Yesterday Once More

The theme TABOO features songs relating to activities and experiences that we can’t undertake as we adopt and adapt to the new world order of social distancing. For a while there won’t be any flying, partying, playing at the beach, ‘Going up the Country’ or standing too close to others. We need to ‘Step Back’ and help the community. Some of the artists this week include Australian favourite Peter Allen, the great duo of Hall and Oates and a couple of legends, Frank Sinatra and Rod Stewart.

PLAYLIST

* I Go To Rio – Peter Allen

* Stand By Me – Ben E. King

* Beach Baby – The First Class

* Sometimes When We Touch – Dan Hill

* Going Up The Country – Canned Heat

* Kiss Is On My List – Hall & Oates

* Sailing – Rod Stewart

* Hold Me Tight – Johnny Nash

* Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me – Mel Carter

* Too Close For Comfort – Frank Sinatra

* Come On Over To Our Place – Bev Harrell

* Step Back – Johnny Young

Listening to this week’s collection of songs it seems that a common thread is singers feeling sorry for themselves. The songs reflect disappointment after being dumped, jilted or ignored. Hence everyone feels like a fool. There is a star studded line up this week: Elvis Presley (A Fool Such As I), Ricky Nelson (Poor Little Fool), Aretha Franklin (Chain Of Fools), Andy Williams (A Fool Never Learns) and popular 50s and 60s singer, Connie Francis (Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool). Australia is represented by the brilliant Lana Cantrell (The Fool On The Hill), Ray Brown & The Whispers (Fool Fool Fool) and ex pat, Rick Springfield (What Kind Of Fool Am I?)

PLAYLIST

* A Fool Such As I – Elvis Presley

* What Kind Of Fool Am I? – Rick Springfield

* Fools Like Me – Jerry Lee Lewis

* I’ll Play The Fool – Dr Buzzard’s Savannah Band

* Poor Little Fool – Ricky Nelson

* What A Fool Believes – Doobie Bros

* The Fool On The Hill – Lana Cantrell

* Chain Of Fools  – Aretha Franklin

* Fools Rush In – Brook Benton

* Fool Fool Fool – Ray Brown & The Whispers

* A Fool Never Learns = Andy Williams

* Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool – Connie Francis

The inspiration for this week’s theme, Live for Life comes from the Claude Lelouch film ‘A Man and a Woman’. Songs included in the playlist are those that have the words ‘life’ or ‘live’ or both in their titles. Johnny Mathis’ mellifluous voice resonates throughout his version of ‘Live For Life’ (featured in Claude’s film) and Kate Ceberano (as part of the duo- I’m Talking) provides a beautiful rendition of ‘Love Don’t Live Any More’. Australian groups The Twilights and Mental As Anything present songs looking at life and the way people live, while the legendary Patti Page sings about ‘The Good Life’.

PLAYLIST

* Live it Up – Mental As Anything

* The Good Life – Pattie Page

* Life In The Fast Lane  – Eagles

* Love Don’t Live Here Any More -I’m Talking (Kate Ceberano)

* That’s Life – Shirley Bassey

* How Am I Supposed To Live Without You – Laura Branigan

* What’s Wrong With The Way I Live – Twilights

* Life In A Northern Town – Dream Academy

* Live For Life – Johnny Mathis

* Sing C’est La Vie – Sonny and Cher

* Got To Get You Into My Life – Beatles

* Long Live Love – Sandy Shaw

Today’s theme is about a yearning for something. It features legends Paul Anka (Lonely Boy); The Everly Bros (When Will I Be Loved) and Buddy Holly with his group, The Crickets (I’m Looking For Someone To Love). Soulful seeking is expressed in Foreigner‘s ‘I Want To Know What Love Is’ and Chicago‘s ‘I’ve Been Searching For So Long’. The Aussie presence is provided by the aptly named The Seekers with ‘I’ll Never Find Another You’ and Autumn‘s “Looking Through The Eyes Of A Beautiful Girl’.

PLAYLIST

* I’ll Never Find Another You – The Seekers

* I’ve Been Waiting So Long – Chicago

* I Want To Know What Love Is -Foreigner

* I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For – U2

* Needle In A Haystack – The Twilights

* Looking For Another Pure Love – Stevie Wonder

* Lonely Boy – Paul Anka

* Looking Through The Eyes Of A Beautiful Girl – Autumn

* When Will I Be Loved – Everly Bros

* The Look – Roxette

* I’m Looking For Someone To Love – Buddy Holly & The Crickets

The word ‘thing’ has many meanings and our playlist theme this week, THINGS includes songs that may represent some of those meanings. For example a thing could be an inanimate object such as, The Playmates’  ‘The Thing-a-ma-jig’, an object or creature that cannot be precisely described like ‘Wild Thing’ by The Troggs and ELO‘s ‘Living Thing’, and anything that is or may become an object of thought, such as ‘Love is a Many Splendored Thing’ by The Four Aces. Further, a ‘thing’ could be a fact, such as 10CC‘s ‘The Things We do For Love’, an action, ‘Things I Want to Hear’ by The Shirelles, or a deed, as in Ronnie Burns ‘One Bad Thing’ and Bobby Darin‘s ‘Things’.

PLAYLIST

* Crazy Little Thing Called Love – Queen

* Things I Want To Hear – Shirelles

* Living Thing – ELO

* The Things we Do For Love – 10CC

* Real Thing – Russell Morris

* Love is a Many A Splendid Thing – Four Aces

* One Bad Thing – Ronnie Burns

* Little Things Mean a Lot – Kitty Kallen

* Things We Said Today – Beatles

* Things – Bobby Darin

* Wild Thing – Troggs

* The Thing-a-ma-jig – The Playmates

Love and its variations is the most common theme in pop music since time eternity. So today we are deliberately providing an antidote to that theme and presenting songs that are NOT about Love. The program begins with Johnny Horton‘s account of the sinking of a German battleship in WW2 (Sink The Bismarck). Great Aussie bands The Angels’ (We Gotta Get Out Of This Place) and The Zoot‘s knockout cover of the Beatles’ classic ‘Eleanor Rigby’ are standout tracks this week. Added to this American doo-wop group The Tokens with their huge hit ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’ and the most nihilistic song ever written- Barry Maguire‘s ‘Eve Of Destruction’.

PLAYLIST

* Sink The Bismarck – Johnny Horton

* Gonna Make You A Star – David Essex

* Quiet Village – Martin Denny

* We Gotta Get Out Of This Place – The Angels

* Eve Of Destruction – Barry Maguire

* The Logical Song – Supertramp

* Eleanor Rigby – The Zoot

* The Nips Are Getting Bigger – Mental As Anything

* The Lion Sleeps Tonight – The Tokens

* Being For The Benefit Of Mr Kite – Beatles

* Shame And Scandal – Johnny Chester & Jigsaw

* Gypsies Tramps And Thieves – Cher

Southern Lands is our theme for the first day of Autumn focussing on popular singers / musicians who emanated from countries south of the equator. Sergio Mendes and Brasil ’66 carry the flag for Brazil with their toe tapping ‘Mas Que Nada’ and South African human rights advocate, Miriam Makeba sings about ‘Pata Pata’ a dance associated with Johannesburg. Australia is well represented with Judy Stone, Alison McCallum, Doug Ashdown, Moir Sisters and The Strangers. A New Zealand contingent comprises Dave Dobbyn, Ray Columbus & The Invaders, Johnny Devlin, Max Merritt & the Meteors and My-Sex.

PLAYLIST

* Pata Pata – Miriam Makeba

* Good Morning How Are You – Moir Sisters

* Computer Games – Mi-Sex

* Winter in America – Doug Ashdown

* Mas Due Nada – Sergio Mendes and Brasil ’66

* Slice of Heaven  – Dave Dobbyn

* I’ll Step Down – Judy Stone

* Slipping Away – Max Merritt and the Meteors

* Western Union  – The Strangers

* Superman – Alison McCallum

* She’s a Mod – Ray Columbus and The Invaders

This is the final week of our Summer theme. Today’s program contains songs with; ‘Sun’ or ‘Summer’ in the title. Three legends of song are featured today: Nina Simone (Here Comes The Sun), Nat King Cole (That Sunday That Summer) and Andy Williams (In The Summertime). A sad note is struck by Terry Jacks’ ‘Seasons In The Sun’. But lively music abounds too starting with ‘Summer In The City’ (Lovin’ Spoonful) and later ‘I Live For The Sun’ (The Sunrays) and Mossy’s favourite group The Beatles (I’ll Follow The Sun).

PLAYLIST

* Summer In The City – Lovin’ Spoonful

* Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying – Gerry& The Pacemakers

* Here Comes The Sun – Nina Simone

* A Little Ray Of Sunshine – Little River Band

* It’s Almost Summer – Billy Thorpe

* Seasons In The Sun – Terry Jacks

* That Sunday That Summer – Nat King Cole

* Wonderful Summer – Robin Ward

* With The Sun in My Eyes – Bee Gees

* I Live For The Sun – The Sunrays

* In The Summertime – Andy Williams

* I’ll Follow The Sun – The Beatles

While continuing our focus on summertime, this week’s theme reveals more songs relating to modes of transport used for Summer Travels. Flight is popular with Peter, Paul and Mary ‘Leaving On A Jet Plane’, the 5th Dimension are ‘Up, Up and Away’ in their balloon and LGBTI singer Janis Ian is about to ‘Fly Too High’. The waterways are well represented with Tom Jones, Jo Stafford and The Tarriers singing about boats. Roads and driving are illustrated through Paul McCartney‘s ‘Long and Winding Road’, Dave Dudley‘s ‘6 Days on the Road’ and Australia’s Betty McQuade taking the ‘Midnight Bus’.

PLAYLIST

* Up, Up and Away – 5th Dimension

* Shrimp Boats – Jo Stafford

* The Long and Winding Road – Beatles

* Leaving on a Jet Plane – Peter, Paul and Mary

* Fly Too High – Janis Ian

* Skye Boat Song – Tom Jones

* Morningtown Ride – The Seekers

* Banana Boat Song – The Tarriers

* Mercedes Benz – Janis Joplin

* Midnight Bus – Betty McQuade

* Little Deuce Coupe – Beach Boys

* 6 Days on the Road -Dave Dudley

Continuing on with our Summer theme we present More Summer Getaways. Quality songs include Key Largo (Bertie Higgins), Rio (Mike Nesmith) and Africa (Toto). Other featured artists include Paul McCartney and Wings (Mull Of Kintyre), Frank Sinatra (Isle Of Capri) and Andy WIlliams (The Bilbao Song). Our Aussie songs are the great Stevie Wright heading the Easybeats with ‘St Louis’ and seldom played Doug Ashdown (Georgetown).

PLAYLIST

* St Louis – Easybeats

* Waterloo- ABBA

* Rio – Mike Nesmith

* Portuguese Washerwoman – Percy Faith Orch

* Key Largo – Bertie Higgins

* Take Me Home Country Roads – John Denver

* Africa – Toto

* Mull Of Kintyre – Paul McCartney & Wings

* New Orleans – Gary US Bonds

* Isle Of Capri – Frank Sinatra

* The Bilbao Song – Andy Williams

* Georgetown – Doug Ashdown