Happy Music Monday! Say, how many songs have been written about women? No, please don't try to count, it's futile. Probably the very first song was about a woman, and they've been a major subject of music ever since. Today Scott's taking a look at songs that immortalize the ladies once loved, lost, or who otherwise did something noteworthy. Like this one, for example:
Ready For The World - Oh Sheila
What's good for the gander is also good for the goose, and based on these lyrics, it seems Sheila might not have cared so much about Our Hero's goofy accent. But he's still gonna do his best Prince impersonation and try to win her back. Since this song was a decent sized '80s hit, maybe it all worked out in the end? All I can say for sure is that this song is DEFINITELY about a girl. Maybe from Australia.
Inside you'll get four more girl names, plus last week's Spotify playlist. Then it'll be your turn to add a song of your own in the comments. See you right after the jump!
As you likely recall, we've got a weekly Spotify playlist, featuring a great selection from last week's Music Monday comments. This time it's Forgotten Hip Hop and it's both dope AND phat. Just please don't check it out until after you enjoy the current Music Monday below.
This lovely song seems like the story of a heartbreak, but it's not. It's really an outreach, a friend calling out to a friend hooked on drugs and letting her know he's still there to help. This song was a great hit for Steve Winwood (and a maybe NSFW dance track hit for Eric Prydz) plus the song's namesake seems to be clean and sober today. So, happy endings all around, maybe?
Elvis Costello hasn't ever said very much about the real person behind this song, except that "much could be undone by saying more." Probably the real "Alison" knows who she is and what this song's actually about. The rest of us can just enjoy the mystery. Bonus trivia: some of the backing band went on to become The News of Huey Lewis fame!
This American classic is best known as being a Beach Boys hit, but the Beach Boys never knew the original Barbara Ann that The Regents sang about. Apparently the song is named after the songwriter's sister which is sorta… well, it was a more innocent time. Probably he meant well, right? The song got another small boost in Welcome Back Kotter and if you know what that link is gonna be already, thank you for not making me feel so old.
Well, Graham Nash certainly knew how to write a pop song. This Hollies hit was actually about Marianne Faithfull, because Nash had a crush he was too shy to act on. Maybe it's for the best he never did, because, when ranking pick-up lines, "What's your game, girl, can anybody play?" is not even in the top thousand, and "You're so like a woman to me" really sounds like an insult! Since the competition was David Bowie and Mick Jagger, this kind of clumsy tribute was pretty much dead in the water. Catchy, though.
Before you head to our Turntable.fm room for the regular Music Monday fun, let's make something clear: this is a two-parter! Next week, in the interest of fairness, we'll be taking a look at boy songs, so be ready. But this week's all about the women, and we want your additions to our playlist. Throw your favorite female-named song in the comments below. Also, as usual, some images come from their corresponding Wikipedia page and are here under fair use.