The Great HTF Music Challenge (10 Viewers)

[John Dirk]

My offering for today. Just came up in rotation during my evening listening session and is a longtime favorite. This is the original 1958 version. It has been covered by several groups since, most notably Eric Clapton in 1974.

WILLIE AND THE HAND JIVE - Johnny Otis​

 

[BobO'Link]

Johnny Otis, "Willie and the Hand Jive" - I like this one better than Clapton's and never knew the Clapton version was a cover. Clapton did very little to change it up, practically doing a note for note cover.

 

[John Dirk]

Brooks & Dunn - Boot Scootin' Boogie
Pretty typical "contemporary Country" but I like it just fine.

Instantly reminded me of this classic:

Dion - The Wanderer​

Indigenous - "Bring Back That Day":
Nah - This is just to vanilla for this soulful genre. The two earlier [faster] tracks you presented were infinitely better.

 

[BobO'Link]

I've gotten a good laugh from the comic strip "Curtis" the past few days:

 

[BobO'Link]

Brooks & Dunn - Boot Scootin' Boogie
Pretty typical "contemporary Country" but I like it just fine.

Instantly reminded me of this classic:

Dion - The Wanderer​

Indigenous - "Bring Back That Day":
Nah - This is just to vanilla for this soulful genre. The two earlier [faster] tracks you presented were infinitely better.

Except, IMHO, the track from Dion is the better of the two.

I agree about that track from Indigenous. I wanted to post another track from that album but couldn't decide which as most, while fairly good, are quite similar, basic, blues rock stuff.

 

[John Dirk]

I've gotten a good laugh from the comic strip "Curtis" the past few days:
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I enjoyed this but it's factually misleading at best. Rap artists have historically been better at business than musicians of any other genre.

The 30 Richest Rappers In The World 2020

Who are the richest rappers in the world? Diddy, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z, Eminem… I'm sure you know the names, but do you know their fortunes as of 20...

www.celebritynetworth.com

World's Richest Musicians, 2021 - CEOWORLD magazine

With a net worth of roughly $1.28 Billion, Paul McCartney is the wealthiest musician in the world, followed by Andrew Lloyd Webber ($1.2 Billion), Jay Z($1 Billion); and Herb Alpert ($850 Million). Sean Combs – Diddy is the fifth-richest musician in the world, with an $825 million fortune. Dr...

ceoworld.biz

 

[BobO'Link]

I enjoyed this but it's factually misleading at best. Rap artists have historically been better at business than musicians of any other genre.

The 30 Richest Rappers In The World 2020

Who are the richest rappers in the world? Diddy, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z, Eminem… I'm sure you know the names, but do you know their fortunes as of 20...

www.celebritynetworth.com

World's Richest Musicians, 2021 - CEOWORLD magazine

With a net worth of roughly $1.28 Billion, Paul McCartney is the wealthiest musician in the world, followed by Andrew Lloyd Webber ($1.2 Billion), Jay Z($1 Billion); and Herb Alpert ($850 Million). Sean Combs – Diddy is the fifth-richest musician in the world, with an $825 million fortune. Dr...

ceoworld.biz

I know - it just struck me as humorous considering this thread and my general reaction to Rap. It doesn't hurt that I really like that strip - Curtis is a real hoot at times.

 

[Bryan^H]

Melanie - Long, Long time



I have nothing against any of the covers of "Long, long time" as I don't think a bad version exists. However this great song from Linda Ronstadt is completely haunting and much more sad by Melanie. I love this version.

Here is the Linda Ronstadt original:

 

[BobO'Link]

Melanie / Linda Ronstadt, "Long, Long Time" - I like this song just about no matter *who* does it but these two are the best. I'll go with Ronstadt most of the time but Melanie practically owns it herself.

 

[BobO'Link]

Way back I posted Melanie's "Lay Down (Candles in the Wind)". She had a few other hits and some of them were covered by other artists.

The "B" side to her cover of The Rolling Stones song "Ruby Tuesday" was a self-penned song, "What Have they Done to my Song Ma" that received a fair amount of air play, making it to the top 50 in the US charts. Other artists covered it using the first line of the song as the title, "Look What They've Done To My Song Ma" and she adopted that name herself.

Melanie Safka - "Look What They've Done To My Song Ma":


Shortly after that release a group known as The New Seekers recorded a cover that was a top 10 hit in several countries.
The New Seekers - "Look What They've Done To My Song Ma":



Another song from Melanie was a #1 10 US hit and likely the song she's known for best. It was actually banned in several countries due to its possible sexual innuendo. She says people hear what they want and she didn't write it that way.

Melanie Safka - "Brand New Key":

 

[BobO'Link]

The New Seekers covered another top 40 song with great success. This time one from Delany & Bonnie.

Delany & Bonnie - "Never Ending Song of Love":



The New Seekers - "Never Ending Song of Love":




They're likely best known today for their hit pop song version of the then current Coca-Cola jingle. They were unable to record the song for the TV commercial (but had recorded the earlier UK radio version) so a new group, The Hillside Singers, was thrown together to record the TV version. After their version hit #1 on the Adult Contemporary charts The New Seekers recorded it. You'd hear The New Seekers version on pop radio and The Hillside Singers version on Adult Contemporary radio.

The New Seekers - "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing":




The Hillside Singers - "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing":



For those who weren't around... the commercial (which at 60 seconds is almost half the length of the song version):

 

[Bryan^H]

Melanie - 'Look What They've Done To My Song Ma'

Good Song, and again her voice is what makes it special.

The New Seekers

Not bad at all. Very pleasant cover, and if I had to choose it'd be close...probably Melanie. Just because I'm a fan.

Melanie Safka - Brand New Key

My introduction to Melanie, and a classic (to me anyway). Very feel good tune. Love it.

 

[John Dirk]

Melanie - Long, Long time



I have nothing against any of the covers of "Long, long time" as I don't think a bad version exists. However this great song from Linda Ronstadt is completely haunting and much more sad by Melanie. I love this version.

Here is the Linda Ronstadt original:

Melanie's version sounded extremely personal and fresh, even to the point of being a lamentation. Linda's sounds more like something she experienced in years past and is offering as a cautionary tale. I strongly prefer the original.

 

[John Dirk]

Melanie Safka

"Look What They've Done To My Song Ma":
This is cute but it's also another lamentation. She seems to have a penchant for them.

Melanie Safka - "Brand New Key":
I remember this one. You're right. It's funny how some people "hear" certain things in ostensibly innocuous content and then feel the need to decide whether or not it's suitable for distribution to us uneducated cattle.

The New Seekers

"Look What They've Done To My Song Ma":
This comes across as shameless capitalization to me as the cover sounds almost exactly the same as the original and was released within a years time.

"Never Ending Song of Love":
A little folksy for my contemporary taste but not a bad little song. At least this time around The New Seekers added some musical variation to sort of make their version stand out.

"I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing":
I remember the Coca Cola jingle well as I'm sure we all do. I found The Hillside Singers contribution unremarkable The New Seekers version is nice too but am I starting to see a pattern with this group? They seem more adept at seeking material to cover than producing original content.

 

[BobO'Link]

Did you *ever* hear a TV theme song or commercial and go "Gee... I wish they'd make a single out of this?" Nope? Me neither as I've always been quite content just hearing it on the TV. I never could understand why anyone would want to listen to a song length version of a commercial or TV theme song, yet several were top 40 hits (another reason I tended to avoid "Top 40" radio):

The Monkees - "[Theme from] The Monkees":



John Sebestian - "Welcome Back":



Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs - "Ballad of Jed Clampet":


There were a *few* instrumentals that were kind of OK but still...

The Ventures - "Hawaii 5-0" (we played this in marching band - oy! did I get tired of this one...):



The T-Bones - "No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach's In)" [the Alka-Seltzer commercial theme]:

 

[John Dirk]

Did you *ever* hear a TV theme song or commercial and go "Gee... I wish they'd make a single out of this?" Nope? Me neither as I've always been quite content just hearing it on the TV. I never could understand why anyone would want to listen to a song length version of a commercial or TV theme song, yet several were top 40 hits (another reason I tended to avoid "Top 40" radio):

Agreed. I enjoyed all of these in their original presentation but [with the possible exception of Welcome Back] saw no need for feature-length treatments.

 

[BobO'Link]

Melanie Safka

"Look What They've Done To My Song Ma":
This is cute but it's also another lamentation. She seems to have a penchant for them.

Melanie Safka - "Brand New Key":
I remember this one. You're right. It's funny how some people "hear" certain things in ostensibly innocuous content and then feel the need to decide whether or not it's suitable for distribution to us uneducated cattle.

The New Seekers

"Look What They've Done To My Song Ma":
This comes across as shameless capitalization to me as the cover sounds almost exactly the same as the original and was released within a years time.

"Never Ending Song of Love":
A little folksy for my contemporary taste but not a bad little song. At least this time around The New Seekers added some musical variation to sort of make their version stand out.

"I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing":
I remember the Coca Cola jingle well as I'm sure we all do. I found The Hillside Singers contribution unremarkable The New Seekers version is nice too but am I starting to see a pattern with this group? They seem more adept at seeking material to cover than producing original content.

RE: The New Seekers - You're not far from right. While they *did* have a few minor hits in the UK and EU with non-cover songs (IIRC no one in the group was a songwriter), the majority of hits they had in the US *were* from covers. Most had a little bit of tweaking done to make them "fuller" at times but, in general, the originals were quite good without that added little bit of material. And their versions typically came out in time to ride the coat tails of the originals. They're not a "bad" group but just not that original.

They were born out of the ashes of The Seekers, a 60s pop/folk group.

The Seekers - "I'll Never Find Another You":



The Seekers - "Georgy Girl":



The Seekers - "Red Rubber Ball":



"Red Rubber Ball" was co-written by Bruce Woodley (The Seekers) and Paul Simon. While The Seekers released it themselves it was a #2 hit for the band The Cyrkle.

The Cyrkle - "Red Rubber Ball":

 

[sleroi]

The Monkees - a fun, catchy little pop song. I remember watching the show with my sister in the early 70s in syndication and rewatching it again when MTV replayed the whole series in the 80s. I bought their greatest hits album and didnt mind the theme song.

Flatt & Scruggs - Ballad of Jed Clampett: too simple and repetitive for their talents and the vocals sound off compared to the version from the TV show. And it works better split between the opening and closing credits than as one song.

The Ventures Hawaii-5--0: One of my favorite theme songs ever, its just perfect. I wasnt in marching band, so im not sick of it, and dont think I ever will be.

The T-Bones - No matter what shape: It sounds vaguely familiar, but I dont associate it with Alka Seltzer. Its an okay song, nothing great. Based on your description I was expecting a rock version of Plop Plop Fizz Fizz.

 

[sleroi]

Back in 1982 when we first got HBO, thwir video jukebox was always playing Making It Work by Doug and the Slugs. I thought it was a fun song, but that was before we had a good record store nearby, and so I just forgot about the band.



Then when Norm MacDonald got his own sitcom I instantly recognized Doug and the Slugs.



And I actually did want to hear more and went and found a couple of their albums.

 

[sleroi]

Long Long Time -

I really liked Melanie's version. The music was simple but beautiful, and the vocals matched perfectly. It sounded very personal and heartfelt.

Honestly Ive never been a big Linda Ronstadt fan. And her version sounded too syrupy, and her vocals were all over the place. I think she was trying too hard to be dramatic.