Monthly Archives: September 2009

I’ll See You In My Dreams

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OK, here’s an early post. Bill is singing the National Anthem at Madison Square Garden tonight before the WNBA NY Liberty game. I’m heading out shortly and might post later, but if I don’t….

Inspired by Popdose as well as a few other articles and blogs I’ve decided to follow their lead and do a posting on my favorite (not so famous) Beatles songs. So either read on or roll your eyes, it’s entirely up to you.

The ball is in your court and my words are on the page… or rather screen.

One After 909- Let It Be. Great songs from their early days, recorded then and re-recorded in 1969. Almost a sloppy take, but it sounds like a lot of fun. This song has been popping into my head a lot lately, but having written that it probably won’t anymore.

She’s A Woman- Past Masters Vol 1. I actually prefer the reverb version that came out in the US on Beatles 65. A really fun song to play, pretty simple. A great rocker of a song.

Old Brown Shoe- Past Masters Vol 2. The B-side to The Ballad of John & Yoko. I love this song, perfect pop. Great middle eight. George was definitely coming into his own on this one. I just love this song.

With A Little Help From My Friends- Sgt. Pepper. Yay Ringo makes the list! Of course it’s a Lennon & McCartney song written especially for Richie. Very simple and written for Ringo’s range. Don’t throw tomatoes, just stand up and walk out on him if he sings out of key.

I’ll Be Back- A Hard Day’s Night. A Lennon song, he wasn’t entirely pleased with it, at least in one interview, but he was known for vacillating on his opinions as we all do. Last song on A Hard Day’s Night, nice way to finish the album. Another song I enjoy playing on the guitar.

You Won’t See Me- Rubber Soul. Another great pop song from, let’s face it, the best pop band ever. Even Anne Murray couldn’t damage this song. Great lyrics, great backing vocals.

I Want to Tell You- Revolver One of three George tracks from Revolver and my personal favorite of those three. I think the Fabs were at their most together on this album and they all gave their best on each track, with this one standing out.

Boys- Please Please Me A cover for Ringo to sing. Sounds like a lot of fun going on with the bop shoo bops. Had to change the pronouns though of course.

Rain- Past Masters 2 B-Side to Paperback Writer. I’m pretty sure this is when they first started using backwards tapes in the mix. Pop psychedelia from 1966, also a great video, with the four of them looking so cool.

Things We Said Today- A Hard Day’s Night A song from Paul for Jane Asher? Maybe. Pretty mature for a 22 year old. Great opening guitar hook, downbeat. Always reminded me of gypsies.

For You Blue- Let It Be Another George song, not his best but included here. I sometimes play Kansas City on guitar and a few people asked me if the songs is ‘Because you’re sweet & lovely’ meaning this song. Similar chords perhaps or maybe it’s just the way I play it.

If You’ve Got Trouble- Anthology 2 Give the drummer some! Written I believe for Help, but not used. A throwaway song but another fun track, especially when Ringo says, ‘Oh rock on anybody!’.

Tomorrow Never Knows- Revolver Last song on my favorite Beatle album. I sometimes wonder how much this track freaked out the teenagers who heard it for the first time. It might have been misunderstood back then, or even hated but it certainly has gained a lot of cool creditability as time went on.

Here There & Everywhere- Revolver This is the song that Paul definitely wrote about Jane Asher. I first heard it on the Love Songs compilation in the late 1970’s. A truly beautiful song, great harmonies.

Here Comes the Sun- Abbey Road Like someone wrote on another blog or article, is there a better song that ever started a side two of an album? Legendarily written when George played hooky from an Apple Corps meeting. I don’t think John was in on the session.

What Goes On- Rubber Soul The only Beatle song credited to Lennon/McCartney/Starkey. Not the best but not the worst either. Good Carl Perkins like guitar from George.

A Day in the Life- Sgt Pepper Still a fantastic track, the ending to Sgt Pepper, simply amazing and thrilling. Even watching the video or short film of the orchestra recording is a gas. 42 years later it still raises goosebumps.

There are other songs as well, It’s All Too Much & Hey Bulldog from Yellow Submarine, You Can’t Do That from A Hard Day’s Night, Lovely Rita from Sgt. Pepper, I Need You from Help, Revolution 1 from the White Album. I could go on you know, but I won’t.

Last night Bill and I watched the last hour of the Concert for George from 2002 after the daily dose of Lawn Hors d’œuvre.

It’s a very good video despite Eric Clapton being around. I enjoyed it even more than previous times I’ve watched it. It ends with George’s buddy, Joe Brown playing a ukelele and singing I’ll See You in My Dreams.

I woke up this morning with that song in my head. A nice yet sad song.

And here’s Bill…

He Hit Me (It Felt Like a Kiss)

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It’s Labor Day 2009. For some it’s the end of summer, for others it’s back to work, back to school. For me it’s another day.

All the ample parking that existed in Hoboken for the past couple of months is gone. They’re all back and shopping at the supermarket all at once. It’s a madhouse.

Labor Day for me was the last holiday before school started. Growing up it was usually the weekend of the Romaine Singer VFW Post 3484 picnic at Saddle River County Park in Saddle Brook.

My father was a member and most of my family would go. There were other kids to play with as the adults generally got really drunk. Usually there was a major fist fight each year, sometimes because one guy smacked his wife and someone would intervene.

“Don’t hit your wife!”
‘Don’t tell me what to do! Mind your own fucking business!’
Bam! Pow! Smack Smack!

Me and the other kids would get all sugared up at the 7Up trailer, drinking as much orange soda as we could. There would be egg tossing contests and a tug of war and softball as activities. Most families knew to stay away from the picnic area on those days, drunken veterans were not to be fooled with.

We would also play in the Saddle River, avoiding the carcasses of water rats as they floated downstream. Eventually the picnic would end as the park would close at dusk. Lot’s of drunk driving home, no accidents reported.

Remember this was the 1970’s when if you were pulled over by the police you would be told to drive directly home.

Mostly the veterans were all from World War II and the Korean War. A sprinkling of Vietnam vets were eventually represented. At some point in the 1970’s the picnics moved from the County Park to a space behind the VFW on Market Street in Saddle Brook, between the road and Riverside Jewish Cemetery.

The other children of the veterans and myself would play in those woods before it was developed, learning how to smoke cigarettes.

It was more contained in that space by the cemetery, still a fist fight would occur, oyster shuckers would throw down their shucking knives and join the melee. I only went to one or two of the picnics there.

No 7Up trailers there and the other kids were off doing other things, perhaps joining Al-A-Teen. It started not being fun sitting there watching the adults get 3 sheets to the wind.

In the 1980’s I did go to the Labor Day parade in Manhattan with my friend Lois. That was sparsely attended by both marchers and spectators.

I also went to the Carnival in Flatbush a few times on Labor Day. Each successive year I had less and less of a good time, eventually avoiding it all together. I

went with Rand & Lisa once, also with Julio once and another time hanging out with my old Rasta pal Marcus. The time with Marcus was mainly a blur since I was quite red eyed when I left. I am pretty sure I had a good time though.