, don’t fear the reaper
Baby I’m your man

La, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la

Valentine is done
Here but now they’re gone
Romeo and Juliet
Are together in eternity, Romeo and Juliet
40,000 men and women everyday, Like Romeo and Juliet
40,000 men and women everyday, Redefine happiness
Another 40,000 coming everyday, We can be like they are

Come on baby, don’t fear the reaper
Baby take my hand, don’t fear the reaper
We’ll be able to fly, don’t fear the reaper
Baby I’m your man

La, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la

Love of two is one
Here but now they’re gone
Came the last night of sadness
And it was clear she couldn’t go on

Then the door was open and the wind appeared
The candles blew then disappeared
The curtains flew then he appeared, saying don’t be afraid

Come on baby, and she had no fear
And she ran to him, then they started to fly
They looked backward and said goodby, she had become like they are
She had taken his hand, she had become like they are
Come on baby, don’t fear the reaper