28 October 1967 Aha, says you: another Irish folk ballad about drinking! However, 'Whiskey On A Sunday' was really a contemporary English song called 'The Ballad Of Seth Davy', the reference to the Dublin district of Beggar's Bush was originally Bevington Bush in Liverpool, plus the Seth Davy (or Davey or Davie, depending on sources) … Continue reading Danny Doyle – ‘Whiskey On A Sunday’
Author: Aidan Curran
Carly Rae Jepsen – ‘Call Me Maybe’
22 March 2012 I was surprised to discover that 'Call Me Maybe', which went to number one in Carly Rae Jepsen's native Canada in February 2012, Ireland in March 2012, the UK in April 2012 and the US in June 2012, had actually been released in Canada in September 2011. That's a whole five-to-six months … Continue reading Carly Rae Jepsen – ‘Call Me Maybe’
Engelbert Humperdinck – ‘The Last Waltz’
21 September 1967 Engelbert Humperdinck was in the arts and culture section of my Sunday paper last weekend; apparently he's doing a record with a fellow Eurovision competitor he met while finishing second-last for the UK in 2012. And yes, you may have forgotten he repped le Royaume-Uni at Eurovision in the 21st century. How … Continue reading Engelbert Humperdinck – ‘The Last Waltz’
Emeli Sandé – ‘Next To Me’
16 February 2012 Emeli Sandé's first name is actually Adele. That's just a coincidence. The pounding piano chords that accompany the thumping martial drumbeat of '60s soul-pop throwback 'Next To Me' are played by the same pianist—jazz composer Neil Cowley, at one time Musician in Residence for the city of Derry—who plays the pounding piano … Continue reading Emeli Sandé – ‘Next To Me’
Gotye ft. Kimbra – ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’
2 February 2012 I approach 'Somebody That I Used To Know' under the impression that it had disappeared from the popular consciousness. Yes, it was inescapably mahoosive in 2012, but who listens to it now? Actually, quite a lot of people; as I write this, its streaming and viewing figures are each over one billion, … Continue reading Gotye ft. Kimbra – ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’
Scott McKenzie – ‘San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair)’
14 September 1967 Be sure to wear some product in your hair, I sing to myself every morning as I go about my grooming routine. (No need for me here to go into my mnemonics for moisturising or other daily ablutions.) And they said the '60s counter-culture wouldn't change the world. That this slice of … Continue reading Scott McKenzie – ‘San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair)’
The Beatles – ‘All You Need Is Love’
3 August 1967 As with 'Yellow Submarine', once again we meet a Beatles song which has long outgrown being a mere pop record and instead become a communal pop-cultural touchstone. In other words, I'm pretty sure you know 'All You Need Is Love', your family member who's not into music knows 'All You Need Is … Continue reading The Beatles – ‘All You Need Is Love’
Jessie J – ‘Domino’
19 January 2012 What if Katy Perry records were good? That's the intriguing, albeit low-stakes, premise of 'Domino'. Sure, its parts don't hold much promise. By early 2012 I was well weary of big-budget in-your-face EDM. The Jessie J school of brash naffness has limited appeal. Neither EDM nor Jessie J are a good fit … Continue reading Jessie J – ‘Domino’
Flo Rida – ‘Good Feeling’
12 January 2012 In fairness, there are parts of this Flo Rida hit I like. You've got its propulsive EDM-synth-pop energy with a twist of techno and Euro-house, plus that chorus vocal is bright and soulful. The thing is, those parts happen to be borrowed—or as the Irish Number Ones legal team prefer me to … Continue reading Flo Rida – ‘Good Feeling’
Procol Harum – ‘A Whiter Shade Of Pale’
22 June 1967 Ghostly organ riffing on Bach; impenetrable lyrics referencing Chaucer: would you call 'A Whiter Shade Of Pale' pretentious? Well, John Lennon was drawing on Edward Lear and the Tibetan Book Of The Dead; The Byrds had a smash hit with Pete Seeger's folk setting of a chapter from the Bible; Mick Jagger … Continue reading Procol Harum – ‘A Whiter Shade Of Pale’
