Interractive Poll #? - Oldies rocking goldies

I dedicate this poll to the three singers-songwriters I have followed since I was a teenager (Springsteen) or since I was twenty-five (Francesco Guccini and Fabrizio De Andrè). The other one I should mention is Peter Hammill, who I leave out, however.

1) The first song IF I WAS THE PRIEST is taken from Bruce Springsteen's latest album (Letter to you, 2020) and is indicative of his songwriting with Catholic ancestry. Springsteen sang it, guitar and vocals, along with other songs, at his 1972 audition in front of Columbia's talent scout John Hammond (the same who discovered Dylan). Springsteen never released it, but it ran as a pirate song on many studio or live bootlegs. Finally last year he released it in a folk-rock version with the E Street Band. 

I like it very much.

Here it is.

1*) With Springsteen I am undecided: Better "If A Was A Priest" (which is a simple rock ballad) or better this melodic song of symphonic folk genre, which has its best part in the instrumental, orchestral pieces, worthy of John Williams' film music?

2) DE ANDRE' & MINA: "La CANZONE DI MARINELLA" (Marinella's song) is one of the first songs written by Fabrizio De André, at the end of the Sixties. At the time, Mina, the greatest Italian interpreter of melodic and pop music, she had led the song to success. Over the years De Andrè regained possession of that song and at the end of his career he made a completely different version, jazzed, singing it together with Mina. It looks like a masterpiece to me. The song is not recent because it was published in 1997 but I chose it because, unfortunately, De Andrè died in 1999.

3) MAURO PAGANI & GUCCINI: CHRISTAMS AT PAVANA.

Francesco Guccini (81 years old), who before being a singer songwriter is a writer, has now retired from the music scene to devote himself solely to writing. But his colleagues always try to involve him in some project and so Mauro Pagani (former singer and multi-instrumentalist of PFM) managed to convince him to write the lyrics and sing a song in the dialect of Guccini's hometown (Pavana). And so here's to you the song,  musically written and arranged by Mauro Pagani with the ethnic-folk style with which he had also arranged the latest De André albums.

Cristi:  UFO “Devils in the Detail” Here we have a hybrid hard rocker/metal rocker from UFO.  Classic construction for this type of song and a strong male vocalist.  Clean leads and heavy hitting all through.  Well-crafted for hitmaking, this one, in it’s genre.  Simple Minds “The Signal and the Noise”  Begins with synths and a steady beat, this one is more poetic, lyrically than the previous selection, but also a more complex piece of music.  Jim Kerr’s voice has a roughness to it that wasn’t present in his earlier forays, but it is still very compelling.  It is recognizably Simple Minds, yet not sounding quite so 80’s.  A band I enjoyed in the 80’s, I was unaware of this release.  Love the washy guitars, too.  It retains that kind of dark edge that made me a fan of the band.  Placebo “Loud Like Love”  This one starts with slightly washy guitar, a sound I enjoy, as noted earlier.  This one is much more upbeat than the previous selection, with a sense of optimism.  Clear vocals with a vocalist who is quite distinct.  Reminds me a bit of Michael Stipe when he lost the mumble, but with more tremolo in his voice.  This one might stick with me, first time I’ve heard this band.  Depeche Mode “Peace”  This begins with some pulsating electronic keys and a little less monotone-ish singing than I associate with them.  I like what I’m hearing (another band I appreciated from it’s era), here, really like how he opens up at the “just look at me,” verses, which vary a bit each time.  This one is also more optimistic than I generally think of the band as being.  A-ha “Living At the End of the World”  Another one from a-ha, who I have to say I really enjoy much more than I would have thought from their smash hit, which did suffer from over-exposure, at least for me.  A lovely ballad-type song with pretty orchestration and of course the fabulous singer at the fore.  A song of depth and sadness, despite the feeling of elation in it. 

Lewian:  Comsat Angels “Psychedelic Dungeon”  Looking forward to this one, with the name.  Definitely a psychedelic, raga-like beginning.  This one has an almost garage-y edge to it, like Love when they were moving from their garage roots into psychedelia.  I like the whole feel to this, it’s a more “traditional,” song than I’m used to hearing from you, or am I just getting more used to your picks?  Either way, yes. 

Shadowyzard:  Ajda Pekkan “Ben Yanmisim”  All the Turkish stuff you post is so different than what I think of as Turkish music, obviously this is modern pop, but with a Turkish twist.  This one has a female singer, I find the combination of styles very intriguing, as you can hear the vestiges of the more traditional Turkish style.  I like this one.  Poetic Assassin “Inverti In Darkness”  Now this one, I might have voted for, in the April Fool’s poll.  The guy’s deadpan delivery is quite funny to me, although a bit less time would have made the point.

JD:  Since you stated you were changing your selections on better understanding of the poll theme, I will skip your first entries. 

Logan:  David Bowie “Dollar Days”  This of course, is very moving, especially given the circumstances of the recording.  Eloquently sung, beautiful production, understated orchestration.  The double meaning of the “dying to,” and “dying too,” lyrics are just the kind of thing that speaks deeply to me.  Lovely sax solo as well.  Song ends with a drumbeat (heartbeat), fading out. I actually haven’t heard the recording, even though it was much mentioned at the time, so thank you for making me stop and take a listen.

Hiram:  Queen “Innuendo”  Here we have the irrepressible Freddy Mercury and his ace bandmates with a  metally/prog/rock anthem.   Nice change of pace about halfway in where they slow it down and then trasition into a  flamenco burst of guitars and handclaps, becoming operatic in tone and then back to the full on electric band.  The Fall “Mountain Energei”  Drums and bass lead in to a punkish Velvet Underground sort of feel all around.  This song appears to have many levels of ways you could perceive the lyrics, some literal and pop culture references are in it, along with plenty of disdain for society.  Live version.  Interesting 2 mic technique, don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone use two at once, although I have seen people play 2 recorders at once, and even with their nose, lol (not laughing at the band here).  There is a sense of detachment, even as the intensity builds in the piece, as there is with this sort of band. 

I prophesy disaster:  Van der Graaf Generator “Mr Sands”  Starting off with wiggly vocals and keyboards, drums, all come in stronger as the wiggly vocals subside.  Snappy sort of rhythm and sing-songy vocals, not quite monotone, but close.  The rhythms shift about quite a bit, from more rapid to slower and sort of swinging along, ebbs and flows along in waves and decreases and intensities.  Another from VDGG with “Manuelle”  This one comes in with guitar meanderings (maybe some sax or brassy keys?) and cymbal crashes, more interesting to my ear, for the start than the first one.  Some strong organ hits come in with a steadier beat and now it definitely sounds like sax joining in there, with the guitar and keyboards.  We enter a more funky realm with sax and drums to the fore about halfway in, accompanied with some wailing guitar.   The general trend continues with the sax becoming more doubled in sound, along with odd organ chords thrown in here and there.  Fuzzy lead guitar comes to the fore with the organ towards the end.  And back to sax and blips on guitar and organ, the sax gets the final say at the end.

JD:  Peter Gabriel “No Way Out”  Love Peter Gabriel, this is a recording I never really heard, however.  Wangly guitar starts the piece and steady drumbeats with some keyboard/organ hits.  His beautifully expressive voice describes a scene of potential death of someone he knows.  Ends with plenty of crashy percussion and keyboards.  Very moving, especially if you’ve attended the passing of a person.  This is just fantastic, I will probably have to get this recording.  Thank you!  King Crimson “Elektrik”  Another band that I’ve loved through every incarnation.  Begins with keys/flutes then crashes into wriggly guitar intermingled with blats of other guitar.  Some spooky kind of voices come in here and there, buried way way back.  Builds wonderfully in intensity with violin-y effects on guitar.  Then the patterns shift and there is a heavier sound overall.  The sonic assault continues with a reprise of the original quiet keys/flutes passage.  Can’t vote for it, since I know it, but dang, are they ever spectacular.  PFM “Dracula Opera Rock -07- Ho Mangiato Gli Uccelli”  Starts with some pretty ominous plinks and orchestral hits and discordant keys, jumpy organ and counterpoint effected guitar.  Strident voiced male vocalist, not sure of lyrics, because of language.  I did once have a PFM LP, long ago when so much of this was being imported to the US, back in the 70’s, this was not that, obviously.  This does sound much like how I remember them.  Definite operatic/cinematic feel to this, as the title suggest.  Ends as ominously as it begins.  Joe Jackson “Fool”  Now I am late to the Joe Jackson party, but was turned on to “Heaven and Hell,” which I just love.  This one begins with repeating guitar notes, drums Joe singing in a staccato way.  Some sitar-guitar here, too?  Or could be just an effect.  I have always liked the idea of The Fool who can speak truth to power.  He sings a kind of childhood singsong tune as one of the repeated choruses.  I picture a demented royal court kind of scene to this.  Fantastic playing, instrumentally.  Robert Plant “Calling To You”  Starts with sparkly guitars and then wastes no time in hitting hard with full band kicking in, Robert Plant, another famously emotive singer, comes in strong with lots of embellishments added to his voice.  Lots of heavy orchestration to this piece, very oriental in feel, with shivery violin sounds (but may be guitar effects, not sure), as the piece comes to a fade.    Steve Hackett “Omega Metallicus”  Bass note then some whangy guitar sounds, with drums and a sort of Woody Woodpecker laugh, as more “straight,” guitar comes blazing in.  This reminds me more of a jam sort of thing going on, definitely some ace guitar showmanship, with lots of fooling about and whing-whangs, but not as structured as I expect from Hackett. (sorry about the shift in formatting, happens sometimes here).  

Can I write it in the poll already? 

1) LOGAN: This is a song of the past, heir to glam-rock, melodic, mesmeric, enveloping song, and at the same time also evanescent, devoid of consistency, as often happens with Bowie. A melodic song but where the melody wraps around itself, turns in a circle, and then slowly dissolves, after the intervention of the saxophone, in an almost psychedelic final coda. Very evocative and suggestive song. Contender

2) JD: Joe Jackson plays a post-punk song where he mixes his encyclopedic knowledge of music, moving from the Indian sound of the sitar to an interlude of Latin Amerina music (mambo?) and then moving on to a jazz atmosphere guided by the bass. Great display of virtuosity and eclecticism (it also reminds me of Green Day in the singing and the choirs). Of course he is very educated and competent - perhaps too much.

3) HIRAM: Post-punk song, indeed I would almost say revival of the new wave, with a tribal rhythm that has the only flaw of always being the same, and a good rhythmic song, an energetic song that has its effect.

4) RAFF: The video opens with a slightly gothic image, but just a little ;-) Undoubtedly, Blue Oyster Cult have aged remaining true to themselves, still capable of grit, heavy metal guitars, passion, anger.

Yello, like Yaz, were a great 80's band.

I used 'Oh Yeah' for my wedding when I did the garter thing, mouthing the words "Oh Yeah" as I danced around like a stealthy shadow and moved Mrs. JD's dress just a little higher each time to get to the garter. It was a blast and very well received.

Thanks to TCat and Nickie for your comments.

The singer and songwriter of Tv-2, Steffen Brandt, later recorded a solo album with his own translations - or rather re-tellling - of Dylan songs, so he has obviously been a big influence.

Mini reviews:

- Simple Minds try to go back to the sound of the origins but in my opinion they exaggerate in the special effects. 

- Placebo: I know this band well, and I like various albums, I really like Molko's voice; the song is nice, but it doesn't convince me at all. 

- Depeche mode: I love the Depeche Mode of maturity, not the first ones, here the sound is very synthetic, like in the first albums, a bit too much for my taste, but the vocal intertwining and the composition are very good. 

I think that's the one I like more.

My friend, I got the face, you got the words... Peter Hammill is our idol.

I was undecided if nominate or not nominate songs written by him and now I see you've nominated two wonderful songs by  VdG...

@Lewian